15. Fire as First Matter and Mover: The Problem of the Cosmos

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

Why Fire is Superior to Previous Guesses #

Heraclitus proposes fire as the first principle, arguing it is superior to earth, water, or air:

• Quantitatively (in terms of subtlety): Fire is the thinnest and most penetrating substance. Its sharpness comes from thinness; fire penetrates matter completely, exemplified by how it cuts and reduces things to ash.
• Functionally: Fire is capable of motion and transformation—it can move things and change their nature.
• Analogously to modern physics: Heisenberg notes a parallel between fire and energy in physics. Like energy (E=mc²), fire functions as both matter (out of which things are made) and mover (what causes change).

The Problem: Fire as Matter vs. Fire as Mover #

Heraclitus’s insight reveals a fundamental tension:

• What makes fire a good mover: Its heat. Hot air rises; fire applied to water causes motion.
• What makes fire a bad candidate for unlimited matter: Its definite qualities (hot, dry). If everything were made of fire, everything would have to be hot—limiting rather than unlimited.
• The implication: What makes fire effective as a mover is precisely what disqualifies it as matter. This suggests the need to separate the mover from the matter conceptually.

Matter and Mover Through History #

As philosophical thought develops, matter and mover become increasingly distinct:

• Heraclitus: Fire combines both; matter and mover run together, creating tension.
• Empedocles (next thinker): Matter and mover are more separated.
• Anaxagoras: Matter and mover are entirely distinct. Anaxagoras introduces Mind (Nous) as a separate cause.

Berquist notes that the Marxists object to this separation because separating matter from mover is the beginning of the path toward God. So long as matter and mover remain unified (and thus mindless), materialism is preserved. Once separated, one is forced toward the recognition of a transcendent principle.

The Cosmos Problem: The Central Question #

Heraclitus states: “The most beautiful universe is a heap piled under the land.”

This fragment poses the most profound question:

1. Observation: The universe exhibits cosmos—a beautiful, ordered, intelligible whole.

   • Cosmos (κόσμος): Greek word meaning beautiful, ordered whole (source of “cosmetics”)
   • The universe is elegant, unified, mathematically harmonious

2. The Problem: If the origin of all things is mindless matter or mindless mover (like Heraclitus’s fire), the result should be chaos, not cosmos.

   • A mindless fire raging through a building leaves “a heap piled at random” (e.g., the Twin Towers)
   • Mindless causation produces disorder

3. The Apparent Contradiction: How can mindless causation produce a cosmos?

   • This is the fundamental problem that leads to Anaxagoras’s introduction of Mind (Nous) as a necessary cause
   • Socrates in Plato’s Phaedo expresses great enthusiasm for Anaxagoras’s doctrine that Mind orders the universe
   • Aristotle says Anaxagoras “seemed like a sober man among drunk men”—all others were “drunk” on mindless matter

4. Why This Matters: The apparent contradiction between mindless origin and ordered result forces philosophy toward theology—toward the recognition that a mind must be responsible for cosmic order.

Connection to Modern Physics #

Berquist shows how modern physics embodies the same insight:

• Energy in Physics: Like fire, energy is both matter (E=mc²) and mover. Energy can be transformed into mass, and mass manifests as energy.
• The Equations: Modern physics uses universal equations as premises from which calculations are deduced. These equations relate to matter-in-motion but don’t contain actual matter or motion themselves—they are abstract, mathematical formulations.
• The Parallel: Just as the premises of a syllogism relate to the conclusion as both matter (containing the terms that compose it) and maker (the middle term that brings them together), so universal equations contain something like both the matter-aspect and the mover-aspect.
• The Limitation: Mathematical formulations lack the concrete reality of matter-in-motion; they are like shadows of reality.

The Principle of Simplicity and Unity in Reason #

Heraclitus states: “It is wise, listening not to me, but to reason, to agree that all things are one.”

This appeals to a natural inclination of reason toward unity and simplicity:

• Reason naturally seeks the simplest explanation
• Order is based on unity
• The mind resists accepting mindless matter as the origin because reason itself is inclined toward intelligibility

Berquist traces this principle through:

• Ancient philosophers: All seek one simple, eternal, unchanging principle underlying change
• Modern scientists: The same inclination toward unity, simplicity, and beauty guides modern physics (Galileo, Kepler, Newton, Einstein, Planck, Heisenberg)

The Soul’s Infinity #

Heraclitus’s final fragment: “One could not find in going the ends of the soul, having traveled every road. So deep is the reason it has.”

• Something infinite about the soul
• The soul’s capacity for reason is boundless
• This anticipates Anaxagoras’s teaching that Mind (Nous) is unlimited (ἀπέραντος)

Key Arguments #

The Superiority of Fire Over Other Elements #

1. Fire is thinner and more penetrating than air, water, or earth

   • Thinness = capacity to permeate and cut
   • Sharpness comes from thickness or thinness (being thin makes fire sharp)
   • Charcoal on fire: fire gets inside and penetrates

2. Fire demonstrates both matter and mover aspects

   • As matter: Something can be made from fire (though not everything)
   • As mover: Fire’s heat causes motion and transformation

3. Yet fire is inferior in terms of definite quality

   • Fire is inferior not only to air but even to water
   • If fire were the first matter, everything would be hot (definite quality)
   • This contradicts the requirement for unlimited matter

The Incompatibility of Fire as Both Matter and Mover #

1. What makes fire a good mover: Being hot

   • Heat is what enables fire to move things
   • Heat makes hot air rise
   • Heat applied to water causes motion and transformation

2. What makes it a poor candidate for unlimited matter: Being hot

   • A definite quality limits matter
   • Matter should be without limiting qualities (unlimited)
   • The same feature (heat) that makes it a good mover makes it a bad matter

3. Conclusion: Matter and mover must be distinguished

   • They cannot be the same thing without contradiction
   • Later thinkers (Empedocles, Anaxagoras) increasingly separate them

The Cosmos Problem: Mindless Origin Cannot Produce Ordered Result #

1. The Evidence: The universe is cosmos, not chaos

   • Beautiful order
   • Mathematical elegance and simplicity
   • Intelligible structure

2. The Problem: If first cause is mindless matter/mover, result should be chaos

   • Mindless fire produces random heap (e.g., burning buildings)
   • Without intellect, no reason for order

3. The Implication: A mind must be responsible for cosmic order

   • Anaxagoras introduces Nous (Mind) as a separate cause
   • This is the philosophical path toward theology

Important Definitions #

Cosmos (κόσμος) #

Greek word meaning “beautiful, ordered whole.” Implies:

• Unity and order based in unity
• Intelligible structure
• Elegance and proportion
• Source of the word “cosmetics” (beautification through order)

Matter vs. Mover #

• Matter: That out of which things are made; should be unlimited and without definite limiting qualities
• Mover: That which causes change, motion, and transformation; must have active capacity and power
• The Tension: A thing cannot function well as both simultaneously

Nous (νοῦς) #

Mind; intellect. Anaxagoras’s innovation: introducing Mind as a separate cause from matter, necessary to explain cosmic order.

Middle Term #

In analogy with logic: what brings things together. In the context of causation, the mover is like a middle term—it doesn’t enter into the matter of the result but is the agent that brings matter together.

Examples & Illustrations #

Paper and Fire #

• Paper left in air: will be cut up (by wind, etc.)
• Paper put in fire: burned to ashes, becomes a heap
• Fire’s sharpness (penetration) comes from thinness

Hot Air and Water on a Stove #

• Hot air rises (demonstrates fire’s motive power through heat)
• Fire under water causes it to move and eject from the pan
• Heat is what enables fire to cause motion

The Twin Towers #

• Mindless fire raging through buildings
• Result: a heap piled at random
• Illustrates that mindless causation produces disorder, not cosmos

The Syllogism Analogy #

In Barbara (AAA-1): Every B is A; Every C is B; Therefore, Every C is A.

• Matter aspect: C and A (the parts of which the conclusion is made) are like matter—they are what the conclusion is composed of
• Mover aspect: B (the middle term) is like the mover or maker—it brings C and A together; without B, C would not be joined to A
• Distinction: The premises are in some way like both matter and maker, but we can distinguish them more clearly here than in fire

The Matchmaker Analogy #

• A matchmaker brings two people together to marry
• The matchmaker is not a part of the marriage (not matter)
• But the matchmaker is the cause that unites them (like mover)
• Similarly, the middle term brings together the major and minor terms without being part of the conclusion

Euclid’s Theorem on Rectangles #

For rectangles with the same perimeter, the square (the simplest form) has the greatest area:

• Square 5×5: perimeter = 20, area = 25

• Rectangle 4×6: perimeter = 20, area = 24

• Rectangle 3×7: perimeter = 20, area = 21

• Rectangle 2×8: perimeter = 20, area = 16

• As you depart from the square, area decreases

• The difference always equals the square of the difference between the sides:

  • (5−4)² = 1² = 1, and 25−24 = 1
  • (5−3)² = 2² = 4, and 25−21 = 4
  • (5−2)² = 3² = 9, and 25−16 = 9

• Principle illustrated: The simplest form contains more; simplicity is not poverty but richness

• Application: This parallels Planck’s principle—the more general a law, the simpler its form; the simpler contains the more

Grazing Animals on Hillside #

• Crooked geometrists sold land by perimeter, not area
• With the same amount of fence (perimeter), different shapes enclose different areas
• A farmer with a simple square fence has more grazing area than with a complex rectangular fence
• Illustration of principle: Simplicity yields more than complexity

Ball Rolling Down Hill and Back Up #

• Ball loses height going down (loses potential energy)
• Ball gains speed going down (gains kinetic energy)
• Potential energy transforms into kinetic energy
• Going up the hill: kinetic energy transforms back into potential energy
• If ball doesn’t reach original height, the “lost” energy appears as heat (friction in the tracks)
• Principle: Energy is conserved through transformation, not created or destroyed
• Relates to the ancient principle of first matter remaining throughout all change (Axiomander)

Questions Addressed #

Why is fire superior to previous guesses as the first principle? #

Answer: Fire is thinner, more penetrating, and more universal than earth, water, or air. It demonstrates both matter and mover aspects. However, its definite quality (heat) makes it ultimately inadequate as unlimited matter, revealing the need to distinguish matter from mover.

How can fire be both matter and mover? #

Answer: Heraclitus seems to combine them in fire. Fire is what things are made of (matter aspect) and what moves and transforms things (mover aspect). But what makes fire good at moving (heat) makes it bad at being unlimited matter (definite quality limits), suggesting they must eventually be separated.

If the origin of all things is mindless matter or mover, why is the universe ordered rather than chaotic? #

Answer: This is the central problem that forces philosophy toward theology. Mindless causation should produce chaos (a heap piled at random), not cosmos (beautiful order). The existence of cosmos necessitates a Mind (Nous) as the source of order, as Anaxagoras will argue.

What is the connection between modern physics and Heraclitus’s insights? #

Answer: Energy in modern physics functions like fire—it is both matter (E=mc²) and mover. Universal equations relate to matter-in-motion but are abstract mathematical formulations (like shadows of reality). The principle of simplicity that guides modern physics (Einstein, Planck, Heisenberg) reflects the same natural inclination of reason that Heraclitus appeals to.

How does simplicity relate to richness and power? #

Answer: The simplest forms contain more than complex ones. A square with the same perimeter as an oblong encloses more area. The most universal laws have the simplest mathematical form (Planck). God, the simplest being, is the most universal cause. This paradox—that simplicity is richer than complexity—is a fundamental principle in reason and nature.

Notable Quotes #

“If you leave this paper here in the air for a while, it’s going to be cut up. No, you put that paper in the fire and it’s going to be cut to pieces. It’s a bunch of pile of ashes on the floor. Now, the fire is sharp, right?” — Duane Berquist, illustrating fire’s penetrating power

“What makes it a good mover? It’s being hot. And you can see that, huh? Hot air rises. So hot is what enables fire to move things. And what makes fire a good mover, it makes it, in a way, a bad matter.” — Duane Berquist, on the tension between fire’s aspects

“It is wise listening not to me, but to reason, to agree that all things are one.” — Heraclitus (DK-50)

“One could not find in going the ends of the soul, having traveled every road. There’s something, what, infinite about the soul. So deep is the reason it has.” — Heraclitus, on the soul’s infinity

“The most beautiful universe is a heap piled under the land.” — Heraclitus (DK-124), on the cosmos problem

“He seemed like a sober man among drunk men.” — Aristotle, on Anaxagoras (via Berquist)

“The more general a natural law is, the more it covers, the simpler is its form.” — Max Planck

“The genuine physicist believes obstinately in the unity and simplicity of nature, despite any appearance of the contrary.” — Max Born

“We are seeking for the simplest possible system of thought which will bind together the observed facts… the one which contains the fewest possible mutually independent postulates or axioms.” — Einstein