ANAXAGORAS, in biography, a cele brated philosopher among the ancients. Ile was born in Ionia about the 70th olym piad, became the disciple of Anaximencs, and was afterwards a lecturer himself at Athens. In this city he was cruelly per secuted, and at length banished. He went to Lampsacus, where he was greatly honoured during his life, and still more re spected after his death. Statues have been erected to his memory.
Anaxagoras was a mathematician, and wrote, during his imprisonment at Ath ens, upon the quadrature of the circle. As a philosopher, he introduced some impor tant innovations, as they were then called, hilt which redound much to his honour he maintained, in opposition to the com mon systems of a plurality of Gods, that an infinite mind is the author of all motion and life. Plato asserts, that Anaxagoras taught that "mind was the cause of the world, and of all order," and that, "while all things else are compounded, this alone is pure and unmixed:" he ascribes to this principle two powers, to know, and to move. Testimonies to this purpose in fa vour of Anaxagoras are numerous ; Plu tarch, speaking of the Ionian philosophers who flourished before this great man, says, that they made fortune, or blind ne cessity, the first principle in nature ; but Anaxagoras affirmed, that a pure mind go verns the universe. By Diogencs Laerti
us he is represented as the first person, " who superadded mind to matter." He died in the year 428 before Christ, and throughout his life he supported the cha racter of a true philosopher. Superior to the motives of avarice and ambition, he resigned in early life a patrimony, that would have secured him distinction and independence, in order that he might give himself up wholly to the pursuits of science, and in the midst of the vicissi tudes of fortune preserved au equal mind. Being asked, just before his death, whe ther he wished to be carried for interlpeut to his native city, he replied, "it is unne cessary: the way to the regionsbelow is ev erywhere alike open:" and in answerto a message sent him at the same time by the senate of Lampsacus, requesting to be in formed in what manner they might honour his memory after his decease, he said, "By ordaining the day of my death to be annually kept as a holiday in all the schools of Lampsacus." This request was com plied with, and a festival called Anaxago ria was instituted on the occasion. '