Page:The religion of Plutarch, a pagan creed of apostolic times; an essay (IA religionofplutar00oakeiala).pdf/184

 going to add more, when Heracleon twitched his cloak, "but I," writes Plutarch, "being on more familiar terms with him than were the others, said to him, 'My dear Planetiades, cease your efforts to provoke a god who is really amiable and gentle, and who has been, as Pindar says,

"Adjudged exceeding mild to mortal men."

And whether he is the sun, or lord and father of the sun and of the whole perceptible world, it is not right to believe that he would deprive the men of to-day of the help of his utterances, for he is the author and supporter of our life, and the master of our intelligence. Nor is it reasonable to suppose that Providence, which, like a kind and tender mother, has given us all that we possess, should wish to punish us in one single point alone—by taking away from us that prophetic aid which was once given to us. Just as if the wicked were not as numerous when the oracles were firmly established in many parts of the earth! Sit down again, and, in honour of the Pythian games, make a truce for once with vice, which you are always eager to chastise, and help us to find out the cause of the failure of the oracles.' The only result of my remarks was that Planetiades went out-of-doors in silence. After a brief silence, Ammonius turned to me and said, 'Come, Lamprias, we must be careful not to deprive the god of all agency in this matter. For if we

the Pindaric fragment, see W. Christ, p. 225.)]
 * [Footnote: here., Epist. i. 16. 59, readily occurs to the memory. (For