Hypatia was an astronomer and mathematician as well as a philosopher. She was an Egyptian of Greek descent, renowned for her great beauty. Hypatia's philosophy was also her religion. She believed in a divine being called "the One" - the ultimate source of all reality.

Her aim was to get closer to "the One", and she shared her methods with a select circle of students. She taught them to break free from the world of matter by seeking the divine part of human nature, or the soul. She called it:

"The eye

buried within us"

At this time women were not considered equal. But in the eyes of her all-male students, Hypatia was above womanhood. She demanded complete dedication and wouldn't put up with any nonsense. When one student got distracted from his path towards "the One" by falling in love with her, Hypatia dangled a soiled item of her clothing in front of him and said, "This is me. This is what you love!" He was a model pupil from then on. Hypatia's point was that earthly beauty is an illusion. True beauty existed only in "the One".

Hypatia lived in Alexandria, which was the third largest city in the Roman Empire. It was a centre of learning and a melting pot of cultures. In her day, there was a lot of strife between Christians, Jews, and pagans. Hypatia tried to stay out of the battles. The whole city respected her wisdom, and the Roman governor often asked her advice on city affairs. This sealed her fate. The governor was locked in a bitter power struggle with the local head of the Christian church, who saw Hypatia as a threat. Rumours spread that she practiced black magic, and Hypatia was blamed for all the city's woes. One day as she was riding home, a group of outraged Christians dragged her from her chariot and cut her to pieces with sharpened seashells.

As a result of Hypatia's teaching, a pupil was able to construct this instrument, which measures the position of stars and planets

Hypatia helped students get in touch with their spiritual nature, or the "eye within".

She dressed simply wearing the white cloak of a philosopher.

She was a gifted astronomer.

Her enemies incited the Christians to drag her from her chariot and murder her.