Heraclitus, Testimonia, Part 2: Doctrine (D)

LCL 526: 142-143

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EARLY GREEK PHILOSOPHY III

ται1 καὶ διδασκάλῳ χρείωνται ὁμίλῳ οὐκ εἰδότες ὅτι οἱ πολλοὶ κακοί, ὀλίγοι δὲ ἀγαθοί.”

D11 (B39) Diog. Laert. 1.88

ἐν Πριήνῃ Βίας ἐγένετο ὁ Τευτάμεω, οὗ πλείων λόγος ἢ τῶν ἄλλων.

D12 (B49) Theod. Prodr. Epist. 1, p. 1239 (et al.)

εἷς ἐμοὶ1 μύριοι, ἐὰν ἄριστος ᾖ.2

D13 (B29) Clem. Alex. Strom. 5.59.5, cf. 4.50.2

αἱρεῦνται ἓν ἀντὶ ἁπάντων οἱ ἄριστοι, κλέος ἀέναον θνητῶν· οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ κεκόρηνται ὅκωσπερ1 κτήνεα.

D14 (B121) Strab. 14.2 (et al.)

ἄξιον Ἐφεσίοις ἡβηδὸν ἀπάγξασθαι πᾶσι καὶ τοῖς ἀνήβοις τὴν πόλιν καταλιπεῖν,1 οἵτινες Ἑρμόδωρον ἄνδρα ἑωυτῶν ὀνήιστον ἐξέβαλον φάντες· “ἡμέων μηδὲ εἷς2 ὀνήιστος ἔστω, εἰ δὲ μή,3 ἄλλῃ τε καὶ μετ’ ἄλλων.”

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HERACLITUS

the people’s bards and take the crowd as their teacher, for they do not know that ‘most men are bad’ [cf. Bias, MOR. T35.6.1] and that the good are few.”

D11 (B39) Diogenes Laertius

In Priene was born Bias, the son of Teutames, who is held in greater account (logos) than the others.

D12 (B49) Theodore Prodromus, Letters

One man, for me, is ten thousand, if he is the best.

D13 (B29) Clement of Alexandria, Stromata

The best men choose one thing instead of all others, the ever-flowing fame of mortals; but most men are sated like cattle.

D14 (B121) Strabo, Geography

All the adult Ephesians ought to hang themselves and to leave the city to beardless boys: for they exiled Hermodorus, the one man of them who was most beneficial, saying, “Let there not be one man among us who is the most beneficial—otherwise, may he be elsewhere and among others.”

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DOI: 10.4159/DLCL.heraclitus-doctrine.2016