Humanitext Reader

Theophrastus · Fragments §152.1

Piety Toward the Divine, Family Duties, and Financial Dealings

Passage 157 of 196 · Greek

Summary

The text discusses piety toward the divine, filial duty toward parents, care for one's wife and children, and wise financial transactions, explaining the duties and the nature of justice behind them.

§152.1Fr. 152 Χρὴ τοίνυν τὸν μέλλοντα θαυμασθήσεσθαι περὶ τὸ θεῖον φιλοθύτην εἶναι, μὴ τῷ πολλὰ θύειν ἀλλὰ τῷ πυκνὰ τιμᾶν τὸ θεῖον· τὸ μὲν γὰρ εὐπορίας τὸ δʼ ὁσιότητος σημεῖον.
Therefore, he who is to be admired concerning the divine must be a lover of sacrifice, not by sacrificing many things, but by frequently honoring the divine; for the former is a sign of wealth, the latter of piety.
Ἔπειτα γονεῖς γηροτροφεῖν καλῶς, ταῖς τʼ ἐκείνων βουλήσεσι τὸν αὐτῶν βίον εὐπειθῆ κατασκευάζειν.
Next, [one must] care for one's parents well in their old age, and render one's own life obedient to their wishes.
Ὁ γὰρ μὴ τοιοῦτος ἀλλὰ τῶν τε τῆς φύσεως τῶν τε τῆς πόλεως νόμων ὀλιγωρῶν ἀμφοτέρους τοὺς τῆς δικαιοσύνης τρόπους παραβέβηκεν.
For he who is not such a person, but disregards both the laws of nature and those of the city, has transgressed both ways of justice.
Καὶ μὴν καὶ γυναικὸς καὶ παίδων ἐπιμελητέον καλῶς καὶ φιλανθρώπως.
Furthermore, one must also care for wife and children well and humanely.
Οἱ μὲν γὰρ εἰς τὸ γῆρας ταῖς θεραπείαις, ἡ δʼ ἐν ταῖς νόσοις καὶ ταῖς καθʼ ἡμέραν οἰκονομίαις ἀποδώσει τὴν εὐεργεσίαν.
For the former will repay the benefit by their care in old age, and the latter in times of sickness and in daily household management.
Ἐὰν δέ τινι συμβάλλειν ἀνάγκη ἦ, μετὰ τοῦ βεβαίου πειρῶ τοῦτο πράττειν.
And if there is a necessity to transact with someone, try to do this with a reliable person.
Φρονιμωτάτου γὰρ ἀνδρὸς δανείσαντα φρονίμως ἀπολαβεῖν φιλικῶς, οὐ συναλλάξαντα φιλανθρώπως κομίσασθαι φιλαπεχθημόνως.
For it is the character of a most wise man, having lent wisely, to recover [the loan] in a friendly manner, and not, having transacted humanely, to get it back in a hostile manner.

Notes

  1. §152.1Χρὴ — The impersonal verb χρή governs not only the accusative and infinitive construction in the first sentence (τὸν μέλλοντα... εἶναι) but also the subsequent infinitives γηροτροφεῖν and κατασκευάζειν, maintaining the sense of obligation throughout.
  2. §152.1Ὁ γὰρ μὴ τοιοῦτος — Meaning "he who is not such a person," referring back to the one described in the preceding sentence who cares for his parents in old age and conforms his life to their wishes.
  3. §152.1Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ... ἡ δʼ ... ἀποδώσει — While the subject οἱ μὲν (the children) is plural and ἡ δʼ (the wife) is singular, the verb ἀποδώσει is in the third-person singular. This is because the verb agrees with the nearer subject (ἡ δʼ), or a plural verb (ἀποδώσουσι) for the first clause is ellipted.
  4. §152.1Φρονιμωτάτου γὰρ ἀνδρὸς — A genitive of characteristic ("it is the mark of a most wise man"). The participles δανείσαντα and συναλλάξαντα, which express the subject of the following infinitives ἀπολαβεῖν and κομίσασθαι, are in the accusative rather than the genitive. This follows the Greek tendency to put the subject of an infinitive in the accusative even when dependent on a genitive.

Cite this passage

Theophrastus, Fragments §152.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0093.tlg010x09.humanitext-grc1:152.1

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