§199λέλυμαι μελέων σύνδεσμα φίλων.
My limbs are unstrung, the joints of my dear body.
§200λάβετ’ εὐπήχεις χεῖρας, πρόπολοι.
Take my beautiful arms, attendants.
The heavy headdress is painful for me to bear on my head; take it off, let my hair fall loose on my shoulders.
Take heart, my child, and do not move your body with such difficulty.
You will bear your sickness more easily with quietness and a noble mind; for mortals must needs labor.
§208αἰαῖ·
Alas!
§208aπῶς ἂν δροσερᾶς ἀπὸ κρηνῖδος §209καθαρῶν ὑδάτων πῶμ’ ἀρυσαίμαν, §210ὑπό τ’ αἰγείροις ἔν τε κομήτῃ §211λειμῶνι κλιθεῖσ’ ἀναπαυσαίμαν;
How I wish that from a dewy spring I could draw a drink of pure water, and under the poplars, in the leafy meadow, lie down and rest!
§212ὦ παῖ, τί θροεῖς;
My child, what are you shouting?
Do not utter these words before the crowd, throwing out a speech that rides on madness.
§215πέμπετέ μ’ εἰς ὄρος· εἶμι πρὸς ὕλαν §216καὶ παρὰ πεύκας, ἵνα θηροφόνοι §217στείβουσι κύνες §218βαλιαῖς ἐλάφοις ἐγχριμπτόμεναι·
Send me to the mountain; I will go to the woods and among the pines, where the beast-slaying hounds tread, pressing close upon the dappled deer.
§219πρὸς θεῶν, ἔραμαι κυσὶ θωΰξαι §220καὶ παρὰ χαίταν ξανθὰν ῥῖψαι §221Θεσσαλὸν ὅρπακ’, ἐπίλογχον ἔχουσ’ §222ἐν χειρὶ βέλος.
By the gods, I long to cheer on the dogs, and past my golden hair to hurl a Thessalian spear, holding a barbed javelin in my hand.
§223τί ποτ’, ὦ τέκνον, τάδε κηραίνεις;
Why on earth, my child, do you distress yourself with these things?
§224τί κυνηγεσίων καὶ σοὶ μελέτη;
What have you to do with hunting?
§225τί δὲ κρηναίων νασμῶν ἔρασαι;
And why do you long for flowing springs?
For right next to our towers is a dewy hillside, from which you could get a drink.
§228δέσποιν’ ἁλίας Ἄρτεμι Λίμνας §229καὶ γυμνασίων τῶν ἱπποκρότων, §230εἴθε γενοίμαν ἐν σοῖς δαπέδοις, §231πώλους Ἐνέτας δαμαλιζομένα.
Mistress of the salty lake, Artemis, and of the gymnasiums where horses stamp, would that I were on your plains, taming Enetian fillies.
§232τί τόδ’ αὖ παράφρων ἔρριψας ἔπος;
What mad speech is this that you have thrown out again?
§233νῦν δὴ μὲν ὄρος βᾶσ’ ἐπὶ θήρας §234πόθον ἐστέλλου, νῦν δ’ αὖ ψαμάθοις §235ἐπ’ ἀκυμάντοις πώλων ἔρασαι.
Just now you were setting your desire on going to the mountain for hunting, and now again on the wave-free sands you long for fillies.
These things need much prophecy, to know which of the gods pulls back your reins and drives your mind astray, my child.
§239δύστηνος ἐγώ, τί ποτ’ εἰργασάμην;
Miserable that I am, what on earth have I done?
§240ποῖ παρεπλάγχθην γνώμης ἀγαθῆς;
Where have I wandered away from my good sense?
§241ἐμάνην, ἔπεσον δαίμονος ἄτῃ.
I went mad, I fell by the ruin of a deity.
§242φεῦ φεῦ, τλήμων.
Alas, alas, wretched that I am.
Nurse, cover my head again, for I am ashamed of what I have said.
Cover me; tears are falling from my eyes, and my gaze is turned to shame.
§247τὸ γὰρ ὀρθοῦσθαι γνώμην ὀδυνᾷ· §248τὸ δὲ μαινόμενον κακόν· ἀλλὰ κρατεῖ §249μὴ γιγνώσκοντ’ ἀπολέσθαι.
For to have one's mind set right is painful; madness is an evil, but it is better to perish without knowing it.
§250κρύπτω·
I cover you.
τὸ δ’ ἐμὸν πότε δὴ θάνατος §251σῶμα καλύψει;
But when indeed will death cover my own body?
§252πολλὰ διδάσκει μ’ ὁ πολὺς βίοτος.
My long life teaches me many things.
§253χρῆν γὰρ μετρίας εἰς ἀλλήλους §254φιλίας θνητοὺς ἀνακίρνασθαι §255καὶ μὴ πρὸς ἄκρον μυελὸν ψυχῆς, §256εὔλυτα δ’ εἶναι στέργηθρα φρενῶν §257ἀπό τ’ ὤσασθαι καὶ ξυντεῖναι.
For mortals should mix moderate friendships with one another, and not to the very marrow of the soul; the affections of the mind should be easily loosed, both to push away and to draw tight.
But for one soul to suffer for two, as I grieve for her, is a heavy burden.
§261βιότου δ’ ἀτρεκεῖς ἐπιτηδεύσεις §262φασὶ σφάλλειν πλέον ἢ τέρπειν §263τῇ θ’ ὑγιείᾳ μᾶλλον πολεμεῖν.
The uncompromising pursuits of life they say bring more failure than pleasure, and war more against health.
Thus I praise the excess less than 'nothing in excess'; and the wise will agree with me.
§267γύναι γεραιά, βασιλίδος πιστὴ τροφὲ §268Φαίδρας, ὁρῶμεν τάσδε δυστήνους τύχας, §269ἄσημα δ’ ἡμῖν ἥτις ἐστὶν ἡ νόσος· §270σοῦ δ’ ἂν πυθέσθαι καὶ κλύειν βουλοίμεθ’ ἄν.
Old woman, faithful nurse of Queen Phaedra, we see these miserable fortunes, but what her sickness is is unclear to us; we would like to ask and hear from you.
§271οὐκ οἶδ’ ἐλέγχους· οὐ γὰρ ἐννέπειν θέλει.
I do not know though I question her; for she refuses to speak.
§272οὐδ’ ἥτις ἀρχὴ τῶνδε πημάτων ἔφυ;
Nor what was the beginning of these sufferings?
§273ἐς ταὐτὸν ἥκεις· πάντα γὰρ σιγᾷ τάδε.
You come to the same point; for she keeps silent about all this.
§274ὡς ἀσθενεῖ τε καὶ κατέξανται δέμας.
How weak she is and how wasted in body!
§275πῶς δ’ οὔ, τριταίαν γ’ οὖσ’ ἄσιτος ἡμέραν;
How could she not be, being without food for three days?
§276πότερον ὑπ’ ἄτης ἢ θανεῖν πειρωμένη;
Is it from some delusion, or is she trying to die?
§277θανεῖν;
To die?
ἀσιτεῖ γ’ εἰς ἀπόστασιν βίου.
She is fasting to achieve release from life.
§278θαυμαστὸν εἶπας, εἰ τάδ’ ἐξαρκεῖ πόσει.
You have said an amazing thing, if this satisfies her husband.
§279κρύπτει γὰρ ἥδε πῆμα κοὔ φησιν νοσεῖν.
For she hides her suffering and says she is not sick.
§280ὃ δ’ ἐς πρόσωπον οὐ τεκμαίρεται βλέπων;
But does he not guess by looking at her face?
§281ἔκδημος ὢν γὰρ τῆσδε τυγχάνει χθονός.
For he happens to be away from this land.
But do you not apply force, trying to learn her sickness and the wandering of her mind?
§284ἐς πάντ’ ἀφῖγμαι κοὐδὲν εἴργασμαι πλέον· §285οὐ μὴν ἀνήσω γ’ οὐδὲ νῦν προθυμίας, §286ὡς ἂν παροῦσα καὶ σύ μοι ξυμμαρτυρῇς §287οἵα πέφυκα δυστυχοῦσι δεσπόταις.
I have tried everything and achieved nothing more; yet I will not slacken my zeal even now, so that you being present may bear witness with me what kind of person I am to my unfortunate masters.
§288ἄγ’, ὦ φίλη παῖ, τῶν πάροιθε μὲν λόγων §289λαθώμεθ’ ἄμφω, καὶ σύ θ’ ἡδίων γενοῦ §290στυγνὴν ὀφρὺν λύσασα καὶ γνώμης ὁδόν, §291ἐγώ θ’ ὅπῃ σοι μὴ καλῶς τόθ’ εἱπόμην §292μεθεῖσ’ ἐπ’ ἄλλον εἶμι βελτίω λόγον.
Come, dear child, let us both forget our former talk, and be more pleasant, smoothing your gloomy brow and changing your line of thought, and I, where I did not follow you well before, letting it go, will go on to another and better discourse.
§293κεἰ μὲν νοσεῖς τι τῶν ἀπορρήτων κακῶν, §294γυναῖκες αἵδε συγκαθιστάναι νόσον· §295εἰ δ’ ἔκφορός σοι συμφορὰ πρὸς ἄρσενας, §296λέγ’, ὡς ἰατροῖς πρᾶγμα μηνυθῇ τόδε.
And if you are sick with any of the unmentionable ills, here are women to help set your sickness right; but if your misfortune can be spoken of to men, speak, so that this matter may be made known to physicians.
§297εἶἑν·
Well?
τί σιγᾷς;
Why are you silent?
οὐκ ἐχρῆν σιγᾶν, τέκνον,
You ought not to be silent, my child.