In the centuries after Homer a number of individuals with supernatural powers emerged who cannot be labeled or classified precisely. They belong partly to the history of Greek philosophy and science, partly to the realm of Greek religion, but they are also magoi, or miracle-workers.
Perhaps the three most famous Greek magoi, between Homer and the Hellenistic period, when magic became an applied science, were Orpheus, Pythagoras, and Empedocles. All three are strikingly similar, but each clearly has an identity of his own. Pythagoras and Empedocles lived in fifth century BCE Orpheus was a more mythical figure, but Orphism, the religious movement named after him was very real and influential.
