363
(
Greek characters)[Greek: Phamen ô teknon, periektikon'tôn apantôn einai to'sôma. ennoêson oun auto ôsper kykloeides schêmaypo de ton kyklon tou'sômatos toutou tetachthai tous lst dekanous, mesous tou pantos kyklou tou zôdiakou.noêsômen ôsperei phylakas autous proïstasthai tôn en kosmô apantôn santa synechontaskai têrountas tên'tôn pantôn eutaxian.eti de noêson ô Tat, oti apatheis eisin ôn oi alloi asteres paschousin. oute gar epechomenoi ton dromon stêrizousin, oute kôlyomenoi anapodizousin, all' oude mên apo tou phôtos tou êliou skepontai, aper paschousin oi alloi asteres. eleutheroi de ontes yperanô pantôn, ôsper phylakes kai episkopoi akribeis tou pantos, periechontai tô nychthêmerô to pan.echousi pros êmas tên megistên dynamin.] i. e. "We say, O son, that the body [of the universe] is comprehensive of all things. Conceive, therefore, this to be as it were of a circular form.But under the circle of this body the thirty-six decans are arranged, as the media of the whole circle of the zodiac.These, likewise, must be understood to preside as guardians over every thing in the world, connecting and containing all thingsand preserving the established order of all things.Farther still, understand, O Tat, that these decans are impassive to the things which the other stars suffer. For neither being detained, do they stop their course, nor being impeded do they recede, nor are they, like the other stars, concealed as with a veil by the light of the sun. But being liberated above all things, they comprehend the universe as the guardians and accurate inspectors of it, in the Nycthemeron [or the space of night and day].They also possess, with respect to us, the greatest power."
P. 125. So that what you add from Homer, "that the Gods are flexible," it is not holy to assert. The words of Homer are (Greek characters)[Greek: streptoi de te kai theoi autoi], and are to be found in Iliad ix. v. 493. But when Iamblichus says, it is not holy to assert the Gods are flexible, he means that it is not holy according to the literal signification of the words; divine flexibility indicating nothing more than this, that those who through depravity were before unadapted to receive the illuminations of the Gods, and in consequence of this were subject to the power of avenging dæmons; when afterwards they obtain pardon of their guilt through prayers and sacrifices, and through methods of this kind apply a remedy to their vices, again become partakers of the goodness of the Gods. So that divine flexibility is a resumption of the participation of divine light and goodness by those who through inaptitude were before deprived of it.
