As naturally happens with fire when it is heaped over with chaff, and no breath fans the flame-it neither consumes what lies beside it, nor is entirely quenched, but instead of flame it rises to the air through the chaff in the form of smoke; yet if it should obtain any breath of air, it turns the smoke to flame-in the same way the mind when hidden by the inaction of the senses in sleep is neither able to shine out through them, nor yet is quite extinguished, but has, so to say, a smouldering activity, operating to a certain extent, but unable to operate farther.

Again, as a musician, when he touches with the plectrum the slackened strings of a lyre, brings out no orderly melody (for that which is not stretched will not sound), but his hand frequently moves skilfully, bringing the plectrum to the position of the notes so far as place is concerned, yet there is no sound, except that he produces by the vibration of the strings a sort of uncertain and indistinct hum; so in sleep the mechanism of the senses being relaxed, the artist is either quite inactive, if the instrument is completely relaxed by satiety or heaviness; or will act slackly and faintly, if the instrument of the senses does not fully admit of the exercise of its art.

For this cause memory is confused, and foreknowledge, though rendered doubtful by uncertain veils, is imaged in shadows of our waking pursuits, and often indicates to us something of what is going to happen: for by its subtlety of nature the mind has some advantage, in ability to behold things, over mere corporeal grossness; yet it cannot make its meaning clear by direct methods, so that the information of the matter in hand should be plain and evident, but its declaration of the future is ambiguous and doubtful,-what those who interpret such things call an "enigma."

Οἷον δέ τι περὶ τὸ πῦρ γίνεσθαι πέφυκεν͵ ὅταν μὲν ὑποκρυφθῇ τοῖς ἀχύροις ἁπανταχόθεν͵ μηδεμιᾶς ἀναπνοῆς ἀναῤῥιπιζούσης τὴν φλόγα͵ οὔτε τὰ προσπαρακείμενα νέμεται͵ οὔτε παντελῶς κατασβέννυται͵ ἀλλ' ἀντὶ φλογὸς ἀτμός τις διὰ τῶν ἀχύρων ἐπὶ τὸν ἀέρα διέξεισιν͵ εἰ δέ τινος λάβοιτο διαπνοῆς͵ φλόγα τὸν καπνὸν ἀπεργάζεται· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ ὁ νοῦς τῇ ἀπραξίᾳ τῶν αἰσθήσεων κατὰ τὸν ὕπνον συγκαλυφθεὶς͵ οὔτε ἐκλάμπειν δι' αὐτῶν δυνατῶς ἔχει͵ οὔτε μὴν παντελῶς κατασβέννυται· ἀλλ' οἷον καπνοειδῶς κινεῖται͵ τὸ μέν τι ἐνεργῶν͵ τὸ δὲ οὐ δυνάμενος.

Καὶ ὥσπερ τις μουσικὸς κεχαλασμέναις ταῖς χορδαῖς τῆς λύρας ἐμβαλὼν τὸ πλῆκτρον͵ οὐ κατὰ ῥυθμὸν προάγει τὸ μέλος, οὐ γὰρ ἂν τὸ μὴ συντεταμένον ἠχήσειεν, ἀλλ' ἡ μὲν χεὶρ τεχνικῶς πολλάκις κινεῖται͵ πρὸς τὴν τοπικὴν θέσιν τῶν τόνων τὸ πλῆκτρον ἄγουσα͵ τὸ δὲ ἠχοῦν οὐκ ἔστιν͵ εἰ μὴ ὅσον ἄσημόν τινα καὶ ἀσύντακτον ἐν τῇ κινήσει τῶν χορδῶν ὑπηχεῖ τὸν βόμβον, οὕτω διὰ τοῦ ὕπνου τῆς ὀργανικῆς τῶν αἰσθητηρίων κατασκευῆς χαλασθείσης ἢ καθόλου ἠρεμεῖ ὁ τεχνίτης͵ εἴπερ τελείαν λύσιν ἐκ πληθώρας τινὸς καὶ βάρους πάθοι τὸ ὄργανον͵ ἢ ἀτόνως τε καὶ ἀμυδρῶς ἐνεργήσει͵ οὐχ ὑποδεχομένου τοῦ αἰσθητικοῦ ὀργάνου δι' ἀκριβείας τὴν τέχνην.

Διὰ τοῦτο ἥ τε μνήμη συγκεχυμένη καὶ ἡ πρόγνωσις προκαλύμμασί τισιν ἀμφιβόλοις ἐπινυστάζουσα͵ ἐν εἰδώλοις τῶν καθ' ὕπαρ σπουδαζομένων φαντασιοῦται καί τι τῶν ἐκβαινόντων πολλάκις ἐμήνυσε. Τῷ γὰρ λεπτῷ τῆς φύσεως͵ ἔχει τι πλέον παρὰ τὴν σωματικὴν παχυμέρειαν εἰς τὸ καθορᾷν τι τῶν ὄντων δύνασθαι. Οὐ μὴν δι' εὐθείας τινὸς δύναται [172] διασαφεῖν τὸ λεγόμενον͵ ὡς τηλαυγῆ τε καὶ πρόδηλον εἶναι τὴν τῶν προκειμένων διδασκαλίαν, ἀλλὰ λοξὴ καὶ ἀμφίβολος τοῦ μέλλοντος ἡ δήλωσις γίνεται͵ ὅπερ αἴνιγμα λέγουσιν οἱ τὰ τοιαῦτα ὑποκρινόμενοι.