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Section 66

"Because of all this," said Socrates, "must not a certain opinion occur to genuine philosophers, so that they speak to one another somewhat like this: 'It seems a narrow path has been found to lead us out. For as long as we have the body, and our soul is kneaded together with this evil, we will never adequately acquire what we desire, which we say is the truth. For the body provides us with countless distractions because of its necessary nourishment. Moreover, if any diseases fall upon it, they impede our hunt for reality. It fills us with loves, desires, fears, all kinds of illusions, and endless nonsense, so that, as the saying goes, because of the body we can scarcely ever think of anything at all. 'For whence do wars, factions, and battles arise, if not from the body and its desires? All wars are undertaken for the acquisition of wealth, and we are forced to acquire wealth because of the body, being slaves to its service. As a result, we have no leisure for philosophy because of all these things. And the worst of all is that if we do get some leisure from it and turn to some investigation, it interrupts us everywhere in our inquiries, creating noise and confusion, and amazing us so that we are unable to see the truth because of it. 'But it has been genuinely shown to us that if we are ever going to know anything purely, we must be separated from the body and view things themselves with the soul itself. Then, it seems, we shall attain what we desire and what we say we are lovers of—namely, wisdom—not while we live, but only after we are dead, as the argument indicates. For if it is impossible to know anything purely while associated with the body, one of two things follows: either knowledge is nowhere to be acquired, or it is to be acquired only after death. For then the soul will be by itself, apart from the body, but not before. 'And while we live, it seems we shall be closest to knowledge if we have the least possible communion and contact with the body, except what is strictly necessary, and do not infect ourselves with its nature, but keep ourselves pure from it until the god himself releases us. In this way, being pure and rid of the body's foolishness, we shall likely be with others of the same sort, and shall know through ourselves all that is unsullied—which is, presumably, the truth. For it is not permitted for the impure to grasp the pure.' I think, Simmias, that all true lovers of learning must say such things to one another and hold these beliefs. Does it not seem so to you?"