- Source
- Herodotus. Godley, Alfred Denis, editor. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1920-1925 (printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.32.1-1.32.9
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-28
Solon explains that the divine is envious and human beings are entirely subject to chance, demonstrating this by calculating the days in a seventy-year lifespan. He advises Croesus that even a wealthy king cannot be called 'happy' until he has ended his life well, but should only be called 'fortunate.'
Σόλων μὲν δὴ εὐδαιμονίης δευτερεῖα ἔνεμε τούτοισι, Κροῖσος δὲ σπερχθεὶς εἶπε ὦ ξεῖνε Ἀθηναῖε, ἡ δʼ ἡμετέρη εὐδαιμονίη οὕτω τοι ἀπέρριπται ἐς τὸ μηδὲν ὥστε οὐδὲ ἰδιωτέων ἀνδρῶν ἀξίους ἡμέας ἐποίησας; ὁ δὲ εἶπε ὦ Κροῖσε, ἐπιστάμενόν με τὸ θεῖον πᾶν ἐὸν φθονερόν τε καὶ ταραχῶδες1 ἐπειρωτᾷς ἀνθρωπηίων πρηγμάτων πέρι.
Solon indeed assigned the second place of happiness to them, but Croesus said in anger: “My Athenian guest, is our happiness thus cast aside by you as nothing, so that you have made us not even worth as much as common men?” And he said: “Croesus, you ask me about human affairs, who know that the divine is entirely envious and troublesome.
ἐν γὰρ τῷ μακρῷ χρόνῳ πολλὰ μὲν ἐστὶ ἰδεῖν τὰ μή τις ἐθέλει, πολλὰ δὲ καὶ παθεῖν. ἐς γὰρ ἑβδομήκοντα ἔτεα οὖρον τῆς ζόης ἀνθρώπῳ προτίθημι.
For in the long span of time there are many things to see that one does not wish, and many things to suffer. For I set the limit of life for a human being at seventy years.
οὗτοι ἐόντες ἐνιαυτοὶ ἑβδομήκοντα παρέχονται ἡμέρας διηκοσίας καὶ πεντακισχιλίας καὶ δισμυρίας, ἐμβολίμου μηνὸς μὴ γινομένου· εἰ δὲ δὴ ἐθελήσει τοὔτερον τῶν ἐτέων μηνὶ μακρότερον γίνεσθαι, ἵνα δὴ αἱ ὧραι συμβαίνωσι παραγινόμεναι ἐς τὸ δέον, μῆνες μὲν παρὰ τὰ ἑβδομήκοντα ἔτεα οἱ ἐμβόλιμοι γίνονται τριήκοντα πέντε, ἡμέραι δὲ ἐκ τῶν μηνῶν τούτων χίλιαι πεντήκοντα.
These seventy years, if no intercalary month is added, provide twenty-five thousand two hundred days. But if indeed you wish every other year to be longer by a month, so that the seasons may come around in due course, the intercalary months for the seventy years will be thirty-five, and the days from these months will be one thousand and fifty.
τουτέων τῶν ἁπασέων ἡμερέων τῶν ἐς τὰ ἑβδομήκοντα ἔτεα, ἐουσέων πεντήκοντα καὶ διηκοσιέων καὶ ἑξακισχιλιέων καὶ δισμυριέων, ἡ ἑτέρη αὐτέων τῇ ἑτέρῃ ἡμέρῃ τὸ παράπαν οὐδὲν ὅμοιον προσάγει πρῆγμα. οὕτω ὦν Κροῖσε πᾶν ἐστὶ ἄνθρωπος συμφορή.
Of all these days of the seventy years, being twenty-six thousand two hundred and fifty, not one of them brings about a thing entirely like another. Thus indeed, Croesus, a human being is entirely chance.
ἐμοὶ δὲ σὺ καὶ πλουτέειν μέγα φαίνεαι καὶ βασιλεὺς πολλῶν εἶναι ἀνθρώπων· ἐκεῖνο δὲ τὸ εἴρεό με, οὔκω σε ἐγὼ λέγω,2 πρὶν τελευτήσαντα καλῶς τὸν αἰῶνα πύθωμαι. οὐ γάρ τι ὁ μέγα πλούσιος μᾶλλον τοῦ ἐπʼ ἡμέρην ἔχοντος ὀλβιώτερος ἐστί, εἰ μή οἱ τύχη ἐπίσποιτο πάντα καλὰ ἔχοντα εὖ τελευτῆσαὶ τὸν βίον. πολλοὶ μὲν γὰρ ζάπλουτοι ἀνθρώπων ἀνόλβιοι εἰσί, πολλοὶ δὲ μετρίως ἔχοντες βίου εὐτυχέες.
To me you appear both to be very wealthy and to be king of many men; but as for that which you asked me, I do not yet call you so, until I hear that you have ended your life well. For the extremely wealthy man is not at all more happy than he who has enough for the day, unless fortune should follow him so that he ends his life well while possessing all good things. For many very wealthy men are unhappy, and many who have a moderate livelihood are fortunate.
ὁ μὲν δὴ μέγα πλούσιος ἀνόλβιος δὲ δυοῖσι προέχει τοῦ εὐτυχέος μοῦνον, οὗτος δὲ τοῦ πλουσίου καὶ ἀνόλβου πολλοῖσι· ὃ μὲν ἐπιθυμίην ἐκτελέσαι καί ἄτην μεγάλην προσπεσοῦσαν ἐνεῖκαι δυνατώτερος, ὁ δὲ τοῖσιδε προέχει ἐκείνου· ἄτην μὲν καὶ ἐπιθυμίην οὐκ ὁμοίως δυνατὸς ἐκείνῳ ἐνεῖκαι, ταῦτα δὲ ἡ εὐτυχίη οἱ ἀπερύκει, ἄπηρος δὲ ἐστί, ἄνουσος, ἀπαθὴς κακῶν, εὔπαις, εὐειδής.
Now, the extremely wealthy but unhappy man excels the fortunate man in only two things, but the fortunate man excels the wealthy and unhappy man in many things. The former is more able to satisfy his desire and to bear a great disaster when it falls upon him, but the latter excels him in these: he is not equally able to bear disaster and desire like the former, but his good fortune keeps these away from him, and he is free from bodily deformity, free from disease, untouched by misfortunes, blessed with good children, and fair to look upon.
εἰ δὲ πρὸς τούτοισι ἔτι τελευτήσῃ τὸν βίον εὖ, οὗτος ἐκεῖνος τὸν σὺ ζητέεις, ὁ ὄλβιος κεκλῆσθαι ἄξιος ἐστί· πρὶν δʼ ἂν τελευτήσῃ, ἐπισχεῖν,3 μηδὲ καλέειν κω ὄλβιον ἀλλʼ εὐτυχέα.
And if, in addition to these things, he should still end his life well, this is the very man whom you seek, who is worthy to be called happy; but before he dies, hold back, and do not yet call him happy, but fortunate.
τὰ πάντα μέν νυν ταῦτα συλλαβεῖν ἄνθρωπον ἐόντα ἀδύνατον ἐστί, ὥσπερ χωρῇ οὐδεμία καταρκέει πάντα ἑωυτῇ παρέχουσα, ἀλλὰ ἄλλο μὲν ἔχει ἑτέρου δὲ ἐπιδέεται· ἣ δὲ ἂν τὰ πλεῖστα ἔχῃ, αὕτη ἀρίστη. ὣς δὲ καὶ ἀνθρώπου σῶμα ἓν οὐδὲν αὔταρκες ἐστί· τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἔχει, ἄλλου δὲ ἐνδεές ἐστι·
Now, for a human being, it is impossible to gather all these things together, just as no land is self-sufficient by providing all things for itself, but has one thing and lacks another; and whichever land has the most things, this is the best. So also, no single body of a human being is self-sufficient; for it has one thing, but is in need of another.
ὃς δʼ ἂν αὐτῶν πλεῖστα ἔχων διατελέῃ4 καὶ ἔπειτα τελευτήσῃ εὐχαρίστως τὸν βίον, οὗτος παρʼ ἐμοὶ τὸ οὔνομα τοῦτο ὦ βασιλεῦ δίκαιος ἐστὶ φέρεσθαι. σκοπέειν δὲ χρὴ παντὸς χρήματος τὴν τελευτήν, κῇ ἀποβήσεται· πολλοῖσι γὰρ δὴ ὑποδέξας ὄλβον ὁ θεὸς προρρίζους ἀνέτρεψε.
And whoever of them continues possessing the most things and then ends his life gratefully, this man, O king, in my judgment is worthy to bear this name. But it is necessary to look to the end of every matter, how it will turn out; for to many the god, having shown a glimpse of happiness, has utterly overturned them.”
- 1.32.1ἐπιστάμενόν με τὸ θεῖον πᾶν ἐὸν φθονερόν τε καὶ ταραχῶδες
The participle ἐπιστάμενον modifies the accusative με, which is the direct object of the main verb ἐπειρωτᾷς (you ask). The phrase from τὸ θεῖον to ταραχῶδες functions as the object clause governed by ἐπιστάμενον.
- 1.32.5ἐκεῖνο δὲ τὸ εἴρεό με, οὔκω σε ἐγὼ λέγω
A proleptic construction where ἐκεῖνο (and its appositive τὸ εἴρεό με, 'that which you asked me') is placed at the beginning for emphasis. The main verb λέγω (to call) governs a double accusative, taking σε (you) as the direct object and an implied predicate accusative ('happy').
- 1.32.7πρὶν δʼ ἂν τελευτήσῃ, ἐπισχεῖν
The infinitive ἐπισχεῖν functions as an 'imperative infinitive' expressing a command or obligation, implicitly carrying the meaning of χρή (it is necessary) or δεῖ.
- 1.32.9ὃς δʼ ἂν αὐτῶν πλεῖστα ἔχων διατελέῃ
The subjunctive διατελέῃ with ἄν forms a generalizing relative clause. The verb διατελέω is used with the present participle ἔχων to express the aspect of continuation ('to continue possessing').