Proclus Lycaeus (412 – 485 AD), called the Successor, was the last major Greek Neoplatonist philosopher. He was born in Constantinople and raised in Xanthus. He studied rhetoric, philosophy and mathematics in Alexandria, and became a successful practicing lawyer. Realizing that he preferred philosophy, he began studying the works of Aristotle in Alexandria. At 18 years old, Proclus moved to Athens to study at the famous Platonic School, the Academy, where he later succeeded Syrianus as head of the Academy. The majority of Proclus’s works are commentaries on dialogs of Plato, in which he presents his own philosophical system as a faithful interpretation of Plato. His works had a great influence on the history of Western philosophy.
Quotes by Proclus…
We have lost sight of the original harmony. If you could hear the sound that is produced by the sunflower as it keeps on turning its head toward the sun, the friction between the flower and the air, and if you could hear the sound produced by the galaxies, you would hear and realize that the system is based upon a basic harmony, the harmony of the spheres.
