2 Answers

  1. Heraclitus is certainly worth reading. His treatise “On Nature” has been preserved in the form of quotations and fragments by later authors, so, of course, it does not give a complete picture of the system of his views, but we have what we have. The fragments were collected in the anthology Die Fragmente der Vorsokratiker by G. A. Diels, which went through several reprints (in particular, under the editorship of V. Kranz). Actually, until now, when quoting Heraclitus (as well as other pre-Socratics), there is a reference to the publication of this fragment in Diels-Kranz (DK). Fragments have been repeatedly translated into European languages, and they are also available in Russian. Last edition: Heraclitus of Ephesus: all the Heritage: in the original languages and in Russian translation / prepared by S. N. Muravyov, Moscow, 2012. I will honestly say that I only saw the publication itself in the store, but I didn't look or read it, so I can't recommend it. I have seen translations by M. A. Dynnik, and they have been reprinted many times. Although, of course, no translation of the original will replace it, since the language of Heraclitus can be very complex, because of the fragmentary nature of fragments, the idea is not always clear (the complexity of perception of Heraclitus was noted by Socrates, and in general by the ancient tradition, which called him the Dark One).

    Then there is the biography of Heraclitus by Diogenes of Laertes (in his ” On Life … philosophers ' is the first biography of Book IX); many fragments of Heraclitus himself originate from there. Aristotle refers to the teachings of Heraclitus several times in his Metaphysics.

    The literature on Heraclitus is extensive. F. H. Cassidy's work (1963, 1982, 2004) has passed through three editions in Russian, and you can view this work, which also provides some bibliography.

  2. According to Heraclitus, you can advise:

    The already named Fragments of Early Greek Philosophers edited by Lebedev (This is the Russian edition of Fragments by Diels, Kranz)

    1. Detailed work of Lebedev ” Logos of Heraclitus. Reconstruction of thoughts and words. Especially interesting are chapters 1, 4 and especially 5 in the First part and, of course, the Second Part, which contains fragments of the philosopher, as well as extensive comments on them.
    2. So that you do not think that Heraclitus is simple and can only be understood in one way, I suggest reading the chapter on Heraclitus in the first volume of the “History of Ancient Aesthetics” by A. F. Losev.
    3. Cassidy F. H. – a major specialist in antiquity, who wrote a large amount of material on Heraclitus (Starting with his doctoral dissertation), among which you can recommend the book “Heraclitus” (1982).
    4. W. C. C. Guthrie, History of Greek Philosophy, vol. 1. It is also a useful book because it was written for students, not for specialists, but despite this, the author takes into account the large number of articles written at the time of writing the book and the research conducted. Perhaps this book is a good place to start exploring the philosophy of Heraclitus the Dark.
    5. For further acquaintance and clarification of some details, you can selectively read Heidagger's work “Heraclitus”
      The self-taught antiquarian Muravyov mentioned above is far from the best option for getting acquainted with Heraclitus, no matter how attractive the titles of his articles and books may be, or how pretentious his prefaces, introductions, and flourishes may be. A detailed review of his edition of Heraclitus is given in the named book by Lebedev.

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