stars were all gods; for in them the
warm principle predominates which is the cause of life. And that the
moon derives its light from the sun. And that there is a relationship
between men and the gods, because men partake of the divine principle;
on which account, also, God exercises his providence for our advantage.
Also, that Fate is the cause of the arrangement of the world both
generally and particularly. Moreover, that a ray from the sun penetrated
both the cold aether and the dense aether; and they call the air the
cold aether, and the sea and moisture they call the dense aether. And
this ray descends into the depths, and in this way vivifies everything.
And everything which partakes of the principle of heat lives, on which
account, also, plants are animated beings; but that all living things
have not necessarily souls. And that the soul is a something tom off
from the aether, both warm and cold, from its partaking of the cold
aether. And that the soul is something different from life. Also,
that it is immortal, because that from which it has been detached is
immortal.

"Also, that animals are born from one another by seeds, and that it is
impossible for there to be any spontaneous production by the earth.
And that seed is a drop from the brain which contains in itself a warm
vapor; and that when this is applied to the womb it transmits virtue and
moisture and blood from the brain, from which flesh and sinews and bones
and hair and the whole body are produced. And from the vapor is produced
the soul, and also sensation. And that the infant first becomes a solid
body at the end of forty days; but, according to the principles of
harmony, it is not perfect till seven, or perhaps nine, or at most ten
months, and then it is brought forth. And that it contains in itself all
the principles of life, which are all connected together, and by their
union and combination form a harmonious whole, each of them developing
itself at the appointed time.

"The senses in general, and especially the sight, are a vapor of
excessive warmth, and on this account a man is said to see through air
and through water. For the hot principle is opposed by the cold one;
since, if the vapor in the eyes were cold, it would have the same
temperature as the air, and so would be dissipated. As it is, in some
passages he calls the eyes the gates of the sun; and he speaks in a
similar manner of hearing and of the other senses.

"He also says that th