ABSTRACT
Apocryphal lore depicted Empedocles as a miracle-worker who performed many superhuman deeds, such as curing the plague and raising the dead. Although these entertaining tales reveal an endearing human personality behind the philosophy, one must not allow such colourful accounts to surpass the importance of his philosophy. A philosopher and poet of exceptional merit, Empedocles was blessed with a gift for creative expression and put forth his views in two epic poems, On Nature and Purifications. In these works, Empedocles reconciled the methods of Ionian philosophy with the Eleatic thought of Parmenides, attempting to give a reasoned account of the world. While Parmenides denied the reality of motion and change, Empedocles saw change as a legitimate aspect of existence. He suggested that change occurred as the four imperishable elements were arranged and rearranged in varying ratios. Empedocles’s work seems to suggest the existence of an eternal law of ‘fate,’ or necessity, which directly controlled the world cycle.
