SOL Search

Because Diogenes had a son in love[1] and because he was a harsh father, he did not condone his son’s brashness, but shutting him up and hindering his desire, he sharpened the passion all the more. And the vehemence of the evil was terrible, for the love flared up. Since the father stood in his way, the young man was impelled even more into his present disease. When [Diogenes] saw that the ill was battling back stubbornly, he came to Delphi and in his vexation and distress asked if the boy would ever leave off being sick. And she [the Pythia] spoke as follows:[2] "the boy will cease from love when with lightness of youth he will have consumed his mind with the lovely passion of the Cyprian.[3] Thus calm your pitiless anger and do not increase it by trying to prevent it,[4] for you are acting against your intent. But if you arrive at composure, the magic (of love) will quickly be obliterated and he, being sobered, will cease from his shameful impulse." When he heard this, Diogenes calmed his passion and was filled with good hope, having worthy assurances of his son’s self-control; and thereby he became a better father, for he had become milder and gentler in nature. This, too, the tragic hero Haemon, Sophocles’ [character], demonstrated, when he was in love with Antigone and quarreled with his father Creon [Author, Myth]; for you see he likewise charged with a sword to his love and settled matters with his father in respect of the disease.[5]

*dioge/nhs: o(/ti *dioge/nhs ei)=xen e)rw=nta pai=da kai\ pikro\s w)\n path\r ou) sunegi/nwske ne/ou r(a|qumi/a|, a)lla\ a)nei/rgwn au)to\n kai\ a)naste/llwn tou= po/qou ma=llo/n oi( to\ pa/qos parw/cune. kai\ h)=n tou= kakou= deinh\ e)pi/tasis: e)cerripi/zeto ga\r o( e)/rws, e)mpodw\n i(stame/nou tou= *dioge/nous, kai\ e)s th\n parou=san no/son ma=llon e)ch/pteto o( ne/os. h(=ken ou)=n ei)s *delfou/s, w(s e(w/ra filo/neikon o)\n to\ kako/n, kai\ dusanasxetw=n te a(/ma kai\ perialgw=n e)rwta=|, ei)/ oi( pe/pautai nosw=n pote o( pai=s. h( de/, w(s ei)=den ou) pa/nth frenh/rh ge/ronta ou)de\ e)rwtikai=s suggnw/mona a)na/gkais, le/gei tau=ta: lh/cei pai=s so\s e)/rwtos, o(/tan kou/fh| neo/thti *ku/pridos i(mero/enti kataflexqh=| fre/nas oi)/strw|. o)rgh\n ou)=n prh/u+non a)meide/a mhd' e)pitei/nein kwlu/wn: pra/sseis ga\r e)nanti/a soi=si logismoi=s. h)\n d' e)f' h(suxi/hn e)/lqh|s, lh/qhn ta/xos e(/cei fi/ltron kai\ nh/yas ai)sxra=s katapau/setai o(rmh=s. a)kou/sas toi/nun o( *dioge/nhs tau=ta to\n me\n qumo\n katesto/resen, e)lpi/dos de\ u(peplh/sqh xrhsth=s, e)/xwn th=s tou= paido\s swfrosu/nhs e)gguhta\s a)cio/xrews: kai\ e)n tau)tw=| belti/wn e)ge/neto o( path\r h(merwqei/s te kai\ prau+nqei\s to\n tro/pon. tou=to/ toi kai\ o( tragiko\s *ai(/mwn, o( tou= *sofokle/ous, a)pedei/cato, th=s *)antigo/nhs e)rw=n kai\ pikrw=| zugomaxw=n patri\ tw=| *kre/onti: kai\ ga/r toi kai\ e)kei=nos o(moi/ws e)launo/menos ci/fei pro\s to\n e)/rwta kai\ to\n pate/ra th\n no/son dielu/sato.

[1] This can hardly be the famous Diogenes the Cynic (delta 1141, delta 1143, delta 1144), who advocated and practiced free love -- and the only home he could have shut his son into would have been a large pithos-jar. Nor do any of the other known Diogeneses (for a selection see Diog.Laert. 6.81; OCD(4) 457) readily suggest themselves, but the name must have been common: "Zeus-born."
Adler identifies this entry as Aelian fr. 103 Hercher (= fr. 106 in the more recent Domingo-Forasté edition (Teubner 1994) of Aelian).
[2] The priestess’s response appears, according to literary convention, in hexameter verse.
[3] Aphrodite of Cyprus (cf. kappa 2738).
[4] cf. alpha 1567, end.
[5] Sophocles, Antigone 1175-77, elaborated at 1192-1243. The "likewise" (o(moi/ws) is odd.

Suda On Line Search