Thales of Miletus is considered the father of Western Philosophy

The father of Western Philosophy: Thales of Miletus

The father of Western Philosophy and founder of the school in Milesia is known as Thales of Miletus. Many of his metaphysical works are considered to explain phenomena using natural explications in contrast to the supernatural in the universe. He was the first to establish theories and describe general concepts, apart from the father of Western philosophy.

The hypothesis of Thales: “One or more nature must be one or more”

On the creation of hypothesis, he said, “For, while it is preserved, one or more nature must be one or more.” By this argument, he means that one thing can generate other things and yet remain intact as a response.

Water as the primary material

Thales identified water as the primary material from which all things came to being. His view is that the earth rests because it can float on water like a raft or a log of wood. He says none of these things can rest on air but on water. He further got this belief from the fact that the nourishment of everything is moist (contains some water) and that the seeds of everything contain some moisture. For this reason, Thales thought that water is the natural principle of all things.

Mythology vs. Science

I think the principal reason why Thales arrived at the conclusion that water was the source of all beings is due to its importance in life and nature. The world and the universe can better be understood in terms of mythology. Instead, Thales avoids mythology and prefers hypotheses and theories (science). There are certain phenomena that science (theories and hypotheses) cannot explain. I prefer mythology to science because myths were there even before science or language were. I also feel that Thales is wrong as he seems to be following the traditional Homeric world image-Oceanos. This viewpoint was that both mortal and immortal life came from water which I feel is not true. The earth cannot float on water like a raft as Thales assumes and there are no gods controlling the world.