Plutarch · c. AD 46-after 119
On the E at Delphi
Περὶ τοῦ ΕΙ τοῦ ἐν ΔελφοῖςPlutarch's dialogue On the E at Delphi asks what the single letter E (EI) dedicated in the temple of Apollo at Delphi can mean. Plutarch, a priest of Apollo at Delphi himself, reports a conversation held there in his youth, in which the Platonist Ammonius, Lamprias, Theon, Eustrophus, the priest Nicander and Plutarch each propose an answer: the fifth letter and the five Sages, a question or a prayer, logic, the number five, or a greeting of the god, EI, 'thou art'. It is the first of Plutarch's three Delphic dialogues.
Contents · 5 passages
- 1–4The dedication at Delphi: the Sages and the letter E1250 words
- 5–7E as a question and a prayer; Theon pleads for logic1105 words
- 8–12The number five: even and odd, the five elements and the five senses1571 words
- 13–16Homer, Plato and the Delphic lots: more on the number five1010 words
- 17–21Ammonius: EI, 'thou art', the god's being, time and eternity1863 words
More by Plutarch
English translation by R. Kippax (1874). Original text: William W. Goodwin (ed.), Plutarch's Morals, translated from the Greek by several hands, vol. 4, Boston: Little, Brown and Company; Cambridge: Press of John Wilson and Son, 1874 (Greek text: Gregorius N. Bernardakis, Plutarchi Chaeronensis Moralia, vol. 3, Leipzig: Teubner, 1891, as digitised by Perseus).
Greek text and translation from the Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Perseus Digital Library); translation public domain. Introductions, summaries and notes © GreekMythology.com.
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