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ALEXANDER ¹

[1] While Alexander was still a boy and Philip was winning many successes, he was not glad, but said to ² his playmates, My father will leave nothing for me to do. But, said the boys, he is acquiring all this for you. But what good is it, said Alexander, if I possess much and accomplish nothing ?³

[2] Being nimble and swift of foot, he was urged by his father to run in the foot-race at the Olympic games. Yes, I would run, said he, if I were to have kings as competitors.⁴

[3] A girl was brought to him late in the evening with the intent that she should spend the night with him, and he asked her, Why at this time ? She replied, I had to wait to get my husband to go to bed ; whereupon Alexander bitterly rebuked his servants, since, owing to them, he had so narrowly escaped becoming an adulterer.

[4] On a time when he was offering incense to the gods with lavish hand, and often taking up handfuls of the frankincense, Leonidas, who had been his attendant in boyhood, happening to be present, said, My boy, you may offer incense thus lavishly when you have made yourself master of the land that bears it. And so, when Alexander had become master of it, he sent a letter to Leonidas: I have sent to you a half-ton of frankincense and cassia, so that you may never again count any petty cost in dealing with the gods, since you know that we are now masters of the land that bears these fragrant things.⁵

[5] Just before he fought the battle at Granicus he urged the Macedonians to eat without stint, and to bring out all they had, since on the morrow they should dine from the enemy’s stores.

[6] When Perillus, one of his friends, asked him for dowry for his girls, Alexander bade him accept ten thousand pounds. He said that two thousand would be enough; but Alexander said, Enough for you to accept, but not enough for me to give.⁶

[7] He bade his manager give to Anaxarchus, the philosopher, as much as he asked for; and when the manager said that he asked for twenty thousand pounds, Alexander said, He does well, for he knows that he has a friend who is both able and willing to make such presents.⁷

[8] When he saw in Miletus many statues of athletes who had won victories in the Olympic and the Pythian games, he said, Where were the men with bodies like these when the barbarians were besieging your city?⁸

[9] Ada, queen of the Carians, made it a point of honour to be always sending to him fancy dishes and sweetmeats prepared in unusual ways by the hands of artists and chefs, but he said he had better fancy cooks--his night marches for his breakfast, and for his dinner his frugal breakfast. ⁹

[10] Once, when all preparations had been made for battle, his generals asked him whether there was anything else in addition to what they had done. Nothing, said he, except to shave the Macedonians’ beards. And as Parmenio expressed his surprise, Alexander said, Don’t you know that in battles there is nothing handier to grasp than a beard?¹⁰

[11] When Darius offered him two million pounds, and also offered to share Asia equally with him, Parmenio said, I would take it if I were Alexander. And so indeed would I, said Alexander, if I were Parmenio. But he made answer to Darius that the earth could not tolerate two suns, nor Asia two kings. ¹¹

[12] When he was about to risk everything at Arbela against a million men arrayed against him, his friends came to him and accused the soldiers of talking together and making agreements in their tents that they would hand over none of the spoil to the royal treasury, but would keep everything for themselves. And he smiling said, You bring good news; for I hear in this the talk of men prepared to conquer and not to flee. And many of the soldiers came to him and said, Be of good cheer, Sire, and do not fear the great numbers of the enemy; for they will not be able to stand the very smell of goat that clings to us.

[13] As the army was being drawn up for battle, he saw one of the soldiers fitting the thong to his javelin, and he shoved him out of the line as a useless man who was making ready at this time when he ought to be using his weapons.

[14] As he was reading a letter from his mother, which contained secret slanders against Antipater, Hephaestion, as usual, was reading it with him. Alexander did not prevent Hephaestion from reading it, but, when he had finished the reading, he took off his ring, and placed the seal on Hephaestion’s lips. ¹²

[15] In the shrine of Ammon he was hailed by the prophetic priest as the son of Zeus. That is nothing surprising, said he; for Zeus is by nature the father of all, and he makes the noblest his own.¹³

[16] When he was hit in the leg by an arrow, and many of those who were oftentimes wont to hail him as a god hurried up to him, he, relaxing his countenance, said, This is blood, as you see, and not

Ichor, like that which flows from the wounds of the blessed Immortals.

¹⁴

[17] When some commended the frugality of Antipater, who, they said, lived a plain and simple life, he remarked, Outwardly Antipater is plain white, but within he is all purple.¹⁵

[18] When one of his friends was entertaining him in the cold of winter, and brought in a small brazier with a little Are in it, Alexander bade him bring in either firewood or incense.

[19] When Antipatrides brought to dinner a beautiful harp-player, Alexander, stirred to love at the sight of her, asked Antipatrides whether he happened to be at all in love with the girl; and when he admitted that he was, Alexander said, You abominable wretch ! Please take her away from here at once.

[20] On another occasion Casander forced Python, beloved by Evius the flute-player, ¹⁶ to kiss him, and Alexander, seeing that Evius was vexed, leapt up in anger against Casander, exclaiming It isn’t allowable even to fall in love with anybody, because of you and people like you.

[21] When he was sending away to the sea those of the Macedonians who were sick or incapacitated, a man was reported to have put down his name in the list of the sick although there was nothing the matter with him. When therefore the man was brought before Alexander and examined, he admitted that he had employed this ruse because of love for Telesippa, who was departing for the sea; and Alexander asked, With whom must one talk concerning Telesippa ? And when he learned that she was not a slave, he said, Then let us, Antigenes, try to persuade Telesippa to stay with us; for to coerce her, a free woman, is not within our right.¹⁷

[22] When Greek mercenaries serving on the enemy’s side carne into his hands, he would order the Athenians among them to be kept in chains, because, while they could live at the expense of the State, they were serving as mercenaries, and so also the Thessalians, because, although they owned the very best land, they did not till it. But the Thebans he let go free, saying that these alone, because of us, have neither city nor land left to them.

[23] When he had taken captive the man who had the greatest repute for marksmanship among the Indians, of whom it was said that he could send an arrow through a finger-ring, Alexander bade him show his skill, and when he would not, the king in anger decreed his execution. The man, as he was being led away, said to those who were taking him that he had not practised for many days, and was afraid of failing; and when this came to the ears of Alexander, he marvelled and let the man go with many gifts because he preferred to suffer himself to be put to death rather than to show himself unworthy of his reputation.

[24] When Taxiles, king of the Indians, met Alexander, he charged him not to fight or make war, but, if he were inferior, to accept favours, and, if he were superior, to bestow them. To this Alexander replied that this was the very issue between them, to determine which could outdo the other in bestowing favours. ¹⁸

[25] When he was told concerning the Birdless Rock,¹⁹ as it is called, in India, that the place was extremely difficult to capture, but that the man who held it was a coward, he said, In that case it is easy to capture.²⁰

[26] When another man who held a seemingly impregnable rock surrendered himself together with his stronghold to Alexander, Alexander bade him to continue to rule, and gave him additional country to govern, saying that this person seems to me to show sense in trusting himself to a good man rather than to a strong place.

[27] After the capture of the rock his friends were saying that he had surpassed Heracles in his deeds, but he remarked, No, I do not feel that my deeds, with my position as commander, are to be weighed against one word of Heracles.²¹

[28] Learning that in gambling with dice some of his friends did not enter into the game as a sport, he punished them.²²

[29] Of his foremost and most influential friends he seems to have honoured Crateras most and to have loved Hephaestion best. For, said he, Crateras is fond of the king, but Hephaestion is fond of Alexander.²³

[30] He sent ten thousand pounds to Xenocrates the philosopher, but when Xenocrates would not accept them, and said he had no need of them, Alexander asked whether Xenocrates had not a single friend. For, in my case, said he, the wealth of Darius was hardly enough for my friends.²⁴

[31] Porus, after the battle, was asked by Alexander, How shall I treat you ? Like a king, said he. Asked again if there were nothing else, he said, Everything is included in those words. Marvelling at his sagacity and manliness, Alexander added to his kingdom more land than he had possessed before. ²⁵

[32] Learning that he was being maligned by a certain man, he said, It is kingly to be ill spoken of for doing good.²⁶

[33] As he was dying, he said, looking towards his companions, I see that my funeral rites will be imposing.²⁷

[34] When he had come to his end, Demades the orator said that the army of the Macedonians, because of its lack of leadership, looked like the Cyclops after his eye had been put out. ²⁸

Regum et imperatorum apophthegmata. Plutarch. Frank Cole Babbitt (Translator). Cambridge, MA. 1931.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The National Endowment for the Humanities.

Current edition Perseus

Sayings of Kings and Commanders (English) (Plutarch. Moralia, Vol. III. Babbitt, Frank Cole, translator. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1931 (printing).)

Editions (2)

Ἀποφθέγματα βασιλέων καὶ στρατηγῶν Perseus (Plutarch. Moralia, Vol. III. Babbitt, Frank Cole, editor. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1931 (printing).) — 27 focus

Ἀλέξανδρος

[1] Ἀλέξανδρος ἔτι παῖς ὤν, πολλὰ τοῦ Φιλίππου κατορθοῦντος, οὐκ ἔχαιρεν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τοὺς συντρεφομένους ἔλεγε παῖδας, ἐμοὶ δὲ ὁ πατὴρ οὐδὲν ἀπολείψει. τῶν δὲ παίδων λεγόντων ὅτι σοὶ ταῦτα κτᾶται τί δὲ ὄφελος, εἶπεν, ἐὰν ἔχω μὲν πολλὰ πράξω δὲ μηδέν;

[2] ἐλαφρὸς δὲ ὢν καὶ ποδώκης καὶ παρακαλούμενος ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς Ὀλύμπια δραμεῖν στάδιον, εἴγε, ἔφη, βασιλεῖς ἕξειν ἔμελλον ἀνταγωνιστάς.

[3] 179e ἀχθείσης δὲ παιδίσκης πρὸς αὐτὸν ὡς συναναπαυσομένης περὶ ἑσπέραν βαθεῖαν, ἠρώτησεν ὅ τι τηνικαῦτα· τῆς δὲ εἰπούσης, περιέμενον γὰρ τὸν ἄνδρα κατακλῖναι,¹ πικρῶς ἐπετίμησε τοῖς παισὶν ὡς μικροῦ διʼ αὐτοὺς μοιχὸς γενόμενος.

[4] Ἐπιθυμιῶντι δὲ τοῖς θεοῖς ἀφειδῶς αὐτῷ καὶ πολλάκις ἐπιδραττομένῳ τοῦ λιβανωτοῦ, παρὼν Λεωνίδης ὁ παιδαγωγός, οὕτως, εἶπεν, ὦ παῖ, δαψιλῶς ἐπιθυμιάσεις, ὅταν τῆς λιβανωτοφόρου κρατήσῃς. ὡς οὖν ἐκράτησεν, ἔπεμψεν 179f ἐπιστολὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀπέσταλκά σοι τάλαντα ἑκατὸν² λιβανωτοῦ καὶ κασίας, ἵνα μηκέτι μικρολογῇ περὶ τοὺς θεούς, εἰδὼς ὅτι καὶ τῆς ἀρωματοφόρου κρατοῦμεν.

[5] μέλλων δὲ τὴν ἐπὶ Γρανίκῳ μάχην μάχεσθαι παρεκάλει τοὺς Μακεδόνας ἀφθόνως δειπνεῖν καὶ πάντα φέρειν εἰς μέσον, ὡς αὔριον δειπνήσοντας ἐκ τῶν πολεμίων.

[6] Περίλλου δέ τινος τῶν φίλων αἰτήσαντος προῖκα τοῖς θυγατρίοις, ἐκέλευσε πεντήκοντα τάλαντα λαβεῖν· αὐτοῦ δὲ φήσαντος ἱκανὰ εἶναι, δέκα, σοί γε, ἔφη, λαβεῖν, ἐμοὶ δʼ οὐχ ἱκανὰ δοῦναι.

[7] Ἀναξάρχῳ δὲ τῷ φιλοσόφῳ δοῦναι τὸν διοικητὴν ἐκέλευσεν ὅσον ἂν αἰτήσῃ· τοῦ δὲ διοικητοῦ φήσαντος ὡς ἑκατὸν αἰτεῖ τάλαντα, καλῶς, 180a ἔφη, ποιεῖ γινώσκων ὅτι φίλον ἔχει καὶ δυνάμενον τηλικαῦτα δωρεῖσθαι, καὶ βουλόμενον.

[8] ἐν δὲ τῇ Μιλήτῳ πολλοὺς ἀνδριάντας ἀθλητῶν θεασάμενος Ὀλύμπια καὶ Πύθια νενικηκότων, καὶ ποῦ τὰ τηλικαῦτα, ἔφη, ἦν σώματα, ὅτε οἱ βάρβαροι ὑμῶν τὴν πόλιν ἐπολιόρκουν;

[9] τῆς δὲ τῶν Καρῶν βασιλίσσης Ἄδας ὄψα καὶ πέμματα παρεσκευασμένα περιττῶς διὰ δημιουργῶν καὶ μαγείρων φιλοτιμουμένης ἀεὶ πέμπειν πρὸς αὐτόν, ἔφη κρείττονας ἔχειν αὐτὸς ὀψοποιούς, πρὸς μὲν ἄριστον τὴν νυκτοπορίαν πρὸς δὲ δεῖπνον τὴν ὀλιγαριστίαν.

[10] ἐπεὶ δὲ παρεσκευασμένων πάντων πρὸς 180b μάχην, ἠρώτησαν οἱ στρατηγοὶ μή τι πρὸς τούτοις ἕτερον; οὐδέν, εἶπεν, ἢ ξυρᾶν τὰ γένεια τῶν Μακεδόνων θαυμάσαντος δὲ τοῦ Παρμενίωνος, οὐκ οἶδας, εἶπεν, ὅτι βελτίων οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν μάχαις λαβὴ πώγωνος;

[11] Δαρείου δὲ διδόντος³ αὐτῷ μύρια τάλαντα καὶ τὴν Ἀσίαν νείμασθαι πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπίσης, καὶ Παρμενίωνος εἰπόντος, ἔλαβον ἂν εἰ Ἀλέξανδρος ἤμην, κἀγὼ νὴ Δία, εἶπεν, εἰ Παρμενίων ἤμην. ἀπεκρίνατο δὲ Δαρείῳ μήτε τὴν γῆν ἡλίους δύο μήτε τὴν Ἀσίαν δύο βασιλεῖς ὑπομένειν.

[12] 180c μέλλοντι δὲ αὐτῷ περὶ τῶν ὅλων ἐν Ἀρβήλοις κινδυνεύειν πρὸς ἑκατὸν μυριάδας ἀντιτεταγμένας προσῄεσαν οἱ φίλοι, τῶν στρατιωτῶν κατηγοροῦντες ὡς ἐν ταῖς σκηναῖς διαλαλούντων καὶ συντιθεμένων, ὅπως μηδὲν τῶν λαφύρων εἰς τὸ βασιλικὸν ἀνοίσουσιν ἀλλʼ αὐτοὶ κερδανοῦσιν. ὁ δὲ μειδιάσας, ἀγαθά, φησίν, ἀγγέλλετε· νικᾶν γὰρ ἀνδρῶν οὐ φεύγειν παρεσκευασμένων ἀκούω διαλογισμούς. καὶ προσιόντες αὐτῷ πολλοὶ τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἔλεγον ὦ βασιλεῦ, θάρρει καὶ μὴ φοβοῦ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν πολεμίων, αὐτὸν γὰρ ἡμῶν τὸν γράσον οὐχ ὑπομενοῦσι.

[13] Παραταττομένου δὲ τοῦ στρατεύματος ἰδών 180d τινα τῶν στρατιωτῶν τὸ ἀκόντιον ἐναγκυλούμενον ἐξέωσε τῆς φάλαγγος ὡς ἄχρηστον, ὃς παρασκευάζεται δὴ νῦν, ὅτε χρῆσθαι δεῖ τοῖς ὅπλοις.

[14] ἐπιστολὴν δὲ παρὰ τῆς μητρὸς ἀναγινώσκων ἀπορρήτους κατʼ Ἀντιπάτρου διαβολὰς ἔχουσαν, ἅμα τοῦ Ἡφαιστίωνος ὥσπερ εἰώθει συναναγινώσκοντος, οὐκ ἐκώλυσεν ὡς δὲ ἀνέγνω τὸν δακτύλιον ἀφελόμενος τὸν ἑαυτοῦ τῷ στόματι τῷ ἐκείνου τὴν σφραγῖδα ἐπέθηκεν.

[15] ἐν δὲ Ἄμμωνος ὑπὸ τοῦ προφήτου παῖς Διὸς προσαγορευθεὶς οὐδέν γε, ἔφη, θαυμαστόν, πάντων μὲν γὰρ ὁ Ζεὺς φύσει πατήρ ἐστιν, ἑαυτοῦ δὲ ποιεῖται τοὺς ἀρίστους.

[16] 180e τοξεύματι δὲ πληγεὶς εἰς τὸ σκέλος, ὡς πολλοὶ συνέδραμον τῶν πολλάκις εἰωθότων αὐτὸν θεὸν προσαγορεύειν, διαχυθεὶς τῷ προσώπῳ, τουτὶ μὲν αἷμα, εἶπεν, ὡς ὁρᾶτε, καὶ οὐκ

ἰχώρ, οἷόσπέρ τε ῥέει μακάρεσσι θεοῖσιν.

[17] ἐπαινούντων δὲ ἐνίων τοῦ Ἀντιπάτρου τὴν εὐτέλειαν ὡς ἀθρύπτως διαιτωμένου καὶ αὐστηρῶς, ἔξωθεν, εἶπεν, Ἀντίπατρος λευκοπάρυφός ἐστι, τὰ δὲ ἔνδον ὁλοπόρφυρος.

[18] ἐν δὲ χειμῶνι καὶ ψύχει τῶν φίλων τινὸς ἑστιῶντος αὐτόν, ἐσχάραν δὲ μικρὰν καὶ πῦρ ὀλίγον εἰσενέγκαντος, ἢ ξύλα ἢ λιβανωτὸν εἰσενεγκεῖν ἐκέλευσεν.

[19] 180f Ἀντιπατρίδου δὲ καλὴν ψάλτριαν ἐπὶ τὸ δεῖπνον ἀγαγόντος, κινηθεὶς τῇ ὄψει πρὸς αὐτὴν ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος ἠρώτησε τὸν Ἀντιπατρίδην, μή τι τυγχάνοι τῆς γυναικὸς ἐρῶν· ἐκείνου δὲ ὁμολογήσαντος, ὦ μιαρέ, εἶπεν,- οὐκ ἀπάξεις εὐθὺς ἐκ τοῦ συμποσίου τὴν γυναῖκα;

[20] πάλιν δὲ Πύθωνα τὸν Εὐίου τοῦ αὐλητοῦ ἐρώμενον Κάσανδρος ἐβιάζετο φιλῆσαι· τὸν οὖν Εὔιον ὁρῶν ἀχθόμενον ἀνεπήδησε μετʼ ὀργῆς ἐπὶ τὸν Κάσανδρον, κεκραγώς, ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ἐρασθῆναί τινος ἔξεστι διʼ ὑμᾶς.

[21] ἀποστέλλοντος δὲ αὐτοῦ τῶν Μακεδόνων 181a τοὺς νοσώδεις καὶ ἀναπήρους ἐπὶ θάλατταν, ἐνεδείχθη τις εἰς τοὺς νοσοῦντας ἀπογεγραμμένος ἑαυτὸν οὐ νοσῶν. ἐπεὶ οὖν εἰς ὄψιν ἀχθεὶς καὶ ἀνακρινόμενος ὡμολόγησε προφασίζεσθαι διʼ ἔρωτα Τελεσίππας ἀπιούσης ἐπὶ θάλατταν, ἠρώτησεν ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος, πρὸς τίνα δεῖ περὶ τῆς Τελεσίππας διαλέγεσθαι· πυθόμενος δὲ ἐλευθέραν οὖσαν, οὐκοῦν, ἔφη, ὦ Ἀντιγένη, πείθωμεν τὴν Τελεσίππαν, ἵνα μείνῃ μεθʼ ἡμῶν βιάζεσθαι γὰρ ἐλευθέραν οὖσαν οὐχ ἡμέτερον.

[22] τῶν δὲ μισθοφορούντων Ἑλλήνων παρὰ τοῖς πολεμίοις ὑποχειρίων γενομένων, τοὺς μὲν Ἀθηναίους 181b ἐκέλευσεν ἐν πέδαις φυλάττειν ὅτι τροφὴν ἔχοντες ἐκ δημοσίου μισθοφοροῦσι καὶ τοὺς Θετταλοὺς ὅτι γῆν⁴ ἀρίστην κεκτημένοι οὐ γεωργοῦσι· τοὺς δὲ Θηβαίους ἀφῆκεν εἰπὼν ὅτι μόνοις τούτοις οὔτε πόλις οὔτε χώρα διʼ ἡμᾶς ἀπολέλειπται.

[23] τῶν δὲ Ἰνδῶν τὸν ἄριστα τοξεύειν δοκοῦντα καὶ λεγόμενον διὰ δακτυλίου τὸν ὀιστὸν ἀφιέναι λαβὼν αἰχμάλωτον ἐκέλευσεν ἐπιδείξασθαι, καὶ μὴ βουλόμενον ὀργισθεὶς ἀνελεῖν προσέταξε· ἐπεὶ δὲ ἀγόμενος⁵ ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἔλεγε πρὸς τοὺς ἄγοντας, ὅτι πολλῶν ἡμερῶν οὐ μεμελέτηκε καὶ ἐφοβήθη διαπεσεῖν, ἀκούσας ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος ἐθαύμασε καὶ ἀπέλυσε μετὰ δώρων αὐτόν, ὅτι μᾶλλον ἀποθανεῖν ὑπέμεινεν ἢ τῆς δόξης ἀνάξιος φανῆναι.

[24] 181c ἐπεὶ δὲ Ταξίλης, εἷς τῶν Ἰνδῶν βασιλεὺς ὤν, ἀπαντήσας προεκαλεῖτο μὴ μάχεσθαι μηδὲ πολεμεῖν Ἀλέξανδρον, ἀλλʼ εἰ μέν ἐστιν ἥττων, εὖ πάσχειν, εἰ δὲ βελτίων, εὖ ποιεῖν, ἀπεκρίνατο περὶ αὐτοῦ τούτου μαχητέον εἶναι, πότερος εὖ ποιῶν περιγένηται.

[25] περὶ δὲ τῆς λεγομένης Ἀόρνου πέτρας ἐν Ἰνδοῖς ἀκούσας ὅτι τὸ μὲν χωρίον δυσάλωτὸν ἐστιν, ὁ δὲ ἔχων αὐτὸ δειλός ἐστι νῦν, ἔφη, τὸ χωρίον εὐάλωτόν ἐστιν.

[26] ἐπεὶ δὲ ἄλλος ἔχων πέτραν ἄληπτον δοκοῦσαν εἶναι ἐνεχείρισεν ἑαυτὸν μετὰ τῆς πέτρας τῷ 181d Ἀλεξάνδρῳ, καὶ τῆς δυνάμεως ἐκέλευσεν ἄρχειν καὶ προσέθηκε χώραν, εἰπὼν ὅτι φρονεῖν μοι δοκεῖ ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ἀνδρὶ μᾶλλον ἀγαθῷ πιστεύσας ἑαυτὸν ἢ ὀχυρῷ τόπῳ.

[27] μετὰ δὲ τὴν τῆς πέτρας ἅλωσιν τῶν φίλων λεγόντων ὑπερβεβληκέναι τὸν Ἡρακλέα ταῖς πράξεσιν, ἀλλʼ ἐγώ, εἶπε, τὰς ἐμὰς πράξεις μετὰ τῆς ἡγεμονίας ἑνὸς οὐ νομίζω ῥήματος⁶ ἀνταξίας εἶναι τοῦ Ἡρακλέους.

[28] τῶν δὲ φίλων τινὰς αἰσθόμενος ἐν τῷ κυβεύειν οὐ παίζοντας⁷ ἐζημίωσε.

[29] τῶν δὲ πρώτων φίλων καὶ κρατίστων τιμᾶν μὲν ἐδόκει Κρατερὸν μάλιστα πάντων, φιλεῖν δὲ Ἡφαιστίωνα. κρατερὸς μὲν γάρ, ἔφη, φιλοβασιλεύς ἐστιν, Ἡφαιστίων δὲ φιλαλέξανδρος.

[30] 181e Ξενοκράτει δὲ τῷ φιλοσόφῳ πεντήκοντα τάλαντα πέμψας, ὡς οὐκ ἐδέξατο μὴ δεῖσθαι φήσας, ἠρώτησεν εἰ μηδὲ φίλον ἔχει Ξενοκράτης· ἐμοὶ μὲν γάρ, ἔφη, μόλις ὁ Δαρείου πλοῦτος εἰς τοὺς φίλους ἤρκεσεν.

[31] ἐπεὶ δὲ Πῶρος ἐρωτηθεὶς ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ μετὰ τὴν μάχην, πῶς σοι χρήσωμαι; βασιλικῶς, εἶπε, καὶ προσερωτηθείς, καὶ μή τι ἄλλο; πάντα, εἶπεν, ἐν τῷ ʼ βασιλικῶς ʼ ἔνεστι θαυμάσας καὶ τὴν σύνεσιν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν ἀνδραγαθίαν πλείονα χώραν ἧς πρότερον εἶχε προσέθηκε,

[32] 181f πυθόμενος δὲ ὑπό τινος λοιδορεῖσθαι, βασιλικόν, ἔφη, ἐστὶν εὖ ποιοῦντα κακῶς ἀκούειν.

[33] ἀποθνῄσκων δὲ πρὸς τοὺς ἑταίρους ἀπιδὼν ἔφη, μέγαν ὁρῶ μου τὸν ἐπιτάφιον ἐσόμενον.

[34] τελευτήσαντος δὲ αὐτοῦ Δημάδης ὁ ῥήτωρ ὅμοιον ἔφη διὰ τὴν ἀναρχίαν ὁρᾶσθαι τὸ στρατόπεδον τῶν Μακεδόνων ἐκτετυφλωμένῳ τῷ Κύκλωπι.

Ἀποφθέγματα βασιλέων καὶ στρατηγῶν Perseus (Plutarch. Plutarchi Chaeronensis Moralia, Vol II. Vernardakēs, Grēgorios N., editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1889.) — 27 focus

Ἀλεξάνδρου

[1] Ἀλέξανδρος ἔτι παῖς ὤν, πολλὰ τοῦ Φιλίππου κατορθοῦντος, οὐκ ἔχαιρεν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τοὺς συντρεφομένους 5 ἔλεγε παῖδας ἐμοὶ δὲ ὁ πατὴρ οὐδὲν ἀπολείψει τῶν δὲ παίδων λεγόντων ὅτι σοὶ ταῦτα κτᾶται· τί δὲ ὄφελος εἶπεν ἐὰν ἔχω μὲν πολλὰ πράξω δὲ μηδέν;

[2] ἐλαφρὸς δὲ ὢν καὶ ποδώκης καὶ παρακαλούμενος 10 ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς Ὀλύμπια δραμεῖν στάδιον, εἴγε ἔφη βασιλεῖς ἕξειν ἔμελλον ἀνταγωνιστάς,

179e

ἀχθείσης δὲ παιδίσκης πρὸς αὐτὸν ὡς συναναπαυσομένης περὶ ἑσπέραν βαθεῖαν, ἠρώτησεν ὅ τι τηνικαῦτα; τῆς δὲ εἰπούσης περιέμενον γὰρ 15 τὸν ἄνδρα κατακλῖναι,¹ πικρῶς ἐπετίμησε τοῖς παισὶν ὡς μικροῦ διʼ αὐτοὺς μοιχὸς γενόμενος.

[4] ἐπιθυμιῶντι δὲ τοῖς θεοῖς ἀφειδῶς αὐτῷ καὶ πολλάκις ἐπιδραττομένῳ τοῦ λιβανωτοῦ, παρὼν Λεωνίδης ὁ παιδαγωγός οὕτως εἶπεν ὦ παῖ, δαψιλῶς 20 ἐπιθυμιάσεις, ὅταν τῆς λιβανωτοφόρου κρατήσῃς. ὡς οὖν ἐκράτησεν, ἔπεμψεν ἐπιστολὴν πρὸς αὐτόν· 179f ἀπέσταλκά σοι τάλαντα ἑκατὸν ² λιβανωτοῦ καὶ κασίας, ἵνα μηκέτι μικρολογῇ περὶ τοὺς θεούς, εἰδὼς ὅτι καὶ τῆς ἀρωματοφόρου κρατοῦμεν.

[6] Περίλλου δέ τινος τῶν φίλων αἰτήσαντος 5 προῖκα τοῖς θυγατρίοις, ἐκέλευσε πεντήκοντα τάλαντα λαβεῖν· αὐτοῦ δὲ φήσαντος ἱκανὰ εἶναι δέκα, σοὶ γε ἔφη λαβεῖν, ἐμοὶ δʼ οὐχ ἱκανὰ δοῦναι.

[7] Ἀναξάρχῳ δὲ τῷ φιλοσόφῳ δοῦναι τὸν διοικητὴν ἐκέλευσεν ὅσον ἂν αἰτήσῃ· τοῦ δὲ διοικητοῦ 10 φήσαντος ὡς ἑκατὸν αἰτεῖ τάλαντα, καλῶς ἔφη ποιεῖ 180a γινώσκων ὅτι φίλον ἔχει καὶ δυνάμενον τηλικαῦτα δωρεῖσθαι καὶ βουλόμενον.

[8] ἐν δὲ τῇ Μιλήτῳ πολλοὺς ἀνδριάντας ἀθλητῶν θεασάμενος Ὀλύμπια καὶ Πύθια νενικηκότων 15 καὶ ποῦ τὰ τηλικαῦτα ἔφη ἦν σώματα, ὅτε οἱ βάρβαροι ὑμῶν τὴν πόλιν ἐπολιόρκουν;

[9] τῆς δὲ τῶν Καρῶν βασιλίσσης Ἄδας ὄψα καὶ πέμματα παρεσκευασμένα περιττῶς διὰ δημιουργῶν καὶ μαγείρων φιλοτιμουμένης ἀεὶ πέμπειν πρὸς 20 αὐτόν, ἔφη κρείττονας ἔχειν αὐτὸς ὀψοποιούς, πρὸς μὲν ἄριστον τὴν νυκτοπορίαν πρὸς δὲ δεῖπνον τὴν ὀλιγαριστίαν.

[10] ἐπεὶ δὲ παρεσκευασμένων πάντων πρὸς 180b μάχην, ἠρώτησαν οἱ στρατηγοὶ μή τι πρὸς τούτοις 25 ἕτερον; οὐδέν εἶπεν ἢ ξυρᾶν τὰ γένεια τῶν Μακεδόνων· θαυμάσαντος δὲ τοῦ Παρμενίωνος οὐκ οἶδας εἶπεν ὅτι βελτίων οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν μάχαις λαβὴ πώγωνος;

[11] Δαρείου δὲ διδόντος ³ αὐτῷ μύρια τάλαντα καὶ τὴν Ἀσίαν νείμασθαι πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπίσης, καὶ Παρμενίωνος εἰπόντος ἔλαβον ἂν εἰ Ἀλέξανδρος ἤμην. κἀγὼ νὴ Δία, εἶπεν εἰ Παρμενίων ἤμην. ἀπεκρίνατο δὲ Δαρείῳ μήτε τὴν γῆν ἡλίους δύο 5 μήτε τὴν Ἀσίαν δύο βασιλεῖς ὑπομένειν.

180c

μέλλοντι δὲ αὐτῷ περὶ τῶν ὅλων ἐν Ἀρβήλοις κινδυνεύειν πρὸς ἑκατὸν μυριάδας ἀντιτεταγμένας προσῄεσαν οἱ φίλοι, τῶν στρατιωτῶν κατηγοροῦντες ὡς ἐν ταῖς σκηναῖς διαλαλούντων καὶ 10 συντιθεμένων, ὅπως μηδὲν τῶν λαφύρων εἰς τὸ βασιλικὸν ἀνοίσουσιν ἀλλʼ αὐτοὶ κερδανοῦσιν. ὁ δὲ μειδιάσας ἀγαθά φησὶν ἀγγέλλετε· νικᾶν γὰρ ἀνδρῶν οὐ φεύγειν παρεσκευασμένων ἀκούω διαλογισμούς. καὶ προσιόντες αὐτῷ πολλοὶ τῶν στρατιωτῶν 15 ἔλεγον ὦ βασιλεῦ, θάρρει καὶ μὴ φοβοῦ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν πολεμίων, αὐτὸν γὰρ ἡμῶν τὸν γράσον οὐχ ὑπομενοῦσι.

[13] παρατασσομένου δὲ τοῦ στρατεύματος ἰδών 180d τινα τῶν στρατιωτῶν τὸ ἀκόντιον ἐναγκυλούμενον 20 ἐξέωσε τῆς φάλαγγος ὡς ἄχρηστον, ὃς παρασκευάζεται δὴ νῦν, ὅτε χρῆσθαι δεῖ τοῖς ὅπλοις.

[14] ἐπιστολὴν δὲ παρὰ τῆς μητρὸς ἀναγινώσκων ἀπορρήτους κατʼ Ἀντιπάτρου διαβολὰς ἔχουσαν, ἅμα τοῦ Ἡφαιστίωνος ὥσπερ εἰώθει συναναγινώσκοντος, 25 οὐκ ἐκώλυσεν· ὡς δὲ ἀνέγνω, τὸν δακτύλιον ἀφελόμενος τὸν ἑαυτοῦ τῷ στόματι τῷ ἐκείνου τὴν σφραγῖδα ἐπέθηκεν.

[15] ἐν δὲ Ἄμμωνος ὑπὸ τοῦ προφήτου παῖς Διὸς προσαγορευθεὶς οὐδέν γε ἔφη θαυμαστόν, πάντων μὲν γὰρ ὁ Ζεὺς φύσει πατήρ ἐστιν, ἑαυτοῦ δὲ ποιεῖται τοὺς ἀρίστους. 180e

[16] τοξεύματι δὲ πληγεὶς εἰς ⁴ τὸ σκέλος, ὡς πολλοὶ συνέδραμον τῶν πολλάκις εἰωθότων αὐτὸν 5 θεὸν προσαγορεύειν, διαχυθεὶς τῷ προσώπῳ τουτὶ μὲν αἷμα εἶπεν ὡς ὁρᾶτε καὶ οὐκ

ἰχώρ, οἷόσπέρ τε ῥέει μακάρεσσι θεοῖσιν.

⁵

[17] ἐπαινούντων δὲ ἐνίων τοῦ Ἀντιπάτρου τὴν εὐτέλειαν ὡς ἀθρύπτως διαιτωμένου καὶ αὐστηρῶς, ἔξωθεν εἶπεν Ἀντίπατρος λευκοπάρυφός ἐστι, τὰ 10 δὲ ἔνδον ὁλοπόρφυρος

[18] ἐν δὲ χειμῶνι καὶ ψύχει τῶν φίλων τινὸς ἑστιῶντος αὐτόν, ἐσχάραν δὲ μικρὰν καὶ πῦρ ὀλίγον εἰσενέγκαντος, ἢ ξύλα ἢ λιβανωτὸν εἰσενεγκεῖν ἐκέλευσεν. 180f

Ἀντιπατρίδου δὲ καλὴν ψάλτριαν ἐπὶ τὸ δεῖπνον ἀγαγόντος, κινηθεὶς τῇ ὄψει πρὸς αὐτὴν ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος ἠρώτησε τὸν Ἀντιπατρίδην, μή τι τυγχάνοι τῆς γυναικὸς ἐρῶν ἐκείνου δὲ ὁμολογήσαντος, ὦ μιαρέ εἶπεν οὐκ ἀπάξεις εὐθὺς ἐκ τοῦ συμποσίου 20 τὴν γυναῖκα;

[20] πάλιν δὲ Πύθωνα τὸν Εὐίου τοῦ αὐλητοῦ ἐρώμενον Κάσανδρος ἐβιάζετο φιλῆσαι· τὸν οὖν Εὔιον ὁρῶν ἀχθόμενον ἀνεπήδησε μετʼ ὀργῆς ἐπὶ τὸν Κάσανδρον, κεκραγώς ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ἐρασθῆναί τινος 25 ἔξεστι διʼ ὑμᾶς;

[21] ἀποστέλλοντος δὲ αὐτοῦ τῶν Μακεδόνων 181a τοὺς νοσώδεις καὶ ἀναπήρους ἐπὶ θάλασσαν, ἐνεδείχθη τις εἰς τοὺς νοσοῦντας ἀπογεγραμμένος ἑαυτὸν οὐ νοσῶν. ἐπεὶ οὖν εἰς ὄψιν ἀχθεὶς καὶ ἀνακρινόμενος ὡμολόγησε προφασίζεσθαι διʼ ἔρωτα Τελεσίππας ἀπιούσης ἐπὶ θάλασσαν, ἠρώτησεν ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος 5 πρὸς τίνα δεῖ περὶ τῆς Τελεσίππας διαλέγεσθαι; πυθόμενος δὲ ἐλευθέραν οὖσαν οὐκοῦν ἔφη ὦ Ἀντιγένη, πείθωμεν τὴν Τελεσίππαν, ἵνα μείνῃ μεθʼ ἡμῶν· βιάζεσθαι γὰρ ἐλευθέραν οὖσαν οὐχ ἡμέτερον.

[22] τῶν δὲ μισθοφορούντων Ἑλλήνων παρὰ τοῖς 10 πολεμίοις ὑποχειρίων γενομένων, τοὺς μὲν Ἀθηναίους 181b ἐκέλευσεν ἐν πέδαις φυλάττειν ὅτι τροφὴν ἔχοντες ἐκ δημοσίου μισθοφοροῦσι καὶ τοὺς Θεσσαλοὺς ὅτι τὴν ἀρίστην κεκτημένοι οὐ γεωργοῦσι· τοὺς δὲ Θηβαίους ἀφῆκεν εἰπὼν ὅτι μόνοις τούτοις οὔτε πόλις 15 οὔτε χώρα διʼ ἡμᾶς ἀπολέλειπται.

[23] τῶν δὲ Ἰνδῶν τὸν ἄριστα τοξεύειν δοκοῦντα καὶ λεγόμενον διὰ δακτυλίου τὸν ὀιστὸν ἀφιέναι λαβὼν αἰχμάλωτον ἐκέλευσεν ἐπιδείξασθαι, καὶ μὴ βουλόμενον ὀργισθεὶς ἀνελεῖν προσέταξε· ἐπεὶ δὲ 20 ἀγόμενος ⁶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἔλεγε πρὸς τοὺς ἄγοντας, ὅτι πολλῶν ἡμερῶν οὐ μεμελέτηκε καὶ ἐφοβήθη διαπεσεῖν, ἀκούσας ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος ἐθαύμασε καὶ ἀπέλυσε μετὰ δώρων αὐτόν, ὅτι μᾶλλον ἀποθανεῖν ὑπέμεινεν ἢ τῆς δόξης ἀνάξιος φανῆναι,

181c

ἐπεὶ δὲ Ταξίλης, εἷς τῶν Ἰνδῶν βασιλεὺς ὤν, ἀπαντήσας προυκαλεῖτο μὴ μάχεσθαι μηδὲ πολεμεῖν Ἀλέξανδρον, ἀλλʼ εἰ μέν ἐστιν ἥττων, εὖ πάσχειν, εἰ δὲ βελτίων, εὖ ποιεῖν· ἀπεκρίνατο περὶ αὐτοῦ τούτου μαχετέον εἶναι , πότερος εὖ ποιῶν περιγένηται.

[25] περὶ δὲ τῆς λεγομένης Ἀόρνου πέτρας ἐν 5 Ἰνδοῖς ἀκούσας, ὅτι τὸ μὲν χωρίον δυσάλωτόν ἐστιν, ὁ δὲ ἔχων αὐτὸ δειλός ἐστι, νῦν ἔφη τὸ χωρίον εὐάλωτόν ἐστιν.

[26] ἐπεὶ δὲ ἄλλος ἔχων πέτραν ἄληπτον δοκοῦσαν εἶναι ἐνεχείρισεν ἑαυτὸν μετὰ τῆς πέτρας τῷ Ἀλεξάνδρῳ, 10 181d καὶ τῆς δυνάμεως ἐκέλευσεν ἄρχειν καὶ προσέθηκε χώραν, εἰπὼν ὅτι φρονεῖν μοι δοκεῖ ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ἀνδρὶ μᾶλλον ἀγαθῷ πιστεύσας ἑαυτὸν ἢ ὀχυρῷ τόπῳ.

[27] μετὰ δὲ τὴν τῆς πέτρας ἅλωσιν τῶν φίλων 15 λεγόντων ὑπερβεβληκέναι τὸν Ἡρακλέα ταῖς πράξεσιν, ἀλλʼ ἐγώ εἶπε τὰς ἐμὰς πράξεις μετὰ τῆς ἡγεμονίας ἑνὸς οὐ νομίζω ῥήματος ἀνταξίας εἶναι τοῦ Ἡρακλέους

[28] τῶν δὲ φίλων τινὰς αἰσθόμενος ἐν τῷ 20 κυβεύειν οὐ παίζοντας ἐζημίωσε.

[29] τῶν δὲ πρώτων φίλων καὶ κρατίστων τιμᾶν μὲν ἐδόκει Κρατερὸν μάλιστα πάντων, φιλεῖν δὲ Ἡφαιστίωνα. κρατερὸς μὲν γάρ ἔφη φιλοβασιλεύς ἐστιν, Ἡφαιστίων δὲ φιλαλέξανδρος 181e

Ξενοκράτει δὲ τῷ φιλοσόφῳ πεντήκοντα τάλαντα πέμψας, ὡς οὐκ ἐδέξατο μὴ δεῖσθαι φήσας, ἠρώτησεν εἰ μηδὲ φίλον ἔχει Ξενοκράτης· ἐμοὶ μὲν γάρ ἔφη μόλις ὁ Δαρείου πλοῦτος εἰς τοὺς φίλους ἤρκεσεν.

[31] ἐπεὶ δὲ Πῶρος ἐρωτηθεὶς ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ μετὰ τὴν μάχην πῶς σοι χρήσωμαι; βασιλικῶς εἶπε, καὶ προσερωτηθεὶς καὶ μή τι ἄλλο; πάντα εἶπεν ἐν τῷ βασιλικῶς ἔνεστι· θαυμάσας καὶ τὴν σύνεσιν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν ἀνδραγαθίαν πλείονα χώραν ἧς πρότερον 5 εἶχε προσέθηκε.

181f

πυθόμενος δὲ ὑπό τινος λοιδορεῖσθαι βασιλικόν ἔφη ἐστὶν εὖ ποιοῦντα κακῶς ἀκούειν.

[33] ἀποθνῄσκων δὲ πρὸς τοὺς ἑταίρους ἀπιδὼν ἔφη μέγαν ὁρῶ μου τὸν ἐπιτάφιον ἐσόμενον.

Translations (1)

The apophthegms or remarkable sayings of kings and great commanders. Perseus (Plutarch. Plutarch's Morals, Vol. I. Goodwin, William W., editor; Hinton, Edward, translator. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company; Cambridge: Press of John Wilson and Son, 1874.) — 27 focus

[27] ALEXANDER. While Alexander was a boy, Philip had great success in his affairs, at which he did not rejoice, but told the children that were brought up with him, My father will leave me nothing to do. The children answered, Your father gets all this for you. But what good, saith he, will it do me, if I possess much and do nothing? Being nimble and light-footed, his father encouraged him to run in the Olympic race; Yes, said he, if there were any kings there to run with me. A wench being brought to lie with him late in the evening, he asked why she tarried so long. She answered, I staid until my husband was abed; and he sharply reproved his pages, because through their carelessness he had almost committed adultery. As he was sacrificing to the Gods liberally, and often offered frankincense, Leonidas his tutor standing by said, O son, thus generously will you sacrifice, when you have conquered the country that bears frankincense. And when he had conquered it, he sent him this letter: I have sent you an hundred talents of frankincense and cassia, that hereafter you may not be niggardly towards the Gods, when you understand I have conquered the country in which perfumes grow. The night before he fought at the river Granicus, he exhorted the Macedonians to sup plentifully and to bring out all they had, as they were to sup the next day at the charge of their enemies. Perillus, one of his friends, begged of him portions for his daughters; and he ordered him to receive fifty talents. And when he said, Ten were enough, Alexander replied: Enough for you to receive, but not for me to give. He commanded his steward to give Anaxarchus the philosopher as much as he should ask for. He asketh, said the steward, for an hundred talents. He doth well, said he, knowing he hath a friend that both can and will bestow so much on him. Seeing at Miletus many statues of wrestlers that had overcome in the Olympic and Pythian games, And where, said he, were these lusty fellows when the barbarians assaulted your city? When Ada queen of Caria was ambitious often to send him sauces and sweetmeats delicately prepared by the best cooks and artists, he said, I have better confectioners of my own, viz., my night-travelling for my breakfast, and my spare breakfast for my dinner. All things being prepared for a fight, his captains asked him whether he had any thing else to command them. Nothing, said he, but that the Macedonians should shave their beards. Parmenio wondering at it, Do you not know, said he, there is no better hold in a fight than the beard? When Darius offered him ten thousand talents, and to divide Asia equally with him: I would accept it, said Parmenio, were I Alexander. And so truly would I, said Alexander, if I were Parmenio. But he answered Darius, that the earth could not bear two suns, nor Asia two kings. When he was going to fight for the world at Arbela, against ten hundred thousand enemies set in array against him, some of his friends came to him, and told him the discourse of the soldiers in their tents, who had agreed that nothing of the spoils should be brought into the treasury, but they would have all themselves. You tell me good news, said he, for I hear the discourse of men that intend to fight, and not to run away. Several of his soldiers cameto him and said: O King! be of good courage, and fear not the multitude of your enemies, for they will not be able to endure the very stink of our sweat. The army being marshalled, he saw a soldier fitting his thong to his javelin, and dismissed him as a useless fellow, for fitting his weapons when he should use them. As he was reading a letter from his mother, containing secrets and accusations of Antipater, Hephaestion also (as he was wont) read it along with him. Alexander did not hinder him; but when the letter was read, he took his ring off his finger, and laid the seal of it upon Hephaestion’s mouth. Being saluted as the son of Jupiter in the temple of Ammon by the chief priest; It is no wonder, said he, for Jupiter is by nature the father of all, and calls the best men his sons. When he was wounded with an arrow in the ankle, and many ran to him that were wont to call him a God, he said smiling: That is blood, as you see, and not, as Homer saith,—

Such humor as distils from blessed Gods.

To some that commended the frugality of Antipater, whose diet was sober and without luxury; Outwardly, said he, Antipater wears white clothes, but within he is all purple. In a cold winter day one of his friends invited him to a banquet, and there being a little fire on a small hearth, he bid him fetch either wood or frankincense. Antipatridas brought a beautiful singing woman to supper with him; Alexander, being taken with her visage, asked Antipatridas whether she was his miss or not. And when he confessed she was; O villain, said he, turn her immediately out from the banquet. Again, when Cassander forced a kiss from Pytho, a boy beloved by Evius the piper, and Alexander perceived that Evius was concerned at it, he was extremely enraged at Cassander, and said with a loud voice, It seems nobody must be loved if you can help it. When he sent such of the Macedonians as were sick and maimed to the sea, they showed him one that was in health and yet subscribed his name among the sick; being brought into ## the presence and examined, he confessed he used that pretence for the love of Telesippa, who was going to the sea. Alexander asked, of whom he could make inquiries about this Telesippa, and hearing she was a free woman, he said. Therefore, my Antigenes, let us persuade her to stay with us, for to force her to do so when she is a free woman is not according to my custom. Of the mercenary Grecians that fought against him he took many prisoners. He commanded the Athenians should be kept in chains, because they served for wages when they were allowed a public maintenance; and the Thessalians, because when they had a fruitful country they did not till it; but he set the Thebans free, saying, To them only I have left neither city nor country. He took captive an excellent Indian archer that said he could shoot an arrow through a ring, and commanded him to show his skill; and when the man refused to do this, he commanded him in a rage to be put to death. The man told them that led him to execution that, not having practised for many days, he was afraid he should miss. Alexander, hearing this, wondered at him and dismissed him with rewards, because he chose rather to die than show himself unworthy of his reputation. Taxiles, one of the Indian kings, met Alexander, and advised him not to make war nor fight with him, but if he were a meaner person than himself, to receive kindness from him, or if he were a better man, to show kindness to him. He answered, that was the very thing they must fight for, who should exceed the other in bounty. When he heard the rock called Aornus in India was by its situation impregnable, but the commander of it was a coward; Then, said he, the place is easy to be taken. Another, commanding a rock thought to be invincible, surrendered himself and the rock to Alexander, who committed the said rock and the adjacent country to his government, saying: I take this for a wise man, who chose rather to commit himself to a good man than to a strong place. When the rock was taken, his friends said that it exceeded the deeds of Hercules. But I, said he, do not think my actions and all my empire to be compared with one word of Hercules. He fined some of his friends whom he caught playing at dice in earnest. Of his chief and most powerful friends, he seemed most to respect Craterus, and to love Hephaestion. Craterus, said he, is the friend of the king; but Hephaestion is the friend of Alexander. He sent fifty talents to Xenocrates the philosopher, who would not receive them, saying he was not in want. And he asked whether Xenocrates had no friend either; For as to myself, said he, the treasure of Darius is hardly sufficient for me to bestow among my friends. He demanded of Porus, after the fight, how he should treat him. Royally, said he, like a king. And being again asked, what farther he had to request; All things, said he, are in that word royally. Admiring his wisdom and valor, he gave him a greater government than he had before. Being told a certain person reviled him, To do good, said he, and to be evil spoken of is kingly. As he was dying, looking upon his friends, I see, said he, my funeral tournament will be great. When he was dead, Demades the rhetorician likened the Macedonian army without a general to Polyphemus the Cyclops when his eye was put out.

Notes on the current edition

Sayings of Kings and Commanders

1. Alexander the Great, born 356, king of Macedon 356-323 B.C.

2. d The story is told also in Plutarch’s Life of Demetrius, chap. xiii. (909 c). Stobaeus, Florilegium, xiii. 28, quotes Serenus, who states that a peasant made this remark to Anitpater. e Alexander the Great, born 356, king of Macedon 336323 B.C.

3. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. v. (666 F). Many of the stories about Alexander are repeated in Zonaras, Epitome of History, iv. 8-15.

4. Cf. Moralia, 331 B, and Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. iv. (666 D).

5. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. xxv. (679 C); Pliny, Natural History, xii. 32 (62).

6. Stories of this type about kings have long been popular and often repeated.

7. Xencrates seems to have been the lucky recipient, while Anaxarchus received high esteem, according to Moralia, 331 E, and Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. viii. (668 E).

8. Cf. in Aristophanes, Plutus, 1003, and Athenaeus, 523 F, the proverb, Once were the Milesians stout and strong.

9. The story with slight variations is found also in Moralia, 127 B, 1099 C, and the Life of Alexander, chap. xxii. (677 B).

10. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Theseus, chap. iii. (3 A); Athenaeus, 565 A.

11. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. xxix. (681 F): Arrian, Anabasis, ii. 25; Diodorus, xvii. 54: Longinus, De sublimitate, ix. 4; Valerius Maximus, vi. 4, ext. 3.

12. Cf. Moralia, 332 F and 240 A, and Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. xxix. (688 A).

13. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. xxvii. (680 F).

14. The story is often repeated: cf. for example, Moralia, 341 B; Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, champ. xxviii. (681 B); Diogenes Laertius, ix. 60; Dio Chrysostom, Oration xliv. (p. 498); Seneca, Epistulae Moral. vi. 7. 12.

15. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Phocion, chap. xxix. (754 E).

16. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Eumenes, chap. ii. (583 D).

17. Cf. Moralia, 339 C, and Plutarch’s Lfe of Alexander, chap. xl. (689 B).

18. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. lix. (698 B).

19. Cf. Cunningham, Ancient Geography of India, i. pp. 58 ff.

20. Cf. Plutarch’s, Life of Alexander, chap. lviii. (697 E); Arrian, Anabasis, iv. 28; Diodorus, xvii. 85; Quintus Curtius, Hist. Alexandri, viii. 11.

21. Arrian, Anabasis, v. 26. 5, represents Alexander as boasting over the capture of the rock, which Heracles had failed to capture.

22. Alexander himself, when he was ill, spent the whole day in throwing dice with Medius, according to Plutarch, Life of Alexander, chap. lxxvi (706 D).

23. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. xlvii. (691 F), and Diodorus, xvii. 114.

24. Cf. Moralia, 331 E and 333 B, and Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. viii (668 E).

25. Cf. Moralia, 332 E and 458 B; Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. lx. (699C); Arrian, Anabasis, v. 19. 2.

26. An oft- repeated aphorism; cf. for example, Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, chap. xli. (688 E); Pro Nobilitate, 19 (Bernardakis ed. vii. p. 268); Diogenes Laertius, vi. 3; Epictetus, Discourses, iv. 6; Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, vii. 36; Dio Chrysostom, Oration xlvii., last sentence.

27. Cf. Arrian, Anabasis, vii. 26. 3; Diodorus, xvii. 117. 4; Quintus Curtius, Hist. Alexandri, x. 5. 5; Justinus, Historiae Phillippicae, xii. 15.

28. Cf. Plutarch’s Life of Galba, chap. i. (1053 C), which also gives Demades as the author; but in Moralia, 336 F, the saying is attributed to Leosthenes. Cf. also Demetrius Phalereus, De elocutione, 284.

Plutarch Regum et imperatorum apophthegmata 27

Frank Cole Babbitt (Translator)

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