§1Τίς τὸν Διὸς σύλλεκτρον οὐκ οἶδεν βροτῶν, §2Ἀργεῖον Ἀμφιτρύωνʼ, ὃν Ἀλκαῖός ποτε §3ἔτιχθʼ ὁ Περσέως, πατέρα τόνδʼ Ἡρακλέους;
Who among mortals does not know the one who shared the bed of Zeus, Argive Amphitryon, whom once Alcaeus, the son of Perseus, begot, the father of this Heracles here?
§4ὃς τάσδε Θήβας ἔσχον, ἔνθʼ ὁ γηγενὴς §5σπαρτῶν στάχυς ἔβλαστεν, ὧν γένους Ἄρης §6ἔσωσʼ ἀριθμὸν ὀλίγον, οἳ Κάδμου πόλιν §7τεκνοῦσι παίδων παισίν.
I held this Thebes, where the earth-born crop of Sown Men sprouted up, of whose race Ares saved a small number, who populate the city of Cadmus with their children's children.
ἔνθεν ἐξέφυ §8Κρέων Μενοικέως παῖς, ἄναξ τῆσδε χθονός.
From them sprang Creon, son of Menoeceus, the ruler of this land.
§9Κρέων δὲ Μεγάρας τῆσδε γίγνεται πατήρ, §10ἣν πάντες ὑμεναίοισι Καδμεῖοί ποτε §11λωτῷ συνηλάλαξαν, ἡνίκʼ εἰς ἐμοὺς §12δόμους ὁ κλεινὸς Ἡρακλῆς νιν ἤγετο.
And Creon became the father of this Megara here, whom once all the Cadmeans with marriage songs and flute cheered in unison, when into my house the famous Heracles led her as his bride.
§13λιπὼν δὲ Θήβας, οὗ κατῳκίσθην ἐγώ, §14Μεγάραν τε τήνδε πενθερούς τε παῖς ἐμὸς §15Ἀργεῖα τείχη καὶ Κυκλωπίαν πόλιν §16ὠρέξατʼ οἰκεῖν, ἣν ἐγὼ φεύγω κτανὼν §17Ἠλεκτρύωνα·
But leaving Thebes, where I had settled, and this Megara and her kinsmen, my son desired to dwell in the Argive walls and the Cyclopean city, from which I am in exile, having slain Electryon.
συμφορὰς δὲ τὰς ἐμὰς §18ἐξευμαρίζων καὶ πάτραν οἰκεῖν θέλων, §19καθόδου δίδωσι μισθὸν Εὐρυσθεῖ μέγαν, §20ἐξημερῶσαι γαῖαν, εἴθʼ Ἥρας ὕπο §21κέντροις δαμασθεὶς εἴτε τοῦ χρεὼν μέτα.
And wishing to lighten my misfortunes and to dwell in his native land, he offered Eurystheus a great price for our return: to clear the earth of monsters, whether subdued by Hera's goads or by necessity.
§22καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἄλλους ἐξεμόχθησεν πόνους, §23τὸ λοίσθιον δὲ Ταινάρου διὰ στόμα §24βέβηκʼ ἐς Ἅιδου, τὸν τρισώματον κύνα §25ἐς φῶς ἀνάξων, ἔνθεν οὐχ ἥκει πάλιν.
And he labored through his other labors, but for his last one, through the mouth of Taenarum he went down to Hades, to bring the three-bodied dog up to the light, and from there he has not returned.
§26γέρων δὲ δή τις ἔστι Καδμείων λόγος §27ὡς ἦν πάρος Δίρκης τις εὐνήτωρ Λύκος §28τὴν ἑπτάπυργον τήνδε δεσπόζων πόλιν, §29τὼ λευκοπώλω πρὶν τυραννῆσαι χθονὸς §30Ἀμφίονʼ ἠδὲ Ζῆθον, ἐκγόνω Διός.
Now there is an old legend among the Cadmeans that once a certain Lycus, husband of Dirce, ruled over this seven-gated city, before the twin riders of white horses, Amphion and Zethus, sons of Zeus, became kings of the land.
§31οὗ ταὐτὸν ὄνομα παῖς πατρὸς κεκλημένος, §32Καδμεῖος οὐκ ὤν, ἀλλʼ ἀπʼ Εὐβοίας μολών, §33κτείνει Κρέοντα καὶ κτανὼν ἄρχει χθονός, §34στάσει νοσοῦσαν τήνδʼ ἐπεσπεσὼν πόλιν.
A descendant called by the same name as his father, who was no Cadmean but came from Euboea, killed Creon, and having killed him, rules the land, having fallen upon this city while it was sick with faction.
And to us, our alliance with Creon is turning out, as it seems, to be the greatest evil.
§37τοὐμοῦ γὰρ ὄντος παιδὸς ἐν μυχοῖς χθονὸς §38ὁ καινὸς οὗτος τῆσδε γῆς ἄρχων Λύκος §39τοὺς Ἡρακλείους παῖδας ἐξελεῖν θέλει §40κτανὼν δάμαρτά θʼ, ὡς φόνῳ σβέσῃ φόνον, §41κἄμʼ — εἴ τι δὴ χρὴ κἄμʼ ἐν ἀνδράσιν λέγειν §42γέροντʼ ἀχρεῖον — μή ποθʼ οἵδʼ ἠνδρωμένοι §43μήτρωσιν ἐκπράξωσιν αἵματος δίκην.
For while my son is in the depths of the earth, this new ruler of this land, Lycus, wishes to destroy the children of Heracles and kill his wife, so that he may quench blood with blood, and me too — if indeed I, a useless old man, should be counted among men — lest these children, once grown, exact a blood-vengeance for their mother's father.
§44ἐγὼ δέ — λείπει γάρ με τοῖσδʼ ἐν δώμασιν §45τροφὸν τέκνων οἰκουρόν, ἡνίκα χθονὸς §46μέλαιναν ὄρφνην εἰσέβαινε, παῖς ἐμός — §47σὺν μητρί, τέκνα μὴ θάνωσʼ Ἡρακλέους, §48βωμὸν καθίζω τόνδε σωτῆρος Διός, §49ὃν καλλινίκου δορὸς ἄγαλμʼ ἱδρύσατο §50Μινύας κρατήσας οὑμὸς εὐγενὴς τόκος.
And I — for my son left me in this house as a guardian and keeper of his children, when into the earth's black darkness he entered — together with their mother, lest the children of Heracles should die, sit at this altar of Zeus the Savior, which, as a monument of his victorious spear, my noble son established after conquering the Minyans.
§51πάντων δὲ χρεῖοι τάσδʼ ἕδρας φυλάσσομεν, §52σίτων ποτῶν ἐσθῆτος, ἀστρώτῳ πέδῳ §53πλευρὰς τιθέντες· ἐκ γὰρ ἐσφραγισμένοι §54δόμων καθήμεθʼ ἀπορίᾳ σωτηρίας.
In need of all things we guard this seat, lacking food, drink, and clothing, on the unpaved ground laying our ribs; for locked out of our home, we sit in helplessness of salvation.
Of our friends, some I see are not true friends, while others, though truly so, are powerless to help.
§57τοιοῦτον ἀνθρώποισιν ἡ δυσπραξία· §58ἧς μήποθʼ ὅστις καὶ μέσως εὔνους ἐμοὶ §59τύχοι, φίλων ἔλεγχον ἀψευδέστατον.
Such a thing is misfortune for mankind; may no one who is even moderately well-disposed to me ever meet with it, the truest test of friends.
§60ὦ πρέσβυ, Ταφίων ὅς ποτʼ ἐξεῖλες πόλιν §61στρατηλατήσας κλεινὰ Καδμείων δορός, §62ὡς οὐδὲν ἀνθρώποισι τῶν θείων σαφές.
O elder, you who once destroyed the city of the Taphians, leading in war the glorious spear of the Cadmeans, how nothing of divine things is clear to humans!
§63ἐγὼ γὰρ οὔτʼ ἐς πατέρʼ ἀπηλάθην τύχης, §64ὃς οὕνεκʼ ὄλβου μέγας ἐκομπάσθη ποτέ, §65ἔχων τυραννίδʼ, ἧς μακραὶ λόγχαι πέρι §66πηδῶσʼ ἔρωτι σώματʼ εἰς εὐδαίμονα, §67ἔχων δὲ τέκνα·
For I was not driven away from fortune in respect of my father, who once was boasted great because of his wealth, possessing royal power, for which long spears leap with desire toward prosperous bodies, and having children.
κἄμʼ ἔδωκε παιδὶ σῷ §68ἐπίσημον εὐνὴν Ἡρακλεῖ συνοικίσας.
And he gave me to your son, joining me in a famous marriage with Heracles.
§69καὶ νῦν ἐκεῖνα μὲν θανόντʼ ἀνέπτατο, §70ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ σὺ μέλλομεν θνῄσκειν, γέρον, §71οἵ θʼ Ἡράκλειοι παῖδες, οὓς ὑπὸ πτεροῖς §72σῴζω νεοσσοὺς ὄρνις ὣς ὑφειμένη.
And now those things have died and flown away, while I and you, old man, are about to die, along with Heracles' children, whom under my wings I keep safe, like a bird hovering over her chicks.
And they, falling upon me one after another to ask, say: 'O mother, where on earth is our father gone?
§75τί δρᾷ, πόθʼ ἥξει;
What is he doing?
When will he come?' Deceived by their youth, they seek the one who begot them; and I put them off with stories, making up tales.
And in wonder, whenever the gates make a sound, everyone starts to his feet, to fall down at their father's knees.
Now, therefore, what hope or path of safety do you devise, elder?
πρὸς σὲ γὰρ βλέπω.
For I look to you.
§82ὡς οὔτε γαίας ὅριʼ ἂν ἐκβαῖμεν λάθρᾳ· §83φυλακαὶ γὰρ ἡμῶν κρείσσονες κατʼ ἐξόδους· §84οὔτʼ ἐν φίλοισιν ἐλπίδες σωτηρίας §85ἔτʼ εἰσὶν ἡμῖν.
Since we could not cross the borders of the land in secret; for the guards placed over us at the exits are too strong; nor in our friends are there any hopes of safety left for us.
ἥντινʼ οὖν γνώμην ἔχεις
Whatever opinion you have, therefore,