Texte grec :
| [8,34] Ὅταν δὲ φίλους ἔτι καλῇς, ὦ Μηνύκιε,
τοὺς ἐξελάσαντάς με καὶ πατρίδα τὴν ἀπαρνησαμένην,
φύσεώς τε νόμους ἀνακαλῇ καὶ περὶ τῶν ὁσίων διαλέγῃ,
φαίνῃ μοι τὰ κοινότατα καὶ ὑπὸ μηδενὸς ἀγνοούμενα
μόνος ἀγνοεῖν· ὅτι τὸ φίλιον ἢ πολέμιον οὔτ´
ὄψεως ὁρίζει χαρακτὴρ οὔτ´ ὀνόματος θέσις, ἀλλὰ ταῖς
χρείαις καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις δηλοῦται τούτων ἑκάτερον,
φιλοῦμέν τε πάντες τὰ ὠφελοῦντα καὶ μισοῦμεν τὰ
βλάπτοντα, οὐκ ἀνθρώπων τινῶν ἡμῖν τόνδε θεμένων
τὸν νόμον, οὐδὲ ἀνελούντων ποτὲ αὐτόν, ἐὰν τἀναντία
αὐτοῖς δοκῇ, ἀλλ´ ὑπὸ τῆς κοινῆς φύσεως ἐξ ἅπαντος
τοῦ χρόνου πᾶσι τοῖς αἰσθήσεως μετειληφόσι κείμενον
καὶ εἰς ἀεὶ διαμενοῦντα παραλαβόντες· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο
φίλους τ´ ἀπαρνούμεθα, ὅταν ἀδικήσωσι, καὶ ἐχθροὺς
φίλους ποιούμεθα, ὅταν τις ἡμῖν παρ´ αὐτῶν ὑπάρξῃ
χάρις, πόλιν τε τὴν γειναμένην ἡμᾶς, ὅταν μὲν ὠφελῇ,
στέργομεν, ὅταν δὲ βλάπτῃ, καταλείπομεν, οὐ διὰ τὸν
τόπον ἀγαπῶντες αὐτήν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ συμφέρον. καὶ
οὐχὶ τοῖς μὲν ἰδιώταις οὕτως ἐπέρχεται καθ´ ἕνα φρονεῖν, οὐχὶ δὲ
καὶ πόλεσιν ὅλαις καὶ ἔθνεσιν, ὥστε ὁ
ταύτῃ τῇ γνώμῃ χρώμενος οὐδὲν ἔξω τῶν θείων ἀξιοῖ
νομίμων, οὐδὲ παρὰ τὴν κοινὴν ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων
ποιεῖ δικαίωσιν. ἐγὼ μὲν δὴ ταῦτα πράττοντα ἐμαυτὸν τά τε
δίκαια ἡγοῦμαι πράττειν καὶ τὰ συμφέροντα
καὶ τὰ καλὰ καὶ ἅμα ταῦτα καὶ τὰ πρὸς τοὺς θεοὺς
ὁσιώτατα· καὶ οὐ δέομαι δικαστὰς ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν λαβεῖν
τοὺς εἰκασμῷ καὶ δόξῃ τεκμαιρομένους τὴν ἀλήθειαν
ἀνθρώπους, ἐπειδὴ θεοῖς ἀρέσκοντα πράττω. οὐ γὰρ
ἀδυνάτοις ἐπιχειρεῖν ὑπολαμβάνω πράγμασι θεοὺς ἔχων
αὐτῶν ἡγεμόνας, εἴγε δεῖ τεκμαίρεσθαι τοῖς γεγονόσιν
ἤδη τὰ μέλλοντα.
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Traduction française :
| [8,34] "When you call those still my friends, Minucius, who banished me and that
nation my country which has renounced me, when you appeal to the laws of Nature
and discuss the obligations of religion, you seem to me to be ignorant of the most
common facts, of which no one but you is ignorant — namely, that a friend or an
enemy is not determined either by the lineaments of a face or by the giving of a name,
but both are made manifest by their services and by their deeds, and that we all love
those who do us good and hate those who do us harm. No men laid down this law for
us nor will men ever annul it if the opposite course seems to them better; on the
contrary, it has been enacted from the beginning of time by the universal nature for
all creatures endowed with sense, a heritage of man to remain in force forever. for
this reason we renounce our friends when they injure us and make friends of our
enemies when some kindly service is done for us by them; and we cherish the country
that gave us birth when it helps us, but abandon it when it harms us, since our
affection is based, not on the place, but on the benefit it confers. These are the
sentiments not merely of individual persons in private life, but of whole cities and
nations. Consequently, whoever applies this principle demands nothing not
sanctioned by religion usage and does nothing that contravenes the common
judgement of all mankind. I, therefore, consider that in doing these things I am doing
what is just, advantageous (p101) and honourable, and at the same time what is most
holy in the eyes of the gods; and I do not care to take as judges of my conduct mere
men who infer the truth from guesswork and opinion, since the gods are pleased with
what I do. Nor do I agreed that I am undertaking impossible things when I have the
gods as my guides therein — not, at least, if one is to judge of the future by the past.
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