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Ancient Greek Page · Branch 105 of 879
Book I Chapter 6 · I.6.17b.1–I.6.17b.2
Ancient Greek
p. 20617b Πλάτωνος Νόμων δʹ
Ὡς οὐδεὶς ποτε ἀνθρώπων οὐδὲν νομοθετεῖ, τύχαι δὲ καὶ ξυμφοραὶ παντοῖαι πίπτουσαι παντοίως νομοθετοῦσιν ἅπαντα ἡμῖν. ἢ γὰρ πόλεμός τις βιασάμενος ἀνέτρεψε πολιτείας καὶ μετέβαλε νόμους, ἢ πενίας χαλεπῆς ἀπορία· πολλὰ δὲ καὶ νόσοι ἀναγκάζουσι καινοτομεῖν, λοιμῶν τε ἐμπιπτόντων καὶ χρόνον ἐπὶ πολὺν ἐνιαυτῶν πολλῶν πολλάκις ἀκαιρίᾳ. Ταῦτα δὴ πάντα προϊδών τις ἄρξειεν ἂν εἰπεῖν ὅπερ ἐγὼ νῦν δή, θνητὸν μὲν μηδένα νομοθετεῖν μηδέν, τύχας δ’ εἶναι σχεδὸν ἅπαντα τἀνθρώπινα πράγματα· τὸ δ’ ἔστι περὶ ναυτιλίαν καὶ κυβερνητικὴν καὶ ἰατρικὴν καὶ στρατηγικὴν πάντα ταῦτ’ εἰπόντα δοκεῖν εὖ λέγειν· ἀλλὰ γὰρ ὅμως αὖ καὶ τόδε ἔστιν εὖ λέγοντα λέγειν ἐν τοῖς αὐτοῖς τούτοις.
17b Πλάτωνος· συνέχεια
Τὸ ποῖον; Ὡς θεὸς μὲν πάντα καὶ μετὰ θεοῦ τύχη καὶ καιρὸς τἀνθρώπινα διακυβερνᾷ ξύμπαντα. Ἡμερώτερον μὲν τρίτον ξυγχωρῆσαι τούτοις δεῖν ἕπεσθαι τέχνην· καιρῷ γὰρ χειμῶνος συλλαβέσθαι κυβερνητικὴν ἢ μή, μέγα πλεονέκτημα ἔγωγ’ ἂν θείην. ἢ πῶς; Οὕτως. Οὐκοῦν καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ὡσαύτως κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν ἂν ἔχοι λόγον;
Stobaeus, Volume I: Book I Chapter 6
p. 20717b Plato, Laws IV (709a)
No human being ever legislates anything; chances and misfortunes of every sort, falling upon us in every way, legislate everything for us. A war may force its way in, overthrow constitutions, and change laws; or the distress of severe poverty may do so. Diseases too compel many innovations, when plagues strike and when unfavorable seasons often persist over many years. Someone who foresaw all this might begin by saying just what I said a moment ago: no mortal legislates anything, and practically all human affairs are matters of chance. One could say all this about seafaring, navigation, medicine, and generalship, and seem to be speaking well. Yet, in these very same matters, it is also possible to say the following and speak well.228
17b Plato, continued
“What is that?” “That God steers all things and, together with God, fortune and opportunity steer all human affairs. We should take a gentler view and concede that skill must follow these as a third factor. For, in the critical moment of a storm, I would reckon the assistance of navigational skill, as against its absence, a great advantage. Would you not?”229 “Yes.” “Then would not the same account hold in the other cases too?”
Socrates
Reading Stobaeus, Volume I · Book I Chapter 6 · I.6.17b.1–I.6.17b.2
Ask about a concept, passage, contradiction, or connection.
Socrates will begin with this book and its sources.About This Reading Edition
Stobaeus gathered Greek philosophy and poetry for his son Septimius. Volume I presents the dedication testimony, On Arithmetic, Book I through chapter 60, and the ancient contents of all four books. This complete bilingual edition includes an introduction and 2,117 explanatory notes.
Historical Text and Translation
The Greek follows Curt Wachsmuth’s 1884 Volume I, checked against the supplied scan. Gaps, lost-chapter headings, and uncertain attributions remain visible. Chapter 2 includes a labeled proposed reconstruction. The appendix outlines Books I–IV; the full texts of Books II–IV are outside this volume. Reader pages preserve the companion PDF’s numbering.
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