Chapter 11

The term individual is used in four senses. Thus, that which cannot be divided or partitioned is called individual, as the point, the instance of the time which is now, and the unit. These are said to be quantitiless (that is to say, without quantity). That also is called individual which is hard to divide, that is to say, is difficult to cut up, as is the diamond and the like. That species is also called individual which is not further divisible into other species; in other words, the most specific species, such as man, the horse, and so forth. The term individual, however, is principally used as meaning that which, although it is divisible, does not maintain its species intact after the division. Thus, Peter is divided into soul and body, but neither is the soul by itself a perfect man or a perfect Peter, nor is the body. It is with this latter kind of individual—namely, that which shows the individuality of the substance—that the philosophers are concerned.

{Περὶ ἀτόμου.} Τὸ ἄτομον τετραχῶς λέγεται. Ἄτομον γάρ ἐστι τὸ μὴ τεμνόμενον μηδὲ μεριζόμενον, ὡς ἡ στιγμὴ καὶ τὸ νῦν καὶ ἡ μονάς, ἅτινα καὶ ἄποσα λέγονται. Ἄτομον λέγεται καὶ τὸ δύστμητον τουτέστι τὸ δυσχερῶς τεμνόμενον ὡς ὁ ἀδάμας λίθος καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα. Ἄτομον λέγεται καὶ τὸ εἶδος, ὅπερ οὐκέτι εἰς ἕτερα εἴδη τέμνεται ἤτοι τὸ εἰδικώτατον εἶδος ὡς ἄνθρωπος, ἵππος καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα. Ἄτομον δὲ κυρίως λέγεται, ὅπερ τέμνεται μέν, οὐ σῴζει δὲ μετὰ τὴν τομὴν τὸ πρῶτον εἶδος, ὥσπερ Πέτρος τέμνεται εἰς ψυχὴν καὶ σῶμα, ἀλλ' οὔτε ἡ ψυχὴ καθ' αὑτήν ἐστι τέλειος ἄνθρωπος ἢ Πέτρος τέλειος οὔτε τὸ σῶμα. Περὶ τούτου τοῦ ἀτόμου παρὰ τοῖς φιλοσόφοις ὁ λόγος, ὅπερ ἐπὶ τῆς οὐσίας δηλοῖ τὴν ὑπόστασιν.