O VIZIUNE A EDUCATIEI ÎN OPERA LUI DIMITRIE CANTEMIR

Abstract

Concerning the encyclopedic scholar, considered by historians as the most representative figure of Romanian humanism, Dimitrie Cantemir left posterity an impressive work, consisting of works on historical themes, geography, philosophy, music, etc.. Although he did not develop a systematic study of pedagogy, ideas about education are found in many of his writings as an element of a well organized philosophy. Cantemir's conception of education and education-type combines humanist beliefs about culture and civilization with new elements, which prefigures and anticipates Enlightenment, particularly rationalist conception of man, which emphasizes dignity as a free being, moral and perfected by culture. Dimitrie Cantemir addresses issues of education and humanistic education perspective, viewed as phenomena of culture and civilization, which make human progress. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

Ionu? Vl?descu*

[email protected]

* Lect. univ. dr., Facultatea de Psihologie ?i ?tiin?e ale Educa?iei, Universitatea "Petre Andrei" din Ia?i.

Abstract: Concerning the encyclopedic scholar, considered by historians as the most representative figure of Romanian humanism, Dimitrie Cantemir left posterity an impressive work, consisting of works on historical themes, geography, philosophy, music, etc.. Although he did not develop a systematic study of pedagogy, ideas about education are found in many of his writings as an element of a well organized philosophy. Cantemir's conception of education and education-type combines humanist beliefs about culture and civilization with new elements, which prefigures and anticipates Enlightenment, particularly rationalist conception of man, which emphasizes dignity as a free being, moral and perfected by culture. Dimitrie Cantemir addresses issues of education and humanistic education perspective, viewed as phenomena of culture and civilization, which make human progress.

Keywords: Dimitrie Cantemir, education, encyclopedia, civilization, culture, enlightenment, morality.

1. Introducere

Dimitrie Cantemir a fost primul intelectual roman care a reu?it s? dea gândurilor sale o form? autentic filosofic?. De?i nu a fost foarte original, nu se poate contesta for?a sa creatoare în acest domeniu. Mult? vreme cei care l-au urmat nici m?car nu l-au egalat.

Dar importan?a lui excep?ional? în filosofia român? este dat?, în aceea?i m?sura de faptul c?, încercând s? transpun? în limba român? concepte pân? atunci str?ine, a inaugurat procesul de formare a limbajului filosofic românesc, care va continua apoi pân? la sfâr?itul secolului al XIX- lea. Cunoa?terea limbilor str?ine vorbite curent la Constantinopol (araba, turca, persana), a limbilor antice (greaca ?i latina), a limbilor apusene (italiana, franceza, germana) ?i a limbii ruse, în perioada exilului, i-au asigurat lui Dimitrie Cantemir accesul la cultura antic? greco-latina, dar ?i la culturile bizantin?, islamic? ?i apusean?. S-a întors la Moldova în 1691, tân?rul prin?, ?colit într-o universitate prestigioas?, a c?p?tat experien?a politic? a luptei pentru putere ?i gustul intrigilor diplomatice.

Imediat dup? moartea tat?lui s?u, Dimitrie a fost numit domn de c?tre boieri ?i a primit, la doar 19 ani, toate onorurile ceremonialului de însc?unare. Îns?, dup? trei s?pt?mâni, a fost arestat de turci ?i dus la Constantinopol, unde a r?mas f?r? avere ?i f?r? vreo perspectiv? de revenire ca domnitor. Interesele politice ale turcilor care au început s? se team? de un atac al armatelor ?arului Petru cel Mare, l-au trimis pe tronul Moldovei, unde nu a r?mas decât opt luni, timp suficient pentru a întreprinde marea aventur? a încheierii unui tratat cu Petru cel Mare ?i a participat la lupta de la St?nile?ti din 1711, soldat? cu înfrângerea alia?ilor.

Pacea, cump?rat? cu bani grei de ?ar nu a impus condi?ii foarte grele: domnitorul Moldovei, Dimitrie Cantemir, devenit pentru turci un tr?d?tor, a avut de a se refugia în Rusia, împreun? cu familia, dar ?i cu o suit? format? din 5000 de moldoveni (boieri, curteni, osta?i) r?ma?i credincio?i, printre care se afla ?i Ion Neculce, viitorul cronicar. Dac? visul lui Cantemir de a-?i vedea ?ara eliberat? de turci ?i de a întemeia o dinastie ereditar? i-a fost spulberat de împrejur?rile istorice pe care le-a tr?it, acelea?i vremuri tulburi i-au asigurat ?i r?gazul de a sus?ine o prodigioas? activitate ?tiin?ific?, istoric? ?i filosofic? în numai 50 de ani de via??. Dimitrie Cantemir r?mâne în con?tiin?a general? ca erudit ?i scriitor. Acesta a scris, în limba latin?, la cererea Academiei din lucrarea "Descriptio Moldaviae", în 1716, opera de erudi?ie, ce reia la un nivel superior ideile lui Miron Costin din "De neamul moldovenilor". Perioada creatoare din tinere?e a lui Dimitrie Cantemir a stat sub semnul filosofiei.

Înc? de la 25 de ani (1698), el publica, la Ia?i, atât în limba român?, cât ?i în limba greac?, prima sa lucrare, "Divanul sau gâlceava în?eleptului cu lumea sau Giude?ul sufletului cu trupul", care este ?i prima lucrare propriu-zis? de filosofie scris? în cultura român?, în limba român?. Este o oper? filosofic?, etic? ?i religioas?, conceput? ca un dialog platonic între Lume ?i în?elept, afla?i într-o semnificativ? opozi?ie. La scurt timp, în anul 1700, pe aceea?i direc?ie filosofic?, a scris în limba latin? lucrarea "Sacrosanctae scientiae indepingibilis imago" ("Icoana de nezugr?vit a ?tiin?ei sacre") în aceasta crea?ie, Dimitrie Cantemir a fost influen?at de teosofia lui Van Helmont, un filosof ?i gânditor fl?mând care consider? c? se poate ajunge la cunoa?terea divinit??ii în mod direct, prin intui?ie intelectual?, l?sând deoparte toate c?ile obi?nuite ale ?tiin?ei.

În aceast? carte, Dimitrie Cantemir ?i-a propus s? contureze principiile sacre care stau la baza unei astfel de cunoa?teri inefabile, cu statul egal de fizic? ?i teologie, punând în discu?ie, de fapt, problematica unei adev?rate ontologii. Lucrarea, mult? vreme inedit? a fost tradus? în române?te abia în 1928 cu titlul de Metafizica dar, în realitate, ea este o opera de filosofie a naturii, în sensul Fizicii lui Aristotel. De?i nu s-a bucurat de acela?i succes ca al lucr?rilor mai sus men?ionate, "Istoria ieroglific?", considerat? primul roman al literaturii noastre, este o crea?ie valoroas? ?i important? pentru evolu?ia culturii române.

Istoria ieroglific? este deopotriv? un manual politic ?i un eseu filosofic. Cantemir a dezb?tut probleme de conducere a statului, f?când indirect o demonstra?ie a calit??ilor ideale ale domnitorului luminat. El a crezut, în sens umanist, c? valorile spirituale hot?r?sc mersul istoriei, propunând în subtext o ierarhie social? bazat? pe meritele intelectuale ale indivizilor. Istoria ieroglific? este o carte de literatur? baroc?, în care se îmbin? temperamentul p?tima? al autorului cu lirismul s?u. La rândul s?u, G. C?linescu îl asociaz? pe D. Cantemir lui Lorenzo de Medici, asocia?iei numai în parte servit? de realitatea biografic?, pentru c? în ordinea operei ?tiin?ifice, atât de diverse, domnul moldovean e mai mult decât principiile florentinului.

Personalitate prodigioas?, poliglot, comparabil cu umani?tii rena?terii, el folose?te în opera sa - într-o m?sur? incomparabil mai mare decât cronicarii Miron Costin, Nicolae Costi, stolnicul Constantin Cantacuzino ?i cu rezultate deosebit de fructuoase - numeroase aspecte folclorice, crea?ii populare ?i obiceiuri.

2. Idei despre educa?ie în opera lui Dimitrie Cantemir

C?rturar cu preocup?ri enciclopedice, considerat de c?tre istorici drept figura cea mai reprezentativ? a umanismului românesc, Dimitrie Cantemir1 a l?sat posterit??ii o oper? impresionant?, alc?tuit? din lucr?ri pe teme istorice, geografice, filosofice, muzicale etc. Chiar dac? nu a elaborat o lucrare sistematic? de pedagogie, ideile despre educa?ie se reg?sesc în multe dintre scrierile sale, ca elemente constitutive ale unei concep?ii filosofice bine închegate. Un caracter educativ prezint? îndeosebi dou? dintre lucr?rile elaborate de c?tre Dimitrie Cantemir: Divanul sau gâlceava în?eleptului cu lumea sau giude?ul sufletului cu trupul (1698) ?i Locuri neclare în Catechism, aceasta de pe urm? nepublicat?, dar p?strat? într-o copie dup? manuscrisul original în limba latin?. În alte scrieri, cum ar fi Descrierea situa?iei din trecut ?i de ast?zi a Moldovei, Hronicul vechimii romano-moldo-vlahilor, Istoria ieroglific? sunt prezentate date pre?ioase despre starea înv???mântului ?i culturii acelor vremuri în Moldova, dar ?i în ?ara româneasc?, înso?ite de considera?ii personale privind realizarea educa?iei tinerilor ?i ridicarea nivelului lor de cultur? ?i civiliza?ie.

În scrierile sale, Dimitrie Cantemir a abordat probleme de educa?ie ale c?ror solu?ii au constituit un pas semnificativ în evolu?ia preocup?rilor de acest gen în cultura român?: definirea condi?iei umane, a scopurilor ce trebuie s? ?i le propun? omul ?i a valorii lor morale, precizarea metodelor ?i mijloacelor de împlinire a acestora, precum ?i delimitarea vârstelor cele mai propice atingerii ?elurilor propuse. A?a cum transpare din paginile lucr?rii Divanul, idealul educa?ional era unul inspirat din antichitatea greac?: a preg?ti omul pentru a ajunge la în?elepciune, considerat? ca o stare superioar? a sufletului. În?elept este acela care dovede?te o înalt? spiritualitate ?i, mai mult decât atât, se las? condus în ac?iunile sale de valori ?i principii de natur? moral?, fapt pentru care un scop important al educa?iei, al înv???turii privite ca factor de civiliza?ie ?i de înnobilare a sufletului, îl constituie, în opinia lui Dimitrie Cantemir, formarea convingerilor ?i deprinderilor morale, necesare individului în perspectiva vie?ii sociale. Lucrarea Divanul este un îndreptar pentru laicii ispiti?i s? se lase prad? pl?cerilor u?oare ?i care trebuie îndruma?i pe calea cea bun? a în?elepciunii. Contrar eticii cre?tine, care nu abordeaz? probleme morale corespunz?toare cu necesit??ile practice ale vie?ii curente, ci se refer? îndeosebi la escatologie, ?tiin?? a destinului omului dincolo de via?a terestr?, atunci când pretinde c? prin moarte sufletul se desprinde de trup, Dimitrie Cantemir îl leag? pe om de via?a lumeasc? ?i îi indic? regulile de urmat pentru a-?i înfrâna patimile, principiile unei conduite care s?-i asigure fericirea p?mânteasc?, deschizându-i, totodat?, perspectivele r?splatei cere?ti. În Istoria ieroglific? ?i în Hronicul vechimii romano- moldo-vlahilor este pre?uit omul care îmbin? în chip armonios înv???turile cu "vredniciile", forma?ia intelectual?, deprinderile morale ?i ac?iunea în folosul ob?tesc. Chiar noble?ea unui popor este apreciat? nu dup? vechimea sa sau dup? întinderea teritoriului pe care îl st?pâne?te, ci dup? civiliza?ia la care s-a ridicat, în?eleas? ca sintez? a înv???turilor ?i vredniciilor. Con?tient fiind de faptul c? este st?pânul ?i nu robul lumii, omul se va manifesta cu în?elepciune împ?când cerin?ele sufletului cu cele ale trupului. Pentru aceasta, el trebuie s? aspire mereu la dobândirea virtu?ii ?i s? se arate preocupat de mijloacele prin care ea se dobânde?te. Virtutea face parte din demnitatea uman?, iar practicarea ei se impune a fi expresia convingerii ?i nu a fricii.

Dimitrie Cantemir abordeaz? cultura ?i civiliza?ia prin prisma sarcinii form?rii omului moral, a omului capabil s? respecte preceptele moralei cre?tine. La baza concep?iei sale etice se afl? ideea de voin?? autonom?, de libertate a alegerii între bine ?i r?u. Orice predeterminare ?i condi?ionare transcendental? a faptelor umane este respins?. Alegerea între bine ?i r?u ?ine de nivelul de cultur? ?i de civiliza?ie al fiec?ruia, atins prin intermediul educa?iei. Cauza viciului, apreciaz? Cantemir, se afl? în ignoran??: "Lipsa de înv???tur? ?i ignoran?a lucrurilor u?or de cunoscut, sau lipsa de minte ?i de socoteal? a oamenilor sunt cauzele multor rele, de pild? a p?r?sirii virtu?ii ?i a dobândirii r?ut??ii sau p?catului"2. Dac? la viciu se ajunge prin ignoran??, virtutea se dobânde?te prin cunoa?tere: cunoa?terea de sine, a lumii ?i a lui Dumnezeu. Cunoa?terea de sine presupune cunoa?terea omului sub aspect corporal ?i sufletesc, a luptei ce se d? între corp, care îl trage pe om spre p?cat ?i suflet, care îl înal?? spre virtute. Printr-o astfel de cunoa?tere, omul înva?? s? se ridice deasupra tenta?iilor lume?ti ?i s? le domine, pentru a duce o via?? virtuoas?. Cunoa?terea lumii îl va ajuta s? se foloseasc? de bunurile p?mânte?ti ?i s? în?eleag? caracterul efemer al acestora. Cunoa?terea lui Dumnezeu îi va releva atotputernicia divinit??ii ?i îl va îndemna s?-i urmeze poruncile. Printr-o astfel de cunoa?tere, omul va ajunge s? duc? o via?? virtuoas?, o via?? moral?.

În lucrarea Locuri neclare în Catechism, Dimitrie Cantemir consider?, asemeni lui Erasmus sau Rabelais ?i anticipându-l pe J.J. Rousseau, c? to?i oamenii sunt de la natur? la fel de buni, dar dup? na?tere, în lipsa m?surilor de constrângere ?i în lipsa educa?iei, dobândesc obi?nuin?e urâte: "To?i oamenii s-au n?scut buni de la natur?; numai dup? na?tere, prin convorbiri rele sau prin lipsa convorbirilor pioase ?i a înv???turilor bune ei pot contracta moravuri rele"3. Pentru a sus?ine aceast? idee, el recurge la conceptul de "ordine natural?": dac? prin crea?ie toate sunt bune, iar ordinea naturii r?mâne neschimbat?, omul, creat bun, r?mâne, prin natur?, a?a cum a fost la început, desigur, în m?sura în care dore?te s? devin? bun ?i din punct de vedere moral. Înclina?ia spre r?u se manifest? abia la tinere?e, când individul este capabil de judecat? autonom? ?i poate discerne între bine ?i r?u. De aceea, este necesar? o educare a tineretului în sensul dobândirii cuno?tin?elor ?i deprinderilor, care s? împiedice alunecarea spre r?u, valorile educative fiind evlavia, bun?tatea, cinstea, ascultarea ?i respectarea poruncilor. Educa?ia este posibil? tocmai datorit? naturii bune a omului: "Dac? unii s-ar fi n?scut r?i, în zadar ar fi fost ei supu?i înv???turilor evlavioase, bune ?i cinstite, c?ci cele naturale, potrivit unei axiome, r?mân cum au început"4 Cantemir sus?ine predarea în ?coli a cuno?tin?elor elementare de moral? religioas?, pe care le nume?te "fundamentele credin?ei cre?tine ortodoxe" ?i care, al?turi de înv??area scrisului ?i cititului, formeaz? con?inutul de baz? al înv???mântului. Care sunt mijloacele ?i "tocmelile" pentru redobândirea virtu?ii? Un prim mijloc îl constituie exemplul: s? se cunoasc? exemplele bune oferite de vie?ile sfin?ilor ?i ale marilor filosofi ai antichit??ii (Socrate, Platon, Heraclit ?.a.), dar ?i exemplele rele, de care tân?rul trebuie s? înve?e s? se fereasc?. Apoi, pentru ca tân?rul s? se simt? atras de via?a moral? se impune ca el s? tr?iasc? în tov?r??ia oamenilor virtuo?i, a celor ce sunt demni de a fi urma?i. Cantemir vorbe?te, mai apoi, despre necesitatea form?rii deprinderilor morale prin exerci?iu, despre cultivarea virtu?ii nu numai prin exemplu, ci ?i prin lectura unor c?r?i, a Bibliei în primul rând, dar ?i a celor apar?inând unor autori antici, precum Cicero, Seneca sau Epictet. Pentru gre?eli, arat? Dimitrie Cantemir în Divanul, se va folosi dojana, dar ?i auto-pedepsirea: omul singur s? se pedepseasc? renun?ând la o pl?cere, pentru ca singur s?-?i r?scumpere gre?eala ?i pentru ca amintindu-?i de ceea ce a f?cut r?u s? se fereasc? alt?dat?5. Un alt mijloc de dobândire a virtu?ii este rug?ciunea, cu men?iunea c? Dumnezeu îi va ajuta pe cei ce trudesc, nicidecum pe cei lene?i.

În transmiterea cuno?tin?elor, precizeaz? Dimitrie Cantemir, se va urma o anumit? ordine, aceea de la u?or la greu, potrivit vârstei ?i capacit??ii copilului. Ideea respect?rii specificului vârstei ?i cea a pred?rii urmând ordinea de la u?or la greu au fost dezvoltate îns? cu mult mai devreme decât redactarea lucr?rii Loca obscura în Catechism, mai exact în Divanul, unde întâlnim ?i o interesant? concep?ie asupra vârstelor omului, considerate sub raportul instruirii ?i educa?iei. În opinia lui ?tefan Bârs?nescu, Divanul este o lucrare de o cert? valoare pedagogic?: "Din punct de vedere pedagogic, Divanul prezint? o prim? importan??: aceea de a constitui un mic tratat de pedagogie, în care autorul a cercetat, fire?te în forma corespunz?toare epocii lui, problemele principale de educa?ie: scopul educa?iei, psihologia vârstelor ?i tehnica educativ?. Cu el ne g?sim deci în fa?a primului tratat românesc de pedagogie".6.Multe dintre ideile cuprinse aici sunt inspirate din pedagogia vechilor greci, din pedagogia cre?tin? ?i cea renascentist?. Ce fel de ideal educa?ional propunea Cantemir am v?zut mai înainte; vom prezenta în continuare teoria sa asupra vârstelor ?i asupra c?ilor de urmat în realizarea idealului educa?ional.

Dimitrie Cantemir împarte via?a omului în ?apte vârste, fiecare reprezentând nu numai o etap? biologic?, ci ?i una educa?ional?: pruncia, copil?ria, catarigia, voinicia, b?rb??ia, c?runte?ele ?i b?trâne?ele. Chiar în etapa prunciei sau vârsta micii copil?rii, cum îi spunem ast?zi, o vârst? a nevinov??iei ?i a purit??ii, începe formarea individului, în sensul de a-l ajuta s? cunoasc? ce vede, s? în?eleag? ce aude, s? priceap? ce fapte sunt rele ?i ce fapte sunt bune. Copil?ria (vârsta ?colar? mic?, în în?elesul actual) ?i catarigia (pubertatea) constituie împreun? o important? etap? formativ?, deoarece de educa?ia primit? acum depinde dac? omul va fi în via?? bun sau r?u, altfel spus, formarea lui moral?. În aceste etape, el cunoa?te credin?a, legea ?i pravilele, r?ul ?i binele, dobânde?te priceperile necesare satisfacerii nevoilor primare ale vie?ii. Despre importan?a educa?iei la aceste vârste, o educa?ie care orienteaz? dezvoltarea ulterioar? a omului, Cantemir scrie: "În copil?rie sau bune sau rele deprinderi sau obicee vei putea lega, ?i carile în c?t?rigie vei agonisi în b?trâne?e le vei mo?teni" 7. În copil?rie, scopul educa?iei este formarea unei conduite disciplinate ?i morale, iar la pubertate deprinderea iste?imii (dezvoltarea inteligen?ei) ?i "agonisirea de înv???turi" (acumularea de cuno?tin?e). Despre vârsta voiniciei (adolescen?a, tinere?ea), Cantemir vorbe?te ca de o etap? plin? de primejdii pentru p?strarea conduitei morale, c?ci aceasta este o vârst? "nea?ezat?", "r?t?cit?", adic? marcat? de inconstan??, omul având o personalitate insuficient format?, sclav? a pl?cerilor senzoriale. Omul ajuns în etapa b?rb??iei (maturit??ii) trebuie s? se dovedeasc? a fi format ca fiin?? moral? ?i mereu preocupat de a se perfec?iona intelectual prin autoeduca?ie. Chiar ?i în ultimele dou? etape, omul are posibilitatea de a-?i reconsidera via?a moral? ?i de a se îndrepta, dac? pân? atunci a fost prea slab pentru a se des?vâr?i. La Cantemir întâlnim, a?adar, ideea de permanen?? în educa?ie, c?ci, a?a cum am v?zut, educa?ia nu se limiteaz? la primele vârste ale omului; pe orice treapt? s-ar afla, el este dator s? se autoeduce ?i s?-?i perfec?ioneze conduita moral?, considerat? definitorie pentru condi?ia lui existen?ial?. În aceast? teorie a vârstelor este exprimat? o idee unanim acceptat? în pedagogia modern? ?i anume educarea omului în func?ie de caracteristicile diferitelor stadii ale evolu?iei sale.

În concep?ia lui Dimitrie Cantemir despre înv???mânt ?i educa?ie se îmbin? convingerile de tip umanist despre cultur? ?i civiliza?ie cu elemente inedite, prin care prefigureaz? ?i anticipeaz? Iluminismul, îndeosebi concep?ia ra?ionalist? asupra omului, care accentueaz? demnitatea lui ca fiin?? liber?, moral? ?i des?vâr?it? prin cultur?. Dimitrie Cantemir a abordat problemele de înv???mânt ?i educa?ie din perspectiv? umanist?, considerându-le fenomene de cultur? ?i civiliza?ie, care condi?ioneaz? progresul uman. Este vorba, în primul rând, de un progres în ceea ce prive?te cunoa?terea ?i moravurile, iar modelele de urmat în acest sens sunt oferite de c?tre antichitatea greco-latin?. Întrucât cultura ?i civiliza?ia sunt cele care înnobileaz? spiritul ?i asigur? progresul umanit??ii, un popor trebuie apreciat prin prisma contribu?iei aduse pe acest t?râm. Pornind de la astfel de considera?ii, Dimitrie Cantemir deplângea starea cultural? precar? a poporului s?u, care se datora îndeosebi faptului c? "fiii boierilor nu înv??au alt? limb? decât cea slavoneasc?, în care nu puteau înv??a alte ?tiin?e"8. Utilizarea slavonei ca limb? de cultur? a însemnat un factor de regres, o piedic? în calea orient?rii înv???mântului spre cultura clasic? greac?, un înv???mânt care, de cele mai multe ori, se limita la dobândirea deprinderilor de citit ?i scris, la transmiterea ?i însu?irea cuno?tin?elor religioase, achizi?ii considerate total nesatisf?c?toare. Din acest motiv, Cantemir salut? introducerea limbii române în cultura scris?, apari?ia tipografiilor, înfiin?area Academiilor domne?ti la Ia?i ?i Bucure?ti, aducerea unor profesori str?ini, care predau în limba greac? sau latin? ?i facilitau, astfel, accesul tinerilor la ?tiin?e. O admira?ie deosebit? arat?, la fel ca to?i umani?tii, pentru limba greac?, aceasta reprezentând un instrument de acces la o cunoa?tere cuprinz?toare de nivel superior, dar permanentizarea manifest?rilor culturale într-o limb? str?in? nu-l mul?ume?te. Tocmai de aceea, din dorin?a de a promova limba na?ional?, Dimitrie Cantemir a scris în române?te câteva din lucr?rile sale: Hronicul, Istoria ieroglific? ?i Laud? c?tre van Helmont.

3. Concluzii

Ideile despre educa?ie pres?rate în paginile lucr?rilor lui Cantemir sunt expresii ale concep?iei sale umaniste, potrivit c?reia educa?ia ?i înv???mântul afecteaz? în mod nemijlocit progresul uman, de unde ?i convingerea c? puterea unui popor nu const? în cuceriri, ci în formele de via?? spiritual? ?i material? pe care le dezvolt?. Elogiile aduse înv???turii ca mijloc al dobândirii libert??ii spirituale constituie un adev?rat leitmotiv al operei sale, nu de pu?ine ori în cuprinsul acesteia reg?sindu-se afirmat criteriul aprecierii omului nu atât dup? rangul social sau starea material?, cât dup? efortul de înnobilare spiritual?.

Bibliografie

B?d?r?u, Dan, (1964), Filosofia lui Dimitrie Cantemir, Ed. Academiei, Bucure?ti.

Cândea, Virgil, (1974), "Locul lui Dimitrie Cantemir în cultura româneasc?", în vol. 300 de ani de la na?terea lui Dimitrie Cantemir, Editura Academiei, Bucure?ti.

Cândea, Virgil, (1979), Ra?iunea dominant?. Contribu?ii la istoria umanismului românesc, Ed. Dacia, Cluj-Napoca.

Cantacuzino, Constantin, Istoria ??rii Rumâne?ti, edi?ie de N. Cartojan ?i D. Simonescu, Ed. Scrisul Românesc, Craiova, f. a.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, (1967), Descrierea Moldovei, Ed. Tineretului, Bucure?ti.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, (1969), Divanul, Ed. pentru literatur?, Bucure?ti.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, Loca obscura în Catechisi, mss. lat. nr. 76, Biblioteca Academiei Române.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, (1974), Opere complete, vol. I-IV, edi?ie critic? publicat? sub îngrijirea lui Virgil 8. Cândea, Ed. Academiei, Bucure?ti.

Iorga, Nicolae, (1971), Istoria înv???mântului românesc, Ed. Didactic? ?i Pedagogic?, Bucure?ti.

Panaitescu, P.P., (1958), Dimitrie Cantemir. Via?a ?i opera, Ed. Academiei, Bucure?ti.

1 Dimitrie Cantemir s-a n?scut la Ia?i, în 26 octombrie 1673, ca fiu al boierului Constantin Cantemir. Când tat?l s?u a ajuns domn al Moldovei, în 1685, a fost trimis la Constantinopol ca garant al credin?ei c?tre Poarta Otoman?, de unde s -a întors ?ase ani mai târziu. Educa?ia primit? de mic copil, prezentat? critic în Descriptio Moldaviae, se rezuma la studiul limbii slavone ?i la lectura c?r?ilor religioase. Între 1691-1693 a studiat la Ia?i limba greac? ?i limba latin?, precum ?i filosofia cu eruditul c?lug?r grec Ieremia Cacavela, c?ruia îi dedica, mai târziu, opera filosofic? Sacrosanctae scientiae indepingibilis imago (1700). Formarea sa intelectual? s-a împlinit îns? în anii petrecu?i la Constantinopol, unde i-a cunoscut pe c?rturarii greci de pe lâng? Academia Patriarhiei: filosofii peripateticieni Antonie, Spandonis, Balasios, geograful Hrisant Notara, medicul Alexandru Mavrocordat. La Constantinopol, între 1698-1705, Dimitrie Cantemir a elaborat scrierile filosofico-religioase: Divanul, Sacrosanctae ?i Istoria ieroglific?. Dup? scurta perioad? petrecut? ca domn al Moldovei (1710-1711) a fost nevoit s? se refugieze în Rusia, la curtea ?arului Petru. În 1714 a fost ales membru al Academiei din Berlin. Între anii 1715-1723 ?i-a scris principalele opere ?tiin?ifice, care i-au adus consacrarea. S-a stins din via?? la 21 august 1723, pe mo?ia sa de la Dimitrievka.

2 Dimitrie Cantemir, Divanul, Ed. pentru literatur?, Bucure?ti, 1969, p. 296.

3 Dimitrie Cantemir, Loca obscura în Catechisi, mss. lat. nr. 76, Biblioteca Academiei Române, f. 103 v.

4 Ibidem, f. 103 v.

5 Dimitrie Cantemir, Divanul , p. 389

6 ?tefan Bârs?nescu, Istoria pedagogiei române?ti , p. 32

7 Dimitrie Cantemir, Divanul , p. 265

8 Dimitrie Cantemir, Descrierea Moldovei, Ed. tineretului, Bucure?ti, 1967, p. 236

A VISION OF EDUCATION IN CANTEMIR'S WORK

Ionu? Vl?descu*

[email protected]

* Lecturer PhD., Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences University "Petre Andrei" from Ia?i.

Abstract: Concerning the encyclopedic scholar, considered by historians as the most representative figure of Romanian humanism, Dimitrie Cantemir left posterity an impressive work, consisting of works on historical themes, geography, philosophy, music, etc. Although he did not develop a systematic study of pedagogy, ideas about education are found in many of his writings as an element of a well-organized philosophy. Cantemir's conception of education and education-type combines humanist beliefs about culture and civilization with new elements, which prefigures and anticipates Enlightenment, particularly rationalist conception of man, which emphasizes dignity as a free being, moral and perfected by culture. Dimitrie Cantemir addresses issues of education and humanistic education perspective, viewed as phenomena of culture and civilization, which make human progress.

Keywords: Dimitrie Cantemir, education, encyclopedia, civilization, culture, enlightenment, morality.

1. Introduction

Dimitrie Cantemir was the first Romanian intellectual who managed to present his thoughts in an authentic, philosophical, manner. Although he was not very original, his creative force in this area cannot be denied. For a long time those who followed him have not even been close.

It's important to know that his exceptional importance in Romanian philosophy is given, to the same extent, by the fact that, trying to translate into Romanian foreign philosophical concepts, he inaugurated the formation of the Romanian philosophical language, which will then continue to the end of the nineteenth century.

During his exile, the knowledge of foreign languages currently spoken in Constantinople (Arabic, Turkish, Persian), ancient languages (Greek and Latin), Western languages (Italian, French, German) and of Russian, ensured Dimitrie Cantemir's access to the ancient Greco-Latin culture, and the culture of Byzantine, Islamic and Western world.

He returned to Moldova in1691, where the young prince, educated in a prestigious university, gained the experience of the struggle for political power and the taste for diplomatic intrigues.

Immediately after the death of his father, Dimitrie Cantemir was appointed by the landowners, the ruler of the country, and received, at the age of only 19 years, all enthronement ceremony honors. But after three weeks, he was arrested by the Turks and taken to Constantinople, where he remained without fortune and without any prospect of return as a ruler.

The political interests of the Turks, who began to fear an attack by the armies of Peter the Great, sent him in 1710 in Moldavia, where he remained only eight months, time to undertake the great adventure of concluding a treaty with Peter The Great and participate in the battle of St?nilesti in 1711, resulted in the defeat of the Christian allies.

The peace purchased with hard cash by Peter the Great, did not require heavy duty for the allies: the Moldavian Prince Dimitrie Cantemir, who for the Turks became a traitor, was allowed to leave for Russia with his family and a suite consisting of 5,000 faithful Moldavians (landowners, courtiers, soldiers), among whom was also the future chronicler Ion Neculce. If Cantemir's dream to see his country liberated from the Turks and to found a hereditary dynasty was shattered by the historical circumstances in which he lived, the same troubled circumstances allowed him the respite to support a prodigious scientific, historical and philosophical activity, in only 50 years of life. Dimitrie Cantemir remains in the general consciousness as a scholar and writer. He wrote in 1716, in Latin, at the request of the Berlin Academy, his great work Descriptio Moldaviae, which reproduces at a higher level, Miron Costin's ideas from The Moldavian Nation. The creative period of Cantemir's youth was marked by philosophy.

Ever since he was 25 years (1698), he published in Iasi, both in Romanian and Greek, his first work, The Parley of the Wise Man with the World or the Judgment of the Soul with the Body, which is actually the first philosophical work written in the Romanian culture and language. It's a philosophical and religious work, conceived as a Platonic dialogue between the World and the Wise Man which are in a significant opposition. Shortly thereafter, in 1700, keeping the same philosophical direction, he wrote in Latin his Sacrosanctae Scientiae Indepingibilis Imago (The Undepictable Image of the Sacred Science). In this creation, Dimitrie Cantemir was influenced by Van Helmont's Theosophy, a Flemish philosopher and thinker who believed that you can reach directly the divine knowledge through intellectual intuition, leaving aside all the usual ways of science.

In this book, Dimitrie Cantemir proposed to outline the sacred principles underlying such ineffable knowledge with equal physics and theology state, challenging, in fact, a genuine issue of ontology. This work, unique for a long period of time, was translated into Romanian only in 1928 with the title of "Metaphysics", but in reality it is a work of philosophy of nature, in the sense of Aristotle's Physics. Although it did not enjoy the same success as the aforementioned works, the Hieroglyphic History, considered the first novel of our literature, and it's a valuable and important creation for the evolution of the Romanian culture. The Hieroglyphic History is both a political guide and a philosophical essay. Cantemir debated state leadership issues, indirectly making a demonstration of ideal qualities of an enlightened ruler. He believed, in a humanist sense, that the spiritual values decide the course of history, proposing the subtext of a social hierarchy based on intellectual merits of individuals. The Hieroglyphic History is a book of baroque literature that combines the author's passionate temperament and lyricism. In his turn, G.C?linescu clearly associated D.Cantemir with Lorenzo de Medici, an association which is only only in part due to the biographical reality, because Cantemir's scientific work, so different and vast, placed the Moldavian prince higher than the prince of Florence.

Prodigious multilingual personality, comparable with the Renaissance humanists, he uses in his work, to a much higher extent than the chroniclers Miron Costin, Nicolae Costi, Constantin Cantacuzino, and with extremely fruitful results, many aspects of folklore, folk art and customs.

2.Ideas about education in Dimitrie Cantemir's work

Scholar with encyclopedic concerns, considered by historians the most representative figure of the Romanian humanism, Dimitrie Cantemir 1left to posterity an impressive work, consisting of works on historical themes, geography, philosophy, music, etc. Although he did not develop a systematic study of pedagogy, ideas about education are found in many of his writings as constituents of a well-organized philosophical work. Especially two of the Dimitrie Cantemir's works have an educational character: The Wise Man's Parley with the World or The Judgment of the Soul with the Body (1968), and Obsure Places in Catechism, which was unpublished, just kept in a copy of the original manuscript in Latin. In other writings, such as The Description of the Past and Today's Situation of Moldavia, The Chronicles of the Durability of the Romanians - Moldavian-Wallachians", the Hieroglyphic History are presented precious data about the state of education and culture of those times in Moldavia and the Romanian Country, accompanied by personal statement on the implementation of youth education and the improvement of their culture and civilization level.

In his work, Dimitrie Cantemir approached education issues whose solutions have been a significant step in the evolution of this concern in the Romanian culture: the definition of human condition, the goals a human being has to achieve and their moral values, specifying the methods and means of fulfilling them and delimit the proper age to achieve their goals. As the pages of the work the Divan reveal, the educational ideal was the one inspired from the Greek antiquity: to prepare man to reach wisdom, which is considered a superior state of the soul. A wise man is he who shows a high spirituality and, moreover, allows high values and moral principles to lead his actions, therefore an important aim of education, of teaching, viewed as a civilization and soul ennobling factor is, in the Cantemir's opinion, forming moral beliefs and skills necessary for the individual in the social life perspective. The Divan is a guide for laymen tempted to indulge themselves in mild pleasures, who need to be guided on the right path of wisdom. Contrary to the Christian ethics, which does not deal with moral issues relevant to the practical needs of everyday life, but refers particularly to eschatology, the science of human destiny beyond earthly life, when it's claimed that through death the soul separates from the body, D. Cantemir binds man to worldly life and indicates him the rules to follow to restrain the passions, principles of a conduct that would ensure earthly happiness, also opening prospects of heavenly reward. In the Chronicles of the Durability of the Romanians, Moldavians and Wallachians, the Hieroglyphic History, is valued the man who harmoniously combines teachings with diligence, intellectual formation, moral habits and actions for the community benefit. Even the nobility of a nation is judged not by its age or the extension of the territory owned, but by the civilization at which the nation rose, being understood as a synthesis of the teachings and dignity. Aware that he is the master and not the servant of the world, the man will manifest wisdom of reconciling the requirements of the soul with the body. In order to do this, he must always aspire to the acquisition of virtue and to be concerned about the means by which it is acquired. Virtue is part of human dignity and its practice is required to be an expression of belief and not of fear.

Dimitrie Cantemir addresses culture and civilization through the task of training the moral man, a man able to observe the precepts of Christian morality. At the basis of his ethical conception lies the idea of independent will, freedom of choice between good and evil. Any preset and transcendental conditioning of human actions is rejected. The choice between good and evil depends on the level of culture and civilization of each one, achieved through education. The cause of vices, Cantemir appreciates, is ignorance: "The lack of education and ignorance of easily known things, or peple's lack of mind and judgement are the causes of many evils, such as leaving virtue and acquiring wickedness or sin2." If the vice is reached through ignorance, virtue is acquired through knowledge: knowledge of self, of the world and God. Self-knowledge requires the knowledge of man under the physical and spiritual aspect, of the struggle taking place between the body and the soul, that drags man into sin and soul, that ascends him to virtue. Through such knowledge, one learns to rise above worldly temptations and to dominate, to lead a virtuous life. The knowledge of the world will help to use earthly goods and understand their ephemeral nature. Knowing God will reveal the divine omnipotence and urge him to follow such commandments. Through such knowledge, man will get to live a virtuous life, a moral one.

In his work Obscure Places in Catechism, Dimitrie Cantemir believes, like Erasmus or Rabelais and anticipating J.J. Rousseau, that all men are by nature equally good, but after birth in the absence of measures of constraint and lack of education, they acquire bad habits: "All men are born good by nature, only after birth by bad calls or lack of pious conversations and good teachings they can acquire bad habits3." To support this idea, he resorts to the concept of "natural order": if through creation all things are good and the order of nature remains unchanged, the man created good remains, by nature, as he was in the beginning, of course, to the extent to which he wants to be good morally, too. The nclination towards the evil is manifested only in youth, when the individual is capable of independent judgment and may discern between good and evil. Therefore, it is necessary to educate the youth in the sense of acquiring knowledge and skills, which prevent them from slipping towards the evil, the educational values being piety, kindness, honesty, listening and observing the commandments. Education is possible precisely due to the good nature of man: "If some had been born evil, in vain would they have been subjected to evlavious, good and honest teaching for the natural traits, according to an axiom remain as they started4." Cantemir supports the teaching of elementary knowledge of religious morality, which he calls "the fundamentals of the Orthodox Christian faith" and that, along with reading and writing learning form the core content of education. What are the means and "bargains" for the recovery of virtue? The first way is the example: to know the good examples provided by the Saints and the great philosophers of antiquity (Socrates, Plato, Heraclitus and others a.s.o.), but also the bad examples of the youngster who must learn to beware. Then, the young man is required live in the company of virtuous people, of those who are worth to be followed, in orderto be attracted to the moral life. Cantemir speaks, then, about the necessity of forming moral habits through exercise, about the cultivation of virtue not only by example, but by reading some books, the Bible in the first place, but also those belonging to ancient authors, such as Cicero, Seneca and Epictetus. For mistakes, Dimitrie Cantemir shows in the Divan, rebuke, but also self-punishment will be used: man alone to punish himself renouncing to pleasure, so as to redeem his mistake by himself and remember what he did wrong so as to avoid it another time.5. Another means of acquiring virtue is prayer, except that God will help those who work hard, not the idle ones.

As far as the transmission of knowledge is concerned, Dimitrie Cantemir says, a certain order will be followed, from easy things to difficult ones, according to the child's age and ability. The idea of respecting the specific age and that of teaching aaccording to the principle from easy things to more difficult ones were developed before the writing of the work Obscure Places in Catechism, namely in the The Divan, where we find an interesting conception of the ages of man, considered in terms of training and education. According to Stephen Bârs?nescu, the Divan is a work of a definite educational value: "From the pedagogical point of view, The Divan has a paramount importance: to constitute a small treatise of pedagogy, in which the author researched, naturally, according to his epoch, the main educational issues: the purpose of education, the educational psychology depending on ages, and the educational technique.

So, we find him in the first Romanian pedagogy treaty6. Many of the ideas here are inspired from the ancient Greek pedagogy, from the Christian one and from that of the Renaissance. We have seen before what kind of educational ideal Cantemir suggested, so we will move on to presenting his theory on ages and on the ways to be followed in order to achieve the educational goal. Dimitrie Cantemir divided the human life into seven ages, each representing a stage not only biologically but also educationally: infancy, childhood, adolescence, valiance, manhood, grey hair and old age.

Even at the stage of infancy or early childhood, what we call it today, an age of innocence and purity, the training of the individual starts, in the sense of helping him to know what he sees, to understand what he hears, which are good deeds and evilones. Childhood (the early school age in the current meaning) and adolescence (puberty) together constitute an important formative stage because on the education they receive now depends if the man will be good or bad in life, his moral formation. In these stages, hegets to know faith, law, evil and good, acquires the skills necessary to meet the basic needs of life. About the importance of education at this age, an education that directs the subsequent development of man, Cantemir wrote: "In childhood either good or bad habits you will get, and those you will acquire in adolescence, you will inherit in the old age7. In childhood, the purpose of education is to form a disciplined and moral behavior and in adolescence to acquire cleverness (the development of intelligence) and "learning" (knowledge). As far as the valiant age (adolescence, youth) is concerned, Cantemir spoke of a stage full of dangers for keeping the moral behavior, for it is an "unsettled", "stray" age, that is characterized by volatility, with a poorly formed personality, slave to sensory pleasures. The man who has reached the stage of manhood (maturity) must prove to be formed as a moral being and always concerned about intellectual improvement by means of self-education Even in the last two stages, the man has the opportunity to reconsider his moral life and to make amends, if by then he was too weak to become a complete man. Therefore, in Cantemir's work we find the idea of permanence in education, for, as we have seen, education is not limited to the first ages of man; no matter on what level he may find himself, he is obliged to educate himself and to improve his moral conduct, considered defining for his existential condition. In this theory of ages we find the expression of an idea widely accepted in modern pedagogy, namely that of human education according to the characteristics of the different stages of his evolution.

Cantemir's conception of education and education-type combines the humanist beliefs about culture and civilization with new elements, which prefigures and anticipates the Enlightenment, particularly the rationalist conception of man, which emphasizes his dignity as a free and moral being, perfected by means of culture. Dimitrie Cantemir addressed the issues of learning and education from a humanistic perspective, viewed as phenomena of culture and civilization, which trigger human progress.We refer, firstly, to the progress in the knowledge and morals and the role models to be followed in this respect are provided by the Graeco-Latin antiquity. Since culture and civilization are those that elevate the spirit and ensure the progress of humanity, a people must be assessed in terms of their contribution to this realm. Based on such considerations, Cantemir bemoaned the poor cultural condition of his people, which was due mainly to the fact that "the boyars' children were not taught any other language but Slavonic, in which they could not learn other sciences8."

Using Slavonic as the language of culture meant a regression factor, a barrier to the education orientation towards the classical Greek culture, an education which, in most cases, was limited to acquiring the skills of reading and writing, to the transmission and acquisition of religious knowledge, considered totally unsatisfactory. For this reason, Cantemir welcomes the Romanian language in written culture, the emergence of printing houses, the setting up of the Princely Academy in Ia?i and Bucharest, the bringing of foreign teachers who taught in Greek or Latin, thus facilitating the youngsters' access to science. He showed a special admiration, like all the humanists, for Greek, which was a tool for accessing to a comprehensive knowledge level, but he did not content himself wwith the permanentization of cultural events in a foreign language. Therefore, starting grom the desire to promote the national language, Cantemir wrote some of his works in Romanian: The Chronicle, the Hieroglyphic History and the Praise to van Helmont.

3. Conclusions

The ideas about education scattered in the pages of Cantemir's works are the expression of his humanist conception according to which education and learning affect directly human progress, hence the belief that the strength of a nation does not lie in its conquests, but in the spiritual and material life forms which they developed. The praises brought to teaching as a means of acquiring true spiritual freedom is a leitmotif of his work, asserting quite frequently throughout it the criterion of man's assessment, not so much according to his social rank or wealth, but to his effort of spiritual ennoblement.

References

B?d?r?u, Dan, (1964), The Philosophy of Dimitrie Cantemir, the Academy Publishing House.

Cândea, Virgil, (1974), Cantemir's Place in the Romanian Culture, in the Volume 300 years since the birth of Dimitrie Cantemir, the Academy Publishing House.

Cândea, Virgil, (1979), Dominant reason. Contributions to the history of the Romanian humanism, Dacia Publishing, Cluj-Napoca.

Cantacuzino, Constantin, The History of the Romanian Country, edition by N. Cartojan and D. Simonescu, Publishing Romanian Writing Publishing House, Craiova, f.a.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, (1967), Description of Moldova, Youth Publisher, Bucharest.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, (1969), The Divan or The Wise Man's Parley with the World or The Judgement of the Soul with the Body, The Divan Literature Publishing House, Bucharest.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, Loca obscura in Catechisi, mss. lat. nr. 76, the Romanian Academy Library.

Cantemir, Dimitrie, (1974), Complete Works, vol. I-IV, published critical edition edited by Virgil 8.Cândea, the Academy Publishing House, Bucharest.

Iorga, Nicolae, (1971), The History of the Romanian Education, Didactic and Pedagogic Publishing House, Bucharest.

Panaitescu, P.P., (1958), Dimitrie Cantemir. Life and work, the Academy Publishing House, Bucharest.

1 Dimitrie Cantemir was born in Ia?i, on October 26th, 1673, as a son of the Lord Constantin Cantemir. When his father gained Moldovia's throne, in 1685, he was sent to Constantinople as a guarantee of his father's loyalty to the Turks. Six years later he returned. His basic education, as a child, was thoroughly presented in Descriptio Moldavie, concerning only the study of the Slavic language, and the lecture of religious texts. Between 1691-1693, at Iasi, he studied Greek and Latin, as well as philosophy with the Greek scholar monk, Ieremia Cacavela, to whom he will later dedicate the philosophical work Sacrosanctae Scientiae Indepingibilis Imago (1700). His intellectual formation was completed during his years in Constantinople, where he met the scholars of The Patriarchal Academy: the peripatetic philosophers Antonie, Spandonis, Balasios, the geographer Hrisant Notara, the doctor Alexandru Mavrocordat. In Constantinople, between 1698-1705, Dimitrie Cantemir wrote the philosophical and religious text: The Divan or The Wise Man's Parley with the World or The Judgment of the Soul with the Body, Sacrosanctae Scientiae Indepingibilis Imago, and Hieroglyphic History. After his short period of ruling, as the Lord of Moldavia (1710-1711), he was forced to retreat in Russia, at the Court of the Czar Peter. In 1714 he received a place in the Academy of Berlin. During 1715-1723 he wrote his main works, which earned him his consecration. He died on August 21st, 1723, at his estate in Dimitrievka.

2 Cantemir, Dimitrie, The Divan or The Wise Man's Parley with the World or The Judgement of the Soul with the Body, The Divan Literature Publishing House, Bucharest, 1969, p. 296.

3 Cantemir, Dimitrie, Loca obscura in Catechisi, mss. lat. nr. 76, Romanian Academy Library, f. 103 v.

4 Ibidem, f. 103 v.

5 Cantemir, Dimitrie, The Divan or The Wise Man's Parley with the World or The Judgement of the Soul with the Body, p. 389.

6 ?tefan Bârs?nescu, The History of the Romanian Pedagogy , p. 32.

7 Cantemir, Dimitrie, The Divan or The Wise Man's Parley with the World or The Judgement of the Soul with the Body, p. 265.

8 Cantemir, Dimitrie, Description of Moldova, Youth Publisher, Bucharest, 1967, p. 236.