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For links to many more fragments: The Orphic Fragments of Otto Kern.

SUMMARY: This fragment consists of four quotations regarding the sun and the moon.

92. (82) σχόλιον Πρόκλου επὶ Τιμαίου Πλάτωνος 38 c (III 56, 4 Diehl):

διὸ καὶ ὥσπερ τὸν ἥλιον κατὰ ὥραν καὶ κατὰ ζώιδιον εἰρήκασιν ἀμείβειν τὰς μορφάς, οὕτω καὶ τὴν σελήνην κατὰ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν,

ὄφρ’ ἐν μηνὶ τρέπηι ὅπερ [ὁ del. Diehl] ἥλιος εἰς ἐνιαυτόν,

ὥς φησιν ὁ θεολόγος.

“Hence, as the sun is said to change his forms every hour, and in each sign of the zodiac, so the moon changes her form every day; so that as the theologist says,

“She undergoes as many changes in a month as the sun in a year.”

(trans. Thomas Taylor, 1820)

(Compare in σχόλιον Πρόκλου επὶ Τιμαίου Πλάτωνος 22 c [I 107, 29 Diehl]:

οὕτω γὰρ οἵ τε μυθοί φασιν οἱ παρ’ Ἕλλησιν, ἥ τε τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἐνδείκνυται παρά | ^{107 Diehl} δοσις [καὶ del. Diehl] περὶ ἡλίου λέγουσα μυστικῶς ὡς διαφόρους ἐν τοῖς ζωιδίοις ἀμείβοντος μορφάς.

“(Deluges, therefore, and conflagrations are the greatest destructions. But famine and pestilence, earthquakes and wars, and other such-like partial calamities, may be produced from other causes. And of all these, the effective cause indeed is the order of the universe, and prior to this, the junior fabrication, which always makes new effects, and at different times produces the generation of different things.)

“For this is asserted by the fables of the Greeks, and is indicated by the tradition of the Egyptians, which mystically says of the sun, that he assumes different forms in the signs of the zodiac.”

“(It is not, therefore, at all wonderful, if though there are many destructions, and in many places, yet man and every form always exist, through the immutable progression of divine forms. For through these, the productive principles in the universe possess an invariable sameness of subsistence, because every thing which is generated from an immoveable cause, is always suspended from its cause.)”

(trans. Thomas Taylor, 1820)

and Περὶ τῶν Αἰγυπτίων μυστηρίων Ιαμβλίχου Χαλκιδέως VII 3 p. 253 Parth.:

διὸ καὶ φησιν αὐτὸν ἕνα εἶναι καὶ τὸν αὐτόν, τὰς δὲ διαµείψεις τῆς µορφῆς καὶ τοὺς µετασχηµατισµοὺς ἐν τοῖς δεχοµένοις ὑποτίθεται.

Διόπερ κατὰ ζῴδιον καὶ καθ' ὥραν µεταβάλλεσθαι

αὐτὸν φησιν, ὡς ἐκείνων διαποικιλλοµένων περὶ τὸν θεὸν κατὰ τὰς πολλὰς αὐτοῦ ὑποδοχάς.

“Hence, likewise, it says that he is one and the same, but that the vicissitudes of his form, and his configurations, must be admitted to exist in the recipients. On this account it asserts,

‘That he is changed every hour, according to the signs of the zodiac,’

“in consequence of these being variously changed about the Gods, according to the many modes by which they receive him.” (trans. Thomas Taylor, 1821)

σχόλιον Πρόκλου επὶ Πολιτείας Πλάτωνος II 58, 10 Kr.:

καὶ ὁ ὅλος ἐνιαυσιαῖος κύκλος διήιρηται εἰς αὔξησιν καὶ μείωσιν διὸ καὶ ὁ μηνιαῖος τῆς σελήνης κύκλος ἐνεικονίζεσθαι λέγεται τὸν ἐνιαύσιον τοῦ ἡλίου δρόμον· καὶ ὅ γε Ὀρφεὺς ἐν τῶι μηνὶ τρέπειν αὐτήν φησιν, ὅπερ ἥλιος ἐν ἐνιαυτῶι,τὸ (Scoell] τὰ cod.) ἀνάλογον ἐπ’ ἀμφοῖν θεώμενος.

“And the whole annual cycle is divided into increase and decrease; he says this also through the monthly cycle of the moon representing the annual course of the sun; and Orphéfs (Ὀρφεὺς) declares that in a month the moon rotates, the very thing which the sun (accomplishes) in a year, viewing both as an analogue (of each other).” (trans. by the author)

Lobeck I 499.

The story of the birth of the Gods: Orphic Theogony.

We know the various qualities and characteristics of the Gods based on metaphorical stories: Mythology.

Dictionary of terms related to ancient Greek mythology: Glossary of Hellenic Mythology.

Introduction to the Thæí (the Gods): The Nature of the Gods.

How do we know there are Gods? Experiencing Gods.

PLEASE NOTE: Throughout the pages of this Glossary, you will find fascinating stories. These narratives are known as mythology, the traditional stories of the Gods and Heroes. While these tales are great mystical vehicles containing transcendent truth, they are symbolic and should not be taken literally; a literal reading will frequently yield an erroneous result. The meaning of the myths is often concealed in code. To understand them requires a key. For instance, when a God kills someone, this usually means a transformation of the soul to a higher level. Similarly, sexual union with a God is a transformation.

The story of the birth of the Gods: Orphic Theogony.

We know the various qualities and characteristics of the Gods based on metaphorical stories: Mythology.

Dictionary of terms related to ancient Greek mythology: Glossary of Hellenic Mythology.

SPELLING: HellenicGods.org uses the Reuchlinian method of pronouncing ancient Greek, the system preferred by scholars from Greece itself. An approach was developed to enable the student to easily approximate the Greek words. Consequently, the way we spell words is unique, as this method of transliteration is exclusive to this website. For more information, visit these three pages:

Pronunciation of Ancient Greek

Transliteration of Ancient Greek

Pronouncing the Names of the Gods

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