§5Λυκῖνος
τὸ δʼ οὖν τέλος τῆς δίκης ἐς τοῦτο περιέστη· ἀφέμενος γὰρ ὁ Διοκλῆς τοῦ δεικνύναι τὰ αὑτοῦ μετέβαινεν ἐπὶ τὸν Βαγώαν καὶ διελέγχειν ἐπειρᾶτο μάλιστα τὸν βίον αὐτοῦ· κατὰ ταὐτὰ δὲ καὶ ὁ Βαγώας ἀντεξήταζε τὸν ἐκείνου βίον.
Lycinus At any rate, the end of the lawsuit came to this: for Diocles, giving up the demonstration of his own merits, passed on to Bagoas and tried especially to scrutinize his life; and in the same way Bagoas in turn examined his rival's life.
Πάμφιλος
εἰκότως, ὦ Λυκῖνε· καὶ τὰ πλείω γε τοῦ λόγου περὶ τούτου μᾶλλον ἐχρῆν εἶναι αὐτοῖς·
Pamphilus Naturally, Lycinus; and indeed the greater part of their speech ought rather to have been about this.
ὡς ἔγωγε, εἰ δικάζων ἐτύγχανον, ἐπὶ τῷ τοιούτῳ τὸ πλεῖον διατρῖψαι ἄν μοι δοκῶ, τὸν ἄμεινον βιοῦντα μᾶλλον ἢ τὸν ἐν τοῖς λόγοις αὐτοῖς προχειρότερον ζητῶν καὶ οἰκειότερον τῇ νίκῃ νομίζων.
As for me, if I happened to be judging, I think I would have spent most of my time on such a matter, seeking the one who lived a better life rather than the one who was more ready in the arguments themselves, and deeming him more fitting for the victory.
§6Λυκῖνος
εὖ λέγεις, κἀμὲ ὁμόψηφον ἐν τούτῳ ἔχεις.
Lycinus Well said, and you have me of the same opinion in this.
ἐπεὶ δὲ ἅλις μὲν εἶχον βλασφημιῶν, ἅλις δὲ ἐλέγχων, τὸ τελευταῖον ἤδη ὁ Διοκλῆς ἔφη μηδὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν θεμιτὸν εἶναι τῷ Βαγώᾳ μεταποιεῖσθαι φιλοσοφίας καὶ τῶν ἐπʼ αὐτῇ ἀριστείων εὐνούχῳ γε ὄντι, ἀλλὰ τοὺς τοιούτους οὐχ ὅπως τούτων ἀποκεκλεῖσθαι ἠξίου, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἱερῶν αὐτῶν καὶ περιρραντηρίων καὶ τῶν κοινῶν ἁπάντων συλλόγων, δυσοιώνιστόν τι ἀποφαίνων καὶ δυσάντητον θέαμα, εἴ τις ἕωθεν ἐξιὼν ἐκ τῆς οἰκίας ἴδοι τοιοῦτόν τινα.
But when they had had enough of abuse and enough of mutual exposures, finally Diocles said that it was not even lawful in the first place for Bagoas to lay claim to philosophy and its prizes, being a eunuch as he was; indeed, he demanded that such persons should not only be excluded from these, but even from the sacred rites themselves, the lustral vessels, and all public assemblies, declaring him to be an ill-omened and offensive sight, if anyone leaving his house in the morning should see such a person.
καὶ πολὺς ἦν ὁ περὶ τούτου λόγος, οὔτε ἄνδρα οὔτε γυναῖκα εἶναι τὸν εὐνοῦχον λέγοντος, ἀλλά τι σύνθετον καὶ μικτὸν καὶ τερατῶδες, ἔξω τῆς ἀνθρωπείας φύσεως.
And there was a long discourse about this, with him saying that a eunuch is neither man nor woman, but something composite, mixed, and monstrous, outside of human nature.
Πάμφιλος
καινόν γε τὸ ἔγκλημα φής, ὦ Λυκῖνε, καὶ ἤδη γελᾶν καὶ αὐτός, ὦ ἑταῖρε, προάγομαι τῆς παραδόξου ταύτης κατηγορίας ἀκούων.
Pamphilus You speak of a novel accusation indeed, Lycinus, and I myself am already moved to laughter, my friend, hearing this strange charge.
τί δʼ οὖν ἅτερος;
What then did the other do?
ἆρα τὴν ἡσυχίαν ἤγαγεν, ἤ τι πρὸς ταῦτα καὶ αὐτὸς ἀντειπεῖν ἐτόλμησεν;
Did he keep quiet, or did he too dare to say something in reply to this?
§7Λυκῖνος
τὰ μὲν πρῶτα ὑπʼ αἰδοῦς καὶ δειλίας — οἰκεῖον γὰρ αὐτοῖς τὸ τοιοῦτον — ἐπὶ πολὺ ἐσιώπα καὶ ἠρυθρία καὶ ἰδίων φανερὸς ἦν, τέλος δὲ λεπτόν τι καὶ γυναικεῖον ἐμφθεγξάμενος οὐ δίκαια ποιεῖν ἔφη τὸν Διοκλέα φιλοσοφίας ἀποκλείοντα εὐνοῦχον ὄντα, ἧς καὶ γυναιξὶ μετεῖναι·
Lycinus At first, out of shame and cowardice—for such a trait is natural to them—he remained silent for a long time, blushed, and was clearly sweating; but at last, uttering something high-pitched and feminine, he said that Diocles was doing what was unjust in excluding him from philosophy because he was a eunuch, since even women have a share in it.
καὶ παρήγοντο Ἀσπασία καὶ Διοτίμα καὶ Θαργηλία συνηγορήσουσαι αὐτῷ, καί τις Ἀκαδημαϊκὸς εὐνοῦχος ἐκ Πελασγῶν τελῶν, ὀλίγον πρὸ ἡμῶν εὐδοκιμήσας ἐν τοῖς Ἕλλησιν.
And Aspasia, Diotima, and Thargelia were brought forward to advocate for him, and also a certain Academic eunuch hailing from the Pelasgians, who had won high repute among the Greeks a little before our time.
ὁ Διοκλῆς δὲ κἀκεῖνον αὐτόν, εἰ περιῆν καὶ τῶν ὁμοίων μετεποιεῖτο, εἶρξαι ἂν οὐ καταπλαγεὶς αὐτοῦ τὴν παρὰ τοῖς πολλοῖς δόξαν· καί τινας καὶ αὐτὸς ἀπεμνημόνευε λόγους καὶ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ὑπό τε Στωϊκῶν καὶ Κυνικῶν μάλιστα εἰρημένους πρὸς τὸ γελοιότερον ἐπὶ τῷ ἀτελεῖ τοῦ σώματος.
But Diocles, not at all intimidated by that man's reputation among the populace, said that he would have excluded even that very man, if he had survived and were laying claim to similar honors; and he himself recalled certain remarks made against him, especially by the Stoics and Cynics, to mock the imperfection of his body.
§8Λυκῖνος
ἐν τούτοις ἦν τοῖς δικασταῖς ἡ διατριβή· καὶ τὸ κεφάλαιον ἤδη τοῦ σκέμματος τοῦτο ἐτύγχανεν, εἰ δοκιμαστέος εὐνοῦχος ἐπὶ φιλοσοφίαν παραγγέλλων καὶ νέων προστασίαν ἐγχειρισθῆναι ἀξιῶν, τοῦ μὲν καὶ σχῆμα καὶ σώματος εὐμοιρίαν προσεῖναι φιλοσόφῳ δεῖν λέγοντος, καὶ τὸ μέγιστον, πώγωνα βαθὺν ἔχειν αὐτὸν καὶ τοῖς προσιοῦσι καὶ μανθάνειν βουλομένοις ἀξιόπιστον καὶ πρέποντα ταῖς μυρίαις ἃς χρὴ παρὰ βασιλέως ἀποφέρεσθαι, τὸ δὲ τοῦ εὐνούχου καὶ τῶν βακήλων χεῖρον εἶναι·
Lycinus In these matters the judges' time was spent; and the main point of the inquiry now happened to be this: whether a eunuch should be approved when offering himself for philosophy and asking to be entrusted with the guidance of the youth.
τοὺς μὲν γὰρ κἂν πεπειρᾶσθαί ποτε ἀνδρείας, τοῦτον δὲ ἐξ ἀρχῆς εὐθὺς ἀποκεκόφθαι καὶ ἀμφίβολόν τι ζῷον εἶναι κατὰ ταὐτὰ ταῖς κορώναις, αἳ μήτε περιστεραῖς μήτε κόραξιν ἐναριθμοῖντο ἄν,
One side argued that a philosopher ought to have both a proper appearance and physical soundness, and, greatest of all, should have a deep beard that would inspire trust in those who approach and wish to learn, and befitting the ten thousand drachmae which he is to receive from the emperor; while the eunuch's condition was worse even than that of the galli, for they had at least once experienced manhood, whereas this man had been cut off from the very beginning and was an ambiguous creature, just like crows, which can be numbered neither among doves nor among ravens.