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Ammonius, inasmuch as he plainly held that in
mathematics was contained not the least important
part of philosophy, was pleased with these remarks,
and said, “It is not worth while to argue too precisely
over these matters with the young, except to say that
every one of the numbers will provide not a little for
them that wish to sing its praises. What need to
speak of the others ? Why, the sacred Seven of
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Apollo will consume the whole day before the
narration of all its powers is finished. Then again, we
shall be branding the wise men as ‘warring with’
common custom, as well as with ‘the long years of
time,’1 if they are to oust Seven from its place of
honour and make Five sacred to the god, on the ground
that it is in some way more closely related to him. I
am therefore of the opinion that the significance of
the letter is neither a numeral nor a place in a series
nor a conjunction nor any of the subordinate parts of
speech. No, it is an address and salutation to the god,
complete in itself, which, by being spoken, brings him
who utters it to thoughts of the god's power. For the
god addresses each one of us as we approach him here
with the words ‘Know Thyself,’2 as a form of welcome, which certainly is in no wise of less import
than ‘Hail’; and we in turn reply to him ‘Thou art,’
as rendering unto him a form of address which is
truthful, free from deception, and the only one befitting him only, the assertion of Being.
Plutarch. Moralia. with an English Translation by. Frank Cole Babbitt. Cambridge, MA. Harvard University Press. London. William Heinemann Ltd. 1936. 5.
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