THE DREAM

...narrow straits original: "angustijs"; the text begins mid-word, completing a sentence describing the small, inhabited portions of the Earth of those regions which you see; nor has it ever been everlasting for anyone, for it is buried by the death of men and extinguished by the forgetfulness of posterity."

When he had said these things, I replied, "O Africanus Scipio Africanus the Younger is addressing his adoptive grandfather, Scipio Africanus the Elder, if indeed a path like a gateway to the entrance of heaven lies open to those who have served their country well, then—although I have followed in my father's footsteps and yours since I was a boy, and have not failed to uphold your honor—now, with such a great reward set before me, I will strive much more vigilantly."

And he said, "Strive indeed, and hold this truth: it is not you who are mortal, but only this body. For you are not what that physical form reveals; rather, the mind original: "mens"; here referring to the rational soul or the true self of each person is who they truly are, not that shape which can be pointed to with a finger. Know, therefore, that you are a god original: "Deum... te esse"; Cicero follows the Platonic tradition of viewing the rational, self-moving soul as divine: if indeed that which thrives, feels, remembers, and foresees is a god—that which rules, governs, and moves the body over which it is set, just as the supreme God rules this world. And just as the eternal God moves the world, which is in some part mortal, so the everlasting soul moves the fragile body.

For that which is always in motion is eternal. But that which communicates motion to something else, and which is itself moved from an outside source, must necessarily find an end to its life when it finds an end to its motion. Therefore, only that which moves itself never ceases to move, because it is never deserted by itself; moreover, for all other things that are moved, this is the source, the principle original: "principium"; the primary cause or starting point from which everything else flows of their movement. Now, a principle has no origin, for all things arise from a principle, while the principle itself cannot be born from anything else. It would not be a principle if it were produced from elsewhere. And if it never has a beginning, it certainly never dies. For if a principle were extinguished, it could not be reborn from another, nor could it create anything else from itself, since all things must necessarily arise from a principle. Thus it follows that the principle of motion arises from that which is moved by its own power. This can neither be born nor die; otherwise, the whole heaven would collapse and all nature would col- The text cuts off mid-word "consistat," meaning to come to a halt or collapse