- Source
- Anonymous. Hesiod, The Homeric Hymns and Homerica. Evelyn-White, Hugh G., editor. London: William Heinmann; New York: The Macmillan Co., 1914.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0013.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1-21
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
The poet recounts various traditions regarding Dionysus' birthplace, affirming Nysa as the true one, and describes Zeus's nod of assent confirming his worship. The hymn concludes with a prayer and a promise of perpetual song.
οἳ μὲν γὰρ Δρακάνῳ σʼ, οἳ δʼ1 Ἰκάρῳ ἠνεμοέσσῃ
For some say [you were born] in Dracanum, and some in windy Icarus,
φάσʼ, οἳ δʼ ἐν Νάξῳ, δῖον γένος, εἰραφιῶτα,
some in Naxos, O Eiraphiotes, divine offspring,
οἳ δέ σʼ ἐπʼ Ἀλφειῷ ποταμῷ βαθυδινήεντι
and others say that on the deep-swirling river Alpheus,
κυσαμένην Σεμέλην τεκέειν Διὶ τερπικεραύνῳ·
pregnant Semele bore you to Zeus who delights in thunder.
ἄλλοι δʼ ἐν Θήβῃσιν, ἄναξ, σε λέγουσι γενέσθαι,
Others, O lord, say that you were born in Thebes,
ψευδόμενοι· σὲ δʼ ἔτικτε πατὴρ ἀνδρῶν τε θεῶν τε
but they lie. The father of men and of gods begot you
πολλὸν ἀπʼ ἀνθρώπων, κρύπτων λευκώλενον Ἥρην.
far away from men, hiding from white-armed Hera.
ἔστι δέ τις Νύση, ὕπατον ὄρος, ἀνθέον ὕλῃ,
There is a certain Nysa, a most high mountain, blooming with woods,
τηλοῦ Φοινίκης, σχεδὸν Αἰγύπτοιο ῥοάων,
far from Phoenicia, near the streams of Egypt.
καί οἱ2 ἀναστήσουσιν ἀγάλματα πόλλʼ ἐνὶ νηοῖς.
”And they will set up many statues for him in temples.
ὣς δὲ τὰ μὲν τρία, σοὶ πάντως τριετηρίσιν αἰεὶ
And so these three [honors]; to you, in any case, always at triennial festivals
ἄνθρωποι ῥέξουσι τεληέσσας ἑκατόμβας.
men will offer perfect hecatombs.”
ἦ3 καὶ κυανέῃσιν ἐπʼ ὀφρύσι νεῦσε Κρονίων·
He spoke, and the son of Cronos nodded with his dark brows;
ἀμβρόσιαι δʼ ἄρα χαῖται ἐπερρώσαντο ἄνακτος
and the ambrosial hair of the lord flowed waving
κρατὸς ἀπʼ ἀθανάτοιο· μέγαν δʼ ἐλέλιξεν Ὄλυμπον.
from his immortal head; and he shook great Olympus.
ὣς εἰπὼν ἐπένευσε καρήατι μητίετα Ζεύς.
So saying, wise Zeus nodded with his head.
ἵληθʼ, εἰραφιῶτα, γυναιμανές· οἱ δέ σʼ ἀοιδοὶ
Be gracious, Eiraphiotes, who drive women mad; we singers
ᾁδομεν ἀρχόμενοι λήγοντές τʼ· οὐδέ πῃ ἔστι
sing of you as we begin and as we end; and in no way is it possible
σεῖʼ ἐπιληθομένῳ4 ἱερῆς μεμνῆσθαι ἀοιδῆς.
for one who forgets you to be mindful of sacred song.
καὶ σὺ μὲν οὕτω χαῖρε, Διώνυσʼ εἰραφιῶτα,
And so hail to you, Dionysus, Eiraphiotes,
σὺν μητρὶ Σεμέλῃ, ἥν περ καλέουσι Θυώνην.
together with your mother Semele, whom they call Thyone.
- 1οἳ μὲν... οἳ δʼ
An early usage of the relative pronoun as a demonstrative, forming the correlative structure 'some... others...' The main verb governing this entire construction is φάσʼ (φάσι) in §2.
- 10οἱ
The dative of the third person pronoun (enclitic), referring here to Dionysus ('for him' or 'in his honor').
- 13ἦ
Although it can be interpreted either as the third-person singular imperfect of ἠμί ('he spoke') or as an emphatic particle ('truly'), it is best understood as the Homeric formulaic expression ἦ καί ('he spoke, and...').
- 19σεῖʼ ἐπιληθομένῳ
The dative participle ἐπιληθομένῳ ('for one who forgets') functions as the subject of the infinitive μεμνῆσθαι, which is dependent on the impersonal construction οὐδέ πῃ ἔστι ('it is in no way possible'). The genitive pronoun σεῖʼ (σεῖο) is the object of this participle.