Texte grec :
| [4,5] τῶν μὲν οὖν ἄλλων πάντων κατεφρόνει καὶ οὐδένα ᾤετο ἀξιόμαχον
αὑτῷ περὶ τούτου τοῦ πράγματος, οὔτε τὸν Πέρσην οὔτε τὸν Σκύθην
οὔτε τὸν Ἰνδὸν οὔτε ἐν τοῖς Ἕλλησιν οὐδένα οὔτε ἄνδρα οὔτε πόλιν.
(6) ᾐσθάνετο γὰρ ὅτι μικροῦ διεφθαρμένοι πάντες εἰσὶ τὰς ψυχὰς ὑπὸ
τρυφῆς καὶ ἀργίας καὶ τοῦ κερδαίνειν καὶ ἡδονῆς ἥττονες. περὶ
Διογένους δὲ πυνθανόμενος τῶν τε λόγων οὓς ἔλεγεν καὶ τῶν ἔργων
ἃ ἔπραττεν, καὶ ὅπως διήνεγκε τὴν φυγήν, ἐνίοτε μὲν κατεφρόνει
τῆς τε πενίας τἀνδρὸς καὶ τῆς εὐτελείας, ἅτε νέος ὢν καὶ τραφεὶς
(7) ἐν βασιλικῷ τύφῳ, πολλάκις δὲ ἐθαύμαζε καὶ ἐζηλοτύπει τῆς τε
ἀνδρείας τοῦτον καὶ τῆς καρτερίας, καὶ μάλιστα τῆς δόξης, ὅτι
τοιοῦτος ὢν πᾶσι τοῖς Ἕλλησι γιγνώσκοιτο καὶ θαυμάζοιτο, καὶ
(8) οὐδεὶς ἠδύνατο τῶν ἄλλων οἷος ἐκεῖνος γενέσθαι τῇ φιλοτιμίᾳ· καὶ
ὅτι αὐτῷ μὲν ἔδει τῆς Μακεδόνων φάλαγγος καὶ τοῦ Θετταλῶν
ἱππικοῦ καὶ Θρᾳκῶν καὶ Παιόνων καὶ ἄλλων πολλῶν, εἰ μέλλοι
βαδίζειν ὅποι βούλοιτο καὶ τυγχάνειν ὧν ἐπιθυμοῖ· ὁ δὲ μόνος
ἀπῄει πάνυ ἀσφαλῶς οὐ μόνον ἡμέρας, ἀλλὰ καὶ νυκτός, ἔνθα
(9) αὐτῷ ἐδόκει· καὶ ὅτι αὐτὸς μὲν χρυσίου καὶ ἀργυρίου παμπόλλου
ἐδεῖτο, ὥστε ἐπιτελέσαι τι ὧν ἐβούλετο· ἔτι δὲ εἰ μέλλοι πειθομένους
ἕξειν Μακεδόνας καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας, θεραπευτέον
αὐτῷ τούς τε ἄρχοντας καὶ τὸν ἄλλον ὄχλον λόγοις τε καὶ δώροις
πολλάκις·
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Traduction française :
| [4,5] Moreover, he looked down upon all other men
and thought that no one was a dangerous rival
in this matter - neither the Persian
king nor the Scythian nor the Indian nor any man
or city among the Greeks. For he perceived that
they had all been well-nigh ruined in soul by
luxury and idleness and were the slaves of money
and pleasure. But as to Diogenes, when Alexander
heard of the words which this man spoke and of
the deeds which he did and how he bore his exile,
though at times he despised the man for his poverty
and shabbiness, quite naturally, as he himself was
young and had been reared in royal luxury, yet
often he would admire and envy the man for his
courage and endurance, and especially for his great
reputation, because all the Greeks knew and admired
him for what he was, and no one else could match
him in point of distinction. He himself needed
his Macedonian phalanx, his Thessalian cavalry,
Thracians, Paeonians, and many others if he was to
go where he wished and get what he desired; but
Diogenes went forth unattended in perfect safety
by night as well as by day whithersoever he cared
to go. Again, he himself required huge sums of
gold and silver to carry out any of his projects ;
and what is more, if he expected to keep the
Macedonians and the other Greeks submissive, must
time and again curry the favour of their rulers and
the general populace by words and gifts ;
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