§1.3#3Τοῦ μὲν οὖν εἶναι τὴν μὲν ἀπλῆν γένεσιν φθορὰν οὖσάν τινος, τὴν δὲ φθορὰν τὴν ἁπλῆν γένεσιν οὗσάν τινος, εἴρηται τὸ αἴτιον (διὰ γὰρ τὸ τὴν ὕλην διαφέρειν ἢ τῷ οὐσίαν εἶναι ἢ τῷ μή, ἢ τῷ τὴν μὲν μᾶλλον τὴν δὲ μή, ἢ τῷ τὴν μὲν μᾶλλον αἰσθητὴν εἶναι τὴν ὕλην ἐξ ἧς καὶ εἰς ἤν, τὴν δὲ ἧττον εἷναι)·
Thus, the cause of unqualified generation being the destruction of something, and unqualified destruction being the generation of something, has been stated (for it is because the matter differs either by being substance or not, or by one being more so and the other less, or by the matter from which and into which [the change occurs] being more sensible in one case and less in the other).
τοῦ δὲ πὰ μὲν ἁπλῶς γίνεσθαι λέγεσθαι, τὰ δέ τι μόνον, μὴ τῇ ἐξ ἀλλήλων γενέσει, καθ᾿ ὃν εἴπομεν νῦν τρόπον (νῦν μὲν γὰρ τοσοῦτον διώρισται, τί δή ποτε πάσης γενέσεως οὔσης φθορᾶς ἄλλου, καὶ πάσης φθορᾶς οὕσης ἑτέρου τινὸς γενέσεως, οὐχ ὁμοίως ἀποδίδομεν τὸ γίνεσθαι καὶ τὸ φθείρεσθαι τοῖς εἰς ἄλληλα μεταβάλλουσιν. τὸ δ᾿ ὕστερον εἰρημένον οὐ τοῦτο διαπορεῖ ἀλλὰ τί ποτε τὸ μανθάνον μὲν οὐ λέγεται ἀπλῶς γίνεσθαι ἀλλὰ γίνεσθαι ἐπιστῆμον, τὸ δὲ φυόμενον γίνεσθαι), ταῦτα δὲ διώρισται ταῖς κατηγορίαις·
But as to why some things are said to come to be unqualifiedly, and others only to come to be something, not by their generation from one another in the way we have just spoken (for now only so much has been defined: why on earth, since every generation is the destruction of another, and every destruction is the generation of another, we do not attribute coming to be and perishing in like manner to things changing into one another; whereas what was said later does not raise a difficulty about this, but rather why on earth the learner is not said to come to be unqualifiedly but to come to be knowledgeable, whereas that which grows is said to come to be)—these things are defined by the categories.
τὰ μὲν γὰρ τόδε τι σημαίνει, τὰ δὲ τοιόνδε, τὰ δὲ ποσόν·
For some signify a 'this', others a 'such', and others a 'so much'.
ὅσα οὖν μὴ οὐσίαν σημαίνει, οὐ λέγεται ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ τὶ γίνεσθαι.
Therefore, as many as do not signify substance are not said to come to be unqualifiedly, but to come to be something.
οὐ μὴν ἀλλ᾿ ὁμοίως ἐν πᾶσι γένεσις μὲν κατὰ τὰ ἐν τῇ ἑτέρᾳ συστοιχίᾳ λέγεται, οἶον ἐν μὲν οὐσίᾳ ἐὰν πῦρ ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἐὰν γῆ, ἐν δὲ τῷ ποιῷ ἐὰν ἐπιστῆμον ἀλλ᾿ οὐχ ὅταν ἀνεπιστῆμον.
Nevertheless, in all cases alike, generation is said to be according to the things in the other column [of contraries], for example in substance if it is fire but not if it is earth, and in quality if it is knowledgeable but not when it is unknowledgeable.
Περὶ μὲν οὖν τοῦ τὰ μὲν ἁπλῶς γίνεσθαι τὰ δὲ μή, καὶ ὅλως καὶ ἐν ταῖς οὐσίαις αὐταῖς, εἴρηται, καὶ διότι τοῦ γένεσιν εἶναι συνεχῶς αἰτία ὡς ὕλη τὸ ὑποκείμενον, ὅτι μεταβλητικὸν εἰς τἀναντία, καὶ ἔστιν ἡ θατέρου γένεσις ἀεὶ ἐπὶ τῶν οὐσιῶν ἄλλου φθορὰ καὶ ἡ ἄλλου φθορὰ ἄλλου γένεσις.
Concerning, then, some things coming to be unqualifiedly and others not, both in general and in substances themselves, it has been stated; and also why the underlying subject is the cause, as matter, of there being generation continuously, because it is changeable into contraries, and the generation of one is always, in the case of substances, the destruction of another, and the destruction of one the generation of another.
ἀλλὰ μὴν οὐδ᾿ ἀπορῆσαι δεῖ διὰ τί γίνεται ἀεὶ ἀπολλυμένων· ὥσπερ γὰρ καὶ τὸ φθείρεσθαι ἁπλῶς φασίν, ὅταν εἰς ἀναίσθητον ἔλθῃ καὶ τὸ μὴ ὄν, ὁμοίως καὶ γίνεσθαι ἐκ μὴ ὄντος φασίν, ὅταν ἐξ ἀναισθήτου.
But indeed, neither should one be at a loss as to why something is always coming to be while things are perishing; for just as they say that to perish unqualifiedly is when something goes into the imperceptible and non-being, in like manner they say that coming to be is from non-being, when it is from the imperceptible.
εἴτ᾿ οὖν ὄντος τινὸς τοῦ ὑποκειμένου εἴτε μή, γίνεται ἐκ μὴ ὄντος.
Whether, therefore, the underlying subject is something or not, it comes to be from non-being.
ὥστε ὁμοίως καὶ γίνεται ἐκ μὴ ὄντος καὶ φθείρεται εἰς τὸ μὴ ὄν.
So, in like manner, it both comes to be from non-being and perishes into non-being.
εἰκότως οὖν οὐχ ὑπολείπει· ἡ γὰρ γένεσις φθορὰ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος, ἡ δὲ φθορὰ γένεσις τοῦ μὴ ὄντος.
Reasonably, then, it does not fail; for generation is the destruction of non-being, and destruction is the generation of non-being.
Ἀλλὰ τοῦτο τὸ μὴ ὂν ἁπλῶς ἀπορήσειεν ἄν τις πότερον τὸ ἕτερον τῶν ἐναντίων ἐστίν, οἷον γῇ καὶ τὸ βαρὺ μὴ ὄν, πῦρ δὲ καὶ τὸ κοῦφον1 ὄν, ἢ οὔ, ἀλλ᾿ ἔστι καὶ γῆ τὸ ὄν, τὸ δὲ μὴ ὂν ὕλη ἡ τῆς γῆς, καὶ πυρὸς ὡσαύτως.
But concerning this unqualified non-being, one might be at a loss whether it is one of the contraries—for example, earth and the heavy being non-being, while fire and the light are being—or not, but earth too is being, whereas non-being is the matter of earth, and likewise of fire.
καὶ ἆρά γε ἑτέρα ἑκατέρου b ἡ ὕλη, ἢ οὐκ ἂν γίνοιτο ἐξ ἀλλήλων οὐδ᾿ ἐξ ἐναντίων;
And is the matter of each different, b or would they not come to be from one another, nor from contraries?
τούτοις γὰρ ὑπάρχει τἀναντία, πυρί, γῇ, ὕδατι, ἀέρι.
For to these—fire, earth, water, air—the contraries belong.
ἢ ἔστι μὲν ὡς ἡ αὐτή, ἔστι δ᾿ ὡς ἡ ἑτέρα·
Or is it in one way the same, and in another way different?
ὃ μὲν γάρ ποτε ὂν ὑπόκειται τὸ αὐτό, τὸ δ᾿ εἶναι οὐ τὸ αὐτό.
For that which once being underlies is the same, but its being is not the same.
περὶ μὲν οὖν τούτων ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον εἰρήσθω.
Concerning these things, then, let so much be said.