And the sun, the holy, holy eye of light, changed its course.
ἄλλαις δʼ ἄλλα προσέβα §196χρυσέας ἀρνὸς μελάθροις ὀδύνα,
And on account of the golden lamb, at another time, another pain attacked the halls.
§197φόνος ἐπὶ φόνῳ, ἄχεα ἄχεσιν §199ἔνθεν τῶν πρόσθεν δμαθέντων §200Τανταλιδᾶν ἐκβαίνει ποινά γʼ §201εἰς οἴκους, σπεύδει δʼ ἀσπούδαστʼ §202ἐπὶ σοὶ δαίμων.
Slaughter upon slaughter, grief upon grief, from where the retribution for the previously slain Tantalidae comes upon the house, and the deity hastens with relentless speed against you.
From the beginning, for me, an unfortunate destiny was ordained from my mother's girdle and from that night.
ἐξ ἀρχᾶς §206λόχιαι στερρὰν παιδείαν §207Μοῖραι ξυντείνουσιν θεαί, §208τᾷ μναστευθείσᾳ ʼξ Ἑλλάνων, §209ἃν πρωτόγονον θάλος ἐν θαλάμοις §210Λήδας ἁ τλάμων κούρα §211σφάγιον πατρῴᾳ λώβᾳ §212καὶ θῦμʼ οὐκ εὐγάθητον §213ἔτεκεν, ἔτρεφεν εὐκταίαν·
From the beginning the birth-goddesses, the stern Fates, stretched out their tight bond of rearing for her who was wooed by the Greeks, whom, as her first-born shoot in the chambers, the wretched daughter of Leda bore, and reared as a dedicated sacrifice, to be a victim by her father's outrage, a sacrifice not joyful.
§214ἱππείοις δʼ ἐν δίφροισι §215ψαμάθων Αὐλίδος ἐπέβασαν §216νύμφαιον, οἴμοι, δύσνυμφον §217τῷ τᾶς Νηρέως κούρας, αἰαῖ.
And in horse-drawn chariots, they brought me to the sands of Aulis as a bride, alas, an ill-fated bride for the son of Nereus' daughter, alas.
§218νῦν δʼ ἀξείνου πόντου ξείνα §219δυσχόρτους οἴκους ναίω, §220ἄγαμος ἄτεκνος ἄπολις ἄφιλος, §221οὐ τὰν Ἄργει μέλπουσʼ Ἥραν §222οὐδʼ ἱστοῖς ἐν καλλιφθόγγοις §223κερκίδι Παλλάδος Ἀτθίδος εἰκὼ §224καὶ Τιτάνων ποικίλλουσʼ, ἀλλʼ §225αἱμόρραντον δυσφόρμιγγα §226ξείνων αἱμάσσουσʼ ἄταν βωμούς, §227οἰκτράν τʼ αἰαζόντων αὐδὰν §228οἰκτρόν τʼ ἐκβαλλόντων δάκρυον.
And now, a stranger by the inhospitable sea, I dwell in barren houses with bad pastures, unmarried, childless, cityless, friendless, not singing of Hera in Argos, nor in the beautifully sounding looms, weaving with the shuttle the image of Athenian Pallas and the Titans, but rather staining with blood the altars that are stained with the blood of strangers, a ruin unaccompanied by the lyre, and the pitiful voice of those wailing, and the pitiful tears of those shedding them.
§229καὶ νῦν κείνων μέν μοι λάθα, §230τὸν δʼ Ἄργει δμαθέντα κλαίω §232σύγγονον, ὃν ἔλιπον ἐπιμαστίδιον, §233ἔτι βρέφος, ἔτι νέον, ἔτι θάλος §234ἐν χερσὶν ματρὸς πρὸς στέρνοις τʼ §235Ἄργει σκηπτοῦχον Ὀρέσταν.
And now indeed I have forgetfulness of those things, but I weep for my brother who was slain in Argos, whom I left at the breast, still an infant, still young, still a shoot in the hands of his mother and at her breast, Orestes, who was to hold the scepter in Argos.
And indeed, leaving the sea-shores, this herdsman has come to signal some news to you.
Child of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, hear new tidings from me.
§240τί δʼ ἔστι τοῦ παρόντος ἐκπλῆσσον λόγου;
And what is there that strikes me with dread in your present speech?
§241ἥκουσιν ἐς γῆν, κυανέαν Συμπληγάδα §242πλάτῃ φυγόντες, δίπτυχοι νεανίαι, §243θεᾷ φίλον πρόσφαγμα καὶ θυτήριον §244Ἀρτέμιδι.
There have come to this land, having escaped the dark Symplegades by oar, two young men, a welcome offering and sacrifice for the goddess Artemis.
χέρνιβας δὲ καὶ κατάργματα §245οὐκ ἂν φθάνοις ἂν εὐτρεπῆ ποιουμένη.
And the lustral water and the preliminary rites you should make ready without delay.
§246ποδαποί;
From what land?
τίνος γῆς σχῆμʼ ἔχουσιν οἱ ξένοι;
What appearance of country do the strangers have?
§247Ἕλληνες· ἓν τοῦτʼ οἶδα κοὐ περαιτέρω.
Greeks; this one thing I know and nothing further.
§248οὐδʼ ὄνομʼ ἀκούσας οἶσθα τῶν ξένων φράσαι;
Not even having heard their names do you know how to tell of the strangers?
§249Πυλάδης ἐκλῄζεθʼ ἅτερος πρὸς θατέρου.
Pylades was one called by the other.
§250τοῦ ξυζύγου δὲ τοῦ ξένου τί τοὔνομʼ ἦν;
And what was the name of the stranger's companion?
§251οὐδεὶς τόδʼ οἶδεν· οὐ γὰρ εἰσηκούσαμεν.
No one knows this; for we did not hear it.
§252πῶς δʼ εἴδετʼ αὐτοὺς κἀντυχόντες εἵλετε;
And how did you see them and catch them upon meeting them?
At the edge of the breakers of the inhospitable passage— And what sharing is there between the sea and herdsmen?
§255βοῦς ἤλθομεν νίψοντες ἐναλίᾳ δρόσῳ.
We came to wash our cattle in the sea-water.
Return to that point: how did you catch them and in what manner?
τοῦτο γὰρ μαθεῖν θέλω.
For this I wish to learn.
For they have come after a long time; and not yet has the altar of the goddess been reddened with Greek streams of blood.
§260ἐπεὶ τὸν ἐσρέοντα διὰ Συμπληγάδων §261βοῦς ὑλοφορβοὺς πόντον εἰσεβάλλομεν, §262ἦν τις διαρρὼξ κυμάτων πολλῷ σάλῳ §263κοιλωπὸς ἀγμός, πορφυρευτικαὶ στέγαι.
When we were driving the forest-pastured cattle into the sea that flows through the Symplegades, there was a certain cleft made by the great tossing of the waves, a hollow cave, a shelter for purple-fishers.
§264ἐνταῦθα δισσοὺς εἶδέ τις νεανίας §265βουφορβὸς ἡμῶν, κἀπεχώρησεν πάλιν §266ἄκροισι δακτύλοισι πορθμεύων ἴχνος.
There a certain herdsman of ours saw the two young men, and he retreated backward, carrying his steps on the tips of his toes.
§267ἔλεξε δʼ· Οὐχ ὁρᾶτε;
And he said: "Do you not see?
δαίμονές τινες §268θάσσουσιν οἵδε. — θεοσεβὴς δʼ ἡμῶν τις ὢν §269ἀνέσχε χεῖρα καὶ προσηύξατʼ εἰσιδών· §270ὦ ποντίας παῖ Λευκοθέας, νεῶν φύλαξ, §271δέσποτα Παλαῖμον, ἵλεως ἡμῖν γενοῦ, §272εἴτʼ οὖν ἐπʼ ἀκταῖς θάσσετον Διοσκόρω, §273ἢ Νηρέως ἀγάλμαθʼ, ὃς τὸν εὐγενῆ §274ἔτικτε πεντήκοντα Νηρῄδων χορόν. §275ἄλλος δέ τις μάταιος, ἀνομίᾳ θρασύς, §276ἐγέλασεν εὐχαῖς, ναυτίλους δʼ ἐφθαρμένους §277θάσσειν φάραγγʼ ἔφασκε τοῦ νόμου φόβῳ, §278κλύοντας ὡς θύοιμεν ἐνθάδε ξένους.
Some deities are sitting here." And one of us, being god-fearing, held up his hands and prayed when he saw them: "O child of marine Leucothea, guardian of ships, lord Palaemon, be merciful to us, whether indeed you two sitting on the shores are the Dioscuri, or images of Nereus, who begot the noble dance of the fifty Nereids." But another one, foolish and bold in lawlessness, laughed at the prayers, and said that they were shipwrecked sailors sitting in the cleft through fear of the law, hearing that we sacrifice strangers here.
And he seemed to the majority of us to speak well, and that we should hunt the customary victims for the goddess.
§281κἀν τῷδε πέτραν ἅτερος λιπὼν ξένοιν §282ἔστη κάρα τε διετίναξʼ ἄνω κάτω §283κἀπεστέναξεν ὠλένας τρέμων ἄκρας, §284μανίαις ἀλαίνων, καὶ βοᾷ κυναγὸς ὥς· §285Πυλάδη, δέδορκας τήνδε;
And in this moment, one of the two strangers, leaving the rock, stood and shook his head up and down and groaned, trembling at the tips of his arms, wandering in madness, and shouted like a hunter: "Pylades, do you see this one?
τήνδε δʼ οὐχ ὁρᾷς §286Ἅιδου δράκαιναν, ὥς με βούλεται κτανεῖν §287δειναῖς ἐχίδναις εἰς ἔμʼ ἐστομωμένη;
And do you not see this dragon of Hades, how she wishes to kill me, armed against me with her terrible vipers?
§288ἣ δʼ ἐκ χιτώνων πῦρ πνέουσα καὶ φόνον §289πτεροῖς ἐρέσσει, μητέρʼ ἀγκάλαις ἐμὴν §290ἔχουσα — πέτρινον ὄχθον, ὡς ἐπεμβάλῃ.
And she, breathing fire and slaughter from her garments, rows with her wings, having my mother in her arms —that rocky mass, to cast it upon me.
§291οἴμοι, κτενεῖ με· ποῖ φύγω; §291aπαρῆν δʼ ὁρᾶν §292οὐ ταῦτα μορφῆς σχήματʼ, ἀλλʼ ἠλλάσσετο §293φθογγάς τε μόσχων καὶ κυνῶν ὑλάγματα, §294ἃς φᾶσʼ Ἐρινῦς ἱέναι μιμήματα.
Alas, she will kill me; where shall I flee?" And it was possible to see not these shapes of form, but it changed both the lowing of cattle and the howling of dogs, which they say the Furies utter as imitations.