The Graces dwell on the addressee's tongue; Dionysus enters the argument

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Procopius opens his letter by praising his correspondent's eloquence, then introduces Dionysus as a figure who might be blamed for neglecting a poor man devoted to the Muses and Graces.

You truly carry the Graces themselves upon your tongue, and it seems to me that a precinct of theirs—a temple—has been established for you somewhere here, and it charms the goddesses: a soul with a pure plectrum sounding in varied response upon the tongue. That is why they rejoice in it more than when they look upon Naxos, which tradition holds to be the island of the Graces—the place where Dionysus was defeated by Ariadne and lived with her as her husband. But how fittingly the son of Semele has come into our discussion! If he were not a god, how much accusation he would have received from us, for overlooking a man who is poor, who dreams of taxes even from his very bedding, but is otherwise devoted to the Muses and the Graces.

Greek

Epistula (e cod. Esc. gr. 234)

Αὐτὰς ὄντως ἐπὶ τῆς γλώττης φέρεις τὰς Χάριτας, καί μοι δοκεῖς ὡς τέμενος αὐτῶν,

καὶ νεὼς ἐνταῦθά που σοι καθίδρυται καὶ θέλγει τὰς θεάς, ψυχὴ καθαρῷ πλήκτρῳ

ποικίλως ὑπηχοῦσα τῇ γλώττῃ· ὅθεν χαίρουσι ταύτῃ μᾶλλον ἢ Νάξον ὁρῶσαι, ἣν καὶ

νῆσον εἶναι Χαρίτων λόγος κατέχει· ἔνθα καὶ ∆ιόνυσος τῆς Ἀριάδνης ἡττήθη καὶ

σύνοικος ἦν. Ἀλλ' εἰς καλὸν ἡμῖν ὁ Σεμέλης ἐπῆλθε τῷ λόγῳ· ὅς, εἰ μὴ θεὸς ἦν, ὅσης

ἂν ἡμῖν τῆς κατηγορίας ἀπέλαυσεν, ἄνδρα παριδὼν πένητα μὲν κἀκ τῶν στρωμάτων

αὐτῶν ὀνειροπολοῦντα τοὺς φόρους, Μούσαις δ' ἄλλως ἀνειμένον καὶ Χάρισιν.

About this text

A playful letter from Procopius of Gaza blaming Dionysus for a poor scholar's thin harvest, and concluding that no one is rich in both words and money.

Procopius of Gaza, a Christian sophist and head of the rhetorical school in Gaza, wrote this letter to a correspondent named Hieronymus. The letter belongs to a large surviving collection of his elaborately rhetorical letters, which provide most of what is known about his life. It was written from Gaza to Elusa in Palestine.

He then introduces Dionysus, who might be blamed for overlooking a poor man devoted to the Muses and Graces, a man who dreams of taxes even from his bedding.

In an imagined speech, Dionysus explains that one cannot be rich in both words and money. Procopius concludes that one should be content with present circumstances, since singing alone can make tax collectors immediately forget about money.

Printed text used

Translated from PG 87 (Greek)

This work has passed this project's source check. This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.