Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §1.93.1-1.93.4

Pledging Bodies for Loans and the Merit of Egyptian Law

Passage 94 of 406 · Greek

Summary

The author explains the Egyptian tradition of ancestral worship and the custom of offering relatives' bodies as security for loans, highlighting their strong moral benefits. He contrasts this with Greek mythical systems and discusses what truly constitutes an excellent law.

§1.93.1σεμνότατον δὲ διείληπται παρʼ Αἰγυπτίοις τὸ τοὺς γονεῖς ἢ τοὺς προγόνους φανῆναι περιττότερον τετιμηκότας εἰς τὴν αἰώνιον οἴκησιν μεταστάντας.

Among the Egyptians, it is considered most noble for it to be manifest that one has honored one's parents or ancestors more than is customary after they have departed to their eternal habitation.

νόμιμον δʼ ἐστὶ παρʼ αὐτοῖς καὶ τὸ διδόναι τὰ σώματα τῶν τετελευτηκότων γονέων εἰς ὑποθήκην δανείου· τοῖς δὲ μὴ λυσαμένοις ὄνειδός τε τὸ μέγιστον ἀκολουθεῖ καὶ μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν στέρησις ταφῆς.

It is also a custom among them even to give the bodies of deceased parents as security for a loan; and for those who do not redeem them, the greatest disgrace follows, and after their death, deprivation of burial.

§1.93.2θαυμάσαι δʼ ἄν τις προσηκόντως τοὺς ταῦτα διατάξαντας, ὅτι τὴν ἐπιείκειαν καὶ τὴν σπουδαιότητα τῶν ἠθῶν οὐκ ἐκ τῆς τῶν ζώντων ὁμιλίας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς τῶν τετελευτηκότων ταφῆς καὶ θεραπείας ἐφʼ ὅσον ἦν ἐνδεχόμενον τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐνοικειοῦν ἐφιλοτιμήθησαν.

And one might appropriately admire those who established these regulations, because they made it their ambition to instill gentleness and seriousness of character into people, to the greatest extent possible, not only from the association of the living, but also from the burial and care of the deceased.

§1.93.3οἱ μὲν γὰρ Ἕλληνες μύθοις πεπλασμένοις καὶ φήμαις διαβεβλημέναις τὴν περὶ τούτων πίστιν παρέδωκαν, τήν τε τῶν εὐσεβῶν τιμὴν καὶ τὴν τῶν πονηρῶν τιμωρίαν· τοιγαροῦν οὐχ οἷον ἰσχῦσαι δύναται ταῦτα προτρέψασθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐπὶ τὸν ἄριστον βίον, ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον ὑπὸ τῶν φαύλων χλευαζόμενα πολλῆς καταφρονήσεως τυγχάνουσι·

For the Greeks transmitted belief concerning these matters—both the honor of the pious and the punishment of the wicked—by means of fabricated myths and discredited rumors; consequently, so far from these being able to encourage men towards the best life, on the contrary, being mocked by the base, they meet with much contempt.

§1.93.4παρὰ δὲ τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις οὐ μυθώδους, ἀλλʼ ὁρατῆς τοῖς μὲν πονηροῖς τῆς κολάσεως, τοῖς δʼ ἀγαθοῖς τῆς τιμῆς οὔσης, καθʼ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν ἀμφότεροι τῶν ἑαυτοῖς προσηκόντων ὑπομιμνήσκονται, καὶ διὰ τούτου τοῦ τρόπου ἡ μεγίστη καὶ συμφορωτάτη διόρθωσις γίνεται τῶν ἠθῶν.

But among the Egyptians, since the punishment of the wicked and the honor of the good is not mythical but visible, every day both classes of people are reminded of their duties, and in this way the greatest and most beneficial correction of morals takes place.

κρατίστους δʼ, οἶμαι, τῶν νόμων ἡγητέον οὐκ ἐξ ὧν εὐπορωτάτους, ἀλλʼ ἐξ ὧν ἐπιεικεστάτους τοῖς ἤθεσι καὶ πολιτικωτάτους συμβήσεται γενέσθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους.

And we must consider those laws to be the best, I think, not from which it will result that men become the wealthiest, but from which they will become the most gentle in character and the most public-spirited.

Notes

1.93.1φανῆναι περιττότερον τετιμηκότας — The aorist passive infinitive `φανῆναι` (from `φαίνω`) is used here intransitively to mean "to be shown to be" or "to be manifest as," taking the perfect active participle in the accusative plural `τετιμηκότας` as its complement. The implied subject of the infinitive is people in general (descendants); since it is omitted, the predicate participle agrees with it in the accusative. On the other hand, the participle `μεταστάντας` modifies `τοὺς γονεῖς ἢ τοὺς προγόνους` (parents or ancestors), which is the object of `τετιμηκότας`.
1.93.2ἐνοικειοῦν ἐφιλοτιμήθησαν — The main verb `ἐφιλοτιμήθησαν` ("they made it their ambition") takes the infinitive `ἐνοικειοῦν` ("to instill" or "to domesticate") as its complement. The direct object of this infinitive is `τὴν ἐπιείκειαν καὶ τὴν σπουδαιότητα` ("gentleness and seriousness"), and the dative `τοῖς ἀνθρώποις` indicates the recipients in whom these qualities are instilled. The sources from which these qualities are drawn are coordinated by the two prepositional phrases: `οὐκ ἐκ τῆς τῶν ζώντων ὁμιλίας μόνον` and `ἀλλὰ καὶ [ἐκ] τῆς τῶν τετελευτηκότων ... ταφῆς καὶ θεραπείας`.
1.93.3οὐχ οἷον — An idiomatic expression meaning "so far from" or "not only not," used in correlation with the subsequent `ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον` ("but on the contrary") to express a strong contrast. Here it emphasizes the logical contrast that the Greek myths, far from being able to encourage men to the best life, actually become objects of contempt.
1.93.4ἐξ ὧν — The relative pronoun `ὧν` refers back to the antecedent `τῶν νόμων` ("laws"), and combined with the preposition `ἐκ` ("from" or "by") it means "by which/from which." The verb within this relative clause is the impersonal future `συμβήσεται` ("it will result"), which takes the accusative and infinitive construction `γενέσθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους...` ("that men become...") as its subject.

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §1.93.1-1.93.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc5:1.93.1-1.93.4

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