Chapter 4 Volume 1 Chapter 4

Socrates not only exhorts people to be virtuous, but also guides them to practice them; his dialogue with Aristodemus, § 1, 2.Things made for a purpose must not be the products of chance, but of reason, §3,4.The human body has a very fine structure, and very well suited to its purpose; we are compelled, therefore, to regard man as an object of divine vision, v. 5-7.The orderliness of things in the universe shows that it is the product of supernatural creation, §8,9.Man's superiority over the lower animals, evidences that man is more directly under the care of the heavenly gods, v. 10-14.The gods also teach man how to be, v. 15.From various considerations it can be seen that the gods care for the individual as well as for the collective of mankind, §§ 15, 16.As spirit rules the body, so divine creation rules the universe, v. 17.Therefore, if people worship the gods rightly, they can be sure that the gods will be willing to help them, v. 18, 19.

But if anyone thinks that Socrates was, as those who judge him by mere observations say, capable of leading men in virtue, though very capable of directing them, let them Consider the arguments he uses against those who think they know it all; the questions he puts to them to argue with them, and his daily conversations with those who associate with him, let them decide whether he can use Those who talked to him got better.I will first mention that I once heard him speak about the gods to Aristodemus, nicknamed the little man.Socrates had heard that Aristodemus, whatever he did, neither sacrificed to the gods nor practiced divination, but laughed at those who did such things.Socrates said to him, "Tell me, Aristodemus, do you admire any wise man?"

"Of course," he replied. v "Then tell us their names," said Socrates. "In epic poetry, I most admire Homer; in hymn, Melanipides; in tragedy, Sophocles; in sculpture, Paroclitus; In painting, it's Soxis." "Which do you think is more admirable for those who portray inanimate, incapable figures, or for those who portray living beings with feeling and life?" "I swear by the god Zeus, those who fashioned the image of the living creature, for the image of the living creature was not created by chance, but by the intellect." "Of those things which exist for an indeterminate purpose, or those which obviously exist for a useful purpose, which do you say was created by chance, and which by intellect?"

"There can be no doubt that those things which exist for a useful purpose must be products of the intellect." "Does it not seem to you, then, that He who made man in the first place, for useful purposes, endowed him with those faculties which make him aware of different things: eyes, that he may see all things, ears, so that he may hear all sounds? What use is smell if we have not given us a nose? How can we know all these things, if we have not made a tongue in our mouths, that can perceive sweetness, bitterness, and every other palatable taste? Do you have sentience? In addition to these, because the eyes are weak, they also made eyelids to protect them; the eyelids are like doors, they are opened when they need to see things, and they are closed when they are sleeping. Is this not good? Is it like having foresight? Make the eyelashes grow like a screen, so that the wind will not damage it; make the eyebrows over the eyes as a canopy, so that the sweat from dripping from the head will make it feel uncomfortable; sounds, but are not filled by them; make the incisors of all creatures fit for chewing, from which the molars take their food and grind it; close to the eyes and nose; and since the excreted matter is objectionable, the bowels are led as far as possible from the five senses--the arrangements of things are so obviously foreseeable that they are by chance Or plan, can you still doubt it?"

"Certainly not," replied Aristodemus, "when I look at them in this light, they do seem to have been made by a wise and loving creator." "Also, put the natural desire to bear children in the living beings, so that the mother has the desire to feed the baby, and the children have an extremely strong desire to survive and an extremely strong fear of death. What do you think of these things? ?” "There is no doubt that these also appear to be the result of a deliberate design by one who wishes all things to survive." "Do you think you have some wisdom yourself?"

"Ask and I'll answer." "Can you think that there is no wisdom elsewhere? You know that the dust is plentiful, and all that is in your body is a little, and the water is vast, and there is only a little in your body, and the structure of your body It can only make you receive a little of each of the innumerable other elements, and you can think yourself very lucky to have all the wisdom of the world for yourself, and this meeting of things that is vast and infinite is due to Sustained by something irrational?" "Indeed; for I cannot see the conductor of these things, but I can see the creator of the things of the world."

"However, you can't see the soul that directs your body. Based on the same reasoning, you can also say that you have no plan for anything you do, and everything is completely accidental." "But, Socrates," said Aristodemus, "I do not despise the gods, but I think they are so sublime that I need not pay attention to them." "However," Socrates said, "since they are willing to look after you, the more noble they are, the more they should be respected by you!" "Be at ease," replied Aristodemus, "if I had known that the gods cared for man, I would never despise them."

"Then do you think the gods don't care about man? First, of all creatures, they make man the only one who can stand upright, and by being upright, he can see farther ahead and pay better attention to things above. And things are not easily damaged. Secondly, the gods have given to other creeping animals feet that can only move the body, but they have given humans hands, and because of them, humans have greater happiness. Although all animals have Tongues, but the gods only made human tongues so that they can sometimes touch this part of the mouth and sometimes touch the other part of the mouth, so that they can make clear sounds and express affection to each other. Also, have you not noticed that, They restrict the sexual intercourse of other animals to certain seasons, but can human sexual intercourse continue until old age? Moreover, the gods are not satisfied with just taking care of the human body, what is more important is that they have placed a The soul, that is, his most important part. First of all, what other animal soul can understand that there is a god who keeps everything in order? What other animal but man worships a god? What? What other animals have better souls than man to prevent hunger and thirst, cold and heat, cure disease, improve health; study hard and pursue knowledge; or can better remember what they hear, see or learn? You Is it not clear that man is by nature infinitely nobler than other animals, both in body and in soul, and lives like a god? For a creature who has the body of an ox and has no judgment of a man, It cannot carry out what it wishes; hands are useless without reason; and to you who have both these beautiful gifts, do you think the gods do not care for you? What has to be done for you to make you think they care about you?"

"If they had sent me counselors, as you say they sent you, to say, 'Do this and not that,' I would have thought so." "When the Athenians borrowed divination When the gods are consulted, and the gods give them advice, don't you think that these advices are also for you? Or when the gods give signs to the Greeks, or to all mankind, warning them, they regard you as the only one exception, and ignore you altogether? Do you think that if the gods had no real power to do good or harm to man, they would create such a belief in them in man's heart? And, if man is thus eternally deceit, and they never perceive it? Can't you see that the oldest and wisest human societies, the oldest and wisest cities and nations honor gods, and that the wisest period of life is their wisest God-fearing time?" "My good friend, you should understand," continued Socrates, "since the intellect that lives in your body can direct your body at will; The reason of the universe can also direct everything in the universe at will, and it should not be thought that your eyes can see many stadia, but the eyes of gods cannot see everything at once; or that your soul can think here things, or things of Egypt or Sicily, and the gods cannot think of everything at the same time. If you serve men, you will find who will serve you, and by you doing favors, you will find who will do you good, By asking men for advice, you will find out who is wise, so try them in the way of worshiping the gods, and see if they will tell you things that are hidden from men, and you will find, God has such a power and such a disposition that he can see all things at once, hear all things at the same time, be everywhere at once, and care for all things at the same time."

By expressing such opinions, I think Socrates kept those in his company from doing ungodly, unjust, and dishonorable things, not only when they were seen, but also when they were alone. The same is true when they are in one place, because they will think that nothing they do can escape the eyes and ears of the gods.