Moralia

The Moralia (Latin for "Morals", "Customs" or "Mores"; Ancient Greek: Ἠθικά, Ethiká) is a set of essays ascribed to the 1st-century scholar Plutarch of Chaeronea. The eclectic collection contains 78 essays and transcribed speeches. They provide insights into Roman and Greek life, but they also include timeless observations. Many generations of Europeans have read or imitated them, including Michel de Montaigne, Renaissance Humanists and Enlightenment philosophers.

Quotes

Greek text cited from C. Hubert, M. Pohlenz et al., Plutarchus. Moralia, vols. I–VII (Stuttgart-Leipzig, 1929–1993).

1. The Education of Children

Περὶ παίδων ἀγωγῆς, De liberis educandis (1a–14c)

ἡ μὲν γὰρ φύσις ἄνευ μαθήσεως τυφλόν, ἡ δὲ μάθησις δίχα φύσεως ἐλλιπές, ἡ δ᾿ ἄσκησις χωρὶς ἀμφοῖν ἀτελές.
- Nature without instruction is blind, and instruction apart from nature is defective, and practice without nature and instruction is ineffectual.
- 2b (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

σταγόνες μὲν γὰρ ὕδατος πέτρας κοιλαίνουσι.
- For water continually dropping will wear hard rocks hollow.
- 2d (Tr. Goodwin)
Compare Bion of Smyrna, frg. 4 Galavotti (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897):
ἐκ θαμινᾶς ῥαθάμιγγος, ὅπως λόγος, αἰὲς ἰοίσας / χἁ λίθος ἐς ῥωχμὸν κοιλαίνεται.
The unceasing drip of water, as they say, / Will wear a channel in the hardest stone.

οἱ παροιμιαζόμενοι δέ φασιν οὐκ ἀπὸ τρόπου λέγοντες, ὅτι 'ἂν χολῷ παροικήσῃς, ὑποσκάζειν μαθήσῃ'.
- It is a true proverb, that if you live with a lame man, you will learn to halt.
- 4a (Tr. Goodwin)

πηγὴ γὰρ καὶ ῥίζα καλοκαγαθίας τὸ νομίμου τυχεῖν παιδείας.
- For the very spring and root of honesty and virtue lies in the felicity of lighting on good education.
- 4b (Tr. Goodwin)

εὐγένεια καλὸν μέν, ἀλλὰ προγόνων ἀγαθόν.
- It is a desirable thing to be well descended; but the glory belongs to our ancestors.
- 5c (Tr. Goodwin)

κατὰ τὴν παροιμίαν 'χαλεπὰ τὰ καλά'.
- According to the proverb, the best things are the most difficult.
- 6c (Tr. Goodwin)

μονῳδία γὰρ ἐν ἅπασίν ἐστι πλήσμιον καὶ πρόσαντες, ἡ δὲ ποικιλία τερπνόν.
- To sing the same tune, as the saying is, is in everything cloying and offensive; but men are generally pleased with variety.
- 7b (Tr. Goodwin)

κἀκεῖνό φημι, δεῖν τοὺς παίδας ἐπὶ τὰ καλὰ τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων ἄγειν παραινέσεσι καὶ λόγοις, μὴ μὰ Δία πληγαῖς μηδ᾿ αἰκισμοῖς.
- I say now, that children are to be won to follow liberal studies by exhortations and rational motives, and on no account to be forced thereto by whipping.
- 8e–f (Tr. Goodwin)

ἡ ἀνάπαυσις τῶν πόνων ἐστὶν ἄρτυμα.
- Rest gives relish to labour.
- 9c (Tr. Babbitt)

οὐδὲν οὕτω πιαίνει τὸν ἵππον ὡς βασιλέως ὀφθαλμός.
- Nothing made the horse so fat as the king's eye.
- 9d (Tr. Goodwin)

'λόγος γὰρ ἔργου σκιὴ' κατὰ Δημόκριτον.
- Democritus said, words are but the shadows of actions.
- 9f (Tr. Goodwin)

σοφὸν γὰρ εὔκαιρος σιγὴ καὶ παντὸς λόγου κρεῖττον.
- It is wise to be silent when occasion requires, and better than to speak, though never so well.
- 10e (Tr. Goodwin)

'μὴ ἐσθίειν καρδίαν,' μὴ βλάπτειν τὴν ψυχὴν ταῖς φροντίσιν αὐτὴν κατατρύχοντα.
- Eat not thy heart; which forbids to afflict our souls, and waste them with vexatious cares.
- 12e (Tr. Goodwin), quoting and interpreting Pythagoras

'κυάμων ἀπέχεσθαι,' ὅτι οὐ δεῖ πολιτεύεσθαι· κυαμευταὶ γὰρ ἦσαν ἔμπροσθεν αἱ ψηφοφορίαι δι᾿ ὧν πέρας ἐπετίθεσαν ταῖς ἀρχαῖς.
- Abstain from beans; that is, keep out of public offices, for anciently the choice of the officers of state was made by beans.
- 12e (Tr. Goodwin), quoting and interpreting Pythagoras

'μὴ ἐπιστρέφεσθαι ἐπὶ τοὺς ὅρους ἐλθόντας,' τουτέστι μέλλοντας ἀποθνήσκειν καὶ τὸν ὅρον τοῦ βίου πλησίον ὄντα ὁρῶντας φέρειν εὐκόλως καὶ μὴ ἀθυμεῖν.
- When men are arrived at the goal, they should not turn back; that is, those who are near the end of their days, and see the period of their lives approaching, ought to entertain it contentedly, and not to be grieved at it.
- 12f (Tr. Goodwin), quoting and interpreting Pythagoras

τὸ γὰρ 'τὴν κατὰ σαυτὸν ἔλα' σοφόν.
- 'Tis a wise saying, Drive on your own track.
- 13f (Tr. Goodwin)

στιγμὴ χρόνου πᾶς ἐστὶν ὁ βίος, [. . .] ζῆν οὐ παραζῆν ⟨σοι⟩ προσῆκε.
- The whole life of man is but a point of time; let us enjoy it, therefore, while it lasts, and not spend it to no purpose.
- 13a (Tr. Goodwin)

κρονόληρος καὶ σοροδαίμων ἐστί.
An old doting fool, with one foot already in the grave.
- 13b (Tr. Goodwin)

2. How the Young Man Should Study Poetry

Πῶς δεῖ τὸν νέον ποιημάτων ἀκούειν, De audiendis poetis (14d–37b)

Σωκράτης τοὐναντίον ἔλεγε, τοὺς μὲν φαύλους ζῆν ἕνεκα τοῦ ἐσθίειν καὶ πίνειν τοὺς δ᾿ ἀγαθοὺς ἐσθίειν καὶ πίνειν ἕνεκα τοῦ ζῆν.
- Socrates said, "Bad men live that they may eat and drink, whereas good men eat and drink that they may live."
- 21e (Tr. Goodwin)

3. On Listening to Lectures

Περὶ τοῦ ἀκούειν, De audiendo (37c–48d)

καὶ γὰρ τὸν Ἐπαμεινώνδαν ὁ Σπίνθαρος ἐπαινῶν ἔφη μήτε πλείονα γινώσκοντι μήτ᾿ ἐλάττονα φθεγγομένῳ ῥᾳδίως ἐντυχεῖν ἑτέρῳ.
- Spintharus, speaking in commendation of Epaminondas, says he scarce ever met with any man who knew more and spoke less.
- 39b (Tr. Goodwin)

τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἀντειπεῖν οὐ χαλεπὸν ἀλλὰ καὶ πάνυ ῥᾴδιον εἰρημένῳ λόγῳ· τὸ δ᾿ ἕτερον ἀνταναστῆναι βελτίονα παντάπασιν ἐργῶδες.
- It is a thing of no great difficulty to raise objections against another man's oration,—nay, it is a very easy matter; but to produce a better in its place is a work extremely troublesome.
- 40e (Tr. Goodwin)

οὐ γὰρ ὡς ἀγγεῖον ὁ νοῦς ἀποπληρώσεως ἀλλ᾿ ὑπεκκαύματος μόνον ὥσπερ ὕλη δεῖται, ὁρμὴν ἐμποιοῦντος εὑρετικὴν καὶ ὄρεξιν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ὥσπερ οὖν εἴ τις ἐκ γειτόνων πυρὸς δεόμενος, εἶτα πολὺ καὶ λαμπρὸν εὑρὼν αὐτοῦ καταμένοι διὰ τέλους θαλπόμενος, οὕτως εἴ τις ἥκων λόγου μεταλαβεῖν πρὸς ἄλλον οὐκ οἴεται δεῖν φῶς οἰκεῖον ἐξάπτειν καὶ νοῦν ἴδιον, ἀλλὰ χαίρων τῇ ἀκροάσει κάθηται θελγόμενος, οἷον ἔρευθος ἕλκει καὶ γάνωμα τὴν δόξαν ἀπὸ τῶν λόγων, τὸν δ᾿ ἐντὸς εὐρῶτα τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ ζόφον οὐκ ἐκτεθέρμαγκεν οὐδ᾿ ἐξέωκε διὰ φιλοσοφίας.
- The correct analogy for the mind is not a vessel that needs filling, but wood that needs igniting — no more — and then it motivates one towards originality and instills the desire for truth. Suppose someone were to go and ask his neighbors for fire and find a substantial blaze there, and just stay there continually warming himself: that is no different from someone who goes to someone else to get to some of his rationality, and fails to realize that he ought to ignite his own flame, his own intellect, but is happy to sit entranced by the lecture, and the words trigger only associative thinking and bring, as it were, only a flush to his cheeks and a glow to his limbs; but he has not dispelled or dispersed, in the warm light of philosophy, the internal dank gloom of his mind.
- 48c (Tr. Waterfield)

5. How a Man May Become Aware of His Progress in Virtue

Πῶς ἄν τις αἴσθοιτο ἑαυτοῦ προκόπτοντος ἐπ᾿ ἀρετῇ, De profectibus in virtute (75a–86a)

περὶ Διογένους ὅμοια τοῦ Σινωπέως ἱστοροῦσιν ἀρχομένου φιλοσοφεῖν, ὡς Ἀθηναίοις ἦν ἑορτὴ καὶ δεῖπνα δημοτελῆ καὶ θέατρα, καὶ συνουσίας μετ᾿ ἀλλήλων ἔχοντες ἐχρῶντο κώμοις καὶ παννυχίσιν, ὁ δ᾿ ἔν τινι γωνίᾳ τῆς ἀγορᾶς συνεσπειραμένος ὡς καθευδήσων ἐνέπιπτεν εἰς λογισμοὺς στρέφοντας αὐτὸν οὐκ ἀτρέμα καὶ θραύοντας, ὡς οὐδ᾿ ἀπὸ μιᾶς ἀνάγκης εἰς ἐπίτονον καὶ ἀλλόκοτον ἥκων βίον αὐτὸν ὑφ᾿ ἑαυτοῦ κάθηται τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἁπάντων ἐστερημένος. εἶτα μέντοι μῦν τινα προσερπύσαντα λέγεται περὶ τὰς ψίχας αὐτοῦ τῆς μάζης ἀναστρέφεσθαι, τὸν δ᾿ αὖθις ἀναφέρειν τῷ φρονήματι καὶ λέγειν πρὸς ἑαυτὸν οἷον ἐπιπλήττοντα καὶ κακίζοντα 'τί φῇς, ὦ Διόγενες; τοῦτον μὲν εὐωχεῖ τὰ σὰ λείμματα καὶ τρέφειν, σὺ δ᾿ ὁ γενναῖος ὅτι μὴ μεθύεις ἐκεῖ κατακείμενος ἐν ἀνθινοῖς καὶ ἁπαλοῖς στρώμασιν ὀδύρῃ καὶ θρηνεῖς σεαυτόν;' ὅταν οὖν οἱ τοιοῦτοι κατασπασμοὶ γένωνται μὴ πολλάκις, αἵ τε πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἐξερείσεις καὶ ἀνακρούσεις τοῦ φρονήματος ὥσπερ ἐκ στροφῆς ταχεῖαι παρῶσι καὶ διαλύωσι ῥᾳδίως τὸν ἄλυν καὶ τὴν ἀδημονίαν, ἔν τινι βεβαίῳ τὴν προκοπὴν εἶναι δεῖ νομίζειν.
- They relate of Diogenes of Sinope, when he began to be a philosopher, that the Athenians were celebrating a festival, and there were public banquets and shows and mutual festivities, and drinking and revelling all night, and he, coiled up in a corner of the market-place intending to sleep, fell into a train of thought likely seriously to turn him from his purpose and shake his resolution, for he reflected that he had adopted without any necessity a toilsome and unusual kind of life, and by his own fault sat there debarred of all the good things. At that moment, however, they say a mouse stole up and began to munch some of the crumbs of his barley-cake, and he plucked up his courage and said to himself, in a railing and chiding fashion, "What say you, Diogenes? Do your leavings give this mouse a sumptuous meal, while you, the gentleman, wail and lament because you are not getting drunk yonder and reclining on soft and luxurious couches?" Whenever such depressions of mind are not frequent, and the mind when they take place quickly recovers from them, after having put them to flight as it were, and when such annoyance and distraction is easily got rid of, then one may consider one's progress in virtue as a certainty.
- 77e–78a (Tr. Shilleto)

ὁ γὰρ Ἀντιφάνης ἔλεγε παίζων ἔν τινι πόλει τὰς φωνὰς εὐθὺς λεγομένας πήγνυσθαι διὰ ψῦχος, εἶθ᾿ ὕστερον ἀνιεμένων ἀκούειν θέρους ἃ τοῦ χειμῶνος διελέχθησαν.
- Antiphanes said merrily that in a certain city the cold was so intense that words were congealed as soon as spoken, but that after some time they thawed and became audible; so that the words spoken in winter articulated next summer.
- 79a (Tr. Goodwin)

Ὅταν οὖν οὕτως ἀρχώμεθα τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἐρᾶν, ὥστε μὴ μόνον κατὰ Πλάτωνα μακάριον μὲν αὐτὸν ἡγεῖσθαι τὸν σώφρονα, 'μακάριον δὲ τὸν ξυνήκοον τῶν ἐκ τοῦ σωφρονοῦντος στόματος ἰόντων λόγων', ἀλλὰ καὶ σχῆμα καὶ βάδισμα καὶ βλέμμα καὶ μειδίαμα θαυμάζοντες αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀγαπῶντες οἷοι συναρμόττειν καὶ συγκολλᾶν ὦμεν ἑαυτούς, τότε χρὴ νομίζειν ἀληθῶς προκόπτειν. ἔτι δὲ μᾶλλον, ἂν μὴ μόνον εὐημεροῦντας τοὺς ἀγαθοὺς θαυμάζωμεν, ἀλλ᾿ ὥσπερ οἱ ἐρῶντες καὶ τραυλότητας ἀσπάζονται τῶν ἐν ὥρᾳ καὶ ὠχρότητας, τῆς δὲ Πανθείας καὶ δάκρυα καὶ κατήφεια πενθούσης ἄρα καὶ κεκακωμένης ἐξέπληξε τὸν Ἀράσπην, οὕτως ἡμεῖς μήτε φυγὴν Ἀριστείδου μήτε εἱργμὸν Ἀναξαγόρου μήτε πενίαν Σωκράτους ἢ καταδίκην Φωκίωνος ὑποδειμαίνωμεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετα τούτων ἀξιέραστον ἡγούμενοι τὴν ἀρετὴν ὁμόσε χωρῶμεν αὐτῇ, τὸ Εὐριπίδειον ἐφ᾿ ἑκάστῳ φθεγγόμενοι 'φεῦ, τοῖσι γενναίοισιν ὡς ἅπαν καλόν'.
- Whenever we begin so much to love good men that we deem happy, "not only," as Plato says, "the temperate man himself, but also the man who hears the words that flow from his wise lips," and even admire and are pleased with his figure and walk and look and smile, and desire to adapt ourselves to his model and to stick closely to him, then may we think that we are making genuine progress. Still more will this be the case, if we admire the good not only in prosperity, but like lovers who admire even the lispings and paleness of those in their flower, as the tears and dejection of Panthea in her grief and affliction won the affections of Araspes, so we fear neither the exile of Aristides, nor the prison of Anaxagoras, nor the poverty of Socrates, nor the condemnation of Phocion, but think virtue worthy our love even under such trials, and join her, ever chanting that line of Euripides, "Unto the noble everything is good."
- 84e–85a (Tr. Shilleto)

τὸν γὰρ ἄχρι τοῦ καὶ τὰ φαινόμενα δεινὰ μὴ δυσχεραίνειν ἀλλὰ θαυμάζειν καὶ ζηλοῦν ἐνθουσιασμὸν οὐκ ἂν ἔτι γε τῶν καλῶν οὐδεὶς ἀποτρέψειεν. ἤδη δὲ τοῖς τοιούτοις παρέπεται βαδίζουσιν ἐπὶ πράξεις τινὰς ἢ λαβοῦσιν ἀρχὴν ἢ χρησαμένοις τύχῃ τίθεσθαι πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν τοὺς ὄντως ἀγαθοὺς γεγενημένους, καὶ διανοεῖσθαι 'τί δ᾿ ἂν ἔπραξεν ἐν τούτῳ Πλάτων, τί δ᾿ ἂν εἶπεν Ἐπαμεινώνδας, ποῖος δ᾿ ἂν ὤφθη Λυκοῦργος ἢ Ἀγησίλαος', οἷον πρὸς ἔσοπτρα κοσμοῦντας ἑαυτοὺς καὶ μεταρρυθμίζοντας, ἢ φωνῆς ἀγεννεστέρας αὑτῶν ἐπιλαμβανομένους ἢ πρός τι πάθος ἀντιβαίνοντας.
- For the enthusiasm that can go so far as not to be discouraged at the sure prospect of trouble, but admires and emulates what is good even so, could never be turned away from what is noble by anybody. Such men ever, whether they have some business to transact, or have taken upon them some office, or are in some critical conjuncture, put before their eyes the example of noble men, and consider what Plato would have done on the occasion, what Epaminondas would have said, how Lycurgus or Agesilaus would have dealt; that so, adjusting and re-modelling themselves, as it were, at their mirrors, they may correct any ignoble expression, and repress any ignoble passion.
- 85a–b (Tr. Shilleto)

ὥσπερ γὰρ οἱ τὸ πλουτήσειν ἀπεγνωκότες ἐν οὐδενὶ τίθενται τὰ μικρὰ δαπανήματα, μηθὲν οἰόμενοι ποιεῖν μέγα τὸ μικρῷ τινι προστιθέμενον.
- As those persons who despair of ever being rich make little account of small expenses, thinking that little added to a little will never make any great sum.
- 85e (Tr. Goodwin)

6. How to Profit by One's Enemies

Πῶς ἄν τις ἀπ᾿ ἐχθρῶν ὠφελοῖτο, De capienda ex inimicis utilitate (86b–92f)

τὸ τοῦ Σόλωνος ἔχειν ἀεὶ δεῖ πρόχειρον
'ἀλλ᾿ ἡμεῖς αὐτοῖς οὐ διαμειψόμεθα
τῆς ἀρετῆς τὸν πλοῦτον'.
- Have in readiness this saying of Solon, "But we will not give up our virtue in exchange for their wealth."
- 92e (Tr. Goodwin)

8. Chance

Περὶ τύχης, De fortuna (97c–100a)

τί μεῖζον ἐλέφαντος ἢ φοβερώτερον ἰδεῖν; ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦτο παίγνιον γέγονεν ἀνθρώπου καὶ θέαμα πανηγυρικόν, ὀρχήσεις τε μανθάνει καὶ χορείας καὶ προσκυνήσεις.
- What is bigger than an elephant? But this also is become man's plaything, and a spectacle at public solemnities; and it learns to skip, dance, and kneel.
- 98e (Tr. Goodwin)

ἀλλὰ γῆν μὲν οὐδεὶς ὕδατι δεύσας ἀφῆκεν, ὡς ἀπὸ τύχης καὶ αὐτομάτως πλίνθων ἐσομένων.
- No man ever wetted clay and then left it, as if there would be bricks by chance and fortune.
- 99d (Tr. Goodwin)

11. Advice About Keeping Well

Ὑγιεινὰ παραγγέλματα, De tuenda sanitate praecepta (122b–137e)

μεμνημένους ὅτι καθάπερ ὁ Σιμωνίδης ἔλεγε μηδέποτ᾿ αὐτῷ μεταμελῆσαι σιγήσαντι, φθεγξαμένῳ δὲ πολλάκις.
Remember what Simonides said,—that he never repented that he had held his tongue, but often that he had spoken.
- 125d (Tr. Goodwin)

τὸ ἔθος τρόπον τινὰ φύσις τοῦ παρὰ φύσιν γέγονεν.
- Custom is almost a second nature.
- 132a (Tr. Goodwin)

ὅπερ γάρ φασιν εἰπεῖν τὸν Ἐπαμεινώνδαν μετὰ παιδιᾶς, ἀνδρὸς ἀγαθοῦ περὶ τὰ Λευκτρικὰ νόσῳ τελευτήσαντος, 'ὦ Ἡράκλεις, πῶς ἐσχόλασεν ἁνὴρ ἀποθανεῖν ἐν τοσούτοις πράγμασι;'
- Epaminondas is reported wittily to have said of a good man that died about the time of the battle of Leuctra, "How came he to have so much leisure as to die, when there was so much stirring?"
- 136c (Tr. Goodwin)

12. Advice to Bride and Groom

Γαμικὰ παραγγέλματα, Conjugalia praecepta (138a–146a)

πᾶσα γυνὴ τοῦ λύχνου ἀρθέντος ἡ αὐτή ἐστι.
- When the candles are out, all women are alike.
- 144e (Tr. Goodwin)

14. Superstition

Περὶ δεισιδαιμονίας, De superstitione (164e–171e)

τοῖς ἐγρηγόρσιν ἕνα καὶ κοινὸν κόσμον εἶναι, τῶν δὲ κοιμωμένων ἕκαστον εἰς ἴδιον ἀποστρέφεσθαι.
- All men whilst they are awake are in one common world; but each of them, when he is asleep, is in a world of his own.
- 166c (Tr. Addison); Heraclitus, fragment 89 DK (= 24 Marcovich)

ἐγὼ γοῦν ἂν ἐθέλοιμι μᾶλλον τοὺς ἀνθρώπους λέγειν περὶ ἐμοῦ μήτε γεγονέναι τὸ παράπαν μήτ᾿ εἶναι Πλούταρχον ἢ λέγειν ὅτι 'Πλούταρχός ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος ἀβέβαιος εὐμετάβοολος, εὐχερὴς πρὸς ὀργήν, ἐπὶ τοῖς τυχοῦσι τιμωρητικός, μικρόλυπος'.
- I, for my own part, had much rather people should say of me that there neither is nor ever was such a man as Plutarch, than that they should say, "Plutarch is an unsteady, fickle, froward, vindictive, and touchy fellow."
- 169e–170a (Tr. Goodwin)

15. Sayings of Kings and Commanders

Βασιλέων ἀποφθέγματα καὶ στρατηγῶν, Regum et imperatorum apophthegmata (172a–208a)

Ἑρμοδότου δ᾿ αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς ποιήμασιν Ἡλίου παῖδα γράψαντος 'οὐ ταῦτά μοι' ἔφη 'σύνοιδεν ὁ λασανοφόρος.'
When Hermodotus in his poems described Antigonus as the son of Helios, "My valet-de-chambre," said he, "is not aware of this."
- 182b–c (Tr. Goodwin)

16. Sayings of Spartans

Λακωνικὰ ἀποφθέγματα, Apophthegmata Laconica (208a–242d)

κατ᾿ ἐπιδημίαν τις ἐν Σπάρτῃ κρηπιδούμενος ὀρθὸς ἐπὶ θατέρου σκέλους εἶπε πρὸς Λακεδαίμονα 'οὐκ ἂν οἶμαί σε, ὦ Λάκων, τοσοῦτον χρόνον ἐπὶ τοῦ ποδὸς ὅσον ἐγὼ στῆναι.' καὶ ὃς ὑπολαβών 'οὐ γάρ' ἔφη· 'τῶν μέντοι χηνῶν οὐκ ἔστιν ὅστις οὔ.'
- A traveller at Sparta, standing long upon one leg, said to a Lacedaemonian, "I do not believe you can do as much." "True," said he, "but every goose can."
- 233b (Tr. Goodwin)

21. On the Fortune or the Virtue of Alexander

Περὶ τῆς Ἀλεξάνδρου τύχης ἢ ἀρετῆς, De Alexandri Magni fortuna aut virtute (326d–345b)

ἀπὸ τούτων κρινέσθω καὶ Ἀλέξανδρος· ὀφθήσεται γὰρ οἷς εἶπεν οἷς ἔπραξεν οἷς ἐπαίδευσε φιλόσοφος.
- By these criteria let Alexander also be judged! For from his words, from his deeds, and from the instruction' which he imparted, it will be seen that he was indeed a philosopher.
- 328b (Tr. Babbitt)

Ἀλέξανδρος δ᾿ ὑπὲρ ἑβδομήκοντα πόλεις βαρβάροις ἔθνεσιν ἐγκτίσας καὶ κατασπείρας τὴν Ἀσίαν Ἑλληνικοῖς τέλεσι.
- Alexander established more than seventy cities among savage tribes, and sowed all Asia with Greek magistracies.
- 328e (Tr. Babbitt)

πολλάκις αὐτοῦ μνημονεύων λέγειν 'εἰ μὴ Ἀλέξανδρος ἤμην, Διογένης ἂν ἤμην'.
- Alexander was wont to say, "Were I not Alexander, I would be Diogenes."
- 331f (Tr. Goodwin)

εἰ μὴ τὰ βαρβαρικὰ τοῖς Ἑλληνικοῖς κεράσαι διενοούμην καὶ πᾶσαν ἤπειρον ἐπιὼν ἐξημερῶσαι, καὶ πέρατα γῆς ἀνερευνῶν καὶ θαλάττης ὠκεανῷ προσερεῖσαι Μακεδονίαν, καὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα σπεῖραι καὶ καταχέασθαι γένους παντὸς εὐδικίαν καὶ εἰρήνην, οὐκ ἂν ἐν ἀπράκτῳ τρυφῶν ἐξουσίᾳ καθήμην, ἀλλ᾿ ἐζήλουν ἂν τὴν Διογένους εὐτέλειαν. νῦν δὲ σύγγνωθι, Διόγενες, Ἡρακλέα μιμοῦμαι καὶ Περσέα ζηλῶ, καὶ τὰ Διονύσου μετιὼν ἴχνη, θεοῦ γενάρχου καὶ προπάτορος, βούλομαι πάλιν ἐν Ἰνδίᾳ νικῶντας Ἕλληνας ἐγχορεῦσαι καὶ τοὺς ὑπὲρ Καύκασον ὀρείους καὶ ἀγρίους τῶν βακχικῶν κώμων ἀναμνῆσαι.
- If it were not my purpose to combine foreign things with things Greek, to traverse and civilize every continent, to search out the uttermost parts of land and sea, to push the bounds of Macedonia to the farthest Ocean, and to disseminate and shower the blessings of Greek justice and peace over every nation, I should not content to sit quietly in the luxury of idle power, but I should emulate the frugality of Diogenes. But as things are, forgive me Diogenes, that I imitate Heracles, and emulate Perseus, and follow in the footsteps of Dionysus, the divine author and progenitor of my family, and desire that victorious Greeks should dance again in India and revive the memory of the Bacchic revels among the savage mountain tribes beyond the Caucasus.
- 332a–b (Tr. Babbitt)

τίς οὖν οὐκ ἂν εἴποι τότε [. . .] θεατής, ὅτι [. . .] τὸ μὲν βάρβαρον παρ᾿ ἀξίαν ἐπικρατεῖ διὰ Τύχην, τὸ δ᾿ Ἑλληνικὸν ἀντέχει παρὰ δύναμιν δι᾿ Ἀρετὴν, κἂν μὲν ἐκεῖνοι περιγένωνται, Τύχης, καὶ δαίμονος φθονεροῦ καὶ νεμέσεως ἔσται τὸ ἔργον· ἂν δ᾿ οὗτοι κρατήσωσιν, Ἀρετὴ καὶ τόλμα καὶ φιλία καὶ πίστις ἐξοίσεται τὸ νικητήριον;
- What spectator [. . .] would not exclaim [. . .] that through Fortune the foreign host was prevailing beyond its deserts, but through Virtue the Hellenes were holding out beyond their ability? And if the enemy gains the upper hand, this will be the work of Fortune or of some jealous deity or of divine retribution; but if the the Greeks prevail, it will be Virtue and daring, friendship and fidelity, that will win the guerdon of victory?
- 344e (Tr. Babbitt)

22. Were the Athenians More Famous in War or in Wisdom?

Πότερον Ἀθηναῖοι κατὰ πόλεμον ἢ κατὰ σοφίαν ἐνδοξότεροι, De gloria Athenensium (345c–351b)

ὁ Σιμωνίδης τὴν μὲν ζωγραφίαν ποίησιν σιωπῶσαν προσαγορεύει, τὴν δὲ ποίησιν ζωγραφίαν λαλοῦσαν.
- Simonides calls painting silent poetry, and poetry speaking painting.
- 346f (Tr. Goodwin)

23. On Isis and Osiris

Περὶ Ἴσιδος καὶ Ὀσίριδος, De Iside et Osiride (351c–384c)

ἐγώ εἰμι πᾶν τὸ γεγονὸς καὶ ὂν καὶ ἐσόμενον καὶ τὸν ἐμὸν πέπλον οὐδείς πω θνητὸς ἀπεκάλυψεν.
I am whatever was, or is, or will be; and my veil no mortal ever took up.
- 354c (Tr. Goodwin); inscription on a shrine of Neith (confused with Isis by Plutarch) in Sais

26. The Obsolesence of Oracles

Περὶ τῶν ἐκλελοιπότων χρηστηρίων, De defectu oraculorum (409e–438d)

ἀπάγγειλον ὅτι Πὰν ὁ μέγας τέθνηκε.
- Make it known that the great God Pan is dead.
- 419c (Tr. Goodwin)

29. On the Control of Anger

Περὶ ἀοργησίας, De cohibenda ira (457d–464d)

πολλὰ γάρ ἐστι τοῦ θυμοῦ φοβερά, πολλὰ δὲ καὶ γελοῖα.
- There is much in anger that is terrible, but much also that is laughable.
- 455d (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

ὡς γὰρ δι᾿ ὀμίχλης τὰ σώματα, καὶ δι᾿ ὀργῆς τὰ πράγματα μείζονα φαίνεται.
- As bodies appear larger when seen through fog, so are our annoyances magnified by anger.
- 460a (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

οἱ γὰρ ὀλίγων δεόμενοι πολλῶν οὐκ ἀποτυγχάνουσι.
- Those who have few wants have not many deficiencies.
- 461c (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

30. On Tranquility of Mind

Περὶ εὐθυμίας, De tranquilitate animi (464e–477f)

Ἀλέξανδρος Ἀναξάρχου περὶ κόσμων ἀπειρίας ἀκούων ἐδάκρυε, καὶ τῶν φίλων ἐρωτώντων ὅ τι πέπονθεν, 'οὐκ ἄξιον' ἔφη 'δακρύειν, εἰ κόσμων ὄντων ἀπείρων ἑνὸς οὐδέπω κύριοι γεγόναμεν;'
- Alexander wept when he heard from Anaxarchus that there was an infinite number of worlds; and his friends asking him if any accident had befallen him, he returns this answer: "Do you not think it a matter worthy of lamentation that when there is such a vast multitude of them, we have not yet conquered one?"
- 466d (Tr. Goodwin)

ὥσπερ ὁ τῆς κυνὸς ἁμαρτὼν τῷ λίθῳ καὶ τὴν μητρυιὰν πατάξας 'οὐδ᾿ οὕτως' ἔφη 'κακῶς'.
- Like the man who threw a stone at a bitch, but hit his step-mother, on which he exclaimed, "Not so bad!"
- 467c (Tr. Goodwin)

ὁ γοῦν Πιττακὸς ἐκεῖνος [. . .] εἱστία ξένους· ἐπελθοῦσα δ᾿ ἡ γυνὴ μετ᾿ ὀργῆς ἀνέτρεψε τὴν τράπεζαν· τῶν δὲ ξένων διατραπέντων 'ἑκάστῳ τι' ἔφη 'ἡμῶν κακὸν ἔστιν· ᾧ δὲ τοὐμόν, ἄριστα πράττει.'
When the renowned Pittacus [. . .] was entertaining his friends at a noble banquet, and his spouse in an angry humor came and overturned the table; his guests being extremely disturbed at it, he told them: Every one of you hath his particular plague, and my wife is mine; and he is very happy who hath this only.
- 471b (Tr. Goodwin)

τὴν μὲν ἄμπελον σῦκα φέρειν οὐκ ἀξιοῦμεν οὐδὲ τὴν ἐλαίαν βότρυς.
- We do not expect to gather figs from the vine, or grapes from the olive.
- 472e–f (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

ἄνθρωπον ὄντα, 'ζῷον φύσει εὐμετάβολον' ὡς ὁ Πλάτων εἶπεν.
- He was a man, which, as Plato saith, is a very inconstant creature.
- 474e (Tr. Goodwin)

κυβερνήτῃ γὰρ οὔτε κῦμα πραῧναι τραχὺ καὶ πνεῦμα δυνατόν ἐστιν.
- The pilot cannot mitigate the billows or calm the winds.
- 475d (Tr. Goodwin)

35. Concerning Talkativeness

Περὶ ἀδολεσχίας, De garrulitate (502a–515a)

ἀπιστοῦνται δ᾿ οἱ λάλοι, κἂν ἀληθεύωσιν.
- Chatterers are not believed even when they are speaking the truth.
- 503d (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

τὸ γὰρ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ τοῦ νήφοντος ἐπὶ τῆς γλώττης ἐστὶ τοῦ μεθύοντος.
- What is in the heart of the sober man is upon the tongue of the drunkard.
- 503f (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

νήπιος, ὃς τὰ ἑτοῖμα λιπὼν ἀνέτοιμα διώκει.
- He is a fool who leaves things close at hand
  To follow what is out of reach.
- 505d (Tr. Babbitt); quoting Hesiod, Catalogue of Women, fragment 61 Merkelbach-West

36. On Being a Busybody

Περὶ πολυπραγμοσύνης, De curiositate (515a–523b)

ἡ πολυπραγμοσύνη φιλομάθειά τίς ἐστιν ἀλλοτρίων κακῶν.
- Inquisitiveness is a sort of love of learning, with other people's misfortunes for its object.
- 515d (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

τὸ 'οἴμοι, τὸ κακὸν τῆς εὐτυχίας
ὡς μᾶλλον ἐς οὖς φέρεται θνητῶν.'
- That proverbial saying, "Ill news goes quick and far."
- 518a (Tr. Goodwin)

37. On Love of Wealth

Περὶ φιλοπλουτίας, De cupiditate divitiarum (523c–528b)

Σκόπαν τὸν Θεσσαλὸν [. . .], ὃς αἰτηθείς τι τῶν κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν ὡς περιττὸν αὐτῷ καὶ ἄχρηστον 'ἀλλὰ μήν' ἔφη 'τούτοις ἐσμὲν ἡμεῖς εὐδαίμονες καὶ μακάριοι τοῖς περιττοῖς, ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἐκείνοις τοῖς ἀναγκαίοις.'
- [. . .] Scopas of Thessaly, who, when one begged somewhat of him he had in his house, as a superfluous thing he had no use for, made answer, "But we rich men count our felicity and happiness to lie in these superfluities, and not in those necessary things."
- 527c (Tr. Goodwin)

38. On Compliancy

Περὶ δυσωπίας, De vitioso pudore (528c–536d)

Ξενοφάνης Λάσου τοῦ Ἑρμιονέως μὴ βουλόμενον αὐτῷ συγκυβεύειν δειλὸν ἀποκαλοῦντος ὁμολόγει καὶ πάνυ δειλὸς εἶναι πρὸς τὰ αἰσχρὰ καὶ ἄτολμος.
- Xenophanes, when Lasus of Hermione called him coward because he refused to play at dice: Yes, said he, I confess myself the greatest coward in the world, for I dare not do an ill thing.
- 530f (Tr. Goodwin)

ὁ μὲν γὰρ εἰπών, ὅτι πάντες οἱ τὴν Ἀσίαν κατοικοῦντες ἑνὶ δουλεύουσιν ἀνθρώπῳ διὰ τὸ μὴ δύνασθαι μίαν εἰπεῖν τὴν 'οὐ' συλλαβήν.
- One made this observation of the people of Asia, that they were all slaves to one man, merely because they could not pronounce that syllable No.
- 532e (Tr. Goodwin)

'τὴν γὰρ σιωπὴν' ὁ μὲν Εὐριπίδης φησὶ 'τοῖς σοφοῖς ἀπόκρισιν' εἶναι.
- Euripides was wont to say, "Silence is an answer to a wise man."
- 532e–f (Tr. Goodwin)

ὁ μὲν γὰρ εἰπὼν 'ποτὶ πονηρὸν οὐκ ἄχρηστον ὅπλον ἁ πονηρία' κακῶς ἐθίζει μιμούμενον ἀμύνεσθαι τὴν κακίαν.
- He that first started that doctrine, that knavery is the best defence against a knave, was but an ill teacher, advising us to commit wickedness to secure ourselves.
- 534a (Tr. Goodwin); Zeno, SVF I 313, citing Epicharmus

41. On the Delays of the Divine Vengeance

Περὶ τῶν ὑπὸ τοῦ θείου βραδέως τιμωρουμένων, De sera numinis vindicta (548a–568a)

οὐθὲν γὰρ οὕτω χρέος ὡς τὸ τῆς δίκης ὑπερήμερον.
- There is no debt with so much prejudice put off as that of justice.
- 548d (Tr. Goodwin)

ἡ δ᾿ ἀτρέμα καὶ 'βραδεῖ ποδί' κατ᾿ Εὐριπίδην καὶ ὡς ἔτυχεν ἐπιπίπτουσα Δίκη τοῖς πονηροῖς τῷ αὐτομάτῳ μᾶλλον ἢ τῷ κατὰ πρόνοιαν ὅμοιον ἔχει τὸ πεπλανημένον καὶ ὑπερήμερον καὶ ἄτακτον. ὥστ᾿ οὐχ ὁρῶ, τί χρήσιμον ἔνεστι τοῖς ὀψὲ δὴ τούτοις ἀλεῖν λεγομένοις μύλοις τῶν θεῶν καὶ ποιοῦσι τὴν δίκην ἀμαυρὰν καὶ τὸν φόβον ἐξίτηλον τῆς κακίας.
- That remiss and slow-paced justice (as Euripides describes it) that falls upon the wicked by accident, by reason of its uncertainty, ill-timed delay, and disorderly motion, seems rather to resemble chance than providence. So that I cannot conceive what benefit there is in these millstones of the Gods which are said to grind so late, as thereby celestial punishment is obscured, and the awe of evil doing rendered vain and despicable.
- 549d (Tr. Goodwin)

πρὸς φυσικὴν πάθους ἀνάγκην ἀντιβῆναι παγχάλεπόν ἐστιν.
- It is a difficult thing for a man to resist the natural necessity of mortal passions.
- 555e (Tr. Goodwin)

44. On Exile

Περὶ φυγῆς, De exilio (599a–607f)

ὁ δὲ Σωκράτης [. . .] οὐκ Ἀθηναῖος οὐδ᾿ Ἕλλην ἀλλὰ κόσμιος εἶναι φήσας.
- Socrates [. . .] said he was not an Athenian or a Greek, but a citizen of the world.
- 600f (Tr. Goodwin)

πατρὶς δὲ γίνεται πᾶσα πόλις εὐθὺς ἀνθρώπῳ χρῆσθαι μεμαθηκότι.
- Every city becomes a man's fatherland so soon as he has learned to enjoy its advantages.
- 601f (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

46. Table-Talk

Συμποσιακά, Quaestiones convivales (612c–748d)

ἐκεῖνος [. . .] ἐν ἰχθύσιν ἐγγενέσθαι τὸ πρῶτον ἀνθρώπους ἀποφαίνεται καὶ τραφέντας ὥσπερ οἱ γαλεοὶ καὶ γενομένους ἱκανοὺς ἑαυτοῖς βοηθεῖν ἐκβῆναι τηνικαῦτα καὶ γῆς λαβέσθαι.
- For he [Anaximander] says [. . .] that men were first produced in fishes, and, when they were grown up and able to help themselves, were thrown out, and so lived upon the land.
- 730e (Tr. Goodwin)

Ἀθηνόδωρον, [. . .] ἱστοροῦντα πρῶτον ἐν τοῖς κατ᾿ Ἀσκληπιάδην χρόνοις [. . .] τὴν ὑδροφόβαν ἐκφανῆ γενέσθαι.
- Athenodorus [. . .] says that [. . .] the hydrophobia or water-dread [. . . was] first discovered in the time of Asclepiades.
- 731a (Tr. Goodwin)

μὴ θαυμάζωμεν, ἂν γένηταί τι τῶν οὐ πρότερον ὄντων, ⟨μηδ᾿ εἴ τι τῶν πρότερον ὄντων⟩ ὕστερον ἐκλέλοιπεν.
- Let us not wonder if something happens which never was before, or if something doth not appear among us with which the ancients were acquainted.
- 733d (Tr. Goodwin)

51. Whether an Old Man Should Engage in Public Affairs

Εἰ πρεσβυτέρῳ πολιτευτέον, An seni sit gerenda res publica (783a–797f)

ἄκουσμα μὲν γὰρ ἔστω μηδὲν ἥδιον ἐπαίνου κατὰ τὸν Ξενοφῶντα.
- Xenophon says that there is no sound more pleasing than one's own praises.
- 786e (Tr. Goodwin); referencing Xenophon, Memorabilia, II.1.31 or Hiero, 1.14.

Λάμπις ὁ ναύκληρος ἐρωτηθεὶς πῶς ἐκτήσατο τὸν πλοῦτον 'ού χαλεπῶς' ἔφη 'τὸν μέγαν, τὸν δὲ βραχὺν ἐπιπόνως καὶ βραδέως'.
- Lampis, the sea commander, being asked how he got his wealth, answered, "My greatest estate I gained easily enough, but the smaller slowly and with much labour."
- 787a (Tr. Goodwin)

τὸν δὲ στρατηγὸν 'ἅμα πρόσω καὶ ὀπίσω' τῶν πραγμάτων ὁρῶντα.
- The general himself ought to be such a one as can at the same time see both forward and backward.
- 788d (Tr. Goodwin)

52. Precepts of Statecraft

Πολιτικὰ παραγγέλματα, Praecepta gerendae reipublicae (798a–825f)

οὐ γὰρ ὧν λέγουσιν ἐν κοινῷ καὶ πράττουσιν οἱ πολιτευόμενοι μόνον εὐθύνας διδόασιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ δεῖπνον αὐτῶν πολυπραγμονεῖται καὶ κοίτη καὶ γάμος καὶ παιδιὰ καὶ σπουδὴ πᾶσα.
- Statesmen are not only liable to give an account of what they say or do in public, but there is a busy inquiry made into their very meals, beds, marriages, and every other sportive or serious action.
- 800c–d (Tr. Goodwin)

ὁ Βυζάντιος Λέων ἧκε δή ποτε τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις στασιάζουσι διαλεξόμενος· ὀφθεὶς δὲ μικρὸς καὶ γελασθείς 'τί δ᾿' εἶπεν 'εἰ τὴν γυναῖκά μου θεάσαισθε μόλις ἐξικνουμένην πρὸς τὸ γόνυ;' [. . .] 'ἀλλ᾿ ἡμᾶς' ἔφη 'μικροὺς οὕτως ὄντας, ὅταν διαφερώμεθα πρὸς ἀλλήλους, ἡ Βυζαντίων πόλις οὐ χωρεῖ.'
- Leo Byzantius came to make an harangue to the Athenians, being then at discussion amongst themselves; by whom when he perceived himself to be laughed at for the littleness of his stature, What would you do, said he, if you saw my wife, who scarce reaches up to my knees? [. . .] Yet, went he on, as little as we are, when we fall out with one another, the city of Byzantium is not big enough to hold us.
- 804a–b (Tr. Goodwin)

ὁ δὲ Κάτων, ἤδη τότε τῆς Ῥώμης καταπιπλαμένης ἀνδριάντων, οὐκ ἐῶν αὑτοῦ γενέσθαι 'μᾶλλον' ἔφη 'βούλομαι πυνθάνεσθαί τινας, διὰ τί μου ἀνδριὰς οὐ κεῖται ἢ διὰ τί κεῖται'.
- And Cato, when Rome was in a manner filled with statues, would not suffer his to be erected, saying, I had rather men should ask why my statue is not set up, than why it is.
- 820b (Tr. Goodwin)

55. Lives of the Ten Orators

Βίοι τῶν δέκα ῥητόρων, Vitae decem oratorum (832b–852e)

ἐρομένου αὐτόν ⟨τινος⟩ τί πρῶτον ἐν ῥητορικῇ, εἶπεν 'ὑπόκρισις'· καὶ τί δεύτερον 'ὑπόκρισις'· καὶ τί τρίτον 'ὑπόκρισις'.
- When Demosthenes was asked what was the first part of oratory, he answered, "Action;" and which was the second, he replied, "Action;" and which was the third, he still answered, "Action."
- 845b (Tr. Goodwin)

59. Causes of Natural Phenomena

Αἴτια φυσικά, Aeta physica (911c–919e)

Διὰ τί τῆς θαλάττης ἐλαίῳ καταρραινομένης γίνεται καταφάνεια καὶ γαλήνη; Πότερον [. . .] τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς λειότητος ἀπολισθαῖνον οὐ ποιεῖ πληγὴν οὐδὲ σάλον;
- Why does pouring oil on the sea make it clear and calm? Is it for that the winds, slipping the smooth oil, have no force, nor cause any waves?
- 914f (Tr. Goodwin)

63. Whether Land or Sea Animals Are Cleverer

Πότερα τῶν ζῴων φρονιμώτερα, τὰ χερσαῖα ἢ τὰ ἐνύδρια, De sollertia animalium (959a–985c)

μὴ παντάπασι καθαρεύειν ἀδικίας τὸν ἄνθρωπον οὕτω τὰ ζῷα μεταχειριζόμενον Ἐμπεδοκλῆς καὶ Ἡράκλειτος ὡς ἀληθὲς προσδέχονται.
- Both Empedocles and Heraclitus held it for a truth that man could not be altogether cleared from injustice in dealing with beasts as he now does.
- 964d (Tr. Goodwin)

ὁ Βίων ἔλεγε τὰ παιδάρια παίζοντα τῶν βατράχων τοῖς λίθοις ἐφίεσθαι, τοὺς δὲ βατράχους μηκέτι παίζοντας ἀλλ᾿ ἀληθῶς ἀποθνήσκειν.
- It was the saying of Bion, that though the boys throw stones at frogs in sport, yet the frogs do not die in sport but in earnest.
- 965a–b (Tr. Goodwin)

65. On the Eating of Flesh

Περὶ σαρκοφαγίας, De esu carnium (993a–999b)

ἀλλὰ σὺ μὲν ἐρωτᾷς τίνι λόγῳ Πυθαγόρας ἀπείχετο σαρκοφαγίας, ἐγὼ δὲ θαυμάζω καὶ τίνι πάθει καὶ ποίᾳ ψυχῇ ὁ πρῶτος ἄνθρωπος ἥψατο φόνου στόματι καὶ τεθνηκότος ζῴου χείλεσι προσήψατο σαρκὸς καὶ νεκρῶν σωμάτων καὶ ἑώλων προθέμενος τραπέζας ὄψα καὶ τρυφὰς προσέτι εἶπεν τὰ μικρὸν ἔμπροσθεν βρυχώμενα μέρη καὶ φθεγγόμενα καὶ κινούμενα καὶ βλέποντα· πῶς ἡ ὄψις ὑπέμεινε τὸν φόνον σφαζομένων δερομένων διαμελιζομένων, πῶς ἡ ὄσφρησις ἤνεγκε τὴν ἀποφοράν, πῶς τὴν γεῦσιν οὐκ ἀπέστρεψεν ὁ μολυσμὸς ἑλκῶν ψαύουσαν ἀλλοτρίων καὶ τραυμάτων θανασίμων χυμοὺς καὶ ἰχῶρας ἀπολαμβάνουσαν.
- You ask of me then for what reason it was that Pythagoras abstained from eating of flesh. I for my part do much admire in what humor, with what soul or reason, the first man with his mouth touched slaughter, and reached to his lips the flesh of a dead animal, and having set before people courses of ghastly corpses and ghosts, could give those parts the names of meat and victuals, that but a little before lowed, cried, moved, and saw; how his sight could endure the blood of slaughtered, flayed, and mangled bodies; how his smell could bear their scent; and how the very nastiness happened not to offend the taste, while it chewed the sores of others, and participated of the saps and juices of deadly wounds.
- 993a–b (Tr. Goodwin)

οὐκ αἰδεῖσθε τοὺς ἡμέρους καρποὺς αἵματι καὶ φόνῳ μιγνύοντες; ἀλλὰ δράκοντας ἀγρίους καλεῖτε καὶ παρδάλεις καὶ λέοντας, αὐτοὶ δὲ μιαιφονεῖτ᾿ εἰς ὠμότητα καταλιπόντες ἐκείνοις οὐδέν· ἐκείνοις μὲν γὰρ ὁ φόνος τροφή, ὑμῖν δ᾿ ὄψον ἐστίν.
- Are you not ashamed to mix tame fruits with blood and slaughter? You are indeed wont to call serpents, leopards, and lions savage creatures; but yet yourselves are defiled with blood, and come nothing behind them in cruelty. What they kill is their ordinary nourishment, but what you kill is your better fare.
- 994a–b (Tr. Goodwin)

σαρκιδίου μικροῦ χάριν ἀφαιρούμεθα ψυχήν, ἡλίου φῶς, τὸν τοῦ βίου χρόνον, ἐφ᾿ ἃ γέγονε καὶ πέφυκεν. εἶθ᾿ ἃς φθέγγεται καὶ διατρίζει φωνὰς ἀνάρθρους εἶναι δοκοῦμεν, οὐ παραιτήσεις καὶ δεήσεις καὶ δικαιολογίας ἑκάστου.
- For the sake of some little mouthful of flesh, we deprive a soul of the sun and light, and of that proportion of life and time it had been born into the world to enjoy. And then we fancy that the voices it utters and screams forth to us are nothing else but certain inarticulate sounds and noises, and not the several deprecations, entreaties, and pleadings of each of them.
- 994e (Tr. Goodwin)

μᾶλλον, ὡς ἔοικε, τῶν παρὰ συνήθειαν ἢ τῶν παρὰ φύσιν αἰσθανόμεθα.
- We are more sensible of what is done against custom than against Nature.
- 996b (Tr. Goodwin)

ποῖον οὖν οὐ πολυτελὲς δεῖπνον, εἰς ὃ θανατοῦταί τι ἔμψυχον; [. . .] αἰσθήσεώς γε μετέχουσαν, ὄψεως ἀκοῆς, φαντασίας συνέσεως, ἣν ἐπὶ κτήσει τοῦ οἰκείου καὶ φυγῇ τοῦ ἀλλοτρίου παρὰ τῆς φύσεως ἕκαστον εἴληχε.
- For what sort of dinner is not costly for which a living creature loses its life? [. . .] It does, at least, possess some perception, hearing, seeing, imagination, intelligence, which last every creature receives from Nature to enable it to acquire what is proper for it and to evade what is not.
- 997d–e (Tr. H. Cherniss, W. C. Helmbold, 1957)

τὸ πρῶτον ἄγριόν τι ζῷον ἐβρώθη καὶ κακοῦργον, εἶτ᾿ ὄρνις τις ἢ ἰχθὺς εἵλκυστο· καὶ γευσάμενον οὕτω καὶ προμελετῆσαν ἐν ἐκείνοις τὸ φονικὸν ἐπὶ βοῦν ἐργάτην ἦλθε καὶ τὸ κοσμοῦν πρόβατον καὶ τὸν οἰκουρὸν ἀλεκτρυόνα· καὶ κατὰ μικρὸν οὕτω τὴν ἀπληστίαν στομώσαντες ἐπὶ σφαγὰς ἀνθρώπων καὶ πολέμους καὶ φόνους προῆλθον.
- In the beginning, some wild and mischievous beast was killed and eaten, and then some little bird or fish was entrapped. And the love of slaughter, being first experimented and exercised in these, at last passed even to the laboring ox, and the sheep that clothes us, and to the poor cock that keeps the house; until by little and little, unsatiableness being strengthened by use, men came to the slaughter of men, to bloodshed and wars.
- 998b–c (Tr. Goodwin); cp. Montaigne, II, 11, Of Cruelty

67. Platonic Questions

Πλατωνικὰ ζητήματα, Platonicae quaestiones (999c–1011e)

καθάπερ Μένανδρος 'ὁ νοῦς γὰρ ἡμῶν ὁ θεός' καὶ Ἡράκλειτος 'ἦθος ἀνθρώπῳ δαίμων'.
- As Menander says, "For our mind is God;" and as Heraclitus, "Man's genius is a deity."
- 999d (Tr. Goodwin)

ὅ τε Πυθαγόρας, ἐρωτηθεὶς τί χρόνος ἐστί, τὴν τοῦ ὅλου ψυχὴν εἰπεῖν.
- Pythagoras, when he was asked what time was, answered that it was the soul of this world.
- 1007b (Tr. Goodwin)

73. That Epicurus Actually Makes a Pleasant Life Impossible

Ὅτι οὐδ᾿ ἡδέως ζῆν ἔστιν κατ᾿ Ἐπίκουρον, Non posse suaviter vivi secundum Epicurum (1086c–1107c)

Ἀρχιμήδην [. . .] λουόμενος ὥς φασιν ἐκ τῆς ὑπερχύσεως ἐννοήσας τὴν τοῦ στεφάνου μέτρησιν οἷον ἔκ τινος κατοχῆς ἢ ἐπιπνοίας ἐξήλατο βοῶν 'εὕρηκα'.
- And Archimedes, as he was washing, thought of a manner of computing the proportion of gold in King Hiero's crown by seeing the water flowing over the bathing-stool. He leaped up as one possessed or inspired, crying, "I have found it! Eureka!"
- 1094b–c (Tr. Goodwin)

74. Reply to Colotes in Defence of the Other Philosophers

Πρὸς Κωλώτην, Adversus Colotem (1107d–1127e)

τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἁμαρτάνειν περὶ δόξαν, εἰ καὶ μὴ σοφῶν, ὅμως ἀνθρώπινόν ἐστι.
- To err in opinion, though it be not the part of wise men, is at least human.
- 1125f (Tr. Goodwin)

75. Is "Live Unknown" a Wise Precept?

Εἰ καλῶς εἴρηται τὸ λάθε βιώσας, De latenter vivendo (1128a–1130e)

ὡς γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι, πρὸς τὴν πρύμναν ἀφορῶντες τῆς νεὼς τῇ κατὰ πρῷραν ὁρμῇ συνεργοῦσιν.
- Like watermen, who look astern while they row the boat ahead.
- 1128b–c (Tr. Goodwin)

Misattributed

For a man's felicity consists not in the outward and visible favours and blessings of Fortune, but in the inward and unseen perfections and riches of the mind.
- Appears after The Dinner of the Seven Wise Men 155b in Goodwin 1878; it is an elaboration added by the translator, and does not occur in the Greek.

Hesiod might as well have kept his breath to cool his pottage.
- Appears in The Dinner of the Seven Wise Men 157f in Goodwin 1878, where the Greek instead cites Works and Days 45–46:
  - πῶς οὖν ἐῶμεν τῷ Ἡσιόδῳ τὸ 'πηδάλιον ὑπὲρ καπνοῦ' κείμενον
    'ἔργα βοῶν τ᾿ ἀπόλοιτο καὶ ἡμιόνων ταλαεργῶν',
    εἰ τοσαύτης δεήσει παρασκευῆς;
  - How, then, can we concede to Hesiod his
    Rudder on high in the smoke
    suspended, and
    All the labours of oxen and stout-toiling mules be abolished,
    if there is to be need of all this preparation? (tr. F. C. Babbit, 1928)