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Text of major passages
Life 1.2 §10–12
(§10) Περὶ ἑκκαίδεκα δὲ ἔτη γενόμενος ἐβουλήθην τῶν παρ̕ ἡμῖν αἱρέσεων ἐμπειρίαν λαβεῖν· τρεῖς δ' εἰσὶν αὗται, φαρισαίων μὲν ἡ πρώτη καὶ Σαδδουκαίων ἡ δευτέρα, τρίτη δ' Ἐσσηνῶν, καθὼς πολλάκις εἴπομεν· οὕτως γὰρ ᾠόμην αἱρήσεσθαι τὴν ἀρίστην, εἰ πάσας καταμάθοιμι. (§11) σκληραγωγήσας οὗν ἐμαυτὸν καὶ πολλά πονηθεὶς τὰς τρεῖς διῆλθον· καὶ μηδὲ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἐμπειρίαν ἱκανὴν ἐμαυτῷ νομίσας εἷναι, πυθόμενός τινα Βαννοῦν ὄνομα κατὰ τὴν ἐρημίαμ διατρίβειν, ἐσθῆτι μὲν ἀπὸ δένδρων χρώμενον, τροφὴν δὲ τὴν αὐτομάτως φυομένην προσφερόμενον, ψυχρῷ δὲ ὕδατι τὴν ἡμέραν καὶ τὴν νύκτα πολλάκις λουόμνον πρὸς ἁγνείαν, ζηλωτὴς ἐγενόμην αὐτοῦ. (§12) καὶ διατρίψας παρ̕ αὐτῷ ἐνιαυτοὺς τρεῖς καὶ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν τελειώσας εἰς τὴν πόλιν ὑπέστρεφον. ἐννεακαιδέκατον δ'ἔτος ἔχων ἠρξάμην τε πολιτεύεσθαι τῇ Φαρισαίων αἱρέσει κατακολουθῶν, ἣ παραπλήσιός ἐστι τῇ παρ̕ Ἓλλησι Στωικῇ λεγομένη.
J.W. 2.8, 2–13 §119–61
(§119) Tρία γὰρ παρὰ Ἰουδαίοις εἴδη φιλοσοφεῖται, καὶ τοῦ μὲν αἱρετισταὶ Φαρισαῖοι, τοῦ δὲ Σαδδουκαῖοι, τρίτον δέ, ὃ δὴ καὶ δοκεῖ σεμνότητα ἀσκεῖν, Ἐσσηνοὶ καλοῦνται, Ἰουδαῖοι μὲν γένος ὂντες, φιλάλληλοι δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πλέον.
Translation of major passages
Life 1.2 §10–12
(§10) When I was about sixteen years old, I decided to get experience of the sects that existed among us. These are three, as we have said many times: the first, that of the Pharisees; the second, that of the Sadducees; and the third, that of the Essenes.
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