Letter 482: It is time for you to call the Nile a small river, since you also call yourself small in eloquence.
Θεοδώρῳ. (356)
Ὥρα σοι τὸν Νεῖλον μικρὸν καλεῖν ποταμόν, ὅπου γε
καὶ σαυτὸν μικρὸν εἶναι φὴς ἐν λόγοις. ἡμεῖς δὲ τὰ μὲν ἄλλα
σοι πιστεύσομεν, τουτὶ δὲ μόνον ἀπιστήσομεν. σοὶ μὲν γὰρ
ἴσως καλὸν μὴ σαυτὸν ἐγκωμιάζειν, ἡμῖν δὲ μὴ πᾶν ὅσον ἐν
σοὶ δοκεῖν εἰδέναι πῶς καλόν;
ἢ γὰρ οὐ σὺ Θεόδωρος ἐΜ
νος ὁ πολλῶν μὲν πόνων πολλοὺς λόγους ἐωνημένος Ἀθήνησι,
πρὸς δὲ τοὺς ἔξω λαμπρὸς ἀφ’ ὧν ἐκεῖθεν ἐκόμιζες, ἡμὶν δὲ
ἀντὶ κέντρου ποιήσας ὃν ἀνέγνως ἀγῶνα;
θαυμάζω δὲ
ὅπως οὐκ εἶδες ὅτι λέγων μὲν μὴ μεγάλα εἰδέναι, τοιαῦτα δὲ
ἐπιστέλλων ψευδόμενος ἁλώσῃ τοῖς γεγραμμένοις αὐτοῖς ἐλέγ-
χων τὰ γεγραμμένα.
οὑτωσὶ μὲν οὐδ’ εἰ πάνυ βούλοιο,
δύναιο ἂν εἰπείν τι μὴ καλόν, τοὺς δὲ νέους ὑπὲρ ὧν ἡμᾶς
παρακαλεῖς φιλοῦμεν, ὅτι καὶ αὐτοὶ παρακαλοῦσιν ἡμᾶς οἶς
ἐπιθυμοῦσιν.
Related Letters
If I claimed to possess words capable of eliminating every kind of wickedness, I would rightly be accused of arrogance.
Virtue must be practiced with all one's strength — not merely admired from a distance.
The monastic life demands total commitment.
You have honored me with your remembrance, but you did not quite gauge the weakness of my eyes.
You gave good counsel to a good man — you found what was right, and he did not reject it.