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Εἰ ἓν τὸ πᾶν.

οἱ μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς Στοᾶς ἕνα κόσμον ἀπεφήναντο, ὃν δὴ καὶ τὸ πᾶν ἔφασαν εἶναι καὶ τὸ σωματικόν.

Ἐμπεδοκλῆς δὲ κόσμον μὲν ἕνα , οὐ μέντοι τὸ πᾶν εἶναι τὸν κόσμον ἀλλ᾽ ὀλίγον τι τοῦ παντὸς μέρος, τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν ἀργὴν ὕλην.

Πλάτων δὲ τεκμαίρεται τὸ δοκοῦν, ὅτι εἷς ὁ κόσμος καὶ ἓν τὸ πᾶν, ἐκ τριῶν: ἐκ τοῦ μὴ εἶναι τέλειον, ἐὰν μὴ πάντα περιέχῃ : ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ἔσεσθαι ὅμοιον τῷ παραδείγματι, ἐὰν μὴ μονογενὴς ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ἔσεσθαι αὐτὸν ἄφθαρτον, ἐὰν ᾖ τι ἐξωτέρω [p. 277] αὐτοῦ. πρὸς δὴ τὸν Πλάτωνα ῥητέον, ὅτι οὐ τέλειος ὁ κόσμος: οὐδὲ γὰρ πάντα περιέχει ... καὶ γὰρ ὁ ἄνθρωπός ἐστι τέλειος, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ πάντα περιέχει καὶ πολλὰ παραδείγματα ἔστιν, ὥσπερ ἐπ᾽ ἀνδριάντων καὶ οἰκιῶν καὶ ζῳγραφιῶν. πῶς δὲ τέλειος, εἴπερ ἔξωθέν τι αὐτοῦ περιδινεῖσθαι δύναται; ἄφθαρτος δ᾽ οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲ δύναται εἶναι , γενητὸς ὤν.

Μητρόδωρος δέ φησιν ἄτοπον εἶναι ἐν μεγάλῳ πεδίῳ ἕνα στάχυν γενηθῆναι καὶ ἕνα κόσμον ἐν τῷ ἀπείρῳ. ὅτι δ᾽ ἄπειρος κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος, δῆλον ἐκ τοῦ ἄπειρα τὰ αἴτια εἶναι: εἰ γὰρ ὁ μὲν κόσμος πεπερασμένος, ὅτι δ᾽ αἴτια πάντα ἄπειρα, ἐξ ὧν ὅδε ὁ κόσμος γέγονεν, ἀνάγκη ἀπείρους εἶναι. ὅπου γὰρ τὰ πάντα αἴτια, ἐκεῖ καὶ τὰ ἀποτελέσματα αἴτια δ᾽ ἤτοι αἱ ἄτομοι ἢ τὰ στοιχεῖα.

Plutarch. Moralia. Gregorius N. Bernardakis. Leipzig. Teubner. 1893. 5.

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