§8.1339bἀλλʼ οὐχ ἑτέρων ἀκούοντας ὀρθῶς τε χαίρειν καὶ δύνασθαι κρίνειν, ὥσπερ οἱ Λάκωνες;
But is it not possible, by listening to others, both to enjoy rightly and to be able to judge, just as the Lacedaemonians do?
ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ οὐ μανθάνοντες ὅμως δύνανται κρίνειν ὀρθῶς, ὥς φασι, τὰ χρηστὰ καὶ τὰ μὴ χρηστὰ τῶν μελῶν.
For they, though not learning, are nevertheless able to judge rightly, as they say, the good and the not good among melodies.
ὁ δʼ αὐτὸς λόγος κἂν εἰ πρὸς εὐημερίαν καὶ διαγωγὴν ἐλευθέριον χρηστέον αὐτῇ· τί δεῖ μανθάνειν αὐτούς, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ἑτέρων χρωμένων ἀπολαύειν;
And the same argument holds even if we must use music for well-being and cultivated leisure worthy of a free man: why do they need to learn it themselves, and not enjoy it while others perform it?
σκοπεῖν δʼ ἔξεστι τὴν ὑπόληψιν ἣν ἔχομεν περὶ τῶν θεῶν· οὐ γὰρ ὁ Ζεὺς αὐτὸς ἀείδει καὶ κιθαρίζει τοῖς ποιηταῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ βαναύσους καλοῦμεν τοὺς τοιούτους καὶ τὸ πράττειν οὐκ ἀνδρὸς μὴ μεθύοντος ἢ παίζοντος.
And we can consider the conception which we have about the gods; for Zeus himself does not sing and play the cithara according to the poets, but we even call such people vulgar, and performing these things is not the part of a man unless he is drunk or playing.
ἀλλʼ ἴσως περὶ μὲν τούτων ὕστερον ἐπισκεπτέον· ἡ δὲ πρώτη ζήτησίς ἐστι πότερον οὐ θετέον εἰς παιδείαν τὴν μουσικὴν ἢ θετέον, καὶ τί δύναται τῶν διαπορηθέντων τριῶν, πότερον παιδείαν ἢ παιδιὰν ἢ διαγωγήν.
But perhaps we must examine these things later; and our first inquiry is whether music should not be placed in education or should be placed, and what power it has among the three things questioned: whether education, or play, or cultivated leisure.
εὐλόγως δʼ εἰς πάντα τάττεται καὶ φαίνεται μετέχειν.
And it is with good reason placed in all and appears to share in them.
ἥ τε γὰρ παιδιὰ χάριν ἀναπαύσεώς ἐστι, τὴν δʼ ἀνάπαυσιν ἀναγκαῖον ἡδεῖαν εἶναι (τῆς γὰρ διὰ τῶν πόνων λύπης ἰατρεία τίς ἐστιν), καὶ τὴν διαγωγὴν ὁμολογουμένως δεῖ μὴ μόνον ἔχειν τὸ καλὸν ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἡδονήν (τὸ γὰρ εὐδαιμονεῖν ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων τούτων ἐστίν)·
For play is for the sake of relaxation, and relaxation must of necessity be pleasant (for it is a kind of medicine for the pain caused by labors); and cultivated leisure is confessedly required to have not only what is noble but also pleasure (for being happy is from both of these).
τὴν δὲ μουσικὴν πάντες εἶναί φαμεν τῶν ἡδίστων, καὶ ψιλὴν οὖσαν καὶ μετὰ μελῳδίας (φησὶ γοῦν καὶ Μουσαῖος εἶναι
βροτοῖς ἥδιστον ἀείδειν
· διὸ καὶ εἰς τὰς συνουσίας καὶ διαγωγὰς εὐλόγως παραλαμβάνουσιν αὐτὴν ὡς δυναμένην εὐφραίνειν), ὥστε καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἄν τις ὑπολάβοι παιδεύεσθαι δεῖν αὐτὴν τοὺς νεωτέρους.
And we all say that music is among the pleasantest things, both when it is instrumental and when with song (at any rate Musaeus says that singing is the pleasantest thing for mortals; wherefore with good reason people introduce it into social gatherings and cultivated leisure, as being able to make them cheerful), so that also from this one might suppose that the younger people ought to be educated in it.
ὅσα γὰρ ἀβλαβῆ τῶν ἡδέων, οὐ μόνον ἁρμόττει πρὸς τὸ τέλος ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἀνάπαυσιν· ἐπεὶ δʼ ἐν μὲν τῷ τέλει συμβαίνει τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ὀλιγάκις γίγνεσθαι, πολλάκις δὲ ἀναπαύονται καὶ χρῶνται ταῖς παιδιαῖς οὐχ ὅσον ἐπὶ πλέον ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τὴν ἡδονήν, χρήσιμον ἂν εἴη διαναπαύειν ἐν ταῖς ἀπὸ ταύτης ἡδοναῖς.
For all harmless pleasant things are fitting not only for the end but also for relaxation; and since it happens to men to find themselves rarely at the end, but they often relax and use plays, not only as far as they go further but also for the sake of pleasure, it would be useful to find relaxation in the pleasures derived from this.
συμβέβηκε δὲ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ποιεῖσθαι τὰς παιδιὰς τέλος· ἔχει γὰρ ἴσως ἡδονήν τινα καὶ τὸ τέλος, ἀλλʼ οὐ τὴν τυχοῦσαν, ζητοῦντες δὲ ταύτην λαμβάνουσιν ὡς ταύτην ἐκείνην, διὰ τὸ τῷ τέλει τῶν πράξεων ἔχειν ὁμοίωμά τι.
But it has happened to men to make plays their end; for perhaps the end also has some pleasure, but not any random one, and seeking this they take that other pleasure as if it were this one, because it has some likeness to the end of actions.
τό τε γὰρ τέλος οὐθενὸς τῶν ἐσομένων χάριν αἱρετόν, καὶ αἱ τοιαῦται τῶν ἡδονῶν οὐθενός εἰσι τῶν ἐσομένων ἕνεκεν, ἀλλὰ τῶν γεγονότων, οἷον πόνων καὶ λύπης.
For the end is chosen for the sake of nothing that is to be, and such pleasures are not for the sake of anything that is to be, but of what has been, such as labors and pain.
διʼ ἣν μὲν οὖν αἰτίαν ζητοῦσι τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν γίγνεσθαι διὰ τούτων τῶν ἡδονῶν, ταύτην εἰκότως ἄν τις ὑπολάβοι τὴν αἰτίαν· περὶ δὲ τοῦ κοινωνεῖν τῆς μουσικῆς, ὅτι οὐ διὰ ταύτην μόνην, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τὸ χρήσιμον εἶναι πρὸς τὰς ἀναπαύσεις, ὡς ἔοικεν.
For what reason, then, they seek happiness to come about through these pleasures, one might reasonably suppose to be this reason; but concerning participation in music, it is because it is not for this reason alone, but also because of its being useful for relaxations, as it seems.
οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ ζητητέον μή ποτε τοῦτο μὲν συμβέβηκε,
Nevertheless, we must inquire whether this has happened,