§3εἰπόντος δὲ ταῦτα τοῦ Ἀμμωνίου; Λαμπρίας ὁ ἀδελφὸς εἶπε καὶ
μὴν ὃν ἡμεῖς ἀκηκόαμεν λόγον ἁπλοῦς τίς ἐστι καὶ κομιδῇ βραχύς.
When Ammonius had said these things, my brother Lamprias said, "And yet the account we have heard is simple and very brief.
λέγουσι γὰρ ἐκείνους; τοὺς σοφοὺς ὑπʼ ἐνίων δὲ σοφιστὰς προσαγορευθέντας αὐτοὺς μὲν εἶναι πέντε, Χίλωνα καὶ Θαλῆν καὶ Σόλωνα καὶ Βίαντα καὶ Πιττακόν·
For they say that those wise men (who by some were called sophists) were themselves five in number: Chilon, Thales, Solon, Bias, and Pittacus.
ἐπεὶ δὲ Κλεόβουλος ὁ Λινδίων τύραννος, εἶτα Περίανδρος ὁ Κορίνθιος, οὐδὲν αὐτοῖς ἀρετῆς μετὸν οὐδὲ σοφίας, ἀλλὰ δυνάμει καὶ φίλοις καὶ χάρισι καταβιαζόμενοι τὴν δόξαν, ἐνέβαλον εἰς τοὔνομα τῶν σοφῶν καί τινας γνώμας καὶ λόγους ἐξέπεμπον καὶ διέσπειρον εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα τοῖς ὑπʼ ἐκείνων λεγομένοις ὁμοίους·
But when Cleobulus, the tyrant of Lindus, and then Periander of Corinth, although they had no share in virtue or wisdom, yet by power, friends, and favors forced their reputation, they thrust themselves into the name of the wise men, and sent out and scattered throughout Greece certain maxims and sayings similar to those spoken by the former.
δυσχεράναντας ἄρα τοὺς ἄνδρας ἐξελέγχειν μὲν οὐκ ἐθέλειν τὴν ἀλαζονείαν οὐδὲ φανερῶς ὑπὲρ δόξης ἀπεχθάνεσθαι καὶ διαμάχεσθαι πρὸς ἀνθρώπους μέγα δυναμένους, ἐνταῦθα δὲ συνελθόντας αὐτοὺς καθʼ αὑτοὺς καὶ διαλεχθέντας ἀλλήλοις, ἀναθεῖναι τῶν γραμμάτων ὃ τῇ τε τάξει πέμπτον ἐστὶ καὶ τοῦ ἀριθμοῦ τὰ πέντε δηλοῖ, μαρτυρομένους μὲν ὑπὲρ αὑτῶν πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ὅτι πέντʼ εἰσί, τὸν δʼ ἕβδομον καὶ τὸν ἕκτον ἀποποιουμένους καὶ ἀποβάλλοντας ὡς οὐ προσήκοντας αὑτοῖς·
Consequently, the wise men, being displeased, were unwilling to expose their pretense or to incur open hostility and fight for reputation against men of great power; but meeting together here by themselves and conferring with one another, they dedicated that letter which is fifth in order and represents the number five, testifying for themselves to the god that they were five, and disowning and casting off the seventh and the sixth as not belonging to them.
ὅτι δʼ οὐκ ἀπὸ σκοποῦ ταῦτα λέγεται, γνοίη τις ἂν ἀκούσας τῶν κατὰ τὸ ἱερὸν τὸ μὲν χρυσοῦν Λιβίοις τῆς Καίσαρος γυναικὸς ὀνομαζόντων, τὸ δὲ χαλκοῦν Ἀθηναίων τὸ δὲ πρῶτον καὶ παλαιότατον τῇ δʼ οὐσίᾳ ξύλινον ἔτι νῦν τῶν σοφῶν καλοῦσιν, ὡς οὐχ ἑνὸς ἀλλὰ κοινὸν ἀνάθημα πάντων γενόμενον. §4ὁ μὲν οὖν Ἀμμώνιος ἡσυχῆ διεμειδίασεν, ὑπονοήσας ἰδίᾳ τὸν Λαμπρίαν δόξῃ κεχρῆσθαι, πλάττεσθαι δʼ, ἱστορίαν καὶ ἀκοὴν ἑτέρων πρὸς τὸ ἀνυπεύθυνον.
And that this is not said without purpose, anyone might know who hears those in the temple call the gold one after Livia, the wife of Caesar, and the bronze one after the Athenians, but the first and oldest, which is in substance still wooden, they call to this day 'the offering of the wise men,' as having been dedicated not by one but as a common offering of them all." Now Ammonius smiled quietly, suspecting that Lamprias privately held this opinion but was pretending it to be history and hearsay from others to avoid responsibility.
ἕτερος δέ τις ἔφη τῶν παρόντων, ὡς ὅμοια ταῦτʼ ἐστὶν οἷς πρῴην ὁ Χαλδαῖος ἐφλυάρει ξένος, ἑπτὰ μὲν εἶναι τὰ φωνὴν ἰδίαν ἀφιέντα τῶν γραμμάτων, ἑπτὰ δὲ τοὺς κίνησιν αὐτοτελῆ καὶ ἀσύνδετον ἐν οὐρανῷ κινουμένους ἀστέρας εἶναι δὲ τῇ τάξει δεύτερον τὸ τʼ Ε τῶν φωνηέντων ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς καὶ τὸν ἥλιον ἀπὸ σελήνης τῶν πλανήτων· ἡλίῳ δʼ Ἀπόλλωνα τὸν αὐτὸν ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν πάντας Ἕλληνας νομίζειν.
But someone else among those present said, "These things are similar to the nonsense that the Chaldean stranger was recently babbling: that there are seven letters which emit a sound of their own, and seven stars that move in heaven with an independent and unconnected motion; and that 'E' is second in order among the vowels from the beginning, and the sun is second among the planets from the moon; and that almost all Greeks regard Apollo as the same as the sun.
ἀλλὰ ταυτὶ μέν
ἔφη
παντάπασιν ἐκ πίνακος καὶ πυλαίας.
But these things," he said, "are entirely from the astrological tablet and the public assembly.
ὁ δὲ Λαμπρίας ἔλαθεν, ὡς ἔοικε, τοὺς ἀφʼ ἱεροῦ κινήσας ἐπὶ τὸν αὑτοῦ λόγον. ἃ μὲν γὰρ ἐκεῖνος εἶπεν, οὐδεὶς ἐγίγνωσκε Δελφῶν· τὴν δὲ κοινὴν καὶ περιηγητικὴν δόξαν εἰς τὸ μέσον προῆγον, οὔτε τὴν ὄψιν ἀξιοῦντες οὔτε τὸν φθόγγον ἀλλὰ τοὔνομα μόνον τοῦ γράμματος ἔχειν τι σύμβολον.
Yet Lamprias, as it seems, has without noticing stirred up those from the temple to favor his own discourse." For what he had said, none of the Delphians knew; but they brought forward the common and touristy opinion, deeming that neither the shape nor the sound, but only the name of the letter contained some symbol.
§5ἔστι γάρ
ὡς ὑπολαμβάνουσι Δελφοὶ καὶ τότε προηγορῶν ἔλεγε Νίκανδρος ὁ ἱερεὺς
σχῆμα καὶ μορφὴ τῆς πρὸς τὸν, θεὸν ἐντεύξεως, καὶ τάξιν ἡγεμονικὴν ἐν τοῖς ἐρωτήμασιν ἔχει τῶν χρωμένων ἑκάστοτε καὶ διαπυνθανομένων, εἰ νικήσουσιν, εἰ γαμήσουσιν, εἰ συμφέρει πλεῖν, εἰ γεωργεῖν, εἰ ἀποδημεῖν.
¦386c "For it is," as the Delphians suppose, and Nicander the priest said on that occasion as their spokesman, "the form and shape of petition to the god, and it holds a leading place in the questions of those who consult and inquire of him on each occasion, whether (if) they shall conquer, whether (if) they shall marry, whether (if) it is expedient to sail, to farm, or to travel.
τοῖς δὲ διαλεκτικοῖς χαίρειν ἔλεγε σοφὸς ὁ θεός, οὐδὲν οἰομένοις ἐκ τοῦ
εἰ
μορίου καὶ τοῦ μετʼ αὐτοῦ ἀξιώματος πρᾶγμα γίγνεσθαι, πάσας τὰς ἐρωτήσεις ὑποτεταγμένας τούτῳ καὶ νοῶν ὡς πράγματα καὶ προσιέμενος.
And the wise god bids farewell to the logicians, who think that nothing real comes from the particle 'if' (εἰ) and the proposition with it; but the god conceives and admits all questions as real things since they are subordinate to this particle.
ἐπεὶ δʼ ἴδιον τὸ ἐρωτᾶν ὡς μάντιν ἐστὶν ἡμῖν καὶ τὸ εὔχεσθαι κοινὸν ὡς πρὸς θεὸν, οὐχ ἧττον οἴονται τῆς πευστικῆς τὴν εὐκτικὴν τὸ γράμμα περιέχειν δύναμιν·
And since to inquire of him as a prophet is peculiar to us, and to pray to him as a god is common to all, they think that the letter contains the power of prayer no less than that of inquiry.
εἰ γὰρ ὤφελον
φησὶν ἕκαστος τῶν εὐχομένων.
For 'would that' (if indeed), says each of those who pray.
καὶ Ἀρχίλοχος
"εἰ γὰρ ὣς ἐμοὶ γένοιτο χεῖρα Νεοβούλης θιγεῖν. "
καὶ τοῦ
εἴθε
τὴν δευτέραν συλλαβὴν παρέλκεσθαί φασιν, οἷον τὸ Σώφρονος
"ἃμα τέκνων θην δευομένα· "
καὶ τὸ Ὁμηρικὸν
"ὥς θην καὶ σὸν ἐγὼ λύσω μένος· "
ἐν δὲ τῷ
εἰ
τὸ εὐκτικὸν καὶ ἀποχρώντως δηλοῦσθαι.
And Archilochus says: 'Would that (if indeed) it might be my lot to touch Neobule's hand.' And they say that the second syllable of 'eithe' (εἴθε) is redundant, as in that of Sophron: 'being entirely deprived of children,' and the Homeric: 'thus indeed I also will break your strength.' And they think that in 'ei' (εἰ) the power of prayer is sufficiently expressed."