- Source
- Herodotus. Godley, Alfred Denis, editor. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1920-1925 (printing).
- 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:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.43.1-3.43.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Amasis foresees Polycrates' doom from his letter and, in order to avoid personal grief when misfortune inevitably strikes, sends a herald to Samos to dissolve their alliance.
ἐπιλεξάμενος δὲ ὁ Ἄμασις τὸ βυβλίον τὸ παρὰ τοῦ Πολυκράτεος ἧκον, ἔμαθε ὅτι ἐκκομίσαι τε ἀδύνατον εἴη ἀνθρώπῳ ἄνθρωπον1 ἐκ τοῦ μέλλοντος γίνεσθαι πρήγματος, καὶ ὅτι οὐκ εὖ τελευτήσειν μέλλοι Πολυκράτης εὐτυχέων τὰ πάντα, ὃς καὶ τὰ ἀποβάλλει εὑρίσκει.2
And Amasis, having read the letter coming from Polycrates, understood that it was impossible for a human being to rescue a human being from that which is destined to happen, and that Polycrates, being successful in all things, who even finds what he throws away, was not likely to end his life well.
πέμψας δέ οἱ κήρυκα ἐς Σάμον διαλύεσθαι ἔφη τὴν ξεινίην. τοῦδε δὲ εἵνεκεν ταῦτα ἐποίεε, ἵνα μὴ συντυχίης δεινῆς τε καὶ μεγάλης Πολυκράτεα καταλαβούσης3 αὐτὸς ἀλγήσειε τὴν ψυχὴν ὡς περὶ ξείνου ἀνδρός.
And having sent a herald to him at Samos, he said that he dissolved their guest-friendship. He did this for the following reason: so that, if a terrible and great misfortune should overtake Polycrates, he himself might not be grieved in his soul as for a guest-friend.
- 3.43.1ἐκκομίσαι τε ἀδύνατον εἴη ἀνθρώπῳ ἄνθρωπον
The infinitive ἐκκομίσαι (to rescue) depends on the impersonal expression ἀδύνατον εἴη. The dative ἀνθρώπῳ functions either as the subject of the infinitive ("for a human") or a dative of reference, while the accusative ἄνθρωπον is the direct object of ἐκκομίσαι ("another human").
- 3.43.1ὃς καὶ τὰ ἀποβάλλει εὑρίσκει
τὰ is the Ionic form of the relative pronoun, corresponding to the Attic ἃ ("the things which"). The phrase means "who finds even the things that he throws away."
- 3.43.2συντυχίης δεινῆς τε καὶ μεγάλης Πολυκράτεα καταλαβούσης
A genitive absolute construction consisting of the noun συντυχίης (misfortune) and the participle καταλαβούσης. Embedded within the purpose clause introduced by ἵνα μὴ, it expresses a temporal or conditional circumstance ("if/when a terrible and great misfortune should overtake Polycrates").