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for it to rain today; but its opposite is also possible, for it not to rain today. Again, of the contingent, some things are said to happen for the most part, some for the lesser part, and some indifferently. For the most part, as for a sixty-year-old to go gray; for the lesser part, as for some sixty-year-old not to go gray; indifferently, to walk and not to walk, and simply to do something and not to do it. Therefore, concerning these things, those that are indifferently contingent, alone do we deliberate. And that is indifferently contingent which we are able to do and its opposite; for if we were not able to do both, both it and its opposite, we would not deliberate; for one deliberates neither about things agreed upon, nor about things impossible. But if we were able to do only one of the opposites, this one would be agreed upon and in no way doubtful, and its opposite, impossible. 34 Concerning Fate Those who attribute the cause of all things that happen to the revolution of the stars not only fight against common notions; but also declare every civil society to be useless. For the laws are absurd, the courts superfluous for punishing those who are in no way to blame, and the censures and praises irrational; and prayers are also useless, since all things happen according to fate; and providence is banished along with piety, in addition to man also being found to be merely an instrument of the celestial revolution; for by this are moved to actions not only the parts of the body but also the thoughts of the soul; and in general those who say these things do away with what is in our power along with the nature of the contingent; and thus they do nothing else than corrupt the whole. And the stars themselves are unjust, making some adulterers, and others murderers; and before these, God their creator bears the blame, if he constructed such things as by necessity inflict the assault of evils upon us; so that not only does their absurdity stand in the way of civil society, but it also declares God to be the cause of the greatest evils, in addition to their hypothesis also being proved impossible. But it is not necessary even to hear these things, which have their blasphemy and absurdity manifest. But those who say that both what is in our power and what is according to fate are preserved (for to each of generated things something has been given according to fate, as to water to be cold and to each of the plants to bear such and such a fruit and to a stone to move downwards and to fire to move upwards, so also to an animal to assent and to have impulse; and whenever nothing from without and according to fate opposes this impulse, then walking is completely in our power and we shall walk in any case); those who say these things, and they are of the Stoics, Chrysippus and Philopator and many other distinguished men, prove nothing other than that all things happen according to fate. For if they say that our impulses are given to us by fate, and that these are sometimes hindered by fate, and sometimes not; it is clear that all things happen according to fate, even those things that seem to be in our power. And again we shall use the same arguments against them, showing the absurdity of their opinion. For if, when the same causes are present, as they themselves say, it is wholly necessary for the same things to happen and it is not possible for it to happen now in this way and now in another, because it has been so allotted from eternity; it is necessary also for the impulse of the animal, when the same causes are present, to happen thus in every way and in any case; but if the impulse also follows from necessity, where then is what is in our power? For what is in our power must be free; and it would be free if, when the same things were present, it were in our power sometimes to have an impulse, and sometimes not to have an impulse. But if having an impulse also follows from necessity, it is clear that the things of impulse will also happen according to fate, even if it happens through us and according to our nature and impulse and judgment. For if it were possible for it also not to happen, the proposition saying that when the same causes are present, the same things must follow, would be false. And thus it will be found also in the case of irrational and inanimate things. For if they posit that impulse is in our power because we have it by nature, what prevents them from saying that burning is also in the power of fire,

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τὸ σή μερον ὄμβρον γενέσθαι· ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ἀντικείμενον αὐτῷ δυνατόν, τὸ μὴ γενέσθαι σήμερον ὄμβρον. πάλιν δὲ τοῦ ἐνδεχομένου τὰ μὲν ὡς ἐπὶ πολὺ λέγεται, τὰ δὲ ὡς ἐπ' ἔλαττον, τὰ δὲ ὡς ἐπίσης. ἐπὶ πολὺ μὲν ὡς τὸν ἑξηκοντούτην πολιοῦσθαι· ἐπ' ἔλαττον δὲ ὥς τινα ἑξηκονταετῆ μὴ πολιοῦσθαι· ἐπίσης δὲ τὸ περιπατῆσαι καὶ μὴ περιπατῆσαι καὶ ἁπλῶς πρᾶξαί τι καὶ μὴ πρᾶξαι. περὶ τούτων οὖν, τῶν ἐπίσης ἐνδεχομένων, μόνων βουλευόμεθα. ἔστι δὲ ἐπίσης ἐνδεχόμενον ὃ αὐτό τε δυνάμεθα καὶ τὸ ἀντικείμενον αὐτῷ· εἰ γὰρ μὴ ἀμφότερα ἐδυνάμεθα, αὐτό τε καὶ τὸ ἀντικείμενον οὐκ ἂν ἐβουλευόμεθα· οὔτε γὰρ περὶ τῶν ὁμολογουμένων, οὔτε περὶ τῶν ἀδυνάτων τις βουλεύεται. εἰ δὲ τὸ ἕτερον μόνον τῶν ἀντικειμένων ἐδυνάμεθα, τοῦτο μὲν ἦν ὁμολογούμενον καὶ οὐδαμῶς ἀμφίβολον, τὸ δὲ ἀντικείμενον, ἀδύνατον. 34 περὶ εἱμαρμένησ Οἱ τῇ περιφορᾷ τῶν ἄστρων τὴν αἰτίαν τῶν γινομένων πάντων ἐπιγράφοντες οὐ μόνον ταῖς κοιναῖς ἐννοίαις ἀπομάχονται· ἀλλὰ καὶ πᾶσαν πολιτείαν ἄχρηστον ἀποφαίνουσιν. ἄτοποι μὲν γὰρ οἱ νόμοι, περιττὰ δὲ τὰ δικαστήρια κολάζοντα τοὺς μηδὲν αἰτίους, παράλογοι δὲ οἱ ψόγοι καὶ οἱ ἔπαινοι· ἀνόνητοι δὲ καὶ αἱ εὐχαί, πάντων καθ' εἱμαρμένην γινομένων· ἐξορίζεται δὲ καὶ πρόνοια μετὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας, πρὸς τῷ καὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον ὄργανον μόνον εὑρίσκεσθαι τῆς ἄνωθεν περιφορᾶς· ὑπὸ ταύτης γὰρ κινεῖσθαι πρὸς τὰς πράξεις οὐ μόνον τὰ μέρη τοῦ σώματος ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ τῆς ψυχῆς διανοήματα· καὶ ὅλως οἱ ταῦτα λέγοντες τῷ ἐφ' ἡμῖν συναναιροῦσι καὶ τὴν τοῦ ἐνδεχομένου φύσιν· καὶ οὕτως οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἢ τῷ παντὶ λυμαίνονται. ἄδικοι δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ οἱ ἀστέρες τοὺς μὲν μοιχούς, τοὺς δὲ φονέας ἀπεργαζόμενοι· καὶ πρό γε τούτων ὁ δημιουργὸς αὐτῶν Θεὸς τὴν αἰτίαν ἀποφέρεται, εἰ τοιαῦτα κατεσκεύασεν ἃ τῶν κακῶν ἡμῖν τὴν ἐπιφορὰν ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἐπιτίθησιν· ὡς μὴ μόνον ἐπὶ τῆς πολιτείας ἵστασθαι τὴν τούτων ἀτοπίαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν μεγίστων κακῶν αἴτιον ἀποφαίνειν τὸν Θεόν, πρὸς τῷ καὶ ἀδύνατον ἀποδείκνυσθαι τὴν ὑπόθεσιν αὐτῶν. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν οὐδὲ ἀκούειν ἀναγκαῖον, πρόδηλον ἔχοντα τὴν βλασφημίαν καὶ τὴν ἀτοπίαν. οἱ δὲ λέγοντες ὅτι καὶ τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν καὶ τὸ καθ' εἱμαρμένην σῴζεται (ἑκάστῳ γὰρ τῶν γενομένων δεδόσθαι τι καθ' εἱμαρμένην, ὡς τῷ ὕδατι τὸ ψύχειν καὶ ἑκάστῳ τῶν φυτῶν τὸ τοιόνδε καρπὸν φέρειν καὶ τῷ λίθῳ τὸ κατωφερὲς καὶ τῷ πυρὶ τὸ ἀνωφερές, οὕτω καὶ τῷ ζῴῳ τὸ συγκατατίθεσθαι καὶ ὁρμᾶν· ὅταν δὲ ταύτῃ τῇ ὁρμῇ μηδὲν ἀντιπέσῃ τῶν ἔξωθεν καὶ καθ' εἱμαρμένην, τότε τὸ περιπατεῖν τέλεον ἐφ' ἡμῖν εἶναι καὶ πάντως περιπατήσομεν)· οἱ ταῦτα λέγοντες, εἰσὶ δὲ τῶν Στωϊκῶν Χρύσιππός τε καὶ Φιλοπάτωρ καὶ ἄλλοι πολλοὶ καὶ λαμπροί, οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἀποδεικνύουσιν ἢ πάντα καθ' εἱμαρμένην γίνεσθαι. εἰ γὰρ καὶ τὰς ὁρμὰς παρὰ τῆς εἱμαρμένης φασὶν ἡμῖν δεδόσθαι, καὶ ταύτας ποτὲ μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς εἱμαρμένης ἐμποδίζεσθαι, ποτὲ δὲ μή· δῆλον ὡς πάντα καθ' εἱμαρμένην γίνεται καὶ τὰ δοκοῦντα ἐφ' ἡμῖν εἶναι. καὶ πάλιν τοῖς αὐτοῖς λόγοις χρησόμεθα πρὸς αὐτούς, δεικνύντες τῆς δόξης τὴν ἀτοπίαν. εἰ γὰρ τῶν αὐτῶν αἰτίων περιεστηκότων, ὥς φασιν αὐτοί, πᾶσα ἀνάγκη τὰ αὐτὰ γίνεσθαι καὶ οὐχ οἷόν τε ποτὲ μὲν οὕτως ποτὲ δὲ ἄλλως γενέσθαι, διὰ τὸ ἐξ αἰῶνος οὕτως ἀποκεκληρῶσθαι αὐτά· ἀνάγκη καὶ τὴν ὁρμὴν τὴν τοῦ ζῴου πάντῃ καὶ πάντως τῶν αὐτῶν αἰτίων περιεστηκότων οὕτω γενέσθαι· εἰ δὲ καὶ ἡ ὁρμὴ ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἐπακολουθεῖ, ποῦ λοιπὸν τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν; ἐλεύθερον γὰρ εἶναι δεῖ τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν· ἦν δ' ἂν ἐλεύθερον εἰ τῶν αὐτῶν περιεστηκότων ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἦν τὸ ποτὲ μὲν ὁρμᾶν, ποτὲ δὲ μὴ ὁρμᾶν. εἰ δὲ ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἐπακολουθεῖ καὶ τὸ ὁρμᾶν, δῆλον ὡς καθ' εἱμαρμένην καὶ τὰ τῆς ὁρμῆς γενήσεται, εἰ καὶ ὑφ' ἡμῶν γίνεται καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν φύσιν καὶ ὁρμὴν καὶ κρίσιν. εἰ γὰρ οἷόν τε ἦν αὐτὴν καὶ μὴ γενέσθαι, ψευδὴς ἂν ἦν ἡ πρότασις ἡ λέγουσα ὅτι τῶν αὐτῶν περιεστηκότων αἰτίων ἀνάγκη τὰ αὐτὰ ἕπεσθαι. οὕτω δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀλόγοις καὶ τοῖς ἀψύχοις εὑρεθήσεται. εἰ γὰρ τὴν ὁρμὴν ἐφ' ἡμῖν τάττουσιν ὅτι φύσει ταύτην ἔχομεν, τί κωλύει καὶ ἐπὶ τῷ πυρὶ λέγειν εἶναι τὸ καίειν,