[30,10] λέξω δὲ αὐτὸν ὑμῖν οὔτι που τερπνὸν ὄντα οὐδὲ χαρίεντα· οὐ γὰρ οἶμαι πρὸς χάριν τὴν ἡμετέραν γέγονεν· ἔχοντα δέ τι θαυμαστὸν ἴσως ὅτι τοῦ τῶν Τιτάνων αἵματός ἐσμεν ἡμεῖς ἅπαντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι. ὡς οὖν ἐκείνων ἐχθρῶν ὄντων τοῖς θεοῖς καὶ πολεμησάντων οὐδὲ ἡμεῖς φίλοι ἐσμέν, ἀλλὰ κολαζόμεθά τε ὑπ´ αὐτῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τιμωρίᾳ γεγόναμεν, ἐν φρουρᾷ δὴ ὄντες ἐν τῷ βίῳ τοσοῦτον χρόνον ὅσον ἕκαστοι ζῶμεν. τοὺς δὲ ἀποθνῄσκοντας ἡμῶν κεκολασμένους ἤδη (11) ἱκανῶς λύεσθαί τε καὶ ἀπαλλάττεσθαι. εἶναι δὲ τὸν μὲν τόπον τοῦτον, ὃν κόσμον ὀνομάζομεν, δεσμωτήριον ὑπὸ τῶν θεῶν κατεσκευασμένον χαλεπόν τε καὶ δυσάερον, οὐδέποτε τὴν αὐτὴν κρᾶσίν τε καὶ στάσιν τοῦ ἀέρος φυλάττον, ἀλλὰ ποτὲ μὲν ψυχρόν τε καὶ παγερόν, ἀνέμου τε καὶ πηλοῦ καὶ χιόνος καὶ ὕδατος ἐμπεπλησμένον, ποτὲ δὲ αὖ θερμόν τε καὶ πνιγηρόν· μικρὸν δέ τινα παντελῶς καιρὸν τοῦ ἔτους μετρίως ἔχειν· κατασκήπτειν δὲ καὶ πρηστῆρας ἐν αὐτῷ καὶ τυφῶνας ἐγγίγνεσθαι καὶ πολλάκις σείεσθαι κάτωθεν ὅλον. ταῦτα δὲ (12) πάντα εἶναι κολάσεις δεινάς. ἐκπλήττεσθαι γὰρ ἑκάστοτε ὑπ´ αὐτῶν καὶ φοβεῖσθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, ὁπότε συμβαίνοι. πρὸς δὲ τούτοις οὐκ ἀνεχομένους τοῦ ἀέρος τὴν φαυλότητα καὶ τὰς μεταβολὰς ἕτερα αὖ μηχανᾶσθαι μικρὰ δεσμωτήρια, τάς τε οἰκίας καὶ πόλεις, ξύλα καὶ λίθους ξυντιθέντας, ὥσπερ εἴ τις ἐν μεγάλῃ εἱρκτῇ ἑτέρας βραχυτέρας ἐνοικοδομοῖ· καὶ τὰ φυόμενα ταῦτα καὶ τὸν καρπὸν τὸν ἐκ γῆς ἕνεκα τοῦ παραμένειν ἡμᾶς γίγνεσθαι, καθάπερ δεσμώταις τροφὴν διδομένην ἀηδῆ τε καὶ φαύλην· ἡμᾶς δὲ ἄλλως ἀγαπᾶν διὰ (13) τὴν ἀνάγκην τε καὶ ἀπορίαν. καὶ γὰρ τοῖς ὑφ´ ἡμῶν κολαζομένοις, ἅττ´ ἂν παράσχῃ τις, ὑπὸ λιμοῦ καὶ συνηθείας ἡδέα φαίνεσθαι. καὶ ταῦτα τὰ σιτία τῇ μὲν ἀληθείᾳ πονηρὰ εἶναι καὶ διεφθορότα (δηλοῦσθαι δὲ τὴν διαφθορὰν ἐκ τῆς τῶν σωμάτων ἀσθενείας), ἔτι δὲ μηδὲ ἐξ ἑτοίμου πορίζεσθαι μηδὲ πᾶσιν ἄφθονα ὑπάρχειν, ἀλλὰ μετὰ ἀμηχάνων πόνων καὶ κακῶν. ξυγκεῖσθαι δὲ ἡμᾶς ἐξ (14) αὐτῶν δὴ τῶν βασανιζόντων, ψυχῆς τε καὶ σώματος. τὴν μὲν γὰρ ἐπιθυμίας τε καὶ λύπας καὶ ὀργὰς καὶ φόβους καὶ φροντίδας καὶ μυρία πάθη τοιαῦτα ἔχειν ἐν ἑαυτῇ, καὶ δι´ ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς ὑπὸ τούτων ἀεὶ κατατείνεσθαι καὶ στρεβλοῦσθαι (καὶ γὰρ ὅστις ἐπιεικέστερον διάκειται, καθόλου μὲν ἀπήλλακται τούτων οὐδενός, ὥσπερ δὲ θηρία ἔνδον κατακεκλεισμένα ἔχει, μετὰ βίας ὁμοῦ καὶ πειθοῦς τινος ἠναγκασμένα ἠρεμεῖν· εἰ δὲ καὶ σμικρὸν παύσαιτο κατεπᾴδων καὶ προσέχων, αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα κινούμενα)·

[30,10] This explanation I will now give to you, although it is very likely not at all cheering, nor pleasing — for I imagine it was not devised to please us—and it has something of the marvellous about it perhaps. It is to the effect that all we human beings are of the blood of the Titans. Then, because they were hateful to the gods and had waged war on them, we are not dear to them either, but are punished by them and have been born for chastisement, being, in truth, imprisoned in life for as long a time as we each live. And when any of us die, it means that we, having already been sufficiently chastised, are released and go our way. (11) This place which we call the universe, they tell us, is a prison prepared by the gods, a grievous and ill-ventilated one, which never keeps the same temperature and condition of its air, but at one time is cold and frosty, and infected with wind, mud, snow, and water, and at another time again is hot and stifling; for just a very little time of the year it is endurable; it is visited by cyclones, typhoons occur, and sometimes the whole of it quakes to the very bottom. Now all these are terrible punishments. For men are invariably dismayed and terrified by them whenever they occur. Then in addition to all this, because men cannot endure the bad air and changes of temperature, they devise for themselves other small prisons, namely, their houses and cities, which they construct of timber and stone, just as if a person should build other smaller enclosures inside of a large one. And the plants which grow all about us and the fruits of the earth are created, they assure us, simply in order that we may serve out our time here. They are just like the unappetizing and wretched food which is given to prisoners, but we nevertheless put up with it on account of the necessity which is upon us and our helplessness. For in the case of men who are being punished by us, whatever is furnished appears appetizing because they are hungry and used to it. These foods are in reality bad and spoiled, and that they are spoiled is shown by the frailty of our bodies. And, further, it is not even furnished us ready at hand, nor yet supplied in abundance to everyone, but must be won with intolérable toil and hardships. " Also, we are composed of the very things which torture us, namely, soul and body. (14) For the one has within it desires, pains, angers, fears, worries, and countless such feelings ; and by day and by night it is ever racked and wrenched by them. Even the man who is of a better bodily condition than most, is free from none whatever of these troubles, but has them shut up within him just like wild animals compelled to keep quiet by force and persuasion alike ; but if he stops singing charms to them and watching them, for even a short time, they instantly become very active.