Then, in addition to this, in counting.
How dost thou count ?
One, two, three, four—
Lo! what thou thinkest four is ten, and a perfect
triangle, and our oath.
Thereafter, my friend, thou shalt learn of earth and air and water and fire, what their flux is, and what form they have and how they move.
Why, has fire form, or air, or water ?
Yea, very notably, for without shape and form there can be no motion. And in addition thou shalt learn that God is number and mind and harmony.
What you say is wonderful.
And beside all that I have said, thou shalt learn
What’s that? I am another and not this man who now talks to you!
Now thou art he, but erstwhile thou didst manifest thyself in another body and under another name, and in time thou shalt again migrate into another person.
You mean that I shall be immortal, changing into many forms? But enough of this.
How do you stand in the matter of diet ?
I eat nothing at all that hath life, but all else save beans.
Why so? Do you dislike beans?
Nay, but they are holy, and wonderful is their
nature. First, they are nought but seed of man, and
if thou open a bean while it is still green, thou wilt
see that it resembleth in structure the member of a
man ; and again, if thou cook it and set it in the
light of the moon for a fixed number of nights, thou
wilt make blood. But more than this, the
Athenians are wont to choose their magistrates with
beans.
Ten minas.
I'll take him at that figure.
Write down the buyer’s name and where he comes from.
He appears to be an Italian, Zeus, one of those
who live in the neighbourhood of Croton and
Tarentum and the Greek settlements in that
quarter of the world. But there is more than one
buyer; about three hundred have bought him in
shares.