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But nevertheless, even if we have left anything out, by pursuing the argument further we shall find it. Come now, since each table has taken its proper form well for us, let us see where you will recline. For I will go to that table of the blind and the lame; but perhaps the majority of you will choose this one, the one of the generals, the bright and brilliant one. Let us see then which is full of the greater pleasure; for let us not yet examine the things to come; for in those things, this table of mine prevails. Why? Because this one has Christ reclining at it, but that one has men; this one the Master, that one the servants. But not yet these things, but let us see which has the greater pleasure in the present. And in this respect, therefore, this pleasure is greater; for to recline with a king brings greater pleasure than to be with the servants. But let us also set this aside, and examine the matter itself in itself. Therefore I, and those with me who have chosen this table, will both say and hear everything with much freedom and good cheer; but you, trembling and fearing, and being in awe of those reclining, will not even dare to stretch out a hand, as if you had entered a schoolroom and not a breakfast, trembling as if before stern masters. But it is not so with those others. But the matters of honor, one says, are great. And yet I am in greater honor; for your own worthlessness appears greater, when, though sharing the same table, you put forth the words of slaves. For a slave then especially appears a slave, when he is reclining with his master. For that man is where it is not proper for him to be, not having so much dignity from the intimacy, as he has humiliation; for then he is exceedingly humbled. And one might see a slave being splendid by himself, and a poor man being splendid by himself, not when he is walking with a rich man; for what is lowly, when it is near what is high, then it appears lowly, and the comparison shows the lowly to be lowlier, not higher. So also to recline with those men shows you to be of less account, but not us. Therefore, we have the advantage in these two things, in freedom and in honor, than which nothing is equal in the matter of pleasure. For I for my part would rather partake of bread with freedom, than of ten thousand delicacies with slavery. For better, it says, is a meal of vegetables with friendship and grace, than a stalled ox with enmity. For whatever those men say, it is necessary for those present to praise it, or to give offense, having taken up the position of parasites, or rather, being worse than them. For they, even if with shame and being insulted, still have some share of boldness; but you do not even have this. But the worthlessness is so great; for you are afraid and cower; but honor no longer exists. Therefore that table is deprived of all pleasure, but this one is full of all good cheer. 62.306 eʹ. But let us also examine the nature of the foods themselves. For there it is necessary even for one who is unwilling to be burst with much wine, but here it is not possible to eat and drink unwillingly. So that there, the pleasure from the quality of the foods is taken away both by the preceding dishonor, and the disgust from gluttony. For gluttony does not corrupt and pain our bodies less than hunger, but even much more grievously; and whomever you wish to give me, I burst him more easily with gluttony than with hunger. For truly this is more bearable than that; because a person might endure hunger for even twenty days, but gluttony not even for two alone; and by struggling continually with this, those in the fields are in health and do not need physicians; but this, I mean gluttony, they could not endure without constantly calling for physicians; or rather, the tyranny of this has often overcome even their help. And so for the sake of pleasure, this one holds the first place. For if honor is sweeter than being dishonored, and to be in authority than to be subject, and to be confident than to tremble and fear, and to enjoy what is sufficient than what is beyond the

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Πλὴν ἀλλὰ, καὶ εἴ τι παρελίπομεν, ἐπεξαγαγόντες τὸν λόγον εὑρήσομεν. Φέρε οὖν, ἐπειδὴ τὸ πρόσφορον καλῶς ἡμῖν ἀπέλαβε σχῆμα ἑκάστη τράπεζα, ἴδωμεν ποῦ ὑμεῖς κατακλιθήσεσθε. Ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ ἐπ' ἐκείνην ἄπειμι τὴν τῶν τυφλῶν, τὴν τῶν χωλῶν· ὑμῶν δὲ τάχα οἱ πλείους ταύτην αἱρήσονται, τὴν τῶν στρατηγῶν, τὴν φαιδρὰν καὶ λαμπράν. Ἴδωμεν οὖν ποία πλείονος γέμει τῆς ἡδονῆς· μήπω γὰρ τὰ μέλλοντα ἐξετάσωμεν· ἐν ἐκείνοις μὲν γὰρ αὕτη κρατεῖ ἡ ἐμή. ∆ιὰ τί; Ὅτι αὕτη μὲν ἔχει τὸν Χριστὸν ἀνακείμενον, ἐκείνη δὲ ἀνθρώπους· αὕτη τὸν ∆εσπότην, ἐκείνη τοὺς δούλους. Ἀλλὰ μήπω ταῦτα, ἀλλ' ἴδωμεν ποία πλείονα ἔχει τὴν ἡδονὴν τὴν ἐν τῷ παρόντι. Καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο μὲν οὖν πλείων αὕτη ἡ ἡδονή· τὸ γὰρ μετὰ βασιλέως ἀναπεσεῖν, πλείονα φέρει τὴν ἡδονὴν τοῦ μετὰ τῶν οἰκετῶν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦτο ὑπεξέλωμεν, αὐτὸ καθ' ἑαυτὸ τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐξετάσωμεν. Οὐκοῦν ἐγὼ, καὶ οἱ σὺν ἐμοὶ ταύτην ἑλόμενοι τὴν τράπεζαν, μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς ἐλευθερίας καὶ τῆς θυμηδίας καὶ ἐροῦμεν ἅπαντα, καὶ ἀκουσόμεθα· ὑμεῖς δὲ τρέμοντες καὶ δεδοικότες, καὶ τοὺς ἀνακειμένους αἰδούμενοι, οὐδὲ ἐκτεῖναι χεῖρα τολμήσετε, καθάπερ εἰς παιδαγωγεῖον, ἀλλ' οὐκ εἰς ἄριστον εἰσελθόντες, καθάπερ δεσπότας δεινοὺς τρέμοντες. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐκεῖνοι οὕτως. Ἀλλὰ τὰ τῆς τιμῆς, φησὶ, μεγάλα. Καὶ μὴν ἐγὼ ἐν πλείονί εἰμι τιμῇ· ὑμῶν μὲν γὰρ ἡ εὐτέλεια μείζων φαίνεται, ὅταν καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς τραπέζης κοινωνοῦντες, δούλων προβάλλησθε ῥήματα. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ δοῦλος τότε μάλιστα φαίνεται, ὅταν μετὰ τοῦ δεσπότου κατακείμενος ᾖ. Ἐκεῖνος μὲν γὰρ, ἔνθα μὴ προσῆκεν αὐτῷ, γίνεται, οὐ τοσαύτην ἀπὸ τῆς οἰκειώσεως ἔχων σεμνότητα, ὅσην τὴν ταπείνωσιν· σφόδρα γὰρ τότε ταπεινοῦται. Καὶ τὸν δοῦλον ἴδοι τις ἂν λαμπρὸν ὄντα καθ' ἑαυτὸν, καὶ τὸν πένητα λαμπρὸν ὄντα καθ' ἑαυτὸν, μὴ ὅταν μετὰ πλουσίου βαδίζῃ· τὸ γὰρ ταπεινὸν, ὅταν ἐγγὺς ᾖ τοῦ ὑψηλοῦ, τότε φαίνεται ταπεινὸν, καὶ ἡ παράθεσις τὸ ταπεινὸν ταπεινότερον δείκνυσιν, οὐχ ὑψηλότερον. Οὕτω καὶ ὑμᾶς εὐτελεστέρους δείκνυσι τὸ μετ' ἐκείνων ἀνακεῖσθαι, ἀλλ' οὐχ ἡμᾶς. ∆ύο μὲν οὖν τούτοις πλεονεκτοῦμεν, τῇ τε ἐλευθερίᾳ, καὶ τῇ τιμῇ, ὧν οὐδὲν ἴσον εἰς ἡδονῆς λόγον ἐστί. Βουλήσομαι γὰρ ἂν ἔγωγε ἄρτου μεταλαβεῖν μετ' ἐλευθερίας, ἢ μυρίων ἐδεσμάτων μετὰ δουλείας. Κρεῖσσον γὰρ, φησὶ, ξενισμὸς λαχάνων πρὸς φιλίαν καὶ χάριν, ἢ βοῦς ἀπὸ φάτνης μετ' ἔχθρας. Ὃ γὰρ ἂν εἴπωσιν ἐκεῖνοι, ἀνάγκη τοὺς παρόντας ἐπαινεῖν, ἢ προσκρούειν, παρασίτων τάξιν ἀναδεδεγμένους, μᾶλλον δὲ ἐκείνων χείρους ὄντας. Τοῖς μὲν γὰρ εἰ καὶ μετ' αἰσχύνης καὶ τοῦ ὑβρίζεσθαι, ὅμως μέτεστι παῤῥησίας· ὑμῖν δὲ οὐδὲ τούτου. Ἀλλ' ἡ μὲν εὐτέλεια τοσαύτη· δεδοίκατε γὰρ καὶ κατεπτήχατε· ἡ δὲ τιμὴ οὐκέτι. Οὐκοῦν πάσης μὲν ἡδονῆς ἀπεστέρηται ἡ τράπεζα ἐκείνη, πάσης δὲ αὕτη γέμει θυμηδίας. 62.306 εʹ. Ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ἐδεσμάτων τὴν φύσιν ἐξετάσωμεν. Ἐκεῖ μὲν γὰρ ἀνάγκη καὶ μὴ βουλομένῳ διαῤῥήγνυσθαι τῷ πολλῷ οἴνῳ, ἐνταῦθα δὲ οὐκ ἔνι μὴ βουλόμενον ἐσθίειν καὶ πίνειν. Ὥστε ἐκεῖ μὲν τὴν ἐκ τῆς τῶν σιτίων ποιότητος ἡδονὴν ἥ τε προλαβοῦσα ἀτιμία ἀφαιρεῖται, καὶ ἡ ἐκ τῆς πλησμονῆς ἀηδία. Οὐ γὰρ ἧττον λιμοῦ τὰ σώματα ἡμῖν ἡ πλησμονὴ διαφθείρει καὶ ὀδυνᾷ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλῷ χαλεπώτερον· καὶ ὃν ἂν θέλῃς μοι δοῦναι, εὐκολώτερον αὐτὸν διαῤῥηγνύω τῇ πλησμονῇ, τοῦ λιμοῦ. Ὄντως γὰρ τοῦτο ἐκείνου φορητότερον· ὅτι λιμὸν μὲν ἄν τις καὶ εἴκοσιν ἡμέρας ἐνέγκοι, πλησμονὴν δὲ οὐδὲ δύο μόνας· καὶ τούτῳ μὲν προσπαλαίοντες διηνεκῶς οἱ ἐν τοῖς ἀγροῖς, ἐν ὑγείᾳ εἰσὶ καὶ οὐ δέονται ἰατρῶν· ταύτην δὲ, τὴν πλησμονὴν λέγω, οὐκ ἂν ἐνέγκοιεν μὴ συνεχῶς καλοῦντες ἰατρούς· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐκείνων βοήθειαν ἤλεγξε πολλάκις ἡ ταύτης τυραννίς. Καὶ ἡδονῆς μὲν οὖν ἕνεκεν αὕτη τὰ πρῶτα ἔχει. Εἰ γὰρ ἡ τιμὴ τοῦ ἀτιμάζεσθαι ἡδίων, καὶ τὸ ἐν ἐξουσίᾳ εἶναι τοῦ ὑποτάσσεσθαι, καὶ τὸ θαῤῥεῖν τοῦ τρέμειν καὶ δεδοικέναι, καὶ τὸ τῶν ἀρκούντων ἀπολαύειν τοῦ πέρα τοῦ