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are unknown, having spent their time solely on the inquiry into the nature of existing things; nor indeed do Pittacus and Periander and Solon and Lycurgus and those like them escape notice, having applied their philosophy to the state; and Zeno and this whole Eleatic school is itself also well known for having especially devoted itself to the art 11.2.4 of reasoning. But Plato, coming after these, a man perfect by nature and far superior, as if truly sent down from the gods, so that the philosophy through him might appear complete, both omitted nothing and made each point precise, neither falling short of what was necessary nor being carried away 11.2.5 into what was useless. Since, therefore, we said that the Platonic philosopher partakes of all things, both investigating nature and speaking about ethics and reasoning dialectically, come let us examine each point.” 11.2.6 Thus Atticus; and the Peripatetic Aristocles also bears witness to the same things, in the seventh book of the works he composed *On Philosophy*, speaking word for word as follows:

11.3.1 4. OF ARISTOCLES, ON THE PHILOSOPHY ACCORDING TO PLATO

“Plato philosophized, if any other man ever did, genuinely and completely. For those from Thales continued to investigate nature, while those around Pythagoras kept everything secret; and Xenophanes and those after him, by stirring up eristic arguments, cast much dizziness upon philosophers, but yet 11.3.2 they provided no help. And not least Socrates, as the saying goes, became fire upon fire, just as Plato himself said. For being most gifted and clever at raising difficulties about any subject whatsoever, he introduced ethical and political inquiries, and furthermore that concerning the ideas, being the first to attempt to define 11.3.3 things; but stirring up every argument and inquiring about all things, he died before he could finish. But others, cutting off certain parts, spent their time on these things, some on medicine, some on the mathematical sciences, and some on the poets and music. Most, however, marveled at the powers of arguments, of whom some called themselves orators, and 11.3.4 others dialecticians. However, those who succeeded Socrates became altogether diverse and contrary in their opinions. For some praised cynicism and simplicity and freedom from passion, while others in turn praised pleasures. And some 11.3.5 boasted that they knew everything, others simply that they knew nothing. Furthermore, some went about in the midst and in sight of all, consorting with the many, while others on 11.3.6 the contrary remained inaccessible and unapproachable. Plato, however, having understood that the knowledge of divine and human things is a certain unity, was the first to divide it and said that one part is the study of the nature of the universe, 11.3.7 a second the study of human affairs, and a third the study of reasoning. And he thought that we cannot understand human affairs unless divine things are first seen; for just as doctors, when treating certain parts, first take care of the whole body, so too must one who is going to examine things here below first know the nature of the whole; and that man is a part of existing things, and the good is twofold, one being ours, the other that of the universe, and that of the uni- 11.3.8 verse is the more important; for through that one, this one also comes to be. But Aristoxenus the musician says that this argument is from the Indians. For in Athens, one of those men met Socrates and then asked him what he did to philosophize; and when he said that he inquired about human life, the Indian laughed, saying that no one could understand human affairs while being ignorant of divine things. 11.3.9 Now whether this is true, one could not say with certainty. Plato, therefore, did divide philosophy into that concerning the whole, and the political, and further, the logical.”

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ἀγνοοῦνται περὶ μόνην τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς φύσεως τῶν ὄντων σκέψιν διατρίψαντες· οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ Πιττακὸς καὶ Περίανδρος καὶ Σόλων καὶ Λυκοῦργος καὶ οἱ παραπλήσιοι τούτοις λανθάνουσί τινας τὴν αὑτῶν φιλοσοφίαν εἰς πολιτείαν καταθέντες· Ζήνων δὲ καὶ πᾶν τὸ Ἐλεατικὸν τοῦτο διδασκαλεῖον καὶ αὐτὸ γνώριμον ἐπὶ τῇ τέχνῃ 11.2.4 τῶν λόγων μάλιστα σπουδάσαν. τούτοις δὲ ἐπιγενόμενος Πλάτων, ἀνὴρ ἐκ φύσεως ἀρτιτελὴς καὶ πολὺ διενεγκών, οἷα κατάπεμπτος ὡς ἀληθῶς ἐκ θεῶν, ἵν' ὁλόκληρος ὀφθῇ ἡ δι' αὐτοῦ φιλοσοφία, παρῆκέ τε οὐδὲν καὶ ἕκαστα ἠκρίβωσε, μήτε ἐλλείπων πρὸς τὸ ἀναγκαῖον μήτε πρὸς τὸ ἄχρηστον ἐξενεχ 11.2.5 θείς. ἐπεὶ τοίνυν πάντων ἔφαμεν μετεῖναι τῷ Πλατωνικῷ καὶ φυσιολογοῦντι καὶ περὶ ἠθῶν λέγοντι καὶ διαλεγομένῳ, φέρε καθ' ἕκαστον ἐπισκεψώμεθα.» 11.2.6 Ταῦτα μὲν ὁ Ἀττικός· ἐπιμαρτυρεῖ δὲ τοῖς αὐτοῖς καὶ ὁ Περιπατητικὸς Ἀριστοκλῆς, ἐν ἑβδόμῳ συγγράμματι ὧν Περὶ φιλοσοφίας συνέταξεν ὧδε λέγων πρὸς ῥῆμα·

11.3.1 δʹ. ΑΡΙΣΤΟΚΛΕΟΥΣ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΗΣ ΚΑΤΑ ΠΛΑΤΩΝΑ ΦΙΛΟΣΟΦΙΑΣ

«Ἐφιλοσόφησε δὲ Πλάτων, εἰ καί τις ἄλλος τῶν πώποτε, γνησίως καὶ τελείως. οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀπὸ Θάλεω φυσιολογοῦντες διετέλεσαν, οἱ δὲ περὶ Πυθαγόραν ἐπεκρύψαντο πάντα· Ξενοφάνης δὲ καὶ οἱ ἀπ' ἐκείνου τοὺς ἐριστικοὺς κινήσαντες λόγους πολὺν μὲν ἐνέβαλον ἴλιγγον τοῖς φιλοσόφοις, οὐ μὴν 11.3.2 ἐπόρισάν γέ τινα βοήθειαν. οὐχ ἥκιστα δὲ καὶ Σωκράτης, αὐτὸ δὴ τὸ λεγόμενον, ἐγένετο πῦρ ἐπὶ πυρί, καθάπερ αὐτὸς ἔφη Πλάτων. εὐφυέστατος γὰρ ὢν καὶ δεινὸς ἀπορῆσαι περὶ παντὸς ὁτουοῦν ἐπεισήνεγκε τάς τε ἠθικὰς καὶ πολιτικὰς σκέψεις, ἔτι δὲ τὴν περὶ τῶν ἰδεῶν, πρῶτος ἐπιχειρήσας ὁρίζε11.3.3 σθαι· πάντα δὲ ἐγείρων λόγον καὶ περὶ πάντων ζητῶν ἔφθη τελευτήσας. ἄλλοι δ' ἀποτεμόμενοι μέρη τινὰ περὶ ταῦτα διέτριψαν, οἱ μὲν ἰατρικήν, οἱ δὲ τὰς μαθηματικὰς ἐπιστήμας, ἔνιοι δὲ περὶ τοὺς ποιητὰς καὶ τὴν μουσικήν. οἱ μέντοι πολλοὶ τὰς τῶν λόγων δυνάμεις ἐθαύμασαν, ὧν οἱ μὲν ῥήτορας, οἱ 11.3.4 δὲ διαλεκτικοὺς προσεῖπον ἑαυτούς. οἱ μέντοι Σωκράτην διαδεξάμενοι καὶ πάνυ τινὲς ἐγένοντο παντοῖοι καὶ ὑπεναντίοι τὰς γνώμας. οἱ μὲν γὰρ κυνισμοὺς καὶ ἀτυφίας καὶ ἀπαθείας ὕμνουν, ἄλλοι δ' αὖ πάλιν ἡδονάς. καὶ οἱ 11.3.5 μὲν εἰδέναι πάντα ἐκόμπαζον, οἱ δὲ ἁπλῶς μηθέν. ἔτι δ' οἱ μὲν ἐν μέσῳ καὶ ἐν ὄψει πάντων ἐκαλινδοῦντο, τοῖς πολλοῖς ἐξομιλοῦντες, ἄλλοι δ' αὖ 11.3.6 τοὐναντίον ἀπρόσιτοι καὶ ἀπροσαύδητοι διετέλουν ὄντες. Πλάτων μέντοι κατανοήσας ὡς εἴη μία τις ἡ τῶν θείων καὶ ἀνθρωπείων ἐπιστήμη, πρῶτος διεῖλε καὶ ἔφη τὴν μέν τινα περὶ τῆς τοῦ παντὸς φύσεως εἶναι πραγματείαν, 11.3.7 τὴν δὲ περὶ τῶν ἀνθρωπείων, τρίτην δὲ τὴν περὶ τοὺς λόγους. ἠξίου δὲ μὴ δύνασθαι τὰ ἀνθρώπεια κατιδεῖν ἡμᾶς, εἰ μὴ τὰ θεῖα πρότερον ὀφθείη· καθάπερ γὰρ οἱ ἰατροὶ μέρη τινὰ θεραπεύοντες ἐπιμελοῦνται τῶν ὅλων σωμάτων πρῶτον, οὕτω χρῆναι καὶ τὸν μέλλοντα τἀνθάδε κατόψεσθαι τὴν τῶν ὅλων φύσιν εἰδέναι πρότερον· μέρος τε εἶναι τῶν ὄντων τὸν ἄνθρωπον καὶ τἀγαθὸν διττόν, τὸ μὲν ἡμέτερον, τὸ δὲ τοῦ παντός, κυριώτερον δὲ τὸ τοῦ παν11.3.8 τός· διὰ γὰρ ἐκείνου καὶ τοῦτο γίγνεσθαι. φησὶ δ' Ἀριστόξενος ὁ μουσικὸς Ἰνδῶν εἶναι τὸν λόγον τοῦτον. Ἀθήνησι γὰρ ἐντυχεῖν Σωκράτει τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐκείνων ἕνα τινὰ κἄπειτα αὐτοῦ πυνθάνεσθαι τί ποιῶν φιλοσοφοίη· τοῦ δὲ εἰπόντος ὅτι ζητῶν περὶ τοῦ ἀνθρωπείου βίου, καταγελάσαι τὸν Ἰνδόν, λέγοντα μὴ δύνασθαί τινα τὰ ἀνθρώπεια κατιδεῖν ἀγνοοῦντά γε τὰ θεῖα. 11.3.9 τοῦτο μὲν οὖν εἰ ἀληθές ἐστιν, οὐκ ἂν δύναιτό τις διατεινόμενος εἰπεῖν. διεῖλε δ' οὖν ὁ Πλάτων τήν τε περὶ τῶν ὅλων φιλοσοφίαν καὶ τὴν πολιτικήν, ἔτι δὲ τὴν λογικήν.»