Cyropaedia

Now he knew that the Persians on account of their poverty lived in the greatest privation at home and were accustomed to a life of the hardest toil, because their country was rugged and they had to work with their own hands; so he believed that they would especially welcome life with him.

Accordingly, he took from among them ten thousand spearmen, who kept guard about the palace day and night, whenever he was in residence; but whenever he went away anywhere, they went along drawn up in order on either side of him.

And since he considered that all Babylon, too,[*](The city guards) stood in need of adequate protection, whether he himself happened to be at home or abroad, he stationed there also an adequate garrison, and he arranged that the Babylonians should furnish the money for their wages, for it was his aim that this people should be as destitute of resources as possible, so that they might be as submissive and as easily restrained as possible.

This guard that he then established about himself and in the city of Babylon is maintained on the same footing even to this day. And as he studied how his whole empire might be held together and at the same time enlarged, he reflected that these mercenaries were not so much better men than those he had made subject as they were inferior in number; and he realized that the brave men, who with the aid of the gods had brought him victory, must be kept together and that care must be exercised that they should not abandon their practice of virtue.

But in order that he might not seem to be issuing orders to them, but that they also might of themselves recognize that this was the best course for them and so abide in virtue and cultivate it, he collected the peers and all who were men of influence, together with such as seemed to him most worthy sharers of his toil and its rewards;

and when they had come together he addressed them as follows:Friends and allies, thanks be above all to the gods[*](Cyrus advocates the old morals for his new empire) that they have vouchsafed to us to obtain all that we thought we deserved. For now we are in possession of broad and fertile lands and of subjects to support us by tilling them; we have houses also and furniture in them.

And let not one of you think that in having these things he has what does not belong to him; for it is a law established for all time among all men that when a city is taken in war, the persons and the property of the inhabitants thereof belong to the captors. It will, therefore, be no injustice for you to keep what you have, but if you let them keep anything, it will be only out of generosity that you do not take it away.

As for the future, however, it is my judgment that if we turn to idleness and the luxurious self-indulgence of men of coarse natures, who count toil misery and living without toil happiness, we shall soon be of little account in our own eyes and shall soon lose all the blessings that we have.

For, to have quitted yourselves once like valiant men does not, we know, assure the perpetuity of valour, unless you devote yourselves to it to the end; but, just as skill in other arts retrogrades if neglected, and as bodies, too, that were once in good condition change and deteriorate as soon as the owners relax into idleness, so also self-control and temperance and strength will take a backward turn to vice as soon as one ceases to cultivate them.

Therefore, we dare not become careless nor give ourselves up to the enjoyment of the present moment; for, while I think it is a great thing to have won an empire, it is a still greater thing to preserve it after it has been won. For to win falls often to the lot of one who has shown nothing but daring; but to win and hold—that is no longer a possibility without the exercise of self-control, temperance, and unflagging care.

Recognizing all this, we ought to practise[*](He emphasizes the Persians’ need) virtue even more than we did before we secured these advantages, for we may be sure that the more a man has, the more people will envy him and plot against him and become his enemies, particularly if, as in our case, he draws his wealth and service from unwilling hands. We must, therefore, believe that the gods will be on our side; for we have not come unjustly into our possessions through plotting against others, but plotted against we have avenged ourselves.

But that which is next in importance after the favour of the gods we must get for ourselves—namely, we must claim the right to rule over our subjects only on the ground that we are their betters. Now the conditions of heat and cold, food and drink, toil and rest, we must share even with our slaves. But though we share with them, we must above all try to show ourselves their betters in such matters;

but the science and practice of war we need not share at all with those whom we wish to put in the position of workmen or tributaries to us, but we must maintain our superiority in these accomplishments, as we recognize in these the means to liberty and happiness that the gods have given to men. And just as we have taken their arms away from them, so surely must we never be without our own, for we know that the nearer to their arms men constantly are, the more completely at their command is their every wish.

But if any one is revolving in his mind any[*](The secret of happiness) such questions as this—‘of what earthly use it is to us to have attained to the goal of our ambitions if we still have to endure hunger and thirst, toil and care’—he must take this lesson to heart: that good things bring the greater pleasure, in proportion to the toil one undergoes beforehand to attain them; for toil gives a relish to good things; and nothing, however sumptuously prepared, could give pleasure unless a man get it when he needs it.

Now if God has helped us to obtain that which men most desire, and if any one will so order these results for himself that they shall give as great pleasure as possible, such a man will have this advantage over those who are not so well supplied with the means of living: when hungry he will enjoy the most dainty food, and when thirsty he will enjoy the finest drinks, and when in need of rest he will find it most refreshing.

Wherefore I maintain that we should now strain every nerve after manliness, so that we may enjoy our success in the best and most delightful manner and have no experience in that which is hardest of all. For failure to obtain good things is not so hard as the loss of them, when once obtained, is painful.

And think of this also: what excuse should we offer for allowing ourselves to become less deserving than before? That we are rulers? But, you know, it is not proper for the ruler to be worse than his subjects. Or that we seem to be more fortunate than before? Will any one then maintain that vice is the proper ornament for good fortune? Or shall we plead that since we have slaves, we will punish them, if they are bad?

Why, what propriety is there in any one’s punishing others for viciousness or indolence, when he himself is bad?And think also on this: we have made arrangements[*](Virtue the strongest safeguard) to keep many men to guard our homes and our lives; and how would it be otherwise than base in us to think that we have a right to enjoy security protected by other men’s spears, while we ourselves do not take up the spear for our own defence? And yet we must be fully aware that there is no such safeguard as for a man to be good and brave himself; this guard must be ever at our side. But if a man lack virtue, neither is it fitting that aught else be well with him.