Part IX.

? T r H A G 0 K A S.
547
(i) Pint. Sym
fOS.
(t) Pixrph.
(e) Strom.lih.
I.
(f) Porp.
fome think , his Father was of Meiapontum^
(b) fome, a Tyrrhene, of Etruria in Ifa/y , yet
(c) Diogenes and others report him a Tyrrhene,
of the race of thofe who inhabited Lemnus, Im- brusj 2iad Seyrus and that coming upon Traf- fick to he fetled there,' and was made
(d) Porph. free. With thefe conenrrs (d) Arijioxenus, (to
'' whom Clemens Alexandrinu.s joyneth Arijlar-
chus and Theopompus) who ( {e) in the life of Tythagoras) iaith, (J) That he was born in one of thofe lilands which the Athenians won, and expelled thence the T yrrhenians. Whence Suidas {aithj tValPythagor as zvas a Samian, but by birth a Tyrrhenian, brought over young by his father from Tyrrhenia to Simus. And indeed his
(g) Porph. Country feemsdnfcrutable to (g)Lyeus to (h)
(h) Contra. Jofepms no lefs difficult to find out, than that of
4ppion. Homer. . , _
Nor is it ftrange, that the Country of his Fa¬ ther ihould be queftion’d, fince if is not agreed (/)Libi2o. . concerning hir name and quality: (i) fujiin calls him Demaratus, (and Johannes Sarisbu- pkj Laert. rienfis, from Jujiine, Alar at us) others, Ala-
mercus : But the greater part of Writers agree, {l)Lasrt.Su]d. t\\a.t\\Q was called (1) Mnefarchus-, his profef-
ppj Porph.
fion, according to Hermippus and others, a Gra¬ ver of Rings •, according to others, a Merchant. fmj Porph. (m) Some there are who affirm, he was a Bhliajian ■, Daufanias reports, that he was Son of Euphron, Grandfon of Hippafus, who upon the taking of Phlius by the Dorians, fled to Sa- XiJ LaerU ' Others, that he was Son of Hippa-
fus ', Hippafus was Son of Euthyphron, Euthy- phron of Oeonymus, who was banilhed out of Phlius and that Alamercus (or rather Mnefar¬ chus ) lived in Samus, whence Pythagoras was faid to be a Samian. ' (p) Cleanthes relates- he was a Syrian, of the City Tyriis in Syria, (or rather in Phoenicia) whence making a Voyage to 5’a;®//rfor Traffick, at fuch time as the were much oppreft with Famine, he furnilhed them with Corn, in requital whereof, they made
(q) Clenu/Hex* him free of their Gcjuntry. {q) Hippobotus faith, ^om. ' that Pythagoras was a Samian.
Indeed, the moll general and approved opi¬ nion is, that Mnefarchus*w2s a Samian, defeen- ded from Ancetus, who firft brought a Colony into Samus •, and that Pythagoras, his Son, was .•] . ; born atSidon in Phoenicia-, but by education, as
well as extradiq^, a Samian alfo. This is rati- • ■ . ' • fy’d by the authority of Jamblichus, who begins
his life with this fabulous NiVration
(r) J Pyth.crp 2. Same in Cephalenia, zvatf defeended from\a QJ So read fothers fay from Neptune and AJiypalaa'] ^envS, as opinion occafioned by his virtues, or fome par-
ticular greatnefs of foul. In prudence and mag- me' Oi-acie, nanimity he excelled all other Cephalenians. This dnt 'Sety.tif- AncsEus zaas commanded by the Pythian Oracle, to gather together a Colony out of Cephalenia, Arca¬ dia, and Theffaly, augmenting it from Athens,
and that having got
That this Colony zoos drazan from thofe fever al places, appears not only frotti their religious rites and facrijices, (znhich are derived f rptn the' Coun¬ tries out of vohich thofe people cante )' but alfo from the afiinities -and mutpiaf conventions made by the Samians. Mnefarchus W P.ytji^ais, of Pythxigoras, are faid to be defxendejfrom tpp family of the fame’ AniZ.n’i, that pi anied. this Coif ny there. C {u)^Of Pythais, it is coafirmed bj^ (u ) Per-phyr, Apollonimjy Wbifiy.noblenefs of their . ejctratlif^ bei ng much celebrated among fi t heir Country men, ' a Samian Poet declar'd him to be thefonpf Apof- (x) Cited alfo lo, /;? (x) thefe zjoords. ■’ hy Porphyrins.
Pythais of all Samians the tnoft fair,
Jove-loCH Pythagoras to PhcelMf-Ay^rc.
MAhitk report zn^ai raifed thus. T/;A Mnefarchus '
the Samian being upon occafwn of Traffick ac Del¬ phi, zxithhis Wife, zaho zoasat that iime newly zaith Child, and not known. to be fo he enquired of the Oracle concerning his Voyage to „ The
Prophet efs told him. That hk Journey [hould be according to histpind, . apery 'advantageous. That his Wife was' already with Child, and fhould bring forth a San that foould exceed all men -that ever in Beauty and Wifdom, and through the
•V ca
were.
whole cQurfe of .his hife • candule much to the be¬ nefit of Mankind. Mnefarchus confid^ring. That the Oracle zwuld not have fpoken of hfifion, fee¬ ing that he demanded nothing concerniifg him, if there were not foznething extraordinary to be ex- peSedfrom him., immediately hereupon changed the Name of his Wife,which before was ^arthenis to P'ji\ws, f'om the Prophetefs ■, and aii/oon as.
She was delivered at Sidon in PJjoenicia, they
called the Child . Pythagoras. 'Epimenides, *'
Eudoxus, Xenocrates, Land others mentioned
by (y) Apollonius')) are to be. re jelled, who affirm (y) Porphyr.
Apollo at that time lay with Pythais, Cz) and got pag-
her with Child, (She. not being fq before) andCD^ Adding^
thereupon foretold it by the Prophetefs, this is
not to be admitted. But that the Soul of Pythago-
ras, being of the Regimine of Apollo^ (dchether
as a Epllower, or fome otbfer way more near to him )
was fent to men, none can doubt, fince it. may be
evinc'd by theje circumfiances of hisi Birth, and
the univerfal Wifdom of his mind. Thzfi much
(faith Jamblichus ) concerning his Generation.
Whence we fee the Greeks did fo much admire his Wit, that they thought it could be nothing lefs than Divine, and thereupon fabled Apollo to be his Father.
Pythagoras was theyoungefl: of three Sons, the eldeft {a) Cleanthes, calls Eunefius Laertius, (a) Porphyr. and Suidas Eunomus-, thefecond, Tyrrhenus. He had likewife an Uncle, Xoilus, mentioned by Laertius.
The reafons for eftablifhing the times concern¬ ing Pythagoras's life will hereafter be fet forth, upon occalion of his going into Italy. In the mean time I (hall defire it may be admitted, that he was born about the third year of the fifty- third Olympiad : That being eighteen years old.
Epidaurus, and Chalcis^ them together under his command, he Jhould peo¬ ple an Ifland, named from the richnefs ofthefoyl he heard Thales and others. Then he Went to (0 lib.Melamphyllos, (t) \y\zck-\taP) and call the City Phienicia, thence into Egypt, where he Raid i4t which they built Samus, from Same in Cephale- twenty-two years -, afterwards at Babylon twelve
hia. The Oracle was thus : .years, then returned to Samus, hCmg fifty-fix
years old j and from thence went into Italy. The Inftead of Same, Samus thou ( an Ifle ) particulars whereof fhall in their feveral places Shalt plant Ancaus^ whichmen Phyllas ftylc. be more ffiUy difeourfed. CHAP
548
FTTH ,A G 0 R. A S.