The Mystical Hymns of Orpheus - Platonic Philosophy
The Mystical Hymns of Orpheus - Platonic Philosophy
The Mystical Hymns of Orpheus - Platonic Philosophy
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
OF ORPHEUS. 157<br />
In thee the Gods have fix'd their dwelling place,<br />
Strong, stable basis <strong>of</strong> the mortal race.<br />
the antichthon complete the decad; and in this manner<br />
Aristotle understands the assertions <strong>of</strong> the Pythagoreans."<br />
amwv peraqovrcs, TO<br />
He then adds : 01 6e yvq~~eur~pov<br />
p€V 7TVp EY Tq pEG(t) $a01 TqY ~~/LLOVWLK~Y ~UVU/LLV, EK T0U<br />
p~aov oX~v T ~ Y YTY T~E$OVG~V, ~ a TO i ~UXO~EYOY aurqs<br />
avcyEipovaave 61 o, or pev Z~vos aupyov auro K~XOU~Y, US<br />
avros ev rois ~~u~ayoperocs 8iqyqcraro' OL 66 Aios GuXa~qv, ws<br />
ev TOVTOLS* OL d~ A~OS BPOVOY* US aXXoi $aaivS avrpov 6s T ~ V<br />
yqv ~Xeyov, ws opyavov Kai auTTv TOV ~povov* qp~puv yap<br />
EGTLY avrq, ~ai VUKTWV, airia. i. e. " But those who more<br />
genuinely participate <strong>of</strong> the Pythagorean doctrines say<br />
that the fire in the middle is a demiurgic power, nourishing<br />
the whole earth from the middle, and exciting whatever it<br />
contains <strong>of</strong> a frigid nature. Hence some call it the tower<br />
<strong>of</strong> Jupiter, as he (i. e. Aristotle) narrates in his Pytha.gorics.<br />
But others denominate it the guardian <strong>of</strong> Jupiter, as Aristotle<br />
relates in the present treatise. And according to<br />
others it is the throne <strong>of</strong> Jupiter. <strong>The</strong>y called, however,<br />
the earth a cavern, as being itself an instrument <strong>of</strong> time : for<br />
it is the cause <strong>of</strong> day and night." In that part <strong>of</strong> this<br />
remarkable passage, in which it is said that the Pythagoreans<br />
called the earth a carern, it is necessary for avrpov to<br />
read agrpov, a stay. For a little before both Aristotle and<br />
Simplicius inform us, that the Pythagoreans asserted that<br />
the earth exists as one <strong>of</strong> the stays. And this is confirmed by<br />
their calling the earth one <strong>of</strong> the inst~untents <strong>of</strong> time : for the<br />
stars are thus detiominated by Plato in the Timaeus. Meursius,<br />
in his Denarius Fythagoricus, p. 19, thinks we should<br />
read ~~vrpov for avrpov ; but he was evidently mistaken.<br />
From this account, given by Simplicius, it appears that<br />
the abovementioned decad <strong>of</strong> the Pythagoreana consists <strong>of</strong><br />
the inerratic sphere, the seven planets, the earth, and the<br />
fire in the centre <strong>of</strong> the earth.