The Greek concept of Logos is an enduring idea that has shaped various aspects of Western thought. However, it’s not so simple to understand.
This is partly because the word “logo” is associated with branding. And in the definition discussed here, the word “Logos” has been borrowed and built upon by several philosophies and religions over the centuries. Each has put its own angle on the original meaning, including adding God to it—something that atheists and agnostics have struggled to find a workaround for.
Here, we’ll explore the origin of Logos and the most important adaptations of it that have shifted its definition, along with how Logos merges with the Stoic point of view.
Logos is an ancient Greek word that has nothing to do with product branding or visual symbols that represent a business. It’s a representation of the interplay between reason, rationality and the fundamental principles that are central to the universe.
Its earliest use can be seen in the work of the pre-Socratic philosophers such as Heraclitus, for whom Logos was the fundamental principle that governed the cosmos. He emphasized that the world is in a constant state of flux:
No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.
– Heraclitus
Despite this fluidity of life, Logos represents an underlying order based on reason that maintains the coherence of the universe. In this sense, Logos is both a process and a principle: It’s the rational structure that supports the changing world.
Logos in Stoicism
The Stoics further developed the initial concept of Logos. For Stoic philosophers like Zeno of Citium and Marcus Aurelius, Logos was synonymous with the rational principle that permeates the universe.
The Stoics believed that the universe is an organized whole and that Logos represents the divine reason or rationality that governs it. In the Stoic view, human beings (as rational creatures) are part of this divine reason and must align their own reasoning with the universal Logos to live a virtuous and fulfilling life.
Stoics strive to live in accordance with nature. Nature is and will always be constantly changing. Despite the changes that nature will experience, it’s a product—if you will—of Logos. If nature were a computer, Logos would be its operating system.
Look at everything that exists and observe that it is already in dissolution and in change, and as it were putrefaction or dispersion, or that everything is so constituted by nature as to die.
– Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
Judaism and Logos
The philosopher Philo of Alexandria, who lived in the 1st century C.E., integrated Greek philosophy with Jewish thought by presenting Logos as the intermediary between God and the world. Philo’s Logos was a divine reason or plan that mediated between the transcendent God and the material universe.
This created a bit of a disconnect for people without faith in a higher power. However, God can mean many things. For some, it’s the creator of the universe. For others, it’s our collective consciousness, and so on. Adapting “God” to one’s own definition makes Logos more palatable for many who don’t define themselves as believers.
Christianity and Logos
In early Christianity, the concept of Logos was profoundly influential. The Gospel of John begins with the phrase, “In the beginning was the Logos,” identifying Logos with Christ. (Logos has been translated to Word in English versions of the New Testament.) This identification underscores the role of Logos as both a divine principle and a person in Christian theology.
The concept of Logos in this context reflects an acceptance of Christ as the divine reason or word through which all things were created and by which God interacts with the world.
Here, Logos becomes more of a facet of faith than of reason. While Stoics have no bias against faith, subscribing to a religion isn’t a part of Stoicism. Essentially, everyone is saying the same thing about the importance of Logos, except that some definitions prefer to use the term “God” over calling it reason.
The legacy of Logos
As the cliche goes, the only thing constant is change. And like most cliches, it’s rooted in truth. Yet, human beings not only fear change but often actively fight it. Logos reminds Stoics that change is a fundamental truth about our lives and the environment in which we live.
Is any man afraid of change? Why, what can take place without change? What then is more pleasing or more suitable to the universal nature? And canst thou take a bath unless the wood undergoes a change? And canst thou be nourished unless the food undergoes a change? And can anything else that is useful be accomplished without change? Dost thou not see then that for thyself also to change is just the same, and equally necessary for the universal nature?
– Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
The legacy of Logos continues to inform contemporary discussions about reason, existence and the nature of divine and human interaction, making it a concept of timeless relevance and significance.
Whether one attributes Logos to God, or reason, or anything else, our understanding is that it’s the foundation of our very existence. It’s the unseen force that creates order in the universe. The rest is merely semantics.
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