Herodotus, pt. 2

Huic Artaÿcti crucifixo major fuit Artembares, qui Persis consilium dedit, et illi hoc captum ante Cyrum posuerunt, dicentes, “Quia Juppiter regnum Persis dedit, et præsertim tibi, Cyre, Astyagen obruendo, nunc linquamus hanc terram parvulam atque asperam, et pro ea meliorem teneamus. Multæ sunt tales vicinæ, multæque longiores: unam si quarum teneamus, multo magis celebres fiemus. Opportet homines regentes sic facere, et quod melius tempus invenietur quam nunc, cum regamus multos homines et totam Asiam?” Audivit Cyrus, sed non probavit quod dixerant; eis locutus ut sic facerent, sed ferent non regere sed regi: nam e mollibus terris molles viros produci solere, nec esse unius terræ et fructūs bonos et viros fortes gignere. Huic consenserunt Persæ, et abierunt, sententiam Cyri confitientes meliorem esse; et optaverunt in terrā asperā viventes regere, magis quam agros colentes aliis servare.

 

Τούτου δὲ Ἀρταΰκτεω τοῦ ἀνακρεμασθέντος προπάτωρ Ἀρτεμβάρης ἐστὶ ὁ Πέρσῃσι ἐξηγησάμενος λόγον τὸν ἐκεῖνοι ὑπολαβόντες Κύρῳ προσήνεικαν λέγοντα τάδε, “Ἐπεὶ Ζεὺς Πέρσῃσι ἡγεμονίην διδοῖ, ἀνδρῶν δὲ σοί, Κῦρε, κατελὼν Ἀστυάγην, φέρε, γῆν γὰρ ἐκτήμεθα ὀλίγην καὶ ταύτην τρηχέαν, μεταναστάντες ἐκ ταύτης ἄλλην σχῶμεν ἀμείνω. Εἰσὶ δὲ πολλαὶ μὲν ἀστυγείτονες πολλαὶ δὲ καὶ ἑκαστέρω, τῶν μίαν σχόντες πλέοσι ἐσόμεθα θωμαστότεροι. Οἰκὸς δὲ ἄνδρας ἄρχοντας τοιαῦτα ποιέειν· κότε γὰρ δὴ καὶ παρέξει κάλλιον ἢ ὅτε γε ἀνθρώπων τε πολλῶν ἄρχομεν πάσης τε τῆς Ἀσίης;” Κῦρος δὲ ταῦτα ἀκούσας καὶ οὐ θωμάσας τὸν λόγον ἐκέλευε ποιέειν ταῦτα, οὕτω δὲ αὐτοῖσι παραίνεε κελεύων παρασκευάζεσθαι ὡς οὐκέτι ἄρξοντας ἀλλ᾽ ἀρξομένους· φιλέειν γὰρ ἐκ τῶν μαλακῶν χώρων μαλακοὺς γίνεσθαι· οὐ γὰρ τι τῆς αὐτῆς γῆς εἶναι καρπόν τε θωμαστὸν φύειν καὶ ἄνδρας ἀγαθοὺς τὰ πολέμια. Ὥστε συγγνόντες Πέρσαι οἴχοντο ἀποστάντες, ἑσσωθέντες τῇ γνώμῃ πρὸς Κύρου, ἄρχειν τε εἵλοντο λυπρὴν οἰκέοντες μᾶλλον ἢ πεδιάδα σπείροντες ἄλλοισι δουλεύειν.

 

This Artaÿctes who was crucified had a forefather named Artembares, who gave to the Persians a proposal which they took up and placed before Cyrus, saying, “Since Zeus has given lordship to the Persians, and above all to you, O Cyrus, by overthrowing Astyages, come, let us leave this small and rugged country and take instead a better one. There are many such lands on our borders, and many further away: if we take one, we shall gain far greater renown among men. It is proper that ruling people should behave in this way, and what better time will present itself than now, when we are the rulers of many men and all of Asia?” Cyrus listened to what they said, but found little good in their proposal. He bade them do what they had suggested, but advised them to be prepared not to rule but to be ruled: for soft lands produce soft men, and it is not the property of one country to bring forth both excellent fruits and warlike men. So the Persians agreed with Cyrus and left his presence, acknowledging that his opinion was superior; and they preferred to live in a rugged land and rule than to sow crops on the plain and be slaves to others.

—Herodotus, Histories, 9.122