Panegyric orations

 To run against you from an opposing lot, he endured but the pentathlon was accomplished for you and the pancratium was completed with no one having c

 The votes, i imagine the divine judgment and i refer to the incorruptible tribunal. when i test you in elections, i admire your intelligence and your

 From afar it shines on those landing and extends a hand to those from the sea, escorting them to rome most painlessly. what in addition to these does

 Using it and bending and curving it towards the drooping jaw, i remember the indian's eyebrow at this, how he held it more than a cubit above his head

 And to a rival. let others, then, measure you against and compare you with whomever they wish, but i, though i seem to make a strange and dissimilar c

 In prose, not in meters and poems or perhaps many are present, but they have no account of the matter, as if it were of no account to them. and time

 The hegemony of his father, with kingdoms overthrown and not a few changes having occurred in both, those who, having exchanged their fortune for the

 He took counsel of opposing nations, but by making everything purchasable with gold and royal splendors, from this he gained the goodwill of all, and

 Opened, and flung wide the very gates of the soul, and associated with wicked and corrupt lives. for he did not at once know the whole line of the fam

 To work deeds of injustice for he was angry with those who did wrong and would punish them. but when he began to be sick and his body was wasting awa

 Not a magnificent spirit, not a musical and graceful speech, nothing else of the sort that knows how to beautify the soul and the nature of the body.

 Drives a sphere, and the other the superterrestrial one, so that the one might wind its own zone in a single cycle, and the other in twelve cycles, an

 Defining the virtues by its power, and practicing the higher geometry. for this, as proclus also says, has occupied the middle ground between the indi

 The power of the kingdom came to him, besides these the life of david among the flocks, the pursuit, those many dangers into which he fell but was not

 He locks up the monarchy into a tyranny, having exchanged one evil for another. justice is not quiet, it kindles the coals, it sends the arrow, the wi

 I call it his girdle-and he draws away no small cavalry and infantry force from old rome, he adds to these also the best army of the east, and no smal

 An angel wrought a more manifest victory. i have something more to say than those wonders there the cross was in types and images, a bronze serpent s

 You, o king the more abundantly you pour out benefits upon us, the more you increase by being filled. from this, no one has been left out of such wea

 With the eyes, then poured out and dissolved, but better and higher than all that is visible. but, o emperor—for i repeat the title to you and call it

 You fill the western beacon, neither grudging us your rays nor altering the color of your disk, but the more time increases the distances, the more be

 The rising of the sun, the land upon which it immediately rises, so that, if any of our people wished, having gone there he could, not with geometrica

 I am an unskillful chronicler of your deeds and erring in my timing, and i do not have a nature that strikes out in both directions at once. for you a

 To wish. for you both comprehend the present and conjecture the future and discover the unseen, discerning character from eyebrows and eyelids, so tha

 To speak? -unseemly even in his appearance, made of tin or dipped in bile and altogether counterfeit gold, but since he was in the midst of dangers, t

 With stones lying along each side, so that the conjoined may seem continuous and the well-fitted of one nature. behold for me the heights and beauties

 But here is a distinct hand divided into five rosy branches. but this is a most unerring testimony of that godlike soul. but do you wish to see some t

 Transcending substance and holding the principles of the forms folded together and least of all divided from the one. and you, being such, do you not

 The fountains of good deeds flowed, as if from a sheer rock, having received the impetus for their flowing these proclaimed you by reputation even be

 A guide, so also there an arbiter of the administrations, that i may suit you for both, both speaking your deeds and doing the words of your administr

 P]ortions are deprived of praise, but no one of all men has been suited to all words of praise. but to you so much is granted [against] all in all thi

 To bring to the highest point of keenness, or your soul which was not [shattered by] trials, but also most nobly endured through the magnitude of the

 And they were torn away, and their manner altered their nature [....], and they have remained, and after the separation, being both nourished and fatt

 But the love of art and the care concerning the divine sanctuaries, what demostheneses or the best of the writers could describe and praise? how beau

 Having surpassed in his heroic deeds him and the kings up to you, but in his plans he is recorded as being less than his accomplishments, winning in [

 Less, you have given the first place to reason over passion, and you have established the one like some foundation upon the acropolis, but the other y

 Having considered what is seen, but when i also behold the tomb of the queen, and i behold it often whenever i wish to console some hardship of fortun

 To comprehend in a speech. for to whom could the unattainable be attainable, even if he were rich in the homeric power for speeches, or the herodotan

 Admiring and in return is eager to make an image and someone already having constructed a stele for you inscribed the gentle one. therefore solomon

 Much praise and measured against all of time. how then could i summarize the whole in a few words? i will speak, therefore, a little of your virtues,

 Everyone rejoices and exults with the one who has taken up your encomiums and because i did not weave the words of praise sooner, he is rather vexed

 Gracefulness, the maturity of your thought, the symmetry of your greatness, the quick-wittedness, the stability of your mind, the unmarried life, the

 At once for us the lord and most skilled in command and pleasing to all, o most excellent foresight, o wise consideration, o most noble counsel, o div

 Of virtues? you, beyond any kings who ever were, honored justice and preferred philanthropy, and having attained the height of prudence, you appeared

 Accomplishments? o the arrows from heaven against the barbarians, o the unseen bowshots, o the angelic powers in the air, o the divine armies against

 The greatest part of character. for as many as have become of a civic disposition, if they have descended to this willingly, they seemed both prudent

 Of civil administration and of divine hearing. if therefore, being engaged in one, he also holds to the other, let this for now be a secret to many. b

 Of wise men going to ammon's shrine or being within the delphic tripod suddenly transferred their apparent wisdom to the more divine and greater, how

 We have taken starting points, and yet more absurd, if we render praises to the good and noble men who have died, for what they have said concerning w

 And not many months after the sowing, but immediately reaping the harvest and so that i might say what is from the gospel, the two were running toget

 If we should set about to build him up, this marvelous man, both in nature and in diligence, has received much contribution toward his eloquence from

 For having embraced one of these, they might neglect the rest, or putting ears before mind, they have an unintelligible tongue, or having drawn up spr

 Pleases the petty and the overly artful. therefore, of these enumerated wise men, the one now honored in this discourse wishes to imitate gregory, and

 I knew not only what the greeks knew, nor what the chaldeans or egyptians knew, but i had also condemned them, though not all of them, nor has my refu

 With magnanimity, he who was both namesake and like-minded with the great constantine, and who alone nobly contended against all, and taking his name-

 Regulates the state of the church, no less than moses who constructed the tabernacle below according to the pattern shown to him for whether melodies

 Concerning which things, before his high-priesthood, at a time when he did not even have many resources of money, he constructed brilliantly and accom

 And to impart to others. and perhaps he did not endure the waves of the sea, but in his toils on land he might in some way be compared to paul. and co

 One of two things happening, either god descending into the mind, or the mind ascending to god. but what is the place of god's rest, or by which of al

 Of a voice, nor were you instructed by any of the higher powers, to lay aside the symbols of the priesthood, and to transfer yourself to another life,

 Nothing unpleasant would happen to those handling these things but for you, who happen to be a philosopher, what harm will come from these affairs? j

 Of words but you, o king, will both speak publicly among the armies and bring an impulse with your speech and will rouse them together for the deed.

 May you be crowned on the head with glorious trophies. may you be adorned with deeds of valor against the barbarians, and be escorted by many victorie

 May you rend the sea and stop the river and vanquish amalek. may a cloud, giving shade over your head, take away your burning heat, and a pillar of li

gracefulness, the maturity of your thought, the symmetry of your greatness, the quick-wittedness, the stability of your mind, the unmarried life, the greatest of all things, virginity, the purity, with which you were both brought up and nurtured together, and which from your tenderest years you had as a companion and in which you have sufficiently delighted, which is also beloved by God most of all and by which you were drawn away from the terrible things that came upon you for a little while, through which you were also enrolled in the choirs above and were counted in the book of the firstborn, through which you might also enjoy the greatest goods and revel in eternal graces? But what now? You flourish in a glorious and great family, and you are revered for the more sublime and divine virtues, and you abound in wealth and are lifted to a high station by the dignity and greatness of your office, do you then, trusting in your power, despise justice and scorn the laws and bid equality farewell? or do you lavishly bestow benefits on some, but for others hold back your hand and not allow them to be filled from the pure streams, being somehow sparingly and stingily disposed towards good deeds? Certainly not, but having mixed everything in your own soul as if in a single mixing-bowl, you have appeared to us shining, humane, most gracious, affable, humble, and gentle. You both rule alone most excellently and judge incorruptibly and govern most loftily; you also direct the boundaries of your rule very well, and you give audience to all as is fitting, and to those who converse with you, you appear gracious and affable, but to those standing around the tribunal, formidable and terrible, and to your subjects, gentle and approachable, but to those who are opposed, you are terrible and breathe a lion's spirit. You also loved the legislative art, because it is the ornament of the state; you also honored the one who precisely practiced the legislative art, because he raised up the laws that lay on the ground, and you commanded him to rule over these things, because he strengthened them, showing in this, by all means, that which is beyond mind and magnanimous in your nature. For thus the man in this surpassed and outstripped only the experts of the art, inasmuch as in other things he also surpassed those who had partaken of the other branches of learning; whom if anyone should call a guide and a lamp and a light of the laws, he would not miss what is fitting. For these reasons may God, who through you has provided well-being for all, himself grant to you long ages for the common benefit of the race and may he establish you in the kingdom from there, which is truly lofty and indissoluble. 12 An encomium to the same. [Beh]old, [I] stand before [y]ou again as an orator, for the queen of virtues rather than of the cities over which I pre[.....]. behold, again I move m[y] to[ng]ue to your praises and I make your virtues the subject of my words. [..........] I echo the voices of the citizens about you and I dare to sing of your magnificent and wonderful deeds. For who of all women is better than you either in beauty of body or in adornment of soul [or in] manliness of judgment or in providence for your subjects or in cares or in deliberations or in counsels? For all the things that have been attested of the renowned for their spirit, you alone, having comprehended these, are esteemed in all things and, that I may mention to you in summary the things in which you are rich, you have nobility from your family, steadfastness from your character, uprightness from your soul, truthfulness from your tongue, your thought is keen, your nature is quick, your judgment is straightforward, your mind is vigorous, your reasoning is versatile, your character is well-conducted. If there is a matter of deliberation, in this you would contribute the best opinion before al[l others]; if of counsels, you would give counsel beyond all others; if of ac[tions], you would act advantageously at once; and, that I may pass over the other things of your cares and counsels, on the matter of a h[..........], I will show the virtues that have come together for you, which have been enumerated. there was need of a k[ing's ....] affairs like some overseer or a pilot for those shipwrecked or [............]. there was need of a hand for the fallen and of strength for those needing to rise up. you therefore found

χάριεν, τὸ τοῦ φρονήματος πολιόν, τὸ τοῦ μεγέθους σύμμετρον, τὴν ἀγχίνοιαν, τὴν τοῦ νοὸς σταθηρότητα, τὸν ἄζυγα βίον, τὸ πάντων μέγιστον τὴν παρθενίαν, τὴν καθαρότητα, ᾗ καὶ συνανήχθης καὶ συνανετράφης, καὶ ἣν ἐξ ἁπαλῶν ὀνύχων σύνοικον ἔσχες καὶ ἧς ἱκανῶς κατετρύφησας, ἣ καὶ μάλιστα πάντων πεφίληται τῷ θεῷ καὶ παρ' ἧς τῶν ἐπὶ μικρὸν ἐπελθόντων ἀφειλκύσθης δεινῶν, δι' ἣν καὶ ταῖς ἄνωθεν ἐναπεγράφης χοροστασίαις καὶ τῇ τῶν πρωτοτόκων βίβλῳ συγκατελέγης, δι' ἣν καὶ τῶν μεγίστων ἀγαθῶν ἀπολαύσειας καὶ τῶν αἰωνίων χαρίτων κατατρυφήσειας; Ἀλλὰ τί δή; γένει μὲν εὐκλεεῖ καὶ μεγάλῳ θάλλεις, ἀρετῶν δὲ ταῖς μετεωροτέραις καὶ θείαις σεμνύνῃ, καὶ πλούτῳ μὲν βρίθεις καὶ τῷ τῆς ἀρχῆς ὄγκῳ καὶ μεγέθει ἐφ' ὕψος αἴρῃ, καταφρονεῖς δὲ δικαιοσύνης τῷ κράτει θαρροῦσα καὶ νόμων ὑπερφρονεῖς καὶ τὴν ἰσονομίαν χαίρειν ἐᾷς; ἢ τοῖς μὲν ἐπιχορηγεῖς δαψιλῶς τὰς εὐεργεσίας, τοῖς δὲ τὴν χεῖρα κατέχεις καὶ τῶν ἀκηράτων οὐ δίδως ἐμφορεῖσθαι ναμάτων, φειδωλῶς καὶ γλίσχρως πως περὶ τὴν εὐποιΐαν ἀνακειμένη; οὐμενοῦν, ἀλλὰ πάντα ὥσπερ ἐφ' ἑνὶ κρατῆρι τῇ ἑαυτῆς ψυχῇ συγκεράσασα φιλάνθρωπος, εὐμενέστατος, εὐπροσήγορος ταπεινή τε καὶ ἥμερος ἐπιλάμπουσα ἡμῖν ἀναπέφηνας. σὺ καὶ μοναρχεῖς ἄριστα καὶ διαιτᾷς ἀδέκαστα καὶ κρατεῖς ὑψηλότατα· σὺ καὶ τοὺς τῆς ἀρχῆς ὅρους ἰθύνεις εὖ μάλα, χρηματίζεις τε πᾶσι κατὰ τὸ πρέπον, καὶ τοῖς μὲν ὁμιλοῦσι χαρίεσσά τις φαίνῃ καὶ εὐπροσήγορος, τοῖς δὲ τὸ βῆμα περιεστηκόσι καταπληκτική τε καὶ φοβερά, καὶ τοῖς μὲν ὑπηκόοις ἥμερος καὶ εὐπρόσιτος, τοῖς δ' ἐναντίως ἔχουσι δεινή τις καὶ λεοντῶδες πνέουσα. σὺ καὶ τὴν νομοθετικὴν ἠγάπησας, ὅτι τῆς πολιτείας κόσμος ἐστί· σὺ καὶ τὸν τὴν νομοθετικὴν ἀκριβῶς ἐξασκήσαντα τέχνην ἐτίμησας, ὅτι τοὺς νόμους χαμαὶ κειμένους εἰς ὕψος ἀνήγειρε, καὶ τούτων ἄρχειν ἐπέταξας, ὅτι τούτους ἐκράτυνε, δείξασα κἀν τούτῳ πάντως τὸ τῆς σῆς φύσεως ὑπέρνουν τε καὶ μεγαλόγνωμον. οὕτω γὰρ ὁ ἀνὴρ ἐν τούτῳ μόνους τοὺς τῆς τέχνης εἰδήμονας ὑπερηκόντισέ τε καὶ ὑπερήλασεν, ὅσον τοῖς ἄλλοις καὶ τοὺς τῶν λοιπῶν μαθημάτων μετεσχηκότας ὑπερεβάλλετο· ὃν εἴ τις ὁδηγὸν καὶ λύχνον καὶ φῶς τῶν νόμων προσείποι, οὐκ ἂν ἁμάρτοι τοῦ πρέποντος. ∆ιὰ ταῦτά σοι καὶ θεός, ὁ τὸ εὖ εἶναι παρασχόμενος διὰ σοῦ πᾶσιν, αὐτός σοι καὶ μακραίωνας χρόνους εἰς κοινὴν τοῦ γένους εὐεργεσίαν χαρίσαιτο καὶ εἰς τὴν ἐκεῖθεν εἰσοικίσαιτο βασιλείαν τὴν ὄντως ὑψηλήν τε καὶ ἀκατάλυτον. 12 Τῇ αὐτῇ ἐγκώμιον [Ἰδ]ού [σ]οι καὶ πάλιν δημηγόρος ἐφέστ[ηκ]α, τῷ βασιλίδι τῶν ἀρετῶν μάλιστα ἢ τῶν πόλεων ὧν προ[.....]μαι. ἰδοὺ καὶ πάλιν τὴν ἐ[μ]ὴν γ[λῶ]σσαν εἰς σοὺς ἐπαίνους κινῶ καὶ ὑπόθεσιν λόγων [τὰ]ς σὰς ἀρετὰς [..]σ[.....ποιοῦ]μαι. [..........] τῶν πολιτῶν περί σου φωνὰς ὑποκρίνομαι καὶ ᾄδειν τολμῶ τὰ σὰ μεγαλεῖα καὶ θαυμάσια. τίς γὰρ σοῦ κρείττων τῶν ἁπασῶν γυναικῶν ἢ κάλλει σώματος ἢ κόσμῳ ψυχῆς [ἢ γ]νώμης ἀνδρείᾳ ἢ προνοίᾳ τῶν ὑπηκόων ἢ φροντίσιν ἢ σκέμμασιν ἢ βουλεύμασιν; ὁπόσα γὰρ καὶ τοῖς περιβοητοῖς ἐπὶ φρονήματι μεμαρτύρηται, ταῦτα μόνη συλλαβοῦσα ἐν πᾶσιν εὐδοκιμεῖς καί, ἵνα δὴ ἐπὶ κεφαλαίου σοι μνησθήσομαι ὧν πεπλούτηκας, ἔχεις ἀπὸ γένους τὸ εὐγενές, ἀπὸ τρόπου τὸ εὐσταθές, ἀπὸ ψυχῆς τὸ εὐθές, ἀπὸ τῆς γλώττης τὸ ἀληθές, τὴν διάνοιαν ὀξεῖα, τὴν φύσιν ταχεῖα, τὴν γνώμην εὐθεῖα, τὸν νοῦν δραστήριος, τὸν λογισμὸν εὐπερίστροφος, τὸν τρόπον εὐάγωγος. Εἰ λόγος ἐστὶ σκέψεως, ταύτῃ ἂν πρὸ πά[ντων] τὴν καλλίστην γνώμην εἰσενέγκοις· εἰ βουλευμάτων, ὑπὲρ πάντας βουλεύσαιο· εἰ πρά[ξεων], αὐτίκα συμφερόντως πράξειας· καί, ἵνα τἆλλα παρῶ τῶν σῶν φροντίδων καὶ βουλευμάτων, ἐπὶ ὑ[..........] ὑποθέσεως τὰς διηριθμημένας σοι συνδραμούσας ἐπιδείξομαι ἀρετάς. ἔδει βα[σιλέως ....] πράγμασιν ὥσπερ ἐπιστάτου τινὸς ἢ κυβερνήτου ναυαγοῦσί τισιν ἢ [............]. ἔδει χειρὸς τοῖς πεσοῦσι καὶ ἰσχύος τοῖς ἀναστήσεσθαι δεομένοις. ἐξεῦρες οὖν