priests of the deathless gods and plot against their privileges
with plans that fear not the gods, never shall such men travel
life’s path to the end, men who have sinned against the blessed
gods whose honour and holy service those priests have in
charge.”(517))
καὶ πάλιν ἐν ἄλλοις ὁ θεός φησι
(And again in another oracle the god says:)
Πάντας μὲν θεράποντας ἐμοὺς ὀλοῆς κακότητος—,
(“All my servants from harmful mischief——;”(518))
καί φησιν ὑπὲρ τούτων δίκην ἐπιθήσειν αὐτοῖς.
(and he says that on their behalf he will inflict punishment on the
aggressors.)
Πολλῶν δὲ εἰρημένων τοιούτων παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ, δι᾽ ὧν ἔνεστι μαθόντας ὅπως
χρὴ τιμᾶν καὶ θεραπεύειν τοὺς ἱερέας, εἰρήσεταί μοι διὰ πλειόνων ἐν
ἄλλοις· ἀπόχρη δὲ νῦν, ὅτι μὴ σχεδιάζω μηδέν, [B] ἐπιδεῖξαι τήν τε ἐκ τοῦ
θεοῦ πρόρρησιν καὶ τὸ ἐπίταγμα τῶν αὐτοῦ λόγων ἱκανὸν ἡγούμενος. εἴ τις
οὖν ἀξιόπιστον ὑπείληφεν ἐμὲ διδάσκαλον τῶν τοιούτων, αἰδεσθεὺς τὸν θεὸν
ἐκείνῳ πειθέσθω καὶ τοὺς ἱερέας τῶν θεῶν τιμάτω διαφερόντως· ὁποῖον δὲ
αὐτὸν εἶναι χρή, πειράσομαι νῦν εἰπεῖν, οὐχ ἕνεκα σοῦ· τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ εἰ μὴ
τό νῦν ἠπιστάμην, ἅμα μὲν τοῦ καθηγεμόνος, ἅμα δὲ τῶν μεγίστων θεῶν
μαρτυρούντων, ὅτι τὴν λειτουργίαν [C] ταύτην διαθήσῃ καλῶς, ὅσα γε εἰς
προαίρεσιν ἥκει τὴν σήν, οὐδ᾽ ἂν ἐτόλμησά σοι μεταδοῦναι τοσούτου
πράγματος· ἀλλ᾽ ὅπως ἔχῃς ἐντεῦθεν διδάσκειν τοὺς ἄλλους, οὐκ ἐν ταῖς
πόλεσι μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀγροῖς εὐλογώτερον καὶ ἐπ᾽ ἐξουσίας, ὡς οὐκ
οἴκοθεν αὐτὰ νοεῖς καὶ πράττεις μόνος, ἔχεις δὲ καὶ ἐμὲ σύμψηφον σεαυτῷ,
δοκοῦντα γε εἶναι διὰ τοὺς θεοὺς ἀρχιερέα μέγιστον, ἄξιον μὲν οὐδαμῶς
πράγματος τοσούτου, βουλόμενον δὲ εἶναι καὶ προσευχόμενον ἀεὶ τοῖς θεοῖς.
[D] εὖ γὰρ ἴσθι, μεγάλας ἡμῖν οἱ θεοὶ μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν ἐλπίδας
ἐπαγγέλλονται. πειστέον δὲ αὐτοῖς πάντως. ἀψευδεῖν γὰρ εἰώθασιν οὐχ ὑπὲρ
ἐκείνων μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἐν τῷ βίῳ τῷδε. οἱ δὲ διὰ περιουσίαν δυνάμεως
οἷοί [299] τε ὄντες καὶ τῆς ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ περιγενέσθαι ταραχῆς καὶ τὸ
ἄτακτον αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸ ἀλλόκοτον ἐπανορθοῦν ἆρ᾽ οὐκ ἐν ἐκείνῳ μᾶλλον, ὅπου
διῄρηται τὰ μαχόμενα, χωρισθείσης μὲν τῆς ἀθανάτου ψυχῆς, γῆς δὲ γενομένου
τοῦ νεκροῦ σώματος, ἱκανοὶ παρασχεῖν ἔσονται ταῦθ᾽ ὅσαπερ ἐπηγγείλαντο
τοῖς ἀνθρώποις; εἰδότες οὖν, ὅτι μεγάλας ἔχειν ἔδοσαν οἱ θεοὶ τοῖς ἱερεῦσι
τὰς ἀμοιβάς, ἐγγύους αὐτοὺς ἐν πᾶσι [B] τῆς ἀξίας τῶν θεῶν κατασκευάσωμεν,
ὧν πρὸς τὰ πλήθη χρὴ λέγειν δεῖγμα τὸν ἑαυτῶν ἐκφέροντας βίον.
(Now though there are many utterances of the god to the same effect, by
means of which we may learn to honour and cherish priests as we ought, I
shall speak on this subject elsewhere at greater length. But for the
present it is enough to point out that I am not inventing anything
offhand, since I think that the declaration made by the god and the
injunction expressed in his own words are sufficient. Therefore let any
man who considers that as a teacher of such matters I am worthy to be
believed show due respect to the god and obey him, and honour the priests
of the gods above all other men. And now I will try to describe what sort
of man a priest himself ought to be, though not for your especial benefit.
For if I did not already know from the evidence both of the high priest
and of the most mighty gods that you administer this priestly office
aright—at least all matters that come under your management—I should not
have ventured to confide to you a matter so important. But I do so in
order that you may be able from what I say to instruct the other priests,
not only in the cities but in the country districts also, more
convincingly and with complete freedom; since not of your own self do you
alone devise these precepts and practise them, but you have me also to
give you support, who by the grace of the gods am known as sovereign
pontiff, though I am indeed by no means worthy of so high an office;
though I desire, and moreover constantly pray to the gods that I may be
worthy. For the gods, you must know, hold out great hopes for us after
death; and we must believe them absolutely. For they are always truthful,
not only about the future life, but about the affairs of this life also.
And since in the superabundance of their power they are able both to
overcome the confusion that exists in this life and to regulate its
disorders and irregularities, will they not all the more in that other
life where conflicting things are reconciled, after the immortal soul has
been separated from the body and the lifeless body has turned to earth, be
able to bestow all those things for which they have held out hopes to
mankind? Therefore since we know that the gods have granted to their
priests a great recompense, let us make them responsible in all things for
men’s esteem of the gods, displaying their own lives as an example of what
they ought to preach to the people.)
Ἀρκτέον δὲ ἡμῖν τῆς πρὸς τοὺς θεοὺς εὐσεβείας. οὕτω γὰρ ἡμᾶς πρέπει τοῖς
θεοῖς λειτουργεῖν ὡς παρεστηκόσιν αὐτοῖς καὶ ὁρῶσι μὲν ἡμᾶς, οὐχ ὁρωμένοις
δὲ ὑφ᾽ ἡμῶν καὶ τὸ πάσης αὐγᾶς ὄμμα κρεῖττον ἄχρι [C] τῶν ἀποκρυπτομένων
ἡμῖν λογισμῶν διατετακόσιν. ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἐμὸς ὁ λόγος οὗτος ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ τοῦ
θεοῦ, διὰ πολλῶν μὲν εἰρημένος λόγων, ἐμοὶ δὲ δῆτα ἀπόχρη καὶ ἕνα
παραθεμένῳ δύο δι᾽ ἑνὸς παραστῆσαι, πῶς μὲν ὁρῶσιν οἱ θεοὶ πάντα, πῶς δὲ
῍πὶ τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν εὐφραίνονται·
(The first thing we ought to preach is reverence towards the gods. For it
is fitting that we should perform our service to the gods as though they
were themselves present with us and beheld us, and though not seen by us
could direct their gaze, which is more powerful than any light, even as
far as our hidden thoughts. And this saying is not my own(519) but the
god’s, and has been declared in many utterances, but for me surely it is
sufficient, by bringing forth one such utterance, to illustrate two things
in one, namely how the gods see all things and how they rejoice in god‐
fearing men:)
Πάντη Φοιβείη τέταται τανυσίσκοπος ἀκτίς·
[D] Καί τε διὰ στερεῶν χωρεῖ θοὸν ὄμμα πετράων,
Καὶ διὰ κυανέης ἁλὸς ἔρχεται, οὐδέ ἑ λήθει
Πληθὺς ἀστερόεσσα παλινδίνητος ἰοῦσα
Οὐρανὸν εἰς ἀκάμαντα σοφῆς κατὰ θεσμὸν ἀνάγκης,
Οὐδ᾽ ὅσα νερτερίων ὑπεδέξατο φῦλα καμόντων
Τάρταρος [300] ἀχλυόεντος(520) ὑπὸ ζόφον ἀίδος εἴσω·
Εὐσεβέσιν δὲ βροτοῖς γάνυμαι τόσον, ὅσσον Ὀλύμπῳ.
(“On all sides extend the far‐seeing rays of Phoebus. His swift
gaze pierces even through sturdy rocks, and travels through the
dark blue sea, nor is he unaware of the starry multitude that
passes in returning circuit through the unwearied heavens for ever
by the statutes of necessity; nor of all the tribes of the dead in
the underworld whom Tartarus has admitted within the misty
dwelling of Hades, beneath the western darkness. And I delight in
god‐fearing men as much even as in Olympus.”(521))
Ὅσῳ δὲ λίθου καὶ πέτρας ἅπασα μὲν ψυχή, πολὺ δὲ πλέον ἡ τῶν ἀνθρώπων
οἰκειότερον ἔχει καὶ συγγενέστερον πρὸς τοὺς θεούς, τοσούτῳ μᾶλλον εἰκός
ἐστι ῥᾷον καὶ ἐνεργέστερον δι᾽ αὐτῆς χωρεῖν τῶν θεῶν τὸ ὄμμα. [B] θέα(522)
δὲ τὴν φιλανθρωπίαν τοῦ θεοῦ γάνυσθαι φάσκοντος τῇ τῶν εὐσεβῶν ἀνδρῶν
διανοίᾳ ὅσον Ὀλύμπῳ τῷ καθαρωτάτῳ. πῶς(523) ἡμῖν οὗτως οὐχὶ καὶ ἀνάξει τὰς
ψυχὰς ἡμῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ ζόφου καὶ τοῦ Ταρτάρου μετ᾽ εὐσεβείας αὐτῷ προσιόντων;
οἶδε μὲν γὰρ καὶ τοὺς ἐν τῷ Ταρτάρῳ κατακεκλεισμένους· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκεῖνα τῆς
τῶν θεῶν ἐκτὸς πίπτει δυνάμεως· ἐπαγγέλλεται δὲ τοῖς [C] εὐσεβέσι τὸν
Ὄλυμπον ἀντὶ τοῦ Ταρτάρου. διόπερ χρὴ μάλιστα τῶν τῆς εὐσεβείας ἔργων
ἀντέχεσθαι προσιόντας μὲν τοῖς θεοῖς μετ᾽ εὐλαβείας, αἰσχρὸν μηδὲν μήτε
λέγοντας μήτε ἀκούοντας. ἁγνεύειν δὲ χρὴ τοὺς ἱερέας οὐκ ἔργων μόνον
ἀκαθάρτων οὐδὲ ἀσελγῶν πράξεων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ῥημάτων καὶ ἀκροαμάτων τοιούτων.
ἐξελατέα τοίνυν ἐστὶν ἡμῖν πάντα τὰ ἐπαχθῆ σκώμματα, πᾶσα δὲ ἀσελγῆς
ὁμιλία. καὶ ὅπως εἰδέναι ἔχῃς ὃ βούλομαι φράζειν, ἱερωμένος τις μήτε
Ἀρχίλοχον [D] ἀναγινωσκέτω μήτε Ἱππώνακτα μήτε ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα
γραφόντων. ἀποκλινέτω καὶ τῆς παλαιᾶς κωμῳδίας ὅσα τῆς τοιαύτης ἰδέας·
ἄμεινον μὲν γάρ· καὶ πάντως πρέποι δ᾽ ἂν ἡμῖν ἡ φιλοσοφία μόνη, καὶ τούτων
οἱ θεοὺς ἡγεμόνας προστησάμενοι τῆς ἑαυτῶν παιδείας, ὥσπερ(524) Πυθαγόρας
καὶ Πλάτων καὶ Ἀριστοτέλης οἵ τε ἀμφὶ Χρύσιππον καὶ Ζήνωνα. προσεκτέον μὲν
γὰρ οὔτε πᾶσιν οὔτε τοῖς πάντων δόγμασιν, [301] ἀλλὰ ἐκείνοις μόνον καὶ
ἐκείνων, ὅσα εὐσεβείας ἐστὶ ποιητικὰ καὶ διδάσκει περὶ θεῶν πρῶτον μὲν ὡς
εἰσίν, εἶτα ὡς προνοοῦσι τῶν τῇδε, καὶ ὡς ἐργάζονται μὲν οὐδὲ ἓν κακὸν
οὔτε ἀνθρώπους οὔτε ἀλλήλους φθονοῦντες καὶ βασκαίνοντες καὶ πολεμοῦντες,
ὁποῖα γράφοντες οἱ μὲν παρ᾽ ἡμῖν ποιηταὶ κατεφρονήθησαν, οἱ δὲ τῶν
Ἰουδαίων προφῆται διατεταμένως συγκατασκευάζοντες [B] ὑπὸ τῶν ἀθλίων
τούτων τῶν προσνειμάντων ἑαυτοὺς τοῖς Γαλιλαίοις θαυμάζονται.
(Now in so far as all soul, but in a much higher degree the soul of man,
is akin to and related to the gods, so much the more is it likely that the
gaze of the gods should penetrate through his soul easily and effectively.
And observe the love of the god for mankind when he says that he delights
in the disposition of god‐fearing men as much as in Olympus most pure and
bright. How then shall he not lead up our souls from the darkness and from
Tartarus, if we approach him with pious awe? And indeed he has knowledge
even of those who have been imprisoned in Tartarus—for not even that
region falls outside the power of the gods,—and to the god‐fearing he
promises Olympus instead of Tartarus. Wherefore we ought by all means to
hold fast to deeds of piety, approaching the gods with reverence, and
neither saying nor listening to anything base. And the priests ought to
keep themselves pure not only from impure or shameful acts, but also from
uttering words and hearing speeches of that character. Accordingly we must
banish all offensive jests and all licentious intercourse. And that you
may understand what I mean by this, let no one who has been consecrated a
priest read either Archilochus or Hipponax(525) or anyone else who writes
such poems as theirs. And in Old Comedy let him avoid everything of that
type—for it is better so—and indeed on all accounts philosophy alone will
be appropriate for us priests; and of philosophers only those who chose
the gods as guides of their mental discipline, like Pythagoras and Plato
and Aristotle, and the school of Chrysippus and Zeno. For we ought not to
give heed to them all nor to the doctrines of all, but only to those
philosophers and those of their doctrines that make men god‐fearing, and
teach concerning the gods, first that they exist, secondly that they
concern themselves with the things of this world, and further that they do
no injury at all either to mankind or to one another out of jealousy or
envy or enmity. I mean the sort of thing our poets in the first place have
brought themselves into disrepute by writing, and in the second place such
tales as the prophets of the Jews take pains to invent, and are admired
for so doing by those miserable men who have attached themselves to the
Galilaeans.)
Πρέποι δ᾽ ἂν ἡμῖν ἱστορίαις ἐντυγχάνειν, ὁπόσαι συνεγράφησαν ἐπὶ
πεποιημένοις τοῖς ἔργοις· ὅσα δὲ ἐστιν ἐν ἱστορίας εἴδει παρὰ τοῖς
ἔμπροσθεν ἀπηγγελμένα πλάσματα παραιτητέον, ἐρωτικὰς ὑποθέσεις καὶ πάντα
ἁπλῶς τὰ τοιαῦτα. καθάπερ γὰρ οὐδὲ ὁδὸς πᾶσα τοῖς ἱερωμένοις ἁρμόττει,
τετάχθαι δὲ χρὴ καὶ ταύτας, [C] οὕτως οὐδὲ ἀνάγνωσμα πᾶν ἱερωμένῳ πρέπει.
ἐγγίνεται γάρ τις τῇ ψυχῇ διάθεσις ὑπὸ τῶν λόγων, καὶ κατ᾽ ὀλίγον ἐγείρει
τὰς ἐπιθυμίας, εἶτα ἐξαίφνης ἀνάπτει δεινὴν φλόγα, πρὸς ἣν οἶμαι χρὴ
πόρρωθεν παρατετάχθαι.
(But for us it will be appropriate to read such narratives as have been
composed about deeds that have actually been done; but we must avoid all
fictions in the form of narrative such as were circulated among men in the
past, for instance tales whose theme is love, and generally speaking
everything of that sort. For just as not every road is suitable for
consecrated priests, but the roads they travel ought to be duly assigned,
so not every sort of reading is suitable for a priest. For words breed a
certain sort of disposition in the soul, and little by little it arouses
desires, and then on a sudden kindles a terrible blaze, against which one
ought, in my opinion, to arm oneself well in advance.)
Μήτε Ἐπικούρειος εἰσίτω λόγος μήτε Πυρρώνειος· ἤδη μὲν γὰρ καλῶς ποιοῦντες
οἱ θεοὶ καὶ ἀνῃρήκασιν, [D] ὥστε ἐπιλείπειν καὶ τὰ πλεῖστα τῶν βιβλίων.
ὅμως οὐδὲν κωλύει τύπου χάριν ἐπιμνησθῆναι μὲν καὶ τούτων, ὁποίων χρὴ
μάλιστα τοὺς ἱερέας ἀπέχεσθαι λόγων, εἰ δὲ λόγων, πολὺ πρότερον ἐννοιῶν.
οὐδὲ γὰρ οἶμαι ταὐτόν ἐστιν ἁμάρτημα γλώττης καὶ διανοίας, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκείνην
χρὴ μάλιστα θεραπεύειν, ὡς καὶ τῆς γλώττης ἐκείνῃ συνεξαμαρτανούσης.
ἐκμανθάνειν χρὴ τοὺς ὕμνους τῶν θεῶν· εἰσὶ δὲ οὗτοι πολλοὶ μὲν καὶ καλοὶ
πεποιημένοι παλαιοῖς καὶ νέοις· οὐ μὴν ἀλλ᾽ ἐκείνους πειρατέον ἐπίστασθαι
τοὺς ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς ᾀδομένους. οἱ πλεῖστοι γὰρ ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν τῶν θεῶν
ἱκετευθέντων ἐδόθησαν, [302] ὀλίγοι δέ τινες ἐποιήθησαν καὶ παρὰ ἀνθρώπων,
ὑπὸ πνεύματος ἐνθέου καὶ ψυχῆς ἀβάτου τοῖς κακοῖς ἐπὶ τῇ τῶν θεῶν τιμῇ
συγκείμενοι.
(Let us not admit discourses by Epicurus or Pyrrho; but indeed the gods
have already in their wisdom destroyed their works, so that most of their
books have ceased to be. Nevertheless there is no reason why I should not,
by way of example, mention these works too, to show what sort of
discourses priests must especially avoid; and if such discourses, then
much more must they avoid such thoughts. For an error of speech is, in my
opinion, by no means the same as an error of the mind, but we ought to
give heed to the mind first of all, since the tongue sins in company with
it. We ought to learn by heart the hymns in honour of the gods—many and
beautiful they are, composed by men of old and of our own time—though
indeed we ought to try to know also those which are being sung in the
temples. For the greater number were bestowed on us by the gods
themselves, in answer to prayer, though some few also were written by men,
and were composed in honour of the gods by the aid of divine inspiration
and a soul inaccessible to things evil.)
Ταῦτά γε ἄξιον ἐπιτηδεύειν καὶ εὔχεσθαι πολλάκις τοῖς θεοῖς ἰδίᾳ καὶ
δημοσίᾳ, μάλιστα μὲν τρὶς τῆς ἡμέρας, εἰ δὲ μή, πάντως ὄρθρου γε(526) καὶ
δείλης· οὐδὲ γὰρ εὔλογον ἄθυτον ἄγειν ἡμέραν ἢ νύκτα τὸν ἱερωμένον· [B]
ἀρχὴ δὲ ὄρθρος μὲν ἡμέρας, ὀψία δὲ νυκτός. εὔλογον δὲ ἀμφοτέρων τοῖς θεοῖς
ἀπάρχεσθαι τῶν διαστημάτων, ὅταν ἔξωθεν τῆς ἱερατικῆς ὄντες τυγχάνωμεν,
λειτουργίας· ὡς τά γε ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς, ὅσα πάτριος διαγορεύει νόμος,
φυλάττειν πρέπει, καὶ οὔτε πλέον οὔτε ἔλαττόν τι ποιητέον αὐτῶν· ἀίδια γάρ
ἐστι τὰ τῶν θεῶν· ὥστε καὶ ἡμᾶς χρὴ μιμεῖσθαι τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτῶν, [C] ἵν᾽
αὐτοὺς ἱλασκώμεθα διὰ τοῦτο πλέον.
(All this, at least, we ought to study to do, and we ought also to pray
often to the gods, both in private and in public, if possible three times
a day, but if not so often, certainly at dawn and in the evening. For it
is not meet that a consecrated priest should pass a day or a night without
sacrifice; and dawn is the beginning of the day as twilight is of the
night. And it is proper to begin both periods with sacrifice to the gods,
even when we happen not to be assigned to perform the service. For it is
our duty to maintain all the ritual of the temples that the law of our
fathers prescribes, and we ought to perform neither more nor less than
that ritual; for eternal are the gods, so that we too ought to imitate
their essential nature in order that thereby we may make them propitious.)
Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἦμεν αὐτοψυχαὶ μόναι τὸ σῶμα δὲ πρὸς μηδὲν ἡμῖν διώχλει, καλῶς
ἂν εἶχεν ἕνα τινὰ τοῖς ἱερεῦσιν ἀφορέζειν βίον· ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐχ ἱερεῦσιν
ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ(527) ἱερεῖ προσήκει μόνον, ὃ δὴ κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς
λειτουργίας ἐπιτηδευτέον, τί δὲ τῷ(528) ἱερατεύειν ἀνθρώπῳ λαχόντι
συγχωρητέον, ὅταν ἐκτὸς ᾖ τῆς ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς λειτουργίας; οἶμαι δὲ χρῆναι
[D] τὸν ἱερέα πάντων ἁγνεύσαντα νύκτα καὶ ἡμέραν, εἶτα ἄλλην ἐπ᾽ αὐτῇ
νύκτα καθηράμενον οἷς διαγορεύουσιν οἱ θεσμοὶ καθαρμοῖς οὕτως εἴσω
φοιτῶντα τοῦ ἱεροῦ μένειν ὅσας ἂν ἡμέρας ὁ νόμος κελεύῃ. τριάκοντα μὲν γὰρ
αἱ παρ᾽ ἡμῖν εἰσιν ἐν Ῥώμῃ, παρ᾽ ἄλλοις δὲ ἄλλως. εὔλογον οὖν οἶμαι μένειν
ἁπάσας ταύτας τὰς ἡμέρας ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς φιλοσοφοῦντα, καὶ μήτε εἰς οἰκίαν
βαδίζειν μήτε εἰς ἀγοράν, [303] ἀλλὰ μηδὲ ἄρχοντα πλὴν ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς
ὁρᾶν, ἐπιμελεῖσθαι δὲ τῆς περὶ τὸ θεῖον θεραπείας αὐτὸν ἐφορῶντα πάντα καὶ
διατάττοντα, πληρώσαντα δὲ τὰς ἡμέρας εἶτα ἑτέρῳ παραχωρεῖν τῆς
λειτουργίας. ἐπὶ δὲ τὸν ἀνθρώπινον τρεπομένῳ βίον ἐξέστω καὶ βαδίζειν εἰς
οἰκίαν φίλου καὶ εἰς ἑστίασιν ἀπαντᾶν παρακληθέντα, [B] μὴ πάντων, ἀλλὰ
τῶν βελτίστων· ἐν τούτῳ δὲ καὶ εἰς ἀγορὰν παρελθεῖν οὐκ ἄτοπον ὀλιγάκις,
ἡγεμόνα τε προσειπεῖν καὶ ἔθνους ἄρχοντα, καὶ τοῖς εὐλόγως δεομένοις ὅσα
ἐνδέχεται βοηθῆσαι.
(Now if we were pure soul alone, and our bodies did not hinder us in any
respect, it would be well to prescribe one sort of life for priests. But
since what he should practise when on duty concerns the individual priest
alone, not priests absolutely, what should we concede to a man who has
received the office of priest, on occasions when he is not actually
engaged in service in the temples? I think that a priest ought to keep
himself pure from all contamination, for a night and a day, and then after
purifying himself for another night following on the first, with such
rites of purification as the sacred laws prescribe, he should under these
conditions enter the temple and remain there for as many days as the law
commands. (Thirty is the number with us at Rome, but in other places the
number varies.) It is proper then, I think, that he should remain
throughout all these days in the sacred precincts, devoting himself to
philosophy, and that he should not enter a house or a market‐place, or see
even a magistrate, except in the precincts, but should concern himself
with his service to the god, overseeing and arranging everything in
person; and then, when he has completed the term of days, he should retire
from his office in favour of another. And when he turns again to the
ordinary life of mankind, he may be allowed to visit a friend’s house,
and, when invited, to attend a feast, but not on the invitation of all but
only of persons of the highest character. And at this time there would be
nothing out of the way in his going occasionally to the market‐place and
conversing with the governor or the chief magistrate of his tribe, and
giving aid, as far as lies in his power, to those who have a good reason
for needing it.)
Πρέπει δὲ οἶμαι τοῖς ἱερῦσιν ἔνδον μέν, ὅτε λειτουργοῦσιν, ἐσθῆτι χρῆσθαι
μεγαλοπρεπεστάτῃ, τῶν ἱερῶν δὲ ἔξω τῇ συνήθει δίχα πολυτελείας· οὐδὲ γὰρ
εὔλογον τοῖς δεδομένοις ἡμῖν ἐπὶ τιμῇ θεῶν εἰς κενοδοξίαν καταχρῆσθαι καὶ
τύφον μάταιον. [C] ὅθεν ἀφεκτέον ἡμῖν ἐσθῆτος πολυτελεστέρας ἐν ἀγορᾷ καὶ
κόμπου ἢ καὶ πάσης ἁπλῶς ἀλαζονείας. οἱ γοῦν θεοὶ τὴν τοσαύτην ἀγασθέντες
Ἀμφιαράου σωφροσύνην, ἐπειδὴ τοῦ στρατεύματος ἐκείνου κατεδίκασαν φθορὰν
εἰδώς τε αὐτὸς συνεστρατεύετο καὶ ἦν ἄφευκτον αὐτῷ διὰ τοῦτο τὸ
πεπρωμένον, ἀπέφηναν αὐτὸν ἄλλον ἐξ ἄλλου καὶ μετέστησαν εἰς λῆξιν θείαν.
πάντων γοῦν τῶν ἐπιστρατευσάντων ταῖς Θήβαις ἐπὶ τῶν ἀσπίδων [D] πρὶν
κατεργάσασθαι σήματα γραφόντων καὶ ἐγειρόντων τὰ τρόπαια κατὰ τῆς
συμφορᾶς(529) τῶν Καδμείων, ὁ τῶν θεῶν ὁμιλητὴς ἄσημα μὲν ἐπεστράτευεν
ἔχων ὅπλα, πρᾳότητα δὲ καὶ σωφροσύνην ὡς καὶ(530) ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων
ἐμαρτυρεῖτο. διόπερ οἶμαι χρὴ καὶ τοὺς ἱερέας ἡμᾶς τὰ περὶ τὰς ἐσθῆτας
σωφρονεῖν,(531) ἵνα τυγχάνωμεν εὐμενῶν τῶν θεῶν· ὡς οὐ μικρά γε εἰς αὐτοὺς
ἐξαμαρτάνομεν δημούμενοι τὰς ἱερὰς ἐσθῆτας [304] καὶ δημοσιεύοντες καὶ
παρέχοντες ἁπλῶς περιβλέπειν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ὥσπερ τι θαυμαστόν. εἰ γὰρ
τοῦτο(532) συμβαίνει, πολλοὶ πελάζουσιν ἡμῖν οὐ καθαροί, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο
χραίνεται τὰ τῶν θεῶν σύμβολα. τὸ δὲ καὶ ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς οὐχ ἱερατικῶς ζῶντας
ἱερέων ἐσθῆτα περικεῖσθαι πόσης ἐστὶ παρανομίας καὶ καταφρονήσεως εἰς τοὺς
θεούς; εἰρήσεται μὲν οὖν ἡμῖν καὶ περὶ τούτων ἐν ἄλλοις(533) δι᾽
ἀκριβείας· νυνὶ δὲ ὡς τύπῳ πρὸς σὲ γράφω περὶ αὐτῶν.
(And it is in my opinion fitting for priests to wear the most magnificent
dress when they are within the temple performing the services, but when
they are outside the sacred precincts to wear ordinary dress, without any
extravagance. For it is not rational that we should misuse, in empty
conceit and vain ostentation, what has been given to us for the honour of
the gods. And for this reason we ought in the market place to abstain from
too costly dress and from outward show, and in a word from every sort of
pretentiousness. For consider how the gods, because they admired the
perfect moderation of Amphiaraus,(534) after they had decreed the
destruction of that famous army—and he, though he knew that it would be
so, went with the expedition and therefore did not escape his fated
end,—the gods I say transformed him completely from what he had been, and
removed him to the sphere of the gods. For all the others who were in the
expedition against Thebes engraved a device on their shields before they
had conquered the enemy, and erected trophies to celebrate the downfall of
the Cadmeans; but he, the associate of the gods, when he went to war had
arms with no device; but gentleness he had, and moderation, as even the
enemy bore witness. Hence I think that we priests ought to show moderation
in our dress, in order that we may win the goodwill of the gods, since it
is no slight offence that we commit against them when we wear in public
the sacred dress and make it public property, and in a word give all men
an opportunity to stare at it as though it were something marvellous. For
whenever this happens, many who are not purified come near us, and by this
means the symbols of the gods are polluted. Moreover what lawlessness it
is, what arrogance towards the gods for us ourselves when we are not
living the priestly life to wear the priestly dress! However, of this too
I shall speak more particularly in another place; and what I am writing to
you at the moment is only a mere outline of the subject.)
[B] Τοῖς ἀσελγέσι τούτοις θεάτροις τῶν ἱερέων μηδεὶς μηδαμοῦ παραβαλλέτω
μηδὲ εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν εἰσαγέτω τὴν ἑαυτοῦ· πρέπει γὰρ οὐδαμῶς. καὶ εἰ μὲν
οἷόν τε ἦν ἐξελάσαι παντάπασιν αὐτὰ τῶν θεάτρων, ὥστε αὐτὰ πάλιν ἀποδοῦναι
τῷ Διονύσῳ καθαρὰ γενόμενα, πάντως ἂν ἐπειράθην αὐτὸ προθύμως
κατασκευάσαι. [C] νυνὶ δὲ οἰόμενος τοῦτο οὔτε δυνατὸν οὔτε ἄλλως, εἰ καὶ
δυνατὸν φανείη, συμφέρον ἂν αὐτὸ γενέσθαι, ταύτης μὲν ἀπεσχόμην παντάπασι
τῆς φιλοτιμίας· ἀξιῶ δὲ τοὺς ἱερέας ὑποχωρῆσαι καὶ ἀποστῆναι τῷ δήμῳ τῆς
ἐν τοῖς θεάτροις ἀσελγείας. μηδεὶς οὖν ἱερεὺς εἰς θέατρον εἰσίτω, μηδὲ
ἐχέτω(535) φίλον θυμελικὸν μηδὲ ἁρματηλάτην, μηδὲ ὀρχηστὴς μηδὲ μῖμος
αὐτοῦ τῇ θύρᾳ προσίτω· τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἀγῶσιν [D] ἐπιτρέπω μόνον τῷ βουλομένῳ
παραβάλλειν, ὧν ἀπηγόρευται μετέχειν οὐκ ἀγωνίας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ θέας ταῖς
γυναιξίν. ὑπὲρ δὲ τῶν κυνηγεσίων τί δεῖ καὶ λέγειν, ὅσα ταῖς πόλεσιν εἴσω
τῶν θεάτρων συντελεῖται, ὡς ἀφεκτέον τούτων ἐστὶν οὐχ ἱερεῦσι μόνον, ἀλλὰ
καὶ παισὶν ἱερέων;
(No priest must anywhere be present at the licentious theatrical shows of
the present day, nor introduce one into his own house; for that is
altogether unfitting. Indeed if it were possible to banish such shows
absolutely from the theatres so as to restore to Dionysus those theatres
pure as of old, I should certainly have endeavoured with all my heart to
bring this about; but as it is, since I thought that this is impossible,
and that even if it should prove to be possible it would not on other
accounts be expedient, I forebore entirely from this ambition. But I do
demand that priests should withdraw themselves from the licentiousness of
the theatres and leave them to the crowd. Therefore let no priest enter a
theatre or have an actor or a chariot‐driver for his friend; and let no
dancer or mime even approach his door. And as for the sacred games, I
permit anyone who will to attend those only in which women are forbidden
not only to compete but even to be spectators. With regard to the hunting
shows with dogs which are performed in the cities inside the theatres,
need I say that not only priests but even the sons of priests must keep
away from them?)