Hryhorii Skovoroda

Who is Hryhorii Skovoroda?

Hryhorii Savych Skovoroda was born on 3 December 1722 in the village of Chornukhy in the Poltava region of Cossack Hetmanate Ukraine. He studied at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, sang in the imperial court choir, and travelled through Central Europe before returning to teach. Rejecting a settled career and material comfort, he spent his later decades as a wandering philosopher, walking the roads of Slobozhanshchyna with his few belongings and a Bible, teaching and composing. His philosophy centered on self-knowledge, the idea of 'related work' (finding the vocation suited to one's nature), and a mystical reading of scripture. His literary legacy includes the poetry collection 'The Garden of Divine Songs' (Сад божественних пісень), the fable collection 'Kharkiv Fables', and philosophical dialogues. He died on 9 November 1794, and his famous self-composed epitaph reads, 'The world tried to catch me but failed' (Світ ловив мене, та не впіймав).

Sources: Hryhorii Skovoroda, 'Сад божественних пісень' (The Garden of Divine Songs) · Hryhorii Skovoroda, 'Байки харківські' (Kharkiv Fables), 1774 · Encyclopedia of Ukraine (CIUS), entry 'Skovoroda, Hryhorii'