The Commentaries on the Timaeus of Plato — trans. Thomas Taylor

* Iliad. 19 . v. KM.

Iliad 7. »’ -H”. Blit ill Proclus for !!/>«, read 5 (***•

BOOK V.]

TIM/EUS OF PLATO.

p. 326

and fathers of Saturn and Rhea; in consequence of preserving as among bre¬ thren the paternal peculiarity. In the first place, therefore, the doubt may after this manner he solved.

In the next place, it may be said, that of the divine Titannic hebdomads'. Ocean, indeed, both abides and proceeds, uniting himself to his father, and not departing from his kingdom. But all the rest rejoicing in progression, are said to have given completion to the will of Earth, but to have assaulted their father, dividing themselves from his kingdom, and proceeding into another order. Or rather, of all the celestial genera, some alone abide in their principles, as the two first triads. “For, as soon as Heaven understood that they had an implacable heart, and a lawless nature, he hurled them into Tartarus, the profundity of the Earth"[says Orpheus], lie concealed them therefore in the unapparent, through transcendency of power. But others both abide in, and proceed from their prin¬ ciples. as Ocean and Tethys. For w hen the other Titans proceeded to assault their father Heaven, Ocean prohibited them from obeying the mandates of their mother, being dubious of their rectitude.

“But Ocean [says Orpheus] remained within his place of abode, considering to what he should direct his attention, and whether lie should deprive his father of strength, and unjustly mutilate him in conjunction w ith Saturn, and the other brethren, who ware obedient to their dear mother; or leaving these, stay quietly at home. After much fluctuation of thought however, he remained peaceably at home, being angry with his mother, but still more so with his brethren.”

He therefore abides, and at the same time proceeds together with Tethys ; for she is conjoined with him according to the first progeny. But the otherTitans are induced to separation and progression. Ami the leader of these is the mighty Saturn, as the theologist says; though he evinces that Saturn is superior to Ocean bv sa\ ing, that Saturn himself received tin* celestial < llympus, and that there being throned he reigns over the Titans; but that Ocean obtained all the middle allot¬ ment. For he says, that he dwells in the dame streams which are posterior to Olympus,ami that lie environs the Heaven which is there, and not the highest Hea¬ ven, hut as the fable says, that whicli fell from Olympus, and was there arranged.*

For he says, that he dwells in the dame streams which are posterior to Olympus,ami that lie environs the Heaven which is there, and not the highest Hea¬ ven, hut as the fable says, that whicli fell from Olympus, and was there arranged.*

• A» tltis i« a reinaikalily runout Orpine fragment, uml it noi to tie found m Geinert rolk-etion of the Orpine remain*, I *1)1111 gi*e llie origin >1 for llie nuke of llie learned reader: *u« rot yt on o *p> yet vtrrprfpoi eon roo tyytarov, bfb tj\tyyry e OroXoyot waXty XrywC roe fttv tfwycv avroy laraXa^ku-iii' rcy evpaytey oXt joror, iy»o OjinnffOoTo, /lanXrwu rwinraiwC roe bt vttaruy rrjy XijJir araiar riji' ftrtrr$y. yatfiy yap avror ry r on (It art mot t pttdpott rent fjfra roy oXifuror, irai r or on TffJif Tcir c ivpayey, aXX ev top atpararcy, wi bt frjety c ftvOot, roy tfirtaorra row oXy/troy, tai Od rtraypityoy.

p. 320

PROCLUS ON THE

[book V.

Ocean and Tethy# therefore, *o far an tlioy abide, and are united to Heaven, produce in conjunction with him the kingdom of Saturn mid Kliea ; mid ho far an they urc fNtuhli.<dicd in the first power of their mother, ho far they produce Pliorcvs in conjunction with her.' For she produces him together with iSereus and Thaunias,‘ from Iteitig mingled through love with the sea. l’or 1'horcyn is not celes¬ tial but Ocean, as is evident from the Theogony.’ And so far as Tethvs is fill! of .Earth, so far In-ing as it vvi re a certain Earth, she may be said to produce this Phorcys in conjunction vv itli Ocean; so far as Ocean also comprehends the intel¬ ligible in himself. Hence Tethv.s, so far as shu is Earth according to participa¬ tion, ami Ocean so lar as lie is eausall) the sea, give subsistence in conjunction with Saturn and Kliea to this Ood. If however, any arguments should demon¬ strate that in the intellectual order Saturn isuhove Ocean, or Kliea above Tethys, it must he said that this arrangi incut is indeed there; for m that order the causes of intellection are superior to those- of motion; but that Ik re on the contrary, all tilings arc in mutation and a ilouing condition ; so tb it here Ocean is ver) pro¬ perly prior to Saturn, since it is tin fountain of motion, and l’» thvs is prior to Kliea. Hence, after another manlier the doubt mav be thus .solved.

Hence, after another manlier the doubt mav be thus .solved.

That we may speak how* V« r, about < at li ot ihi -e < bids, I’ln otlorus ri lers solds that subsist in habitude to these divinities, mid arranges them as presiding over the three divisions of the world. And Plinrc).s indeed, lie arranges in the star¬ less sphere, as moling the latum of the universe. He- ought however to persuade us that Plato was acquainted with a ccitain .starless sphere, and afterwards, that he thus arranged Phorcvs in this sphere, lbil lie places Saturn over the motions of the stars, 1 m cause time 4 is from these, and the generations and corruptions of things. And he places Khra over the material part of the world, because by ma¬ teriality, she lias a redundancy with respect to the divinities prior to herself. Jlut the divine lambhchiis arranges them m the three spheres lu-twi en the heavens and the earth. For some of the sublunary deitii s give a two-fold division to the sul>- 1 unary region, hut these divide it in a three-fold manner. And Phorcys indeed, according to him, presides over the whole* of a humid essence, containing all of it impartihly. But Kliea is a divinity connective of flowing and aerial-formed spirits. And Saturn governs the highest and most attenuated sphere of ether, having a m>» «*r« tijKov rrjt Ot- yeviat For uXXa o therefore, I read a\Xo v Hetayoi ; Ocean according to the Theogonv of Hesiod, being the progeny of Heaven and Earth.

* For fitr avrov, it is necessary to read /itr’aimjt.

* For ©ac/mt-ra, it is requisite to read Oav/tai'roi; and for toiTcc, rrceji.

* The original here is evidently erroneous ; for it is, cv yap tony o ov/ianfijt aXAn u 4*opte«,

* Kporot ii erroneously printed for ^o»oi.

1 For r fjt vynat v\rjt cvoim, I read rtj« vypa i c\t)t cioiai.

BOOK V.]

T1M>EUS OF PLATO.

p. 327