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in the council-chamber of the city, nor in the courts, nor in the palaces, but somewhere far and distant we keep them bound; but in the soul, where the council-chamber is, where the palace is, where the court is, the beasts are let loose, crying and making a disturbance around the mind itself and the royal throne. Because of this all things are turned upside down, and all things are full of turmoil, things within, things without, and each one of us is no different from a city disturbed by a barbarian raid; and the same thing happens, as if a dragon were attacking a brood of sparrows, the sparrows would fly everywhere chirping, fearing and full of turmoil, not having anywhere to end their agony. 7. Therefore I beseech you, let us destroy the dragon, let us shut up the beasts, let us suffocate them, let us slaughter them; and let us deliver these wicked thoughts to the sword of the Spirit, lest the prophet threaten us with such things as he did Judea, that onocentaurs shall dance there, and hedgehogs, and dragons. For there are, there are even men worse than onocentaurs, living as if in a wilderness, and kicking; and the greater part of youth among us is of this sort. For having wild desires, thus they leap, thus they kick, going about unbridled, and using their zeal for nothing that is necessary. And the fathers are to blame, who compel the horse-tamers to train their own horses with much care, and do not allow the colt’s age to advance for long untamed, but put on both a bridle and all the other things from the very beginning; but their own youths they for a long time overlook, going about unbridled 58.583 and destitute of self-control, disgraced by fornication and dice and by pastimes in the lawless theaters, when they ought to give them over to a wife before fornication, to a prudent and most wise wife; for she will lead the man away from the most absurd pastime, and will be a bridle to the colt. For fornications and adulteries do not come from anywhere else, but from the young being unrestrained. For if he has a sensible wife, he will take care of his house, and of his reputation, and of his esteem. But he is young, he says. I know it too. For if Isaac, being forty years old, took his bride, passing all that time of his life in virginity, much more ought the young men in grace to practice this philosophy. But what am I to do? You do not endure to take care of their self-control, but you overlook them being disgraced, being defiled, becoming accursed, not knowing that the profit of marriage is to keep the body pure; and if this is not so, there is no benefit of marriage. But you do the opposite; when they have been filled with ten thousand stains, then you bring them to marriage, randomly and in vain. For it is necessary to wait, he says, so that he may become well-reputed, so that he may shine in political affairs; but of the soul you take no account, but you overlook it cast down. Because of this all things are full of confusion, and of disorder and turmoil, because this is a secondary matter, because the necessary things have been neglected, while the trivial things receive much forethought. Do you not know, that you will bestow no such favor on the child, as to keep him pure from the impurity of fornication? For nothing is equal to the soul. For What is a man profited, he says, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul, But indeed the love of money has overturned and thrown down all things, and has thrust aside the exact fear of God, having seized the souls of men just as some tyrant an acropolis. Wherefore we neglect both the salvation of our children and our own, considering one thing only, how having become more wealthy, we may leave wealth to others, and they in turn 58.584 to others, and those after them to those after them, becoming certain escorts of our possessions and money, but not masters. From this comes much folly; from this the free are more dishonored than the slaves. For we rebuke our slaves, if not for their own sakes, yet for our own; but the free do not even enjoy this forethought, but are to us more worthless even than these. And why do I speak of slaves? For children are more dishonored than cattle, and donkeys and

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τῷ βουλευτηρίῳ τῆς πόλεως, οὔτε πρὸς τοῖς δικαστηρίοις, οὔτε πρὸς τοῖς βασιλείοις, ἀλλὰ πόῤῥω που καὶ μακρὰν δεδεμένα κατέχομεν· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ψυχῆς, ἔνθα τὸ βουλευτήριον, ἔνθα τὰ βασίλεια, ἔνθα τὸ δικαστήριον, ἀνεῖται τὰ θηρία, περὶ τὸν νοῦν αὐτὸν καὶ τὸν θρόνον τὸν βασιλικὸν κράζοντα καὶ θορυβοῦντα. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο πάντα ἄνω καὶ κάτω γίνεται, καὶ πάντα μεστὰ ταραχῆς, τὰ ἔνδον, τὰ ἔξω, καὶ οὐδὲν διεστήκαμεν ἕκαστος ἡμῶν πόλεως ὑπὸ καταδρομῆς βαρβάρων θορυβουμένης· καὶ ταὐτὸν γίνεται, οἷον ἂν εἰ δράκοντος νεοττίᾳ στρουθῶν ἐπιτιθεμένου, πανταχοῦ τρίζοντες οἱ στρουθοὶ πέτοιντο φοβούμενοι καὶ ταραχῆς γέμοντες, οὐκ ἔχοντες δὲ ὅποι καταλύσωσι τὴν ἀγωνίαν. ζʹ. ∆ιὸ παρακαλῶ, τὸν δράκοντα ἀνέλωμεν, συγκλείσωμεν τὰ θηρία, ἀποπνίξωμεν, κατασφάξωμεν· καὶ τοὺς πονηροὺς τούτους λογισμοὺς τῇ μαχαίρᾳ τοῦ Πνεύματος παραδῶμεν, ἵνα μὴ καὶ ἡμῖν ἀπειλῇ τοιαῦτα ὁ προφήτης, οἷα καὶ τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ, ὅτι Ὀνοκένταυροι ἐκεῖ ὀρχήσονται, καὶ ἐχῖνοι, καὶ δράκοντες. Εἰσὶ γὰρ, εἰσὶ καὶ ἄνθρωποι ὀνοκενταύρων χείρους, καθάπερ ἐν ἐρημίᾳ ζῶντες, καὶ λακτίζοντες· καὶ τὸ πλέον τῆς νεότητος παρ' ἡμῖν τοιοῦτον. Καὶ γὰρ ἀγρίας ἔχοντες ἐπιθυμίας, οὕτω πηδῶσιν, οὕτω λακτίζουσιν, ἀχαλίνωτοι περιιόντες, καὶ τῇ σπουδῇ πρὸς οὐδὲν τῶν δεόντων χρώμενοι. Αἴτιοι δὲ οἱ πατέρες, οἳ τοὺς μὲν πωλοδάμνας ἀναγκάζουσι τοὺς ἵππους τοὺς ἑαυτῶν μετὰ πολλῆς ῥυθμίζειν τῆς ἐπιμελείας, καὶ οὐκ ἀφιᾶσιν ἐπὶ πολὺ τοῦ πώλου τὴν ἡλικίαν ἀδάμαστον προελθεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ χαλινὸν καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα ἐπιτιθέασιν ἐκ προοιμίων· τοὺς δὲ αὐτῶν νέους ἐπὶ πολὺ περιορῶσιν ἀχαλινώτους 58.583 περιιόντας καὶ σωφροσύνης ἐρήμους, πορνείαις καὶ κύβοις καὶ ταῖς ἐν τοῖς παρανόμοις θεάτροις διατριβαῖς καταισχυνομένους, δέον πρὸ τῆς πορνείας γυναικὶ παραδοῦναι, γυναικὶ σώφρονι καὶ σοφωτάτῃ· αὕτη γὰρ καὶ τῆς ἀτοπωτάτης ἀπάξει διατριβῆς τὸν ἄνδρα, καὶ ἀντὶ χαλινοῦ τῷ πώλῳ γενήσεται. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἑτέρωθεν αἱ πορνεῖαι καὶ αἱ μοιχεῖαι, ἀλλ' ἐκ τοῦ ἀφέτους εἶναι τοὺς νέους. Ἂν γὰρ γυναῖκα ἔχῃ συνετὴν, καὶ οἰκίας ἐπιμελήσεται, καὶ δόξης, καὶ ὑπολήψεως. Ἀλλὰ νέος ἐστὶ, φησίν. Οἶδα κἀγώ. Εἰ γὰρ ὁ Ἰσαὰκ τεσσαράκοντα ἐτῶν ὢν τὴν νύμφην ἠγάγετο, ἐν παρθενίᾳ τὴν ἡλικίαν πᾶσαν ἐκείνην διάγων, πολλῷ μᾶλλον τοὺς ἐν τῇ χάριτι νέους τὴν φιλοσοφίαν ταύτην ἀσκεῖν ἔδει. Ἀλλὰ τί πάθω; Οὐκ ἀνέχεσθε τῆς σωφροσύνης αὐτῶν ἐπιμελεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ περιορᾶτε καταισχυνομένους, μολυνομένους, ἐναγεῖς γινομένους, οὐκ εἰδότες ὅτι γάμου κέρδος τὸ καθαρὸν διατηρῆσαι τὸ σῶμα· κἂν τοῦτο μὴ ᾖ, οὐδὲν ὄφελος γάμου. Ὑμεῖς δὲ τοὐναντίον ποιεῖτε· ὅταν μυρίων ἐμπλησθῶσι κηλίδων, τότε αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ γάμον ἄγετε, εἰκῆ καὶ μάτην. ∆εῖ γὰρ ἀναμεῖναι, φησὶν, ἵνα εὐδόκιμος γένηται, ἵνα ἐν τοῖς πολιτικοῖς λάμψῃ πράγμασι· τῆς δὲ ψυχῆς ὑμῖν οὐδεὶς λόγος, ἀλλὰ περιορᾶτε αὐτὴν ἐῤῥιμμένην. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο πάντα συγχύσεως γέμει, καὶ ἀταξίας καὶ ταραχῆς, ὅτι πάρεργον αὕτη, ὅτι τὰ μὲν ἀναγκαῖα ἠμέληται, τὰ δὲ εὐτελῆ πολλῆς τυγχάνει προνοίας. Οὐκ οἶσθα, ὅτι οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον χαριῇ τῷ παιδὶ, ὡς τὸ φυλάξαι πορνικῆς ἀκαθαρσίας καθαρόν; Ψυχῆς γὰρ ἴσον οὐδέν. Ὅτι Τί ὠφελεῖται ἄνθρωπος, φησὶν, ἐὰν τὸν κόσμον ὅλον κερδήσῃ, τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ζημιωθῇ, Ἀλλὰ γὰρ πάντα ὁ τῶν χρημάτων ἔρως ἀνέτρεψε καὶ κατέβαλε, καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸν ἀκριβῆ φόβον παρώθησεν, ὥσπερ τις τύραννος ἀκρόπολιν, οὕτω τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ψυχὰς καταλαβών. ∆ιὸ καὶ τῆς τῶν παίδων καὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας ἀμελοῦμεν σωτηρίας, ἓν μόνον σκοποῦντες, ὅπως εὐπορώτεροι γενόμενοι, πλοῦτον ἑτέροις ἀφῶμεν, κἀκεῖνοι πάλιν 58.584 ἄλλοις, καὶ οἱ μετ' ἐκείνους τοῖς μετ' αὐτοὺς, παράπομποί τινες τῶν ἡμετέρων γινόμενοι κτημάτων τε καὶ χρημάτων, ἀλλ' οὐ δεσπόται. Ἐντεῦθεν πολλὴ ἡ ἄνοια· ἐντεῦθεν τῶν δούλων οἱ ἐλεύθεροι ἀτιμότεροι. Τοῖς μὲν γὰρ δούλοις, εἰ καὶ μὴ δι' αὐτοὺς, ἀλλὰ δι' ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐπιτιμῶμεν· οἱ δὲ ἐλεύθεροι οὐδὲ ταύτης ἀπολαύουσι τῆς προνοίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τούτων ἡμῖν εἰσιν εὐτελέστεροι. Καὶ τί λέγω τῶν δούλων; Καὶ γὰρ βοσκημάτων οἱ παῖδες ἀτιμότεροι, καὶ ὄνων καὶ