Philo Judaeus, De Vita Contemplativa, Charles Duke Yonge (Translator), 3

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[3] with whom, however, who is there of those who profess piety that we can possibly compare? Can we compare those who honour the elements, earth, water, air, and fire? to whom different nations have given different names, calling fire Hephaestus, I imagine because of its kindling, ¹ and the air Hera, I imagine because of its being raised up, ² and raised aloft to a great height, and water Poseidon, probably because of its being drinkable, ³ and the earth Demeter, because it appears to be the mother ⁴ of all plants and of all animals.

De Vita Contemplativa. Philo Judaeus. Charles Duke Yonge (Translator). Germany. 2023-08-01.

Current edition First1KGreek

On the Contemplative Life, or on the Virtues of Suppliants (English) (The works of Philo Judaeus, the contemporary of Josephus, volume 4. Yonge, C. D., translator. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1855.)

Editions (1)

De Vita Contemplativa First1KGreek (Philo Judaeus. Opera quae supersunt, Volume 6. Cohn, Leonard; Reiter, Siegfried, editors. Berlin: Reimer, 1915.) — 3 focus

[3] ἆρά γε τοὺς τὰ στοιχεῖα τιμῶντας, γῆν, ὕδωρ, ἀέρα, πῦρ; οἷς καὶ
ἐπωνυμίας ἔθεντο ἑτέρας ἕτεροι, τὸ μὲν πῦρ Ἥφαιστον παρὰ τὴν ἔξαψιν, οἶμαι, καλοῦντες, Ἥραν δὲ τὸν ἀέρα παρὰ τὸ αἴρεσθαι καὶ μετεωρίζεσθαι πρὸς ὕψος, τὸ δὲ ὕδωρ Ποσειδῶνα τάχα που διὰ τὸ ποτόν, τὴν δὲ γῆν Δήμητραν, παρόσον μήτηρ εἶναι δοκεῖ πάντων φυτῶν τε καὶ ζῴων.

Notes on the current edition

On the Contemplative Life, or on the Virtues of Suppliants

1. The Greek is ἔξαψις, as if " Ηφαιστος were also derived from ἅπτομαι, being akin to ἁφὴ.

2. The Greek word is αἵρεσθαι, to which "Hpa has some similarity in sound.

3. The Greek word is πότον, derived from 3rd sing. perf. pass. of πίνω πέποται, from the 2nd sing. of which Πέποσαι, ποσειδω̄ν may probably be derived.

4. The Greek word is μητήρ, evidently the root of Δημητήρ.

Philo Judaeus De Vita Contemplativa 3

Charles Duke Yonge (Translator)

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Current edition First1KGreek

Notes on the current edition

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