- 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-grc2:4.95.1-4.95.5
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
The author presents a Greek tradition stating that Salmoxis was originally a human slave to Pythagoras in Samos. After returning home, Salmoxis used his Greek knowledge to build an underground chamber, disappeared, and staged a resurrection to make the Thracians believe his teachings.
ὡς δὲ ἐγὼ πυνθάνομαι τῶν τὸν Ἑλλήσποντον οἰκεόντων Ἑλλήνων καὶ Πόντον, τὸν Σάλμοξιν τοῦτον ἐόντα ἄνθρωπον δουλεῦσαι1 ἐν Σάμῳ, δουλεῦσαι δὲ Πυθαγόρῃ τῷ Μνησάρχου, ἐνθεῦτεν δὲ αὐτὸν γενόμενον ἐλεύθερον χρήματα κτήσασθαι μεγάλα, κτησάμενον δὲ ἀπελθεῖν ἐς τὴν ἑωυτοῦ. ἅτε δὲ κακοβίων τε ἐόντων τῶν Θρηίκων καὶ ὑπαφρονεστέρων, τὸν Σάλμοξιν τοῦτον ἐπιστάμενον δίαιτάν τε Ἰάδα καὶ ἤθεα βαθύτερα ἢ κατὰ Θρήικας,2 οἷα Ἕλλησι τε ὁμιλήσαντα3 καὶ Ἑλλήνων οὐ τῷ ἀσθενεστάτῳ σοφιστῇ Πυθαγόρῃ, κατασκευάσασθαι ἀνδρεῶνα, ἐς τὸν πανδοκεύοντα τῶν ἀστῶν τοὺς πρώτους καὶ εὐωχέοντα ἀναδιδάσκειν ὡς οὔτε αὐτὸς οὔτε οἱ συμπόται αὐτοῦ οὔτε οἱ ἐκ τούτων αἰεὶ γινόμενοι ἀποθανέονται, ἀλλʼ ἥξουσι ἐς χῶρον τοῦτον ἵνα αἰεὶ περιεόντες ἕξουσι τὰ πάντα ἀγαθά.
But as I learn from the Greeks who inhabit the Hellespont and the Pontus, this Salmoxis, being a human being, was a slave in Samos, and was a slave to Pythagoras the son of Mnesarchus. From there, having become a free man, he acquired great wealth, and having acquired it, he departed to his own country. Now since the Thracians lived a poor life and were somewhat foolish, this Salmoxis, who understood the Ionian way of life and deeper customs than those of the Thracians—inasmuch as he had associated with Greeks, and with Pythagoras, not the weakest sage among the Greeks— established a men’s hall, in which he received and feasted the chief men of the citizens, and taught them that neither he himself, nor his drinking companions, nor those who should ever be born of them would die, but that they would come to this place where, surviving forever, they would possess all good things.
ἐν ᾧ δὲ ἐποίεε τὰ καταλεχθέντα καὶ ἔλεγε ταῦτα, ἐν τούτῳ κατάγαιον οἴκημα ἐποιέετο. ὡς δέ οἱ παντελέως εἶχε τὸ οἴκημα,4 ἐκ μὲν τῶν Θρηίκων ἠφανίσθη, καταβὰς δὲ κάτω ἐς τὸ κατάγαιον οἴκημα διαιτᾶτο ἐπʼ ἔτεα τρία·
While he was doing what has been mentioned and saying these things, in the meantime he was making an underground chamber. When the chamber was completely ready for him, he vanished from the Thracians, and having gone down into the underground chamber, he lived there for three years.
οἳ δὲ μιν ἐπόθεόν τε καὶ ἐπένθεον ὡς τεθνεῶτα. τετάρτω δὲ ἔτεϊ ἐφάνη τοῖσι Θρήιξι, καὶ οὕτω πιθανά σφι ἐγένετο τὰ ἔλεγε ὁ Σάλμοξις. ταῦτα φασί μιν ποιῆσαι.
And they missed him and lamented him as dead. But in the fourth year, he appeared to the Thracians, and thus what Salmoxis had been saying became credible to them. This is what they say he did.
- 4.95.1δουλεῦσαι
An infinitive in indirect discourse introduced by the verb πυνθάνομαι (to learn), forming an accusative-and-infinitive construction with τὸν Σάλμοξιν as its subject.
- 4.95.2ἤθεα βαθύτερα ἢ κατὰ Θρήικας
The prepositional phrase ἢ κατά with the accusative (ἢ κατὰ Θρήικας) following the comparative ἤθεα βαθύτερα (deeper customs) expresses a comparison of standard ('deeper than according to the measure of the Thracians').
- 4.95.2οἷα Ἕλλησί τε ὁμιλήσαντα
The combination of οἷα with the participle (ὁμιλήσαντα) expresses an objective ground or reason ('inasmuch as he had associated').
- 4.95.4ὡς δέ οἱ παντελέως εἶχε τὸ οἴκημα
The verb εἶχε functions intransitively with the subject τὸ οἴκημα, meaning 'was in a certain state' or 'was ready.' The pronoun οἱ is a dative of interest ('for him').