Topic: An Apology
Posted: 2024-Dec-01 03:31
A brief inroduction into Politics (πολιτεία)
from the European side (= Judaic-Greek origins): From πολῑ́της (polī́tēs, “citizen”)
- the relation in which a citizen stands to the state, the condition and rights of a citizen, citizenship
-- the life of a citizen, one's daily life,
- the body of citizens,
- the life and business of a statesman, government, administration
- civil polity, the condition or constitution of a state
-- a well-ordered republican government, a commonwealth
-- a free community, republic
Peaking into two opposite convictions from both literate edges of the ancient world:
Greek:
“τῆς δὲ ζημίας μεγίστη τὸ ὑπὸ πονηροτέρου ἄρχεσθαι, ἐὰν μὴ αὐτὸς ἐθέλῃ ἄρχειν”
"One (But) of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors." (Plato)
Chinese:
汝遊心於淡,合氣於漠,順物自然,而無容私焉,而天下治矣。
“Let your mind find its enjoyment in pure simplicity; blend yourself with (the primary) ether in idle indifference; allow all things to take their natural course; and admit no personal or selfish consideration - do this and the world will be governed.” (Zhuang Zi, 莊子)
Both coincidentally finding common ground in defining what a person is that abstains from the/a communal way:
ἰδιώτης (Idiot), yí 夷 (Barbarian)
- a private person, one not engaged in public affairs
- uneducated person, layman, amateur
- an ignorant or illiterate person
Thus, its relatively easy to conclude that every public statement is political or part of politics; and not doing it means being an “idiot”.
Easy, isn’t it?