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6 From the ' harmony of the Sirens in Delphi

celestial
Ἡ γῆ μας γῆ τῶν ἄφθαρτων
ἀερικῶν καὶ εἰδώλων,
πασίχαρος καὶ ὑπέρτατος
θεός μας εἶν᾿ὁ᾿Aπόλλων.
(Côstis Palamás, Οὐράνια)
6.1 Introduction
In the myth of Er, Plato first refers to the Sirens, to come, then,
at the Moires. These are then described as singing in accordance with the
Sirens (ὑμνεῖν πρὸς τὴν τῶν Σειρήνων ἁρμονίαν). This way of presenting
things would seem to give Sirens a certain primacy over
Moires, since it is the latter who match their song with that of
Sirens and not the other way around. On the other hand, the celestial movement, which goes
hand in hand with
the harmony emitted, is launched by the Moires, while the Sirens are represented
senated as if they were simply carried away by the revolution,
without really being the cause. In addition, the Moires are daughters of Anankè, who is the
great divine figure of the myth of Er, while no genealogy legitimizes the
status of Sirens. These elements would seem to testify in favor of a certain
preponderance of Moires. The indices are therefore contradictory as to the
primacy of one over the other. How then should we understand the
relationship between Sirens and Moires? This question is important in the
measure where it is associated with the question of the relationship between the harmony of
Moires,
examined in the previous chapter, and the harmony of the Sirens, which will be ana-
lysed below.
I think that between the Moires and the Sirens, a circle is established: in this
chapter, I will try to show that the Anankè girls constitute the model on
which take the example of the Sirens, to be, finally, assimilated. Once
assimilated to the model, the Sirens themselves take on a paradigmatic character.
matic, their harmony having the quality of an incantation capable of restoring
kill the soul in its previous and pure state, which is, precisely, the one to which
refers to the allegory of Moires. This is how the myth, echoing itself
of the harmony of the Sirens, saves, purifying the soul from all stain.
 Pl. R. 621b sq.

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the ambiguity of the mythical order according to which things are described, we evoke
What will Timaeus' remark on the fortuitous nature of the discourse:
in a way, like ourselves, our way of speaking also participates strongly
the occasional and the fortuitous.
The myth must therefore be "rectified", ³ what I will try to do later, by
focusing on the meaning of Sirens harmony.
6.2 From psychology to ' Astronomy
6.2.1 The ' virtuous soul of the philosopher
The Sirens and the Moires sing in harmony with each other. Com-
the harmony of the Moires, the harmony of the Sirens is therefore the διὰ πασῶν. However, the
Sirens are eight in number, and each of them emits a note. These eight
notes embraced by the octave must be the notes of the disjointed tetrachords
(διαζευγμένον): net, paranete, trite, paramesis, mese, lichanos, parhypate, hy-
pate.⁴ The Sirens thus emit not only the hypate, the mesa and the net, but
also "the other terms which exist in the interval", ⁵ as noted by Plato
in book IV about the harmony of the three parts of the soul of man
fair.
Like the harmony of the Moires, the harmony of the Sirens is also an image
of the harmony of the virtuous soul, with which the prelude to the
dialectic and dialectic itself.⁶ However, unlike the three
Moires, Sirens do not represent the virtuous soul in general. We have
since, from Phaedrus to Cratylus , these latter are an image of the soul of the true
 Pl. Ti. 34 c: ἀλλά πως ἡμεῖς πολὺ μετέχοντες τοῦ προστυχόντος τε καὶ εἰκῇ ταύτῃ πῃ καὶ
λέγομεν.
 On this expression, cf. supra chap. 3.2.3.
 The most basic Greek scale consisted of two tetrac hords (literally 'four strings')
combined in two different ways: depending on the first, the last note of the first tetra-
chord was the first note of the second tetrachord (συνημμένον, 'joint'); according to the second,
the
two tetrachords did not share a string, but there was a tone between the last note of the
first tetrachord and the first note of the second tetrachord (διαζευγμένον, 'disjoint'). Cf.
also Philol. VS 44 B 6 (I, 408‒410), and the analyzes of Burkert 1972, 386 ff .; Huffman 1993, 145
sq.
 Pl. R. IV 443 d: καὶ εἰ ἀλλα ἄττα μεταξὺ τυγχάνει ὄντα. See above, chap. 5 n. 50.
 See above, chap. 5.5. See also Johnson 1999, 8, who puts forward the hypothesis that the song
of the Sirens
represents the song of the dialectic.
6.2 From psychology to astronomy
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philosopher, who does not submit to the constraints of the body, being retained in the
place invisible by the desire for virtue. The Sirens therefore represent the soul through-
virtuous fact of the philosopher (as long as perfection is accessible
to a human being), while their harmony is revealed as an allegory
concerning the justice which governs this soul close to the gods, and which finds its
major expression in the righteous practice of dialectics, whose "song" does not
is not distinguished from that of virtue.
The dialectic constitutes, in fact, the highest and most difficult part
of philosophy, ⁸ part reserved for a limited number of exceptional natures
nelles, ⁹ who, like the cicadas of Phaedrus and the true philosopher of Phaedo ,
do not regard death as something terrible, ¹⁰ but which succeeds
nent, thanks to philosophical teaching, to conquer the whole of the
tu, ¹¹ thus assimilating to the divine model represented by the Moires.¹² Thanks to the
dialectical, the philosopher succeeds, by means of reason and without the
from any sensible perception, to the contemplation of the essence of everything and,
finally, to the contemplation of the Good itself, to which, as we have
seen, the choir of Moires.¹³ He contemplates thus “time in its totality”, ¹⁴ to
like the daughters of Anankè, and transmits, by singing with them, his knowledge
dialectic of the present, the past and the future.
 See above, chap. 3.3.
 See above, chap. 5 nn. 106 and 107.
 Pl. R. VI 491 a ‒ b: τοιαύτην φύσιν καὶ πάντα ἔχουσαν ὅσα προσετάξαμεν νυνδή, εἰ
τελέως
μέλλοι φιλόσοφος γενέσθαι, ὀλιγάκις ἐν ἀνθρώποις φύεσθαι καὶ ὀλίγας; 496 a ‒ b:
Πάνσμικρον δή
τι […] λείπεται τῶν κατ 'ἀξίαν ὁμιλούντων φιλοσοφίᾳ.
 Ibid. 486b: Οὐκοῦν καὶ θάνατον οὐ δεινόν τι ἡγήσεται ὁ τοιοῦτος; Ἥκιστά γε; cf. also III
386a sq.
 Pl. R. VI 492a; cf. supra chap. 5 n. 109.
 On assimilation to the model of justice, cf. R. V 472 b ‒ d; VI 498 e; 500 c ‒ d; IX 592 a ‒ b;
infra
nn. 49, 52, 59, 61, 62.
 Ibid. VII 532 a ‒ b: Οὐκοῦν, εἶπον, ὦ Γλαύκων, οὗτος ἤδη αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ νόμος ὃν τὸ δια-
λέγεσθαι περαίνει; […] Οὕτω καὶ ὅταν τις τῷ διαλέγεσθαι ἐπιχειρῇ ἄνευ πασῶν τῶν
αἰσθήσεων
διὰ τοῦ λόγου ἐπ 'αὐτὸὃἔστιν ἕκαστον ὁρμᾶν, καὶ μὴ ἀποστῇ πρὶν ἂν αὐτὸὃἔστιν ἀγαθὸν
αὐτῇ
νοήσει λάβῃ, ἐπ 'αὐτῷ γίγνεται τῷ τοῦ νοητοῦ τέλει, ὥσπερ ἐκεῖνος τότε ἐπὶ τῷ τοῦ ὁρατοῦ.
 Ibid. VI 486 a: θεωρία παντὸς χρόνου. It is undoubtedly in this sense that we must
understand the
dream of announcing Socrates his death in Crito 44 a ‒ b. On this dream, cf. supra chap. 5 n. 20.
On the contemplation of time in its totality, cf. also supra chap. 5 nn. 26 and 82.
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6.2.2 Circles of planets and fixed stars
In the myth of Er, the Sirens are placed on the upper part of each
circles of the spindle and are thus driven by the revolution of the latter
(συμπεριφερομένην). What is the significance of the position of the Sirens? Being
since the circles represent the orbits of the Sun, the Moon, the planets
and fixed stars, one could think of the islands of the Blessed Pythagoreans
identified with the Sun and the Moon, ¹⁵ and suppose that, in accordance with doc-
Pythagorean trine, the place of the Sirens indicates the blessed state of the
losophe, ¹⁶ who, in the Republic , is described as inhabitant, from his lifetime, this
place of happiness. We will still think of those souls who, in Timaeus , are affected
each to a star and are mounted there as on a chariot so that the Demiurge
reveals to them the nature of the universe and the laws of destiny.
that in this case they are fixed stars and not planets, ¹⁹ while,
in the Republic , the Sirens are placed on the seven circles of the planets and
on that of fixed. Of these souls, said Timaeus, the one who will live as it takes time
planned on earth, will return to the star that has been assigned to it to live there in
 Iamb. VP 82 = VS 58 C 4 (I, 464); cf. supra chap. 1 n. 15; chap. 2 n. 60.
 Pl. R. VI 498 b ‒ c: ὅταν δὲ λήγῃ μὲν ἡ ῥώμη, πολιτικῶν δὲ καὶ στρατειῶν ἐκτὸς
γίγνηται, τότε
ἤδη ἀφέτους νέμεσθαι καὶ μηδὲν ἄλλο πράττειν, ὅτι μὴ πάρεργον, τοὺς μέλλοντας
εὐδαιμόνως
βιώσεσθαι καὶ τελευτήσαντας τῷ βίῳ τῷ βεβιωμένῳ τὴν ἐκεῖ μοῖραν ἐπιστήσειν
πρέπουσαν. We
will draw attention to the expression τὴν ἐκεῖ μοῖραν, which evokes the Moires in the myth of
Er.
On the happiness (εὐδαιμονία) of the philosopher, cf. also VII 540b ‒ c: μνημεῖα δ 'αὐτοῖς καὶ
θυσίας
τὴν πόλιν δημοσίᾳ ποιεῖν, ἐὰν καὶ ἡ Πυθία συναναιρῇ, ὡς δαίμοσιν, εἰ δὲ μή, ὡς εὐδαίμοσί
τε καὶ
θείοις; IX 580b sq. The theme returns in Phaedo 81a: εἰς τὸ ὅμοιον αὐτῇ τὸ ἀιδὲς ἀπέρχεται,
τὸ θεῖόν τε καὶ ἀθάνατον καὶ φρόνιμον, οἷ ἀφικομένῃ ὑπάρχει αὐτῇ εὐδαίμονι εἶναι,
πλάνης καὶ
ἀνοίας καὶ φόβων καὶ ἀγρίων ἐρώτων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων κακῶν τῶν ἀνθρωπείων
ἀπηλλαγμένῃ,
ὥσπερ δὲ λέγεται κατὰ τῶν μεμυημένων, ὡς ἀληθῶς τὸν λοιπὸν χρόνον μετὰ θεῶν
διάάουσα; Cf.
also Epinomis 992 b ‒ c; supra chap. 3 n. 86.
 Pl. R. VII 519 c: ἡγούμενοι ἐν μακάρων νήσοις ζῶντες ἔτι ἀπῳκίσθαι; 540 b: καὶ οὕτως
[…] εἰς
μακάρων νήσους ἀπιόντας οἰκεῖν; Grg. 526c: ἐνίοτε δ 'ἄλλην εἰσιδὼν ὁσίως βεβιωκυῖαν καὶ
μετ'
ἀληθείας, ἀνδρὸς ἰδιώτου ἢ ἄλλου τινός, μάλιστα μέν […] φιλοσόφου τὰ αὑτοῦ πράξαντος
καὶ οὐ
πολυπραγμονήσαντος ἐν τῷ βίῳ, ἠγάσθη τε καὶ ἐς μακάρων νήσους ἀπέπεμψε. See also
Ep. 992 b ‒ c; supra chap. 3 n. 86.
 Pl. Ti. 41d sq. Bidez 1945, 82 and 179 sees in it an oriental doctrine attested here for the first
times in the Greek world. However, Festugière 1947, 65‒65, notes that, in the Timaeus , he
these are the fixed stars and not the planets of astrology. Cf. also Goldschmidt 1949, 95 ff.
and 99; Boyance 1952, 324; Kucharski 1966, 21 ff .; Ostenfeld 1982, 70. Although identifying the
τοῦ
παντὸς φύσις with the διαιώνιον φύσιν of the model (cf. Ti. 37d, 38b), Ostwald 1977, 52 and
61‒62,
nevertheless stresses that the guiding idea is the primacy of the soul and the Intellect over the
body.
 Festugière 1947, 64‒65.
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leading a blissful life.²⁰ This is how no one will see the end of his
suffering and will return to the condition of its first and best state before
to have first submitted his own revolution to that of the Same and the Similar (τῇ
ταὐτοῦ καὶ ὁμοίου περιόδῳ) and to have thus dominated, by reason, the mass
tumultuous and unreasonable feeling, desire, fear, anger
and all other evils.²¹ I will come back to this idea later. Let's stay, for
the moment, on the significance of the position of the Sirens.
In the Laws , Plato points out that, despite their name designating the stars
which, unlike fixed stars (stars), seem to wander, the planets
(πλανῆτες) do not wander:
It is false, dear friends, the conviction that the Moon, the Sun and the other stars
are really wandering stars (πλανᾶται). Quite the contrary is true. Each
of them in fact travel the same route and not several, a route always unique and
circular, although it seems changeable.²²
I wish to propose that the position of the Sirens on the circles of the planets and
of the fixed stars implies the fact that the philosopher is free from the pangs of
wandering because he assimilates his own revolutions to those of the universe. Indeed,
according to the Republic , ²³ the philosopher knows no wandering, since those who
wander are not philosophers (οἱ πλανώμενοι οὐ φιλόσοφοι): reality at
which it adheres to is distinguished from the world of becoming, which is subject to wandering.
On the other hand, "those who do not have the experience of reflection and
 Pl. Ti. 42 b: καὶ ὁ μὲν εὖ τὸν προσήκοντα χρόνον βιούς, πάλιν εἰς τὴν τοῦ συννόμου
πορευθεὶς οἴκησιν ἄστρου, βίον εὐδαίμονα καὶ συνήθη ἕξοι.
 Ibid. 42 c ‒ d: οὐ πρότερον πόνων λήξοι, πρὶν τῇ ταὐτοῦ καὶ ὁμοίου περιόδῳ τῇ ἐν αὑτῷ
συνεπισπώμενος τὸν πολὺν ὄχλον καὶ ὕστερον προσφύντα ἐκ πυρὸς καὶ ὕδατος καὶ ἀέρος
καὶ
γῆς, θορυβώδη καὶ ἄλογον ὄντα, λόγῳ κρατήσας εἰς τὸ τῆς πρώτης καὶ ἀρίστης ἀφίκοιτο
εἶδος
ἕξεως. See also ibid. 47 a ‒ c; 90c ‒ d; infra nn. 33 and 34. Cf. Kucharski 1966, 22 ff. According to
Skemp
1967, 36‒51, Plato borrows the theory of the assimilation of the revolutions of the human soul
from
those of the soul of the world to Alcmeon of Crotone.
 Pl. Lg. VII 822 a: οὐ γάρ ἐστι τοῦτο, ὦ ἄριστοι, τὸ δόγμα ὀρθὸν περὶ σελήνης τε καὶ
ἡλίου καὶ
τῶν ἄλλων ἄστρων, ὡς ἄρα πλανᾶταί ποτε, πᾶν δὲ τοὐναντίον ἔχει τούτου — τὴν αὐτὴν
γὰρ
αὐτῶν ὁδὸν ἕκαστον καὶ οὐ πολλὰς ἀλλὰ μίαν ἀεὶ κύκλῳ διεξέρχεται, φαίνεται δὲ πολλὰς
φερόμενον.
 Pl. R. VI 484 b: ἐπειδὴ φιλόσοφοι μὲν οἱ τοῦ ἀεὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ὡσαύτως ἔχοντος
δυνάμενοι
ἐφάπτεσθαι, οἱ δὲ μὴ ἀλλ 'ἐν πολλοῖς καὶ παντοίως ἴσχουσιν πλανώμενοι οὐ φιλόσοφοι,
ποτέ-
ρους δὴ δεῖ πόλεως ἡγεμόνας εἶναι;
 Pl. R. VI 485 b: Τοῦτο μὲν δὴ τῶν φιλοσόφων φύσεων πέρι ὡμολογήσθω ἡμῖν ὅτι
μαθήματός
γε ἀεὶ ἐρῶσιν ὃ ἂν αὐτοῖς δηλοῖ ἐκείνης τῆς οὐσίας τῆς ἀεὶ οὔσης καὶ μὴ πλανωμένης ὑπὸ
γενέσεως καὶ φθορᾶς.
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virtue ”(φρονήσεως καὶ ἀρετῆς ἄπειροι), go here and there during their life (πλανῶνται
διὰ βίου), and Plato uses harsh language to describe their state comparable to
that of a cattle (βοσκημάτων δίκην) .²⁵ “Injustice, indiscipline, cowardice,
ignorance, and, in a word, all kinds of vice (πᾶσαν κακίαν) ”reside in the
disturbance and wandering (πλάνη) of the soul traversed by internal conflicts.²⁶ The notion
of wandering returns in the Phaedo: unlike the Republic , ²⁷ where it
designates discord and injustice within the soul itself, in the Phaedo ,
Socrates asserts that the soul wanders when it adheres to the body and the senses, ²⁸ which
evokes the wandering due to sensations, ²⁹ which, according to Timaeus , fall on the soul at
through the body. This adhesion to the body, which leads to a series of ailments, ³⁰
corresponds to the exact opposite of the attitude of the philosopher, who practices
cation in the sense of the separation of the soul from the body.³¹ Of the Republic
in the Phaedo therefore, via the Timaeus , the philosopher is free from wandering. ³²
In the Timaeus , this state of the philosopher, who, like the ship pilot
in the Republic , has its eyes turned to the heavenly order, ³³ is explained by the
 Pl. R. IX 586 a ‒ b.
 Ibid. IV 444 b: τοιαῦτ 'ἄττα οἶμαι φήσομεν καὶ τὴν τούτων ταραχὴν καὶ πλάνην εἶναι
τήν τε
ἀδικίαν καὶ ἀκολασίαν καὶ δειλίαν καὶ ἀμαθίαν καὶ συλλήβδην πᾶσαν κακίαν.
 On this difference between the Republic and the Phaedo , cf. Robinson 1967, 148‒149;
Hendrik
2011, 253.
 Phd. 79 c: Οὐκοῦν καὶ τόδε πάλαι ἐλέγομεν, ὅτι ἡ ψυχή, ὅταν μὲν τῷ σώματι
προσχρῆται εἰς
τὸ σκοπεῖν τι ἢ διὰ τοῦ ὁρᾶν ἢ διὰ τοῦ ἀκούειν ἢ δι 'ἄλλης τινὸς αἰσθήσεως […] τότε μὲν
ἕλκεται
ὑπὸ τοῦ σώματος εἰς τὰ οὐδέποτε κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἔχοντα, καὶ αὐτὴ πλανᾶται καὶ ταράττεται
καὶ
εἰλιγγιᾷ ὥσπερ μεθύουσα, ἅτε τοιούτων ἐφαπτομένη; Dixsaut 1991, 353, highlights this
passage
relationship with R. VI 508 d. On the other hand, when the soul detaches itself from the senses
and conducts its examination
by itself, then it stops wandering, cf. Phd. 79 d: Ὅταν δέ γε αὐτὴ καθ 'αὑτὴν σκοπῇ, ἐκεῖσε
οἴχεται εἰς τὸ καθαρόν τε καὶ ἀεὶ ὂν καὶ ἀθάνατον καὶ ὡσαύτως ἔχον, καὶ ὡς συγγενὴς
οὖσα
αὐτοῦ ἀεὶ μετ 'ἐκείνου τε γίγνεται, ὅτανπερ αὐτὴ καθ' αὑτὴν γένηται καὶ ἐξῇ αὐτῇ, καὶ
πέπαυταί
τε τοῦ πλάνου καὶ περὶ ἐκεῖνα ἀεὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ὡσαύτως ἔχει, ἅτε τοιούτων ἐφαπτομένη ·
καὶ
τοῦτο αὐτῆς τὸ πάθημα φρόνησις κέκληται; On the φρόνησις, cf. Dixsaut 2000, 93‒119.
 Pl. Ti. 43 b: κατὰ τοὺς ἓξ τόπους πλανώμενα.
 Pl. Phd. 81a; cf. supra n. 16.
 Ibid. 64c; 67c ‒ e; cf. supra chap. 3 nn. 82 and 83. On the separation of the soul from the
body and
the μελέτη θανάτου, cf. also Vernant 1960.
 Unlike the sophists, who seem to have their eyes closed (cf. Pl. Sph. 239e: δοκοῦσιν
μύειν) and wander from town to town (cf. Ti. 19 e: γένος πλανητόν). On this subject, cf.
Viltanioti 2008, 106‒
107.
 Pl. Ti. 47 a: ῶν νῦν λόγων περὶ τοῦ παντὸς λεγομένων οὐδεὶς ἄν ποτε ἐρρήθη μήτε
ἄστρα
μήτε ἥλιον μήτε οὐρανὸν ἰδόντων; cf. also supra n. 21; infra n. 34. We will compare with R. VI
488 d: ἀνάγκη αὐτῷ τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν ποιεῖσθαι ἐνιαυτοῦ καὶ ὡρῶν καὶ οὐρανοῦ καὶ ἄστρων
καὶ
πνευμάτων. We especially underlined the political dimension of this metaphor; cf. Bambrough
1956. However, we must not forget that the real aim of the search for the Republic is
6.2 From psychology to astronomy
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Page 7
makes him assimilate his own wandering revolutions due to his birth to
harmonious and non-wandering revolutions of the universe. By this assimilation, he
becomes blessed (εὐδαίμων), by attaining the perfect life, which constitutes the
ultimate goal that the gods have assigned to human existence.³⁴ In this light,
the Sirens who are carried away by the movement of the circles, reveal themselves as
an allegory of the philosopher who assimilated his revolutions to those of the universe and
thus regained the original natural state (τὴν ἀρχαίαν φύσιν) of his soul, state
illustrated by the image of Moires.
6.2.3 The ' soul that leads the heavenly round
According to the Laws , the stars are set in motion by the virtuous soul³⁵ and
divine, ³⁶ who leads the celestial round either by staying inside (ἐνοῦσα ἐντὸς)
to grasp the nature of justice in the soul; cf. infra 6.3.1. We will also compare with the Phlb. 30 c;
Lg. X 899 b.
 Pl. Ti. 47 b ‒ c: ἀλλὰ τούτου λεγέσθω παρ 'ἡμῶν αὕτη ἐπὶ ταῦτα αἰτία, θεὸν ἡμῖν
ἀνευρεῖν
δωρήσασθαί τε ὄψιν, ἵνα τὰς ἐν οὐρανῷ τοῦ νοῦ κατιδόντες περιόδους χρησαίμεθα ἐπὶ τὰς
περιφορὰς τὰς τῆς παρ 'ἡμῖν διανοήσεως, συγγενεῖς ἐκείναις οὔσας, ἀταράκτοις
τεταραγμένας,
ἐκμαθόντες δὲ καὶ λογισμῶν κατὰ φύσιν ὀρθότητος μετασχόντες, μιμούμενοι τὰς τοῦ θεοῦ
πάντως ἀπλανεῖς οὔσας, τὰς ἐν ἡμῖν πεπλανημένας καταστησαίμεθα; ibid 90 c ‒ d: τῷ δ 'ἐν
ἡμῖν
θείῳ συγγενεῖς εἰσιν κινήσεις αἱ τοῦ παντὸς διανοήσεις καὶ περιφοραί ταύταις δὴ
συνεπόμενον
ἕκαστον δεῖ, τὰς περὶ τὴν γένεσιν ἐν τῇ κεφαλῇ διεφθαρμένας ἡμῶν περιόδους ἐξορθοῦντα
διὰ
τὸ καταμανθάνειν τὰς τοῦ παντὸς ἁρμονίας τε καὶ περιφοράς, τῷ κατανοουμένῳ τὸ
κατανοοῦν
ἐξομοιῶσαι κατὰ τὴν ἀρχαίαν φύσιν, ὁμοιώσαντα δὲ τέλος ἔχειν τοῦ προτεθέντος
ἀνθρώποις
ὑπὸ θεῶν ἀρίστου βίου πρός τε τὸν παρόντα καὶ τὸν ἔπειτα χρόνον. See also supra nn. 21 and
33.
On the teleological orientation of the vision in the Timaeus , cf. Viltanioti 2008, 102‒103;
Johansen
2008, 106‒114; 165‒166. As Johansen observes, the Ti. 90 c ‒ d summarizes the central thesis of
the
Timaeus and Critias ; cf. ibid. 1 sq. On the expression τὴν ἀρχαίαν φύσιν, cf. R. X 611 d; supra
chap. 5
not. 91; cf. also Ti. 42 d: τὸ τῆς πρώτης καὶ ἀρίστης […] εἶδος ἕξεως; supra n. 21. Unlike
Johansen 2008, 157, which identifies “original nature” with the rational part, I consider that ἡ
ἀρχαία φύσις concerns the tripartite soul; cf. supra chap. 5.4.2.
 Pl. Lg. X 897 b ‒ c: Εἰ μέν […] ἡ σύμπασα οὐρανοῦ ὁδὸς ἅμα καὶ φορὰ καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ
ὄντων
ἁπάντων νοῦ κινήσει καὶ περιφορᾷ καὶ λογισμοῖς ὁμοίαν φύσιν ἔχει καὶ συγγενῶς ἔρχεται,
δῆλον
ὡς τὴν ἀρίστην ψυχὴν φατέον ἐπιμελεῖσθαι τοῦ κόσμου παντὸς καὶ ἄγειν αὐτὸν τὴν
τοιαύτην
ὁδὸν ἐκείνην; 898c: πᾶσαν ἀρετὴν ἔχουσαν ψυχὴν μίαν ἢ πλείους περιάγειν αὐτά. See Ti.
34c‒
35 a: γενέσει καὶ ἀρετῇ προτέραν καὶ πρεσβυτέραν ψυχὴν σώματος ὡς δεσπότιν καὶ
ἄρξουσαν
ἀρξομένου συνεστήσατο; 36th ‒ 37 a: λογισμοῦ δὲ μετέχουσα καὶ ἁρμονίας ψυχή. Unlike
from the Timaeus , the Laws mention an evil soul (cf. 897 d: κακήν), opposed to the virtuous soul
(cf. 898c: ἐναντίαν) and cause of a manic and disordered movement (cf. 897d: μανικῶς τε
καὶ ἀτάκτως). This evil soul is undoubtedly the soul which attaches itself to the bodily element
(τὸ
σωματοειδές), under the terms of Phaedon and the Timeus , or unfair core crossing conflicts
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stars ("as in a chariot" ³⁷), or by pushing from the outside (πόθεν
ἔξωθεν), that is, which corresponds to the most abstract conception, thanks to
superbly prodigious powers which it possesses of its own and which
allow to guide the astral walk being itself separated from any body
(ψιλὴ σώματος οὖσα) .³⁸ Now, a few lines before, this circular round and
uniform, identified with the movement with which the Intellect maintains the most
resemblance, ³⁹ is described in terms that evoke the image quite clearly
interiors, under the terms of the Republic. We will compare with the myth of Politics 268d‒
277a, according to which the universe is sometimes guided by the divinity (participation of the
sensitive in the
telligible), sometimes left to its own fate (the participation of the sensible in the intelligible is
broken).
 Pl. Lg. X 899b: Ἄστρων δὴ πέρι πάντων καὶ σελήνης, ἐνιαυτῶν τε καὶ μηνῶν καὶ πασῶν
ὡρῶν πέρι, τίνα ἄλλον λόγον ἐροῦμεν ἢ τὸν αὐτὸν τοῦτον, ὡς ἐπειδὴ ψυχὴ μὲν ἢ ψυχαὶ
πάντων
τούτων αἴτιαι ἐφάνησαν, ἀγαθαὶ δὲ πᾶσαν ἀρετήν, θεοὺς αὐτὰς εἶναι φήσομεν, εἴτε ἐν
σώμασιν
ἐνοῦσαι, ζῷα ὄντα, κοσμοῦσιν πάντα οὐρανόν, εἴτε ὅπῃ τε καὶ ὅπως;
 Ibid. 899 a: ἐν ἅρμασιν ἔχουσα. See also Ti. 41e: ὡς ἐς ὄχημα; supra n. 18. The reference to
tanks will evoke, moreover, the Phdr. 246a sq.
 Pl. Lg. X 898 e ‒ 899 a: Ὡς ἢ ἐνοῦσα ἐντὸς τῷ περιφερεῖ τούτῳ φαινομένῳ σώματι πάντῃ
διακομίζει τὸ τοιοῦτον, καθάπερ ἡμᾶς ἡ παρ'ἡμῖν ψυχὴ πάντῃ περιφέρει · ἤ ποθεν ἔξωθεν
σῶμα
αὑτῇ πορισαμένη πυρὸς ἤ τινος ἀέρος, ὡς λόγος ἐστί τινων, ὠθεῖ βίᾳ σώματι σῶμα · ἢ
τρίτον
αὐτὴ ψιλὴ σώματος οὖσα, ἔχουσα δὲ δυνάμεις ἄλλας τινὰς ὑπερβαλλούσας θαύματι,
ποδηγεῖ. We
will note that Plato refers here to the soul that moves the Sun, having first clarified that by
thus, he will apply to only one of the stars considerations concerning all the bodies
celestial; cf. ibid. 898 c ‒ d. About the presence of the soul inside the body, we
will remember that, in Timaeus 36 d, e, it is the bodily element that is inside the soul
and not the other way round: πᾶν τὸ σωματοειδὲς έντὸς αὐτῆς ἐτεκταίνετο.
 Pl. Lg. X 897th sq .; Ti. 34a (on the circular movement of the body of the world); 36b ‒ e (on
the
circular movement of the soul of the world); R. IV 436 d ‒ e (the example of the spinning top,
which will undoubtedly have to be related to the rotation of the spindle); Plt. 269 d ‒ 277a (on
the
circular revolution of the body of the world). On the subject of circular motion, cf. Vlastos 1975,
51
sq. On the Pythagorean influence, cf. Burkert 1972, 331‒332; Kalfas 2003, 157 n. 17, and 163‒164.
AT
About the Pythagorean influence on Platonic astronomy, cf. also Goldstein and
Bowen 1983, 332 ff .; Knorr 1990. On the theme of circular movement, we will evoke
in particular the ἄκουσμα according to which the circle is the most beautiful shape; cf. DL VIII
35: Καὶ τῶν
σχημάτων τὸ κάλλιστον σφαῖραν εἶναι τῶν στερεῶν, τῶν δ 'ἐπιπέδων κύκλον. On this
precept,
cf. Delatte 1974, 283; Burkert 1972, 168 n. 18 and 169 n. 23. Cf., moreover, [Arist.] Probl. 16, 9, 915
a
25 = Archyt. VS 47 A 23a (I, 430). Alcmeon of Croton refers to the imperfect circle as the cause
of death; cf. [Arist.] Probl. 17, 3, 916 a 33 = Alcmaeon VS 24 B 2 (I, 215): τοὺς ἀνθρώπους φησὶν
᾿Aλκμαίων διὰ τοῦτο ἀπόλλυσθαι, ὅτι οὐ δύνανται τὴν ἀρχὴν τῷ τέλει προσάψαι; Schofield
1983,
347‒348. The circle has an important role in the cosmology of Anaximander; cf. Hippol. Haer. I
6,
1‒7 = Anaximand. VS 12 A 11 (I, 84); Schofield 1983, 133‒137; Vernant 1968; Naddaf 2008, 116 sq.
Burkert 1972, 332 n. 42, recalls that Homer ( II. XVIII 504) already speaks of the “sacred circle”
(ἱερὸς
κύκλος). He also draws attention to the circular shape of the tombs at Mycenae (circles A
and B).
6.2 From psychology to astronomy
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Page 9
of the spindle in the myth of Er. Plato himself does not fail to point out
that his words reproduce a beautiful image made in words in the past.
This image can therefore only be that of the spindle in the myth of Er. The reference
reference to the three ways in which the soul leads the celestial circle thus appears in this
context relating to the story that concludes the Republic.
Indeed, on closer inspection, a perfect homology is established between this
passage of Laws and the myth of Er. According to the latter, the celestial revolution is
launched by the Moires, who push the circles from the outside, and who, in the
previous chapter, were seen as an image of the tripartite soul
virtuous and divine, that is to say of the soul in its most authentic nature.
In this vein, the Moires are revealed as an allegory of the soul
virtuous woman who leads the revolution of the sky by guiding it in the best way
and which thus serves as a model for the soul of the philosopher assimilating his revolutions to
those of the universe. Their mother, Anankè, image of the virtuous soul contemplated
in its unity, leads the celestial circle without moving, by its existence,
that is to say, thanks to his superbly prodigious powers, ⁴² whose ge-
noux undoubtedly serve as a symbol.³ The Sirens, image of the just soul and
 Pl. Lg. X 898 a ‒ b: Τούτοιν δὴ τοῖν κινήσεοιν τὴν ἐν ἑνὶ φερομένην ἀεὶ περί γέ τι μέσον
ἀνάγκη κινεῖσθαι, τῶν ἐντόρνων οὖσαν μίμημά τι κύκλων, εἶναί τε αὐτὴν τῇ τοῦ νοῦ
περιόδῳ
πάντως ὡς δυνατὸν οἰκειοτάτην τε καὶ ὁμοίαν […] Τὸ κατὰ ταὐτὰ δήπου καὶ ὡσαύτως καὶ
ἐν τῷ
αὐτῷ καὶ περὶ τὰ αὐτὰ καὶ πρὸς τὰ αὐτὰ καὶ ἕνα λόγον καὶ τάξιν μίαν ἄμφω κινεῖσθαι
λέγοντες,
νοῦν τήν τε ἐν ἑνὶ φερομένην κίνησιν, σφαίρας ἐντόρνου ἀπεικασμένα φοραῖς, οὐκ ἄν ποτε
φανεῖμεν φαῦλοι δημιουργοὶ λόγῳ καλῶν εἰκόνων. On this passage as an allusion to the
myth
of Er, cf. also Kalfas 2003, 96. The word ἀνάγκη is, of course, the elliptical form of the
impersonal phrase ἀνάγκη ἐστί, "it is necessary". It is however interesting that
found here combined with the word μέσον (μέσον ἀνάγκη). The combination of these two
terms could
take up a play on words aimed at evoking the central position of Anankè (and his knees) in
the myth of Er. On the position of Anankè, cf. supra chap. 4 n. 62. On the expression ἔντορνοι
κύκλοι,
cf. also Ti. 33 b: κυκλοτερὲς ἐτορνεύσατο.
 Pl. Lg. X 898 b. See also ibid. 897 e: Ἧι προσέοικεν κινήσει νοῦς τῶν δέκα ἐκείνων
κινήσεων,
τὴν εἰκόνα λάβωμεν · ἣν συναναμνησθεὶς ὑμῖν ἐγὼ κοινῇ τὴν ἀπόκρισιν ποιήσομαι. In
897th
898a, Plato alludes to Republic IV 436c sq.
 Attention will be drawn to the sentence in Lg. X 899a: Ναί, τοῦτο μὲν ἀνάγκη. Two
readings
are possible: "Yes, this is necessary" or, more literally, "yes, this is necessary.
site". I believe that Plato is playing here a subtle play on words which allows him to evoke, in a
way
oblique, Anankè and to identify it with the soul that guides the celestial walk thanks to powers
superbly prodigious that it owns. It would be tempting to recall the character
playful and hypomnematic attributed to the speeches written in the Phaedrus : the philosopher
will write by
way of play (παιδιᾶς χάριν), by amassing a treasure of memories for himself and for
anyone who follows the same trail; cf. Phdr. 276d. On the παιδιᾶ associated with the μίμησις, cf.
RX 602 b.
 See above, chap. 4.1.
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blessed with the philosopher who has assimilated her revolutions to those of the universe,
are housed inside the spindle, "as in a tank".
Note, however, that in the myth of Er, the Sirens are described
as driven (συμπεριφερομένην) by the revolution and not as the
governing. At first glance, this would seem incompatible with the passage of
Laws. But is it really so? It is, in fact, possible, at first,
to be carried away by the movement, and, in a second step, to guide the
movement by which one has been carried away (as, for example, in the case of a
circular dance). I think the Mermaids lead the heavenly round only
after having been carried away by the circular motion, that is to say after having
imitated, or after having assimilated their revolutions to the revolutions of the round
celestial. Through this assimilation, they participate in its setting in motion.
In other words, the term συμπεριφερομένην⁴⁴ refers to the fact that the Sirens, who,
as we have seen, designate the soul of the philosopher, are carried away by the
revolution in the sense that they imitate the circular movement launched by the
Moires, and, by imitating it, they also become its source.
Sirens themselves give impetus to the circular revolution which took them
carried and carries them and which is thrown by the Moires. After all, given
that the movement of depth (φορὰ βάθους), ⁴⁶ which is the object of the astro-
nomie, goes hand in hand with the harmonic motion (ἐναρμόνιος φορά), which is
object of the harmonic, it follows that, if the Sirens and Moires are at the
source of the same harmonic movement, they must necessarily be at the
source of the same movement of depth. But the myth, which is a speech
approximate, always describes things with a certain distortion, which, can
also involve a fractionation in time.
We are here at the threshold of Platonic mysticism, where the soul of the philosopher is
reunites with the soul of the world (κόσμος), thus becoming the driving force of
 We will compare Pl. R. X 617 b: ἐπὶ δὲ τῶν κύκλων αὐτοῦ ἄνωθεν ἐφ 'ἑκάστου
βεβηκέναι
Σειρῆνα συμπεριφερομένην, with the Phdr. 247 b ‒ c: ἔστησαν ἐπὶ τῷ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ νώτῳ,
στάσας δὲ
αὐτὰς περιάγει ἡ περιφορά.
 We will compare with the procession that follows the chariots of the gods in the Phaedrus ,
thus imitating
their circular and harmonious movement; cf. Phdr. 246e ‒ 247a; 250b. We will, moreover,
observe that the eleven groups of gods in the Phaedrus (247 a: στρατιὰ θεῶν τε καὶ δαιμόνων,
κατὰ ἕνδεκα μέρη κεκοσμημένη) corresponds to the eleven "singers" of the myth of Er (the
three
Moires and the Eight Sirens). Anankè (in the Republic ) and Zeus or Hestia (in the Phaedrus )
complete the dozen.
 Pl. R. VII 528e: ἀστρονομίαν ἔλεγον, φορὰν οὖσαν βάθους; cf. supra chap. 4 n. 82.
 Ibid. 530d; cf. supra chap. 4 n. 82.
6.2 From psychology to astronomy
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this one. The soul of the philosopher therefore rises to the rank of divinity who orders the
sky: ⁴⁸
this is how the philosopher, who lives in the presence of that which is divine and harmonious
(κόσ-
μιον), itself becomes divine and harmonious (κόσμιος), as much as it is possible for a being
human being.
The two souls, the soul "full of reflection and virtue" to which
mastery of the sky, the earth and the revolution of the universe ”⁵⁰ and the soul well har-
monized and virtuous of the philosopher thus 'sing' without its articulation nor
noise ”⁵¹ in agreement with each other, like the Moires and the Sirens, which in
book X of the Republic , emit a sound harmony for the needs of the
myth. It is in this song, which unites the divine in us with the universal divine, that
resides, for Plato, "the harmony of the spheres".
6.3 From the ' soul to the city: the heavenly homeland
6.3.1 The city as a metaphor for ' soul
In Book V of the Republic , Plato draws attention to the fact that his
analysis concerns the position of a justice paradigm, whether it is
the perfectly just man (ἄνδρα τὸν τελέως δίκαιον), on whom takes ex-
example any just possible existence, or the model of the virtuous city (παρά-
δειγμα ἀγαθῆς πόλεως) .⁵² In both cases, the model constitutes at the same time
the purpose to be achieved as far as possible. In the first case, this
finality translates, as we have seen, the assimilation to the revolutions of
 Pl. Lg. X 899b; cf. supra n. 36.
 Pl. R. VI 500 c ‒ d: Θείῳ δὴ καὶ κοσμίῳ ὅ γε φιλόσοφος ὁμιλῶν κόσμιός τε καὶ θεῖος εἰς
τὸ
δυνατὸν ἀνθρώπῳ γίγνεται.
 Pl. Lg. X 897b; cf. supra n. 35.
 Pl. Ti. 37b: ἄνευ φθόγγου καὶ ἠχῆς. It will be recalled that the individual souls and the
soul of
world are created from the same mixture, except that in the case of the
second, the mixture is purer; cf. ibid. 41 d.
 Pl. R. V 472 c ‒ d: Παραδείγματος ἄρα ἕνεκα, ἦν δ 'ἐγώ, ἐζητοῦμεν αὐτό τε δικαιοσύνην
οἷόν
ἐστι, καὶ ἄνδρα τὸν τελέως δίκαιον εἰ γένοιτο, καὶ οἷος ἂν εἴη γενόμενος, καὶ ἀδικίαν αὖ καὶ
τὸν
ἀδικώτατον, ἵνα εἰς ἐκείνους ἀποβλέποντες, οἷοι ἂν ἡμῖν φαίνωνται εὐδαιμονίας τε πέρι
καὶ τοῦ
ἐναντίου, ἀναγκαζώμεθα καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν ὁμολογεῖν, ὃς ἂν ἐκείνοις ὅτι ὁμοιότατος ᾖ,
τὴν
ἐκείνης μοῖραν ὁμοιοτάτην ἕξειν, ἀλλ'οὐ τούτου ἕνεκα, ἵν 'ἀποδείξωμεν ὡς δυνατὰ ταῦτα
γίγνεσθαι; 472e: παράδειγμα ἐποιοῦμεν λόγῳ ἀγαθῆς πόλεως. The use of the word μοῖρα in
connection with
of the model of justice could hardly be the product of chance.
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the perfectly virtuous soul which moves the celestial circle. This assimilation cor-
responds to the ultimate goal of human existence. The soul therefore regains its nature
original, illustrated, as I tried to show, by the image of Moires.
In the second case, the finality concerns the foundation of the just city, of which
existence on earth generates serious doubts. Now, Socrates insists that
the nature of justice in the city is identical to the nature of justice in
blade. The city is, in fact, above all a register where justice is more manifest
and can thus be understood more clearly than at the psychological level.
In other words, the city corresponds, as Socrates explains it, to a writing
more readable because more extensive, the real goal of the research being to capture the
nature of justice in the soul.⁵³ The soul therefore has priority over the city,
would not be implausible to regard it as a metaphor for the soul.
allows us to suppose that the paradigmatic city of which Socrates speaks is only
metaphor of the perfectly virtuous soul, that is to say of the model represented
feel the daughters of Anankè and imitate the Sirens, by assimilating to them.
6.3.2 The inner city and the heavenly homeland
The idea of the paradigmatic city as an example of just existence returns
in book IX. Socrates introduces the passage which concludes this book by referring to
"True disciple of the Muses" (τῇ ἀληθείᾳ μουσικός), who, as he corrected
been observed, is the one who harmonizes the three parts of his soul as
we harmonize the three terms of a musical harmony In other words, the
"True disciple of the Muses" is one who, as far as possible, assimilates
its soul to the model of justice represented by Anankè, the Moires, and the
Mermaids, which we have considered an image of the virtuous soul and
divine who leads the celestial revolution. He thus sings in accordance with the Moires,
like the Sirens, who, placed on the celestial circles, represent the soul
virtuous of the philosopher having conformed his revolutions to those of the universe.
This man, says Socrates, will neither attach himself to the inordinate possession of
wealth⁵⁶ (domination of the desiring party) nor to honors risking
 Ibid. II 368c sq .; VIII 545 b: ἠρξάμεθα ἐν ταῖς πολιτείαις πρότερον σκοπεῖν τὰ ἤθη ἢ ἐν
τοῖς
ἰδιώταις, ὡς ἐναργέστερον ὄν. On the analogy between the soul and the city, cf. also supra
chap. 5 n. 62.
 See also Annas 1997; Same. 1999. Contra Cornford 1912, which supports the priority of the
tri-
political partition and the artificial character of the tripartition of the soul.
 Pl. R. IX 591d. See also Adam 2009, 369; Segal 1978, 316.
 Pl. R. IX 591d.
6.3 From soul to city: the heavenly homeland
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Page 13
destroy his inner disposition⁵⁷ (domination of the fiery part), but,
turning his gaze to the political constitution that exists in him, he will seek to
to safeguard the harmony of his soul, in the service of which he will place, moreover,
that of his body. Consequently, he will not exercise political functions in
unless it is in his own inner city, that is to say in his soul, or,
exceptionally, in the homeland (ἐν τῇ πατρίδι), provided that a chance
divine (θεία τύχη) allows it. What is this homeland which, while associating
with the inner city, is distinguished from it and which is a matter of divine luck?
Glaucos identifies the homeland with the city of which the Republic develops the foundations
dations, and which exists in discourses (ἐν λόγοις) but nowhere on earth (γῆς
γε οὐδαμοῦ) .⁵⁹ Yet it exists in the sky⁶⁰ — by that we mean the ideal sky
pure mathematical relations and not the visible sky—, answers Socrates, such
a model (ἐν οὐρανῷ ἴσως παράδειγμα) for those who wish to contemplate it
and, following this contemplation (ὁρῶντι), ⁶¹ ἑαυτὸν κατοικίζειν.⁶² It therefore appears
 Ibid. 592 a.
 Ibid. 591 d: ἀεὶ τὴν ἐν τῷ σώματι ἁρμονίαν τῆς ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ ἕνεκα συμφωνίας
ἁρμοττόμενος
φανεῖται.
 Ibid. 592 a ‒ b: Οὐκ ἄρα, ἔφη, τά γε πολιτικὰ ἐθελήσει πράττειν, ἐάνπερ τούτου
κήδηται. Νὴ
τὸν κύνα, ἦν δ 'ἐγώ, ἔν γε τῇ ἑαυτοῦ πόλει καὶ μάλα, οὐ μέντοι ἴσως ἔν γε τῇ πατρίδι, ἐὰν
μὴ θεία
τις συμβῇ τύχη. Μανθάνω, ἔφη · ἐν ᾗ νῦν διήλθομεν οἰκίζοντες πόλει λέγεις, τῇ ἐν λόγοις
κειμένῃ, ἐπεὶ γῆς γε οὐδαμοῦ οἶμαι αὐτὴν εἶναι. This passage supports the psychological
interpretation
gic of the Republic ; cf. also Annas 1997; Idem 1999. On the soul as inner city, cf.
also R. X 605 b: κακὴν πολιτείαν ἰδίᾳ ἑκάστου τῇ ψυχῇ ἐμποιεῖν; 608b: περὶ τῆς ἐν αὑτῷ
πολιτείας δεδιότι.
 We will relate it to the testimony of Diogenes Laërce on Anaxagoras, who, accused of
not caring about the affairs of his homeland, would have replied that he cared a lot, in
pointing the finger at the sky; cf. DL II 7: καἰ τέλος ἀπέστη καὶ περὶ τὴν τῶν φυσικῶν
θεωρίαν
ἦν οὐ φροντίζων τῶν πολιτικῶν. ὅτε καὶ πρὸς τὸν εἰπόντα, “οὐδέν σοι μέλει τῆς πατρίδος;”
“Εὐφήμει,” ἔφη, “ἐμοὶ γὰρ καὶ σφόδρα μέλει τῆς πατρίδος,” δείξας τὸν οὐρανόν.
 The affirmation of Socrates associating contemplation and imitation will evoke for the
reader that
of book VI 500 c ‒ d (cf. also supra n. 49) concerning contemplation and, consequently,
imitation of Ideas, then described in terms that refer to the world of stars, beings well
ordered according to a harmonious and eternal whole, the movement of which serves as a
model for the
sophe.
 Pl. R. IX 592 b: ᾿Aλλ ', ἦν δ' ἐγώ, ἐν οὐρανῷ ἴσως παράδειγμα ἀνάκειται τῷ βουλομένῳ
ὁρᾶν
καὶ ὁρῶντι ἑαυτὸν κατοικίζειν. Διαφέρει δὲ οὐδὲν εἴτε που ἔστιν εἴτε ἔσται · τὰ γὰρ ταύτης
μόνης
ἂνπράξειεν, ἄλλης δὲ οὐδεμιᾶς. On the παραδειγμα, cf. also VI 484 c: Ἦ οὖν δοκοῦσί τι
τυφλῶν
διαφέρειν οἱ […] μηδὲν ἐναργὲς ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ ἔχοντες παράδειγμα. We will put in relation
with the teleological orientation of vision as well as with the blindness and wandering of the
phistes, cf. supra nn. 32, 34. The παράδειγμα par excellence is the Good itself; cf. VII 540 a ‒ b:
αὶ ἰδόντας τὸ ἀγαθὸν αὐτό, παραδείγματι χρωμένους ἐκείνῳ, καὶ πόλιν καὶ ἰδιώτας καὶ
ἑαυτοὺς
κοσμεῖν. The city, like the soul, takes on the quality of a model in that it is virtuous (ἀγαθή),
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that the heavenly homeland, which serves as a model posed in heaven, is a metaphor for the
soul
pure and virtuous which leads the celestial round, in whose revolutions the
philosopher tries to copy his own failing revolutions,
thus gaining the original state of his soul: his inner city then becomes identical to
the homeland. Due to the interpretation that will be adopted for the infinitive κατοι-
κίζειν, the expression ἑαυτὸν κατοικίζειν can mean that the one who contemplates the
heavenly homeland either made of his soul a colony imitating the heavenly metropolis⁶³ or
settles in the latter like a colonist who settles in the place prescribed by the oracle
of Delphi⁶⁴ or rather like an exile who returns to his homeland and remains there in
new.⁶⁵ The three readings are equivalent: by assimilating his inner city to
the celestial city, the philosopher realizes the latter in himself and, regaining
thus, like another Ulysses, the authentic nature and the true homeland of his soul,
he becomes its inhabitant and exercises functions there.
Here is the νόστος that Plato substitutes for the νόστος of Ulysses, just as, in
book X , it substitutes for the account of a valiant man (ἀλκίμου ἀνδρός), ⁶⁶ that is
tell the story of the philosopher — for the philosopher is a valiant warrior⁶⁷—, to the story
of Odysseus at the court of King Alcinoos.⁶⁸ And he who is ἀλκίνοος, that is, he
which has a powerful and governing intellect (νοῦς), namely the true philoso-
phe, can grasp the meaning. As the philosopher himself says in the Laws ,
by addressing the poets:
you, you are poets, but we too are poets practicing the same
kind; we are your adversaries in the practice of poetic art and your rivals in the
that is to say, in what she realizes in herself the Good. We will compare with Lg. V 739 d ‒ e: ἡ
μὲν δὴ
τοιαύτη πόλις, εἴτε που θεοὶ ἢ παῖδες θεῶν αὐτὴν οἰκοῦσι πλείους ἑνός, οὕτω διαζῶντες
εὐφραινόμενοι κατοικοῦσι · διὸ δὴ παράδειγμά γε πολιτείας οὐκ ἄλλῃ χρὴ σκοπεῖν, ἀλλ
'ἐχο-
μένους ταύτης τὴν ὅτι μάλιστα τοιαύτηνζητεῖν κατὰ δύναμιν. See IV 713 b; Plt. 297 c:
ζητητέον
τὴν μίαν ἐκείνην πολιτείαν τὴν ὀρθήν, τὰς δ 'ἄλλας μιμήματα θετέον; Tht. 176 e:
Παραδειγμάτων,
ὦ φίλε, ἐν τῷ ὄντι ἑστώτων, τοῦ μὲν θείου εὐδαιμονεστάτου, τοῦ δὲ ἀθέου ἀθλιωτάτου.
 Adam 2009, II 370; Leroux 2004 ad loc. On this usage, cf., for example, A. Pr. 724‒725: αἳ
Θεμίσκυράν ποτε κατοικιοῦσιν; Hdt. V 76: Μέγαρα κατοίκισαν.
 On this usage, cf., for example, Pl. R. II 370 e: κατοικίσαι γε αὐτὴν τὴν πόλιν εἰς τοιοῦτον
τόπον; Ti. 70 a: τὸ μετέχον οὖν τῆς ψυχῆς ἀνδρείας καὶ θυμοῦ […] κατῴκισαν ἐγγυτέρω τῆς
κεφαλῆς.
 Waterfield 2008, ad loc. On this use, cf. A. Eu. 754‒756: ὦ Παλλάς, […] σύ τοι κατώικισάς
με.
 Pl. R. X 614 b.
 See above, chap. 3.3.3.
 Hom. Od. IX ‒ XII. Attention will be drawn to the play on words between ᾿Aλκίνου and
ἀλκίμου.
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Page 15
composition of the most beautiful drama, the one that only is naturally capable of leading to its
end the true law, in accordance with our hopes.
If the Platonic νόστος is not expressed in a less poetic way than that
Homer, however, it concludes an even more beautiful drama because
by the true law (νόμος ἀληθής). The Republic tells us that the master of
this law is Apollo.
6.3.3 The celestial Delphi?
The divinity who presides over the city, of which Plato lays the foundations in the
Republic and which exists in the sky as a model for those who wish
to imitate him is none other than Apollo. In a famous passage from Book IV , the Athenian
grants "the most essential, the most beautiful and the most fundamental
mental "from his ideal city to Apollo and, more precisely, to the Apollo of Del-
phes:
For the Apollo of Delphi, there remain the most essential, the most beautiful and
most fundamental of all. […] Legislation relating to the consecrations of sanc-
tories, to sacrifices and to all things that concern the worship of gods, demons
and heroes. Also what concerns the graves of the deceased and all that is required for
serve those who are there so that they are auspicious. Things like that, we don't
know ourselves, and, if we are intelligent, when we
found a city, we will not be influenced by anyone, nor will we
will consult an exegete (ἐξηγητῇ) different from that of our ancestors (τῷ πατρίῳ). Because this
god is undoubtedly the ancestral exegete (πάτριος ἐξηγητὴς) in such matters for
all men, he who, sitting in the middle of the earth, in his navel, shows the way
by guiding to the end (ἐξηγεῖται) .⁷⁰
 Pl. Lg. VII 817 b ‒ c; cf. supra chap. 4 n. 86. I translate based on the translation of Luke
Brisson and Jean-François Pradeau.
 Pl. R. IV 427 b ‒ c: τῷ μέντοι ᾿Aπόλλωνι τῷ ἐν Δελφοῖς τά γε μέγιστα καὶ κάλλιστα καὶ
πρῶτα
τῶν νομοθετημάτων. […] Ἱερῶν τε ἱδρύσεις καὶ θυσίαι καὶ ἄλλαι θεῶν τε καὶ δαιμόνων καὶ
ἡρώων θεραπεῖαι τελευτησάντων 〈τε〉 αὖ θῆκαι καὶ ὅσα τοῖς ἐκεῖ δεῖ ὑπηρετοῦντας ἵλεως
αὐτοὺς ἔχειν. τὰ γὰρ δὴ τοιαῦτα οὔτ 'ἐπιστάμεθα ἡμεῖς οἰκίζοντές τε πόλιν οὐδενὶ ἄλλῳ
πει-
σόμεθα, ἐὰν νοῦν ἔχωμεν, οὐδὲ χρησόμεθα ἐξηγητῇ ἀλλ 'ἢ τῷ πατρίῳ οὗτος γὰρ δήπου ὁ
θεὸς
περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις πάτριος ἐξηγητὴς [ἐν μέσῳ] τῆς γῆς ἐπὶ τοῦ ὀμφαλοῦ
καθή-
μενος ἐξηγεῖται. See ibid. V 469 a; VII 540c; supra n. 16. We will put τά τε μέγιστα καὶ
κάλλιστα καὶ
πρῶτα τῶν νομοθετημάτων in relation to the νόμος ἀληθὴς of the Laws ; cf. Lg. X 817 b; supra
n. 66
and chap. 4 n. 86. On the political level, recourse to Delphi, the center and symbol of the unity of
Greek world, refers to the Pan-Hellenic ideal of Plato; cf. R. V 469 b ‒ 471c. The primacy of
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Plato thus anchors his project of founding the ideal city around the god
founder of Delphi, by granting him the place of exegete (ἐξηγητής), that is to say
of supreme founder⁷¹ and unique guide (ἡγεμὼν) who, leading the way,
shows the way.⁷² Ruler of the heavenly homeland, who, as we have
seen, is a metaphor for the virtuous soul leading the celestial revolution, the Apollo
of Delphi, sitting on the μφαλός, guides the human race as a whole
(πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις πάτριος ἐξηγητὴς). Having founded the heavenly paradigm, which is
from then on his prerogative, this guide god makes, in a way comparable to that of the In-
tellect in the Timaeus , ⁷³ to stop wandering; he delivers mankind from the throes of
this, by determining which road to take, by showing the direction, by
pointing the landmarks and indicating the marks in order to allow the return to
the homeland, a return that purifies the human soul, restoring it to its state
of origin belonging to the Property. In this sense, the god is the guide on the path that
leads to Good and to its realization within the soul, the ἐξηγητὴς τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ, ⁷⁴
one might say. This is how when the discourse approaches the Good, Glaucon
exclaims: Ἄπολλον, δαιμονίας ὑπερβολῆς.
Indeed, if the path that leads to the heavenly homeland is that of the philosopher,
the relationship that Apollo maintains with the latter is not the least. Socrates himself
read willingly as accomplishing a task entrusted to him by the god of
Delphi, namely that of improving human souls by
practice of philosophy, considered as the "supreme music".
the Apollo of Delphi returns in the Laws, passim. On this subject, cf. Reverdin 1945; Goldshmidt
1949, 121 sq .; Piérart 1974; Detienne 2009, 169‒174.
 Ibid. 172‒174.
 Ἡγεμὼν is the official title of the Apollo founder of the cities, such for example, the Apollo
Ἡγεμὼν from Phasis, colony of Miletus. The only epigraphic testimony is the dedication of a
cup dating from the V th century BC Cf. ibid. 273, n. 23. On the etymological and semantic
affinity
between ἐξηγητὴς and ἡγεμών, cf. ibid. 87, 171.
 Allusion to Ti. 47 e ‒ 48a; cf. supra chap. 4.3.1; cf. also infra n. 92.
 A decree of the V th century prescribed sacrifice to Apollo, who had declared prophetic
tically ἐξηγητὴς τῶν ἀγαθῶν, “guide to good advice”, for the Athenians. See Sokolowski
1962 n o 8; Detienne 2009, 172. During the Hellenistic and Roman period, Athens experienced
gistrates bearing the title of exegetes, one of whom was chosen by the oracle of Delphi from
among the Eupatrides,
is attested from the end of the IV th century. Their function seems to be to indicate (ἐξηγεῖσθαι)
the rites to
accomplish, especially in cases of filth and impurity. Piérart 1974, 347‒351, considers that
Plato "transposes" this official Athenian function here. Detienne 2009, 173, expresses
doubts.
 Pl. Ap. 20th ‒ 23b; McPherran 2009, 246; Same as 2011, 123‒124. On Socrates as master
Apollonian, cf. Reeve 2000.
 Pl. Ap. 29 d ‒ 30 d.
 Pl. Phd. 60d sq., In particular 61a: ὡς φιλοσοφίας μὲν οὔσης μεγίστης μουσικῆς.
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Page 17
will also think of Pythagoras, whose very name symbolically evokes the link
with the Pythian, ⁷⁸ and who, in book X , is recognized as a guide in the
field of education (ἡγεμὼν παιδείας) having indicated a life path at
human race (ὁδὸς τοῦ βίου), namely the Pythagorean way of life (Πυθα-
γόρειος τρόπος τοῦ βίου) .⁷⁹ Attention will be drawn to the affinity between ἐξηγητὴς and
ἡγεμών, ⁸⁰ which seems to suggest the link between Apollo and Pythagoras: ⁸¹ is from
The ancestral exegete that Pythagoras holds his quality from ἡγεμὼν παιδείας. The Apollo
of Delphi is then celebrated as the not only founder and divine patron
of the dialectic, but also of the Pythagorean way of life, to which Plato
attached, it seems, special importance - perhaps analogous to that
of the propaedeutics about which the Pythagoreans are, moreover,
specifically mentioned? ⁸² — in his philosophical design, since he attributes to
Pythagoras the second position in relation to the truth relating to virtue, in
opposing it to Homer, who has the third and last position, ⁸³ and
situating after Socrates, who, occupying the first position, is chosen by the Py-
thien to found "in discourse" (ἐν λόγοις) a Hellenic city different from the
others: the city of the philosophers. Plato emphasizes here the divine foundations of
 See the appendix below .
 Pl. R. X 600 a ‒ b; cf. supra chap. 1 n. 110.
 See supra n. 72.
 See the appendix below .
 Pl. R. VII 530 d.
 Ibid. X 599 d ‒ 600b; cf. supra chap. 1 n. 108.
 The two Apollonian masters, Pythagoras and Socrates, perhaps agree in the affirmation
concerning the demonic sign; cf. Pl. R. VI 496 c: τὸ δ 'ἡμέτερον οὐκ ἄξιον λέγειν, τὸ δαιμόνιον
σημεῖον · ἢ γάρ πού τινι ἄλλῳ ἢ οὐδενὶ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν γέγονεν. See also supra chap. 1 n. 111.
On
the demon of Socrates, cf. Pl. Ap. 31 c ‒ d; Euthd. 272nd; Tht. 151 a; Phdr. 242 b; X. Mem. I 1, 2; I
4.15;
IV 3, 12; IV 8, 1 and 5. Cf. also McPherran 1996, cf. 4.1; Brickhouse and Smith 2000; Vlastos and
al. 2000; Smith and Destrée 2005; McPherran 2011, 125 sq. We will stop on the sentence "he did
not
produced only once with someone else, and even with no one ”. This unique man,
likely to have worn, before Socrates, the demonic sign, could it not be Pythagoras,
considered by tradition sometimes as a demon, sometimes as son of Apollo, sometimes again
like Apollo Hyperborean himself (cf. appendix)? Assuming this is so, the
connection between Socrates and Pythagoras could be considered as an allusion to the dis-
passing of Pythagorean wisdom by Socrates, perfectly embodying, alone among the
men, the philosophical ideal; cf. also supra chap. 1.2.5. Pythagoras transmitted a kind of life
of Apollonian origin, but the divine plan would have remained unfulfilled without Socrates. It
seems that
expressing doubt as to whether another man wearing the demonic sign has actually
existed (ἢ οὐδενί), Plato grants Socrates absolute superiority.
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philosophical vocation, the origin of which he traces back to
Apollo.⁸⁵
Although keeping the features of the Apollo of tradition, this Apollo Exegete,
founding guide and patron of the heavenly city, could not be the one who, in the
Phaedrus , remains under the regime of Zeus. Indeed, in this dialogue, the procession
circular of the chariots of the gods illustrates the heavenly righteous regime, whose
Republic develops the foundations.⁸⁶ In this case, Apollo is part of the
divine procession which contemplates the Ideas, remaining under a regime where each
"Performs its own task" (πράττων ἕκαστος αὐτῶν τὸ αὑτοῦ), - allusion to the
definition of justice in the Republic - and to which those who want and
may, thus becoming himself blessed (εὐδαίμων), like the gods.
In accordance with Olympian rule, the sovereign of this regime, the guide
(ἡγεμὼν) from "the army of gods and demons" (στρατιὰ θεῶν τε καὶ δαιμόνων),
is Zeus: "The great chief of heaven, Zeus, driving his winged chariot, advances the
first, ordering and regulating all things ”.
However, in the Republic , the roles change. The role of Apollo is
then less in line with the Olympian canon, but more in line with the primacy of
this god in the Pythagorean tradition. The quality of ἡγεμὼν, attributed to Zeus
in the Phaedrus , finds its parallel in the quality of ηγητής, granted to
Apollo in the Republic. ⁸⁸ Thus, in the dialogue on the ideal city,
Zeus cedes his place as leader to Apollo, his beloved son, ⁸⁹ who, in his capacity
Exegete, performs a function analogous to that of his father in the Phaedrus. Of
same as the Zeus of Phaedrus , ⁹⁰ this Apollo, ruler of the heavenly homeland, of
 In the third chapter, we saw that the Timaeus locates philosophy under the patronage
nage d'Athéna, then qualified as a “philosopher goddess”; cf. supra chap. 3.3.3. At Delphi, the
Temple of Athena is located at the entrance to the sanctuary. On the privileged link that the
Pythagoreans
established between Apollo and Athena due to the relationship between the numbers one and
seven attributed
to each of these two gods respectively, cf. Lyd. Mens. II 12; Philo Op. 100; Anat.
Dec. 11 Heiberg; Arist. Fr. 13 Ross = Fr. 203 Rose = Alex. Aphr. in Metaph. 39, 9 ff. ; supra chap. 2
not. 207. For all the relative sources, see in particular Huffman 1993, 334‒339.
See also Delatte 1974, 221‒222
 See also the comment by Guy Samama ad. loc. (247a); Moreschini et al. 2002, 180.
 Pl. Phdr. 246e ‒ 247a. On the word ἡγεμών, cf. Detienne 2009, 87‒88.
 On the etymological and semantic affinity of these two words, cf. supra and n. 72.
 On this expression, cf. Graf 2009, 32. As a prophet, Apollo is intimately linked
with his father: cf. Hom. Hymn. Rev. 132; Α. Ε u. 19.
 McPherran proposes, rightly it seems to me, that the Zeus of the Phaedrus can be identified
with the Good considered as the crowning God of Platonic metaphysics; cf. McPherran
2009, 253. McPherran shows that several elements lead to consider Good as God;
cf. also infra n. 91. However, he considers that, being ἐπέκεινα τῆς ούσίας πρεσβείᾳ καὶ
δυνάμει
ὑπερέχον (R. VI 509b), Good is not an Intellect (νοῦς). Now, you have to be an Intellect to be
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regime under which the gods themselves and their relatives dwell,
would rather come closer to the supreme god who crowns Platonic ontology, and who
identifies with the One-Good, ⁹¹ about which Glaucos exclaimed — no doubt
not by chance: “By Apollo, what a prodigious transcendence!”. ⁹²
a God. In this light, he concludes that Good cannot be a god. It solves this problem
by arguing that “Plato's foremost concern in the Republic is ethical” (2009, 253).
 The identification of Good with the God of Plato was a commonly accepted idea in
Antiquity; cf., for example, SE M. XI 70‒71: παρὸ καὶ ὁ Πλάτων συνιστάς, ὅτι φύσει ἀγαθόν
ἐστιν ὁ θεός, […] τἀγαθὸν δέ γε ὁ θεός · ἴδιον ἄρα ἐστὶ θεοῦ τὸ ἀγαθοποιεῖν. About
identification
Good with the One, cf. supra chap. 4.4. Xenocrates also identified the One with God; cf. Xenocr.
Fr. 213, 1‒6 Isnardi-Parente; Dillon 2003, 99 sq. On the idea of identifying Good with God,
cf. Renew 1844, II 81; Adam 1965, 439‒460; Dies 1972, 523 sq .; Festugière 1932, 172; Moreau
1939, 477; Jaeger 1943, 285‒288; Goldschmidt 1949, 60‒62; Doherty 1956; Burkert 1993, 649‒650;
Benitez 1995, 114 n. 8; McPherran 2006, 95‒96; Same as 2009, 252‒253.
 Allow me to add, by way of suggestion, some additional remarks
about the Apollo of the Republic , without claiming to deepen the analysis:
we have seen that as an exegete, this god takes on the character of supreme founder who
presides over the heavenly city. If we follow the interpretation proposed above, according to
which the homeland
celestial is a metaphor for the soul of the world, it would be appropriate to bring the founder of
the
celestial city of the author of the soul of the world, that is to say to the Demiurge of Timaeus ,
that we can
consider it as the mythical equivalent of νοῦς. The closest parallel in the Repu-
Republic would φυτουργός ( x 597d), who is the author of all that exists; cf. ibid. 596 c ‒ d. Gold,
being himself good (ἀγαθός), the Demiurge of Timaeus always aims at the Good (cf. Ti. 29d ‒ e),
from
so that the latter (which corresponds mutatis mutandis to Aristotle's final cause; cf. also
Viltanioti 2008, 103; Johansen 2008, 109 ff.) Is inseparable from divine design. Indeed, so
as Strange 1999, 407‒408, points out: "The Demiurge is a cosmic craftsman, a divine ana-
logue of a certain sort of efficient cause at the human level. […] Reason is a special sort of
efficient cause, for it always aims rightly at good goal or final cause and always achieves the
best result possible. So, Plato's Reason seems to incorporate the Aristotelian final cause as
well ”. In the same vein, Johansen 2008, 109‒110, explains that the final cause operates
as such thanks to the Intellect: "For Timaeus final causes cannot be detached from god's
intentions. They operate as aitiai via god's intelligence. Timaeus' teleology is not independent
of god's mind or intellect. Final causes presupposes the agency of an intellect ”. In this sense, we
can say that the final cause, that is to say the Good, remains in the Intellect in that it
identifies himself to the latter. On the other hand, in the Republic , the Good generates the
Sun in his image ( R. VI 506th f.), Thus revealing himself as a kind of father, quality
that Aristotle enumerates among the different types of efficient cause. It would therefore seem
that in this
meaning, the “efficient cause” (the Demiurge, the νοῦς, the φυτουργὸς) and the “final cause”
(the Good)
overlap; cf. Viltanioti 2008, 102 n. 14). The Apollo of the Republic would thus fall under
of them. Could one say that it would relate to the Good as it is conceived by the Intellect? It
would suit
to note that the identification of the Demiurge with the Good was supported by Platonists, such
Atticus (c. 150–200), and refuted by the Neoplatonists, notably by Porphyry and Proclus; cf.
Porph. Fr. 51 Sodano = Procl. in Ti. I 391, 4‒396, 26 Diehl.
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It remains to wonder about the identity of this celestial city which, located under
the patronage of the Apollo of Delphi, is the place specific to the Sirens and which realizes
in it a harmony corresponding to that represented by the tetractys. These
allusions will immediately evoke the Pythagorean ἄκουσμα to which the
first part of this study. It would therefore be tempting to conclude this chapter by
identifying the heavenly homeland, the divine city of the Republic , with the Delphi
celestial and to see in this identification, which makes the soul perfectly virtuous
the oracle holding the knowledge "of the present, the future and the past", the "transposition"
Platonic of the Pythagorean maxim.
6.4 Conclusion
We can thus conclude that the image of the harmony of the Sirens developed in the
Mythe d'Er takes up and sums up the major themes of the Republic , including
bearing recurring elements whose presence we have highlighted in
other dialogues. In accordance with theological models and the difference
of the imitation implemented by the poets, Plato composes, from elements
traditional, especially Pythagorean, an image of beauty and strength
extraordinary protreptics, which "could save us, if we allow ourselves to
suadions ”; ⁹³ because then“ we would successfully cross the river of Lethe and we
we would not defile our souls ”.⁹⁴
In the background of this image stands a reinterpretation - a "trans-
position ”, one might say, using the terminology of Diès — from the ἄκουσμα
Pythagorean who defines the oracle of Delphi as being the tetractys , identified,
as for it, to the harmony of the Sirens. Inspired by the Pythagorean formula
cien, which stems from a pre-Socratic worldview, Plato substitutes
Celestial Delphi, which is only a metaphor for the virtuous soul leading the round
heavenly, to the oracle of Delphi, and harmony in the soul of the philosopher, who
"Sings" in harmony with the universal soul, to that of the heavenly bodies. It adapts
thus the Pythagorean doctrine for the purposes of its own philosophy, in him
conferring an entirely new meaning, consistent with the teleological orientation
of his thought and relevant in the context of the Republic.
 Pl. R. X 621c: καὶ ἡμᾶς ἂν σώσειεν, ἂν πειθώμεθα αὐτῷ. Like Johnson 1999, 11, I believe
Socrates invites us here to persuade ourselves of the relevance of the argument of the Republic of
which
raises the myth of Er.
 Pl. R. X 621c: καὶ τὸν τῆς Λήθης ποταμὸν εὖ διαβησόμεθα καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν οὐ
μιανθησόμεθα.
6.4 Conclusion
177