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for neither Meletus nor Anytus could harm me at all. For they would not be able; for I do not think it is right for a better man to be harmed by a worse. He might perhaps kill or banish or disfranchise me; but these things this man perhaps thinks, and some other perhaps, are great evils; but I do not think so, but rather to do what this man is now doing, attempting to kill a man unjustly." 8.56 Such things, then, Socrates philosophized even in the trial itself, as Plato has testified, but nevertheless he has not obtained the honor of the martyrs; for neither did those who partook of his words build a shrine for him, nor dedicate a sacred precinct, nor establish a festival, but they left him unhonored, though he was wise and brave, even though he too had endured an unjust slaughter. But he did not have the best and purest piety; for much of the error that then prevailed was mixed in with it. 8.57 Whence indeed he was not deemed worthy of honor after his death; nor indeed that Anaxarchus, who, being pounded with iron pestles, said, as they say, "Pound, pound the bag of Anaxarchus; for you do not pound Anaxarchus," nor Zeno of Elea, who, being compelled to speak of some of the secrets, held out against the tortures, confessing nothing; and as Eratosthenes says in his *On Good and Evil*, this man, fearing that he might be forced by the excess of his sufferings to reveal some of the agreements and inform on his fellow conspirators, cut off his tongue with his teeth and spat it at the tyrant. 8.58 They say that Theodotus the Pythagorean and Paulus the acquaintance of Lacydes also did this very thing, as Timotheus of Pergamum wrote in his *On the Courage of the Philosophers*; and Achaicus also bears witness to this in his *Ethics*. But nevertheless none of these was deemed worthy of the honor of the martyrs; 8.59 nor indeed those who set up the brilliant and much-celebrated trophies, not Miltiades, not Cimon, not Pericles, not Themistocles, not Aristides the son of Lysimachus; and yet this man was considered not only brave, but also just; but nevertheless neither this man nor Brasidas the Spartan, not Agesilaus, not Lysander who overthrew the dominion of the Athenians, not Pelopidas the Boeotarch, not Epaminondas who ravaged Laconia and dared to bring his army to Sparta, not the most illustrious generals of the Romans, the first Scipio, his namesake, Cato, Sulla, Marius, Pompey, Caesar himself. 8.60 For each of these excelled in generalship and deeds of valor in wars, but did not partake of the prize of the martyrs. And why do I mention the generals? For not even those who had been kings of the world enjoyed this honor, not Cyrus, not Darius, not Xerxes, not Alexander the son of Philip—for I list only the famous ones—not Augustus, not Vespasian, not Trajan, not Hadrian, not Antoninus; but all these, while living, were conspicuous and conquered the barbarians and after their victories held processions and festivals, but when they 8.61 died, they differ in nothing from the many; for they neither have noteworthy tombs nor are they honored with annual public feasts. For who knows the tomb of Xerxes, or of Darius? And who knows that of Alexander, who conquered so many nations in a very short time? And why do I mention the ancients? For not even the tomb of Augustus is known, or those of the others who after him, directing the Roman empire, were ignorant of its giver and provider, but only the tombs of the pious emperors are known and recognized, while those of the impious who ruled in between are visible, but enjoy not even the slightest honor; for not only have they been deprived of the royal honor, but also of that which private citizens have partaken. 8.62 And yet some of the foolish ones both proclaimed themselves gods and built temples to themselves. For both Antiochus was called a god, and Gaius the successor of Tiberius, and Vespasian and Hadrian built very great temples to themselves, but with their life they were also deprived of their impious honor. But the shrines of the gloriously triumphant martyrs are brilliant and conspicuous and distinguished in size and every 8.63

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γὰρ οὐδὲν βλάψειεν ἂν οὔτε Μέλητος οὔτε Ἄνυτος. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν δύναιντο· οὐ γὰρ οἶμαι θεμιτὸν εἶναι βελτίονι ἀνδρὶ ὑπὸ χείρονος βλάπτεσθαι. Ἀποκτείνειε μέντ' ἂν ἴσως ἢ ἐξελάσειεν ἢ ἀτιμάσειεν· ἀλλὰ ταῦτα οὗτος μὲν ἴσως οἴεται εἶναι καὶ ἄλλος τίς που μεγάλα κακά· ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ οἶμαι, ἀλλὰ πολὺ μᾶλλον ποιεῖν ἃ οὗτος νυνὶ ποιεῖ, ἄνδρα ἀδίκως ἐπι χειρῶν ἀποκτιννύναι." 8.56 Τοιαῦτα μὲν οὖν ὁ Σωκράτης καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ γε τῷ ἀγῶνι πεφι λοσόφηκεν, ὡς ὁ Πλάτων μεμαρτύρηκεν, ἀλλ' ὅμως τῆς τῶν μαρτύρων τιμῆς οὐ τετύχηκεν· οὔτε γὰρ σηκὸν ἐκείνῳ ἐδείμαντο οὔτε τέμενος ἀφιέρωσαν οὔτε πανήγυριν ἀπεκλήρωσαν οἱ τῶν ἐκείνου λόγων μετειληχότες, ἀλλὰ καὶ σοφὸν γενόμενον καὶ ἀνδρεῖον, ἀγέραστον εἴασαν, καίτοι ἄδικόν γε κἀκεῖνος ὑπομεμε νήκει σφαγήν. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀρίστην γε εἶχε καὶ ἀκραιφνῆ τὴν εὐσέβειαν· ἀνεμέμικτο γὰρ αὐτῇ τοῦ τηνικάδε κατεσχηκότος πλά 8.57 νου πολλά. Ὅθεν δὴ οὐδὲ τῆς μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν ἠξιώθη τιμῆς· οὐδέ γε Ἀνάξαρχος ἐκεῖνος, ὃς ὑπέροις πτισσόμενος σιδηροῖς ἔλεγεν, ὥς φασι, "πτίσσε, πτίσσε τὸν Ἀναξάρχου θύλακον· Ἀνάξαρχον γὰρ οὐ πτίσσεις", οὐδὲ Ζήνων ὁ Ἐλεάτης, ὃς ἀναγκαζόμενος κατειπεῖν τι τῶν ἀπορρήτων, ἀντέσχε πρὸς τὰς βασάνους οὐδὲν ἐξομολογούμενος· ὡς δέ φησιν Ἐρατοσθένης ἐν τοῖς Περὶ ἀγαθῶν καὶ κακῶν, δείσας οὗτος, μὴ τῇ τῶν παθῶν ὑπερβολῇ βιασθεὶς ἐξείπῃ τι τῶν ξυγκειμένων καὶ τοὺς στασιώτας μηνύσῃ, τὴν γλῶτταν τοῖς ὀδοῦσι τεμὼν προσέπτυσε τῷ τυράννῳ. 8.58 Ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ Θεόδοτόν φασι ποιῆσαι τὸν Πυθαγόρειον καὶ Παῦλον τὸν Λακύδου γνώριμον, ὡς ὁ Περγαμηνὸς Τιμόθεος ἐν τῷ Περὶ τῆς τῶν φιλοσόφων ἀνδρείας ξυνέγραψε· ξυμμαρτυρεῖ δὲ τούτῳ καὶ Ἀχαϊκὸς ἐν τοῖς Ἠθικοῖς. Ἀλλ' ὅμως τούτων οὐδεὶς τῆς τῶν μαρτύρων ἠξιώθη τιμῆς· 8.59 οὐδὲ μὴν ἐκεῖνοι οἱ τὰ λαμπρὰ καὶ πολυθρύλητα στήσαντες τρό παια, οὐ Μιλτιάδης, οὐ Κίμων, οὐ Περικλῆς, οὐ Θεμιστοκλῆς, οὐκ Ἀριστείδης ὁ Λυσιμάχου· καίτοι οὗτος οὐκ ἀνδρεῖος μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ δίκαιος ἐνενόμιστο· ἀλλ' ὅμως οὔτε οὗτος οὔτε Βρασί δας ὁ Σπαρτιάτης, οὐκ Ἀγησίλαος, οὐ Λύσανδρος ὁ τὴν δυνασ τείαν καταλύσας τῶν Ἀθηναίων, οὐ Πελοπίδας ὁ Βοιωτάρχης, οὐκ Ἐπαμεινώνδας ὁ τὴν Λακωνικὴν ληϊσάμενος καὶ τῇ Σπάρτῃ προσενεγκεῖν τὴν στρατιὰν τολμήσας, οὐχ οἱ Ῥωμαίων περι φανέστατοι στρατηγοί, ὁ Σκιπίων ὁ πρῶτος, ὁ ἐκείνου ὁμώνυμος, ὁ Κάτων, ὁ Σύλλας, ὁ Μάριος, ὁ Πομπήϊος, ὁ Καῖσαρ αὐτός. 8.60 Τούτων γὰρ ἕκαστος ἐν μὲν ταῖς στρατηγίαις καὶ ταῖς ἐν πολέ μοις ἀνδραγαθίαις διέπρεψε, τοῦ δὲ τῶν μαρτύρων οὐ μετέλαχε γέρως. Καὶ τί λέγω τοὺς στρατηγούς; οὐδὲ γὰρ οἱ τῆς οἰκουμένης βεβασιλευκότες ταύτης ἀπέλαυσαν τῆς τιμῆς, οὐ Κῦρος, οὐ ∆αρεῖος, οὐ Ξέρξης, οὐκ Ἀλέξανδρος ὁ Φιλίππου-τοὺς γὰρ ἐπισήμους καταλέγω μόνους-, οὐκ Αὔγουστος, οὐκ Οὐεσπα σιανός, οὐ Τραϊανός, οὐκ Ἀδριανός, οὐκ Ἀντωνῖνος· ἀλλ' οὗτοι πάντες ζῶντες μὲν ἦσαν περίβλεπτοι καὶ τοὺς βαρβάρους ἐνίκων καὶ μετὰ τὰς νίκας πομπὰς ἐπετέλουν καὶ ἑορτάς, ἐπειδὴ δὲ 8.61 ἐτελεύτησαν, οὐδὲν τῶν πολλῶν διαφέρουσιν· οὔτε γὰρ τάφους ἔχουσιν ἐπισήμους οὔτε δημοθοινίαις ἐτησίοις γεραίρονται. Τίς γὰρ δὴ οἶδε τὸν Ξέρξου γε τάφον ἢ τὸν ∆αρείου; τίς δὲ τὸν Ἀλεξάνδρου, τοῦ τοσούτων ἐθνῶν ἐν ὀλιγίστῳ γε χρόνῳ κρα τήσαντος; Καὶ τί λέγω τοὺς παλαιούς; οὐδὲ γὰρ τὸ Αὐγούστου σῆμα δῆλόν ἐστιν ἢ τῶν ἄλλων, ὅσοι μετὰ τοῦτον τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἰθύναντες βασιλείαν ἠγνόησαν τὸν ταύτης δοτῆρα καὶ χορηγόν, μόνων δὲ τῶν εὐσεβῶν βασιλέων οἱ τάφοι δῆλοι καὶ γνώριμοι, οἱ δὲ τῶν μεταξὺ δυσσεβῶς βεβασιλευκότων φαίνονται μέν, τιμῆς δὲ οὐδὲ σμικρᾶς ἀπολαύουσιν· οὐ μόνον γὰρ τῆς βασιλικῆς ἀπεστέρηνται, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἧς οἱ τῶν ἰδιωτῶν μετεσχήκασιν. 8.62 Καίτοι τινὲς τῶν ἀνοήτων καὶ θεοὺς σφᾶς ἀνηγόρευσαν καὶ νεὼς ἑαυτοῖς ἐδομήσαντο. Καὶ γὰρ Ἀντίοχος ἐπεκλήθη θεός, καὶ Γάϊος ὁ Τιβερίου διάδοχος, καὶ Οὐεσπασιανὸς καὶ Ἀδρια νὸς μεγίστους ἑαυτοῖς νεὼς ᾠκοδόμησαν, ἀλλὰ ξὺν τῇ ζωῇ καὶ τὴν δυσσεβῆ τιμὴν ἀφῃρέθησαν. Οἱ δὲ τῶν καλλινίκων μαρτύρων σηκοὶ λαμπροὶ καὶ περίβλεπτοι καὶ μεγέθει διαπρεπεῖς καὶ παν 8.63