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Featured Book: The Comprehensive New Testament More Books: Online References: Apostolic and Early Church Fathers
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CONCERNING
NOAH'S WORK AS A PLANTER I.
(1) In the former part of this treatise we have spoken of the art of husbandry
as to its genus, dwelling on it at as great a length as the time admitted of;
but in this book we will discuss the question of his cultivation of his vineyard
with regard to the species as far as it is in our power. For Moses represents
the just Noah not only as a husbandman, but also especially as occupied with the
cultivation of vines, saying, "Noah began to be a husbandman of the earth;
and he planted a Vineyard."{1}{Genesis 9:20.} (2) And it is fitting that a
man who was about to discuss the whole question of separate plants and manners
of cultivation, should first of all acquire an accurate comprehension of the
most perfect plants in the universe, and of the great planter and superintendent
of them. He then who is the greatest of all planters and the most perfect in
art, is the Ruler of the universe; and his plant is not one which comprises
within itself only individual plants, but rather infinite numbers of them
springing up like suckers from one root, namely, this world. (3) For after the
Creator of the world, reducing that substance, which was in its own nature
destitute of order and regularity, into a state of order, and bringing it from a
condition of confusion into a distinct system, began to fashion and shape it, he
placed the earth and the water in the middle, and the plants of air and fire he
drew up from their previously central position to a lofty eminence; and the
aether he arranged all round, placing it as a boundary to and preservation of
the things within, from which also it seems that the Heaven{2}{ouranos,
"heaven;" as if derived from horos or houros, "a boundary."}
derives its name, causing the earth to be borne upon the water in such a way
that it continues dry, which, however, there was reason to fear might be
dissolved by water; and this great worker of marvels, moreover, united the air,
which was exceedingly cold by its own nature, to fire which is very hot; a most
surprising miracle. (4) For how can it be looked upon as anything but a prodigy,
for that which would dissolve another thing, to be held together by that which
it would dissolve: that is to say, for water to be held together by earth; and
again, for that which is the hottest of all things to be placed upon that which
is the coldest without its nature being destroyed, that is to say, for fire to
be placed upon air? And these are the elements of this most perfect plant; but
the very great and all productive plant is this world, of which the aforesaid
branches are the main shoots. II.
(5) We must now therefore consider where God placed its foundations, and in
fact, what foundation it has on which it is supported, as a statue is on a
pedestal; certainly we cannot imagine that any body is left outside and
wandering about, since God has worked up and arranged every imaginable material
throughout the whole universe. (6) For it was fitting that the most perfect and
greatest of all works should be made by the greatest of all makers; and it would
not have been the most perfect of works if it had not been filled up by perfect
parts, so that this world consists of all earth, and all water, and all air, and
all fire, not a single particle, no not the smallest imaginable atom, being
omitted. (7) It follows therefore of necessity, that what is outside must either
be a vacuum or nothing at all. If now it is a vacuum, than how can that which is
full and solid, and the heaviest of all things, avoid being pressed down by its
own weight, since there is no solid thing to hold it up? from which
consideration it would appear to be something like a vision, since the mind is
always seeking for some corporeal foundation, such as everything which is moved,
must of necessity have: and especially the world, inasmuch as it is the greatest
of all bodies, and embraces a multitude of other bodies as it sown appropriate
parts. (8) If therefore any one wishes to escape from the difficulties of this
question which present themselves in the different doubts thus raised, let him
speak freely and say that there is nothing in any material of such power as to
be able to support this weight of the world. But it is the eternal law of the
everlasting God which is the most supporting and firm foundation of the
universe. (9) This it is which, being extended from the centre of the borders,
and again from the extremities to the centre, runs through the whole unsubdued
course of nature, collecting all the parts and binding them firmly together; for
the father who created them has made it the indissoluble bond of the universe.
(10) Very naturally and appropriately therefore, all earth will not be dissolved
by all water, which the bosom of the earth contains, nor will fire be
extinguished by air, nor again will air be burnt up by fire, since the divine
law establishes itself as a boundary to all these elements, like a vowel among
consonants, so that the universe may, as it were, be harmonious in concert with
the music expressed by letters; persuasion, by its own authority, putting an end
to the threatening conflicts of contrary natures. III.
(11) Thus then the plant which bears all things was rooted, and when it was
rooted was made strong. But of the particular plants, and those of smaller
growth, some were moveable, so as to have their places changed; and some were
made so as, without any such change, to stand steadily in the same place. (12)
Those then that are affected by motion, inducing change of place, which we call
animals, are attached to the most important portions of the universe; the
terrestrial animals to the earth, the animals which swim to the water, the
winged animals to the air and those which can live in the flame to the fire
(which last are said to be most evidently produced in Macedonia), and the stars
are attached to the heaven. For those who have studied philosophy pronounce the
stars also to be animals, being endowed with intellect and pervading the whole
universe; some being planets, and moving by their own intrinsic nature; and
others, that is the fixed stars, being borne along with the revolutions of the
universe; so that they likewise appear to change their places. (13) But those
which are regulated according to a nature devoid of all sensation, which are
peculiarly called plants, have no participation in that motion which involves a
change of place. IV.
(14) But the Creator made two different races on the earth and in the air. In
the air, he made the winged animals capable of being perceived by the external
senses, and other powers which can by no means be comprehended in any place by
the external senses; and this is the company of incorporeal souls arranged in
order, but not in the same classifications. For it is said that some are
assigned to mortal bodies, and are again subjected to a change of place
according to certain defined periodical revolutions; but that others which have
received a more divinely prepared habitation, look down upon the region of the
earth, and that in the highest place, near the other itself, the purest souls
are placed, which those who have studied philosophy among the Greeks call
heroes, but which Moses, by a felicitous appellation, entitles angels; souls
which go as ambassadors and messengers of good from the ruler of all things to
his subjects, and messengers also to the king respecting those things of which
his subjects have heard. To the earth again he assigned two classes, terrestrial
animals and plants, wishing that she should be at the same time their mother and
their nurse. (15) For, as in the case of woman and every animal of the female
sex, fountains of milk spring up in them when they are about to bring forth, in
order that they may supply the offspring that is born of them with necessary and
suitable food; so in a similar manner God has assigned to the earth, which is
the mother of all terrestrial animals, all the different species of plants, in
order that the animals produced by the earth may have such food as is akin to
them, and not alien from their natures. (16) And, indeed, God has caused plants
to grow with their heads downwards, having fixed their heads in the deepest
parts of the earth; and having drawn up the heads of the irrational animals from
the earth, he has set them up high on long necks, putting their fore feet under
their necks as a kind of foundation. (17) But man has received a pre-eminently
superior formation. For of all other animals God has bent the eyes downwards, so
that they look upon the ground; but on the other hand, he has raised the eyes of
man so that he may behold the heaven, being not a terrestrial but a celestial
plant as the old proverb Is.{3}{this is similar to what Ovid says, which may be
Translated - "and while all other creatures from their birth / With
downcast eyes gaze on their kindred earth, / He bids man walk erect, and scan
the heaven, / From whence he sprung, to which his hopes are given."} V.
(18) But the others who say that our mind is a portion of the ethereal nature,
have by this assertion attributed to man a kindred with the air; but the great
Moses has not named the species of the rational soul by a title resembling that
of any created being, but has pronounced it an image of the divine and invisible
being, making it a coin as it were of sterling metal, stamped and impressed with
the seal of God, the impression of which is the eternal word. (19) For, says
Moses, "God breathed into man's face the breath of Life,"{4}{Genesis
2:7.} so that it follows of necessity, that he that received the breath must be
fashioned after the model of him who sent it forth. On which account it is said
too, that "Man was made after the image of God,"{5}{Genesis 1:27.} and
not after the image of any created being. (20) It follows, therefore, since the
soul of man has been fashioned in accordance with the archetypal word of the
great cause of all things, that his body also, having been raised up to the
purest portion of the universe - the heaven, must extend its vision, in order
that, by a comparison with what is visible, it may attain to an accurate
comprehension of what is invisible. (21) Since, therefore, it was impossible for
any one to perceive the attraction of the mind to the living God, except for
those persons alone who were drawn towards him (for that which each person
suffers, he alone particularly knows), God has given us the eyes of the body (as
an evident and visible image of the invisible eye), which are able to look up to
the heaven; (22) for when the eyes, composed of perishable material, have raised
themselves to such a height, as to be able from the region of the earth to mount
up to heaven which is removed at so great a distance from the earth, and to
reach its utmost heights, how great a course in every direction must we suppose
to be within the power of the eyes of the soul? which, being endowed with wings
from their excessive desire to see the living God clearly, reach up not only to
the highest regions of the air, but even pass over the boundaries of the whole
world, and hasten towards the Uncreated. VI.
(23) On this account, those persons who are insatiable in their desire for
wisdom and knowledge are said in the sacred oracles to be "called
Up."{6}{Exodus 19:20.} (24) For it is legitimate that those persons should
be called up to the Deity who have been inspired by him. For it would be a
terrible thing if whirlwinds and hurricanes have power to tear trees up by their
roots, and to toss them in the air, and to carry off vessels of many tons'
burden, though loaded with cargoes, as if they were the lightest things
imaginable, out of the middle of the sea; and if even lakes and rivers are
raised on high, when their streams actually leave the bosom of the earth, having
been drawn up by the ardent and diversified eddies of the winds: and yet, if the
mind, which is intrinsically light, cannot be raised up by the nature of the
Divine Spirit, which is able to do everything and to subdue all things below,
and cannot be elevated to an exceeding height; and especially the mind of the
man who studies philosophy in a genuine manner. (25) For he does not incline
downwards to the things dear to the body and to the earth, from which he
separates himself, and studies to alienate himself as far as possible but he is
borne upwards, being insatiably devoted to sublime, holy, magnificent, and happy
natures. (26) Therefore, also, Moses will be summoned upwards, the steward and
guardian of the sacred mysteries of the living God. For we read in the book of
Leviticus, "He called Moses up to Him."{7}{Exodus 31:2 is the passage
alluded to, and not any verse in Leviticus.} Bezeleel also will be summoned up,
being thought worthy of the same honors. For him, also, God calls up for the
preparation of the sacred furniture and for the care of the sacred works. (27)
But he receives only the second honor of this summons, and the all-wise Moses
shall have the first place assigned to him. For the former fashions shadows
only, like painters do, in which it is not right to form any living thing. For
the very name Bezeleel is interpreted to mean, "working in shadows."
But Moses does not make shadows, but the task is assigned to him of forming the
archetypal natures of things themselves. And in other places, also, the great
Cause of all things is accustomed to reveal his secrets to some in a more
conspicuous and visible manner, as if in the pure light of the sun, and to
others more sparely, as though in the shade. VII.
(28) Having therefore gone through all the larger plants in the universe, let us
see in what manner the all-wise God made the trees which exist in the smaller
world, that is to say, in man. In the first place, then, taking our body as if
it were a field of deep soil, he created the external senses to be in it as so
many channels. (29) And after that, he arranged the place of each separate one
of them, as if it had been a fruit-bearing and most useful tree, assigning the
sense of hearing to the ear, that of sight to the eyes, that of smell to the
nostrils, and each of the other senses and faculties to their kindred and
appropriate organs. And the divine man bears his testimony to this account of
mine, speaking thus in his Psalms, "He that planted the ear, doth he not
hear? and he that made the eyes, shall he not See?"{8}{psalm 94:9.} (30)
Moreover, all the different powers which run down as far as the legs and hands,
and all the other parts of the body, whether internal or external, are all those
of an unimportant kind. (31) But those which are better and more perfect he has
rooted in the more central portion; that which is pre-eminently able to bring
forth fruit, the dominant portion of the man. These faculties are perception,
comprehension, felicity of conjecture, study, memory, habit, disposition, the
various species of art, the firmness of knowledge of different things, the
apprehension of the speculations of universal virtue in such a way as is never
forgotten. Now, no mortal is competent to plant any one of these things himself.
But of all of them together there is one architect, the uncreated God, who has
not only made them originally, but who also makes them for and implants them in
every individual man that is born. VIII.
(32) Now the account of the planting of IX.
(36) We must therefore have recourse to allegory, which is a favorite with men
capable of seeing through it; for the sacred oracles most evidently conduct us
towards and instigate us to the pursuit of it. For they say that in the Paradise
there were plants in no respect similar to those which exist among us; but they
speak of trees of life, trees of immortality, trees of knowledge, of
comprehension, of understanding; trees of the knowledge of good and evil. (37)
Now these cannot have been trees of the land, but must indisputably have been
plants of a rational soil, which was a road to travel along, leading to virtue,
and having for its end life and immortality; and another road leading to vice,
having for its end the loss of life and immortality, that is to say, death.
Therefore, we must suppose that the bounteous God plants in the soul, as it
were, a paradise of virtues and of the actions in accordance with them, which
lead it to perfect happiness. (38) On this account, also, he has assigned a most
appropriate place to the Paradise, called Eden (and the name Eden, being
interpreted, means "delight"), an emblem of the soul, which sees right
things, and revels amid the virtues, and exults by reason of the abundance and
magnitude of its joy; proposing to itself one source of enjoyment in the place
of the innumerable things which are accounted pleasant among men, namely the
service of the one wise God. (39) He, then, who had drunk of this unmixed source
of joy, and was a follower of and fellow rejoicer with Moses, and not one of the
least valued of that body, in his Psalms addressed his own mind, saying,
"Delight thou in the Lord."{10}{psalm 37:4.} Exciting himself and his
mind towards heavenly and divine love by these words, and indignantly turning
away from the luxury and effeminacy existing among what are called and believed
to be human goods; and being hurried away in his whole heart by divine
inspiration and fervour, and finding his joy in God alone. X.
(40) And the statement that "the XI.
(43) We cannot therefore raise any question as to why it was ordained that all
the different species of animals should be collected in the ark which was made
at the time of the great deluge, while more were brought into the XII.
(46) Such then are the trees which the only wise God has planted in rational
souls. But Moses, pitying those who were exiled and compelled to quit the
paradise of the virtues, addresses a prayer to the absolute authority of God and
to his merciful and propitious powers, entreating that in the place from which
the earthly mind, Adam, was banished, there a people capable of seeing the truth
might be planted. (47) For he says, "Bring them in and plant them in the
mountain of thy inheritance which thou dost give them; thou hast made them to
sit in thy seat, O Lord; in the sanctuary, O Lord, which they hands have made.
The Lord shall be king of ages, for ever and Ever."{12}{Exodus 15:17.} (48)
Therefore he had learnt, as plainly as any man that ever lived, that God, having
fixed the roots and seeds of everything down in the earth, is the cause also of
the greatest of all plants, namely this world, shooting up; which world he here
seems to speak of enigmatically in the song which I have just quoted, where he
calls it the mountain of his inheritance; since that which is made is the most
appropriate possession and inheritance, of him who has made it. (49) Therefore
he prays that we may be planted in it, not in order that we may become
irrational and unmanageable in our natures; but that, in due obedience to the
arrangement of the all-perfect governor, imitating his perpetual and undeviating
consistency, we may live a temperate and innocent life. For to be able to live
in a strict uniformity with nature, is what the man of old have defined as the
end of happiness. (50) And accordingly what is said afterwards is in strict
agreement with what is said before, namely, that the world is the beautiful and
properly prepared house of God, appreciable by the external senses; and that he
himself made it and that it is not uncreated, as some persons have thought. And
he uses the word "sanctuary," as meaning a splendour emitted from holy
objects, an imitation of the archetypal model; since those things which are
beautiful to the external senses are to the intellectual senses models of what
is beautiful. The expression that "it was prepared by the hands of
God," means that it was made by his worldcreating powers. (51) But in order
that no one may suppose that the Creator had need of any one of the things which
he created, he adds the most necessary assertion, "Being King of ages for
ever and ever." But a king is in need of nothing, but everything which is
subject to him is inevitably in need of the king. (52) And some persons have
said that God is and is properly called the inheritance of God, the use and
enjoyment of which Moses has now prayed may be afforded to us. For, says he,
representing us as children just beginning to learn by means of the doctrines
and speculations of wisdom, and not leaving us destitute of the elements of
knowledge, plant them in sublime and heavenly reason. (53) For this is the most
thoroughly prepared inheritance; the house most completely ready, the abode most
entirely suitable, which "thou hast made holy." For, O master, thou
art the maker of all good and holy things, as, on the other hand, corruptible
creation is of what is evil and profane. Reign thou throughout infinite eternity
over the suppliant soul; not leaving it for a single moment without a governor.
For an uninterrupted service under them is not only better than freedom, but
even than the most extensive dominion. XIII.
(54) In many people perhaps an inquiry may suggest itself as to what is the
meaning of the expression, "In the mountain of thy inheritance." It is
plain that God bestows inheritance, but perhaps it is not reasonable to think
that he receives inheritances, since everything in the world belongs to him.
(55) But perhaps this is said of those who are subject to him as their master,
according to some special computation of connection; just as kings govern indeed
all their subjects, but rule their own servants in a different and peculiar
manner, whom they are accustomed to employ as ministers for the care of their
bodies and the rest of their manner of life. (56) And again, though they are
lords of all the possessions in their whole country, even of those which appear
to belong to private individuals, they nevertheless are accounted owners only of
those portions which they can entrust to superintendents and overseers, from
whom they receive yearly revenues, which properties they often visit for the
sake of relaxation and amusement, when they lay aside for a while the heaviest
portion of the burden of the cares which arise to them in the administration of
public affairs and in the government of their kingdoms; and these possessions
are called especially the royal properties. (57) Moreover all the silver and
gold, and other treasures which are stored up in the coffers of their subjects,
do all in reality belong more to the rulers than to those who possess them. But
nevertheless there are some which are peculiarly called the royal treasures, in
which those who are appointed collectors of the produce lay up the revenues
which are derived from the country. (58) Do not wonder, therefore, if the
company of wise souls is pronounced to be the especial inheritance of the
all-powerful God who has authority and dominion over everything, since he sees
most acutely of all beings, exercising the irreproachable and unadulterated eye
of the mind, which is never shut, but is always wide open and looking intensely
into every thing. XIV.
(59) And on this account, indeed, it is said in the greater prayer,
"Inquire of thy father, and he will tell thee; of thy elders, and they will
reply to thee, when the Most High divided the nations, when he separated the
sons of Adam, he fixed the boundaries of the nations, according to the number of
the angels of God, and the portion of the Lord himself was his people
Israel."{13}{Deuteronomy 32:7.} (60) For, behold, here again, he uses the
expression, "the portion and inheritance of God," meaning that
disposition which is capable of seeing him, and which sincerely worships him;
and he says that the children of the earth, whom he calls the sons of Adam, were
scattered and dispersed, and brought together again, and that a company was
formed of them, since they were unable to use right reason as their guide. For,
in real truth, virtue is the cause of harmony and unity, and the opposite
disposition is the cause of dissolution and disagreement. (61) Indeed, it is a
proof of what has been said, what happens every year on the day called the day
of atonement; for on that day the people are enjoined "to take by lot two
goats, one for the Lord, and one to be the Scapegoat;"{14}{Deuteronomy
15:6.} that is to say, two reasons, the one in accordance with God, the other
consistent with creation. He, therefore, who wishes to exalt the Cause of all
things will acquire honor to himself; but he who attributes honor to creation
will be banished, being driven from the most sacred places, and compelled to
fall into inaccessible and wicked gulfs. XV.
(62) Moses, therefore, has such intimate connection with God, that, relying upon
this in a very great degree, he is in the habit of using more fervent and
energetic expressions and doctrines than are calculated for the ears of us
inferior persons; for he not only thinks it fit to speak of God as an inheritor,
but even, which is a more startling thing to the comprehension, he calls him the
inheritance of others; (63) for to the entire tribe which came to him as a
fugitive and a suppliant, he did not think fit to allot only a portion of land,
as he did to the other eleven tribes, but he chose that they should receive an
especial honor, namely, the priesthood, a possession not of earth, but of
heaven. "For thou shall not be," says God, as Moses represents,
"a portion to the tribe of Levi, nor any inheritance among the children of XVI.
(65) They tell an old story, that some man in ancient times, who had fallen
madly in love with the beauty of wisdom, as if it had been the beauty of a most
lovely woman, once, when he saw a most sumptuous preparation of unbounded and
costly magnificence, looked towards some of his friends, and said, "Behold,
O companions, how many things there are of which I have no need!" And yet
he had nothing whatever of even necessary things beyond his mere clothes, so
that he was not puffed up with the magnitude of his riches, which has been the
case with numbers of people; so that, on this account, he spoke arrogantly
against pomp and show. (66) The lawgiver teaches
us that we should account those people wise who are not eager to be rich in
created things, but who despise all created things in comparison of the
friendship of the uncreated God, whom they look upon as the only true wealth,
and the boundary of most perfect happiness. (67) Never, then, let those men
boast, who have acquired power and sovereignty, as some do, because they have
subdued one city, or country, or nation; and others, because they have acquired
the dominion over all the countries of the earth, to its furthest borders, and
over all Grecian and barbarous nations, and over all the rivers and seas,
infinite both in number and magnitude. (68) For if, besides these things, they
had made themselves masters (which it is impious even to mention) of that
sublime nature which was the only thing that the Creator made free from the bond
of slavery and servitude, they would still be looked upon but as private
individuals in comparison with the great kings who have received God for their
inheritance; for in proportion as that nature which has acquired a possession is
better than the possession itself, and the Creator than the thing created, by so
much also are they more royal. XVII.
(69) Therefore, some people considered, that they who said that everything was
the property of the one good Being, were speaking in an unreasonable manner,
looking at the deficiencies and abundance which existed externally, and thinking
no one rich who was in want of either money or possessions. But Moses thinks
wisdom a thing of such pre-eminent value, and deserving to be so eagerly sought
after, that not only the whole world deserves to be his inheritance, but that he
even looks upon the Governor of the universe in that light; (70) and these are
the doctrines, not of men who are halting between two opinions, but of those who
are occupied in a firm and sure faith; since, even now, there are some persons
among those who make a show and pretence of piety, who calumniate the literal
meaning of this saying, saying that it is neither pious nor safe to speak of God
as the inheritance of a man. (71) You say this - I should say to them - because
ye have come not from genuine passion, but from a supposititious and
illegitimate one, to the investigation of things. For you thought it a matter of
equal consequence for God to be called the inheritance of possessions, of
vineyards, and oliveyards, and such matters, and of wise men; and ye did not
perceive that paintings are said to be the inheritance of painters, and, in
short, that any art is said to be the inheritance of the artist, not looked at
as an earthly possession, but as a heavenly prize; for none of such things are
the property of any master, (72) but still they are an advantage to those who
possess them: so that you, O sycophants, hear of the living God as an
inheritance, not in the sense of being a possession, like those which I have
enumerated, but as being the most beneficial and greatest of goods to those who
think fit to worship the Cause of all good. XVIII.
(73) Having, therefore, now said what is proper concerning the original planter
and the original plant, let us next proceed, in due order, to the consideration
of matters of instruction and imitation. In the first place, then, the wise
Abraham is said "to have planted a field at the well of the oath, and to
have called upon the name of the everlasting Lord God."{17}{Genesis 21:33.}
And here there is no peculiar property of the plants mentioned, but only the
magnitude of the place. (74) And they who are in the habit of investigating
these matters say, that everything which belongs to God has been very carefully
and accurately described, both tree and place, and the fruit of the tree.
Accordingly, they say that the tree was the field itself, not like those trees
which sprung up out of the ground, but rather to those which grow according to
the firmly-rooted mind of the man who loves God: and the place, they say, is the
well of the oath, and the fruit, the change of the name of the Lord into that of
"The Eternal God." (75) And it is necessary further to give the
probable explanation of each point of the things here mentioned. The field,
then, being in length a hundred cubits, and as many in breadth, multiplied
together according to the nature and character of a square, is composed of ten
thousand superficial cubits; (76) and this is the greatest limit of those
numbers which increase from the unit, and also the most perfect: so that the
limit is the beginning of numbers, and the end, in those calculations, according
to the first combination, is the number ten thousand; in reference to which
fact, some persons have not erred greatly, who have compared the limit to the
starting-place, and the number ten thousand to the goal, and all the numbers
between these two to those who contend in a race; for they, beginning to start
from the unit, as from the starting place, come to the number ten thousand as to
the goal. (77) Therefore, some persons, departing from these numbers, as from
signals, have said that God is the beginning and end of everything, which is a
doctrine admirably calculated to engender piety. This doctrine, being implanted
in the soul, produces a most beautiful and nutritious fruit, holiness; and the
place most suitable for this fruit, (78) is the well which is called the oath,
in which there is a report that no water could be found. For, says Moses,
"the children of XIX.
(79) Those who investigate the nature of things as they actually exist, and who
conduct their examinations of each individual matter in no negligent manner,
behave very like those men who dig wells; for they also are seeking springs in
an obscure place. And all men have one common desire, to find something to
drink. But some men's nature is to be nourished by the food of the soul, and
that of others by the food of the body. (80) As, therefore, some of those who
have dug wells have often done so without finding water; so likewise those who
advance far in knowledge, and who have made great progress in it, are still
often unable to attain to the end which they desire. At all events, they say
that men of extensive learning often find fault with their terrible ignorance,
for they only just know how far they are removed from the truth. And there is a
story that some man of old time, when he was admired for his wisdom, said, that
it was a fine thing that he should be admired, who only just knew that he knows
nothing. (81) And choose, if you like, any art you please, whether trifling or
important, and the man, too, who is most excellent, and most highly thought of
in regard of his skill in it, and then consider if the professions held out by
the art are equal to the performances of the artist; for if you duly examine the
matter, you will find that the performance falls short of the profession, not by
a small, but by a vast distance, it being almost impossible for a man to be
perfect in any art whatever, which is in continual motion like a fountain, and
is constantly pouring forth various species of all kinds of speculations. (82)
On this account, it is most appropriately denominated an oath, being the most
certain sign of faith, comprehending also the testimony of God: for as he who
swears, calls God to be a witness to a matter concerning which a question is
raised, so it is not possible to swear so truly about any matter, as to the fact
that the perfection of no art whatever can be found in the artist who professes
it. (83) And the same assertion holds good also with respect to all the other
powers which exist in us, or very nearly so; for, as they say, that no water was
found in the well which had been mentioned, so also neither was there the
faculty of seeing in the eyes, or that of hearing in the ears, or that of
smelling in the nostrils, or, in short, any one of the senses in its
corresponding organ; and similarly in the mind, there was not the faculty of
comprehension. (84) For how could it have happened that any one should have made
a mistake in what he saw, or in what he heard, or in what he understood, if the
comprehensions of each of these faculties had been well established, and if they
had had a trustworthy nature of themselves without God implanting accuracy in
them? XX.
(85) Having now, therefore, discussed the place sufficiently in which the tree
flourishes, let us now, in conclusion, examine also the subject of the
fruit:--Now, what the fruit is, Moses will tell us himself: "For the Lord
God everlasting," says he, "called it by its Name."{19}{Genesis
21:33.} (86) Therefore the appellations already mentioned reveal the powers
existing in the living God; for one title is that of Lord, according to which he
governs; and the other is God, according to which he is beneficent. For which
reason also, in the account of the creation of the world, according to the most
holy Moses, the name of God is always assumed by him: for it was fitting that
the power according to which the Creator, when he was bringing his creatures
into the world, arranged and adorned them, should be invoked also by that
creation. (87) Inasmuch, therefore, as he is a ruler, he has both powers, that,
namely, of doing good, and that of doing harm; regulating his conduct on the
principle of requiting him who has done anything. But inasmuch as he is a
benefactor, he is inclined only to one of these two courses, namely, to do good.
(88) And it would be the greatest possible advantage to the soul no longer to
feel any doubt about the power of the King for both purposes, but steadily to
emancipate itself from the fear, which is suspended over it, on account of the
vastness of his authority, and to kindle and keep alive a most firm hope of the
acquisition and enjoyment of blessings arising from his being beneficent by
deliberate intention. (89) Now the expression, "everlasting God," is
equivalent to, God who bestows gifts, not sometimes giving and sometimes not,
but always and incessantly; it is equivalent to, God who does good
uninterruptedly; to God who, without intermission, is connecting a flow of
benefits, coming one after the other; God, who pours forth blessings upon
blessings, who is made up of mercies connected and united; God, who never omits
any single opportunity of doing good; God, who is also the Lord, so that he is
able to injure. XXI.
(90) This also Jacob, the practicer of virtue, asked at the end of his most holy
prayers. For he said, "And the Lord shall be to me as God." Which is
equivalent to: He will no longer display towards me the despotic power of his
absolute authority, but rather the beneficent influence of his universally
propitious and saving power, utterly removing the fear with which he is regarded
as a master, and filling the soul with affection and benevolence as felt towards
a benefactor. (91) What soul could ever conceive thus that the master and ruler
of the universe, without changing anything of his own nature, but remaining in
the condition in which he always was, is continually kind and uninterruptedly
bounteous? (92) owing to which he is, to those who are happy, the most perfect
cause of unlimited and overflowing blessings. And to trust in a king who is not
by reason of the magnitude of his authority elated so as to do injury to his
subjects, but who, through his love to mankind, prefers that every one should
enjoy happiness without fear, is the greatest possible bulwark of prosperity and
security. XXII.
(93) What, therefore, we originally undertook we have now nearly fulfilled,
namely, to demonstrate that the fact spoken of must be taken to mean the
principle which declares God to be the most glorious of all things. The portion
of the subject which follows next, is the demonstration that perfection is found
in no created thing, but that it does appear in them at times owing to the grace
of the great Cause of all things. And the fruit of the tree is, that the graces
of God endure for ever and ever, and that they are shed incessantly upon
mankind, and never cease. (94) Thus, in truth, the wise man, following the
practice of the first and greatest planter, displays his knowledge of husbandry;
and the sacred scripture wishes the labors of husbandry to be performed, even by
those of us who are not yet perfect, but who are still reckoned among the middle
numbers of those things which are accounted duties; for it says, (95) "When
you go forth into the land which the Lord your God giveth to you, and when you
plant every tree which is good for food, you shall completely purify its
uncleanness. For three years it shall be unclean as to its fruit, it shall not
be eaten; but in the fourth year, all its fruit shall be holy, being praised by
the Lord. And in the fifth year you shall eat the fruit thereof; and everything
that it bears shall be useful to you: I am the Lord your
God."{20}{Leviticus 19:23.} Therefore it was impossible for the children of
XXIII.
(100) These duties which are as it were in the middle, appear to me to be
properly looked upon in the same light as those trees, which admit of being
cultivated and used for food; for each of them bears most useful fruits, the one
for the body, and the other for the soul. But in the middle there must
necessarily be many injurious plants springing up with and growing along-side of
them, which must be removed in order that the better sorts may not be injured.
(101) May I not call the restoration of a deposit a useful plant of the soul?
But still this plant requires purification and exceeding attention. What then is
the purification? This. Having taken a deposit from a man while he is sober, you
must not restore it to him while he is drunk, or intemperate, or mad; for in
such a case though he may have received the advantage of having his own back
again, he will have no opportunity of being benefited by it. Again. You must not
restore a deposit to debtors or to slaves while their creditors or their masters
are present; for that is betraying, and not a restoration of a deposit. Nor must
you keep faith in small things in the hope merely of gaining confidence, so as
to have greater things entrusted to you. (102) For those who fish, and who let
down small baits into the sea, with the view of catching larger fish, are not
very much to be blamed, as they say that they are providing for the good supply
of the market, and in order that they may supply men with unlimited food for
every day. (103) But no one should use as a bait, the restoration of a deposit
of small value by way of obtaining a larger one, holding forth in his hands, and
displaying the deposit of one individual, and that a trifling one, and in his
intention appropriating the deposits of every body, and those too of unspeakable
value. If, therefore, you remove the uncleanness of your deposit, as of these
trees, namely, the inquiries threatened by plotters, the evils arising from want
of opportunity and treachery, and all things of similar kinds; you will bring
into a state of cultivation and usefulness, that which was on the point of
becoming wild. XXIV.
(104) And in the case of the tree of friendship, it is necessary to cut down and
eradicate these things which shoot up by the side of it for the sake of
preserving the more valuable plant. And the evil plants which spring up
alongside are these: the tricky blandishments of courtesans towards their
lovers, and the deceitfulness of parasites to those whom they flatter. (105) For
one may see those who make a traffic of their personal beauty, clinging to their
lovers as if they were excessively fond of them; but they love not them but
themselves, and they are eager only for their daily gains. And as for
flatterers, sometimes they conceal unspeakable hatred towards those whom they
flatter; but still, being slaves to gluttony and intemperance, they are on that
account induced to pay court to those who can supply their immoderate appetites.
(106) But the tree of science and unadulterated friendship having rejected and
discarded these things, will bear fruit of the greatest possible service to
those who use it, namely, incorruptible good faith. For good-will is a desire
that one's neighbour should enjoy good things for his own sake. But courtesans
and flatterers are anxious solely for their own advantage, which is the only
motive why they should confer pleasure, the first on their lovers, and the
latter on the objects of their flatteries. We must therefore cut down all
trickeries and flatteries as evil plants growing up near the tree of friendship.
XXV.
(107) The due attention to sacred rites, and good faith in the matter of
sacrifices, are the most excellent of trees; but along-side of them an evil
grows up, namely, superstition, which it is desirable to eradicate before it has
time to blossom. For some persons have fancied the sacrificing of oxen to be
piety, and they assign a portion of all that they steal or obtain by denials, or
by cheating their creditors, or by plundering, to the altars. Impious wretches
that they are, thinking that thus they are paying a price to buy themselves off
from suffering punishment for their offences. (108) But to such persons I would
say, O ye men, the tribunal of God is not to be corrupted by bribes; so that
those who have guilty minds will be rejected, even if they sacrifice a hundred
oxen every day; and those who are innocent will be received, even if they never
sacrifice at all. For God delights in altars on which no fire is burned, but
which are frequented by virtues, and which do not blaze with great flame, such
as those sacrifices do kindle which are offered by impious men, and which are no
sacrifices at all, and which serve to remind one of the ignorances and
wickedness of each of the sacrificers; for Moses has somewhere spoken of a
sacrifice "reminding one of Sin."{21}{Numbers 5:15.} (109) All such
things therefore, being the causes of great injury, it is necessary to cut off
and eradicate, in obedience to the oracle in which it is enjoined "to
remove the uncleanness of the tree which has been planted, bearing eatable
Fruit."{22}{Leviticus 19:23.} XXVI.
(110) But we, even after we have been instructed, make no progress in learning;
but some persons, having a self-taught natural instinct, purify what is good
from the evils which surround it, as Jacob did, he who was surnamed the
practicer of virtue; for he "peeled the rods, leaving on the white bark,
having stripped off all the Green;"{23}{Genesis 30:37.} in order that the
dark and dusky vanity in the middle being taken away in every case, a white
appearance might be displayed, which should be produced so as to be akin to it,
not by diversified art but by nature; (111) in reference to which it is also
commanded in the law which was established in cases of leprosy, that "the
man who was not infected with any variation of color, but who was white all over
from the head to the extremity of his feet, should be Pure."{24}{Leviticus
13:12.} In order that, according to the similitude of the body, those who have
discarded the crafty, and unscrupulous, and ambiguous, and uncertain disposition
of mind, may embrace the simple, uncolored, unambiguous, plain complexion of
truth; (112) therefore, to say that the tree is purified, contains a principle,
the assertion of which is founded surely in truth, but to make the same
statement with respect to the fruit is saying what is not equally clear or
credible; for no cultivator of figs or grapes, or, in sort, of any fruit
whatever, purifies them. XXVII.
(113) And again Moses says, "Its fruit shall be impure for three days, it
shall not be Eaten;"{25}{Leviticus 19:23.} as if in fact it were customary
for it to be purified for ever. We must, therefore, say that this is one of
those expressions which have a concealed meaning, since the words themselves are
not quite consistent with it; for the expression is an ambiguous one; for it
bears one sense of this kind, the fruit shall remain for three years; and then
there is a distinct injunction, "it shall not be eaten before it is
purified." But there is also another meaning, "the fruit of the tree
shall for three years be unpurified, and while in that state it shall not be
eaten." (114) According, then, to the former statement one may understand
it in this manner: the three years being taken from time which is divided into
three portions; for it is the nature of time to be divided into the past, the
present, and the future; therefore the fruit of education will exist, and will
endure, and will last unimpaired through all the divisions of time, a statement
equivalent to - it will never receive any corruption, for the nature of good is
imperishable. But the fruit which is not purified shall not be eaten; inasmuch
as virtuous reasons, duly purified and rendered sound, nourish the soul, and
give vigor to the mind; but the opposite kinds are not nutritious, but bring
disease and destruction on the soul. (115) According to the other meaning, as in
the disputes of dialecticians, the word "undemonstrated" is used in a
double sense, either of a proposition which it is hard to demonstrate by reason
of its difficulty, or of one which is intrinsically so plain as to require no
demonstration, and the truth of which is established not by the testimony of any
one else, but by its own internal evidence. So also fruit may be understood as
not being purified, either when it is so impure as to be difficulty to purify,
or when it requires no purification, but is bright, and clear, and pure of
itself. (116) Such now is the fruit of education; being for three years, that is
to say for all time, divided as it is into three portions, most completely pure
and brilliant, being overshadowed by no injurious thing, and having no need
whatever of any washings or purifications, or any thing else whatever which
tends to cleansing. XXVIII.
(117) "But in the fourth year," says the scripture, "all the
fruit of the tree shall be sacred, being praised by the
Lord."{26}{Leviticus 19:25.} The prophetic books appear often to dignify
the number four in many places of the exposition of the law, and most especially
in the account of the creation of the universe; (118) for the light which is
perceptible by the outward senses, and held in honor, being that which throws
the most brilliant light both upon itself and upon other things, and upon its
own parents the sun and the moon, and upon the most sacred company of the stars,
which by their rising and setting fix the boundaries of night and day, and
moreover, of months and years, and which have shown the nature of number, to
which, also, the greatest good of the soul is attributed, Moses says was created
on the fourth day. (119) And now he honors this day in a remarkable degree,
assigning the fruit of the trees to God, in accordance with no other time than
with the fourth year after they are planted; (120) for this has a principle in
it very consistent with nature and with good morals. At all events it so happens
that the roots of the universe, the elements of which the world is composed, are
four - earth, water, air, and fire. Also, that the seasons of the year are equal
in number, namely, winter and summer, and those others which are between these
two, spring and autumn. (121) And as this is the most ancient of all square
numbers, it is found to exist in right angles, as the figure of a square in
geometry shows. And right angles are manifest examples of correctness of reason.
And right reason is an everlasting fountain of virtues. (122) It follows,
therefore, of necessity that the sides of a square must be all equal to one
another. And equality is the parent of justice, which is the mistress and ruler
of all the virtues, so that it is not proved that this number four is the symbol
of equality, and justice, and of all virtue, beyond any other number. (123) And
the number four is likewise called "all," because it comprehends in
its power the numbers up to ten, and the number ten itself. XXIX.
That is comprehends all the numbers up to itself is manifest to every one; but
that it also comprehends the numbers which come after it, is very easily seen by
a calculation of numbers, (124) when we have put them together, one, two, three,
four, we shall find what we were doubting about; for of one and four, the number
five will be found to be composed, and of two and four six are made up; the
number seven, again, consists of three and four; again, according to a triple
combination of one, and three, and four, the number eight is composed; also of
two, and three, and four, the number nine; and the number ten is made of all the
numbers together, for one, and two, and three, and four make ten. (125) On this
account also, Moses said that in the fourth year all the fruit of the tree shall
be holy; for this number has an even, and an entire, and a full, and (as one may
almost say) every possible reason in it, because the number ten, of which four
is the parent, is the first starting place of all the numbers when put together
after the unit; and the number four and the number ten are both also called
"all," but the number ten is so called by reason of its operation,
this number four with reference to its potentiality. XXX.
(126) And Moses very appropriately says that the fruit of education is not only
holy but also praised; for every one of the virtues is a holy thing, but most
especially is gratitude holy; but it is impossible to show gratitude to God in a
genuine manner, by those means which people in general think the only ones,
namely offerings and sacrifices; for the whole world could not be a temple
worthy to be raised to his honor, except by means of praises and hymns, and
those too must be such as are sung, not by loud voices, but by the invisible and
pure mind, which shall raise the shout and song to him. (127) At all events
there is an old saying often quoted, originally invented by wise men, but, as is
often the case, handed down in succession to future ages, and one which has not
escaped our ears, which are always greedy of instruction, and it is to this
effect, "When," say they, "the Creator had finished the whole
world, he asked of one of his ministers, whether he felt that any thing that was
wanting which had not been created of all the things that are in the earth, or
in the water, or of all that have received the sublime nature of the air, or the
loftiest nature of all the universe, namely, that of the heaven; (128) and he
replied, that every thing every where was perfect and complete; but that he
wished for one thing only, namely for reason, which should be able duly to
praise it all, and which should not so much praise as give an accurate account
of the exceeding excellence existing throughout, even in these things which
appeared the most unimportant and the most obscure; for he said that an exact
account of the works of God was their most complete and adequate panegyric,
since they required no addition of external things to set them forth, but were
of such a character that the bare plain truth was their most perfect
encomium." (129) And when the Father had heard what he said he praised it
all, and at no distant time produced a race, which should be capable of
receiving all learning, and of composing hymns of praise, producing them from
one of the faculties existing around him, the virgin memory, whose name men in
general distort and call her Mnemosyne. XXXI.
(130) This is then the purport of that legend of the ancients, and we in
accordance with that story say, that it is the most appropriate work of God to
confer benefits, and of created beings to show gratitude, since they are unable
to give any requital of those benefits beyond gratitude; for whatever he might
be inclined to give as a requital for the other things which he has received,
will be found to be the private property of him who is the Creator of all
things, and not of the nature which offers it. (131) Having learnt therefore
that there is only one employment possible for us of all the things that seem to
contribute to the honor of God, namely the display of gratitude, let us at all
times and in all places study this, with our voice, and with useful writings,
and let us never desist composing encomiastic orations and poems, in order that
both the Creator and the world may be honored by every description of utterance
which can be exhibited in either speaking or singing; the one being, as some has
said, the best of all causes, and the other the most perfect of all created
things. XXXII.
(132) Since therefore all the fruit of the soul is consecrated in the fourth
year and the fourth number; in the fifth year we ourselves shall be allowed the
use and enjoyment of it for ourselves; for the scripture says, "In the
fifth year ye shall eat the fruit thereof;" since it has been established
by a perpetual law of nature, that account shall be taken of the creation after
the Creator in every thing; so that even if we are thought worthy of the second
place, it must be considered a marvelous thing; (133) and on this account it
assigns to us the fruit of the fifth year, because the number five is the number
appropriate to the outward sense; and if one must tell the truth, that which
nourishes our minds is the outward sense, which by means of our eyes sets before
us the distinctive qualities of colors and forms, and by means of our ears
presents us with all the various peculiarities of sounds, and with smells by
means of the nose, and with tastes through the medium of the mouth, and which
enables us to judge of the yielding softness and resisting hardness, or of
softness and roughness, or again of heat and cold, by means of the faculty which
is dispersed over the whole body, which we usually denominate touch. XXXIII.
(134) But the most correct example of what has been said, is afforded by the
sons of Leah, that is of virtue, not all her sons, but the fourth and fifth; for
with respect to the fourth, Moses says that, then she ceased to bring forth,
{27}{Genesis 29:35.} and his name was called Judah, which, being interpreted, is
"confession to the Lord," and the fifth she called Issachar, and the
name being interpreted, means "reward;" and after she had brought
forth in this manner, the soul immediately spoke and related what it had
suffered; for says Moses, "She called his name Issachar, which means
Reward."{28}{Genesis 30:18.} (135) Therefore Judas, the mind which blesses
God, and which is without ceasing, devoted to pouring forth hymns of praise and
gratitude to him, is himself in truth "the holy and praiseworthy
Fruit,"{29}{Leviticus 19:24.} being produced not by the trees of the earth
but by a rational and virtuous nature. In reference to which, the nature which
brought him forth is said to have desisted from bringing forth, since she knew
not which way to turn, when she had come to the limit of perfection; for of all
successful actions which are brought forth, the best and most perfect production
is a hymn to the Father of the universe; (136) and the fifth son is in no
respect different from the enjoyment of the trees planted in the fifth year; for
the tiller of the earth after a fashion takes his reward from the trees in the
fifth year, and he takes the offspring of the soul, Issachar, who was called the
"reward," and very naturally, being brought forth after the grateful
Judah; for to a grateful person gratitude is a most sufficient reward. (137)
Therefore, the fruits of the trees are called the produce of the owners of the
trees; but the fruit of instruction and wisdom is no longer the produce of man,
but as Moses says, "of the universal Governor alone;" for after he has
spoken of his produce, he adds, "I am the Lord your God," asserting
most distinctly that there is one God, whose fruit is the produce of the soul.
(138) And with this assertion, this oracle delivered by one of the prophets is
consistent, "Fruit from me has been found by you. What wise man will
understand this? Will any intelligent person comprehend It?"{30}{Hosea
14:9.} For it does not belong to every one, but only to the wise man, to
understand whose the fruit of the mind is. XXXIV.
(139) Therefore, concerning that most ancient and sacred husbandry, which the
Cause of all things uses with reference to the world, that most productive of
trees, and concerning that other kind in imitation of it which the virtuous man
studies, and concerning the ordinary quaternion of prizes, and the laws and
precepts which all tend to the same point, we have now spoken to the best of our
power. (140) Let us now consider the vine-planting of the just Noah which is a
species of husbandry. For it is said that "Noah began to be a husbandman of
the earth, and he planted a vineyard, and drank of the wine, and got
Drunk."{31}{Genesis 9:20.} Therefore, the wise man here cultivates with
skill and science the tree of drunkenness, though fools enter upon its
management in an unartistic and negligent manner, (141) so that it is necessary
for us now to speak in a fitting manner about drunkenness; for we shall
presently know the power also of that tree which gives rise to it. Afterwards,
we will examine with accuracy what has been said by the lawgiver concerning
drunkenness, but at present we will examine what determination others have come
to on this subject. XXXV.
(142) Now, among many philosophers, this question has been investigated with no
slight degree of pains, and the question is proposed in this manner, whether the
wise man will get drunk? Therefore, to get drunk is a matter of a twofold
nature, one part of it being equivalent to being overcome with wine; the other,
to behaving foolishly in one's cups. (143) But of those who have dealt with this
proposition, some have said that the wise man never takes too much unmixed wine,
and never behaves foolishly; for that the one is an error, and that the other is
an efficient cause of error, and that both the one and the other is inconsistent
with good conduct. (144) Others again have asserted, that to be overcome with
wine is appropriate even to a virtuous man, but that to behave foolishly is
inconsistent with his character. For that the wisdom which is in him is
sufficient to resist those things which attempt to do him injury, and to destroy
the innovations which they seek to produce in the soul, and that wisdom is
endued with a power capable of extinguishing the passions, whether they be
fanned by the impetuous gale of furious love, or kindled by abundant and heating
wine, and that owing to this power it will always be superior to them. Since
also of those who dive beneath a deep river or under the sea, some are destroyed
from being ignorant of the art of swimming, but others who are possessed of this
knowledge are very speedily saved; and, indeed, a great quantity of wine,
inundating the soul like a torrent, sometimes weighs it down and precipitates it
to the lowest depth of ignorance, but at other times is unable to part it,
because it is supported and borne aloft by saving instruction. (145) Those again
who have not sufficiently observed the greatness of this excess with respect to
passion in the wise man, have pressed him down, when he was applying himself to
the study of sublime things, from heaven to earth, as those men do who are
seeking to catch birds, in order to involve him in disasters similar to their
own; but others, seeing the great height of his virtue, have said that a wise
man, if he indulges in wine beyond the bounds of moderation, will by all means
cease to be master of himself, and will go astray, and will not only let his
hands droop out of weakness, like those athletes do who are defeated, but will
also droop his neck and his head, and stumble, and fall down, coming to the
ground with his whole body. XXXVI.
(146) Having then learnt this beforehand, the wise man will never of his own
accord think fit to enter upon a contest of hard drinking, unless there were
great things at stake, such as the safety of his country, or the honor of his
parents, or the preservation of his children, or of his nearest relations, or in
short, the success and prosperity of some important public or private interest.
(147) For he would not take a deadly poison unless the occasion compelled him
very strongly to depart from life, as it might urge him to depart from his
country. And at all events it is plain, that unmixed wine is a poison, which is
the cause, if not of death, at least of madness, and why may we not pronounce
madness to be death, since by it the most important thing in us dies, namely,
the mind? But it appears to me that a man would without the slightest hesitation
choose (if a choice was permitted him), that death which separates and disunites
the soul and the body as a lesser evil in preference to that greater one - the
alienation of the mind. (148) On this account, forsooth, men of old time called
skill in the art of making wine madness (mainomeneµ), and called the Bacchae
who were carried away under the influence of wine, mad women (Mainades), since
wine is the cause of madness and folly to those who indulge in it insatiably. XXXVII.
(149) Such then are, as it were, the prefaces of this discussion or
investigation. Let us now go on to the other parts of this question which is
divided into two heads as is natural; the one view affirming that the wise man
will occasionally be drunk, and the other, on the contrary, insisting that he
will not get drunk. (150) Now it is well to ruminate the arguments which are
adduced in support of the former view, having first of all take our beginning
from this point, that of things some are homonymous, and others are only
synonymous. And it is admitted that the being homonymous and the being
synonymous are two opposite things, because homonymy is predicated of many
subjects which have one common name; and synonymy is the application of many
different names to one subject. (151) For instance, the name of dog is beyond
all question a homonymy, inasmuch as it comprehends many dissimilar things which
are signified by that appellation. For there is a terrestrial barking animal
called a dog; there is also a marine monster with the same name: there is also
the star in heaven, which the poets calls the autumnal star, because it rises at
the beginning of autumn, for the sake of ripening the fruits and bringing them
to perfection. Moreover, there were the philosophers who came from the cynic
school. Aristippus and Diogenes; and other too who chose to
practice the same mode of life, an incalculable number of men. (152)
Again there are other appellations which differ from one another, but still
signify but one thing, as a shaft, a bolt, and arrow; for all these terms are
applied to the weapon which is sent from the string of the bow against the mark;
and again there are the words, oar, scull, and blade, to express the instrument
used for propelling a vessel, of equal power with sails; for whenever a ship, by
reason of a calm or of unfavorable winds cannot use its sails, then, those,
whose business it is, sitting down as rowers, and stretching out their oars on
each side like wings, compel to it proceed onwards as if borne on wings; and so
the vessel being borne on the top of the waves, and rather running over them
than cutting through them, hastens along with a speedy voyage, and speedily
anchors in a safe harbor. (153) And again, a staff, and a stick, and a cane, are
all different appellations of one subject with which we can strike, or support
one's self steadily, and on which one can lean, and do many other things
besides. And we have enumerated these instances not for the purpose of making a
long story, but in order that the matter under investigation may be more clearly
understood. XXXVIII.
(154) The ancients called unmixed wine oinos, and also methy. At all events,
this latter name is used in very many passages of poetry, so that if those names
are accounted synonymous which are applied to one subject, then oinos and
methysma, and other words derived from them will differ in nothing but sound,
and the being overcome with wine (oinousthai), and the being drunk (methyein),
are one and the same thing. (155) And both these words intimate a taking of too
much wine, which nevertheless there may be many reasons for a good man not
turning away from; and if he be overcome with wine he will also be drunk, being
nevertheless not made in any respect the worse by his drunkenness, but remaining
the same as if he had simply been well filled with wine. (156) We have now
detailed one of the opinions concerning a wise man getting drunk: and the second
is as follows--The men of the present day, with the exception of a small portion
of them, do not choose in any way to resemble the men of old times; but both in
mind and action they show that they are in no respect agreed with them, but that
they differ from them widely. (157) For they have made such a revolution as to
bring reasons which were sound and healthy into incurable decay and destruction.
And in the place of a vigorous and athletic habit, they have brought almost
every thing into a state of disease; and in the place of a full, and strong, and
sinewy body, they have rendered it weak, inducing an unnatural, and swollen, and
sickly habit, filling it up with empty wind alone, which soon bursts by reason
of the want of any power to keep it together, when it is extended in the
greatest degree. (158) And the actions of created beings, which are most worthy
of attention, and which were, as one may say, masculine actions, those also they
have made disgraceful feminine instead, and discreditable instead of honorable,
so that there are very few persons found, either in deed or in words, inclined
to an imitation of the ancient manners. (159) Therefore, the poets and
historians who lived in their time, and all other men who devoted themselves to
literary studies, did not confine themselves to soothing and tickling the ears
with rhythmical sounds, but, if there was anything broken, so to say, and
relaxed in the mind, they roused it up, and whatever there was in it suited to
their purpose they improved by initiation into natural philosophy and virtue.
But the cooks and confectioners of our time, and those persons who are only
artists of superfluous luxury, in the arts of dyeing and making perfumes, are
always building up the outward senses with some new color, or shape, or scent,
or flavor, so as utterly to destroy the most important part of us, the mind. XXXIX.
(160) And why do I mention these things? In order to show that the men of the
present day do not use wine now as the ancients did. For now they drink eagerly
without once taking breath, till the body and soul are both wholly relaxed, and
they keep on bidding their cup-bearers to bring more wine, and are angry with
them if they delay while they are cooling what is called by them the hot drink;
and in a vile imitation of the gymnastic contests, they institute a contest
among their fellow revellers as to who can drink most wine, in which they do
many glorious things to one another, biting one another's ears and noses, and
the tips of the fingers of their hands, and any other parts of the body they can
get at. (161) Now, these are the contests of revelry while in youth and vigor,
and, as one may say, in its prime; but the others are the deeds of that ancient
and more old-fashioned sort. For the men of old time began every good action
with perfect sacrifices, thinking that in that way the result would be most
favorable to them; and even if the occasion required especial promptitude in
action, still they did not begin till they had offered prayers and sacrifices.
But in all cases waited, thinking that haste was not in every case better than
slowness. For speed, which is not accompanied with forethought, is injurious,
but slowness, when founded on good hope, is advantageous. (162) Knowing,
therefore, that the use and enjoyment of wine require much care, they did not
drink unmixed wine either in great quantities or at all times, but only in
moderation and on fitting occasions. For first, of all, they offered up prayers
and instituted sacrifices, and then, having propitiated the deity, and having
purified their bodies and souls, the former with baths, and the latter with the
waters of laws and of right instruction, they then turned their cheerful and
rejoicing countenances to more luxurious food, very often not returning home
but, walking about in the temples in which they sacrificed, in order that, by
keeping in mind their sacrifices, and having a due respect for the place, they
might enjoy what should be really a most sacred feast, doing no wrong either in
word or deed. (163) And this, indeed, is what they say the word methyein, to be
drunk, derives its name from; because, meta to thyein (after sacrificing) it was
the custom of the men of old to drink great quantities of wine. And to whom
could the manner of using unmixed wine described above be more appropriate than
to wise men to whom the work to be done before drinking, namely, sacrificing, is
so appropriate? (164) For one may almost say that no bad man can really perform
sacrifices, not even if he were to bring the altar ten thousand oxen every day
without intermission; for his most important and indispensable offering, namely
his mind, is polluted. And it is impious for polluted things to come near to the
altar. (165) This, now, is the second point of view in which this question may
be regarded, by which we have shown that it is not inconsistent with the
character of the wise man to get drunk. XL.
There is a third way of looking at this subject, which depends chiefly on the
exceeding plausibility of an argument derived from etymology. For some persons
think that drunkenness (metheµ) derives its name not merely from the fact of
its being admitted after sacrifice, but also because it is the cause of
relaxation (methesis) to the soul. (166) But the reason of foolish men is
relaxed so as to get strength for many sins; while that of those inclined to be
sensible is relaxed, so as to enjoy freedom from care, and cheerfulness, and
lightness of heart. For the wise man, when he is intoxicated, becomes more good-humoured
than when he is sober; so that in this respect we should not be at all wrong in
saying that he may get drunk. (167) And besides all this, we must likewise add,
that we are not speaking of a stern-looking and sordid kind of wisdom,
contracted by profound thought and ill-humour; but, on the other hand, of that
wisdom which wears on tranquil and cheerful appearance, being full of joy and
happiness, by which men have often been led on to sport and divert themselves in
no inelegant manner, indulging in amusements suitable to their dignified and
earnest character, just as in a well-tuned lyre one may have a combination
uniting, by means of opposite sounds, in one melodious harmony. (168) At all
events, according to the most holy Moses, the end of all wisdom is amusement and
mirth, not such mirth as is pursued by foolish people, uncombined with any
prudence, but such as is admitted even by those who are already grey, not only
through old age alone, but also through deep thinking. Do you not see that he
speaks of the man who has drunk deeply of that wisdom which is to be derived
from a man's own hearing and learning, and study; not as one who partakes of
mirth, but who is actually mirth in itself? (169) This is Isaac, for the name
Isaac being interpreted means "laughter," with whose character it is
very consistent that he should have been sporting with "perseverance,"
which the Hebrews call Rebekkah. XLI.
But it is not lawful for a private individual to behold the divine instruction
of the soul, but the king may behold it, as one with whom wisdom has dwelt for a
very long time, if we may not rather say that it dwells with him all his life.
His name is Abimelech, who, looking out through the window with the well-opened
and radiant eye of the mind, saw Isaac sporting with Rebekkah his wife. (170)
For what employment is more suitable for a wise man than to be sporting, and
rejoicing, and diverting himself with perseverance in good things? From which it
is plain that he will become intoxicated, since intoxication contributes to good
morals, and also produces relaxation and advantage; (171) for unmixed wine seems
to increase and render more intense all the natural qualities, whether they be
good or the contrary, as many other things do too. For money is to a good man a
cause of good things, and to a bad man, as some one has said, it is a cause of
bad things. And again, high rank makes the wickedness of a fool more
conspicuous, but it renders the virtue of the just man more glorious. So also
unmixed wine, being poured forth in abundance, makes the man who is the slave of
his passions, still more subservient to them, but it renders him who has them
under control more manageable and amiable. (172) Who, indeed, is there who does
not know that of two opposite things, when one kind is suitable to most people,
the other kind must of necessity be suited to some? As, for instance, white and
black are two opposite colors: if white is suitable both to good and to bad
things, then black must also be necessarily equally suitable to both, and not to
one of the two alone. And, again, to be sober and to be drunk are two opposite
things; accordingly, both bad men and good, as the ancient proverb says, partake
of sobriety; therefore, also, drunkenness is suitable to both classes. Therefore
the virtuous man will get drunk without losing any of his virtue by it. XLII.
(173) But if, like persons before a court of justice, one must bring forward not
only such proofs as are in accordance with the rules of art, but those too which
have no connection with art, one of which is proof by testimony, we will then
produce many sons of physicians and philosophers of high repute to give
evidence, not by words alone, but also by writings. (174) For they have left
behind ten thousand commentaries entitled treatises on drunkenness; in which
they consider nothing beyond the bare use of wine, without pursuing any
investigation with respect to those who are accustomed to behave foolishly in
their cups, and in fact omitting every thing which has reference to conduct
under the influence of wine; so that it is very plainly confessed in their
writings that drunkenness is the same as drinking wine freely. And to drink a
superabundant quantity of wine on proper occasions is not unsuitable to a wise
man; therefore we shall not be wrong if we say that a wise man may get drunk.
(175) But since no one is ever inscribed on the rolls as a conqueror if he has
contended by himself alone, for if he does this he appears only to be fighting
with a shadow, and very naturally too; it follows that we must also produce the
arguments of those who contend for the opposite side of the question, that by
this means a most just judgment may be formed, and that the other side of the
question may not be decided against through default. (176) And the first and the
most powerful argument is this: if no one in his senses would entrust a secret
which he wished to be kept to a drunken man, then a good and wise man will not
get drunk. But before we collect all the other arguments in their order, it may
be better to reply to each objection separately, in order that we may not appear
to be too prolix, and consequently to be troublesome. (177) Some one then will
say in opposition that, according to the argument that has been advanced, the
wise man must never have a bilious attack, and never go to sleep, and above all
must never die. But he to whom some of these things happens is either an
inanimate being or a divine one; but beyond all question he is not a man at all.
Imitating this perversion of the arguments, one may apply it equally to a
bilious man, or to a sleeping man, or to a dying man; for no one in his senses
would tell a secret to a man in any of these conditions, but it would be
reasonable for him to tell it to a wise man, for the wise man is never bilious,
never goes to sleep, and never dies. |
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