TIMAEU [10]
divided in six places and made seven unequal circles
having their intervals in ratios of two-and three, three of each,
and bade the orbits proceed in a direction opposite to one another;
and three [Sun, Mercury, Venus] he made to move with equal
swiftness, and the remaining four [Moon, Saturn, Mars, Jupiter] to
move with unequal swiftness to the three and to one another, but in
due proportion.
Now when the Creator had framed the soul according to his will, he
formed within her the corporeal universe, and brought the two
together, and united them centre to centre. The soul, interfused
everywhere from the centre to the circumference of heaven, of which
also she is the external envelopment, herself turning in herself,
began a divine beginning of never ceasing and rational life enduring
throughout all time. The body of heaven is visible, but the soul is
invisible, and partakes of reason and harmony, and being made by the
best of intellectual and everlasting natures, is the best of things
created. And because she is composed of the same and of the other
and of the essence, these three, and is divided and united in due
proportion, and in her revolutions returns upon herself, the soul,
when touching anything which has essence, whether dispersed in parts
or undivided, is stirred through all her powers, to declare the
sameness or difference of that thing and some other; and to what
individuals are related, and by what affected, and in what way and how
and when, both in the world of generation and in the world of
immutable being. And when reason, which works with equal truth,
whether she be in the circle of the diverse or of the same-in
voiceless silence holding her onward course in the sphere of the
self-moved-when reason, I say, is hovering around the sensible world
and when the circle of the diverse also moving truly imparts the
intimations of sense to the whole soul, then arise opinions and
beliefs sure and certain. But when reason is concerned with the
rational, and the circle of the same moving smoothly declares it, then
intelligence and knowledge are necessarily perfected. And if any one
affirms that in which these two are found to be other than the soul,
he will say the very opposite of the truth.
When the father creator saw the creature which he had made moving
and living, the created image of the eternal gods, he rejoiced, and in
his joy determined to make the copy still more like the original;
and as this was eternal, he sought to make the universe eternal, so
far as might be. Now the nature of the ideal being was everlasting,
but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was
impossible. Wherefore he resolved to have a moving image of
eternity, and when he set in order the heaven, he made this image
eternal but moving according to number, while eternity itself rests in
unity; and this image we call time. For there were no days and
nights and months and years before the heaven was created, but when he
constructed the heaven he created them also. They are all parts of
time, and the past and future are created species of time, which we
unconsciously but wrongly transfer to the eternal essence; for we
say that he "was," he "is," he "will be," but the truth is that "is"
alone is properly attributed to him, and that "was" and "will be" only
to be spoken of becoming in time, for they are motions, but that which
is immovably the same cannot become older or younger by time, nor ever
did or has become, or hereafter will be, older or younger, nor is
subject at all to any of those states which affect moving and sensible
things and of which generation is the cause. These are the forms of
time, which imitates eternity and revolves according to a law of
number. Moreover, when we say that what has become is become and
what becomes is becoming, and that what will become is about to become
and that the non-existent is non-existent-all these are inaccurate
modes of expression. But perhaps this whole subject
having their intervals in ratios of two-and three, three of each,
and bade the orbits proceed in a direction opposite to one another;
and three [Sun, Mercury, Venus] he made to move with equal
swiftness, and the remaining four [Moon, Saturn, Mars, Jupiter] to
move with unequal swiftness to the three and to one another, but in
due proportion.
Now when the Creator had framed the soul according to his will, he
formed within her the corporeal universe, and brought the two
together, and united them centre to centre. The soul, interfused
everywhere from the centre to the circumference of heaven, of which
also she is the external envelopment, herself turning in herself,
began a divine beginning of never ceasing and rational life enduring
throughout all time. The body of heaven is visible, but the soul is
invisible, and partakes of reason and harmony, and being made by the
best of intellectual and everlasting natures, is the best of things
created. And because she is composed of the same and of the other
and of the essence, these three, and is divided and united in due
proportion, and in her revolutions returns upon herself, the soul,
when touching anything which has essence, whether dispersed in parts
or undivided, is stirred through all her powers, to declare the
sameness or difference of that thing and some other; and to what
individuals are related, and by what affected, and in what way and how
and when, both in the world of generation and in the world of
immutable being. And when reason, which works with equal truth,
whether she be in the circle of the diverse or of the same-in
voiceless silence holding her onward course in the sphere of the
self-moved-when reason, I say, is hovering around the sensible world
and when the circle of the diverse also moving truly imparts the
intimations of sense to the whole soul, then arise opinions and
beliefs sure and certain. But when reason is concerned with the
rational, and the circle of the same moving smoothly declares it, then
intelligence and knowledge are necessarily perfected. And if any one
affirms that in which these two are found to be other than the soul,
he will say the very opposite of the truth.
When the father creator saw the creature which he had made moving
and living, the created image of the eternal gods, he rejoiced, and in
his joy determined to make the copy still more like the original;
and as this was eternal, he sought to make the universe eternal, so
far as might be. Now the nature of the ideal being was everlasting,
but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was
impossible. Wherefore he resolved to have a moving image of
eternity, and when he set in order the heaven, he made this image
eternal but moving according to number, while eternity itself rests in
unity; and this image we call time. For there were no days and
nights and months and years before the heaven was created, but when he
constructed the heaven he created them also. They are all parts of
time, and the past and future are created species of time, which we
unconsciously but wrongly transfer to the eternal essence; for we
say that he "was," he "is," he "will be," but the truth is that "is"
alone is properly attributed to him, and that "was" and "will be" only
to be spoken of becoming in time, for they are motions, but that which
is immovably the same cannot become older or younger by time, nor ever
did or has become, or hereafter will be, older or younger, nor is
subject at all to any of those states which affect moving and sensible
things and of which generation is the cause. These are the forms of
time, which imitates eternity and revolves according to a law of
number. Moreover, when we say that what has become is become and
what becomes is becoming, and that what will become is about to become
and that the non-existent is non-existent-all these are inaccurate
modes of expression. But perhaps this whole subject