And somehow Eteocles, having recognized the Thessalian trick, introduced it, from his intercourse with that land.
§1409ἐξαλλαγεὶς γὰρ τοῦ παρεστῶτος πόνου, §1410λαιὸν μὲν ἐς τοὔπισθεν ἀμφέρει πόδα, §1411πρόσω τὰ κοῖλα γαστρὸς εὐλαβούμενος, §1412προβὰς δὲ κῶλον δεξιὸν διʼ ὀμφαλοῦ §1413καθῆκεν ἔγχος σφονδύλοις τʼ ἐνήρμοσεν.
For, withdrawing himself from the present struggle, he brings his left foot back, carefully guarding his belly from the front, and stepping forward with his right leg, he drove his spear through the navel and fixed it in the vertebrae.
And bending together ribs and belly, the wretched Polynices falls with bloody drops.
§1416ὃ δʼ, ὡς κρατῶν δὴ καὶ νενικηκὼς μάχῃ, §1417ξίφος δικὼν ἐς γαῖαν ἐσκύλευέ νιν §1418τὸν νοῦν πρὸς αὑτὸν οὐκ ἔχων, ἐκεῖσε δέ.
And he, as if indeed ruling and victorious in battle, having cast his sword on the ground, began to despoil him, not keeping his mind on himself, but on that.
§1419ὃ καί νιν ἔσφηλʼ· ἔτι γὰρ ἐμπνέων βραχύ, §1420σῴζων σίδηρον ἐν λυγρῷ πεσήματι, §1421μόλις μέν, ἐξέτεινε δʼ εἰς ἧπαρ ξίφος. §1422Ἐτεοκλέους ὁ πρόσθε Πολυνείκης πεσών.
Which indeed tripped him; for still breathing a little, keeping hold of his sword in his painful fall, with difficulty indeed, but thrust his sword into the liver, Polynices, who had fallen before, of Eteocles.
And biting the dust near each other both fall and did not decide the victory.
Chorus: Alas, alas, Oedipus, how much I groan for your evils; and a god seems to have fulfilled your curses.
§1427ἄκουε δή νυν καὶ τὰ πρὸς τούτοις κακά.
Messenger: Hear now indeed also the evils in addition to these.
§1428ἐπεὶ τέκνω πεσόντʼ ἐλειπέτην βίον, §1429ἐν τῷδε μήτηρ ἡ τάλαινα προσπίτνει §1430σὺν παρθένῳ τε καὶ προθυμίᾳ ποδός.
When the two children, having fallen, were leaving life, at this moment the wretched mother falls upon them together with the maiden, with eager foot.
§1431τετρωμένους δʼ ἰδοῦσα καιρίους σφαγὰς §1432ᾤμωξεν· ὦ τέκνʼ, ὑστέρα βοηδρόμος §1433πάρειμι. προσπίτνουσα δʼ ἐν μέρει τέκνα §1434ἔκλαιʼ, ἐθρήνει, τὸν πολὺν μαστῶν πόνον §1435στένουσʼ, ἀδελφή θʼ ἡ παρασπίζουσʼ ὁμοῦ· §1436ὦ γηροβοσκὼ μητρός, ὦ γάμους ἐμοὺς §1437προδόντʼ ἀδελφὼ φιλτάτω. στέρνων δʼ ἄπο §1438φύσημʼ ἀνεὶς δύσθνητον Ἐτεοκλῆς ἄναξ §1439ἤκουσε μητρός, κἀπιθεὶς ὑγρὰν χέρα §1440φωνὴν μὲν οὐκ ἀφῆκεν, ὀμμάτων δʼ ἄπο §1441προσεῖπε δακρύοις, ὥστε σημῆναι φίλα.
And seeing them wounded with fatal gashes, she lamented: 'O children, too late as a helper I arrive.' And falling upon her children in turn, she wept, she lamented, groaning for her much pain of nursing, and the sister who supported her did likewise: 'O nurturers of your mother's old age, O my marriages betraying, dearest brothers!' And from his chest releasing his hard-drawn breath, lord Eteocles heard his mother; and having placed his moist hand on her, he uttered no voice indeed, but from his eyes he spoke with tears, so as to show his affection.
§1442ὃ δʼ ἦν ἔτʼ ἔμπνους, πρὸς κασιγνήτην δʼ ἰδὼν §1443γραῖάν τε μητέρʼ εἶπε Πολυνείκης τάδε· §1444Ἀπωλόμεσθα, μῆτερ· οἰκτίρω δὲ σὲ §1445καὶ τήνδʼ ἀδελφὴν καὶ κασίγνητον νεκρόν.
But he was still breathing, and looking toward his sister and his aged mother, Polynices spoke as follows: 'We are undone, mother; and I pity you and this sister, and my dead brother.
§1446φίλος γὰρ ἐχθρὸς ἐγένετʼ, ἀλλʼ ὅμως φίλος.
For a friend became an enemy, but yet he is a friend.
§1447θάψον δέ μʼ, ὦ τεκοῦσα, καὶ σύ, σύγγονε, §1448ἐν γῇ πατρῴᾳ, καὶ πόλιν θυμουμένην §1449παρηγορεῖτον, ὡς τοσόνδε γοῦν τύχω §1450χθονὸς πατρῴας, κεἰ δόμους ἀπώλεσα.
And bury me, O mother, and you, sister, in my native soil, and the angry city appease, so that I may at least obtain this much of my fatherland, even if I have lost my home.
§1451ξυνάρμοσον δὲ βλέφαρά μου τῇ σῇ χερί, §1452μῆτερ — τίθησι δʼ αὐτὸς ὀμμάτων ἔπι — §1453καὶ χαίρετʼ· ἤδη γάρ με περιβάλλει σκότος. §1454ἄμφω δʼ ἅμʼ ἐξέπνευσαν ἄθλιον βίον.
And close my eyelids with your hand, mother'—and he himself places her hand upon his eyes— 'and farewell; for already darkness wraps around me.' And both together breathed out their wretched life.
§1455μήτηρ δʼ, ὅπως ἐσεῖδε τήνδε συμφοράν, §1456ὑπερπαθήσασʼ, ἥρπασʼ ἐκ νεκρῶν ξίφος §1457κἄπραξε δεινά· διὰ μέσου γὰρ αὐχένος §1458ὠθεῖ σίδηρον, ἐν δὲ τοῖσι φιλτάτοις §1459θανοῦσα κεῖται περιβαλοῦσʼ ἀμφοῖν χέρας.
And the mother, when she saw this calamity, overcome with grief, snatched a sword from the corpses and did a terrible deed; for through the middle of her neck she drives the iron, and among her dearest ones, having died, she lies, throwing her arms around both.
And the people sprang up erect into a strife of words, we indeed claiming that my master was victorious, and they claiming him.
§1462οἳ δʼ ὡς ἐκεῖνον. ἦν δʼ ἔρις στρατηλάταις, §1463οἳ μὲν πατάξαι πρόσθε Πολυνείκη δορί, §1464οἳ δʼ ὡς θανόντων οὐδαμοῦ νίκη πέλοι.
And there was strife among the leaders, some saying that Polynices struck first with the spear, others that as they were dead, victory belonged to neither side.
§1465κἀν τῷδʼ ὑπεξῆλθʼ Ἀντιγόνη στρατοῦ δίχα.
And in this moment Antigone withdrew away from the army.
§1466οἳ δʼ εἰς ὅπλʼ ᾖσσον· εὖ δέ πως προμηθίᾳ §1467καθῆστο Κάδμου λαὸς ἀσπίδων ἔπι· §1468κἄφθημεν οὔπω τεύχεσιν πεφραγμένον §1469Ἀργεῖον ἐσπεσόντες ἐξαίφνης στρατόν.
And they rushed to arms; but happily by some foresight, the people of Cadmus had been sitting upon their shields; and we forestalled them, falling suddenly upon the Argive army not yet fenced in with armor.
§1470κοὐδεὶς ὑπέστη, πεδία δʼ ἐξεπίμπλασαν §1471φεύγοντες, ἔρρει δʼ αἷμα μυρίων νεκρῶν §1472λόγχαις πιτνόντων.
And no one stood his ground, but they filled the plains fleeing, and blood of countless corpses was flowing as they fell by spears.
ὡς δʼ ἐνικῶμεν μάχῃ, §1473οἳ μὲν Διὸς τροπαῖον ἵστασαν βρέτας, §1474οἳ δʼ ἀσπίδας συλῶντες Ἀργείων νεκρῶν §1475σκυλεύματʼ εἴσω τειχέων ἐπέμπομεν.
And when we were victorious in battle, some were setting up a statue of Zeus as a trophy, and others despoiling the shields of the dead Argives, we were sending the spoils inside the walls.
And others, together with Antigone, are bringing the dead bodies here, for their friends to mourn.
And for the city, some contests turned out most fortunate in this way, and others most unfortunate.
§1480οὐκ εἰς ἀκοὰς ἔτι δυστυχία §1481δώματος ἥκει· πάρα γὰρ λεύσσειν §1482πτώματα νεκρῶν τρισσῶν ἤδη §1483τάδε πρὸς μελάθροις κοινῷ θανάτῳ §1484σκοτίαν αἰῶνα λαχόντων.
Chorus: No longer by hearsay does the misfortune of the house reach us; for we can behold already these fallen bodies of three dead, here at the palace, who by a shared death have obtained their dark destiny.
§1485οὐ προκαλυπτομένα βοτρυχώδεος §1486ἁβρὰ παρηίδος οὐδʼ ὑπὸ παρθενί- §1488ας τὸν ὑπὸ βλεφάροις φοίνικʼ, ἐρύθημα προσώπου, §1489αἰδομένα φέρομαι βάκχα νεκύ- §1490ων, κράδεμνα δικοῦσα κόμας ἀπʼ ἐ- §1491μᾶς, στολίδος κροκόεσσαν ἀνεῖσα τρυφάν, §1492ἁγεμόνευμα νεκροῖσι πολύστονον.
Antigone: Not veiling the delicate cheek beneath my curly hair, nor out of maiden bashfulness concealing the purple blush under my eyelids, the flush of my face, ashamed, I am carried along as a Bacchant of the dead, having cast the veil from my hair, having let loose the saffron luxury of my robe, a much-lamented escort for the dead.
αἰαῖ, ἰώ μοι.
Alas, woe to me!