5 Xenophon’s Anabasis

Xenophon resumes his narrative of what happened after Tissaphernes imprisoned Clearchus and the other four Greek generals, Proxenos the Boeotian, Menon the Thessalian, Agias the Arcadian, and Socrates the Achaean:

Now when the time of perplexity came (epei de aporia én), Xenophon was distressed as well as everybody else and was unable to sleep; but, getting at length a little sleep (mikron d’ hupnou lachón), he had a dream (eiden onar). It seemed to him that there was a clap of thunder and a bolt fell on his father’s house, setting the whole house ablaze. He woke at once in great fear (periphobos euthus égerthé), and judged the dream in one way an auspicious one, because in the midst of hardships and perils he had seemed to behold a great light from Zeus; but looking at it in another way he was fearful, since the dream came, as he thought, from Zeus the King and the fire appeared to blaze all about, lest he might not be able to escape out of the King’s country, but might be shut in all sides by various difficulties. Now what it really means one can learn  from the events which followed the dream – and they were these: - and they were these: Firstly, on the moment of his awakening the thought occurred to him: “Why do I lie here? The night is wearing on, and at the daybreak it is likely the enemy will be upon us. And if we fall into the King’s hands, what is there to prevent our living to behold the most grievous sights and to experience all the most dreadful sufferings, and then to be put to death with insult? As for defending ourselves, however, no one is making preparations or taking thought of that, but we lie here just as if it were possible to enjoy our ease. What about myself, then? From what state (ek poias poleós) am I expecting the general to come who is to perform these duties (stratégon posdokó tauta praxein;)? And what age must I myself wait to attain? (poian d’ hélikian emautói elthein anamenói;) For surely I shall never be any older, if this day I give myself up to the enemy.”