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are hung from one another; and if one of them happens to be torn from the chain, the rest cry out. It alone of winged creatures is four-footed, and is adorned with teeth. And cicadas are born in the rainy season, but they are quiet for a 737 time, since they are stiffened by the dew. And they say that they strike and sing with their wings. And on the sixth day God commanded the earth to bring forth after their kind quadrupeds, and reptiles, and beasts of the earth, and cattle, and all things that creep upon the earth after their kind, and immediately they were all brought into being, which have sensation in common with man by nature, yet they do not possess an equal soul while living, and they are moved with a motion, which the original nature of the blood supplies, being mingled with the breath of the air from without. And there are also different characters among them, hinting at the Providence of God; for these things, too, in no small way establish it. For just as the wise fruitfulness of plants, and the good order of the stars, and the blameless course of the sun and moon, and the law of the sea's boundaries not being overstepped, irrefutably bear witness to Providence; so also the peculiar nature of animals, showing the unchangeableness of their order, very clearly proclaims Providence, like a soul moving the whole composition of the world. And anyone who rejects it would be ridiculous, since all the elements confess it; the earth not disobeying in regard to planting, the sun, and moon, and the other stars not having deviated from their proper course, the sea not overstepping the rule of command, and swimming, and airborne, and land creatures not falling short of their due function. How then is he not unjust and senseless who altogether rejects Providence? Where does reason say that a work of art is not produced spontaneously, but that wise works are accomplished by knowledge? For example, we form the concept of a sculptor; and when we see a beautifully painted image, we admire its painter; and when we see a ship skillfully constructed with knowledge, we praise the shipbuilder. If we ourselves, when we behold works of art, know the skillful artist, why then should we not much more have in our comprehension the all-wise Providence, with the eye of the mind through the elemental parts of the world, which are arranged with knowledge? For the forms and shapes are sufficient to make known the artist, even if in speech the created elements keep silence. For it is the nature of things formed by someone to acknowledge the one who has ordered them. And just as the composition of the elements makes Providence clear, so also the diverse nature of animals provides the knowledge of it. For anger is born together with the lion, and its life is solitary, associating with no other animals, nor partaking of yesterday's food, but fresh. And it has a keen sense of perception, and it quickly perceives the scent of hunters, and flees by running to its cave, wiping away its tracks with its tail, so that, covered by the dust, it might make them untraceable to the hunters. And its cub is born blind, and for three days it is guarded by the lioness, and he, having come from the hunt, having breathed into its face, raises 740 it up seeing. And when it attacks a man or any of the animals, it first whips itself with its tail, according to the poet: With its tail it lashes both its flanks and hips on either side, And urges itself on to fight. And when it grows old, and being too weak to go to the hunt, it lies in wait near cities, desiring to hunt men for its sustenance. And its mouth is always most foul-smelling; and when it sleeps it has its eyelids open. And the lioness with difficulty endures the gestation of one cub; for as it comes forth, with the points of its claws it tears her womb. The panther is violent and swift in its attacks, and surpasses others in sharpness, and leaps upon the faces of the hunters. The sluggish

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ἐξ ἀλλήλων ἀπήρτηνται· καὶ εἰ μίαν συμβῇ τοῦ ὁρμαθοῦ ἀποσπασθῆναι αὐτῶν, αἱ λοιπαὶ καταβοῶσιν. Μόνον δὲ τῶν πετεινῶν τετρασκελὲς ὑπάρχει, καὶ ὀδοῦσι κατακεκόσμηται. Οἱ δὲ τέττιγες ἐν ἐπομβρίᾳ γίνονται, ἡσυχάζουσι δὲ 737 καιρὸν, ἐπειδὴ τῇ δρόσῳ πήγνυνται. Πλήττειν δὲ καὶ ᾄδειν τὸ πτερὸν αὐτῶν φάσκουσι. Τῇ δὲ ἕκτῃ ἡμέρᾳ προσέταξεν ὁ Θεὸς ἐξαγαγεῖν τὴν γῆν κατὰ γένος τετράποδα, καὶ ἑρπετὰ, καὶ θηρία τῆς γῆς, καὶ τὰ κτήνη, καὶ πάντα τὰ ἕρποντα ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς κατὰ γένος, καὶ παρήχθη εὐθέως εἰς τὸ εἶναι πάντα, ἅπερ κοινὴν μὲν τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ τῆς φύσεως ἔχει τὴν αἴσθησιν, οὐ μὴν δὲ ἴσην καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν κέκτηνται ζῶντα, καὶ κινούμενα κίνησιν, ἣν ἡ ἀρχέγονος τοῦ αἵματος φύσις χορηγεῖ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ ἔξωθεν ἀέρος κιρναμένη. Ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἐν αὐτοῖς ἤθη διάφορα, τὴν Πρόνοια τοῦ Θεοῦ αἰνιττόμεναι· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα οὐ μικρῶς ταύτην συνίστησιν. Ὡς γὰρ σοφὴ τῶν βλαστῶν ἡ καρπογονία, καὶ ἄστρων εὐταξία, καὶ ἡλίου, καὶ σελήνης ἀνυπαίτιος δρόμος, καὶ θαλάσσης ὅρων θεσμὸς μὴ ὑπερισταμένης τὴν Πρόνοιαν ἀναντιῤῥήτως μαρτύρεται· οὕτως καὶ ἡ τῶν ζώων ἰδιότης τὸ ἀπαράλλακτον τῆς τάξεως ἐνδεικνυμένη τὴν Πρόνοιαν μάλα σαφῶς κηρύττει, καθάπερ ψυχὴ κινοῦσα τοῦ κόσμου πᾶσαν τὴν σύστασιν. Καὶ καταγέλαστος ἂν εἴη πᾶς ὁ ἐκβάλλων, τῶν στοιχείων ἁπάντων ὁμολογούντων αὐτήν· γῆ μὲν πρὸς φυτουργίαν οὐκ ἀπειθοῦσα, ἥλιός τε, καὶ σελήνη, καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἄστρα τοῦ προσήκοντος δρόμου μὴ στείλαντα, θάλαττα κανόνα προσταγῆς οὐχ ὑπερβαίνουσα, νηκτὰ δὲ καὶ ἀεροπόλα, καὶ χερσαῖα τῆς ὀφειλομένης χρείας οὐχ ὑστερούμενα. Πῶς οὖν οὐκ ἄδικος καὶ ἄφρων ὁ καθόλου τὴν Πρόνοιαν παραιτούμενος; Ποῦ λόγος ἐρεῖ τεχνικὸν ἔργον μὴ ἀπαυτοματίζεσθαι, πρὸς ἐπιστήμης δὲ τὰ σοφὰ ἔργα ἀποτελεῖσθαι· αὐτίκα γοῦν ἀνδριαντοποιοῦ ἔννοιαν λαμβάνομεν· εἰκόνα δὲ περικαλλῶς γεγραμμένην κατιδόντες, τὸν ταύτης γραφέα θαυμάζομεν· νῆα δὲ ἐντέχνως ἐπιστήμῃ κατεσκευασμένην ὁρῶντες, ναυπηγὸν ἐπαινοῦμεν. Εἰ δ' αὐτοὶ τεχνικὰ ἔργα θεώμενοι τὸν ἔμμουσον τεχνίτην γινώσκομεν, τί οὖν οὐ μᾶλλον τὴν πάντων σοφὴν Πρόνοιαν ἐν καταλήψει ἔξοιμεν, ὀφθαλμῷ διάνοιαν διὰ τῶν ἐστοιχειωμένων κόσμου μερῶν, ἐπιστημόνως τεταγμένων; Τὰ γὰρ εἴδη καὶ σχήματα ἱκανὰ γνωρίσαι τὸν τεχνίτην, εἰ καὶ λόγῳ τὰ ἐστοιχειωμένα σιωπὴν ἄγει. Φιλεῖ γὰρ τὰ πρός τινος μορφωθέντα τὸν κεκοσμηκότα ὁμολογεῖν. Ὥσπερ δὲ τῶν στοιχείω ἡ σύστασις σαφηνίζει τὴν Πρόνοιαν, οὕτω καὶ ἡ τῶν ζώων διάφορος φύσις τὴν γνῶσιν ταύτης παρέχεται. Συγγεννᾶται μὲν γὰρ ὁ θυμὸς τῷ λέοντι, καὶ ἔστι μοναστικὸς ὁ βίος αὐτοῦ, οὐδενὶ τῶν ζώων κοινωνῶν, οὐδὲ χθιζὴν τροφὴν προϊέμενος, ἀλλὰ πρόσφατον· ὀξεῖαν δὲ ἔχει τὴν αἴσθησιν, καὶ θᾶττον τῆς ὀσμῆς τῶν θηρευόντων αἰσθάνεται, καὶ δρόμῳ φεύγει ἐπὶ τὸ σπήλαιον, τὰ ἴχνη τῇ σοβῇ περισαίνων, ὅπως καλυφθέντα ὑπὸ τῆς κόνεως ἀνίχνευτον τοῖς θηρευταῖς καταστήσωσιν. Πηρὸς δὲ αὐτοῦ ὁ σκύμνος τίκτεται, καὶ τρεῖς ἡμέρας ὑπὸ τῆς λεαίνης φυλάττεται, καὶ ἐλθὼν αὐτὸς ἀπὸ τῆς θήρας, ἐμφυσήσας αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον, βλέποντα αὐτὸν ἐξαν 740 ίστησιν. Ἡνίκα δὲ ἀνθρώπῳ ἤ τινι τῶν ζώων ἐπέρχεται, μαστίζει τῇ σοβῇ ἑαυτὸν πρότερον κατὰ τὸ ποιητικόν· Οὐρῇ μὴν πλευράς τε καὶ ἰσχία ἀμφοτέρωθεν Μαστίεται, ἕε δ' αὐτὸν ἐποτρύνει μαχέσασθαι. Γηράσας δὲ, καὶ εἰς ἄγραν βαδίζειν ἀτονῶν ἐφεδρεύει ταῖς πόλεσιν, θηρεύειν εἰς βίωσιν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους γλιχόμενος. Ἔστι δὲ αὐτοῦ τὸ στόμα πάντοτε δυσωδέστατον· καθεύδων δὲ ἀναπετάσας ἔχει τὰ βλέφαρα. Ἡ δὲ λέαινα μόλις ἑνὸς σκύμνου ὑπομένει τὴν κύησιν· προϊὼν γὰρ εἰς τὸ ἔξω ταῖς ἀκμαῖς τῶν ὀνύχων τὴν μήτραν διασπαράσσει αὐτῆς. Ῥαγδαλαῖον ἡ πάρδαλις καὶ ὀξύῤῥοπον ταῖς ὁρμαῖς, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων διαφέρων ὀξύτητι, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς ὄψεις τῶν θηρευτῶν ἐφιπτάμενον. Νωθρὰ ἡ