[B] Παρεσκεύαστο δὲ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις θεοῖς ἑκάστῳ θρόνος ἢ κλίνη κατὰ πρεσβείαν. ἤριζε δὲ οὐδείς, ἀλλ᾽ ὅπερ Ὅμηρος ὀρθῶς ποιῶν ἔφη, δοκεῖν μοι παρὰ τῶν Μουσῶν αὐτῶν ἀκηκοώς, ἔχειν ἕκαστον τῶν θεῶν θρόνον, ἐφ᾽ οὗ πάντως αὐτῷ θέμις καθῆσθαι στερεῶς καὶ ἀμετακινήτως· ἐπεὶ καὶ πρὸς τὴν παρουσίαν τοῦ πατρὸς ἐξανιστάμενοι ταράττουσιν οὐδαμῶς τὰς καθέδρας οὐδὲ μεταβαίνουσιν οὐδὲ ὑφαρπάζουσιν ἀλλήλων, [C] γνωρίζει δὲ ἕκαστος τὸ προσῆκον αὑτῷ. πάντων οὖν κύκλῳ τῶν θεῶν καθημένων, ὁ Σειληνὸς ἐρωτικῶς ἔχειν μοι δοκῶν τοῦ Διονύσου καλοῦ καὶ νέου καὶ τῷ πατρὶ τῷ Διὶ παραπλησίου πλησίον αὐτοῦ, τροφεύς τις οἷα καὶ παιδαγωγός, [D] καθῆστο, τά τε ἄλλα φιλοπαίγμονα καὶ φιλόγελων καὶ χαριτοδότην(550) ὄντα τὸν θεὸν εὐφραίνων καὶ δὴ καὶ τῷ σκώπτειν τὰ πολλὰ καὶ γελοιάζειν. (For the other gods had been prepared a throne or couch, for everyone according to seniority. Nor did any dispute arise as to this, but as Homer said,(551) and correctly, no doubt instructed by the Muses themselves, every god has his seat on which it is irrevocably ordained that he shall sit, firmly and immovably fixed; and though they rise on the entrance of their father they never confound or change the order of their seats or infringe on one another’s, since every one knows his appointed place. Now when the gods were seated in a circle, Silenus, amorous, methinks, of Dionysus ever fair and ever young, who sat close to Zeus his father, took his seat next to him on the pretext that he had brought him up and was his tutor. And since Dionysus loves jesting and laughter and is the giver of the Graces, Silenus diverted the god with a continual flow of sarcasms and jests, and in other ways besides.) Ὡς δὲ καὶ τὸ τῶν καισάρων συνεκεκρότητο(552) συμπόσιον, εἰσῄει πρῶτος Ἰούλιος Καῖσαρ, ὑπὸ φιλοτιμίας αὐτῷ βουλόμενος ἐρίσαι τῷ Διὶ περὶ τῆς μοναρχίας, εἰς ὃν ὁ Σειληνὸς βλέψας, Ὅρα, εἶπεν, ὦ Ζεῦ, μή σε ὁ ἀνὴρ οὗτος ὑπὸ φιλαρχίας ἀφελέσθαι καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν διανοηθῇ. καὶ γὰρ, ὡς ὁρᾷς, ἐστὶ μέγας καὶ καλός· ἐμοὶ γοῦν, εἰ καὶ μηδὲν ἄλλο, [309] τὰ γοῦν περὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἐστι προσόμοιος. παίζοντος ἔτι τοιαῦτα τοῦ Σειληνοῦ καὶ τῶν θεῶν οὐ σφόδρα προσεχόντων αὐτῷ, Ὀκταβιανὸς ἐπεισέρχεται πολλὰ ἀμείβων, ὥσπερ οἱ χαμαιλέοντες, χρώματα καὶ νῦν μὲν ὠχριῶν, αὖθις δὲ ἐρυθρὸς γινόμενος, εἶτα μέλας καὶ ζοφώδης καὶ συννεφής· [B] ἀνίετο δ᾽ αὖθις εἰς Ἀφροδίτην καὶ Χάριτας, εἶναί τε ἤθελε τὰς βολὰς τῶν ὀμμάτων ὁποῖός ἐστιν ὁ μέγας Ἥλιος· οὐδένα γάρ οἱ τῶν ἀπαντώντων(553) ἀντιβλέπειν ἠξίου. καὶ ὁ Σειληνός, Βαβαί, ἔφη, τοῦ παντοδαποῦ τούτου θηρίου· τί ποτ᾽ ἄρα δεινὸν ἡμᾶς ἐργάσεται; Παῦσαι, εἴπε, ληρῶν, ὁ Ἀπόλλων· ἐγὼ γὰρ αὐτὸν τουτῳὶ Ζήνωνι παραδοὺς αὐτίκα ὑμῖν ἀποφανῶ χρυσὸν ἀκήρατον. [C] ἀλλ᾽ ἴθι, εἶπεν, ὦ Ζήνων, ἐπιμελήθητι τοὐμοῦ θρέμματος. ὁ δὲ ὑπακούσας, εἶτα ἐπᾴσας αὐτῷ μικρὰ τῶν δογμάτων, ὥσπερ οἱ τὰς Ζαμόλξιδος ἐπῳδὰς θρυλοῦντες, ἀπέφηνεν ἄνδρα ἔμφρονα καὶ σώφρονα.