De amore
Charitonis & Melanippi, & tyranni erga ipsos miseratione
Phalaridis factum
recensebo vobis, alienum id quidem ab eius moribus. Nam humanitatem quandam
prae se fert singularem, & idcirco ei non convenire videtur. Chariton erat
quidam Agrigentinus, pulchritudinis amator, & nimius in adolescentium
amore. Hic ardenti desiderio Melanippum amabat, qui etiam ipse Agrigentinus
erat, animum gerens honestum, & elegantia formae praestans. Hunc Melanippum
laeserat quadam re Phalaris. Quum enim iudicio cum amico Phalaridis
contenderet, tyrannus mandavit, ut accusatione desisteret. Qui quum non
obediret, extremum periculum ei ministratus est, nisi morem gereret. Itaque vi
coactus lite abstinuit. Magistratus autem, qui sub Phalaride, irritatam iudicii
sententiam fecerunt. Quod adolescens aegre ferens, iniuriam sibi fieri dixit
& ei a quo amabatur, suam iram prodidit atque confessus est Melanippus,
rogavitque ut sibi adiumento esset, ad insidias in tyrannum intendendas. Alios
etiam adolescentes in societatem adscisciscere cogitavit, quos ad eiusmodi
facinus commodissimos paratissimusque esse scirent. Chariton, quum insaniam
eius ac furorem cerneret, & ab ira incensum rapi, atque sciret neminem
civium in hanc rem consensurum esse metu tyranni, se quoque; dudum aiebat hoc
agitasse, & omnem diligentiam semper adhibere, ut patriam a servitute
praesenti in libertatem vidicaret: sed periculose haec multis enunciari &
communicari. Quamobrem orare, ut sibi de his rebus penitius considerandi curam
permittat, & tempus idoneum ad obeundum facinus capere sinat. Concessit adolescens.
Proinde Chariton, omnem hius ausi conatu in se assumens, amasium in societatem
sceleris assumere nolebat: ut si deprehenderetur, & manifestum fieret
negotium, ipse solus poenas dependeret, non etiam amasium periculi faceret
participe. Sumpta igitur sica, quum opportunum videbatur, adversus tyrannum
ruebat. Nec vero clam esse potuit, sed deprehensus est a satellitibus, qui in
eiusmodi res summo studio intenti erant. Coniectus autem in carcerem. &
quaestionibus examinatus ad prodendos coniuratores, fortiter toleravit, &
passus est tormentorusm saevitiamque atque vim. Postqauam vero longum id fuit.
Melanippus ad Phalarim accessit & se non tantum socium huius consilii, sed
etiam auctorem insidiarum. Charitoni fuisse confessus est. Percontante rege,
qua causa impulsus hoc fecisset, narravit ei rem omnem a principio, de
accusandi potestate sibi adempta, atque haec sibi molesta & indigna vis
esse fassus est. Miratus igitur tyrannus, utrumque liberum dimisit: sed ea lege
atque conditione, ut eodem die non solum ex Agrigentinorum urbe, verum etiam e
Sicilia excederent. Nihilominus tamen eis permittebat, ut ex suis
possessionibus & facultatibus debitum tructum caperent. Hos postmodoum
& eorum amicitiam Pythia celebravit his carminibus :
Humana genti
auctores caelestis amoris,
et Chariton felix
& Melanippus erat.
oraculo horum
amorem divinam & caelestem appellante.
Φαλάριδος ὑμῖν ἔργον
οὐ μάλα ἐκείνῳ σύνηθες εὶπεῖν ἐθέλω: τὸ δὲ ἔργον φιλανθρωπίαν ἄμαχον ὁμολογεῖ,
καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀλλότριον ἐκείνου δοκεῖ. Χαρίτων ἦν Ἀκραγαντῖνος φιλόκαλος ἄνθρωπος
καὶ περὶ τὴν ὥραν τὴν τῶν νέων ἐσπουδακὼς δαιμονίως: διαπύρως δὲ ἠράσθη μάλιστα
Μελανίππου Ἀκραγαντίνου καὶ ἐκείνου καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἀγαθοῦ καὶ τὸ κάλλος
διαφέροντος. τοῦτον ἐλύπησέ τι Φάλαρις τὸν Μελάνιππον: δικαζομένῳ γὰρ αὐτῷ πρός
τινα τῶν ἑταίρων αὐτοῦ τοῦ Φαλάριδος προσέταξεν ὁ τύραννος τὴν γραφὴν
καταθέσθαι. τοῦ δὲ μὴ πειθομένου ὃ δὲ ἠπείλησε τὰ ἔσχατα δράσειν αὐτὸν μὴ ὑπακούσαντα.
καὶ ἐκεῖνος μὲν παρὰ τὴν δίκην ἐκράτησεν
ἀνάγκῃ προστάξαντος τοῦ Φαλάριδος, οἱ δὲ ἄρχοντες τὴν γραφὴν τοῦ ἀγῶνος ἠφάνισαν.
βαρέως δὲ ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ νεανίσκος ἤνεγκεν ὑβρίσθαι λέγων, καὶ ὡμολόγει τὴν ὀργὴν
τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πρὸς τὸν ἐραστήν, καὶ ἠξίου κοινωνὸν αὐτὸν γενέσθαι τῆς ἐπιθέσεως τῆς
κατ᾽ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἄλλους δὲ ἔσπευδε προσλαβεῖν τῶν νεανίσκων, οὓς μάλιστα ᾔδει
περὶ τὴν τοιαύτην πρᾶξιν θερμοτάτους. ὁρῶν δὲ αὐτὸν ὁ Χαρίτων ἐνθουσιῶντα καὶ ὑπὸ
τῆς ὀργῆς ἀναφλεγόμενον, καὶ γινώσκων ὅτι τῶν πολιτῶν οὐδεὶς αὐτοῖς συλλήψεται
δέει τῷ ἐκ τοῦ τυράννου, καὶ αὐτὸς ἔφη πάλαι τοῦτο ἐπιθυμεῖν καὶ σπεύδειν ἐκ
παντὸς τὴν πατρίδα ῥύσασθαι τῆς δουλείας τῆς καταλαβούσης: ἀσφαλὲς δὲ μὴ εἶναι
πρὸς πολλοὺς τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐκφέρειν. ἠξίου δὴ τὸν Μελάνιππόν οἱ συγχωρῆσαι ἀκριβέστερον
ὑπὲρ τούτων διασκέψασθαι καὶ ἐᾶσαι παραφυλάξαι τὸν χρόνον τὸν ἐπιτήδειον ἐς τὴν
πρᾶξιν. συνεχώρησε τὸ μειράκιον. ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτοῦ τοίνυν ὁ Χαρίτων βαλόμενος τὸ πᾶν
τόλμημα, καὶ κοινωνὸν αὐτοῦ μὴ θελήσας παραλαβεῖν τὸν ἐρώμενον, ἵν᾽ εἰ
καταφωραθείη, αὐτὸς ὑπέχοι τὴν δίκην, ἀλλὰ μὴ καὶ ἐκεῖνον ἐς ταὐτὰ ἐμβάλοι, ἡνίκα
οἱ ἐδόκει καλῶς ἔχειν, ἐγχειρίδιον λαβὼν ὡρμᾶτο ἐπὶ τὸν τύραννον. οὐ μὴν ἔλαθε,
πάνυ σφόδρα ἀκριβῶς τῶν δορυφόρων τὰ τοιαῦτα φυλαττόντων. ἐμβληθεὶς δὲ ὑπὸ τοῦ
Φαλάριδος ἐς τὸ δεσμωτήριον καὶ στρεβλούμενος ἵν᾽ εἴποι τοὺς συνεγνωκότας, ὃ δὲ
ἐνεκαρτέρει καὶ ἐνήθλει ταῖς βασάνοις. ἐπεὶ δὲ μακρὸν τοῦτο ἦν, ὁ Μελάνιππος ἧκεν
ἐπὶ τὸν Φάλαριν, καὶ ὡμολόγησεν οὐ μόνον κοινωνὸς εἶναι τῷ Χαρίτωνι, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς
ἄρξαι τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς. τοῦ δὲ πυνθανομένου τὴν αἰτίαν, εἶπε τὸν ἐξ ἀρχῆς λόγον καὶ τὴν τῆς γραφῆς ἄρσιν, καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις ὡμολόγει περιαλγῆσαι.
θαυμάσας οὖν ἀμφοτέρους ἀφῆκε τῆς τιμωρίας, προστάξας αὐθημερὸν ἀπελθεῖν μὴ
μόνον τῆς Ἀκραγαντίνων πόλεως ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς Σικελίας: συνεχώρησε δὲ αὐτοῖς τὰ ἴδια
δίκαια καρποῦσθαι. τούτους ὕστερον ἡ Πυθία καὶ τὴν φιλίαν αὐτῶν ὕμνησε διὰ
τούτων τῶν ἐπῶν
θείας ἡγητῆρες ἐφημερίοις
φιλότητος
εὐδαίμων Χαρίτων
καὶ Μελάνιππος ἔφυ,
τοῦ θεοῦ τὸν ἔρωτα αὐτῶν θείαν ὀνομάσαντος φιλίαν.
--Aelian, Hist. Var. 2.4; Translated into Latin by Joannis Schefferi [Second Edition 1662]
I’m going to tell you about what Phalaris did that was out
of character. It’s strange, since it showed empathy, which wasn’t something he
did. Chariton was an honorable man from Agrigento and was madly in love with a
youth [Melanippus] who was a fellow citizen who had a good heart and good character.
Phalaris offended Melanippus in this manner. When he had sued
one of Phalaris’ companions, the tyrant ordered him to drop the lawsuit. When
Melanippus refused, Phalaris threatened to kill him. He was compelled to drop
the suit and the judges nullified the case.
Melanippus got upset over this, yelled that he was treated
unfairly, vowed revenge. He tried make a plot with Chariton, and tried to assemble
other like-minded youths to take down the tyrant. Chariton, seeing his boyfriend’s
inflamed anger, realized that everyone was too afraid of the tyrant to act, agreed
with him and offered to join him. He said he would do anything to free his
country from slavery, but that it wasn’t safe to tell this to too many people,
and that he should lay low until they could find the opportune time to act.
Melanippus agreed.
Taking charge, Chariton wanted to shield his lover from the
association of the crime. In case he was caught, he didn’t want Melanippus in
trouble; he alone would pay the consequences, and his lover wouldn’t be
endangered.
Grabbing a dagger, he attacked the tyrant. He wasn’t sneaky
about it; he did it openly and he was caught by tyrant’s guards who were alert
to such attacks. Melanippus was thrown in prison and interrogated to betray his
fellow conspirators, but he bravely endured the torture. But after a long time,
Melanippus went to Phalaris and told him that he not only agreed to do it, but
actually planned the deed—not Chariton. When Phalaris asked the reason,
Melanippus explained everything from the beginning, about the trial and how he
was upset about it. Phalaris was amazed at the both of them, and released them
both! They were free under the condition that they leave not only Agrigento,
but stay out of Sicily. Furthermore, they got to keep their property.
This is the relationship that the Pythia later sings about,
stating
"The blessed gods gave as a guide to humankind
The blessed Chariton and Melanippus!"
She called their relationship divine and heavenly love.