Priscian of Lydia and his Solutiones ad Chosroem An introduction, translation from the Greek into Russian and notes

Abstract

The article focuses on the Solutiones deorum de quibus dubitavit Chosroes Persarum Rex of Priscian of Lydia, one of the six Athenian philosophers who travelled to the Sassanian king Chosroes I in 531–532 CE. The Solutiones, namely their arguments on immortality of the soul, are considered in two contexts: of the Neoplatonic ‘psychology’ and of the theological speculations in the late Sassanian Zoroastrianism. Based on the proposed dating of the Solutiones, the author critically reviewed Agathias Histories 2.28, 30–31 on the Persian ‘exodus’ of Priscian and his colleagues. The article is amended with the translation of the Introduction and Chapter I of the Solutiones.

Keywords

• Neoplatonic schools at Athens
• its close
• ancient psychology