Delphi Complete Works of Dio Chrysostom

by Dio Chrysostom

  [13] ὕπαρ ὤνησε καὶ μεθ᾽ ἡμέραν ἐναργῶς προεῖπεν. ἴστε δήπου τὰς τοῦ Ἄπιδος φήμας ἐνθάδε ἐν Μέμφει πλησίον ὑμῶν, ὅτι παῖδες ἀπαγγέλλουσι παίζοντες τὸ δοκοῦν τῷ θεῷ, καὶ τοῦτο ἀψευδὲς πέφηνεν. ὁ δὲ ὑμέτερος θεὸς οἶμαι, τελειότερος ὤν, δἰ ἀνδρῶν ὑμᾶς καὶ μετὰ σπουδῆς βούλεται ὠφελεῖν, οὐ δἰὀλίγων ῥημάτων, ἀλλ᾽ ἰσχυρᾷ καὶ πλήρει κληδόνι καὶ λόγῳ σαφεῖ, διδάσκοντι περὶ τῶν ἀναγκαιοτάτων, ἂν ὑπομένητε, μετὰ γνώμης καὶ πειθοῦς.

  [13] You are acquainted no doubt with the prophetic utterances of Apis here, in neighbouring Memphis, and you know that lads at play announce the purpose of the god, and that this form of divination has proved to be free from falsehood. But your deity, methinks, being more potent, wishes to confer his benefits upon you through the agency of men rather than boys, and in serious fashion, not by means of few words, but with strong, full utterance and in clear terms, instructing you regarding most vital matters — if you are patient — with purpose and persuasiveness.

  [14] καὶ πρῶτόν γε ἁπάντων, ἵνα, ὅθενπερ ἐχρῆν, ἐγγύθεν ἄρξωμαι, τοῦτο πείσθητε βεβαίως, ὅτι τὰ συμβαίνοντα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐπ᾽ ἀγαθῷ πάνθ᾽ ὁμοίως ἐστὶ δαιμόνια,κἂν πλέων τις ἐμπείρου τύχῃ κυβερνήτου κἂν ἔθνος ἢ πόλις χρηστῶν ἡγεμόνων, κἂν ἰατρὸς ἐν καιρῷ παραγένηται τῷ κάμνοντι, καὶ τοῦτον ἡγεῖσθαι χρὴ βοηθὸν ἥκειν παρὰ θεοῦ, κἂν λόγων τις ἀκούσῃ φρονίμων, ἐκεῖθεν ἐπιπεμφθῆναι.

  [14] And first of all — to begin, as I ought, with matters close at hand — rest assured of this, that all things which happen to men for their good are without exception of divine origin; not only is this true if a voyager has the luck to find a pilot with experience, or a nation or a city to secure good leaders, but also if a physician arrives in time to save his patient, we must believe that he is a helper come from god, and if one hears words of wisdom, we must believe that they too were sent by god.

  [15] καθόλου γὰρ οὐδὲν εὔδαιμον οὐδ᾽ ὠφέλιμον, ὃ μὴ κατὰ γνώμην καὶ δύναμιν τῶν θεῶν[p. 271] ἀφικνεῖται πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ἀλλὰ πανταχῇ πάντων ἀγαθῶν αὐτοὶ κρατοῦσι καὶ διανέμουσι δαψιλῶς τοῖς ἐθέλουσι δέχεσθαι: τὰ κακὰ δὲ ἀλλαχόθεν, ὡς ἐξ ἑτέρας τινὸς πηγῆς ἔρχεται τῶν πλησίον οὔσης παρ᾽ ἡμῖν, ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τοῦδε τοῦ ὕδατος τὸ μὲν σῷζον καὶ τρέφον καὶ γόνιμον ὄντως ἄνωθέν ποθεν ἐκ δαιμονίου τινὸς πηγῆς κάτεισι, τοὺς ῥυπαροὺς δὲ ὀχετοὺς καὶ δυσώδεις αὐτοὶ ποιοῦμεν καὶ ἀφ᾽ ἡμῶν οὗτοι ἵστανται. διὰ γὰρ ἀνθρώπων ἄνοιαν καὶ τρυφὴν καὶ φιλοτιμίαν δυσχερὴς ὁ βίος καὶ μεστὸς ἀπάτης, πονηρίας,

  [15] For, in general, there is no good fortune, no benefit, that does not reach us in accordance with the will and the power of the gods; on the contrary the gods themselves control all blessings everywhere and apportion lavishly to all who are ready to receive; but evils come from quite a different source, as it were from some other fount close beside us. Take for example the water of Alexandria — that which keeps us alive and nourishes us and is truly the author of our being: it descends from some region up above, from some divine fount; whereas the filthy, evil-smelling canals are our own creation, and it is our fault that such things exist. For it is through man’s folly and love of luxury and ambition, that life comes to be vexatious and full of deceit, wickedness, pain, and countless other ills.

  [16] λύπης, μυρίων ἄλλων κακῶν. τούτων δὲ ἓν ἴαμα καὶ φάρμακον ἐποίησαν οἱ θεοὶ παιδείαν καὶ λόγον, ᾧ διὰ βίου μέν τις χρώμενος καὶ συνεχῶς ἦλθέ ποτε πρὸς τέλος ὑγιὲς καὶ εὔδαιμον: οἱ δὲ σπανίως καὶ διὰ χρόνου ποτὲ περιτυχόντες

  ἄλλοτε μὲν ζώουσ᾽ ἑτερήμεροι, ἄλλοτε δ᾽ αὖτε

  τεθνᾶσιν:

  ὅμως δὲ ἤδη ποτὲ ἐξαισίων δεινῶν ἐπικειμένων αὐτοῖς ἀπετράπησαν. οἱ δὲ διὰ παντὸς ἄπειροι τοῦ φαρμάκου τούτου καὶ μηδέποτε σωφρονοῦντι λόγῳ τὰς ἀκοὰς ὑπέχοντες ὁλοκλήρως ἄθλιοι μηδεμίαν σκέπην μηδὲ προβολὴν ἔχοντες ἀπὸ τῶν παθῶν,

  ἀλλ᾽ ἐν ἀκαλύπτῳ καὶ ταλαιπώρῳ βίῳ

  χειμαζόμενοι,

  καθάπερ σκάφει σαθρῷ καὶ λελυμένῳ πάντων ἐν ἀγνώμονι γνώμῃ

  [16] However, for these maladies one remedy and cure has been provided by the gods, to wit, education and reason, and the man who throughout life employs that remedy with consistency comes at last to a healthy, happy end; but those who encounter it rarely and only after long intervals,

  Alternate live one day, are dead the next.

  But, nevertheless, there have been occasions when even such persons have been turned aside when portentous disasters were impending. But those who are wholly unacquainted with the remedy of which I speak, and never give ear to chastening reason, are utterly wretched, having no refuge or defence against their sufferings,

  But storm-tossed on the sea of life they drift,

  Devoid of shelter and in misery,

  as if embarked upon a rotten and wholly shattered hulk, amidst a sea of senseless opinion and misery.

  [17] καὶ πονηρίᾳ. συμβαίνει δὲ τοὺς κακίστους καὶ ἀτυχεστάτους ὡς πορρωτάτω φεύγειν ἀπὸ τοῦ λόγου καὶ μὴ ἐθέλειν ἀκούειν, μηδ᾽ ἂν βιάζηταί τις, ὥσπερ οἶμαι καὶ τῶν ἑλκῶν τὰ δυσχερῆ λίαν οὐκ ἐᾷ προσάψασθαι, καὶ τοῦτο αὐτὸ σημεῖόν ἐστι τοῦ πάνυ πονήρως αὐτὰ ἔχειν. οἱ δὲ τοιοῦτοι παρ᾽ ἑτέρους ἴασιν ἰατροὺς οὐχ ἑκόντες ἰσχυροτέρους. διττὴ γὰρ θεραπεία κακίας καὶ πρόνοια, καθάπερ τῶν ἄλλων νόσων: ἡ μὲν ἐοικυῖα διαίτῃ καὶ φαρμάκοις, ἡ δὲ καύσει καὶ τομῇ, προσήκουσα μᾶλλον ἄρχουσι καὶ νόμοις καὶ δικασταῖς, οἳ τὸ περιττὸν δὴ καὶ ἀνίατον ἐξαιροῦσι. βελτίους δέ εἰσιν οἱ μὴ ῥᾳδίως αὐτὸ πράττοντες.

  [17] And it so happens that it is the most depraved and unfortunate men who flee the farthest from the voice of reason and will not listen to it, not even if you try to force them — just as, I fancy, those sores which are especially disgusting shrink from the touch, and that in itself is a sign of their extremely bad condition. But such sufferers will have to visit a different kind of physician, however unwillingly, whose treatment will be more drastic. For there are two systems for the treatment of vice and its prevention, just as there are for maladies in general: the one may be likened to dieting and drugs, and the other resembles cautery and the knife, this being more suitable for the use of magistrates and laws and jurymen, that is, for those whose business it is to
remove growths that are abnormal and incurable. But much to be preferred are those who do not lightly resort to removal.

  [18] τὴν δὲ ἑτέραν ἐπιμέλειαν ἔργον [p. 272] εἶναί φημι τῶν δυναμένων διὰ πειθοῦς καὶ λόγου ψυχὰς πραΰνειν καὶ μαλάττειν. οὗτοι δὲ σωτῆρές εἰσι καὶ φύλακες τῶν οἵων τε σώζεσθαι, πρὶν ἐλθεῖν εἰς τέλος τὴν πονηρίαν εἴργοντες καὶ κατέχοντες. δεῖ μὲν οὖν ἑκατέρων ταῖς πόλεσι, πολὺ δὲ ἐπιεικεστέρων τῶν ἐν ταῖς ἐξουσίαις. κολάζειν μὲν γὰρ προσήκει φειδόμενον,διδάσκειν δὲ μὴ φειδόμενον: καὶ χρηστοῦ μέν ἐστιν ἡγεμόνος συγγνώμη, φιλοσόφου δὲ κακοῦ μὴ πικρὸν εἶναι. τὸ μὲν γὰρ τῆς τιμωρίας σκληρὸν ἀπόλλυσι, τὸ δὲ τοῦ λόγου πικρὸν σῴζειν πέφυκε.

  [18] The other treatment is, I claim, the proper function of men who have the power through persuasion and reason to calm and soften the soul. These indeed are the saviours and guardians of all who can be saved, confining and controlling vice before it reaches its final stage.

  It is true, no doubt, that both types of practitioners are required by the state, but the type to be found in public office should be much the milder of the two. For in administering punishment one should be sparing, but not so in imparting instruction; and a good prince is marked by compassion, a bad philosopher by lack of severity. For while the harshness of the one in punishing destroys, the other’s severity of speech is by nature salutary.

  [19] κινδυνεύει μέντοι πολλή τις εἶναι σπάνις ὑμῖν τῶν τὸ ὕστερον ἐπισταμένων. οὔτε γὰρ χρήματα αὐτοῖς οὔτε δύναμισπεριγίγνεται διὰ τούτου, ἀλλ᾽ ἀπέχθεια μᾶλλον καὶ λοιδορία καὶ προπηλακισμός: ὧν ἴσως οὐκ ἔδει φροντίζειν: τοιγαροῦν διὰ τὴν ἐκείνων ἀναχώρησιν καὶ σιωπὴν ἐρίδων ὑμῖν φύεται πλῆθος καὶ δικῶν καὶ βοὴ τραχεῖα καὶ γλῶτται βλαβεραὶ καὶ ἀκόλαστοι, κατήγοροι, συκοφαντήματα, γραφαί, ῥητόρων ὄχλος, καθάπερ οἶμαιδἰ ἔνδειαν ἰατρῶν ἢ δἰ ἀπειρίαν πλείους οἱ θάπτοντες γίγνονται.

  [19] It is likely, however, that you have a great dearth of men who are expert in the latter branch of healing; for its practitioners gain neither wealth nor power thereby, but rather hatred, abuse, and reviling, though perhaps one should pay no more attention to such things. Accordingly, when the philosophers quit the field and are silent, there springs up among you a multitude of quarrels and lawsuits, harsh cries, tongues that are mischievous and unrestrained, accusers, calumnies, writs, a horde of professional pleaders — just as, I suspect, the lack of physicians, or else their incompetence, accounts for the increase in number of the undertakers!

  [20] καὶ τούτων ἐν ἀρχῇ μὲν ᾐτιασάμην τοὺς μὴ παριόντας εἰς τὸ πλῆθος μηδὲ τολμῶντας ὑμῖν διαλέγεσθαι, ἀλλὰ σεμνοὺς μὲν εἶναι βουλομένους, ἀνωφελεῖς δ᾽ ὁρωμένους καὶ ὁμοίους τοῖς ἀγεννέσι τῶν ἀθλητῶν, οἳ τὰς παλαίστρας ἐνοχλοῦσι καὶ τὰ γυμνάσια χειρονομοῦντες καὶ παλαίοντες, εἰς δ᾽ τὸ στάδιον οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν ἰέναι, τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τὰς πληγὰς ὑφορώμενοι. τὸ μέντοι πρᾶγμα δυσχερὲς ὄντως καὶ δι᾽ ὑμᾶς. οὐ γὰρ ῥᾴδιον ἐνεγκεῖν τοσοῦδε πλήθους θόρυβον οὐδὲ μυριάσιν ἀνθρώπων ἀπείροις ἐναντίον βλέψαι χωρὶσᾠδῆς καὶ κιθάρας. τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ ἀλεξιφάρμακόν ἐστι πρὸς τὸν δῆμον ὑμῶν, καθάπερ στέαρ φασὶν ἐνίων ζῴων ὠφελεῖν πρός τι τῶν χαλεπῶν.

  [20] In my opening remarks also I laid the blame for this upon the philosophers who will not appear before the people or even deign to converse with you, but, while wishing to maintain their dignity, are seen to be of no utility, and like those degenerate athletes who are a nuisance to wrestling-schools and gymnasia with their make-believe sparring and wrestling, but refuse to enter the stadium, viewing with suspicion the sun’s heat and the blows. However, the trouble becomes truly difficult because of you. For it is not easy to endure the uproar of such a crowd as this, or to face countless thousands of human beings without the support of song and lyre. For music is an antidote in dealing with the populace of your city, just as, we are told, the fat of certain creatures is beneficial in dealing with one of the serious disorders.

  [21] ἐγὼ γοῦν, εἰ ἦν ᾠδικός, οὐκ ἂν δεῦρο εἰσῆλθον δίχα μέλους τινὸς ἢ ᾄσματος. νῦν δὲ τούτου μὲν ἀπορῶ τοῦ φαρμάκου: θεὸς δ᾽, ὅπερ ἔφην, θαρρῆσαί μοι παρέσχεν,[p. 273]

  ὅς τε καὶ ἄλκιμον ἄνδρα φοβεῖ καὶ ἀφείλετο νίκης

  ῥηιδίως, τοτὲ δ᾽ αὐτὸς ἐποτρύνει καὶ ἀνώγει.

  εἰ οὖν τὰ τοῦ Ἑρμοῦ ἔπη κἀγὼ λέγοιμι πρὸς ὑμᾶς, ὡς ἐκεῖνος ἐν Ὀδυσσείᾳ πεποίηται Καλυψοῖ ἀπολογούμενος ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀγγελίας, ἣν ἀηδῆ οὖσαν ἐκόμιζε, τάχ᾽ ἂν ληρεῖν με φαίητε, ῥητέα δ᾽ ὅμως:

  Ζεὺς ἐμέ γ᾽ ἠνώγει δεῦρ᾽ ἐλθέμεν οὐκ ἐθέλοντα:

  τίς δ᾽ ἂν ἑκὼν τοσσόνδε διαδράμοι ἁλμυρὸν ὕδωρ

  ἄσπετον; οὐδέ τις ἄγχι βροτῶν πόλις.

  [21] I, for instance, had I the gift of song, should not have come here before you without some tune or lay. But the truth is, I lack that magic spell; yet a god, as I said, has given me courage, the god

  Who routs with ease the hero brave

  And robs him of his conquest, then again

  Himself doth urge and cheer to victory.

  If, then, in addressing you I were to use the words of Hermes as he is portrayed in the Odyssey, excusing himself to Calypso for the unpleasant message that he bore for her, no doubt you would declare that I was talking nonsense, and yet speak them I must:

  Zeus bade me hither come, though I was loath;

  For who of his own choosing would traverse

  The salty sea so vast, unspeakable?

  Nor is there near a town of mortal men.

  [22] ἐκεῖνος μὲν θεὸς ὢν καὶ πετόμενος δυσχεραίνει τὰ κύματα καὶ τὸ πέλαγος καὶ τὴν μεταξὺ τῶν πόλεων καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐρημίαν: ἐγὼ δὲ ἄνθρωπος οὐδεὶς οὐδαμόθεν ἐν τριβωνίῳ φαύλῳ μήτε ᾄδειν ἡδὺς μήτε μεῖζον ἑτέρου φθεγγόμενος, οὐκ ἄρα ἔδεισα τὸν ὑμέτερον θροῦν οὐδὲ τὸν γέλωτα οὐδὲ τὴν ὀργὴν οὐδὲ τοὺς συριγμοὺς οὐδὲ τὰ σκώμματα, οἷς πάντας ἐκπλήττετε καὶ πανταχοῦ πάντων ἀεὶ περίεστε καὶ ἰδιωτῶν καὶ βασιλέων; καὶ ταῦτα ἀκούων Ὁμήρου τε καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ποιητῶν ὑμνούντων ἀεὶ τὸν ὄχλον ὡς χαλεπόν τε καὶ ἀπειθῆ καὶ πρὸς ὕβριν ἕτοιμον, τοῦ μὲν οὕτω λέγοντος:

>   [22] If Hermes, a god and a winged god besides, complains of the waves and the sea and the lack of cities and men on the way, was I, a mere mortal, a nobody from nowhere, clad in a mean cloak, with no sweetness of song and a voice no louder than common, not afraid of your noise, your laughter, your anger, your hissing, your rough jokes — the means by which you terrify all men and always dominate men everywhere, both private citizens and princes — and that too, though I hear Homer and the other poets constantly singing of the mob as being cruel and unruly and prone to violence? This is what Homer has to say:

  [23]

  κινήθη δ᾽ ἀγορή, ὡς κύματα μακρὰ θαλάσσης

  πόντου Ἰκαρίοιο, τὰ μέν τ᾽ Εὖρός τε Νότος τε

  ὤρορ᾽ ἐπαΐξας πατρὸς Διὸς ἐκ νεφελάων:

  ἑτέρου δὲ πάλιν αὖ,

  δῆμος ἄστατον κακόν,

  καὶ θαλάσσῃ πάνθ᾽ ὅμοιον ὑπ᾽ ἀνέμου ῥιπίζεται.

  καὶ γαληνὸς εντηχω παν πνεῦμα βραχὺ κορύσσεται.

  κἄν τις αἰτία γένηται, τὸν πολίτην κατέπιεν.

  [23] Then stirred was the assembly, as the sea

  Sends forth long billows on the Icarian deep,

  Billows the Southeast wind doth raise, with force

  Rushing from out the clouds of Father Zeus;

  and here are the words of another:

  Unstable and evil is the populace,

  And wholly like the sea: beneath the gale