Daimon

I choose daimon as a word to excavate because of the unexpected positive turn it held for Socrates. “Socrates said he had a life-time daimon that always warned him of danger and bad judgment, but never directed his actions. He said his daimon was more accurate than omens of either watching the flights or reading the entrails of birds, which were two respected forms of divination of the time.”[1] We could simply claim that Socrates’s daimon is similar to Pinocchio’s Jimmy Cricket acting as his conscience and guide. There is an added element that is added to the idea of daimon in its source comes from a higher power in that it is, “a supernatural being of Greek mythology intermediate between gods and men.”[2] Furthermore it was seen as, “An inferior deity, such as a deified hero, an attendant spirit, a genius.”[3] A daimon was held as a quasi divine being sent by the gods. It makes for an interesting entity in that its residence is within the individual but its source was external.

So now I wish to briefly investigate the transition from daimon to demon. This probably saw its transition begin with the division between good and evil by the Greeks. “The ancient Greeks thought there were good and bad demons called 'eudemons' and 'cacodemons.’ Good daimons were considered to be guardian spirits, giving guidance and protection to the ones they watched over. Bad daimons led people astray.” [1] Late Latin held demon to be “an evil spirit, a source of great evil, harm, or distress.” [2] This terminology has become the more widespread usage.

Finally I want to show how daimon relates to our field. Daimon seems to be a nebulous source of wisdom and inspiration which cannot be limited down to anyone field. For Socrates it allowed him to strive towards finding the truth, from that we could claim that we seek to better understand our reality. To me, Daimon in our or any discipline represents references. They are external sources of wisdom, knowledge, and experience that we internalize to guide us in our study of knowledge. The Greeks viewed their deified heroes as daimons; I believe we do that same. Only our heroes are based on their academic achievements, even now we still turn to Plato thousands of years later for inspiration and guidance.


[1] "Daimon." Encyclopedia Mythica. 2008. Encyclopedia Mythica Online.04 Apr. 2008 <http://www.pantheon.org/articles/d/daimon.html>.

[2] “Demon.” Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 2008. Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online.
04 Apr. 2008 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/demon

[3] “Daimon.” The Free Dictionary. 2008. The Free Dictionary Online.
04 Apr. 2008 http://www.thefreedictionary.com/daimon