§14καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῆς αἰσχρολογίας ἀπακτέον τοὺς υἱεῖς
λόγος γὰρ ἔργου σκιή
κατὰ Δημόκριτον.
Moreover, one must also keep sons away from vulgar speech; for "speech is the shadow of action," according to Democritus.
εἶτά γε μὴν ἐντευκτικοὺς αὐτοὺς εἶναι παρασκευαστέον καὶ φιλοπροσηγόρους οὐδὲν γὰρ ὡς τὰ ἀνέντευκτα τῶν ἠθῶν ἐστιν οὕτως ἀξιομίσητον.
Next, indeed, one must prepare them to be sociable and affable; for nothing in character is so detestable as being unsociable.
ἔτι τοίνυν οἱ παῖδες ἀμισεῖς γίγνοιντʼ ἂν τοῖς συνοῦσι μὴ παντελῶς ἐν ταῖς ζητήσεσιν ἀπαραχώρητοι γιγνόμενοι· οὐ γὰρ τὸ νικᾶν μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ἡττᾶσθαι ἐπίστασθαι καλὸν ἐν οἷς τὸ νικᾶν βλαβερόν.
Furthermore, children would become agreeable to their associates if they do not become completely unyielding in discussions; for it is honorable to know not only how to win but also how to be defeated in things where winning is harmful.
ἔστι γὰρ ὡς ἀληθῶς καὶ νίκη Καδμεία. ἔχω δὲ μάρτυρα τούτου Εὐριπίδην τὸν σοφὸν ἐπαγαγέσθαι λέγοντα
"
δυοῖν λεγόντοιν, θατέρου θυμουμένου,
ὁ μὴ ἀντιτείνων τοῖς λόγοις σοφώτερος
"
ἃ τοίνυν τῶν εἰρημένων οὐδενὸς ἧττόν ἐστιν ἀλλὰ καὶ μᾶλλον ἐπιτηδευτέα τοῖς νέοις καὶ δὴ λεκτέον.
For in truth there is also a "Cadmean victory." And I have as witness of this the wise Euripides, who says as he brings forward: "When two are speaking, and one of them is angry, the one who does not resist with words is the wiser. "Now, those things which are no less important than the aforementioned, but even more to be practiced by the young, must indeed be spoken of.
ταῦτα δʼ ἐστὶ τὸ τὸν βίον ἀτύφωτον ἀσκεῖν, τὸ τὴν γλῶτταν κατέχειν, τὸ τῆς ὀργῆς ὑπεράνω γίγνεσθαι, τὸ τῶν χειρῶν κρατεῖν.
And these are: to practice a life free from vanity, to control the tongue, to rise above anger, and to restrain the hands.
τούτων ἕκαστον ἡλίκον ἐστὶ σκεπτέον ἔσται δʼ ἐπὶ παραδειγμάτων γνωριμώτερα.
How great each of these is must be considered; and they will become more familiar through examples.
οἷον ἵνʼ ἀπὸ τοῦ τελευταίου πρῶτον ἄρξωμαι, τὰς χεῖράς τινες ὑποσχόντες λήμμασιν ἀδίκοις τὴν δόξαν τῶν προβεβιωμένων ἐξέχεαν· ὡς Γύλιππος ὁ Λακεδαιμόνιος τὰ σακκία τῶν χρημάτων παραλύσας φυγὰς ἀπηλάθη τῆς Σπάρτης.
For instance, to begin first from the last: some by putting their hands to unjust gains have poured out the reputation of their past lives; as Gylippus the Lacedaemonian, having undone the bags of money, was driven away as an exile from Sparta.
τό γε μὴν ἀόργητον ἀνδρός ἐστι σοφοῦ.
Now, the absence of anger is a mark of a wise man.
Σωκράτης μὲν γάρ, λακτίσαντος αὐτὸν νεανίσκου θρασέος μάλα καὶ βδελυροῦ, τοὺς ἀμφʼ αὑτὸν ὁρῶν ἀγανακτοῦντας καὶ σφαδάζοντας ὡς καὶ διώκειν αὐτὸν ἐθέλειν,
ἆρʼ
ἔφησε
καὶ εἲ μʼ ὄνος ἐλάκτισεν, ἀντιλακτίσαι τοῦτον ἠξιώσατʼ ἄν; οὐ μὴν ἐκεῖνός γε παντελῶς κατεπροίξατο, πάντων δʼ αὐτὸν ὀνειδιζόντων καὶ λακτιστὴν ἀποκαλούντων ἀπήγξατο.
For Socrates, when a very bold and abominable young man kicked him, seeing those around him indignant and struggling so as even to wish to prosecute him, said, "If a donkey had kicked me, would you have thought it right to kick it back?" Yet that young man indeed did not altogether go unpunished; for with all reproaching him and calling him the "kicker," he hanged himself.
Ἀριστοφάνους δέ, ὅτε τὰς Νεφέλας ἐξέφερε, παντοίως πᾶσαν ὕβριν αὐτοῦ κατασκεδαννύντος, καί τινος τῶν παρόντων
κᾆτα τοιαῦτʼ ἀνακωμῳδοῦντος οὐκ ἀγανακτεῖς
εἰπόντος
ὦ Σώκρατες; μὰ Δίʼ οὐκ ἔγωγʼ ἔφησεν
ὡς γὰρ ἐν συμποσίῳ μεγάλῳ τῷ θεάτρῳ σκώπτομαι
ἀδελφὰ τούτοις καὶ σύζυγα φανήσονται πεποιηκότες Ἀρχύτας ὁ Ταραντῖνος καὶ Πλάτων.
And when Aristophanes produced "The Clouds," pouring all kinds of insult upon him, and one of those present said, "And then, when you are ridiculed in such a comedy, are you not indignant, Socrates?" "By Zeus, not I," he said; "for I am mocked in the theater as if in a great banquet." Archytas of Tarentum and Plato will be shown to have done things brother and sister to these.
ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἐπανελθὼν ἀπὸ τοῦ πολέμου στρατηγῶν δʼ ἐτύγχανε γῆν καταλαβὼν κεχερσωμένην, τὸν ἐπίτροπον καλέσας αὐτῆς ᾤμωξας
ἄν
ἔφησεν
εἰ μὴ λίαν ὠργιζόμην
Πλάτων δὲ δούλῳ λίχνῳ καὶ βδελυρῷ θυμωθείς, τὸν τῆς ἀδελφῆς υἱὸν Σπεύσιππον καλέσας
τοῦτον
ἔφησεν ἀπελθών
κρότησον· ἐγὼ γὰρ πάνυ θυμοῦμαι
χαλεπὰ δὲ ταῦτα καὶ δυσμίμητα φαίη τις ἄν.
For the former, having returned from war (and he happened to be a general) and having found his land neglected, called his steward and said, "You would have wailed, if I were not too angry." And Plato, having become angry at a greedy and abominable slave, called Speusippus, his sister's son, and said, "Go and flog this fellow, for I am very angry." One might say that these things are difficult and hard to imitate.
οἶδα κἀγώ.
I know it too.
πειρατέον οὖν εἰς ὅσον οἷόν τʼ ἐστὶ τούτοις παραδείγμασι χρωμένους τὸ πολὺ τῆς ἀκρατοῦς καὶ μαινομένης ὑφαιρεῖν ὀργῆς οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐς τἄλλα ἐνάμιλλοι ταῖς ἐκείνων ἐσμὲν οὔτʼ ἐμπειρίαις οὔτε καλοκαγαθίαις.
Therefore, one must try, as far as is possible, by using these examples, to withdraw much of unbridled and raging anger; for neither in other things are we rivals of their experiences or their nobility of character.
ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν ἧττον ἐκείνων, ὥσπερ θεῶν ἱεροφάνται καὶ δᾳδοῦχοι τῆς σοφίας ὄντες, ὅσαπέρ ἐστιν ἐν δυνατῷ, ταῦτα μιμεῖσθαι καὶ περικνίζειν ἐπιχειροῦμεν.
But nonetheless, as if we were initiators of the gods and torchbearers of wisdom, we attempt to imitate and graze upon as many of these things as are in our power.
τὸ τοίνυν τῆς γλώττης κρατεῖν περὶ τούτου γάρ, ὥσπερ ὑπεθέμην, εἰπεῖν λοιπόν εἴ τις μικρὸν καὶ φαῦλον ὑπείληφε, πλεῖστον διαμαρτάνει τῆς ἀληθείας.
Now, as for controlling the tongue—for concerning this, as I proposed, it remains to speak—if anyone has assumed this to be small and trivial, he errs very much from the truth.
σοφὸν γὰρ εὔκαιρος σιγὴ καὶ παντὸς λόγου κρεῖττον.
For timely silence is wise and better than any speech.
καὶ διὰ τοῦτό μοι δοκεῖ τὰς μυστηριώδεις τελετὰς οἱ παλαιοὶ κατέδειξαν, ἵνʼ ἐν ταύταις σιωπᾶν ἐθισθέντες ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων μυστηρίων πίστιν τὸν ἀπὸ τῶν θεῶν μεταφέρωμεν φόβον.
And because of this, it seems to me, the ancients established the mysterious initiation rites, so that having been accustomed to keep silence in these, we might transfer the fear from the gods to the trustworthiness of human secrets.
καὶ γὰρ αὖ σιωπήσας μὲν οὐδεὶς μετενόησε, λαλήσαντες δὲ παμπληθεῖς.
For indeed, no one has repented of having kept silence, but very many of having spoken.
καὶ τὸ μὲν σιγηθὲν ἐξειπεῖν ῥᾴδιον, τὸ δὲ ῥηθὲν ἀναλαβεῖν ἀδύνατον.
And that which has been kept silent is easy to utter, but that which has been spoken is impossible to recall.
μυρίους δʼ ἔγωγʼ οἶδʼ ἀκούσας ταῖς μεγίσταις συμφοραῖς περιπεσόντας διὰ τὴν τῆς γλώττης ἀκρασίαν.
I myself know countless people who, as I have heard, fell into the greatest misfortunes because of the unbridledness of their tongue.
ὧν τοὺς ἄλλους παραλιπὼν ἑνὸς ἢ δυεῖν τύπου ἕνεκεν ἐπιμνησθήσομαι.
Leaving aside the others, I shall mention one or two of them for the sake of an example.
τοῦ γὰρ Φιλαδέλφου γήμαντος τὴν ἀδελφὴν Ἀρσινόην Σωτάδης εἰπών
"εἰς οὐχ ὁσίην τρυμαλιὴν τὸ κέντρον ὠθεῖς"
ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ πολλοὺς κατεσάπη χρόνους καὶ τῆς ἀκαίρου λαλιᾶς οὐ μεμπτὴν ἔδωκε δίκην, ἵνα δὲ γέλωτα παράσχῃ τοῖς ἄλλοις, αὐτὸς πολὺν χρόνον ἔκλαυσεν.
For when Philadelphus married his sister Arsinoe, Sotades, having said, "You thrust your sting into an unholy hole," rotted in prison for many years, and paid no small penalty for his untimely talk, and so that he might provide laughter for others, he himself wept for a long time.
ἐνάμιλλα δὲ τούτοις καὶ σύζυγα καὶ Θεόκριτος ὁ σοφιστὴς εἶπέ τε καὶ ἔπαθε, καὶ πολὺ δεινότερα.
And Theocritus the sophist also said and suffered things rival and sister to these, and much more terrible.
Ἀλεξάνδρου γὰρ πορφυρᾶς ἐσθῆτας κελεύσαντος κατασκευάζειν τοὺς Ἕλληνας, ἵνʼ ἐπανελθὼν τὰ ἐπινίκια τοῦ πολέμου τοῦ κατὰ τῶν βαρβάρων θύσειε, καὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν κατὰ κεφαλὴν εἰσφερόντων ἄργυρον πρότερον
μέν
ἔφησεν
ἠμφισβήτουν, νῦν δʼ ᾔσθημαι σαφῶς ὅτι ὁ
πορφύρεος
Ὁμήρου
θάνατος
οὗτός ἐστιν. ἐξ ὧν ἐχθρὸν ἐκτήσατο τὸν Ἀλέξανδρον.
For when Alexander ordered the Greeks to prepare purple garments, so that on his return he might sacrifice the victory offerings of the war against the barbarians, and when the nations were contributing silver per head, he said, "Before, indeed, I was in doubt, but now I clearly perceive that this is 'purple death' of Homer this is." From which he made Alexander his enemy.
Ἀντίγονον δὲ τὸν βασιλέα τῶν Μακεδόνων ἑτερόφθαλμον ὄντα τὴν πήρωσιν προφέρων εἰς οὐ μετρίαν ὀργὴν κατέστησε.
And by bringing forward the blindness of Antigonus, the king of the Macedonians, who was one-eyed, he threw him into no moderate anger.
τὸν γὰρ ἀρχιμάγειρον Εὐτροπίωνα γεγενημένον ἐν τάξει πέμψας παραγενέσθαι πρὸς αὐτὸν ἠξίου καὶ λόγον δοῦναι καὶ λαβεῖν.
For having sent Eutropion, who had become chief cook, in a post of honor, the king requested that Theocritus should come to him and give and receive a statement.
ταῦτα δʼ ἀπαγγέλλοντος ἐκείνου πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ πολλάκις προσιόντος
εὖ οἶδʼ ἔφησεν
ὅτι ὠμόν με θέλεις τῷ Κύκλωπι, παραθεῖναι,
ὀνειδίζων τὸν μὲν ὅτι πηρός, τὸν δʼ ὅτι μάγειρος ἦν.
And when that man reported these things to him and approached many times, "I know well," he said, "that you wish to serve me raw to the Cyclops," reproaching the one for being blind, and the other for being a cook.
κἀκεῖνος
τοιγαροῦν
εἰπών
τὴν κεφαλὴν οὐχ ἕξεις ἀλλὰ τῆς ἀθυροστομίας ταύτης καὶ μανίας δώσεις δίκην
, ἀπήγγειλε τὰ εἰρημένα τῷ βασιλεῖ, ὁ δὲ πέμψας ἀνεῖλε τὸν Θεόκριτον.
And the other saying, "Therefore indeed you shall not keep your head, but shall pay the penalty for this loose tongue and madness," reported what was said to the king, and he, having sent, put Theocritus to death.
παρὰ πάντα δὲ ταῦτα, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ἱεροπρεπέστατον, ἐθίζειν τοὺς παῖδας τῷ τἀληθῆ λέγειν τὸ γὰρ ψεύδεσθαι δουλοπρεπὲς καὶ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἄξιον μισεῖσθαι καὶ οὐδὲ μετρίοις δούλοις συγγνωστόν.
But beside all these things, which is most sacred, to accustom children to tell the truth; for lying is fit for slaves and worthy of being hated by all men, and not even forgivable in decent slaves.