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Teach him to be sober, to be watchful, to stay awake for prayers, to set his seal on everything he both says and does. Consider yourself to be a king having the child's soul as a subject city; for the soul is truly a city. And just as in a city some steal, some do righteous deeds, some work, and others simply do everything at random, so also in the soul are thoughts and reasonings; some make war against the unjust, as are the soldiers in a city; others provide for the whole, both body and house, as are the statesmen in the cities; others command, as are the rulers; and some relate wanton things, as are the licentious; others, venerable things, as are the temperate; and some are effeminate, as are the women among us; others converse more foolishly, as do children; and some give orders like slaves, which is what the servants are; others are noble, which is what the free are. We need laws, therefore, so as to banish the wicked, and to approve the good, and not to allow the wicked to rise up against the good. For just as in a city, if one should enact laws giving much impunity to thieves, he would have overthrown the whole thing; and if the soldiers should not use their anger for a proper purpose, they would have ruined the whole thing; and if each one, leaving his own post, pursues that of another, he has corrupted the good order with greed; so it is also here. The child's soul, therefore, is a city, a city newly founded and built, a city having foreign citizens, as yet inexperienced in anything. It is especially easy to regulate such people. For those who have been brought up in a bad constitution, such as the old are, would change with difficulty, but not impossibly; for it is possible for them also to be converted, if they are willing; but those who are inexperienced in everything would easily accept the laws from you. Enact, therefore, fearsome and forceful laws for this city and for those governing in the city, and be a protector of those being transgressed; for it is of no benefit to enact laws, if retribution does not also follow. Enact laws, therefore, and pay close attention; for our legislation is on behalf of the inhabited world, and we are founding a city today. Let the four senses, then, be the circuits and gates <αἱ>; let the rest of the whole body be like a wall, and its gates the eyes, the tongue, hearing, smell, and if you wish, touch also; for through these gates the citizens of this city both enter and exit; that is, the thoughts are both corrupted and set right through these gates. Come then, let us first go to the gate of the tongue, since this is the one most engaged in business, and before all others let us build for it for the time being doors and bars not of wood nor of iron, but of gold. For the city so constructed is truly golden. For not some man, but the King of all himself is going to inhabit this city, if it is constructed. And as the discourse proceeds, you will see where we also assign the royal palace for him. Let us therefore construct for it doors and bars of gold, the oracles of God, as the prophet says: "The oracles of God are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb to my mouth; than gold and much precious stone." Let us teach these things to be turned about on the lips at all times, and during walks, not simply nor as a side task nor rarely, but continuously. It is necessary not only for plates of gold to be laid upon the doors, but for them to be constructed entirely of solid, thick gold, and to have precious stones instead of stones fixed on from the outside. And let the bar of these doors be the cross of the Lord, made entirely of precious stones and cast sideways through the middle of the doors. But when we have thus constructed the doors thick and golden and the

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δίδαξον αὐτὸν νήφειν, ἐγρηγορέναι, εἰς προσευχὰς ἀγρυπνεῖν, πάντα καὶ λέγοντα καὶ ποιοῦντα τὴν σφραγῖδα ἐπιτίθεσθαι. Νόμισον εἶναι βασιλεὺς πόλιν ἔχων ὑπήκοον τὴν τοῦ παιδὸς ψυχήν· πόλις γάρ ἐστιν ὄντως ἡ ψυχή. Καὶ καθάπερ ἐν τῇ πόλει οἱ μὲν κλέπτουσιν, οἱ δὲ δικαιοπραγοῦσιν, οἱ δὲ ἐργάζονται, οἱ δὲ ἁπλῶς ὡς ἔτυχεν ἅπαντα πράττουσιν, οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ διάνοια καὶ λογισμοί· οἱ μὲν στρατεύονται κατὰ τῶν ἀδικούντων, οἷόν εἰσιν ἐν πόλει οἱ στρατιῶται· οἱ δὲ τοῦ παντὸς προνοοῦσιν, καὶ σώματος καὶ οἰκίας, οἷόν εἰσιν οἱ πολιτευόμενοι ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν· οἱ δὲ ἐπιτάττουσιν, οἷόν εἰσιν οἱ ἄρχοντες· καὶ οἱ μὲν ἀσελγῆ διηγοῦνται, οἷόν εἰσιν οἱ ἀκόλαστοι· οἱ δὲ σεμνά, οἷόν εἰσιν οἱ σώφρονες· καὶ οἱ μέν εἰσιν ἐκτεθηλυσμένοι, οἷόν εἰσιν αἱ γυναῖκες παρ' ἡμῖν· οἱ δὲ ἀνοητότερον διαλέγονται, οἷόν οἱ παῖδες· καὶ οἱ μὲν ὡς δοῦλοι ἐπιτάττουσιν, ὅπερ εἰσὶν οἱ οἰκέται· οἱ δὲ εὐγενεῖς, ὅπερ εἰσὶν οἱ ἐλεύθεροι. ∆εῖ τοίνυν νόμων ἡμῖν, ὥστε τοὺς μὲν πονηροὺς ἐξορίζειν, τοὺς δὲ ἀγαθοὺς ἐγκρίνειν καὶ μὴ ἐᾶν κατεξανίστασθαι τῶν ἀγαθῶν τοὺς πονηρούς. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐν πόλει ἂν νόμους τις θῇ πολλὴν τοῖς κλέπταις τὴν ἄδειαν διδόντας, τὸ πᾶν ἀνέτρεψεν· κἂν οἱ στρατιῶται μὴ εἰς δέον κέχρηνται τῷ θυμῷ, τὸ πᾶν ἐλυμήναντο· καὶ ἐὰν τὴν οἰκείαν τάξιν ἕκαστος καταλιπὼν τὴν ἑτέρου μεταδιώκῃ, τῇ πλεονεξίᾳ τὴν εὐταξίαν διέφθειρεν· οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐνταῦθα. Πόλις τοίνυν ἐστὶν ἡ τοῦ παιδὸς ψυχή, πόλις ἄρτι κτισθεῖσα καὶ κατασκευασθεῖσα, πόλις ξένους ἔχουσα πολίτας, οὔπω οὐδενὸς ἐμπείρους. Τοὺς δὲ τοιούτους μάλιστα εὔκολον ῥυθμίζειν. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ κακῇ πολιτείᾳ συντραφέντες, οἷοί πέρ εἰσιν οἱ γέροντες, δυσκόλως ἂν μεταθοῖντο, οὐ μὴν ἀδυνάτως· ἔνεστι γὰρ κἀκείνους μεταστραφῆναι, ἐὰν θέλωσιν· οἱ δὲ παντὸς ἄπειροι εὐκόλως ἂν δέξοιντο τοὺς παρὰ σοῦ νόμους. Τίθει τοίνυν νόμους τῇ πόλει ταύτῃ καὶ τοῖς ἐν τῇ πόλει πολιτευομένοις φοβεροὺς καὶ σφοδροὺς καὶ τῶν παραβαινομένων γενοῦ προστάτης· οὐδὲν γὰρ ὠφελεῖ τιθέναι νόμους, ἂν μὴ καὶ ἡ ἐκδίκησις ἕποιτο. Τίθει τοίνυν νόμους καὶ πρόσεχε ἀκριβῶς· ὑπὲρ γὰρ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἡμῖν ἡ νομοθεσία καὶ πόλιν κτίζομεν σήμερον. Ἔστωσαν οὖν οἱ μὲν περίβολοι καὶ πύλαι <αἱ> τέσσαρες αἰσθήσεις· τὸ λοιπὸν ἅπαν σῶμα ὥσπερ τεῖχος ἔστω, πύλαι δὲ αὐτῷ οἱ ὀφθαλμοί, ἡ γλῶσσα, ἡ ἀκοή, ἡ ὄσφρησις, εἰ βούλει καὶ ἡ ἁφή· διὰ γὰρ τῶν πυλῶν τούτων καὶ εἰσίασι καὶ ἐξέρχονται οἱ τῆς πόλεως ταύτης πολῖται· τουτέστιν οἱ λογισμοὶ διὰ τῶν πυλῶν τούτων καὶ φθείρονται καὶ κατορθοῦνται. Φέρε οὖν πρῶτον ἐπὶ τὴν πύλην ἔλθωμεν τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς γλώσσης, ἐπειδὴ ἡ μάλιστα χρηματίζουσα αὕτη ἐστίν, καὶ πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων κατασκευάσωμεν αὐτῇ τέως θύρας καὶ μοχλοὺς μὴ ἀπὸ ξύλων μηδὲ ἀπὸ σιδήρου, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ χρυσοῦ. Χρυσῆ γὰρ ὄντως ἐστὶν ἡ πόλις ἡ οὕτω κατασκευαζομένη. Οὐ γὰρ ἄνθρωπός τις, ἀλλ' αὐτὸς ὁ τῶν ὅλων βασιλεὺς ταύτην μέλλει τὴν πόλιν οἰκεῖν, ἐὰν κατασκευασθῇ. Καὶ τοῦ λόγου προϊόντος ὄψεσθε, ὅπου καὶ τὰ βασίλεια αὐτῷ τάττομεν. Κατασκευάσωμεν οὖν αὐτῇ θύρας καὶ μοχλοὺς ἀπὸ χρυσίου, τὰ λόγια τοῦ Θεοῦ, καθὼς ὁ προφήτης φησίν· «Τὰ λόγια τοῦ Θεοῦ ὑπὲρ μέλι καὶ κηρίον τῷ στόματί μου· ὑπὲρ χρυσίον καὶ λίθον τίμιον πολύν.» ∆ιδάσκωμεν ταῦτα διὰ παντὸς ἐν τοῖς χείλεσι στρέφεσθαι, καὶ ἐν τοῖς περιπάτοις, μὴ ἁπλῶς μηδὲ παρέργως μηδὲ σπανιάκις, ἀλλὰ διηνεκῶς. Οὐ λεπίδας χρυσοῦ μόνον ἐπικεῖσθαι δεῖ ταῖς θύραις, ἀλλ' ὅλας δι' ὅλου ἀπὸ χρυσοῦ κατεσκευάσθαι παχείας καὶ ναστάς, καὶ λίθους ἔχειν τιμίους ἀντὶ λίθων προσπεπηγότων ἔξωθεν. Μοχλὸς δὲ ἔστω τῶν θυρῶν τούτων ὁ τοῦ Κυρίου σταυρός, ὅλος δι' ὅλων ἀπὸ λίθων κατεσκευασμένος τιμίων καὶ διὰ μέσων βεβλημένος τῶν θυρῶν πλάγιος. Ὅταν δὲ τὰς θύρας οὕτω παχείας κατασκευάσωμεν καὶ χρυσᾶς καὶ τὸν