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we will consider, when someone dies from old age or in some other way, of those who have been judged to be exceptionally 8.47 good in life." And in the Cratylus he expanded this argument: for he praises Hesiod and indeed the other poets for saying: "that when a good man dies, he has a great portion and honor there, and becomes a daemon according to the name for wisdom; on this account, therefore, I too posit the knowing man." And Hesiod, concerning the golden race, said these things: But when fate had covered this race, they are called pure spirits upon the earth, noble, averters of evil, guardians of mortal men. 8.48 If, therefore, the poet called those who had lived best and then died noble, and averters of evil, and guardians of mortal men, and the best of philosophers confirmed the poet's argument and said that it is necessary both to attend to and to reverence their tombs, why then do you find fault with the things done by us, O most excellent men? For those who shone in piety and received the slaughter for its sake, we name averters of evil and physicians, not calling them daemons—may we never be so mad—but friends of God and well-disposed servants, using freedom of speech and proclaiming to us the bestowal of good things. 8.49 For indeed the chief of philosophers has also declared this in the Epinomis; for he said: "I do not say that it is possible for men to become blessed and happy, except for a few. As long as we live, I determine this; but there is a good hope for one who has died to obtain all things." And this simply resembles the things spoken by the divine scripture: "Call no man blessed before his death," and "light for the righteous always," and "the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God," and things similar to these. 8.50 And that the ruler of all things has allotted insults and railings and torments and scourges to the righteous in the present life, Plato also wrote in the Republic: "For," he says, "being so disposed, the just man will be tormented, racked, bound, he will have his two eyes gouged out, and finally, having suffered all evils, he will be impaled." Therefore, are not those who do these things thrice-wretched, and those who suffer them thrice-blessed? 8.51 And that the souls of the holy, even when they have departed the body, are able indeed to care for human affairs, Plato also taught this in the eleventh book of the Laws; and he speaks thus: "For it seems to me we have reached a certain point in time to have gone through the previous arguments, that the souls of the departed have a certain power after death and care for human affairs. These things are true, but the arguments containing them are long; but one must trust the other traditions about such things, since they are so many and indeed very ancient; and one must trust 8.52 those who legislate that these things are so." But the philosopher commands to trust even the traditions; but you not only distrust us and are not willing to listen to the shouting truth of the facts, but you are not even willing to trust your philosopher when he says outright, that the souls of the holy, when freed from their bodies, care for human affairs. And to whom is it so fitting to obtain this prize, as to those who have fervently loved the divine things, and have remained until the end in what they chose from the beginning and not enduring to desert the post at which they stationed themselves? 8.53 And Plato indeed confirms this argument in the Apology; and he speaks thus: "For this is how it is, O men of Athens, in truth: wherever a man has stationed himself, believing it to be best, or has been stationed by a commander, there he must, as it seems to me, remain and face danger, reckoning nothing, neither death nor anything else 8.54 before what is shameful." And again, after a little: "For to fear death, O men, is nothing other than to seem to be wise, while not being so." And again after a short while: "Before evils, at least, which I know are evils, things that I do not know if they may even happen to be good, I will not fear nor flee." And again: "For in other respects, those there are happier than those here, and now also for the remaining time 8.55 they are immortal." And his also, O dear men, are these words: "Me

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νομιοῦμεν, ὅταν τις γήρᾳ ἤ τινι ἄλλῳ τρόπῳ τελευτήσῃ τῶν ὅσοι ἂν διαφερόντως ἐν τῷ 8.47 βίῳ ἀγαθοὶ κριθῶσιν." Κἀν τῷ Κρατύλῳ δὲ τόνδε τὸν λόγον διεύρυνεν· ἐπαινεῖ γὰρ τὸν Ἡσίοδον καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους γε ποιητὰς εἰρηκότας· "ὡς ἐπειδάν τις ἀγαθὸς ὢν τελευτήσῃ, μεγάλην μοῖραν καὶ τιμὴν ἐκεῖ ἔχει, καὶ γίνεται δαίμων κατὰ τὴν τῆς φρονήσεως ἐπωνυμίαν· ταύτῃ οὖν τίθεμαι κἀγὼ τὸν δαήμονα ἄνδρα." Ὁ δέ γε Ἡσίοδος περὶ τοῦ χρυσοῦ γένους ταῦτα ἔφη· αὐτὰρ ἐπειδὴ τοῦτο γένος κατὰ μοῖρ' ἐκάλυψεν, οἱ μὲν δαίμονες ἁγνοὶ ἐπιχθόνιοι καλέονται, ἐσθλοί, ἀλεξίκακοι, φύλακες θνητῶν ἀνθρώπων. 8.48 Εἰ τοίνυν καὶ ὁ ποιητὴς καὶ ἐσθλοὺς καὶ ἀλεξικάκους καὶ φύλακας θνητῶν ἀνθρώπων τοὺς ἄριστα βεβιωκότας, εἶτα τελευ τήσαντας, προσηγόρευσεν, ἐκράτυνε δὲ τοῦ ποιητοῦ τὸν λόγον τῶν φιλοσόφων ὁ ἄριστος καὶ χρῆναι ἔφη καὶ θεραπεύειν τούτων καὶ προσκυνεῖν τὰς θήκας, τί δήποτε μέμφεσθε τοῖς παρ' ἡμῶν γινομένοις, ὦ βέλτιστοι; Τοὺς γὰρ ἐν εὐσεβείᾳ λάμψαντας καὶ ὑπὲρ ταύτης τὴν σφαγὴν δεξαμένους, ἀλεξικάκους ἡμεῖς καὶ ἰατροὺς ὀνομάζομεν, οὐ δαίμονας καλοῦντες-μὴ οὕτω λυττή σαιμεν-ἀλλὰ Θεῷ φίλους καὶ εὔνους θεράποντας, παρρησίᾳ χρωμένους καὶ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἡμῖν ἐπαγγέλλοντας τὴν φοράν. 8.49 Τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ καὶ τῶν φιλοσόφων ὁ κορυφαῖος ἐν τῇ Ἐπινομίδι δεδήλωκεν· ἔφη γάρ· "Οὔ φημι εἶναι δυνατὸν ἀνθρώποις μακα ρίοις τε καὶ εὐδαίμοσι γενέσθαι πλὴν ὀλίγων. Μέχρι περ ἂν ζῶμεν, τοῦτο διορίζομαι· καλὴ δὲ ἐλπὶς τελευτήσαντι τυχεῖν ἁπάντων." Ἀτεχνῶς δέ γε τοῦτο ἔοικε τοῖς ὑπὸ τῆς θείας εἰρη μένοις γραφῆς· "Μὴ μακαρίσῃς ἄνδρα πρὸ τελευτῆς αὐτοῦ" καὶ "φῶς δικαίοις διαπαντός", καὶ "ψυχαὶ δικαίων ἐν χειρὶ Θεοῦ" καὶ τὰ τούτοις προσόμοια. 8.50 Ὅτι δὲ τοῖς δικαίοις ὕβρεις καὶ λοιδορίας καὶ αἰκίας καὶ μάστιγας κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον ξυνεκλήρωσε τῶν ὅλων ὁ πρύ τανις, καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῇ Πολιτείᾳ ξυγγέγραφεν· "Οὕτω" γάρ φησι "διακείμενος ὁ δίκαιος αἰκισθήσεται, στρεβλωθήσεται, δεθήσεται, ἐκκοπήσεται τὼ ὀφθαλμώ, τελευτῶν πάντα κακὰ παθὼν ἀνασκινδυλευθήσεται." Οὐκοῦν τρισάθλιοι μὲν οἱ ταῦτα ποι οῦντες, τρισόλβιοι δὲ οἱ πάσχοντες; 8.51 Ὅτι δὲ καὶ ἐπιμελεῖσθαι τῶν ἀνθρωπείων δύνανται πραγμά των αἱ τῶν ὁσίων ψυχαὶ καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἐκτὸς γενόμεναι, ὁ Πλάτων καὶ τοῦτο ἐν τῷ ἑνδεκάτῳ τῶν Νόμων ἐδίδαξε· λέγει δὲ οὕτως· "Εἴς τινα γὰρ οὖν μοι καιρὸν φαινόμεθα τοὺς ἔμπροσθεν λόγους διεξελθεῖν, ὡς ἄρα αἱ τῶν τελευτησάντων ψυχαὶ δύναμιν ἔχουσί τινα τελευτήσασαι καὶ τῶν κατ' ἀνθρώπους πραγμάτων ἐπιμελοῦνται. Ταῦτα δὲ ἀληθεῖς μέν, μακροὶ δέ εἰσι περιέχοντες λόγοι· πιστεύειν δὲ ταῖς ἄλλαις φήμαις χρεὼν περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα, οὕτω πολλαῖς καὶ σφόδρα γε παλαιαῖς οὔσαις· πιστεύειν δὲ αὐ 8.52 τοῖς νομοθετοῦσι ταῦθ' οὕτως ἔχειν." Ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν φιλόσοφος κελεύει καὶ ταῖς φήμαις πιστεύειν· ὑμεῖς δὲ οὐ μόνον ἡμῖν ἀπισ τεῖτε καὶ τῆς τῶν πραγμάτων βοώσης ἀληθείας ἐπαΐειν οὐ βού λεσθε, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τῷ ὑμετέρῳ φιλοσόφῳ πιστεύειν ἐθέλετε ἄντικρυς λέγοντι, ὡς αἱ τῶν ὁσίων ψυχαὶ τῶν σωμάτων ἀπαλ λαγεῖσαι τῶν κατ' ἀνθρώπους ἐπιμελοῦνται πραγμάτων. Τῷ δὲ οὕτως ἁρμόττει τοῦδε τοῦ γέρως τυχεῖν, ὡς τοῖς ἠγαπηκόσι μὲν ἐκθύμως τὰ θεῖα, μεμενηκόσι δὲ μέχρι τέλους οἷς ἐξ ἀρχῆς προ είλοντο καὶ τὴν τάξιν ἐν ᾗ σφᾶς ἔταξαν οὐκ ἀνασχομένοις κατα 8.53 λιπεῖν; Τοῦτον δέ γε καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῇ Ἀπολογίᾳ κρατύνει τὸν λόγον· φησὶ δὲ οὕτως· "Οὕτω γὰρ ἔχει, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τῇ ἀληθείᾳ· οὗ ἄν τις ἑαυτὸν τάξῃ, ἡγησάμενος βέλτιστον εἶναι, ἢ ὑπ' ἄρχοντος ταχθῇ, ἐνταῦθα δεῖ, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, μένοντα κινδυνεύειν, μηδὲν ὑπολογιζόμενον μήτε θάνατον μήτε ἄλλο 8.54 μηδὲν πρὸ τοῦ αἰσχροῦ." Καὶ πάλιν μετ' ὀλίγα· "Τὸ γάρ τοι θάνατον δεδιέναι, ὦ ἄνδρες, οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἐστὶν ἢ δοκεῖν σοφὸν εἶναι, μὴ ὄντα." Καὶ αὖθις μετὰ βραχέα· "Πρὸ γοῦν τῶν κακῶν, ὧν οἶδα ὅτι κακά ἐστιν, ἃ μὴ οἶδα εἰ καὶ ἀγαθὰ ὄντα τυγχάνει, οὐ φοβηθήσομαι οὐδὲ φεύξομαι." Καὶ πάλιν· "Τά τε γὰρ ἄλλα εὐδαιμονέστεροί εἰσιν οἱ ἐκεῖ τῶν ἐνθάδε, καὶ ἤδη καὶ 8.55 τὸν λοιπὸν χρόνον ἀθάνατοί εἰσιν." Αὐτοῦ δέ, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, καὶ ταῦτα· "Ἐμὲ