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τὰς τελετὰς. “Ritual”: cp. Rep. 365 A λύσεις τε καὶ καθαρμοὶ ἀδικημάτων...ἃς δὴ τελετὰς καλοῦσιν: Phaedrus 244 E (with Thompson's note): Laws 738 C θυσίας τελεταῖς συμμίκτους. That καθαρμοί (and τελεταί) included περιθειώσεις, λουτρά, περιρράνσεις appears from Crat. 405 A. Rohde (Psyche II. 70 n. 3) points out that “diese μάντεις entsprechen in allem Wesentlichen den Zaubern und Medicinmännern der Naturvölker. Wahrsager, Arzt, Zauberer, sind hier noch eine Person.” E.g. Apis in Aesch. Suppl. 260 ff.; cp. Eur. Heracl. 401, Phoen. 1255 ff., and the part played by Empedocles. In Hippocr. de morb. sacr. p. 591 the μάντεις and καθαρταί are witch-doctors, claiming control of the elements, as rain-makers, etc. (καθαρμοὺς προσφέροντες καὶ ἐπαοιδὰς... περικαθαίρων καὶ μαγεύων...τε καὶ θύων σελήνην τε καθαιρήσει καὶ ἥλιον ἀφανιεῖ καὶ χειμῶνα καὶ εὐδίην ποιήσει κτλ.): cp. 197 C n.

τὴν μαγγανείαν πᾶσαν. Geel's correction μαγγανείαν is perhaps slightly preferable, on the ground of Platonic usage, to Badham's μαγείαν. Cp. Laws 908 D ἐξ ὧν μάντεις τε κατασκευάζονται πολλοὶ καὶ περὶ πᾶσαν τὴν μαγγανείαν κεκινημένοι: id. 933 A ἄλλη δὲ (φαρμακεῖα μαγγανείαις τέ τισι καὶ ἐπῳδαῖς καὶ καταδέσεσι λεγομέναις πείθει κτλ. (cp. 933 C): Gorg. 484 A τὰ ἡμέτερα γράμματα καὶ μαγγανεύματα καὶ ἐπῳδάς: also [Dem.] XXV. 79 λαβὼν τὰ φάρμακα καὶ τὰς ἐπῴδας...μαγγανεύει καὶ φενακίζει. Hug objects to γοητείαν, as elsewhere used by Plato in a bad sense. There is, however, no need to suppose that any of these terms are intended here to convey more than a neutral sense; and to represent Μαντινική as a disbeliever in any of the arts of divination or wizardry would be less artistic than pedantic. Moreover, the language used here is supported by the echo it finds in the description of Eros below (203 D ad fin.) as δεινὸς γόης καὶ φαρμακεὺς καὶ σοφιστής. Rep. 364 B, C shows Plato's own low opinion of current μαντική, but Socrates was probably more credulous, see Xen. Mem. I. 1. 9, 4. 15.

θεοῖς πρὸς ἀνθρώπους κτλ. Since the participles can neither be construed with θεοῖς, because of the sense, nor with ἀνθρώπους, because of the case, it is necessary to supply some such supplement as that adopted in the text. Rettig accepts Stallbaum's explanation of the traditional text: “Quum enim dicatur ὁμιλεῖν τινι et διαλέγεσθαί τινι, etiam ὁμιλία καὶ διάλεκτος τινι recte dici potuit. Et quum antea...perspicuitatis caussa usus esset praepositione πρὸς addito casu accusativo, nunc ad legitimam constructionem revertens, neglecta grammatica diligentia, dativum post accusativum recte inferri potuit.” But at this rate one might justify anything in the way of distorted grammar! Hug marks a lacuna after ἀνθρώπους. For the ref. to divine communications in sleep (“the visions of the head upon the bed”), cp. Pind. fr. 131. 3 ff.; Rep. 571 D ff. (with Adam's notes); Rohde, Psyche I. 6 ff.

δαιμόνιος ἀνήρ. Compare the etymological definition (δαίμων=δαήμων) in Crat. 398 C. For Socrates as an example of the δαιμόνιος ἀνήρ, see 219 B.

περὶ τέχνας...βάναυσος. Cp. Theaet. 176 C, Laws 644 A; Arist. Rhet. I. 9. 1367^{a} 31 (ἐλευθέρου σημεῖον) τὸ μηδεμίαν ἐργάζεσθαι βάναυσον τέχνην. The question as to why manual labour is held in contempt is asked in Rep. 590 C, and answered in Rep. 495 D (see Adam's notes ad loc.).

οἱ δαίμονες. Other Platonic passages mentioning these intermediary beings are Rep. 392 A, 427 B, 617 D (with Adam's note), Laws 713 D, 717 B. For later developments see esp. Plutarch (de defect. orac., de Is. et Os., de daem. Socr., etc.). Cp. Rohde, Psyche I. 153.

Πατρὸς δέ...τίνος κτλ. These are genitives of origin. Here we have it tacitly assumed that Phaedrus's statement (178 B), that Eros is unbegotten, is untrue.


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hide References (17 total)
  • Commentary references from this page (17):
    • Plato, Laws, 644a
    • Plato, Laws, 713d
    • Plato, Laws, 738c
    • Plato, Laws, 908d
    • Plato, Republic, 364b
    • Plato, Republic, 365a
    • Plato, Republic, 392a
    • Plato, Republic, 495d
    • Plato, Republic, 571d
    • Plato, Republic, 590c
    • Plato, Cratylus, 398c
    • Plato, Cratylus, 405a
    • Plato, Theaetetus, 176c
    • Plato, Phaedrus, 244e
    • Plato, Symposium, 197c
    • Plato, Symposium, 219b
    • Plato, Gorgias, 484a
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