§12καὶ μὴν ὁ ἄθεος δεισιδαιμονίας οὐδαμῆ συναίτιος, ἡ δὲ δεισιδαιμονία τῇ ἀθεότητι καὶ γενέσθαι παρέσχεν ἀρχὴν καὶ γενομένῃ δίδωσιν ἀπολογίαν, οὐκ ἀληθῆ μὲν οὐδὲ καλήν, προφάσεως δέ τινος οὐκ ἄμοιρον οὖσαν.
And indeed, the atheist is in no way a contributor to superstition, but superstition both provided the starting point for atheism to come into being and, once it had arisen, gives it an excuse—not indeed a true or honorable one, yet not lacking some pretext.
οὐ γὰρ ἐν οὐρανῷ τι μεμπτὸν οὐδʼ ἐν ἄστροις οὐδʼ ἐν ὥραις ἢ περιόδοις σελήνης ἢ κινήσεσιν ἡλίου περὶ γῆν,
ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς δημιουργοῖς,
ἢ τροφαῖς ζῴων ἢ καρπῶν γενέσεσι πλημμελὲς καὶ ἄτακτον ἐνιδόντες οὕτως ἀθεότητα τοῦ παντὸς κατέγνωσαν, ἀλλὰ τῆς δεισιδαιμονίας ἔργα καὶ πάθη καταγέλαστα, καὶ ῥήματα καὶ κινήματα καὶ γοητεῖαι καὶ μαγεῖαι καὶ περιδρομαὶ καὶ τυμπανισμοὶ καὶ ἀκάθαρτοι μὲν καθαρμοὶ ῥυπαραὶ δʼ ἁγνεῖαι, βάρβαροι δὲ καὶ παράνομοι πρὸς ἱεροῖς κολασμοὶ καὶ προπηλακισμοί, ταῦτα δίδωσιν ἐνίοις λέγειν ὡς μὴ εἶναι θεοὺς ἄμεινον ἢ εἶναι, τοιαῦτα μὲν δεχομένους τοιούτοις δὲ χαίροντας, οὕτω δʼ ὑβριστάς, οὕτω δὲ μικρολόγους καὶ μικρολόγους
For it was not because they saw anything to complain of in the heavens, or in the stars, or in the seasons, or in the cycles of the moon, or in the movements of the sun around the earth, which are the creators of day and night, or in the nourishment of living things, or in the generation of crops, that they observed something out of tune and disorderly and so condemned the universe of atheism. Rather, it is the ridiculous actions and passions of superstition, its words, gestures, magic spells, sorceries, runnings-about, beatings of drums, impure purifications and filthy cleansings, and barbarian and unlawful punishments and insults at the temples—these are what give some people cause to say that it is better for there to be no gods than for there to be such as receive these things, rejoice in them, and are so insolent and small-minded.
§13οὐκ ἄμεινον οὖν ἦν Γαλάταις ἐκείνοις καὶ Σκύθαις τὸ παράπαν μήτʼ ἔννοιαν ἔχειν θεῶν μήτε φαντασίαν μήθʼ ἱστορίαν ἢ θεοὺς εἶναι νομίζειν χαίροντας ἀνθρώπων σφαττομένων αἵματι καὶ τελεωτάτην θυσίαν καὶ ἱερουργίαν ταύτην νομίζοντας;
Would it not then have been better for those Galatians and Scythians to have absolutely no concept, imagination, or history of gods at all, than to believe in the existence of gods who rejoice in the slaughter and blood of men, and who regard this as the most perfect sacrifice and holy rite?
τί δέ;
And what of the Carthaginians?
Καρχηδονίοις οὐκ ἐλυσιτέλει Κριτίαν λαβοῦσιν ἢ Διαγόραν νομοθέτην ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς μήτε τινὰ δαιμόνων μήτε θεῶν νομίζειν ἢ τοιαῦτα θύειν οἷα τῷ Κρόνῳ ἔθυον;
Would it not have been more profitable for them to have received Critias or Diagoras as their lawgiver from the beginning, and to believe in neither daemons nor gods, rather than to offer such sacrifices as they used to offer to Cronus?
οὐχ ὥσπερ Ἐμπεδοκλῆς φησι τῶν τὰ ζῷα θυόντων καθαπτόμενος
"
μορφὴν δʼ ἀλλάξαντα πατὴρ φίλον υἱὸν ἀείρας
σφάζει ἐπευχόμενος μέγα νήπιος,
"
ἀλλʼ εἰδότες καὶ γιγνώσκοντες αὐτοὶ τὰ αὑτῶν τέκνα καθιέρευον, οἱ δʼ ἄτεκνοι παρὰ τῶν πενήτων ὠνούμενοι παιδία κατέσφαζον καθάπερ ἄρνας ἢ νεοσσούς, παρειστήκει δʼ ἡ μήτηρ ἄτεγκτος καὶ ἀστένακτος.
Not as Empedocles says, when he censures those who sacrifice animals, "And the father, lifting up his own dear son who has changed his form, slaughters him with prayers, great fool that he is, "but knowing and recognizing what they did, they themselves offered up their own children. And those who were childless would buy infants from the poor and slaughter them like lambs or young birds, while the mother stood by, tearless and without a groan.
εἰ δὲ στενάξειεν ἢ δακρύσειεν, ἔδει τῆς τιμῆς στέρεσθαι, τὸ δὲ παιδίον οὐδὲν ἧττον ἐθύετο, κρότου τε κατεπίμπλατο πάντα πρὸ τοῦ ἀγάλματος ἐπαυλούντων καὶ τυμπανιζόντων ἕνεκα τοῦ μὴ γίγνεσθαι τὴν βοὴν τῶν θρήνων ἐξάκουστον.
But if she should groan or weep, she had to lose the price paid, yet the child was sacrificed nonetheless, and the whole area before the statue was filled with the noise of flutes and drums to prevent the sound of wailing from being heard.
εἰ δὲ Τυφῶνές τινες ἢ Γίγαντες ἦρχον ἡμῶν τοὺς θεοὺς ἐκβαλόντες, ποίαις ἂν ἥδοντο θυσίαις ἢ τίνας ἄλλας ἱερουργίας ἀπῄτουν;
If some Typhons or Giants were ruling over us after driving out the gods, what kind of sacrifices would they delight in, or what other holy rites would they demand?
Ἄμηστρις δʼ ἡ Ξέρξου γυνὴ δώδεκα κατώρυξεν ἀνθρώπους ζῶντας ὑπὲρ αὑτῆς τῷ ᾍδῃ, ὃν ὁ Πλάτων φησὶ φιλάνθρωπον ὄντα καὶ σοφὸν καὶ πλούσιον, πειθοῖ καὶ λόγῳ κατέχοντα τὰς ψυχάς, ᾍδην ὠνομάσθαι.
Amestris, the wife of Xerxes, buried twelve men alive on her own behalf to Hades, whom Plato says is called Hades because he is a lover of mankind, wise and wealthy, holding the souls fast by persuasion and reason.
Ξενοφάνης δʼ ὁ φυσικὸς τοὺς Αἰγυπτίους κοπτομένους ἐν ταῖς ἑορταῖς καὶ θρηνοῦντας ὁρῶν ὑπέμνησεν οἰκείως. οὗτοι
φησὶν
εἰ μὲν θεοί εἰσι, μὴ θρηνεῖτε αὐτούς· εἰ δʼ ἄνθρωποι, μὴ θύετε αὐτοῖς. §14ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν οὕτω πολυπλανὲς καὶ πολυπαθὲς νόσημα καὶ μεμιγμένον ἐναντίαις δόξαις καὶ μαχομέναις μᾶλλον ὡς τὸ τῆς δεισιδαιμονίας.
And Xenophanes the natural philosopher, seeing the Egyptians beating their breasts and wailing at their festivals, reminded them appropriately: "These," he said, "if they are gods, do not lament them; but if they are men, do not sacrifice to them." But there is no disease so wandering, so full of passion, and so mixed with opposite and conflicting opinions as that of superstition.
φευκτέον οὖν αὐτὴν ἀσφαλῶς τε καὶ συμφερόντως, οὐχ ὥσπερ οἱ λῃστῶν ἢ θηρίων ἔφοδον ἢ πῦρ ἀπερισκέπτως καὶ ἀλογίστως περιφεύγοντες ἐμπίπτουσιν εἰς ἀνοδίας. βάραθρα καὶ κρημνοὺς ἐχούσας.
We must therefore flee from it safely and profitably, not like those who, escaping recklessly and senselessly from an inroad of robbers or wild beasts, or from a fire, rush into pathless places that contain abysses and precipices.
οὕτω γὰρ ἔνιοι φεύγοντες τὴν δεισιδαιμονίαν ἐμπίπτουσιν εἰς ἀθεότητα τραχεῖαν καὶ ἀντίτυπον, ὑπερπηδήσαντες ἐν μέσῳ κειμένην τὴν εὐσέβειαν.
For in this way, some people, while fleeing from superstition, fall into a harsh and stubborn atheism, bypassing piety which lies in the middle.