And as for the strength of one adult
man, it surpasses that of a child immeasurably,
for one man could easily overpower any number
of children, since it seems that by nature we have
always in early life a time of perfect helplessness
and impotence.
Now, seeing that man apparently differs from
man to such a degree, how shall we suppose the
whole heaven compares with our powers in the
eyes of those that attain to such vision? It will
probably seem likely to many that the power and
understanding and reason of the universe are as
much in excess of what Sokrates or Chairephon
has as its size surpasses that of our bodies.
 
Moreover, many things that are impossible to
others are easy to you and me and hosts of men
like us, and even the arts of flute-playing and
reading and writing are more impossible to the
uninstructed, until they learn them, than making
birds into women or women into birds. Nature,
we may say, deposits a footless, wingless creature
in the honey-comb. Then she sets it upon feet,
and gives it wings, and makes it bright with the
bravery of many varying colors, and lo! it is a


 


bee, a clever maker of honey fit for the gods.
And from voiceless, lifeless eggs she forms all
sorts of flying and walking and swimming creatures, employing, as some hold, divine arts of the
boundless air. Seeing, then, that the powers of
the immortals are vast, and that we are mortal
and altogether tiny and unable to understand.
either great or small or even to cope with most of
those things that concern ourselves, we can give
no sure opinion about either halcyons or nightingales.
But the famous story of thy lays, melodious
mourner, I will hand down to my children as I
received it from my fathers, and I will often
chant thy dutiful, wifely love to my wives, Xanthippe and Myrto, and tell them all, but chiefly
what glory the gods gave thee.
You will do likewise, will you not, Chairephon? Chairephon Yes, Sokrates; and what you have
said may fitly be a double encouragement of love
between man and wife. Sokrates Then it is high time for us to say
farewell to Halkyone and set out from Phaleron
towards the town. Chairephon Very well; I am ready.