Letter to JulianΠρὸς Ἰουλιανὸν ἐπιστολή
Aratus Lives Letter to Julian PDF
The Letter to Julian is a single epistle attributed to the author Aratus Lives. While extant, the work is poorly documented, with no surviving sources providing details regarding its specific content, length, or philosophical or biographical arguments. The identity of the recipient, Julian, and the precise nature of the author, Aratus Lives, remain similarly unspecified. The letter is attested as extant, but its manuscript tradition, the history of its editions, and the extent of its textual preservation are not detailed in available scholarship. Consequently, the historical circumstances of its composition, its intended purpose, and any potential influence it may have exerted are entirely unknown due to the absence of descriptive testimony.
| 534 | EPISTVLA AD IVLIANVM QVENDAM DATA Ταῦτά σοι, ὦ Ἰουλιανέ, συναγαγόντες ταχεῖαν πεποιήμεθα τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν. ἄλλοις δὲ μελέτω γραφὰς ἀλλοίας ποιεῖν, εἰ μέντοι ὁ Ἄρατος μνησθείη Περσέως, πάντα τὰ περὶ Περσέως διερευνᾶν, εἰ δὲ περὶ Βοώτου, τὰ περὶ ἐκεῖνον, εἰ δὲ περὶ Ἀργοῦς, τὰ περὶ Ἀργοναύτας. τοῖς γὰρ βουλομένοις τὰ περιμηκέστερα βιβλία ἢ πλείονα καὶ τοῦ ἀναγκαίου ἐκτὸς καταλιπεῖν, †τὰ σὰ† ὁδός. ἡμῖν δὲ τί καὶ ταῖς κατὰ καιρὸν ἐξηγήσεσι [κατα λείπω] τὸ περιττὸν τῆς συνταγματικῆς ἐκδόσεως; εἴρηται δὲ πάντα τὰ ἀναγκαῖα καὶ συντελοῦντα πρὸς τὸ σαφὲς ἀπεριέργως, καὶ ὡσὰν ἀνδρὶ διὰ τῶν μαθημάτων φιλοσοφοῦντι ἐξηγήσασθαι πρέπον ἦν. τὰ [ποιήματα] δὲ λίαν φανερά, ὡς λέγουσιν, ἐξ ἀγωνίας παρα λέλειπται. τί γὰρ ἤπειγεν ἄκαιρον ἐνδείκνυσθαι πολυμάθειαν, καὶ καταλέγειν ὅσων καὶ ἡλίκων ἀστέρων ἕκαστον ἄστρον, καὶ θέσεις διηγεῖσθαι κύκλων πολλῶν μηδὲν εἰς τὸ ποίημα συντελούντων, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ὅσα γράφουσιν ἀμέτρως, οὐ πολυμάθειαν τὴν αὑτῶν εἰς μέσον τιθέντες ... πάντες δὲ φιλόσοφοι θέλοντες εἶναι. |