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Euripides · The Suppliants §1147-1234

Athena's Epiphany and the Oath of Alliance

Passage 14 of 14 · Greek

Summary

As the children and their grandmother continue their lament over the ashes, the goddess Athena appears and instructs Theseus to bind Adrastus to an oath of future alliance and revenge. Obeying the divine command, Theseus and Adrastus swear the oath and depart.

§1147πατρῷος·
Father's vengeance!
§1147bοὔπω κακὸν τόδʼ εὕδει.
This evil does not yet sleep.
§1148αἰαῖ γόων·
Alas for the laments!
ἅλις τύχας, §1149ἅλις δʼ ἀλγέων ἐμοὶ πάρεστι.
Enough of fortune, and enough of pains is present to me.
§1150— ἔτʼ Ἀσωποῦ με δέξεται γάνος §1151χαλκέοις ἐν ὅπλοις Δαναϊδῶν στρατηλάταν, §1152τοῦ φθιμένου πατρὸς ἐκδικαστάν.
―― Yet the bright stream of Asopus shall receive me, as a leader of the Danaids in bronze armor, the avenger of my perished father.
§1153— ἔτʼ εἰσορᾶν σε, πάτερ, ἐπʼ ὀμμάτων δοκῶ §1154— φίλον φίλημα παρὰ γένυν τιθέντα σόν.
―― I still seem to see you, father, before my eyes, ―― placing a dear kiss upon your cheek.
§1155— λόγων δὲ παρακέλευσμα σῶν §1156ἀέρι φερόμενον οἴχεται.
―― But the encouragement of your words is gone, borne away on the wind.
§1157— δυοῖν δʼ ἄχη, ματρί τʼ ἔλιπεν — §1158σέ τʼ οὔποτʼ ἄλγη πατρῷα λείψει.
―― And it has left griefs for two, for your mother ―― and the grief for your father shall never leave you.
§1159— ἔχω τοσόνδε βάρος ὅσον μʼ ἀπώλεσεν.
―― I hold a burden as great as has destroyed me.
§1160— φέρʼ, ἀμφὶ μαστὸν ὑποβάλω φίλαν σποδόν.
―― Come, let me place the dear ashes near my breast.
§1161— ἔκλαυσα τόδε κλύων ἔπος §1162στυγνότατον· ἔθιγέ μου φρενῶν.
―― I wept hearing this word, most grievous; it touched my heart.
§1163— ὦ τέκνον, ἔβας· οὐκέτι φίλον §1164φίλας ἄγαλμʼ ὄψομαί σε ματρός.
―― O child, you are gone; no longer shall I see you, the dear joy of your loving mother.
§1165Ἄδραστε καὶ γυναῖκες Ἀργεῖαι γένος, §1166ὁρᾶτε παῖδας τούσδʼ ἔχοντας ἐν χεροῖν §1167πατέρων ἀρίστων σώμαθʼ ὧν ἀνειλόμην· §1168τούτοις ἐγώ σφε καὶ πόλις δωρούμεθα.
Adrastus, and women of the Argive race, behold, these children holding in their hands the bodies of their excellent fathers whom I recovered; to them I and the city give these as a gift.
§1169ὑμᾶς δὲ τῶνδε χρὴ χάριν μεμνημένους §1170σῴζειν, ὁρῶντας ὧν ἐκύρσατʼ ἐξ ἐμοῦ, §1171παισίν θʼ ὑπειπεῖν τούσδε τοὺς αὐτοὺς λόγους, §1172τιμᾶν πόλιν τήνδʼ, ἐκ τέκνων ἀεὶ τέκνοις §1173μνήμην παραγγέλλοντας ὧν ἐκύρσατε.
And you must, remembering the gratitude for these things, preserve it, seeing what you obtained from me, and suggest these same words to your children, to honor this city, always transmitting from children to children the memory of what you obtained.
§1174Ζεὺς δὲ ξυνίστωρ οἵ τʼ ἐν οὐρανῷ θεοὶ §1175οἵων ὑφʼ ἡμῶν στείχετʼ ἠξιωμένοι.
Let Zeus be witness, and the gods in heaven, of what kind of treatment you depart having been deemed worthy of by us.
§1176Θησεῦ, ξύνισμεν πάνθʼ ὅσʼ Ἀργείαν χθόνα §1177δέδρακας ἐσθλὰ δεομένην εὐεργετῶν, §1178χάριν τʼ ἀγήρων ἕξομεν· γενναῖα γὰρ §1179παθόντες ὑμᾶς ἀντιδρᾶν ὀφείλομεν.
Theseus, we are conscious of all the good things which you have done, conferring benefits on the land in its need, and we shall have ageless gratitude; for having experienced noble treatment we owe it to you to act in return.
§1180τί δῆτʼ ἔθʼ ὑμῖν ἄλλʼ ὑπουργῆσαί με χρή;
What else then must I still perform for you?
§1181χαῖρʼ· ἄξιος γὰρ καὶ σὺ καὶ πόλις σέθεν.
Farewell; for both you and your city are worthy.
§1182ἔσται τάδʼ· ἀλλὰ καὶ σὺ τῶν αὐτῶν τύχοις.
So shall it be; and may you also obtain the same.
§1183ἄκουε, Θησεῦ, τούσδʼ Ἀθηναίας λόγους, §1184ἃ χρή σε δρᾶσαι, δρῶντα δʼ ὠφελεῖν τάδε.
Listen, Theseus, to these words of Athena, what you must do, and by doing so, benefit these people.
§1185μὴ δῷς τάδʼ ὀστᾶ τοῖσδʼ ἐς Ἀργείαν χθόνα §1186παισὶν κομίζειν ῥᾳδίως οὕτω μεθείς, §1187ἀλλʼ ἀντὶ τῶν σῶν καὶ πόλεως μοχθημάτων §1188πρῶτον λάβʼ ὅρκον.
Do not give these bones to these children to carry to the Argive land, letting them go so easily, but in return for your labors and those of the city first receive an oath.
τόνδε δʼ ὀμνύναι χρεὼν §1189Ἄδραστον· οὗτος κύριος, τύραννος ὤν, §1190πάσης ὑπὲρ γῆς Δαναϊδῶν ὁρκωμοτεῖν.
And it is necessary for this Adrastus; he is sovereign, being ruler, to swear on behalf of the whole land of the Danaids.
§1191ὁ δʼ ὅρκος ἔσται, μήποτʼ Ἀργείους χθόνα §1192ἐς τήνδʼ ἐποίσειν πολέμιον παντευχίαν, §1193ἄλλων τʼ ἰόντων ἐμποδὼν θήσειν δόρυ.
And the oath shall be, that the Argives will never bring hostile panoply against this land, and if others invade, they will set their spears in the way.
§1194ἢν δʼ ὅρκον ἐκλιπόντες ἔλθωσιν, πάλιν §1195κακῶς ὀλέσθαι πρόστρεπʼ Ἀργείων χθόνα.
But if, violating the oath, they should come, pray for the land of the Argives to perish miserably.
§1196ἐν ᾧ δὲ τέμνειν σφάγια χρή σʼ, ἄκουέ μου.
And listen to me as to wherein you must cut the victims.
§1197ἔστιν τρίπους σοι χαλκόπους ἔσω δόμων, §1198ὃν Ἰλίου ποτʼ ἐξαναστήσας βάθρα §1199σπουδὴν ἐπʼ ἄλλην Ἡρακλῆς ὁρμώμενος §1200στῆσαί σʼ ἐφεῖτο Πυθικὴν πρὸς ἐσχάραν.
You have a bronze-footed tripod inside your house, which once, having overturned the foundations of Ilium, and hastening upon another enterprise, Hercules charged you to set up near the Pythian hearth.
§1201ἐν τῷδε λαιμοὺς τρεῖς τριῶν μήλων τεμὼν §1202ἔγγραψον ὅρκους τρίποδος ἐν κοίλῳ κύτει, §1203κἄπειτα σῴζειν θεῷ δὸς ᾧ Δελφῶν μέλει, §1204μνημεῖά θʼ ὅρκων μαρτύρημά θʼ Ἑλλάδι.
In this, having cut three throats of three sheep, engrave the oaths in the hollow basin of the tripod, and then give it to the god who cares for Delphi to guard, both as a memorial of the oaths and a witness for Hellas.
§1205ᾗ δʼ ἂν διοίξῃς σφάγια καὶ τρώσῃς φόνον §1206ὀξύστομον μάχαιραν ἐς γαίας μυχοὺς §1207κρύψον παρʼ αὐτὰς ἑπτὰ πυρκαιὰς νεκρῶν· §1208φόβον γὰρ αὐτοῖς, ἤν ποτʼ ἔλθωσιν πόλιν, §1209δειχθεῖσα θήσει καὶ κακὸν νόστον πάλιν.
And where you cut open the victims and draw blood, bury the sharp-edged knife in the depths of the earth, hide it near the very seven pyres of the dead; for, if they ever come against the city, it will, being shown, bring fear to them and a disastrous return.
§1210δράσας δὲ ταῦτα πέμπε γῆς ἔξω νεκρούς.
And having done these things, send the dead out of the land.
§1211τεμένη δʼ, ἵνʼ αὐτῶν σώμαθʼ ἡγνίσθη πυρί, §1212μέθες παρʼ αὐτὴν τρίοδον Ἰσθμίας θεοῦ·
And the sacred precincts where their bodies were purified by fire, leave it beside the very three-way crossroads of the Isthmian goddess.
§1213σοὶ μὲν τάδʼ εἶπον· παισὶ δʼ Ἀργείων λέγω· §1214πορθήσεθʼ ἡβήσαντες Ἰσμηνοῦ πόλιν, §1215πατέρων θανόντων ἐκδικάζοντες φόνον,
To you indeed I have spoken these things; but to the children of the Argives I say: when you grow up, you shall sack the city of Ismenus, avenging the death of your perished fathers.
§1216σύ τʼ ἀντὶ πατρός, Αἰγιαλεῦ, στρατηλάτης §1217νέος καταστάς, παῖς τʼ ἀπʼ Αἰτωλῶν μολὼν §1218Τυδέως, ὃν ὠνόμαζε Διομήδην πατήρ.
And you instead of your father, Aegialeus, as a young leader established, and the youth coming from the Aetolians, the son of Tydeus, whom his father named Diomedes.
§1219ἀλλʼ οὐ φθάνειν χρὴ συσκιάζοντας γένυν §1220καὶ χαλκοπληθῆ Δαναϊδῶν ὁρμᾶν στρατὸν §1221ἑπτάστολον πύργωμα Καδμείων ἔπι·
But you must not delay, as soon as the down shades your cheeks, to set in motion the bronze-clad host of the Danaids, against the seven-gated fortress of the Cadmeans.
§1222πικροὶ γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἥξετʼ, ἐκτεθραμμένοι §1223σκύμνοι λεόντων, πόλεος ἐκπορθήτορες.
For you shall come as bitter foes to them, having been reared as lion whelps, sackers of the city.
§1224κοὐκ ἔστιν ἄλλως· Ἔκγονοι δʼ ἀνʼ Ἑλλάδα §1225κληθέντες ᾠδὰς ὑστέροισι θήσετε· §1226τοῖον στράτευμα σὺν θεῷ πορεύσετε.
And it cannot be otherwise; and being called the Epigoni throughout Hellas you shall afford themes for songs to posterity; such an army, with God's help, you shall march.
§1227δέσποινʼ Ἀθάνα, πείσομαι λόγοισι σοῖς· §1228σὺ γάρ μʼ ἀνορθοῖς, ὥστε μὴ ʼξαμαρτάνειν·
Mistress Athena, I shall obey your words; for you set me right, so that I make no mistake.
§1229καὶ τόνδʼ ἐν ὅρκοις ζεύξομαι· μόνον σύ με §1230ἐς ὀρθὸν ἵστη· σοῦ γὰρ εὐμενοῦς πόλει §1231οὔσης τὸ λοιπὸν ἀσφαλῶς οἰκήσομεν.
And I shall bind this man with oaths; only do you keep me upright; for if you are well-disposed to the city, we shall dwell in safety for the future.
§1232στείχωμεν, Ἄδρασθʼ, ὅρκια δῶμεν §1233τῷδʼ ἀνδρὶ πόλει τʼ· ἄξια δʼ ἡμῖν §1234προμεμοχθήκασι σέβεσθαι.
Let us go, Adrastus, and let us give oaths to this man and the city; for they are worthy for us, having labored for us beforehand, to be revered.

Notes

  1. 1219οὐ φθάνειν χρὴ συσκιάζοντας — The verb φθάνω with a participle means 'to anticipate' or 'do before.' When accompanied by the negative οὐ and the impersonal verb χρή, it forms an idiom meaning 'should not delay to' or 'must do immediately upon.' Here, it indicates that as soon as the down begins to shade their cheeks (i.e., upon reaching manhood), they must set the army in motion without delay.
  2. 1233ἄξια δʼ ἡμῖν προμεμοχθήκασι σέβεσθαι — The construction is ἄξιά ἐστι followed by the infinitive σέβεσθαι, meaning 'worthy to be revered.' The dative ἡμῖν is a dative of relation ('for us'). The participle προμεμοχθήκασι is the perfect active dative plural of προμοχθέω ('to labor beforehand'), agreeing with the preceding τῷδʼ ἀνδρὶ πόλει τʼ ('this man and the city'), meaning 'those who have labored beforehand on our behalf.'

Cite this passage

Euripides, The Suppliants §1147-1234. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0006.tlg008.humanitext-grc2:1147-1234

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