Ἔχοντος δέ οἱ ἐν χερσὶ τοῦ παιδὸς τὸν γάμον ἀπικνέεται ἐς τὰς Σάρδις ἀνὴρ συμφορῇ ἐχόμενος καὶ οὐ καθαρὸς χεῖρας , ἐὼν Φρὺξ μὲν γενεῇ , γένεος δὲ τοῦ βασιληίου . Παρελθὼν δὲ οὗτος ἐς τὰ Κροίσου οἰκία κατὰ νόμους τοὺς ἐπιχωρίους καθαρσίου ἐδέετο κυρῆσαι , Κροῖσος δέ μιν ἐκάθηρε . Ἔστι δὲ παραπλησίη ἡ κάθαρσις τοῖσι Λυδοῖσι καὶ τοῖσι Ἕλλησι . Ἐπείτε δὲ τὰ νομιζόμενα ἐποίησε ὁ Κροῖσος , ἐπυνθάνετο ὁκόθεν τε καὶ τίς εἴη , λέγων τάδε · " Ὤνθρωπε , τίς τε ἐὼν καὶ κόθεν τῆς Φρυγίης ἥκων ἐπίστιός μοι ἐγένεο ; Τίνα τε ἀνδρῶν ἢ γυναικῶν ἐφόνευσας ; " Ὁ δὲ ἀμείβετο · " Ὦ βασιλεῦ , Γορδίεω μὲν τοῦ Μίδεω εἰμὶ παῖς , ὀνομάζομαι δὲ Ἄδρηστος , φονεύσας δὲ ἀδελφεὸν ἐμεωυτοῦ ἀέκων πάρειμι ἐξεληλαμένος τε ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ ἐστερημένος πάντων . " Κροῖσος δέ μιν ἀμείβετο τοῖσδε · " Ἀνδρῶν τε φίλων τυγχάνεις ἔκγονος ἐὼν καὶ ἐλήλυθας ἐς φίλους , ἔνθα ἀμηχανήσεις χρήματος οὐδενὸς μένων ἐν ἡμετέρου συμφορήν τε ταύτην ὡς κουφότατα φέρων κερδανέεις πλεῖστον . "

Then while he was engaged about the marriage of his son , there came to Sardis a man under a misfortune and with hands not clean , a Phrygian by birth and of the royal house . This man came to the house of Croesus , and according to the customs which prevail in that land made request that he might have cleansing ; and Croesus gave him cleansing : now the manner of cleansing among the Lydians is the same almost as that which the Hellenes use . So when Croesus had done that which was customary , he asked of him whence he came and who he was , saying as follows : " Man , who art thou , and from what region of Phrygia didst thou come to sit upon my hearth ? And whom of men or women didst thou slay ? " And he replied : " O king , I am the son of Gordias , the son of Midas , and I am called Adrastos ; and I slew my own brother against my will , and therefore am I here , having been driven forth by my father and deprived of all that I had . " And Croesus answered thus : " Thou art , as it chances , the offshoot of men who are our friends and thou hast come to friends , among whom thou shalt want of nothing so long as thou shalt remain in our land : and thou wilt find it most for thy profit to bear this misfortune as lightly as may be . " So he had his abode with Croesus .

Interim , dum nuptias filii parat Croesus , advenit Sardes vir calamitate obstrictus , cui manus non erant purae , natione Phryx , regio de genere . Qui quum ad aedes Croesi venisset , orassetque ut ritu patrio expiari sibi contingeret , expiavit eum Croesus : est autem modus expiandi apud Lydos similis ei , quo Graeci utuntur . Peractis legitimis , percontatur Croesus hominem , unde veniret , quisve esset , his usus verbis : " Quis tu es , homo , et quonam e Phrygiae loco veniens , ad meos lares supplex te recepisti ? et quem virum , quamve foeminam occidisti ? " Cui ille respondit : " O rex , Gordiae sum filius , Midae nepos ; est autem nomen mihi Adrasto . Fratrem meum occidi invitus ; unde ejectus a patre adsum , et rebus omnibus destitutus . " Tum Croesus : " Ex viris amicis , " inquit , " oriundus es , et ad amicos venisti , ubi nullius rei indigebis quoad apud nos manseris . Istam autem calamitatem quam poteris levissime ferendo , plurimum lucri feceris , Ita ille in Croesi aedibus vitam agebat . "

b . GEN . 1 . 1 Εν αρχη εποιησεν ο Θεος τον ουρανον και την γην .

b . GEN . 1 . 1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth .

b . GEN . 1 . 1 in principio creavit Deus caelum et terram

b . GEN . 1 . 26 Και ειπεν ο θεος , Ας καμωμεν ανθρωπον κατ ' εικονα ημων , καθ ' ομοιωσιν ημων και ας εξουσιαζη επι των ιχθυων της θαλασσης και επι των πετεινων του ουρανου και επι των κτηνων και επι πασης της γης και επι παντος ερπετου , ερποντος επι της γης .
b . GEN . 1 . 27 Και εποιησεν ο Θεος τον ανθρωπον κατ ' εικονα εαυτου κατ ' εικονα Θεου εποιησεν αυτον αρσεν και θηλυ εποιησεν αυτους
b . GEN . 1 . 28 και ευλογησεν αυτους ο Θεος και ειπε προς αυτους ο Θεος , Αυξανεσθε και πληθυνεσθε και γεμισατε την γην και κυριευσατε αυτην , και εξουσιαζετε επι των ιχθυων της θαλασσης και επι των πετεινων του ουρανου και επι παντος ζωου κινουμενου επι της γης .
b . GEN . 1 . 29 Και ειπεν ο Θεος , Ιδου , σας εδωκα παντα χορτον καμνοντα σπορον , οστις ειναι επι του προσωπου πασης της γης , και παν δενδρον , το οποιον εχει εν εαυτω καρπον δενδρου καμνοντος σπορον ταυτα θελουσιν εισθαι εις εσας προς τροφην
b . GEN . 1 . 30 και εις παντα τα ζωα της γης και εις παντα τα πετεινα του ουρανου και εις παν ερπετον ερπον επι της γης και εχον εν εαυτω ψυχην ζωσαν , εδωκα παντα χλωρον χορτον εις τροφην . Και εγεινεν ουτω .
b . GEN . 1 . 31 Και ειδεν ο Θεος παντα οσα εποιησε και ιδου , ησαν καλα λιαν . Και εγεινεν εσπερα και εγεινε πρωι , ημερα εκτη .
b . GEN . 2 . 1 Και συνετελεσθησαν ο ουρανος και η γη και πασα η στρατια αυτων .
b . GEN . 2 . 2 Και ειχε συντετελεσμενα ο Θεος εν τη ημερα τη εβδομη τα εργα αυτου , τα οποια εκαμε και ανεπαυθη την ημεραν την εβδομην απο παντων των εργων αυτου , τα οποια εκαμε .

b . GEN . 1 . 26 And God said , Let us make man in our image , after our likeness : and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea , and over the fowl of the air , and over the cattle , and over all the earth , and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth .
b . GEN . 1 . 27 So God created man in his own image , in the image of God created he him ; male and female created he them .
b . GEN . 1 . 28 And God blessed them , and God said unto them , Be fruitful , and multiply , and replenish the earth , and subdue it : and have dominion over the fish of the sea , and over the fowl of the air , and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth .
b . GEN . 1 . 29 And God said , Behold , I have given you every herb bearing seed , which is upon the face of all the earth , and every tree , in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed ; to you it shall be for meat .
b . GEN . 1 . 30 And to every beast of the earth , and to every fowl of the air , and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth , wherein there is life , I have given every green herb for meat : and it was so .
b . GEN . 1 . 31 And God saw every thing that he had made , and , behold , it was very good . And the evening and the morning were the sixth day .
b . GEN . 2 . 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished , and all the host of them .
b . GEN . 2 . 2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made ; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made .

b . GEN . 1 . 26 et ait faciamus hominem ad imaginem et similitudinem nostram et praesit piscibus maris et volatilibus caeli et bestiis universaeque terrae omnique reptili quod movetur in terra
b . GEN . 1 . 27 et creavit Deus hominem ad imaginem suam ad imaginem Dei creavit illum masculum et feminam creavit eos
b . GEN . 1 . 28 benedixitque illis Deus et ait crescite et multiplicamini et replete terram et subicite eam et dominamini piscibus maris et volatilibus caeli et universis animantibus quae moventur super terram
b . GEN . 1 . 29 dixitque Deus ecce dedi vobis omnem herbam adferentem semen super terram et universa ligna quae habent in semet ipsis sementem generis sui ut sint vobis in escam
b . GEN . 1 . 30 et cunctis animantibus terrae omnique volucri caeli et universis quae moventur in terra et in quibus est anima vivens ut habeant ad vescendum et factum est ita
b . GEN . 1 . 31 viditque Deus cuncta quae fecit et erant valde bona et factum est vespere et mane dies sextus
b . GEN . 2 . 1 igitur perfecti sunt caeli et terra et omnis ornatus eorum
b . GEN . 2 . 2 conplevitque Deus die septimo opus suum quod fecerat et requievit die septimo ab universo opere quod patrarat

and of Cronos and Rhea were born Zeus and Hera and all those who are , as we know , called their brethren ; and of these again , other descendants .
Now when all the gods , both those who revolve manifestly and those who manifest themselves so far as they choose , had come to birth , He that generated this All addressed them thus :
" Gods of gods , those works whereof I am framer and father are indissoluble save by my will . For though all that is bound may be dissolved , yet to will to dissolve that which is fairly joined together and in good case were the deed of a wicked one . Wherefore ye also , seeing that ye were generated , are not wholly immortal or indissoluble , yet in no wise shall ye be dissolved nor incur the doom of death , seeing that in my will ye possess a bond greater and more sovereign than the bonds wherewith , at your birth , ye were bound together . Now , therefore , what I manifest and declare unto you do ye learn . Three mortal kinds still remain ungenerated ; but if these come not into being the Heaven will be imperfect ; for it will not contain within itself the whole sum of the hinds of living creatures , yet contain them it must if it is to be fully perfect . But if by my doing these creatures came into existence and partook of life , they would be made equal unto gods ; in order , therefore , that they may be mortal and that this World-all may be truly All , do ye turn yourselves , as Nature directs , to the work of fashioning these living creatures , imitating the power showed by me in my generating of you . Now so much of them as it is proper to designate ' immortal , ' the part we call divine which rules supreme in those who are fain to follow justice always and yourselves , that part I will deliver unto you when I have sown it and given it origin . For the rest , do ye weave together the mortal with the immortal , and thereby fashion and generate living creatures , and give them food that they may grow , and when they waste away receive them to yourselves again . "
Thus He spake , and once more into the former bowl , wherein He had blended and mixed the Soul of the Universe , He poured the residue of the previous material , mixing it in somewhat the same manner , yet no longer with a uniform and invariable purity , but second and third in degree of purity . And when He had compounded the whole He divided it into souls equal in number to the stars , and each several soul He assigned to one star , and setting them each as it were in a chariot He showed them the nature of the Universe , and declared unto them the laws of destiny , —namely , how that the first birth should be one and the same ordained for all , in order that none might be slighted by Him ; and how it was needful that they , when sown each into his own proper organ of time , should grow into the most god-fearing of living creatures ;

ἐκ δὲ Κρόνου καὶ Ῥέας Ζεὺς Ἥρα τε καὶ πάντες ὅσους ἴσμεν ἀδελφοὺς λεγομένους αὐτῶν , ἔτι τε τούτων ἄλλους ἐκγόνους : ἐπεὶ δ᾽ οὖν πάντες ὅσοι τε περιπολοῦσιν φανερῶς καὶ ὅσοι φαίνονται καθ᾽ ὅσον ἂν ἐθέλωσιν θεοὶ γένεσιν ἔσχον , λέγει πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὁ τόδε τὸ πᾶν γεννήσας τάδε—
‘θεοὶ θεῶν , ὧν ἐγὼ δημιουργὸς πατήρ τε ἔργων , δι᾽ ἐμοῦ γενόμενα ἄλυτα ἐμοῦ γε μὴ ἐθέλοντος . τὸ μὲν οὖν δὴ δεθὲν πᾶν λυτόν , τό γε μὴν καλῶς ἁρμοσθὲν καὶ ἔχον εὖ λύειν ἐθέλειν κακοῦ : δι᾽ ἃ καὶ ἐπείπερ γεγένησθε , ἀθάνατοι μὲν οὐκ ἐστὲ οὐδ᾽ ἄλυτοι τὸ πάμπαν , οὔτι μὲν δὴ λυθήσεσθέ γε οὐδὲ τεύξεσθε θανάτου μοίρας , τῆς ἐμῆς βουλήσεως μείζονος ἔτι δεσμοῦ καὶ κυριωτέρου λαχόντες ἐκείνων οἷς ὅτ᾽ ἐγίγνεσθε συνεδεῖσθε . νῦν οὖν ὃ λέγω πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐνδεικνύμενος , μάθετε . θνητὰ ἔτι γένη λοιπὰ τρία ἀγέννητα : τούτων δὲ μὴ γενομένων οὐρανὸς ἀτελὴς ἔσται : τὰ γὰρ ἅπαντ᾽ ἐν αὑτῷ γένη ζῴων οὐχ ἕξει , δεῖ δέ , εἰ μέλλει τέλεος ἱκανῶς εἶναι . δι᾽ ἐμοῦ δὲ ταῦτα γενόμενα καὶ βίου μετασχόντα θεοῖς ἰσάζοιτ᾽ ἄν : ἵνα οὖν θνητά τε ᾖ τό τε πᾶν τόδε ὄντως ἅπαν ᾖ , τρέπεσθε κατὰ φύσιν ὑμεῖς ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν ζῴων δημιουργίαν , μιμούμενοι τὴν ἐμὴν δύναμιν περὶ τὴν ὑμετέραν γένεσιν . καὶ καθ᾽ ὅσον μὲν αὐτῶν ἀθανάτοις ὁμώνυμον εἶναι προσήκει , θεῖον λεγόμενον ἡγεμονοῦν τε ἐν αὐτοῖς τῶν ἀεὶ δίκῃ καὶ ὑμῖν ἐθελόντων ἕπεσθαι , σπείρας καὶ ὑπαρξάμενος [ 41δ ] ἐγὼ παραδώσω : τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν ὑμεῖς , ἀθανάτῳ θνητὸν προσυφαίνοντες , ἀπεργάζεσθε ζῷα καὶ γεννᾶτε τροφήν τε διδόντες αὐξάνετε καὶ φθίνοντα πάλιν δέχεσθε . ’ ταῦτ᾽ εἶπε , καὶ πάλιν ἐπὶ τὸν πρότερον κρατῆρα , ἐν ᾧ τὴν τοῦ παντὸς ψυχὴν κεραννὺς ἔμισγεν , τὰ τῶν πρόσθεν ὑπόλοιπα κατεχεῖτο μίσγων τρόπον μέν τινα τὸν αὐτόν , ἀκήρατα δὲ οὐκέτι κατὰ ταὐτὰ ὡσαύτως , ἀλλὰ δεύτερα καὶ τρίτα . συστήσας δὲ τὸ πᾶν διεῖλεν ψυχὰς ἰσαρίθμους τοῖς ἄστροις , ἔνειμέν θ᾽ ἑκάστην πρὸς ἕκαστον , καὶ ἐμβιβάσας ὡς ἐς ὄχημα τὴν τοῦ παντὸς φύσιν ἔδειξεν , νόμους τε τοὺς εἱμαρμένους εἶπεν αὐταῖς , ὅτι γένεσις πρώτη μὲν ἔσοιτο τεταγμένη μία πᾶσιν , ἵνα μήτις ἐλαττοῖτο ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ , δέοι δὲ σπαρείσας αὐτὰς εἰς τὰ προσήκοντα ἑκάσταις ἕκαστα ὄργανα χρόνων φῦναι ζῴων τὸ θεοσεβέστατον ,

deinceps Iovem atque Iunonem , reliquos , quos fratres inter se agnatosque usurpari atque appellari videmus , et eorum , ut utamur vetere verbo , prosapiam . Quando igitur omnes , et qui moventur palamque se ostendunt , et qui eatenus nobis declarantur , qua ipsi volunt , creati sunt , tum ad eos is deus , qui omnia genuit , fatur : ‘Haec vos , qui deorum satu orti estis , attendite : quorum operum ego parens effectorque sum , haec sunt indissoluta me invito ; quamquam omne col- ligatum solvi potest ; sed haudquaquam boni est ratione vinctum velle dissolvere . Sed quoniam estis orti , inmortales vos quidem esse et indissolubiles non potestis , neutiquam tamen dissolvemini , neque vos ulla mortis fata periment nec fraus valentior quam consilium meum , quod maius est vinculum ad perpe- tuitatem vestram quam illa , quibus estis tum , cum ’ gignebamini , conligati . Quid sentiam igitur , cogno- scite : Tria genera nobis reliqua sunt , eaque mortalia ; quibus praetermissis caeli absolutio perfecta non erit . Omnia enim genera animalium complexu non tenebit ; teneat autem oportebit , ut ex eodem ne quid absit . Quae a me ipso effecta si sint , deorum vitam possint adaequare . Ut igitur mortali condicione generentur , vos suscipite , ut illa gignatis imiteminique vim meam , qua me in vestro ortu usum esse meministis . In quibus qui tales creabuntur , ut deorum inmortalium quasi gentiles esse debeant , divini generis appellentur teneantque omnium animantium principatum vobisque iure et lege volentes pareant ; quorum vobis initium satusque tradetur a me , vos autem ad id , quod erit inmortale , partem attexitote mortalem . Ita orientur animantes , quos et vivos alatis et consumptos sinu recipiatis . ’ Haec ille dixit . Deinde ad temperationem supe- riorem revertit ; in qua omnem animum universae na- turae temperans permiscebat superiorisque permixtionis reliquias fundens aequabat eodem modo ferme , nisi quod non ita incorrupta , ut ea , quae semper idem , sed ab iis secundum sumebat atque etiam tertium . Toto igitur omni constituto sideribus parem numerum distribuit animorum et singulos adiunxit ad singula atque ita quasi in currum universitatis inposuit com- monstravitque leges fatales ac necessarias et ostendit primum ortum unum fore omnibus , eumque modera- tum atque constantem nec ab ullo inminutum , satis autem et quasi sparsis animis fore uti certis tempo- rum intervallis oreretur animal , quod esset ad cultum deorum aptissumum .

[ 32a ] is such that as the first term is to it , so is it to the last term , and again , conversely , as the last term is to the middle , so is the middle to the first , —then the middle term becomes in turn the first and the last , while the first and last become in turn middle terms , and the necessary consequence will be that all the terms are interchangeable , and being interchangeable they all form a unity . Now if the body of the All [ 32b ] had had to come into existence as a plane surface , having no depth , one middle term would have sufficed to bind together both itself and its fellow-terms ; but now it is otherwise : for it behoved it to be solid of shape , and what brings solids into unison is never one middle term alone but always two . 1 Thus it was that in the midst between fire and earth God set water and air , and having bestowed upon them so far as possible a like ratio one towards another—air being to water as fire to air , and water being to earth as air to water , —he joined together and constructed a Heaven visible and tangible . For these reasons [ 32c ] and out of these materials , such in kind and four in number , the body of the Cosmos was harmonized by proportion and brought into existence . These conditions secured for it Amity , so that being united in identity with itself it became indissoluble by any agent other than Him who had bound it together .
Now of the four elements the construction of the Cosmos had taken up the whole of every one . For its Constructor had constructed it of all the fire and water and air and earth that existed , leaving over , outside it , no single particle or potency of any one of these elements . And these were his intentions : [ 32d ] first , that it might be , so far as possible , a Living Creature , perfect and whole , with all its parts perfect ; and next , that it might be One , [ 33a ] inasmuch as there was nothing left over out of which another like Creature might come into existence ; and further , that it might be secure from age and ailment , since He perceived that when heat and cold , and all things which have violent potencies , surround a composite body from without and collide with it they dissolve it unduly and make it to waste away by bringing upon it ailments and age . Wherefore , because of this reasoning , He fashioned it to be One single Whole , compounded of all wholes , perfect and ageless and unailing . [ 33b ] And he bestowed on it the shape which was befitting and akin . Now for that Living Creature which is designed to embrace within itself all living creatures the fitting shape will be that which comprises within itself all the shapes there are ; wherefore He wrought it into a round , in the shape of a sphere , equidistant in all directions from the center to the extremities , which of all shapes is the most perfect and the most self-similar , since He deemed that the similar is infinitely fairer than the dissimilar . And on the outside round about , it was all made smooth with great exactness , and that for many reasons . [ 33c ] For of eyes it had no need , since outside of it there was nothing visible left over ; nor yet of hearing , since neither was there anything audible ; nor was there any air surrounding it which called for respiration ; nor , again , did it need any organ whereby it might receive the food that entered and evacuate what remained undigested . For nothing went out from it or came into it from any side , since nothing existed ; for it was so designed as to supply its own wastage as food for itself , [ 33d ] and to experience by its own agency and within itself all actions and passions , since He that had constructed it deemed that it would be better if it were self-sufficing rather than in need of other things . Hands , too , He thought He ought not to attach unto it uselessly , seeing they were not required either for grasping or for repelling anyone ; nor yet feet , nor any instruments of locomotion whatsoever .

[ 32α ] εἴτε δυνάμεων ὡντινωνοῦν ᾖ τὸ μέσον , ὅτιπερ τὸ πρῶτον πρὸς αὐτό , τοῦτο αὐτὸ πρὸς τὸ ἔσχατον , καὶ πάλιν αὖθις , ὅτι τὸ ἔσχατον πρὸς τὸ μέσον , τὸ μέσον πρὸς τὸ πρῶτον , τότε τὸ μέσον μὲν πρῶτον καὶ ἔσχατον γιγνόμενον , τὸ δ᾽ ἔσχατον καὶ τὸ πρῶτον αὖ μέσα ἀμφότερα , πάνθ᾽ οὕτως ἐξ ἀνάγκης τὰ αὐτὰ εἶναι συμβήσεται , τὰ αὐτὰ δὲ γενόμενα ἀλλήλοις ἓν πάντα ἔσται . εἰ μὲν οὖν ἐπίπεδον μέν , βάθος δὲ μηδὲν ἔχον ἔδει γίγνεσθαι τὸ τοῦ παντὸς σῶμα , μία μεσότης ἂν ἐξήρκει [ 32β ] τά τε μεθ᾽ αὑτῆς συνδεῖν καὶ ἑαυτήν , νῦν δὲ στερεοειδῆ γὰρ αὐτὸν προσῆκεν εἶναι , τὰ δὲ στερεὰ μία μὲν οὐδέποτε , δύο δὲ ἀεὶ μεσότητες συναρμόττουσιν : οὕτω δὴ πυρός τε καὶ γῆς ὕδωρ ἀέρα τε ὁ θεὸς ἐν μέσῳ θείς , καὶ πρὸς ἄλληλα καθ᾽ ὅσον ἦν δυνατὸν ἀνὰ τὸν αὐτὸν λόγον ἀπεργασάμενος , ὅτιπερ πῦρ πρὸς ἀέρα , τοῦτο ἀέρα πρὸς ὕδωρ , καὶ ὅτι ἀὴρ πρὸς ὕδωρ , ὕδωρ πρὸς γῆν , συνέδησεν καὶ συνεστήσατο οὐρανὸν ὁρατὸν καὶ ἁπτόν . καὶ διὰ ταῦτα ἔκ τε δὴ τούτων τοιούτων [ 32ξ ] καὶ τὸν ἀριθμὸν τεττάρων τὸ τοῦ κόσμου σῶμα ἐγεννήθη δι᾽ ἀναλογίας ὁμολογῆσαν , φιλίαν τε ἔσχεν ἐκ τούτων , ὥστε εἰς ταὐτὸν αὑτῷ συνελθὸν ἄλυτον ὑπό του ἄλλου πλὴν ὑπὸ τοῦ συνδήσαντος γενέσθαι .
τῶν δὲ δὴ τεττάρων ἓν ὅλον ἕκαστον εἴληφεν ἡ τοῦ κόσμου σύστασις . ἐκ γὰρ πυρὸς παντὸς ὕδατός τε καὶ ἀέρος καὶ γῆς συνέστησεν αὐτὸν ὁ συνιστάς , μέρος οὐδὲν οὐδενὸς οὐδὲ δύναμιν ἔξωθεν ὑπολιπών , τάδε διανοηθείς , [ 32δ ] πρῶτον μὲν ἵνα ὅλον ὅτι μάλιστα ζῷον τέλεον ἐκ τελέων [ 33α ] τῶν μερῶν εἴη , πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ἕν , ἅτε οὐχ ὑπολελειμμένων ἐξ ὧν ἄλλο τοιοῦτον γένοιτ᾽ ἄν , ἔτι δὲ ἵν᾽ ἀγήρων καὶ ἄνοσον ᾖ , κατανοῶν ὡς συστάτῳ σώματι θερμὰ καὶ ψυχρὰ καὶ πάνθ᾽ ὅσα δυνάμεις ἰσχυρὰς ἔχει περιιστάμενα ἔξωθεν καὶ προσπίπτοντα ἀκαίρως λύει καὶ νόσους γῆράς τε ἐπάγοντα φθίνειν ποιεῖ . διὰ δὴ τὴν αἰτίαν καὶ τὸν λογισμὸν τόνδε ἕνα ὅλον ὅλων ἐξ ἁπάντων τέλεον καὶ ἀγήρων καὶ ἄνοσον [ 33β ] αὐτὸν ἐτεκτήνατο . σχῆμα δὲ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ τὸ πρέπον καὶ τὸ συγγενές . τῷ δὲ τὰ πάντα ἐν αὑτῷ ζῷα περιέχειν μέλλοντι ζῴῳ πρέπον ἂν εἴη σχῆμα τὸ περιειληφὸς ἐν αὑτῷ πάντα ὁπόσα σχήματα : διὸ καὶ σφαιροειδές , ἐκ μέσου πάντῃ πρὸς τὰς τελευτὰς ἴσον ἀπέχον , κυκλοτερὲς αὐτὸ ἐτορνεύσατο , πάντων τελεώτατον ὁμοιότατόν τε αὐτὸ ἑαυτῷ σχημάτων , νομίσας μυρίῳ κάλλιον ὅμοιον ἀνομοίου . λεῖον δὲ δὴ κύκλῳ [ 33ξ ] πᾶν ἔξωθεν αὐτὸ ἀπηκριβοῦτο πολλῶν χάριν . ὀμμάτων τε γὰρ ἐπεδεῖτο οὐδέν , ὁρατὸν γὰρ οὐδὲν ὑπελείπετο ἔξωθεν , οὐδ᾽ ἀκοῆς , οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀκουστόν : πνεῦμά τε οὐκ ἦν περιεστὸς δεόμενον ἀναπνοῆς , οὐδ᾽ αὖ τινος ἐπιδεὲς ἦν ὀργάνου σχεῖν ᾧ τὴν μὲν εἰς ἑαυτὸ τροφὴν δέξοιτο , τὴν δὲ πρότερον ἐξικμασμένην ἀποπέμψοι πάλιν . ἀπῄει τε γὰρ οὐδὲν οὐδὲ προσῄειν αὐτῷ ποθεν—οὐδὲ γὰρ ἦν—αὐτὸ γὰρ ἑαυτῷ τροφὴν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ φθίσιν παρέχον καὶ πάντα ἐν ἑαυτῷ καὶ ὑφ᾽ [ 33δ ] ἑαυτοῦ πάσχον καὶ δρῶν ἐκ τέχνης γέγονεν : ἡγήσατο γὰρ αὐτὸ ὁ συνθεὶς αὔταρκες ὂν ἄμεινον ἔσεσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ προσδεὲς ἄλλων . χειρῶν δέ , αἷς οὔτε λαβεῖν οὔτε αὖ τινα ἀμύνασθαι χρεία τις ἦν , μάτην οὐκ ᾤετο δεῖν αὐτῷ προσάπτειν , οὐδὲ ποδῶν οὐδὲ ὅλως τῆς περὶ τὴν βάσιν

Quando enim trium vel numerorum vel figurarum vel quorum- cumque generum contingit ut , quod medium sit , ut ei primum proportione , ita id postremo comparetur , vicissimque , ut extremum cum medio , sic medium cum primo conferatur , id , quod medium est , tum primum fit , tum postremum , postrema autem et prima media fiunt ; ita necessitas cogit , ut eadem sint ea , quae diiuncta fuerant ; eadem autem cum facta sint , effici- tur , ut omnia sint unum . Quodsi universi corpus planum et aequabile explicaretur neque in eo quic- quam esset † requisitum , unum interiectum medium et se ipsum et ea , quibus esset interpositum , conligaret .
Sed cum soliditas mundo quaereretur , solida autem omnia uno medio numquam , duobus semper copulen- tur , ita contigit , ut inter ignem atque terram aquam deus animamque poneret eaque inter se conpararet et proportione coniungeret , ut , quem ad modum ignis animae , sic anima aquae , quodque anima aquae , id aqua terrae proportione redderet . Qua ex coniunctione caelum ita aptum est , ut sub aspectum et tactum cadat . Itaque et ob eam causam et ex iis rebus nu- mero quattuor mundi est corpus effectum ea con- strictum conparatione , qua dixi ; ex quo ipse se con- cordi quadam amicitia et caritate conplectitur atque ita apte cohaeret , ut dissolvi nullo modo queat nisi ab eodem , a quo est conligatus . Earum autem quat- tuor rerum , quas supra dixi , sic in omni mundo par- tes omnes conlocatae sunt , ut nulla pars huiusce ge- neris excederet extra , atque ut in hoc universo ines- sent genera illa universa , id ob eas causas , primum ut mundus animans posset ex perfectis partibus esse perfectus , deinde ut unus esset nulla parte , unde alter gigneretur , relicta , postremo ne qui morbus eum pos- set aut senectus attingere . Omnis enim coagmentatio corporis vel caloris vel frigoris vi vel aliqua inpul- sione vehementi labefactatur et frangitur et ad morbos senectutemque conpellitur . Hanc igitur habuit ratio- nem effector mundi et molitor deus , ut unum opus totum atque perfectum ex omnibus et totis atque per- fectis absolveret , quod omni morbo et senio vacaret . Formam autem et maxime cognatam et decoram dedit . A quo enim animanti omnis reliquos contineri vellet animantes , hunc ea forma figuravit , qua una omnes formae reliquae concluduntur , et globosum est fabri- catus , quod σφαιροειδές Graeci vocant , cuius omnis extremitas paribus a medio radiis attingitur , idque ita tornavit , ut nihil efficere posset rotundius , nihil aspe- ritatis ut haberet , nihil offensionis , nihil incisum an- gulis , nihil anfractibus , nihil eminens , nihil lacunosum , omnesque partes simillimas omnium , quod eius iudicio
praestabat dissimilitudini similitudo . Omni autem to- tam figuram mundi levitate circumdedit . Nec enim oculis egebat , quia nihil extra , quod cerni posset , re- lictum erat , nec auribus , quia ne quod audiretur qui- dem , neque erant anima circumfusa extrema mundi , ut respirationem requireret , nec vero desiderabat aut alimenta corporis aut detractionem confecti et con- sumpti cibi ; neque enim ulla decessio fieri poterat neque accessio , nec vero erat unde . Itaque se ipse consumptione et senio alebat sui , cum ipse per se et a se et pateretur et faceret omnia . Sic enim ratus est ille , qui ista iunxit et condidit , ipsum se contentum esse
mundum neque egere altero . Itaque ei nec manus adfixit , quoniam nec capiendum quicquam erat nec repellendum , nec pedes aut alia membra , quibus in- gressum corporis sustineret .

After that He went on to fill up the intervals in the series of the powers of 2 and the intervals in the series of powers of 3 in the following manner : He cut off yet further portions from the original mixture , and set them in between the portions above rehearsed , so as to place two Means in each interval , —one a Mean which exceeded its Extremes and was by them exceeded by the same proportional part or fraction of each of the Extremes respectively ; the other a Mean which exceeded one Extreme by the same number or integer as it was exceeded by its other Extreme . And whereas the insertion of these links formed fresh intervals in the former intervals , that is to say , intervals of 3 : 2 and 4 : 3 and 9 : 8 , He went on to fill up the 4 : 3 intervals with 9 : 8 intervals . This still left over in each case a fraction , which is represented by the terms of the numerical ratio 256 : 243 . And thus the mixture , from which He had been cutting these portions off , was now all spent . Next , He split all this that He had put together into two parts lengthwise ; and then He laid the twain one against the other , the middle of one to the middle of the other , like a great cross ; and bent either of them into a circle , and join them , each to itself and also to the other , at a point opposite to where they had first been laid together . And He compassed them about with the motion that revolves in the same spot continually , and He made the one circle outer and the other inner . And the outer motion He ordained to be the Motion of the Same , and the inner motion the Motion of the Other . And He made the Motion of the Same to be toward the right along the side , and the Motion of the Other to be toward the left along the diagonal ; and He gave the sovranty to the Revolution of the Same and of the Uniform . For this alone He suffered to remain uncloven , whereas He split the inner Revolution in six places into seven unequal circles , according to each of the intervals of the double and triple intervals , three double and three triple . These two circles then He appointed to go in contrary directions ; and of the seven circles into which He split the inner circle , He appointed three to revolve at an equal speed , the other four to go at speeds equal neither with each other nor with the speed of the aforesaid three , yet moving at speeds the ratios of which one to another are those of natural integers . And when the construction of the Soul had all been completed to the satisfaction of its Constructor , then He fabricated within it all the Corporeal , and uniting them center to center He made them fit together . And the Soul , being woven throughout the Heaven every way from the center to the extremity , and enveloping it in a circle from without , and herself revolving within herself , began a divine beginning of unceasing and intelligent life lasting throughout all time .

μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα συνεπληροῦτο τά τε διπλάσια καὶ τριπλάσια διαστήματα , μοίρας ἔτι ἐκεῖθεν ἀποτέμνων καὶ τιθεὶς εἰς τὸ μεταξὺ τούτων , ὥστε ἐν ἑκάστῳ διαστήματι δύο εἶναι μεσότητας , τὴν μὲν ταὐτῷ μέρει τῶν ἄκρων αὐτῶν ὑπερέχουσαν καὶ ὑπερεχομένην , τὴν δὲ ἴσῳ μὲν κατ᾽ ἀριθμὸν ὑπερέχουσαν , ἴσῳ δὲ ὑπερεχομένην . ἡμιολίων δὲ διαστάσεων καὶ ἐπιτρίτων καὶ ἐπογδόων γενομένων ἐκ τούτων τῶν δεσμῶν ἐν ταῖς πρόσθεν διαστάσεσιν , τῷ τοῦ ἐπογδόου διαστήματι τὰ ἐπίτριτα πάντα συνεπληροῦτο , λείπων αὐτῶν ἑκάστου μόριον , τῆς τοῦ μορίου ταύτης διαστάσεως λειφθείσης ἀριθμοῦ πρὸς ἀριθμὸν ἐχούσης τοὺς ὅρους ἓξ καὶ πεντήκοντα καὶ διακοσίων πρὸς τρία καὶ τετταράκοντα καὶ διακόσια . καὶ δὴ καὶ τὸ μειχθέν , ἐξ οὗ ταῦτα κατέτεμνεν , οὕτως ἤδη πᾶν κατανηλώκει . ταύτην οὖν τὴν σύστασιν πᾶσαν διπλῆν κατὰ μῆκος σχίσας , μέσην πρὸς μέσην ἑκατέραν ἀλλήλαις οἷον χεῖ προσβαλὼν κατέκαμψεν εἰς ἓν κύκλῳ , συνάψας αὑταῖς τε καὶ ἀλλήλαις ἐν τῷ καταντικρὺ τῆς προσβολῆς , καὶ τῇ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἐν ταὐτῷ περιαγομένῃ κινήσει πέριξ αὐτὰς ἔλαβεν , καὶ τὸν μὲν ἔξω , τὸν δ᾽ ἐντὸς ἐποιεῖτο τῶν κύκλων . τὴν μὲν οὖν ἔξω φορὰν ἐπεφήμισεν εἶναι τῆς ταὐτοῦ φύσεως , τὴν δ᾽ ἐντὸς τῆς θατέρου . τὴν μὲν δὴ ταὐτοῦ κατὰ πλευρὰν ἐπὶ δεξιὰ περιήγαγεν , τὴν δὲ θατέρου κατὰ διάμετρον ἐπ᾽ ἀριστερά , κράτος δ᾽ ἔδωκεν τῇ ταὐτοῦ καὶ ὁμοίου περιφορᾷ : μίαν γὰρ αὐτὴν ἄσχιστον εἴασεν , τὴν δ᾽ ἐντὸς σχίσας ἑξαχῇ ἑπτὰ κύκλους ἀνίσους κατὰ τὴν τοῦ διπλασίου καὶ τριπλασίου διάστασιν ἑκάστην , οὐσῶν ἑκατέρων τριῶν , κατὰ τἀναντία μὲν ἀλλήλοις προσέταξεν ἰέναι τοὺς κύκλους , τάχει δὲ τρεῖς μὲν ὁμοίως , τοὺς δὲ τέτταρας ἀλλήλοις καὶ τοῖς τρισὶν ἀνομοίως , ἐν λόγῳ δὲ φερομένους . ἐπεὶ δὲ κατὰ νοῦν τῷ συνιστάντι πᾶσα ἡ τῆς ψυχῆς σύστασις ἐγεγένητο , μετὰ τοῦτο πᾶν τὸ σωματοειδὲς ἐντὸς αὐτῆς ἐτεκταίνετο καὶ μέσον μέσῃ συναγαγὼν προσήρμοττεν : ἡ δ᾽ ἐκ μέσου πρὸς τὸν ἔσχατον οὐρανὸν πάντῃ διαπλακεῖσα κύκλῳ τε αὐτὸν ἔξωθεν περικαλύψασα , αὐτὴ ἐν αὑτῇ στρεφομένη , θείαν ἀρχὴν ἤρξατο ἀπαύστου καὶ ἔμφρονος βίου πρὸς τὸν σύμπαντα χρόνον .

Deinde instituit dupla et tripla intervalla explere partis rursus ex toto desecans ; quas in intervallis ita locabat , ut in singulis essent bina media ( vix enim audeo dicere medietates , quas Graeci μεσότητας appellant ; sed quasi ita dixerim , intellegatur ; erit enim planius ) , earum alteram eadem parte praestantem extremis eademque superatam , alteram pari numero praestantem extremis parique superatam . Sesquialteris autem intervallis et sesquitertiis et sesquioctavis sumptis ex his conligationibus in primis intervallis sesquioctavo intervallo sesquitertia omnia explebat , cum particulam singulorum relinqueret . Eius autem particulae intervallo relicto habebat numerus ad numerum eandem proportionem conparationemque in extremis , quam habent ducenta quinquaginta sex cum ducentis quadraginta tribus , atque ita permixtum illud , ex quo haec secuit , iam omne consumpserat . Hanc igitur omnem coniunctionem duplicem in longitudinem diffidit mediaeque accommodans mediam quasi decussavit , deinde in orbem intorsit , ut et ipsae secum et inter se ex commissura , quae e regione esset , iungerentur , eoque motu , cuius orbis semper in eodem erat eodemque modo ciebatur , undique est eas circum plexus . Atque ita cum alterum esset exteriorem , alterum interiorem amplexus orbem , illum eiusdem naturae , hunc alterius notavit eamque , quae erat eiusdem , detorsit a latere in dexteram partem , hanc autem citimam a mediana linea direxit ad laevam , sed principatum dedit superiori , quam solam individuam reliquit . Interiorem autem cum in sex partis divisisset , septem orbis dispares duplo et triplo intervallo moveri iussit contrariis inter se cursibus . Eorum autem trium fecit pares celeritates , sed quattuor et inter se dispares et dissimilis trium reliquorum . Animum igitur cum ille procreator mundi deus ex sua mente et voluntate genuisset , tum denique omne , quod erat concretum atque corporeum , substernebat animo interiusque faciebat atque ita medio medium accommodans copulabat . Sic animus a medio profectus extremitatem caeli a suprema regione rotundo ambitu circumiecit seseque ipse versans divinum sempiternae sapientisque vitae induxit exordium

And whereas the body of the Heaven is visible , the Soul is herself invisible but partakes in reasoning and in harmony , [ 37a ] having come into existence by the agency of the best of things intelligible and ever-existing as the best of things generated . Inasmuch , then , as she is a compound , blended of the natures of the Same and the Other and Being , these three portions , and is proportionately divided and bound together , and revolves back upon herself , whenever she touches anything which has its substance dispersed or anything which has its substance undivided she is moved throughout her whole being and announces what the object is identical with [ 37b ] and from what it is different , and in what relation , where and how and when , it comes about that each thing exists and is acted upon by others both in the sphere of the Becoming and in that of the ever-uniform . And her announcement , being identically true concerning both the Other and the Same , is borne through the self-moved without speech or sound ; and whenever it is concerned with the sensible , and the circle of the Other moving in straight course proclaims it to the whole of its Soul , opinions and beliefs arise which are firm and true ; and again , when it is concerned with the rational , [ 37c ] and the circle of the Same , spinning truly , declares the facts , reason and knowledge of necessity result . But should anyone assert that the substance in which these two states arise is something other than Soul , his assertion will be anything rather than the truth .
And when the Father that engendered it perceived it in motion and alive , a thing of joy to the eternal gods , He too rejoiced1 ; and being well-pleased He designed to make it resemble its Model [ 37d ] still more closely . Accordingly , seeing that that Model is an eternal Living Creature , He set about making this Universe , so far as He could , of a like kind . But inasmuch as the nature of the Living Creature was eternal , this quality it was impossible to attach in its entirety to what is generated ; wherefore He planned to make a movable image of Eternity , and , as He set in order the Heaven , of that Eternity which abides in unity He made an eternal image , moving according to number , even that which we have named Time . [ 37e ] For simultaneously with the construction of the Heaven He contrived the production of days and nights and months and years , which existed not before the Heaven came into being . And these are all portions of Time ; even as " Was " and " Shall be " are generated forms of Time , although we apply them wrongly , without noticing , to Eternal Being .

καὶ τὸ μὲν δὴ σῶμα ὁρατὸν οὐρανοῦ γέγονεν , αὐτὴ δὲ ἀόρατος μέν , λογισμοῦ δὲ μετέχουσα καὶ [ 37α ] ἁρμονίας ψυχή , τῶν νοητῶν ἀεί τε ὄντων ὑπὸ τοῦ ἀρίστου ἀρίστη γενομένη τῶν γεννηθέντων . ἅτε οὖν ἐκ τῆς ταὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς θατέρου φύσεως ἔκ τε οὐσίας τριῶν τούτων συγκραθεῖσα μοιρῶν , καὶ ἀνὰ λόγον μερισθεῖσα καὶ συνδεθεῖσα , αὐτή τε ἀνακυκλουμένη πρὸς αὑτήν , ὅταν οὐσίαν σκεδαστὴν ἔχοντός τινος ἐφάπτηται καὶ ὅταν ἀμέριστον , λέγει κινουμένη διὰ πάσης ἑαυτῆς ὅτῳ τ᾽ ἄν τι ταὐτὸν ᾖ καὶ ὅτου ἂν [ 37β ] ἕτερον , πρὸς ὅτι τε μάλιστα καὶ ὅπῃ καὶ ὅπως καὶ ὁπότε συμβαίνει κατὰ τὰ γιγνόμενά τε πρὸς ἕκαστον ἕκαστα εἶναι καὶ πάσχειν καὶ πρὸς τὰ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἔχοντα ἀεί . λόγος δὲ ὁ κατὰ ταὐτὸν ἀληθὴς γιγνόμενος περί τε θάτερον ὂν καὶ περὶ τὸ ταὐτόν , ἐν τῷ κινουμένῳ ὑφ᾽ αὑτοῦ φερόμενος ἄνευ φθόγγου καὶ ἠχῆς , ὅταν μὲν περὶ τὸ αἰσθητὸν γίγνηται καὶ ὁ τοῦ θατέρου κύκλος ὀρθὸς ἰὼν εἰς πᾶσαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ψυχὴν διαγγείλῃ , δόξαι καὶ πίστεις γίγνονται βέβαιοι καὶ ἀληθεῖς , [ 37ξ ] ὅταν δὲ αὖ περὶ τὸ λογιστικὸν ᾖ καὶ ὁ τοῦ ταὐτοῦ κύκλος εὔτροχος ὢν αὐτὰ μηνύσῃ , νοῦς ἐπιστήμη τε ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἀποτελεῖται : τούτω δὲ ἐν ᾧ τῶν ὄντων ἐγγίγνεσθον , ἄν ποτέ τις αὐτὸ ἄλλο πλὴν ψυχὴν εἴπῃ , πᾶν μᾶλλον ἢ τἀληθὲς ἐρεῖ .
ὡς δὲ κινηθὲν αὐτὸ καὶ ζῶν ἐνόησεν τῶν ἀιδίων θεῶν γεγονὸς ἄγαλμα ὁ γεννήσας πατήρ , ἠγάσθη τε καὶ εὐφρανθεὶς ἔτι δὴ μᾶλλον ὅμοιον πρὸς τὸ παράδειγμα ἐπενόησεν ἀπεργάσασθαι . [ 37δ ] καθάπερ οὖν αὐτὸ τυγχάνει ζῷον ἀίδιον ὄν , καὶ τόδε τὸ πᾶν οὕτως εἰς δύναμιν ἐπεχείρησε τοιοῦτον ἀποτελεῖν . ἡ μὲν οὖν τοῦ ζῴου φύσις ἐτύγχανεν οὖσα αἰώνιος , καὶ τοῦτο μὲν δὴ τῷ γεννητῷ παντελῶς προσάπτειν οὐκ ἦν δυνατόν : εἰκὼ δ᾽ ἐπενόει κινητόν τινα αἰῶνος ποιῆσαι , καὶ διακοσμῶν ἅμα οὐρανὸν ποιεῖ μένοντος αἰῶνος ἐν ἑνὶ κατ᾽ ἀριθμὸν ἰοῦσαν αἰώνιον εἰκόνα , τοῦτον ὃν δὴ χρόνον ὠνομάκαμεν . [ 37ε ] ἡμέρας γὰρ καὶ νύκτας καὶ μῆνας καὶ ἐνιαυτούς , οὐκ ὄντας πρὶν οὐρανὸν γενέσθαι , τότε ἅμα ἐκείνῳ συνισταμένῳ τὴν γένεσιν αὐτῶν μηχανᾶται : ταῦτα δὲ πάντα μέρη χρόνου , καὶ τό τ᾽ ἦν τό τ᾽ ἔσται χρόνου γεγονότα εἴδη , ἃ δὴ φέροντες λανθάνομεν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀίδιον οὐσίαν οὐκ ὀρθῶς .

Et corpus quidem caeli aspectabile effectum est , animus autem ocu- lorum effugit optutum . Est autem unus ex omnibus rationis concentionisque , quae ἁρμονία Graece , sem- piternarum rerum et sub intellegentiam cadentium compos et particeps , quo nihil est ab optimo et prae- stantissimo genitore melius procreatum ; quippe qui ex eadem iunctus alteraque natura adiuncta materia tem- peratione trium partium proportione conpactus , se ipse conversans , cum materiam mutabilem arripuit et cum rursus individuam atque simplicem , per se omnis movetur discernitque , quid sit eiusdem generis , quid alterius , et cetera diiudicat , quid cuique rei sit ma- xime aptum , quid quoque loco aut modo aut tempore contingat , quaeque distinctio sit inter ea , quae gignantur , et ea , quae sint semper eadem . Ratio autem vera , quae versatur in iis , quae sunt semper eadem , et in iis , quae mutantur , cum in eodem et in altero movetur ipsa per sese sine voce et sine ullo sono , cum eam partem attingit , qua sensus cieri potest , et orbis illius generis alterius inmutatus et rectus omnia animo mentique denuntiat , tum opiniones adsensio- nesque firmae veraeque gignuntur ; cum autem in illis rebus vertitur , quae manentes semper eadem non sensu , sed intellegentia continentur ratione igitur et mente divina ad originem temporis curricu- lum inventum est solis et lunae .

What is that which is Existent always and has no Becoming ? And what is that which is Becoming always and never is Existent ? Now the one of these is apprehensible by thought with the aid of reasoning , since it is ever uniformly existent ; whereas the other is an object of opinion with the aid of unreasoning sensation , since it becomes and perishes and is never really existent . Again , everything which becomes must of necessity become owing to some Cause ; for without a cause it is impossible for anything to attain becoming . But when the artificer of any object , in forming its shape and quality , keeps his gaze fixed on that which is uniform , using a model of this kind , that object , executed in this way , must of necessity be beautiful ; but whenever he gazes at that which has come into existence and uses a created model , the object thus executed is not beautiful . Now the whole Heaven , or Cosmos , or if there is any other name which it specially prefers , by that let us call it , —so , be its name what it may , we must first investigate concerning it that primary question which has to be investigated at the outset in every case , —namely , whether it has existed always , having no beginning of generation , or whether it has come into existence , having begun from some beginning . It has come into existence ; for it is visible and tangible and possessed of a body ; and all such things are sensible , and things sensible , being apprehensible by opinion with the aid of sensation , come into existence , as we saw , 1 and are generated . And that which has come into existence must necessarily , as we say , have come into existence by reason of some Cause . Now to discover the Maker and Father of this Universe were a task indeed ; and having discovered Him , to declare Him unto all men were a thing impossible . However , let us return and inquire further concerning the Cosmos , —after which of the Models did its Architect construct it ? Was it after that which is self-identical and uniform , or after that which has come into existence ; Now if so be that this Cosmos is beautiful and its Constructor good , it is plain that he fixed his gaze on the Eternal ; but if otherwise ( which is an impious supposition ) , his gaze was on that which has come into existence . But it is clear to everyone that his gaze was on the Eternal ; for the Cosmos is the fairest of all that has come into existence , and He the best of all the Causes . So having in this wise come into existence , it has been constructed after the pattern of that which is apprehensible by reason and thought and is self-identical . Again , if these premisses be granted , it is wholly necessary that this Cosmos should be a Copy of something . Now in regard to every matter it is most important to begin at the natural beginning . Accordingly , in dealing with a copy and its model , we must affirm that the accounts given will themselves be akin to the diverse objects which they serve to explain ; those which deal with what is abiding and firm and discernible by the aid of thought will be abiding and unshakable ; and in so far as it is possible and fitting for statements to be irrefutable and invincible , they must in no wise fall short thereof ; whereas the accounts of that which is copied after the likeness of that Model , and is itself a likeness , will be analogous thereto and possess likelihood ; for I as Being is to Becoming , so is Truth to Belief . Wherefore , Socrates , if in our treatment of a great host of matters regarding the Gods and the generation of the Universe we prove unable to give accounts that are always in all respects self-consistent and perfectly exact , be not thou surprised ; rather we should be content if we can furnish accounts that are inferior to none in likelihood , remembering that both I who speak and you who judge are but human creatures , so that it becomes us to accept the likely account of these matters and forbear to search beyond it .

Socrates
Excellent , Timaeus ! We must by all means accept it , as you suggest ; and certainly we have most cordially accepted your prelude ; so now , we beg of you , proceed straight on with the main theme .

Timaeus
Let us now state the Cause wherefore He that constructed it constructed Becoming and the All . He was good , and in him that is good no envy ariseth ever concerning anything ; and being devoid of envy He desired that all should be , so far as possible , like unto Himself . This principle , then , we shall be wholly right in accepting from men of wisdom as being above all the supreme originating principle of Becoming and the Cosmos . For God desired that , so far as possible , all things should be good and nothing evil ;