§1818.
18.
Δημόκριτος Ἱπποκράτει εὖ πράττειν.
Democritus to Hippocrates, greeting.
Ἐπῆλθες ἡμῖν ὡς μεμηνόσιν, ὦ Ἱππόκρατες, ἐλλέβορον δώσων, πεισθεὶς ἀνοήτοις ἀνδράσι, παρ’ οἷσιν ὁ πόνος τῆς ἀρετῆς μανίη κρίνεται.
You came to us as to those who are mad, Hippocrates, to give hellebore, having believed foolish men, among whom the labor of virtue is judged to be madness.
Ἐτυγχάνομεν δὲ περὶ κόσμου διαθέσιος καὶ πολογραφίης, ἔτι τε ἄστρων οὐρανίων ξυγγράφοντες.
But we happened to be writing about the disposition of the universe and description of the poles, and further about the heavenly stars.
Γνοὺς δὲ τὴν ἐπὶ τούτοις φύσιν, ὡς ἀκεραίως κάρτα εἴη ἐπιδεδημιουργημένα καὶ ὡς τῆλου μανίης καὶ παραφρονήσιος καθεστήκοι, ἐμοῖο μὲν φύσιν ἐπῄνεσας, ἀπηνέας δὲ καὶ μεμηνότας κείνους ἔκρινας.
And having recognized the nature concerning these things, how very purely they have been fashioned, and how far established from madness and insanity, you praised my nature indeed, and judged those men to be harsh and mad.
Ὁκόσα γὰρ ἰνδαλμοῖσι διαλλάττοντα ἀνὰ τὸν ἠέρα πλάζει ἡμέας, ἃ δὴ κόσμῳ ξυνεώραται καὶ ἀμειψιρυσμέοντα τέτευχε, ταῦτα· νόος ἐμὸς φύσιν ἐρευνήσας ἀτρεκέως ἐς φάος ἤγαγεν· μάρτυρες δὲ τουτέων βίβλοί ὑπ’ ἐμοῖο γραφεῖσαι.
For all things which, differing in phantasms, wander through the air and mislead us, which indeed have been observed in the universe and happen changing their form—these things my mind, having investigated nature, accurately brought to light; and witnesses of these are the books written by me.
Χρὴ οὖν καὶ σὲ, ὦ Ἱππόκρατες, μὴ τοιουτοτρόποισιν ἀνδράσιν ξυνέρχεσθαι καὶ ξυνομιλέειν, ὧν νόος ἀκρόπλοος καὶ ἀβέβαιος καθέστηκεν.
Therefore you too, Hippocrates, must not associate and converse with such kinds of men, whose mind is shallow-sailing and unstable.
Εἴ γάρ τοι πεισθεὶς ὡς μεμηνότα με επότισας ἐν ἐλλεβόρῳ, ἡ πινυτὴ μανίη ἂν ἐγεγόνει, καὶ σέο τέχνην ἂν κατεμέμψαντο, ὡς παραιτίην παρακοπῆς γεγενημένην· ἐλλέβορος γὰρ ὑγιαίνουσι. μὲν δοθεὶς ἐπισκοτεῖ διάνοιαν, μεμηνόσι δὲ κάρτα ὠφελέειν εἴωθεν.
For if, believed that I was mad, you had given me hellebore to drink, my wisdom would have become madness, and they would have blamed your art as having been a contributing cause of insanity; for hellebore, when given to healthy people indeed, darkens the intellect, but to the mad it is accustomed to help greatly.
Γνῶθι γὰρ εἰ μὴ κατειλήφεις με γράφοντα, ἀνακείμενον δὲ ἢ σχέδην περιπατεῦντα καὶ προσομιλεῦντα ἐμαυτῷ, ὁτὲ μὲν δυσχεραίνοντα, ὁτὲ δὲ μειδιῶντα ἐπὶ τοῖσιν ἐννοουμένοισιν ὑπ’ ἐμοῖο, καὶ τοῖσι μὲν προσομιλέουσι τῶν γνωρίμων οὐ προσέχοντα, ἐφιστάντα δὲ τὴν διάνοιαν καὶ σκεπτόμενον ἐκπάγλως, ᾠήθης ἂν Δημόκριτον, κατά γε ὄψιος κρίσιν ἐκ τῶν ὁρεομένων; μανίης εἰκόνι ἐοικέναι.
For consider, if you had not caught me writing, but lying down or walking slowly and conversing with myself, sometimes being displeased, sometimes smiling at the things conceived by me, and not paying attention to those of my acquaintances who were conversing with me, but focusing my intellect and thinking extraordinarily, would you have thought Democritus—at least according to the judgment of sight from things seen—to resemble an image of madness?
Χρὴ οὖν τὸν ἰητρὸν μὴ μοῦνον ὄψει τὰ πάθεα κρίνειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρήγματι τούς τε ῥυθμοὺς ἀνακρίνειν ὡς ἐπιτοπλεῖστον, καὶ πότερον ἄρχοιτο τὸ πάθος ἤ μεσάζοι ἢ λήγοι, καὶ διαφορὴν καὶ ὥρην καὶ ἡλικίην παρατηροῦντα ἰητρεύειν τὸ πάθος οὐλομελίην τε τοῦ σκήνεος· ἐκ γὰρ τουτέων ἁπάντων εὐχερῶς τὴν νοῦσον εὑρήσεις.
Therefore the doctor must not judge the diseases by sight alone, but also by the fact, and investigate the rhythms as much as possible, and whether the disease is beginning, is at its middle, or is ending, and, observing the difference, the season, and the age, treat the disease and the integrity of the body; for from all these you will easily find the sickness.
Ἀπέσταλκα δέ σοι τὸν περὶ μανίης λόγον.
And I have sent you the discourse on madness.
Ἔῤῥωσο.
Farewell.
§1919.
19.
Ὁ περὶ μανίης λόγος.
The discourse on madness.
Μαινόμεθα, ὡς ἔφην ἐν τῷ περὶ ἱερῆς νούσου, ὑπὸ ὑγρότητος τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου, ἐν ᾧ ἐστὶ τὰ τῆς ψυχῆς ἔργα.
We go mad, as I said in the work on the Sacred Disease, because of the moisture of the brain, in which are the operations of the soul.
Ὅταν ὑγρότερος τῆς φύσιος ᾖ, ἀνάγκη κινεῖσθαι, κινουμένου δὲ μήτε τὴν ὄψιν ἀτρεμίζειν μήτε τὴν ἀκοὴν. ἀλλὰ ἄλλοτε ἀλλοῖα ὁρᾷν τε καὶ ἀκούειν, τήν τε γλῶσσαν τοιαῦτα διαλέγεσθαι, οἷα ἂν βλέπῃ τε καὶ ἀκούῃ ἑκάστοτε· ὅσον δὲ ἂν ἀτρεμίσῃ ὁ ἐγκέφαλος, τοσοῦτον καὶ φρονεῖ χρόνον ὁ ἄνθρωπος.
When it is moister than its nature, it must move, and when it is moved, neither sight nor hearing remains still, but at different times they see and hear different things, and the tongue talks about such things as it sees and hears each time; but as long as the brain remains still, for so long a time does a person think.
Γίνεται δὲ ἡ διαφθορὰ τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου ὑπὸ φλέγματος καὶ χολῆς, γνώσῃ δὲ έκάτερα ὧδε· οἱ μὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ φλέγματος μαινόμενοι ἥσυχοί τέ εἰσι καὶ οὐ βοηταὶ οὐδὲ θορυβώδεες· οἱ δὲ ὑπὸ χολῆς, πλῆκται καὶ κακοῦργοι καὶ οὐκ ἠρεμαῖοι.
The corruption of the brain occurs because of phlegm and bile, and you will know both as follows: for those who are mad because of phlegm are quiet and not shouting nor tumultuous; but those because of bile are strikers and mischievous and not peaceful.
Ἢν μὲν ξυνεχῶς μαίνωνται, αὗται αἱ προφάσιες εἰσίν· ἢν δὲ δείματα καὶ φόβοι, ὑπὸ μεταστάσιος γίνεται τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου θερμαινομένου ὑπὸ χολῆς ὁρμώσης ἐπ’ αὐτὸν κατὰ τὰς φλέβας τὰς αἱματίτιδας· ὅταν δὲ ἀπέλθῃ ἡ χολὴ πάλιν ἐς τὰς φλέβας καὶ τὸ σῶμα, πέπαυται.
If they are continuously mad, these are the causes; but if there are terrors and fears, it happens by a displacement of the brain being warmed by bile rushing upon it through the blood-containing veins; and when the bile departs again into the veins and the body, it ceases.
Ἀνιῆται δὲ καὶ ἀσῆται καὶ ἐπιλήθεται, παρὰ καιρὸν ψυχομένου τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου ὑπὸ φλέγματος καὶ ξυνισταμένου παρὰ τὸ ἔθος.
And one is distressed and experiences nausea and becomes forgetful, when the brain is cooled out of season by phlegm and condensed contrary to custom.
Ὅταν δὲ ἐξαπίνης ὁ ἐγκέφαλος διαθερμαίνηται ὑπὸ χολῆς κατὰ τὰς φλέβας τὰς εἰρημένας, ἐπιζέσαντος τοῦ αἵματος, ἐνύπνια ὁρεῦσι φοβερὰ, καὶ ὡς ἐγρηγορότος τὸ πρόσωπον φλογιᾷ, καὶ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ ἐρυθραίνονται, καὶ ἡ γνώμη ἐπινοεῖ τι κακόν ἐργάζεσθαι· τοῦτο καὶ ἐν τῷ ὕπνῳ πάσχει· ὅταν δὲ τὸ αἷμα σκεδασθῇ πάλιν ἐς τὰς φλέβας, πέπαυται.
And when the brain is suddenly overheated by bile through the said veins, the blood boiling, they see fearful dreams, and as of one awake the face blazes, and the eyes become red, and the mind plans to work some evil; this also one suffers in sleep; and when the blood is dispersed again into the veins, it ceases.
Ἐν δὲ τῷ πέμπτῳ τῶν ἐπιδημιῶν ἱστόρησα ὡς ἐγίνετο ἀφωνίη, ἄγνοια, παραληρήσεις συχναὶ καὶ ὑποστροφαί· ἡ δὲ γλῶσσα σκληρὴ, καὶ εἰ μὴ διακλύσαιτο, λαλεῖν οὐχ οἷός τε ἦν, καὶ σφόδρα πικρὴ τὰ πολλά· φλεβοτομίη ἔλυσεν, ὑδροποσίη, μελίκρητον, ἐλλεβόρων πόσιες· οὗτος ὀλίγον ἐπιζήσας χρόνον ἐτελεύτησεν.
And in the fifth book of the Epidemics I recorded how there occurred loss of voice, loss of understanding, frequent deliriums and relapses; and the tongue was stiff, and unless one washed it out, he was not able to speak, and it was very bitter for the most part; bloodletting relieved it, drinking of water, hydromel, and doses of hellebore; this person, having survived a short time, died.
Ἄλλος ἦν δν, ὅτε εἰς ποτὸν ὁρμῴη, φόβος τῆς αὐλητρίδος ἐλάμβανεν, εἰ ἀκούσειεν αὐλούσης, ἡμέρης δὲ ἀκούων οὐδὲν ἔπασχεν.
There was another man whom, when he rushed to a drinking party, a fear of the flute-girl seized, if he should hear her playing the flute; but hearing her during the day, he suffered nothing.