§156ὀρθῶς.
Correct.
οὐκοῦν ἔστι καὶ οὗτος χρόνος, ὅτε μεταλαμβάνει τοῦ εἶναι καὶ ὅτε ἀπαλλάττεται αὐτοῦ;
Is there not, then, also this time, when it acquires being and when it is released from it?
ἢ πῶς οἷόν τε ἔσται τοτὲ μὲν ἔχειν τὸ αὐτό, τοτὲ δὲ μὴ ἔχειν, ἐὰν μή ποτε καὶ λαμβάνῃ αὐτὸ καὶ ἀφίῃ;
Or how will it be possible to have the same thing at one time and not to have it at another, unless it at some time both acquires and lets it go?
οὐδαμῶς.
By no means.
τὸ δὴ οὐσίας μεταλαμβάνειν ἆρά γε οὐ γίγνεσθαι καλεῖς;
Do you not, then, call the acquiring of being 'becoming'?
ἔγωγε.
I do.
τὸ δὲ ἀπαλλάττεσθαι οὐσίας ἆρα οὐκ ἀπόλλυσθαι;
And the being released from being, do you not call it 'perishing'?
καὶ πάνυ γε.
Quite so.
τὸ ἓν δή, ὡς ἔοικε, λαμβάνον τε καὶ ἀφιὲν οὐσίαν γίγνεταί τε καὶ ἀπόλλυται.
The one, then, as it seems, by acquiring and letting go of being, both becomes and perishes.
ἀνάγκη.
It is necessary.
ἓν δὲ καὶ πολλὰ ὂν καὶ γιγνόμενον καὶ ἀπολλύμενον ἆρʼ οὐχ, ὅταν μὲν γίγνηται ἕν, τὸ πολλὰ εἶναι ἀπόλλυται, ὅταν δὲ πολλά, τὸ ἓν εἶναι ἀπόλλυται;
And since it is both one and many, and becomes and perishes, when it becomes one, is not its being many destroyed, and when it becomes many, is not its being one destroyed?
πάνυ γε.
Quite so.
ἓν δὲ γιγνόμενον καὶ πολλὰ ἆρʼ οὐκ ἀνάγκη διακρίνεσθαί τε καὶ συγκρίνεσθαι;
And in becoming one and many, is it not necessary for it to be separated and combined?
πολλή γε.
Highly necessary.
καὶ μὴν ἀνόμοιόν γε καὶ ὅμοιον ὅταν γίγνηται, ὁμοιοῦσθαί τε καὶ ἀνομοιοῦσθαι;
And surely, when it becomes unlike and like, must it not become like and unlike?
ναί.
Yes.
καὶ ὅταν μεῖζον καὶ ἔλαττον καὶ ἴσον, αὐξάνεσθαί τε καὶ φθίνειν καὶ ἰσοῦσθαι;
And when it becomes greater and smaller and equal, must it not increase and decrease and be equalized?
οὕτως.
That is so.
ὅταν δὲ κινούμενόν τε ἵστηται καὶ ὅταν ἑστὸς ἐπὶ τὸ κινεῖσθαι μεταβάλλῃ, δεῖ δήπου αὐτό γε μηδʼ ἐν ἑνὶ χρόνῳ εἶναι.
But when, being in motion, it comes to rest, and when, being at rest, it changes to being in motion, it must surely itself not be in any time at all.
πῶς δή;
How so?
ἑστός τε πρότερον ὕστερον κινεῖσθαι καὶ πρότερον κινούμενον ὕστερον ἑστάναι, ἄνευ μὲν τοῦ μεταβάλλειν οὐχ οἷόν τε ἔσται ταῦτα πάσχειν.
For that which was previously at rest should afterwards be in motion, and that which was previously in motion should afterwards be at rest, is impossible for it to experience these things without changing.
πῶς γάρ;
Indeed, how could it be?
χρόνος δέ γε οὐδεὶς ἔστιν, ἐν ᾧ τι οἷόν τε ἅμα μήτε κινεῖσθαι μήτε ἑστάναι.
But indeed, there is no time in which something can at once neither be in motion nor be at rest.
οὐ γὰρ οὖν.
Indeed not.
ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ μὴν μεταβάλλει ἄνευ τοῦ μεταβάλλειν.
But on the other hand, neither does it change without changing.
οὐκ εἰκός.
Not likely.
πότʼ οὖν μεταβάλλει;
When, then, does it change?
οὔτε γὰρ ἑστὸς ὂν οὔτε κινούμενον μεταβάλλει, οὔτε ἐν χρόνῳ ὄν.
For neither while it is at rest, nor while it is in motion, does it change, nor while it is in time.
οὐ γὰρ οὖν.
Indeed, that is true.
ἆρʼ οὖν ἔστι τὸ ἄτοπον τοῦτο, ἐν ᾧ τότʼ ἂν εἴη, ὅτε μεταβάλλει;
Is there, then, this strange thing, in which it would be at the very moment when it changes?
τὸ ποῖον δή;
What sort of thing is that?
τὸ ἐξαίφνης.
'The sudden'.
τὸ γὰρ ἐξαίφνης τοιόνδε τι ἔοικε σημαίνειν, ὡς ἐξ ἐκείνου μεταβάλλον εἰς ἑκάτερον.
For 'the sudden' seems to signify something of this sort: that from which a change occurs to either of the two states.
οὐ γὰρ ἔκ γε τοῦ ἑστάναι ἑστῶτος ἔτι μεταβάλλει, οὐδʼ ἐκ τῆς κινήσεως κινουμένης ἔτι μεταβάλλει· ἀλλὰ ἡ ἐξαίφνης αὕτη φύσις ἄτοπός τις ἐγκάθηται μεταξὺ τῆς κινήσεώς τε καὶ στάσεως, ἐν χρόνῳ οὐδενὶ οὖσα, καὶ εἰς ταύτην δὴ καὶ ἐκ ταύτης τό τε κινούμενον μεταβάλλει ἐπὶ τὸ ἑστάναι καὶ τὸ ἑστὸς ἐπὶ τὸ κινεῖσθαι.
For it does not change from rest while rest is still rest, nor from motion while motion is still motion; but this sudden nature is a strange thing nestled between motion and rest, existing in no time at all, and indeed into this and out of this that which is in motion changes to being at rest, and that which is at rest to being in motion.
κινδυνεύει.
It seems likely.
καὶ τὸ ἓν δή, εἴπερ ἕστηκέ τε καὶ κινεῖται, μεταβάλλοι ἂν ἐφʼ ἑκάτερα—μόνως γὰρ ἂν οὕτως ἀμφότερα ποιοῖ—μεταβάλλον δʼ ἐξαίφνης μεταβάλλει, καὶ ὅτε μεταβάλλει, ἐν οὐδενὶ χρόνῳ ἂν εἴη, οὐδὲ κινοῖτʼ ἂν τότε, οὐδʼ ἂν σταίη.
And the one indeed, if it both is at rest and is in motion, would change to either state—for only in this way could it do both—and in changing, it changes suddenly; and when it changes, it would be in no time, and would neither be in motion nor be at rest at that time.
οὐ γάρ.
Indeed not.