y the self-moving, never leaving self, never ceases to move,
and is the fountain and beginning of motion to all that moves besides.
Now, the beginning is unbegotten, for that which is begotten has a
beginning; but the beginning is begotten of nothing, for if it were
begotten of something, then the begotten would not come from a
beginning. But if unbegotten, it must also be indestructible; for if
beginning were destroyed, there could be no beginning out of anything,
nor anything out of a beginning; and all things must have a beginning.
And therefore the self-moving is the beginning of motion; and this can
neither be destroyed nor begotten, else the whole heavens and all
creation would collapse and stand still, and never again have motion or
birth. But if the self-moving is proved to be immortal, he who affirms
that self-motion is the very idea and essence of the soul will not be
put to confusion. For the body which is moved from without is soulless;
but that which is moved from within has a soul, for such is the nature
of the soul. But if this be true, must not the soul be the self-moving,
and therefore of necessity unbegotten and immortal? Enough of the soul's
immortality.

Of the nature of the soul, though her true form be ever a theme of large
and more than mortal discourse, let me speak briefly, and in a
figure. And let the figure be composite--a pair of winged horses and a
charioteer. Now the winged horses and the charioteers of the gods are
all of them noble and of noble descent, but those of other races are
mixed; the human charioteer drives his in a pair; and one of them is
noble and of noble breed, and the other is ignoble and of ignoble breed;
and the driving of them of necessity gives a great deal of trouble to
him. I will endeavour to explain to you in what way the mortal differs
from the immortal creature. The soul in her totality has the care of
inanimate being everywhere, and traverses the whole heaven in divers
forms appearing--when perfect and fully winged she soars upward, and
orders the whole world; whereas the imperfect soul, losing her wings
and drooping in her flight at last settles on the solid ground--there,
finding a home, she receives an earthly frame which appears to be
self-moved, but is really moved by her power; and this composition of
soul and body is called a living and mortal creature. For immortal no
such union can be reasonably believed to be; although fancy, not
having seen nor surely