Dialogue Text

Timaios (Continued)

Someone must clarify how and by what means motion and stillness arise, otherwise it will be a significant obstacle to the subsequent considerations. I have already mentioned these things before, but there is further: Motion never enters into a uniform state. It seems unlikely, indeed impossible, that something can be moved without something moving it, or that something can move something else without being moved itself. Without these, motion does not exist, and neither can they both be uniform at the same time.

Timaios (Continued). Therefore, let us consider that a uniform state has stillness, while an uneven state always has movement. The cause of this uneven nature lies in further inequality. We have already described the process by which inequalities arise. However, we have not yet explained how each type does not separate into distinct categories and why they continue to move through one another without stopping. So, let me explain it again. The cyclical motion of the entire universe encompasses all types. Because it is circular and has a nature that draws everything towards itself, it compresses everything and prevents any space from remaining empty.

Timaios (Continued). Therefore, fire spreads to all places more than anything else, and air, which is second in fineness, follows it as the second most pervasive element. The other elements follow the same order. This is because things composed of larger parts leave the largest voids within their composition, while those composed of smaller parts leave the smallest voids. Thus, compression causes small things to be pushed into the spaces between large things. Consequently, small things are placed next to large things, and smaller things push apart larger things, while larger things gather together smaller things. Therefore, everything moves up and down, to its respective place.

Timaios (Continued). This is because when the size of each element changes, it also alters its stationary position in space. These circumstances maintain the generation of heterogeneity, and this generation continuously produces movement within these elements, which will continue indefinitely.