Theseus: And when we have placed these on the pyre, you shall fetch their bones.
O wretched among mortals, why do you acquire spears and cause slaughters against one another?
παύσασθʼ, ἀλλὰ λήξαντες πόνων §952ἄστη φυλάσσεθʼ ἥσυχοι μεθʼ ἡσύχων.
Cease, but having desisted from labors, guard your cities, peaceful among the peaceful.
Small is the matter of life; and this one must pass through as easily as possible and not with labors.
§955— οὐκέτʼ εὔτεκνος, οὐκέτʼ εὔ- §956παις, οὐδʼ εὐτυχίας μέτε- §957στίν μοι κουροτόκοις ἐν Ἀργείαις· §958οὐδʼ Ἄρτεμις λοχία §959προσφθέγξαιτʼ ἂν τὰς ἀτέκνους.
Chorus: No longer blessed with children, no longer blessed with offspring, nor is there a share of happiness for me among the child-rearing women of Argos; nor would Artemis of childbed address childless women.
And life is ill-fated, and wandering like some cloud I dart under stormy winds.
§963— ἑπτὰ ματέρες ἑπτὰ κού- §964ρους ἐγεινάμεθʼ αἱ ταλαί- §965πωροι κλεινοτάτους ἐν Ἀργείοις· §966καὶ νῦν ἄπαις ἄτεκνος §967γηράσκω δυστανοτάτως, §968οὔτʼ ἐν φθιμένοις §969οὔτʼ ἐν ζωοῖσιν ἀριθμουμένη, §970χωρὶς δή τινα τῶνδʼ ἔχουσα μοῖραν.
We, seven mothers, gave birth to seven sons, wretched as we are, most famous among the Argives; and now, childless, without offspring, I grow old most miserably, counted neither among the dead nor among the living, having indeed some fate apart from these.
§971— ὑπολελειμμένα μοι δάκρυα· §972μέλεα παιδὸς ἐν οἴκοις §973κεῖται μνήματα, πένθιμοι §974κουραὶ καὶ στέφανοι κόμας, §974aλοιβαί τε νεκύων φθιμένων, §975ἀοιδαί θʼ ἃς χρυσοκόμας §976Ἀπόλλων οὐκ ἐνδέχεται· §977γόοισι δʼ ὀρθρευομένα §978δάκρυσι νοτερὸν ἀεὶ πέπλων §979πρὸς στέρνῳ πτύχα τέγξω.
Tears are left to me; sad memorials of my child lie in the house: mournful clippings and crowns of hair, and libations for the perished dead, and songs which golden-haired Apollo does not accept; and rising early with laments, I shall always wet with tears the moist fold of my robes at my breast.
§980— καὶ μὴν θαλάμας τάσδʼ ἐσορῶ δὴ §981Καπανέως ἤδη τύμβον θʼ ἱερὸν §982μελάθρων τʼ ἐκτὸς §983Θησέως ἀναθήματα νεκροῖς, §984κλεινήν τʼ ἄλοχον τοῦ καπφθιμένου §985τοῦδε κεραυνῷ πέλας Εὐάδνην, §986ἣν Ἶφις ἄναξ παῖδα φυτεύει.
Chorus: And indeed I see these chambers now, even now the sacred tomb of Capaneus, and outside the palace the offerings of Theseus to the dead, and the famous wife of this man who perished by lightning, Euadne, nearby, whom lord Iphis begot as a child.
Why on earth does she stand on the airy rock, which rises high above this house, treading upon this path?
§990τί φέγγος, τίνʼ αἴγλαν §991ἐδίφρευε τόθʼ ἅλιος §992σελάνα τε κατʼ αἰθέρα, §993λαμπάδʼ ἵνʼ ὠκυθόαι νύμφαι, §994ἱππεύουσι διʼ ὀρφναίας, §995ἁνίκα γάμων γάμων §996τῶν ἐμῶν πόλις Ἄργους §997ἀοιδάς, εὐδαιμονίας, §998ἐπύργωσε καὶ γαμέτα §999χαλκεοτευχοῦς, αἰαῖ, Καπανέως.
Euadne: What light, what radiance did the sun then drive in his chariot, and the moon along the ether, where swift-running nymphs, with torches, ride through the darkness, when, for my marriage, my marriage, the city of Argos raised high the songs of happiness, and for my bridegroom, the bronze-clad, alas, Capaneus?
§1000πρός σʼ ἔβαν δρομὰς ἐξ ἐμῶν §1001οἴκων ἐκβακχευσαμένα, §1002πυρᾶς φῶς τάφον τε §1003βατεύσουσα τὸν αὐτόν, §1004ἐς Ἅιδαν καταλύσουσʼ ἔμμοχθον §1005βίοτον αἰῶνός τε πόνους· §1006ἥδιστος γάρ τοι θάνατος §1007συνθνῄσκειν θνῄσκουσι φίλοις, §1008εἰ δαίμων τάδε κραίνοι.
I came running towards you from my house, driven wild like a Bacchant, seeking to mount the light of the pyre and the same tomb, to bring to an end in Hades my laborious life and the troubles of my span of years; for indeed most sweet is death, to die together with dying loved ones, if the deity should ordain these things.
§1009καὶ μὴν ὁρᾷς τήνδʼ ἧς ἐφέστηκας πέλας §1010πυράν, Διὸς θησαυρόν, ἔνθʼ ἔνεστι σὸς §1011πόσις δαμασθεὶς λαμπάσιν κεραυνίοις.
Chorus: And indeed you see this pyre, near which you stand, the pyre, the treasure-store of Zeus, where is your husband, subdued by the thunderbolt's flashes.
§1012ὁρῶ δὴ τελευτάν, §1013ἵνʼ ἕστακα· τύχα δέ μοι §1014ξυνάπτοι ποδός· ἀλλὰ τᾶς §1015εὐκλεΐας χάριν ἔνθεν ὁρ- §1016μάσω τᾶσδʼ ἀπὸ πέτρας πη- §1017δήσασα πυρὸς ἔσω, §1018σῶμά τʼ αἴθοπι φλογμῷ §1020πόσει συμμείξασα, φίλον §1021χρῶτα χρωτὶ πέλας θεμένα, §1022Φερσεφονείας ἥξω θαλάμους, §1023σὲ τὸν θανόντʼ οὔποτʼ ἐμᾷ §1024προδοῦσα ψυχᾷ κατὰ γᾶς.
Euadne: I see indeed the end, where I stand; and may fortune join with my foot; but for the sake of noble fame, from here I shall start, having leaped from this rock into the fire, and mingling my body in the blazing flame with my husband, placing my dear flesh near his flesh, I shall come to the chambers of Persephone, never betraying you, the dead, by my soul beneath the earth.
§1025ἴτω φῶς γάμοι τε· §1026ἴθʼ αἵτινες εὐναὶ §1027δικαίων ὑμεναίων ἐν Ἄργει §1028φανῶσιν τέκνοις· ὅσιος δʼ §1029ὅσιος εὐναῖος γαμέτας §1030συντηχθεὶς αὔραις ἀδόλοις §1030aγενναίας ἀλόχοιο.
Let light and marriage go; go, whichever beds of just weddings in Argos shall appear for children; and holy, holy wedded husband melted together with the guileless breezes of a noble wife.
§1031καὶ μὴν ὅδʼ αὐτὸς σὸς πατὴρ βαίνει πέλας §1032γεραιὸς Ἶφις ἐς νεωτέρους λόγους, §1033οὓς οὐ κατειδὼς πρόσθεν ἀλγήσει κλύων.
Chorus: And indeed here is your father himself walking near, aged Iphis, towards new discussions, which not knowing before he will grieve to hear.
§1034ὦ δυστάλαιναι, δυστάλας δʼ ἐγὼ γέρων, §1035ἥκω διπλοῦν πένθημʼ ὁμαιμόνων ἔχων, §1036τὸν μὲν θανόντα παῖδα Καδμείων δορὶ §1037Ἐτέοκλον ἐς γῆν πατρίδα ναυσθλώσων νεκρόν, §1038ζητῶν τʼ ἐμὴν παῖδʼ, ἣ δόμων ἐξώπιος §1039βέβηκε πηδήσασα Καπανέως δάμαρ, §1040θανεῖν ἐρῶσα σὺν πόσει.
Iphis: O wretched women, and wretched am I, an old man, I have come holding a double grief for my kindred: one, my child Eteoclus, who died by the Cadmeian spear, to convey his corpse to his fatherland, and the other, seeking my daughter, who out of sight of the house has gone, having leaped away, the wife of Capaneus, desiring to die with her husband.
χρόνον μὲν οὖν §1041τὸν πρόσθʼ ἐφρουρεῖτʼ ἐν δόμοις· ἐπεὶ δʼ ἐγὼ §1042φυλακὰς ἀνῆκα τοῖς παρεστῶσιν κακοῖς, §1043βέβηκεν.
Indeed, for the time before, she was guarded in the house; but when I relaxed the guard in the face of the present evils, she was gone.
ἀλλὰ τῇδέ νιν δοξάζομεν §1044μάλιστʼ ἂν εἶναι· φράζετʼ εἰ κατείδετε.
But here we expect her to be most of all; tell me if you have seen her.
§1045τί τάσδʼ ἐρωτᾷς;
Euadne: Why do you ask these women?
Here am I upon the rock, like some bird over the pyre of Capaneus, balancing a wretched suspension, father.
§1048τέκνον, τίς αὔρα;
Iphis: My child, what breeze?
τίς στόλος;
What journey?
τίνος χάριν §1049δόμων ὑπεκβᾶσʼ ἦλθες ἐς τήνδε χθόνα;
For what reason having slipped out of the house have you come to this land?
Euadne: You would take anger if you heard of my plans; and I do not wish you to hear, father.
§1052τί δʼ;
Iphis: And why?
οὐ δίκαιον πατέρα τὸν σὸν εἰδέναι;
Is it not right for your father to know?
§1053κριτὴς ἂν εἴης οὐ σοφὸς γνώμης ἐμῆς.
Euadne: You would be an unwise judge of my mind.
§1054σκευῇ δὲ τῇδε τοῦ χάριν κοσμεῖς δέμας;
Iphis: And for what reason do you adorn your body with this garb?
§1055θέλει τι κλεινὸν οὗτος ὁ στολμός, πάτερ.
Euadne: This garb means something glorious, father.
§1056ὡς οὐκ ἐπʼ ἀνδρὶ πένθιμος πρέπεις ὁρᾶν.
Iphis: As you do not seem to look like a mourner for a husband.