Lucian of Samosata, Toxaris vel amicitia, Austin Morris Harmon (Translator), 61

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[61] As the fifth, I shall tell you the deed of Abauchas, and then I shall stop. Once upon a time this man Abauchas came to the city of the Borysthenites,¹ bringing his wife, of whom he was exceptionally fond, and two children, one of whom, a boy, was a child in arms, while the other, a girl, was seven years old. There came with him also a companion of his, Gyndanes, who was ill of a wound which he had received on the way from robbers who had attacked them. In fighting with them he had got a thrust in the thigh, so that he could not even stand for the pain of it. During the night, as they slept— they chanced to be living in an upper story—a great fire broke out, every avenue of escape was being cut off, and the flames were encompassing the house on all sides. At that juncture Abauchas woke up; abandoning his crying children, shaking off his wife as she hung upon him and urging her to save herself, he carried his comrade down and managed to burst through at a place which the fire had not yet completely burned away. His wife, carrying the baby, followed, telling the girl too to come along. Halfburned, she let the child fall from her arms and barely leaped through the flames, and with her the little girl, who also came very near losing her life. When someone afterwards rebuked Abauchas for abandoning his wife and children but bringing out Gyndanes, he said: “Why, I can easily have other children, and it was uncertain whether these would be good for anything but I could not in a long time find another friend like Gyndanes, who has given me abundant proof of his devotion.”²

Toxaris vel amicitia. Lucian of Samosata. Austin Morris Harmon (Translator). United States. Perseus 5.0.

Funding provided by National Endowment for the Humanities.

Current edition Perseus

Toxaris, or Friendship (English) (Lucian, Vol. 5. Harmon, Austin Morris, editor. London: William Heinemann, Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1936 (printing).)

Editions (1)

Τόξαρις ἢ Φιλία Perseus (Lucian, Vol. 5. Harmon, Austin Morris, editor. London: William Heinemann, Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1936 (printing).) — 61 focus

Τόξαρις

πέμπτον ἔτι σοι τὸ Ἀβαύχα ἔργον διηγησάμενος παύσομαι. ἧκέν ποτε οὗτος ὁ Ἀβαύχας εἰς τὴν Βορυσθενιτῶν πόλιν ἐπαγόμενος καὶ γυναῖκα, ἧς ἤρα μάλιστα, καὶ παιδία δύο· τὸ μὲν ἐπιμαστίδιον ἄρρεν, τὸ δὲ ἕτερον, ἡ κόρη, ἑπτέτις ἦν. συναπεδήμει δὲ καὶ ἑταῖρος αὐτοῦ, Γυνδάνης, οὗτος μὲν καὶ νοσῶν ἀπὸ τραύματος ὃ ἐτέτρωτο κατὰ τὴν ὁδὸν ὑπὸ λῃστῶν ἐπιπεσόντων σφίσι· διαμαχόμενος γὰρ πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἐλαύνεται εἰς τὸν μηρόν, ὥστε οὐδὲ ἑστάναι ἐδύνατο ὑπὸ τῆς ὀδύνης. νύκτωρ δὲ καθευδόντων — ἔτυχον δὲ ἐν ὑπερῴῳ τινὶ οἰκοῦντες — πυρκαϊὰ μεγάλη ἐξανίσταται καὶ πάντα περιεκλείετο καὶ περιεῖχεν ἡ φλὸξ ἁπανταχόθεν τὴν οἰκίαν. ἐνταῦθα δὴ ἀνεγρόμενος ὁ Ἀβαύχας καταλιπὼν τὰ παιδία κλαυθμυριζόμενα καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα ἐκκρεμαννυμένην¹ ἀποσεισάμενος καὶ σώζειν αὑτὴν παρακελευσάμενος, ἀράμενος τὸν ἑταῖρον κατῆλθεν καὶ ἔφθη διεκπαίσας καθʼ ὃ μηδέπω τελέως ἀπεκέκαυτο ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρός. ἡ γυνὴ δὲ φέρουσα τὸ βρέφος εἵπετο, ἀκολουθεῖν κελεύσασα καὶ τὴν κόρην. ἡ δὲ ἡμίφλεκτος ἀφεῖσα τὸ παιδίον ἐκ τῆς ἀγκάλης μόλις διεπήδησε τὴν φλόγα, καὶ ἡ παῖς σὺν αὐτῇ, παρὰ μικρὸν ἐλθοῦσα κἀκείνη ἀποθανεῖν. καὶ ἐπεὶ ὠνείδισέν τις ὕστερον τὸν Ἀβαύχαν διότι προδοὺς τὰ τέκνα καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα ὁ δὲ Γυνδάνην ἐξεκόμισεν, ἀλλὰ παῖδας μέν, ἔφη, καὶ αὖθις ποιήσασθαί μοι ῥᾴδιον, καὶ ἄδηλον εἰ ἀγαθοὶ ἔσονται οὗτοι· φίλον δὲ οὐκ ἂν εὕροιμι ἄλλον ἐν πολλῷ χρόνῳ τοιοῦτον οἷος Γυνδάνης ἐστίν, πεῖράν μοι πολλὴν τῆς εὐνοίας παρεσχημένος.

Translations (2)

Toxaris: a Dialogue of Friendship Perseus (The Works of Lucian of Samosata, Vol. 3. Fowler, Henry Watson and Fowler, Francis George, translators. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1905.) — 61 focus

[61] One more story, that of Abauchas, and I have done. Abauchas once arrived in the capital of the Borysthenians, with his wife, of whom he was extremely fond, and two children; one, a boy, was still at the breast, the other was a girl of seven. With him also was his friend Gyndanes, who was still suffering from the effects of a wound he had received on the journey: they had been attacked by some robbers, and Gyndanes in resisting them had been stabbed in the thigh, and was still unable to stand on account of the pain. One night they were all asleep in the upper story, when a tremendous fire broke out; the whole building was wrapped in flames, and every means of exit blocked. Abauchas started up, and leaving his sobbing children, and shaking off his wife, who clung to him and implored him to save her, he caught up his friend in his arms, and just managed to force his way down without being utterly consumed by the flames. His wife followed, carrying the boy, and bade the girl come after her; but, scorched almost to a cinder, she was compelled to drop the child from her arms, and barely succeeded in leaping through the flames; the little girl too only just escaped with her life. Abauchas was afterwards reproached with having abandoned his own wife and children to rescue Gyndanes. ‘I can beget other children easily enough,’ said he: ‘nor was it certain how these would turn out: but it would be long before I got such another friend as Gyndanes; of his affection I have been abundantly satisfied by experience.’

Toxaris; Or, Friendship Perseus (Selections from Lucian. Smith, Emily James, translator. New York: Harper Brothers, 1892.) — 61 focus

[61] When I have told you as my fifth case the deeds of Abauchas I will stop. This Abauchas once came into a city of the Borysthenites, bringing with him his wife, whom he loved tenderly, and two small children, one of them a baby at the breast and the other a girl seven years old. A friend of his, Gyndanes, journeyed in company with him, and he, moreover, was suffering from a wound he got from robbers who had waylaid them on the road. For in fighting them he got a thrust in the thigh, so that he could not even stand for pain. As they were asleep at night— they happened to be lodging in an upper story—a great fire broke out, all means of exit were cut off, and the flames surrounded the house on every side. Thereupon Abauchas awoke, and he left his weeping child behind and shook off his wife, who clung to him, calling to her to save herself; but he lifted his friend and made his way down, and was in time to get out through part of the house not yet entirely seized by the fire. His wife followed, carrying the baby, and bidding the little girl come after; but the woman was half-burnt and let the baby fall from her arm, and barely leaped through the flame with the little girl, who also had a narrow escape from death. When it was afterwards made a reproach to Abauchas that he had deserted his wife and children to bring Gyndanes out, he would say, "It is an easy matter for me to have more children, and it is impossible to know whether they will be good or not; but it would take me a long time to find another such friend as Gyndanes, who has given me great proof of his affection."

Notes on the current edition

Toxaris, or Friendship

Olbia.

The reasoning of Abauchas on this point is suspiciously like that ascribed to Seleucus Nicator by Lucian in the Goddess of Syria (18: Vol. IV, p. 364), to Antigone by Sophocles (Antig. 905-912), and to the wife of Intaphernes by Herodotus (III, 119). We cannot, however, be entirely certain in the case of Abauchas that it derives from the Herodotean story. There are parallels from India (in the Ramayana and in the Jatakas: Hermes, XXVIII, 465) and from Persia: sbid., XXIX, 155); cf. also, for modern Syria, A. Goodrich-Freer, Arabs in Tent and Town, p. 25. .

Lucian of Samosata Toxaris vel amicitia 61

Austin Morris Harmon (Translator)

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