Abstract
<jats:p>A detailed study of the dialogues of Plato, the father of the fathers of philosophy and pedagogy, reveals that he considered leisure to be the central goal of education in the liberal arts. Schools should teach citizens not to avoid leisure by choosing excessive work, but instead to turn to virtue, embodied in the state in the daily practice of the liberal arts. But play was Plato’s method of education. Children learned best through playful activities that engaged their enthusiasm, that «turned the gaze of their souls» to the Good and the True. Likewise, play was the best way for adults to learn and practice philosophy, and it was the only way to discover new truth. Play was also central to the Socratic method. Plato found that dialogue at its highest and most serious level was a game for both teacher and student. Although the main thrust of playful education was to turn people to truth and to make them do philosophy for themselves, according to Plato, Being itself is in play.</jats:p>