§863πρὸς τίνʼ ἀγῶνας τιθέμεσθʼ ἀρετῆς;
Against whom do we enter contests of virtue?
§864οὐ πόσις ἡμῶν προδότης γέγονεν, §865στέρομαι δʼ οἴκων, στέρομαι παίδων, §866φροῦδαι δʼ ἐλπίδες, ἃς διαθέσθαι §867χρῄζουσα καλῶς οὐκ ἐδυνήθην, §868σιγῶσα γάμους, §869σιγῶσα τόκους πολυκλαύτους;
Has not our husband become a traitor, and I am deprived of home, deprived of children, and gone are the hopes which, though wishing to arrange them well, I was unable to do so, keeping silence about my marriage, keeping silence about my tearful childbirth.
§870ἀλλʼ οὐ τὸ Διὸς πολύαστρον ἕδος §871καὶ τὴν ἐπʼ ἐμοῖς σκοπέλοισι θεὰν §872λίμνης τʼ ἐνύδρου Τριτωνιάδος §873πότνιαν ἀκτάν, §874οὐκέτι κρύψω λέχος, ὡς στέρνων §875ἀπονησαμένη ῥᾴων ἔσομαι.
But no, by Zeus's starry seat and by the goddess upon my cliffs, and the holy shore of the watery Tritonian lake, I will no longer hide my bed, so that by washing it off my chest I may be eased.
§876στάζουσι κόραι δακρύοισιν ἐμαί, §877ψυχὴ δʼ ἀλγεῖ κακοβουλευθεῖσʼ §878ἔκ τʼ ἀνθρώπων ἔκ τʼ ἀθανάτων, §879οὓς ἀποδείξω §880λέκτρων προδότας ἀχαρίστους.
My eyes are streaming with tears, and my soul is in pain, evilly plotted against both by men and by the immortals, whom I shall expose as ungrateful betrayers of my bed.
§881ὦ τᾶς ἑπταφθόγγου μέλπων §882κιθάρας ἐνοπάν, ἅτʼ ἀγραύλοις §883κέρασιν ἐν ἀψύχοις ἀχεῖ §884μουσᾶν ὕμνους εὐαχήτους, §885σοὶ μομφάν, ὦ Λατοῦς παῖ, §886πρὸς τάνδʼ αὐγὰν αὐδάσω.
O you who sing to the voice of the seven-toned lyre, which in lifeless rustic horns sounds the sweet-voiced hymns of the Muses, to you, O child of Leto, I will speak my blame before this light of day.
§887ἦλθές μοι χρυσῷ χαίταν §888μαρμαίρων, εὖτʼ ἐς κόλπους §889κρόκεα πέταλα φάρεσιν ἔδρεπον, §890ἀνθίζειν χρυσανταυγῆ· §891λευκοῖς δʼ ἐμφὺς καρποῖσιν §892χειρῶν εἰς ἄντρου κοίτας §893κραυγὰν Ὦ μᾶτέρ μʼ αὐδῶσαν §894θεὸς ὁμευνέτας §895ἆγες ἀναιδείᾳ §896Κύπριδι χάριν πράσσων.
You came to me with your hair shimmering with gold, when into the folds of my garments I was plucking saffron petals, blooming with golden-shining light; and clinging to the white wrists of my hands, to the bed of the cave, while I cried out "O mother!", you, a divine bedfellow, led me shamelessly away, doing a pleasure to Cypris.
§897τίκτω δʼ ἁ δύστανός σοι §898κοῦρον, τὸν φρίκᾳ ματρὸς §899εἰς εὐνὰν βάλλω τὰν σάν, §900ἵνα με λέχεσι μελέαν μελέοις §901ἐζεύξω τὰν δύστανον.
And I, wretched one, bore you a son, whom in a mother's terror I cast onto your bed, where you had joined wretched me to your wretched bed.
§902οἴμοι μοι·
Ah me!
And now he is gone, snatched by winged birds as a feast, my child and yours, wretched boy!
§907ὠή, §907aτὸν Λατοῦς αὐδῶ σʼ, §908ὅστʼ ὀμφὰν κληροῖς §909πρὸς χρυσέους θάκους §910καὶ γαίας μεσσήρεις ἕδρας, §911εἰς οὖς αὐδὰν καρύξω· §912Ἰὼ κακὸς εὐνάτωρ, §913ὃς τῷ μὲν ἐμῷ νυμφεύτᾳ §914χάριν οὐ προλαβὼν §915παῖδʼ εἰς οἴκους οἰκίζεις· §916ὁ δʼ ἐμὸς γενέτας καὶ σός γʼ, ἀμαθής, §917οἰωνοῖς ἔρρει συλαθείς, §918σπάργανα ματέρος ἐξαλλάξας.
Ho, I call to you, Leto's son, who dispense oracles at your golden seats and the earth's central shrine, into your ears I will proclaim my voice: O evil bedfellow, who, having received no prior favor from my husband, settle a child in his house; while my child and yours, unacknowledged, is gone, torn to pieces by birds of prey, having exchanged his mother's swaddling bands.
§919μισεῖ σʼ ἁ Δᾶλος καὶ δάφνας §920ἔρνεα φοίνικα παρʼ ἁβροκόμαν, §921ἔνθα λοχεύματα σέμνʼ ἐλοχεύσατο §922Λατὼ Δίοισί σε καρποῖς.
Delos hates you, and the laurel branches beside the soft-haired palm tree, where Leto bore you as a holy birth from Zeus's seed.
(Tutor) Alas, how great a treasury of evils is opened, at which anyone would shed a tear.
O daughter, looking upon your face I am not filled, and I am out of my mind.
§927κακῶν γὰρ ἄρτι κῦμʼ ὑπεξαντλῶν φρενί, §928πρύμνηθεν αἴρει μʼ ἄλλο σῶν λόγων ὕπο, §929οὓς ἐκβαλοῦσα τῶν παρεστώτων κακῶν §930μετῆλθες ἄλλων πημάτων κακὰς ὁδούς.
For just as I was bailing out a wave of evils from my mind, another wave from the stern lifts me up by your words, which, casting aside the present evils, you have followed along the evil paths of other sufferings.
§931τί φῄς;
What say you?
τίνα λόγον Λοξίου κατηγορεῖς;
What charge do you bring against Loxias?
§932ποῖον τεκεῖν φῂς παῖδα;
What kind of child do you say you bore?
ποῦ θεῖναι πόλεως §933θηρσὶν φίλον τύμβευμʼ;
Where did you place him in the city as a welcome tomb for wild beasts?
ἄνελθέ μοι πάλιν.
Go over it again for me.
§934αἰσχύνομαι μέν σʼ, ὦ γέρον, λέξω δʼ ὅμως.
(Creusa) I am ashamed before you, old man, but I will speak nevertheless.
§935ὡς συστενάζειν γʼ οἶδα γενναίως φίλοις.
(Tutor) Since I know how to join in noble grief with my friends.
(Creusa) Listen then: do you know the northward cave of Cecrops' rock, which we call the "Long Cliffs" (Makrai)?
§938οἶδʼ, ἔνθα Πανὸς ἄδυτα καὶ βωμοὶ πέλας.
(Tutor) I know it, where Pan's shrine and altars are nearby.
§939ἐνταῦθʼ ἀγῶνα δεινὸν ἠγωνίσμεθα.
(Creusa) There I fought a terrible contest.
§940τίνʼ;
(Tutor) What kind?
ὡς ἀπαντᾷ δάκρυά μοι τοῖς σοῖς λόγοις.
How my tears flow to meet your words.
§941Φοίβῳ ξυνῆψʼ ἄκουσα δύστηνον γάμον.
(Creusa) I joined in a wretched union with Phoebus against my will.
§942ὦ θύγατερ, ἆρʼ ἦν ταῦθʼ ἅ γʼ ᾐσθόμην ἐγώ;
(Tutor) O daughter, were these the things that I was sensing?
§943οὐκ οἶδʼ· ἀληθῆ δʼ εἰ λέγεις φαίημεν ἄν.
(Creusa) I do not know; but if you speak the truth, we might say so.
§944νόσον κρυφαίαν ἡνίκʼ ἔστενες λάθρα;
(Tutor) When you groaned in secret over a hidden affliction?
§945τότʼ ἦν ἃ νῦν σοι φανερὰ σημαίνω κακά.
(Creusa) That was the time of the evils which I now make clear to you.
§946κᾆτʼ ἐξέκλεψας πῶς Ἀπόλλωνος γάμους;
(Tutor) And then how did you keep secret your union with Apollo?
§947ἔτεκον — ἀνάσχου ταῦτʼ ἐμοῦ κλύων, γέρον.
(Creusa) I gave birth—bear with hearing this from me, old man.
§948ποῦ;
(Tutor) Where?
τίς λοχεύει σʼ;
Who assisted in your birth?
ἢ μόνη μοχθεῖς τάδε;
Or did you labor through this alone?
§949μόνη κατʼ ἄντρον οὗπερ ἐζεύχθην γάμοις.
(Creusa) Alone, in the cave where I was joined in union.
§950ὁ παῖς δὲ ποῦ ʼστιν; ἵνα σὺ μηκέτʼ ᾖς ἄπαις.
(Tutor) And where is the child, so that you may no longer be childless?
§951τέθνηκεν, ὦ γεραιέ, θηρσὶν ἐκτεθείς.
(Creusa) He is dead, old man, exposed to wild beasts.
§952τέθνηκʼ;
(Tutor) Dead?
Ἀπόλλων δʼ ὁ κακὸς οὐδὲν ἤρκεσεν;
And did evil Apollo bring no help?
§953οὐκ ἤρκεσʼ· Ἅιδου δʼ ἐν δόμοις παιδεύεται.
(Creusa) He did not help; he is being reared in the halls of Hades.
§954τίς γάρ νιν ἐξέθηκεν;
(Tutor) For who exposed him?
οὐ γὰρ δὴ σύ γε.
Surely not you yourself.
§955ἡμεῖς, ἐν ὄρφνῃ σπαργανώσαντες πέπλοις.
(Creusa) I did, wrapping him in swaddling clothes in the darkness.
§956οὐδὲ ξυνῄδει σοί τις ἔκθεσιν τέκνου;
(Tutor) And did no one share the knowledge of your child's exposure?
§957αἱ ξυμφοραί γε καὶ τὸ λανθάνειν μόνον.
(Creusa) Only my misfortunes and the secrecy itself.
§958καὶ πῶς ἐν ἄντρῳ παῖδα σὸν λιπεῖν ἔτλης;
(Tutor) And how did you have the heart to leave your child in the cave?
§959πῶς δʼ οἰκτρὰ πολλὰ στόματος ἐκβαλοῦσʼ ἔπη —
(Creusa) How?
§960φεῦ·
Having uttered many pitiful words from my mouth— (Tutor) Alas!
§960aτλήμων σὺ τόλμης, ὁ δὲ θεὸς μᾶλλον σέθεν.
Wretched are you for your daring, but the god is more so than you.