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I promised to show masters, but the argument, as it proceeded and contended, has done more than the promise, showing enemies instead of masters, or rather, the same persons to be both enemies and masters. For they are served as masters, but are fearsome as enemies, and they plot as foes. When, therefore, someone has the same persons as both lords and enemies, what could be worse than this misfortune? The slave, even if he is commanded, yet nevertheless enjoys care and goodwill from those who give the orders; but these men are both commanded and warred against, and stand against one another; and it is by so much more grievous than what happens in battles, inasmuch as they also wound secretly, and under the mask of friends perpetrate the deeds of enemies, and often gain repute from the misfortune of others. But our affairs are not such; but if another fares ill, there are many who grieve with him; and if he is well-reputed, there are many who rejoice with him. But does not the Apostle say: For if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. And at one time he who gave this exhortation said: What is my hope, or joy? Is it not you? And at another: For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord. And at another: Out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you; and: Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation? For what reason, then, do we still endure the storm, and the waves from without, and not run to this fair haven, and leaving the names of good things, proceed to the things themselves? For glory and power and wealth and renown and all such things, are names with them, but realities with us; just as, then, the grievous things, death and dishonor and poverty and all such things, are names with us, but realities with them. And if you wish, let us first bring into the discussion glory, which with them is longed for and desired by all. And I do not say that it is short-lived, nor that it is quickly extinguished; but when it is in bloom, then show it to me. Do not strip off the harlot's paint and cosmetics, but bring her forth adorned into our midst and show her to us, that then I may expose her ugliness. Therefore you will surely mention the procession and the multitude of lictors, and the voice of the herald, and the obedience of the populace, and the silence from the crowds, and the beating of all who get in the way, and being gazed upon by all. Are not these the splendid things? Come then, let us examine if these things are not superfluous, and a mere useless opinion. For how does he become better from these things, either in body, or in soul? For this is what a man is. Will he be taller from this, or stronger, or healthier, or swifter, or will he acquire keener and clearer senses? But no one could say this. Let us go, then, to the soul, to see if we might find some gain accruing there from this. What then? Will such a man be more temperate, more gentle, more prudent from this service? By no means, but all the contrary. For what happens in the case of the body does not also happen here. For in that case the body gains 58.573 nothing for its own excellence; but here not only is this the terrible thing, that it reaps no good fruit, but that the soul also receives much wickedness from it. For from this it is carried into despair, and vainglory, and folly, and into anger, and into countless such faults. But he rejoices, you say, and delights in these things, and is brightened. You have told me the summit of evils, and the incurability of the disease. For he who rejoices in these things would not even wish to be easily freed from the source of the evils, but has walled off for himself the path of healing through pleasure. So this is the most terrible thing, that he does not even feel pain, but even rejoices, while his diseases are increasing. For to rejoice is not everywhere a good thing; since thieves also rejoice when they steal, and an adulterer when corrupting his neighbor's marriage, and the covetous man when seizing, and the murderer when killing. Let us not, therefore, look at whether he rejoices, but whether it is for something useful; and let us consider, lest we find this joy to be such as the
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ὑπεσχόμην δεσπότας δεῖξαι, ὁ δὲ λόγος ἡμῖν προϊὼν καὶ ἀγωνιζόμενος πλέον τῆς ὑποσχέσεως ἐποίησε, πολεμίους ἀντὶ δεσποτῶν δείξας, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ πολεμίους καὶ δεσπότας τοὺς αὐτούς. Θεραπεύονται μὲν γὰρ ὡς δεσπόται, φοβεροὶ δέ εἰσιν ὡς πολέμιοι, καὶ ἐπιβουλεύουσιν ὡς ἐχθροί. Ὅταν οὖν τις τοὺς αὐτοὺς καὶ κυρίους ἔχῃ καὶ ἐχθροὺς, τί ταύτης τῆς συμφορᾶς χεῖρον γένοιτ' ἄν; Ὁ μὲν δοῦλος, κἂν ἐπιτάττηται, ἀλλ' ὅμως ἐπιμελείας ἀπολαύει παρὰ τῶν κελευόντων καὶ εὐνοίας· οὗτοι δὲ καὶ ἐπιτάττονται, καὶ πολεμοῦνται, καὶ κατ' ἀλλήλων ἑστήκασι· καὶ τοσούτῳ τῶν ἐν ταῖς μάχαις χαλεπώτερον, ὅσῳ καὶ λάθρα κεντοῦσι, καὶ ἐν προσωπείῳ φίλων τὰ τῶν ἐχθρῶν διατιθέασι, καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἑτέρων πολλάκις εὐδοκιμοῦσι συμφορᾶς. Ἀλλ' οὐ τὰ ἡμέτερα τοιαῦτα· ἀλλὰ κἂν πράξῃ κακῶς ἕτερος, πολλοὶ οἱ συναλγοῦντες· κἂν εὐδοκιμῇ, πολλοὶ οἱ συνηδόμενοι. Ἀλλ' οὐχ ὁ Ἀπόστολος· Εἴτε γὰρ πάσχει, φησὶν, ἓν μέλος, συμπάσχει πάντα τὰ μέλη· εἴτε δοξάζεται ἓν μέλος, συγχαίρει πάντα τὰ μέλη. Καὶ νῦν μὲν ἔλεγεν ὁ ταῦτα παραινῶν· Τίς μού ἐστιν ἡ ἐλπὶς ἢ χαρὰ, ἢ οὐχὶ καὶ ὑμεῖς; νῦν δὲ, Ὅτι νῦν ζῶμεν, ἐὰν ὑμεῖς στήκητε ἐν Κυρίῳ· νῦν δὲ, Ἐκ πολλῆς θλίψεως καὶ συνοχῆς καρδίας ἔγραψα ὑμῖν· καὶ, Τίς ἀσθενεῖ, καὶ οὐκ ἀσθενῶ; τίς σκανδαλίζεται, καὶ οὐκ ἐγὼ πυροῦμαι; Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν ἔτι τῆς ζάλης ἀνεχόμεθα, καὶ τῶν κυμάτων τῶν ἔξωθεν, καὶ οὐ τρέχομεν ἐπὶ τὸν εὔδιον λιμένα τοῦτον, καὶ τὰ ὀνόματα ἀφέντες τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ἐπὶ τὰ πράγματα βαδίζομεν αὐτά; ∆όξα γὰρ καὶ δυναστεία καὶ πλοῦτος καὶ εὐδοκίμησις καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα, ὀνόματα παρ' ἐκείνοις, παρὰ δὲ ἡμῖν πράγματα· ὥσπερ οὖν τὰ λυπηρὰ, θάνατος καὶ ἀτιμία καὶ πενία καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα, ὀνόματα μὲν παρ' ἡμῖν, πράγματα δὲ παρ' ἐκείνοις. Καὶ εἰ βούλει, τὴν δόξαν πρῶτον εἰς μέσον ἀγάγωμεν, τὴν παρ' ἐκείνοις πᾶσιν ἐπέραστον καὶ ποθεινήν. Καὶ οὐ λέγω, ὅτι ὀλιγοχρόνιος, οὐδ' ὅτι ταχέως σβέννυται· ἀλλ' ὅτε ἀνθεῖ, τότε μοι δεῖξον αὐτήν. Μὴ περιέλῃς τῆς πόρνης τὰ ἐπιτρίμματα καὶ τὰς ὑπογραφὰς, ἀλλὰ κεκαλλωπισμένην εἰς μέσον ἄγε καὶ ἐπίδειξον ἡμῖν, ἵνα τότε αὐτῆς ἐλέγξω τὸ δυσειδές. Οὐκοῦν τὸ σχῆμα πάντως ἐρεῖς καὶ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ῥαβδούχων, καὶ τοῦ κήρυκος τὴν φωνὴν, καὶ τῶν δήμων τὴν ὑπακοὴν, καὶ τὴν παρὰ τῶν πολλῶν σιγὴν, καὶ τὸ τύπτεσθαι τοὺς ἀπαντῶντας ἅπαντας, καὶ τὸ ὑπὸ πάντων περιβλέπεσθαι. Οὐχὶ ταῦτά ἐστι τὰ λαμπρά; Φέρε οὖν, ἐξετάσωμεν εἰ μὴ περιττὰ ταῦτα, καὶ ὑπόληψις μόνον ἀνόνητος. Τί γὰρ ἐκεῖνος ἀπὸ τούτων βελτίων γίνεται, ἢ τὸ σώμα, ἢ τὴν ψυχήν; Τοῦτο γὰρ ἄνθρωπος. Ἆρα ὑψηλότερος ἔσται ἐντεῦθεν, ἢ ἰσχυρότερος, ἢ ὑγιεινότερος, ἢ ταχύτερος, ἢ τὰς αἰσθήσεις ὀξυτέρας κτήσεται καὶ τρανοτέρας; Ἀλλ' οὐδεὶς ἂν ἔχοι τοῦτο εἰπεῖν. Ἴωμεν τοίνυν ἐπὶ τὴν ψυχὴν, μήποτε ἐκεῖ τι κέρδος προσγινόμενον ἐντεῦθεν εὑρήσομεν. Τί οὖν; σωφρονέστερος, ἐπιεικέστερος, συνετώτερος ἀπὸ ταύτης ἔσται τῆς θεραπείας ὁ τοιοῦτος; Οὐδαμῶς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὐναντίον ἅπαν. Οὐ γὰρ ὅπερ ἐπὶ τοῦ σώματος, τοῦτο καὶ ἐνταῦθα συμβαίνει. Ἐκεῖ μὲν γὰρ οὐδὲν πρὸς τὴν οἰκείαν προσλαμ 58.573 βάνει ἀρετὴν τὸ σῶμα· ἐνταῦθα δὲ οὐ μόνον τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ δεινὸν, ὅτι οὐδὲν καρποῦται χρηστὸν, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ κακίαν δέχεται πολλὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἡ ψυχή. Καὶ γὰρ εἰς ἀπόνοιαν, καὶ κενοδοξίαν, καὶ ἄνοιαν, καὶ εἰς θυμὸν, καὶ εἰς μυρία ἐλαττώματα τοιαῦτα ἐντεῦθεν ἐκφέρεται. Ἀλλὰ χαίρει, φησὶ, καὶ γάννυται τούτοις, καὶ φαιδρύνεται. Τὸν κολοφῶνά μοι τῶν κακῶν εἶπες, καὶ τοῦ νοσήματος τὸ ἀνίατον. Ὁ γὰρ χαίρων ἐπὶ τούτοις, οὐδὲ ἀπαλλαγῆναι ῥᾳδίως ἂν θελήσειε τῆς ὑποθέσεως τῶν κακῶν, ἀλλ' ἀπετείχισεν ἑαυτῷ τῆς θεραπείας τὴν ὁδὸν διὰ τῆς ἡδονῆς. Ὥστε τοῦτο μάλιστά ἐστι τὸ δεινὸν, ὅτι οὐδὲ ἀλγεῖ, ἀλλὰ καὶ χαίρει, τῶν νοσημάτων αὐξανομένων αὐτῷ. Οὐδὲ γὰρ πανταχοῦ τὸ χαίρειν καλόν· ἐπεὶ καὶ κλέπται χαίρουσι κλέπτοντες, καὶ μοιχὸς διαφθείρων τὸν τοῦ πλησίον γάμον, καὶ ὁ πλεονέκτης ἁρπάζων, καὶ ὁ ἀνδροφόνος φονεύων. Μὴ τοίνυν εἰ χαίρει ἴδωμεν, ἀλλ' εἰ ἐπὶ χρησίμῳ· καὶ διασκεψώμεθα, μήποτε τοιαύτην εὑρήσομεν τὴν χαρὰν, οἵαν τὴν