[Discussion] On the Gods and the World, Ch. VII

Happy Wednesday to you all, again!

First, a little bit of housekeeping: my copy of Arthur Darby Nock's translation of On the Gods and the World finally arrived in the mail this last week, and I've begun studying it. While I find Murray's translation more generally readable, I appreciate Nock's scholarship—his appears to be a very precise translation. I plan to stick with Murray's translation even into the New Year (when Nock's becomes public domain), though I will be including Nock's notes and any ways in which his translation varies from Murray's and Taylor's. (In fact, I have gone back over the prior six chapters already.)

With that out of the way, let's pick the puzzle-box back up, shall we?

VII. On the Nature of the World and its Eternity.

The Cosmos itself must of necessity be indestructible and uncreated. Indestructible because, suppose it destroyed: the only possibility is to make one better than this or worse or the same or a chaos. If worse, the power which out of the better makes the worse must be bad. If better, the maker who did not make the better at first must be imperfect in power. If the same, there will be no use in making it; if a chaos... it is impious even to hear such a thing suggested. These reasons would suffice to show that the World is also uncreated: for if not destroyed, neither is it created. Everything that is created is subject to destruction. And further, since the Cosmos exists by the goodness of God it follows that God must always be good and the world exist. Just as light coexists with the Sun and with fire, and shadow coexists with a body.

Of the bodies in the Cosmos, some imitate Mind and move in orbits; some imitate Soul and move in a straight line, fire and air upward, earth and water downward. Of those that move in orbits the fixed sphere goes from the east, the Seven from the west. (This is so for various causes, especially lest the creation should be imperfect owing to the rapid circuit of the spheres.*)

The movement being different, the nature of the bodies must also be different; hence the celestial body does not burn or freeze what it touches, or do anything else that pertains to the four elements.†‡

And since the Cosmos is a sphere—the zodiac proves that—and in every sphere "down" means "towards the centre," for the centre is farthest distant from every point, and heavy things fall "down" and fall to the earth <it follows that the Earth is in the centre of the Cosmos.>

All these things are made by the Gods, ordered by Mind, moved by Soul. About the Gods we have spoken already.

* Gilbert Murray notes, "i. e. if the Firmament or Fixed Sphere moved in the same direction as the seven Planets, the speed would become too great. On the circular movement cf. Plot. Enn. ii. 2."

† Murray notes, "The fire of which the heavenly bodies are made is the πέμπτον σῶμα ['pempton soma'], matter, but different from earthly matter." He then references a line from a different section of his book, which reads, "The Gods themselves are said by Plato to be made of fire, and the Stars visibly are so. Though perhaps the heavenly Fire is really not our Fire at all, but a πέμπτον σῶμα, a 'Fifth Body,' seeing that it seems not to burn nor the Stars to be consumed."

‡ Thomas Taylor notes, "For the reason of this, see my Introduction to the Timæus of Plato."

Was that leaf devil the manifestation of a spirit?

Let me excerpt an entry from my diary, dated Mar 2011:

While walking by my house today, there was a little leaf devil swirling in the road. I stepped past it, and it began to follow me, darting forward and back, playfully nipping at my heels. It spent ten minutes or so with me in this manner, all the way down the street: I leading, and it chasing. When I finally reached the end of the way and turned onto a side road to continue my walk, the leaf devil balked for a moment, spun in place, and finally whirled itself apart now that the game was over.

When I see such things with my own eyes, it is very difficult not to believe in magic.

I had completely forgotten about this lovely little incident, but was reminded of it by today's chapter of Sallustius, which speaks of circular motion being the imitation of Mind and linear motion being the imitation of Soul. We think very little of plain, old wind—but, for some reason, when the wind moves in circles, it seems intelligent, as my diary indicates!

So reminded, I thought I might ask if there was intelligence behind it, after all.

I'm Laetitia in the I, a figure of inspiration. The prospective spirit is Conjunctio in the VIII, the figure of forces coming together—and, I might note, a figure of Mercury, lord of intellect. Perfection exists through the translation (resolution by a third party, here Sallustius) of Fortuna Major (of success after long and patient effort) rejoicing in the IX (of philosophy) and in the XII (of blind spots). As a figure of the Sun, it's almost as if He's shedding light on the situation, and I would certainly say that taking ten years to make sense of an experience qualifies as long and patient effort!

The court takes a step back and looks at the bigger picture. At the time, I (Rubeus RW) was full of confusion and turmoil—I was just beginning, then, to take my first steps back into spirituality after harsh treatment at the hands of Christianity and materialism, both. This was soon to end (Cauda Draconis LW), but for the time being I was at a loss about the nature of the world (Amissio IV and J).

Puer in the III and XI seems to be my deity, winking and saying, "see how far I have led you?"