Euthyphro (Part X)

Socrates: However, while you were just speaking, I was thinking to myself, what if Euthyphro should decidedly convince myself that all of the Gods think this kind of death to be unjust? How I would learn more from Euthyphro about what is pious and what is impious. For the action you are taking appears to myself as offensive to the divine, however, it has not yet become known what is pious and what is not because that which is offensive also appears to be loved by the divine. So that I can go along with yourself, Euthyphro, please let all the Gods think the offensive to be unjust and let them all hate it. Therefore, shall we now make this correction to the definition:

What all the Gods hate is impious, and what they all love is pious, but what some of them love, and others hate is neither or both.

Are you willing, for the time being, to accept this definition of the pious and impious?

Euthyphro: What stops us, Socrates?

Socrates: Nothing stops myself, Euthyphro, but would yourself by accepting this more easily teach myself what you promised?

Euthyphro: But I say the pious is that which all the Gods love and the impious is what all the Gods hate.

Plato, The Euthyphro

So, we have a definition - or rather, Socrates and Euthyphro believe they have an opinion on one. However, this is not sufficient for Socrates, and he will want to continue the thought process until he knows the definition.

Note from the editor of Classical Philosophy