You can read it in the header of this website because it is our motto and most likely you have encountered it hundreds of times before: “Gnōthi Seauton“, translated into English as “Know Thyself“. But what is its origin and what does it intrinsically mean?

The Delphic Oracle
This epigram was engraved on the entrance to the temple of Apollo at Delphi, a Greek city on the slopes of Mount Parnassus. It was home to the most prestigious Oracle of antiquity, where the Pythias, priestesses of Delphi, gave answers to those who questioned them. The maxim “Gnōthi Seauton” urged visitors to introspection, to explore their own consciousness, to seek the answers within themselves and not outside.

Socrates: The luminary of ancient greek philosophy
Numerous thinkers were inspired by this aphorism, including Socrates, the emblem of ancient philosophy. According to him, the search for truth, which dwells in man, is possible only by looking within and above all by conversing with oneself and others. Out of dialogue comes analysis, which has no definite goal as each answer is followed by a further question: doubt is the key to evolving and learning. Socratic maieutics was the dialogue-based method by which the philosopher helped his interlocutor search for truth.

The importance of dialogue for Socrates
Socrates left nothing written because he thought philosophy should be practiced through orality; philosophical discussion had to be continuous and could not admit a conclusive point as writing allowed. His ideas were passed on by his disciples, such as Plato and Xenophon.

Plato: from disciple to great philosopher
Plato also gave priority to the verbal aspect, but he felt the need to leave a trace of his theories and those of his master. For this reason he wrote meticulously, especially dialogues, in which Socrates was the protagonist; in this way it was possible to preserve fundamental elements such as alternating theses and dialectics. Plato gave birth to a unique philosophical thought that still forms the basis of Western culture today and inspires numerous scholars. Platonism is an all-round philosophy illustrated by the author mainly through myths, such as the myth of the cave, the myth of the winged chariot, the myth of Er.