- 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-grc2:8.26.1-8.26.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
After learning from Arcadian deserters that the Greeks compete for an olive crown at the Olympics, Tigranes praises them for fighting for virtue rather than wealth, earning the king's accusation of cowardice.
ἧκον δέ σφι αὐτόμολοι ἄνδρες ἀπʼ Ἀρκαδίης ὀλίγοι τινές, βίου τε δεόμενοι καὶ ἐνεργοὶ βουλόμενοι εἶναι. ἄγοντες δὲ τούτους ἐς ὄψιν τὴν βασιλέος ἐπυνθάνοντο οἱ Πέρσαι περὶ τῶν Ἑλλήνων τί ποιέοιεν· εἷς δέ τις πρὸ πάντων ἦν ὁ εἰρωτῶν αὐτοὺς ταῦτα.
Now there came to them a few deserters from Arcadia, lacking livelihood and wishing to be employed. Bringing them into the presence of the king, the Persians inquired concerning the Greeks, what they were doing; and there was one in particular who asked them these things on behalf of all.
οἳ δέ σφι ἔλεγον ὡς Ὀλύμπια ἄγουσι καὶ θεωρέοιεν1 ἀγῶνα γυμνικὸν καὶ ἱππικόν. ὁ δὲ ἐπείρετο ὅ τι τὸ ἄεθλον εἴη σφι κείμενον περὶ ὅτευ ἀγωνίζονται· οἳ δʼ εἶπον τῆς ἐλαίης τὸν διδόμενον στέφανον. ἐνθαῦτα εἴπας γνώμην γενναιοτάτην Τιγράνης ὁ Ἀρταβάνου δειλίην ὦφλε πρὸς βασιλέος.2
They told them that they were celebrating the Olympic games and watching athletic and equestrian contests. Then he asked what the prize was that was set before them, for which they contended; and they said it was the crown of olive that was given. Thereupon Tigranes, the son of Artabanus, having expressed a most noble opinion, incurred the charge of cowardice from the king.
πυνθανόμενος γὰρ τὸ ἄεθλον ἐὸν στέφανον ἀλλʼ οὐ χρήματα, οὔτε ἠνέσχετο σιγῶν3 εἶπέ τε ἐς πάντας τάδε. παπαῖ Μαρδόνιε, κοίους ἐπʼ ἄνδρας ἤγαγες μαχησομένους ἡμέας, οἳ οὐ περὶ χρημάτων τὸν ἀγῶνα ποιεῦνται ἀλλὰ περὶ ἀρετῆς. τούτῳ μὲν δὴ ταῦτα εἴρητο.
For when he learned that the prize was a crown and not money, he could not bear to remain silent, but spoke among them all as follows: “Good heavens, Mardonius, what kind of men have you brought us to fight against, who hold their contest not for money but for virtue!” Thus indeed it was spoken by him.
- 8.26.2Ὀλύμπια ἄγουσι καὶ θεωρέοιεν
In the indirect discourse introduced by ὡς after the past main verb (ἔλεγον), the indicative (ἄγουσι) and the oblique optative (θεωρέοιεν) are coordinated. The indicative emphasizes the objective fact of the festival currently taking place, whereas the optative marks the indirect report of their activity (watching the contests), showing a deliberate shift in mood.
- 8.26.2δειλίην ὦφλε πρὸς βασιλέος
The verb ὦφλε (aorist of ὀφλισκάνω, "to incur, be charged with") takes the accusative of the charge (δειλίην, "cowardice") to mean "to incur the charge of cowardice." Since it carries a passive meaning, the agent is expressed by πρὸς with the genitive (πρὸς βασιλέος, "by the king").
- 8.26.3οὔτε ἠνέσχετο σιγῶν
The verb ἠνέσχετο (aorist of ἀνέχομαι, "to endure, bear," showing double augment) is construed with the supplementary participle σιγῶν (from σιγάω, "to be silent"), meaning "he could not bear to remain silent" or "he could not keep silent."