Plato, Laws

Clinias
That is so.

Athenian
And that, of these two motions, the motion which moves in one place must necessarily move always round some center, being a copy of the turned wheels; and that this has the nearest possible kinship and similarity to the revolution of reason?¹

Clinias
How do you mean?

Athenian
If we described them both as moving regularly and uniformly in the same spot, round the same things and in relation to the same things, according to one rule and system—reason, namely, and the motion that spins in one place [898b] (likened to the spinning of a turned globe),—we should never be in danger of being deemed unskillful in the construction of fair images by speech.

Clinias
Most true.

Athenian
On the other hand, will not the motion that is never uniform or regular or in the same place or around or in relation to the same things, not moving in one spot nor in any order [898c] or system or rule—will not this motion be akin to absolute unreason?

Clinias
It will, in very truth.

Athenian
So now there is no longer any difficulty in stating expressly that, inasmuch as soul is what we find driving everything round, we must affirm that this circumference of Heaven is of necessity driven round under the care and ordering of either the best soul or its opposite.

Clinias
But, Stranger, judging by what has now been said, it is actually impious to make any other assertion than that these things are driven round by one or more souls endowed with all goodness.

Athenian
You have attended to our argument admirably, Clinias. [898d] Now attend to this further point.

Clinias
What is that?

Athenian
If soul drives round the sum total of sun, moon and all other stars, does it not also drive each single one of them?

Clinias
Certainly.

Athenian
Then let us construct an argument about one of these stars which will evidently apply equally to them all.

Clinias
About which one?

Athenian
The sun's body is seen by everyone, its soul by no one. And the same is true of the soul of any other body, whether alive or dead, of living beings. There is, however, a strong suspicion that this class of object, which is wholly imperceptible to sense, [898e] has grown round all the senses of the body,² and is an object of reason alone. Therefore by reason and rational thought let us grasp this fact about it,—

Clinias
What fact?

Athenian
If soul drives round the sun, we shall be tolerably sure to be right in saying that it does one of three things.

Clinias
What things?

Athenian
That either it exists everywhere inside of this apparent globular body and directs it, such as it is, just as the soul in us moves us about in all ways; or, having procured itself a body of fire or air (as some argue), it in the form of body pushes forcibly on the body from outside;