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in life, not caring for wives and children and possessions, but guiding their souls at least according to the rule of the divine laws and like certain excellent painters, painting their spiritual images according to the archetypes of virtue. 12.28 For that the things said by Plato fit them, he himself is a witness, saying after very many things: ‘And it is necessary that such a man become rustic and uneducated on account of his lack of leisure, no less than the herdsmen, who has built his wall as an enclosure on a mountain. And whenever he hears that someone possesses ten thousand plethra of land or even more, as if he possessed a wondrous amount, it seems to him that he is hearing of something very small, accustomed as he is to look upon the whole earth.’ 12.29 That not one of those who have philosophized among the Greeks built an enclosure on a mountain and lived there, the ancient writings are sufficient to show, but you also bear witness, being indignant with those who pursue this life. But Plato has said this is most worthy of admiration. 12.30 And he said things in agreement with this in the second book of the Republic: ‘For having posited such a man,’ he says, ‘let us in our argument place the just man next to him, a man simple and noble, according to Aeschylus, not wishing to seem but to be good. But we must take away the seeming; for if he should seem to be just, there will be for him honors and gifts, for seeming to be such a man; it would be unclear, then, whether he were such for the sake of justice or for the sake of the 12.31 gifts and honors. He must be stripped, then, of everything except justice, and he must be made to be in a condition opposite to the former. For having nothing, let him have the greatest reputation for injustice, so that he may be tested for justice, by not being swayed by a bad reputation and the things that come from it; but let him be steadfast until death, seeming to be unjust throughout his life.’ 12.32 And these things likewise fit our athletes of virtue. For not like Antisthenes and Diogenes and Crates, for the sake of empty glory, but for the sake of the good itself do they do what they do. Therefore indeed they live far from cities and villages, concealing their virtue and showing it to its judge alone. 12.33 But you are willing neither to observe nor to admire those who strive thus. But if you see some who wear this outward appearance, but do not embrace a life in every way agreeing with the habit, you immediately move your tongue to reproach. And if you were to attack them alone, your action would have some reason; but since, along with them, you also try to ridicule and slander those who are disposed in the very opposite way to them and who truly philosophize, you make your most unjust purpose clear. For you do not detest the wicked, but you slander the praiseworthy life, doing something similar to if someone, seeing an ape imitating a man, should on account of that imitation also hate the nature of men. 12.34 And indeed, not only I, but Plato too accuses this opinion; for indeed in the Theaetetus he says: ‘Let us consider it in this way. Come, if someone should praise the keeping of goats, and the animal itself as a fine possession, but someone else, having seen goats grazing without a goatherd in cultivated fields and doing damage, should criticize them, and seeing any herd without a ruler or with bad rulers should find fault in this way, would we think such a censure could ever censure anything soundly at all? 12.35 {-} How could it?’ These are the words of Plato, o men, not mine. And he taught not to mock all herds on account of those that are badly led by bad rulers or are completely deprived of a ruler. And elsewhere again he teaches expressly that it is impossible for a multitude of philosophers to exist; for ‘many are the thyrsus-bearers,’ he says, ‘but few are the Bacchants.’ And the Lord Christ also said this: for He said, 12.36 ‘Many are called, but few are chosen.’ And in harmony with these things Plato also says in the Epinomis: ‘I say it is not possible for men to become blessed and happy except for a few, so long as we are alive, this I maintain; but there is good hope for one who has died to obtain all things.’ 12.37 Why then are you angry, seeing among us some who are false to the life they profess? and why do you not admire those who have loved the extraordinary life and who, while struggling in the body, the bodiless way of life

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βίῳ, οὐ γυναικῶν καὶ παίδων καὶ κτημάτων ἐπι μελούμενοι, ἀλλὰ τὰς ψυχὰς κατά γε τὸν κανόνα τῶν θείων διευθύνοντες νόμων καὶ οἷόν τινες ἄριστοι ζωγράφοι πρὸς τὰ ἀρχέτυπα τῆς ἀρετῆς τὰς νοερὰς αὐτῶν ζωγραφοῦντες εἰκόνας. 12.28 Ὅτι γὰρ δὴ τούτοις ἁρμόττει τὰ παρὰ Πλάτωνος εἰρημένα, μάρτυς αὐτὸς μετὰ πλεῖστα εἰπών· "Ἄγροικον δὲ καὶ ἀπαίδευ τον ὑπ' ἀσχολίας οὐδὲν ἧττον τῶν νομέων τὸν τοιοῦτον ἀναγκαῖον γίνεσθαι, σηκὸν ἐν ὄρει τὸ τεῖχος περιβαλλόμενον. Γῆς δὲ ὅταν μυρία πλέθρα ἢ εἴ τι πλέον ἀκούσῃ ὥς τις ἄρα κεκτημένος θαυ μαστὰ πλήθη κέκτηται, πάνυ σμικρὰ δοκεῖ ἀκούειν εἰς ἅπασαν εἰωθὼς τὴν γῆν βλέπειν." 12.29 Ὅτι δὲ τῶν παρ' Ἕλλησι πεφιλοσοφηκότων οὐδεὶς ἐν ὄρει σηκὸν δειμάμενος ᾤκησεν, ἱκανὰ μὲν καὶ τὰ παλαιὰ δηλῶσαι ξυγγράμματα, μαρτυρεῖτε δὲ καὶ ὑμεῖς, τοῖς τοῦτον μετιοῦσι νεμεσῶντες τὸν βίον. Ἀλλ' ὁ Πλάτων τοῦτον εἴρηκεν ἀξιαγα 12.30 στότατον εἶναι· ξύμφωνα δὲ κἀν τῷ δευτέρῳ τῆς Πολιτείας ἔφη· "Τὸν γὰρ τοιοῦτόν" φησι "θέντες, τὸν δίκαιον αὖ παρ' αὐτὸν ἱστῶμεν τῷ λόγῳ, ἄνδρα ἁπλοῦν καὶ γενναῖον, κατ' Αἰσχύλον, οὐ δοκεῖν, ἀλλ' εἶναι ἀγαθὸν ἐθέλοντα. Ἀφαιρετέον δὲ τὸ δοκεῖν· εἰ γὰρ δόξαι δίκαιος εἶναι, ἔσονται αὐτῷ τιμαὶ καὶ δωρεαί, δο κοῦντι τοιούτῳ εἶναι· ἄδηλον οὖν, εἴτε τοῦ δικαίου εἴτε τῶν 12.31 δωρεῶν καὶ τιμῶν ἕνεκα τοιοῦτος εἴη. Γυμνωτέος δὴ πάντων πλὴν δικαιοσύνης, καὶ ποιητέος ἐναντίως διακείμενος τῷ προ τέρῳ. Μηδὲν γὰρ ἔχων, δόξαν ἐχέτω μεγίστην ἀδικίας, ἵνα βεβασανισμένος ᾖ εἰς δικαιοσύνην, τῷ μὴ τίθεσθαι ὑπὸ κακοδοξίας καὶ τῶν ἀπ' αὐτῆς γινομένων· ἀλλ' ἔστω ἀμετάστατος μέχρι θανάτου, δοκῶν εἶναι ἄδικος διὰ βίου." 12.32 Καὶ ταῦτα δὲ ὡσαύτως τοῖς ἡμετέροις ἁρμόττει τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀθληταῖς. Οὐ γὰρ Ἀντισθένει καὶ ∆ιογένει καὶ Κράτητι παρα πλησίως κενῆς ἕνεκα δόξης, ἀλλ' αὐτοῦ γε εἵνεκα τοῦ καλοῦ δρῶσιν, ἃ δρῶσιν. ∆ιὸ δὴ καὶ πόλεων καὶ κωμῶν πόρρω διά γουσι, τὴν ἀρετὴν κατακρύπτοντες καὶ μόνῳ γε τῷ ταύτης ἀγω νοθέτῃ δεικνύντες. 12.33 Ἀλλ' ὑμεῖς τοὺς μὲν οὕτως ἀγωνιζομένους οὔτε θεωρεῖν οὔτε θαυμάζειν ἐθέλετε. Εἰ δέ τινας ἴδοιτε τὸ μὲν πρόσχημα τοῦτο περικειμένους, οὐ πάντα δὲ ξυνομολογοῦντα τῷ σχήματι βίον ἀσπαζομένους, εὐθὺς εἰς λοιδορίαν κινεῖτε τὴν γλῶτταν. Καὶ εἰ μὲν ἐκείνους ἐβάλλετε μόνους, εἶχεν ἄν τινα τὸ γινόμενον λόγον· ἐπειδὴ δὲ μετ' ἐκείνων καὶ τοὺς ἄντικρυς ἐναντίως διακει μένους ἐκείνοις καὶ ἀληθῶς φιλοσοφοῦντας κωμῳδεῖν πειρᾶσθε καὶ διασύρειν, τὸν ἀδικώτατον ὑμῶν δῆλον ποιεῖτε σκοπόν. Οὐ γὰρ τοῖς πονηροῖς ἀπεχθάνεσθε, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἀξιέπαινον διαβάλλετε βίον, ὅμοιον ποιοῦντες, ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις πίθηκον ἰδὼν μιμούμενον ἄνθρωπον, δι' ἐκείνην τὴν μίμησιν καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων μισήσοι τὴν φύσιν. 12.34 Ταύτης δέ τοι τῆς γνώμης οὐκ ἐγὼ μόνος, ἀλλὰ καὶ Πλάτων κατηγορεῖ· ἐν γάρ τοι τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ φησίν· "Σκεψώμεθα δέ πῃ τῇδε. Φέρ', εἴ τις αἰγῶν τροφήν, καὶ τὸ ζῷον αὐτὸ κτῆμα ὡς καλόν ἐστιν, ἐπαινοῖ, ἄλλος δέ τις ἑωρακὼς αἶγας χωρὶς νεμο μένας αἰπόλου ἐν ἐργασίμοις χωρίοις δρώσας κακὰ διαψέγοι, καὶ πᾶν θρέμμα ἄναρχον ἢ μετὰ κακῶν ἀρχόντων ἰδὼν οὕτω μέμφοιτο, τὸν τοιοῦτον ψόγον ἡγούμεθα ὑγιὲς ἄν ποτε ψέξαι καὶ 12.35 ὁτιοῦν; {-} Καὶ πῶς;" Ταῦτα τοῦ Πλάτωνος, ὦ ἄνδρες, οὐκ ἐμὰ τὰ ῥήματα. Ἐδίδαξε δὲ μὴ ἅπαντα σκώπτειν τὰ θρέμματα διὰ τὰ κακῶς ὑπὸ κακῶν ἀρχόντων ἀγόμενα ἢ ἄρχοντος πάμπαν ἐστερημένα. Καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ δὲ πάλιν διαρρήδην διδάσκει, ὡς φιλο σόφων πλῆθος ἀδύνατον γενέσθαι· ναρθηκοφόροι μὲν γὰρ πολλοί, φησί , βάκχοι δέ τε παῦροι. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ὁ δεσπότης ἔφη Χριστός· "Πολλοὶ" γὰρ εἶπε 12.36 "κλητοί, ὀλίγοι δὲ ἐκλεκτοί". Ξυνῳδὰ δὲ τούτοις ὁ Πλάτων κἀν τῇ Ἐπινομίδι φησίν· "Οὔ φημι εἶναι ἀνθρώποις δυνατὸν μακαρίοις τε καὶ εὐδαίμοσι γενέσθαι πλὴν ὀλίγων, μέχρι περ ἂν ζῶμεν, τοῦτο διορίζομαι· καλὴ δὲ ἐλπὶς τελευτήσαντι τυχεῖν ἁπάντων." 12.37 Τί δήποτε τοίνυν χαλεπαίνετε, παρ' ἡμῖν ὁρῶντές τινας ψευ δομένους, ὃν ἐπαγγέλλονται βίον; ἀνθ' ὅτου δὲ μὴ θαυμάζετε τοὺς τὸν ὑπερφυᾶ βίον ἠγαπηκότας καὶ ἐν σώματι μὲν ἀγωνι ζομένους, τὴν ἀσώματον δὲ πολιτείαν