c) Former spendthrift and dishonest habits of Amasis; his unexpected treatment, after his accession to the throne, of the oracular shrines which had encouraged his practices.

Amasis said that even when he was a private citizen, he loved drinking and joking, and he was in no way a serious man, so much so that while he was drinking and making merry, he would run out of the necessities of life, and he would steal to survive. And those who claimed that he had [stolen] their wealth, they would take him, denying [his guilt], to whichever oracle was nearest each time. And although he was often convicted by the oracles, he was just as often acquitted.

And so when he became king, he did the following: whichever of the gods had set him free [saying] that he was not a thief, of these temples neither did he take care of them nor did he give them anything in reparation; he would not even sacrifice to them on the grounds that they were worthless, since they procured false prophecy; but whichever temples had convicted him as a thief, to these he gave the greatest care, since they were truly from the gods and supplied unerring prophecy.

b) How he justified his relaxation.

In such manner, he won over the Egyptians, so that they consented to be obedient. And he managed that state of affairs as follows; in the morning, until the marketplace filled [i.e. noon], he eagerly managed the matters brought before him; and after that he drank and made jokes with his fellows and he was idle and playful.

Those of his friends disgusted by these [antics] admonished him, saying this, “My king, you are not conducting yourself properly, leading yourself into too much frivolity. You must sit solemnly on the solemn throne managing the affairs of state for the entire day. In this way, the Egyptians would see that they were led by a man of greatness, and you would have a better reputation; but you are not now behaving in a kingly manner.”

He replied to them this, “Those who possess bows, when they need to use them, string them; and when they have used them, they unstring them; for if they kept them strung at all times, they would break, and they would not have their use when they were needed. Thus too is the nature of a man. If he wished to be always serious and never, in turn, let himself relax in play, he would never get away with it without going mad or having a stroke. Knowing this, I allot a turn to each.”

“he would never get away with it without going mad or…”: this is a very loose translation of λάθοι ἂν ἤτοι μανεὶς ἢ…, but I hope it keeps the spirit of the Greek better than a literal translation (something more like, “truly he would escape by going mad or…”)

a) How, in spite of his low birth, he induced his subjects to respect him.

After Apries was deposed, Amasis became king. At first, the Egyptians despised Amasis and held him in no great respect, since he was formerly a commoner and from an undistinguished house. But Amasis soon won them over, not by bluster, but by skill. He had a golden basin for washing feet, in which he himself and also all his guests always washed their feet, and countless other fine things besides. And so, he cut this into pieces and made from it a statue of a god, and he set it up where it was most useful; and the Egyptians came to and fro before the statue and worshiped it greatly.

When Amasis discovered this, he called the Egyptians together and he revealed it, saying that from the wash-basin, the statue had come to be, into what the Egyptians had previously vomited and washed their feet, they then greatly worshiped. And then he went on to say that he had done himself the same way as with the statue; for if he had previously been a commoner, he was nevertheless at present their king. And he bid them to honour him and show respect for him.