Hegesias of Cyrene
Source: Web (personality-database.com)
Philosophy & Thought • Historical Archive • 🇱🇾 Libya • 21 views

Hegesias of Cyrene 🇱🇾

Ἡγησίας ὁ πεισιθάνατος (Known as "Hegesias Peisithanatos")
Cyrenaic Philosopher, Pessimist Ethicist, Lecturer
Born c. 320 BCE 🇱🇾 Cyrene, Libya
Passed Away c. 260 BCE Alexandria, Egypt
Lifespan ~60 years old
21 views
Notice / Correction
"Neither life nor death is chosen by nature; true peace lies in releasing all attachment to desire."

Archival Overview

Cyrenaic philosopher nicknamed Peisithanatos ('the Death-Persuader') whose lectures on the futility of human suffering in Alexandria were banned by King Ptolemy II Philadelphus.

Biographical Record

Hegesias emerged from the Cyrenaic school in eastern Libya, radicalizing hedonist ethics into uncompromising philosophical pessimism: arguing that pleasure is elusive while bodily and mental suffering are inevitable, he posited that indifference to life and death is the only rational tranquility.

His dialogue The Man Starving Himself to Death was so persuasively moving that several students in Alexandria committed suicide after hearing his lectures, prompting King Ptolemy II Philadelphus to ban him from teaching in the city.

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Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial
Alexandrian Hellenistic Necropolis
Alexandria, Egypt
GPS: 31.2000, 29.9167
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