[11,145] τὸ γὰρ πιστεύεσθαι πολὺν χρόνον ὑπὸ ἀνθρώπων ἠλιθίων οὐδέν ἐστιν ἰσχυρὸν οὐδὲ ὅτι τὰ ψευδῆ ἐλέχθη παρὰ τοῖς πρότερον· ἐπεί τοι καὶ περὶ ἄλλων πολλῶν διαφέρονται καὶ τἀναντία δοξάζουσιν. οἷον εὐθὺς περὶ τοῦ Περσικοῦ πολέμου, οἱ μέν φασιν ὑστέραν γενέσθαι τὴν περὶ Σαλαμῖνα ναυμαχίαν τῆς ἐν Πλαταιαῖς μάχης, οἱ δὲ τῶν ἔργων τελευταῖον εἶναι τὸ ἐν Πλαταιαῖς· (146) καίτοι γε ἐγράφη παραχρῆμα τῶν ἔργων. οὐ γὰρ ἴσασιν οἱ πολλοὶ τὸ ἀκριβές, ἀλλὰ φήμης ἀκούουσι μόνον, καὶ ταῦτα οἱ γενόμενοι κατὰ τὸν χρόνον ἐκεῖνον· οἱ δὲ δεύτεροι καὶ τρίτοι τελέως ἄπειροι καὶ ὅ,τι ἂν εἴπῃ τις παραδέχονται ῥᾳδίως· ὁπότε τὸν Σκιρίτην μὲν λόχον ὀνομάζουσι Λακεδαιμονίων μηδεπώποτε γενόμενον, ὥς φησι Θουκυδίδης, Ἁρμόδιον δὲ καὶ Ἀριστογείτονα πάντων μάλιστα Ἀθηναῖοι τιμῶσιν, ὡς ἐλευθερώσαντας τὴν πόλιν καὶ ἀνελόντας τὸν τύραννον. (147) καὶ τί δεῖ τἀνθρώπεια λέγειν, ὅπου τὸν μὲν Οὐρανὸν τολμῶσι λέγειν καὶ πείθουσιν ὡς ἐκτμηθέντα ὑπὸ τοῦ Κρόνου, τὸν Κρόνον δὲ ὑπὸ τοῦ Διός; τοῦ γὰρ πρώτου καταλαβόντος, ὥσπερ εἴωθεν, ἄτοπον τὸ πεισθῆναί ἐστι. βούλομαι δὲ καὶ περὶ Ὁμήρου ἀπολογήσασθαι, ὡς οὐκ ἀνάξιον ὁμολογεῖν αὐτῷ ψευδομένῳ. πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ πολὺ ἐλάττω τὰ ψεύσματά ἐστι τῶν περὶ τοὺς θεούς· ἔπειτα ὠφέλειάν τινα εἶχε τοῖς τότε Ἕλλησιν, ὅπως μὴ θορυβηθῶσιν, ἐὰν γένηται πόλεμος αὐτοῖς πρὸς τοὺς ἐκ τῆς Ἀσίας, ὥσπερ καὶ προσεδοκᾶτο. ἀνεμέσητον δὲ Ἕλληνα ὄντα τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ πάντα τρόπον ὠφελεῖν. (148) τοῦτο δὲ τὸ στρατήγημα παρὰ πολλοῖς ἐστιν. ἐγὼ γοῦν ἀνδρὸς ἤκουσα Μήδου λέγοντος ὅτι οὐδὲν ὁμολογοῦσιν οἱ Πέρσαι τῶν παρὰ τοῖς Ἕλλησιν, ἀλλὰ Δαρεῖον μέν φασιν ἐπὶ Νάξον καὶ Ἐρέτριαν πέμψαι τοὺς περὶ Δᾶτιν καὶ Ἀρταφέρνην, κἀκείνους ἑλόντας τὰς πόλεις ἀφικέσθαι παρὰ βασιλέα. ὁρμούντων δὲ αὐτῶν περὶ τὴν Εὔβοιαν ὀλίγας ναῦς ἀποσκεδασθῆναι πρὸς τὴν Ἀττικήν, οὐ πλείους τῶν εἴκοσι, καὶ γενέσθαι τινὰ μάχην τοῖς ναύταις πρὸς τοὺς αὐτόθεν ἐκ τοῦ τόπου. (149) μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα Ξέρξην ἐπὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα στρατεύσαντα Λακεδαιμονίους μὲν νικῆσαι περὶ Θερμοπύλας καὶ τὸν βασιλέα αὐτῶν ἀποκτεῖναι Λεωνίδην, τὴν δὲ τῶν Ἀθηναίων πόλιν ἑλόντα κατασκάψαι, καὶ ὅσοι μὴ διέφυγον ἀνδραποδίσασθαι. ταῦτα δὲ ποιήσαντα καὶ φόρους ἐπιθέντα τοῖς Ἕλλησιν εἰς τὴν Ἀσίαν ἀπελθεῖν. ὅτι μὲν οὖν ψευδῆ ταῦτά ἐστιν οὐκ ἄδηλον, ὅτι δὲ εἰκὸς ἦν τὸν βασιλέα κελεῦσαι στρατεῦσαι τοῖς ἄνω ἔθνεσιν οὐκ ἀδύνατον, ἵνα μὴ θορυβῶσιν. εἰ δὴ καὶ Ὅμηρος ἐποίει τοῦτο, συγγιγνώσκειν ἄξιον.

[11,145] The fact that a thing has long been accepted by foolish people is not a weighty consideration nor the fact that the falsehoods were current among those of former times. You see, in regard to many other matters also men differ and hold contrary views. In regard to the Persian War, for instance, some hold that the naval engagement off Salamis took place after the battle of Plataea, others that the affair at Plataea was the last of the events ; yet a record was made immediately after the events occurred. For most people have no accurate knowledge. They merely accept rumour, even when they are contemporary with the time in question, while the second and third generations are in total ignorance and readily swallow whatever anyone says ; as, for example, when people speak of the Scirite company in the Lacedaemonian army, which, as Thucydides says, never existed, or when the Athenians give the highest honours to Harmodius and Aristogeiton, under the impression that they had freed the city and slain the tyrant. But why speak of human affairs when people maintain and dare to say that Uranus was mutilated by Cronus, and the latter by Zeus ? Just as soon as anyone has thought of an absurdity, as often happens, it is absurd to refuse to believe it. But I wish to offer a defence in behalf of Homer by saying that there is nothing wrong in accepting his fictions. First, they are much less serious than the falsehoods told about the gods. Second, there was some advantage in them for the Greeks of those days, since they saved them from being alarmed in case war, as was expected, arose between them and the people of Asia. We can pardon one who, being a Greek, used every means to aid his countrymen. This is a very common device. I heard, for instance, a Mede declare that the Persians concede none of the claims made by the Greeks, but maintain that Darius despatched Datis and Artaphernes against Naxos and Eretria, and that after capturing these cities they returned to the king ; that, however, while they were lying at anchor off Euboea, a few of their chips were driven on to the Attic coast—not more than twenty—and their crews had some kind of an engagement with the inhabitants of that place ; that, later on, Xerxes in his expedition against Greece conquered the Lacedaemonians at Thermopylae and slew their king Leonidas, then captured and razed the city of the Athenians and sold into slavery all who did not escape ; and that after these successes he laid tribute upon the Greeks and withdrew to Asia. Now it is quite clear that this is a false account, but, sinee it was the natural thing to do, it is quite possible that the king ordered this story to be spread among the inland tribes in order to keep them quiet. So if Homer used this same device we ought to forgive him.