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is of the lower cycle and of dreamlike pleasure; but I cling to reason alone; and I do not blame the toils on land and sea, which have procured these for me. At any rate, may I have, and whoever is my friend, the power of words; which I have embraced and do embrace as the first thing after the First—I mean divine things, and the hopes beyond what is seen. So that if "all that is one's own is pressing," according to Pindar, a discourse about these things is necessary for me; and it is most just, as I know not if anything else is, to repay to learning with learning the thanks due for learning.

ΡΑʹ. Whence then did this occur to you, O most frivolous and insatiable of all men, to deprive Christians of learning? For this was not one of the threatened things, but one of the things already enacted. Whence, and from what cause? What Hermes of eloquence, as you yourself might say, brought this to your mind? What evil Telchines and envious demons? If you wish, we will also present the cause of this. For it was necessary that you, who attempted many lawless evils, should at last be led to this, and manifestly fall into your own trap; so that in that very thing in which you thought you ought most to be wise, you might unknowingly act most disgracefully, and be condemned for irrationality. For answer: what does your decree mean? and what is the reason for this innovation concerning learning? And if you seem to say anything just, we will be grieved, but we will not find fault; for just as we have learned to conquer with reason, so also to be conquered well.

ΡΒʹ. "Learning is ours," he says, "and Hellenism, 35.637 to which belongs also the worship of the gods; but yours is irrationality and rusticity; and nothing beyond 'Believe' is of your wisdom." I do not think, however, that those among you who philosophize according to Pythagoras would laugh at this, for whom 'He himself said it' is the first and greatest of their dogmas, and more to be chosen than the Golden, or rather leaden, Verses. For after the first philosophy of silence, much hymned by those initiated in his ways, so that the measures of speech might be practiced by being silent, it was the rule, he says, for those asked about any of the dogmas, and then declaring them, when a reason was also demanded, to answer nothing else, but that this had been decided by Pythagoras; and that the reason for the dogma was what had occurred to him, being irresponsible and unexamined; the 'He himself said it' coming to the same thing as our 'Believe,' in other syllables and words, even if you do not cease mocking and deriding this. For our principle means that it is not permitted to disbelieve the things said by God-bearing men, but that their credibility is the proof of the word, stronger than any logical and contradictory power.

ΡΓʹ. But let this of ours also be open to abuse; but how will you show that learning belongs to you? And if it is yours, how is it that we have no share in it, according to your legislation and irrationality? For to what does "Hellenism" belong, and how is it said and understood? Let me distinguish for you the meaning of the name, O you who are concerned with homonyms and the things signified, whether different things by one appellation, or the same things by different ones, or different things by different ones. For you will say this belongs either to religion, or clearly to the nation, and to those who first discovered the power of the dialect. If then of religion, show where and among which priests it is lawful to Hellenize, just as it is to sacrifice certain things and 35.640 to certain of the demons; for neither are the same things for all, nor all things for one, nor in the same manner, as seems right to your hierophants and to the experts in sacrifices. And where, as for the Lindians, is it pious to curse Bouthoina, and for this to be an honor to the god, these reproaches against him? or for the Tauri to murder strangers, or for the Laconians to be scourged at the altars, or for the Phrygians to be castrated, charmed by flutes, and to be unmanned by leaping, or for some to practice pederasty, or for others fornication, or whatever other mysteries there are, that I may not speak of each one, is to Hellenize in this way the prerogative of some god or demon? And yet even if this were so, it is not yet clear,

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τῆς κάτω περιφορᾶς ἐστι καὶ ὀνειρώδους τέρψεως· τοῦ λόγου δὲ περιέχομαι μόνου· καὶ οὐ μέμφομαι χερσαίοις τε πόνοις καὶ θαλασσίοις, οἳ τούτους μοι συνεπόρισαν. Ἐμοὶ γοῦν εἴη, καὶ ὅστις ἐμοὶ φίλος, τὸ τῶν λόγων κράτος· ὃ πρῶτον μετὰ τὸ πρῶτον ἠσπασάμην τε καὶ ἀσπάζο μαι, τὰ θεῖα λέγω, καὶ τὰς ἔξω τῶν ὁρωμένων ἐλπίδας. Ὥστε εἰ τὸ οἰκεῖον πιέζει πᾶν, κατὰ Πίνδαρον, ἀναγκαῖος ὁ περὶ τούτων ἔμοιγε λόγος· καὶ μάλιστα δίκαιον, ὡς οὐκ οἶδ' εἴ τι τῶν ἄλ λων, λόγῳ τὴν ὑπὲρ λόγων χάριν ἀποδιδόναι τοῖς λόγοις.

ΡΑʹ. Πόθεν οὖν ἐπῆλθέ σοι τοῦτο, ὦ κουφότατε πάν των καὶ ἀπληστότατε, τὸ λόγων ἀποστερῆσαι Χρι στιανούς; τοῦτο γὰρ οὐ τῶν ἀπειλουμένων ἦν, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἤδη νενομοθετημένων. Πόθεν, κἀκ τίνος αἰτίας; Τίς Ἑρμῆς σοι λόγιος, ὡς ἂν αὐτὸς εἴποις, τοῦτ' ἐπὶ νοῦν ἤγαγε; Τίνες Τελχῖνες πονηροὶ, καὶ βάσκανοι δαίμονες; Εἰ βούλει, καὶ τούτου τὴν αἰτίαν ἡμεῖς παραστήσομεν. Ἔδει γάρ σε πολλοῖς ἐγχειροῦντα καὶ παρανόμοις κακοῖς, εἰς τοῦτο ὑπαχθῆναι τελευτῶντα, καὶ σαυτῷ προδήλως περι πεσεῖν· ἵν' ᾧ μάλιστα φρονεῖν ᾤου δεῖν, τούτῳ μάλιστα λάθῃς ἐνασχημονῶν, καὶ ἀλογίαν κατακρι νόμενος. Ἀπόκριναι γάρ· τί σοι τὸ δόγμα βού λεται; καὶ τίς ὁ λόγος τῆς περὶ λόγους καινοτομίας; Κἄν τι δίκαιον δόξῃς λέγειν, ἀνιασόμεθα μὲν, οὐ μεμψόμεθα δέ· καὶ γὰρ ὥσπερ σὺν λόγῳ νικᾷν, οὕτω καὶ νικᾶσθαι καλῶς μεμαθήκαμεν.

ΡΒʹ. Ἡμέτεροι, φησὶν, οἱ λόγοι, καὶ τὸ Ἑλλη 35.637 νίζειν, ὧν καὶ τὸ σέβειν θεούς· ὑμῶν δὲ ἡ ἀλογία καὶ ἡ ἀγροικία· καὶ οὐδὲν ὑπὲρ τὸ, Πί στευσον, τῆς ὑμετέρας ἐστὶ σοφίας. Οὐκ ἂν μὲν, οἶμαι, τούτου καταγελάσαιεν οἱ παρ' ὑμῖν τὰ Πυθα γόρου φιλοσοφοῦντες, οἷς τὸ, Αὐτὸς ἔφα, τὸ πρῶ τον καὶ μέγιστόν ἐστι τῶν δογμάτων, καὶ τῶν Χρυ σῶν ἐπῶν, εἴτ' οὖν μολιβῶν αἱρετώτερον. Μετὰ γὰρ τὴν πρώτην καὶ πολυύμνητον τοῖς τὰ ἐκείνου τελουμένοις φιλοσοφίαν τῆς σιωπῆς, ἵνα λόγου μέτρα τῷ σιωπᾷν ἀσκηθῶσιν, ἔννομον, φησὶν, ἦν ὁτιοῦν τῶν δογμάτων ἐρωτωμένοις, ἔπειτ' ἀποφαινο μένοις, ἀπαιτουμένου καὶ λόγου, ἄλλο μὲν μηδὲν ἀποκρίνεσθαι, ὅτι δὲ Πυθαγόρᾳ τοῦτ' εἴη δεδογμέ νον· καὶ λόγον εἶναι τοῦ δόγματος, τὸ παραστὰν ἐκείνῳ, ἀνεύθυνόν τε καὶ ἀβασάνιστον· εἰς ταυτὸν ἥκοντος τοῦ, Αὐτὸς ἔφα, τῷ παρ' ἡμῖν, Πίστευσον, ἐν ἄλλαις συλλαβαῖς τε καὶ ῥήμασι, κἂν εἰ μὴ παύοισθε κωμῳδοῦντες τοῦτο καὶ διασύ ροντες. Βούλεται γὰρ ἡμῖν ὁ λόγος μὴ ἐξεῖναι δια πιστεῖν τοῖς ὑπὸ τῶν θεοφόρων ἀνδρῶν εἰρημένοις, ἀλλ' ἀπόδειξιν εἶναι τοῦ λόγου τὸ ἐκείνων ἀξιόπιστον, πάσης δυνάμεως λογικῆς καὶ ἀντιλογικῆς ἰσχυ ρότερον.

ΡΓʹ. Ἔστω δὲ καὶ τοῦτο τῶν ἡμετέρων εὐεπη ρέαστον· πῶς δὲ σὺ δείξεις τοὺς λόγους σοι διαφέροντας; Εἰ δὲ καὶ σοὺς, πῶς τούτων ἡμῖν οὐ μετὸν κατὰ τὴν σὴν νομοθεσίαν καὶ ἀλογίαν; τίνος γὰρ τοῦ Ἑλληνίζειν εἰσὶν οἱ λόγοι, καὶ τοῦ πῶς λεγομένου καὶ νοουμένου; Ἵν' ἐγώ σοι διέλω τὴν τοῦ ὀνόματος δύναμιν, ὦ περὶ τὰς ὁμωνυ μίας ἔχων σὺ, καὶ τὰ δηλούμενα, ἢ μιᾷ προσηγορίᾳ διάφορα, ἢ διαφόροις ταυτὰ, ἢ ἑτέραις ἕτερα· ἢ γὰρ τῆς θρησκείας εἶναι τοῦτο φήσεις, ἢ τοῦ ἔθ νους δηλαδὴ, καὶ τῶν πρῶτον εὑρισκομένων τῆς διαλέκτου τὴν δύναμιν. Εἰ μὲν οὖν τῆς θρησκείας, δεῖξον ποῦ καὶ παρὰ τίσι τῶν ἱερέων τὸ Ἑλλη νίζειν ἔννομον, ὥσπερ καὶ τὸ θύειν ἔστιν ἃ καὶ 35.640 οἷς τῶν δαιμόνων· οὔτε γὰρ πᾶσι τὰ αὐτὰ, οὔτε ἑνὶ τὰ πάντα, οὔτε τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον, ὡς τοῖς παρ' ὑμῖν ἱεροφάνταις δοκεῖ, καὶ τοῖς τῶν θυσιῶν τεχνολό γοις. Ποῦ δὲ, ὥσπερ Λινδίοις, εὐσεβὲς τὸ καταρᾶσθαι τῷ Βουθοίνᾳ, καὶ τοῦτο εἶναι θεοῦ τιμὴν, τὰς εἰς αὐτὸν λοιδορίας; ἢ Ταύροις τὸ ξενοκτονεῖν, ἢ Λάκωσι τὸ ἐπιβώμια ξαίνεσθαι, ἢ Φρυξὶ τὸ κατατέ μνεσθαι ὑπ' αὐλῶν κηλουμένους, καὶ ἀνανδρουμέ νους ὑφ' ἅλματος, ἢ τὸ παιδεραστεῖν ἄλλοις, ἢ τὸ πορνεύειν ἑτέροις, ἢ ὅσα τῶν ἄλλων μυστηρίων ἐστὶν, ἵνα μὴ λέγω καθ' ἕκαστον, οὕτω δὲ καὶ τὸ Ἑλληνίζειν ἔκκριτόν τινος θεῶν ἢ δαιμόνων; Καίτοι κἂν εἰ τοῦτ' ἦν, οὔπω δῆλον,