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Click on title of any pericope numbered in red to access the original language text.
| 314. | Strong Speech |
| When Aesop the story-teller [mythopoios]
was asked: -- "What is the strongest thing in humans?", he said: -- "Speech!" [logos]. |
|
| --- Nicolaus of Myra, Progymnasmata: Chreia 118-120 |
| 315. | What is Justice? |
| When Aristeides was asked: -- "What is justice?," he said: -- "Not to desire what belongs to others." |
|
| --- Nicolaus of Myra, Progymnasmata: Chreia 122-124 |
| 316. | Treasured Friends |
| When Alexander, the king of
Macedonians, was asked by someone where he has (his) treasure, he said: -- "In these!" pointing to his friends [philous]. |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 158-161 |
| 317. | The Love of Money |
| Bion the sophist used to say: -- "The love of money is the center [métropolis] of all evil." |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 125-126 | |
| [This oft-quoted chreia was variously ascribed to different sources including Diogenes of Sinopé and Democritus making its actual origin impossible to trace.] |
| 318. | How to Become Famous |
| When Diogenes (of Sinopé), the
(Cynic) philosopher was asked by someone how he might become
famous, he replied: -- "By caring least about fame!" |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 33-35 |
| 319. | The Rich Young Man |
| When Diogenes the Cynic
philosopher saw an uneducated rich youth, he said: -- "This is silverplated filth [rhupos]!"* |
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| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 41-44 | |
| * | Instead of "filth" [rhupos] other versions of this chreia have "horse" [hippos]. |
| 320. | Who Needs Sleep? |
| Standing over Diogenes as he was
falling asleep, Alexander the king of Macedonians said: -- "No need [chré] for a man who gives advice to sleep all night!" And Diogenes replied: -- "(There is) for one who has supported a people and cared for so much!" |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 88-93 | |
| [Greek rhetoricians sometimes cited this chreia to explain the derivation of the name of the genre. Since it contains two witty remarks, it was used as an example of a double chreia, involving repartée between two masters.] |
| 321. | Disciplinarian Disciplined |
| Seeing a child eating rich food, Diogenes (of Sinopé) struck his trainer [paidagógos] with his staff. |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 100-102 |
| 322. | Disciplinarian Disciplined (Variant) |
| Seeing a youth misbehaving, Diogenes (of Sinopé) beat his trainer [paidagógos], and said: -- "Why were you training such things?" |
|
| --- Hermogenes of Tarsus, Progymnasmata: Chreia 13-15 | |
| [Hermogenes (10-11) and other rhetoricians also used a shorter version of this chreia without the concluding saying.] |
| 323. | Formal Informality |
| When Diogenes (of Sinopé) was
lunching in the marketplace and summoned (Plato) to the lunch, Plato said: -- "O Diogenes! How charming your informality would be if it were not so formal!" |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 77-80 |
| 324. | Featherless Creatures |
| Plato defined a human as a
featherless, biped animal and was applauded. Diogenes of Sinope plucked a chicken and brought it into the lecture hall, saying: -- "Here is Plato's human!" |
|
| --- Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Philosophers 6.40 |
| 325. | Unjust Justice |
| When a certain acquaintance of
Socrates named Apollodorus said to him: -- "The Athenians have condemned you to death unjustly!", the philosopher said, laughing: -- "Did you want (them to do it) justly?" |
|
| --- Theon of Alexandria, Progymnasmata: Chreia 143-146 |
| 326. | Four Basic Questions |
| When (the philosopher Thales)
was asked: -- "What is hard?," he responded: -- "To know oneself." -- "What is easy?" -- "To advise another." -- "What is most pleasant?" -- "Success." -- "What is divine?" -- "What has neither beginning nor end." |
|
| --- Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Philosophers 1.36 |
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