#ancient philosophy

• Antisthenes — An ancient Greek philosopher from Athens (c. 445 – 365 BC), a direct disciple of Socrates and considered the founder of the Cynic school of philosophy. In the evolution of Western thought, Antisthenes laid the foundations of Cynic asceticism, arguing that virtue is the sole path to happiness (eudaimonia) and that it relies on self-control, the rejection of artificial social conventions, luxury, and material pleasures, directly influencing Diogenes of Sinope.
• Antisthenes — An international graphic variant, of French or alphabetically transposed Greek origin, for the name of the ancient Greek philosopher Antisthenes (the founder of the Cynic school). In older Romanian academic works, 19th-century literary translations, or specialized philosophical jargon, this form is occasionally used to preserve fidelity to the original or Western European spelling of the name of Socrates' disciple.
• First principle — A fundamental philosophical concept originating from Ancient Greece that designates the beginning, origin, first principle, or primordial substance from which all things derive and into which they eventually resolve. Structurally introduced by presocratic thinkers of the Milesian school, the term represents the ontological foundation of reality, explained variously through single cosmic elements like water, air, fire, or the indeterminate infinite.
• Arete — A proper feminine noun of Ancient Greek origin (Arete), borne in the Odyssey by the famous queen of the Phaeacians, wife of Alcinous and mother of Nausicaa, recognized as a symbol of wisdom, justice, and princely hospitality; in an abstract philosophical sense, it represents the personification of supreme virtue, moral excellence, and duty fulfilled according to classical Hellenic ethics. In a structural-onomastic sense, the name was adapted into various European cultures as an indicator of spiritual nobility and integrity of character.
• Aristotle — Aristotle of Stagira (384–322 BCE), one of the most significant philosophers and scientists of Ancient Greece, a disciple of Plato and tutor to Alexander the Great. Founder of the Lyceum and the Peripatetic school, his encyclopedic body of work laid the foundations for formal logic, ethics, politics, metaphysics, rhetoric, and biology, exerting a massive influence on medieval Christian, Islamic thought, and the entirety of Western culture.
• Asana — A bodily position or static posture specific to the practice of the Hatha Yoga system, structurally designed to improve flexibility, fortify muscles, and facilitate mental concentration. From a spiritual and meditative standpoint, this geometric shape of the body aims to balance energy channels and prepare the practitioner for advanced stages of deep meditation.
• Aspasia — An influential female figure of classical Athens (born in Miletus), renowned for her exceptional intelligence, oratorical skills, and status as the partner of the statesman Pericles; her home became a structural center of culture and philosophy frequented by Socrates, Plato, and Xenophon, deeply influencing Athenian political and intellectual life despite her legal status as a metic.
• Asvaghosa — An Indian Buddhist poet, dramatist, and philosopher of Sanskrit language from the first-second centuries AD, considered one of the great masters of classical Indian literature and a pioneer of the Mahayana philosophical school. His structural masterpiece is the epic poem Buddhacarita (The Acts of the Buddha), which unified classical artistic style (kavya) with profound spiritual teachings.
• Ataraxia — A state of perfect serenity, absolute calm, and imperturbability of the soul, achieved through complete liberation from passions, fears, and external disturbances. In ancient Greek philosophy, particularly in Stoicism, Epicureanism, and Pyrrhonism, ataraxia represented the supreme ideal of wisdom and human happiness, attained through rational detachment and inner control.