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Section 101

"Would you not be afraid to say that ten is more than eight by two, and that this is the cause of its excess, rather than saying it is more by Multitude and because of Multitude? Or that the two-cubit measure is greater than the one-cubit by half, rather than by Largeness? For the fear is the same." "Absolutely," he said. "And further, if one is added to one, would you not beware of saying the addition is the cause of their becoming two, or the splitting if one is divided? Would you not shout loudly that you know no other way each thing comes to be except by partaking of the specific essence of each thing it partakes of? So in these cases, you admit no other cause of becoming two than partaking in Duality. Whatever is to be two must partake in it, and whatever is to be one must partake in Oneness. You would bid farewell to these splittings, additions, and all other such subtleties, leaving them for those wiser than you to answer. Afraid, as the saying goes, of your own shadow and inexperience, you would cling to the safety of the hypothesis and answer accordingly. But if anyone attacked the hypothesis itself, you would let him be and not answer until you had examined whether its consequences agreed or disagreed with one another. And when you had to give an account of the hypothesis itself, you would give it in the same way, hypothesizing another higher hypothesis, whichever seemed best, until you reached something sufficient. You would not mix things up like the contentious debaters, discussing the starting principle and its consequences at the same time, if you wished to discover any of the realities. For those people perhaps care not a whit about this. Their wisdom allows them to mix everything together and still be pleased with themselves. But if you are a philosopher, I think you will do as I say." "You speak perfectly truly," said Simmias and Cebes together.

ECHECRATES. By Zeus, Phaedo, justly so! He seems to me to have explained this with wondrous clarity, even to someone of small intelligence.

PHAEDO. That is exactly what everyone present thought, Echecrates.

ECHECRATES. Even we who were absent and are hearing it now think so. What was said next?