Astrology and magic

85 - Sky Writing: Astronomy, Astrology, and Philosophy

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Ptolemy uses philosophy in the service of studying the stars, while philosophers of all persuasions evaluate the widespread practice of astrology.

 
93 - Pythagorean Theorems: Iamblichus

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Iamblichus fuses Platonism with pagan religious conviction and sets the agenda for Neoplatonism in generations to come.

94 - The Platonic Successor: Proclus

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Proclus’ system, presented in original works and in commentaries on Plato and Euclid, integrates Neoplatonic philosophy with pagan religious belief and practice.

158 - Born Under a Bad Sign: Freedom and Astrology in Jewish Philosophy

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Abraham Ibn Ezra, Ibn Daud and Maimonides consider the philosophical implications of astrology as science flourishes in the Jewish culture of Andalusia.

231. Origin of Species: Roger Bacon

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Roger Bacon extols the power of science based on experience and uses a general theory of "species" to explain light and vision.

232. Charles Burnett on Magic

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Charles Burnett tells Peter about the role of magic in medieval intellectual life.

57. Learn by Doing: Tantra

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Philosophy is put into practice in Kashmir Śaivite Tantra and Buddhist Tantra.

2. It’s Only Human: Philosophy in Prehistoric Africa

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Might philosophy be as old as humankind as we know it? We investigate the implications of findings concerning the origins of humankind in Africa.

3. Fertile Ground: Philosophy in Ancient Mesopotamia

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Do the cuneiform writings of Babylonian culture show that it had its own philosophy?

21. The Doctor Will See You Now: Divination, Witchcraft, and Knowledge

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Special forms of knowledge and the explanation of misfortunes in African tradition.

360. Dag N. Hasse on Arabic Learning in the Renaissance

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An interview with Dag Nikolaus Hasse on the Renaissance reception of Averroes, Avicenna, and other authors who wrote in Arabic.

366. The Men Who Saw Tomorrow: Renaissance Magic and Astrology

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Ficino, Pico, Cardano, and other Renaissance thinkers debate whether astrology and magic are legitimate sciences with a foundation in natural philosophy.

367. Brian Copenhaver on Renaissance Magic

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Brian Copenhaver joins us to explain how Ficino and other Renaissance philosophers thought about magic.

368. Boundless Enthusiasm: Giordano Bruno

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Giordano Bruno’s stunning vision of an infinite universe with infinite worlds, and his own untimely end.

386. Perhaps Not Wrong: Cornelius Agrippa

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Was Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa a dark magician, a pious skeptic, or both?

388. Just Add Salt: Paracelsus and Alchemy

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Paracelsus adapts the tradition of alchemical science for use in medicine, and in the process overturns the scientific theories of Aristotle and Galen.

394. Best of Both Worlds: Tycho Brahe

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Responses to Copernicus in the 16th century, culminating with the master of astral observation Tycho Brahe.

395. Music of the Spheres: Johannes Kepler

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Kepler combines Brahe's observations, Copernicus' astronomy, and Platonist metaphysics.

396. Lorraine Daston on Renaissance Science

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Comets! Magnets! Armadillos! In this wide-ranging interview Lorraine Daston tells us how Renaissance and early modern scientists dealt with the extraordinary events they called "wonders".

103. A Federal Case: Nnamdi Azikiwe and Obafemi Awolowo

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Two Nigerian activists lead the struggle for independence, and clash over the competing values of national unity and ethnic diversity.

410. Ann Blair on Jean Bodin's Natural Philosophy

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A chat with Ann Blair about the "Theater of Nature" by Jean Bodin, and other encyclopedic works of natural philosophy. (Pictured: Prof Blair holding the annotated copy of Bodin's Theatrum she describes in the episode.)

428. Weird Sisters: Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Witchcraft

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How Macbeth reflects the anxieties and explanations surrounding witchcraft and witch-hunting in early modern Europe.

430. I’ll Teach You Differences: British Scholasticism

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The evolution of Aristotelian philosophy from John Mair in the late 15th century to John Case in the late 16th century.

432. If This Be Magic, Let It Be an Art: John Dee

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Science, intrigue, exploration, angelic seances! It's the life and thought of Elizabethan mathematician and magician John Dee.

433. Nature’s Mystery: Science in Renaissance England

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How scientists of the Elizabethan age anticipated the discoveries and methods of the Enlightenment (without necessarily publishing them).

436. Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores: Robert Fludd

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Our last figure of the English Renaissance undertakes daring investigations of chemistry, medicine, agriculture, and cosmology – and gets accused of magic and Rosicrucianism.

437. Jennifer Rampling on Renaissance Alchemy

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An expert on Renaissance alchemy tells us how this art related to philosophy at the time... and how she has tried to reproduce its results!