1.1. Cyrus was thus employed; but when the Armenian king heard from the envoy the message of Cyrus, he was alarmed, for he knew that he was doing wrong in witholding the tribute due and in failing to send the troops, and he was afraid most of all because he saw that he was sure to be detected in the act of beginning to build his palace in such a way as to render it strong enough for armed resistance.
1.1. ὁ μὲν δὴ Κῦρος ἐν τούτοις ἦν· ὁ δὲ Ἀρμένιος ὡς ἤκουσε τοῦ ἀγγέλου τὰ παρὰ Κύρου, ἐξεπλάγη, ἐννοήσας ὅτι ἀδικοίη καὶ τὸν δασμὸν λείπων καὶ τὸ στράτευμα οὐ πέμπων, καὶ τὸ μέγιστον, ἐφοβεῖτο, ὅτι ὀφθήσεσθαι ἔμελλε τὰ βασίλεια οἰκοδομεῖν ἀρχόμενος ὡς ἂν ἱκανὰ ἀπομάχεσθαι εἴη.
1.2. Disturbed by the consciousness of all these faults, he sent around and collected his forces, and at the same time he sent away to the mountains his younger son, Sabaris, and the women, both his queen and his son’s wife, and his daughters. And he sent along with them his most valuable jewels and chattels and gave them an escort. At the same time he sent scouts to spy out what Cyrus was doing, while he went on assigning positions in his service to the Armenians as they came in to him. Presently still others arrived with the news that the man himself was quite near.
1.2. διὰ ταῦτα δὴ πάντα ὀκνῶν ἅμα μὲν διέπεμπεν ἁθροίζων τὴν ἑαυτοῦ δύναμιν, ἅμα δʼ ἔπεμπεν εἰς τὰ ὄρη τὸν νεώτερον υἱὸν Σάβαριν καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας, τήν τε ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τὴν τοῦ υἱοῦ, καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας· καὶ κόσμον δὲ καὶ κατασκευὴν τὴν πλείστου ἀξίαν συναπέπεμπε προπομποὺς δοὺς αὐτοῖς. αὐτὸς δὲ ἅμα μὲν κατασκεψομένους ἔπεμπε τί πράττοι Κῦρος, ἅμα δὲ συνέταττε τοὺς παραγιγνομένους τῶν Ἀρμενίων· καὶ ταχὺ παρῆσαν ἄλλοι λέγοντες ὅτι καὶ δὴ αὐτὸς ὁμοῦ.
1.3. Then he no longer had the courage to join battle with him but retreated. When the Armenians saw him act thus, they dispersed at once, each to his own possessions, wishing to get their belongings out of the way. And when Cyrus saw the plain full of men running about and driving away, he sent secretly to say that he had no quarrel with any who remained; but he declared that if he caught any one trying to get away, he should treat him as an enemy. Accordingly, the most of them remained, but some retreated with the king.
1.3. ἐνταῦθα δὴ οὐκέτι ἔτλη εἰς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν, ἀλλʼ ὑπεχώρει. ὡς δὲ τοῦτʼ εἶδον ποιήσαντα αὐτὸν οἱ Ἀρμένιοι, διεδίδρασκον ἤδη ἕκαστος ἐπὶ τὰ ἑαυτοῦ, βουλόμενοι τὰ ὄντα ἐκποδὼν ποιεῖσθαι. ὁ δὲ Κῦρος ὡς ἑώρα διαθεόντων καὶ ἐλαυνόντων τὸ πεδίον μεστόν, ὑποπέμπων ἔλεγεν ὅτι οὐδενὶ πολέμιος εἴη τῶν μενόντων. εἰ δέ τινα φεύγοντα λήψοιτο, προηγόρευεν ὅτι ὡς πολεμίῳ χρήσοιτο. οὕτω δὴ οἱ μὲν πολλοὶ κατέμενον, ἦσαν δʼ οἳ ὑπεχώρουν σὺν τῷ βασιλεῖ.
1.4. Now as those with the women in charge went forward they came upon the forces in the mountain. At once they raised a cry and as they tried to escape many of them were caught. And finally the young prince and the wives and daughters were captured and all the treasure that happened to be in the train. When the king himself learned what was going on, he was in a quandary which way to turn and took refuge upon a certain hill.
1.4. ἐπεὶ δʼ οἱ σὺν ταῖς γυναιξὶ προϊόντες ἐνέπεσον εἰς τοὺς ἐν τῷ ὄρει, κραυγήν τε εὐθὺς ἐποίουν καὶ φεύγοντες ἡλίσκοντο πολλοὶ [γε] αὐτῶν. τέλος δὲ καὶ ὁ παῖς καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες καὶ αἱ θυγατέρες ἑάλωσαν, καὶ χρήματα ὅσα σὺν αὐτοῖς ἀγόμενα ἔτυχεν. ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς αὐτός, ὡς ᾔσθετο τὰ γιγνόμενα, ἀπορῶν ποῖ τράποιτο ἐπὶ λόφον τινὰ καταφεύγει.
1.5. And when Cyrus saw this he surrounded the hill with the troops he had with him and sent orders to Chrysantas to leave a guard upon the mountains and come. Thus Cyrus’s army was being brought together. Then he sent a herald to the Armenian to ask him the following question: Tell me, king of Armenia, he said, whether you prefer to remain there and fight against hunger and thirst, or to come down into the plain and fight it out with us? The Armenian answered that he had no wish to fight against either.
1.5. ὁ δʼ αὖ Κῦρος ταῦτα ἰδὼν περιίσταται τὸν λόφον τῷ παρόντι στρατεύματι, καὶ πρὸς Χρυσάνταν πέμψας ἐκέλευε φυλακὴν τοῦ ὄρους καταλιπόντα ἥκειν. τὸ μὲν δὴ στράτευμα ἡθροίζετο τῷ Κύρῳ· ὁ δὲ πέμψας πρὸς τὸν Ἀρμένιον κήρυκα ἤρετο ὧδε· εἰπέ μοι, ἔφη, ὦ Ἀρμένιε, πότερα βούλει αὐτοῦ μένων τῷ λιμῷ καὶ τῷ δίψει μάχεσθαι ἢ εἰς τὸ ἰσόπεδον καταβὰς ἡμῖν διαμάχεσθαι; ἀπεκρίνατο ὁ Ἀρμένιος ὅτι οὐδετέροις βούλοιτο μάχεσθαι.
1.6. Again Cyrus sent to him and asked: Why then do you sit there and refuse to come down? Because, he answered, I am in a quandary what to do. But said Cyrus, there is no occasion whatever for that; for you are free to come down for trial. And who, said he, will be my judge? He, to be sure, to whom God has given the power to deal with you as he will, even without a trial. Then the Armenian, recognizing the exigency of his case, came down. And Cyrus received both the king and all that belonged to him into the midst and set his camp round them, for by this time he had all his forces together.
1.6. πάλιν ὁ Κῦρος πέμψας ἠρώτα τί οὖν κάθησαι ἐνταῦθα καὶ οὐ καταβαίνεις; ἀπορῶν, ἔφη, ὅ τι χρὴ ποιεῖν. ἀλλʼ οὐδέν, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, ἀπορεῖν σε δεῖ· ἔξεστι γάρ σοι ἐπὶ δίκην καταβαίνειν. τίς δʼ, ἔφη, ἔσται ὁ δικάζων; δῆλον ὅτι ᾧ ὁ θεὸς ἔδωκε καὶ ἄνευ δίκης χρῆσθαί σοι ὅ τι βούλοιτο. ἐνταῦθα δὴ ὁ Ἀρμένιος γιγνώσκων τὴν ἀνάγκην καταβαίνει· καὶ ὁ Κῦρος λαβὼν εἰς τὸ μέσον κἀκεῖνον καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα περιεστρατοπεδεύσατο, ὁμοῦ ἤδη πᾶσαν ἔχων τὴν δύναμιν.
1.7. Now at this juncture Tigranes, the king’s elder son, returned from a journey abroad. He it was who had been Cyrus’s companion once on a hunt; and when he heard what had occurred, he came at once, just as he was, to Cyrus. And when he saw his father and mother and brothers and sisters and his own wife all made prisoners, he wept, as might be expected.
1.7. ἐν τούτῳ δὲ τῷ χρόνῳ ὁ πρεσβύτερος παῖς τοῦ Ἀρμενίου Τιγράνης ἐξ ἀποδημίας τινὸς προσῄει, ὃς καὶ σύνθηρός ποτε ἐγένετο τῷ Κύρῳ· καὶ ὡς ἤκουσε τὰ γεγενημένα, εὐθὺς πορεύεται ὥσπερ εἶχε πρὸς τὸν Κῦρον. ὡς δʼ εἶδε πατέρα τε καὶ μητέρα καὶ ἀδελφοὺς καὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα αἰχμαλώτους γεγενημένους, ἐδάκρυσεν, ὥσπερ εἰκός.
1.8. But Cyrus, when he looked upon him, showed him no token of friendship, but merely remarked: You have come just in time to attend your father’s trial. And immediately he called together the officers of both the Medes and the Persians and all the Armenian nobles who were present. And the women who were there in their carriages he did not exclude but permitted them to attend.
1.8. ὁ δὲ Κῦρος ἰδὼν αὐτὸν ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν ἐφιλοφρονήσατο αὐτῷ, εἶπε δʼ ὅτι εἰς καιρὸν ἥκεις, ἔφη, ὅπως τῆς δίκης ἀκούσῃς παρὼν τῆς ἀμφὶ τοῦ πατρός. καὶ εὐθὺς συνεκάλει τοὺς ἡγεμόνας τούς τε τῶν Περσῶν καὶ τοὺς τῶν Μήδων· προσεκάλει δὲ καὶ εἴ τις Ἀρμενίων τῶν ἐντίμων παρῆν. καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας ἐν ταῖς ἁρμαμάξαις παρούσας οὐκ ἀπήλασεν, ἀλλʼ εἴα ἀκούειν.
1.9. When everything was in order, he began his examination: King of Armenia, said he, I advise you in the first place in this trial to tell the truth, that you may be guiltless of that offence which is hated more cordially than any other. For let me assure you that being caught in a barefaced lie stands most seriously in the way of a man’s receiving any mercy. In the next place, said he, your children and your wives here and also the Armenians present are cognizant of everything that you have done; and if they hear you telling anything else than the facts, they will think that you are actually condemning your own self to suffer the extreme penalty, if ever I discover the truth. Well, Cyrus, said he, ask what you will, and be assured that I will tell the truth, let happen what will as a result of it.
1.9. ὁπότε δὲ καλῶς εἶχεν, ἤρχετο τοῦ λόγου· ὦ Ἀρμένιε, ἔφη, πρῶτον μέν σοι συμβουλεύω ἐν τῇ δίκῃ τἀληθῆ λέγειν, ἵνα σοι ἕν γε ἀπῇ τὸ εὐμισητότατον· τὸ γὰρ ψευδόμενον φαίνεσθαι εὖ ἴσθι ὅτι καὶ τοῦ συγγνώμης τινὸς τυγχάνειν ἐμποδὼν μάλιστα ἀνθρώποις γίγνεται· ἔπειτα δʼ, ἔφη, συνίσασι μέν σοι καὶ οἱ παῖδες καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες αὗται πάντα ὅσα ἔπραξας, καὶ Ἀρμενίων οἱ παρόντες· ἢν δὲ αἰσθάνωνταί σε ἄλλα ἢ τὰ γενόμενα λέγοντα, νομιοῦσί σε καὶ αὐτὸν καταδικάζειν σεαυτοῦ πάντα τὰ ἔσχατα παθεῖν, ἢν ἐγὼ τἀληθῆ πύθωμαι. ἀλλʼ ἐρώτα, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, ὅ τι βούλει, ὡς τἀληθῆ ἐροῦντος. τούτου ἕνεκα καὶ γενέσθω ὅ τι βούλεται.
1.10. Tell me then, said the other, did you ever have a war with Astyages, my mother’s father, and with the rest of the Medes? Yes, he answered, I did. And when you were conquered by him, did you agree to pay tribute and to join his army, wherever he should command you to go, and to own no forts? Those are the facts. Why, then, have you now failed to pay the tribute and to send the troops, and why have you been building forts? I longed for liberty; for it seemed to me to be a glorious thing both to be free myself and to bequeath liberty to my children.
1.10. λέγε δή μοι, ἔφη, ἐπολέμησάς ποτε Ἀστυάγει τῷ τῆς ἐμῆς μητρὸς πατρὶ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις Μήδοις; ἔγωγʼ, ἔφη. κρατηθεὶς δʼ ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ συνωμολόγησας δασμὸν οἴσειν καὶ συστρατεύσεσθαι ὅποι ἐπαγγέλλοι, καὶ ἐρύματα μὴ ἕξειν; ἦν ταῦτα. νῦν οὖν διὰ τί οὔτε τὸν δασμὸν ἀπῆγες οὔτε τὸ στράτευμα ἔπεμπες, ἐτείχιζές τε τὰ ἐρύματα; ἐλευθερίας ἐπεθύμουν· καλὸν γάρ μοι ἐδόκει εἶναι καὶ αὐτὸν ἐλεύθερον εἶναι καὶ παισὶν ἐλευθερίαν καταλιπεῖν.
1.11. You are right, said Cyrus; it is a noble thing to fight that one may never be in danger of becoming a slave. But if any one has been conquered in war or in any other way reduced to servitude and is then caught attempting to rob his masters of himself, are you the first man to reward him as an honest man and one who does right, or do you punish him as a malefactor if you catch him? I punish him, said he; for you will not let me tell a lie.
1.11. καὶ γάρ ἐστιν, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, καλὸν μάχεσθαι, ὅπως μήποτέ τις δοῦλος μέλλοι γενήσεσθαι· ἢν δὲ δὴ ἢ πολέμῳ κρατηθεὶς ἢ καὶ ἄλλον τινὰ τρόπον δουλωθεὶς ἐπιχειρῶν τις φαίνηται τοὺς δεσπότας ἀποστερεῖν ἑαυτοῦ, τοῦτον σὺ πρῶτος πότερον ὡς ἀγαθὸν ἄνδρα καὶ καλὰ πράττοντα τιμᾷς ἢ ὡς ἀδικοῦντα, ἢν λάβῃς, κολάζεις; κολάζω, ἔφη· οὐ γὰρ ἐᾷς σὺ ψεύδεσθαι.
1.12. Answer each of these questions explicitly then, said Cyrus; if any one happens to be an officer under you and does wrong, do you permit him to continue in office or do you put another in his place? I put another in his place. And what if he has great possessions—do you allow him to continue rich, or do you make him poor? I confiscate all that he may happen to possess, said he. And if you find out that he is trying to desert to the enemy, what do you do? I put him to death, said he; I may as well confess, for why should I convict myself of lying and be put him to death for that, instead of telling the truth?
1.12. λέγε δὴ σαφῶς, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, καθʼ ἓν ἕκαστον· ἢν ἄρχων τις τύχῃ σοι καὶ ἁμάρτῃ, πότερον ἐᾷς ἄρχειν ἢ ἄλλον καθίστης ἀντʼ αὐτοῦ; ἄλλον καθίστημι. τί δέ, ἢν χρήματα πολλὰ ἔχῃ, ἐᾷς πλουτεῖν ἢ πένητα ποιεῖς; ἀφαιροῦμαι, ἔφη, ἃ ἂν ἔχων τυγχάνῃ. ἢν δὲ καὶ πρὸς πολεμίους γιγνώσκῃς αὐτὸν ἀφιστάμενον, τί ποιεῖς; κατακαίνω, ἔφη· τί γὰρ δεῖ ἐλεγχθέντα ὅτι ψεύδομαι ἀποθανεῖν μᾶλλον ἢ τἀληθῆ λέγοντα;
1.13. Then his son, when he heard this, stripped off his turban and rent his garments, and the women cried aloud and tore their cheeks, as if it were all over with their father and they were already lost. But Cyrus bade them be silent and said: Very well, king of Armenia; so that is your idea of justice; in accordance with it, then, what do you advise us to do? Then the Armenian was silent, for he was in a quandary whether to advise Cyrus to put him to death or to propose to him a course opposite to that which he admitted he himself always took.
1.13. ἔνθα δὴ ὁ μὲν παῖς αὐτοῦ ὡς ἤκουσε ταῦτα, περιεσπάσατο τὴν τιάραν καὶ τοὺς πέπλους κατερρήξατο, αἱ δὲ γυναῖκες ἀναβοήσασαι ἐδρύπτοντο, ὡς οἰχομένου τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ ἀπολωλότων σφῶν ἤδη. καὶ ὁ Κῦρος σιωπῆσαι κελεύσας εἶπεν· εἶεν· τὰ μὲν δὴ σὰ δίκαια ταῦτα, ὦ Ἀρμένιε· ἡμῖν δὲ τί συμβουλεύεις ἐκ τούτων ποιεῖν; ὁ μὲν δὴ Ἀρμένιος ἐσιώπα ἀπορῶν πότερα συμβουλεύοι τῷ Κύρῳ κατακαίνειν αὑτὸν ἢ τἀναντία διδάσκοι ὧν αὐτὸς ἔφη ποιεῖν.
1.14. But his son Tigranes put a question to Cyrus, saying: Tell me, Cyrus, since my father seems to be in doubt, may I advise you in regard to him what I think the best course for you? Now Cyrus had observed when Tigranes used to go hunting with him that there was a certain philosopher with him who was an object of admiration to Tigranes; consequently he was very eager to hear what he would say. So he bade him express his opinion with confidence.
1.14. ὁ δὲ παῖς αὐτοῦ Τιγράνης ἐπήρετο τὸν Κῦρον· εἰπέ μοι, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, ἐπεὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἀποροῦντι ἔοικεν, ἦ συμβουλεύσω περὶ αὐτοῦ ἃ οἶμαί σοι βέλτιστα εἶναι; καὶ ὁ Κῦρος, ᾐσθημένος, ὅτε συνεθήρα αὐτῷ ὁ Τιγράνης, σοφιστήν τινα αὐτῷ συνόντα καὶ θαυμαζόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ Τιγράνου, πάνυ ἐπεθύμει αὐτοῦ ἀκοῦσαι ὅ τι ποτʼ ἐροίη· καὶ προθύμως ἐκέλευσε λέγειν ὅ τι γιγνώσκοι.
1.15. Well said Tigranes, if you approve either of my father’s theory or his practice, then I advise you by all means to imitate him. But if you think he has done wrong throughout, I advise you not to imitate him. Well then, said Cyrus, if I should do what is right, I should surely not be imitating the one who does wrong. That is true, said he. Then, according to your reasoning, your father must be punished, if indeed it is right that the one who does wrong should be punished. Which do you think is better for you, Cyrus, to mete out your punishments to your benefit or to your own injury? In the latter case, at least, said he, I should be punishing myself.
1.15. ἐγὼ τοίνυν, ἔφη ὁ Τιγράνης, εἰ μὲν ἄγασαι τοῦ πατρὸς ἢ ὅσα βεβούλευται ἢ ὅσα πέπραχε, πάνυ σοι συμβουλεύω τοῦτον μιμεῖσθαι· εἰ μέντοι σοι δοκεῖ πάντα ἡμαρτηκέναι, συμβουλεύω τοῦτον μὴ μιμεῖσθαι. οὐκοῦν, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, τὰ δίκαια ποιῶν ἥκιστʼ ἂν τὸν ἁμαρτάνοντα μιμοίμην. ἔστιν, ἔφη, ταῦτα. κολαστέον ἄρʼ ἂν εἴη κατά γε τὸν σὸν λόγον τὸν πατέρα, εἴπερ τὸν ἀδικοῦντα δίκαιον κολάζειν. πότερα δʼ ἡγῇ, ὦ Κῦρε, ἄμεινον εἶναι σὺν τῷ σῷ ἀγαθῷ τὰς τιμωρίας ποιεῖσθαι ἢ σὺν τῇ σῇ ζημίᾳ; ἐμαυτὸν ἄρα, ἔφη, οὕτω γʼ ἂν τιμωροίμην.
1.16. Aye, but you would be doing yourself a great injury, said Tigranes, if you should put your friends to death just at the time when it was of the greatest advantage to you to have them. How said Cyrus, could men be of the greatest advantage to me just at the time when they were caught doing wrong? They would be, I think, if at that time they should become discreet. For it seems to me to be true, Cyrus, said he, that without discretion there is no advantage at all in any other virtue; for what, he continued, could one do with a strong man or a brave man, or what with a rich man or a man of power in the state if he lacked discretion? But every friend is useful and every servant good, if he be endowed with discretion.
1.16. ἀλλὰ μέντοι, ἔφη ὁ Τιγράνης, μεγάλα γʼ ἂν ζημιοῖο, εἰ τοὺς σεαυτοῦ κατακαίνοις τότε ὁπότε σοι πλείστου ἄξιοι εἶεν κεκτῆσθαι. πῶς δʼ ἄν, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, τότε πλείστου ἄξιοι γίγνοιντο ἅνθρωποι ὁπότε ἀδικοῦντες ἁλίσκοιντο; εἰ τότε, οἶμαι, σώφρονες γίγνοιντο. δοκεῖ γάρ μοι, ὦ Κῦρε, οὕτως ἔχειν, ἄνευ μὲν σωφροσύνης οὐδʼ ἄλλης ἀρετῆς οὐδὲν ὄφελος εἶναι· τί γὰρ ἄν, ἔφη, χρήσαιτʼ ἄν τις ἰσχυρῷ ἢ ἀνδρείῳ μὴ σώφρονι, [ἢ ἱππικῷ], τί δὲ πλουσίῳ, τί δὲ δυνάστῃ ἐν πόλει; σὺν δὲ σωφροσύνῃ καὶ φίλος πᾶς χρήσιμος καὶ θεράπων πᾶς ἀγαθός.
1.17. Do you mean to say, then, Cyrus answered, that in one day’s time your father has become discreet when he was indiscreet before? Yes said he, I do, indeed. By that you mean to say that discretion is an affection of the soul, as sorrow is, and not an acquisition. For I do not suppose that a man could instantly pass from being indiscreet to being discreet, if indeed the one who is to be discreet must first have become wise.
1.17. τοῦτʼ οὖν, ἔφη, λέγεις ὡς καὶ ὁ σὸς πατὴρ ἐν τῇδε τῇ μιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ ἐξ ἄφρονος σώφρων γεγένηται; πάνυ μὲν οὖν, ἔφη. πάθημα ἄρα τῆς ψυχῆς σὺ λέγεις εἶναι τὴν σωφροσύνην, ὥσπερ λύπην, οὐ μάθημα· οὐ γὰρ ἂν δήπου, εἴγε φρόνιμον δεῖ γενέσθαι τὸν μέλλοντα σώφρονα ἔσεσθαι, παραχρῆμα ἐξ ἄφρονος σώφρων ἄν τις γένοιτο.
1.18. What, have you never observed, Cyrus, said he, that when a man indiscreetly ventures to fight a stronger man than himself and has been worsted, he is instantly cured of his indiscretion toward that particular man? And again, he continued, have you never seen how when one state is in arms against another it is at once willing, when defeated, to submit to the victor instead of continuing the fight?
1.18. τί δʼ, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, οὔπω ᾔσθου καὶ ἕνα ἄνδρα διʼ ἀφροσύνην μὲν ἐπιχειροῦντα κρείττονι ἑαυτοῦ μάχεσθαι, ἐπειδὰν δὲ ἡττηθῇ, εὐθὺς πεπαυμένον τῆς πρὸς τοῦτον ἀφροσύνης; πάλιν δʼ, ἔφη, οὔπω ἑώρακας πόλιν ἀντιταττομένην πρὸς πόλιν ἑτέραν, ἧς ἐπειδὰν ἡττηθῇ παραχρῆμα ταύτῃ ἀντὶ τοῦ μάχεσθαι πείθεσθαι ἐθέλει;
1.19. To what defeat of your father’s do you refer, said Cyrus, that you are so confident that he has been brought to discretion by it? Why that, by Zeus, Tigranes answered, which he is conscious of having sustained, inasmuch as when he aimed at securing liberty he has become more of a slave than ever, and as he has not been able to accomplish a single thing of all that he thought he should effect by secrecy or by surprise or by actual force. And he knows that when you desired to outwit him, you did it as effectually as one could do who set out to deceive men blind or deaf or deprived of all their senses; and when you thought you ought to act secretly, you acted with such secrecy that the fortified places which he thought he had provided for his own safety you had secretly turned into prisons for him in advance. And so much did you surpass him in dispatch, that you came from a distance with a large army before he could muster the forces he had at home.
1.19. ποίαν δʼ, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, καὶ σὺ τοῦ πατρὸς ἧτταν λέγων οὕτως ἰσχυρίζει σεσωφρονίσθαι αὐτόν; ἧι νὴ Δίʼ, ἔφη, σύνοιδεν ἑαυτῷ ἐλευθερίας μὲν ἐπιθυμήσας, δοῦλος δʼ ὡς οὐδεπώποτε γενόμενος, ἃ δὲ ᾠήθη χρῆναι λαθεῖν ἢ φθάσαι ἢ ἀποβιάσασθαι, οὐδὲν τούτων ἱκανὸς γενόμενος διαπράξασθαι. σὲ δὲ οἶδεν, ἃ μὲν ἐβουλήθης ἐξαπατῆσαι αὐτόν, οὕτως ἐξαπατήσαντα ὥσπερ ἄν τις τυφλοὺς καὶ κωφοὺς καὶ μηδʼ ὁτιοῦν φρονοῦντας ἐξαπατήσειεν· ἃ δὲ ᾠήθης λαθεῖν χρῆναι, οὕτω σὲ οἶδε λαθόντα ὥστε ἃ ἐνόμιζεν ἑαυτῷ ἐχυρὰ χωρία ἀποκεῖσθαι, σὺ εἰρκτὰς ταῦτα ἔλαθες προκατασκευάσας· τάχει δὲ τοσοῦτον περιεγένου αὐτοῦ ὥστε πρόσωθεν ἔφθασας ἐλθὼν σὺν πολλῷ στόλῳ πρὶν τοῦτον τὴν παρʼ ἑαυτῷ δύναμιν ἁθροίσασθαι.
1.20. Well said Cyrus, do you really think that such a defeat is adequate to make men discreet—I mean, when they find out that others are their superiors? Yes said Tigranes, much more than when they are defeated in combat. For the one who is overcome by strength sometimes conceives the idea that, if he trains his body, he may renew the combat. Even cities too, when captured, think that by taking on new allies they might renew the fight. But if people are convinced that others are superior to themselves, they are often ready even without compulsion to submit to them.
1.20. ἔπειτα δοκεῖ σοι, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, καὶ ἡ τοιαύτη ἧττα σωφρονίζειν ἱκανὴ εἶναι ἀνθρώπους, τὸ γνῶναι ἄλλους ἑαυτῶν βελτίονας ὄντας; πολύ γε μᾶλλον, ἔφη ὁ Τιγράνης, ἢ ὅταν μάχῃ τις ἡττηθῇ. ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἰσχύι κρατηθεὶς ἔστιν ὅτε ᾠήθη σωμασκήσας ἀναμαχεῖσθαι· καὶ πόλεις γε ἁλοῦσαι συμμάχους προσλαβοῦσαι οἴονται ἀναμαχέσασθαι ἄν· οὓς δʼ ἂν βελτίους τινὲς ἑαυτῶν ἡγήσωνται, τούτοις πολλάκις καὶ ἄνευ ἀνάγκης ἐθέλουσι πείθεσθαι.
1.21. You seem to think, said the other, that the insolent do not recognize those more discreet than they, that thieves do not recognize the truthful, and wrong-doers those who do right. Do you not know, he continued, that even now your father has played false and has not kept his agreement with us, although he knew that we have not been violating any of the agreements made by Astyages?
1.21. σύ, ἔφη, ἔοικας οὐκ οἴεσθαι τοὺς ὑβριστὰς γιγνώσκειν τοὺς ἑαυτῶν σωφρονεστέρους, οὐδὲ τοὺς κλέπτας τοὺς μὴ κλέπτοντας, οὐδὲ τοὺς ψευδομένους τοὺς τἀληθῆ λέγοντας, οὐδὲ τοὺς ἀδικοῦντας τοὺς τὰ δίκαια ποιοῦντας· οὐκ οἶσθα, ἔφη, ὅτι καὶ νῦν ὁ σὸς πατὴρ ἐψεύσατο καὶ οὐκέτʼ ἠμπέδου τὰς πρὸς ἡμᾶς συνθήκας, εἰδὼς ὅτι ἡμεῖς οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν ὧν Ἀστυάγης συνέθετο παραβαίνομεν;
1.22. Yes; but neither do I mean that simply recognizing their superiors makes people discreet, unless they are punished by those superiors, as my father now is. But said Cyrus, your father has not yet suffered the least harm; but he is afraid, to be sure, that he will suffer the worst.
1.22. ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ἐγὼ τοῦτο λέγω ὡς τὸ γνῶναι μόνον τοὺς βελτίονας σωφρονίζει ἄνευ τοῦ δίκην διδόναι ὑπὸ τῶν βελτιόνων, ὥσπερ ὁ ἐμὸς πατὴρ νῦν δίδωσιν. ἀλλʼ, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, ὅ γε σὸς πατὴρ πέπονθε μὲν οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν πω κακόν· φοβεῖταί γε μέντοι εὖ οἶδʼ ὅτι μὴ πάντα τὰ ἔσχατα πάθῃ.
1.23. Do you think, then, said Tigranes, that anything breaks a man’s spirit sooner than object fear? Do you not know that those who are beaten with the sword, which is considered the most potent instrument of correction, are nevertheless ready to fight the same enemy again; but when people really fear anyone very much, then they cannot look him in the face, even when he tries to cheer them? You mean to say, said he, that fear is a heavier punishment to men than real correction.
1.23. οἴει οὖν τι, ἔφη ὁ Τιγράνης, μᾶλλον καταδουλοῦσθαι ἀνθρώπους τοῦ ἰσχυροῦ φόβου; οὐκ οἶσθʼ ὅτι οἱ μὲν τῷ ἰσχυροτάτῳ κολάσματι νομιζομένῳ σιδήρῳ παιόμενοι ὅμως ἐθέλουσι καὶ πάλιν μάχεσθαι τοῖς αὐτοῖς; οὓς δʼ ἂν σφόδρα φοβηθῶσιν ἄνθρωποι, τούτοις οὐδὲ παραμυθουμένοις ἔτι ἀντιβλέπειν δύνανται; λέγεις σύ, ἔφη, ὡς ὁ φόβος τοῦ ἔργῳ κακοῦσθαι μᾶλλον κολάζει τοὺς ἀνθρώπους.
1.24. And you, said he, know that what I say is true; for you are aware that, on the one hand, those who are afraid that they are to be exiled from their native land, and those who on the eve of battle are afraid that they shall be defeated, and those who fear slavery or bondage, all such can neither eat nor sleep for fear; whereas those who are already in exile or already defeated or already in slavery can sometimes eat and sleep better than those enjoying a happier lot.
1.24. καὶ σύ γε, ἔφη, οἶσθα ὅτι ἀληθῆ λέγω· ἐπίστασαι γὰρ ὅτι οἱ μὲν φοβούμενοι μὴ φύγωσι πατρίδα καὶ οἱ μέλλοντες μάχεσθαι δεδιότες μὴ ἡττηθῶσιν [ἀθύμως διάγουσι, καὶ οἱ πλέοντες μὴ ναυαγήσωσι,] καὶ οἱ δουλείαν καὶ δεσμὸν φοβούμενοι, οὗτοι μὲν οὔτε σίτου οὔθʼ ὕπνου δύνανται λαγχάνειν διὰ τὸν φόβον· οἱ δὲ ἤδη μὲν φυγάδες, ἤδη δʼ ἡττημένοι, ἤδη δὲ δουλεύοντες, ἔστιν ὅτε δύνανται καὶ μᾶλλον τῶν εὐδαιμόνων ἐσθίειν τε καὶ καθεύδειν.
1.25. And from the following considerations it is still clearer what a burden fear is: some, for fear that they will be caught and put to death, in terror take their own lives before their time—some by hurling themselves over a precipice, other by hanging themselves, others by cutting their own throats; so does fear crush down the soul more than all other terrors. As for my father, he added, in what a state of mind do you think he is? For he is in dread not only for himself, but also for me, for his wife, and for all of his children.
1.25. ἔτι δὲ φανερώτερον καὶ ἐν τοῖσδε οἷον φόρημα ὁ φόβος· ἔνιοι γὰρ φοβούμενοι μὴ ληφθέντες ἀποθάνωσι προαποθνῄσκουσιν ὑπὸ τοῦ φόβου, οἱ μὲν ῥιπτοῦντες ἑαυτούς, οἱ δʼ ἀπαγχόμενοι, οἱ δʼ ἀποσφαττόμενοι· οὕτω πάντων τῶν δεινῶν ὁ φόβος μάλιστα καταπλήττει τὰς ψυχάς. τὸν δʼ ἐμὸν πατέρα, ἔφη, νῦν πῶς δοκεῖς διακεῖσθαι τὴν ψυχήν, ὃς οὐ μόνον περὶ ἑαυτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ ἐμοῦ καὶ περὶ γυναικὸς καὶ περὶ πάντων τῶν τέκνων [δουλείας] φοβεῖται; καὶ ὁ Κῦρος εἶπεν·
1.26. Well, answered Cyrus, it is not at all unlikely, I suppose, that he is for the moment in such a state of mind. However, it seems to me that we expect of a man who is insolent in success and abject in failure that, when set on his feet once more, he will again wax arrogant and again cause more trouble.
1.26. ἀλλὰ νῦν μὲν ἔμοιγε οὐδὲν ἄπιστον τοῦτον οὕτω διακεῖσθαι· δοκεῖ μέντοι μοι τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἀνδρὸς εἶναι καὶ εὐτυχοῦντα ἐξυβρίσαι καὶ πταίσαντα ταχὺ πτῆξαι, καὶ ἀνεθέντα γε πάλιν αὖ μέγα φρονῆσαι καὶ πάλιν αὖ πράγματα παρασχεῖν.
1.27. Well, by Zeus, Cyrus, said he, our wrong-doing does, no doubt, give you cause to distrust us; but you may build forts in our country and occupy the strongholds already built and take whatever else you wish as security. And yet, he added, you will not find us very much aggrieved by your doing so; for we shall remember that we are to blame for it all. But if you hand over our government to some one of those who have done no wrong and yet show that you distrust them, see to it lest they regard you as no friend, in spite of your favours to them. But if again, on your guard against incurring their hatred, you fail to place a check upon them to keep them from rebellion, see to it lest you need to bring them to discretion even more than you did in our case just now.
1.27. ἀλλὰ ναὶ μὰ Δίʼ, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, ἔχει μὲν προφάσεις τὰ ἡμέτερα ἁμαρτήματα ὥστʼ ἀπιστεῖν ἡμῖν· ἔξεστι δέ σοι καὶ φρούρια ἐντειχίζειν καὶ τὰ ἐχυρὰ κατέχειν καὶ ἄλλο ὅ τι ἂν βούλῃ πιστὸν λαμβάνειν. καὶ μέντοι, ἔφη, ἡμᾶς μὲν ἕξεις οὐδέν τι τούτοις μέγα λυπουμένους· μεμνησόμεθα γὰρ ὅτι ἡμεῖς αὐτῶν αἴτιοί ἐσμεν· εἰ δέ τινι τῶν ἀναμαρτήτων παραδοὺς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀπιστῶν αὐτοῖς φανεῖ, ὅρα μὴ ἅμα τε εὖ ποιήσεις καὶ ἅμα οὐ φίλον νομιοῦσί σε· εἰ δʼ αὖ φυλαττόμενος τὸ ἀπεχθάνεσθαι μὴ ἐπιθήσεις αὐτοῖς ζυγὰ τοῦ μὴ ὑβρίσαι, ὅρα μὴ ἐκείνους αὖ δεήσει σε σωφρονίζειν ἔτι μᾶλλον ἢ ἡμᾶς νῦν ἐδέησεν.
1.28. Nay, by the gods, said he, I do not think I should like to employ servants that I knew served me only from compulsion. But if I had servants who I thought assisted me, as in duty bound, out of goodwill and friendship toward me, I think I should be better satisfied with them when they did wrong than with others who disliked me, when they performed all their tasks faithfully but from compulsion. To this Tigranes replied: From whom could you ever get such friendship as you now can from us? From those, I presume, said he, who have never been my enemies, if I would do them such favours as you now bid me do you.
1.28. ἀλλὰ ναὶ μὰ τοὺς θεούς, ἔφη, τοιούτοις μὲν ἔγωγε ὑπηρέταις, οὓς εἰδείην ἀνάγκῃ ὑπηρετοῦντας, ἀηδῶς ἄν μοι δοκῶ χρῆσθαι· οὓς δὲ γιγνώσκειν δοκοίην ὅτι εὐνοίᾳ καὶ φιλίᾳ τῇ ἐμῇ τὸ δέον συλλαμβάνοιεν, τούτους ἄν μοι δοκῶ καὶ ἁμαρτάνοντας ῥᾷον φέρειν ἢ τοὺς μισοῦντας μέν, ἔκπλεω δὲ πάντα ἀνάγκῃ διαπονουμένους. καὶ ὁ Τιγράνης εἶπε πρὸς ταῦτα· φιλίαν δὲ παρὰ τίνων ἄν ποτε λάβοις τοσαύτην ὅσην σοι παρʼ ἡμῶν ἔξεστι κτήσασθαι νῦν; παρʼ ἐκείνων οἶμαι, ἔφη, [παρὰ] τῶν μηδέποτε πολεμίων γεγενημένων, εἰ ἐθέλοιμι εὐεργετεῖν αὐτοὺς ὥσπερ σὺ νῦν με κελεύεις εὐεργετεῖν ὑμᾶς.
1.29. But, Cyrus, said he, as things now are, could you find any one to whom you could do as great favours as you can to my father? For example, if you grant any one of those who have done you no wrong his life, what gratitude do you think he will feel toward you for that? And again, who will love you for not depriving him of his wife and children more than he who thinks that it would serve him right to lose them? And do you know of any one who would be more grieved than we, not to have the throne of Armenia? Well, then, he added, it is evident that he who would be most grieved not to be king, would also be most grateful for receiving the throne.
1.29. ἦ καὶ δύναιο ἄν, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, ἐν τῷ παρόντι νῦν εὑρεῖν ὅτῳ ἂν χαρίσαιο ὅσαπερ τῷ ἐμῷ πατρί; αὐτίκα, ἔφη, ἤν τινα ἐᾷς ζῆν τῶν σε μηδὲν ἠδικηκότων, τίνα σοι τούτου χάριν οἴει αὐτὸν εἴσεσθαι; τί δʼ, ἢν αὐτοῦ τέκνα καὶ γυναῖκα μὴ ἀφαιρῇ, τίς σε τούτου ἕνεκα φιλήσει μᾶλλον ἢ ὁ νομίζων προσήκειν αὑτῷ ἀφαιρεθῆναι; τὴν δʼ Ἀρμενίων βασιλείαν εἰ μὴ ἕξει, οἶσθά τινα, ἔφη, λυπούμενον μᾶλλον ἢ ἡμᾶς; οὐκοῦν καὶ τοῦτʼ, ἔφη, δῆλον ὅτι ὁ μάλιστα λυπούμενος εἰ μὴ βασιλεὺς εἴη οὗτος καὶ λαβὼν τὴν ἀρχὴν μεγίστην ἄν σοι χάριν εἰδείη.
1.30. And if you care at all to leave matters here in as little confusion as possible when you go away, consider whether you think the country would be more tranquil under the beginning of a new administration than if the one we are used to should continue. And if you care to take with you as large an army as possible, who do you think would be in a better position to organize the troops properly than he who has often employed them? And if you need money also, who do you think could supply it better than he who knows and commands all the sources of supply? My good Cyrus,” he added, beware lest in casting us aside you do yourself a greater injury than any harm my father has been able to do you. Thus he spoke.
1.30. εἰ δέ τί σοι, ἔφη, μέλει καὶ τοῦ ὡς ἥκιστα τεταραγμένα τάδε καταλιπεῖν, ὅταν ἀπίῃς, σκόπει, ἔφη, πότερον ἂν οἴει ἠρεμεστέρως ἔχειν τὰ ἐνθάδε καινῆς γενομένης ἀρχῆς ἢ τῆς εἰωθυίας καταμενούσης· εἰ δέ τί σοι μέλει καὶ τοῦ ὡς πλείστην στρατιὰν ἐξάγειν, τίνʼ ἂν οἴει μᾶλλον ἐξετάσαι ταύτην ὀρθῶς τοῦ πολλάκις αὐτῇ κεχρημένου; εἰ δὲ καὶ χρημάτων δεήσει, τίνʼ ἂν ταῦτα νομίζεις κρεῖττον ἐκπορίσαι τοῦ καὶ εἰδότος καὶ ἔχοντος πάντα τὰ ὄντα; ὠγαθέ, ἔφη, Κῦρε, φύλαξαι μὴ ἡμᾶς ἀποβαλὼν σαυτὸν ζημιώσῃς πλείω ἢ ὁ πατὴρ ἐδυνήθη σε βλάψαι. ὁ μὲν τοιαῦτα ἔλεγεν.
1.31. And Cyrus was more than pleased at hearing him, for he thought that everything that he had promised Cyaxares to do was in course of accomplishment; for he remembered having told him that he would make the Armenian more his friend than he was before. Tell me, king of Armenia, he therefore asked, if I yield to you in this matter, how large an army will you send with me and how much money will you contribute to the war?
1.31. ὁ δὲ Κῦρος ἀκούων ὑπερήδετο, ὅτι ἐνόμιζε περαίνεσθαι πάντα αὐτῷ ὅσαπερ ὑπέσχετο τῷ Κυαξάρῃ πράξειν; ἐμέμνητο γὰρ εἰπὼν ὅτι καὶ φίλον οἴοιτο μᾶλλον ἢ πρόσθεν ποιήσειν. καὶ ἐκ τούτου δὴ τὸν Ἀρμένιον ἐρωτᾷ· ἢν δὲ δὴ ταῦτα πείθωμαι ὑμῖν, λέγε μοι, ἔφη, σύ, ὦ Ἀρμένιε, πόσην μὲν στρατιάν μοι συμπέμψεις, πόσα δὲ χρήματα συμβαλῇ εἰς τὸν πόλεμον;
1.32. I have nothing to propose more simple or more fair, Cyrus, the Armenian replied to this, than for me to show you all the forces I have and for you, when you have seen them, to take as many as you see fit, leaving the rest here to protect the country. And in the same way in regard to the money, it is proper for me to show you all that I have, and for you to decide for yourself and take as much as you please and to leave as much as you please.
1.32. πρὸς ταῦτα δὴ λέγει ὁ Ἀρμένιος· οὐδὲν ἔχω, ὦ Κῦρε, ἔφη, ἁπλούστερον εἰπεῖν οὐδὲ δικαιότερον ἢ δεῖξαι μὲν ἐμὲ πᾶσαν τὴν οὖσαν δύναμιν, σὲ δὲ ἰδόντα ὅσην μὲν ἄν σοι δοκῇ στρατιὰν ἄγειν, τὴν δὲ καταλιπεῖν τῆς χώρας φυλακήν. ὡς δʼ αὔτως περὶ χρημάτων δηλῶσαι μὲν ἐμὲ δίκαιόν σοι πάντα τὰ ὄντα, σὲ δὲ τούτων αὐτὸν γνόντα ὁπόσα τε ἂν βούλῃ φέρεσθαι καὶ ὁπόσα ἂν βούλῃ καταλιπεῖν.
1.33. Come then, said Cyrus, tell me how large your forces are and how much money you have. Well, the Armenian then answered, there are about eight thousand cavalry and about forty thousand infantry. And the property, said he, including the treasures that my father left me, amounts, when reduced to cash, to more than three thousand talents.
1.33. καὶ ὁ Κῦρος εἶπεν· ἴθι δὴ λέξον μοι πόση σοι δύναμίς ἐστι, λέξον δὲ καὶ πόσα χρήματα. ἐνταῦθα δὴ λέγει ὁ Ἀρμένιος· ἱππεῖς μὲν τοίνυν εἰσὶν [Ἀρμενίων] εἰς ὀκτακισχιλίους, πεζοὶ δὲ εἰς τέτταρας μυριάδας· χρήματα δʼ, ἔφη, σὺν τοῖς θησαυροῖς οἷς ὁ πατὴρ κατέλιπεν ἔστιν εἰς ἀργύριον λογισθέντα τάλαντα πλείω τῶν τρισχιλίων.
1.34. And without hesitation, Cyrus replied: Send with me then, said he, only half the army, since your neighbours, the Chaldaeans, are at war with you. And of the money, instead of the fifty talents which you used to pay as tribute, pay Cyaxares double that sum because you are in arrears with your payments. And lend me personally a hundred more, said he; and I promise you that if God prospers me, I will in return for your loan either do you other favours worth more than that amount or at least pay you back the money, if I can; but if I cannot, I may seem insolvent, I suppose, but I should not justly be accounted dishonest.
1.34. καὶ ὁ Κῦρος οὐκ ἐμέλλησεν, ἀλλʼ εἶπε· τῆς μὲν τοίνυν στρατιᾶς, ἐπεί σοι, ἔφη, οἱ ὅμοροι Χαλδαῖοι πολεμοῦσι, τοὺς ἡμίσεις μοι σύμπεμπε· τῶν δὲ χρημάτων ἀντὶ μὲν τῶν πεντήκοντα ταλάντων ὧν ἔφερες δασμὸν διπλάσια Κυαξάρῃ ἀπόδος, ὅτι ἔλιπες τὴν φοράν· ἐμοὶ δʼ, ἔφη, ἄλλα ἑκατὸν δάνεισον· ἐγὼ δέ σοι ὑπισχνοῦμαι, ἢν ὁ θεὸς εὖ διδῷ, ἀνθʼ ὧν ἂν ἐμοὶ δανείσῃς ἢ ἄλλα πλείονος ἄξια εὐεργετήσειν ἢ τὰ χρήματα ἀπαριθμήσειν, ἢν δύνωμαι· ἢν δὲ μὴ δύνωμαι, ἀδύνατος ἂν φαινοίμην, οἶμαι, ἄδικος δʼ οὐκ ἂν δικαίως κρινοίμην.
1.35. For heaven’s sake, Cyrus, said the Armenian, do not talk that way. If you do, you will make me lose heart. But consider, said he, that what you leave here is no less yours than what you take away. Very well, said Cyrus; now how much money would you give to get your wife back? As much as I could, said he. And how much to get your children? For these also, said he, as much as I could. Well then, said Cyrus, that makes already twice as much as you have.
1.35. καὶ ὁ Ἀρμένιος, πρὸς τῶν θεῶν, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, μὴ οὕτω λέγε· εἰ δὲ μή, οὐ θαρροῦντά με ἕξεις· ἀλλὰ νόμιζε, ἔφη, ἃ ἂν καταλίπῃς μηδὲν ἧττον σὰ εἶναι ὧν ἂν ἔχων ἀπίῃς. εἶεν, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος· ὥστε δὲ τὴν γυναῖκα ἀπολαβεῖν, ἔφη, πόσα ἄν μοι χρήματα δοίης; ὁπόσα ἂν δυναίμην, ἔφη. τί δέ, ὥστε τοὺς παῖδας; καὶ τούτων, ἔφη, ὁπόσα ἂν δυναίμην. οὐκοῦν, ἔφη ὁ Κῦρος, ταῦτα μὲν ἤδη διπλάσια τῶν ὄντων.
1.36. And you, Tigranes, said he, tell me how much you would pay to get your wife back? Now it happened that he was newly married and loved his wife very dearly. I would give my life, Cyrus, said he, to keep her from slavery.
1.36. σὺ δέ, ἔφη, ὦ Τιγράνη, λέξον μοι πόσου ἂν πρίαιο ὥστε τὴν γυναῖκα ἀπολαβεῖν. ὁ δὲ ἐτύγχανε νεόγαμός τε ὢν καὶ ὑπερφιλῶν τὴν γυναῖκα. ἐγὼ μέν, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, κἂν τῆς ψυχῆς πριαίμην ὥστε μήποτε λατρεῦσαι ταύτην.
1.37. Well then, said he, take her back; she is your own. For I, for my part, do not consider that she has been made a prisoner of war at all, since you never ran away from us. And you too, king of Armenia, may take back your wife and children without paying any ransom for them, that they may know that they return to you free men and women. And now, said he, stay and have dinner with us; and when you have dined you may drive away wherever you have a mind to go. So they stayed.
1.37. σὺ μὲν τοίνυν, ἔφη, ἀπάγου τὴν σήν· οὐδὲ γὰρ εἰλῆφθαι ἔγωγε αἰχμάλωτον ταύτην νομίζω σοῦ γε μηπώποτε φυγόντος ἡμᾶς. καὶ σὺ δέ, ὦ Ἀρμένιε, ἀπάγου τὴν γυναῖκα καὶ τοὺς παῖδας μηδὲν αὐτῶν καταθείς, ἵνʼ εἰδῶσιν ὅτι ἐλεύθεροι πρὸς σὲ ἀπέρχονται. καὶ νῦν μέν, ἔφη, δειπνεῖτε παρʼ ἡμῖν· δειπνήσαντες δὲ ἀπελαύνετε ὅποι ὑμῖν θυμός. οὕτω δὴ κατέμειναν.
1.38. And after dinner, as the party was breaking up, Cyrus asked: Tell me, Tigranes, where is the man who used to hunt with us? You seemed to admire him very much. Ah, he replied, did not my father here have him put to death? What wrong did he find him doing? He said that he was corrupting me. And yet, Cyrus, said he, he was so noble and so good that when he was about to be put to death, he called me to him and said: Be not angry with your father, Tigranes, for putting me to death; for he does it, not from any spirit of malice, but from ignorance, and when men do wrong from ignorance, I believe they do it quite against their will.
1.38. διασκηνούντων δὲ μετὰ δεῖπνον ἐπήρετο ὁ Κῦρος· εἰπέ μοι, ἔφη, ὦ Τιγράνη, ποῦ δὴ ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν ὁ ἀνὴρ ὃς συνεθήρα ἡμῖν καὶ σύ μοι μάλα ἐδόκεις θαυμάζειν αὐτόν. οὐ γάρ, ἔφη, ἀπέκτεινεν αὐτὸν οὑτοσὶ ὁ ἐμὸς πατήρ; τί λαβὼν ἀδικοῦντα; διαφθείρειν αὐτὸν ἔφη ἐμέ. καίτοι [γʼ, ἔφη], ὦ Κῦρε, οὕτω καλὸς κἀγαθὸς ἐκεῖνος ἦν ὡς καὶ ὅτε ἀποθνῄσκειν ἔμελλε προσκαλέσας με εἶπε· μήτι σύ, ἔφη, ὦ Τιγράνη, ὅτι ἀποκτείνει με, χαλεπανθῇς τῷ πατρί· οὐ γὰρ κακονοίᾳ τῇ σῇ τοῦτο ποιεῖ, ἀλλʼ ἀγνοίᾳ. ὁπόσα δὲ ἀγνοίᾳ ἄνθρωποι ἐξαμαρτάνουσι, πάντʼ ἀκούσια ταῦτʼ ἔγωγε νομίζω.
1.39. Poor man! Cyrus exclaimed on hearing this. Here the Armenian king interrupted: Do not men who discover strangers in intercourse with their wives kill them, not on the ground that they make their wives more inclined to folly, but in the belief that they alienate from them their wives’ affections—for this reason they treat them as enemies. So I was jealous of him because I thought that he made my son regard him more highly than he did me.
1.39. ὁ μὲν δὴ Κῦρος ἐπὶ τούτοις εἶπε· φεῦ τοῦ ἀνδρός. ὁ δʼ Ἀρμένιος ἔλεξεν· οὔτοι, ἔφη, ὦ Κῦρε, οὐδʼ οἱ ταῖς ἑαυτῶν γυναιξὶ λαμβάνοντες συνόντας ἀλλοτρίους ἄνδρας οὐ τοῦτο αἰτιώμενοι αὐτοὺς κατακαίνουσιν ὡς ἀμαθεστέρας ποιοῦντας τὰς γυναῖκας, ἀλλὰ νομίζοντες ἀφαιρεῖσθαι αὐτοὺς τὴν πρὸς αὑτοὺς φιλίαν, διὰ τοῦτο ὡς πολεμίοις αὐτοῖς χρῶνται. καὶ ἐγὼ ἐκείνῳ, ἔφη, ἐφθόνουν, ὅτι μοι ἐδόκει τοῦτον ποιεῖν αὐτὸν μᾶλλον θαυμάζειν ἢ ἐμέ.
1.40. Well, by the gods, king of Armenia, said Cyrus, your sin seems human; and you, Tigranes, must forgive your father. Then when they had thus conversed and showed their friendly feelings toward one another, as was natural after a reconciliation, they entered their carriages and drove away with their wives, happy.
1.40. καὶ ὁ Κῦρος εἶπεν· ἀλλὰ ναὶ μὰ τοὺς θεούς, ἔφη, ὦ Ἀρμένιε, ἀνθρώπινά μοι δοκεῖς ἁμαρτεῖν· καὶ σύ, ὦ Τιγράνη, συγγίγνωσκε τῷ πατρί. τότε μὲν δὴ τοιαῦτα διαλεχθέντες καὶ φιλοφρονηθέντες ὥσπερ εἰκὸς ἐκ συναλλαγῆς, ἀναβάντες ἐπὶ τὰς ἁρμαμάξας σὺν ταῖς γυναιξὶν ἀπήλαυνον εὐφραινόμενοι.
1.41. And when they got home they talked, one of Cyrus’s wisdom, another of his strength, another of his gentleness, and still another of his beauty and his commanding presence. Then Tigranes asked his wife: Tell me, my Armenian princess, said he, did you, too, think Cyrus handsome? Why, by Zeus, said she, I did not look at him. At whom, then? asked Tigranes. At him, by Zeus, who said that he would give his life to keep me from servitude. Then as might be expected after such experiences, they went to rest together.
1.41. ἐπεὶ δʼ ἦλθον οἴκαδε, ἔλεγον τοῦ Κύρου ὁ μέν τις τὴν σοφίαν, ὁ δὲ τὴν καρτερίαν, ὁ δὲ τὴν πρᾳότητα, ὁ δέ τις καὶ τὸ κάλλος καὶ τὸ μέγεθος. ἔνθα δὴ ὁ Τιγράνης ἐπήρετο τὴν γυναῖκα· ἦ καὶ σοί, ἔφη, ὦ Ἀρμενία, καλὸς ἐδόκει ὁ Κῦρος εἶναι; ἀλλὰ μὰ Δίʼ, ἔφη, οὐκ ἐκεῖνον ἐθεώμην. ἀλλὰ τίνα μήν; ἔφη ὁ Τιγράνης. τὸν εἰπόντα νὴ Δία ὡς τῆς αὑτοῦ ψυχῆς ἂν πρίαιτο ὥστε μή με δουλεύειν. τότε μὲν δὴ ὥσπερ εἰκὸς ἐκ τοιούτων ἀνεπαύοντο σὺν ἀλλήλοις.
1.42. And on the following day the Armenian king sent guest-presents to Cyrus and all his army, and he commanded those of his men who were to take the field to present themselves on the third day; and he paid Cyrus double the sum of money that he had named. But Cyrus accepted only the amount specified and returned the rest. Then he asked which of the two was to go in command of the forces, the king himself or his son. They both answered at the same instant, the father saying: Whichever you command; and the son: I will never leave you, Cyrus, not even if I have to accompany you as a camp-follower.
1.42. τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ ὁ Ἀρμένιος Κύρῳ μὲν καὶ τῇ στρατιᾷ ἁπάσῃ ξένια ἔπεμπε, προεῖπε δὲ τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ, οὓς δεήσοι στρατεύεσθαι. εἰς τρίτην ἡμέραν παρεῖναι· τὰ δὲ χρήματα ὧν εἶπεν ὁ Κῦρος διπλάσια ἀπηρίθμησεν. ὁ δὲ Κῦρος ὅσα εἶπε λαβὼν τἆλλα ἀπέπεμψεν· ἤρετο δὲ πότερος ἔσται ὁ τὸ στράτευμα ἄγων, ὁ παῖς ἢ αὐτός. εἰπέτην δὲ ἅμα ὁ μὲν πατὴρ οὕτως· ὁπότερον ἂν σὺ κελεύῃς· ὁ δὲ παῖς οὕτως· ἐγὼ μὲν οὐκ ἀπολείψομαί σου, ὦ Κῦρε, οὐδʼ ἂν σκευοφόρον ἐμὲ δίῃ σοι συνακολουθεῖν.