Timaeus — Plato

TJic affections of tJic iotignc. 487 body, and the names of the agents which produce them. And Thnaeus. now I will endeavour to speak of the affections of particular Timaeus. parts, and the causes and agents of them, as far as I am able. ii. Affections In the first place let us set forth what was omitted when we ofpanicuiar organs : — were speakmg of juices, concerning the affections peculiar to (o of the the tongue.

These too, like most of the other affections, ^°"b"*^ — . produced by appear to be caused by certain contractions and dilations, but contraction they have besides more of roughness and smoothness than is ^"^. '^''''*""" "' ^ , of the veins found in other affections ; for whenever earthy particles enter They are as into the small veins which are the testing instruments of the '"""^^• " a.

Astnntongue, reaching to the heart, and fall upon the moist, delicate gency. portions of flesh — when, as they are dissolved, they contract and dry up the little veins, they are astringent if they are i>. Harshness, rougher, but if not so rough, then only harsh. Those of c.

Bitterness, them which are of an abstergent nature, and purge the whole surface of the tongue, if they do it in excess, and so encroach as to consume some part of the flesh itself, like potash and soda, are all termed bitter. But the particles d. SaUness. which are deficient in the alkaline quality, and which cleanse only moderately, are called salt, and having no bitterness or roughness, are regarded as rather agreeable than otherwise.

Bodies which share in and are made smooth by the heat of e. Pungency, the mouth, and which are inflafned, and again in turn inflame that which heats them, and which are so light that they are carried upwards to the sensations of the head, and cut all 66 that comes in their way, by reason of these qualities in them, are all termed pungent.

But when these same particles, / Acidity. refined by putrefaction, enter into the naiTow veins, and are duly proportioned to the particles of earth and air which are there, they set them whirling about one another, and while they are in a whirl cause them to dash against and enter into one another, and so form hollows surrounding the particles that enter — which watery vessels of air (for a film of moisture, sometimes earthy, sometimes pure, is spread around the air) are hollow spheres of water ; and those of them which are pure, are transparent, and are called bubbles, while those composed of the earthy liquid, which is in a state of general agitation and effervescence, are said to boil or ferment; — of all these affections the cause is termed acid. And there is e- Sweetness. the opposite affection arising from an opposite cause, when

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Smells and sounds.

Tintaeus. TiMAEUS.

(2) Of the nostrils. Smells can only be distinguished as pleasant or the reverse. The substances which emit them, vapour and mist, are halfformed, being intermediate between water and air.

(3) Of the ear. Hounds are blows which pass through the ears to the soul. They are acute and grave, smooth and harsh, &c.

the mass of entering particles, immersed in the moisture of the mouth, is congenial to the tongue, and smooths and oils over the roughness, and relaxes the parts which are unnaturally contracted, and contracts the parts which are relaxed, and disposes them all according to their nature; — that sort of remedy of violent affections is pleasant and agreeable to every man, and has the name sweet. But enough of this.

The faculty of smell does not admit of differences of kind ; for all smells are of a half-formed nature, and no element is so proportioned as to have any smell.

The veins about the nose are too narrow to admit earth and water, and too wide to detain fire and air ; and for this reason no one ever perceives the smell of any of them ; but smells always proceed from bodies that are damp, or putrefying, or liquefying, or evaporating, and are perceptible- only in the intermediate state, when water is changing into air and air into water ; and all of them are either vapour or mist.

That which is passing out of air into water is mist, and that which is passing from water into air is vapour ; and hence all smells are thinner than water and thicker than air. The proof of this is, that when there is any obstruction to the respiration, and a man draws in his breath by force, then no smell filters through, but the air without the smell alone penetrates.

Wherefore the varieties of smell have no name, and they 67 have not many, or definite and simple kinds ; but they are distinguished only as painful and pleasant, the one sort irritating and disturbing the whole cavity which is situated between the head and the navel, the other having a soothing influence, and restoring this same region to an agreeable and natural condition.

In considering the third kind of sense, hearing, we must speak of the causes in which it originates. We may in general assume sound to be a blow which passes through the ears, and is transmitted by means of the air, the brain, and the blood, to the soul, and that hearing is the vibration of this blow, which begins in the head and ends in the region of the liver.

The sound which moves swiftly is acute, and the sound which moves slowly is grave, and that which is regular is equable and smooth, and the reverse is harsh. A