§1## ΠΕΡΙ ΑΡΧΑΙΗΣ ΙΗΤΡΙΚΗΣ.
1.
## ON ANCIENT MEDICINE 1.
Ὁχόσοι ἐπεχείρησαν περὶ ἰητριχῆς λέγειν ἢ γράφειν, ὑπόθεσιν᾿ σφίσιν αὐτέοισιν ὑποθέμενοι τῷ λόγῳ, θερμὸν, ἢ ψυχρὸν, ἢ ὑγρὸν, ἢ ξηρὸν, ἢ ἄλλ᾿ ὅ τι ἂν ἐθέλωσιν, ἐς βραχὺ ἄγοντες, τὴν ἀρχὴν τῆς αἰτίης τοῖσιν ἀνθρώποισι τῶν νούσων τε καὶ τοῦ θανάτου, καὶ πᾶσι τὴν αὐτέην, ἓν ἢ δύο προθέμενοι, ἐν πολλοῖσι μὲν καὶ οἷσι λέγουσι καταφανέες εἰσὶν ἁμαρτάνοντες·
All those who have undertaken to speak or write about medicine, by laying down for themselves a hypothesis for their argument—heat, cold, wet, dry, or whatever else they wish—and narrowing down the origin of the cause of diseases and death for human beings, and positing the same single or double cause for everyone, are clearly seen to be in error in many of the things they say.
μάλιστα δὲ ἄξιον μέμψασθαι, ὅτι ἀμφὶ τέχνης ἐούσης, ᾗ χρέονταί τε πάντες ἐπὶ τοῖσι μεγίστοισι καὶ τιμῶσι μάλιστα τοὺς ἀγαθοὺς χειροτέχνας καὶ δημιουργούς.
But they are most deserving of censure because they do so concerning an actually existing art, which all people employ in the most important matters, and they honor most highly its good practitioners and craftsmen.
Εἰσὶ δὲ δημιουργοὶ, οἱ μὲν φλαῦροι, οἱ δὲ πολλὸν διαφέροντες· ὅπερ, εἰ μὴ ἦν ἰητρικὴ ὅλως, μηδ᾿ ἐν αὐτέῃ ἔσκεπτο, μηδ᾿ εὕροιτο μηδὲν, οὐκ ἂν ἦν, ἀλλὰ πάντες ἂν ὁμοίως αὐτέης ἄπειροί τε καὶ ἀνεπιστήμονες ἦσαν, καὶ τύχῃ ἂν πάντα τὰ τῶν καμνόντων διῳκέετο.
There are indeed craftsmen, some of whom are poor, others far superior; which would not be the case if medicine did not exist at all, and had not been investigated in any way, nor anything discovered in it, but all would be equally inexperienced and ignorant of it, and all the affairs of the sick would be managed by chance.
Νῦν δ᾿οὐχ οὕτως ἔχει, ἀλλ᾿ ὥσπερ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τεχνέων χνέων πασέων οἱ δημιουργοὶ πολλὸν ἀλλήλων διαφέρουσι κατὰ χεῖρα καὶ κατὰ γνώμην, οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐπὶ ἰητρικῆς.
But now it is not so; rather, just as the craftsmen of all other arts differ greatly from one another in manual skill and in judgment, so it is also in medicine.
Διὸ οὐκ ἠξίουν ἔγωγε κενῆς αὐτέην ὑποθέσιος δέεσθαι, ὥσπερ τὰ ἀφανέα τε καὶ ἀπορεόμενα· περὶ ὧν ἀνάγκη, ἤν τις ἐπιχειροίη λέγειν, ὑποθέσει χρέεσθαι·
Therefore, I did not think that medicine required a vacant hypothesis, as do things unseen and doubtful, concerning which, if anyone should undertake to speak, it is necessary to use a hypothesis.
οἷον περὶ τῶν μετεώρων ἢ τῶν ὑπὸ γῆν εἰ λέγοι τις καὶ γινώσκοι ὡς ἔχει, οὔτ᾿ ἂν αὐτέῳ τῷ λέγοντι οὔτε τοῖσιν ἀκούουσι δῆλα ἂν εἴη, εἴ τε ἀληθέα ἐστὶν εἴτε μή· οὐ γὰρ ἔστι πρὸς ὅ τι χρὴ ἐπανενέγκαντα εἰδέναι τὸ σαφές.
For example, if one should speak of things in the sky or under the earth and know how they are, it would not be clear either to the speaker himself or to his hearers whether they are true or not; for there is nothing to which one can refer in order to know the truth clearly.
§22.
2.
Ἰητρικῇ δὲ πάντα πάλαι ὑπάρχει, καὶ ἀρχὴ καὶ ὁδὸς εὑρημένη, καθ᾿ ἣν καὶ τὰ εὑρημένα πολλά τε καὶ καλῶς ἔχοντα εὕρηται ἐν πολλῷ χρόνῳ, καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ εὑρεθήσεται, ἤν τις ἱκανός τε ἐὼν καὶ τὰ εὑρημένα εἰδὼς, ἐκ τουτέων ὁρμώμενος ζητέῃ.
But for medicine, all things have long been available, and a principle and a path have been found, along which many excellent things have been discovered over a long period, and the rest will be discovered, if anyone who is competent and knows what has been discovered should search, starting from these.
Ὅστις δὲ ταῦτα ἀποβαλὼν καὶ ἀποδοκιμάσας πάντα, ἑτέρῃ ὁδῷ καὶ ἑτέρῳ σχήματι ἐπιχειρέει ζητέειν, καὶ φήσει τι εὑρηκέναι, ἐξηπάτηται καὶ ἐξαπατᾶται· ἀδύνατον γάρ.
But whoever, rejecting and disregarding all these, attempts to search in another path and another manner, and claims to have discovered something, has been deceived and is still being deceived; for it is impossible.
Δι᾿ ἃς δὲ ἀνάγκας ἀδύνατον, ἐγὼ πειρήσομαι ἐπιδεῖξαι, λέγων καὶ δεικνὺς τὴν τέχνην ὅ τι ἐστίν.
For what reasons it is impossible, I will attempt to demonstrate by explaining and showing what the art is.
Ἐκ δὲ τουτέου καταφανὲς ἔσται ἀδύνατα ἐόντα ἄλλως πως τουτέων εὑρίσκεθαι.
From this it will be clear that it is impossible for discoveries to be made in any other way than this.
Μάλιστα δέ μοι δοκέει περὶ ταύτης δεῖν λέγοντα τῆς τέχνης γνωστὰ λέγειν τοῖσι δημότῃσιν.
Especially, it seems to me that anyone speaking about this art must speak of things understandable to the common people.
Οὐ γὰρ περὶ ἄλλου τινὸς οὔτε ζητέειν προσήκει οὔτε λέγειν ἢ περὶ τῶν παθημάτων ὧν αὐτοὶ οὗτοι νοσέουσί τε καὶ πονέουσιν· αὐτοὺς μὲν οὖν τὰ σφέων αὐτέων παθήματα καταμαθεῖν, ὡς γίνεται καὶ παύεται, καὶ δι᾿ οἵας προφάσιας αὔξεταί τε καὶ φθίνει, δημότας ἐόντας, οὐ ῥηΐδιον· ὑπ᾿ ἄλλου δ᾿ εὑρημένα καὶ λεγόμενα εὐπετές.
For it is not appropriate to search or speak about anything else than the sufferings of these very people who are sick and in pain; now, for themselves to understand their own sufferings, how they arise and cease, and by what reasons they increase and decrease, being common people, is not easy; but when discovered and explained by another, it is easy.
Οὐδὲν γὰρ ἕτερον ἢ ἀναμιμνήσκεται ἕκαστος ἀκούων τῶν ἑωυτῷ ξυμβαινόντων.
For each person, in hearing, does nothing other than remember what happens to himself.
Εἰ δέ τις τῶν ἰδιωτέων γνώμης ἀποτεύξεται, καὶ μὴ διαθήσει τοὺς ἀκούοντας οὕτως, τοῦ ἐόντος ἀποτεύξεται.
But if anyone fails to reach the understanding of the laymen, and does not put his hearers into this state of mind, he will miss the reality.
Καὶ διὰ ταῦτα οὖν οὐδὲν δέεται ὑποθέσιος.
For these reasons also, therefore, medicine has no need of a hypothesis.