POEMANDRES. XII. 85 



the water, the terrestrial the earth, and those aloft the 

 air; but the Man makes use of all these: earth, water, 

 air, fire. He beholds also heaven, and he touches this also 

 with his sense. But The God is around all and throughout 

 all; for He is Energy and also Power, and it is nothing 

 difficult to understand The God, O Child ! 



21. But if thou wishest also to contemplate (a) Him, 

 behold the order of the World and the fair symmetry (b) 

 of this order, behold the Necessity of things apparent, the 

 Providence of those having been generated (c) and are 

 generate, behold the Matter being very full of life, The 

 so great God moved along with all Good, and beautiful 

 Gods, and Demons, and Men. 



Tat. But these, O Father ! are altogether Energies ? 



Hermes. If then they are altogether Energies, Child ! 

 by whom then are they energized unless by God? Or art 

 thou ignorant that just as parts of the World (d) are 

 Heaven and Earth and Water and Air, the same way parts 

 of God, are Life and Immortality, Energy, and Spirit, and 

 Necessity, and Providence, and Nature, and Soul, and 

 Mind, and the permanence of all these, that called Good? 

 and there is not anything beside of things generate or 

 those having been generated where there is not The God. 



22. Tat. In the Matter then, O Father? 



Hermes. Matter, O Son ! is apart from God, 1 that to it 

 thou mayest set apart a peculiar place. But what, being 

 but a Mass (e), dost thou think it to be, not being ener- 

 gized? But if it be energized, by whom is it energized? 

 for these energies we have said to be parts of The God. 

 By whom then are all the animals vivified? By whom are 

 things immortal made immortal ? By whom are unstable 

 things changed? But whether thou sayest Matter, or 

 Body, or Essence, know that these same are energies of 



(a) QtupwoLi. (6) svzoafttotv. (c) ysyovoruv. 



(d) rot/ xoa/aov (Atp*. (e) oapov. 



1 The doctrine of Plato about Matter is enunciated, Timoeas, 30. 

 See post, Part II., Excerpts from Stobeeus (Physica, 319 ; Meineke, 

 i. 84). 



