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

For so far as it is connected with nature, and the fabrication of mortals, ho far it is accompanied with probability; but so far as it recurs to a divine intellect Tim. Plat. Vol, II. 3 N

4 M PLOCLUS OS THE TINLEU 5 OF PLATO. [book v.

itself, so far again, it participates of truth. And finally, he connects the mode nml the end of the discussion. For he says, "Thus, and to those that proceed conformally to these things, it it rn/uisitc to discuss the particulars that remain llut the word thus, pertains to the mode; and the words , conformably to these things, belong to the end. The end however, is to speak about the parts of the body, and to discuss minutely, what pertains to the mortal boul.

UNIS.

ADDITIONAL NOTES,

Vol. I, p. I. O.i Ifin account n( hart prefixed the treat lie of 1 inurut to t'nic Ccnmnenior irr.

*1 Ins l realise ill 1 mi i ns, u lui ii has In i n traiisinittril to us ihnnigh Pin* III', is mil linu< srr | r.liinl to the prin'i l nli!inn nl tin si; ( •■inment irirs. lint the reader may find it in C. ill s' (Ipiisrula Mvilmlogica.

I* 4. I he tu n co-orjnmti .of of thin^i

Tl csr two ro-ordinatiiiiis are the following: hound the inlinitr ; the odd, the even; the our, multitude; the right hand, tl r It It I and, the in.isriilnir, the femi¬ nine; the rjm* 'Cent, that whirli is in motion; the straight, the mrsed, light, darkness ; good, evil; the Sipiare, the i I "iig.

P. 14 II ho celebrate number^ Ac. on I the trtre, tat.

For a dcveliipeiiirnt of t! c inaimi r in which the Py¬ thagoreans phibi-uphizi-d at out nuinhrr, and also con¬ cerning the tetractvs. s rr niv Inc .relic Aiithiuctic.

1’. If Our preerf'h-r .Sir^ inu’.

1 Ins vrrv cxlraordin irv in i i «as ih«- iir^l that thor.Highly prnetia'i 1 run, and tlrvelopid the latent doc¬ trines ol philosophers and tin oh guts of the highest antiquity. lie did not writi intirh himself, but ernnmitted the protiiulgatioii ot Ins dogmas to I’roclus.

1 Ins vrrv cxlraordin irv in i i «as ih«- iir^l that thor.Highly prnetia'i 1 run, and tlrvelopid the latent doc¬ trines ol philosophers and tin oh guts of the highest antiquity. lie did not writi intirh himself, but ernnmitted the protiiulgatioii ot Ins dogmas to I’roclus.

P 3d Airmr. I'he following amitnl account of the Sirens, is given by Proel i« in his MS. Sehoiia on the (. ratylus. •• 1 ne divine Plato knew that there arc three kinds ol ‘'•rens ; the e< l< Pi.i/, w hich i« under the government of Jupiter; that which is pi ncnurgic, and is iiii ler the government of Neptune; and that which is cathartic, and is under the government of Pluto It is common to all these, to iurline all things through • n harmonic motion to thru ruling Gods, lienee, when the soul is in the he iveii', they arc desirous of uniting it to the divine I Ii- which flourishes there. Hot it is proper that souls living in grncr.it on, should sail hryof.d them, like the Homeric l lyssc% that they may lint he lilurrd hy generation, of which the «ca is an image. And when souls are in Hades, Hie Sirens are desirous ot uniting them through intellectual con¬ ceptions to Pinto, bo that Plato knew-that in the king¬ dom of Hades, there are Grids, danions,and soul«,who danec as it were round Pluto, allured by the Sirens that dwell there ”

P. 3i. Dialectic. The dialectic nf Plato, to which Proclus here alludes, is not the tame with that dialec¬ tic which is the Mjh|ert ol opinion, and is accurately investigated in the Topics of Aristotle. For the former it irrcprclicusible and most expeditious , since it is con¬ nate with tilings themselves, and employs • multitude of i owrrs in ordi r to the atla nment ol truth. It like¬ s' ise imitate intellect, from which it rrceives its prm- < iplcs, ami ascends through well-ordcre I grad itions to being it-clf. It aUo'crininates the wandering of ll e soul about *ensihlrs; and explores every thing by methods which cannot l e confuted, till it arrives at tire intliable principle of tilings. The business like¬ wise ot this first of sciences, is to enrj I >y definitions, divisions, nnaly/ations, anil demonstrations, as pri¬ mary sricnos in the investigation ol causes ; imitating the progression of beings horn trie first principle of things, and their continual conversion to ir, as the ultinraie object of desire. l or an ample aerount of this master science, see the notes to my translation of the I’arnirmd.-y < r Plato, and also my translation ot Select wi rks of Plotinus.

l or an ample aerount of this master science, see the notes to my translation of the I’arnirmd.-y < r Plato, and also my translation ot Select wi rks of Plotinus.

P.43 Pbyucnl \irtnes. The phv s cal virtues are those which are ci rnnion to men and Lrntrv, being mingled with the temperaments, arid f rtlie most part contrary to each other ; or ratnrr, they prrtair to the animal. < »r it m iv lie said that they arc ilhinnnationa from reason, whtii not impeded hy a certain bad tem¬ perament - or th it tliev arc the result of energies in a former life. < >t these, Plato speaks in the Polihcus anil the I-aws. For an aerount ot the other virtues, viz. ol the ethical, the political, the c it I artir, theoretic, and paradigm itir, sec the Notes to my translation of the I’lm do ol Plato, and aim the Additional Notes annried to my transl itiun ol Select Works of Plotinus.

P. nil. Si i pi re oj turnhj-tvur rrcoiura.

The serptre ot Jupiter, ns we arr informed hy Proclus on the Cralyliis, was, according to Orplicn*, twentyfour measures in length; hv wh.ih savs lie, the thcob gi't *igmfie», the < st.ihlishtncnt of those two divine ord* rs by Jup ti r, the cclesti il, and supr ri elrvtial, and his reigning ovi r two series ot God', each of which is characterized hy the number t«i Ivc.

P. 01. tor the rclatu n whittling among tew, that
Phaeton, the ofhpmmc of the Sun, Ac.

The lollowing evplanatirin of the faldc of rhaeton, is given by Olynipiodorus in his Scholia On the Mete¬ ors of Ari'totlc. “ Phaeton signifies m comet, hy which considerable parts of the earth are at times destroyed. Hut he is 'aid to have been the oltspring of the bun, because a comet is a sublunary body, consisting of a collection of dry vapours raised, and set on fire by the Sun. He is likewise said to have dr sued the govern*

p. 408

ADDITIONAL NOTES,

in. it of the chariot of the Sun, tfiuu a comet .In net to imitate the circular inotiou of the Sun. lie did not keep the track observed by hit parent, because acmnct duct Hut mute- III a dirtillull parallel to tint 111" the *'un. lie was blasted by tl,under through the anger of Jupiter, because tin* ei.inel war rvlingiuslii I by uiuisl vapours On lint uciouit, lie it said tu hate fallen into the river 1 u laim*, be. ausc tin c iint I w is extinguished through inuislure. lb vs a* 1 aim nti d tiy tbc 1 it bade?, because tl t c ape nr print edmg li un l ie clist,dm lull ul the tuliiet timed d unwaids, I r.ng of •i.i a | .all. II i tu re. Hint in I .is n.| eel curri'|i tiding tu teas. lilt lleindi s wcie chaligi tl lulu p»plar tuts, be. a isc a luitc di'tds limn the* pi ir tu e >iiui!.ir In audit r; ambtr In* a f l ie ii spYiidetil, anil gold Is dedicate J 111 the s iiii 1 lie table I lit It bn r, uli'i lire Iv •igitihe s tii.il the | nice ul tie puplartiee is piodtiitil fiuiu iiiui-Iiirr, Miiular to tl.at which was produced by the dissi Imlull ut lbe < unit I *