is, through its infiniteness, undetermined and unordered.
Moreover, there is no other thing which can be the cause of the
universe, there being nothing besides the universe; nor is the universe
the cause of other things or even of itself; for its nature suffers it
not to act, and a cause is understood by its acting. Suppose, now, one
should ask all men what they imagine NOTHING to be, and what notion they
have of it. Would they not answer, that it neither is a cause nor has
a cause, that it is neither the whole nor a part that it is neither
perfect nor imperfect, that it is neither animate nor inanimate, that
it neither is moved nor rests nor subsists, that it is neither corporeal
nor incorporeal; and that this and no other thing is meant by NOTHING?
Since, then, they alone predicate that of the universe which all others
do of NOTHING, it seems plain that they make the universe and NOTHING to
be the same. Time must then be said to be nothing; the same also must
be said of predicate, axiom, junction, conjunction, which terms they use
more than any of the other philosophers, yet they say that they have
no existence. But farther, to say that what is true has no being or
subsistence but is comprehended, and that that is comprehensible and
credible which no way partakes of the essence of being,--does not this
exceed all absurdity?

But lest these things should seem to have too much of logical
difficulty, let us proceed to such as pertain more to natural
philosophy. Since, then, as themselves say,

Jove is of all beginning, midst, and end,
(See "Orphic Fragments," vi. 10 (Herm.).)

they ought chiefly to have applied themselves to remedy, redress, and
reduce to the best order the conceptions concerning the gods, if there
were in them anything confused or erroneous; or if not, to have left
every one in those sentiments which they had from the laws and custom
concerning the Divinity:--

For neither now nor yesterday But always these things lived,
No one knows from whence they came.
(Sophocles, "Antigone," 456.)

But these men, having begun (as it were) "from Vesta" to disturb the
opinions settled and received in every country concerning the gods, have
not (to speak sincerely) left anything entire and uncorrupted. For
what man is there or ever was, except these, who does not believe the
Divinity to be immortal and eternal? Or what in the common anticipations
is more unanimously chanted forth concernin