[21,5] ἴσως δὲ καὶ ἡ τροφὴ αἰτία τοῖς Πέρσαις, τὸ μέχρι πολλοῦ τρέφεσθαι ὑπό τε γυναικῶν καὶ εὐνούχων τῶν πρεσβυτέρων, παῖδας δὲ μετὰ παίδων καὶ μειράκια μετὰ μειρακίων μὴ πάνυ συνεῖναι μηδὲ γυμνοῦσθαι ἐν παλαίστραις καὶ γυμνασίοις. ὅθεν ἐγὼ οἶμαι ξυμβῆναι αὐτοῖς τὸ ταῖς μητράσι μίγνυσθαι· ὥσπερ οἱ πῶλοι, ἐπειδὰν ἁδρότεροι ὄντες ἀκολουθῶσιν ἔτι ταῖς μητράσιν, ἐπιβαίνειν ζητοῦσιν.

[21,5] But perhaps in the case of the Persians the way the boys are reared is the cause, I mean that for a long time they are brought up by women and the older eunuchs, and that young boys do not associate much with other young boys, nor the striplings with others of their own age, and that they do not go naked in the wrestling schools and gymnasia. This is the reason why, in my opinion, cases have occurred where they had intercourse with their mothers ; just as colts, when they still follow their dams although fairly well grown, try to cover them.

[21,6] τὸ μέντοι τῆς τροφῆς καὶ ἐνταῦθα δείκνυσι τὴν ἰσχύν. κάλλιον μὲν γὰρ δὴ πολὺ ἵππος ὄνου, οἱ δέ γε ὄνοι οὐκ ἐπιθυμοῦσιν ἵππων διὰ τὴν φύσιν, εἰ μὴ ὃς ἂν ᾖ τεθραμμένος ἵππου γάλακτι· ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ἵππος πωλευθεὶς ὑπὸ ὄνου τὸ αὐτὸ πάσχει. ἐν δὲ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις καὶ ἡ ἐξουσία παράνομόν τί ἐστι. Νέρωνα γοῦν πάντες ἐπιστάμεθα ἐφ´ ἡμῶν ὅτι οὐ μόνον ἐξέτεμε τὸν ἐρώμενον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ μετωνόμασε γυναικεῖον, τῆς αὑτοῦ ἐρωμένης καὶ γυναικός, ἧς ἐκεῖνος ἐπιθυμήσας ἔγημεν, ἀναφανδὸν εἴρξας τὴν πρόσθεν, ἐφ´ ᾗ τὴν βασιλείαν εἰλήφει.

[21,6] Moreover, the influence of their nurture is shown in the following case also. A horse is certainly far more beautiful than an ass, but yet the asses, because they are of a different breed, feel no passion for mares, except when they have been raised on mare's milk; and similarly, a horse that has been suckled by an ass is affected in the same way. In human beings unlimited power also is a lawless sort of thing. Take Nero for instance : we all know how in our own time that he not only castrated the youth whom he loved, but also changed his name for a woman's, that of the girl whom he loved and his subsequent wife, for whom he conceived a passion and wedded after openly incarcerating his former wife, to whom he was already married when he became Emperor.