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The Debate of the Three Bodyguards

3Now King Darius gave a great banquet for all that were under him, all that were born in his house, and all the nobles of Media and Persia, ²and all the satraps and generals and governors that were under him in the hundred and twenty-seven satrapies from India to Ethiopia. ³They ate and drank, and when they were satisfied they went away, and King Darius went to his bedroom; he went to sleep, but woke up again.

4 Then the three young men of the bodyguard, who kept guard over the person of the king, said to one another, ⁵‘Let each of us state what one thing is strongest; and to the one whose statement seems wisest, King Darius will give rich gifts and great honours of victory. ⁶He shall be clothed in purple, and drink from gold cups, and sleep on a gold bed,^* and have a chariot with gold bridles, and a turban of fine linen, and a necklace around his neck; ⁷and because of his wisdom he shall sit next to Darius and shall be called Kinsman of Darius.’

8 Then each wrote his own statement, and they sealed them and put them under the pillow of King Darius, ⁹and said, ‘When the king wakes, they will give him the writing; and to the one whose statement the king and the three nobles of Persia judge to be wisest the victory shall be given according to what is written.’ ¹⁰The first wrote, ‘Wine is strongest.’ ¹¹The second wrote, ‘The king is strongest.’ ¹²The third wrote, ‘Women are strongest, but above all things truth is victor.’^*

13 When the king awoke, they took the writing and gave it to him, and he read it. ¹⁴Then he sent and summoned all the nobles of Persia and Media and the satraps and generals and governors and prefects, ¹⁵and he took his seat in the council chamber, and the writing was read in their presence. ¹⁶He said, ‘Call the young men, and they shall explain their statements.’ So they were summoned, and came in. ¹⁷They said to them, ‘Explain to us what you have written.’

The Speech about Wine

Then the first, who had spoken of the strength of wine, began and said: ¹⁸‘Gentlemen, how is wine the strongest? It leads astray the minds of all who drink it. ¹⁹It makes equal the mind of the king and the orphan, of the slave and the free, of the poor and the rich. ²⁰It turns every thought to feasting and mirth, and forgets all sorrow and debt. ²¹It makes all hearts feel rich, forgets kings and satraps, and makes everyone talk in millions.^{* 22}When people drink they forget to be friendly with friends and kindred, and before long they draw their swords. ²³And when they recover from the wine, they do not remember what they have done. ²⁴Gentlemen, is not wine the strongest, since it forces people to do these things?’ When he had said this, he stopped speaking.