with things themselves, and all the Platonic dogmas. For that Plato in of opi¬ nion, that the irrational life is preserved, after the corruption of the material body, he renders evident by delivering to us the soul punished in Hades, through anger and desire, though it does not require any punishment, .so far as it is liberated I rum all passion. For it was pure reason, and prior to body, in its elections of lives, chose through voracity such as are tyrannical, and through the desire of glory, sophistical and popular lives. And these things happen to the soul in its tlr-1 descent from the heavens, and to the soul that has been recently perfected. Hut that lit* preserves the vehicle of the soul perpetual, is evident from his repre¬ senting souls using their vehicles in Hailes. For ascending into their vehicles, as Socrates says in tin* Plnedo, they pass over the river. ISow also, he generates the vehicle from the Demiurgus. For it is he who causes the soul to ascend into its vehicle, according to the similitude of divine souls. For how could it be possible tor the soul to be mundane, except by having a vehicle in the universe? l or ev ery thing mundane has a seat and order in the world, and gives comple¬ tion to a part of it. \\ licther therefore, will a partial soul be better prior to the suspension of a vehicle from it, or worse? For if lietter, it will be more divine than total souls, to which the Demiurgus gave vehicles, lint if worse, how is if, that the I)i iniurgus iunnediati ly alter it was gi in rated, caused it to ascend into a vehicle ? l or things that are perpetual, do not begin lioin a preternatural, lint bom a natural condition of being. It is evident therefore, that these things are eonlormable to the opinion of Plato.
■Since however, lichen* clearly calls th.it which is woven together by the mun¬ dane (iods, mortal, is therefore that vvhicb is asserted bv some true, that lie says the life w liich is in the vi hide is woven by the junior (iods ; that In* denominates it mortal, because it is cnrpureal-furmt d, and is conversant with tin* mortal na¬ ture; and that in a certain place, he calls that which is woven bv tliejunior Gods immortal, in order that we may apprehend the mortal nature which is here men¬ tioned to be a thing ot this hind ? Ibit bow does lie deliver to us universally, that the Demiurgus is tin* cause of immortal natures, and that the generation of mortals is eominitti d to the junior (bills ? Ib nee, after the delivery of fabrication, the junior (iods are alone the Demiurgi of mortal nauires. Is therefore that true, which is asserted by some, that the vehicle and the irrational soul both re¬ main and are dissolved, through being analysed into tin* spheres from which tlicv were derived; and that on this account they are mortal, and yet not mortal ? This however, is of itself absurd, for when the union is dissolved, bow can wc any longer say that the same thing remains ? For the irrational soul is not a coacer- vatiun of animals, but one multiform life. In addition also to these things, it must
TIM/EL’S Ol’ PLATO.
bo admitted, that at one time something is taken away from, and at another, somethin;; is added tn the celestial bodies, which is entirely foreign from their nature. Is the irrational soul therefore corruptible, and shall we admit that this life is dissipated together with the body ? But if this be the case, how will there be punishments, how will there be purifications, how will there be elections of lues, some according to the phantasy, others according to anger, ami others according to desire, and also the ingressinns ' into irrational animals? For die contact with the analogous is through analogy,*just as the contact with intellect, is through intellect.
V\ ill it not tin n fore be better to say with our preceptor, that the spirit, [or pneu¬ matic part of the soul,] comprehends the summits of the irrational life, and that these exist perpetually, togethi r with the vehicle, as being produced by the Demi- urgus? And that these being extended and distributed into parts, make tins life which is woven by the junior (bids, and which is mortal, because it is necessary that the soul should lay aside this distribution, when having obtained purification it is restored to its pristine state of felicity ? This life however, is of longer dura¬ tion than the life of the presi nt body ; and lienee the soul when in Ilades, and choosing dif'eii nt li\es, lias a life of this kind, lor through its pro pi nsity, or incli¬ nation [to luuLj, it n reives this mortal life from the junior (bids. If therefore, this be admitted, tin: IViniurgus constitutes the summit of the irrational life, hut does not constitute the life itself. For in producing du nums, he evidently pro¬ duces likewise the irrational life which i> la them, but not this life, which the junior (bids wea\e in us. For this is alone adapted to souls that fall into generation. The mundane ( bids th reforc, ha\ ing themselves intellectual souls, illuminate their vehicles with ralinnal-fnruied lives. But ihemons, who are peculiarly defined ac¬ cording to reason, employ irrational powers, our \\hich they have dominion. And our souls have much more a life in the vehicle which is irrational, as with reference to them. But in this, they exceed <1 vinous, that they receive another irrational lif-, which is a departure from the life in the spirit, and which is woven by the junior (bids. Ileure, all that is immortal, which it possesses according to an imitation of w holes ; but the addition pertains to a second, or mortal-formed life. If tin n fore, in the i therealj vehicle, there is one impassive life, this will gene¬ rate in the pneumatic u hide, one passive sense ; and this latter will generate in the testaceous [or this outward] body, many and passive senses. The orectic power likewise, in the ethereal vehicle will produce many orectic powers in the pneuma-
1 t'orhuni litre, it it nocr*sary to read ttafvvru.
* Instead of rwi it aXoytai yap ui tins place, it is necessary to read h avaXoytai yap.
[book v»
tic vehicle, which will possess something separate from the testaceous body, and capable of l>eing disciplined. And these will produce in this outward body, ulti¬ mate and material orectie powers. Since however, parts energize in conjunction with wholes, the Clods hy a much greater priority, the causes of these secondarily operative powers and the powers of souls, produce together with them things analogous to themselves. Ilence also they inspire and corroborate that which tliev produce. And that Plato indeed, gives here to the soul a certain vehicle, is evident. 1 or shortly afb r, lie repri sents the soul ascending as into a vehicle, and thus makes it to be mundane, and a t ili/en ot the woild.
It is likewise necessary to understand, that he gives a subsistence to the irra¬ tional soul, prior to this outward body. 1 or it this be not admitted, one of two things must follow, either that prodiieing the irratiun d soul in that vehicle, he does not establish it in another vehicle, or that he constitutes it in this outward hodv alone.' But if the latter lie the case, this soul may very properly he called mor¬ tal; ami we shall no longer lie aide to preserve what Js said of it elsewhere, I mean, the elections of lives, and the punishments in Hailes, in which there is entirely the irrational nature. And it we say that this soul is in the [Ythen-ai] vehi¬ cle, it will be necessarily immortal, and the assertion wInch immortalizes it will predominate, and it will be no longer true, that the* one 1 h-mitiigus is the cause of immortals, hut the inanv Ih iuiuigi, of mortal natures. By showing then-lore, as we have said, th.it the junior (bids product- the irrational soul prior t > this out¬ ward liodv, and that another pueiimatn vehicle, Mich as Aristotle also admitted, evists together, and is i u introduced w ith our immortal vehicle, but is at the same tune mortal, all that proilm i s our doubts on this subject w ill be dissolved. These tilings liovvi-ver, will, as we proceed, become more apparent. But whence tin- junior < bids commeiii i- then lain u alimi, w hat media tin \ possess, and vv hat ends thev employ, the philosopher through these things sulheieiitly teaches.
“ Ida Inn ate and generate animals, cause them In increase by giving them nutriment, and receive them back again, when dissolved by cor¬ ruption.”
The generation of the irrational life, of which the vehicle of the soul compre¬ hends the summits, is therefore the beginning of the fabrication. But since the complete production and generation of animals, proceeds together with this, lienee the Dciniurgu* orders the junior Hods to elaborate and generate animals, wt-av-
* for i here, it is tiereisary to read fj e»y
ing together the mortal with the immortal nature. And this he says indefinitely, and not all animals ; because Plato further on, calls plants also animals, ami shows that it is requisite thus to denominate them. Through the immortal soul therefore, the junior Gods produce animals, viz. such as not only possess the last form of life, the cpi thyme tic, and are on this account called animals, hut likewise every mortal animal. If however, the Demiurgus calls on the junior Gods not only to fabricate man, weaving together the mortal with the immortal nature, hut likewise animals, they evidently fabricate all other animals. HenceTimieus very properly, towards the end ol this dialogue, represents other animals as gene¬ rated, through the transformation of the human soul into them, and this conformably to the demiurgic mandate, the junior Gods alone producing plants, without the assistance of this soul. Tor in these, there is not a ra¬ tional soul. And localise this soul is the principle of motion, it is necessary that it should be the principle of the first motion to animals. But the first motion to these, is that which is according to place, as Aristotle also has shown. So that ev< ry animal whii h is moved according to pi ice, has a sell-motive soul pre¬ sent w it h it. < )n this account, a plant rooted in the earth, has not this soul ; so that the junior Gods very properly generate and elaborate other animals except plants, by weaving together the mortal with the immortal nature. But they afford other animals nutriment, by contriving the generation of plants, through which men and other animals are nourished. For nothing hinders certain animals from being nourished by such things as afford nutriment to men, and also by other things, to which tle*ir nature is allied, in the same maimer as the nature ot the animals, by which we are nourished, is allied to n*. Through this elaboration therefore, the junior Gods give completion to the production of the one Demiur¬ ges, For he imparts the beginning [or summit! only, but they elaborate, and through generation constitute the whole animal. And through elaboration indeed, they imitate the demiurgic power, hut through generation, the paternal' power, i hrough elaboration al-o, they produce the mortal-formed parts of rational animals; hut through generation, irrational animals, so far as they are irrational. I*or tney constitute the whole of such like animals. But if they receive the immortal nature which the Demiurgus produces, and which lie orders them to weave with the mortal nature, and thus to fabricate animals, it is evident that according to the demiurgic will, every soul has an immortal prior to the mortal life; and that the junior Gods elaborate the latter, but the one Demiurgus the former. And if indeed, the Demiurgus constituted both irrational and rational
Tim. Plat.
I’KOCLL'S ON TMi:
[book V.