§1281Κύπρι, τῶνδε μόνα κρατύνεις.
Chorus: Cypris, you alone rule over these things.
Artemis: I command you, the noble son of Aegeus, child, to listen; And I, Artemis, daughter of Leto, address you.
§1286Θησεῦ, τί τάλας τοῖσδε συνήδῃ, §1287παῖδ’ οὐχ ὁσίως σὸν ἀποκτείνας, §1288ψευδέσι μύθοις ἀλόχου πεισθεὶς §1289ἀφανῆ;
Theseus, why do you, wretched man, rejoice in these things, having killed your son unholily, persuaded by the false words of your wife in things unseen?
φανερὰν δ’ ἔσχεθες ἄτην.
But you have gained a visible ruin.
§1290πῶς οὐχ ὑπὸ γῆς τάρταρα κρύπτεις §1291δέμας αἰσχυνθείς, §1292ἢ πτηνὸς ἄνω μεταβὰς βίοτον §1293πήματος ἔξω πόδα τοῦδ’ ἀνέχεις;
Why do you not hide your body beneath the Tartarus of the earth, shamed in body, or changing your life to a winged bird on high, keep your foot out of this misery?
For among good men, you have no share of life that is to be possessed.
Hear, Theseus, the state of your evils; although I shall advance nothing, but I shall grieve you.
§1298ἀλλ’ ἐς τόδ’ ἦλθον, παιδὸς ἐκδεῖξαι φρένα §1299τοῦ σοῦ δικαίαν, ὡς ὑπ’ εὐκλείας θάνῃ, §1300καὶ σῆς γυναικὸς οἶστρον ἢ τρόπον τινὰ §1301γενναιότητα· τῆς γὰρ ἐχθίστης θεῶν §1302ἡμῖν, ὅσαισι παρθένειος ἡδονή, §1303δηχθεῖσα κέντροις παιδὸς ἠράσθη σέθεν.
But I came for this, to show that your son's mind is just, so that he may die with good reputation, and the frenzy of your wife, or in some way her nobility; for, stung by the stings of that goddess most hateful to us, who find pleasure in virginity, stung by her stings, she fell in love with your son.
§1304γνώμῃ δὲ νικᾶν τὴν Κύπριν πειρωμένη §1305τροφοῦ διώλετ’ οὐχ ἑκοῦσα μηχαναῖς, §1306ἣ σῷ δι’ ὅρκων παιδὶ σημαίνει νόσον.
And trying to conquer Cypris by her judgment, she was destroyed, against her will, by the schemes of her nurse, who, under oaths, revealed the sickness to your son.
§1307ὃ δ’, ὥσπερ ὢν δίκαιος, οὐκ ἐφέσπετο §1308λόγοισιν, οὐδ’ αὖ πρὸς σέθεν κακούμενος §1309ὅρκων ἀφεῖλε πίστιν, εὐσεβὴς γεγώς.
But he, as was just, did not follow her words, nor, even though mistreated by you, did he break the pledge of his oaths, being pious.
§1310ἣ δ’ εἰς ἔλεγχον μὴ πέσῃ φοβουμένη §1311ψευδεῖς γραφὰς ἔγραψε καὶ διώλεσεν §1312δόλοισι σὸν παῖδ’· ἀλλ’ ὅμως ἔπεισέ σε.
But she, fearing lest she should fall into refutation, wrote false writings and destroyed your son by wiles; but nevertheless she persuaded you.
§1313οἴμοι.
Theseus: Alas!
§1313aδάκνει σε, Θησεῦ, μῦθος;
Artemis: Does the story bite you, Theseus?
ἀλλ’ ἔχ’ ἥσυχος, §1314τοὐνθένδ’ ἀκούσας ὡς ἂν οἰμώξῃς πλέον.
But keep quiet, listening to what follows, so that you may groan more.
§1315ἆρ’ οἶσθα πατρὸς τρεῖς ἀρὰς ἔχων σαφεῖς;
Do you know that you have three clear curses from your father?
Of which you have used up one, o most base man, against your son, when it was possible against some enemy.
§1318πατὴρ μὲν οὖν σοι πόντιος φρονῶν καλῶς §1319ἔδωχ’ ὅσονπερ χρῆν, ἐπείπερ ᾔνεσεν· §1320σὺ δ’ ἔν τ’ ἐκείνῳ κἀν ἐμοὶ φαίνῃ κακός, §1321ὃς οὔτε πίστιν οὔτε μάντεων ὄπα §1322ἔμεινας, οὐκ ἤλεγξας, οὐ χρόνῳ μακρῷ §1323σκέψιν παρέσχες, ἀλλὰ θᾶσσον ἤ σ’ ἐχρῆν §1324ἀρὰς ἀφῆκας παιδὶ καὶ κατέκτανες.
Your father of the sea, being well-disposed, granted as much as he had to, since he had promised; but you appear base both to him and to me, who waited neither for proof nor the voice of prophets, nor did you investigate, nor in long time did you allow reflection, but swifter than you ought you hurled the curses at your son and killed him.
§1325δέσποιν’, ὀλοίμην.
Theseus: Mistress, may I perish!
§1325bδείν’ ἔπραξας, ἀλλ’ ὅμως §1326ἔτ’ ἔστι καί σοι τῶνδε συγγνώμης τυχεῖν· §1327Κύπρις γὰρ ἤθελ’ ὥστε γίγνεσθαι τόδε, §1328πληροῦσα θυμόν.
Artemis: You have done terrible things, but nevertheless it is still possible even for you to obtain pardon for these things; for Cypris wished that this should happen, satiating her anger.
θεοῖσι δ’ ὧδ’ ἔχει νόμος· §1329οὐδεὶς ἀπαντᾶν βούλεται προθυμίᾳ §1330τῇ τοῦ θέλοντος, ἀλλ’ ἀφιστάμεσθ’ ἀεί.
And for the gods, this is the law: no one wishes to oppose the desire of him who wills, but we always stand aside.
§1331ἐπεί, σάφ’ ἴσθι, Ζῆνα μὴ φοβουμένη §1332οὐκ ἄν ποτ’ ἦλθον ἐς τόδ’ αἰσχύνης ἐγὼ §1333ὥστ’ ἄνδρα πάντων φίλτατον βροτῶν ἐμοὶ §1334θανεῖν ἐᾶσαι.
For, know well, if I were not fearing Zeus, I would never have come to this point of shame, as to allow the man dearest to me of all mortals to die.
τὴν δὲ σὴν ἁμαρτίαν §1335τὸ μὴ εἰδέναι μὲν πρῶτον ἐκλύει κάκης· §1336ἔπειτα δ’ ἡ θανοῦσ’ ἀνήλωσεν γυνὴ §1337λόγων ἐλέγχους ὥστε σὴν πεῖσαι φρένα.
But as for your error, first, your ignorance releases it from wickedness; and secondly, your dead wife used up the refutation of words so as to persuade your mind.
§1338μάλιστα μέν νυν σοὶ τάδ’ ἔρρωγεν κακά, §1339λύπη δὲ κἀμοί· τοὺς γὰρ εὐσεβεῖς θεοὶ §1340θνῄσκοντας οὐ χαίρουσι·
Most of all indeed these evils have burst upon you, but there is grief also for me; for the pious when they die, the gods do not rejoice.
τούς γε μὴν κακοὺς §1341αὐτοῖς τέκνοισι καὶ δόμοις ἐξόλλυμεν.
Indeed, the wicked we utterly destroy, with their children and their houses.
Chorus: And look, the wretched man himself is coming, his young flesh and fair head mutilated.
O trouble of the house, what double grief has been accomplished for the halls, sent by the gods to seize them.
§1347αἰαῖ αἰαῖ·
Hippolytus: Alas, alas!
Wretched am I, by an unjust father's unjust oracles mutilated!
§1350ἀπόλωλα τάλας, οἴμοι μοι.
I am destroyed, wretched, alas, alas!
Through my head shoot pains, and spasm leaps through my brain.
§1353σχές, ἀπειρηκὸς σῶμ’ ἀναπαύσω.
Stop, let me rest my exhausted body.
O hateful team of horses, nurtured by my own hand, nourished by my hand, you have destroyed me, you have killed me!
§1358φεῦ φεῦ·
Ah, ah!
πρὸς θεῶν, ἀτρέμας, δμῶες, §1359χροὸς ἑλκώδους ἅπτεσθε χεροῖν.
By the gods, gently, servants, touch my wounded flesh with your hands.
§1360τίς ἐφέστηκεν δεξιὰ πλευροῖς;
Who stands by me on the right side?
§1361πρόσφορά μ’ αἴρετε, σύντονα δ’ ἕλκετε §1362τὸν κακοδαίμονα καὶ κατάρατον §1363πατρὸς ἀμπλακίαις.
Lift me carefully, and pull me smoothly, the ill-fated and cursed one, by my father's errors.
Ζεῦ Ζεῦ, τάδ’ ὁρᾷς;
Zeus, Zeus, do you see this?
§1364ὅδ’ ὁ σεμνὸς ἐγὼ καὶ θεοσέπτωρ, §1365ὅδ’ ὁ σωφροσύνῃ πάντας ὑπερσχὼν §1366προῦπτον ἐς Ἅιδην στείχω κατ’ ἄκρας §1367ὀλέσας βίοτον· μόχθους δ’ ἄλλως §1368τῆς εὐσεβίας §1369εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἐπόνησα.
Here am I, the holy and god-fearing, here am I, who surpassed all in temperance, marching to a manifest Hades, utterly having destroyed my life; in vain did I labor the labors of piety before men.
§1370αἰαῖ αἰαῖ·
Alas, alas!
And now pain, pain comes upon me — let me go, wretched ones! — and may death come to me as healer.
§1374προσαπόλλυτ’ ἀπόλλυτε τὸν δυσδαί- §1375μονά μ’· ἀμφιτόμου λόγχας ἔραμαι, §1376διαμοιρᾶσαι §1377διά τ’ εὐνᾶσαι τὸν ἐμὸν βίοτον.
Destroy me utterly, destroy me, the ill-fated one! — I long for a two-edged spear, to cleave asunder and to put to rest my life.
§1378ὦ πατρὸς ἐμοῦ δύστηνος ἀρά·
O wretched curse of my father!