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as you yourself wish, if indeed we are able to speak with her. And I answered: Impossible. And Appion asked if it is possible to write a letter to her. And I said: This at least is possible. And Appion said: This very night I will compose a book, an encomium of adultery, which you, taking it from me, will send to her, and I hope that being persuaded she will consent. And after composing that book, Appion gave it to me, about which I thought even this night and opportunely remembered having it with other books which I carry with me. And having related these things, I showed the book to those present and, since they wished to hear it, I read it, and indeed after reading it I said: This, men, is the education of the Greeks, having a noble pretext for sinning without fear. And the book was as follows: The lover to his beloved (anonymously on account of the laws of foolish men) greetings, by the commands of Eros, the oldest child of all. I have learned that you are devoted to philosophy and for the sake of virtue emulate the life of the better sort. And who could be better than the gods over all, and among men the philosophers? For these alone know which deeds are evil or good by nature, and which, not being so, are considered so by the enactment of laws. For instance, some have supposed the so-called act of adultery to be evil, although it is in all respects good; for it happens by the commands of Eros for the procreation of life. And Eros is the most ancient of all the gods; for indeed without Eros no mixing or generation of elements, or of gods, or of men, or of irrational animals, or of all the rest can take place. For we are all instruments of Eros. And he himself, the craftsman working through us, visiting the souls of all that is begotten, is mind. Whence, it is not of our own will, but when we are commanded by him, that we desire to do his will. But if, desiring by his will, we should attempt for the sake of so-called moderation to control our desire, how shall we not commit the greatest impiety by acting against the most ancient of all gods and men? But let all doors be opened to him, and let all wicked and man-made laws be done away with, laws laid down for jealous men, who, being overcome by folly and unwilling to perceive what is reasonable, and furthermore being suspicious of so-called adulterers, are reasonably trifled with by man-made laws by Zeus himself through Minos and Rhadamanthus. For it is not possible to restrain Eros when he has come upon souls. For the passion of lovers is not voluntary. For instance, Zeus himself, the lawgiver of these things, had union with countless women, and by some wise men he was considered a benefactor for procreation, bestowing his union upon men; but among those by whom he knew he was not recognized for this grace, he would change his form, so that he might neither grieve them nor seem to act contrary to the laws established by him. Therefore, one who is devoted to philosophy must, for the sake of a good life, imitate those who are acknowledged to be superior, whose unions have been countless. And in order not to waste time in vain on more proofs, I will begin from Zeus himself, the father of gods and men, to declare the unions of some; for to recall all of them is impossible on account of their number.

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ὡς αὐτὸς θέλεις, εἴπεργε προσομιλῆσαι αὐτῇ δυνάμεθα. κἀγὼ ἀπεκρι- νάμην· Ἀδύνατον. καὶ ὁ Ἀππίων ἐπύθετο, εἰ ἐπιστεῖλαι αὐτῇ δυνατόν ἐστιν. κἀγὼ ἔφην· ∆υνατὸν τοῦτό γε. καὶ ὁ Ἀππίων ἔφη· Ἔτι τῇ νυκτὶ ταύτῃ συνγράψω βιβλίον, μοιχείας ἐγκώμιον, ὅπερ σὺ παρ' ἐμοῦ λαβὼν διαπέμψεις αὐτῇ, καὶ ἐλπίζω ὅτι πεισθεῖσα συνθήσεται. καὶ συγγράψας ὁ Ἀππίων ἐκεῖνο τὸ βιβλίον ἐδίδου ἐμοί, περὶ οὗ καὶ ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ ταύτῃ ἐνενόησα καὶ εὐκαίρως ἔχειν αὐτὸ ὑπεμνήσθην σὺν ἄλλοις βιβλίοις οἷς μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ ἐπιφέρομαι. διηγησάμενος δὲ ταῦτα ἔδειξα τοῖς παροῦσι τὸ βιβλίον καὶ βουλομένοις ἐπακοῦσαι ἀνέγνων καὶ δὴ ἀναγνοὺς ἔφην· Aὕτη ἐστίν, ἄνδρες, ἡ τῶν Ἑλλήνων παιδεία, γενναίαν ὑπόθεσιν ἔχουσα πρὸς τὸ ἀδεῶς ἐξαμαρτάνειν. τὸ δὲ βιβλίον ἦν οὕτως ἔχον· Ὁ ἐρῶν τῇ ἐρωμένῃ (ἀνωνύμως διὰ τοὺς ἐκ τῶν ἀνοήτων ἀνθρώπων νό- μους) ἐπιταγαῖς Ἔρωτος τοῦ πάντων πρεσβυτάτου παιδὸς χαίρειν. ἔγνων σε φιλοσοφίᾳ προσανέχουσαν καὶ ἀρετῆς ἕνεκα τὸν τῶν κρειττόνων ζη- λοῦσαν βίον. τίνες δὲ ἂν εἶεν κρείττονες ἢ θεοὶ μὲν ἁπάντων, ἀνθρώπων δὲ οἱ φιλόσοφοι; οὗτοι γὰρ μόνοι ἴσασιν τῶν ἔργων ποῖα μέν ἐστιν φύσει κακὰ ἢ καλά, ποῖα δὲ τῇ τῶν νόμων θέσει οὐκ ὄντα νομίζεται. αὐτίκα γοῦν τὴν λεγομένην μοιχείαν πρᾶξίν τινες ὑπειλήφασιν εἶναι κακήν, καίτοι καλὴν κατὰ πάντα ὑπάρχουσαν· εἰς γὰρ τὴν τοῦ βίου πολυγονίαν ἐπιταγαῖς Ἔρωτος γίνεται. Ἔρως δέ ἐστιν ὁ πάντων θεῶν πρεσβύτατος· ἄνευ γὰρ δὴ Ἔρωτος οὐ στοιχείων, οὐ θεῶν, οὐκ ἀνθρώπων, οὐ ζσων ἀλόγων, οὐ τῶν λοιπῶν ἁπάντων μίξις ἢ γένεσις γενέσθαι δύναται. πάντες γάρ τοι ὄργανά ἐσμεν τοῦ Ἔρωτος. αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ δι' ἡμῶν τεχνίτης, παντὸς τοῦ γεννωμένου ψυχαῖς ἐπιδημῶν, ἐστὶ νοῦς. ὅθεν οὐκ αὐτοὶ θέλοντες, ἀλλ' ὅταν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ κελευσθῶμεν, τὸ ἐκείνου βούλημα ποιεῖν ἐπιθυμοῦ- μεν. εἰ δ' ἐκείνου βουλῇ ἐπιθυμοῦντες χάριν τῆς λεγομένης σωφροσύ- νης κρατεῖν τῆς ἐπιθυμίας ἐπιχειρήσομεν, πῶς τῷ πάντων πρεσβυτάτῳ θεῶν τε καὶ ἀνθρώπων ἀντιπράττοντες οὐ τὰ μέγιστα ἀσεβήσομεν; ἀλλὰ πᾶσαι μὲν ἀνεσχθωσαν αὐτῷ θύραι, πάντες δὲ μοχθηροὶ καὶ θετοὶ λυέ- σθωσαν νόμοι, ζηλοτύποις ἀνθρώποις κείμενοι, οἵτινες ὑπὸ ἀνοίας κρατού- μενοι καὶ τὸ εὔλογον νοεῖν μὴ βουλόμενοι, προσέτι δὲ καὶ τοὺς λεγομέ- νους μοιχοὺς ὑφορώμενοι, ὑπ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ ∆ιὸς διά γε τοῦ Μίνωος καὶ τοῦ Ῥαδαμάνθυος εὐλόγως θετοῖς παίζονται νόμοις. Ἔρωτα γὰρ ἐπιδημήσαντα ψυχαῖς οὐκ ἔστιν ἐπισχεῖν. οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἑκούσιον τὸ τῶν ἐρώντων πά- θος. αὐτίκα γοῦν ὁ Ζεὺς αὐτὸς ὁ τούτων νομοθέτης μυρίαις συνῆλθεν γυναιξίν, καὶ ὑπ' ἐνίων μὲν σοφῶν ἀνδρῶν εὐεργέτης πρὸς τεκνοποιίαν ἐνοήθη τὴν αὑτοῦ μίξιν ἀνθρώποις δωρούμενος, παρ' οἷς δὲ ἐπὶ τῇ χάριτι ἠπίστατο ἀγνοούμενος, μετεμορφοῦτο τὴν ἰδέαν, ἵνα μήτε αὐτοὺς λυπῇ μήτε τοῖς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ τεθεῖσιν νόμοις ἀντιπράττειν δοκῇ. δεῖ οὖν τῇ φιλοσοφίᾳ προσανέχουσαν καλοῦ βίου χάριν μιμεῖσθαι τοὺς ὁμολο- γουμένους κρείττονας, ὧν αἱ μίξεις μυρίαι γεγόνασιν. καὶ ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ τὸν χρόνον παραναλίσκειν μάτην εἰς τὰς ἀποδείξεις τὰς πλείονας, ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ ∆ιὸς τοῦ πατρὸς θεῶν τε καὶ ἀνθρώπων ἄρξομαι τὰς ἐνίων μηνύειν κοινωνίας· πασῶν γὰρ ὑπομνησθῆναι διὰ τὸ πλῆθος ἀδύνατον.