Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Indian Ocean through the Strait of Hormuz and lies between Iran to the northeast and the Arabian Peninsula to the southwest; the Shatt al-Arab river delta forms the northwest shoreline. The body of water is and internationally known as the "Persian Gulf"; some Arab governments refer to it as the "Arabian Gulf" or "The Gulf", but neither term is recognized internationally. The name "Gulf of Iran" is used by the International Hydrographic Organization; the Persian Gulf was a battlefield of the 1980–1988 Iran–Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers. It is the namesake of the 1991 Gulf War, the air- and land-based conflict that followed Iraq's invasion of Kuwait; the gulf has many fishing grounds, extensive reefs, abundant pearl oysters, but its ecology has been damaged by industrialization and oil spills. The Persian Gulf resides in the Persian Gulf Basin, of Cenozoic origin and related to the subduction of the Arabian Plate under the Zagros Mountains.
The current flooding of the basin started 15,000 years ago due to rising sea levels of the Holocene glacial retreat. This inland sea of some 251,000 square kilometres is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz. In Iran this is called "Arvand Rood", where "Rood" means "river", its length is 989 kilometres, with Iran covering most of the northern coast and Saudi Arabia most of the southern coast. The Persian Gulf is about 56 km wide in the Strait of Hormuz; the waters are overall shallow, with a maximum depth of 90 metres and an average depth of 50 metres. Countries with a coastline on the Persian Gulf are: Iran. Various small islands lie within the Persian Gulf, some of which are the subject of territorial disputes between the states of the region; the International Hydrographic Organization defines the Persian Gulf's southern limit as "The Northwestern limit of Gulf of Oman". This limit is defined as "A line joining Ràs Limah on the coast of Arabia and Ràs al Kuh on the coast of Iran".
The gulf is connected to Indian Ocean through Strait of Hormuz. Writing the water balance budget for the Persian Gulf, the inputs are river discharges from Iran and Iraq, as well as precipitation over the sea, around 180mm/year in Qeshm Island; the evaporation of the sea is high, so that after considering river discharge and rain contributions, there is still a deficit of 416 cubic kilometers per year. This difference is supplied by currents at the Strait of Hormuz; the water from the Gulf has a higher salinity, therefore exits from the bottom of the Strait, while ocean water with less salinity flows in through the top. Another study revealed the following numbers for water exchanges for the Gulf: evaporation = -1.84m/year, precipitation = 0.08m/year, inflow from the Strait = 33.66m/year, outflow from the Strait = -32.11m/year, the balance is 0m/year. Data from different 3D computational fluid mechanics models with spatial resolution of 3 kilometers and depth each element equal to 1–10 meters are predominantly used in computer models.
The Persian Gulf and its coastal areas are the world's largest single source of crude oil, related industries dominate the region. Safaniya Oil Field, the world's largest offshore oilfield, is located in the Persian Gulf. Large gas finds have been made, with Qatar and Iran sharing a giant field across the territorial median line. Using this gas, Qatar has built up a substantial liquefied natural petrochemical industry. In 2002, the Persian Gulf nations of Bahrain, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE produced about 25% of the world's oil, held nearly two-thirds of the world's crude oil reserves, about 35% of the world's natural gas reserves; the oil-rich countries that have a coastline on the Persian Gulf are referred to as the Persian Gulf States. Iraq's egress to the gulf is narrow and blockaded consisting of the marshy river delta of the Shatt al-Arab, which carries the waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers, where the east bank is held by Iran. In 550 BC, the Achaemenid Empire established the first ancient empire in Persis, in the southwestern region of the Iranian plateau.
In the Greek sources, the body of water that bordered this province came to be known as the "Persian Gulf". During the years 550 to 330 BC, coinciding with the sovereignty of the Achaemenid Persian Empire over the Middle East area the whole part of the Persian Gulf and some parts of the Arabian Peninsula, the name of "Pars Sea" is found in the compiled written texts. In the travel account of Pythagoras, several chapters are related to description of his travels accompanied by the Achaemenid king Darius the Great, to Susa and Persepolis, the area is described. From among the writings of others in the same period, there is the inscription and engraving of Darius the Great, installed at junction of waters of Red Sea and the Nile river and the Rome river which belongs to t
Xenophon
Xenophon of Athens was an ancient Greek philosopher, soldier and student of Socrates. As a soldier, Xenophon became commander of the Ten Thousand at about 30, with noted military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge saying of him, “the centuries since have devised nothing to surpass the genius of this warrior.” He established the precedent for many logistical operations and was among the first to use flanking maneuvers and attacks in depth. He was among the greatest commanders of antiquity; as a historian, Xenophon is known for recording the history of his time, the late-5th and early-4th centuries BC, in such works as the Hellenica, which covered the final seven years and the aftermath of the Peloponnesian War, thus representing a thematic continuation of Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War. As one of the Ten Thousand, Xenophon participated in Cyrus the Younger's failed campaign to claim the Persian throne from his brother Artaxerxes II of Persia and recounted the events in Anabasis, his most notable history.
Like Plato, Xenophon is an authority on Socrates, about whom he wrote several books of dialogues and an Apology of Socrates to the Jury, which recounts the philosopher's trial in 399 BC. Despite being born an Athenian citizen, Xenophon was associated with Sparta, the traditional enemy of Athens, his pro-oligarchic politics, military service under Spartan generals, in the Persian campaign and elsewhere, his friendship with King Agesilaus II endeared Xenophon to the Spartans. Some of his works have a pro–Spartan bias the royal biography Agesilaus and the Constitution of the Spartans. Xenophon's works span several genres and are written in plain-language Attic Greek, for which reason they serve as translation exercises for contemporary students of the Ancient Greek language. In the Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers, Diogenes Laërtius observed that, as a writer, Xenophon of Athens was known as the “Attic Muse”, for the sweetness of his diction. Xenophon was born around 431 BC, near the city of Athens, of the deme Erchia of Athens.
His father's family were a wealthy equestrian family. The history of his youth is little attested before 401 BC, when he was convinced by his Boeotian friend Proxenus to participate in the military expedition led by Cyrus the Younger against his elder brother, King Artaxerxes II of Persia. Written years after these events, Xenophon's book Anabasis is his record of the entire expedition of Cyrus against the Persians and the Greek mercenaries’ journey home. Xenophon writes that he had asked the veteran Socrates for advice on whether to go with Cyrus, that Socrates referred him to the divinely inspired Pythia. Xenophon's query to the oracle, was not whether or not to accept Cyrus' invitation, but "to which of the gods he must pray and do sacrifice, so that he might best accomplish his intended journey and return in safety, with good fortune"; the oracle told him to which gods to pray and sacrifice. When Xenophon returned to Athens and told Socrates of the oracle's advice, Socrates chastised him for asking so disingenuous a question.
Under the pretext of fighting Tissaphernes, the Persian satrap of Ionia, Cyrus assembled a massive army composed of native Persian soldiers, but a large number of Greeks. Prior to waging war against Artaxerxes, Cyrus proposed that the enemy was the Pisidians, so the Greeks were unaware that they were to battle against the larger army of King Artaxerxes II. At Tarsus the soldiers became aware of Cyrus's plans to depose the king, as a result, refused to continue. However, Clearchus, a Spartan general, convinced the Greeks to continue with the expedition; the army of Cyrus met the army of Artaxerxes II in the Battle of Cunaxa. Despite effective fighting by the Greeks, Cyrus was killed in the battle. Shortly thereafter, Clearchus was invited to a peace conference, alongside four other generals and many captains, he was betrayed and executed; the mercenaries, known as the Ten Thousand, found themselves without leadership far from the sea, deep in hostile territory near the heart of Mesopotamia, with a hostile population and armies to deal with.
They elected new leaders, including Xenophon himself. Dodge says of Xenophon's generalship, "Xenophon is the father of the system of retreat, the originator of all that appertains to the science of rear-guard fighting, he reduced its management to a perfect method. More originality in tactics has come from the Anabasis than from any dozen other books; every system of war looks to this as to the fountain-head when it comes to rearward movements, as it looks to Alexander for a pattern of resistless and intelligent advance. Necessity to Xenophon was the mother of invention, but the centuries since have devised nothing to surpass the genius of this warrior. No general possessed a grander moral ascendant over his men. None worked for the safety of his soldiers with greater ardor or to better effect." Xenophon and his men had to deal with volleys by a minor force of harassing Persian missile cavalry. Every day, these cavalry, finding no opposition from the Ten Thousand, moved cautiously closer and closer.
One night, Xenophon formed a body of archers and light cavalry. When the Persian cavalry arrived the next day, now firing within several yards, Xenophon unleashed his new cavalry in a shock charge, smashing into the stunned and confused enemy, killing many and routing the rest. Tissaphernes pursued Xenophon with a vast force
Menippus
Menippus of Gadara was a Cynic satirist. His works, all of which are lost, were an important influence on Lucian; the Menippean satire genre is named after him. Little is known about the life of Menippus, he was a native of Gadara in Coele-Syria. The ancient sources agree, he was in the service of a citizen of Pontus, but in some way obtained his freedom and lived at Thebes. Diogenes Laërtius relates a dubious story that he amassed a fortune as a money-lender, lost it, committed suicide through grief. Lucian ranks Menippus with Antisthenes and Crates as among the most notable of the Cynics, his works are all lost. He discussed serious subjects in a spirit of ridicule, delighted in attacking the Epicureans and Stoics. Strabo and Stephanus call him the "earnest-jester", his writings exercised considerable influence upon literature, the Menippean satire genre is named after him. Although the writings of Menippus no longer survive, there are some fragments of Varro's Saturae Menippeae, which were written in imitation of Menippus.
One of the dialogues attributed to Lucian, his avowed imitator, who mentions him, is called Menippus, but since the sub-title resembles that of a work ascribed to Menippus by Diogenes Laërtius, it has been suggested that it is imitated from his Necromancy. Diogenes Laërtius says the following works were written by Menippus: Νέκυια – Necromancy Διαθῆκαι – Wills Ἐπιστολαὶ κεκομψευμέναι ἀπὸ τῶν θεῶν προσώπου – Letters artificially composed as if by the Gods Πρὸς τοὺς φυσικοὺς καὶ μαθηματικοὺς καὶ γραμματικοὺς – Replies to the Natural Philosophers, Mathematicians, Grammarians Γονὰς Ἐπικούρου – The Birth of Epicurus Τὰς θρησκευομένας ὑπ' αὐτῶν εἰκάδας – The School's reverence of the twentieth day In addition, Athenaeus mentions works called Symposium and Arcesilaus, Diogenes Laërtius mentions a Sale of Diogenes written by Menippus which seems to be the main source of the story that Diogenes of Sinope was captured by pirates and sold into slavery. Laërtius, Diogenes. "The Cynics: Menippus". Lives of the Eminent Philosophers.
2:6. Translated by Hicks, Robert Drew. Loeb Classical Library. Lives & Writings on the Cynics, directory of literary references to Ancient Cynics Menippus – Lucian's dialogue in which Menippus visits Hades
Jhelum River
The Jhelum River is a river in Northern India and Eastern Pakistan. It is the westernmost of the five rivers of the Punjab region, passes through the Kashmir Valley, it has a total length of about 725 kilometres. Anjum Sultan Shahbaz recorded some stories of the name Jhelum in his book Tareekh-e-Jhelum as: Many writers have different opinions about the name of Jhelum. One suggestion is; the word Jhelum is derived from the words Jal and Ham. The name thus refers to the waters of a river. However, some writers believe that when "Dara-e-Azam" reached a certain place on the river bank after winning many battles, he fixed his flag at that place and called it "Ja-e-Alam" which means "Place of the Flag". With the passage of time it became Jhelum from "Ja-e-Alam"; the Sanskrit name of this river is Vitasta. The river's name is derived from an apocryphal legend regarding the origin of the river as explained in Nilamata Purana. Goddess Parvati was requested by sage Kasyapa to come to Kashmir for purification of the land from evil practices and impurities of Pisachas living there.
Goddess Parvati assumed the form of a river in the Nether World. Lord Shiva made a stroke with his spear near the abode of Nila. By that stroke of the spear, Goddess Parvati came out of the Nether World. Shiva himself named her as Vitasta, he had excavated with the spear a ditch measuring one Vitasti, through which the river - gone to the Nether World - had come out, so she was given the name Vitasta by him. The river Jhelum is called Vitastā in the Hydaspes by the ancient Greeks; the Vitastā is mentioned as one of the major rivers by the holy scriptures — the Rigveda. It has been speculated that the Vitastā must have been one of the seven rivers mentioned so many times in the Rigveda; the name survives in the Kashmiri name for this river as Vyeth. According to the major religious work Srimad Bhagavatam, the Vitastā is one of the many transcendental rivers flowing through land of Bharata, or ancient India. Alexander the Great and his army crossed the Jhelum in BC 326 at the Battle of the Hydaspes River where he defeated the Indian king, Porus.
According to Arrian, he built a city "on the spot whence he started to cross the river Hydaspes", which he named Bukephala to honour his famous horse Bukephalus or Bucephalus, buried in Jalalpur Sharif. It is thought. According to a historian of Gujrat district, Mansoor Behzad Butt, Bukephalus was buried in Jalalpur Sharif, but the people of Mandi Bahauddin, a district close to Jehlum, believed that their tehsil Phalia was named after Bucephalus, Alexander's dead horse, they say. The waters of the Jhelum are allocated to Pakistan under the terms of the Indus Waters Treaty. India is working on a hydropower project on a tributary of Jhelum river to establish first-use rights on the river water over Pakistan as per the Indus Waters Treaty; the river was regarded as a god by the ancient Greeks, as streams. He was the brother of Iris, the goddess of the rainbow, half-brother to the Harpies, the snatching winds. Since the river is in a country foreign to the ancient Greeks, it is not clear whether they named the river after the god, or whether the god Hydaspes was named after the river.
The river Jhelum rises from Verinag Spring situated at the foot of the Pir Panjal in the south-eastern part of the valley of Kashmir. It's joined by its tributaries Lidder River at Mirgund Khannabal and Sind River at Shadipora in Kashmir Valley, it flows through the Wular lake before entering Pakistan through a deep narrow gorge. The Neelum River, the largest tributary of the Jhelum, joins it, at Domel Muzaffarabad, as does the next largest, the Kunhar River of the Kaghan valley, it connects with rest of Pakistan and Pakistani Kashmir on Kohala Bridge east of Circle Bakote. It is joined by the Poonch river, flows into the Mangla Dam reservoir in the district of Mirpur; the Jhelum enters the Punjab in the Jhelum District. From there, it flows through the plains of Pakistan's Punjab, forming the boundary between the Chaj and Sindh Sagar Doabs, it ends in a confluence with the Chenab at Trimmu in District Jhang. The Chenab merges with the Sutlej to form the Panjnad River which joins the Indus River at Mithankot.
The river has rich power generation potential in India. Water control structures are being built as a result of the Indus Basin Project, including the following: Mangla Dam, completed in 1967, is one of the largest earthfill dams in the world, with a storage capacity of 5,900,000 acre feet Rasul Barrage, constructed in 1967, has a maximum flow of 850,000 ft³/s. Trimmu Barrage, constructed in 1939 some 20 km from Jhang Sadar at the confluence with the Chenab, has maximum discharge capacity of 645,000 ft³/s. Haranpur Constructed in 1933 Approximate 5 km from Malakwal near Chak Nizam Village, its length is 1 km used by Pakistan Railways but there is a passage for light vehicles, motorcyc
Cynicism (philosophy)
Cynicism is a school of thought of ancient Greek philosophy as practiced by the Cynics. For the Cynics, the purpose of life is to live in agreement with nature; as reasoning creatures, people can gain happiness by rigorous training and by living in a way, natural for themselves, rejecting all conventional desires for wealth, power and fame. Instead, they were to lead a simple life free from all possessions; the first philosopher to outline these themes was Antisthenes, a pupil of Socrates in the late 5th century BC. He was followed by Diogenes. Diogenes took Cynicism to its logical extremes, came to be seen as the archetypal Cynic philosopher, he was followed by Crates of Thebes, who gave away a large fortune so he could live a life of Cynic poverty in Athens. Cynicism spread with the rise of the Roman Empire in the 1st century, Cynics could be found begging and preaching throughout the cities of the empire. Cynicism declined and disappeared in the late 5th century, although similar ascetic and rhetorical ideas appear in early Christianity.
By the 19th century, emphasis on the negative aspects of Cynic philosophy led to the modern understanding of cynicism to mean a disposition of disbelief in the sincerity or goodness of human motives and actions. The name Cynic derives from Ancient Greek κυνικός, meaning'dog-like', κύων, meaning'dog'. One explanation offered in ancient times for why the Cynics were called "dogs" was because the first Cynic, taught in the Cynosarges gymnasium at Athens; the word cynosarges means the "place of the white dog". It seems certain, that the word dog was thrown at the first Cynics as an insult for their shameless rejection of conventional manners, their decision to live on the streets. Diogenes, in particular, was referred to as the "Dog", a distinction he seems to have revelled in, stating that "other dogs bite their enemies, I bite my friends to save them." Cynics sought to turn the word to their advantage, as a commentator explained: There are four reasons why the Cynics are so named. First because of the indifference of their way of life, for they make a cult of indifference and, like dogs and make love in public, go barefoot, sleep in tubs and at crossroads.
The second reason is that the dog is a shameless animal, they make a cult of shamelessness, not as being beneath modesty, but as superior to it. The third reason is that the dog is a good guard, they guard the tenets of their philosophy; the fourth reason is that the dog is a discriminating animal which can distinguish between its friends and enemies. So do they recognize as friends those who are suited to philosophy, receive them kindly, while those unfitted they drive away, like dogs, by barking at them. Cynicism is one of the most striking of all the Hellenistic philosophies, it offered people the possibility of freedom from suffering in an age of uncertainty. Although there was never an official Cynic doctrine, the fundamental principles of Cynicism can be summarized as follows: The goal of life is eudaimonia and mental clarity or lucidity - "freedom from smoke" which signified false belief, mindlessness and conceit. Eudaimonia is achieved by living in accord with Nature. Arrogance is caused by false judgments of value, which cause negative emotions, unnatural desires, a vicious character.
Eudaimonia, or human flourishing, depends on self-sufficiency, arete, love of humanity and indifference to the vicissitudes of life. One progresses towards flourishing and clarity through ascetic practices which help one become free from influences – such as wealth and power – that have no value in Nature. Examples include Diogenes' practice of walking barefoot in winter. A Cynic defaces the nomos of society, thus a Cynic has no property and rejects all conventional values of money, fame and reputation. A life lived according to nature requires only the bare necessities required for existence, one can become free by unshackling oneself from any needs which are the result of convention; the Cynics adopted Heracles as epitomizing the ideal Cynic. Heracles "was he who brought Cerberus, the hound of Hades, from the underworld, a point of special appeal to the dog-man, Diogenes." According to Lucian, "Cerberus and Cynic are related through the dog."The Cynic way of life required continuous training, not just in exercising judgments and mental impressions, but a physical training as well: used to say, that there were two kinds of exercise: that, namely, of the mind and that of the body.
None of this meant. Cynics were in fact to live in the full glare of the public's gaze and be quite indifferent in the face of any insults which might result from their unconventional behaviour; the Cynics are said to have invented the idea of cosmopolitanism: when he was asked where he came from, Diogenes replied that he was "a citizen of the world."The ideal Cynic would evangelise.
Plutarch
Plutarch named, upon becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus, was a Greek biographer and essayist, known for his Parallel Lives and Moralia. He is classified as a Middle Platonist. Plutarch's surviving works were intended for both Greek and Roman readers. Plutarch was born to a prominent family in the small town of Chaeronea, about 80 kilometres east of Delphi, in the Greek region of Boeotia, his family was wealthy. The name of Plutarch's father has not been preserved, but based on the common Greek custom of repeating a name in alternate generations, it was Nikarchus; the name of Plutarch's grandfather was Lamprias, as he attested in Moralia and in his Life of Antony. His brothers and Lamprias, are mentioned in his essays and dialogues, which speak of Timon in particular in the most affectionate terms. Rualdus, in his 1624 work Life of Plutarchus, recovered the name of Plutarch's wife, from internal evidence afforded by his writings. A letter is still extant, addressed by Plutarch to his wife, bidding her not to grieve too much at the death of their two-year-old daughter, named Timoxena after her mother.
He hinted at a belief in reincarnation in that letter of consolation. The exact number of his sons is not certain, although two of them and the second Plutarch, are mentioned. Plutarch's treatise De animae procreatione in Timaeo is dedicated to them, the marriage of his son Autobulus is the occasion of one of the dinner parties recorded in the "Table Talk". Another person, Soklarus, is spoken of in terms which seem to imply that he was Plutarch's son, but this is nowhere stated, his treatise on marriage questions, addressed to Eurydice and Pollianus, seems to speak of the latter as having been an inmate of his house, but without any clear evidence on whether she was his daughter or not. Plutarch studied mathematics and philosophy at the Academy of Athens under Ammonius from 66 to 67. At some point, Plutarch received Roman citizenship; as evidenced by his new name, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus, his sponsor for citizenship was Lucius Mestrius Florus, a Roman of consular status whom Plutarch used as a historical source for his Life of Otho.
He lived most of his life at Chaeronea, was initiated into the mysteries of the Greek god Apollo. For many years Plutarch served as one of the two priests at the temple of Apollo at Delphi, the site of the famous Delphic Oracle, twenty miles from his home. By his writings and lectures Plutarch became a celebrity in the Roman Empire, yet he continued to reside where he was born, participated in local affairs serving as mayor. At his country estate, guests from all over the empire congregated for serious conversation, presided over by Plutarch in his marble chair. Many of these dialogues were recorded and published, the 78 essays and other works which have survived are now known collectively as the Moralia. In addition to his duties as a priest of the Delphic temple, Plutarch was a magistrate at Chaeronea and he represented his home town on various missions to foreign countries during his early adult years. Plutarch held the office of archon in his native municipality only an annual one which he served more than once.
He undertook the humblest of duties. The Suda, a medieval Greek encyclopedia, states that Emperor Trajan made Plutarch procurator of Illyria. However, most historians consider this unlikely, since Illyria was not a procuratorial province, Plutarch did not speak Illyrian. According to the 8th/9th-century historian George Syncellus, late in Plutarch's life, Emperor Hadrian appointed him nominal procurator of Achaea – which entitled him to wear the vestments and ornaments of a consul. Plutarch spent the last thirty years of his life serving as a priest in Delphi, he thus connected part of his literary work with the sanctuary of Apollo, the processes of oracle-giving and the personalities who lived or traveled there. One of his most important works is the "Why Pythia does not give oracles in verse". More important is the dialogue "On the E in Delphi", which features Ammonius, a Platonic philosopher and teacher of Plutarch, Lambrias, Plutarch's brother. According to Ammonius, the letter E written on the temple of Apollo in Delphi originated from the following fact: the wise men of antiquity, whose maxims were written on the walls of the vestibule of the temple, were not seven but five: Chilon, Thales and Pittakos.
However, the tyrants Cleobulos and Periandros used their political power in order to be incorporated in the list. Thus, the E, which corresponds to number 5, constituted an acknowledgment that the Delphic maxims originated from the five real wise men; the portrait of a philosopher exhibited at the exit of the Archaeological Museum of Delphi, dating to the 2nd century AD, had been in the past identified with Plutarch. The man, although bearded, is depicted at a young age, his hair and beard are rendered in thin incisions. The gaze is due to the heavy eyelids and the incised pupils; the portrait is no longer thought to represent Plutarch. But a fragmentary hermaic stele next to the portrait did once bear a portrait of Plutarch, since it is inscribed, "The Delphians along with the Chaeroneans dedicated this to Plutarch, following the precepts of the Amphictyony". Plutarc
Marcus Favonius
Marcus Favonius was a Roman politician during the period of the fall of the Roman Republic. He is noted for his imitation of Cato the Younger, his espousal of the Cynic philosophy, for his appearance as the Poet in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar. Favonius was born in around 90 BC in Tarracina, a Roman colony on the Appian Way at the edge of the Volscian Hills. Favonius, with the support of Cato, was chosen aedile at some time between 53 and 52 BC. According to Plutarch, Favonius stood to be chosen aedile, was like to lose it. Favonius was afterwards chosen aedile, Cato, who assisted him in all things that belonged to his office undertook the care of the spectacles that were exhibited in the theatre; as well as being chosen aedile, he was chosen quaestor and served as legatus in Sicily, "probably after his quaestorship". Although many classical reference works list Favonius as having been a praetor in 49 BC, it is a matter of some controversy whether or not he was a praetor at any time between 52–48 BC.
According to F. X. Ryan, in his 1994 article'The Praetorship of Favonius', the matter hinges on the meeting at the senate at which he bade Pompey "stamp on the ground". "When we are forced to decide whether a man who spoke at a meeting summoned by consuls was a praetor or a senator, all we can say is that probability favors the latter alternative." Cassius Dio wrote of Favonius' relation to Cato that Favonius "imitated him in everything", while Plutarch wrote that Favonius was "a fair character... who supposed his own petulance and abusive talking a copy of Cato's straightforwardness". An instance of his imitation of Cato's plainspeaking, ruder and more vehement than the behaviour of his model might have allowed came in 49 BC. At which Favonius "bade Pompey stamp upon the ground, call forth the forces he had promised". According to Plutarch, Favonius was known amongst his fellow Roman aristocrats as a Cynic because of his outspokenness, but a modern writer on Greek philosophy labels him as an "early representative of pseudo-Cynic type" who fell short of the ideal cynicism of the earliest Greek proponents of the doctrine.
Despite his "wild, vehement manner", Favonius was capable of acts of humility, such as he performed to Pompey when he entertained Deiotarus I of Galatia aboard ship. Pompey, for want of his servants, began to undo his shoes himself, which Favonius noticing, ran to him and undid them, helped him to anoint himself, always after continued to wait upon, attended him in all things, as servants do their masters to the washing of his feet and preparing his supper." Favonius was a member of the optimates faction within the Roman aristocracy. Bibulus and Lucius Domitius are dismissed as wicked and dishonourable while Cato is someone "whose versatile and clever talents I do not despise." The writer continues, In addition to those whom I have mentioned the party consists of nobles of utter incapacity, like an inscription, contribute nothing but a famous name. Men like Lucius Postumius and Marcus Favonius seem to me like the superfluous deckload of a great ship; when they arrive safely, some use can be made of them.
Like Cato, Favonius opposed the corruption of many of Rome's leading politicians in general and the rise of the First Triumvirate in particular. When Caesar returned from his praetorship in Spain in 59 BC and stood for consul, he allied himself with Pompey and Clodius. Following an incident in which Cato prevented Caesar from both having a triumph and standing for consulship by a filibustering tactic, after which Cato and Bibulus were physically attacked by Caesar's supporters, Caesar's party demanded two things of the senate: first, that it sign a law concerning the distribution of land. According to Plutarch, "heavy penalties were pronounced against such as would not take the oath", which in this case meant exile. A party led by Cicero and Bibulus, to which Cato and Favonius allied themselves, opposed these measures, but either swore the oath or abstained. Cato, feared these laws and the oath as not being for the common good but as extensions of the power of Caesar and Pompey. All senators except Cato and Favonius agreed to Caesar and Pompeys's measures, whereupon Cicero made an oration urging Cato to soften his attitude.
According to Plutarch, The one, most successful in persuading and inducing him to take the oath was Cicero the orator, who advised and showed him that it was even a wrong thing to think himself alone in duty bound to disobey the general will.
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Laërtius, Diogenes (1925). . Lives of the Eminent Philosophers. 2:6. Translated by Hicks, Robert Drew (Two volume ed.). Loeb Classical Library.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1870). . Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
