[8,10] εὐθὺς οὖν καὶ αὐτῷ τινες προσῆλθον, τῶν μὲν Κορινθίων οὐδείς· οὐδὲ γὰρ ᾤοντο οὐδὲν ὠφεληθήσεσθαι, ὅτι καθ´ ἡμέραν ἑώρων αὐτὸν ἐν Κορίνθῳ· τῶν δὲ ξένων ἦσαν οἱ προσιόντες, καὶ τούτων ἕκαστος βραχύ τι εἰπὼν ἢ ἀκούσας ἀπῄει, φοβούμενος τὸν ἔλεγχον. (8,11) διὰ δὴ τοῦτο ἔφη ὁ Διογένης προσεοικέναι τοῖς κυσὶ τοῖς Λάκωσι· καὶ γὰρ τούτους, ὅταν στῶσιν εἰς τὰς πανηγύρεις, πολλοὺς μὲν εἶναι τοὺς καταψήχοντας καὶ προσπαίζοντας, μηδένα δὲ ὠνεῖσθαι ῥᾳδίως, διὰ τὸ μὴ ἐπίστασθαι χρῆσθαι. πυθομένου δέ τινος εἰ καὶ αὐτὸς ἥκοι τὸν ἀγῶνα θεασόμενος, οὐκ, ἔφη, ἀλλ´ ἀγωνιούμενος. καὶ ὃς ἐγέλασέ τε καὶ ἤρετο αὐτὸν τίνας ἔχοι τοὺς ἀνταγωνιστάς. (8,12) ὁ δὲ ὥσπερ εἰώθει ὑποβλέψας, Τοὺς χαλεπωτάτους, εἶπε, καὶ ἀμαχωτάτους, οἷς οὐδεὶς δύναται ἀντιβλέψαι τῶν Ἑλλήνων, οὐ μέντοι διατρέχοντας ἢ παλαίοντας ἢ διαπηδῶντας οὐδὲ πυκτεύοντας καὶ ἀκοντίζοντας καὶ δισκεύοντας {ἀλλὰ τοὺς σωφρονίζοντας}. (8,13) Τίνας μήν; ἤρετο. Τοὺς πόνους, ἔφη, μάλα ἰσχυρούς τε καὶ ἀνικήτους ὑπὸ ἀνθρώπων ἐμπεπλησμένων καὶ τετυφωμένων καὶ τὰς μὲν ἡμέρας ὅλας ἐσθιόντων, ἐν δὲ ταῖς νυξὶ ῥεγκόντων, ὑπὸ δὲ ἀνδρῶν ἡττωμένους λεπτῶν τε καὶ ἀσάρκων καὶ τῶν σφηκῶν τὰς γαστέρας μᾶλλον ἐντετμημένων. (8,14) ἢ σὺ οἴει τούτων τι ὄφελος εἶναι τῶν τὰς μεγάλας κοιλίας ἐχόντων, οὓς ἐχρῆν περιαγαγόντας καὶ περικαθάραντας ἐκβαλεῖν, μᾶλλον δὲ καταθύσαντας καὶ κατατεμόντας εὐωχεῖσθαι, καθάπερ οἶμαι τὰ τῶν κητῶν κρέα, τοὺς νοῦν ἔχοντας, ἕψοντας ἁλσὶ καὶ θαλάσσῃ, τὴν δὲ πιμελὴν τήξαντας, ὥσπερ ἐν Πόντῳ παρ´ ἡμῖν τὸ τῶν δελφίνων στέαρ, ἀλείφεσθαι τοὺς δεομένους. (8,15) οἶμαι γὰρ αὐτοὺς τῶν ὑῶν ἥττονα ψυχὴν ἔχειν. ὁ δὲ ἀνὴρ ὁ γενναῖος ἡγεῖται τοὺς πόνους ἀνταγωνιστὰς μεγίστους, καὶ τούτοις ἀεὶ φιλεῖ μάχεσθαι καὶ τὴν νύκτα καὶ τὴν ἡμέραν, οὐχ ὑπὲρ σελίνου, ὥσπερ αἱ αἶγες, οὐδὲ κοτίνου καὶ πίτυος, ἀλλὰ ὑπὲρ εὐδαιμονίας καὶ ἀρετῆς παρὰ πάντα τὸν βίον, οὐχ ὅταν Ἠλεῖοι προείπωσιν ἢ Κορίνθιοι ἢ τὸ κοινὸν Θετταλῶν, μηδένα αὐτῶν φοβούμενον μηδὲ εὐχόμενον ἄλλῳ λαχεῖν, (8,16) ἀλλὰ προκαλούμενον ἐφεξῆς ἅπαντας, καὶ λιμῷ φιλονεικοῦντα καὶ ψύχει καὶ δίψος ὑπομένοντα, κἂν δέῃ μαστιγούμενον καρτερεῖν καὶ τεμνόμενον καὶ καόμενον μηδὲν μαλακὸν ἐνδιδόντα· πενίαν δὲ καὶ φυγὴν καὶ ἀδοξίαν καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα μηδὲν ἡγεῖσθαι δεινὸν αὑτῷ, ἀλλὰ πάνυ κοῦφα, καὶ πολλάκις παίζειν ἐν αὐτοῖς τὸν ἄνδρα τὸν τέλειον, ὥσπερ οἱ παῖδες τοῖς ἀστραγάλοις καὶ ταῖς σφαίραις ταῖς ποικίλαις. (8,17) καὶ γὰρ δοκοῦσι μέν, ἔφη, δεινοὶ καὶ ἀνυπόστατοι πᾶσι τοῖς κακοῖς οἱ ἀνταγωνισταὶ οὗτοι· ἐὰν δέ τις αὐτῶν καταφρονήσῃ καὶ προσίῃ θαρρῶν {οὐ χαλεπὸν} δειλοὺς καὶ ἀδυνάτους ἄνδρας ἰσχυροὺς κρατῆσαι, μάλιστα τοῖς κυσὶν ὁμοίους, οἳ τοὺς μὲν φεύγοντας ἐπιδιώκουσι καὶ δάκνουσι καὶ διέσπασαν ἔστιν οὓς καταλαβόντες, τοὺς δὲ ἐπιόντας καὶ μαχομένους φοβοῦνται καὶ ἀναχωροῦσι, τελευτῶντες δὲ σαίνουσιν, ἐπειδὰν συνήθεις γένωνται. (8,18) οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ ἄνθρωποι ἐκπεπληγμένοι αὐτοὺς καὶ ἀεί ποτε φεύγοντες κρίνουσιν, οὐδέποτε ἐναντίον βλέποντες. καὶ γὰρ δή, ὥσπερ οἱ πυκτεύειν εἰδότες, ἐὰν μὲν προλάβωσι τὸν ἀνταγωνιστήν, οὐ παίονται τὴν ἀρχήν, πολλάκις δὲ ἀπέβησαν αὐτοὶ καταβαλόντες· ἐὰν δὲ ὑποχωρῶσι φοβούμενοι, τότ´ ἰσχυροτάτας πληγὰς λαμβάνουσιν· οὕτως ἐὰν μέν τις τοὺς πόνους δέχηται καταφρονῶν καὶ πλησιάζῃ προθύμως, οὐ πάνυ ἰσχύουσι πρὸς αὐτόν· ἐὰν δὲ ἀφιστῆται καὶ ἀναχωρῇ, τῷ παντὶ μείζους καὶ σφοδρότεροι δοκοῦσι. (8,19) τοῦτο δ´ ἂν ἴδοις καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ πυρὸς γιγνόμενον· ἐὰν μὲν σφόδρα ἐπιβῇς, ἔσβεσας τὸ πῦρ· ἐὰν δὲ ὑποπτεύων καὶ δεδοικώς, σφόδρα ἐκαύθης· ὥσπερ ἐνίοτε παίζοντες οἱ παῖδες τῇ γλώττῃ τὸ πῦρ σβεννύουσιν. οὗτοι μὲν οὖν οἱ ἀνταγωνισταὶ σχεδὸν ὅμοιοί εἰσι τοῖς παμμάχοις, παίοντές τε καὶ ἄγχοντες καὶ διασπῶντες καὶ ἀποκτιννύντες ἐνίοτε.

[8,10] Naturally a crowd straightway gathered about him too; no Corinthians, however, for they did not think it would be at all worth their while, since they were accustomed to see (p383) him every day in Corinth. The crowd that gathered was composed of strangers, and each of these, after speaking or listening for a short time, went his way, fearing his refutation of their views. 11 Just for that reason, said Diogenes, he was like the Laconian dogs; there were plenty of men to pat them and play with them when they were shown at the popular gatherings, but no one was willing to buy any because he did not know how to deal with them. And when a certain man asked whether he too came to see the contest, he said, "No, but to take part." Then when the man laughed and asked him who his competitors were, 12 he said with that customary glance of his: "The toughest there are and the hardest to beat, men whom no Greek can look straight in the eye; not competitors, however, who sprint, or wrestle or jump, not those that box, throw the spear, and hurl the discus, but those that chasten a man." 13 "Who are they, pray?" asked the other. "Hardships," he replied, "very severe and insuperable for gluttonous and folly- stricken men who feast the livelong day and snore at night, but which yield to thin, spare men, whose waists are more pinched in than those of wasps. 14 Or do you think those pot-bellies are good for anything? — creatures whom sensible people ought to lead around, subject to the ceremony of purification, and then thrust beyond the borders, or, rather, kill, quarter, and use as (p385) food just as people do with the flesh of large fish, don't you know, boiling it in brine and melting out the fat, the way our people at home in Pontus do with the lard of pigs when they want to anoint themselves. For I think these men have less soul than hogs. 15 But the noble man holds his hardships to be his greatest antagonists, and with them he is ever wont to battle day and night, not to win a sprig of parsley as so many goats might do, nor for a bit of wild olive, or of pine, but to win happiness and virtue throughout all the days of his life, and not merely when the Eleans make proclamation, or the Corinthians, or the Thessalian assembly. He is afraid of none of those opponents nor does he pray to draw another antagonist, 16 but challenges them one after another, grappling with hunger and cold, withstanding thirst, and disclosing no weakness even though he must endure the lash or give his body to be cut or burned. Hunting, exile, loss of reputation, and the like have no terrors for him; nay, he holds them as mere trifles, and while in their very grip the perfect man is often as sportive as boys with their dice and their coloured balls. (p387) 17 "Of course," he continued, "these antagonists do seem terrible and invincible to all cravens; but if you treat them with contempt and meet them boldly, you will find them cowardly and unable to master strong men, in this greatly resembling dogs, which pursue and bite people who run away from them, while some they seize and tear to pieces, but fear and slink away from men who face them and show fight, and in the end wag their tails when they come to know them. 18 Most people, however, are in mortal terror of these antagonists, always avoiding them by flight and never looking them in the face. And indeed, just as skilful boxers, if they anticipate their opponents, are not hit at all, but often actually end by winning the bout themselves, but if, on the contrary, they give ground through fear, they receive the heaviest blow; in the same way, if we accept our hardships in a spirit of contempt for them and approach them cheerfully, they avail very little against us; but if we hang back and give way, they appear altogether greater and more severe. 19 You can see that the same thing applies to fire also: if you attack it most vigorously, you put it out; but if with caution and fear, you get badly burned, just as children do when in sport they sometimes try to put out a fire with their tongues. The adversaries of this class are a good deal like the pancratiasts, who strike, choke, rend, and occasionally kill.