ιε′ περὶ φυσικῆς μεταβολῆς.

[102] ‘Ανυπόστατον δὲ εἶναι λέγουσί τινες καὶ τὴν καλουμένην φυσικὴν μεταβολήν, λόγοις ἐπιχειροῦντες τοιούτοις. εἰ εἰ μεταβάλλει τι, ἤτοι σῶμά ἐστι τὸ μεταβάλλον ἤ ἀσώματον· ἑκάτερον δὲ τούτων ἠπόρηται· ἄπορος ἄρα ἔσται καὶ ὁ περὶ τῆς μεταβολῆς λόγος.

[103] εἰ μεταβάλλει τι, κατά τινας ἐνεργείας αἰτίου καὶ πάσχον μεταβάλλει. <.....> διατρέπεται
γὰρ ἡ τοῦ αἰτίου ὑπόστασίς· ᾧ τὸ πάσχον συμπεριτρέπεται μὴ ἔχον ὑπὸ ὅτου πάθῃ. οὐδὲ μεταβάλλει τι ἄρα.

[104] εἰ μεταβάλλει τι, ἤτοι τὸ ὂν μεταβάλλει ἢ τὸ μὴ ὄν. τὸ μὲν οὖν μὴ ὂν ἀνυπόστατόν ἐστι καὶ οὔτε πάσχειν τι οὔτε δρᾶν δύναται, ὥστε οὐδὲ μεταβολὴν ἐπιδέχεται. εἰ
δὲ τὸ ὂν μεταβάλλει, ἤτοι καθὸ ὄν ἐστι μεταβάλλει ἢ ¹² 145 καθὸ μὴ ὄν ἐστιν.

[105] καθὸ μὲν οὖν μὴ ὄν ἐστιν, οὐ μεταβάλλει· ταβάλλει· οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐκ ὄν ἐστιν· εἰ δὲ καθὸ ὄν ἐστι μεταβάλλει, ἕτερον ἐστι τοῦ ὃν εἶναι, τουτέστιν οὐκ ὂν
ἔσται. ἄτοπον δὲ τὸ λέγειν τὸ ὂν οὐκ ὂν γίνεσθαι· οὐκ ἄρα οὐδὲ τὸ ὂν μεταβάλλει. εἰ δὲ μήτε τὸ ὂν μεταβάλλει μήτε τὸ μὴ ὄν, παρὰ ταῦτα δὲ οὐδὲν ἔστι, λείπεται λέγειν ὅτι οὐδὲν μεταβάλλει. ἔτι καὶ ταῦτά φασί τινες.

[106] τὸ μεταβάλλον ἔν τινι χρόνῳ μεταβάλλειν ὀφείλει· οὔτε δὲ
ἐν τῷ παρῳχηκότι Χρόνῳ μεταβάλλει τι οὔτε ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι, λοντι, ἀλλ' οὐδ' ἐν τῷ ἐνεστῶτι, ὡς δείξομεν· οὐκ ἄρα μεταβάλλει τι. ἐν μὲν οὖν τῷ παρεληλυθότι ἢ μέλλοντι χρόνῳ οὐδὲν μεταβάλλει· τούτων γὰρ οὐθέτερος ἐνέστηκεν, ἀδύνατον δέ ἐστι δρᾶν τι ἢ πάσχειν ἐν τῷ μὴ ὄντι
καὶ ἐνεστηκότι χρόνῳ. ἀλλ’ οὐδὲ ἐν τῷ ἐνεστῶτι.

[107] ὁ γὰρ ἐνεστὼς χρόνος ἴσως μὲν καὶ ἀνύπαρκτός ἐστιν, ἵνα δὲ τοῦτο νῦν ὑπερθώμεθα, ἀμερής ἐστιν· ἀδύνατον δέ
ἐρτιν <ἐν> ἀμερεῖ χρόνῳ νομίζειν τὸν σίδηρον, εἰ τύχοι, τῆς σκληρότητος εἰς μαλακότητα μεταβάλλειν ἢ τῶν ἄλλων μεταβολῶν ἑκάστην γίνεσθαι· παρατάσεως γὰρ αὗται φαίνονται χρῄζειν. εἰ οὖν μήτε ἐν τῷ παρεληλυθότι
χρόνῳ μεταβάλλει τι μήτε ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι <μήτε ἐν ἐνεστῶτι, οὐδὲ> μεταβάλλειν τι ῥητέον.

[108] πρὸς τούτοις, εἰ ἔστι τις μεταβολή, ἤτοι x003E; αἰσθήσεις ἁπλοπαθεῖς εἰσιν, ἡ δὲ μεταβολὴ συμμνημόνευσιν ἔχειν δοκεῖ τοῦ τε ἐξ οὗ μεταβάλλει καὶ εἰς ὃ μεταβάλλειν λέγεται· εἰ δὲ νοητή ἐστιν,
ἐπεὶ περὶ τῆς ὑπάρξεως τῶν νοητῶν ἀνεπίκριτος γέγονε παρὰ τοῖς παλαιοῖς διαφωνία, καθάπερ ἤδη πολλάκις ὑπεμνήσαμεν, οὐδὲν ἕξομεν λέγειν οὐδὲ περὶ τῆς ὑπάρξεως τῆς μεταβολῆς.

³⁴

Pyrrhoniae Hypotyposes. Sextus Empiricus. ed. Hermann Mutschmann. Germany. 2014.

Current edition First1KGreek

Pyrrhoniae Hypotyposes (Greek) (Sextus Empiricus. Sexti Empiricii Opera, Volume 1. Mutschmann, Hermann, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1912.)

Translations (1)

Outlines of Pyrrhonism First1KGreek (Sextus Empiricus, Vol. 1. Bury, Robert Gregg, translator. London: William Heinemann Ltd.; New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1933.) — 3.15 focus

Chapter XV.—Concerning Physical Change

[102] Some, too, maintain that what is called ‟physical change” is non-real, and the arguments they employ are such as these:¹ If a thing changes, what changes is either corporeal or incorporeal; but each of these is matter of dispute; therefore the theory of change will also be disputable.

[103] If a thing changes, it changes through certain actions of a Cause² and by being acted upon. But it does not change by being acted upon, for the reality of Cause is refuted, and therewith is refuted also the object which is acted upon, as it has no agent to act upon it.

[104] Therefore nothing changes at all. If a thing changes, either what is changes or what is not.³ Now what is not is unreal and can neither act nor be acted upon at all, so that it does not admit of change either. And if what is changes, it changes either in so far as it is in being or in so far as it is not in being.

[105] Now in so far as it is not in being it does not change, for it is not even existent; while if it changes in so far as it is existent, it will be other than existent, which means that it will be non-existent. But it is absurd to say that the existent becomes non-existent; therefore the existent does not change either. And if neither the existent nor the non-existent changes, and besides these there is nothing else, it only remains to say that nothing changes.

[106] Some also argue thus:⁴ That which changes must change in a certain time; but nothing changes either in the past or in the future, nor yet in the present, as we shall prove; nothing therefore changes. Nothing changes in the past or in the future, for neither of these times is present, and it is impossible to do or suffer anything in time that is not existent and present. Nor yet in time present.

[107] For the present time is probably also unreal,⁵ and—even if we set aside this point—it is indivisible; and it is impossible to suppose that in an indivisible moment of time iron, say, changes from hard to soft, or any one of all the other changes takes place; for they appear to require extension in time. If, then, nothing changes either in the past or in the future or in the present, we must declare that nothing changes at all.

[108] Further, if change exists at all it is either sensible or intelligible; but it is not sensible, since the senses are specialized,⁶ whereas change is thought to possess ‟concurrent recollection”⁷ both of that from which it changes and that into which it is said to change. And if it is intelligible, then, since (as we have frequently pointed out already⁸) there exists among the ancients an unsettled controversy as to the reality of intelligibles, we shall also be unable to make any assertion about the reality of change.

Notes on the current edition

Pyrrhoniae hypotyposes

1. §§ 104—105 cf. adv. dogm. III 267—268.

2. 25 περὶ AB 145, 1 τὰ γὰρ — 160, 20 om. T (vide p. XI) 2 παρέκβασιν L: παρέμβασιν M: παρέκτασιν EAB 10 lacunam quam statuit Apelt sic fere explet <ὃ ἀδύνατον> melius fort. <ὅπερ ἀδύνατον> Pasquali, at malim <κατὰ μὲν οὖν ἐνεργείας αἰτίου οὐ μεταβαλλει> coll. p. 148, 8. 155, 12 ante εἰ L inser. ὃ

3. §§ 106—107 cf. 144—145. (ad 107 cf. adv. dogin. III 271 sqq.)

4. 19 ἔστι G: ἔσται edd. 1 ἐν add. Bekk. || ἀμερῆ L 2 μαλ- θακότητα EB : μαλκαότητα A (sic) 5 μήτε — 6 οὐδὲ add. Fabr. qui οὐ scripsit, quod correxit Pasquali 6 μεταβάλλειν Fabr. : μεταβάλλει G 7 τις EAB : τι ML || lacunam quam statuit sic fere explendam censet Bekker ἤτοι <αἰσθητή ἐστιν νοητή. καὶ αἰσθητὴ μὲν οὔκ ἐστιν· αἱ μὲν γὰρ> αἰσθήσεις

Sextus Empiricus Pyrrhoniae Hypotyposes 3.15

ed. Hermann Mutschmann

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ιε′ περὶ φυσικῆς μεταβολῆς.

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Chapter XV.—Concerning Physical Change

Notes on the current edition

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