Chalcidius's Commentary on Plato's Timaeus

His teaching is the only correct one. A doubt about the credibility and consistency of his statements is rejected with indignation. Plato treats the problems with great diligence and the highest care. His skill of presentation is particularly praised. Indeed, truth itself seems to inspire him in his utterances. Thus it is understandable when Chalcidius—admittedly in severe contradiction with history—occasionally thinks that all other philosophers leaned on Plato, who had taught the whole truth, and because they, according to their pleasure, sometimes emphasized one or the other of his assertions too strongly at the expense of others, they had only produced fragments.

Plato is therefore also cited by him most frequently. Of his writings, the Timaeus itself is, of course, used in particular. Apart from the fact that he always at length cites the passages he intends to explain, which alone takes up a considerable space of his commentary,

1. c. 1. "For what is more prompt than that man?"

2. This shows itself as often as he contrasts Plato's view (or rather what he considers to be that) with the opinion of other philosophers. Cf. c. 214... "so that, once a comparison has been made of how much Plato's [opinion] surpasses others regarding the truth, it becomes plain."

3. c. 228. "In this place, men who have no care for investigating the truth are accustomed to slander. For they say that Plato..."

4. c. 253: "But Plato, with great diligence and highest care, having searched the hidden corners thoroughly..."

5. "The outline of the dialogue is dramatic as far as it pertains to disposition, but the speech is of a more majestic kind. Finally, this type of speech is suitable for the interpretation of mysterious things. Therefore, the author does nothing inconvenient (c. 138)."

6. c. 176: "Plato spoke [about fate] by the instinct of truth itself (as it seems to me, at least)."

7. c. 243: "These (he has previously brought forward the view of the atomists, Heraclitus, the Stoics, the 'Geometers and Peripatetics') are the opinions of the ancients approved concerning vision, who seem to me, at least, to have made their own dogma by taking opportunities from Plato. For when he brought forward a perfect reason... the juniors, having taken parts from the full opinion, felt as if they were speaking about the totality."

8. Such citations—I mention here only the more considerable ones—are found in c. 8, 13, 21, 24, 27, 28, 32, 40, 44, 47, 52, 56, 57 (entirely), 58, 92, 93, 98, 103, 108, 113, 114, 115, 117, 118, 195, 199, 210, 211, 247, 248, 249, 257, 261, 265, 271, 322, 323, 324, 325, 326, 334, 340, 343 and similar ones.