110

the chartophylax Koutales and the archon of the monasteries Kyberiotis, who had dwelt in prison for some time on his account, he thanked for other things and repaid with many benefactions, and as for the chartophylax, since he did not wish to be transferred from the dignity of chartophylax to another, greater one, he made the office itself more honorable by naming him grand chartophylax; and from that time to this, the title "grand" is preserved for the chartophylax. But Markos Kaballarios, son of Bardas, who had previously spoken insolently to the emperor from the walls, the emperor ordered to be brought to him. But he, even before he was sought, knowing what he had uttered, as soon as he learned that the emperor was within Byzantium, hid himself in some sewers and secret places. And those who were assigned the task, having brought great diligence to the search for him, both find him and bring him to the palace. And as the rumor spread that that insolent man was being brought to the palace to be punished by the emperor, the 1.314 entire city ran together, to see in what way he would die. And the emperor ordered him to be brought in; and when he was inside the doors of the chamber, upon seeing the emperor, he was seized with trembling and, spinning around, fell to the ground. And those leading him, having raised him up, brought him near the emperor, filled with tears and with his head bowed to the ground, and unable to look at the emperor at all, but expecting to suffer the most terrible things immediately. A deep silence held the whole crowd, and all were in suspense for the sentence to be brought upon Markos. And seeing him standing thus, trembling and terrified, some of them, grieving from the sight alone, were moved to tears and lamentations; and as many as were wiser than the crowd, from what was happening they received an image of the future judgment of which we hear, and they pictured to themselves that unspeakable shame of sinners before the fearful and incorruptible tribunal. For if before a mortal emperor, where punishments are also of short duration, such great terror seized the one being judged, so that even before the sentence he was for the most part dead from fear, because he had no defense to offer for what he was accused of, what will they not suffer then, those who are conscious of evil things in themselves? And from this example they became better than themselves and were reformed to a more sober life. But the emperor, having sought Markos 1.315 previously not in order to punish him, and then seeing everyone sobered by this scene, paused for a little, and said, "What possessed you, O Kaballarios, to utter such insults and to one who was present? For there might be some pardon for insults uttered against someone who is absent." But he, struck with terror by the emperor's voice, immediately fell to the ground and, dashing his head against the earth, was expected to give up his soul from fear. Again the emperor, after being silent for a sufficient time, ordered Markos to stand up. But he, either not perceiving what was said, or being unable to stand, overcome by fear, rolled on the ground, neither seeing nor uttering anything. But the emperor signaled with his hand for those holding him to raise him; and when he stood up, he ordered him to come to himself and pay attention to what was being said. And the emperor said to him: "To be afraid and to tremble and to expect to suffer the most terrible things, is both just and fitting for you; for you have uttered things worthy of many punishments. But I, being conscious of my own many sins against the Lord and King of all, and being in need of pardon just as you are now, or rather, of much more, inasmuch as my sins are worse, and not against a fellow-servant as yours were, but having offended against the one who brought me forth from non-existence, and being myself in need of mercy, I forgive your sins against me and grant you pardon. And for two reasons I made it of the greatest importance both to find you and to bring you here: first, that from these events the many might be sobered, not to be unrestrained with their tongue nor to be easily carried away to 1.316 insults, and these, directed against superiors and those worthy of honor, and the

110

χαρτοφύλακα τὸν Κουτάλην καὶ τὸν τῶν μοναστηρίων ἄρχοντα Κυβεριώτην, οἷα δι' αὐτὸν δεσμωτήριον οἰκήσαντας ἐπὶ χρόνον τινὰ, τὰ τἄλλα ηὐχαρίστησε καὶ εὐεργεσίαις ἠμείψατο πολλαῖς, τὸν δὲ χαρτοφύλακα, ἐπεὶ μὴ ἠβούλετο ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ χαρτοφύλακος ἀξίας εἰς ἑτέραν μείζονα μετενεχθῆναι, αὐτὴν ἑαυτῆς ἐποίησεν ἐντιμοτέραν, μέγαν χαρτοφύλακα προσαγορεύσας· καὶ ἀπ' ἐκείνου εἰς δεῦρο τῷ χαρτοφύλακι διασώζεται τὸ μέγας. Μάρκον δὲ Καβαλλάριον τὸν τοῦ Βάρδα, ὃς ἦν ἀπὸ τῶν τειχῶν πρότερον πρὸς ὕβριν βασιλεῖ διειλεγμένος, ἐκέλευσεν ἀχθῆναι πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ βασιλεύς. ὁ δὲ καὶ πρὶν ζητηθῆναι, οἷα ἐφθέγξατο εἰδὼς, ἅμα τῷ πυθέσθαι ἐντὸς εἶναι Βυζαντίου βασιλέα, ἐν ὑπονόμοις καὶ ἀδύτοις τισὶ κατέκρυψεν ἑαυτόν. πολλὴν δὲ τὴν περὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ ζήτησιν οἱ προστεταγμένοι εἰσενεγκόντες σπουδὴν, εὑρίσκουσί τε καὶ ἄγουσιν εἰς βασίλεια. φήμης δὲ διαδραμούσης, ὡς ὁ ὑβριστὴς ἐκεῖνος βασιλέως εἰς τὰ βασίλεια ἄγεται κολασθησόμενος, συνέδραμεν ἡ 1.314 πόλις πανδημεὶ, ὁποίῳ τρόπῳ ὀψόμενοι ἀποθανεῖται. βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐκέλευσεν αὐτὸν ἀχθῆναι· καὶ ἐπειδὴ τῶν τοῦ οἴκου θυρῶν ἐγένετο εἴσω, εἰς βασιλέα ἰδὼν, τρόμῳ τε ἐλήφθη καὶ περιδινηθεὶς κατέπεσεν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν. ἀναστήσαντες δὲ οἱ ἄγοντες, ἐγγὺς ἤγαγον βασιλέως δακρύων τε ὑπόπλεων καὶ πρὸς τὴν γῆν νενευκότα, καὶ μὴ δυνάμενον ὅλως εἰς βασιλέα ἰδεῖν, ἀλλ' αὐτίκα προσδοκῶντα πείσεσθαι τὰ δεινότατα. σιωπὴ δὲ βαθεῖα κατέσχε τὸ πλῆθος πᾶν, καὶ πάντες ἦσαν μετέωροι πρὸς τὴν ἐπενεχθησομένην τῷ Μάρκῳ καταδίκην. ὁρῶντες δὲ αὐτὸν οὕτως ἱστάμενον ὑπότρομον καὶ περιδεῆ, οἱ μὲν αὐτῶν καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς θέας μόνης περιαλγοῦντες, εἰς δάκρυα κατεφέροντο καὶ οἰμωγάς· ὅσοι δὲ καὶ συνετώτεροι τῶν πολλῶν ἦσαν, τῆς μελλούσης κρίσεως ἣν ἀκούομεν ἐλάμβανον ἀπὸ τῶν γινομένων εἰκόνα, καὶ ἀνεζωγράφουν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τὴν ἄῤῥητον ἐκείνην τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν αἰσχύνην ἐπὶ τοῦ φοβεροῦ καὶ ἀδεκάστου δικαστηρίου. εἰ γὰρ ἐπὶ θνητοῦ βασιλέως, ἔνθα καὶ αἱ τιμωρίαι ὀλιγοχρόνιοι, τοσαύτη τὸν κρινόμενον ἔκπληξις εἶχεν, ὥστ' ἤδη καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἀποφάσεως τῷ πλείστῳ μέρει ἀποτεθνηκέναι ὑπὸ δέους, ὅτι μηδεμίαν ἀπολογίαν εἶχεν ἐφ' οἷς κατηγορεῖτο ἐνεγκεῖν, τί οὐκ ἂν πάθωσι τότε οἱ πονηρὰ συνειδότες ἑαυτοῖς; καὶ βελτίους ἑαυτῶν ἐκ τοῦ παραδείγματος ἐγίνοντο καὶ πρὸς σωφρονέστερον μετεῤῥυθμίζοντο βίον. βασιλεὺς δὲ πρότερόν τε οὐκ ἐπὶ τῷ τιμωρήσασθαι τὸν Μάρκον 1.315 ζητῶν, καὶ τότε πάντας ὁρῶν τῇ σκηνῇ ταύτῃ σωφρονισθέντας, μικρὸν ἐπισχὼν, «τί παθὼν, ὦ Καβαλλάριε» εἶπε «τοσαῦτα ὕβρικας καὶ πρὸς παρόντα; ἦν γὰρ ἄν τις πρὸς ἀπόντα γινομένων τῶν ὕβρεων συγγνώμη.» ὁ δὲ ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως φωνῆς καταπλαγεὶς, εἰς γῆν τε κατέπεσεν εὐθὺς καὶ τῇ γῇ τὴν κεφαλὴν προσαράσσων, προσδόκιμος ἦν καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἀφεῖναι ὑπὸ δέους. πάλιν δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς σιγήσας ἐφ' ἱκανὸν, τὸν Μάρκον ἐκέλευεν ἀναστῆναι. ὁ δὲ εἴτε καὶ τῶν λεγομένων οὐκ αἰσθανόμενος, εἴτε καὶ μὴ δυνάμενος ἀναστῆναι ὑπὸ τοῦ δέους ἐκλυθεὶς, τῇ γῇ προσεκυλινδεῖτο, μήθ' ὁρῶν μήτε φθεγγόμενος μηδέν. βασιλεὺς δ' ἐσήμαινε τῇ χειρὶ τοὺς κατέχοντας ἀνιστᾷν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀνέστη, ἐπανέρχεσθαί τε ἐκέλευεν εἰς ἑαυτὸν καὶ προσέχειν τοῖς λεγομένοις. εἶπέ τε πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ βασιλεύς· «τὸ μὲν δεδοικέναι καὶ τρέμειν καὶ τὰ δεινότατα πείσεσθαι προσδοκᾷν, δίκαιόν τε ὁμοῦ καὶ σοὶ προσῆκον· ἄξια γὰρ ἐφθέγξω πολλῶν τιμωριῶν. ἐγὼ δὲ ἐμαυτῷ πολλὰ συνειδὼς πρὸς τὸν ἁπάντων κύριον καὶ βασιλέα ἡμαρτημένα, καὶ δεόμενος συγγνώμης ὥσπερ καὶ σὺ νῦν, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ πλείονος πολλῷ, ὅσῳ καὶ τὰ ἡμαρτημένα χείρω, καὶ οὐ πρὸς σύνδουλον ὥσπερ σὺ, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸν ἐκ μὴ ὄντων παραγαγόντα προσκεκρουκὼς καὶ δεόμενος καὶ αὐτὸς ἐλέου, ἀφίημί τε τὰ ἡμαρτημένα σοι καὶ συγγνώμην παρέχω. δυοῖν δὲ ἕνεκα τὸ σέ τε εὑρεῖν καὶ ἐνθάδε ἀγαγεῖν ἐποιησάμην περὶ πλείστου· ἑνὸς μὲν, ἵν' ἐκ τῶν γινομένων οἱ πολλοὶ σωφρονισθῶσι, μὴ ἀκρατεῖς εἶναι περὶ τὴν γλῶτταν μηδὲ ῥᾳδίως ἐκφέρεσθαι πρὸς 1.316 ὕβρεις, καὶ ταῦτα, πρὸς ὑπερέχοντας καὶ τιμῆς ἀξίους γινομένας, καὶ τὸ