Commonwealth, whether of leisure or business, he has given
the palm to justice, he has placed the sacred abodes of the
immortal souls, and the secrets of the heavenly regions, on
the very summit of his completed work, indicating whither
they must come, or rather return, who have managed the
republic with prudence, justice, fortitude, and moderation.
But that Platonic relater of secrets was a man of the name of
Er, a Pamphylian by nation, a soldier by profession, who,
after he appeared to have died from wounds received in
battle, and twelve days afterward was about to receive the
honors of the funeral pile with the others who were slain at
the same time, suddenly either recovering his life, or else
never having lost it, as if he were giving a public
testimony, related to all men all that he had done or seen in
the days that he had thus passed between life and death.
Although Cicero, as if himself conscious of the truth,
grieves that this story has been ridiculed by the ignorant,
still, avoiding giving an example of foolish reproach, he
preferred speaking of the relater as of one awakened from a
swoon rather than restored to life.

VII. And before we look at the words of the dream we must
explain what kind of persons they are by whom Cicero says
that even the account of Plato was ridiculed, who are not
apprehensive that the same thing may happen to them. Nor by
this expression does he wish the ignorant mob to be
understood, but a kind of men who are ignorant of the truth,
though pretending to be philosophers with a display of
learning, who, it was notorious, had read such things, and
were eager to find faults. We will say, therefore, who they
are whom he reports as having levelled light reproaches
against so great a philosopher, and who of them has even left
an accusation of him committed to writing, etc. The whole
faction of the Epicureans, always wandering at an equal
distance from truth, and thinking everything ridiculous which
they do not understand, has ridiculed the sacred volume, and
the most venerable mysteries of nature. But Colotes, who is
somewhat celebrated and remarkable for his loquacity among
the pupils of Epicurus, has even recorded in a book the
bitter reproaches which he aims at him. But since the other
ar