29 D

Timaeus 29 D-92 c

Λέγωμεν δή, δι' ἥντινα αἰτίαν γένεσιν καὶ τὸ πᾶν τόδε Εὁ ξυνιστὰς ξυνέστησεν. ἀγαθὸς ἦν, ἀγαθῷ δὲ οὐδεὶς περὶ οὐδενὸς οὐδέποτε ἐγγίγνεται φθόνος· τούτου δ' ἐκτὸς ὢν πάντα ὅ τι μάλιστα γενέσθαι ἐβουλήθη παραπλήσια ἑαυτῷ.

30 βουληθεὶς γὰρ ὁ θεὸς ἀγαθὰ μὲν πάντα, φλαύρον δὲ μηδὲν εἶναι κατὰ δύναμιν, οὕτω δὴ πᾶν, ὅσον ἦν ὁρατόν, παραλαβὼν οὐχ ἡσυχίαν ἄγον, ἀλλὰ κινούμενον πλημμελῶς καὶ ἀτάκτως, εἰς τάξιν αὐτὸ ἤγαγεν ἐκ τῆς ἀταξίας, ἡγησάμενος ἐκεῖνο τούτου πάντως ἄμεινον. θέμις δὲ οὔτ ̓ ἦν οὔτ ̓ ἔστι τῷ ἀρίστῳ δρᾶν ἄλλο πλὴν τὸ κάλλιστον. Β λογισάμενος οὖν εὕρισκεν ἐκ τῶν κατὰ φύσιν ὁρατῶν οὐδὲν ἀνόητον τοῦ νοῦν ἔχοντος ὅλον ὅλου κάλλιον ἔσεσθαί ποτε ἔργον, νοῦν δ ̓ αὖ χωρὶς ψυχῆς ἀδύνατον παραγενέσθαι τῳ. διὰ δὴ τὸν λογισμὸν τόνδε νοῦν μὲν ἐν ψυχῇ, ψυχὴν δὲ ἐν σώματι ξυνιστὰς τὸ πᾶν ξυνετεκταίνετο, ὅπως ὅ τι κάλλιστον εἴη κατὰ φύσιν ἄριστόν τε ἔργον ἀπειργασμένος. οὕτως οὖν δὴ κατὰ λόγον τὸν εἰκότα δεῖ λέγειν τόνδε τὸν κόσμον ζῶον ἔμψυχον ἔννουν τε τῇ ἀληθείᾳ διὰ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ Ο γενέσθαι πρόνοιαν. Τούτου δ ̓ ὑπάρχοντος αὖ τὰ τούτοις ἐφεξῆς ἡμῖν λεκτέον, τίνι τῶν ζώων αὐτὸν εἰς ὁμοιότητα ὁ ξυνιστὰς ξυνέστησε. τῶν μὲν οὖν ἐν μέρους εἴδει πεφυκότων μηδενὶ καταξιώσωμεν· ἀτελεῖ γὰρ ἐοικὸς οὐδέν ποτ' ἂν γένοιτο καλόν· οὗ δ ̓ ἔστι τἆλλα ζῶα καθ ̓ ἓν καὶ κατὰ γένη μόρια, τούτῳ πάντων ὁμοιότατον αὐτὸν εἶναι τιθῶμεν. τὰ γὰρ δὴ νοητὰ ζῶα πάντα ἐκεῖνο ἐν ἑαυτῷ περιλαβὸν ἔχει, καθάπερ ὅδε ὁ κόσμος ἡμᾶς ὅσα τε ἄλλα θρέμματα Ο ξυνέστηκεν ὁρατά. τῷ γὰρ τῶν νοουμένων καλλίστῳ καὶ

TRANSLATION

Let the cause of the creation of this Universe be declared, to wit, that the Maker thereof was Good; with the Good there is no grudging of aught at any time: wherefore, being altogether without grudging, God wished all things to be made as like unto Himself as might be.

Now God, wishing that all things should be good so far as might be, and nothing evil, having received all that was Visible into His hands, and perceiving that it was not at rest but moved without measure and without order, took and brought it out of that disorder into order, thinking that this state was altogether better than that. For He Who is Best might not then-nor may He now-do aught save that which is most excellent. Wherefore He took thought and found out that, amongst those things which are by nature Visible, no work which is without Reason would ever, in the comparison, be fairer than that which hath Reason; and again, that Reason could not, without Soul, come and abide with anything. For this cause He put Reason in the Soul, and Soul in Body, when he fashioned the Universe; to the end that the creature of his workmanship might be the fairest by nature and the most excellent.

Our discourse, then, following alway the way of likelihood, hath brought us thus far that this Universe is a Living Creature, which hath in truth gotten Soul and Reason through the Providence of God.

Next must we tell in the likeness of what Living Creature the Maker made it. Unto none of those creatures which are by nature Parts of the Whole let us compare it; for naught fair could ever come forth in the likeness of that which is imperfect; but unto That whereof the living creatures, severally and according to their kinds, are parts must we deem it most like. Now That containeth in itself all Intelligible Creatures, even as this Universe containeth us and all his other nurslings which were created to be Visible: for unto That which is the

κατὰ πάντα τελέῳ μάλιστα αὐτὸν ὁ θεὸς ὁμοιῶσαι βουληθεὶς ζῶον ἓν ὁρατόν, πάνθ ̓ ὅσα αὐτοῦ κατὰ φύσιν ξυγγενῆ 31 ζῶα ἐντὸς ἔχον ἑαυτοῦ, ξυνέστησε. Πότερον οὖν ὀρθῶς ἕνα οὐρανὸν προσειρήκαμεν, ἢ πολλοὺς καὶ ἀπείρους λέγειν ἦν ὀρθότερον ; ἕνα, εἴπερ κατὰ τὸ παράδειγμα δεδημιουργημένος ἔσται. τὸ γὰρ περιέχον πάντα ὁπόσα νοητὰ ζῶα, μεθ ̓ ἑτέρου δεύτερον οὐκ ἄν ποτ ̓ εἴη· πάλιν γὰρ ἂν ἕτερον εἶναι τὸ περὶ ἐκείνω δέοι ζῶον, οὗ μέρος ἂν εἴτην ἐκείνω, καὶ οὐκ ἂν ἔτι ἐκείνοιν, ἀλλ ̓ ἐκείνῳ τῷ περιέχοντι, τόδ ̓ ἂν ἀφωμοιωμένον λέγοιτο ὀρθότερον. ἵνα οὖν τόδε κατὰ τὴν Β μόνωσιν ὅμοιον ἢ τῷ παντελεῖ ζώῳ, διὰ ταῦτα οὔτε δύο οὔτ ̓ ἀπείρους ἐποίησεν ὁ ποιῶν κόσμους, ἀλλ ̓ εἰς ὅδε μονογενὴς οὐρανὸς γεγονὼς ἔστι τε καὶ ἔτ ̓ ἔσται.

32 Β καὶ διὰ ταῦτα ἔκ τε δὴ τούτων καὶ τοιούτων καὶ τὸν © ἀριθμὸν τεττάρων τὸ τοῦ κόσμου σῶμα ἐγεννήθη δι' ἀναλογίας ὁμολογῆσαν, φιλίαν τε ἔσχεν ἐκ τούτων, ὥστ ̓ εἰς ταὐτὸν αὑτῷ ξυνελθὸν ἄλυτον ὑπό του ἄλλου πλὴν ὑπὸ τοῦ ξυνδήσαντος γενέσθαι. Τῶν δὲ δὴ τεττάρων ἓν ὅλον ἕκαστον εἴληφεν ἡ τοῦ κόσμου ξύστασις· ἐκ γὰρ πυρὸς παντὸς ὕδατός τε καὶ ἀέρος καὶ γῆς ξυνέστησεν αὐτὸν ὁ ξυνιστάς, μέρος οὐδὲν οὐδενὸς οὐδὲ δύναμιν ἔξωθεν ὑπολιD πών, τάδε διανοηθείς, πρῶτον μὲν ἵνα ὅλον ὅ τι μάλιστα 33 ζῶον τέλεον ἐκ τελέων τῶν μερῶν εἴη, πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ἕν, ἅτε οὐχ ὑπολελειμμένων ἐξ ὧν ἄλλο τοιοῦτο γένοιτ ̓ ἄν, ἔτι δὲ ἵνα ἀγήρων καὶ ἄνοσον ᾖ, κατανοῶν, ὡς ξυνιστάμενα τῷ σώματι θερμά και ψυχρὰ καὶ πάνθ ̓, ὅσα δυνάμεις

1 For ξυνιστάμενα τῳ read ξυστατῷ.

fairest of Things Intelligible and altogether perfect did God wish to liken it; wherefore made He it a Living Creature, One, Visible, having in itself all the Living Creatures which are by nature kin unto it.

Have we rightly called the Heaven One? or were it more right to say that there are Heavens many-nay, infinite in number?

One Visible Heaven there must be, if it is to be fashioned according to the pattern of That which, inasmuch as it containeth all Intelligible Creatures which are, could never be a second with another; for if it were a second with another, then must there be another Creature including these two, whereof they would be parts; and it would no longer be right to say that this Visible Universe was made after their likeness, but rather after the likeness of That which included them. Wherefore that this Universe might be One only, like unto the One only, All-perfect, Living Creature, the Maker made neither two Universes nor Universes infinite in number, but this One Only Begotten Heaven which was made, and is, and ever shall be.

For this cause, and out of these elements, being of such sort and four in number, was the Body of the Universe brought forth at one with itself through the proportional disposition of elements. Whence also it got Love, so that it was knit together with bonds which cannot be loosed, save by Him Who did bind.

Now, the making of the Universe took up the whole of each of the four elements: for the Maker of the Universe made it of all the fire that was, and all the water, and all the air, and all the earth, and left not any part or virtue of any of these without; to the end, first, that it might be a Living Creature, Whole, so far as might be, and Perfect, with the parts thereof perfect; and secondly, that it might be One Only, since naught was left over of which another like unto this could be made; and thirdly, that it might be without old age or disease; for He knew that if things hot and cold, and all such as have strong powers, encompass the composite

Β

ἰσχυρὰς ἔχει, περιϊστάμενα ἔξωθεν, καὶ προσπίπτοντα ἀκαίρως, λύει καὶ νόσους γῆράς τε ἐπάγοντα φθίνειν ποιεῖ.

33 3 Σχῆμα δὲ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ τὸ πρέπον καὶ τὸ ξυγγενές. τῷ δὲ τὰ πάντ ̓ ἐν αὑτῷ ζῶα περιέχειν μέλλοντι ζώῳ 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 πᾶν ἔξωθεν αὐτὸ ἀπηκριβοῦτο, πολλῶν χάριν. ε ὀμμάτων τε γὰρ ἐπεδεῖτο οὐδέν, ὁρατὸν γὰρ οὐδὲν ὑπελεί πετο ἔξωθεν· οὐδ ̓ ἀκοῆς, οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀκουστόν πνεῦμά τε οὐκ ἦν περιεστὸς δεόμενον ἀναπνοῆς. οὐδ ̓ αὖ τινὸς ἐπιδεὲς ἦν ὀργάνου σχεῖν, ᾧ τὴν μὲν εἰς ἑαυτὸ τροφὴν δέξοιτο, τὴν δὲ πρότερον ἐξικμασμένην ἀποπέμψοι πάλιν· ἀπῄει τε γὰρ οὐδὲν οὐδὲ προσῄειν αὐτῷ ποθέν· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἦν. αὐτὸ γὰρ ἑαυτῷ τροφὴν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ φθίσιν παρέχον καὶ πάντα ἐν D ἑαυτῷ καὶ ὑφ ̓ ἑαυτοῦ πάσχον καὶ ὁρῶν ἐκ τέχνης γέγονεν· ἡγήσατο γὰρ αὐτὸ ὁ ξυνθείς αὔταρκες ὃν 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 34 βάσιν ὑπηρεσίας. κίνησιν γὰρ ἀπένειμεν αὐτῷ τὴν τοῦ

σώματος οἰκείαν, τῶν ἑπτὰ τὴν περὶ νοῦν καὶ φρόνησιν μάλιστα οὖσαν. διὸ δὴ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ καὶ ἐν ἑαυτῷ περιαγαγὼν αὐτὸ ἐποίησε κύκλῳ κινεῖσθαι στρεφό μενον, τὰς δὲ ἐξ ἁπάσας κινήσεις ἀφεῖλε καὶ ἀπλανές ἀπειργάσατο ἐκείνων. ἐπὶ δὲ τὴν περιοδον ταύτην ἅτ ̓ οὐδὲν ποδῶν δέον ἀσκελὲς καὶ ἄπουν αὐτὸ ἐγέννησεν.

Οὗτος δὴ πᾶς ὄντος ἀεὶ λογισμὸς θεοῦ περὶ τὸν ποτὲ