Oration 62
Imperial Dio Chrysostom Greek- And indeed, if a man is incapable of ruling a single person—and that one very close at hand, with whom he lives—nor again of directing one soul, his own, how could he be king over countless myriads scattered everywhere, as you say, many of them dwelling at the ends of the earth, most of whom he has never seen and never would see, and whose speech he would not understand? For it is just as if one were to say that a man so feeble of sight that he cannot see even what lies at his feet, but needs a guide to lead him by the hand, could reach with his vision as far as the most distant objects, like those who from far out at sea behold the mountains and the islands; or that a man unable to make himself heard by those standing beside him is capable of speaking within hearing of whole peoples and armies. 2. For in truth the mind has something akin to sight: as sight, when corrupted, sees nothing even of what is nearest, but, when sound, reaches as far as heaven and the stars—so in this very way the understanding of the wise man becomes capable of administering even all mankind, while that of the fool cannot keep safe even his own single body nor a single household. For the generality of those in positions of power, because it is permitted them to take everything, desire everything; because justice rests with them, for this reason they are unjust; because they do not fear the laws, they do not even believe the laws exist; because they are not compelled to toil, they never cease from luxury; because no one defends himself when wronged, they never cease from wrongdoing; because they want for no pleasure, they are never sated with their enjoyments; because no one censures them openly, they leave undone nothing even of what is not honourably spoken of; because no one wishes to grieve them, for this reason they are harsh toward all; because, being angered, they may do anything, for this reason they are continually angry. 3. But the good ruler, such as you are, pursues the contrary course: he desires nothing, because he thinks he possesses everything; he is sparing of pleasures, because, should he reach out for them, he would lack for none; he is more just than the rest, inasmuch as he supplies justice to all; he takes delight in his toils, because he toils willingly; and he loves the laws, because he does not fear them. And in this he judges rightly. For who has need of greater prudence than the man who deliberates about so many things? Who of more exact justice than he who is greater than the laws? Who of firmer self-control than he to whom everything is permitted? Who of greater courage than he who keeps all things safe? 4. And further, the man who is to rule over many others needs, on the one hand, vast expenditure, and, on the other, armies of foot and horse, and besides these walls and ships and engines of war, if he is to hold his subjects and ward off his enemies, and, should anyone revolt from his empire, to subdue him. But to be master of oneself is of all things the least costly, the freest from trouble, and the freest from danger; for the life of the self-controlled man is neither costly nor laborious nor precarious—and yet, being such, it is by nature the hardest of all. 5. For that notorious Sardanapallus held Nineveh, and held Babylon, the greatest of the cities that had ever been; and all the peoples that inhabited the other continent, as far as what are called the uninhabited regions of the earth, were subject to him. Yet kingship belonged to him no more than to one of the rotting dead. For to deliberate, or to judge, or to lead an army he neither wished nor was able. 6. Skulking within his palace in the women's quarters, he sat cross-legged upon a couch of beaten gold beneath canopies of purple, like the Adonis who is mourned by the women, his voice shriller than a eunuch's, his neck inclined, pale and trembling from sloth and shade, his body livid, his eyes rolling upward as though he had been strangled—a man not to be distinguished from his concubines. And yet for a time he held, as it seemed, the empire that was drifting at random—just as we often see a ship without a helmsman wandering in the open sea, no one controlling it, by chance, while fair weather holds; then a small swell rises and a single wave easily swamps it. 7. And so too one may see a chariot, with no one driving it, careering about in the contest—a chariot that could never win the victory, but throws into confusion and destroys the nearby crowd of spectators. For a fool will never be a king, no more than a blind man could become a guide upon the road; nor an unjust man, no more than a crooked and uneven rule could be a rule that needs another rule; nor a coward, no more than a lion could take on the spirit of a deer, or iron be softer than wax and lead. And to whom does stronger self-control belong than to him who lives in the midst of the greatest pleasures, administers the greatest affairs, enjoys the least leisure, and takes thought for the greatest and most numerous concerns?