Empedocles of Agrigentum

7/25/2019 Empedocles of Agrigentum

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EMPEDOCLES OF AGRIGENTUM

The William Ellery Leonard translation*

To his riend!

1.

, , . Hear thou, Pausanias, son of wise Anchitus!

Limitations o "no#led$e!

2.

' , ' .

, ' , ' [ ] ' ' ' . ' , ' , . For narrow through their members scattered ways

Of knowing lie. And many a vile surpriselunts soul and keen desire. And having viewed

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heir little share of life, with briefest fates,"ike smoke they are lifted up and flit away,

elieving only what each chances on,Hither and thither driven# yet they boast

he larger vision of the whole and all.ut thuswise never shall these things be seen,$ever be heard by men, nor sei%ed by mind#

And thou, since hither now withdrawn apart,&halt learn'no more than mortal ken may span.

3.

. &helter these teachings in thine own mute breast.

4.

, ' . , ,, , ' ' . ' , ' '

' . ' ' , , ' , , , , ' .

ut turn their madness, (ods! from tongue of mine,

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And drain through holy lips the well)spring clear!And many)wooed, O white)armed *aiden)*use,

hee + approach O drive and send to me*eek Piety-s well)reined chariot of song,

&o far as lawful is for men to hear,hose lives are but a day. $or shall desireo pluck the flowers of fame and wide report

Among mankind impel thee on to dare&peech beyond holy bound and seat profane/pon those topmost pinnacles of ruth.

ut come, by every way of knowing seeHow each thing is revealed. $or, having sight,

rust sight no more than hearing will bear out,

rust echoing ear but after tasting tongue#$or check the proof of all thy members aught$ote by all ways each thing as -tis revealed.

5.

. ' , . 0ea, but the base distrust the High and &trong#

0et know the pledges that our *use will urge,hen once her words be sifted through thy soul.

The Elements!

6.

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' ! ', . "And first the fourfold root of all things hear!'hite gleaming 1eus, life)bringing Here, 2is,

And $estis whose tears bedew mortality.

7.

.he uncreated elements.

%irth and Death!

8.

# , , , ' .

*ore will + tell thee too there is no birthOf all things mortal, nor end in ruinous death#ut mingling only and interchange of mi3ed

here is, and birth is but its name with men.

9.

' ' ' [] $ ' , [] ' , ' [] , ' ."

ut when in man, wild beast, or bird, or bush,

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hese elements commingle and arrivehe realms of light, the thoughtless deem it 4birth4#

hen they dispart, -tis 4doom of death#4 and though$ot this the "aw, + too assent to use.

10.

. . . .Avenging 2eath.

E& nihilo nihil!

11.

, % .& #

Fools! for their thoughts are briefly brooded o-er.

ho trust that what is not can e-er become,Or aught that is can wholly die away.

12.

' ' ' , . From what)is)not what)is can ne-er become#&o that what)is should e-er be all destroyed,

$o force could compass and no ear hath heard'For there -twill be forever where -tis set.

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The Plen'm!

13.

'() +, +' -./+01 23/30/ -)43, '(5 -36,778/9he All hath neither 5oid nor Overflow.

14.

' ' ; ut with the All there is no 5oid, so whence

6ould aught of more come nigh7

O'r Elements Immortal!

15.

, : , , , , [] , ' . $o wise man dreams such folly in his heart,

hat only whilst we live what men call lifee have our being and take our good and ill,

And ere as mortals we compacted be,And when as mortals we be loosed apart,

e are as nothing.

Lo(e and )ate* the E(erlastin$!

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16.

, , ', , .

For even as "ove and Hate were strong of yore,hey shall have their hereafter# nor + think&hall endless Age be emptied of these wain.

The Cosmi+ Pro+ess!

17.

' ;

, ' = ' . , < > ' , ' , ? = . ' ' , ' : ?

' ; , ' ; ' , ' . + will report a twofold truth. $ow growshe One from *any into being, now

8ven from the One disparting come the *any.wofold the birth, twofold the death of things

For, now, the meeting of the *any brings

o birth and death# and, now, whatever grewFrom out their sundering, flies apart and dies.And this long interchange shall never end.

hiles into One do all through "ove unite#hiles too the same are rent through hate of &trife.And in so far as is the One still wont

o grow from *any, and the *any, again,&pring from primeval scattering of the One,

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&o far have they a birth and mortal date#And in so far as the long interchange

8nds not, so far forever established godsAround the circle of the world they move.

ut come! but hear my words! For knowledge gained*akes strong thy soul. For as before + spake,$aming the utter goal of these my words,

+ will report a twofold truth. $ow growshe One from *any into being, now8ven from the One disparting come the *any,'

Fire, ater, 8arth and awful heights of Air#And shut from them apart, the deadly &trife

+n e9uipoise, and "ove within their midst

+n all her being in length and breadth the same.ehold her now with mind, and sit not thereith eyes astonished, for -tis she inbornAbides established in the limbs of men.

hrough her they cherish thoughts of love, through herPerfect the works of concord, calling hery name 2elight or Aphrodite clear.

&he speeds revolving in the elements,ut this no mortal man hath ever learned'

Hear thou the undelusive course of proofehold those elements own e9ual strength

And e9ual origin# each rules its task#And unto each its primal mode# and each

Prevailing con9uers with revolving time.And more than these there is no birth nor end#For were they wasted ever and evermore,

hey were no longer, and the great All were then

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How to be plenished and from what far coast7And how, besides, might they to ruin come,

&ince nothing lives that empty is of them7'$o, these are all, and, as they course along

hrough one another, now this, now that is born'And so forever down 8ternity.

18.

.

"ove.

19.

.

Firm)clasping "ovingness.

Lo(e and )ate in the Or$ani+ World!

20.

' ; , , ' ' @ ' . ' ' . he world)wide warfare of the eternal wo

ell in the mass of human limbs is shownhiles into one do they through "ove unite,And mortal members take the body-s form,

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And life doth flower at the prime# and whiles,Again dissevered by the Hates perverse,

hey wander far and wide and up and downhe surf)swept beaches and drear shores of life.

&o too with thicket, tree, and gleaming fishHoused in the crystal walls of waters wide#And so with beasts that couch on mountain slopes,

And water)fowls that skim the long blue sea.

From the Elements is All We See!

21.

' , ' , , , # ' ' , ' ' . , ' . ' ' ' , ? ' , ' , . , ' . ut come, and to my words foresaid look well,

+f their wide witness anywhere forgotAught that behooves the elemental forms

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ehold the &un, the warm, the bright)diffused#ehold the eternal &tars, forever steeped

+n li9uid heat and glowing radiance# seeAlso the :ain, obscure and cold and dark,

And how from 8arth streams forth the (reen and Firm.And all through rath are split to shapes diverse#And each through "ove draws near and yearns for each.

For from these elements hath budded allhat was or is or evermore shall be'All trees, and men and women, beasts and birds,

And fishes nourished in deep waters, aye,he long)lived gods, in honors e3cellent.

For these are all, and, as they course along

hrough one another, they take new faces all,y varied mingling and enduring change.

Similia Simili,'s!

22.

, = , . ' , ' . [' ] ' A , , . For amber &un and 8arth and Heaven and &ea

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+s friendly with its every part that springs,Far driven and scattered, in the mortal world#

&o too those things that are most apt to mi3Are like, and love by Aphrodite-s hest.

ut hostile chiefly are those things which mostFrom one another differ, both in birth,And in their mi3ing and their molded forms'

/nwont to mingle, miserable and lone,After the counsels of their father, Hate.

An Analo$y!

23.

' , ' ,$ , ' ,# , ' ' < , , , ' , .

And even as artists'men who know their crafthrough wits of cunning'paint with streak and hue

right temple)tablets, and will sei%e in handhe oo%y poisons pied and red and gold

;*i3ing harmonious, now more, now less


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From which they fashion forms innumerable,And like to all things, peopling a fresh world

ith trees, and men and women, beasts and birds,And fishes nourished in deep waters, aye,

And long)lived gods in honors e3cellent=ust so ;and let no guile deceive thy breast


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The La# o the Elements!

26.

, . , ' ' , ' ' , . ; , ; ' , =

' , ' . +n turn they con9uer as the cycles roll,

And wane the one to other still, and wa3he one to other in turn by olden Fate#For these are all, and, as they course along

hrough one another, they become both menAnd multitudinous tribes of hairy beasts#

hiles in fair order through "ove united all,hiles rent asunder by the hate of &trife,

ill they, when grown into the One and AllOnce more, once more go under and succumb.

And in so far as is the One still wonto grow from the *any, and the *any, again,&pring from primeval scattering of the One,&o far have they a birth and mortal date.

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And in so far as this long interchange8nds not, so far forever established gods

Around the circle of the world they move.

The S-here!

27.

' ' C ' D .here views one not the swift limbs of the &un,$or there the strength of shaggy 8arth, nor &ea#

ut in the strong recess of Harmony,8stablished firm abides the rounded &phere,83ultant in surrounding solitude.

27a.

. $or faction nor fight unseemly in its limbs.

28.

' [] < .he &phere on every side the boundless same,

83ultant in surrounding solitude.

29.

,

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, , , [] . < =

For from its back there swing no branching arms,+t hath no feet nor knees alert, nor form

Of life)producing member,'on all sidesA sphere it was, and like unto itself.

30.

' , ' ...

0et after mighty &trife had wa3en great

ithin the members of the &phere, and rose

o her own honors, as the times arrivedhich unto each in turn, to &trife, to "ove,

&hould come by amplest oath and old decree. . .

31.

.= For one by one did 9uake the limbs of (od.

Physi+al Analo$ies!

32.

.he >oint binds two.

33.

' ' . . .

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ut as when rennet of the fig)tree >uice6urdles the white milk, and will bind it fast. . .

34.

. . . 6ementing meal with water. . .

The Con/'est o Lo(e!

35.

, , , $, , , ; < , ' . ' ' ' , ' ' , ' , ' . ' , ' , ' ,< < , [, ?] . ' , , . ut hurrying back, + now will make return

o paths of festal song, laid down before,

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2raining each flowing thought from flowing thought.hen down the 5orte3 to the last abyss

Had foundered Hate, and "ovingness had reachedhe eddying center of the *ass, behold

Around her into Oneness gathered all.0et not a)sudden, but only as willingly8ach from its several region >oined with each#

And from their mingling thence are poured abroadhe multitudinous tribes of mortal things.0et much unmi3ed among the mi3ed remained,

As much as Hate still held in scales aloft.For not all blameless did Hate yield and stand

Out yonder on the circle-s utmost bounds#

ut partwise yet within he stayed, partwiseas he already from the members gone.And ever the more skulked away and fled,hen ever the more, and nearer, inward pressed

he gentle minded, the divine 2esireOf blameless "ovingness. hence grew apacehose mortal hings, erstwhile long wont to be

+mmortal, and the erstwhile pure and sheerere mi3ed, e3changing highways of new life,

And from their mingling thence are poured abroadhe multitudinous tribes of mortal things,

?nit in all forms and wonderful to see.

36.

. $ And as they came together, Hate begano take his stand far on the outer verge.

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Similia simili,'s!

37.

, ' . And 8arth through 8arth her figure magnifies,

And Air through Air.

The World as It No# Is!

38.

... ' ' ' , > ' , ' ' . 6ome! + will name the like)primeval Four,hence rose to sight all things we now behold'

8arth, many)billowed &ea, and the moist Air,And Aether, the itan, who binds the globe about.

Earth and Air Not Illimita,le!

39.

, , .

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+f 8arth-s black deeps were endless, and o-er)fullere the white 8ther, as forsooth some tongues

Have idly prated in the babbling mouthsOf those who little of the All have seen . . .

S'n and Moon!

40.

' .> ?een)darting Helios and &elene mild.

41.

' . # ut the sun-s fires, together gathered, move

Attendant round the mighty space of heaven,

42.

, ' , : ' . And the sun-s beams

he moon, in passing under, covers o-er,And darkens a bleak tract of earth as largeAs is the breadth of her, the silver)eyed.

43.

. . .E As sunbeam striking on the moon-s broad disk.

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44.

. F oward Olympos back he darts his beams,

ith fearless face.

45.

. = :ound earth revolves a disk of alien light.

46.

' . . . = > 8ven as revolves a chariot-s nave, which round

he outmost. . .

47.

. #For toward the sacred circle of her lord&he ga%es face to face.

48.

.

ut earth makes night for beams of sinking sun.

The Dar.lin$ Ni$ht!

49.

. . .

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Of night, the lonely, with her sightless eyes.

Wind and Rain!

50.

' .G +ris from sea brings wind or mighty rain.

Fire!

51. ' . . .And fire sprang upward with a rending speed.

The 0ol+ano!

52.

' . And many a fire there burns beneath the ground.

Air!

53.

, ' .

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For sometimes so upon its course it met,And ofttimes otherwise.

Thin$s Passin$ Stran$e!

54.

[' ] . +n 8arth sank 8ther with deep)stretching roots.

55.

. 8arth-s sweat, the sea.

56.

.A he salt grew solid, smit by beams of sun.

Stran$e Creat'res o Olden Times!

57. , ' , H' ' . <

here budded many a head without a neck,

And arms were roaming, shoulderless and bare,And eyes that wanted foreheads drifted by.

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' ', , ' ' . ,

< , ' ' . I ut come! now hear how -twas the sundered Fire"ed into life the germs, erst whelmed in night,

Of men and women, the pitied and bewailed#For -tis a tale that sees and knows its mark.

First rose mere lumps of earth with rude impress,

hat had their shares of ater and of arm.hese then by Fire ;in upward %eal to reach+ts kindred Fire in heaven< were shot aloft,

Albeit not yet had they revealed a formOf lovely limbs, nor yet a human cry,$or secret member, common to the male.

The Pro+ess o )'man Generation To1day!

63.

. . . ut separate is the birth of human limbs#For -tis in part in man-s . . .

64.

' ' .<

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"ove)longing comes, reminding him who sees.

65.

' ,

, [ ' ]. +nto clean wombs the seeds are poured, and whenherein they meet with 6old, the birth is girls#

And boys, when contrariwise they meet with arm.

66.

[] ... . +nto the cloven meads of Aphrodite.

67. .For bellies with the warmer wombs become*others of boys, and therefore men are dark,

*ore stalwart and more shaggy.

68.

. On the tenth day, in month the eighth, the bloodecomes white pus.

69.

.

wice bearing.

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70.

.&heepskin.

On Animals and Plants!

71.

, ', ' . . . And if belief lack pith, and thou still doubt

How from the mingling of the elements,he 8arth and ater, the 8ther and the &un,&o many forms and hues of mortal things6ould thus have being, as have come to be,

8ach framed and knit by Aphrodite-s power...

72.

. . . As the tall trees and fish in briny floods.

73.

, ' , . . .

As ?ypris, after watering 8arth with :ain,1ealous to heat her, then did give 8arth o-ero speed of Fire that then she might grow firm.

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74.

J4'/ K'L7'/ M'L7. -'4L7-36)N/ 2.K.7O/N/9"eading the songless shoals of spawning fish.

75.

' ' , ' , . . . Of beasts, inside compact with outsides loose,

hich, in the palms of Aphrodite shaped,(ot this their sponginess.

76.

,

' . -is thus with conchs upon the heavy chinesOf ocean)dwellers, aye, of shell)fish wreathed,

Or stony)hided turtles, where thou mark-sthe earthen crust outside the softer parts.

77-78.

[ '] ' ' . rees bore perennial fruit, perennial fronds,

"aden with fruit the whole revolving year,&ince fed forever by a fruitful air.

79.

' . hus first tall olives lay their yellow eggs.

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80.

. herefore pomegranates slow in ripening be,And apples grow so plentiful in >uice.

81.

.< ine is but water fermented in the wood,And issues from the rind

82.

. From the same stuff on sturdy limbs grow hair,

"eaves, scales of fish, and bird-s thick)feathered plumes.

83.

.

&tiff hairs, keen)piercing, bristle on the chines

Of hedge)hogs.

O'r Eyes!

84.

' , , ,

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' ,$ ' , , ? ' E

['] , [] % ' ,% ' , . ?As when a man, about to sally forth,Prepares a light and kindles him a bla%e

Of flaming fire against the wintry night,+n horny lantern shielding from all winds#

hough it protect from breath of blowing winds,

+ts beam darts outward, as more fine and thin,And with untiring rays lights up the sky=ust so the Fire primeval once lay hid

+n the round pupil of the eye, enclosed+n films and gau%y veils, which through and throughere pierced with pores divinely fashioned,

And thus kept off the watery deeps around,hilst Fire burst outward, as more fine and thin.

85.

. he gentle flame of eye did chance to getOnly a little of the earthen part.

86.

' ' . From which by Aphrodite, the divine,

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he untiring eyes were formed.

87.

.

hus Aphrodite wrought with bolts of love.

88.

. One vision of two eyes is born.

Similia simili,'s!

89.

, ' . . . ?nowing that all things have their emanations.

90.

, ' ,E ' ' , ' .

hus &weet sei%ed &weet, itter on itter flew,&our sprung for &our, and upon Hot rode hot.

91.

. . . , . ater to wine more nearly is allied,ut will not mi3 with oil.

92.

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. . .As when one mi3es with the copper tin.

93.

. ith fla3 is mi3ed the silvery elder-s seed.

The %la+. Ri(er %ottoms!

94.

et niger in fundo fluvii color exstat ab umbra,

atque cavernosis itidem spectatur in antris.

And the black color of the river-s deeps6omes all from shade# and one may see the same

+n hollow caves.

Eyes!

95.

' . As, in the palms of ?ypris shaped, they firstegan to grow together...

%ones!

96.

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, ' ' P .D

?ind 8arth for her broad)breasted melting)pots,Of the eight parts got two of "ucid $estis,

And of Hephaestos four. hence came white bones,2ivinely >oined by glue of Harmony.

97.

.he back)bone.

%lood and Flesh!

98.

, ' ,P ' . I

And after 8arth within the perfect portsOf Aphrodite anchored lay, she metAlmost in e9ual parts Hephaestos red,

And :ain and 8ther, the all)splendorous;Although the parts of 8arth were sometimes less,

&ometimes a little more than theirs


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&huts pipe and tube the air, that from without6omes pressing inward, holds the water back

About the gateways of the gurgling neck,As the child keeps possession of the top,

/ntil her hand will loosen, when amain'@uite contrariwise to way and wise before'Pours out and under the water-s destined bulk,

As air drops down and in. 8ven so it isith the thin blood that through our members driveshen hurrying back it streams to inward, then

Amain a flow of air comes rushing on#ut when again it forward leaps, the air

+n turn breathes out along the selfsame way.

S+ent!

101.

, ['] ' ... # &niffing with nostrils mites from wild beasts- limbs,"eft by their feet along the tender grass. . .

102.

. And thus got all things share of breath and smells.

On the Psy+hi+ Lie!

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108.

['] , ... As far as mortals change by day, so far

y night their thinking changes...

109.

, ' , ' , , , . For -tis through 8arth that 8arth we do behold,

hrough 8ther, divine 8ther luminous,hrough ater, ater, through Fire, devouring Fire,

And "ove through "ove, and Hate through doleful Hate.

110.

' , ' , ' ' ' , . ? = ' , ' I ' , ' ? . oyless land,here &laughter and (rudge, and troops of 2ooms besides,

here shriveled 2iseases and obscene 2ecays,And "abors, burdened with the water)>ars,

2o wander down the dismal meads of ane.

122.

' , ? P ' , D ' , , ' ' . here was 8arth)mother,

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hom they with holy gifts were wont to appease,ith painted images of living things,

ith costly unguents of rich fragrancy,ith gentle sacrifice of taintless myrrh,

ith redolent fumes of frankincense, of oldPouring libations out upon the groundOf yellow honey# not then with unmi3ed blood

Of many bulls was ever an altar stained#ut among men -twas sacrilege most vileo reeve of life and eat the goodly limbs.

The Sa$e!

129.

,? B , ' ' ' . as one among them there, a supreme man

Of vastest knowledge, gainer of large wealthOf understanding, and chief master wise

Of diverse works of skill and wisdom all#For whensoeCer he sought with scope and reach

Of understanding, then -twas his to view:eadily each and every thing that e-er

+n ten or twenty human ages throve.

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Of thoughts divine, O wretched he whose care+s shadowy speculation on the gods!

133.

, . # e may not bring +t near us with our eyes,

e may not grasp +t with our human hands,ith neither hands nor eyes, those highways twainhereby elief drops into minds of men.

134.

, , , , , , . For -tis adorned with never a manlike head,

For from +ts back there swing no branching arms,+t hath no feet nor knees alert, nor formOf tufted secret member# but +t lives,

One holy mind, ineffable, alone,And with swift thoughts darts through the universe.

135.

' ' . ut the wide law of all e3tends throughoutroad)ruling ether and the vast white sky.

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Animal Sa+rii+e!

136. ; ;

ill ye not cease from this great din of slaughter7ill ye not see, unthinking as ye are,How ye rend one another unbeknown7

137.

'

' , ' . ' ' = . he father lifteth for the stroke of death

His own dear son within a changed form,And slits his throat for sacrifice with prayers'A blinded fool! ut the poor victims press,

+mploring their destroyers. 0et not oneut still is deaf to piteous moan and wail.8ach slits the throat and in his halls prepares

A horrible repast. hus too the son&ei%es the father, children the mother sei%e,

And reeve of life and eath their own dear flesh.

138.

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2elight it, nor dire Hecate-s venging house.

143.

' [] . . .

&cooping from fountains five with lasting bron%e.

144.

.O fast from evil)doing.

145.

.

&ince wildered by your evil)doings huge,$e-er shall ye free your life from heavy pains.

The Pro$ression o Re,irth!

146.

.

. And seers at last, and singers of high hymns,

Physicians sage, and chiefs o-er earth)born men&hall they become, whence germinate the gods,

he e3cellent in honors.

147.

,

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153a.

. = =+n seven times seven days.

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Empedocles of Agrigentum

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