- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:12.25d.1-12.25d.7
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-07
Criticizes Timaeus's book-based historical approach by comparing it to the theoretical branch of medicine, whose practitioners look impressive but are useless in practice.
τῷ δὲ Τιμαίῳ καὶ ἕτερόν τι χωρὶς τῶν προγεγραμμένων συμβέβηκεν· ἀποκαθίσας γὰρ Ἀθήνησι σχεδὸν ἔτη πεντήκοντα καὶ πρὸς τοῖς τῶν προγεγονότων ὑπομνήμασι γενόμενος1 ὑπέλαβε τὰς μεγίστας ἀφορμὰς ἔχειν πρὸς τὴν ἱστορίαν, ἀγνοῶν, ὥς γʼ ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ.
But in the case of Timaeus another thing has happened besides what has been written above. For having settled at Athens for nearly fifty years and having devoted himself to the memoirs of his predecessors, he imagined that he possessed the greatest resources for history, being ignorant, at least as it seems to me.
ἐχούσης γάρ τι παραπλήσιον τῆς ἱστορίας καὶ τῆς ἰατρικῆς διὰ τὸ κατὰ τὰς ὁλοσχερεῖς διαφορὰς ἑκατέραν αὐτῶν ὑπάρχειν τριμερῆ, παραπλησίους εἶναι συμβαίνει καὶ τὰς τῶν ἐπιβαλλομένων ἐπʼ αὐτὰς διαθέσεις·
For since history and medicine have something similar, because each of them is threefold according to its general divisions, it happens that the dispositions of those who apply themselves to them are also similar.
οἷον εὐθέως τῆς ἰατρικῆς, ἑνὸς μὲν μέρους αὐτῆς ὑπάρχοντος λογικοῦ, τοῦ δʼ ἑξῆς διαιτητικοῦ, τοῦ δὲ τρίτου χειρουργικοῦ καὶ φαρμακευτικοῦ, γένους ὁλοσχερῶς. ε μαι τῶι καταψεύδεσθαι τοῦ ἐπιτηδεύματος2 τὸ δὲ λογικόν, ὃ δὴ πλεῖστον ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας ἄρχεται παρὰ τῶν Ἡροφιλείων καὶ Καλλιμαχείων ἐκεῖ προσαγορευομένων, τοῦτο μέρος μέν τι κατέχει τῆς ἰατρικῆς, κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἐπίφασιν καὶ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τοιαύτην ἐφέλκεται φαντασίαν ὥστε δοκεῖν μηδένα τῶν ἄλλων κρατεῖν τοῦ πράγματος·
For example, straightway in medicine, one part of it being theoretical, the next dietetic, and the third surgical and pharmaceutical, in a general way. Indeed, it seems to me a mockery of the profession. The theoretical part, which indeed begins mostly from Alexandria under those called there the followers of Herophilus and Callimachus, occupies some part of medicine, but in its display and promise it attracts such an impression as to make it seem that no one of the others possesses the art.
οὓς ὅταν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἀπαγαγὼν ἄρρωστον ἐγχειρίσῃς,3 τοσοῦτον ἀπέχοντες εὑρίσκονται τῆς χρείας ὅσον [καὶ] οἱ μηδὲν ἀνεγνωκότες ἁπλῶς ἰατρικὸν ὑπόμνημα· οἷς ἤδη τινὲς τῶν ἀρρώστων ἐπιτρέψαντες αὑτοὺς διὰ τὴν ἐν λόγῳ δύναμιν οὐδὲν ἔχοντες δεινὸν τοῖς ὅλοις πολλάκις ἐκινδύνευσαν.
But when you bring them to the truth and hand over a patient to them, they are found to be as far removed from practical utility as those who have never read any medical treatise at all; and already some of the sick, having entrusted themselves to them because of their power of speech, though having nothing dangerous at all, have often run extreme risks.
εἰσὶ γὰρ ἀληθῶς ὅμοιοι τοῖς ἐκ βυβλίου κυβερνῶσιν· ἀλλʼ ὅμως οὗτοι μετὰ φαντασίας ἐπιπορευόμενοι τὰς πόλεις, ἐπειδὰν ἁθροίσωσι τοὺς ὄχλους ἐπʼ ὀνόματος, τοὺς ἐπʼ αὐτῶν τῶν ἔργων ἀληθινὴν πεῖραν δεδωκότας αὑτῶν εἰς τὴν ἐσχάτην ἄγουσιν ἀπορίαν καὶ καταφρόνησιν παρὰ τοῖς ἀκούουσι, τῆς τοῦ λόγου πιθανότητος καταγωνιζομένης4 πολλάκις τὴν ἐπʼ αὐτῶν τῶν ἔργων δοκιμασίαν.
For they are indeed like those who steer from a book; but yet, going about the cities with great display, when they collect crowds in their name, they reduce those who have given real proof of themselves in the actual work to the greatest helplessness and contempt among their hearers, the persuasiveness of their speech often defeating the test of actual practice.
τὸ δὲ τρίτον, τὸ τὴν ἀληθινὴν προσφερόμενον ἕξιν ἐν ἑκάστοις τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων, οὐ μόνον ὑπάρχει σπάνιον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλάκις ὑπὸ τῆς στωμυλίας καὶ τόλμης ἐπισκοτεῖται διὰ τὴν τῶν πολλῶν ἀκρισίαν.
But the third part, which brings true skill in each of the professions, is not only rare, but is also often obscured by loquacity and audacity owing to the lack of judgment in the multitude.
- 12.25d.1ἀποκαθίσας... καὶ... γενόμενος
Participial clauses modifying the main verb ὑπέλαβε (imagined), functioning both temporally ("after having settled... and devoted himself") and causally ("because he had settled... and devoted himself").
- 12.25d.3ε μαι τῶι καταψεύδεσθαι τοῦ ἐπιτηδεύματος
A lacuna in the manuscripts, generally emended to ἔοικέ μοι τὸ καταψεύδεσθαι τοῦ ἐπιτηδεύματος ("it seems to me a mockery/misrepresentation of the profession"). τὸ καταψεύδεσθαι is an articular infinitive taking the genitive τοῦ ἐπιτηδεύματος.
- 12.25d.5οὓς ὅταν... ἐγχειρίσῃς
The relative pronoun οὕς refers to the "theoretical doctors" and serves as the accusative object of the conditional clause ὅταν ἐγχειρίσῃς ("when you hand [the patient] over to them"). It represents a connecting relative usage where the pronoun links the clauses.
- 12.25d.6τῆς τοῦ λόγου πιθανότητος καταγωνιζομένης
Genitive absolute construction. The noun phrase τῆς τοῦ λόγου πιθανότητος ("the persuasiveness of speech") is the subject, and the participle καταγωνιζομένης ("defeating") is the predicate, expressing a causal relationship with the main clause.