269

in harmony; for from some it took its being a body, and from others its being impassible, and so fashioned an impassible body 15.7.7. Therefore, in the case of statues, even if something made from different 15.7.7 parts is not beautiful, it is by no means impossible to create. At any rate, Homer teaches such things; for he says, “in eyes and head like unto Zeus who delights in thunder, in waist to Ares, and in chest to Poseidon.” But an impassible body could never come to be. For being bound to a passible and changeable nature, it must necessarily suffer along with that to which it is yoked. But if something were impassible, this must be released and free from that which suffers; so that it would be separate from matter, and being separated from it, would necessarily be acknowledged as incorporeal.” Let us further apply our mind to all the other points in which he shows Aristotle to differ from Plato:

15.8.1 8. FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME, ON THE POINTS IN WHICH HE DIFFERED FROM PLATO ALSO IN HIS THEORIES ABOUT THE HEAVENS

“Then, following these, there are many points on which they differ. For the one says that the heavenly bodies have their form for the most part from fire, but the other that fire has no part in the heavenly bodies at all. And the one says that God kindled a light in the second orbit from the earth, so that it might shine as much as possible throughout the whole heaven, declaring such to be the case concerning the sun; but the other, since he does not wish the sun to be fire, and knowing that light is pure fire 15.8.2 or something of fire, does not permit a light to be kindled about it. Further, the one, while assigning incorruptibility in form to all the heavenly bodies, says that certain departures from them and commensurate approaches to them occur; and what compels him to say this are, on the one hand, the separations, namely the sun’s rays and heat, which occur by its effluence; and on the other hand, the additions, namely the constant appearance of its size; 15.8.3 for it would not have wished to appear the same size if it received nothing in return for what it emits. But Aristotle wants them to remain in every way in the same substance, with nothing 15.8.4 departing from them nor being added. Again, the one, in addition to the common motion of the stars, according to which all the stars, both the fixed and the wandering, are moved bound in their spheres, also assigns to them another motion, which happens to be in other respects most beautiful and befitting the nature of their bodies; for being spherical, it is reasonable that each would move with a certain spherical motion, revolving. But the other deprives them of this motion as well, which they move as ensouled beings, and leaves only that which happens to them as if they were 15.8.5 soulless, moved by their containers. And indeed he says that the appearance we get from the stars as if they are moving is an affection of our sight, which is weak and, as it were, trembling, and that it is not the truth; as if Plato derived his belief about their motion from this appearance, and not from the argument that teaches that it is necessary for each of these, being a living creature and having a soul and a body, to move with its own motion—“for every body whose motion is from without is soulless, but one whose motion is from within itself, from itself, is ensouled,”—and being moved, since it is divine, it is moved with the most beautiful motion; and since the most beautiful motion is circular 15.8.6 motion, it is moved with this. And sense perception might bear witness to the conclusions of reason as being true, but it did not itself furnish the belief in the motion. But concerning the motion of the universe, overcome by the clear evidence, he could not contradict Plato that it does occur in a circle, but here too this fine discovery of his about the body 15.8.7 created a difference with him. For Plato, since there were four bodies and all of them by nature were moved with a simple and straight motion—fire towards the outside, earth towards the middle, and the others towards what is in between—assigned the circular motion to the soul; but the other, just as to another body another, so

269

συνᾴδοντα· παρ' ὧν μὲν γὰρ τὸ εἶναι σῶμα, παρ' ὧν δὲ τὸ ἀπαθὲς εἶναι λαβὼν σῶμα ἀπαθὲς 15.7.7 ἐτεκτήνατο. ἐπὶ μὲν οὖν τῶν ἀνδριάντων, εἰ καὶ μὴ καλὸν τὸ ἐκ τῶν δια15.7.7 φερόντων, οὔ τι γε ἀδύνατον γενέσθαι. διδάσκει γοῦν τὰ τοιαῦτα καὶ Ὅμηρος· ὄμματα, γάρ φησι, καὶ κεφαλὴν ἴκελος ∆ιὶ τερπικεραύνῳ, Ἄρει δὲ ζώνην, στέρνον δὲ Ποσειδάωνι. τὸ δὲ σῶμα ἀπαθὲς οὐκ ἄν ποτε γένοιτο. παθητῇ γὰρ καὶ τρεπτῇ συνδεδεμένον φύσει ἀνάγκην ἔχει συμπαθεῖν ᾧ συνέζευκται. εἰ δέ τι ἀπαθὲς εἴη, τοῦτο ἀφειμένον καὶ ἐλεύθερον ἀπὸ τοῦ πάσχοντος εἶναι δεῖ· ὥστε χωρὶς ἂν εἴη τῆς ὕλης, ἧς κεχωρισμένον ἀσώματον ἀναγκαίως ὁμολογοῖτ' ἄν.» Ἔτι καὶ τούτοις πρόσσχωμεν τὸν νοῦν ἐν ὅσοις ἄλλοις διαφέρεσθαι τῷ Πλάτωνι τὸν Ἀριστοτέλην παρίστησιν·

15.8.1 ηʹ. ΤΟΥ ΑΥΤΟΥ ΠΡΟΣ ΤΟΝ ΑΥΤΟΝ ΚΑΙ ΕΝ ΤΟΙΣ ΚΑΤ' ΟΥΡΑΝΟΝ ΘΕΩΡΗΜΑΣΙ ∆ΙΕΝΕΧΘΕΝΤΑ ΤΩΙ ΠΛΑΤΩΝΙ

«Ἔπειτα τούτοις ἑπόμενα πολλὰ ἐν οἷς διαφέρονται. ὁ μὲν γάρ φησι τὰ κατ' οὐρανὸν τὴν πλείστην ἰδέαν ἐκ πυρὸς ἔχειν, ὁ δὲ μηδαμῇ μετεῖναι τοῖς οὐρανίοις πυρός. καὶ ὁ μέν φησιν ἀνάψαι τὸν θεὸν φῶς ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ πρὸς γῆν περιόδῳ, ἵν' ὅτι μάλιστα εἰς ἅπαντα φαίνοι τὸν οὐρανόν, περὶ ἡλίου τὸ τοιοῦτον ἀποφαινόμενος· ὁ δέ, ἅτε οὐκ ἐθέλων πῦρ εἶναι τὸν ἥλιον, τὸ δὲ φῶς εἰδὼς πῦρ καθαρὸν 15.8.2 ἤ τι πυρὸς ὄν, οὐκ ἐπιτρέπει φῶς περὶ αὐτὸν ἀνῆφθαι. ἔτι ὁ μέν, κατ' εἶδος ἀφθαρσίαν ἀπονέμων τοῖς κατ' οὐρανὸν ἅπασιν, ἀποχωρήσεις τινὰς αὐτῶν καὶ προσχωρήσεις συμμέτρους φησὶ γίνεσθαι· ἀναγκάζουσι δὲ αὐτὸν λέγειν ταῦτα, τὰς μὲν ἀποκρίσεις αἵ τε ἀκτῖνες τοῦ ἡλίου καὶ θερμότητες κατὰ ἀπόρρυσιν αὐτοῦ γινόμεναι· τὰς δὲ προσκρίσεις ἡ ἴση τοῦ μεγέθους αὐτοῦ φαῦσις· 15.8.3 οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἤθελεν ἴσα φαίνεσθαι μηδὲν ἀνθ' ὧν ἀφίησι λαμβάνοντα. ὁ δὲ Ἀριστοτέλης πάντη μένειν ἐπὶ τῆς αὐτῆς οὐσίας αὐτὰ βούλεται, μήτε τινὸς 15.8.4 αὐτοῖς ἀποχωροῦντος μήτε προσιόντος. ἔτι ὁ μὲν πρὸς τῇ κοινῇ κινήσει τῶν ἄστρων, καθ' ἣν ἐν ταῖς σφαίραις ἐνδεδεμένοι κινοῦνται πάντες οἱ ἀστέρες, οἵ τε ἀπλανεῖς καὶ οἱ πλανώμενοι, καὶ ἑτέραν αὐτοῖς κίνησιν ἀποδίδωσιν, ἣν δὴ καὶ ἄλλως καλλίστην εἶναι συμβέβηκε καὶ προσήκουσαν αὐτῶν τῇ φύσει τοῦ σώματος· σφαιρικοὶ γὰρ ὄντες εἰκότως σφαιρικὴν ἄν τινα κίνησιν ἕκαστος κινοῖτο περιδινούμενος. ὁ δὲ καὶ ταύτης ἀφαιρεῖται τῆς κινήσεως αὐτούς, ἣν ὡς ἔμψυχοι κινοῦνται, μόνην δὲ ἀπολείπει τὴν ὑπ' ἀλλήλων τῶν περιεχόντων ὥσπερ 15.8.5 ἀψύχοις συμβαίνουσαν. καὶ δὴ καί φησι τὴν γινομένην φαντασίαν ἡμῖν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων ὡς κινουμένων πάθος εἶναι τῆς ἡμετέρας ὄψεως ἀδυνατούσης καὶ ὡσπερεὶ σειομένης, ἀλήθειαν δὲ οὐκ εἶναι· ὥσπερ Πλάτωνος ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς φαντασίας τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς κινήσεως πίστιν λαμβάνοντος, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀπὸ τοῦ λόγου τοῦ διδάσκοντος ὅτι ἀνάγκη τούτων ἕκαστον ζῷον ὄντα καὶ ψυχὴν ἔχοντα καὶ σῶμα κινεῖσθαι τὴν ἰδίαν κίνησιν «πᾶν γὰρ σῶμα ᾧ μὲν ἔξωθεν τὸ κινεῖσθαι, ἄψυχον, ᾧ δὲ ἔνδοθεν αὐτῷ ἐξ αὑτοῦ, ἔμψυχον», κινούμενον δὲ ἅτε θεῖον ὄντα τὴν καλλίστην κινεῖσθαι κίνησιν· καλλίστης δ' οὔσης τῆς ἐν 15.8.6 κύκλῳ κινήσεως, ταύτη αὐτὸν κινεῖσθαι. ἡ δὲ αἴσθησις τὰ μὲν ἐκ τοῦ λόγου μαρτυροῖτο ἂν ὡς ἀληθεύουσα, οὐ μὴν αὐτὴ παρέσχε τὴν πίστιν τῆς κινήσεως. περὶ δὲ τῆς τοῦ παντὸς κινήσεως ὡς μὲν οὐκ ἐν κύκλῳ τινὶ γίνεται, νικώμενος ὑπὸ τῆς ἐναργείας οὐκ ἔσχεν ἀντειπεῖν Πλάτωνι, παρεῖχε δὲ κἀνταῦθα 15.8.7 διαφορὰν αὐτῷ τὸ καλὸν τοῦτο εὕρημα τοῦ σώματος. ὁ μὲν γὰρ Πλάτων, ἅτε ὄντων τεσσάρων σωμάτων καὶ πάντων φύσει κινουμένων ἁπλῆν καὶ εὐθεῖαν κίνησιν, πυρὸς μὲν ἐπὶ τὰ ἐκτός, γῆς δ' ἐπὶ τὸ μέσον, τῶν δὲ ἄλλων ἐπὶ τὰ μεταξύ, τὴν ἐν κύκλῳ κίνησιν ἀπέδωκε τῇ ψυχῇ· ὁ δ', ᾗπερ ἄλλῳ σώματι ἄλλην, οὕτω