[5,20] τῶν δὲ θηρίων ὁπόσα ἀπῆν κατὰ θήραν, ἐπειδὴ τάχιστα ᾔσθοντο ἀπολωλότας τοὺς φωλεούς, καταδιώξαντα τὴν στρατιὰν πρὸς τὸν ποταμὸν τοὺς μὲν ἐν ὕπνῳ καταλαβόντα, τοὺς δὲ ἄλλους ἀπειρηκότας ὑπὸ τοῦ κόπου, διαφθεῖραι πανσυδί. (5,21) τότε μὲν οὖν ἀτελὲς αὐτῷ γενέσθαι τὸ ἔργον τῆς διαφθορᾶς τοῦ γένους. ὕστερον δὲ Ἡρακλέα τὴν σύμπασαν γῆν καθαίροντα ἀπό τε τῶν θηρίων καὶ τῶν τυράννων κἀκεῖσε ἀφικέσθαι, καὶ τόν τε τόπον ἐμπρῆσαι καὶ τὰ φεύγοντα ἐκ τοῦ πυρὸς τὰ μὲν τῷ ῥοπάλῳ παίοντα κατακαίνειν, ὁπόσα ὁμόσε ᾔει, τὰ δὲ ἀποδιδράσκοντα τοῖς βέλεσι. (5,22) τυχὸν οὖν ὁ μῦθος αἰνίττεται λέγων τοὺς πολλοὺς μὲν εἴ πού τις ἐπεχείρησε καθῆραι τὴν αὑτοῦ ψυχὴν ὥσπερ ἄβατον καὶ μεστόν τινα θηρίων χαλεπῶν τόπον, ἐξελὼν δὴ καὶ ἀπολέσας τι τῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν εἶδος, ἐλπίσαντας ἀπηλλάχθαι καὶ διαπεφευγέναι, οὐκ ἰσχυρῶς αὐτὸ δράσαντας, ὀλίγον ὕστερον ὑπὸ τῶν λειπομένων ἐπιθυμιῶν ἀπολέσθαι καὶ διαφθαρῆναι. (5,23) Ἡρακλέα δὲ τὸν Διὸς καὶ Ἀλκμήνης ἐπεξελθεῖν καὶ ἀποφῆναι καθαρὰν καὶ ἥμερον τὴν αὑτοῦ διάνοιαν. καὶ τοῦτο αὐτῷ {βούλεσθαι} δηλοῦν τῆς γῆς τὴν ἡμέρωσιν. (5,24) βούλεσθε οὖν βραχύ τι καὶ τοῖς νεωτέροις {λόγων} ἐπιχαρισώμεθα τοῦ μυθολογήματος; οὕτω γὰρ πάνυ πείθονται αὐτῷ καὶ νομίζουσιν ἀληθὲς ὥστε ὕστερόν ποτέ φασιν ἐπιφανῆναι τοῦ γένους τούτου βαδίζουσιν εἰς Ἄμμωνος Ἕλλησι θεωροῖς μετὰ πολλῆς δυνάμεως παραπεμπούσης ἱππέων καὶ τοξοτῶν. (5,25) δόξαι γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἐπὶ θινός τινος κατακεῖσθαι γυναῖκα, διφθέραν ἐπιβεβλημένην ἄνωθεν, ὥσπερ αἱ Λίβυσσαι, ἐπιδεικνύειν δὲ τὰ στήθη καὶ τοὺς μαστοὺς {καὶ} τὸν τράχηλον ἀνακλῶσαν. καὶ τοὺς ὑπολαβεῖν ἔκ τινος κώμης τῶν ἑταιρουσῶν τινα γυναικῶν ἐνταῦθα ἰέναι πρὸς τὸν ὄχλον. (5,26) δύο δέ τινας νεανίσκους ἐκπλαγέντας τὸ εἶδος ἰέναι πρὸς αὐτήν, {θάτερον} τὸν ἕτερον φθάνοντα. τὸ δὲ θηρίον, ὡς ἔλαβεν αὐτόν, κατασῦραν εἰς κοῖλόν τι τῆς ψάμμου κατεσθίειν. (5,27) καὶ τὸν ἕτερον νεανίσκον ὑπερβαλόντα θεάσασθαι καὶ ἀνακραγεῖν, καὶ οὕτως ἐπιβοηθῆσαι τὸ λοιπὸν πλῆθος. τὸ δὲ θηρίον ἐφορμῆσαι τῷ νεανίσκῳ, προϊσχόμενον τὸν ὄφιν, καὶ ἀποκτεῖναν οἴχεσθαι μετὰ συριγμοῦ. τὸν δὲ νεκρὸν εὑρεθῆναι σαπρόν τε καὶ μυδῶντα· καὶ τοὺς Λίβυας τοὺς ἡγεμόνας τῆς ὁδοῦ οὐκ ἐᾶν ἅπτεσθαι τοῦ σώματος, ὡς ἅπαντας ἀπολουμένους.

[5,20] But those of the creatures who had been away hunting, as soon as they learned of the destruction of their dens, pursued the army to the river, and finding some asleep and others exhausted by the toil, destroyed them one and all. 21 At that time, then, the task of destroying this brood was not completed by the king. Later, however — so the story continues — Heracles, while clearing the whole earth of wild beasts and tyrants, came to this place too, set it on fire, and when the creatures were escaping from the flames, slew with his club all that attacked him, and with his arrows those that tried to run away. 22 Now perhaps the myth is an allegory to show that, when the majority of men try to clear the trackless region of their souls, teeming with savage beasts, by rooting out and destroying the brood of lusts in the hope of then having got rid of them and escaped, and yet have not one this thoroughly, they are soon afterwards overwhelmed and destroyed by the remaining lusts; 23 but that Heracles, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, carried the task through to (p247) completion and made his own heart pure and gentle or tame; and that this is what is meant by his taming, that is, civilizing the earth. 24 Would you care, then, to have me gratify the younger people among you by giving a brief additional portion of the myth? For they believe so thoroughly in it and are so convinced of its truth as to assert that one of this brood appeared to the oracle of Ammon under the escort of a strong force of cavalry and archers. 25 They saw what seemed to be a woman, reclining on a pile of sand; she wore a sheepskin thrown over her head after the manner of the Libyan women, but displayed her bosom and breasts and lay with her head thrown back. They supposed that she was one of the professional harlots from some village who was on her way thither to join their company. 26 Accordingly, a certain two young men, greatly taken with her appearance, approached her, one outstripping the other. When the creature seized this one, she dragged him into a hole in the sand and devoured him. 27 The other young man, rushing past her, saw this and cried aloud so that the rest of the party came to his assistance. But the creature hurled itself at the young man with the snake part foremost, and after killing him disappeared with a hissing sound. They add that the body was found rotten and putrefying, and that the Libyans who were acting as guides permitted no one to touch the body lest all should perish.