[13] stuffing and gorging with folly, insolence, arrogance, and all manner of lawlessness, by any and every means within his power, a soul perturbed by anger, pain, fear, pleasure, and lusts of every kind, but to the best of his ability he is to devote his attention to himself and his subjects, becoming indeed a guide and shepherd of his people, not, as someone has said, a caterer and banqueter at their expense. Nay, he ought to be just such a man as to think that he should sleep at all the whole night though as having no leisure for idleness.
[14] ταῦτα γάρ φησι καὶ Ὅμηρος ὁμοίως τοῖς ἄλλοις σοφοῖς τε καὶ ἀληθέσιν ἀνδράσιν, ὡς οὐδείς ποτε πονηρὸς καὶ ἀκόλαστος καὶ φιλοχρήματος οὔτε αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ γενέσθαι δυνατὸς ἄρχων οὐδ᾽ ἐγκρατὴς οὔτε τῶν ἄλλων οὐδενός, οὐδ᾽ ἔσται ποτὲ ἐκεῖνος βασιλεύς, οὐδ᾽ ἂν πάντες φῶσιν Ἕλληνες καὶ βάρβαροι καὶ ἄνδρες καὶ γυναῖκες, καὶ μὴ μόνον ἄνθρωποι θαυμάζωσιν αὐτὸν καὶ ὑπακούωσιν, ἀλλ᾽ οἵ τε ὄρνιθες πετόμενοι καὶ τὰ θηρία ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσι μηδὲν ἧττον τῶν ἀνθρώπων συγχωρῇ τε καὶ ποιῇ τὸ προσταττόμενον.
[14] Homer, too, in agreement with all other wise and truthful men, says that no wicked or licentious or avaricious person can ever become a competent ruler or master either of himself or of anybody else, nor will such a man ever be a king even though all the world, both Greeks and barbarians, men and women, affirm the contrary, yea, though not only men admire and obey him, but the birds of the air and the wild beasts on the mountains no less than men submit to him and do his bidding.
[15] οὐκοῦν λέγωμεν ὑπὲρ τοῦ καθ᾽ Ὅμηρόν τε καὶ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ βασιλέως: οὗτος γὰρ ὁ λόγος ἁπλῶς λεγόμενος ἄνευ πάσης κολακείας ἢ λοιδορίας αὐτὸς ἀφ᾽ αὑτοῦ τὸν μὲν ὅμοιον τῷ ἀγαθῷ γνωρίζει τε καὶ ἐπαινεῖ, καθ᾽ ὅσον ἐστὶν ἐκείνῳ ὅμοιος, τὸν δὲ ἀνόμοιον ἐξελέγχει τε καὶ ὀνειδίζει. ἔστι δὴ πρῶτον μὲν θεῶν ἐπιμελὴς καὶ τὸ δαιμόνιον προτιμῶν: οὐ γὰρ δυνατὸν ἄλλῳ τινὶ πεποιθέναι μᾶλλον τὸν δίκαιον ἄνδρα καὶ ἀγαθὸν ἤ τοῖς δικαιοτάτοις τε καὶ ἀρίστοις θεοῖς.
[15] Let me speak, then, of the king as Homer conceives him, of him who is in very truth a king; for this discourse of mine, delivered in all simplicity without any flattery or abuse, of itself discerns the king that is like the good one, and commends him in so far as he is like him, while the one who is unlike him it exposes and rebukes. Such a king is, in the first place, regardful of the gods and holds the divine in honour.
[16] ὅστις δὲ κακὸς ὢν ἡγεῖταί ποτε θεοὺς ἀρέσκειν, κατ᾽ αὐτὸ τοῦτο πρῶτον οὐχ ὅσιός ἐστιν:
[16] For it is impossible that the just and good man should repose greater confidence in any other being than in the supremely just and good — the gods. He, however, who, being wicked, imagines that he at any time pleases the gods, in that very assumption lacks piety, for he has assumed that the deity is either foolish or evil.
[17] ἢ γὰρ ἀνόητον ἢ πονηρὸν νενόμικε τὸ θεῖον. μετὰ δὲ τοὺς θεοὺς ἀνθρώπων ἐπιμελεῖται, τιμῶν μὲν καὶ ἀγαπῶν τοὺς ἀγαθούς, κηδόμενος δὲ πάντων. τίς μὲν γὰρ ἀγέλης βοῶν κήδεται μᾶλλον τοῦ νέμοντος; τίς δὲ ποιμνίοις ὠφελιμώτερός τε καὶ ἀμείνων ποιμένος; τίς δὲ μᾶλλον φίλιππος τοῦ πλείστων μὲν ἄρχοντος [p. 4]
[17] Next after the gods the good king has regard for his fellow-men; he honours and loves the good, yet extends his care to all. Now who takes better care of a herd of cattle than does the herdsman? Who is more helpful and better to flocks of sheep than a shepherd? Who is a truer lover of horses than he who controls the greatest number of horses and derives the greatest benefit from horses?
[18] ἵππων, πλεῖστα δὲ ἀφ᾽ ἵππων ὠφελουμένου; τίνα δὲ εἰκὸς οὕτως εἶναι φιλάνθρωπον ἢ ὅστις πλείστων μὲν ἀνθρώπων ἐγκρατής ἐστι, μάλιστα δὲ ὑπὸ ἀνθρώπων θαυμάζεται; δεινὸν γάρ, εἰ οἱ ἀλλοφύλων καὶ ἀγρίων ἄρχοντες θηρίων εὐνούστεροι εἷεν τοῖς ἀρχομένοις τοῦ βασιλεύοντος ἀνθρώπων ἡμέρων καὶ ὁμοφύλων.
[18] And so who is presumably as great a lover of his fellow-man as he who exercises authority over the greatest number of men and enjoys the highest admiration of men? For it would be strange if men governing beasts, wild and of another blood than theirs, prove more kindly to these their dependants than a monarch to civilized men who are of the same flesh and blood as himself.
[19] καὶ μέντοι καὶ φιλοῦσι καὶ ἀνέχονται μάλιστα πάντων ἀγέλαι μὲν νομεῖς, ἵπποι δὲ ἡνιόχους: κυνηγέται δὲ ὑπὸ κυνῶν φυλάσσονται καὶ ἀγαπῶνται, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα οὕτως ἀγαπᾷ τὰ ἀρχόμενα τοὺς ἄρχοντας.
[19] And further, cattle love their keepers best and are most submissive to them; the same is true of horses and their drivers; hunters are protected and loved by their dogs, and in the same way other subject creatures love their masters.
[20] πῶς οὖν εἰκὸς τὰ μὲν ἄφρονα καὶ ἀγνώμονα εἰδέναι καὶ φιλεῖν τοὺς ἐπιμελουμένους, τὸ δὲ πάντων συνετώτατον καὶ μάλισταἀποδοῦναι χάριν ἐπιστάμενον ἀγνοεῖν καὶ ἐπιβουλεύειν; ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἀνάγκη τὸν ἥμερον καὶ φιλάνθρωπον βασιλέα μὴ μόνον φιλεῖσθαι ὑπ᾽ ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐρᾶσθαι. ταῦτ᾽ οὖν εἰδὼς καὶ φύσει τοιοῦτος ὤν, ἵλεων καὶ πρᾷον παρέχει τὴν ψυχὴν πᾶσιν, ἅτε πάντας ἡγούμενος εὔνους καὶ φίλους.
[20] How then would it be conceivable that, while beings devoid of intelligence and reason recognize and love those who care for them, that creature which is by far the most intelligent and best understands how to repay kindness with gratitude should fail to recognize, nay, should even plot against, its friends? No indeed! For of necessity the kindly and humane king is not only beloved but even adored by his fellow-men. And because he knows this and is by nature so inclined, he displays a soul benignant and gentle towards all, inasmuch as he regards all as loyal and as his friends.
[21] καὶ μὲν δὴ οἴεται δεῖν πλέονἔχειν διὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν οὐ τῶν χρημάτων οὐδὲ τῶν ἡδονῶν, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐπιμελείας καὶ τῶν φροντίδων: ὥστε καὶ φιλόπονος μᾶλλόν ἐστιν ἢ πολλοὶ τῶν ἄλλων φιλήδονοι καὶ φιλοχρήματοι. ἐπίσταται γὰρ ὅτι αἱ μὲν ἡδοναὶ τοὺς ἀεὶ συνόντας τά τε ἄλλα λυμαίνονται καὶ ταχὺ ποιοῦσιν ἀδυνάτους πρὸς αὑτάς, οἱ δὲ πόνοι τά τε ἄλλα
[21] The good king also believes it to be due to his position to have the larger portion, not of wealth or of pleasures, but of painstaking care and anxieties; hence he is actually more fond of toil than many others are of pleasure or
of wealth. For he knows that pleasure, in addition to the general harm it does to those who constantly indulge therein, also quickly renders them incapable of pleasure, whereas toil, besides conferring other benefits, continually increases a man’s capacity for toil.
[22] ὠφελοῦσι καὶ ἀεὶ μᾶλλον παρέχουσι δυναμένους πονεῖν. οὐκοῦν μόνῳ ἔξεστιν αὐτῷ τοὺς μὲν στρατιώτας συστρατιώτας προσειπεῖν, τοὺς δὲ συνήθεις φίλους, μὴ καταγελῶντα τοῦ ὀνόματος τῆς φιλίας: πατέρα δὲ τῶν πολιτῶν καὶ τῶν ἀρχομένων οὐ λόγῳ κεκλῆσθαι μόνον, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἔργοις τοῦτο ἐπιδείκνυσθαι: δεσπότης δὲ οὐχὅπως τῶν ἐλευθέρων, ἀλλὰ μηδὲ τῶν δούλων χαίρει καλούμενος:
[22] He alone, therefore, may call his soldiers “fellow-soldiers” and his associates “friends” without making mockery of the word friendship; and not only may he be called by the title “Father” of his people and his subjects, but he may justify the title by his deeds. In the title “master,” however, he can take no delight, nay, not even in relation to his slaves, much less to his free subjects;
[23] βασιλεύειν γὰρ οὐχ αὑτοῦ χάριν οἴεται μᾶλλον ἑνὸς ὄντος ἢ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἁπάντων. καὶ τοίνυν εὐεργετῶν ἥδεται πλείω τῶν εὐεργετουμένων, καὶ μόνης ταύτης ἐστὶ τῆς ἡδονῆς ἀκόρεστος. τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἄλλα τῆς βασιλείας ἀναγκαῖα νενόμικεν, τὸ
[23] for he looks upon himself as being king, not for the sake of his individual self, but for the sake of all men.
Therefore he finds greater pleasure in conferring benefits than those benefited do in receiving them, and in this one pleasure he is insatiable. For the other functions of royalty he regards as obligatory; that of benefaction alone he considers both voluntary and blessed.
[24] τῆς εὐεργεσίας μόνον ἑκούσιόν τε καὶ εὔδαιμον. καὶ τῶν μὲν [p. 5] ἀγαθῶν ἀφειδέστατός ἐστιν, ὡς οὐδέποτε ἐπιλειψόντων, κακοῦ δὲ ἧττον αἴτιος γίγνεσθαι πέφυκεν ἤπερ ὁ ἥλιος τοῦ σκότους. ὃν οἱ μὲν ἰδόντες καὶ συγγενόμενοι οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν ἀπολιπεῖν, οἱ δὲ ἀκούοντες ἐπιθυμοῦσιν ἰδεῖν μᾶλλον ἢ παῖδες ἀγνοουμένους πατέρας ἀνευρεῖν.
[24] Blessings he dispenses with the most lavish hand, as though the supply were inexhaustible; but of anything hurtful, on the contrary, he can no more be the cause than the sun can be the cause of darkness. Men who have seen and associated with him are loath to leave him, while those who know him only by hearsay are more eager to see him than children are to find their unknown fathers.
[25] τοῦτον οἱ μὲν πολέμιοι δεδοίκασι καὶ οὐδεὶς ὁμολογεῖ πολέμιος εἶναι, οἱ δὲ φίλοι θαρροῦσιν, καὶ οἱ σφόδρα ἐγγὺς ἡγοῦνται πάντων ἐν τῷ ἀσφαλεστάτῳ εἶναι. οὗ τἀναντία ὑπάρχει τῷ κακῷ, τοὺς μὲν ἐχθροὺς θαρρύνειν, τοὺς δὲ φίλους καὶ τοὺς ἐγγὺς ἐκπλήττειν καὶ φοβεῖν. τῷ γε μὴν ἡμέρῳ καὶ ἀβλαβεῖ τοὺς μὲν προσλιπαροῦντας μετὰ τοῦ πεποιθότος περιγίγνεται βιοῦν: τοὺς δὲ προσιόντας καὶ ὁρῶντας οὐκ ἔκπληξις οὐδὲ φόβος, ἀλλ᾽ αἰδὼς ὕπεισι, πολὺ κρεῖττον καὶ ἰσχυρότερον φόβου: τοὺς μὲν γὰρ φοβουμένους ἀνάγκη μισεῖν καὶ ἀποδρᾶναι θέλειν, τοὺς δὲ αἰδουμένους παραμένειν καὶ θαυμάζειν.
[25] His enemies fear him, and no one acknowledges himself his foe; but his friends are full of courage, and those exceeding near unto him deem themselves of all men most secure. They who come into his presence and behold him feel neither terror nor fear; but into their hearts creeps a feeling of profound respect, something much stronger and more powerful than fear. For those who fear must inevitably hate and want to escape; those who feel respect must linger and admire.
[26] τὴν μὲν οὖν ἁπλότητα καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἡγεῖται βασιλικὸν καὶ φρόνιμον, τὴν δὲ πανουργίαν καὶ τὴν ἀπάτην ἀνόητον καὶ δουλοπρεπές, ὁρῶν ὅτι καὶ τῶν θηρίων τὰ δειλότατα καὶ ἀγεννέστατα, ἐκεῖνα καὶ ψεύδεται πάντων μάλιστα καὶ ἐξαπατᾷ.
[26] He holds that sincerity and truthfulness are qualities befitting a king and a prudent man, while unscrupulousness and deceit are for the fool and the slave, for he observes that among the wild beasts also it is the most cowardly and ignoble which surpass all the rest in lying and deceiving.
[27] φιλότιμος δὲ ὤν τὴν φύσιν καὶ εἰδὼς ὅτι τοὺς ἀγαθοὺς πεφύκασιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι τιμᾶν, ἧττον ἐλπίζει τιμᾶσθαι ἂν ὑπὸ ἀκόντων ἢ παρὰ μισούντων φιλίας τυγχάνειν. καὶ πολεμικὸς μὲν οὕτως ἐστὶν ὥστ᾽ ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ εἶναι τὸ πολεμεῖν, εἰρηνικὸς δὲ οὕτως ὡς μηδὲν ἀξιόμαχον αὐτῷ λείπεσθαι. καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ τόδε οἶδεν, ὅτι τοῖς κάλλιστα πολεμεῖν παρεσκευασμένοις, τούτοις μάλιστα ἔξεστιν εἰρήνην ἄγειν.
[27] Though naturally covetous of honour, and knowing that it is the good that men are prone to honour, he has less hope of winning honour from the unwilling than he has of gaining the friendship of those who hate him.
He is warlike to the extent that the making of war rests with him, and peaceful to the extent that there is nothing left worth his fighting for. For assuredly he is well aware that they who are best prepared for war have it most in their power to live in peace.
[28] φιλέταιρος δὲ καὶ φιλοπολίτης καὶ φιλοστρατιώτης ὁμοίως πέφυκεν: ὅστις μὲν γὰρ ὑπερόπτης τῶν στρατευομένων καὶ οὐδεπώποτε ἢ σπανίως ἑώρακε τοὺς ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀρχῆς κινδυνεύοντας καὶ πονοῦντας, τὸν δὲ ἀνόνητον καὶ ἄνοπλον ὄχλον διατελεῖ θωπεύων, ὅμοιόν γε πέπονθε καθάπερ εἰ ποιμὴν τοὺς συμφυλάττοντας αὐτῷ κύνας ἀγνοοίη καὶ μήτε τροφὴν αὐτοῖς [p. 6] ὀρέγοι μήτε συναγρυπνήσειέ ποτε φυλάττουσιν: οὗτος γὰρ οὐ τὰ θηρία μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς κύνας ἀναπείθει μὴ ἀπέχεσθαι τῆς ποίμνης.
[28] He is also by nature fond of his companions, fellow-citizens, and soldiers in like measure; for a ruler who is suspicious of the military and has never or rarely seen those who face peril and hardship in support of his kingdom, but continually flatters the unprofitable and unarmed masses, is like a shepherd who does not know those who help him to keep guard, never proffers them food, and never shares the watch with them; for such a man tempts not only the wild beasts, but even his own dogs, to prey upon the fold.
[29] ὅστις δὲ τοὺς μὲν στρατιώτας διαθρύπτει, μήτε γυμνάζων μήτε πονεῖν παρακελευόμενος, τῶν δὲ ἄλλων ἀνθρώπων ἠμέλησεν, ὅμοιός ἐστι κυβερνήτῃ τοὺς μὲν ναύτας διαφθείροντι
πλησμονῇτε καὶ ὕπνῳ δι᾽ ἡμέρας, τῶν δ᾽ ἐπιβατῶν καὶ τῆς νεὼς ἀπολλυμένης οὐδὲν φροντίζοντι.
[29] He, on the contrary, who pampers his soldiers by not drilling them or encouraging them to work hard and, at the same time, evinces no concern for the people at large, is like a ship-captain who demoralizes his crew with surfeit of food and noonday sleep and takes no thought for his passengers or for his ship as it goes to ruin.
[30] εἰ δέ τις πρὸς μὲν ταῦτα ἔχοι μετρίως, τοὺς δὲ πλησίον αὑτῷ καὶ φίλους καλουμένους ἀτιμάζοι τε καὶ μὴ σκοποῖ τοῦτο, ὅπως δόξουσι μακάριοι καὶ ζηλωτοὶ πᾶσι, λανθάνει προδότης αὑτοῦ καὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς γιγνόμενος, τοὺς μὲν ὄντασφίλους ἀθύμους ποιῶν, τῶν δὲ ἄλλων μηδένα ἐπιθυμεῖν τῆς αὐτοῦ φιλίας, ἀποστερῶν δ᾽ ἑαυτὸν τοῦ καλλίστου καὶ ὠφελιμωτάτου κτήματος φιλίας.
Delphi Complete Works of Dio Chrysostom Page 170