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καὶ δοκεῖ τοῦτο τοῖς πλείστοις καὶ σοφωτάτοις. νομίζουσι γὰρ οἱ μὲν θεοὺς
εἶναι δύο καθάπερ ἀντιτέχνους, τὸν μὲν
ἀγαθῶν, τὸν δὲ φαύλων δημιουργόν. οἱ δὲ τὸν μὲν 1 ἀμείνονα θεόν, τὸν δὲ
ἕτερον δαίμονα
καλοῦσιν: ὥσπερ Ζωροάστρης 2 ὁ μάγος, ὃν πεντακισχιλίοις ἔτεσι τῶν
Τρωικῶν γεγονέναι πρεσβύτερον ἱστοροῦσιν. οὗτος οὖν ἐκάλει τὸν μὲν
Ὡρομάζην, τὸν δ᾽ Ἀρειμάνιον καὶ
προσαπεφαίνετο τὸν μὲν ἐοικέναι φωτὶ μάλιστα τῶν αἰσθητῶν, τὸν δ᾽
ἔμπαλιν σκότῳ καὶ ἀγνοίᾳ, μέσον δ᾽ ἀμφοῖν τὸν Μίθρην εἶναι: διὸ καὶ
Μίθρην Πέρσαι τὸν μεσίτην ὀνομάζουσιν. ἐδίδαξε δὲ τῷ μὲν εὐκταῖα
θύειν καὶ χαριστήρια, τῷ δ᾽ 3 ἀποτρόπαια καὶ
σκυθρωπά. πόαν γάρ τινα κόπτοντες Μῶλυ καλουμένην ἐν ὅλμῳ, τὸν Ἅιδην
ἀνακαλοῦνται καὶ τὸν σκότον: εἶτα μίξαντες αἵματι λύκου σφαγέντος; εἰς
τόπον ἀνήλιον ἐκφέρουσι καὶ ῥίπτουσι. καὶ γὰρ τῶν φυτῶν νομίζουσι
τὰ μὲν τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ θεοῦ, τὰ δὲ τοῦ κακοῦ
δαίμονος εἶναι καὶ τῶν ζῴων ὥσπερ κύνας καὶ [p. 520] ὄρνιθας
καὶ χερσαίους ἐχίνους τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ, τοῦ δὲ φαύλου τοὺς ἐνύδρους μῦς 4
εἶναι: διὸ καὶ τὸν κτείναντα πλείστους εὐδαιμονίζουσιν.
Plutarch. Moralia. Gregorius N. Bernardakis. Leipzig. Teubner. 1889. 2.
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