§158ἥ τε γὰρ πατρῴα ὑμῖν οἰκία, ἡ Κριτίου τοῦ Δρωπίδου, καὶ ὑπὸ Ἀνακρέοντος καὶ ὑπὸ Σόλωνος καὶ ὑπʼ ἄλλων πολλῶν ποιητῶν ἐγκεκωμιασμένη παραδέδοται ἡμῖν, ὡς διαφέρουσα κάλλει τε καὶ ἀρετῇ καὶ τῇ ἄλλῃ λεγομένῃ εὐδαιμονίᾳ, καὶ αὖ ἡ πρὸς μητρὸς ὡσαύτως· Πυριλάμπους γὰρ τοῦ σοῦ θείου οὐδεὶς τῶν ἐν τῇ ἠπείρῳ λέγεται καλλίων καὶ μείζων ἀνὴρ δόξαι εἶναι, ὁσάκις ἐκεῖνος ἢ παρὰ μέγαν βασιλέα ἢ παρὰ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν ἐν τῇ ἠπείρῳ πρεσβεύων ἀφίκετο, σύμπασα δὲ αὕτη ἡ οἰκία οὐδὲν τῆς ἑτέρας ὑποδεεστέρα.
"For your paternal family, that of Critias the son of Dropides, has been handed down to us as having been praised by Anacreon, Solon, and many other poets, as surpassing in beauty and virtue and the rest of what is called happiness, and again your maternal family likewise; for of your uncle Pyrilampes, no one on the continent is said to have been thought more beautiful and greater whenever he went as an ambassador either to the Great King or to anyone else on the continent, and this whole house is in no way inferior to the other.
ἐκ δὴ τοιούτων γεγονότα εἰκός σε εἰς πάντα πρῶτον εἶναι.
Therefore, having sprung from such ancestors, it is natural for you to be first in all things.
τὰ μὲν οὖν ὁρώμενα τῆς ἰδέας, ὦ φίλε παῖ Γλαύκωνος, δοκεῖς μοι οὐδένα τῶν πρὸ σοῦ ἐν οὐδενὶ ὑποβεβηκέναι· εἰ δὲ δὴ καὶ πρὸς σωφροσύνην καὶ πρὸς τἆλλα κατὰ τὸν τοῦδε λόγον ἱκανῶς πέφυκας, μακάριόν σε, ἦν δʼ ἐγώ, ὦ φίλε Χαρμίδη, ἡ μήτηρ ἔτικτεν.
Now, in the visible aspects of your appearance, my dear son of Glaucon, you seem to me to be second to no one before you in any respect; but if indeed, according to this man's account, you are also naturally well-endowed for temperance and the other virtues, then, my dear Charmides," I said, "your mother bore you as a truly blessed youth.
ἔχει δʼ οὖν οὕτως. εἰ μέν σοι ἤδη πάρεστιν, ὡς λέγει Κριτίας ὅδε, σωφροσύνη καὶ εἶ σώφρων ἱκανῶς, οὐδὲν ἔτι σοι ἔδει οὔτε τῶν Ζαλμόξιδος οὔτε τῶν Ἀβάριδος τοῦ Ὑπερβορέου ἐπῳδῶν, ἀλλʼ αὐτό σοι ἂν ἤδη δοτέον εἴη τὸ τῆς κεφαλῆς φάρμακον· εἰ δʼ ἔτι τούτων ἐπιδεὴς εἶναι δοκεῖς, ἐπᾳστέον πρὸ τῆς τοῦ φαρμάκου δόσεως.
At any rate, the matter stands thus: if temperance is already present in you, as this Critias here says, and you are sufficiently temperate, you would no longer need either the charms of Zalmoxis or those of Abaris the Hyperborean, but the medicine for the head itself ought to be given to you immediately; but if you seem to be still in need of these, the charm must be chanted before the giving of the medicine.
αὐτὸς οὖν μοι εἰπὲ πότερον ὁμολογεῖς τῷδε καὶ φῂς ἱκανῶς ἤδη σωφροσύνης μετέχειν ἢ ἐνδεὴς εἶναι; ἀνερυθριάσας οὖν ὁ Χαρμίδης πρῶτον μὲν ἔτι καλλίων ἐφάνη—καὶ γὰρ τὸ αἰσχυντηλὸν αὐτοῦ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ ἔπρεψεν— ἔπειτα καὶ οὐκ ἀγεννῶς ἀπεκρίνατο· εἶπεν γὰρ ὅτι οὐ ῥᾴδιον εἴη ἐν τῷ παρόντι οὔθʼ ὁμολογεῖν οὔτε ἐξάρνῳ εἶναι τὰ ἐρωτώμενα.
You yourself, then, tell me: do you agree with him and say that you already share sufficiently in temperance, or that you are in need of it?" Then Charmides blushed, and first of all he appeared even more beautiful—for his modesty became his age—and then he answered not ignobly; for he said that it was not easy at present either to agree or to deny the things asked.
ἐὰν μὲν γάρ, ἦ δʼ ὅς, μὴ φῶ εἶναι σώφρων, ἅμα μὲν ἄτοπον αὐτὸν καθʼ ἑαυτοῦ τοιαῦτα λέγειν, ἅμα δὲ καὶ Κριτίαν τόνδε ψευδῆ ἐπιδείξω καὶ ἄλλους πολλούς, οἷς δοκῶ εἶναι σώφρων, ὡς ὁ τούτου λόγος· ἐὰν δʼ αὖ φῶ καὶ ἐμαυτὸν ἐπαινῶ, ἴσως ἐπαχθὲς φανεῖται.
"For," he said, "if I say I am not temperate, on the one hand it would be strange to say such things against myself, and on the other hand I would show this Critias here and many others to be liars, who think I am temperate, as his speech says; but if, on the other hand, I say I am and praise myself, it will perhaps appear offensive.
ὥστε οὐκ ἔχω ὅτι σοι ἀποκρίνωμαι. καὶ ἐγὼ εἶπον ὅτι μοι εἰκότα φαίνῃ λέγειν, ὦ Χαρμίδη.
So I do not know what to answer you." And I said, "You seem to me to speak reasonably, Charmides.
καί μοι δοκεῖ, ἦν δʼ ἐγώ, κοινῇ ἂν εἴη σκεπτέον εἴτε κέκτησαι εἴτε μὴ ὃ πυνθάνομαι, ἵνα μήτε σὺ ἀναγκάζῃ λέγειν ἃ μὴ βούλει, μήτʼ αὖ ἐγὼ ἀσκέπτως ἐπὶ τὴν ἰατρικὴν τρέπωμαι.
And it seems to me," I said, "that we should investigate in common whether you possess or do not possess what I am asking about, so that neither you may be forced to say what you do not wish, nor I on the other hand may turn to the medical treatment inconsiderately.
εἰ οὖν σοι φίλον, ἐθέλω σκοπεῖν μετὰ σοῦ· εἰ δὲ μή, ἐᾶν. ἀλλὰ πάντων μάλιστα, ἔφη, φίλον· ὥστε τούτου γε ἕνεκα, ὅπῃ αὐτὸς οἴει βέλτιον σκέψασθαι, ταύτῃ σκόπει. τῇδε τοίνυν, ἔφην ἐγώ, δοκεῖ μοι βελτίστη εἶναι ἡ σκέψις περὶ αὐτοῦ.
If, therefore, it is pleasing to you, I am willing to investigate with you; but if not, to let it go." "But of all things," he said, "it is most pleasing; so as far as this is concerned, investigate in whatever way you yourself think it is better to investigate." "In this way, then," I said, "it seems to me that the investigation about it would be best."