προσήκειν ὑποληπτέον. οὐ γὰρ ἄλλο μέν ἐστιν οὐσία θεοῦ, δύναμις δὲ ἄλλο,
[D] καὶ μὰ Δία τρίτον παρὰ ταῦτα ἐνέργεια. πάντα γὰρ ἅπερ βούλεται, ταῦτα
ἔστι καὶ δύναται καὶ ἐνεργεῖ· οὔτε γὰρ ὃ μὴ ἔστι βούλεται, οὔτε ὃ βούλεται
δρᾶν οὐ σθένει, οὔθ᾽ ὃ μὴ δύναται ἐνεργεῖν ἐθέλει. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν περὶ τὸν
ἄνθρωπον οὐχ ὧδε ἔχει· διττὴ γάρ ἐστι μαχομένη φύσις εἰς ἓν κεκραμένη
ψυχῆς καὶ σώματος, τῆς μὲν θείας, τοῦ δὲ σκοτεινοῦ τε καὶ ζοφώδους· ἔοικέ
τε εἶναι μάχη τις καὶ στάσις. ἐπεὶ καὶ Ἀριστοτέλης φησὶ(687) διὰ τὸ
τοιοῦτο [143] μήτε τὰς ἡδονὰς ὁμολογεῖν μήτε τὰς λύπας ἀλλήλαις ἐν ἡμῖν·
τὸ γὰρ θατέρᾳ, φησί, τῶν ἐν ἡμῖν φύσεων ἡδὺ τῇ πρὸς ταύτην ἀντικειμένῃ
πέφυκεν ἀλγεινόν· ἐν δὲ τοῖς θεοῖς οὐδέν ἐστι τοιοῦτον·(688) οὐσίᾳ γὰρ
αὐτοῖς ὑπάρχει τἀγαθὰ καὶ διηνεκῶς, οὐ ποτὲ μὲν, ποτὲ δ᾽ οὔ. πρῶτον οὖν
ὅσαπερ ἔφαμεν, τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῦ παραστῆσαι βουλόμενοι, ταῦθ᾽ ἡμῖν εἰρῆσθαι
καὶ περὶ τῶν δυνάμεων καὶ ἐνεργειῶν νομιστέον. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις ὁ
λόγος ἔοικεν ἀντιστρέφειν, ὅσα καὶ περὶ τῶν δυνάμεων αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐνεργειῶν
ἐφεξῆς σκοποῦμεν, [B] ταῦτα οὐκ ἔργα μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ οὐσίαν νομιστέον.
εἰσὶ γάρ τοι θεοὶ συγγενεῖς Ἡλίῳ καὶ συμφυεῖς, τὴν ἄχραντον οὐσίαν τοῦ
θεοῦ κορυφούμενοι, πληθυνόμενοι μὲν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, περὶ αὐτὸν δὲ ἑνοειδῶς
ὄντες. ἄκουε δὴ πρῶτον ὅσα φασὶν οἱ τὸν οὐρανὸν οὐχ ὥσπερ ἵπποι καὶ βόες
ὁρῶντες ἤ τι τῶν ἀλόγων καὶ ἀμαθῶν ζῴων, ἀλλ᾽ ἐξ αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀφανῆ
πολυπραγμονοῦντες φύσιν· ἔτι δὲ πρὸ τούτων, εἴ σοι φίλον, [C] περὶ τῶν
ὑπερκοσμίων δυνάμεων αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐνεργειῶν, καὶ ἐκ μυρίων τὸ πλῆθος ὀλίγα
θέασαι.
(We must assume that what has just been said about his substance applies
equally to his powers.(689) For it cannot be that a god’s substance is one
thing, and his power another, and his activity, by Zeus, a third thing
besides these. For all that he wills he is, and can do, and puts into
action. For he does not will what is not, nor does he lack power to do
what he wills, nor does he desire to put into action what he cannot. In
the case of a human being, however, this is otherwise. For his is a two‐
fold contending nature of soul and body compounded into one, the former
divine, the latter dark and clouded. Naturally, therefore, there is a
battle and a feud between them. And Aristotle also says that this is why
neither the pleasures nor the pains in us harmonise with one another. For
he says that what is pleasant to one of the natures within us is painful
to the nature which is its opposite. But among the gods there is nothing
of this sort. For from their very nature what is good belongs to them, and
perpetually, not intermittently. In the first place, then, all that I said
when I tried to show forth his substance, I must be considered to have
said about his powers and activities also. And since in such cases the
argument is naturally convertible, all that I observe next in order
concerning his powers and activities must be considered to apply not to
his activities only, but to his substance also. For verily there are gods
related to Helios and of like substance who sum up the stainless nature of
this god, and though in the visible world they are plural, in him they are
one. And now listen first to what they assert who look at the heavens, not
like horses and cattle, or some other unreasoning and ignorant
animal,(690) but from it draw their conclusions about the unseen world.
But even before this, if you please, consider his supra‐mundane powers and
activities, and out of a countless number, observe but a few.)
Πρώτη δὴ τῶν δυνάμεών ἐστιν αὐτοῦ, δι᾽ ἧς ὅλην δι᾽ ὅλης τὴν νοερὰν οὐσίαν,
τὰς ἀκρότητας αὐτῆς εἰς ἓν καὶ ταὐτὸ συνάγων, ἀποφαίνει μίαν. ὅσπερ γὰρ
περὶ τὸν αἰσθητόν ἐστι κόσμον ἐναργῶς κατανοῆσαι, πυρὸς καὶ γῆς εἰλημμένον
ἀέρα καὶ ὕδωρ ἐν μέσῳ, τῶν ἄκρων σύνδεσμον, τοῦτο οὐκ ἄν τις εἰκότως [D]
ἐπὶ τῆς πρὸ τῶν σωμάτων αἰτίας κεχωρισμένης, ἣ τῆς γενέσεως ἔχουσα τὴν
ἀρχὴν οὐκ ἔστι γένεσις, οὕτω διατετάχθαι νομίσειεν, ὥστε καὶ ἐν ἐκείνοις
τὰς ἄκρας αἰτίας κεχωρισμένας πάντη τῶν σωμάτων ὑπό τινων μεσοτήτων εἰς
ταὐτὸ παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως Ἡλίου συναγομένας ἑνοῦσθαι περὶ αὐτόν; συντρέχει
δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ ἡ τοῦ Διὸς δημιουργικὴ δύναμις, δι᾽ ἣν ἔφαμεν καὶ πρότερον
ἱδρῦσθαί τε αὐτοῖς ἐν Κύπρῳ καὶ ἀποδεδεῖχθαι κοινῇ τὰ τεμένη· [144] καὶ
τὸν Ἀπόλλω δὲ αὐτὸν ἐμαρτυρόμεθα τῶν λόγων, ὃν εἰκὸς δήπουθεν ὑπὲρ τῆς
ἑαυτοῦ φύσεως ἄμεινον εἰδέναι· σύνεστι γὰρ καὶ οὗτος Ἡλίῳ καὶ ἐπικοινωνεῖ
διὰ τὴν(691) ἁπλότητα τῶν νοήσεων καὶ τὸ μόνιμον τῆς οὐσίας καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ
ὂν τῆς ἐνεργείας.(692)
(First, then, of his powers is that through which he reveals the whole
intellectual substance throughout as one, since he brings together its
extremes. For even as in the world of sense‐perception we can clearly
discern air and water set between fire and earth,(693) as the link that
binds together the extremes, would one not reasonably suppose that, in the
case of the cause which is separate from elements and prior to them—and
though it is the principle of generation, is not itself generation—it is
so ordered that, in that world also, the extreme causes which are wholly
separate from elements are bound together into one through certain modes
of mediation, by King Helios, and are united about him as their centre?
And the creative power of Zeus also coincides with him, by reason of which
in Cyprus, as I said earlier, shrines are founded and assigned to them in
common. And Apollo himself also we called to witness to our statements,
since it is certainly likely that he knows better than we about his own
nature. For he too abides with Helios and is his colleague by reason of
the singleness of his thoughts and the stability of his substance and the
consistency of his activity.)
Ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν Διονύσου μεριστὴν δημιουργίαν οὐδαμοῦ φαίνεται χωρίζων ὁ θεὸς
Ἡλίου· τούτῳ δὲ αὐτὴν ὑποτάττων ἀεὶ καὶ ἀποφαίνων σύνθρονον ἐξηγητὴς ἡμῖν
ἐστι τῶν ἐπὶ τοῦ θεοῦ καλλίστων διανοημάτων. [B] πάσας δὲ ἐν αὑτῷ περιέχων
ὁ θεὸς ὅδε τὰς ἀρχὰς τῆς καλλίστης νοερᾶς συγκράσεως Ἥλιος Ἀπόλλων ἐστὶ
Μουσηγέτης. ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ ὅλην ἡμῖν τὴν τῆς εὐταξίας ζωὴν συμπληροῖ, γεννᾷ
μὲν ἐν κόσμῳ τὸν Ἀσκληπιόν, ἔχει δὲ αὐτὸν καὶ πρὸ τοῦ κόσμου παρ᾽ ἑαυτῷ.
(But Apollo too in no case appears to separate the dividing creative
function of Dionysus(694) from Helios. And since he always subordinates it
to Helios and so indicates that Dionysus(695) is his partner on the
throne, Apollo is the interpreter for us of the fairest purposes that are
to be found with our god. Further Helios, since he comprehends in himself
all the principles of the fairest intellectual synthesis, is himself
Apollo the leader of the Muses. And since he fills the whole of our life
with fair order, he begat Asclepios(696) in the world, though even before
the beginning of the world he had him by his side.)
Ἀλλὰ πολλὰς μὲν ἄν τις καὶ ἄλλας περὶ τὸν θεὸν τόνδε δυνάμεις θεωρῶν
οὔποτ᾽ ἂν ἐφίκοιτο πασῶν· ἀπόχρη δὲ τῆς μὲν χωριστῆς καὶ πρὸ τῶν σωμάτων
ἐπ᾽ αὐτῶν οἶμαι τῶν αἰτιῶν, αἳ κεχωρισμέναι τῆς φανερᾶς προϋπάρχουσι
δημιουργίας, ἴσην Ἡλίῳ [C] καὶ Διὶ τὴν δυναστείαν καὶ μίαν ὑπάρχουσαν
τεθεωρηκέναι, τὴν δὲ ἁπλότητα τῶν νοήσεων μετὰ τοῦ διαιωνίου καὶ κατὰ
ταὐτὰ μονίμου ξὺν Ἀπόλλωνι τεθεαμένοις, τὸ δὲ μεριστὸν τῆς δημιουργίας
μετὰ τοῦ τὴν μεριστὴν ἐπιτροπεύοντος οὐσίαν Διονύσου, τὸ δὲ τῆς καλλίστης
συμμετρίας καὶ νοερᾶς κράσεως περὶ τὴν τοῦ Μουσηγέτου δύναμιν τεθεωρηκόσι,
τὸ συμπληροῦν δὲ τὴν εὐταξίαν τῆς ὅλης ζωῆς ξὺν Ἀσκληπιῳ νοοῦσι.
(But though one should survey many other powers that belong to this god,
never could one investigate them all. It is enough to have observed the
following: That there is an equal and identical dominion of Helios and
Zeus over the separate creation which is prior to substances, in the
region, that is to say, of the absolute causes which, separated from
visible creation, existed prior to it; secondly we observed the singleness
of his thoughts which is bound up with the imperishableness and abiding
sameness that he shares with Apollo; thirdly, the dividing part of his
creative function which he shares with Dionysus who controls divided
substance; fourthly we have observed the power of the leader of the Muses,
revealed in fairest symmetry and blending of the intellectual; finally we
comprehended that Helios, with Asclepios, fulfils the fair order of the
whole of life.)
[D] Τοσαῦτα μὲν ὑπὲρ τῶν προκοσμίων αὐτοῦ δυνάμεων, ἔργα δὲ ὁμοταγῆ
ταύταις ὑπὲρ τὸν ἐμφανῆ κόσμον ἡ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀποπλήρωσις. ἐπειδὴ γάρ ἐστι
γνήσιος ἔκγονος(697) τἀγαθοῦ, παραδεξάμενος παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ τελείαν τὴν ἀγαθὴν
μοῖραν, αὐτὸς ἅπασι τοῖς νοεροῖς διανέμει θεοῖς, ἀγαθοεργὸν καὶ τελείαν
αὐτοῖς διδοὺς τὴν οὐσίαν. ἓν μὲν δὴ τουτί. δεύτερον δὲ ἔργον ἐστὶ τοῦ θεοῦ
ἡ τοῦ νοητοῦ κάλλους [145] ἐν τοῖς νοεροῖς καὶ ἀσωμάτοις εἴδεσι τελειοτάτη
διανομή. τῆς γὰρ ἐν τῇ φύσει φαινομένης οὐσίας γονίμου γεννᾶν ἐφιεμένης ἐν
τῷ καλῷ καὶ ὑπεκτίθεσθαι τὸν τόκον, ἔτι ἀνάγκη προηγεῖσθαι τὴν ἐν τῷ νοητῷ
κάλλει τοῦτο αὐτὸ διαιωνίως καὶ ἀεὶ ποιοῦσαν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐχὶ νῦν μὲν, εἰσαῦθις
δὲ οὔ, καὶ ποτὲ μὲν γεννῶσαν, αὖθις δὲ ἄγονον. ὅσα γὰρ ἐνταῦθα ποτὲ καλά,
ταῦτα ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς ἀεί. ῥητέον τοίνυν αὐτοῦ τῆς ἐν τοῖς φαινομένοις
αἰτίας [B] γονίμου προκαθηγεῖσθαι τὸν ἐν τῷ νοερῷ καὶ διαιωνίῳ κάλλει
τόκον ἀγέννητον, ὃν ὁ θεὸς οὗτος ἔχει περὶ ἑαυτὸν ὑποστήσας, ᾧ καὶ τὸν
τέλειον νοῦν διανέμει, καθάπερ ὄμμασιν ἐνδιδοὺς διὰ τοῦ φωτὸς τὴν ὄψιν,
οὕτω δὲ καὶ ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς(698) διὰ τοῦ νοεροῦ παραδείγματος, ὃ προτείνει
πολὺ φανότερον τῆς αἰθερίας αὐγῆς, πᾶσιν οἶμαι τοῖς νοεροῖς τὸ νοεῖν καὶ
τὸ νοεῖσθαι παρέχει. ἑτέρα πρὸς ταύταις [C] ἐνέργεια θαυμαστὴ φαίνεται
περὶ τὸν βασιλέα τῶν ὅλων Ἥλιον ἡ τοῖς κρείττοσι γένεσιν ἐνδιδομένη μοῖρα
βελτῖων, ἀγγέλοις,(699) δαίμοσιν, ἥρωσι ψυχαῖς τε μερισταῖς, ὁπόσαι
μένουσιν ἐν παραδείγματος καὶ ἰδέας λόγῳ, μήποτε ἑαυτὰς διδοῦσαι σώματι.
τὴν μὲν οὖν προκόσμιον οὐσίαν τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεις τε αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔργα τὸν
βασιλέα τῶν ὅλων ὑμνοῦντες Ἥλιον, ἐφ᾽ ὅσον ἡμῖν [D] οἷόν τε ἦν ἐφικέσθαι
τῆς περὶ αὐτὸν εὐφημίας σπεύδοντες, διεληλύθαμεν. ἐπεὶ δὲ ὄμματα, φησίν,
ἀκοῆς ἐστι πιστότερα, καίτοι τῆς νοήσεως ὄντα γε ἀπιστότερα καὶ
ἀσθενέστερα, φέρε καὶ περὶ τῆς ἐμφανοῦς αὐτοῦ δημιουργίας αἰτησάμενοι παρ᾽
αὐτοῦ τὸ μετρίως εἰπεῖν πειραθῶμεν.
(So much then in respect to those powers of his that existed before the
beginning of the world; and co‐ordinate with these are his works over the
whole visible world, in that he fills it with good gifts. For since he is
the genuine son of the Good and from it has received his blessed lot in
fulness of perfection, he himself distributes that blessedness to the
intellectual gods, bestowing on them a beneficent and perfect nature. This
then is one of his works. And a second work of the god is his most perfect
distribution of intelligible beauty among the intellectual and immaterial
forms. For when the generative substance(700) which is visible in our
world desires to beget in the Beautiful(701) and to bring forth offspring,
it is further necessary that it should be guided by the substance that, in
the region of intelligible beauty, does this very thing eternally and
always and not intermittently, now fruitful now barren. For all that is
beautiful in our world only at times, is beautiful always in the
intelligible world. We must therefore assert that the ungenerated
offspring in beauty intelligible and eternal guides the generative cause
in the visible world; which offspring(702) this god(703) called into
existence and keeps at his side, and to it he assigns also perfect reason.
For just as through his light he gives sight to our eyes, so also among
the intelligible gods through his intellectual counterpart—which he causes
to shine far more brightly than his rays in our upper air—he bestows, as I
believe, on all the intellectual gods the faculty of thought and of being
comprehended by thought. Besides these, another marvellous activity of
Helios the King of the All is that by which he endows with superior lot
the nobler races—I mean angels, daemons,(704) heroes, and those divided
souls(705) which remain in the category of model and archetype and never
give themselves over to bodies. I have now described the substance of our
god that is prior to the world and his powers and activities, celebrating
Helios the King of the All in so far as it was possible for me to compass
his praise. But since eyes, as the saying goes, are more trustworthy than
hearing—although they are of course less trustworthy and weaker than the
intelligence—come, let me endeavour to tell also of his visible creative
function; but let first me entreat him to grant that I speak with some
measure of success.)
Ὕπέστη μὲν οὖν περὶ αὐτὸν ὁ φαινόμενος ἐξ αἰῶνος κόσμος, ἕδραν δὲ ἔχει τὸ
περικόσμιον φῆς ἐξ αἰῶνος, οὐχὶ νῦν μέν, τότε δὲ οὔ, οὐδὲ ἄλλοτε ἄλλως,
ἀεὶ δὲ ὡσαύτως. ἀλλ᾽ εἴ τις ταύτην τὴν διαιώνιον φύσιν ἄχρις ἐπινοίας
ἐθελήσειε χρονικῶς κατανοῆσαι, [146] τὸν βασιλέα τῶν ὅλων Ἥλιον ἀθρόως
καταλάμποντα ῥᾷστα ἂν γνοίη, πόσων αἴτιός ἐστι δι᾽ αἰῶνος ἀγαθῶν τῷ κόσμῳ.
οἶδα μὲν οὗν καὶ Πλάτωνα τὸν μέγαν καὶ μετὰ τοῦτον ἄνδρα τοῖς χρόνοις,
οὔτι μὴν τῇ φύσει καταδεέστερον· τὸν Χαλκιδέα φημί, τὸν Ἰάμβλιχον· ὃς ἡμᾶς
τά τε ἄλλα περὶ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν καὶ δὴ καὶ ταῦτα διὰ τῶν λόγων ἐμύησεν,
ἄχρις ὑποθέσεως τῷ γεννητῷ προσχρωμένους καὶ οἱονεὶ χρονικήν τινα [B] τὴν
ποίησιν ὑποτιθεμένους, ἵνα τὸ μέγεθος τῶν παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ γινομένων ἔργων
ἐπινοηθείη. πλὴν ἀλλ᾽ ἔμοιγε τῆς ἐκείνων ἀπολειπομένῳ παντάπασι δυνάμεως
οὐδαμῶς ἐστι παρακινδυνευτέον, ἐπείπερ ἀκίνδυνον οὐδὲ αὐτὸ τὸ μέχρι ψιλῆς
ὑποθέσεως χρονικήν τινα περὶ τὸν κόσμον ὑποθέσθαι ποίησιν ὁ κλεινὸς ἤρως
ἐνόμισεν Ἰάμβλιχος. πλὴν ἀλλ᾽ ἐπείπερ ὁ θεὸς ἐξ αἰωνίου προῆλθεν αἰτίας,
μᾶλλον δὲ προήγαγε πάντα ἐξ αἰῶνος, [C] ἀπὸ τῶν ἀφανῶν τὰ φανερὰ βουλήσει
θείᾳ καὶ ἀρρήτῳ τάχει καὶ ἀνυπερβλήτῳ δυνάμει πάντα ἀθρόως ἐν τῷ νῦν
ἀπογεννήσας χρόνῳ, ἀπεκληρώσατο μὲν οἷον οἰκειοτέραν ἕδραν τὸ μέσον
οὐρανοῦ, ἵνα πανταχόθεν ἴσα διανέμῃ τἀγαθὰ τοῖς ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ καὶ σὺν αὐτῷ
προελθοῦσι θεοῖς, ἐπιτροπεύῃ δὲ τὰς ἑπτὰ καὶ τὴν ὀγδόην οὐρανοῦ
κυκλοφορίαν, ἐνάτην τε οἶμαι δημιουργίαν τὴν ἐν γενέσει καὶ φθορᾷ συνεχεῖ
διαιωνίως ἀνακυκλουμένην γένεσιν. οἵ τε γὰρ πλάνητες εὔδηλον ὅτι περὶ [D]
αὐτὸν χορεύοντες μέτρον ἔχουσι τῆς κινήσεως τὴν πρὸς τὸν θεὸν τόνδε
τοιάνδε περὶ τὰ σχήματα συμφωνίαν, ὅ τε ὅλος οὐρανὸς αὐτῷ κατὰ πάντα
συναρμοζόμενος ἑαυτοῦ τὰ μέρη θεῶν ἐστιν ἐξ Ἡλίου πλήρης. ἔστι γὰρ ὁ θεὸς
ὅδε πέντε μὲν κύκλων ἄρχων κατ᾽ οὐρανόν, τρεῖς δὲ ἐκ τούτων ἐπιὼν ἐν τρισὶ
τρεῖς γεννᾷ τὰς χάριτας· οἱ λειπόμενοι δὲ μεγάλης ἀνάγκης εἰσὶ πλάστιγγες.
[147] ἀξύνετον ἴσως λέγω τοῖς Ἕλλησιν, ὥσπερ δέον μόνον τὰ συνήθη καὶ
γνώριμα λέγειν· οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ τοῦτό ἐστιν, ὡς ἄν τις ὑπολάβοι, παντελῶς
ξένον. οἱ Διόσκουροι τίνες ὑμῖν εἰσιν, ὦ σοφώτατοι καὶ ἀβασανίστως τὰ
πολλὰ παραδεχόμενοι; οὐχ ἑτερήμεροι(706) λέγονται, διότι μὴ θέμις ὁρᾶσθαι
τῆς αὐτῆς ἡμέρας; ὑμεῖς ὅπως ἀκούετε εὔδηλον ὅτι τῆς χθὲς καὶ τήμερον.
εἶτα τί νοεῖ τοῦτο, πρὸς αὐτῶν τῶν Διοσκούρων; ἐφαρμόσωμεν αὐτὸ φύσει τινὶ
καὶ πράγματι, κενὸν(707) [B] ἵνα μηδὲν μηδὲ ἀνόητον λέγωμεν. ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἂν
εὕροιμεν ἀκριβῶς ἐξετάζοντες· οὐδὲ γὰρ ὡς ὑπέλαβον εἰρῆσθαί τινες πρὸς τῶν
θεολόγων ἡμισφαίρια τοῦ παντὸς τὰ δύο λόγον ἔχει τινά· πῶς γάρ ἐστιν
ἑτερήμερον αὐτῶν ἕκαστον οὐδὲ ἐπινοῆσαι ῥᾴδιον, ἡμέρας ἑκάστης
ἀνεπαισθήτου τῆς κατὰ τὸν φωτισμὸν αὐτῶν παραυξήσεως γινομένης. σκεψώμεθα
δὲ νῦν ὑπὲρ ὧν αὐτοὶ καινοτομεῖν ἴσως τῳ δοκοῦμεν. τῆς αὐτῆς ἡμέρας
ἐκεῖνοι [C] μετέχειν ὀρθῶς ἂν ῥηθεῖεν, ὁπόσοις ἴσος ἐστὶν ὁ τῆς ὑπὲρ γῆν
ἡλίου πορείας χρόνος ἐν ἑνὶ καὶ τῷ αὐτῷ μηνί. ὁράτω τις οὖν, εἰ μὴ τὸ
ἑτερήμερον τοῖς κύκλοις ἐφαρμόζει τοῖς τε ἄλλοις καὶ τοῖς τροπικοῖς.
ὑπολήψεται τις· οὐκ ἴσον ἐστιν. οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀεὶ φαίνονται, καὶ τοῖς τὴν
ἀντίσκιον οἰκοῦσι γῆν ἀμφοτέροις ἀμφότεροι, τῶν δὲ οἱ θάτερον ὁρῶντες
οὐδαμῶς ὁρῶσι θάτερον.
(From eternity there subsisted, surrounding Helios, the visible world, and
from eternity the light that encompasses the world has its fixed station,
not shining intermittently, nor in different ways at different times, but
always in the same manner. And if one desired to comprehend, as far as the
mind may, this eternal nature from the point of view of time, one would
understand most easily of how many blessings for the world throughout
eternity he is the cause, even Helios the King of the All who shines
without cessation. Now I am aware that the great philosopher Plato,(708)
and after him a man who, though he is later in time, is by no means
inferior to him in genius—I mean Iamblichus(709) of Chalcis, who through
his writings initiated me not only into other philosophic doctrines but
these also—I am aware, I say, that they employed as a hypothesis the
conception of a generated world, and assumed for it, so to speak, a
creation in time in order that the magnitude of the works that arise from
Helios might be recognised. But apart from the fact that I fall short
altogether of their ability, I must by no means be so rash; especially
since the glorious hero Iamblichus thought it was not without risk to
assume, even as a bare hypothesis, a temporal limit for the creation of
the world. Nay rather, the god came forth from an eternal cause, or rather
brought forth all things from everlasting, engendering by his divine will
and with untold speed and unsurpassed power, from the invisible all things
now visible in present time. And then he assigned as his own station the
mid‐heavens, in order that from all sides he may bestow equal blessings on
the gods who came forth by his agency and in company with him; and that he
may guide the seven spheres(710) in the heavens and the eighth sphere(711)
also, yes and as I believe the ninth creation too, namely our world which
revolves for ever in a continuous cycle of birth and death. For it is
evident that the planets, as they dance in a circle about him, preserve as
the measure of their motion a harmony between this god and their own
movements such as I shall now describe; and that the whole heaven also,
which adapts itself to him in all its parts, is full of gods who proceed
from Helios. For this god is lord of five zones in the heavens; and when
he traverses three of these he begets in those three the three
Graces.(712) And the remaining zones are the scales of mighty
Necessity.(713) To the Greeks what I say is perhaps incomprehensible—as
though one were obliged to say to them only what is known and familiar.
Yet not even is this altogether strange to them as one might suppose. For
who, then, in your opinion, are the Dioscuri,(714) O ye most wise, ye who
accept without question so many of your traditions? Do you not call them
“alternate of days,” because they may not both be seen on the same day? It
is obvious that by this you mean “yesterday” and “to‐day.” But what does
this mean, in the name of those same Dioscuri? Let me apply it to some
natural object, so that I may not say anything empty and senseless. But no
such object could one find, however carefully one might search for it. For
the theory that some have supposed to be held by the theogonists, that the
two hemispheres of the universe are meant, has no meaning. For how one
could call each one of the hemispheres “alternate of days” is not easy to
imagine, since the increase of their light in each separate day is
imperceptible. But now let us consider a question on which some may think
that I am innovating. We say correctly that those persons for whom the
time of the sun’s course above the earth is the same in one and the same
month share the same day. Consider therefore whether the expression
“alternate of days” cannot be applied both to the tropics and the other,
the polar, circles. But some one will object that it does not apply
equally to both. For though the former are always visible, and both of
them are visible at once to those who inhabit that part of the earth where
shadows are cast in an opposite direction,(715) yet in the case of the
latter those who see the one do not see the other.)
[D] Ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα μὴ πλείω περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν λέγων διατρίβω, τὰς τροπὰς
ἐργαζόμενος, ὥσπερ ἴσμεν, πατὴρ ὡρῶν ἐστιν, οὐκ ἀπολείπων δὲ οὐδαμῶς τοὺς
πόλους Ὠκεανὸς ἂν εἴη, διπλῆς ἡγεμὼν οὐσίας. μῶν ἀσαφές τι καὶ τοῦτο
λέγομεν, ἐπείπερ πρὸ ἡμῶν αὐτὸ καὶ Ὅμηρος ἔφη·
However, not to dwell too long on the same subject; since he causes the
winter and summer solstice, Helios is, as we know, the father of the
seasons; and since he never forsakes the poles, he is Oceanus, the lord of
two‐fold substance. My meaning here is not obscure, is it, seeing that
before my time Homer said the same thing?
Ὠκεανοῦ, ὅσπερ γένεσις πάντεσσι τέτυκται,(716)
(“Oceanus who is the father of all things”)
θνητῶν τε θεῶν θ᾽, ὡς ἂν αὐτὸς φαίη, μακάρων; ἀληθῶς. [148] ἒν γὰρ τῶν
πάντων οὐδέν ἐστιν, ὃ μὴ τῆς Ὠκεανοῦ πέφυκεν οὐσίας ἔκγονον. ἀλλὰ τί τοῦτο
πρὸς τοὺς πόλους; βούλει σοι φράσω; καίτοι σιωπᾶσθαι κρεῖσσον ἦν·
εἰρήσεται δὲ ὅμως.
(yes, for mortals and for the blessed gods too, as he himself would say;
and what he says is true. For there is no single thing in the whole of
existence that is not the offspring of the substance of Oceanus. But what
has that to do with the poles? Shall I tell you? It were better indeed to
keep silence(717); but for all that I will speak.)
Λέγεται γοῦν, εἰ καὶ μὴ πάντες ἑτοίμως ἀποδέχονται, ὁ δίσκος ἐπὶ τῆς
ἀνάστρου φέρεσθαι πολὺ τῆς ἀπλανοῦς ὑψηλότερος· καὶ οὕτω δὴ(718) τῶν μὲν
πλανωμένων οὐχ ἕξει τὸ μέσον, τριῶν δὲ τῶν κόσμων κατὰ τὰς τελεστικὰς [B]
ὑποθέσεις, εἰ χρὴ τὰ τοιαῦτα καλεῖν ὑποθέσεις, ἀλλὰ μὴ ταῦτα μὲν δόγματα,
τὰ δὲ τῶν σφαιρικῶν ὑποθέσεις. οἱ μὲν γὰρ θεῶν ἢ δαιμόνων μεγάλων δή τινων
ἀκούσαντές φασιν, οἱ δὲ ὑποτίθενται τὸ πιθανὸν ἐκ τῆς πρὸς τὰ φαινόμενα
συμφωνίας. αἰνεῖν μὲν οὖν ἄξιον καὶ τούσδε, πιστεύειν δὲ ἐκείνοις ὅτῳ
βέλτιον εἶναι δοκεῖ, τοῦτον ἐγὼ παίζων καὶ σπουδάζων ἄγαμαί τε καὶ
τεθαύμακα. καὶ ταῦτα μὲν δὴ ταύτῃ, φασί.
(Some say then, even though all men are not ready to believe it, that the
sun travels in the starless heavens far above the region of the fixed
stars. And on this theory he will not be stationed midmost among the
planets but midway between the three worlds: that is, according to the
hypothesis of the mysteries, if indeed one ought to use the word
“hypothesis” and not rather say “established truths,” using the word
“hypothesis” for the study of the heavenly bodies. For the priests of the
mysteries tell us what they have been taught by the gods or mighty
daemons, whereas the astronomers make plausible hypotheses from the
harmony that they observe in the visible spheres. It is proper, no doubt,
to approve the astronomers as well, but where any man thinks it better to
believe the priests of the mysteries, him I admire and revere, both in
jest and earnest. And so much for that, as the saying is.(719))
[C] Πολὺ δὲ πρὸς οἷς ἔφην πλῆθός ἐστι περὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν θεῶν, οὓς
κατενόησαν οἱ τὸν οὐρανὸν μὴ παρέργως μηδὲ ὥσπερ τὰ βοσκήματα
θεωροῦντες.(720) τοὺς τρεῖς γὰρ τετραχῇ τέμνων διὰ τῆς τοῦ ζῳοφόρου κύκλου
πρὸς ἕκαστον αὐτῶν κοινωνίας τοῦτον αὖθις τὸν ζῳοφόρον εἰς δώδεκα θεῶν
δυνάμεις διαιρεῖ, καὶ μέντοι τούτων ἕκαστον εἰς τρεῖς, ὥστε ποιεῖν ἓξ ἐπὶ
τοῖς τριάκοντα. ἔνθεν οἶμαι καθήκει ἄνωθεν ἡμῖν ἐξ οὐρανῶν [D] τριπλῆ
χαρίτων δόσις, ἐκ τῶν κύκλων, οὗς ὁ θεὸς ὅδε τετραχῇ τέμνων τὴν τετραπλῆν
ἐπιπέμπει τῶν ὡρῶν ἀγλαΐαν, αἳ δὴ τὰς τροπὰς ἔχουσι τῶν καιρῶν. κύκλον τοι
καὶ αἱ Χάριτες ἐπὶ γῆς διὰ τῶν ἀγαλμάτων μιμοῦνται. χαριτοδότης(721) δέ
ἐστιν ὁ Διόνυσος ἐς ταὐτὸ λεγόμενος Ἡλίῳ συμβασιλεύειν. τύ οὖν ἔτι σοι τὸν
Ὧρον λέγω καὶ τἇλλα θεῶν ὀνόματα, τὰ πάντα Ἡλίῳ προσήκοντα; συνῆκαν γὰρ
ἅνθρωποι τὸν θεὸν ἐξ ὧν ὁ θεὸς [149] ὅδε ἐργάζεται, τὸν σύμπαντα οὐρανὸν
τοῖς νοεροῖς ἀγαθοῖς τελειωσάμενος καὶ μεταδοὺς αὐτῷ τοῦ νοητοῦ κάλλους,
ἀρξάμενοί τε ἐκεῖθεν ὅλον τε αὐτὸν καὶ τὰ μέρη τῇ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἁδρᾷ(722)
δόσει. πᾶσαν γὰρ ἐπιτροπεύει(723) κίνησιν ἄχρι τῆς τελευταίας τοῦ κόσμου
λ\ηξεως· φύσιν τε καὶ ψυχὴν καὶ πᾶν ὅ,τι ποτέ ἐστι, πάντα πανταχοῦ
τελειοῦται. τὴν δὲ τοσαύτην στρατιὰν τῶν θεῶν εἰς μίαν ἡγεμονικὴν [B]
ἕνωσιν συντάξας Ἀθηνᾷ Προνοίᾳ παρέδωκεν, ἣν ὁ μὲν μῦθός φησιν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ
Διὸς γενέσθαι κορυφῆς, ἡμεῖς δὲ ὅλην ἐξ ὅλου τοῦ βασιλέως Ἡλίου
προβληθῆναι συνεχομένην ἐν αὐτῷ, ταύτῃ διαφέροντες τοῦ μύθου, ὅτι μὴ ἐκ
τοῦ ἀκροτάτου μέρους, ὅλην δὲ ἐξ ὅλου· ἐπεὶ τἆλλά γε οὐδὲν διαφέρειν Ἡλίου
Δία νομίζοντες ὁμολογοῦμεν τῇ παλαιᾷ φήμῃ. καὶ τοῦτο δὲ αὐτὸ Πρόνοιαν
Ἀθηνᾶν λέγοντες οὐ καινοτομοῦμεν, εἴπερ ὀρθῶς ἀκούομεν·