From: Libanius, rhetorician in Antioch
To: Helladius
Date: ~353 AD
Context: Libanius defends himself against the charge of breaking travel promises, with a mythological flourish.
You're being unfair when you call my inability "deceit." One earns hatred, the other pity -- and you're mixing things that don't mix: bad luck and bad character. I freely admit that I fell in love with Berytus [modern Beirut, famous for its law school] for many reasons and with Athens for every reason, yet couldn't manage to visit either one. I'm told that even Hera was once bound in chains and couldn't stir until the very person who devised those chains came and set her free.
**To Helladius** (353 or 354?)
You do me wrong by calling my inability deceit. The one belongs to what is hated, the other to what is pitied — yet you confuse things that cannot be mixed: misfortunes and villainy. For my part, I confess that I fell in love with Berytus for many reasons, and with Athens for every reason, yet was unable to visit either. I hear that even Hera was once bound and could not stir until the very one who had contrived her chains came and set her free.
Context:Libanius defends himself against the charge of breaking travel promises, with a mythological flourish.
You're being unfair when you call my inability "deceit." One earns hatred, the other pity -- and you're mixing things that don't mix: bad luck and bad character. I freely admit that I fell in love with Berytus [modern Beirut, famous for its law school] for many reasons and with Athens for every reason, yet couldn't manage to visit either one. I'm told that even Hera was once bound in chains and couldn't stir until the very person who devised those chains came and set her free.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.