Chilon of Sparta () (fl. 6th century BC) was a Spartan politician credited with the militarization of Spartan society, and one of the Seven Sages of Greece.

Life

Chilon was the son of Damagetus, and lived towards the beginning of the 6th century BC.

Herodotus Herodotus (; BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey), under Persian control in the 5th century BC, and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He wrote the '' Histori ...

speaks of him as contemporary with Hippocrates, the father of

Peisistratus Pisistratus (also spelled Peisistratus or Peisistratos; ; – 527 BC) was a politician in ancient Athens, ruling as tyrant in the late 560s, the early 550s and from 546 BC until his death. His unification of Attica, the triangular ...

Diogenes Laërtius Diogenes Laërtius ( ; , ; ) was a biographer of the Greek philosophers. Little is definitively known about his life, but his surviving book ''Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers'' is a principal source for the history of ancient Greek ph ...

states that he was an old man in the 52nd

Olympiad An olympiad (, ''Olympiás'') is a period of four years, particularly those associated with the Ancient Olympic Games, ancient and Olympic Games, modern Olympic Games. Although the ancient Olympics were established during Archaic Greece, Greece ...

(572 BC), and that he was elected an

ephor The ephors were a board of five magistrates in ancient Sparta. They had an extensive range of judicial, religious, legislative, and military powers, and could shape Sparta's home and foreign affairs. The word "''ephors''" (Ancient Greek ''éph ...

(overseer) in

Sparta Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the Evrotas Valley, valley of Evrotas (river), Evrotas rive ...

in the 56th Olympiad (556/5 BC). Alcidamas states that he was a member of the Spartan assembly. Diogenes Laërtius even goes so far as to claim that Chilon was also the first person who introduced the custom of joining the ephors to the kings as their counselors.Diogenes Laërtius, i. 68-73 Chilon is said to have helped to overthrow the tyranny at

Sicyon Sicyon (; ; ''gen''.: Σικυῶνος) or Sikyōn was an ancient Greek city state situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea on the territory of the present-day regional unit of Corinthia. The ruins lie just west of th ...

, which became a Spartan ally. He is also credited with the change in Spartan policy leading to the development of the

Peloponnesian League The Peloponnesian League () was an alliance of ancient Greek city-states, dominated by Sparta and centred on the Peloponnese, which lasted from c. 550 to 366 BC. It is known mainly for being one of the two rivals in the Peloponnesian War (431–4 ...

in the sixth century BC. Another legend claims that he died of joy when his son gained the prize for boxing at the

Olympic games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

, and that his funeral was attended by all the Greeks assembled at the festival. One of his descendants married king

Anaxandridas II Anaxandridas II (, meaning "descendant of Anaxander") was an Agiad king of Sparta from 560 BC to 524 BC, father of Leonidas I and grandfather of Pleistarchus. Under the leadership of the ephor Chilon, in office during the middle of the 6th cen ...

of Sparta and had a son with him, king

Cleomenes I Cleomenes I (; Greek Κλεομένης; died c. 490 BC) was Agiad King of Sparta from c. 524 to c. 490 BC. One of the most important Spartan kings, Cleomenes was instrumental in organising the Greek resistance against the Persian Empire of Da ...

Sayings and teachings

Chilon of Sparta also said the famous Ancient Greek proverb: "Το λακωνίζειν εστί φιλοσοφείν", in English "less is more", or "brevity is the soul of wit", or "brevity is a way of philosophy", which means that the best way of being a philosopher is through brevity and describes the Spartans' way of thinking and attitude. Diogenes Laërtius describes him as a writer of elegiac poems, and attributes many sayings to him: * " Do not speak evil of the dead." * "Honor old age." * "Prefer punishment to disgraceful gain; for the one is painful but once, but the other for one's whole life." * "Do not laugh at a person in misfortune." * "If one is strong be also merciful, so that one's neighbors may respect one rather than fear one." * "Learn how to regulate one's own house well." * "Do not let one's tongue outrun one's sense." * "Restrain anger." * "Do not dislike divination." * "Do not desire what is impossible." * "Do not make too much haste on one's road." * "Obey the laws." According to an inscription at the Bath of the Seven Sages in Ostia "cunning Chilon taught to fart silently." Chilon was the sage traditionally credited with the famous Delphic maxim: " Know thyself"Verhasselt, Gertjan, "The Seven Sages and the Inscription of Ai Khanoum"; in: Mayhew, Robert, & Mirhady, David C. (eds.), ''Clearchus of Soli: Text, Translation and Discussion''. Routledge (2022). ISBN 978-0-367-70683-8—though this attribution is not universal, and others of the Seven Sages of Greece, or even the god

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

himself, were also variously supposed to be its originators.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 6th-century BC Spartans Ancient Spartan poets Seven Sages of Greece Ephors Presocratic philosophers 6th-century BC Greek philosophers

Life

Sayings and teachings

References

Further reading

External links