Anaxagoras was a
Greek philosopher from Clazomenae in
Asia Minor. He came from a noble family, but gave up his property to his
relatives and moved to
Athens because he wished to devote himself entirely to
science.
He was the first philosopher who introduced a spiritual principle that gives matter life and form. His beliefs were very similar to those of Empedocles and Parmenides, except that, instead of Empedocles’ four elements, Anaxagoras believed in a plurality of independent elements which he called “seeds”. They are the ultimate elements of combination and are indivisible, imperishable, infinite, and differing in shape, color, and taste. They were not elements; rather, they were compounds. The original mass is infinitely divisible, but however far the division is carried, every part of it will still contain all “things” and will be, in that respect, just like the whole.
Quotes:
“How can hair be made of what is not hair, and flesh of what is not flesh?”
“All things <are> together, infinite both in quantity and in smallness.”
pi sez: interesting thing about anaxagoras, he believed that males were conceived by sperm from the right testicle, and females from the left. found it on google...