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İngilizce İngilizce Yunanca

9 (a)What is the oldest thing?God, said Thales,for God is something that has no beginning.

9 (b) What is greatest? Space; for while the universe contains within it all else, this contains the universe.

9 (c) What is most beautiful? The Universe; for everything that is ordered as it should be is a part of it.

9 (d) What is wisest? Time; for it has discovered some things already, and shall discover all the rest.

9 (e) What is most common? Hope; for those who have nothing else have that ever with them.

9 (f) What is most helpful? Virtue; for it makes everything else helpful by putting it to a good use.

9 (g) What is most harmful? Vice; for it harms the greatest number of things by its presence.

9 (h) What is strongest? Necessity; for that alone is insuperable.

9 (i) What is easiest? To follow Nature’s course; because people often weary of pleasures.

10 When all had expressed their satisfaction with Thales, Cleodorus said, Asking and answering such questions is all right for kings. But the barbarian who would have Amasis drink up the ocean to do him honour needed the terse retort which Pittacus used to Alyattes, when the latter wrote and sent an overbearing command to the Lesbians. The only answer he made was to tell Alyattes to eat onions and hot bread. Ἴσον τῷ κλαίειν was the old explanation; that is, weep, or go hang.