The Creation Myth in Plato’s Timaeus

The relationship between Man and nature as seen through Plato’s creation myth Timaeus can be summed up relatively succinctly: all is one, and therefore, Man is nature and nature is Man. Plato’s scholarship analyzes a variety of elements and principles, but ultimately concludes that the creator “led it from chaos to order, which he regarded as in all ways better”.[footnoteRef:1] For Plato, all is born from chaos into order, all is made of the same elements, and all becomes chaos again.

Analyzing this concept of oneness within Timaeus highlights supportive and limiting factors within Plato’s conceptual framework in nature. This paper will explore Plato’s concept of the oneness of Man and nature through a multiplicity of themes: Plato’s five elements which make up all things in the physical universe; his concept of reincarnation; the preoccupation with balance, proportion and perfection; and the concept that man was, in fact, created to observe and experience the beauty of nature and creation as a whole.

[1: Plato. Timaeus and Critias: A New Translation by Robin Waterfield. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), 18.]

In the creation myth of Timaeus, “all was created from chaos” which was organized into five basic elements: earth, fire, wind, water, and the so-called ‘fifth element.”[footnoteRef:2] Before the Creator’s intervention, Man, nature, God and the universe were all the same. Before the Creator divided matter into these five elements, there was no separation between Man and that which is not Man. This is corroborated by Plato’s assumption that, “between fire and earth the god placed water and air, and he made them all stand in the same ratio to one another (in so far as that is possible), so that as fire is to air, so air is to water, and as air is to water, so water is to earth; and so he bound together and structured the visible and tangible universe”.

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[FootnoteRef: 3] The Telos or purpose of the Creator is to turn chaos into order. This means that the Creator creates beings with the similar ratios of the elements. If Man, nature, God and the universe are all made from the same elemental ratios then structurally they are the same. Oneness remains because all of these elements still contain the unchanging, unwavering divine aspect of existence, with the addition of two other aspects, that which changes and that which connects the two. Therefore, by this logic, at least some aspects of Man and nature are, in fact, one and the same. Man is not just irreversibly and undeniably connected with nature: man is nature itself. [2: Ibid., 20.] [3: Ibid., 20.]

While the theological concept of oneness is not inherently limiting, the five elements theory in Timaeus is limited because it is not an accurate depiction of physical reality. It is also not clear how the manipulation and organization of these five elements corresponds physical reality. In the text, there is some emphasis on the ephemeral qualities of each element (earth, fire, wind, and water), and how they can, in fact change into another.[footnoteRef:4] Earth can be burned away by fire, and it becomes air; Fire can be extinguished by water, and so on. This is far from a detailed, scientific understanding of the world and of nature. At some points, it almost seems as if this aspect is mystified in order to explain away its inadequacy. For example, Plato writes “He [The Creator] gave it [Earth] a perfectly smooth finish all over, for a number of reasons. It had no need of eyes, since there was nothing visible left outside it, nor of ears, since there was nothing to hear either”.[footnoteRef:5] First, this is a scientifically inaccurate explanation for why the Earth has a “smooth” finish. Second, the Earth does not have a smooth finish as it contains various different terrains. This framework does little to shed light on the nuts and bolts of the world around us, it does little to inspire Man to come to a deeper understanding of physical reality and fails to reach the depths of understanding necessary to holistically comprehend the world. Had scholars relied on this simplistic understanding of elements, much of modern technology, particularly medical technology, could not have been created. [4: Ibid., 40-41.] [5: Ibid., 51.]

Keeping in line with this one, there are references to what would be called ‘reincarnation’ in modern times. In essence, all things find their origin in God, these things are made separate and exist on earth, and, upon their death, are returned to God. This implies that God is always with us, and it also provides a sense of meaning. Natural disasters, tragedies, and misfortunes, are simply a part of the divine flow of events. Earth and all that is physical is in a state of constant and continuous change, but it is also divine, perfect and stable. In fact, it could be posited that nature itself is a representation of all that changes, that is, that which is not fully perfect and divine, mixed with that which does not change, the divine: perfection, after all, has no need to change, as it is already perfect.

However, Timaeus’s presentation of reincarnation is limiting. The theory states that a good man can reincarnate as a man, or a bird. But a bad man will return as a woman, an especially bad man becomes a land animal, and the worst of us will return as aquatic creatures.[footnoteRef:6] This is, perhaps, the most limiting belief presented in the entire text. This patriarchal and spiciest belief places human men over all other living beings. It posts that reincarnating as a woman or a non-human animal is a punishment. This contradicts Timaeus’s references of divine perfection. If all was created in divinity, and God is perfect, then why is it a punishment to be one of God’s creatures? If woman is essential to our survival as a species, then how is it beneficial to see her as an inferior to a man? This theory is oppressive and it is neither necessary nor compelling to assume that many of God’s creatures are men who have failed in a previous life. This does not provide many incentives for men to treat women and animals with kindness, which is limiting in that it produces separation between Man and his non-male companions. This, then, can easily translate to men mistreating each other and potential violence from men to his non-male counterparts. [6: Ibid., 97.]

The essence of this ‘failure’ is of interest. The text is filled with references to perfection, proportions, balance, and beauty. Nature is a rich resource of these aspects, not only in the sense of form and function, but also in the delicate systematic changes of natural cycles. In this sense, the framework offered in the text is oriented towards natural proportions and systems, and seeks to understand the beauty and simplicity of them. Man’s purpose is to mimic this balance and proportion by working on these aspects in himself. The strong soul must be balanced with a strong body,[footnoteRef:7] vices must be balanced with loftier pursuits, and a man should live in harmony with himself and the world around him. [7: Ibid., 92.]

The limitation of this mindset is that perfection cannot be truly defined. Natural systems are natural because they cannot be explained within a predictable framework. For example, one winter may be harsh, and the next mild, and this cannot be known in advance. Nature can never completely be pinned down into patterns, proportions or numbers. Following this line of logic, man can never know what is truly perfect and man can never be truly perfect. It is impossible to live perfectly or to be in perfect harmony. The result of this limiting mindset is that men become fixated on perfection which can result in an unhealthy competitive spirit among men, resulting in conflict.

According to the text, Man was created to experience nature. The world is a living being that encompasses all things. The world is perfect, complete and has no need for a body or any senses.[footnoteRef:8] All is known, all is in its place, and there is no need for observation or experience. Man, on the other hand, is on Earth to experience it: this is why Man has arms, legs, eyes, and ears. Man is here to experience and understand nature, to feel pleasure and pain, and to struggle with life’s imperfections. This idea of perfection is problematic. On one hand, Man is imperfect since imperfection is the essence of man; but on the other, Man should strive to be perfect. Aside from the issues that arise when attempting to define perfection, there is one more limiting factor at play here. What happens when Man and nature achieve perfection? By the reasoning presented in the text, it is not out of the question to infer that, in the event of achieving perfection; all that is will disappear, becoming a perfectly round sphere with no need to observe anything, in perfect circular motion. This, in turn, implies that perfection is quite boring, and it is not very compelling to strive to achieve a goal that results in such a state. [8: Ibid., 21-22.]

Man, nature, and oneness are important themes in Plato’s Timaeus. A variety of factors of the mindset of the time is revealed in the text, and can lead to a deeper understanding of the mentality of Ancient Greece. The understanding of physical reality, the nature of the soul and its incarnation in men, women, and animals, the importance of balance and proportion, and man’s role as an observer of nature are all important elements of the text. Diving deeper into these themes provides a window into the spirit and problems of the era.