Cornford, Plato and Orpheus

Plato and Orpheus Author(s): F. M. Cornford Source: The Classical Review, Vol. 17, No. 9 (Dec., 1903), pp.433-445 Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Classical Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/696650 Accessed: 03/12/2008 06:20 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=cup. 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Hesiod then is right. rich fruitfulness a&/~a cny/a by suggesting that the body is E[petv ~porav and avSOpcroS from avaOp&v & H. and is rightly called a spirit. 433 PLATO AND ORPHEUS.I suppose. belongs to that race of gold X ab'rCp ~TreL8* rovro 'e'vos cal'~ tzoip' eKc(ive^v. and to show how he transformed them to his own philosophical uses. Busy with country works and loving tendance Of the fair flock. TravTaXoO &yapo IIkAaro 'Op~ecjs. afar From pain and grief. still under Euthyphro's inspiration. the systematic investigation of the correctness of names. At least you remember that he says the first race of mankind was golden 1 H. who is good. 109) cited by Socrates may be rendered as follows: A golden race of mortals first was made By the high gods who on Olympus dwell. 131 ol 5c . as Spirits beneficent They range the earth. S.V.BovAas f~?Oo[. I do not remember. S. THE GOLDEN AGE. S. S.THEE CLASSICAL REVIEW. cfpvaKes Oy1l~Gv &v. ~pos. What shall we take next . H. And Death's hand soft as sleep. he says about it: ' This race. S. Of earth. then. SPIRITS. unlaboured. And I agree that every man who is good is of a spiritual nature (oai/zuoov). being so called after his wisdom. they lived The life of gods with careless heart. This: I think that by ' golden race ' he means not 'made of gold. f1rtX0Y. Kind guardians of man.' Socrates. in my opinion. in happy Heaven's eye. and Heroes. that he would say that anyone.oto SlalIb. nor even weakling age Came on them. They discuss the derivations of the four terms 0soE. (not v~oX0de. Yes. what he means by ' Spirits': he calls them because they are wise spirits (3a)ovas) our archaic and intelligent (3a~oves)-in language the actual name is found. then. And when this race at last was lapped in earth. True. Hes. S. er7x0otvo4. a~vpoiros.o. and so are all other poets who say that a good man. averting ill. G. The object of this paper is to trace in the mythical setting of some of the Platonic dialogues certain religious conceptions which Plato borrowed from Orphism. But the good are nothing if not wise. above all.2 2 TovTo yevos Kara ?aTa KclKv~eV avrap e~reL?~ so} !uzwoagt. Pollux.Op&rcoy. but with lifelong youth of limb They knew not cares: life was a joyous feast. then. is. goes on to derive {pos ~from fpms and &rtorrev. 123.uev WagjloYesa710ol e'xrO(6vLo& Kak?ovra4. watching o'er mortal life. finally to improve on the Orphic the prison-house in which the soul rr Trar till it shall have paid the debt of its sins. Plato Rep.D.oves elar Albs ze')a. Probably. va\?^iKaKOiX. This. When Cronos yet was king in Heaven.Socrates proceeds: S. And what then ? S. E. is destined to high honour and becomes a spirit. Hermogenes. The inference is supported by his calling us a race of iron. H. O. Spirits (3ag/zoira). and Men X H. fcrAoi. now Fate's dark veil hath shadowed them. WVhat can be the real meaning of the name ' Spirits ' ? You must tell me if you think I am right. whether living or dead. Yes. GUARDIAN We shall begin with a passage in the Cratylus (397 B) in which Socrates. gift of quiet life. Steph. It will be noted that Plato inserts ay&oiand For the latter epithetcf. 8Af/z~v. These passages will be considered later. both in the Cratylus and at Eep. You know who Hesiod says the Spirits are? H. After deriving 0Eos from Oelv. By God's high will. <fvAa. S. 7ra'pa)e ra To9 Olympiodorus. Are called pure Spirits ranging over earth. 468 E. Do you not think. Par. Go on.'1 H.KeS oPX7TGw avffp667rwv. under the inspiration of his morning colloquy with the pious Euthyphro-the Euthyphro of the dialogue on the characteristically Orphic with conception of ' Holiness '--begins. All gifts of good Were theirs-gift of the grain.D. after his death. The familiar lines of Hesiod (O. Spirits.' but good and beautiful. ol .dov u& . I know so much. 469 A. 2 When they were perfected. Hesiod calls spirits. symbolised by (1) gold. they were being formed and moulded. etc. 121. Or. spirits.1). . Plutarch 3 observes: ' Hesiod first clearly and definitely set forth four kinds of rational natures. and so proceed in the manner be prescribes ? -By all means. either because they are all-wise (. 'Erpe'er' a&Td\av . The equivalence of the highest Platonic class--the Hesiod's Golden race philosophers-with 2 A hint of this subterranean nurturemay have beentakenfiom Hesiod. three orders of men in the Platonic State. i. then spirits many and good. Before following out these implications. etc. he answered. X. averting ill " ? -Yes. as Plato said ?' It can. 8agUav) good and bad to men. -It is but just. the end of the digression about war. aXT~'7TptwS?es. give out that he who has fallen with honour belongs to the golden race ? -Certainly. a silver. Z'qopos. I think. but had definitely in view the Guardian Spirits 1 of mythology.434 The just deed air THE CLASSICAL and the unjust. a~rai vT rradvra). Kind guardians of man. in moulding them. Rep. Saii. ~'a2atjxva?oz. When the natural qualities of a good of the watch-dog-have guardian-those been corrected or fortified by the discipline of musical and gymnastic education. sent them up into the light. then. at significant connection. mixed gold in the nature of someand these are worthy to rule. Plato was not merely influenced by a desire to avoid the associations of terms in common use (apxtov.130 (of the silverrace): aAA7 e'caq'oo. those ol tuxe Avov. But the distinction does not go by birth: the children of one class may belong by intrinsic worth to another.qes ~'&s &apasa&e~[KaKcot Aeyo. Robed in REVIEW. gods... The youths are to be taught that their nurture and education by us was a dream..' When this passage is taken in conjunction with the etymological equivalence 8a[txoves the SaYf/ovEs. Xvffiot.. and finally men: the demigods are assigned to the class of heroes. eptvtot' o[ 3e Kupovv'es aAiT'rptot. (txep[?Ev. Socrates proceeds (468 E): 'And when any die upon service. (3) iron and bronze. those who watch over human things are spirits. Further. a&'ro'rojl'a?ot. -And ever afterwards we shall think of them as spirits and pay reverence and worship at their sepulchres accordingly. follows Plutarch. to range the earth. their mother.O. besides the gods (0Eo[).' whose business is to support the guardians' authority. 4 On Hesiod O.r?VXOyLKr]V CqrLV) four: (l) gods. called 'guardians' The remainder are to be ' auxiliaries. Givers of wealth-this Theselines are quoted again by Plato in a In the Republic. as in the Cratylus there were in all four orders of beings: Gods. and for their fellows as for brother children of Earth. (2) silver. tev 'ra?s "rea ~rapa t. shall we not. and iron and bronze in those who are to be husbandmen and craftsmen. Hence they must defend their country and take thought for her as for a mother. they will be taught that the reason for the three classes of citizens is that God. Or does he mean to divide all rational into natures (rraa. an iron age. The reason for the choice of it lies in certain far-reaching implications of which Plato was glad to avail himself. men. And we shall hold the same custom when death from old age or any other cause comes to any that have been esteemed good and true men while they lived. Xe says 4: .it'ept aeSov.rat. or because they allot 1 aatgji4wv <6Axaoin its ordinary sense of tutelary genius. tootheir kingly hest.~rpoarrpoTraiot. then heroes.e. is adopted by Plato. -We shall then inquire of the God with what ceremonies and distinctions men of spiritual and godlike nature should be interred. most worthy to rule are to be selected and in a narrower sense. Earth. They walk invisible through every land. Those who depart from life and are guardians of human life. plainly with the Cr'atylus in mind. who by various tests have proved themselves. (2) spirits. in the first place. We have. inference is irresistible that in calling the rulers of Callipolis ' Guardians' (~bvkaKes). silver in others-these are auxiliaries. be shown that there is a certain correspondence between Plato's three orders and Hesiod's five ages. 3 de I)ef.rapa TO . The source of the term seems to have escaped notice. 620 E. Really.D. -And shall we not believe with Hesiod -that when any of this race die " Pure spirits they become. within the earth beneath. and their arms and equipment forged. a'ro'poTra?ot. we may look at another passage in which Hesiod's symbolism of a golden. (3) heroes.' Proclus. The selection is to be justified by a mythical account which Socrates propounds with much hesitation (414 B).). heroes. (4) men? And does he mean that while the divine has no converse with us.oyes.av . I think. throw some light on the symbolism of The Golden Race. (1) GoldellRace(Guardian-spirits). Plato has combined traits borrowed from two of Hesiod's remaining four. become another Platonic myth-the Cave-myth of ' spirits beneficent. GODS. whose insol. the relation of the lower to the earth. chill. of men. even apart from other considerations. In the proemto the Hymns(line 32) we readof 8ayiovas. (4) Heroes. I. The of husbandmen symbolism of the metals guarantees these HESIOD.' 1 who fought at Thebes and Ilion. (4) the present iron race. compared to the Sun. prehistoric: (1) silver race. Four stages can be distinguished: (1) the state of the prisoners in the cave. far from the light of the destination of the three ' prehistoric ' the Sun. the myth of the Cave illustrates the process of education. The Bronze race was given up to insolence and violence. My concern is not with the philosophical or psychological content of this myth. historic: (3) heroes. ranging the earth to Republic vii. Auxiliaries. 2 The extant Orphic poems have little about oadoves. ovpaviovsre tal elvaAiovsKalevvopovs KalxOovlovsKalv1oxOoviovs 7eplfo[?ous. Heroes. ot KafEoyrai 'Hr(eot. if it were not for the dark. 159. Idea of the Good. and craftsmen. and at the stars by night. B. (2) Silver Race. See 3 Rohde. We must leave the further significance of the heroes to be brought out later. and they left the sunlight for the this correspondence. It would hardly be worth while to point out Clutched. 956. connects them with Plato's warrior class. ' But when this race was likewise lapped in subdivided roughly. These results may be tabulated as follows:PLATO. higher subdivision in each case is the As blessed mortals in the underworld Second they rank. we are surprised to read: vorTOVand oparov. then at the objects which cast them. yet have they honours relation of image to reality. Men. The Line has given us a watch o'er mortal life' (oatuxoves IritxfoJvoL. 'the race divine of heroic men who are called half-gods. Guardians. as we saw. GODS (060o). but Death's black hand 1 avopcv oudvoLCL7ticms Kacm. In the subterranean cavern the prisoners are bound by a chain so that they can see . but only with the mythical setting. who become guardian spirits. (2) bronze race. (4) their contemplation of the Sun and perception that he governs all things and is in a sort the cause of all. The silver race and the heroes answer to Plato's auxiliaries. etc. and each of these parts To speak proportionally. These four are: A.Psyche p. The Line is divided first into of Zeus. germs of certain ideas which carry us beyond the mere superficial adoption of the These passages will be found. to symbolism of the metals. Following upon this. The four faculties or activities of the mind are vojrts too. (2) their deliverance and ascent to the outer air. (3) their looking at shadows and reflections. Nameless. and ' Went to the dank.' They become daKapes OVt~'oL v7roxOvLoi-a phrase which might be taken as a precise description of the 'heroes' s of Greek religion-the deified mortals worshipped with chthonian rites. gloomy halls of Death. Craftsmen. CR4TYLUS.D. their devotion to war which in Hesiod is their salient characteristic. 101.p.2 the Silver race. But.THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. Above all is the O. I shall take the four stages in ascending order.-The Prisoners in the Cave. To describe each of his remaining two classes. (5) IronRace. These lines contain the THE CAVE. They slew one another. has already been noted. and the bronze and iron races to his third class. 3 Hesiod does not use ipws in this sense. Spirits. 435 equations.ledge and of the corresponding faculties of ence and atheism bring on them the anger the soul. races after death. Mighty they were. quadruple division of the objects of knowOf <kvXaKEs).Aglaoph.' remarkable lines in which Hesiod describes They inhabit Hades. GODS. except in the case of the heroes. (3) BronzeRace. REPUBL1C. ~8' See Lobeck. f]p(wv Qeiov ?yevos. with the body of the natural man is a sepulchre philosophy the child of wonder. under sun. 4. Cave. points the by the soul. we may infer that Plato means that the puzzles of and a house of bondage. if they have the resurrection from the body of this any educational value. distressed vision of the ' converted' prisoners for safe-keeping (rovrov 3e 7rep[fio\ov eXEtv. . the present race of men are fast bound in misery and iron. 8o(rTr/p[ov v ep~v may be compared with the quesbody is just what it is called-the o&/za of the soul. Paul. the is called Oavt~aToTrot(s (235 B). when he thinks of the prisoners' life. until the soul shall have paid its tions into the nature of the Oavf/Lara put by the ' someone' of Rep. The idea is familiar from Euripides' passage which has many points of contact famous lines. which is a 'rehearsal of death. When we remember the analogy of Iris other passages.' have this in mind when he says 5 apXov~a~ L TOV ' From flesh unto spirit man grows TCves OVTO)S yap . philosophy. the Orphic c&/za Cr/a : from observation of those which have passed TO already (aTroJLzavreveorOoa tzL?\ov ^(Ev Socrates .2 gave it this name chiefly with the idea that the soul is paying penalty for whatever and by the sudden changes from light to darkness 3 has its parallel in the dazzled and offences may require a penalty.20). 387. what shadows are likely to fall on the cave-side. is the sepulchre (cr/jLia) the soul. like S. To him also (etpeiv dialectic) daughter of Thaumas. their 'customary' virtue at length on the use made of this idea in is a 'KtaTypa+ia. ELKova. . The shadows are cast by Oavftzara. but. in the context of the passage above translated from the Cratylus. The idea that the body is a prison is associated.' 'ravropa]ra Xe?t. There can be little doubt that the hieroTo the Orphic physical death is an escape from the bodily tomb-a rising from the phants of the Cave are the Sophists. xii. because the body is the means by images carried across the fire-lit cave was which the soul signifies (cr. There is no need to dwell shows of Being. will echo Achilles' preference: Better the 4 Theaet.. Again. . 983 a 12. KaOadrep r&v 0 a v tz d o v tots [J. note further parallels later. Iva (Rep.anve%) things. Chrys. 1. 3 Dio. cast by models (like marionettes. but gives it a new content. We shall debt .. 250 A.). Arist. . on the sod. suggested by the exhibition of religious on this account also it is rightly called symbols (3e~^aira epd) in torch-lit darkness (r)/za. 233 D foll. a vrarrTLKo 'living' men (Frogs. The body with its senses and Hesiod's bronze race who dwell in Hades lusts hinders the clear perception of truth with his iron race of living men. nothing but shadows on the back wall. In a dead. . A.436 THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. however. but a ' conversion. 155D. of It seems probable that this procession of as it were buried in its present state. applied by Aristophanes' mystics to Sophist lsoXo~oios (239 D). 515 c). eristic and epideictic sophistry.Thus Plato. 515 D. ao rOv Oa v Jaid e ' TTv Even here. But to my thinking the Orphics at the Eleusinian ceremony of initiation. and from many (240 D). he realises that the escape from the prison. which is carried by men behind the prisoners' backs. with any honours in the kingdom of the dead.. The soul must be delivered moral that unregenerate 'life' is really from the body 'as from bonds' (67 D) by death. life of 'serfdom to a landless man' than . Paul. Phaedrus. Eleus. from the phrase oL avo~ WeKpO[ with the Republic (Sophist. 400 c). is not physical death (or not only that preliminary feeling of wonder which Aristotle must first stimulates inquiry. Even the questions put by the priest to the votary at the ~rapdoocns So the (r)gTaL. For some say that the body 516 D). Oav'tLara) which are carried by men between the prisoners' backs and a fire placed nearer the entrance of the cave. 5 Met. Plato conceives of bronze The lowest class in the state-the the process which begins with conversionand iron class of husbandmen and craftsmen the ascent of man from flesh to spiritlive on the level of the prisoners in the as accomplished by a systematic training of Cave. The bbronzerace dwell in the chill and gloomy house of Death. are of use in exciting death. 256. that). Plato adopts the notion. by combining the Phaedo. and has this enclosure.' The ceremony alluded to. The prisoners are employed in 'conjecture' (elKaO'[a) or ' divination '.r)7]Wto 'rrV 'eOeprfKo~ot ar'av . Unlike S. They are immersed in the passing the intelligence. The philosopher who has emerged from the 2 Ael. the semblance of a prison house.1 The ~KnrAvts caused by these exhibitions. . Jackson: it is will not.IKd I of diseas e physic 1 of ugliness gymnastic l technical l educational I 1 hortatory Socratic f'?. as the years went other name could do. ' The figure of the 'someone who compels to answer questions about what things people REVIEW. be questioned. his four functions: by. The transformation of this notion by Plato is an instructive example of his method. Pyth. Socrates if. I think. archery. 76. As the dyers first completely purify the cleanse and use alum upon the garments conceit of knowledge which obstructs true knowledge. 437 are is thinly veiled: plainly enough it is Socrates.K'etc. Ceremonial purification preceded the initiatory rite: physical death was a fuller purification from the muddy vesture of decay.divination. they would be puzzled and inclined to believe that the shadows were more real. is (a7rokv(v). Apollo. . Lysis 4404 E-406A.). and 'compelled them to answer questions' as to the nature of each.2 We may compare the good man. To correct this delusion they are to be forcibly dragged up the steep and rugged ascent of the Cave towards the sunlight. ap.THE CLASSICAL II. Comparealso Birds 1555.) I I of ignorance slsafaociA.522 E. for Plato. they are to dye. so also 'wv Thedeliverance of theprisoners is. as no (o breasts. As a in 3 ~vua?yw'6s M/x. Purification.whether (a) by the unionof opposite sensible qualities in the same physician'sdrugs. with the Socratic ~XEyXos due to Dr.until at last.that he might never bedeceived the washing of cup and platter: it is a about one who he hoped would turn out a purgingof the soul. or (b) by mantic lustraobject.3 purificationwith certain other notions which 'It were well to reckon the length of have an important bearing on our subject. prepare first 'didthat divine man (Saqo'vtos) the souls of those who became lovers of nota matter of ceremonial lustration and of philosophy.etc. medicine.xa\avevT. To the Orphic it is by purification that the deliverance from the bodily tomb is accomplished. We may tabulate the sixth diaeresis of the Sophist as follows: .. vit. If 'someone' were to tell them that they now saw objects which were nearer reality. is notthe Destroyer time we have spent in scouring away the stains that were deeply engrained in our but a7roAAvwv). toproduce a~rop[a Ka (524 A)about the Ka(Ocaports o[ KaOap/zo[). Iambl.aKpTlK lj-KaOapTlK~f I ofthe body I of the soul I internally f I of vice KoAaa'riKcfi externally (. The identification of the Cathartic sophistry analysed in Sophist 226 A if.' Pythagorean's description of the preliminary purification Another passage in the Cratylus4 of the mind prescribed by the rule of his associates the ideas of deliverance and community./os Thefunction of cathartic sophistry is to we became able to receive the master's soul of ignorance and of that false words. in order that they may It is a 'purification in the fullest sense' ( KvpoL'aTT' KaOdpo'eov). which at first distresses their unaccustomed vision.v7f&\ouVros.x The chain is loosed: the prisoners are turned round to look at the light. says Socrates. The interesting point here is the connection of the Socratic kcEyXos with the idea of purification. whole ceremony travestied Washer-away (aro\ovov) and the The (lines 222 where Washer-away he is2 physician. music. worth tions. The Socratic method is to be used in that first 1 The of stage the higher educationwhich is described process andceremonies of purification (~ at Rep. The analysis is of great interest. Orphic is Deliverer mysteries. second stage in the Cave-myth begins The with the first step in genuine education.-The Deliverance and Ascent. absorb the dye indelibly for ever. make men pure (a) in body and 2 It is noting here that inthe Clouds Socrates is represented as initiating a novice in the The purifying god is the (b) in soul. his name combines. Or. . The connection of prophetic with poetical and musical inspiration is obviously close. the features of the original. enthusiasm. /xav/a)-of In this passage. with the idea of purification. sore afflictions such as existed in certain This ' distraction' (e'Kcrk~/s) comes upon houses because of ancient wrath. chiefly as the god of prophecy. whenever ancient rites of hero-worship. things that are-else it would not have come into the earthly animal: but not for every the close association of medicine for the soul is it easy to recover the memory of diseased body with medicine for the guilty them from things on earth. ecstasy. the object of his art is 7o the adTrogv.when in happy company. through dull his tomb in the season of plague and pre. Apollo henceforth is the Washer-away and the Deliverer. 171. 5 the Muse as Our principal authority here is. The interesting point is the association of They are (1) inspired divination (tavr. scribe the magical remedy-the lustration of organs.2 things else are of worth to souls have no Whether Lucian's legend of Toxaris be indwelling lustre in their likenesses on invented or traditional. every human soul has by nature beheld the which more presently. his name signifies } o/Jov (= a) 7roA6crLs rov Irep~ o{pav6v. and finally (4) love (EpUm/o) KaU Jav a). man's though for want know not what this condition means. Beauty. Lex.1 such of them as had then bet a brief vision and of both with divination. rites (KaOaptxol reXera[) divines Kca initiatory ways of delivering men from diseases and the loss of self-possession is the condition which must precede possession by the divine. purifying the soul. of course. the classification of the four species of divine the source of poetic afflatus: but the two kinds of inspiration are hardly distinguished. Upon this third kind our attention must 8. and for those who after But to the Greek it was more familiar. 5 See Roscher. 17 oc Ry 'A-ogkcoiv. (2) ' Mantic' lustration.438 THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. p. . to lay the microbe. sprites of disease. of sufficient discernment aspect the hero is often a healer. and the discoverer of righteousness and to be holy things ([ep&v) which then they saw. the proper medicine is the medicine-man.c6 above.. The hero's tomb more. of the things yonder. of the angry ghost. Music is derived from and .3 of all revelations. When the worship of Apollo superseded the primaeval chthonian cult at Delphi and elsewhere. The prophetess of Earth's oracle becomes the Pythia. Not only in war were the divinity. darkly. The most famous they Now Justice and Temperance and what instance is the {p(os .copies. simple truth : hence he is called in Thessaly *ATrkoXv. of physic with ceremonial purification. when they approach the credible that the hero should appear from behold. 109 7) er Sys Mov(r' eohtoa^. 435a. ourselves attending over was regularly used as a place of divin. (3) Purification by enthusiastic exaltation. 'For as we said. (non-morbid) madness in the Phaedrus (244). in may lawfully be named) which la'ptKt] appears side by side with cathartic In that rapt worship (6pTytao/zev) we were sophistry. (3) it beholds the earthly images possession by the Muses (a715Movergv KIZTOK(DX7 the soul when of unearthly realities. It is hard for soul. 249. The ideas are associated in the memory is sufficient: but these.arpos at Athens. 3 Aristides.tion they see some likeness of the things yonder. and in his benigner are amazed and lose their self-possession. 4 Aesch. 2 Dem. the streets with wine. Here perhaps Apollo is thought of now be concentrated. Three kinds of purification are here distinguished: (1) Physical purgation by medicine. ~rOeos) (2) the madness of initiation (!zarga inspiration. was then visible in its splendour. As diviner.t&crSOaL means search and philosophy. JEum. and few. There we findpurification identified with the placa. To their fall hitherward had the ill-fortune to the primitive mind the sick body and the medicine' be turned by evil conversation to unsick soul alike require 'p^aKa-s in oblivion of the in the magical sense. 488). xix.62.says Odysseus to Demodocus (Od. /ko tTs. it was plainly earth. l Comparealso the analysis of Ka. helper in his direst need. Few indeed remain. as above in the Cratylus.K~l the ideas of madness. Trceo-ri/K) which through purifications and By enthusiasm the soul is lifted out of itself.however.apr-. 2. the incoming divinity assumed the mantic functions. and others following some other ation in general.Zeus. and the harmonious movement of the heavenly bodies. is remarkable.As musician. in whom the power of the diviner. we saw a spectacle of beatific vision and were initiate in the most blessed (as it heroes V7TOxOOVtOL <VvaK?S KtCUT orrpeg. KaOpo'Ctos and larp6t/Lavrts' tarpofLavTis8e erri KaC'epatCKoroWs 4 KanToto'tv aA\Otqs 8oofdr(v KaOdportOs. The released prisoners are compelled to look up to the light. Dionysus. to prepare the soul for becoming ~r0eos. Compare with this Themistius' description 4 divine. Stob. Harrison.6 It is plain. in the mysteries the intention was precisely to produce this loss of self-possession. god-possessed. in a blaze of light pure as we also were pure and unencumbered by this tomb which we bear about with us and call a body. abiding in evils through fear of death and disbelief in the good things yonder. E. 28. trampling one another and huddled in a great mire and thick mist. one with the divine. a vision purified to apprehend truth. appearances with which Plato here contrasts the ' unterrifying and serene' manifestations of reality. out into the dazzling sunlight. .2 If we adopt this suggestion.' THE CLASSICAL whole and untouched of all those evils that were awaiting us in the days to come: whole. joining in the rapt worship (opyTyadet)of companies of men holy and pure (oo-iois Kal delivered (ZAXv~0pos aE70os) KOC goes to and And there he looks down upon the uninitiated and impure multitude of the living Kaapots). ad Aristoph. likewise. Prolegomena the to of divine madness-Eros. sacred sounds and holy visions (aKovorLaT(v [epil)v Kal ~avTao'fJ'aTov ayt[anv) . 249 We must now return to the fourth kind 2 See Miss J.Plut. no doubt. 7rpodyVevo'st. 3 Schol. 439 we were initiate unto the of those initiatory rites (reXcEac) which 'in fact. :KTWTTOVrTat (~ado'lzaTa) whereby REVIEW. and thereafter a wondrous light5 of the state of awe and terrified wonder produced in the initiated novice by the 'mystical appearances ' (daor/la-a above) in the ceremonies at Eleusis. and pure regions and meadows receive him. unterrifying and serene were the mystical appearances full revelation. . resemble death' (rekEvTav): ' At first wanderings and toilsome circuits and awful and mysterious passages through a darkness. and clear. Eros and Heros. next he will see 'snakes and countless monsters terrible to behold ' in the darkness (line 273). We are to understand that education in the highest sense is an initiation.' 1 ' They are amazed and lose their selfpossession'. and the whole proceeding would already be linked in his mind with the idea of purifipossible cation. shuddering and quaking and sweat and amazement (Oad!os). Murray. In these 8pt6leva may we not see the origin of the tragic 3pata.' Aristophanes gives a parallel account. in the Frogs. Trans.3 it seems With this in mind we may return for a moment to the Cave. There is evidence that the Lesser Mysteries at Agrae included dramatic representations of the Rape of Pherephatta and the sufferings of the wandering Demeter. an exaltation of man's spirit to unity with the TWv (rov a~uv~rOV tuvTov aKaoap~ov\xXov).. and among these he who is now fully initiate and has become free and is fro with a crown upon his head. and dragged up the steep ascent of the Cave. And. 845. there may be some reference to the 'purifying' effect of the mystical Passion-play. 1 Phaedrus. and of the Passion of DionysusZagreus. 4 Them. then before the actual accomplishment (IXkos) all the forms of terror. yLyvovTra. What is more important is the meaning of the symbolism. Ka( that when Aristotle associates Kadapo'tS with Tragedy. to the 'loosening of the prisoners' bonds and the healing of their unwisdom' (515 c). Flor. a death into life. The Cratylus Study of Greek Religion. with solemn voices and dancKal OVKe' aOVTWV ings. I think. it involves deliverance from the prison of the senses. 120. being fast bound as a shellfish to his shell. These are the initiate. 5 The ab?y@ of KaOapd Phaedr. and a light about your eyes Most beautiful -like this--and myrtle groves And joyous throngs of women and of men And clapping of glad hands . E. who are the worshippers at Limnae before the procession to Eleusis). that in the Cavemyth the ceremonies of initiation are in Plato's mind and suggest the imagery. 6 Frogs.250 c. 7rep~~vXrs ap. as well as in name. and the explanation of the connection between Tragedy and the religion of Dionysus . then the mire with its wallowing sinners: 'Then you will find a breath about your ears Of music. The ancient reader of the Poetics would himself have witnessed the spectacle and experienced the emotions of pity and terror which it excited. and further remember that these Lesser Mysteries were related to the Greater Mysteries at Eleusis as 7rpoKadaptrLs This very word ~KTrX/is is used meets him. is told that he will come first to an enormous lake (tenanted by the Frogs. 137-158. who become ' blessed mortals in the underworld' (tzaKapes Ovri'ol v7rox0ovLto). will help us here.' ' He is the channel of all divination and priest-craft and of all that concerns sacrifices and initiations and charms and all divination and magic (Tyo. . neither mortal nor immortal.reta). 407 E Eip4/zrs).--Oeopa and evoaqzovCa. and divine. They are all.' Plato's silver race do not rise above this second stage of education. between the two. his upper. and through mathematical training to dialectic-to Oecopi'a. the heroes are found in the Attic tongue under the name of rhetots and questioners forms the soul may pass into the great ocean of the Beautiful itself. ' These spirits are many and of many sorts.from Poros his craft. or else that they were eloquent rhetors and dialectical. From Penia he has his ' neediness' (~v8Eta). How do you mean ? Socrates.' To repeat E[peLv. (1) cpcos. Hermogenes. So they are led on to the study of number. but a Desire of Immortality. is wocr[s. III. Here too the old Attic tongue will help you to an understanding and show you that the word is but slightly varied from the name of that Eros whence the heroes sprang. with a capacity for which means ' speaking. Such is the meaning with which Plato invests the phrases which Hesiod applies to his silver race. from et7p~tv (dialectic). (2) dtpe.v ~p^Tav. After the passage translated at the beginning of this essay follows the derivation of hero. who is A6yos or the brother of Aoyos. Either this is what is meant by heroes. The method will produce its familiar resulta7rop[a (524 A). ' a race divine of heroic men. D). or of a mortal for a goddess. under the conduct of Eros. is trans- (cptorrTi/KO/).440 THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. That is not at all difficult to perceive. which it has in common with the messengers of the gods. pure. but like all that is spiritual (8aq~Lovi). Iris (Theaet. Well ? Socrates. then. which again is an idea borrowed by Plato from orgiastic religion and adapted to his own philosophic purposes. then these objects themselves.' The man who is wise in these things is spiritual (Saqxo&woS). The best commentary is the discourse of Diotima in the Symposium (201 Eros is not a god. Temperance. The education which is to 'draw them towards Reality' begins with an application of the Socratic method to the problems -called ' the comin the Philebus--of 'childish bination of opposite sensible qualities in one object. too. Their characteristic virtue. ' interand transmitting to the preting (eplx~lvevov) gods what comes from men and to men what comes from the gods. a wondrous magician and wizard and sophist' (yors KOaL ?>aplzaKfes lie is neither wise nor unKal (ro>crTrS). the impulse in the mortal which reaches out to the divine. being falsehood. the novices train their unaccustomed sight for 'looking upward' by viewing. and consider how he governs the seasons and the years and all things visible. race become a class of rhetors and sophists. The conjunction of the alternative derivations. so that the heroic parently significant. Then Diotima comes to 'the full revelation ' and shows how from a love of beautiful We must now say something of identification with the divine. You know that the heroes are demigods. but LX&ocro<os. Their's is the region of 36~a intermediate between y7cris and Their attitude of mind ayvoma (Rep. either of a god for a mortal woman. shadows and reflections in water of men and other objects.' His mixed nature is derived from his parents. Lastly they contemplate the Sun himself as he is in his own place. a lover of wisdom (4(Xoroqo$v)all his life long. Poros and Penia. go on to higher regions. is defined as 'the perpetual preservation of a right and lawful opinion about what is. untainted. and to his heroes. avopwv ~poov OGeov yero. the preliminary purification by music and gymnastic. to be feared' (430 B). tlermogenes. the offspring of the love. and one of them is Eros. human half truth. The two meanings meet in q~korroqo[a. his lower. The son of Hermes is twi-natured Pan. courage. or is not. He is 'one that desires and purveys wisdom. goat nature.. But what may hero be Socrates. . then. The name is only slightly disguised and betrays its origin from Eros. His function is to act as intermediary between gods and men. Outside the Cave. first. Hermogenes. wise. and the moon and stars in the heavens by night. ' between mortal and immortal' (202 E). and so achieve the Friendship of God and such immortality as the mortal may attain (212 A). But the philosophers. Eros as Ip//jve~tov explains the second derivation of hero. 476). and is in a sort the cause of all. for them is loyal subordination to the rulers (see 432 A). 155 D) and Hermes (Crat. in the light of heaven. *308) TOVTOV (TOV TJ\iov) (tCTreCnyf TOHS oAois are both adopted by the philosophers from O 8/. on 250 B. Thompson Phaedr. 641). Lobeck (Aglaoph. so is the life ss crXatv 'OpE?vs.' 6 And our hearts we have guarded clean The word ~rdXAVcrs recalls the magnificent Toward kinsman and stranger !' 2 'Soul uniallegory of the Phaedr'us.. when it is perfect and winged. outside the oupavosq contemplate. So the mystic song ends. I have borne me clean meet with some solid thing which it takes From man's vile birth and coffined clay. while here below it is night' (Pindar. which is ' the cause of knowledge and of truth' (508 E). KE?VOL TCL'aTgLa which only Reason. p. 30. 2 Frogs 455 trans. 403 B). vi. is a bacchos : the god led by the winged car of Zeus who ' orders has entered into him. frag. v. called accord. At any rate we hear of the Sun as 9vAa~ in This is the life of the gods (6?o0). passing into various forms. religion 8.THE CLASSICAL The stars by night are evidently the ideas. is 7Phaedr. Pint. ' A sun they know which is not ours. 3 Eurip. can 3pxVTwS fipOT'V or T?XAI ?Kel IaoX(c) es aoov roZose yap pz6vozs There.5 In respect of his musical art he is a-7ro\Xv The meaning is n o. 441 Solem Liberum esse manifeste pronuntiat Orpheus: ALOVOV AOi ^. rived from &o-Ooar--' search.). which rises to the ment of Sophocles 4: region above the firmament (v6repovpdvtos). it voyages I am Set Free and named by name ' aloft and governs the whole Kosmos. and with them is adopted their KaCf uvXa. and cares for all things. divine life may have been the blessed visions that are within the firmasymbolised by the Sun is suggested by a ment. that in the beatific vision man avda''ret?v achieves union with God. Crat. it is called an animal. The soul which is not wholly imThe initiate who has reached o%crLs. That the Sun was a symbol of peculiar significance to the initiate is well known from many passages in literature. Plat. 'If then Reason From Macrobins (Sat. called poles) and in the harmony of song. ours is the joy of light harmony. without danger: gether (o~juorokxv) alike among gods and For we thine Elect have been. 247. and anotherof Hermes.familiar as the all-seeing hort man to keep to a man's thoughts contained'an altar of the Muses. not ours the stars The they see' (Vergil. the Sun is the supreme Idea of the Good.&^.) ' Upon them shines the might of the Sun.uov (where a=oktov). ' For ours is the sunshine bright. p.' ' philosophy. but A Bacchos of the mailed Priests. 95.' Thejuxtaposition significant. the soul which loses its wings falls till it Robed in pure white. 01. both in regard to the sky (the so~ro6X~/~s. Reason beholds (Oeopei)the vision of Truth. 333) we learn of a Helios-Dionysus: life. who cites Orpheus and the jBacchica of Eumolpos to support the equivalence. Cret.vXov)and ranges throughout all heaven that they have becomeone with their god: (:reprroXek).os (Schol. among men. But it is the immortal soul. 498) compares Diodorus (I. We ought not to obey those who ex1 Helios is. 3aK~Xos 4 ap. vii. 11).iovcro EmKXXrO'~V KaXeoVo't. is divine as compared with man. the mortal can follow in that majestic procession supreme consecration. avenger of wrong (cf. also Clouds 225. 2 thatthe Academy . de and.cumbered by the flesh. Cf.' When it is compact with And exiled from my lips alway an earthen body. So. can T. 1 ^. Murray: . i. of course.405a. i.7 The words &eopewrand ev$af/wv so frean Orphic verse quoted by Proclus (in Tim. and as the a&ybs 0e?s (Pind. Nfv eorTt. Muse and Music are next deThy secrets our eyes have seen. 58) who being pure.uv. Bockh). the soul's pilot. 8 Lobeck. causing all things to move toAll pure. quently used in this passage and its context v.' mortal.ots yap 41.' and it can behold That the higher. US rpoAXfitoL the place of formless and invisible substance. (Osiris)-IHelios-Dionysus--Phanes. 6 We knowfrom Pans. trans. This god presides over all Yea. Aen. mystics in the Frogs end their series of songs with the words: REVIEW. Murray: &wv KoVp~owY Ai?\6rvdoOets.glaoph. We can now see the significance of Socrates' last derivation of Apollo. 4Atos ~cal <47yyos iXap6v dae7'r. ad loc. unencomparison of these passages with the frag. poet. and 3 Touch of all meat where life hath been.K av{TOV ?T?v^? Kes?vce se 7racriv significance. tots 85 c[XXoiriv TTOVeT KaKca. for a dwelling. 5 Crat. The Chorus of versally cares for the soulless (emremrar To~ initiates in the Cretans of Euripides claim ag.LtOVpyOS. p. of reason divine as compared with human 18. purify: 6 a&ygiei~v a?tv va~uaye. Frag. being altogether purified through virtue. the essence being carried upwards. Orac. in Pindar's words. 6 defac. Let us then cling to the truth and admit. that Plato'sintentionis merelyderisive. This is the ' dry soul' which Heraclitus says is best. whose rites.& ~vw. after long time. like vapours'. and become watchers (kvAaces) and punishers of unrighteous deeds. the Caveof Trophonios of in (Plut. whether in anger or with unrighteous partiality. then they attain the fairest and final bliss and ascend 4 from spirits to gods. THE RULE OF THE PHILOSOPHERS. his father is a great understanding({LdvoLa). This separation is accomplished by love of the solar image (T7s 7repi rov &iov through which shines that ?IKOMVO). p. that the body of everything ' follows the prevailing might of Death. Gr. of the Kronos. These words are echoed in a curious passage in Plutarch. they pay the penalty. by nature and divine justice. et Os. participatein divinity': ' but otherscannotmaster but themselves. ed. whereunto every nature yearns diversely after its kind. Seealsothe experiences Timarchus. Socr. sundering the body like the lightning which flies from a cloud: but the soul which is weighted with bodily admixture. d. when the Reason is separated from the sou]. no occasion. for Thence it that alone is from the gods.' 1 For into the company of the Gods it may ' not be that any should come. or ckpovetv) a mortal to those of a (avOp~Trtva mortal. to send the bodies of the good to heaven with their souls. and the Corybants in Phrygia.6 After describing how the 3atJoVe< (souls of the departed) inhabit the hollows in the Moon's face. an image of eternity '. against nature.xxii). the ruler and T qJoLs king of all is ai' ov~v (Ala z1va) aeiraol tons gdrapXet. functions (~qza[). instead of yielding to the desire "c act 'farpieii. whence ol pe. He is son of Oueranos. Compare also de Def. de gen. like a heavy and dank vapour.510 [f]) life.7 0g4is 71 op&xa. is hard to kindle and to convey upwards. of a contemporary Socrates. K. enteragain into mortalbodies. 396: Zeus. But to that better sort the people of Cronos said that they themselves belonged.the sourceof all I cannotagreewith Lobeck(4glaoph. 1903). and countless others in many parts of the world. Compare derivations Zeus. for they are thrust down again to earth and compact with (read (rvJLTrwyvvJ/evot) human bodies.' 1 Aristotle.iii 2. inorbe Lun. 4. Plato is well aware that it will be hard to induce the philosopher who has reached this c7rorreo'a go down again into the Cave to and ' take care of ' (enreAiLoai) his fellows. which is Desired and Beautiful and Divine and Blessed.bv caOapob that vowv. and preservers (C-(o)Tp(S) in war. but we must think that the virtues.' 2 Plutarch.' 5 :He who has been 0eos must descend and become ~vAa~. and they assist at the worship of the highest rites of initiation. who win the highest translation into another region. and from heroes to spirits. Ren. out of water air. wov his name means wbv teaOap^vabwovKala&KpaTov vov. (Forbodies) out of earthcomes water. 3 vit. Whateverview we take of this passage. There is. but we ought so far as possible to achieve immortality (aOavartetv) and do all we can to live according to the highest element in us. Eth.eTepd\o?oL say they acquire . rise from mren to heroes. And yet 'states will never have rest from evils until the philosophers rule in them. and fromspiritsa few. 7 1177b 30. yet to confound earth with heaven is ignorant. 28.xxv-xxvi. and out of air fire is seen . but something living is left. then. But the operative functions of some cease. and titles yet remain. 30. together with in former times the Idaean Dactyli of Crete. x. where after the already quoted(p. comes. and the Trophoniads in Lebadeia. 192. charge (e7rtJe7r6f?vot) of oracles. some later.442 THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. Some win it earlier. the Similarly better souls take their transformation frommeninto heroes. rises upward-not with the body.3 also. has a fine passage on the ascent of man to the divine: 'Many improbable legends are told ' of the translation of mortal bodies 'by those who would deify what is mortal in nature. shaking off all mortal passions.' The condition of the au/zoves is not wholly divine: their reason is not yet comgenerated. and thither it. that hath not loved wisdom and knowledge and departed in perfect purity. If they do these offices ill. Ouranos.Crat. 434 note 3) he continues: passage ' But others hold an analogoustransformation for bodiesand forsouls. see For Plutarch's demonology deIs. It is indeed impious and illiberal altogether to reject the divinity of virtue. and at last. he continues: 'But the Spirits do not always pass their time in the Moon (oV aed 3carp[fovo'rv ?Tr' They come down to earth to take avn).and have a dim and murkylife. the souls.Phil. but precisely when it is delivered and severed from the body and becomes and altogether pure (KaOapov) incorporeal and holy (ayvov). 487E. if as in the mysteries they be perfectly cleansed and consecrated (~e-eov KaOapO'iL KCat o'tto0oO'). and they shine over the sea.it is a most importantcommentary on the vision of Er. 2 Phaedo82r.fromheroesinto spirits. 4 (Zeller. The allegoryis transparent:the wisdom looks upward begetspure reason. 5 Rep. ' The man who is busied with appetites and ambi. xp^/ACC more divine.. but he pletely separated from soul. and say truly. links this class with the fourth. and in all the public of poet. tarpptKO tame kinds of animals. has 0des for qL. and therefore cannot. it implies. oL.The second contains the guardian and kind united and happy.ov who has loved learning and true wisdom has reached such immortality as man may ovres) recalls a passage in the Laws (IV. with this truth in mind. OMCOVOjlKOS. an intelligent animal. the diviner part attaches the head or root of us. trans. according to sort. To mark off the [~aoetkJvs from from earth towards our celestial affinity. led us to avOpwoTrovot(OUf. 487 E ou arise out of the same occurrence.. (e38atfJLov) concerning the blessed life of that age. (8) <o-toTiKd< S. of Reason. 4Aoa. by all fpts alone being raised to the highest class. and so made the generations of man. the god testifying to Atreus. as in the individual. namely Spirits: just as we TIO-TIKOS { now do with flocks of sheep and all the f (4) 4tA-o7ov0 yvly/ao'tiKog. how In the 2haedrus the souls which sink to it had everything in spontaneous abunearth under the encumbrance of mortality dance. or a goat ( (6) -OtrT-KO&. us other av5rpt7rov6. because With these ideas before us. :gLT. the supreme form they throw on the strange myth of the we must believe that God has given it to Politicus.ro-ooso. Reason THE MYTH IN THE Politicus.pyK (OS. has come down to us above all./or them is no escape from evil three of the four species of divine madness. Or{jOTiKO S I V. The mention of ' the people of Cronos ' (o[ 7repi TvO Kp&. It would appear that Cronos of this the measure of their participation in the perceived the truth we have just laid down. 443 tions will become ' utterly mortal'. and private ordinance of house and state to which contains that other /~TllCOS. Archer-Hind. stint. like things . it may be it is divine. seeing we are of no earthly. of a higher sort and a not men. but of heavenly Formerly the sun and the other stars rose growth: since to heaven. reversed this order.Xos. the God out of his ( (9 ) TvpavvtKos love for mankind set over us in that age a higher race than we.\6(ocpos. The first class needs no comment. and must be happy 'A report. *?X(o'TtKS6 case make an ox ruler over oxen. We and makes our whole body upright. It contains but some mortal.!o~we resort to myth.also hear of a reign of Cronos. The statesman has been traced each of us as a guiding genius (23a[tova)down the chain of a long diaeresis which has even that which we say. ranked below the honest craftsman and give the name of Law to the disposition and husbandman.1but we ought. strife of Atreus and Thyestes. the notion of purification runs through that in whatsoever city the ruler is not a god all the three subdivisions. he set up in f (2) /3ao-iXvs TtoXKKO >'vo/os that age as kings and rulers over our cities. 713 c): have. But at the beginning was the birth of our soul. vision of truth: that no human being is capable of a general and absolute control over human life withI. a body. sophist. is to be the guiding genius. he has cherished his divine part and his guardian spirit.THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. most objectionable kind the in the age of Cronos. These legends 1 The very turn of the phrase echoes Rep. In the third contains a true meaning for us even to-day. bringing peace and reverence ing to the four orders 0o[ 3ac[uowes poes and good government and justice without &vOpt7ro'.KOp ruler over goats.-In the same way.-(1) . then. o~q()i6ao'ot ~p~0fLv. the Spirits. being a higher race than they. means to imitate the life which it describes The /zL/~jireKos.' In the state.(3) 7r0ACTLCO'5.-q (5) avmp&d?. but the Trpor?pov KWV Travoroai a ez aucss 7r6Ueis &O vrpOv reason has been forgotten. yezpyiKos ourselves. The Timaeus2 says: ' As to worth while to take account of the light of soul that is within us.o. whence in the in the west and set in the east. and trouble. but beings II.6ocrtKos out becoming full of insolence and injustice. with significant substitution of The Universe. but we are lords over them ( (7) Srfo. rule of featherthe dwells in the summit of our body and raises less bipeds. then. the obey whatever element of immortality is in us. Now this legend the ruler in all his forms. and the reason given is something are classified in nine degrees. and of an earth-born race of men. who with I venture to suggest a grouping of these no less comfort to us than to themselves took nine heads under four classes roughly answercare of us. we do not in their III.. captprKO~ So. 2 90 A. They lived naked and houseless. but a resurrectionfromnthe dead. crowned with garlands and hymning the gods. that the citizens of the ideal state. It opposite intentions. They animal. remembering nothing of their former state.' gathering wisdomfrom enquiry into the distinguishing function of every nature. Birth was a return out of the earth: the dead revived and rising up were called earth-born.(Pol. sleeping on soft grassin temperate seasons. if they used their leisure in philosophy. if filled with meat and drink. 272 A). norwives and children.' Finally. pp.ev diVEfSaKOVTOTI'avT's tJJvr?ievoi rTr . they only discoursedfables (~90oi). Earthgave them fruits spontaneously. The emergence from the underworld obscurity begins where that stage of education ends.bound in the chain of bodily senses andlusts. Hence this reversal of its revolution (avaKvis not due to two gods with KXcrS). 372. The state of innocence. they spent their lives filled with meat and drink. and reverts by its own motion through countless revolutions. We can now interpret the last paragraph of the above summary. 414 D) of the notion.295 this mythin his edition of the tRepublic. If the age of Cronospossessed a Socrates. as legend reports of them. in the other. all came back to life out of the earth. because the world above is the true home of the soul-the imperialpalace whence it came. the City of Pigs. gaining life and renewed immortality from the artificer'. The revolution itself was controlled by the care of God (emrpeAo after their kinds.) it not then theaccount of life in the Golden Age with theimagery of the Cave. ov. wrotethis Dr. frag. and so gathering wisdom. A resurrection.\ia V. vol. To this former order belongs the Age of Cronos with its spontaneous generation of the fruits of earth. what its distinguishing function is. as all their arms and other equipment were forged. ' humanand animal. We think at once of the primitive society described in Rep. Men grew younger instead of older. discoursing fables. that the revolution (Nodoubt Plato realised needed to set that society going was little less then a reversal of the whole order of is fanciful to connect Creation. were really being ' formed and nurtured. this Even notion of living backwards will befound a in curiouslegend preserved by Theopompus. the emergence from the Caveis notonly a birth. ii. We know what is implied by the of spirits. is really the state of the prisoners in the Cave. if this be all.444 THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. while they dreamed they were being educated. compared with which the old life in the kingdom of shadows seems like death. were allotted to a sort of divine shepherds. lost when thesoul died into what we call life: (K yB 'po'J0ev. andanimals. Such a reversal must have been attended by great destruction of life. God himself was theirpresiding shepherd. of whom each was absolute lord over his flock.shepherds hadneither polities. their leisure in ' philosophy. We remember also the sensual paradise offered by religion to the pious.' Only when they are wrought to perfection ('avrEXus ?E?pya(rf/voL does their Mother send them up into the light. (2) But the earth-born may have been better employed. as legend relates. They may have spent.' enquiring of every nature. The opening of the eye of the soul to upper-world reality is the beginning of a new life. their state was not gracious.2 We 2 Plato rarelyinvents the imageryof his myths. abide in the same stay. Were they happier than we of the reign ofZeus ? Yes. ov'/xEvos0e6s). spirits. now reign Thisdescription of the Golden Age isplainly anallegory of the Platonic state of society. attention tohis interestingdiscussionof drawnmy if. We may note first thestrange idea of birth as resurrection out of the earth. Education is recollection of lost knowledge.e:os of Empedocles. The earliest stage of education takes place inside the Cave. have seen what uses Plato makes (Rep. 76.' This will not make a happy state (420 E). the earth-born may have been freed from their chain and turned towards the light by' someone' who 'compelled them to answerquestions concerning the nature of eachof the objects they saw. purely divine. Since I Adam has kindly 1 Like the and <p. Two possibilities are suggested as to the occupation of the earth-born: (1) If. Ir. inculcated by myth. so that there was no fighting or preying of one upon another.1 but in the one case the universe is 'conducted by a divine cause external to itself. This explains the legend about the spontaneous subsistence of mankind. in the earth beneath. asman. thediviner the lower creatures. I Here may pause for comment. it is released. No. but the most marvellous result is the reversal of the course of life itself. where men spend their lives 'in banqueting and drinking. the tdOq of avlomos Hades (363 D). g.and has been touched upon of recent years more especially by :Hirzelinan excursusto his Untersuchungen O G . 'Now this legend contains a true meaning its living creatures likewise show more for us even to-day. of handicrafts. for avaploo'T'a. they had to be rescued by the divine gifts.ation of Caesar's conception of Fortuna (Classical Review. The Roman who opened Polybius' work would find~himself confronted with new ideas of Fortuna in the first four chapters of the first book: the circle of his Roman friends would absorb and disseminate these ideas: and his Greek friend Panaetius. but we ought.). intimate with the leading Romans of his time. F. orphaned of their shepherding spirit. Of the history and meaning of the cult of Fortuna I have said something in my Roman Festivals (pp. the reversal came.' measure of mortal governors. POLYBIUS' CONCEPTION OF Tv'X. The gods who had provincial kingship is the care (~rq. by all region of unlikeness. it is enough to repeat obliterates this memory and is the cause of the words above quoted from the Laws: disorder. of the age of Zeus. and much more will be found in works there cited.ukAeca) human authority under the Highest Spirit ceased society. the Romans. and give the name of Law to the disDuring this reign of Zeus. it implies.C. Then the world the human. as e. educated Roman mind.THE CLASSICAL REVIEW. to its own guidance (274 D). so far as we know. is quite distinct from that of the cult. making it exempt in the age of Cronos. As forgetfulness grows upon it. CLV. gods was withdrawn. a practical man and no professed philosopher. did not do so until they came under Greek influence. it is a Greek rather I. as the world was left appointed births. while the Romans. to trace the history of the same idea at Rome during the period of revolution which came to an end with Caesar. which goes on to describe the present reign of 445 Ignorant of arts. The essence of all of (272 E). that in whatsoever city the ruler is not a god but some mortal. were position of Reason. Earthquakes followed. April 1903). XVII. and the universe turned The myth is then applied to correct the back by its 'destined and innate impulse' foregoing diaeresis. The subject is nonew one. than a Roman idea. The creator perceiving its dissolution them there is no escape from evil and imminent. in so far at least as the Greeks reasoned upon a feeling which is the common property of mankind.-a Greek long resident at Rome. That is the end of all and private ordinance of house and state to obey whatever element of immortality is (273 E). The Greeks discussed this idea in the course of philosophical enquiry. the pilot let go the helm. and later Posidonius and Cicero.' left weak and unguarded (dVXaaKToL). 161 foll. But its corporeal admixture gradually By way of moral. and in all the public from age and death.and the cults ceased to be of any real significance until they were revived by Augustus and used for Imperial purposes. The figure settled down into its course. left it in the hands of a priestly aristocracy.and one whose particular delight it wasto search out in the scientific spirit the causes ofthe stormyand startling events of which he wrote. mankind. lest it 'sink into the infinite trouble. kept the discussion alive for nearly a century. in us. in Horace Od. M. At presentI must confine myself to Polybius himself. CORNFORD. I GO back from the consider. the divine ruler of the age of Cronos from and destruction of life. and men were left to each soul having accomplished all its care for themselves. more suo.' resumes the helm and means to imitate the life which it describes restores it to order. Then the care of the When the earth-born race was exhausted.the Greek speculations about -v'x~ began to penetrate the NO. We may now return to the myth. 'remembering of the true shepherd king surpasses the the instructions of its creator and father. VOL. Hence it is of especial interest to get some idea of the conception of Fortuna held by aman like Polybius in the second century B. and it goes nigh destruction. or only occasionally touches it in poetry. But in the second century B. 35. which from time to time founded new cults of Fortuna under new cult-titles. We ought to have distinguished from their watching.c. of Zeus: seeds and plants. But the idea of Fortuna as a cosmic influence. of fire. 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