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is the coming into being of things that are contingent, both to be and not to be, and of which the principle is in the maker but not in the thing made. For nothing, neither of things that are eternal and exist of necessity, nor of things that come into being of necessity, is said to come into being according to art; but neither is anything that comes to be among contingent things that can be otherwise, but have the efficient cause in themselves—as in the case of animals and plants—said to come into being according to art. For it is by nature and not by art. But if the efficient cause of things that come into being by art is external, who then is the cause of things that come into being by art other than the craftsman who makes them? For in the craftsman is the making. He, therefore, is the principle and cause of actions. Therefore in our power are both the activities according to art and virtues and all actions, both psychic and rational. And it was shown in the preceding parts what psychic activities are. But the many, thinking that free will is spoken of in relation to every action and possession and fortune, reasonably reject the argument; but the more astute, also bringing the text of scripture as proof, "his ways are not in man's power," say, O best of men, how is man a free agent, when his way is not in his power, and "the reasonings of men are futile," as if we are unable to bring to action what we think, and they say many such things, being ignorant of how "free will" is understood. For we do not have power to be rich or poor, or to be always healthy, or to be naturally strong, or to rule, or, in general, of the so-called instrumental or fortuitous goods, or of things that receive their end according to providence; but of actions according to virtue and vice, and choices and movements, and of things of which we are equally able to do the opposites, since choice precedes every action, and not only the action but also the choice is subject to judgment. And this is shown by the passage in the Gospel: "He who looks at a woman to lust for her has committed adultery in his heart." And Job sacrificed to God for the sins in thought of his children. For the principle of sin and of righteous action is choice. For the deed is sometimes permitted by providence, and sometimes prevented; For since that which is in our power exists, and providence also exists, it is necessary that what happens happens according to both; for if it happened only according to the one, the other would not exist. But since what happens is of a mixed nature, it will sometimes turn out according to what is in our power, sometimes according to the principle of providence, and sometimes according to both. And since providence is in some way general, and in some way particular, it is necessary for the particulars to be affected in the same way as the universals; for when the surrounding air is dry, bodies become dry, even if not all in the same way, and when a mother has not followed a good regimen and lives luxuriously, consequently what is born is born with bodies of a bad temperament and with irrational impulses. It is clear then from what has been said that it happens that one falls into an unfortunate temperament of body, either through the general state of the environment, or from the voluntary regimen of the parents, or because they themselves were corrupted by luxury; so that temperaments are sometimes made bad from a voluntary principle, and providence is not in every case the cause of such things. Therefore when a soul, yielding to the temperament of the body, gives itself over to desires or passions, or is oppressed or made vain by fortuitous things, such as poverty or wealth, it undergoes a voluntary evil. For the soul that does not yield acts rightly and conquers the bad temperament, so as to alter rather than be altered; and it brings the dispositions of the soul into a good condition by a good training and a suitable regimen. It is clear then from those who act rightly that those who did not act rightly sin voluntarily. For it is in our power either to go along with the bad temperaments or to resist and overcome them. But the many, putting forward the bad temperament as the cause of their passions, ascribe vice to necessity and not to choice; and for this reason they say that not even the virtues are in our power, speaking absurdly. 40 For what reason we have been made free agents. It remains to say for what reason we have been made free agents. We say, then, that free will immediately enters in with the rational, and that change and alteration are connatural to created things, especially to those that have come into being from an underlying matter. For the principle of coming-to-be is alteration. From

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γένεσίν ἐστι τῶν ἐνδεχομένων καὶ εἶναι καὶ μὴ εἶναι, καὶ ὧν ἡ ἀρχὴ ἐν τῷ ποιοῦντι ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐν τῷ ποιουμένῳ. οὐδὲν γὰρ οὔτε τῶν ἀϊδίων καὶ ἐξ ἀνάγκης ὄντων οὔτε τῶν ἐξ ἀνάγκης γινομένων κατὰ τέχνην γίνεσθαι λέγεται· ἀλλ' οὔτε τῶν γινομένων ἐν τοῖς ἐνδεχομένοις καὶ ἄλλως ἔχειν, ἐν αὐτοῖς δὲ ἐχόντων τὸ ποιητικὸν αἴτιον, ὡς ἐπὶ τῶν ζῴων καὶ φυτῶν κατὰ τέχνην τι λέγεται γίνεσθαι. φύσει γὰρ καὶ οὐ τέχνῃ. εἰ δὲ τῶν κατὰ τέχνην γινομένων ἔξωθέν ἐστι τὸ ποιοῦν αἴτιον, τίς ἄρα αἴτιος τῶν κατὰ τέχνην γινομένων ἢ ὁ ποιῶν τεχνίτης; ἐν γὰρ τῷ τεχνίτῃ τὸ ποιεῖν. οὗτος ἄρα ἀρχὴ καὶ αἴτιος πράξεών ἐστιν. ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἄρα καὶ αἱ κατὰ τέχνην ἐνέργειαι καὶ ἀρεταὶ καὶ πᾶσαι πράξεις ψυχικαί τε καὶ λογικαί. ἐδείχθη δὲ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ποῖαί εἰσιν ἐνέργειαι ψυχικαί. οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ, νομίζοντες λέγεσθαι τὸ αὐτεξούσιον ἐπὶ πάσης πράξεώς τε καὶ κτήσεως καὶ τύχης, ἀποδοκιμάζουσιν εἰκότως τὸν λόγον· οἱ δὲ δριμύτεροι καὶ τὸ τῆς γραφῆς εἰς ἔλεγχον φέροντες τὸ οὐκ ἐπ' ἀνθρώπῳ αἱ ὁδοὶ αὐτοῦ, ὦ βέλτιστοί φασι πῶς αὐτεξούσιος ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὁπότε οὐκ ἐπ' αὐτῷ ἡ ὁδὸς αὐτοῦ, καὶ μάταιοι οἱ διαλογισμοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὡς μὴ δυναμένων ἡμῶν εἰς ἔργον ἄγειν ἃ διανοούμεθα, καὶ τοιαῦτα πολλά φασιν, ἀγνοοῦντες ὅπως λέγεται τὸ αὐτεξούσιον. οὐ γὰρ τοῦ πλουτεῖν ἢ πένεσθαι ἢ διὰ παντὸς ὑγιαίνειν, ἢ ῥωμαλέους εἶναι κατὰ φύσιν, ἢ τοῦ ἄρχειν, ἢ ὅλως τῶν ὀργανικῶν ἢ τυχηρῶν λεγομένων ἀγαθῶν, ἢ τῶν κατὰ πρόνοιαν τὸ τέλος λαμβανόντων, ἐξουσίαν ἔχομεν· ἀλλὰ τῶν κατ' ἀρετὴν καὶ κακίαν πράξεων καὶ προαιρέσεων καὶ κινήσεων καὶ ὧν ἐξίσης καὶ τὰ ἀντικείμενα πρᾶξαι δυνάμεθα, ἐπειδὴ πάσης πράξεως προαίρεσις ἡγεῖται, καὶ οὐ μόνον ἡ πρᾶξις ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡ προαίρεσις ὑπόδικός ἐστι. καὶ τοῦτο δηλοῖ τὸ ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ· ὁ ἐμβλέψας γυναῖκα τοῦ ἐπιθυμῆσαι αὐτὴν ἐμοίχευσεν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ· καὶ ὁ Ἰὼβ ὑπὲρ τῶν κατὰ διάνοιαν τῶν τέκνων αὐτοῦ πλημμελημάτων ἔθυεν τῷ θεῷ. ἀρχὴ γὰρ ἁμαρτίας καὶ δικαιοπραγίας ἡ προαίρεσις. τὸ γὰρ ἔργον ποτὲ μὲν συγχωρεῖται παρὰ τῆς προνοίας, ποτὲ δὲ κωλύεται· ὄντος γὰρ καὶ τοῦ ἐφ' ἡμῖν, οὔσης δὲ καὶ τῆς προνοίας, ἀνάγκη κατ' ἄμφω τὰ γινόμενα γίνεσθαι· εἰ γὰρ κατὰ τὸ ἕτερον μόνον ἐγίνετο, οὐκ ἢν ἂν τὸ ἕτερον. μικτῶν δὲ ὄντων τῶν γινομένων, ποτὲ μὲν κατὰ τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἀποβήσεται, ποτὲ δὲ κατὰ τὸν τῆς προνοίας λόγον, ποτὲ δὲ κατ' ἀμφότερα. τῆς δὲ προνοίας πῇ μὲν κοινῆς οὔσης, πῇ δὲ ἰδιαζούσης, ἀνάγκη τοῖς καθόλου τὰ κατὰ μέρος ὁμοπαθεῖν· τοῦ γὰρ περιέχοντος ξηροῦ ὄντος ξηραίνεται τὰ σώματα, εἰ καὶ μὴ πάντα ὁμοίως, καὶ μητρὸς δὲ οὐκ εὖ δεδιῃτημένης καὶ τρυφώσης ἀκολούθως τὰ τικτόμενα καὶ τοῖς σώμασι δύσκρατα καὶ ταῖς ὁρμαῖς παράφορα γεννᾶται. δῆλον οὖν ἐκ τῶν εἰρημένων ὅτι συμβαίνει καὶ κράσει σώματος οὐκ εὐτυχίᾳ περιπεσεῖν, ἢ τῷ κοινῷ τοῦ περιέχοντος, ἢ ἐξ ἑκουσίου διαίτης τῶν γεννησάντων ἢ καὶ αὐτῶν ἐκείνων ἀπὸ τρυφῆς διεφθαρμένων· ὥστε καὶ τὰς κράσεις ἐξ ἑκουσίας ἀρχῆς ἔσθ' ὅτε φαύλας κατασκευά ζεσθαι, καὶ μὴ τὴν πρόνοιαν πάντως αἰτίαν εἶναι τῶν τοιούτων. ὅταν οὖν ψυχὴ κράσει σώματος ἐνδοῦσα ἐπιθυμίαις ἢ θυμοῖς ἑαυτὴν ἐκδῷ ἢ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν τυχηρῶν καταπιεσθῇ ἢ χαυνωθῇ, οἷον πενίας ἢ πλούτου, ἑκούσιον κακὸν ὑφίσταται. ἡ γὰρ μὴ ἐνδοῦσα κατορθοῖ καὶ νικᾷ τὸ δύσκρατον, ὡς ἀλλοιῶσαι μᾶλλον ἢ ἀλλοιωθῆναι· καὶ καθίστησι τὰς ψυχικὰς διαθέσεις εἰς εὐεξίαν ἀγωγῇ χρηστῇ καὶ διαίτῃ προσφόρῳ. δῆλον οὖν ἐκ τῶν κατορθούντων ὡς οἱ μὴ κατορθώσαντες ἑκουσίως ἁμαρτάνουσιν. ἐφ' ἡμῖν γὰρ ἢ συνδραμεῖν ταῖς δυσκρασίαις ἢ ἀντιβῆναι καὶ κρατῆσαι. οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ τὴν δυσκρασίαν ὡς αἰτίαν τῶν παθῶν προβαλλόμενοι ἀνάγκῃ καὶ οὐ προαιρέσει τὴν κακίαν ἐπιγράφουσιν· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο φασὶ μηδὲ τὰς ἀρετὰς ἐφ' ἡμῖν εἶναι, ἀτόπως λέγοντες. 40 διὰ ποίαν αἰτίαν αὐτεξού σιοι γεγόναμεν. Ὑπόλοιπόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν διὰ ποίαν αἰτίαν αὐτεξούσιοι γεγόναμεν. φαμὲν τοίνυν εὐθέως τῷ λογικῷ συνεισέρχεσθαι τὸ αὐτεξούσιον καὶ τοῖς γενητοῖς συμπεφυκέναι μεταβολὴν καὶ τροπήν, μάλιστα τοῖς ἐξ ὑποκειμένης ὕλης γενομένοις. ἀρχὴ γὰρ γενέσεως τροπή. ἐξ