or he sought healing for them and they were cured; or he invoked destruction upon them and the earth swallowed them up and shook them—or they perished in some other fashion; or he prayed on their behalf and the plague, mass death, flood, or deluge was driven away from them; or for one of them a wild beast became docile, or birds did not take flight from him; and the like. None of these lies along the path of manifest impossibility, so pause and do not rush to denial, for phenomena of this sort have causes hidden among the secrets of nature. Perhaps the opportunity will arise for me to recount some of them to you.

He then added that such effects may stem from the power of the soul: if it can dispose of its own body, it may likewise dispose of bodies other than its own.

It is evident, however, that what they have presented yields no certainty concerning their claim; at best it establishes the bare possibility. One might reason thus: if a person can behold in a dream something that points to unseen realities, then knowledge of all unseen matters could, in principle, come by the same route. And if the soul can influence its own body or some small object, it could likewise act upon the totality of air, water, earth, and fire. Moreover, if the soul can be empowered for certain deeds, it could be empowered to fly through the air, walk upon water, overturn the towns of the people of Lot, part the sea, bring down manna and quails, cause twelve springs to burst forth from a rock, turn a staff into a living serpent, or send forth lice and frogs.