§281πρὸς τὸν αὐτοκράτορα, ἐπεπόμφειν δὲ ὡς τὸν ἐν τῇ Συρίᾳ τότε αὐτοκράτορα, καὶ συνέβη καλῶς.
...to the emperor; and I had sent a message to the emperor who was then in Syria, and it turned out well.
ἑβδόμῃ ἔν τινι ἀποδυτηρίῳ βαλανείου Χαρίδημον ἰδεῖν τὸν ῥήτορα τὸν ἐκ Φοινίκης φαιδρόν τε καὶ ἄρτι λελουμένον, καὶ φάναι δὴ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἅμα τῇ προσρήσει οὑτωσὶ, ὅτι πρῳαίτερον λούσαιτο· καὶ αὐτὸς ἅμα ἀποδύεσθαι, ἐλουσάμην.
On the seventh, I seemed to see Charidemus the rhetorician from Phoenicia in a certain dressing room of a bath, bright and newly bathed, and to say to him along with my greeting, that he had bathed rather early; and while myself undressing, I bathed.
καὶ πάλιν τῇ δεκάτῃ τοῦ μηνὸς ἐδόκει μοι Ἀντωνῖνος ὁ Πυθοδώρου διαλέγεσθαι περὶ Νυμφῶν ἐπαίνων· εἰπεῖν οὖν καὶ αὐτὸς ὅτι οὐκ εἶεν θεαὶ χαριέστεραι, πάντως δὲ εἶναι καὶ τῷ ἐπιεικεῖ ἀπολαύειν αὐτῶν, εἰ καὶ μὴ πολλὰ λουμένῳ, τά γε μέτρια.
And again on the tenth of the month, Antoninus the son of Pythodorus seemed to me to be discoursing on the praises of the Nymphs; so I myself also said that there were no more graceful goddesses, and that it was altogether possible even for a moderate man to enjoy them, even if not bathing often, at least in moderation.
ταῦτά τε δὴ καὶ ὑγιείας ἐδόκουν τι λέγειν ἐγκώμιον.
And so in this way I seemed to be speaking some encomium of health.
δωδεκάτῃ ἐδόκουν Ἀντωνῖνον τὸν αὐτοκράτορα τὸν πρεσβύτερον καὶ τὸν τῶν πολεμίων βασιλέα σπονδὰς καὶ φιλίαν πεποιῆσθαι πρὸς ἀλλήλους· προσιόντων δὲ τῶν περὶ τὸν Βολόγεσον φωνὴν εἶναι οὐκ ὀλίγην, καὶ δοκεῖν αὐτοὺς ἑλληνίζειν.
On the twelfth, I seemed to dream that Antoninus the elder emperor and the king of the enemy had made a treaty and friendship with each other; and as the attendants of Vologeses approached, there was no small shouting, and they seemed to speak Greek.
ἔπειτα ἀφικέσθαι παρʼ ἐμὲ ἀμφοτέρους μετὰ τοῦ σχήματος τοῦ βασιλικοῦ, καὶ εἶναι τόν τε Ἀντωνῖνον ἐπιεικῶς ἐν ἀκμῇ κἀκεῖνον βλοσυρόν τι ἰδεῖν· καθέζεσθαι δέ μου αὐτὸν οὐκ ἀπὸ πολλοῦ, ἑτέρωθεν δὲ ἐν θρόνῳ τὸν Ἀντωνῖνον.
Then both arrived at my side with the royal attire, and Antoninus was reasonably in his prime, while that other one had a somewhat stern look; and he sat not far from me, while Antoninus sat on a throne on the other side.
ἐδόκει δέ μοι καὶ ἰατρικῶν τινῶν ἐμπείρως ἔχειν ὁ Μῆδος, δεξιούμενος δέ με εἰπεῖν, πότε ἡμῖν ἀναγιγνώσκεις; κἀγὼ ἡσθῆναί τε τῷ ῥήματι καὶ φάναι, ὅταν ὑμεῖς κελεύητε. καὶ οἱ μὲν παρεσκευάζοντο πρὸς τὴν ἀκρόασιν, ἐγὼ δὲ ἀπῄειν ἐκλέξων τῶν βιβλίων.
And the Mede seemed to me to be also experienced in some medical matters, and welcoming me, he said, 'When do you read to us?' And I was pleased with the remark and said, 'Whenever you command.' And they prepared themselves for the recitation, while I went away to select some books.
καί μοι ἔδοξε πρόλογόν τινα ὡς ἐν βραχεῖ συνθεῖναι εἰς αὐτοὺς, καὶ εἶχεν οὕτω πως— ἐδόκουν δὲ καὶ πάνυ τοῦ συντεθέντος ἅπαντος μνημονεύειν—ἃ δʼ οὖν διεσωσάμην· ἤδη μέν τις καὶ ἄλλος χρηστοῦ τινος αὐτῷ συμβάντος καὶ βουλόμενος ἐνδείξασθαι τὴν ἡδονὴν εἶπεν ὡς ἄρα εἴη πλεῖν ἢ διπλάσιος γεγονὼς, ἄλλος δέ τις ὡς ἐν μακάρων νήσοις εἶναι δοκοίη, ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς οὕτως ὑπὸ τῆς παρούσης ἡμέρας τε καὶ τύχης διάκειμαι· καὶ ἅμα ἐσκοπούμην εἰ κοινοῦν χρὴ τὸν §282λόγον, ἢ πλέον τῷ παρʼ ἡμῖν βασιλεῖ νέμειν, ἔπειτα οὕτως ἐφέπεσθαι τὰ πρὸς τὸν ἕτερον.
And it seemed to me to compose a certain prologue in brief for them, and it ran somewhat like this—and I seemed to remember very well everything that was composed—but at any rate, these are the words I preserved: 'Indeed, someone else, when something good had happened to him and wishing to show his pleasure, said that he had become more than double his size; and another that he seemed to be in the islands of the blest; but I myself am likewise affected by the present day and fortune.' And at the same time I was considering whether it was necessary to share the speech, or to assign more to our own emperor, and then in this way to follow with the matters concerning the other.
εἶπον δὲ οὕτω πως. ὥστʼ, ἔφην, εἰ μὴ γεγυμνασμένος ἦν ἐν θείαις ὄψεσιν, οὐκ ἄν μοι δοκῶ ῥᾳδίως οὐδὲ πρὸς αὐτὴν τὴν πρόσοψιν ἀντισχεῖν, οὕτω μοι δοκεῖ θαυμαστή τις εἶναι καὶ κρείττων ἢ κατʼ ἄνθρωπον. ἔλεγον δὲ θείας ὄψεις, μάλιστα δὴ ἐνδεικνύμενος τὸν Ἀσκληπιὸν καὶ τὸν Σάραπιν.
And I spoke somewhat as follows: 'So that,' I said, 'if I had not been trained in divine visions, I do not think I would have easily withstood even the very sight of them, so wonderful does it seem to me and greater than human.' But I meant divine visions, indicating most of all Asclepius and Sarapis.
ταυτὶ μὲν τοιαῦτα.
These things were so.
τῶν δὲ βιβλίων τέως μὲν ἐκλέγειν ἠξίουν, ἔπειτα ἔδοξέ μοι τὸ κιβώτιον κομίζειν, καὶ ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς ποιήσασθαι ἀνελέσθαι ὅ τι ἂν βούλωνται· τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ἄλλως χάριν τινὰ ἔχειν καὶ ἅμα οὕτω μάλιστα αὐτοὺς ἐκπλῆξαι.
As for the books, for a while I thought it right to select them, but then it seemed to me to bring the chest, and to let them choose whatever they wanted in their presence; for this on the one hand had a certain grace, and on the other hand, in this way especially I would amaze them.
ταῦτα καὶ ὕστερον ὡς ὀνείρατα φανθέντα πρὸς Πέλοπα κατὰ ῥῆμα ἐδόκουν διηγεῖσθαι.
These things later also, having appeared as dreams, I seemed to relate word for word to Pelops.
ὕστερον δὲ ἔδοξα λελουμένῳ μοι προσφέρεσθαι, τοτὲ μὲν ὡς ὕδωρ ψυχρὸν, τοτὲ δὲ ὡς γάλα· ἀμφιγνοεῖν οὖν καὶ λέγειν δὴ πρὸς Ζώσιμον ὅτι οὔτε διψῴην οὔτε πεινῴην.
Later, I seemed, having bathed, to have offered to me at one time cold water, at another time milk; so I was in doubt and indeed said to Zosimus that I was neither thirsty nor hungry.
τί οὖν ἄν τις ἐσθίοι; καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο ἐκυροῦτο ἡ ἀσιτία καὶ ὁ ἱερεὺς ἐδόκει μου τὰ χείλη ἐκμυζεῖν.
'Why then should one eat?' And after this, the fasting was confirmed, and the priest seemed to suck my lips.
αὕτη μὲν ἀσιτίας, ἡ δὲ ἐπιοῦσα ἀλουσίας, ἡ δὲ ἀπʼ ἐκείνης ἀλουσίας, καὶ ἐμέτου.
This day was one of fasting, the next of abstinence from bathing, and the one after that of abstinence from bathing and of vomiting.
πέμπτῃ ἐπὶ δέκα ἐδόκουν τὸν ἡγεμόνα ἐπιστέλλοντά μοι τὴν πρόρρησιν οὕτω ποιήσασθαι· Ἀριστείδῃ τῷ ἱερεῖ χαίρειν· καὶ ἦν ἀλουσίας καὶ αὕτη.
On the fifteenth, I seemed to dream that the governor wrote to me, addressing me in this way: 'To Aristides the priest, greeting'; and this day too was one of abstinence from bathing.
τῇ δὲ ἐπιούσῃ κάδους τινὰς ἔδει καταχέασθαι· ἔπειτα ἀλουσία.
On the next day, it was necessary to pour certain jars of water over myself; then abstinence from bathing.
ὀγδόῃ ἐπὶ δέκα ἐδόκει μοι Μητρόδωρος ὁ ποιητὴς ἀγωνίζεσθαι ἐν Σμύρνῃ τὸν τῶν ποιητῶν ἀγῶνα, ὅσπερ καὶ ἦν σχεδὸν κατʼ αὐτὴν τὴν ἡμέραν· πρὶν δʼ εἰσιέναι, λαλεῖν μοι περί τινων καὶ ἅμα ἐσθίειν φύλλα πράσων καὶ ὠὸν μετʼ ἄρτου, καὶ μέρος τι τοῦ ὠοῦ ἐγκαταλιπεῖν.
On the eighteenth, Metrodorus the poet seemed to me to be competing in Smyrna in the contest of poets, which indeed was taking place almost on that very day; and before entering, he talked with me about certain things, and at the same time ate leek leaves and an egg with bread, and left some part of the egg behind.
κἀγὼ μέντοι πρὸς αὐτὸν εἰπεῖν ἐπισχὼν ὀλίγα, ὅπως καὶ ἀγωνίσῃ. ἐγένετο δὲ ὁ λόγος καὶ περὶ τοῦ ἱεροῦ τοῦ ἐν Περγάμῳ καὶ τοῦ φρέατος, οἷον μέν τι εἴη αὐτὸν προσελθόντα πιεῖν, οἷον δὲ ἕτερον πίνοντα ἰδεῖν, οἷον δὲ αὐτὸ ἰδεῖν.
And I indeed said to him, after waiting a little, 'So that you may indeed compete.' And the conversation also turned to the temple in Pergamum and the well, what it was like for oneself to approach and drink, and what it was like to see another drinking, and what it was like to see the well itself.
ταῦτά τε οὕτως ἐδόκουν διαλέγεσθαι καὶ τυγχάνειν ἀκηκοὼς ὡς εἰ γενοίμην ἐν χερσὶ τοῦ θεοῦ, ἐλπίδες εἶεν.
And I seemed to be conversing in this way, and to have happened to hear that if I came into the hands of the god, there would be hope.
καί πως ἅμα τούτοις ἑστάναι μὲν ὡς οἴκοι ἐν τῷ προθύρῳ, ναρκῶντος
And somehow along with this, I seemed to be standing as if at home in the vestibule, with my body being numb...