conquers them he must be temperate indeed. As to courage, even the God of
War is no match for him; he is the captive and Love is the lord, for love,
the love of Aphrodite, masters him, as the tale runs; and the master is
stronger than the servant. And if he conquers the bravest of all others,
he must be himself the bravest. Of his courage and justice and temperance
I have spoken, but I have yet to speak of his wisdom; and according to the
measure of my ability I must try to do my best. In the first place he is a
poet (and here, like Eryximachus, I magnify my art), and he is also the
source of poesy in others, which he could not be if he were not himself a
poet. And at the touch of him every one becomes a poet, even though he had
no music in him before (A fragment of the Sthenoaoea of Euripides.); this
also is a proof that Love is a good poet and accomplished in all the fine
arts; for no one can give to another that which he has not himself, or
teach that of which he has no knowledge. Who will deny that the creation
of the animals is his doing? Are they not all the works of his wisdom,
born and begotten of him? And as to the artists, do we not know that he
only of them whom love inspires has the light of fame?--he whom Love
touches not walks in darkness. The arts of medicine and archery and
divination were discovered by Apollo, under the guidance of love and
desire; so that he too is a disciple of Love. Also the melody of the
Muses, the metallurgy of Hephaestus, the weaving of Athene, the empire of
Zeus over gods and men, are all due to Love, who was the inventor of them.
And so Love set in order the empire of the gods--the love of beauty, as is
evident, for with deformity Love has no concern. In the days of old, as I
began by saying, dreadful deeds were done among the gods, for they were
ruled by Necessity; but now since the birth of Love, and from the Love of
the beautiful, has sprung every good in heaven and earth. Therefore,
Phaedrus, I say of Love that he is the fairest and best in himself, and the
cause of what is fairest and best in all other things. And there comes
into my mind a line of poetry in which he is said to be the god who