Philosophorum Aliquot Epistolae [Incertus]

Some Letters of Philosophers, of Which S. Ambrose Is the Interpreter, Collected by the Works of Gilbert Cognatus of Nozeret for the Use of Students, Long Since Together with Many Other Letters. Thales to Pherecydes. I hear that you, the first Ionian, are preparing to discourse publicly among the Greeks on divine matters. Perhaps it would be a more just course for you to read what you have written among friends, rather than to entrust it indiscriminately to whomever, with no benefit to them. Indeed, if I know it is agreeable to you, I wish to be privy to what you write. And if you so command, I will set out for you promptly. For neither I nor Solon of Athens are so senseless and stupid that, having sought Crete by ship for the sake of seeing it, and having likewise penetrated into Egypt to meet with the priests and astronomers there, we would not sail to you with equal zeal. Solon himself will come, if you consent. But you, detained by love of that place, rarely cross into Ionia, nor are you moved by a desire for strangers. Rather, as I hope, you apply yourself solely to the task of writing. But we, who write nothing, travel through Greece and Asia. Farewell.

Thales to Solon. If you leave Athens, you will be able to live most comfortably at Miletus, as I indeed think. For it is your colony, and you will suffer nothing grievous. But if among the Milesians also you execrate tyranny—for everywhere you have tyrants equally hostile to you—still, to live with us, your friends, will be most pleasant. Bias wrote to you that you should set out for Priene; if you prefer to inhabit that city, we ourselves will fly thither to you. Pisistratus to Solon. Neither am I the only Greek who has seized tyranny, nor have I usurped another’s property, since I trace my descent from Cecrops. For I claim by my own right what the Athenians, having once sworn by oath to offer to Codrus and his line, afterwards took away. For the rest, I sin in nothing else against the gods or against men. I command that the laws which you yourself gave to the Athenians be observed, and that we live according to them; and indeed they are better preserved than they could be if affairs were managed by the rule of the multitude. For I permit no one to be wronged; and I, a tyrant, differ from the common people in nothing except dignity and honor, content with only those stipends which were also owed to those who reigned before me. Finally, each of the Athenians sets aside a tenth of their crops, not to be consumed for our uses, but to be assigned for public sacrifices and common benefits, and, if ever war threatens us, to be allocated for expenses.

I am not at all angry with you for having revealed my mind and plan; indeed, you did so more out of zeal for the republic and the city than out of hatred for me, and besides, you did not know what sort of king I would become. For if you had learned that, you would perhaps have tolerated my efforts with equanimity and would by no means have committed yourself to exile. Therefore, return home in good faith, trusting me even without an oath, that there is no danger from Pisistratus to Solon. For you know that no one, even from among my enemies, has suffered any harm from me. Finally, if it pleases you to enjoy my friendship, you will be among the foremost; for I see no deceit or treachery in you. But if you prefer not to live in Athens, you will do so at your own discretion; only do not leave your homeland on my account. Farewell. Solon to Periander. You write that many are plotting against you; but even if you remove all of them from your path, you will not thus succeed. For someone will plot against you from among those you least suspect, partly fearing for himself, partly reproaching you for fearing everything and fearing nothing, and partly also desiring to gratify the city. Therefore, it would be best to abstain from tyranny, so that you may escape all causes of fear. But if you think tyranny must be maintained at all costs, you must, of necessity, procure for yourself external forces and foreign auxiliaries greater than your urban forces, so that no one may be hostile to you and you may drive no one into exile. Farewell.

Solon to Epimenides. Indeed, my laws were not going to be of much benefit to the Athenians; nor were you, by rendering them obsolete, of any advantage to the city. For neither God nor lawgivers alone can aid cities, but rather those who lead the multitude, in whatever direction they wish. For if these administer affairs rightly, God and the laws are useful; but if badly, they are of no help. And certainly my laws and statutes, which I wrote, were of no benefit; but those who transgressed them brought great harms upon the republic, those who did not oppose Pisistratus, lest he seize tyranny. Nor was I, foretelling the future, given credence. He was considered more trustworthy, flattering the Athenians, than I, speaking the truth. Therefore, having laid down my arms before the council, I declared myself wiser than those who did not perceive Pisistratus’s lust for tyranny, and braver than those who feared to assert the liberty of the republic; but they interpreted this as Solon’s madness. Finally, having thus appealed to my fatherland, I departed: “Fatherland, this Solon here is ready and prepared to aid you, both by deed and word, but to these men I seem insane. Therefore, abandoning you, I set out, alone of all as an enemy of Pisistratus; but these men are ready to favor and obey him.” For you know the man, my friend, with how much cunning, with what talent, with what art he seized tyranny. For he began by gently winning over the common people, then also for himself.

wounds inflicted; and, having gone out into public, shouting that he had received them from enemies, he begged that four hundred of the strongest young men be given to him as guards. And they, with me indeed objecting and protesting, acquiesced. These men were armed with stout clubs; thus surrounded by them, he overthrew the state. And while they, with empty hope, were striving to free their poor from serving for wages, all were sent under the yoke together, and all serve Pisistratus alone. Solon to Pisistratus. I believe, indeed, that I will suffer no harm from you. For before the tyranny I was your friend, nor am I now more hostile than any other Athenian who does not love tyranny. But whether it is more beneficial for them to be ruled by the command of one man, or for the state to be administered publicly, let each decide according to his own opinion. Certainly, I admit that you are the most excellent of all tyrants. However, I recognize that it is not useful for me to return to Athens, concerning which anyone might justly reproach me, who long ago handed over the republic to the Athenians to be administered equitably, and, being present, voluntarily declined the tyranny offered to me, if, by returning, I should seem to approve your deed by sudden repentance.

Solon to Croesus. I embrace with wonder your goodwill toward us; and by the immortal gods, had I not long since determined to have my abode where the republic is free, I would rather live with you, in your kingdom, than at Athens, with Pisistratus violently exercising tyranny. But we live more pleasantly there, according to our custom, where laws are equal and common to all. Nevertheless, I will come to you, so that I may for a time enjoy your hospitality. Chilon to Periander. You bid me to be free from military service and live as an exile, as if you yourself will be safe. But I think that not even the possessions of a monarch are safe; and I consider that tyrant fortunate to whom it has fallen to die in his own home without bloodshed. Pittacus to Croesus. You bid me to come to Lydia, to see your wealth. Even if I have not at all beheld it, I do not doubt that you, the son of Alyattes, are the most opulent of all kings, and most full of gold. But truly we will have nothing more, if we come to you at Sardis. For we have no need of gold ourselves, content with a modest life: with a stipend sufficient for me and my friends. Nevertheless, I will come, so that I may become familiar with you, a most humane and hospitable man. Farewell.

Cleobulus to Solon. You have many friends, indeed, and each has a home; but I think the most suitable place for you to dwell, Solon, is Lydia, a free city. It is a maritime island, where, if you are willing to stay, you will fear no harm from Pisistratus, and friends will flock to you from all sides. Farewell. Periander to the Wise Men. I give immortal thanks to Pythian Apollo that my letter found you all together, and that it will, I trust, bring you to Corinth. Therefore I await you. You yourselves will certainly see how courteously I shall receive you. Just as last year you came to Sardis, into Lydia, so now I beg you not to be reluctant to set out to me as well, the tyrant of Corinth; for the Corinthians will see you not without congratulation, when you approach the house of Periander. Periander to Proclus. The crime of my wife was not to our liking; but if you willingly do anything against your ungrateful son, you are in the wrong. Either restrain your harshness toward your son, or I shall bring him aid; for he himself has already paid the penalty long enough.

Thrasybulus to Periander. I concealed nothing from your herald, but leading him into the cornfield, I struck the taller ears with my staff and knocked them down, while he followed; and to you, if you should ask, he would report whatever he saw or heard from me. Do you therefore act likewise, if you wish to hold your tyranny securely and be established in it. Remove the leading men of the city, whether they seem friends or enemies; for to a tyrant even friends are often suspect. Anacharsis to Croesus. I, king of the Lydians, have come to Greece to learn the customs, pursuits, and institutions of the Greeks. I have no need of gold, and it is enough for me to return to the Scythians better and wiser. Yet I will come to you at Sardis, making every effort to become your intimate and friend. Epimenides to Solon. Take heart, my friend. For if the Athenians were accustomed to servitude, or were not well-instructed, and Pisistratus were threatening them, he would surely have held power for a long time. But he has compelled men who are by no means base or cowardly to serve. Yet those who remember Solon's warnings and groan with shame will not long endure servitude to a tyranny. And even if Pisistratus has seized the city, I do not expect the rule to pass to his children. For it is very difficult for free men, with excellent established laws, to persist under slavery. Do not, I beg you, wander aimlessly, but come to me in Crete, where no tyrant is troublesome to anyone.

If by chance you should happen to meet that friend on the road, as often occurs, I fear that some misfortune may befall you. Pherecydes to Thales. You die well, when your fated day has come upon you: Sickness had seized me when I received your letter; I was beset by gout and shaken throughout by fever. So I have instructed certain of my intimates that, when they have buried me, they should bring to you what I have written. You, however, if you approve of them together with the other wise men, shall then finally give them out to be read; but if you disapprove, do not publish them. For my part, they certainly did not yet please me sufficiently; there is in them, indeed, no certain assurance of things. For I have neither accepted that, nor have I professed to know what is true. I have perhaps reserved some things concerning theology; the rest one must understand. For I judge everything rather than reveal it. But as the sickness grows worse day by day, I admit neither any of the physicians nor any of my friends at all within. Moreover, to those standing before the doors and asking what my condition is, by showing my finger through the latch of the door, I have indicated with what pestilential malady I am held; and I have warned them to gather on the next day for the solemn funeral rites of Pherecydes. Farewell.

Anaximenes to Pythagoras. Thales, having been borne from the flower of youth to old age through the pursuits of virtue and humanity, dies a renowned death. When, as was his custom, he had gone out early in the morning into the courtyard of his house together with a maidservant to observe the stars, unmindful of how the place was situated, while he was carelessly surveying the heavens, he fell into a pit below. The Milesians report this end of the observer of the stars. For the rest, we who are held by the love of letters continually remember so great a man, and we rest especially in his teaching, and we always make Thales the beginning of our discourse. Anaximenes to Pythagoras. You have acted more prudently for yourself, in that you live in quiet, having migrated from Samos to Croton. For the Aeacidae are hostile to others, and tyrants rule over the Milesians. Moreover, the king of the Medes presses us sharply, unless we are willing to be tributaries. Although the Ionians seem to be fighting with the Medes for the liberty of all. For they press us so hard from all sides that there is no hope of safety for us. With what spirit, then, can Anaximenes examine the secrets of the sky, upon whom the constant fear of either death or slavery lies? And yet you are welcome and valued by the Crotoniates and other Italians, and students from Sicily also come to you.

Archytas to Dionysius. We, all the intimates of Plato, have sent Lamiscus and Photidas to receive that man from you, in accordance with our ancient friendship. You will therefore act rightly if you remember with how great eagerness you demanded from us Plato’s arrival to you, so that we urged him to come, you promising that you would do everything and would permit him to come and go freely. Therefore, remember how highly you valued his arrival, and that at that time you loved him more than the rest. But if some quarrel has arisen, it is fitting that you act more humanely, and restore him to us unharmed. For if you do this, you will cultivate justice, and you will gratify us. Arcesilaus to Thaumasices. I have handed over my wills to Diogenes to be brought to you. For since I am often ill, and my body is not in good health, I have decided to make a will: so that if anything unexpected happens, I may depart from life without injury to you, who alone of all have pursued me with the greatest affection. But since you have always been the most faithful of all who are here, both diligently preserve and guard it, both on account of your age and on account of our relationship. Therefore, be mindful of how great a trust I place in your loyalty, so that what is entirely deposited with you, as far as it lies in you, and my affairs may be honorably arranged.

King Antigonus to the philosopher Zeno. I consider that in fortune and glory I surpass your life; but in the liberal disciplines and studies, and in the perfect happiness which you possess, I am far excelled by you. Therefore I have decided to beg you to come to me, persuading myself that you will not suffer my entreaties to be made in vain. So strive in every way that we may enjoy your companionship, knowing for certain that you will be the teacher not only of me, but of all the Macedonians together. For whoever instructs the king of Macedonia and imbues him with virtue, it is certain that he also trains each of his subjects in courage and uprightness. For whatever sort the leader is, for the most part the subjects must become such. Farewell. Zeno to King Antigonus. I embrace your so vehement desire for learning, by which you resolve to grasp true, useful, and necessary instruction, not the popular kind which tends to corrupt morals. For whoever is held by love and zeal for philosophy, and shuns that celebrated and vulgar pleasure which effeminates the minds of certain young men, it is manifest that he not only preserves nobility by nature, but also the true institution of virtue. Moreover, if a liberal and noble disposition is joined with moderate exercise, and there is no lack of a teacher, it matures early into the perfect fruit of virtue. For my part, if old age did not hinder me—for I am eighty years old, and my body is besides infirm—I myself would come to you, as you bid.

Because indeed it is granted, I am sending to you some of my companions, who are in no way inferior to me in goods of the mind, and even surpass me in advantages of the body. If you engage with them diligently, you will lack nothing that pertains to perfect happiness. Pythagoras to Anaximenes. But you, best of men, if you were in no way superior to Pythagoras in birth and glory, you would surely have already migrated to us from Miletus; but as it is, paternal and ancestral glory has held you back, which would also have held me back, if I were like Anaximenes. Moreover, if you abandon cities by augury, their adornment will indeed be taken away, and the Medes will press upon them more hostilely. Nor is it always fitting to investigate the reasons of the stars and the sky. Sometimes it is preferable to turn one's thoughts and cares to one's fatherland. Although I do not always devote myself to my fables, but sometimes also to the wars in which the Italians contend among themselves. Archytas to Plato.

You indeed do rightly in indicating to us that you have recovered from illness, and you have also informed us about Damiscus. Regarding the Commentaries, however, we have taken care and have come to the Lucanians, and there we met the descendants of Oecellus. Therefore, what we have concerning kingship, laws, justice, and the generation of all things, we both possess ourselves and have sent some of these to you. The rest cannot be found at present; when they have been discovered, they will be conveyed to you. Plato to Archytas. The Commentaries which were brought to us from you—it cannot be said how gladly we received them; and the man who wrote them we admired above all. For that man indeed showed himself worthy of those ancestors of his, most ancient and excellent men. Moreover, these men are said to have been from Myra; and they were among those Trojans who migrated with Laomedon, good men, as the traditions handed down about them indicate. The Commentaries which are with me, about which you wrote, are not yet sufficiently elaborated, nor will they ever be sufficiently so; nevertheless, I have sent them. Regarding the guardianship, we both agree; therefore, there is no need of exhortation. Farewell.

King Darius, son of Hystaspes, greets Heraclitus of Ephesus, a wise man. You have written a book On Nature, obscure and difficult in many parts, which, if expounded word for word, seems to contain a certain force of speculation concerning the whole world and all things that happen in it, which indeed are established in divine motion. In these matters very many have become so stuck that even those who have read a great deal are in doubt, although a correct account seems to have been composed by you. Therefore Darius, son of Hystaspes, desires to be your hearer and to become a participant in Greek learning. So come as soon as possible into my sight and to the royal house. For the Greeks, for the most part less devoted to honoring wise men, scorn those things that have been correctly elaborated by them, even though they are of such a kind that they lack neither learning nor seriousness. With me, however, every honor and every preeminence will be yours, along with daily attentive regard and pleasant conversation, and a life approved by your character. Farewell.

Heraclitus of Ephesus to King Darius, son of Hystaspes. All mortals who live on earth abstain from truth and justice, but insatiably devote themselves to avarice and empty glory, by reason of a ruinous madness. I, however, forgetful of all wickedness and shunning the disgust of all domestic envy, which is wont to accompany splendor, would never set foot on Persian soil, content with few things, which are according to my judgment.