Stephanus 58

58a irregularity. The cause, in turn, is the unevenness of the irregular nature. We have gone through how inequality comes to be; but how each kind, once separated out by kind, ever ceases from its motion and carrying through one another — that we have not said. Here, then, is how we shall put it. The revolution of the whole, once it had taken in the kinds, being rounded like a circle and inclined by its own nature to draw in upon itself, squeezes everything and allows no empty region to be left behind. That is why 58b fire has spread through everything most of all, air second, as being second in fineness by nature, and the rest in that same ratio; for the things made of the largest parts have left the greatest emptiness in their structure, and the smallest the least. The coming together of the packing, then, drives the small into the gaps of the great. And so, with the small set in among the great, the lesser sorting out the larger and the larger compacting the lesser together, all things are carried up and down toward their own places; 58c for as each thing changes its size, it changes its station among places too. In this way, through these causes, the coming-to-be of unevenness, preserved forever, provides that the motion of these things has been, is, and will be unending.

After this we must understand that many kinds of fire have come to be — for instance flame, and that which goes out from the flame, which does not burn but gives light to the eyes, and that which is left of it 58d among the embers when the flame is put out; and in the same way with air: the clearest has taken the special name ether, the murkiest is mist and darkness, and there are other forms without names, all begotten by the inequality of the triangles. The kinds of water were divided first in two: the liquid, and the fusible kind of it. The liquid, because it partakes of the small and unequal kinds of water, has come to be mobile, both of itself and under something else, through its unevenness and the look of its shape; while that 58e made of large and uniform parts is more stationary than it, and heavy, congealed by its very uniformity. But when fire enters and dissolves it, it loses that uniformity, and, having lost it, takes on more motion; and grown easy to move, pushed and stretched out over the earth by the air beside it, it took for the stripping away of its masses the name melting, and for its flowing down upon the earth the name stream — each affection so named for what it suffered.

58a lack of uniformity; and inequality is in turn the cause of that lack of uniformity. We have already gone through how inequality comes to be. But we have not said how, once things have been separated off by kinds, each of them stops its motion and carrying through one another. So we will now speak again, as follows. The revolution of the whole, once it gathered the kinds in with it, being round and by nature tending to come together on itself, squeezes everything and leaves no empty space remaining. That is why 58b fire has spread through everything the most, and air second, since it is second in fineness by nature, and the rest in the same way. For the things made of the largest parts leave the greatest amount of empty space in their structure, and the smallest ones leave the least. The coming together of compression pushes the small ones into the gaps of the large ones. So when small ones are set beside large ones, and the smaller separate the larger while the larger press the smaller together, everything is shifted up and down toward its own place. 58c For each thing, as it changes in size, also changes its position. So for these reasons, as long as the state of lack of uniformity is preserved, it keeps providing these things with motion without a break, motion that is now and will always be.

After this we must understand that there are many kinds of fire: for example, flame; and what goes off from the flame, which does not burn but gives light to the eyes; and what is left behind in 58d glowing-hot things when the flame has gone out. The same with air: the clearest kind is called aether, the murkiest is mist and darkness, and there are other kinds without names, which came to be because of the inequality of the triangles. Water divides into two kinds first: the liquid kind, and the kind that melts and runs. The liquid kind, because it partakes of the small kinds of water, which are unequal to each other, has become able to move both by itself and under the push of something else, because of its lack of uniformity and the shape of its form. But the kind 58e that is made of large and even parts is steadier than that one and heavy, being solid because of its uniformity. But when fire enters and breaks it up, it loses its uniformity. Having lost it, it shares more in motion; and once it moves easily, being pushed by the air next to it and stretched down toward the earth, it took the name 'melting' for the clearing away of its masses, and 'flowing' for the stretching down toward the earth, each name taken from what it undergoes.

58a and motion in non-uniformity; and the cause of the non-uniform nature lies in inequality. Now we have explained the origin of inequality; but we have not declared how it is that these bodies are not separated according to their several Kinds, and cease not from their motion and passage one through another. Wherefore, we shall once more expound the matter as follows. The revolution of the All, since it comprehends the Kinds, compresses them all, seeing that it is circular and tends naturally to come together to itself; and thus it suffers no void place to be left. 58b Wherefore, fire most of all has permeated all things, and in a second degree air, as it is by nature second in fineness; and so with the rest; for those that have the largest constituent parts have the largest void left in their construction, and those that have the smallest the least. Thus the tightening of the compression forces together the small bodies into the void intervals of the large. Therefore, when small bodies are placed beside large, and the smaller disintegrate the larger while the larger unite the smaller, they all shift up and down 58c towards their own proper regions; for the change in their several sizes causes their position in space also to change. And since in this way and for these reasons the production of non-uniformity is perpetually maintained, it brings about unceasingly, both now and for the future, the perpetual motion of these bodies.

In the next place, we must observe that there are many kinds of fire: for example, there is flame; and the kind issuing from flame, which does not burn but supplies light to the eyes; and the kind which, when the flame is quenched, is left behind among the embers. 58d So likewise of air, there is the most translucent kind which is called by the name of aether, and the most opaque which is mist and darkness, and other species without a name, which are produced by reason of the inequality of the triangles. The kinds of water are, primarily, two, the one being the liquid, the other the fusible kind. Now the liquid kind, inasmuch as it partakes of those small particles of water which are unequal, is mobile both in itself and by external force owing to its non-uniformity and the shape of its figure. But the other kind, which is composed of large 58e and uniform particles, is more stable than the first and is heavy, being solidified by its uniformity; but when fire enters and dissolves it, this causes it to abandon its uniformity, and this being lost it partakes more largely in motion; and when it has become mobile it is pushed by the adjacent air and extended upon the earth; and for each of these modifications it has received a descriptive name—melting for the disintegration of its masses, and for its extension over the earth fluidity.

Timaeus: Again, since the fire on issuing from the water