The 12 Basic Hellenic Characteristics

1. Hellenic Paideia – Παιδεία –, and the ability to understand the abstract Hellenic meanings and ideas in their full depth.

2. Polytheistic perspective of Cosmos – self creation, non-linear time, multiplicity of the Divine…

3. Eleutheroprepeia – Ελευθεροπρεπεία –, and Parrhesia – Παρρεσία: to stand and act as a free person.
The status of the free has to be proven in an everyday basis.

4. Tolerance – Επιεικεία – and Understanding – Καταληψις – for all the other ethnic cultures.
Dialectical and reasonable word → Λόγος.

5. Eugeneia – Ευγενεία –, Eunomia – Ευνομία –, and Euseveia – Ευσεβεία: harmonious personal and socio-political ways. Respect for the Divine.

6. Constant awareness and desire for the Excellent – Aristevein – Αριστεβείν.

7. Bravery – Ανδρεία –, and Fearlessness – Αφοβία.

8. «Kata physin zein» – κατα φύσιν ζειν: living according to the Natural Laws, familiarity with the human body, high ecological conscience.

9. Prudence – Φρόνησις –, disinterestedness – εαυτοΰ καταφρόνησις –, and frugality – Λιτότης.

10. Direct democracy, Panarchy – Παναρχή – full socio-political participation –, emphasis on the socio-political rather than on the private element of everyday life.

11. Personal and ethnical self-knowledge, the «know yourself» saying – γνώθι σεαυτόν –, for both the individual and the ethnos.

12. Polymereia – Πολυμερεία – multifacetedness – and industriousness – Φιλοτεχνία.

… How much farther away from our «founding fathers» can we stand yet?…

RIC