Sorry for ending the previous posrting so abruptly, but the screen
started to flicker.
> > ...But to turn this question into a linguistic and indeed
> > etymological question: Does anyone have a word for "Nature" (as
> > in "natural order", or a "law of nature", or "what is natural
for
> > man") from any language that was not influenced by Greek?
> >
>
A quote from Benveniste, Indo-European Language and Society
(cf.
http://www.angelfire.com/rant/tgpedersen/md.html)
"
In historical times the root *med- designated a great variety
of different things: "govern", "think", "care for", "measure".
The primary meaning cannot be determined simply by reducing all
these to a vague common denominator or by a confused agglomeration
of the historically attested forms. It can be defined as "measure"
not "measurement", but "moderation" (Lat. modus, modestus),
designed to restore order in a sick body (Lat. medeor "care for",
medicus), in the universe (Hom. Zeùs (Idèthen) medéo:n "Zeus the
moderator"), in human affairs, incuding the most serious like
war, or everyday things like a meal. Finally, the man who knows
the médea (Hom. mé:dea eidó:s) is not a thinker, a philosopher,
he is one of those "chiefs and moderators" (Hom. hégé:tores e:dè
médontes) who in every circumstance know how to take the tried
and tested measures which are necessary. *Med-, therefore,
belongs to the same register of terms as ius and díke: : it is
the established rule, not of justice but of order, which it is
the function of the magistrate to formulate: Osc. med-diss (cf.
iu-dex).
"
The fact(?) that this root is found outside IE may answer your
question. Also, there seems to be a connection with another world-
upholding thing: the pole at at the center of the world (not to be
confused with Pooh's North Pole).
As for the early existence of the other concept, that of immediate
action, unbound by rules, from the other side, see:
http://www.angelfire.com/rant/tgpedersen/bHA.html
This is the idea of divine inspiration, also felt at times by
creative artists (Carl Nielsen said that at times he felt like
hollow reed through which music flowed from he didn't know where).
Note the opposition 'fas' vs. 'jus': divine law (because the god(s)
have willed it so) and earthly law (because we have determined this
it should be so)
>
> > I probably have to explain this a bit more in order to make sure
I
> > am not misunderstood. Physis was of course an old word referring
> to
> > growth, and more generally, existance involving change
> > and "becoming". It came to refer to a metaphysical concept:
> > the "way", the "rules", by which *all* things change and
interact.
> > In other words, we post-Greeks believe that apart from the
normal
> > existance of a thing, there is another type of existence,
because
> > there is a set or "rules" which determine how all of nature
works.
> > This in turn leads to the separation of faith and science.
> >
As I said, I don't think we're so post-Greek after all. The question
is: Did Plato invent or merely compile?
Torsten