Epistemology and Religiosity in Plato’s Theaetetus: Socrates, the Daimonion, and the Moral Horizon of the Divine

Abstract

This study examines Plato’s Theaetetus through the lens of philosophy and the phenomenology of religion, focusing on the interplay between epistemology, religiosity, and the life of the polis. The purpose is to analyze how Socrates situates the pursuit of knowledge within a religious-philosophical framework, especially through the notions of daimonion as personal religiosity, communal religiosity of the polis, myth as allegory, and the theion as a moral horizon. Using a qualitative design with hermeneutic and phenomenological approaches, the research employs close reading of Plato’s texts (Theaetetus with Euthyphro, Apology, Critias, Phaedo, and Laws) to interpret key terms such as daimonion, theion, and logos. The findings show that knowledge in Theaetetus is never finalized but appears as a dialogical process of purification through logos and dianoia; myth is used critically as allegory; the daimonion functions as an ethical compass rather than epistemic mediator; and the theion is conceived as a non-anthropomorphic moral guide. Civic obedience remains, yet grounded in rationality rather than fear of the gods. The implications affirm Theaetetus as both epistemological and religious-philosophical, enriching discourse on knowledge, religiosity, and public life, and highlighting the relevance of Socratic epistemology for education, ethics, and democracy. The originality lies in positioning Theaetetus as a text that unifies knowledge, faith, and law in a reflective framework.