§931καὶ βακχιάζων ἐξ ἕδρας μεθώρμισα. §932ἀλλʼ αὐτὸν ἡμεῖς, οἷς σε θεραπεύειν μέλει, §933πάλιν καταστελοῦμεν· ἀλλʼ ὄρθου κάρα. §934ἰδού, σὺ κόσμει· σοὶ γὰρ ἀνακείμεσθα δή. §935ζῶναί τέ σοι χαλῶσι κοὐχ ἑξῆς πέπλων §936στολίδες ὑπὸ σφυροῖσι τείνουσιν σέθεν. §937κἀμοὶ δοκοῦσι παρά γε δεξιὸν πόδα· §938τἀνθένδε δʼ ὀρθῶς παρὰ τένοντʼ ἔχει πέπλος. §939ἦ πού με τῶν σῶν πρῶτον ἡγήσῃ φίλων, §940ὅταν παρὰ λόγον σώφρονας βάκχας ἴδῃς. §941πότερα δὲ θύρσον δεξιᾷ λαβὼν χερὶ §942ἢ τῇδε, βάκχῃ μᾶλλον εἰκασθήσομαι; §943ἐν δεξιᾷ χρὴ χἅμα δεξιῷ ποδὶ §944αἴρειν νιν· αἰνῶ δʼ ὅτι μεθέστηκας φρενῶν. §945ἆρʼ ἂν δυναίμην τὰς Κιθαιρῶνος πτυχὰς §946αὐταῖσι βάκχαις τοῖς ἐμοῖς ὤμοις φέρειν; §947δύναιʼ ἄν, εἰ βούλοιο· τὰς δὲ πρὶν φρένας §948οὐκ εἶχες ὑγιεῖς, νῦν δʼ ἔχεις οἵας σε δεῖ.
"And in my Bacchic frenzy I moved it out of its place." "But we, whose care it is to attend to you," "will arrange it again; but keep your head erect." "Look, you arrange it; for indeed we depend on you." "And your girdles are loose, and the folds of your robes" "do not extend evenly below your ankles." "They seem so to me too, at least by the right foot;" "but on this side the robe hangs straight along the tendon." "Surely you will count me first among your friends," "when contrary to expectation you see the Bacchants acting modestly." "But should I hold the thyrsus in my right hand," "or in this one, to resemble a Bacchant more?" "In the right hand, and at the same time with the right foot" "you must raise it; and I praise you because you have changed your mind." "Could I carry the glens of Cithaeron," "with the Bacchae themselves, upon my shoulders?" "You could, if you wished; the mind you had before" "was not sound, but now you have such as you ought." "Shall we bring levers?
§949μοχλοὺς φέρωμεν; ἢ χεροῖν ἀνασπάσω §950κορυφαῖς ὑποβαλὼν ὦμον ἢ βραχίονα; §951μὴ σύ γε τὰ Νυμφῶν διολέσῃς ἱδρύματα §952καὶ Πανὸς ἕδρας ἔνθʼ ἔχει συρίγματα. §953καλῶς ἔλεξας· οὐ σθένει νικητέον §954γυναῖκας· ἐλάταισιν δʼ ἐμὸν κρύψω δέμας. §955κρύψῃ σὺ κρύψιν ἥν σε κρυφθῆναι χρεών, §956ἐλθόντα δόλιον μαινάδων κατάσκοπον. §957καὶ μὴν δοκῶ σφᾶς ἐν λόχμαις ὄρνιθας ὣς §958λέκτρων ἔχεσθαι φιλτάτοις ἐν ἕρκεσιν. §959οὐκοῦν ἐπʼ αὐτὸ τοῦτʼ ἀποστέλλῃ φύλαξ· §960λήψῃ δʼ ἴσως σφᾶς, ἢν σὺ μὴ ληφθῇς πάρος. §961κόμιζε διὰ μέσης με Θηβαίας χθονός· §962μόνος γὰρ αὐτῶν εἰμʼ ἀνὴρ τολμῶν τόδε. §963μόνος σὺ πόλεως τῆσδʼ ὑπερκάμνεις, μόνος· §964τοιγάρ σʼ ἀγῶνες ἀναμένουσιν οὓς ἐχρῆν. §965ἕπου δέ· πομπὸς εἶμʼ ἐγὼ σωτήριος, §966κεῖθεν δʼ ἀπάξει σʼ ἄλλος. §966bἡ τεκοῦσά γε. §967ἐπίσημον ὄντα πᾶσιν. §967bἐπὶ τόδʼ ἔρχομαι. §968φερόμενος ἥξεις §968bἁβρότητʼ ἐμὴν λέγεις. §969ἐν χερσὶ μητρός. §969bκαὶ τρυφᾶν μʼ ἀναγκάσεις. §970τρυφάς γε τοιάσδε. §970bἀξίων μὲν ἅπτομαι. §971δεινὸς σὺ δεινὸς κἀπὶ δείνʼ ἔρχῃ πάθη, §972ὥστʼ οὐρανῷ στηρίζον εὑρήσεις κλέος. §973ἔκτεινʼ, Ἀγαύη, χεῖρας αἵ θʼ ὁμόσποροι §974Κάδμου θυγατέρες· τὸν νεανίαν ἄγω §975τόνδʼ εἰς ἀγῶνα μέγαν, ὁ νικήσων δʼ ἐγὼ §976καὶ Βρόμιος ἔσται. τἄλλα δʼ αὐτὸ σημανεῖ.
Or shall I tear them up with my hands," "putting my shoulder or arm under the peaks?" "Do not destroy the sanctuaries of the Nymphs," "and the seats of Pan, where he has his pipings." "You speak well; we must not conquer women by force;" "but I will hide my body among the firs." "You shall hide with the hiding with which you ought to be hidden," "going as a treacherous spy upon the maenads." "And indeed I seem to see them in the thickets, like birds," "held in the dearest snares of their beds." "Therefore you are sent as a guard for this very purpose;" "perhaps you will catch them, if you are not caught beforehand." "Lead me through the midst of the Theban land;" "for I am the only man of them who dares to do this." "You alone toil for this city, you alone;" "therefore the struggles which are fitting await you." "Follow me; I am your saving guide," "but another will bring you back from there." "My mother, indeed." "To be a conspicuous sign to all." "It is for this I go." "You will return carried..." "You speak of luxury for me." "In the hands of your mother." "And you will compel me to be pampered." "Such pampering indeed." "I am laying hands on worthy deeds." "You are extraordinary, extraordinary, and to extraordinary sufferings you go," "so that you will find a fame reaching to heaven." "Stretch forth your hands, Agave, and you her sisters," "daughters of Cadmus; I bring this young man" "to this great contest, and the victor shall be I" "and Bromius.
§977ἴτε θοαὶ Λύσσας κύνες ἴτʼ εἰς ὄρος, §978θίασον ἔνθʼ ἔχουσι Κάδμου κόραι, §979ἀνοιστρήσατέ νιν §980ἐπὶ τὸν ἐν γυναικομίμῳ στολᾷ §981λυσσώδη κατάσκοπον μαινάδων.
The rest the event itself will show." Go, swift hounds of Madness, go to the mountain, where the daughters of Cadmus hold their flock, and drive them wild against the one in woman-mimicking attire, the frenzied spy of the maenads.
§982μάτηρ πρῶτά νιν λευρᾶς ἀπὸ πέτρας §983ἢ σκόλοπος ὄψεται §984δοκεύοντα, μαινάσιν δʼ ἀπύσει· §985Τίς ὅδʼ ὀρειδρόμων §986μαστὴρ Καδμείων ἐς ὄρος ἐς ὄρος ἔμολʼ §987ἔμολεν, ὦ βάκχαι;
His mother first from the sheer rock or from a lookout point shall see him watching, and will cry out to the maenads: "Who is this seeker of the mountain-running Cadmeans who has come, has come to the mountain, to the mountain, O Bacchants?
τίς ἄρα νιν ἔτεκεν;
Who indeed bore him?
§988οὐ γὰρ ἐξ αἵματος §989γυναικῶν ἔφυ, λεαίνας δέ τινος §990ὅδʼ ἢ Γοργόνων Λιβυσσᾶν γένος. §992ἴτω δίκα φανερός, ἴτω ξιφηφόρος §993φονεύουσα λαιμῶν διαμπὰξ §995τὸν ἄθεον ἄνομον ἄδικον Ἐχίονος §996γόνον γηγενῆ.
For he was not born of the blood of women, but of some lioness or he is of the race of Libyan Gorgons." Let manifest Justice go, let her go sword-bearing, slaying through the throat the godless, lawless, unjust offspring of Echion, the earth-born.
§997ὃς ἀδίκῳ γνώμᾳ παρανόμῳ τʼ ὀργᾷ §998περὶ σὰ Βάκχιʼ, ὄργια ματρός τε σᾶς §999μανείσᾳ πραπίδι §1000παρακόπῳ τε λήματι στέλλεται, §1001τἀνίκατον ὡς κρατήσων βίᾳ,
Who with unjust mind and lawless rage concerning your Bacchic rites and those of your mother, with mad heart and frenzied purpose sets forth, as if to conquer by force the unconquerable.
To keep the mind wise, death without excuse results in what concerns the gods; and to live as a mortal is a painless life.
τὰ δʼ ἕτερα μεγάλα §1007φανερά τʼ· ὤ, νάειν ἐπὶ τὰ καλὰ βίον, §1008ἦμαρ ἐς νύκτα τʼ εὐ- §1009αγοῦντʼ εὐσεβεῖν, τὰ δʼ ἔξω νόμιμα §1010δίκας ἐκβαλόντα τιμᾶν θεούς.
But there are other great and manifest things: oh, to flow one's life toward beautiful things, by day and into the night to be pure and pious, and casting out those customs outside of justice to honor the gods.
§1013ἴτω δίκα φανερός, ἴτω ξιφηφόρος §1014φονεύουσα λαιμῶν διαμπὰξ §1015τὸν ἄθεον ἄνομον ἄδικον Ἐχίονος §1016τόκον γηγενῆ.
Let manifest Justice go, let her go sword-bearing, slaying through the throat the godless, lawless, unjust offspring of Echion, the earth-born.
Appear as a bull, or a many-headed dragon to look upon, or a fire-breathing lion to be seen.
§1020ἴθʼ, ὦ Βάκχε, θηραγρευτᾷ βακχᾶν §1021γελῶντι προσώπῳ περίβαλε βρόχον §1022θανάσιμον ὑπʼ ἀγέλαν πεσόν- §1023τι τὰν μαινάδων.
Go, O Bacchus, cast a deadly noose upon the hunter of the Bacchants with a smiling face, as he falls under the flock of the maenads.
§1024ὦ δῶμʼ ὃ πρίν ποτʼ εὐτύχεις ἀνʼ Ἑλλάδα, §1025Σιδωνίου γέροντος, ὃς τὸ γηγενὲς §1026δράκοντος ἔσπειρʼ Ὄφεος ἐν γαίᾳ θέρος, §1027ὥς σε στενάζω, δοῦλος ὢν μέν, ἀλλʼ ὅμως
O house that once was happy throughout Greece, of the Sidonian old man, who sowed the earth-born harvest of the dragon Ophion in the land, how I groan for you, slave though I am, but yet!"