"On account of good speech the divinity prefers Lakedaimon over all the altars of the Athenians and their temples and statues and hecatombs and the rest of the nonsense of those lazy people longing for a feast. Thus reason teaches us that true piety is mute and full of sobriety, and is hardly burdensome. 'For good speech is the easiest of labors.'[1] I suppose you have heard [this], o son of Ariston."[2] And
Euripides [writes]: "for good speech is best at libations."[3]
*eu)fhmi/a. eu)fhmi/as xa/rin protima=| th\n *lakedai/mona to\ qei=on h)/per tw=n *)aqhnai/wn bwmou\s su/mpantas kai\ new\s kai\ a)ga/lmata kai\ e(kato/mbas kai\ to\n loipo\n flh/nafon tw=n r(a|qumou/ntwn te kai\ qoina/zein glixome/nwn. ou)kou=n dida/skei o( lo/gos, w(s h( o)/ntws eu)se/beia kou=fo/n e)sti kai\ swfrosu/nhs a)na/plewn, kai\ h(/kista a)xqeino/n. eu)fhmi/a ga\r eu)kolw/tatos po/nwn. h)/kousa/s pou, w)= pai= *)ari/stwnos. kai\ *eu)ripi/dhs: eu)fhmi/a ga\r para\ spondai=si ka/lliston.
For the unglossed headword see also
epsilon 3797 (and
epsilon 3796 as a proper name). The present entry concerns itself with the specialized religious connotation of "good speech" to mean "ritual silence"; cf.
epsilon 3792.
[1] Apparently a fragment of Iambic poetry. Ascribed to
Euripides by Nauck (fr.1087), but to an unknown tragic poet by Snell (
Tragica Adespota fr.562a).
[2]
Aelian fr. 265 Domingo-Forasté (267 Hercher); cf.
epsilon 3735, and see further, next note.
[3]
Euripides fr.1087 Snell. In place of the nominative
*eu)ripi/dhs ('
Euripides') here, Hercher reads the genitive
*eu)ripi/dou, and includes this quotation in the
Aelian fragment, rendering the translation "... I suppose you have heard this, o son of Ariston, and
Euripides' [saying]: "for good speech ...".
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