Introduction

Earl Fontanelle: Plato is the father of Western Esotericism. He says that almost everyone who claimed to be a Pythagorean or to write about Pythagoras after Plato was unconsciously or consciously writing about Plato's ideas, which have been thought by many to be Pythagorean. But there are indeed recognizably Pythagorean ideas in some of Plato's dialogues, although what that means exactly has been the subject of a lot of controversy. And so you see why the previous episodes on the Pre-Secratics and Orpheus have been essential pro-Lagomena to looking at Plato.