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you will be loosed, having obtained my will." And yet to Homer the opposite seems true; for he everywhere calls them immortal; for 'they eat no bread,' he says, 'nor drink they sparkling wine; therefore they are bloodless, and are called immortals.' 3.71 So great is the dispute among the poets and philosophers concerning those who are not, but are called, gods. For these they built temples and added altars and honored them with sacrifices and having carved certain forms and likenesses from wood and stones and other materials, they called the handmade idols gods and deemed the sta 3.72 tues of the art of Phidias and Polyclitus and Praxiteles worthy of the divine title. Accusing this error, Xenophanes of Colophon says the following: 'But mortals think that gods are born, and have perception and voice and body like their own.' And again: 'But if oxen or lions had hands, or could draw with their hands and accomplish such works as men, horses would draw the figures of the gods as like to horses, and oxen as like to oxen, and they would make their bodies of such a sort as the form they themselves severally possess.' 3.73 Then, ridiculing this deception more clearly, he exposes the falsehood from the color of the images. For he said that the Ethiopians draw their own gods black and flat-nosed, just as they themselves are, while the Thracians draw them grey-eyed and red-haired, and indeed the Medes and Persians make them like themselves, and the Egyptians likewise shape them according to their own appear 3.74 ance. Perceiving these things, Zeno of Citium, in his book On the Republic, forbids building temples and making statues; for he says that none of these is a construction worthy of the gods. But Plato did not entirely forbid doing this, fearing, as it seems, the contentiousness of the Athenians and suspecting the hemlock brought to Socrates; 3.75 nevertheless, he himself also mocks most aspects of statue-making and says: "Let no one, then, consecrate other shrines to the gods; gold and silver in other cities, both in private and in temples, are an enviable possession; ivory, from a body that has lost its soul, is not a pure offering; iron and bronze are instruments of war; but wooden things, whatever one wishes, 3.76 let him dedicate and of stone to the public temples." But that he did not completely forbid the making of statues out of fear for the Athenian people is easy to understand from the text itself. For first he forbade anyone from privately making images of the gods, then he cast out gold and silver, as being enviable materials and provoking to sacrilege; and he called ivory impure; and he said that bronze and iron belong to war, not to the making of gods' statues; and he commanded that they be carved only from wood and stone, knowing, I suppose, that the material is easily despised and sufficient to persuade those who see it not to consider divine nor to worship things that are cheap and easily bought. 3.77 For the God of all has made the same accusation through the prophet against those who both make and worship these things: "For," he says, "a carpenter chooses a piece of wood that will not rot; and seeks a wise craftsman how he may set up an image for it, that it should not be moved." For not only does he remove the excess from the material and impress upon it the image of a human form and carve each of the parts very well, but he also takes the greatest care for its seat and its stability, and with certain supports and nails he secures its standing, and 3.78 that which is patched together from material and art is called a god. "Half of it," he says, "he burned in the fire, and roasting flesh, he ate and said: It is pleasant for me, for I have been warmed and have seen the light; but the other half of it he made into a graven thing and worships it and prays, saying: Deliver me, for you are my god." Having thus clearly ridiculed their folly, he added: "Know that their heart is ashes, and they themselves are deceived." 3.79 But I am astonished at the shamelessness of the Hellenists of today. For, being ashamed that the civilized world has come to its senses and has been delivered from its former error, they say that the things spoken by the poets about the gods are false myths, and they do not blush when they are accused by the very things they do. For indeed the things according to the myths...

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λυθήσεσθε, τῆς ἐμῆς βουλήσεως τυχόντες." Καίτοι γε Ὁμήρῳ τἀναντία δοκεῖ· ἀθανάτους γὰρ αὐτοὺς πανταχῇ προσονομάζει· οὐ γὰρ σῖτόν φησιν ἔδουσ', οὐ πίνουσ' αἴθοπα οἶνον· τοὔνεκ' ἀναίμονές εἰσι καὶ ἀθάνατοι καλέονται. 3.71 Τοσαύτη παρὰ τοῖς ποιηταῖς καὶ φιλοσόφοις περὶ τῶν οὐκ ὄντων μέν, καλουμένων δὲ θεῶν διαμάχη. Τούτοις καὶ νεὼς ἐδο μήσαντο καὶ βωμοὺς προσῳκοδόμησαν καὶ θυσίαις ἐτίμησαν καὶ εἴδη τινὰ καὶ εἰκάσματα ἐκ ξύλων καὶ λίθων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὑλῶν διαγλύψαντες, θεοὺς προσηγόρευσαν τὰ χειρόκμητα εἴδωλα καὶ τὰ τῆς Φειδίου καὶ Πολυκλείτου καὶ Πραξιτέλους τέχνης ἀγάλ 3.72 ματα τῆς θείας προσηγορίας ἠξιώσαν. Τούτου δὲ τοῦ πλάνου κατηγορῶν Ξενοφάνης ὁ Κολοφώνιος τοιάδε φησίν· ἀλλ' οἱ βροτοὶ δοκοῦσι γεννᾶσθαι θεούς, καὶ ἴσην τ' αἴσθησιν ἔχειν φωνήν τε δέμας τε. Καὶ πάλιν· ἀλλ' εἴ τοι χεῖρας εἶχον βόες ἠὲ λέοντες ἢ γράψαι χείρεσσι καὶ ἔργα τελεῖν ἅπερ ἄνδρες, ἵπποι μέν θ' ἵπποισι, βόες δέ τε βουσὶν ὁμοίας καὶ θεῶν ἰδέας ἔγραφον καὶ σώματ' ἐποίουν τοιαῦθ' οἷόνπερ καὐτοὶ δέμας εἶχον ὅμοιον. 3.73 Εἶτα σαφέστερον κωμῳδῶν τήνδε τὴν ἐξαπάτην, ἀπὸ τοῦ χρώ ματος τῶν εἰκόνων διελέγχει τὸ ψεῦδος. Τοὺς μὲν γὰρ Αἰθίοπας μέλανας καὶ σιμοὺς γράφειν ἔφησε τοὺς οἰκείους θεούς, ὁποῖοι δὴ καὶ αὐτοὶ πεφύκασι, τοὺς δέ γε Θρᾷκας γλαυκούς τε καὶ ἐρυθρούς, καὶ μέντοι καὶ Μήδους καὶ Πέρσας σφίσιν αὐτοῖς ἐοικότας, καὶ Αἰγυπτίους ὡσαύτως αὐτοὺς διαμορφοῦν πρὸς τὴν οἰκείαν μορ 3.74 φήν. Ταῦτα ξυνορῶν καὶ Ζήνων ὁ Κιτιεὺς ἐν τῷ τῆς Πολιτείας ἀπαγορεύει βιβλίῳ καὶ ναοὺς οἰκοδομεῖν καὶ ἀγάλματα τεκταί νειν· οὐδὲν γὰρ εἶναι τούτων φησὶ θεῶν ἄξιον κατασκεύασμα. Ὁ δέ γε Πλάτων οὐ πάμπαν ἀπηγόρευσε τοῦτο ποιεῖν, τὴν Ἀθη ναίων φιλοτησίαν, ὡς ἔοικεν, ὀρρωδήσας καὶ τὸ τῷ Σωκράτει 3.75 προσενεχθὲν ὑφορώμενος κώνειον· σκώπτει δὲ ὅμως καὶ αὐτὸς τῆς ἀγαλματοποιΐας τὰ πλεῖστα καί φησιν· "Μηδεὶς οὖν ἕτερος ἱερὰ καθιερούτω θεοῖς· χρυσός τε καὶ ἄργυρος ἐν ἄλλαις τε πόλεσιν ἰδίᾳ καὶ ἐν ἱεροῖς ἐστιν ἐπίφθονον κτῆμα· ἐλέφας δέ, ἀπολελοιπότος ψυχὴν σώματος, οὐκ εὐαγὲς ἀνάθημα· σίδηρος δὲ καὶ χαλκὸς πολέμων ὄργανα· ξύλινα δέ, ὅ τι ἂν ἐθέλῃ τις, 3.76 ἀνατιθέτω καὶ ἐκ λίθου πρὸς τὰ κοινὰ ἱερά." Ὅτι δὲ τὸν Ἀθηναίων δεδιὼς δῆμον οὐ παντελῶς ἀπηγόρευσε τῶν ἀγαλμάτων τὴν ποίησιν, αὐτόθεν καταμαθεῖν εὐπετές. Πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ ἰδίᾳ κατασκευάζειν τινὰ θεῶν εἰκόνας ἐκώλυσεν, ἔπειτα δὲ τὸν χρυσὸν καὶ τὸν ἄργυρον, ὡς ἐπιφθόνους ὕλας καὶ εἰς ἱεροσυλίαν ἐρεθι ζούσας, ἐξέβαλε· τὸν ἐλέφαντα δὲ δυσαγῆ προσηγόρευσεν· τὸν δέ γε χαλκὸν καὶ τὸν σίδηρον πολέμῳ προσήκειν ἔφησεν, οὐκ ἀγαλματουργίᾳ θεῶν· ἐκ ξύλων δὲ μόνον καὶ λίθων προσέταξε διαγλύφεσθαι, εἰδὼς οἶμαι τὴν ὕλην εὐκαταφρόνητον καὶ πεῖσαι ἱκανὴν τοὺς ὁρῶντας μὴ θείαν νομίζειν μηδὲ σέβειν τὰ εὐτελῆ τε καὶ εὔωνα. 3.77 Καὶ γὰρ ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς διὰ τοῦ προφήτου τὴν αὐτὴν κατη γορίαν τῶν ταῦτα καὶ ποιούντων καὶ προσκυνούντων πεποίηται· "Ξύλον γάρ" φησιν "ἄσηπτον ἐκλέγεται τέκτων· καὶ σοφὸς ζητεῖ, πῶς στήσει αὐτῷ εἰκόνα, καὶ ἵνα μὴ σαλεύηται." Οὐ γὰρ μόνον τῆς ὕλης ἀφαιρεῖται τὰ περιττὰ καὶ τῆς ἀνθρωπείας μορφῆς ἐκτυποῖ τὴν εἰκόνα καὶ τῶν μορίων εὖ μάλα ἕκαστον διαγλύφει, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἕδρας καὶ τῆς στάσεως ὅτι μάλιστα προμηθεῖται καὶ ὑπερείσμασί τισι καὶ ἥλοις τὴν στάσιν αὐτῷ πραγματεύεται, καὶ 3.78 τὸ ἐξ ὕλης καὶ τέχνης ἐρανισθὲν θεὸς ὀνομάζεται. "Οὗ τὸ ἥμισυ αὐτοῦ" φησι "κατέκαυσεν ἐν πυρί, καὶ ὀπτήσας κρέας ἔφαγε καὶ εἶπεν· ἡδύ μοι, ὅτι ἐθερμάνθην καὶ εἶδον φῶς· τὸ δὲ ἥμισυ αὐτοῦ ἐποίησε γλυπτὸν καὶ προσκυνεῖ αὐτῷ καὶ προσεύχεται, λέγων· ἐξελοῦ με, ὅτι θεός μου εἶ σύ." Οὕτω σαφῶς αὐτῶν κωμῳδήσας τὴν ἄνοιαν, ἐπήγαγεν· "Γνῶτε, ὅτι σποδὸς ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν, καὶ αὐτοὶ πλανῶνται." 3.79 Ἐγὼ δέ γε τῶν νῦν ἑλληνιζόντων ἐκπλήττομαι τὴν ἀναίδειαν. Αἰσχυνόμενοι γὰρ σωφρονοῦσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην καὶ τῆς προτέρας πλάνης ἀπηλλαγμένην, μύθους εἶναι ψευδεῖς λέγουσι τὰ παρὰ τῶν ποιητῶν περὶ τῶν θεῶν εἰρημένα καὶ οὐκ ἐρυθριῶσιν, ὑφ' ὧν δρῶσι, κατηγορούμενοι. Τὰ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ τοὺς μύθους κατε