§12.10#2Ἀναξαγόρας δὲ ὡς κινοῦν τὸ ἀγαθὸν ἀρχήν· ὁ γὰρ νοῦς κινεῖ.
Anaxagoras makes the good a principle as a mover; for intellect moves.
ἀλλὰ κινεῖ ἕνεκά τινος, ὥστε ἕτερον, πλὴν ὡς ἡμεῖς λέγομεν· ἡ γὰρ ἰατρική ἐστί πως ἡ ὑγίεια.
But it moves for the sake of something, so that the end is different, except in the way we say; for medicine is in a sense health.
ἄτοπον δὲ καὶ τὸ ἐναντίον μὴ ποιῆσαι τῷ ἀγαθῷ καὶ τῷ νῷ.
It is also absurd not to make a contrary to the good and to intellect.
πάντες δʼ οἱ τἀναντία λέγοντες οὐ χρῶνται τοῖς ἐναντίοις, ἐὰν μὴ ῥυθμίσῃ τις.
And all who speak of contraries do not make use of the contraries, unless someone organizes them.
καὶ διὰ τί τὰ μὲν φθαρτὰ τὰ δʼ ἄφθαρτα, οὐδεὶς λέγει· πάντα γὰρ τὰ ὄντα ποιοῦσιν ἐκ τῶν αὐτῶν ἀρχῶν.
And why some things are perishable and others imperishable, no one says; for they make all existing things out of the same principles.
ἔτι οἱ μὲν ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος ποιοῦσι τὰ ὄντα· οἱ δʼ ἵνα μὴ τοῦτο ἀναγκασθῶσιν, ἓν πάντα ποιοῦσιν. —ἔτι διὰ τί ἀεὶ ἔσται γένεσις καὶ τί αἴτιον γενέσεως, οὐδεὶς λέγει.
Further, some make existing things out of non-existence, while others, in order not to be forced to do this, make all things one.—Further, why there will always be generation and what the cause of generation is, no one says.
καὶ τοῖς δύο ἀρχὰς ποιοῦσιν ἄλλην ἀνάγκη ἀρχὴν κυριωτέραν εἶναι, καὶ τοῖς τὰ εἴδη ἔτι ἄλλη ἀρχὴ κυριωτέρα·
And for those who make two principles, there must be another, more dominant principle; and for those who make the forms, there is still another, more dominant principle.
διὰ τί γὰρ μετέσχεν ἢ μετέχει;
For why did they participate, or why do they participate?
καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἄλλοις ἀνάγκη τῇ σοφίᾳ καὶ τῇ τιμιωτάτῃ ἐπιστήμῃ εἶναί τι ἐναντίον, ἡμῖν δʼ οὔ.
And for the others, there must be something contrary to wisdom, that is, to the most honorable science; but for us, there is not.
οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἐναντίον τῷ πρώτῳ οὐδέν· πάντα γὰρ τὰ ἐναντία ὕλην ἔχει, καὶ δυνάμει ταῦτα ἔστιν· ἡ δὲ ἐναντία ἄγνοια εἰς τὸ ἐναντίον, τῷ δὲ πρώτῳ ἐναντίον οὐδέν.
For there is nothing contrary to the first principle; for all contraries have matter, and these exist potentially; and the contrary ignorance leads to the contrary, but to the first principle nothing is contrary.
εἴ τε μὴ ἔσται παρὰ τὰ αἰσθητὰ ἄλλα, οὐκ ἔσται ἀρχὴ καὶ τάξις καὶ γένεσις καὶ τὰ οὐράνια, ἀλλʼ ἀεὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἀρχή, ὥσπερ τοῖς θεολόγοις καὶ τοῖς φυσικοῖς πᾶσιν.
And if there are to be no other things besides sensible things, there will be no principle, no order, no generation, and no heavenly bodies, but always a principle of a principle, as with all the theologians and natural philosophers.
εἰ δʼ ἔσται τὰ εἴδη· ἢ οἱ ἀριθμοί, οὐδενὸς αἴτια· εἰ δὲ μή, οὔτι κινήσεώς γε.
But if the forms or numbers are to exist, they are causes of nothing; or if they are, at least not of movement.
ἔτι πῶς ἔσται ἐξ ἀμεγεθῶν μέγεθος καὶ συνεχές;
Further, how can magnitude and what is continuous come to be from things without magnitude?
ὁ γὰρ ἀριθμὸς οὐ ποιήσει συνεχές, οὔτε ὡς κινοῦν οὔτε ὡς εἶδος.
For number will not make what is continuous, either as a mover or as form.
ἀλλὰ μὴν οὐδέν γʼ ἔσται τῶν ἐναντίων ὅπερ καὶ ποιητικὸν καὶ κινητικόν; ἐνδέχοιτο γὰρ ἂν μὴ εἶναι.
But indeed, none of the contraries will be both productive and motive; for it would be possible for it not to exist.
ἀλλὰ μὴν ὕστερόν γε τὸ ποιεῖν δυνάμεως.
And yet, acting is posterior to potency.
οὐκ ἄρα ἀΐδια τὰ ὄντα.
Therefore, existing things are not eternal.
ἀλλʼ ἔστιν· ἀναιρετέον ἄρα τούτων τι.
But they are; therefore, one of these assertions must be rejected.
τοῦτο δʼ εἴρηται πῶς.
And how this is solved has been said.
ἔτι τίνι οἱ ἀριθμοὶ ἓν ἢ ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ τὸ σῶμα καὶ ὅλως τὸ εἶδος καὶ τὸ πρᾶγμα, οὐδὲν λέγει οὐδείς· οὐδʼ ἐνδέχεται εἰπεῖν, ἐὰν μὴ ὡς ἡμεῖς εἴπῃ, ὡς τὸ κινοῦν ποιεῖ.
Further, by what virtue numbers are one, or soul and body, and in general form and the thing, no one says anything; nor is it possible to say, unless one speaks as we do, that the mover makes them so.
οἱ δὲ λέγοντες τὸν ἀριθμὸν πρῶτον τὸν μαθηματικὸν καὶ οὕτως ἀεὶ ἄλλην ἐχομένην οὐσίαν καὶ ἀρχὰς ἑκάστης ἄλλας, ἐπεισοδιώδη τὴν τοῦ παντὸς οὐσίαν ποιοῦσιν (οὐδὲν γὰρ ἡ ἑτέρα τῇ ἑτέρᾳ συμβάλλεται οὖσα ἢ μὴ οὖσα) καὶ ἀρχὰς πολλάς·
But those who say that mathematical number is first, and thus always have another succeeding substance and different principles for each, make the substance of the universe episodic (for one substance contributes nothing to another by being or not being) and introduce many principles.
τὰ δὲ ὄντα οὐ βούλεται πολιτεύεσθαι κακῶς.
But existing things do not wish to be governed badly.
"οὐκ ἀγαθὸν πολυκοιρανίη· εἷς κοίρανος ἔστω. "
"The rule of many is not good; let there be one ruler."