§1## ΓΑΛΗΝΟΥ ΠΕΡΙ ΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΗΣ ΤΟΥ ΣΩΜΑΤΟΣ ΗΜΩΝ ΒΙΒΛΙΟΝ.
Τίς ἡ ἀρίστη κατασκευὴ τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν;
GALEN'S BOOK ON THE BEST CONSTITUTION OF OUR BODY. What is the best constitution of our body?
ἆρά γε ἡ εὐκρατοτάτη, καθάπερ ἔδοξε πολλοῖς μὲν παλαιῶν ἰατρῶν τε καὶ φιλοσόφων;
Is it indeed the best-tempered one, as it seemed to many of the ancient physicians and philosophers?
ἢ τὴν μὲν ἀρίστην ἀναγκαῖον εὐκρατοτάτην ὑπάρχειν, οὐ μὴν τήν γε εὐκρατοτάτην ἀρίστην ἐξ ἀνάγκης;
Or is it necessary for the best constitution to be the best-tempered, but not indeed necessary for the best-tempered to be the best?
ἡ μὲν γὰρ ἐκ θερμοῦ καὶ ψυχροῦ καὶ ξηροῦ καὶ ὑγροῦ σύμμετρος κρᾶσις ὑγεία τῶν ὁμοιομερῶν ἐστι μελῶν τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν· ἡ δὲ ἐκ τούτων ἁπάντων διάπλασις τοῦ ζώου ἐν θέσει καὶ μεγέθει καὶ σχήματι καὶ ἀριθμῷ τῶν συνθέντων ὑπάρχει.
For the well-proportioned mixture of hot, cold, dry, and wet is the health of the homogeneous parts of our body; but the conformation of the animal from all of these consists in the position, size, shape, and number of the compounding parts.
καὶ δόξειεν ἂν ἐγχωρεῖν τὸ ἐκ τῶν πλείστων μορίων εὐκράτων συγκείμενόν τι σῶμα παρὰ τὸ μέγεθος αὐτῶν ἢ τὸν ἀριθμὸν, ἢ τὴν διάπλασιν, ἢ τὴν πρὸς ἄλληλα σύνταξιν ἡμαρτῆσθαι.
And it might seem possible for a body composed of parts that are for the most part well-tempered to be defective in respect of their size, number, conformation, or mutual arrangement.
πειρατέον οὖν ὑπὲρ ἁπάντων τούτων ἐφεξῆς διελθεῖν ἀρξαμένους ἀπὸ τῶν ὀνομάτων, οἷς ἐξ ἀνάγκης χρώμεθα κατὰ τὸν λόγον, ἐπειδὴ καὶ περὶ τούτων ἐρίζουσί τινες, οἱ μὲν κατασκευὴν ἀρίστην, οἱ δὲ διάθεσιν, οἱ δὲ σχέσιν, οἱ δὲ ἕξιν, ἢ φύσιν σώματος, ἢ ὅπως ἂν ἑκάστῳ δόξειε λέγειν ἀξιοῦντες.
Therefore, we must attempt to go through all of these in order, beginning with the names which we of necessity use in our discourse, since some people dispute about these as well, some claiming to call it the "best constitution," others "disposition," others "relation," others "habit," or "nature of the body," or however it might seem fit for each to speak.
ἐγὼ δὲ τὸ μὲν, ὡς ἄν τῳ παρασταίη, ποιεῖσθαι τὴν ἑρμηνείαν οὐ μέμφομαι· τὸ δ’ ἐγκαλεῖν τοῖς ἑτέροις ὀνόμασιν οὐκ ἐπαινῶ, τὴν πλείστην καὶ μεγίστην φροντίδα τῶν πραγμάτων αὐτῶν, ὑπὲρ ὧν ὁ λόγος ἐστὶ, ἡγούμενος χρῆναι ποιεῖσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ τῶν ὀνομάτων.
But for my part, I do not blame someone making their expression in whatever way it might occur to them; however, I do not praise finding fault with other names, believing that our greatest and chief concern should be directed toward the things themselves which are the subject of our discourse, rather than toward the names.
εἴτ’ οὖν ἀρίστην κατασκευὴν σώματος, εἴτε διάθεσιν, εἴτε ἕξιν, εἴτε σχέσιν, εἴτε φύσιν, εἴθ’ ὁπωσοῦν ἑτέρως ὀνομάζειν ἐθέλοι τις, οὕτω θέμενος, ἐὰν ἀπό τε τῆς ὁμολογουμένης ἐννοίας ἄρξηται, καὶ προϊὼν ἐπὶ τὴν τῆς οὐσίας εὕρεσιν ἐν τάξει τινὶ καὶ μεθόδῳ ποιῆται τὴν ζήτησιν, ἐπαινέσομαι τοῦτον ἐγὼ πολὺ μᾶλλον, ἢ εἰ περὶ ὀνομάτων πάνδεινός τίς μοι φαίνοιτο.
Therefore, whether one wishes to name it the "best constitution of the body," "disposition," "habit," "relation," "nature," or in any other way whatsoever, if, having established this, they begin from an agreed concept, and proceeding to the discovery of its essence, conduct their inquiry with a certain order and method, I shall praise this person much more than if someone should appear to me to be extraordinarily clever about names.
καὶ τοίνυν καὶ ἡμεῖς οὕτως ποιῶμεν ἀπὸ τῆς κοινῆς ἐννοίας ἀρξάμενοι, καὶ ταύτην διορισάμενοι μεθόδῳ προΐωμεν ἐπὶ τὸ συνεχὲς τῆς σκέψεως.
And so let us also do likewise, beginning from the common concept, and having defined this, let us proceed in an orderly method to the continuation of our investigation.