§1.7#2Διὸ καὶ εὔλογον ἤδη τό τε πῦρ θερμαίνειν καὶ τὸ ψυχρὸν ψύχειν, καὶ ὅλως τὸ ποιητικὸν ὁμοιοῦν ἑαυτῷ τὸ πάσχον· τό τε γὰρ ποιοῦν καὶ τὸ πάσχον ἐναντία ἐστί, καὶ ἡ γένεσις εἰς τοὐναντίον.
Therefore, it is also reasonable now that fire warms and the cold cools, and in general that the active makes the passive like itself; for the active and the passive are contraries, and generation is into the contrary.
ὥστ᾿ ἀνάγκη τὸ πάσχον εἰς τὸ ποιοῦν μεταβάλλειν· οὕτω γὰρ ἔσται εἰς τοὐναντίον ἡ γένεσις.
So that it is necessary for the passive to change into the active; for in this way generation will be into the contrary.
καὶ κατὰ λόγον δὴ τὸ μὴ ταὐτὰ λέγοντας ἀμφοτέροις ὅμως ἅπτεσθαι τῆς φύσεως.
And it is indeed reasonable that, although they do not say the same things, both nevertheless touch upon nature.
λέγομεν γὰρ πάσχειν ὁτὲ μὲν τὸ ὑποκείμενον (οἷον ὑγιάζεσθαι τὸν ἄνθρωπον καὶ θερμαίνεσθαι καὶ ψύχεσθαι καὶ τἆλλα τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον), ὁτὲ δὲ θερμαίνεσθαι μὲν τὸ ψυχρόν, ὑγιάζεσθαι δὲ τὸ κάμνον·
For we say that being acted upon belongs sometimes to the underlying subject (as, for example, that the human being is made healthy, and is warmed, and is cooled, and other things in the same way), and sometimes that the cold is warmed, and the sick is made healthy; and both are true.
ἀμφότερα δ᾿ ἐστὶν ἀληθῆ (τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ τρόπον καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ποιοῦντος· ὁτὲ μὲν γὰρ τὸν ἄνθρωπόν φαμεν θερμαίνειν, ὁτὲ δὲ τὸ θερμόν· ἔστι μὲν γὰρ ὡς ἡ ὕλη πάσχει, ἔστι δ᾿ ὡς τοὐναντίοι). οἱ μὲν οὖν εἰς ἐκεῖνο βλέψαντες ταὐτόν τι δεῖν ᾠήθησαν τὸ ποιοῦν ἔχειν καὶ τὸ πάσχον, οἱ δ᾿ εἰς θάτερα τοὐναντίον.
(And it is the same way also in the case of the active; for sometimes we say that the human being warms, and sometimes the hot; for in one way the matter is acted upon, and in another way the contrary.) Thus, those who looked to the former thought that the active and the passive must have something identical, while those who looked to the other thought the contrary.
Τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ λόγον ὑποληπτέον εἶναι περὶ τοῦ ποιεῖν καὶ πάσχειν ὅνπερ καὶ περὶ τοῦ κινεῖν καὶ κινεῖσθαι.
And we must assume that the same account holds concerning acting and being acted upon as also concerning moving and being moved.
διχῶς γὰρ λέγεται καὶ τὸ κινοῦν· ἐν ᾧ τε γὰρ ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς κινήσεως, δοκεῖ τοῦτο κινεῖν (ἡ γὰρ ἀρχὴ πρώτη τῶν αἰτίωι), καὶ πάλιν τὸ ἔσχατον πρὸς τὸ κινούμενον καὶ τὴν γένεσιν.
For that which moves is also spoken of in two ways; for that in which the source of movement is seems to move (for the source is the first of the causes), and again the last thing in relation to what is moved and to generation.
ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ περὶ τοῦ ποιοῦντος· καὶ γὰρ τὸν ἰατρόν φαμεν ὑγιάζειν καὶ τὸν οἶνον.
And likewise also concerning the active; for indeed we say that the doctor heals and so does the wine.
τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον κινοῦν οὐδὲν κωλύει ἐν μὲν κινήσει ἀκίνητον εἶναι (ἐν᾿ ἐνίων δὲ καὶ ἀναγκαῖοι), τὸ δ᾿ ἔσχατον ἀεὶ κινεῖν κινούμενον, ἐπὶ δὲ ποιήσεως τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἀπαθές, τὸ δ᾿ ἔσχατον καὶ αὐτὸ πάσχον·
Now, nothing prevents the first mover from being unmoved in movement (and in some cases this is even necessary), while the last always moves being itself moved; but in the case of acting, the first is unaffected, while the last is itself also acted upon.
ὅσα γὰρ μὴ ἔχει τὴν αὐτὴν ὕλην, ποιεῖ ἀπαθῆ ὄντα (οἷον ἡ ἰατρική, αὐτὴ γὰρ ποιοῦσα ὑγίειαν οὐδὲν πάσχει ὑπὸ τοῦ ὑγιαζομένου), τὸ δὲ σιτίον ποιοῦν καὶ αὐτὸ πάσχει τι· ἢ γὰρ θερμαίνεται ἢ ψύχεται ἢ ἄλλο τι πάσχει ἅμα ποιοῦν.
For as many things as do not have the same matter act being themselves unaffected (as, for example, medicine; for while itself producing health, it is in no way acted upon by the patient who is being healed), whereas the food in acting is itself also acted upon in some way; for it is either warmed, or cooled, or affected in some other way at the same time as it acts.
ἔστι δὲ ἡ μὲν ἰατρικὴ ὡς ἀρχή, τὸ δὲ σιτίον τὸ ἔσχατον καὶ ἁπτόμενον.
And medicine is as a source, while food is the last thing and in contact.
Ὅσα μὲν οὖν μὴ ἐν ὕλῃ ἔχει τὴν μορφήν, ταῦτα μὲν ἀπαθῆ τῶν ποιητικῶν, ὅσα δ᾿ ἐν ὕλῃ, παθητικά.
So, as many of the active things as do not have their form in matter are unaffected, while as many as are in matter are passive.
τὴν μὲν γὰρ ὕλην λέγομεν ὁμοίως ὡς εἰπεῖν τὴν αὐτὴν εἶναι τῶν ἀντικειμένων ὁποτερουοῦν, ὥσπερ γένος ὄν, τὸ δὲ δυνάμενον θερμὸν εἶναι παρόντος τοῦ θερμαντικοῦ καὶ πλησιάζοντος ἀνάγκη θερμαίνεσθαι·
For we say that the matter is, so to speak, likewise the same for either of the opposites, being as it were a genus; and that which is potentially hot must be warmed when the warming agent is present and approaches.
διό, καθάπερ εἴρηται, τὰ μὲν τῶν ποιητικῶν ἀπαθῆ τὰ δὲ παθητικά.
Therefore, as has been said, some of the active things are unaffected and others are passive.
καὶ ὥσπερ ἐπὶ κινήσεως, τὸν αὐτὸν ἔχει τρόπον καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ποιητικῶν· ἐκεῖ τε γὰρ τὸ πρώτως κινοῦν ἀκίνητον, καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ποιητικῶν τὸ πρῶτον ποιοῦν ἀπαθές.
And just as in the case of movement, it is the same way also in the case of the active; for as there the primary mover is unmoved, so in the case of the active the first agent is unaffected.
ἔστι δὲ τὸ ποιητικὸν αἴτιον ὡς ὅθεν ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς κινήσεως.
And the active is a cause in the sense of that from which the source of movement [comes].
τὸ δ᾿ οὗ ἕνεκα οὐ ποιητικόν (διὸ ἡ ὑγίεια οὐ ποιητικόν, εἰ μὴ κατὰ μεταφοράν)· καὶ γὰρ τοῦ μὲν ποιοῦντος ὅταν ὑπάρχῃ, γίνεταί τι τὸ πάσχον, τῶν δ᾿ ἕξεων παρουσῶν οὐκέτι γίνεται, ἀλλ᾿ ἔστιν ἤδη· τὰ δ᾿ εἴδη καὶ τὰ τέλη ἕξεις τινές.
But that for the sake of which is not active (therefore health is not active, except metaphorically); for when the active agent is present, the passive becomes something, but when the states are present, it no longer becomes, but already is; and forms and ends are certain states.
ἡ δ᾿ ὕλη ᾗ ὕλη παθητικόν.
But matter qua matter is passive.
τὸ μὲν οὖν πῦρ ἔχι ἐν ὕλῃ τὸ θερμόν· εἰ δέ τι εἴη θερμὸν χωριστόν, τοῦτο οὐδὲν ἂν πάσχοι.
Fire, then, has its heat in matter; but if there were some separate hot thing, this would be acted upon in no way.
τοῦτο μὲν οὖν ἴσως ἀδύνατον εἶναι χωριστόν· εἰ δ᾿ ἐστὶν ἔνια τοιαῦτα, ἐπ᾿ ἐκείνων ἂν εἴη τὸ λεγόμενον ἀληθές.
This, then, is perhaps impossible to be separate; but if there are some such things, what is said would be true of them.
τί μὲν οὖν τὸ ποιεῖν καὶ πάσχειν ἐστὶ καὶ τίσιν ὑπάρχει καὶ διὰ τί καὶ πῶς, διωρίσθω τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον.
What acting and being acted upon are, then, and in what things they are present, and because of what, and how, let it be defined in this way.