295
15.61.1 61. CONCERNING THE RULING PRINCIPLE Plato, Democritus in the whole head. 15.61.2 Strato in the space between the eyebrows. 15.61.3 Erasistratus around the membrane of the brain, which he calls the epicranis. 15.61.4 Herophilus in the ventricle of the brain, which is the base. 15.61.5 Parmenides in the whole chest. 15.61.6 Epicurus, all the Stoics in the whole heart. 15.61.7 Diogenes in the arterial ventricle of the heart, which is pneumatic. 15.61.8 And Empedocles in the constitution of the blood. 15.61.9 Some in the pericardial membrane; others in the diaphragm of the midriff. Some of the younger ones that it extends from the head to the diaphragm. 15.61.10 Pythagoras places the vital principle around the heart, but the rational and intellectual principle around the head.” 15.61.11 So much then for these matters. Do we not then seem to you to have withdrawn justly, by judgement and reasoning, from the unprofitable and very devious vain labor of all these men, and to meddle with none of the aforesaid matters, since we do not even see in them anything that is profitable and in itself conducive to the benefit and acquisition of good for men, but to cleave only to piety toward the God who is the creator of all things, and through a sober life and the rest of the God-loving 15.61.12 conduct according to virtue to be zealous to live pleasingly to the God over all? But if you also through malice and envy are reluctant to accept the true testimony for us, Socrates, the wisest of all the Greeks, will again anticipate you, having truthfully cast his votes on our behalf. For he used to show that those speculators on celestial things were foolish and said they differed in nothing from madmen, refuting them expressly not only as desiring impossible things, but also as being occupied with matters useless and unprofitable for life. And Xenophon, the most famous of Socrates' companions, will also testify to this for you, writing something like this in his Memorabilia:
15.62.1 62. THAT SOCRATES, THE WISEST OF THE GREEKS, ALSO SHOWED THAT THOSE WHO PRIDED THEMSELVES ON THE PHYSIOLOGY OF THE AFOREMENTIONED THINGS WERE FOOLISH, AS BEING OCCUPIED WITH MATTERS USELESS TO LIFE AND
INCOMPREHENSIBLE "But no one ever saw Socrates doing or heard him saying anything impious or unholy. For he did not, like most others, discourse about the nature of all things, investigating how the so-called ‘cosmos’ of the sophists is constituted, and by what necessities each of the celestial 15.62.2 phenomena comes to be, but he would show that those who concerned themselves with such things were foolish. And he would first consider of them whether, thinking they already knew human affairs sufficiently, they came to concern themselves with such things, or whether, passing over human affairs, and investigating divine matters, they thought they were doing what was fitting. 15.62.3 And he was amazed if it was not clear to them that it is not possible for men to find these things out, since even those who thought most highly of themselves for speaking about these things did not hold the same opinions as one another, but were disposed towards one another like madmen. 15.62.4 For of madmen, some do not fear even what is dreadful, while others fear what is not fearful; and some think it is not shameful to say or do anything even in a crowd, while others think they ought not even to go out among men; and some honor neither temple nor altar nor anything else of the gods, while others even stones and
295
15.61.1 ξαʹ. ΠΕΡΙ ΗΓΕΜΟΝΙΚΟΥ Πλάτων, ∆ημόκριτος ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ κεφαλῇ. 15.61.2 Στράτων ἐν μεσοφρύῳ. 15.61.3 Ἐρασίστρατος περὶ τὴν μήνιγγα τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου, ἣν ἐπικρανίδα λέγει. 15.61.4 Ἡρόφιλος ἐν τῇ τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου κοιλίᾳ, ἥτις ἐστὶ βάσις. 15.61.5 Παρμενίδης ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ θώρακι. 15.61.6 Ἐπίκουρος, οἱ Στωϊκοὶ πάντες ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ καρδίᾳ. 15.61.7 ∆ιογένης ἐν τῇ ἀρτηριακῇ κοιλίᾳ τῆς καρδίας, ἥτις ἐστὶ πνευματική. 15.61.8 Ἐμπεδοκλῆς δὲ ἐν τῇ τοῦ αἵματος συστάσει. 15.61.9 Οἱ δ' ἐν τῷ περικαρδίῳ ὑμένι· οἱ δ' ἐν τῷ διαφράγματι τῶν φρενῶν. τῶν νεωτέρων τινὲς διήκειν ἀπὸ κεφαλῆς μέχρι τοῦ διαφράγματος. 15.61.10 Πυθαγόρας τὸ μὲν ζωτικὸν περὶ τὴν καρδίαν, τὸ δὲ λογικὸν καὶ νοερὸν περὶ τὴν κεφαλήν.» 15.61.11 Τοσαῦτα μὲν δὴ καὶ τὰ περὶ τῶνδε. ἆρ' οὖν οὐκ ἐν δίκῃ σοι δοκοῦμεν κρίσει καὶ λογισμῷ τῆς τούτων ἁπάντων ἀνωφελοῦς καὶ πολυπλανοῦς ματαιοπονίας ἀνακεχωρηκέναι καὶ τῶν μὲν εἰρημένων μηδὲν πολυπραγμονεῖν μηδὲ γὰρ ὁρᾶν ἐξ αὐτῶν τὸ λυσιτελὲς καὶ αὐτόθεν συντεῖνον πρὸς ὠφέλειαν καὶ ἀγαθοῦ κτῆσιν ἀνθρώποις, μόνης δὲ τῆς ἀμφὶ τὸν πάντων δημιουργὸν θεὸν εὐσεβείας ἔχεσθαι καὶ διὰ σώφρονος βίου τῆς τε ἄλλης κατ' ἀρετὴν θεοφι15.61.12 λοῦς πολιτείας ἀρεσκόντως ζῆν σπουδάζειν τῷ ἐπὶ πάντων θεῷ; ἀλλ' εἰ καὶ σὺ βασκανίᾳ καὶ φθόνῳ τὴν ἀληθῆ μαρτυρίαν ἡμῖν προσέσθαι δι' ὄκνου φέρεις, φθάσει γέ σε πάλιν ὁ πάντων Ἑλλήνων σοφώτατος Σωκράτης τὰς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ψήφους φιλαλήθως ἐξενηνεγμένος. τοὺς γοῦν μετεωρολέσχας ἐκείνους μωραίνοντας ἀπεδείκνυε καὶ μηθὲν μαινομένων διαφέρειν ἔλεγεν, ἀπελέγχων αὐτοὺς διαρρήδην οὐ μόνον ὡς ἀνεφίκτων ὀρεγομένους, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ ἄχρηστα καὶ ἀνωφελῆ τῷ βίῳ κατατριβομένους. ταῦτα δέ σοι καὶ ὁ πρόσθεν μαρτυρήσει Ξενοφῶν, Σωκράτους ἑταίρων γνωριμώτατος, ὧδέ πη γράφων ἐν Ἀπομνημονεύμασιν·
15.62.1 ξβʹ. ΟΤΙ ΚΑΙ ΤΩΝ ΕΛΛΗΝΩΝ Ο ΣΟΦΩΤΑΤΟΣ ΣΩΚΡΑΤΗΣ ΤΟΥΣ ΕΠΙ ΤΗΙ ΤΩΝ ΠΡΟΕΙΡΗΜΕΝΩΝ ΦΥΣΙΟΛΟΓΙΑΙ ΜΕΓΑΛΑ ΦΥΣΩΝΤΑΣ ΜΩΡΑΙΝΟΝΤΑΣ ΑΠΕ∆ΕΙΚΝΥΕΝ ΩΣ ΠΕΡΙ ΑΧΡΗΣΤΑ ΤΩΙ ΒΙΩΙ ΚΑΙ
ΑΚΑΤΑΛΗΠΤΑ ΚΑΤΑΤΡΙΒΟΜΕΝΟΥΣ «Οὐδεὶς δὲ πώποτε Σωκράτους οὐδὲν ἀσεβὲς οὔτε ἀνόσιον οὔτε πράττοντος εἶδεν οὔτε λέγοντος ἤκουσεν. οὐδὲ γὰρ περὶ τῆς τῶν ἁπάντων φύσεως ἢ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ὡς οἱ πλεῖστοι, διελέγετο, σκοπῶν ὅπως ὁ καλούμενος ὑπὸ τῶν σοφιστῶν κόσμος ἔχει καὶ τίσιν ἀνάγκαις ἕκαστα γίνεται τῶν οὐρα 15.62.2 νίων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς φροντίζοντας τὰ τοιαῦτα μωραίνοντας ἀπεδείκνυε. καὶ πρῶτον μὲν αὐτῶν ἐσκόπει πότερά ποτε νομίσαντες ἱκανῶς ἤδη τὰ ἀνθρώπινα εἰδέναι ἔρχονται ἐπὶ τὸ περὶ τῶν τοιούτων φροντίζειν ἢ τὰ μὲν ἀνθρώπινα παρέντες, τὰ δαιμόνια δὲ σκοποῦντες ἡγοῦνται τὰ προσήκοντα πράττειν. 15.62.3 ἐθαύμαζε δέ, εἰ μὴ φανερὸν αὐτοῖς ἐστιν ὅτι ταῦτα οὐ δυνατόν ἐστιν ἀνθρώποις εὑρεῖν, ἐπεὶ καὶ τοὺς μέγιστα φρονοῦντας ἐπὶ τῷ περὶ τούτων λέγειν οὐ ταὐτὰ δοξάζειν ἀλλήλοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς μαινομένοις ὁμοίως διακεῖσθαι 15.62.4 πρὸς ἀλλήλους. τῶν τε γὰρ μαινομένων τοὺς μὲν οὐδὲ τὰ δεινὰ δεδιέναι, τοὺς δὲ τὰ μὴ φοβερὰ φοβεῖσθαι· καὶ τοῖς μὲν οὐδ' ἐν ὄχλῳ δοκεῖν αἰσχρὸν εἶναι λέγειν ἢ ποιεῖν ὁτιοῦν, τοῖς δὲ οὐδ' ἐξιτητέον εἰς ἀνθρώπους εἶναι δοκεῖν· καὶ τοὺς μὲν οὔθ' ἱερὸν οὔτε βωμὸν οὔτ' ἄλλο τῶν θείων οὐδὲν τιμᾶν, τοὺς δὲ καὶ λίθους καὶ