Translated from french by Grok

On page 95 of his book *The Aesthetic Problem in Thomas Aquinas*, Umberto Eco writes:

It is a matter of that metaphysics of the *homo quadratus* which draws its origin from the doctrines of Calcidius or Macrobius, who asserted: “Physici mundum magnum hominem et hominem brevem mundum esse dixerunt” (in *Somnum Scipionis* II,2): the physicists affirmed that the world was a large man, and man a small world.

Here we are dealing with an allegorization, in mathematical terms, of human proportions: there are four cardinal points, four main winds, four phases of the moon, four seasons, the name Adam is made up of four letters, four is the number of the tetrahedron of fire, this macroscopic number will therefore also be the rule of the microcosm, and the width of an individual with arms outstretched will correspond to his height, thus providing the two equal sides of an ideal square; there will be four humors, four ages of life, and four will become the symbol of moral perfection, so that the man described as *tetragono* (of Aristotelian and Dantesque memory) will be the strong man, naturally well-tempered and battle-hardened.

In our article “Sur les connaissances scientifiques dans ΕΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ” published in ΛΥΧΝΟΣ no. 63, January 1995, we showed that the author had imbued his entire work with a certain completeness from the point of view of scientific knowledge. Now we will use another argument to support our claims. This time it is not really a strictly scientific argument but rather an observation of the abundant appearance of the number four in ΕΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ. Let’s see what it’s about:

A 803 Τρεῖς μῆνες ἐπεράσασι, τέσσερεις πορπατοῦσι,
Trois mois passèrent, quatre arrivaient,

says ΠΕΖΟΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ, the father of ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ, who noticed that his son wasn’t feeling well—in fact, he had fallen in love with ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ.

A 1674 τέσσερα ζάλα πάω ὁμπρόσ κι’ ὀκτώ γιαγέρνω ὀπίσω.
de quatre pas fébriles je vais en avant et de huit je retourne en arrière

says ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ speaking of her love for the evening singer—who is none other than ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ (and note the use of eight, a multiple of four).

A 2016 τέσσερα μῆλα δίφορα ηὗρεν ἡ Ἀρετούσα,
quatre pommes remontantes trouva Arétousa

this is the gift ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ gives to ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ who is sick (with love) and who heals immediately after receiving it!

Γ 927 Τέσσερεις μέρες κι’ ὄχι πλιά τοῦ δίδω να μισέψη
Je lui donne quatre jours et pas plus pour partir

and

Γ 1361 Τέσσερεις μέρες μοναχά μοῦ’δωκε ν’άνιμένω
Quatre jours seulement il me donna pour partir

this is the deadline the king gives ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ to go into exile.

Γ 1435 Τά μάτια, ὁ νοῦς μου κι ’ἡ καρδιά κι ’ἡ ὄρεξη θελῆσα
Γ 1436 κι ’ἐσμιξαν καί τά τέσσερα, ὃντε σέ ζγουραίσα
Les yeux, l’esprit, le cœur et l’appétit je voulus
et ils se réunirent tous les quatre, lorsque je te dessinai.

says ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ to ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ just before his departure into exile (we can already glimpse that for the author the number four corresponds to the notion of totality).

Δ 845 Oἱ τρεῖς χρόνοι περάσασι κι’οἱ τέσσερεις ἐμπαῖνα,
Trois ans passèrent et quatre arrivaient

this is the duration of ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ’s exile and ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ’s imprisonment. (Such a long sentence reminds us of an analogy between ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ and ΑΝΤΙΓΟΝΗ in ΣΟΦΟΚΛΗΣ, and between love and the law of the gods, both of which stand above human laws.)

Δ 1234 νά κάμου μέρες δώδεκα δίχως νά πολεμήσου,
que les jours deviennent douze sans guerroyer

duration of the truce during the war undertaken by the king (use of twelve, a multiple of four).

Δ 1559 Τρεῖς μέρες ἐπεράσασι, την τέταρτην ἡμέρα
Trois jours passèrent, le quatrième jour

duration after which ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ will fight a single combat.

Δ 1567 Ἓνα τοῦ λέει ὁ Βασιλιός καί τέσσερα κατέχει
Une [chose] lui dit le roi et il en comprit quatre

expression meaning that ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ (in disguise) fully understands the king’s advice about the upcoming fight.

Δ 2019 Στόν κάμπο τέσσερεις φορές τοῦ κάμασι τὴ γύρα.
dans le champ quatre fois nous lui fîmes faire le tour

celebration of the death of ΑΡΙΣΤΟΣ, killed by ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ in the single combat.

E 654 ἐχάσαμεν ἀλλήλως μας τέσσερα δακτυλίδια
nous perdîmes chacune nos quatre bagues

the lie ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ tells the stranger (ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ in disguise) so as not to say she had given the ring to ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ.

E 1039 νὰ τρέξω μὲ τὰ τέσσερα, κι ’ὡς ἀστραπή νά σώσω.
que je cours avec les quatre [membres] et comme la foudre que je sauve

says ΑΡΕΤΟΥΣΑ to the stranger who tells her of ΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ’s “death.”

This abundance of the number four is already significant in itself, but it also has the merit of indicating yet another difference between ΕΡΩΤΟΚΡΙΤΟΣ and the folk songs, which mainly use the number three and its multiples.

If, in addition to all this, we recall that the author knows the theory of the four basic qualities and the theory of the four humors, we cannot fail to notice that an explanation lies behind these clues.

Now, *The Dictionary of Symbols* tells us that the number four is an incomparable symbol of plenitude, of universality, a totalizing symbol. More explicitly, four reveals itself—with its multiples and its divisors—as the symbol of totality and characterizes the universe in its entirety (most often the material, sensible world). And it reminds us that the disciples of ΠΥΘΑΓΟΡΑΣ also made the tetrad the key to a numerical symbolism that could provide a framework for the order of the world.

This universal character is in fact omnipresent in the work. Not only from an intellectual and scientific point of view, as we have shown previously, but also historical. Indeed, what some have taken for anachronism regarding the appellations and characteristics of the characters in the work is nothing other than an eclectic and diachronic synthesis of Greek history. The author, by incorporating the universe of his knowledge into his work, has made it a true universe. Moreover, one cannot even accuse him of wanting to hide his intentions from his readers, since he begins his monument with verses (A 1-6) where he indicates that he is going to speak of EVERYTHING!

Nik LYGEROS

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