ΑΝΑΜΝΗΣΙΣ
Anamnesis — «re-remembering», the recovery of what had been forgotten — is one of Plato's boldest teachings: learning is not the acquisition of new knowledge but the recollection of what the soul knew before it was incarnated. In the Meno, Socrates demonstrates the doctrine by guiding an unlettered slave to solve a geometrical problem. In the Phaedo, anamnesis becomes an argument for the immortality of the soul. Its lexarithm (560) is shared with the word itself in a variant form, underscoring its self-referential character.
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According to the Liddell-Scott-Jones Lexicon, ἀνάμνησις is the «calling to mind», the «recollection», the act of bringing back into consciousness something that had been forgotten. It is formed from the prefix ἀνα- (again) and the root μνη- of memory, denoting an active mental operation: not mere retention (μνήμη) but retrieval.
In common usage, anamnesis retains the meaning of recollection or reminder — whatever makes someone remember something. The term is also used in ritual contexts: the anamnesis of the Lord in the Eucharist («do this in remembrance of me», Luke 22:19) means the ritual re-presentation of the saving events.
Its real dimensions, however, emerge in Plato, where it becomes a fundamental epistemological concept. In the Meno (81a-86c), Socrates teaches that the soul, being immortal, has seen «all things» before birth; learning in earthly life is nothing but the recollection of this precosmic knowledge. In the Phaedo (72e-77a) the doctrine is embedded in an argument for the pre-existence and immortality of the soul. In the Phaedrus (249b-c) anamnesis is connected with the recollection of the vision of the Forms in the supercelestial place. The Neoplatonists — Plotinus, Proclus — will further develop the theory, linking it with the soul's return to its original state.
Etymology
Cognates: μνήμη (memory, retention), μνήμων (one who remembers), μνημόσυνον (memento), μνημονεύω, ἀμνησία (loss of memory), ὑπόμνησις (reminder), μιμνήσκω. Foreign parallels: Lat. memini, reminiscor; Eng. mind, memento; Skr. smṛti.
Main Meanings
- Recollection, calling to mind — The general, everyday meaning — the act of remembering something that had been forgotten.
- Reminder, memento — What provokes recollection — an object, a word, a ritual that brings something back to mind.
- Platonic anamnesis (epistemological) — The doctrine that learning is recollection of precosmic knowledge — the soul remembers the Forms it had beheld before incarnation.
- Immortality argument — In the Phaedo, anamnesis proves the pre-existence and therefore the immortality of the soul.
- Theory of learning — According to Plato, teaching does not transfer knowledge from teacher to pupil but helps him draw out what he already knows.
- Ritual anamnesis — In the Christian Eucharist, anamnesis is not mere psychological recollection but mystical re-presentation of the saving events.
- Neoplatonic anamnesis — In Plotinus and Proclus, the soul remembers its origin in the One; philosophy becomes an exercise of return.
- Historical commemoration — In political and social contexts, anamnesis can be a public rite or a literary genre honoring the past.
Philosophical Journey
Anamnesis traces an arc through three stages: as a common Greek word, as a Platonic epistemological theory, and as a mystical ritual concept in both Christianity and Neoplatonism.
Lexarithmic Analysis
The lexarithmos of the word ΑΝΑΜΝΗΣΙΣ is 560, from the sum of its letter values:
560 decomposes into 500 (hundreds) + 60 (tens) + 0 (units).
The 18 Methods
Applying the 18 traditional lexarithmic methods to the word ΑΝΑΜΝΗΣΙΣ:
| Method | Result | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Isopsephy | 560 | Base lexarithmos |
| Decade Numerology | 2 | |
| Letter Count | 9 | |
| Cumulative | 0/60/500 | Units 0 · Tens 60 · Hundreds 500 |
| Odd/Even | Even | Feminine force |
| Left/Right Hand | Right | Divine (≥100) |
| Quotient | — | Comparative method |
| Palindromes | No | |
| Onomancy | — | Comparative |
| Sphere of Democritus | — | Divination with lunar day |
| Zodiacal Isopsephy | Moon ☽ / Sagittarius ♐ | 560 mod 7 = 0 · 560 mod 12 = 8 |
Isopsephic Words (560)
The LSJ lexicon contains a total of 82 words with lexarithmos 560. For the full catalog and AI semantic filtering, see the interactive tool.
Sources & Bibliography
- Liddell, H. G., Scott, R., Jones, H. S. — A Greek-English Lexicon. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1940, s.v. ἀνάμνησις.
- Plato — Meno 81a-86c, Phaedo 72e-77a, Phaedrus 249b-c. Loeb Classical Library.
- Aristotle — De memoria et reminiscentia. Loeb Classical Library.
- Plotinus — Enneads IV.3-4. Transl. A. H. Armstrong, Loeb Classical Library.
- Scott, Dominic — Recollection and Experience: Plato's Theory of Learning and its Successors. Cambridge University Press, 1995.
- Fine, Gail — Plato on Knowledge and Forms: Selected Essays. Oxford University Press, 2003.
- Vlastos, Gregory — Socrates: Ironist and Moral Philosopher. Cornell University Press, 1991.