Stobaeus, Volume I

Name: Stobaeus, Volume I
Author: John Stobaeus

Greek with an independent English translation.

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Stobaeus, Volume IBook I Chapter 49 · I.49.33.7–I.49.34.1

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Book I Chapter 49 · I.49.33.7–I.49.34.1

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Ancient Greek

p. 1168

33.7

I.49.33.7

Κατὰ δὲ Πλάτωνα ἄλλως μὲν λέγεται ἡ ψυχὴ τριμερής, ὡς ἐν ἑτέραις οὐσίαις τριπλῇ ζωῆς παραλλάττουσα, ἄλλως δὲ πολυδύναμος, οὐκέτι κατ᾽ οὐσίαν ζωῆς διαφέρουσα, ἐν ταὐτῷ δὲ πολλαῖς ἰδιότησι διακρινομένη.

33.8

I.49.33.8

Καὶ ὅλως μέρος δυνάμεως ταύτῃ διενήνοχεν, ᾗ τὸ μὲν μέρος οὐσίας ἑτερότητα, ἡ δὲ δύναμις ἐν ταὐτῷ γεννητικὴν ἢ ποιητικὴν διάκρισιν παρίστησιν.

34.1 · Περὶ πλήθους δυνάμεων

I.49.34.1

Ἐν ταὐτῷ· περὶ πλήθους δυνάμεων.

Οἱ ἀπὸ Ζήνωνος ὀκταμερῆ τὴν ψυχὴν διαδοξάζουσι, περὶ ⟨ἣν⟩ τὰς δυνάμεις εἶναι πλείονας, αἵσπερ ἐν τῷ ἡγεμονικῷ ἐνυπαρχουσῶν φαντασίας, συγκαταθέσεως, ὁρμῆς, λόγου.

Stobaeus, Volume I: Book I Chapter 49

p. 1169

33.7 · Three parts and many powers

I.49.33.7

In Plato’s account, soul is called three-part in one sense, as varying threefold in life among distinct substances; in another sense it has many powers, no longer differing in the substance of life, but distinguished by many specific characteristics within the same subject.¹⁴³⁸

33.8 · How a part differs from a power

I.49.33.8

In general, a part differs from a power in this: a part signifies a difference of substance, while a power signifies a generative or productive distinction within the same subject.¹⁴³⁹

34.1 · Eight parts and further powers

I.49.34.1

In the same work: on the number of powers.

The followers of Zeno hold that soul has eight parts, with further powers belonging to ⟨it⟩, such as those in the ruling center: presentation, assent, impulse, and reason.¹⁴⁴⁰

1438.The construction triplēi zōēs in the printed text is awkward; the English interprets it as a threefold variation of life. The apparatus suggests a different case construction or deletion of “threefold,” neither adopted here. The intended contrast distinguishes parts associated with difference of substance from powers differentiated within one subject. This is the excerpt’s analysis of Plato.

1439.The distinction summarizes this account’s terminology. Gennētikē and poiētikē concern generating and producing; the contrast is between a different constituent substance and a capacity differentiated by what it brings about. It should not be assumed that every earlier author quoted in the anthology uses “part” and “power” with this same precision.

1440.The text distinguishes the eightfold division of soul from the several capacities within its ruling center, already listed in excerpt 33. The opening verb diadoxazousi and the transition to the list are difficult; the apparatus discusses repairs. The English regularizes the construction while retaining all four powers and the supplied relative pronoun. It does not add a numerical total for every power.

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.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared this independent English translation directly from the Greek. Prose and verse retain their distinct forms, with mixed passages preserving their quoted verse. Every passage is paired with its Greek and identified by the edition’s reference number. All 2,117 notes remain linked to their passages, with continuous numbering across the introduction and text.

Rights

Stobaeus’s ancient Greek work and Wachsmuth’s 1884 printing are in the public domain. The independent English translation, introduction, and explanatory notes are © 2026 Diotimos Editions. The complete supplied edition is available as PDF, EPUB, Word, and Markdown. The PDF retains the fixed page locations used by the companion lexicon.