[38,15] καὶ τῶν οἴκων δὲ τῆς σωτηρίας οὔσης ἔν τε τῇ τῶν δεσποτῶν ὁμοφροσύνῃ καὶ ἐν τῇ τῶν οἰκετῶν πειθαρχίᾳ, πολλοὺς ὅμως οἴκους ἀπώλεσεν ἥ τε δεσποτικὴ στάσις καὶ ἡ κακοδουλία. τῷ μὲν γὰρ ἅρματι ποία καταλείπεται σωτηρία τῶν ἵππων συνθεῖν μὴ θελόντων; ἐπειδὰν γὰρ ἄρξωνται διαστάντες ἀφέλκειν ἄλλος ἀλλαχῇ, πᾶσα ἀνάγκη κινδυνεύειν τὸν ἡνίοχον. ὁ δὲ γάμος ὁ ἀγαθὸς τί ἄλλο ἐστὶν ἢ ὁμόνοια ἀνδρὸς πρὸς γυναῖκα; καὶ ὁ κακὸς γάμος τί ἄλλο ἐστὶν ἢ ἡ τούτων διχόνοια; καὶ τέκνων δὲ τίς ὠφέλεια γονεῦσιν, ὅταν ὑπὸ ἀφροσύνης ἄρξηται στασιάζειν πρὸς αὐτούς; ἡ δὲ ἀδελφότης (16) τί ἄλλο ἐστὶν ἢ ἀδελφῶν ὁμόνοια; ἡ δὲ φιλία τί ἄλλο ἢ φίλων ὁμόνοια; καὶ ταῦτα πάντα οὐ μόνον ἀγαθά ἐστι καὶ καλά, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἥδιστα· τὰ δὲ ἐναντία τούτοις οὐ κακὰ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀηδῆ· καὶ ὅμως αὐτὰ πολλάκις ἀντὶ τῶν ἡδίστων ἀγαθῶν προαιρούμεθα. τοὺς μὲν οὖν πολέμους ἤδη τινὲς ἀντὶ τῆς εἰρήνης ἐπανείλοντο μεγάλων ὄντων τῶν διαφόρων, οὐχ ὡς τὸ μάχεσθαι κρεῖττον ὂν ἢ ἥδιον καὶ δικαιότερον τοῦ τὴν εἰρήνην ἄγειν, ἀλλ´ οἱ μὲν ὑπὲρ βασιλείας, οἱ δὲ ὑπὲρ ἐλευθερίας, οἱ δὲ γῆν κτώμενοι μὴ ἔχοντες, οἱ δὲ θάλατταν περιποιούμενοι· καὶ τηλικούτων ὅμως τῶν ἄθλων κειμένων ἐν τῷ μέσῳ πολλοὶ κατέθεντο τὸν πόλεμον ὡς οὐκ ἂν ὄντα οὐδὲ ἀντὶ τῶν μεγίστων αἱρεθῆναί σφισιν ἄξιον. (17) τὸ δὲ καὶ χωρὶς ὑποθέσεως πολεμεῖν καὶ μάχεσθαι τί ἄλλο ἢ μανία παντελής ἐστι καὶ διὰ ταύτην κακῶν ἐπιθυμία; τὰ μὲν οὖν θηρία διὰ τοῦτο μάλιστα οἱ ἄνθρωποι μισοῦμεν, ὅτι πόλεμος ἡμῖν ἀδιάλλακτος πρὸς ταῦτά ἐστιν ἀεί. πολλοὶ δὲ καί τινες ἡμῶν καὶ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ὡς θηρίοις χρώμενοι χαίρουσι τῇ πρὸς τὸ ὁμόφυλον γιγνομένῃ μάχῃ. καὶ οὐδὲ τῶν σημείων αἰσθανόμεθα τῶν θείων, ὅσα διδάσκοντες ἡμᾶς ὁμονοεῖν αὑτοῖς ἐπεφήμισαν. (18) καὶ γὰρ κήρυκές τινες ἐκ τῶν θεῶν εἶναι λέγονται, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ παρ´ ἡμῖν εἰρήνη μὲν ἐπικηρύσσεται, πόλεμοι δὲ ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πλεῖστον ἀκήρυκτοι γίγνονται. καὶ γυμνοὶ πρεσβεύουσιν εἰς ὡπλισμένους ὑπὲρ εἰρήνης καὶ ἀδικῆσαι οὐκ ἔξεστιν αὐτῶν οὐδένα, ὡς τῶν θεῶν ἅπαντας τοὺς ὑπὲρ φιλίας ἀγγέλους. καὶ ὅταν συνερχομένων εἰς μάχην στρατῶν ἢ διοσημία φανῇ αἰφνίδιος ἢ τῆς γῆς γένηται σεισμός, ἀποστρέφονται εὐθὺς οἱ ἄνθρωποι καὶ ἀποχωροῦσιν ἀπ´ ἀλλήλων, ὡς τῶν θεῶν οὐ βουλομένων αὐτοὺς μάχεσθαι. (19) πολέμου δὲ σημεῖον οὐδὲν θεῖόν ἐστιν ὑπειλημμένον. καὶ ὅσα δὲ δὴ ἥδιστά τε τοῖς ἀνθρώποις καὶ εὐδαιμονίας σύμβολα, ταῦτα πάντα ποιοῦμεν, ἐπειδὰν εἰρήνη γένηται, καὶ στεφανούμεθα καὶ θύομεν καὶ ἑορτάζομεν· τὰ δὲ ἐναντία πάντα ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις, ὥσπερ ἐν τοῖς πένθεσι, καὶ συγκλειόμεθα ἔσω πυλῶν καὶ δεδοίκαμεν πάντα καὶ ἀπελπίζομεν ἑαυτούς· καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες τότε ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀνδρῶν κλαίουσι καὶ οἱ παῖδες ὑπὲρ τῶν πατέρων ὡς ἐπὶ τοῖς μεγίστοις κακοῖς.

[38,15] Again, take our households—although their safety depends not only on the like-mindedness of master and mistress but also on the obedience of the servants, yet both the bickering of master and mistress and the wickedness of the servants have wrecked many households. Why, what safety remains for the chariot, if the horses refuse to run as a team ? For when they begin to separate and to pull one this way and one that, the driver is inevitably in danger. And the good marriage, what else is it save concord between man and wife ? And the bad marriage, what is it save their discord ? Moreover, what benefit are children to parents, when through folly they begin to rebel against them ? And what is fraternity save concord of brothers ? And what is friendship save concord among friends ? (16) Besides, all there things are not only good and noble but also very pleasant, whereas their opposites are not only evil but also unpleasant ; and yet we often prefer them instead of the most pleasant goods. For example, there have been times when people have chosen wars instead of peace, despite the great differences between the two, not under the delusion that fighting is better or more pleasant and more righteous than keeping the peace, but because some were striving for kingly power, some for liberty, some for territory they did not have, and some for control of the sea. And yet, though the prizes awaiting the victor are so rich, many have laid war aside as an evil thing and not fit to be chosen by them in preference to the things of highest value. But the waging of war and fighting even without occasion, what is that but utter madness and a craving for exils which is occasioned by madness ? Now the chief reason why we human beings hate wild beasts is that remorseless warfare exists between them and us for ever ; yet many even of us treat human beings too as wild beasts and take pleasure in the conflict waged with those of our own kind. (18) What is more, we take no notice of the signs sent by the gods, all those signs and omens by which they try to teach us to live on good terms with one another. Indeed they are said to be, as it were, heralds sent by the gods, and for that reason among ourselves also, while peace is proclaimed by heralds, wars for the most part take place unheralded. Furthermore, men go unarmed into an armed camp as envoys to sue for peace and it is not permitted to wrong any of them, the belief being that all messengers in behalf of friendship are servants of the gods. Again, whenever, as armies come together for battle, there suddenly appears an omen from heaven or there occurs a quaking of the earth, immediately the men wheel about and withdraw from one another, believing the gods do not wish them to fight ; but no divine portent is deemed a signal for war. And furthermore, when peace is brought about, we do all those things which are not only most pleasant for mortals but also tokens of happiness—we bedeck ourselves with garlands, offer sacrifice, and hold high festival ; but we do quite the opposite in time of war, just as in time of mourning—we shut ourselves within the gates, live in dread of every thing, and abandon ourselves to despair. Moreover, at such times the women wail for their husbands and the children for their fathers, as they would over the greatest calamities.