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ιἈ̔̀ρ᾽ οὖν οὐ χρησιμώτερον ἐκεῖνο, οὗ πὰντοτε καὶ διηνεκῶς δεόμεθα καὶ πλείστου, καθάπερ [p. 2] ἐργαλεῖον καὶ ὄργανον, καὶ νὴ Δία φίλος ὁ πάσης ὥρας καὶ παντὸς καιροῦ παρὼν ἕτοιμος; καὶ μὴν τὸ μὲν πῦρ οὐ πάντοτε χρήσιμον, ἔστι δ᾽ ὅτε καὶ βαρυνόμεθα καὶ ἀποσπώμεθα: τοῦ δ᾽ ὕδατος χρεία καὶ χειμῶνος καὶ θέρους καὶ νοσοῦσι καὶ ὑγιαίνουσι, νυκτὸς καὶ μεθ᾽ ἡμέραν καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὅτε ἄνθρωπος οὐ δεῖται: ἀμέλει τοὺς ἀποθανόντας ‘ἀλίβαντας’ καλοῦσιν ὡς ἐνδεεῖς λιβάδος τουτέστιν ὑγρότητος, καὶ παρὰ τοῦτο τοὺς στερουμένους τοῦ ζῆν. καὶ ἄνευ μὲν πυρὸς ἦν πολλά, ὕδατος δ᾽ οὐδέποτ᾽ ἄνθρωπος. ἔτι δὲ τὸ ἐξ ἀρχῆς καὶ ἅμα τῇ πρώτῃ καταβολῇ τῶν ἀνθρώπων χρησιμώτερον τοῦ ὕστερον εὑρεθέντος: δῆλον γὰρ ὡς τὸ μὲν ὅντως ἀναγκαῖον ἡ φύσις ἔδωκε: τὸ δὲ περιουσίᾳ τῆς χρήσεως τέχνη καὶ μηχανή τις εὗρεν. ὕδωρ μὲν οὖν οὐκ ἔστιν εἰπεῖν ὅτ᾽ οὐκ ἦν ἀνθρώποις οὐδέ τις εὑρετὴς λέγεται θεῶν ἢ ἡρώων σχεδὸν γὰρ γενομένων εὐθὺς ὑπῆρχε καὶ τὸ γεγενῆσθαι παρεῖχεν. ἡ δὲ πυρὸς χρῆσις ἐχθές φασι καὶ πρῴην ὑπὸ Προμηθέως : :' βίος πυρός, οὐκ ἄνευ δ᾽ ὕδατος ἦν. καὶ τὸ μὲν πλάσμα τοῦτο μὴ εἶναι ποιητικὸν ἀποδείκνυσιν ὁ καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς βίος: ἔστι γὰρ ἀνθρώπων γένη τινὰ χωρὶς πυρὸς ποιούμενα τὴν δίαιταν, ἄοικα καὶ ἀνέστια καὶ [p. 3] ὑπαίθρια: καὶ Διογένης δ᾽ ὁ κύων ἣκιστα προσεχρῆτο πυρί, ὥστε καὶ πολύποδα καταπιὼν ὠμόν ‘οὕτως ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν’ εἶπεν ‘ὦ ἄνδρες, παραβάλλομαι.’ χωρὶς δ᾽ ὕδατος οὔτε καλόν τις ἐνόμισε ζῆν οὔτε δυνατόν.
Plutarch. Moralia. Gregorius N. Bernardakis. Leipzig. Teubner. 1895. 6.
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