Lucius Aelius Callistratus, a Roman raised in Athens, valued philosophy over war. While others sought glory in the Peloponnesian War, he pursued knowledge, engaging in debates and admiring Pericles' vision. Mocked for refusing to fight, he saw war as a cycle of suffering. An old philosopher urged him to preserve wisdom amid chaos. After Athens' fall, he remained as a teacher, believing that true battles were fought with minds, not swords, and that knowledge, unlike power, endures.