Arrival at Cumae and Prayer at the Sibyl's Temple — Virgil, Aeneid Book 6 (lines 1–75), Latin & English

Sic fatur lacrimans, classique immittit habenas,

Thus he speaks weeping, and gives free rein to the fleet,

et tandem Euboïcis Cumarum adlabitur oris.

and at last glides to the Euboean shores of Cumae.

Obvertunt pelago proras; tum dente tenaci

They turn the prows to the sea; then with tenacious tooth

ancora fundabat naves, et litora curvae

the anchor secured the ships, and the curved sterns

praetexunt puppes. Iuvenum manus emicat ardens

fringe the shores. A band of young men leaps forth burning

litus in Hesperium; quaerit pars semina flammae

onto the Hesperian shore; one part seeks the seeds of flame

abstrusa in venis silicis, pars densa ferarum

hidden in the veins of flint, another part ravishes the forests,

tecta rapit silvas, inventaque flumina monstrat.

the thick coverts of wild beasts, and points out the streams they have found.

At pius Aeneas arces, quibus altus Apollo

But pious Aeneas seeks the heights over which high Apollo

praesidet, horrendaeque procul secreta Sibyllae

presides, and the vast cavern, the far-off secret place of the dread Sibyl,

antrum immane petit, magnum cui mentem animumque

to whom the Delian prophet inspires a great mind and soul,

Delius inspirat vates, aperitque futura.

and reveals the future.

Iam subeunt Triviae lucos atque aurea tecta.

Now they enter the groves of Trivia and the golden roofs.

Daedalus, ut fama est, fugiens Minoïa regna,

Daedalus, as the story goes, fleeing the realms of Minos,

praepetibus pennis ausus se credere caelo,

dared to trust himself to the sky on swift wings,

insuetum per iter gelidas enavit ad Arctos,

and glided away along an unaccustomed path to the cold North,

Chalcidicaque levis tandem super adstitit arce.

and at last hovered lightly above the Chalcidian height.

Redditus his primum terris, tibi, Phoebe, sacravit

Returned first to these lands, to you, Phoebus, he dedicated

remigium alarum, posuitque immania templa.

the oarage of his wings, and built a vast temple.

In foribus letum Androgeo: tum pendere poenas

On the doors was the death of Androgeos: then the Athenians,

Cecropidae iussi—miserum!—septena quotannis

ordered—pity!—to pay as penalty yearly seven

corpora natorum; stat ductis sortibus urna.

bodies of their children; there stands the urn with the lots drawn.

Contra elata mari respondet Gnosia tellus:

Opposite, rising from the sea, the Gnosian land responds:

hic crudelis amor tauri, suppostaque furto

here is the cruel love of the bull, and Pasiphaë mated

Pasiphaë, mixtumque genus prolesque biformis

by stealth, and the mixed race and two-formed offspring,

Minotaurus inest, Veneris monumenta nefandae;

the Minotaur, a monument of unspeakable passion;

hic labor ille domus et inextricabilis error;

here is that labor of the house and the inextricable wandering;

magnum reginae sed enim miseratus¹ amorem

but indeed, pitying the great love of the princess,

Daedalus ipse dolos tecti ambagesque resolvit,

Daedalus himself unraveled the deceits and windings of the building,

caeca regens filo vestigia. Tu quoque magnam

guiding the blind footsteps with a thread. You also, Icarus,

partem opere in tanto, sineret dolor,² Icare, haberes.

would have a large share in so great a work, did grief permit.

Bis conatus erat casus effingere in auro;

Twice he had attempted to fashion your fall in gold;

bis patriae cecidere manus. Quin protinus omnia

twice the father’s hands fell. Indeed, they would have gone on scanning

perlegerent oculis, ni iam praemissus Achates

all things with their eyes, had not Achates, sent ahead, now

adforet,³ atque una Phoebi Triviaeque sacerdos,

been present, and with him the priestess of Phoebus and Trivia,

Deiphobe Glauci, fatur quae talia regi:

Deiphobe daughter of Glaucus, who speaks such words to the king:

Non hoc ista sibi tempus spectacula poscit;

”Not such spectacles as those does this hour demand for itself;

nunc grege de intacto septem mactare iuvencos

now it would be better to sacrifice seven bullocks from an untouched herd,

praestiterit, totidem lectas de more bidentes.

and as many chosen sheep according to custom.”

Talibus adfata Aenean (nec sacra morantur

Having addressed Aeneas in such words (nor do the men delay

iussa viri), Teucros vocat alta in templa sacerdos.

the ordered sacrifices), the priestess summons the Teucrians into the lofty temple.

Excisum Euboicae latus ingens rupis in antrum,

A huge side of the Euboean rock is cut into a cavern,

quo lati ducunt aditus centum, ostia centum;

whither a hundred broad approaches lead, a hundred mouths;

unde ruunt totidem voces, responsa Sibyllae.

whence rush as many voices, the responses of the Sibyl.

Ventum erat ad limen, cum virgo. Poscere fata

They had come to the threshold, when the maiden cries: “It is time to ask

tempus ait; deus, ecce, deus! Cui talia fanti

your fates; lo, the god, the god!” To her, speaking such words

ante fores subito non voltus, non color unus,

before the doors, suddenly her face, her color was not the same,

non comptae mansere comae; sed pectus anhelum,

her hair remained not braided; but her breast heaved,

et rabie fera corda tument; maiorque videri,⁴

and her wild heart swells with madness; and she seemed taller,

nec mortale sonans, adflata est numine quando

nor sounding mortal, since she was inspired by the divinity

iam propiore dei. Cessas in vota precesque,

of the now nearer god. “Do you delay with vows and prayers,

Tros ait Aenea? Cessas? Neque enim ante dehiscent

Trojan Aeneas?” she cries. “Do you delay? For not before will open

attonitae magna ora domus. Et talia fata

the great mouths of the awestruck house.” And having so spoken

conticuit. Gelidus Teucris per dura cucurrit

she fell silent. A cold tremor ran through the hard bones

ossa tremor, funditque preces rex pectore ab imo:

of the Teucrians, and the king pours forth prayers from his deepest heart:

Phoebe, graves Troiae semper miserate labores,

”Phoebus, who didst ever pity the heavy labors of Troy,

Dardana qui Paridis direxti tela manusque

who didst direct the Dardanian weapons and the hands of Paris

corpus in Aeacidae, magnas obeuntia terras

against the body of Aeacus’ grandson; under your guidance I entered

tot maria intravi duce te, penitusque repostas

so many seas bordering great lands, and the deeply hidden

Massylum gentes praetentaque Syrtibus arva,

tribes of the Massylians and the fields stretched before the Syrtes,

iam tandem Italiae fugientis prendimus oras;

now at last we grasp the shores of fleeting Italy;

hac Troiana tenus⁵ fuerit Fortuna secuta.

thus far only may the fortune of Troy have followed us.

Vos quoque Pergameae iam fas est parcere genti,

It is right now for you too to spare the Pergamean race,

dique deaeque omnes quibus obstitit Ilium et ingens

all ye gods and goddesses to whom Ilium and the great glory

gloria Dardaniae. Tuque, O sanctissima vates,

of Dardania was an offense. And you, O most holy prophetess,

praescia venturi, da, non indebita posco

foreknowing the future, grant—I ask for realms not unowed

regna meis fatis, Latio considere Teucros

to my fates—that the Teucrians may settle in Latium,

errantisque deos agitataque numina Troiae.

along with the wandering gods and the storm-tossed divinities of Troy.

Tum Phoebo et Triviae solido de marmore templum

Then to Phoebus and Trivia a temple of solid marble

instituam, festosque dies de nomine Phoebi.

I will establish, and festive days in the name of Phoebus.

Te quoque magna manent regnis penetralia nostris:

For you too a great sanctuary remains in our realms:

hic ego namque tuas sortes arcanaque fata,

for here I will place your lots and secret fates,

dicta meae genti, ponam, lectosque sacrabo,

declared to my people, and I will consecrate chosen men,

alma, viros. Foliis tantum ne carmina manda,

O gracious one. Only do not commit your verses to leaves,

ne turbata volent rapidis ludibria ventis;

lest they fly away, disturbed, the sport of rapid winds;”

Syntax notes5 items

6.28sed enim miseratus
"sed enim" is an emphatic transitional phrase meaning "but indeed." The participle "miseratus" is nominative, agreeing with "Daedalus" in line 29. "reginae" refers to Princess Ariadne, and "amorem" represents her love for Theseus.
6.31sineret dolor
"sineret dolor" stands for "si sineret dolor" with the omission of the conjunction "si" (subjunctive of unfulfilled condition). The apodosis is "haberes," expressing a counterfactual situation ("had grief permitted, you would have...").
6.34perlegerent... ni... adforet
In this counterfactual sentence, "quin" acts as an adverb meaning "indeed / in fact." The imperfect subjunctive "perlegerent" (they would have scanned) forms the apodosis, corresponding to the protasis with "ni" (short for "nisi") "adforet" (had not Achates been present).
6.49maiorque videri
"videri" is used as a historical infinitive (or a Greek-style descriptive infinitive) equivalent to "videbatur" (she seemed). Together with "maior," it means "she seemed taller/larger than before."
6.62hac Troiana tenus
"hac" and "tenus" are separated by tmesis, together forming "hactenus" (thus far / up to this point). The verb "fuerit secuta" is a perfect subjunctive expressing a wish ("may it have followed") or concession.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22)urn:cts:latinLit:phi0690.phi003.humanitext-lat2:6.1-6.75