(And a lusty wild vine bloomed about her dwelling,537 with bunches of excellent grapes, laden with clusters. And at the Phaeacian court there were the same things, except that they were more costly, seeing that, as I suppose, they were made by art, and hence had less charm and seemed less lovely than those that were of natural growth. Now to all that luxury and wealth, and moreover to the peace and quiet that surrounded those islands, who do you think would not have succumbed, especially one who had endured so great toils and dangers and expected that he would have to suffer still more terrible hardships, partly by sea and partly in his own house, since he had to fight all alone against a hundred youths in their prime, a thing which had never happened to him even in the land of Troy? Now if someone in jest were to question Odysseus somewhat in this fashion: “Why, O most wise orator or general, or whatever one must call you, did you endure so many toils, when you might have been prosperous and happy and perhaps even immortal, if one may at all believe the promises of Calypso? But you chose the worse instead of the better, and imposed on yourself all those hardships538 and refused to remain even in Scheria, though you might surely have rested there from your wandering and been delivered from your perils; but behold you resolved to carry on the war in your own house and to perform feats of valour and to accomplish a second journey, not less toilsome, as seemed likely, nor easier than the first!” What answer then do you think he would give to this? Would he not answer that he longed always to be with Penelope, and that those contests and campaigns he purposed to take back to her as a pleasant tale to tell? For this reason, then, he makes his mother exhort him to remember everything, all the sights he saw and all the things he heard, and then she says:)

[pg 304]

φησίν. ὁ δὲ οὐδενὸς ἐπιλαθόμενος, ἐπειδὴ πρῶτον ἀφίκετο καὶ τῶν μειρακίων ἐπὶ τὰ βασίλεια κωμαζόντων ἐκράτει ξὺν δίκῃ, πάντα ἀθρόως αὐτῇ διηγεῖτο, ὅσα τε ἔδρασε καὶ ὅσα ἀνέτλη, καὶ εἰ δὴ τι ἄλλο ὑπὸ τῶν χρησμῶν ἀναπειθόμενος ἐκτελεῖν διενοεῖτο· ἀπόρρητον δὲ ἐποιεῖτο πρὸς αὐτὴν οὐδὲ ἕν, [B] ἀλλ᾽ ἠξίου κοινωνὸν γίγνεσθαι τῶν βουλευμάτων καὶ ὅ,τι πρακτέον εἴη συννοεῖν καὶ συνεξευρίσκειν. ἆρα τοῦτο ὑμῖν τῆς Πηνελόπης ὀλίγον ἐγκώμιον δοκεῖ, ἢ ἤδη540 τις ἄλλη τὴν ἐκείνης ἀρετὴν ὑπερβαλλομένη γαμετή τε οὖσα βασιλέως ἀνδρείου καὶ μεγαλοψύχου καὶ σώφρονος τοσαύτην εὔνοιαν ἐνεποίησεν αὑτῆς τῷ γήμαντι, [C] συγκερασαμένη τῇ παρὰ τῶν ἐρώτων ἐπιπνεομένῃ φιλίᾳ τὴν ἐκ τῆς ἀρετῆς καθάπερ ῥεῦμα θεῖον ἐπιφερομένην ταῖς ἀγαθαῖς καὶ γενναίαις ψυχαῖς; δύο γὰρ δὴ τώδε τινὲ πίθω541 φιλίας ἔστον, ὧν ἥδε κατ᾽ ἴσον ἀρυσαμένη βουλευμάτων τε αὐτῷ γέγονε κοινωνὸς καὶ πρᾷον ὄντα φύσει τὸν βασιλέα καὶ χρηστὸν καὶ εὐγνώμονα πρὸς ἃ πέφυκε παρακαλεῖ μᾶλλον πρεπόντως καὶ πρὸς συγγνώμην τὴν δίκην τρέπει. ὥστε οὐκ ἂν τις εἰπεῖν ἔχοι, ὅτωι γέγονεν ἡ βασιλὶς ἥδε ἐν δίκῃ τυχὸν ἢ καὶ παρὰ δίκην αἰτία τιμωρίας καὶ κολάσεως μικρᾶς ἢ μείζονος. [D] Ἀθήνησι μὲν οὖν φασιν, ὅτε τοῖς πατρίοις ἔθεσιν ἐχρῶντο καὶ ἔζων τοῖς οἰκείοις πειθόμενοι νόμοις μεγάλην καὶ πολυάνθρωπον οἰκοῦντες πόλιν, εἴ ποτε τῶν δικαζόντων [pg 306] αἱ ψῆφοι κατ᾽ ἴσον γένοιντο τοῖς φεύγουσι πρὸς τοὺς διώκοντας, τὴν τῆς Ἀθηνᾶς ἐπιτιθεμένην τῷ τὴν δίκην ὀφλήσειν μέλλοντι ἀπολύειν ἄμφω τῆς αἰτίας, [115] τὸν μὲν ἐπάγοντα τὴν κατηγορίαν τοῦ δοκεῖν εἶναι συκοφάντην, τὸν δέ, ὡς εἰκός, τοῦ δοκεῖν ἔνοχον εἶναι τῷ πονηρεύματι. τοῦτον δὴ φιλάνθρωπον ὄντα καὶ χαρίεντα τὸν νόμον ἐπὶ τῶν δικῶν, ἃς βασιλεὺς κρίνει, σωζόμενον πρᾳότερον αὕτη καθίστησιν. οὗ γὰρ ἂν ὁ φεύγων παρ᾽ ὀλίγον ἔλθῃ τὴν ἴσην ἐν ταῖς ψήφοις λαχεῖν, πείθει, τὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ δέησιν προσθεῖσα καὶ ἱκετηρίαν, ἀφεῖναι πάντως τῆς αἰτίας. ὁ δὲ ἑκὼν ἑκόντι τῷ θυμῷ χαρίζεται τὰ τοιαῦτα, [B] καὶ οὐ, καθάπερ Ὅμηρός φησι τὸν Δία ἐκβιαζόμενον παρὰ τῆς γαμετῆς ὁμολογεῖν542 ὅ,τι ξυγχωροίη,543 δίδωσιν ἑκὼν ἀέκοντί γε θυμῷ. καὶ τυχὸν οὐκ ἄτοπον χαλεπῶς καὶ μόλις τὰ τοιαῦτα ξυγχωρεῖν κατὰ ἀνδρῶν ὑβριστῶν καὶ ἀλαζόνων. ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ544 γὰρ εἰ σφόδρα ἐπιτήδειοί τινές εἰσι πάσχειν κακῶς καὶ κολάζεσθαι, τούτους ἐκ παντὸς ἀπολέσθαι χρεών· ὃ δὴ καὶ ἡ βασιλὶς ἥδε ξυννοοῦσα κακὸν μὲν οὐδὲν ἐκέλευσεν οὔτε ἄλλο ποτε οὔτε545 [C] κόλασιν οὔτε τιμωρίαν ἐπαγαγεῖν οὐχ ὅπως βασιλείᾳ τινὸς ἢ πόλει, ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ οἰκίᾳ μιᾷ τῶν πολιτῶν. προσθείην δ᾽ ἂν ἔγωγε θαρρῶν εὖ μάλα ὅτι μηδὲν [pg 308] ψεῦδός φημι, ὡς οὐδὲ ἐφ᾽ ἑνὸς ἀνδρὸς ἢ γυναικὸς μιᾶς ἔστιν αὐτὴν αἰτιᾶσθαι ξυμφορᾶς τῳ τῆς τυχούσης, ἀγαθὰ δὲ ὅσα καὶ οὕστινας δρᾷ καὶ ἔδρασεν, ἡδέως ἂν ὑμῖν τὰ πλεῖστα ἐξαριθμησαίμην καθ᾽ ἕκαστα ἀπαγγέλλων, ὡς ὅδε μὲν τὸν πατρῷον δι᾽ ἐκείνην νέμεται κλῆρον, ἐκεῖνος δὲ ἀπηλλάγη τιμωρίας, [D] ὀφλήσας τοῖς νὀμοις, ἄλλος συκοφαντίαν διέφυγε, παρ᾽ ὀλίγον ἐλθὼν κινδύνου, τιμῆς δὲ ἔτυχον καὶ ἀρχῆς μυρίοι. καὶ ταῦτα οὐκ ἔστιν ὅστις ἐμὲ ψεύδεσθαι τῶν ἁπάντων φήσει, εἰ καὶ ὀνομαστὶ τοὺς ἄνδρας μὴ καταλέγοιμι. ἀλλ᾽ ὀκνῶ, μή τισιν ἐξονειδίζειν δόξω τὰς συμφορὰς καὶ οὐκ ἔπαινον τῶν ταύτης ἀγαθῶν, κατάλογον δὲ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων συγγράφειν ἀτυχημάτων. τοσούτων δὲ ἔργων μηδὲν παρασχέσθαι μηδὲ εἰς τὸ ἐμφανὲς ἄγειν [116] τεκμήριον κενόν πως εἶναι δοκεῖ καὶ ἐς ἀπιστίαν ἄγει546 τὸν ἔπαινον. οὐκοῦν ἐκεῖνα παραιτησάμενος, ὁπόσα γ᾽ ἐμοί τε εἰπεῖν ἀνεπίφθονον ταύτῃ τε ἀκούειν καλὰ λέγοιμ᾽ ἂν ἤδη.

(And indeed he forgot nothing, and no sooner had he come home and vanquished, as was just, the youths who caroused in the palace, than he related all to her without pause, all that he had achieved and endured, and all else that, obeying the oracles, he purposed still to accomplish.547 And from her he kept nothing secret, but chose that she should be the partner of his counsels and should help him to plan and contrive what he must do. And do you think this a trifling tribute to Penelope, or is there not now found to be yet another woman whose virtue surpasses hers, and who, as the consort of a brave, magnanimous and prudent Emperor, has won as great affection from her husband, since she has mingled with the tenderness that is inspired by love that other which good and noble souls derive from their own virtue, whence it flows like a sacred fount? For there are two jars,548 so to speak, of these two kinds of human affection, and Eusebia drew in equal measure from both, and so has come to be the partner of her husband's counsels, and though the Emperor is by nature merciful, good and wise, she encourages him to follow yet more becomingly his natural bent, and ever turns justice to mercy. So that no one could ever cite a case in which this Empress, whether with justice, as might happen, or unjustly, has ever been the cause of punishment or chastisement either great or small. Now we are told that at Athens, in the days when they employed their ancestral customs and lived in obedience to their own laws, as the inhabitants of a great and humane city, whenever the votes of the jurymen were cast evenly for defendant and plaintiff, the vote of Athene549 was awarded to him who would have incurred the penalty, and thus both were acquitted of guilt, he who had brought the accusation, of the reputation of sycophant, and the defendant, naturally, of the guilt of the crime. Now this humane and gracious custom is kept up in the suits which the Emperor judges, but Eusebia's mercy goes further. For whenever the defendant comes near to obtaining an equal number of votes, she persuades the Emperor, adding her request and entreaty on his behalf, to acquit the man entirely of the charge. And of free will with willing heart he grants the boon, and does not give it as Homer says Zeus, constrained by his wife, agreed as to what he should concede to her “of free will but with soul unwilling.”550 And perhaps it is not strange that he should concede this pardon reluctantly and under protest in the case of the violent and depraved. But not even when men richly deserve to suffer and be punished ought they to be utterly ruined. Now since the Empress recognises this, she has never bidden him inflict any injury of any kind, or any punishment or chastisement even on a single household of the citizens, much less on a whole kingdom or city. And I might add, with the utmost confidence that I am speaking the absolute truth, that in the case of no man or woman is it possible to charge her with any misfortune that has happened, but all the benefits that she confers and has conferred, and on whom, I would gladly recount in as many cases as possible, and report them one by one, how for instance this man, thanks to her, enjoys his ancestral estate, and that man has been saved from punishment, though he was guilty in the eyes of the law, how a third escaped a malicious prosecution, though he came within an ace of the danger, how countless persons have received honour and office at her hands. And on this subject there is no one of them all who will assert that I speak falsely, even though I should not give a list of those persons by name. But this I hesitate to do, lest I should seem to some to be reproaching them with their sufferings, and to be composing not so much an encomium of her good deeds as a catalogue of the misfortunes of others. And yet, not to cite any of these acts of hers, and to bring no proof of them before the public seems perhaps to imply that they are lacking, and brings discredit on my encomium. Accordingly, to deprecate that charge, I shall relate so much as it is not invidious for me to speak or for her to hear.)

Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τὴν τοῦ γήμαντος εὔνοιαν τηλαυγέστατον πρόσωπον, κατὰ τὸν σοφὸν Πίνδαρον, ἀρχομένη τῶν ἔργων ἔθετο, γένος τε ἅπαν καὶ ξυγγενεῖς εὐθὺς ἐνέπλησε τιμῆς, τοὺς μὲν ἤδη γνωρίμους καὶ πρεσβυτέρους ἐπὶ μειζόνων τάττουσα πράξεων καὶ ἀποφήνασα μακαρίους καὶ ζηλωτοὺς βασιλεῖ τ᾽ ἐποίησε φίλους καὶ τῆς εὐτυχίας τῆς παρούσης ἔδωκε τὴν ἀρχήν. [B] καὶ [pg 310] γὰρ εἴ τῳ δοκοῦσιν, ὥσπερ οὖν ἀληθές, δι᾽ αὑτοὺς τίμιοι, ταύτῃ γε οἶμαι προσθήσει τὸν ἔπαινον· δῆλον γὰρ ὅτι μὴ τῇ τοῦ γένους κοινωνίᾳ μόνον, πολὺ δὲ πλέον ἀρετῇ φαίνεται νέμουσα· οὗ μεῖζον οὐκ οἶδα ὅπως τις ἐγκώμιον ἐρεῖ. περὶ μὲν τούσδε γέγονε τοιάδε. ὅσοι δὲ ἀγνῶτες ἔτι διὰ νεότητα τοῦ γνωρισθῆναι καὶ ὁπωσοῦν ἐδέοντο, [C] τούτοις ἐλάττονας διένειμε τιμάς. ἀπέλιπε δὲ οὐδὲν εὐεργετοῦσα ξύμπαντας. καὶ οὐ τοὺς ξυγγενεῖς μόνον τοσαῦτα ἔδρασεν ἀγαθά, ξενίαν δὲ ὅτῳ πρὸς τοὺς ἐκείνης πατέρας ὑπάρξασαν ἔγνω, οὐκ ἀνόνητον ἀφῆκε τοῖς κτησαμένοις, τιμᾷ δὲ οἶμαι καὶ τούτους καθάπερ ξυγγενεῖς, καὶ ὅσους τοῦ πατρὸς ἐνόμισε φίλους, [D] ἅπασιν ἔνειμε τῆς φιλίας ἔπαθλα θαυμαστά.

(When she had, in the beginning, secured her husband's good-will for her actions like a “frontage shining from afar,” to use the words of the great poet Pindar,551 she forthwith showered honours on all her family and kinsfolk, appointing to more important functions those who had already been tested and were of mature age, and making them seem fortunate and enviable, and she won for them the Emperor's friendship and laid the foundation of their present prosperity. And if anyone thinks, what is in fact true, that on their own account they are worthy of honour, he will applaud her all the more. For it is evident that it was their merit, far more than the ties of kinship, that she rewarded; and one could hardly pay her a higher compliment than that. Such then was her treatment of these. And to all who, since they were still obscure on account of their youth, needed recognition of any sort, she awarded lesser honours. In fact she left nothing undone to help one and all. And not only on her kinsfolk has she conferred such benefits, but whenever she learned that ties of friendship used to exist with her ancestors, she has not allowed it to be unprofitable to those who owned such ties, but she honours them, I understand, no less than her own kinsfolk, and to all whom she regards as her father's friends she dispensed wonderful rewards for their friendship.)

Ἐγὲ δέ, ἐπειδή μοι τεκμηρίων καθάπερ ἐν δικαστηρίῳ τὸν λόγον ὁρῶ δεόμενον, αὐτὸς ὑμῖν ἐμαυτὸν τούτων ἐκείνῳ552 μάρτυρα καὶ ἐπαινέτην παρέξομαι· ἀλλ᾽ ὅπως μου μή ποτε ὑπιδόμενοι τὴν μαρτυρίαν πρὶν ἐπακοῦσαι τῶν λόγων διαταράττησθε, ὄμνυμι ὑμῖν, ὡς οὐδὲν ψεῦδος οὐδὲ πλάσμα ἐρῶ· ὑμεῖς δὲ κἂν ἀνωμότῳ ἐπιστεύσατε πάντα οὐ κολακείας ἕνεκα λέγειν553. [117] ἔχω γὰρ ἤδη τοῦ θεοῦ διδόντος καὶ τοῦ βασιλέως ἅπαντα τὰ ἀγαθά, αὐτῆς γε οἶμαι καὶ ταύτης554 ξυμπροθυμουμένης, ὑπὲρ ὧν ἄν τις κολακεύων ἅπαντα ἀφείη [pg 312] ῥήματα, ὥστε, εἰ μὲν πρὸ τούτων ἔλεγον, ἴσως ἐχρῆν ὀρρωδεῖν τὴν ἄδικον ὑποψίαν· νῦν δὲ ἐν ταύτῃ γεγονὼς τῇ τύχῃ καὶ ἀπομνημονεύων τῶν ἐκείνης εἰς ἐμαυτὸν ἔργων παρέξομαι ὑμῖν εὐγνωμοσύνης μὲν ἐμαυτοῦ σημεῖον, μαρτύριον δὲ ἀληθὲς τῶν ἐκείνης ἔργων. [B] πυνθάνομαι γὰρ δὴ καὶ Δαρεῖον, ἕως ἔτι δορυφόρος ἦν τοῦ Περσῶν μονάρχου, τῷ Σαμίῳ ξένῳ περὶ τὴν Αἴγυπτον συμβαλεῖν φεύγοντι τὴν αὑτοῦ, καὶ λαβόντα φοινικίδα τινὰ δῶρον, οὗ σφόδρα ἐπεθύμει, τὴν Σαμίων ὕστερον ἀντιδοῦναι τυραννίδα, ὁπηνίκα, οἶμαι, τῆς Ἀσίας ἁπάσης κύριος κατέστη. εἰ δὴ οὖν καὶ αὐτὸς πολλὰ μὲν παρ᾽ αὐτῆς, ὅτε ἔτι ζῆν ἐξῆν ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ, τὰ μέγιστα δὲ δι᾽ αὐτὴν παρὰ τοῦ γενναίου [C] καὶ μεγαλόφρονος βασιλέως λαβὼν ὁμολογοίην τοῦ μὲν ἀντιδοῦναι τὴν ἴσην λείπεσθαι· ἔχει γάρ, οἶμαι, ξύμπαντα παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ τοῦ καὶ ἡμῖν χαρισαμένου λαβοῦσα· τῷ βούλεσθαι δὲ τὴν μνήμην ἀθάνατον αὐτῇ τῶν ἔργων γενέσθαι καὶ ἐς ὑμᾶς ταῦτα ἀπαγγέλλειν τυχὸν οὐκ ἀγνωμονέστερος φανοῦμαι τοῦ Πέρσου, εἴπερ εἰς τὴν γνώμην ὁρῶντα χρὴ κρίνειν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐχ ὅτῳ παρέσχεν ἡ τύχη πολλαπλάσιον ἀποτῖσαι τὸ εὐεργέτημα.

(But since I see that my account is in need of proofs, just as in a law-court, I will offer myself to bear witness on its behalf to these actions and to applaud them. But lest you should mistrust my evidence and cause a disturbance before you have heard what I have to say, I swear that I will tell you no falsehood or fiction; although you would have believed, even without an oath, that I am saying all this without intent to flatter. For I already possess, by the grace of God and the Emperor, and because the Empress too was zealous in my behalf, all those blessings to gain which a flatterer would leave nothing unsaid, so that, if I were speaking before obtaining these, perhaps I should have to dread that unjust suspicion. But as it is, since this is the state of my fortunes, I will recall her conduct to me, and at the same time give you a proof of my own right-mindedness and truthful evidence of her good deeds. I have heard that Darius, while he was still in the bodyguard of the Persian monarch,555 met, in Egypt, a Samian stranger556 who was an exile from his own country, and accepted from him the gift of a scarlet cloak to which Darius had taken a great fancy, and that later on, in the days when, I understand, he had become the master of all Asia, he gave him in return the tyranny of Samos. And now suppose that I acknowledge that, though I received many kindnesses at Eusebia's hands, at a time when I was still permitted to live in peaceful obscurity, and many also, by her intercession, from our noble and magnanimous Emperor, I must needs fall short of making an equal return; for as I know, she possesses everything already, as the gift of him who was so generous to myself; yet since I desire that the memory of her good deeds should be immortal, and since I am relating them to you, perhaps I shall not be thought less mindful of my debt than the Persian, seeing that in forming a judgment it is to the intention that one must look, and not to an instance in which fortune granted a man the power to repay his obligation many times over.)

[D] Τί ποτε οὖν ἐγὼ τοσοῦτον εὖ παθεῖν φημι καὶ ἀνθ᾽ ὅτου τὸν ἄπαντα χρόνον ὑπόχρεων ἀμαυτὸν [pg 314] εἶναι χάριτος ὁμολογῶ τῇδε, σφόδρα ὥρμησθε ἀκούειν. ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ ἀποκρύψομαι· ἐμοὶ γὰρ βασιλεὺς οὑτοσὶ σχεδὸν ἐκ παιδὸς νηπίου γεγονὼς ἤπιος πᾶσαν ὑπερεβάλλετο φιλοτιμίαν, κινδύνων τε ἐξαρπάσας τηλικούτων, οὓς οὐδ᾽ ἂν ἡβῶν ἀνὴρ εὖ μάλα διαφύγοι, [118] μὴ θείας τινὸς καὶ ἀμηχάνου σωτηρίας τυχών, εἶτα τὴν οἰκίαν καταληφθεῖσαν καθάπερ ἐπ᾽ ἐρημίας παρά τοῦ τῶν δυναστῶν ἀφείλετο ξὺν δίκῃ καὶ ἀπέφηνεν αὖθις πλούσιον. καὶ ἄλλα ἂν ἔχοιμι περὶ αὐτοῦ πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἰπεῖν εἰς ἐμαυτὸν ἔργα πολλῆς ἄξια χάριτος, ὑπὲρ ὧν τὸν ἅπαντα χρόνον εὔνουν ἐμαυτὸν ἐκείνῳ καὶ πιστὸν παρέχων οὐκ οἶδα ἐκ τίνος [B] αἰτίας τραχυτέρως ἔχοντος ᾐσθόμην ἔναγχος. ἡ δὲ ἐπειδὴ τὸ πρῶτον ἤκουσεν ἀδικήματος μὲν οὐδενὸς ὄνομα, ματαίας δὲ ἄλλως ὑποψίας, ἠξίου διελέγχειν καὶ μὴ πρότερον προσέσθαι μηδὲ ἐνδέξασθαι ψευδῆ καὶ ἄδικον διαβολήν, καὶ οὐκ ἀνῆκε ταῦτα δεομένη πρὶν ἐμὲ ἤγαγεν ἐς ὄψιν τὴν βασιλέως καὶ τυχεῖν ἐποίησε λόγου· καὶ ἀπολυομένῳ πᾶσαν αἰτίαν ἄδικον συνήσθη, καὶ οἴκαδε ἐπιθυμοῦντι πάλιν ἀπιέναι πομπὴν ἀσφαλῆ παρέσχεν, [C] ἐπιτρέψαι πρῶτον τὸν βασιλέα ξυμπείσασα. δαίμονος δέ, ὅσπερ οὖν ἐῴκει μοι τὰ πρόσθεν μηχανήσασθαι, ἤ τινος ξυντυχίας ἀλλοκότου τὴν ὁδὸν ταύτην ὑποτεμομένης, ἐποψόμενον πέμπει τὴν Ἑλλάδα, ταύτην αἰτήσασα παρὰ βασιλέως ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ καὶ ἀποδημοῦντος ἤδη τὴν χάριν, ἐπειδ\η με λόγοις ἐπέπυστο χαίρειν καὶ παιδείᾳ τὸ χωρίον ἐπιτήδειον εἶναι ξυννοοῦσα. ἐγὼ δὲ τότε μὲν αὐτῇ [pg 316] καὶ πρώτῳ γε, [D] ὡς εἰκός, βασιλεῖ πολλὰ καὶ ἀγαθὰ διδόναι τὸν θεὸν ηὐχόμην, ὅτι μοι τὴν ἀληθινὴν ποθοῦντι καὶ ἀγαπῶντι πατρίδα παρέσχον ἰδεῖν· ἐσμὲν γὰρ τῆς Ἑλλάδος οἱ περὶ τὴν Θρᾴκην καὶ τὴν Ἰωνίαν οἰκοῦντες ἔγγονοι, καὶ ὄστις ἡμῶν μὴ λίαν ἀγνώμων, ποθεῖ προσειπεῖν τοὺς πατέρας καὶ τὴν χώραν αὐτὴν ἀσπάσασθαι. ὃ δὴ καὶ ἐμοὶ πάλαι μὲν ἦν, ὡς εἰκός, ποθεινόν, [119] καὶ ὑπάρξαι μοι τοῦτο ἐβουλόμην μᾶλλον ἢ πολὺ χρυσίον καὶ ἀργύριον. ἀνδρῶν γὰρ ἀγαθῶν φημι ξυντυχίαν πρὸς χρυσίου πλῆθος ὁσονδηοῦν ἐξεταζομένην καθέλκειν τὸν ζυγὸν καὶ οὐκ ἐπιτρέπειν τῷ σώφρονι κριτῇ οὐδὲ ἐπ᾽ ὀλίγον ῥοπῆς ἐπιστῆσαι.

(Why, then, I say that I have been so kindly treated, and in return for what I acknowledge that I am her debtor for all time, that is what you are eager to hear. Nor shall I conceal the facts. The Emperor was kind to me almost from my infancy, and he surpassed all generosity, for he snatched me from dangers so great that not even “a man in the strength of his youth”557 could easily have escaped them, unless he obtained some means of safety sent by heaven and not attainable by human means, and after my house had been seized by one of those in power, as though there were none to defend it, he recovered it for me, as was just, and made it wealthy once more. And I could tell you of still other kindnesses on his part towards myself, that deserve all gratitude, in return for which I ever showed myself loyal and faithful to him; but nevertheless of late I perceived that, I know not why, he was somewhat harsh towards me. Now the Empress no sooner heard a bare mention, not of any actual wrong-doing but of mere idle suspicion, than she deigned to investigate it, and before doing so would not admit or listen to any falsehood or unjust slander, but persisted in her request until she brought me into the Emperor's presence and procured me speech with him. And she rejoiced when I was acquitted of every unjust charge, and when I wished to return home, she first persuaded the Emperor to give his permission, and then furnished me with a safe escort. Then when some deity, the one I think who devised my former troubles, or perhaps some unfriendly chance, cut short this journey, she sent me to visit Greece, having asked this favour on my behalf from the Emperor, when I had already left the country. This was because she had learned that I delighted in literature, and she knew that that place is the home of culture. Then indeed I prayed first, as is meet, for the Emperor, and next for Eusebia, that God would grant them many blessings, because when I longed and desired to behold my true fatherland, they made it possible. For we who dwell in Thrace and Ionia are the sons of Hellas, and all of us who are not devoid of feeling long to greet our ancestors and to embrace the very soil of Hellas. So this had long been, as was natural, my dearest wish, and I desired it more than to possess treasures of gold and silver. For I consider that intercourse with distinguished men, when weighed in the balance with any amount whatever of gold, drags down the beam, and does not permit a prudent judge even to hesitate over a slight turn of the scale.)

Παιδείας δὲ ἕνεκα καὶ φιλοσοφίας πέπονθεν οἶμαι νῦν τὰ τῆς Ἑλλάδος παραπλήσιόν τι τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις μυθολογήμασι καὶ λόγοις. λέγουσι γὰρ δὴ [B] καὶ Αἰγύπτιοι τὸν Νεῖλον παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς εἶναι τά τ᾽ ἄλλα σωτῆρα καὶ εὐεργέτην τῆς χώρας καὶ ἀπείργειν αὐτοῖς τὴν ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρὸς φθοράν, ὁπόταν ᾕλιος διὰ μακρῶν τινων περιόδων ἄστροις γενναίοις συνελθῶν ἢ συγγενόμενος ἐμπλήσῃ τὸν ἀέρα πυρὸς καὶ ἐπιφλέγῃ τὰ σύμπαντα. οὐ γὰρ ἰσχύει, φασίν, ἀφανίσαι οὐδὲ ἐξαναλῶσαι τοῦ Νείλου τὰς πηγάς. οὔκουν οὐδὲ ἐξ Ἑλλήνων παντελῶς [C] οἴχεται φιλοσοφία, οὐδὲ ἐπέλιπε τὰς Ἀθήνας οὐδὲ τὴν Σπάρτην οὐδὲ τὴν Κόρινθον· ἥκιστα δὲ ἐστι τούτων558 τῶν πηγῶν ἕκητι τὸ Ἄργος πολυδίψιον· πολλαὶ μὲν γὰρ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ ἄστει, πολλαὶ δὲ καὶ πρὸ τοῦ ἄστεος περὶ τὸν παλαιον ἐκεῖνον Μάσητα· τὴν Πειρήνην [pg 318] δὲ αὐτὴν ὁ Σικυὼν ἔχει καὶ οὐχ ἡ Κόρινθος. τῶν Ἀθηνῶν δὲ πολλὰ μὲν καὶ καθαρὰ καὶ ἐπιχώρια τὰ νάματα, πολλὰ δὲ ἔξωθεν ἐπιρρεῖ καὶ ἐπιφέρεται τίμια τῶν ἔνδον οὐ μεῖον· οἱ δὲ ἀγαπῶσι καὶ στέργουσι, [D] πλουτεῖν ἐθέλοντες οὗ μόνου σχεδὸν ὁ πλοῦτος ζηλωτόν.

(Now, as regards learning and philosophy, the condition of Greece in our day reminds one somewhat of the tales and traditions of the Egyptians. For the Egyptians say that the Nile in their country is not only the saviour and benefactor of the land, but also wards off destruction by fire, when the sun, throughout long periods, in conjunction or combination with fiery constellations, fills the atmosphere with heat and scorches everything. For it has not power enough, so they say, to evaporate or exhaust the fountains of the Nile. And so too neither from the Greeks has philosophy altogether departed, nor has she forsaken Athens or Sparta or Corinth. And, as regards these fountains, Argos can by no means be called “thirsty,”559 for there are many in the city itself and many also south of the city, round about Mases,560 famous of old. Yet Sicyon, not Corinth, possesses Peirene itself. And Athens has many such streams, pure and springing from the soil, and many flow into the city from abroad, but no less precious than those that are native. And her people love and cherish them and desire to be rich in that which alone makes wealth enviable.)

Ἡμεῖς δὲ τί ποτε ἄρα πεπόνθαμεν; καὶ τίνα νῦν περαίνειν διανοούμεθα561 λόγον, εἰ μὴ τῆς φίλης Ἑλλάδος ἔπαινον, ἧς562 οὐκ ἔστι μνησθέντα μὴ πάντα θαυμάζειν; ἀλλ᾽ οὐ φήσει τις τυχὸν ὑπομνησθεὶς τῶν ἔμπροσθεν ταῦτα ἐθέλειν ἡμᾶς ἐξ ἀρχῆς διελθεῖν, καθάπερ δὲ τοὺς Κορυβαντιῶντας ὑπὸ τῶν αὐλῶν ἐπεγειρομένους χορεύειν καὶ πηδᾶν οὐδενὶ ξὺν λόγῳ, [120] καὶ ἡμᾶς ὑπὸ τῆς μνήμης τῶν παιδικῶν ἀνακινηθέντας ᾆσαι τῆς χώρας καὶ τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐγκώμιον. πρὸς δὴ τοῦτον ἀπολογεῖσθαι χρεὼν ὧδέ πως λέγοντα· ὦ δαιμόνιε, καὶ τέχνης ἀληθῶς γενναίας ἡγεμών, σοφὸν μὲν χρῆμα ἐπινοεῖς, οὐκ ἐφιεὶς οὐδὲ ἐπιτρέπων τῶν ἐπαινουμένων οὐδὲ ἐπὶ σμικρὸν μεθίεσθαι, ἅτε αὐτὸς οἶμαι ξὺν τέχνῃ τοῦτο δρῶν. ἡμῖν δὲ τὸν ἔρωτα τοῦτον, [B] ὃν σὺ φὴς αἴτιον εἶναι τῆς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις ἀταξίας, ἐπειδὴ προσγέγονεν, οἶμαι, παρακελεύεσθαι μὴ σφόδρα ἐκνεῖν μηδὲ εὐλαβεῖσθαι τὰς αἰτίας. οὐ γὰρ ἀλλοτρίων ἁπτόμεθα563 λόγων δεῖξαι ἐθέλοντες, ὅσων ἡμῖν ἀγαθῶν αἰτία γέγονε τιμῶσα τὸ φιλοσοφίας ὄνομα. τοῦτο δὲ οὐκ οἶδα ὅντινά μοι τρόπον ἐπικείμενον ἀγαπήσαντι μὲν [pg 320] εὖ μάλα τὸ ἔργον καὶ ἐρασθέντι δεινῶς τοῦ πράγματος, ἀπολειφθέντι δὲ οὐκ οἶδε ὅντινα τρόπον ὄνομα [C] ἐτύγχανε μόνον καὶ λόγος ἔργου στερόμενος. ἡ δὲ ἐτίμα καὶ τοὔνομα· αἰτίαν γὰρ δὴ ἄλλην οὔτε αὐτὸς εὑρίσκω οὔτε ἄλλου του πυθέσθαι δύναμαι, δι᾽ ἣν οὕτω μοι πρόθυμος γέγονε βοηθὸς καὶ ἀλεξίκακος καὶ σώτειρα, τὴν τοῦ γενναίου βασιλέως εὔνοιαν ἀκέραιον ἡμῖν καὶ ἀσινῆ μένειν ξὺν πολλῷ πόνῳ πραγματευσαμένη, ἧς μεῖζον ἀγαθὸν οὔποτε ἐγώ τι τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων νομίσας ἑάλων, οὐ τὸν ἐπὶ γῆς καὶ ὑπὸ γῆς χρυσὸν ἀντάξιον [D] οὐδ᾽ ἀργύρου πλῆθος, ὁπόσος νῦν ἐστιν ὑπ᾽ αὐγὰς ἡλίου, καὶ εἴ ποτε ἄλλος προσγένοιτο, τῶν μεγίστων ὀρῶν αὐταῖς, οἶμαι, πέτραις καὶ δένδρεσι μεταβαλλόντων εἰς τήνδε τὴν φύσιν, οὐδὲ ἀρχὴν τὴν μεγίστην οὐδὲ ἄλλο τῶν πάντων οὐδέν· ἐκ μὲν γὰρ δὴ ἐκείνης ταῦτά μοι γέγονε πολλὰ καὶ ὅσα οὐδεὶς ἂν ἤλπισεν, οὐ σφόδρα πολλῶν δεομένῳ γε οὐδὲ ἐμαυτὸν ἐλπίσι τοιαύταις τρέφοντι.

(But as for me, what has come over me? And what speech do I intend to achieve if not a panegyric of my beloved Hellas, of which one cannot make mention without admiring everything? But perhaps someone, remembering what I said earlier, will say that this is not what I intended to discuss when I began, and that, just as Corybants when excited by the flute dance and leap without method, so I, spurred on by the mention of my beloved city, am chanting the praises of that country and her people. To him I must make excuse somewhat as follows: Good sir, you who are the guide to an art that is genuinely noble, that is a wise notion of yours, for you do not permit or grant one to let go even for a moment the theme of a panegyric, seeing that you yourself maintain your theme with skill. Yet in my case, since there has come over me this impulse of affection which you say is to blame for the lack of order in my arguments, you really urge me, I think, not to be too much afraid of it or to take precautions against criticism. For I am not embarking on irrelevant themes if I wish to show how great were the blessings that Eusebia procured for me because she honoured the name of philosophy. And yet the name of philosopher which has been, I know not why, applied to myself, is really in my case nothing but a name and lacks reality, for though I love the reality and am terribly enamoured of the thing itself, yet for some reason I have fallen short of it. But Eusebia honoured even the name. For no other reason can I discover, nor learn from anyone else, why she became so zealous an ally of mine, and an averter of evil and my preserver, and took such trouble and pains in order that I might retain unaltered and unaffected our noble Emperor's good-will; and I have never been convicted of thinking that there is any greater blessing in this world than that good-will, since all the gold above the earth or beneath the earth is not worth so much, nor all the mass of silver that is now beneath the sun's rays or may be added thereto,564 not though the loftiest mountains, let us suppose, stones and trees and all were to change to that substance, nor the greatest sovereignty there is, nor anything else in the whole world. And I do indeed owe it to her that these blessings are mine, so many and greater than anyone could have hoped for, for in truth I did not ask for much, nor did I nourish myself with any such hopes.)

Εὔνοιαν δὲ ἀληθινὴν οὐκ ἔστι πρὸς χρυσίον ἀμείψασθαι, οὐδὲ ἄν τις αὐτὴν ἐντεῦθεν πρίαιτο, [121] θείᾳ δέ τινι καὶ κρείττονι μοίρᾳ ἀνθρώπων ἀγαθῶν συμπροθυμουμένων παραγέγνεται.565 ὃ δὴ καὶ ἐμοὶ παρὰ βασιλέως παιδὶ μὲν ὑπῆρχε κατὰ θεόν, ὀλίγου δὲ οἴχεσθαι δεῆσαν ἀπεσώθη πάλιν τῆς βασιλίδος ἀμυνούσης καὶ ἀπειργούσης τὰς ψευδεῖς καὶ ἀλλοκότους ὑποψίας. ἃς ἐπειδὴ παντελῶς ἐκείνη διέλυσεν, ἐναργεῖ τεκμηρίῳ τῷ βίῳ τὠμῷ χρωμένη, [pg 322] καλοῦντός τε αὖθις [B] τοῦ βασιλέως ἀπὸ τῆς Ἑλλάδος ὑπήκουον, ἆρα ἐνταῦθα κατέλιπεν, ὡς οὐκέτι πολλῆς βοηθείας, ἅτε οὐδενὸς ὄντος ἐν μέσῳ δυσχεροῦς οὐδὲ ὑπόπτου, δεόμενον; καὶ πῶς ἂν ὅσια δρῴην οὕτως ἐναργῆ καὶ σεμνὰ σιωπῶν καὶ ἀποκρύπτων; κυρουμένης τε γὰρ ἐπ᾽ ἐμοὶ τοῦ βασιλέως ταυτησὶ τῆς γνώμης διαφερόντως ηὐφραίνετο καὶ συνεπήχει μουσικόν, θαρρεῖν κελεύουσα καὶ μήτε τὸ μέγεθος δείσαντα τῶν διδομένων ἀρνεῖσθαι τὸ λαβεῖν, [C] μήτε ἀγροίκῳ καὶ αὐθάδει566 χρησάμενον παρῥησίᾳ φαύλως ἀτιμάσαι τοῦ τοσαῦτα ἐργασαμένου ἀγαθὰ τὴν ἀναγκαίαν αἴτησιν. ἐγὼ δὲ ὑπήκουον οὔτι τοῦτό γε ἡδέως σφόδρα ὑπομένων, ἄλλως δὲ ἀπειθεῖν χαλεπὸν ὂν σφόδρα ἠπιστάμην, οἷς γὰρ ἂν ἐξῇ πράττειν ὅ,τι ἂν ἐθέλωσι σὺν βίᾳ, ἦ που δεόμενοι δυσωπεῖν καὶ πείθειν ἀρκοῦσιν. οὐκοῦν ἐπειδή μοι πεισθέντι γέγονε [D] καὶ μεταβαλόντι ἐσθῆτα καὶ θεραπείαν καὶ διατριβὰς τὰς συνήθεις καὶ τὴν οἴκησιν δὲ αὐτὴν καὶ δίαιταν πάντα ὄγκου πλέα καὶ σεμνότητος ἐκ μικρῶν, ὡς εἰκός, καὶ φαύλων τῶν πρόσθεν, ἐμοὶ μὲν ὑπὸ ἀηθείας ἡ ψυχὴ διεταράττετο, οὔτι τὸ μέγεθος ἐκπληττομένῳ τῶν παρόντων ἀγαθῶν· σχεδὸν γὰρ ὑπὸ ἀμαθίας οὐδὲ μεγάλα ταῦτα ἐνόμιζον, ἀλλὰ δυνάμεις τινὰς χρωμένοις μὲν ὀρθῶς σφόδρα ωφελίμους, ἁμαρτάνουσι δὲ περὶ τὴν χρῆσιν βλαβερὰς [122] καὶ οἴκοις καὶ πόλεσι πολλαῖς μυρίων αἰτίας ξυμφορῶν. παραπλήσια [pg 324] δὲ ἐπεπονθεῖν ἀνδρὶ σφόδρα ἀπείρως ἡνιοχικῆς ἔχοντι καὶ οὐδὲ ἐθελήσαντι τύυτης μεταλαβεῖν τῆς τέχνης, κᾆτα ἀναγκαζομένῳ καλοῦ καὶ γενναίου κομίζειν ἅρμα ἡνιόχου, πολλὰς μὲν ξυνωρίδας, πολλὰ δέ, οἶμαι, τέτρωρα τρέφοντος καὶ ἅπασι μὲν ἐπιβεβηκότος, διὰ δὲ567 γενναιότητα φύσεως καὶ ῥώμην ὑπερβάλλουσαν ἔχοντος οἶμαι τὰς ἡνίας πάντων ἐγκρατῶς, [B] εἰ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς μιᾶς ἄντυγος βαίνοι, οὐ μὴν ἀεί γε ἐπ᾽ αὐτῆς μένοντος, μεταφερομένου δὲ πολλάκις ἐνθένδε ἐκεῖσε καὶ ἀμείβοντος δίφρον ἐκ δίφρου, εἴ ποτε τοὺς ἵππους πονουμένους ἢ καὶ ὑβρίσαντας αἴσθοιτο, ἐν δὲ δὴ τοῖς ἅρμασι τοῖσδε κεκτημένου τέτρωρον ὑπὸ ἀμαθίας καὶ θράσους ὑβρίζον, πιεζόμενον τῇ συνεχεῖ ταλαιπωρίᾳ καὶ τοῦ θράσους οὐδέν τι μᾶλλον ἐπιλαθόμενον, ἀγριαῖνον δὲ ἀεὶ [C] καὶ παροξυνόμενον ὑπὸ τῶν συμφορῶν ἐπὶ τὸ μᾶλλον ὑβρίζειν καὶ ἀπειθεῖν καὶ ἀντιτείνειν, οὐ δεχόμενον ἀμῶς γέ πη πορεύεσθαι, ἀλλ᾽ εἰ μὴ καὶ αὐτὸν ὁρῴη τὸν ἡνίοχον568 διὰ τέλους χαλεπαῖνον ἤ, τό γε ἔλαττον, στολὴν γοῦν ἡνιοχικὴν ἄνθρωπον φοροῦντα·569 οὕτως ἐστὶν ἀλόγιστον φύσει. ὁ δέ, οἶμαι, παραμυθούμενος αὐτοῦ τὴν ἄνοιαν ἄνδρα ἐπέστησε, δοὺς φορεῖν570 τοιαύτην ἐσθῆτα καὶ σχῆμα περιβαλὼν ἡνιόχου σεμνοῦ [D] καὶ ἐπιστήμονος, ὃς εἰ μὲν ἄφρων εἴη παντελῶς καὶ ἀνόητος, χαίρει καὶ γέγηθε καὶ μετέωρος ὑπὸ τῶν ἱματίων καθάπερ πτερῶν ἐπαίρεται, συνέσεως δὲ εἰ καὶ [pg 326] ἐπὶ σμικρὸν μετέχοι καὶ σώφρονος νοῦ, σφόδρα εὐλαβεῖται,

(But genuine kindness one cannot obtain in exchange for money, nor could anyone purchase it by such means, but it exists only when men of noble character work in harmony with a sort of divine and higher providence. And this the Emperor bestowed on me even as a child, and when it had almost vanished it was restored again to me because the Empress defended me and warded off those false and monstrous suspicions. And when, using the evidence of my life as plain proof, she had completely cleared me of them, and I obeyed once more the Emperor's summons from Greece, did she ever forsake me, as though, now that all enmity and suspicion had been removed, I no longer needed much assistance? Would my conduct be pious if I kept silence and concealed actions so manifest and so honourable? For when a good opinion of me was established in the Emperor's mind, she rejoiced exceedingly, and echoed him harmoniously, bidding me take courage and neither refuse out of awe to accept the greatness571 of what was offered to me, nor, by employing a boorish and arrogant frankness, unworthily slight the urgent request of him who had shown me such favour. And so I obeyed, though it was by no means agreeable to me to support this burden, and besides I knew well that to refuse was altogether impracticable. For when those who have the power to exact by force what they wish condescend to entreat, naturally they put one out of countenance and there is nothing left but to obey. Now when I consented, I had to change my mode of dress, and my attendants, and my habitual pursuits, and my very house and way of life for what seemed full of pomp and ceremony to one whose past had naturally been so modest and humble, and my mind was confused by the strangeness, though it was certainly not dazzled by the magnitude of the favours that were now mine. For in my ignorance I hardly regarded them as great blessings, but rather as powers of the greatest benefit, certainly, to those who use them aright, but, when mistakes are made in their use, as being harmful to many houses and cities and the cause of countless disasters. So I felt like a man who is altogether unskilled in driving a chariot,572 and is not at all inclined to acquire the art, and then is compelled to manage a car that belongs to a noble and talented charioteer, one who keeps many pairs and many four-in-hands too, let us suppose, and has mounted behind them all, and because of his natural talent and uncommon strength has a strong grip on the reins of all of them, even though he is mounted on one chariot; yet he does not always remain on it, but often moves to this side or that and changes from car to car, whenever he perceives that his horses are distressed or are getting out of hand; and among these chariots he has a team of four that become restive from ignorance and high spirit, and are oppressed by continuous hard work, but none the less are mindful of that high spirit, and ever grow more unruly and are irritated by their distress, so that they grow more restive and disobedient and pull against the driver and refuse to go in a certain direction, and unless they see the charioteer himself or at least some man wearing the dress of a charioteer, end by becoming violent, so unreasoning are they by nature. But when the charioteer encourages some unskilful man, and sets him over them, and allows him to wear the same dress as his own, and invests him with the outward seeming of a splendid and skilful charioteer, then if he be altogether foolish and witless, he rejoices and is glad and is buoyed up and exalted by those robes, as though by wings, but, if he has even a small share of common sense and prudent understanding, he is very much alarmed)