Seyran ZAKARIAN
Ph.D.
1.
Preface
2.
Ancient Period
3.
5th -6th Centuries
4.
8th -11th Centuries
5.
11th -12th Centuries
6.
13th Century
7.
14th -15th Centuries
8.
17th Century
9.
18th -19th Centuries
1. Preface
Philosophical literature occupies a considerable part of the Matenadaran manuscript fund, which expressively testifies to the development of the Armenian medieval philosophy. Numerous works of Armenian philosophers - Mesrop Mashtots (approx. 362-440), Eznik Koghbatsi (5th century), David the Invincible (5th -6th centuries), Anania Shirakatsi (595-685), Hovhan Odznetsi († 728), Hovhannes Sarkavag (1050-1129), Mkhitar Gosh († 1213), Hovhannes Pluz Erzynkatsi († 1293), Vahram Rabuni (13th century), Hovhan Vorotnetsi (1315-1386), Grigor Tathevatsi (1345-1409), Arakel Siunetsi (14th -15th c.), Simeon Jughayetsi (†1675), Stepanos Lehatsi (†1687), Hovhannes Jughayetsi (1643-1715) and others - are kept in the Matenadaran. They are of great value not only to the research of the history of the Armenian philosophy, but also to that of the East Christian, Muslim and West European philosophy.Apart from that, the works of ancient and medieval outstanding philosophers, as Plato, Aristotle, Philo of Alexandria, Porphyry the Phoenician, Proclus Diadochus, Nemesius of Emessa, Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, John of Damascus, Gilbert de la Porrée, Albertus Magnus, Thomas Aquinas, as well as Latin scholars having written in the Armenian milieu - Bartholomew of Bologna († 1333), Peter of Aragon († 1347), Clemens Galanus (1610-1666) and others - are also kept in the Matenadaran. Of exceptional scientific value are those translations whose originals have survived only in Armenian, such as Definitions addressed to Asclepius ascribed to the legendary Hermes Trismegistus, Philo of Alexandria’s On the Providence, On the Language of Animals, On the Genesis of Questions and Solutions, the anonymous interpretations of Aristotle’s Categories, Zeno the Philosopher’s On the Nature, etc. The translations survived in Armenian are valuable especially in the sense that their considerable part being older than the originals preserved in the native language can benefit their verifying and correcting, as well as editing of the revised originals.
Although the Armenians had an ancient period of philosophy (scant data testifying to this has survived in Armenian and foreign sources), still the national philosophy in the Armenian language originates with the invention of the Armenian letters (405). The basis of the development of the medieval Armenian and other Christian nations’ philosophy had been two sources: 1) the Holy Scripture and the religious philosophical doctrines of the Fathers of the Church, 2) the ancient Greek philosophy. The formation and development of the Armenian philosophy benefited by the translations of the Holy Writ, the religious theological and ancient philosophical works, by way of which the merit of the ancient and Christian philosophy was associated with and adopted by the Armenian theoretical mind.
Three directions were formed in the Armenian philosophy in the 5th-9th centuries: Christian Apologetics, Neoplatonism and Natural Philosophy. The principal task of the representatives of the apologetic trend (Mesrop Mashtots, Eznik Koghbatsi and others) was the working out of cosmological, ontological, anthropological, gnosiological and ethical world outlook intrinsic to the spirit of Christianity. In his Refutation of Heresies Eznik Koghbatsi, criticizing the dualistic mercenary and fatalistic tenets of ancient philosophers, pagan religions, Gnostic and heretical theories, substantiates the principles of monotheism, creation, man’s free will. In their theories justifying God, the Armenian apologists reject the idea of the evil’s inborn nature, supposing that the cause of the evil is not God, but the activity of the self-willed man.
David the Invincible, representative of the Alexandrian school of the Neoplatonism, was the founder of the secular direction in the Armenian philosophy. In the 5th-6th centuries, when the ancient philosophical schools were being closed and philosophers persecuted, when the Christian victorious ideology accepted the philosophy with reserve, he came out as an apologist of the philosophy. Being convinced that philosophy is the greatest gift given to man by God, in his Definitions of the Philosophy David the Invincible first skillfully rejects the arguments of the sceptics who denied the existence of the philosophy, then presents six definitions of this science and, basing himself on them, reveals the essence, subject, questions, aim and significance of philosophy.
The founder of the natural philosophical direction Anania Shirakatsi came out with the necessity of the nature investigation. Proceeding from the Holy Scripture ideas glorifying science and wisdom, Shirakatsi includes the truths of the 'Natural Wisdom' in the theory of faith and thinks they do not contradict the truths of the Revelation. He accepts the idea of the earth spherical shape, attaches importance to the role of the experience and mathematical knowledge within the process of the Weltanschauung, criticizes the fatalistic tenets of the astrologers and superstitious ideas on nature.
The Armenian philosophy reaches a new level of development in the 10th-15th centuries. New philosophical schools (Ani, Erzynka, Krna, and Tathev) are founded, scholastic philosophy develops and new translations are made. The translations and original works of the Catholic missionaries played an important role in philosophy revival. The Armenian philosophers examine the questions of correlation of God and world, God and human being, the substantiation of God’s being, faith and reason, theology and philosophy, general and individual universalities. Adopting the methods of the West European scholastics, as well as basing themselves on the traditions of the national philosophy, the representatives of the Tathev School (Hovhan Vorotnetsi, Grigor Tathevatsi) created universal theological-philosophical theories where the idea of the originality and independence of the Armenian Church was theoretically proved. Since the second half of the 15th century the Armenian philosophy began its decline, which lasted up to the outset of the 17th century. Then, the process of reviving interrupted philosophical traditions of the past begins and ends in the 1630s.
The later medieval Armenian philosophy develops not only in Armenia, but also in the Armenian communities in New-Julfa, Lvov, Constantinople, Venice, Amsterdam and elsewhere. In the philosophy of this period the religious idealistic Weltanschauung was still prevailing. However, under the influence of the European philosophy, step by step, the ideas of the New Era philosophy were getting popular. The philosophers of this period, Simeon Jughayetsi, Stepanos Lehatsi, Hovhannes Jughayetsi, Ghukas Vanandetsi and others suggested in their works, in particular, the social-political ones, a number of ideas which paved the way for the formation of the Armenian enlightening philosophy. Among the outstanding representatives of this tendency one can mention the members of the Armenian community of Madras (India): Hovsep Emin (1736-1809), Movses Baghramian (18th century), Shahamir Shahamirian (1723-1797). Like the European enlighteners they criticized monarchic and tyrannical order, they defended the idea of freedom and equality of all the people. At the same time, the Armenian enlighteners took part in the national liberation movement, i.e. they not only theoretically worked out the program of liberation from foreign invaders’ yoke and foundation of the Armenian state, but also made efforts to implement it. The philosophy of the enlightenment became widely spread in the Armenian society of the 19th century, being influenced both by European and Russian enlightenment.
2. Ancient Period
Armenian nation has created constant philosophical values through centuries. Its geographical position being at the crossroads of various cultures, the philosophical thought of the Armenian nation has been beneficially influenced both by the Eastern and Western philosophy, and Armenia itself has made its modest but valuable contribution to the development of the world philosophy. This contribution would certainly have been more substantial and tangible, if the historical circumstances had enabled to implement all the resources of the Armenian intellectual innate qualities.There is too scanty information on the Armenian philosophy of the ancient period. The absence of sources does not even allow having an idea of how the Armenian philosophy originated and developed, what relationship there was between mythology and philosophy, etc. It is known that in Hellenistic Armenia there was a great interest towards the philosophy, numerous scholars and philosophers lived and worked at the courts of the Armenian kings. For instance, Metrodorus of Scepsis (1st century B.C.) had written in Armenia his work On the Reason of Animals. According to Plutarch evidence, the Armenian king Artavazd II wrote tragedies, orations and other works. In the period of the later Hellenism the theories of the Aristotelians, Stoics, Epicureans and Neoplatonists became widely spread in Armenia. At this time the Armenian philosopher and rhetorician Paruyr (Proeresius, 4th century) wins fame; his statue was erected in Rome and Athens. Julian the Emperor (331-363), Basil of Caesarea (330-379) and Gregory Nazianzus (330-390), Fathers of the East Christian Church, were among his students. Numerous Armenian young men studied in his school, too.
The manuscripts kept in the Matenadaran contain vast information mainly on medieval philosophy, history of which is usually divided into three periods: early (5th-9th centuries), developed (10th-15th centuries) and later medieval philosophy. In the early Middle Ages the national philosophy originates and develops in Armenian language. The impetuous progress of the Armenian philosophy in the 5th-6th centuries was conditioned by several factors: historical-political, national (the Armenians at that time carried on a national liberation struggle against the Persians) and spiritual-cultural (the defense of the Armenian Church creed becomes a vital problem after the Chalcedon ecumenical Council in 451). It greatly benefited by the translations which, according to their content, may be divided into two groups: religious-theological and theoretical-philosophical. The translations of the classical period (5th century) were mainly religious-theological, and those of the Philhellenic School (from the end of the 5th to the beginning of the 8th centuries) secular, theoretical-philosophical.
In the classical period first the Holy Scripture was rendered into Armenian, which had an unprecedented impact on the development of the Armenian mentality and philosophy, then the works of Christian apologists and Fathers of the Church – Athanasius of Alexandria, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory Nazianzus, Ephrem Syrus, John Chrysostom, Evagrius Ponticus, Aristides of Athens, Epiphanius of Cyprus, Eusebius of Caesarea and others – were translated from Syrian and Greek. In the beginning of the 8th century Stepanos Siunetsi translated four works of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite: On the Uranian Hierarchy, On the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy, On the Divine Names, On the Mystical Theology and his ten Letters. The philosophical direction of the Christian apologetics was formed in Armenia on the basis of these translations. Its founder was Mesrop Mashtots and its outstanding representatives were Eznik Koghbatsi, Eghishe (5th century), Hovhan Odznetsi (8th century) and others. Alongside with translations, Armenian philosophers came out with their original works, the masterpiece of which was Koghbatsi’s Refutation of Heresies, an apologetic work.
The Armenian Christian apologetic philosophy, with its ideological tendency, statements of questions and problems is akin to the Greek and Latin apologetics, but at the same time it has its peculiarities. First of all it is conditioned by the fact that the triumph of Christianity in Armenia was combined with the awakening of patriotism, national consciousness, national liberation movement and educational enlightening activity. The defending of the Christian doctrine was identified with that of homeland, national identity and independence. Sweeping refutation of the ancient science and philosophy was not characteristic of the Armenian apologetic philosophy. The Armenian apologists were not only champions of the Christian faith, but also enlighteners disseminating science and education. In this sense the choice of the first sentence translated into Armenian from the Bible is symbolic: ‘To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding’.
Armenian thinkers did not reject the merit of the ancient philosophy at a blow, but attempted to Christianize it, to adapt it to the spirit of the Christian doctrine. Placing the theory of the faith above the reasonable analysis, still they did not oppose them to one another, thinking that reason, science and wisdom were given to human being by God. Due to this tolerant point of view, Armenian philosophy and theology developed side by side for a long time, and the theologians accepted the alias philosophers with pleasure. Criticizing the ancient philosophical theories (those of Pythagoreans, Plato, Aristotle, Stoics, Epicureans, Neoplatonists), the main principles of the pagan-heretical doctrines (Marcion), i.e. dualism, cupidity, polytheism, Armenian apologists worked out cosmological, ontological, gnosiological, ethical and anthropological Weltanschauung corresponding to the spirit of Christianity, the principal ideas of which were monotheism, creation, worship of faith, eschatology and so on.
The works of Armenian apologists highlight the questions of correlation of human free will and fate connected with justifying the existence of the evil. Accepting the Christian idea of human free will they reject the fatalistic theories dooming the man to passiveness. They reject it not only due to the fact that it contradicts the Christian theory of salvation, but also the security of the nation and homeland. Koghbatsi writes that fatalists do not have to offer resistance when the enemy invades the country to ravage it and kill the people, justifying their behaviors by saying: ‘Why should we oppose the fate, if that of the country is to be ravaged by the plunderers?’ However, collecting an army and driving the enemy out of the country, people show that they decide their fate themselves, and not the fate settles their destiny. Human activity is not predetermined even by God. The human being was created self-willed, i.e. he is free to choose between the evil and the good, he is, therefore, responsible for his deeds. The evil is neither from God, nor inborn, it is the result of human activity.
3. 5th - 6th Centuries
In the 5th-6th centuries a secular Neoplatonic direction is also formed in Armenian philosophy, nurtured by the translations of the Philhellenic School. Owing to them the Armenian thought adopted the values of the ancient science and philosophy. By the efforts of the Philhellenic School Plato’s Timaios, Euthyphron, Minos, Apologia Socratus, Nomoi, Aristotle’s Categories, Analytics, Porphyry’s Introduction, anonymous interpretations of Aristotle's abovementioned works, David the Invincible’s writings, as well as religious-philosophical and anthropological works of Philo of Alexandria, Gregory of Nyssa, Nemesius of Emessa and others were rendered into Armenian. Being apologists of the Greek science and philosophy the representatives of the Philhellenic School played an inestimable role in the development of grammar, rhetoric, logic, theoretical and practical philosophy in Armenia.David the Invincible was the founder of the Neoplatonic direction formed in the milieu of the Philhellenic School. He had been educated at the Neoplatonic School of Alexandria. The treatise Definitions of Philosophy, the analysis of Porphyry’s Introduction, Aristotle's Categories and Analytics, which have survived both in Greek (except the Analytics) and Armenian, belong to his pen. David the Invincible’s philosophy is not characterized by Plotinus and Proclusian speculative style of philosophizing: his Neoplatonism is expressed in the collation and systematization of the ancient philosophical lore, in particular, Plato’s and Aristotle’s theories. Being convinced that philosophy is the most beautiful and venerable among human occupations, he skillfully rejects the sceptics’ arguments disclaiming the existence of philosophy.
Generalizing Pythagoras’, Plato’s and Aristotle’s definitions of philosophy, the Armenian thinker classifies them considering the subject and aim of philosophy. In compliance with the proximate subject the philosophy is a science on beings, and according to the remote subject, a science on divine and human actualities. In compliance with the proximate aim the philosophy is a meditation on death, and according to the remote aim it is to be the image of God so far as it is possible for a human being. According to the fifth definition, the philosophy is the art of arts and the science of sciences, and the sixth definition is based on the etymology of the word ‘philosophy’, it is the love of wisdom. In David’s opinion the philosophy is divided into two parts: theoretical and practical. The theoretical philosophy in its turn is divided into three parts: natural sciences (physics), mathematics and theology (the first philosophy), and the practical one: ethics, politics and economics. Defining the idea of dialectical unity and correlation of theoretical and practical philosophy, David, nevertheless, gives preference to the practical one. As the greatest gift given to human being by God, the philosophy exists just in order to ‘ennoble and beautify the human soul and transfer it from the material and misty life to the divine and immortal’.
Thus, according to David the Invincible, human being can reach the divine not through faith, but by the way of philosophy. In his works of logical type David examines a number of questions on the theory of conception, definition, judgment, deduction, as well as the fundamental question of universalities. Criticizing the extreme nominalistic and extreme realistic viewpoints of the latter’s solution; he clearly defines the formula of the universalities triple existence, which later on was adopted by a number of medieval thinkers (Avicenna, Thomas Aquinas). David the Invincible’s theoretical legacy had a tremendous impact on the development of the later Armenian medieval philosophy. His works were repeatedly copied, interpreted and used as textbooks in medieval universities. Byzantine, Arabic and Georgian philosophy was also influenced by his views.
The questions of nature investigation were of minor importance in the Armenian philosophy of the 5th-6th centuries. However, the interest in nature and natural sciences gradually increases in the 7th century. The direction of natural philosophy was founded by Anania Shirakatsi, mathematician, astrologer and geographer. The principal merit of his natural philosophy is that he examines the nature from the viewpoint of ‘natural wisdom’; he attempts to reveal the natural grounds of nature objects and phenomena. Pointing out the scarcity of information on nature in the Holy Writ, Shirakatsi regards the use of the ancient thinkers’ scientific ideas as justified. In this respect he addresses himself to the question of correlation of ‘the natural wisdom’ and the theory of faith and works out a synthetic, conciliatory viewpoint.
Classifying the ancient thinkers into two groups: ‘mad, insane wise men’ and ‘good, godly scientists’, Shirakatsi insists at the same time that ‘the first philosophers are teachers to us; examining their sayings we see their veracity’ Shirakatsi also regards the ancient thinkers’ ideas contradicting the thoughts expressed either by the Holy Scripture or Christian theologians as truthful. For instance, he defends the idea of spherical shape of the Earth, rejects the theory according to which the Earth is located on water. On the whole, Shirakatsi has a critical attitude towards the viewpoints of both the ancient and Christian thinkers; he first of all attempts to find out their correspondence to the data of experience and observation. In this respect he attaches importance to the role of experience and mathematical knowledge in the world outlook. Being an apologist of the scientific orientation of the nature investigation, Shirakatsi criticizes and rejects the fatalistic theory of astrologers, comes out against false beliefs, superstition, magic and various prejudices.
4. 8th - 11th Centuries
The development of the Armenian philosophy in the 8th-11th centuries was definitely influenced by the ideology of the religious-heretical movements of the Paulicians and the Tondrakians (9th-11th centuries) who had come out against the ideology of the Church, rejected the latter’s role in Salvation, renounced to the Church rites, ceremonies and sacraments, preached the ideas of social equality and freedom. Regrettably, too scarce information on their viewpoints has survived, even in the works of their opponents. One of them is Against the Paulicians by Hovhan Odznetsi the Philosopher (8th century), in which the sources of the Paulician ideology, their ideological evolution, as well as the grounds of the pagan polytheism, idolatry, the differences between idolatry and iconolatry are cited. In Odznetsi’s opinion the Paulicians are ‘the debris of the earlier heresy of Mtzghne, who had not come to reason and allying with circumcised tyrants, skillfully using their shadowgraph and fabulous books, recruited their numbers with simpletons’. Information on the ideology of Tondrakians is given by Grigor Magistros, Aristakes Lastivertsi and Grigor Narekatsi.Under conditions of crisis in the religious life, a mystic direction was formed in the Armenian literature and philosophy; its greatest representative is Grigor Narekatsi (950-1003). The main feature of his masterpiece, the Book of Lamentation is the question of God and human being, the salvation of the latter. Narekatsi works out an original ‘philosophy of heart’ the theoretical sources of which are to be found in the New Testament doctrine on the ‘inner man’, as well as in the Neoplatonic symbolic ideas and those of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. Narekatsi thinks that the human being can be saved only by the way of faith, which should be accompanied by confession of sins, penance, telling wrongdoings in unmurmuring groan, speaking to God from the bottom of the heart.
The Armenian philosophy reaches a new degree of development in the 10th-15th centuries. In this period the limits of philosophical lore are enlarged, new translations are made, interest in ancient culture and philosophy increases, great attention is paid to the investigation of nature, new schools and universities are founded, scholastic philosophy develops.
5. 11th - 12th Centuries
Grigor Magistros, Hovhannes Sarkavag, Mkhitar Gosh are among the most famous philosophers of the 11th-12th centuries. Grigor Magistros Pahlavuni (990-1058) was an extraordinary Armenian secular philosopher, at the same time a military figure who cruelly suppressed the Tondrakian movement. He translated a few works of Plato, as well as Euclid’s famous Elements of Geometry. Magistros’ philosophical viewpoints, on the whole, are set forth in his Letters, in which numerous natural-philosophical, gnosiological, religious-theological questions are discussed. He attempts to restore the traditions of the ancient philosophy and those of David the Invincible, attaches importance to the role of the natural sciences in knowing the world and God.These tendencies were more successfully developed by Hovhannes Sarkavag Imastaser († 1129), a famous philosopher, theologian and professor of his time. In his school triple and quadruple sciences were taught, great attention was paid to the investigation of the nature, Sarkavag clearly defines the progressive idea that the experience and not the prestige should serve as a criterion for verification of knowledge. ‘I am not one of those credulous people, he writes, who believe every word without examination and are deceived, for no statement should be accepted without examining and testing’. Coming out with the motto ‘Knowledge cannot be regarded as true without testing’, Sarkavag opens a new prospect in the field of the nature investigation. His aesthetic-philosophical viewpoints are innovative, too.
In his treatise Word of Wisdom Sarkavag handles the question of correlation of nature and human being, nature and art, at the same time explaining the grounds of human alienation from the nature, natural-divine order. In Sarkavag's opinion the human art is imperfect compared with the art of the nature representative - the starling - since the latter is true to the divine-natural order, whereas the man is deprived of this ‘inborn gift’ because of the Fall. Worthy of note is the starling’s thought that due to human ‘rebellion’ the harmony of ‘the common home’ - the universe - collapsed, divine unity of creatures was broken, natural calamities became more frequent, which made suffer innocent, defenseless beings. The starling explains to the ‘imperfect philosopher’ that human art can become perfect only if the man acquires his ‘natural status’ again and cares not only for the safety of his own existence, but also for that of all the creatures.
One of the valuable works of the Armenian philosophy of the 11th-12th centuries is the anonymous interpretation of the Definitions of Philosophy by David the Invincible, which is also ascribed to Hovhannes Sarkavag. This analysis is notable for its secular contents, gnosiological optimism and humanism. The anonymous author not only accurately reproduces the thoughts of David, but also inventively makes additions and sets forth ideas consonant to his time. In the philosophy of this period the social-ethical and legal-political thought also flourishes, represented by famous scholars Nerses Lambronatsi (1153-1198), Mkhitar Gosh († 1213) and others.
Lambronatsi substantiates the principle of the national and religious tolerance, and Gosh examines the question of human's social and legal protection. Proceeding from the tenet of human free will, Armenian thinkers defend the idea of human social freedom and equality, everyone's equality to the law, justice, the united and centralized Armenian State. In their opinion the order, social harmony, peace and prosperity in a State are guaranteed by governing in compliance with the law. Human laws are relative and changeable; consequently their application should depend on circumstances of time and place. Even the biblical commandments, according to Lambronatsi, are not absolute since ‘the time rules over commandments, and not the commandments over the time’. Examining the question of what is preferable, war or peace, Lambronatsi states that, on the whole, peace is more desirable, but if it is no more possible to keep it, one should be ready to wage war.
The humanistic thought that ‘the laws are for the human beings, and not the human beings for the laws’ runs all through the Armenian Code of Law by Mkhitar Gosh, too. The Armenian thinker justifies even the attempt of oppressed people to rebel against unfair and unlawful rulers. Powerful men despise the poor ones and are not afraid of them, but the poor ones get mighty by wisdom and sway them. Men are born free and equal; slavery and inequality are results of social-economic and proprietary relations. Under conditions of the Middle Ages Gosh suggests the idea that regardless of national, religious belonging the human life is an absolute value and those infringing on it should be punished. The Code of Law by Mkhitar Gosh is one of the masterpieces of Armenian legal-philosophical thought. It was used not only in Armenia and the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, but later on - in the 16th-18th centuries - also in the Armenian communities of Lvov, the Crimea, Astrakhan, as well as Georgia.
6. 13th Century
Vahram Rabuni (13th century) and Hovhannes Pluz Erzynkatsi († 1293) are the greatest scholars of the 13th century Armenian philosophy. Vahram Rabuni lived and worked in the period of rise of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, he was the chancellor of the royal office. He is the author of philosophical, logical, historical, political and religious-theological works including the interpretations of Aristotle's Categories and Analytics, Porphyry's Introduction, the analysis on the latter by David the Invincible. Of great value is his philosophical speech read on the occasion of Levon III coronation. Examining cosmological and metaphysical questions Rabuni follows the monotheistic and theocentric doctrine of the Armenian philosophers of the earlier centuries, supplementing it with the Areopagus theory on the hierarchic universe. He solves the question of faith and reason, philosophy and theology correlation in favor of faith and theology; he rejects the possibility of the existence of two truths contradicting one another, which does not prevent him from attaching importance to the role of philosophy in the cause of cognition of both the world and God. Rabuni determines the main question of universalities in the spirit of Aristotle and David the Invincible, emphasizing the individual beings' ontological priority with respect to the sorts and species, he conditions the existence of the common by that of individual object. That is why he has been regarded as the founder of the nominalistic direction in the Armenian medieval philosophy. Successively defending the idea of man's free will, Rabuni criticizes the fatalistic theories, superstitious beliefs disseminated among the people. Handling the question of the State origins, its operation and consolidation, the kings’, princes’, priests’ and people’s rights and responsibilities, he regards preservation of moral principles and legal laws as preconditions of the State strengthening.One of the original representatives of the 13th century Armenian philosophy is Hovhannes Pluz Erzynkatsi, an encyclopedic thinker whose ideological characteristic feature was humanism. His philosophical viewpoints are included in his Letter to the Princes of the Canton of Ekeghik, On the Heavenly Adornments, Materials Compiled from the Writings of Arab Philosophers, Those Invested with Power Should Reside in Obedience, Wonderful was Your Science to Me and other works. The work Materials Compiled from the Writings of Arab Philosophers by Erzynkatsi is of exceptional value with regard to the Armenian-Arabian philosophical contacts: it is a concise account of the Letters of the Brotherhood of Purity founded in Basra in the 10th century. However, the Armenian philosopher does not follow blindfold all the ideas of that source, but basically selects what corresponds to the principles of the Armenian world outlook.
Carrying forward Shirakatsi’s line in his natural philosophical works, Erzynkatsi attempts to reveal natural grounds of physical phenomena. The central place in his philosophy is occupied by the main question of human being. The question of human status in the universe is regarded from two points of view: cosmological-pantheistical and religious-ethical. In the first case, the author confirms the resemblance of human and natural small and large universes, the unity of human and animal worlds; in the second case, the human being’s exceptional status in the order of creation, his superiority and advantage with regard to other creatures.
Handling the question of soul and body correlation, he first attempts to reveal physiological grounds of their unity, then tries to mollify the metaphysical opposition between soul and body from the point of view of the principle of ‘justice, attaching importance to the role of both of them in human salvation. Gnosiological optimism, apology of science and wisdom are essential features of Erzynkatsi's world outlook. The love of wisdom is idolized, made a ‘weapon of survival’ and ‘provider of moral purity’. Truths of science, according to him, are above nation and religion, so the examination of gentile and foreign thinkers' works should not be disdained. Erzynkatsi's humanism becomes apparent in his political theory. The country should be ruled by those well-grounded in the art and science of governing, endowed with cognitive, practical, ethical and legal experience and knowledge required for governing.
7. 14th - 15th Centuries
In contrast with the social-political and economic difficult situation in Armenia, the Armenian philosophy made unprecedented progress benefited by foundation of new schools and universities, sharpening of the ideological struggle between those defending the independence of the Armenian Church from the Catholic Church of Rome and their opponents, the Unitors, Latin thinkers who had come to Armenia with apostolic-homiletic mission. The reviving and development of the Armenian philosophy of this period was greatly contributed by Latin thinkers Bartholomew of Bologna (or of Maragha) and Peter of Aragon who, assisted by Armenian students converted to Catholicism, translated the philosophical and theological works of Gilbert de la Porrée, Thomas Aquinas, and Albertus Magnus into Armenian, as well as wrote their own works in Armenian.They enlarged to some extent the limits of information on the ancient and medieval European philosophy, introduced the scholastic deduction method into the Armenian philosophy, thus stimulating the rebirth of national philosophical traditions. These phenomena were reflected in the works of the Tathev philosophical-theological school representatives: Hovhan Vorotnetsi, Grigor Tathevatsi, Matteos Jughayetsi and Arakel Siunetsi. The Tathev University was at the same time the largest center of the anti-unitor movement. The philosophy of both West European scholastic philosophers and that of Tathev were of synthetic, syllogistic and encyclopedic kind. The works of the Armenian thinkers were original collections of lore where numerous cosmological, natural philosophical, ontological, gnosiological, ethical, aesthetic and theological questions were being examined. The most important ones were those of God’s being, God and world, God and man, soul and body, faith and reason, theology and philosophy, theoretical and practical philosophy, human free will and fate, necessity and providence, secular and religious authorities correlation, as well as the question of the status of universalities.
Hovhan Vorotnetsi's theoretical legacy is notable for the analyses of Aristotle's Categories and Analytics, in which the results of the earlier thinkers’ analyses are generalized; the psychological treatise Who Created Their Hearts Separately which examines the viewpoints on the soul and body disseminated in the ancient and medieval literature, as well as the natural philosophical work Compiled from Philosophers. Vorotnetsi solves the question of faith and reason correlation in favor of faith, feeling that the statements of reason may be true as far as they correspond to the truths of the Revelation. Proceeding from the principle of creation Vorotnetsi criticizes the ancient selfish theories on the origins of the world, defends the idea that the existence of God can be substantiated by reason with the help of proofs ‘from consequences to grounds’. According to him, the human being is a self-willed creature, because he is endowed with reason and will; he is therefore the author and respondent of his deeds. More in detail Vorotnetsi addresses himself to the question of correlation of universalities, the individual and the general, regarding it from the view point of priority, equality and advantage. Defending a moderate realistic viewpoint of the question solution by Aristotle and David the Invincible, the Armenian thinker simultaneously emphasizes the idea of priority and advantage of the individual beings with regard to the general. Without individual creatures the general (kinds and species) cannot exist, the former ones are therefore beyond the latter.
Hovhan Vorotnetsi's ideas are in a more systematical way developed by his student, Grigor Tathevatsi, who is the author of the Book of Questions, Book of Preaching (Summer and Winter volumes), Book Called Voskeporik (Miscellany), Concise Solutions of David's Theory and other works. Tathevatsi clearly differentiates the subject, questions and aims of philosophical investigation (natural analysis) from the theological one (theory of faith). There cannot be two truths on the same question, therefore, ‘we should accept the true words of philosophers, but regard as vain and false those opposing the scholars of the Church’. Unlike the natural analysis, the theory of faith reveals absolute truth. If the natural analysis derives truth from ideas, in the theory of faith idea follows truth. Placing faith above reason, Tathevatsi, nevertheless, states that God’s existence can be proved not only by faith, but also by reason. He lists a number of arguments proving the existence of God which are, on the whole, analogous to those suggested by Thomas Aquinas. The reason cannot substantiate all the principles of the Christianity, not on the grounds that they are unnatural, but supernatural. Among positive and negative methods of knowledge of God Tathevatsi prefers the negative one since it is devoid of anthropomorphic interpretation. He attempts to explain the process of creation rationalistically; he even accepts the idea of the created world eternity, deriving it from the idea of God’s eternity and invariability of his will. Tathevatsi regards the question of human status from the view point of Christian anthropocentrism, defending the idea of man theomorphism, his advantage and priority with regard to other creatures. Human being is an organic unity of soul and body, hence soul and body are simultaneous creations. Not opposing the Christian conception of the body he attempts to defend ‘natural rights’ of the body. In his opinion human cognitive abilities (sense, reason and faith) are components of the united cognitive nature and only their combined activity can provide totality and completeness of cognition. Examining the question of universalities and defending Vorotnetsi’s viewpoint, he uses the idea of the individual ontological priority with respect to the general in the religious-theological struggle in order to prove the advantage and priority of the separate Church - in the present case the Armenian one - with regard to the general - Roman Catholic Church. Tathevatsi’s ‘political nominalism’ was called to substantiate the Armenian nation right to live autonomously and independently.
This purpose was also served by the theory of human free will. Matteos Jughayetsi and Arakel Siunetsi (14th -15th centuries) came out with defense of national philosophical traditions. Jughayetsi in his Analysis of the Hexaemeron, Analysis of the Acts of Apostles, Book of the Eight Sacraments of Sins and other works examines natural philosophical, anthropological and ethical questions. Symbolic style prevails in his views. Jughayetsi presents the created universe as hierarchic assemblage of various beings, each of them symbolizing and informing of some feature of divine world beyond it. Such a perception mollifies the opposition existing between the heavenly and earthly, the divine and human.
The principal philosophical work of Arakel Siunetsi is the analysis of the Definitions of Philosophy by David the Invincible, in which a tendency to make philosophy serve theology is apparent. By doing that, however, Siunetsi does not humble or debase philosophy; on the contrary, he identifies true philosophy with true theology, exalting philosophy to the level of the biblical science. In this way he unites the ancient and Christian Armenian values and actually raises their reputation and possibility of influence in the religious-theological struggle. Siunetsi's religious-philosophical views have anthropological tendency: he attempts to reveal the enigma of human nature and essence, to trace the ways leading to salvation, to find out the sense and aim of human earthly life.
Since the second half of the 15th century the Armenian philosophy had fallen into decay which lasted up to the beginning of the17th century. Though new philosophical works are not composed in this period, still numerous manuscripts are copied and disseminated in which philosophical literature occupies a considerable place.
8. 17th Century
The process of reviving interrupted philosophical traditions of the past begins at the outset of the 17th century and ends in the 1630s. The thriving of philosophy also benefited by the sharpening of the religious-theological struggle between the Armenian and Catholic Churches. Both in the earlier centuries and in this period, translations played an important role in philosophy reviving. If the translations of the earlier centuries had been made from the Greek, Syriac and Latin, in this period those from Latin prevailed. The most valuable of them is the translation of Aristotle’s Metaphysics. The greatest representatives of the later medieval Armenian philosophy were Simeon Jughayetsi († 1657), Stepanos Lehatsi († 1689), Hovhannes Jughayetsi (1643-1715), Clemens Galanus (1610-1666), Stepanos Dashtetsi (born in 1653), Ghukas Vanandetsi (born ca 1650), Khachatur Erzrumtsi (1666-1740) and others.Philosophy of this period developed not only in Armenia proper, but also in Armenian communities of New-Julfa, Constantinople, Amsterdam, Venice and elsewhere. At the examination of various philosophical questions lively discussion is held between the thinkers representing contrary ideological trends. Defending the principle of creation, the Armenian philosophers diversely approach the question of estimating the role of God in the created world. Clemens Galanus and Stepanos Lehatsi think that God directly participates and interferes in natural and social processes, whereas Simeon Jughayetsi, Matteos and Ghukas Vanandetsi, rejecting the existence of divine providence, exclude God interference. The latter’s opinion on the question of correlation of form and matter differs from the others. Like the English philosopher Francis Bacon they do not separate the form from the matter, but regard it as property of material objects.
In the field of Gnosticism traditional statements of questions prevail, but here and there characteristic elements of New Era Gnosticism are visible. The Armenian thinkers are interested in the questions of the structure of human cognitive nature, cognition physiological grounds and correlation of objective and subjective sides (internal and external senses, prior and secondary qualities) in cognition. The question of correlation of universalities, general conceptions and separate objects, is talked of again, paying more attention to the gnosiological mechanism of general conceptions formation. The emphasis on the role of the subject’s activity in Gnosticism is especially apparent in the attempts of classification of sciences. According to Simeon Jughayetsi, classification of sciences is relative since the same subject may become an object of research in various sciences. Stepanos Lehatsi suggests that classification of sciences should be based not on the properties of objects, but on the means, methods and aims of Gnosticism or the degree of trustworthiness of the acquired knowledge.
Ideas inherent in New Era thinking are suggested, in particular, in the works of social-political and moral-ethical nature. The Armenian thinkers examine the questions of human freedom, individual rights, nature of social laws, governing of society, national values and liberation struggle. Suggested new solutions and ideas paved the way for the formation of enlightening philosophy in the Armenian reality. In the 17th-18th centuries Armenian-Georgian philosophical cultural relations are enlarged, numerous philosophical works are translated from Armenian into Georgian, which plays an important role in the development of the Georgian philosophy. Since the second half of the 17th century, parallel with the development of the Armenian printing, philosophical literature has mainly been disseminated in printed books, which benefits both the philosophy popularization and its development.
