Stephanus 69

69a for the sake of gaining a blessed life, so far as our nature admits; the necessary for the sake of those others, reckoning that without them those very things—the only ones our striving is set on—can neither be discerned, nor gained, nor shared in any other way.

Now that the kinds of cause have been sifted clean and lie beside us builders like timber, out of which the remaining part of our account must be woven, let us go back for a moment to the starting point and travel quickly to the same spot we came here from, 69b and try to set upon what came before an ending that fits—a head for the story. For as was said at the beginning, these things, then in disorder, god brought into order: in each of them, toward itself and toward the others, he wrought all the symmetries that were possible, and wherever it was possible, proportionate and measured. At that time they had no share in any of this except by chance, nor was anything of what is now named worth naming at all—fire, water, or any of the rest; but all these 69c he first set in order, and then out of them framed this whole: one living creature holding within it all living things, mortal and immortal. Of the divine he himself became the maker; the birth of the mortal kind he charged his own offspring to fashion. And they, imitating him, received from him the deathless beginning of a soul, and then molded around it a mortal body, gave it the whole body for a vehicle, and built within it another kind of soul, the mortal kind, holding within it dreadful and necessary 69d affections: first pleasure, the greatest lure of evil; then pains, that chase the good away; and again boldness and fear, two counselors without sense; spirit, hard to console; and hope, easy to lead astray. Mixing these with irrational sensation and with desire that dares anything, they made up the mortal kind of necessity. And on this account, in awe of staining the divine—since necessity did not lie wholly with them—they housed the mortal apart from it, in 69e another dwelling of the body, building an isthmus and a boundary between head and breast, setting the neck between, that they might be separate; and in the breast, and what is called the chest, they lodged the mortal kind of soul.

Timaeus: And since in that soul the better part and the worse had grown up together, they built the cavity of the chest in two, dividing it, as it were

69a for the sake of gaining a blessed life, as far as our nature allows. The necessary kind is there for the sake of those divine things. We must reckon that without them we could not perceive, take hold of, or in any other way share in the things we strive for by themselves.

So now that the material is laid out before us like timber for builders—the kinds of causes sifted and sorted, out of which the rest of the account must be woven—let us go back to the start for a moment. Let us travel quickly to the point we came here from, 69b and now try to set on the story a fitting head, an ending, to match all that came before. As was said at the beginning, these things lay without order. The god brought proportion into each of them, toward itself and toward the others, as many and in whatever ways it was possible for them to be in measure and in proportion. Before that, they shared in none of this except by chance, and none of what we now name—fire, water, and any of the rest—deserved the name at all. He first set all these in order, 69c and then out of them he put together this whole universe: one living creature holding all living things within it, mortal and immortal. He himself is the craftsman of the divine things. But he ordered his own offspring to craft the birth of the mortal kind. They imitated him. They took over the immortal beginning of the soul, and around it they later molded the mortal body. They gave the whole body to the soul as its vehicle. And in it they built another kind of soul, the mortal kind, with terrible and necessary 69d conditions inside it. First was pleasure, the strongest lure toward evil. Then pains, which chase good things away. Then boldness and fear again—two foolish counselors. Then spirit, hard to calm. And hope, easy to lead astray. Blending these with sensation that lacks reason and with desire that runs at everything, they built the mortal kind, as necessity required. And for this reason, holding reverence for the divine—unwilling to pollute it unless sheer necessity forced them—they housed the mortal part in 69e a separate dwelling of the body. They built a barrier and boundary between the head and the chest, placing the neck in between, so the two would be apart. In the chest, and in what is called the breast, they settled the mortal kind of soul.

Timaeus: And since one part of this soul was born better and one worse, they built the cavity of the chest up in two, dividing it, so to speak, into

69a and to seek the necessary for the sake of the divine, reckoning that without the former it is impossible to discern by themselves alone the divine objects after which we strive, or to apprehend them or in any way partake thereof.

Seeing, then, that we have now lying before us and thoroughly sifted—like wood ready for the joiner, —the various kinds of causes, out of which the rest of our account must be woven together, let us once more for a moment revert to our starting-point, and thence proceed rapidly to the point 69b from which we arrived hither. In this way we shall endeavor now to supplement our story with a conclusion and a crown in harmony with what has gone before.

As we stated at the commencement, all these things were in a state of disorder, when God implanted in them proportions both severally in relation to themselves and in their relations to one another, so far as it was in any way possible for them to be in harmony and proportion. For at that time nothing partook thereof, save by accident, nor was it possible to name anything worth mentioning which bore the names we now give them, such as fire and water, 69c or any of the other elements; but He, in the first place, set all these in order, and then out of these He constructed this present Universe, one single Living Creature containing within itself all living creatures both mortal and immortal. And He Himself acts as the Constructor of things divine, but the structure of the mortal things He commanded His own engendered sons to execute. And they, imitating Him, on receiving the immortal principle of soul, framed around it a mortal body, and gave it all the body to be its vehicle, and housed therein besides another form of soul, even the mortal form, 69d which has within it passions both fearful and unavoidable—firstly, pleasure, a most mighty lure to evil; next, pains, which put good to rout; and besides these, rashness and fear, foolish counsellors both and anger, hard to dissuade; and hope, ready to seduce. And blending these with irrational sensation and with all-daring lust, they thus compounded in necessary fashion the mortal kind of soul. Wherefore, since they scrupled to pollute the divine, unless through absolute necessity, 69e they planted the mortal kind apart therefrom in another chamber of the body, building an isthmus and boundary for the head and chest by setting between them the neck, to the end that they might remain apart. And within the chest—or thorax, as it is called—they fastened the mortal kind of soul.

Timaeus: And inasmuch as one part thereof is better, and one worse, they built a division within the cavity of the thorax—