Hermias (; grc-gre, Ἑρμείας ἐκ Φοινίκης ''Hermeias ek Phoinikes'') was a Neoplatonist philosopher who was born in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

c. 410 AD. He went to

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

and studied philosophy under

Syrianus Syrianus ( grc, Συριανός, ''Syrianos''; died c. 437 A.D.) was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, and head of Plato's Academy in Athens, succeeding his teacher Plutarch of Athens in 431/432 A.D. He is important as the teacher of Proclus, and, ...

. He married

Aedesia Aedesia ( grc-gre, Αἰδεσία) was a philosopher of the Neoplatonic school who lived in Alexandria in the fifth century AD. She was a relation of Syrianus and the wife of Hermias, and was equally celebrated for her beauty and her virtues. ...

, who was a relative of Syrianus, and who had originally been betrothed to

Proclus Proclus Lycius (; 8 February 412 – 17 April 485), called Proclus the Successor ( grc-gre, Πρόκλος ὁ Διάδοχος, ''Próklos ho Diádokhos''), was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major classical philosophers ...

, but Proclus broke the engagement off after receiving a

divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

warning. Hermias brought Syrianus' teachings back to Alexandria, where he lectured in the school of Horapollo, receiving an income from the state. He died c. 450 AD, at a time when his children, Ammonius and

Heliodorus Heliodorus is a Greek name meaning "Gift of the Sun". Several persons named Heliodorus are known to us from ancient times, the best known of which are: *Heliodorus (minister) a minister of Seleucus IV Philopator c. 175 BC * Heliodorus of Athen ...

, were still small. Aedesia, however, continued to receive an income from the state, in order to raise the children, enabling them to become philosophers. A ''Commentary on the Phaedrus'' written by Hermias survives. It consists of notes based on the lectures conducted by Syrianus concerning

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

's ''

Phaedrus Phaedrus may refer to: People * Phaedrus (Athenian) (c. 444 BC – 393 BC), an Athenian aristocrat depicted in Plato's dialogues * Phaedrus (fabulist) (c. 15 BC – c. AD 50), a Roman fabulist * Phaedrus the Epicurean (138 BC – c. 70 BC), an Epic ...

''.

References

* Gertz, S., (2019)
"Hermias on the Argument for Immortality in Plato’s Phaedrus"
In: ''Studies in Hermias’ Commentary on Plato’s Phaedrus''. Brill: Leiden. *Sorabji, R., (2005), ''The Philosophy of the Commentators, 200-600 AD'', Cornell University Press. *Uzdavinys, A., (2004), ''The Golden Chain: An Anthology of Pythagorean and Platonic Philosophy''.

World Wisdom World Wisdom is an independent American publishing company established in 1980 in Bloomington, Indiana. World Wisdom publishes religious and philosophical texts, including the work of authors such as Frithjof Schuon, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Titus Bu ...

, Inc.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hermias 5th-century Byzantine people 5th-century philosophers Commentators on Plato Neoplatonists Roman-era philosophers 5th-century births 450 deaths Roman-era students in Athens 5th-century Byzantine writers Late-Roman-era pagans