Anaximandros z Mílétu – Kočandrle Radim (2011)

Anaximander of Miletus is the author of one of the first Greek writings on the theme of nature. He stands at the origin of Ionian 'inquiry into nature' and simultaneously at the very beginning of philosophy. Although only some words from his work have survived to this day, the fragment DK 12 B 1 is considered the first philosophical text. In his work, he explained the origin of the world and described a universe that lacks a celestial dome. Along with the explanation of celestial bodies, he depicted meteorological phenomena and derived the emergence of life and humanity. However, he is most famously known for the alleged assertion that the beginning of everything is the apeiron, 'the boundless.' The study presents a translation of the main part of Anaximander's textual legacy and accompanies themes related to his thinking and influence. It offers interpretations of the term to apeiron in the sense of 'boundless nature' against the backdrop of the thinking of opposites and the fragment DK 12 B 1 expressing the cycles of the world's order. It also shows the character of Ionian thinking with roots in the fields of astronomy and meteorology, applying geometry and in accordance with the language of religion.