§23γλυκὺ μέν, λυπεῖ δὲ προσιστάμενον.
is sweet, but it brings pain when it comes close.
§24τοτὲ μὲν τὰ θεῶν οὐκ ὀρθωθέντʼ §25ἀνέτρεψε βίον, τοτὲ δʼ ἀνθρώπων §26γνῶμαι πολλαὶ §27καὶ δυσάρεστοι διέκναισαν.
At times, the affairs of the gods, not turning out well, overturn life, and at other times the many and troublesome opinions of men wear one down.
§28οὐκ ἄγαμαι ταῦτʼ ἀνδρὸς ἀριστέως.
I do not admire these words in a noble leader.
Atreus did not beget you, Agamemnon, for all good things alone.
You must both rejoice and grieve; for you were born mortal.
κἂν μὴ σὺ θέλῃς, §33τὰ θεῶν οὕτω βουλόμενʼ ἔσται.
Even if you do not wish it, the will of the gods will be so.
§34σὺ δὲ λαμπτῆρος φάος ἀμπετάσας §35δέλτον τε γράφεις §36τήνδʼ ἣν πρὸ χερῶν ἔτι βαστάζεις, §37καὶ ταὐτὰ πάλιν γράμματα συγχεῖς §38καὶ σφραγίζεις λύεις τʼ ὀπίσω §39ῥίπτεις τε πέδῳ πεύκην, θαλερὸν §40κατὰ δάκρυ χέων, §41καὶ τῶν ἀπόρων οὐδενὸς ἐνδεῖς §42μὴ οὐ μαίνεσθαι.
But you, having spread the light of a lamp, are writing on a tablet— this one which you still hold before your hands— and again you erase the same letters, and seal it, and open it again, and cast the pine tablet to the ground, shedding copious tears, and you lack nothing of the desperate states of madness.
§43τί πονεῖς;
Why do you toil?
τί νέον περὶ σοί, βασιλεῦ;
What is new with you, O king?
§44φέρε κοίνωσον μῦθον ἐς ἡμᾶς.
Come, share your story with us.
§45πρὸς δʼ ἄνδρʼ ἀγαθὸν πιστόν τε φράσεις· §46σῇ γάρ μʼ ἀλόχῳ τότε Τυνδάρεως §47πέμπει φερνὴν §48συννυμφοκόμον τε δίκαιον.
You will speak to a good and faithful man; for to your wife, back then, Tyndareus sent me as a dowry, and as an honest attendant to the bride.
§115πέμπω σοι πρὸς ταῖς πρόσθεν §116δέλτους, ὦ Λήδας ἔρνος— §117λέγε καὶ σήμαινʼ, ἵνα καὶ γλώσσῃ §118σύντονα τοῖς σοῖς γράμμασιν αὐδῶ.
I send to you, in addition to the previous ones, this tablet, O scion of Leda— Speak and explain, so that with my tongue also I may speak in harmony with your writing.
Do not send your child to the harbor-like wing of Euboea, wave-free Aulis.
For indeed, at another season we shall celebrate our child's wedding.
And how will Achilles, deprived of his bride, not rise up in great anger of heart against you and your wife?
§127τόδε καὶ δεινόν· σήμαινʼ ὅ τι φῄς.
This too is a terrible thing; mark what I say.
§128ὄνομʼ, οὐκ ἔργον, παρέχων Ἀχιλεὺς §129οὐκ οἶδε γάμους, οὐδʼ ὅ τι πράσσομεν, §130οὐδʼ ὅτι κείνῳ παῖδʼ ἐπεφήμισα §131νυμφείους εἰς ἀγκώνων §132εὐνὰς ἐκδώσειν λέκτροις.
Achilles, lending his name but not his deed, knows nothing of the marriage, nor of what we are doing, nor that I have promised my child to him to give her in marriage into his arms and bridal bed.
§133δεινά γʼ ἐτόλμας, Ἀγάμεμνον ἄναξ, §134ὃς τῷ τῆς θεᾶς σὴν παῖδʼ ἄλοχον §135φατίσας ἦγες σφάγιον Δαναοῖς.
You dared a terrible deed, King Agamemnon, who, having called your child the wife of the goddess's son, were bringing her as a sacrifice for the Danaans.
Alas, I have lost my senses, ah, I fall into ruin!
But go, quickening your step, yielding in no way to old age.
§140bσπεύδω, βασιλεῦ.
I make haste, O king.
Do not sit down by wooded springs, nor let yourself be charmed by sleep.
§143εὔφημα θρόει.
Speak words of good omen.
§144πάντῃ δὲ πόρον σχιστὸν ἀμείβων §145λεῦσσε, φυλάσσων μή τίς σε λάθῃ §146τροχαλοῖσιν ὄχοις παραμειψαμένη §147παῖδα κομίζουσʼ ἐνθάδʼ ἀπήνη §148Δαναῶν πρὸς ναῦς.
And everywhere, as you pass the dividing roads, look closely, watching lest any carriage elude you, passing by with rolling wheels and bringing the maiden here, toward the ships of the Danaans.
§149ἔσται τάδε.
It shall be so.
§149bκλῄθρων δʼ ἐξόρμοις §150ἤν νιν πομπαῖς ἀντήσῃς, §151πάλιν εἰσόρμα, σεῖε χαλινούς, §152ἐπὶ Κυκλώπων ἱεὶς θυμέλας.
And if, outside the gates, you meet them on their way, turn them back again, shake the reins, driving them toward the Cyclopean temples.
But how shall I be trusted when I say these things, tell me, to your child and to your wife?
Keep safe the seal which on this tablet you carry.
ἴθι.
Go.
Already it whitens, this light, with the shining dawn, and the fire of Helios' four-horse chariot shines.
§160σύλλαβε μόχθων.
Help me in my toil.
No mortal is blessed until the end, nor happy; for no one was ever born free of pain.
§164—ἔμολον ἀμφὶ παρακτίαν §165ψάμαθον Αὐλίδος ἐναλίας, §166Εὐρίπου διὰ χευμάτων §167κέλσασα στενοπόρθμων, §168Χαλκίδα πόλιν ἐμὰν προλιποῦσʼ, §169ἀγχιάλων ὑδάτων τροφὸν §170τᾶς κλεινᾶς Ἀρεθούσας, §171Ἀχαιῶν στρατιὰν ὡς ἐσιδοίμαν §172Ἀχαιῶν τε πλάτας ναυσιπόρους ἡ- §173μιθέων, οὓς ἐπὶ Τροίαν §174ἐλάταις χιλιόναυσιν §175τὸν ξανθὸν Μενέλαόν θʼ §176ἁμέτεροι πόσεις §177ἐνέπουσʼ Ἀγαμέμνονά τʼ εὐπατρίδαν §178στέλλειν ἐπὶ τὰν Ἑλέναν, ἀπʼ §179Εὐρώτα δονακοτρόφου §180Πάρις ὁ βουκόλος ἃν ἔλαβε §181δῶρον τᾶς Ἀφροδίτας, §182ὅτʼ ἐπὶ κρηναίαισι δρόσοις §183Ἥρᾳ Παλλάδι τʼ ἔριν ἔριν §184μορφᾶς ἁ Κύπρις ἔσχεν.
— I have come to the coastal sand of maritime Aulis, through the waters of the narrow-strait Euripus, having steered my ship, leaving my city Chalcis, the nurse of near-sea waters of famous Arethusa, so that I might look upon the army of the Achaeans and the ship-voyaging oars of the demigods, whom toward Troy on a thousand ships of fir, with fair-haired Menelaus our husbands say and noble Agamemnon are leading, to fetch Helen, whom from the reed-bearing Eurotas Paris the herdsman took as a gift from Aphrodite, when at the spring-waters Cypris held the contest of beauty against Hera and Pallas.
§185—πολύθυτον δὲ διʼ ἄλσος Ἀρ- §186τέμιδος ἤλυθον ὀρομένα, §187φοινίσσουσα παρῇδʼ ἐμὰν §188αἰσχύνᾳ νεοθαλεῖ, §189ἀσπίδος ἔρυμα καὶ κλισίας §190ὁπλοφόρους Δαναῶν θέλουσʼ §191ἵππων τʼ ὄχλον ἰδέσθαι.
— And I came, rushing through the much-sacrificing grove of Artemis, with my cheeks reddening with fresh shame, wishing to see the protective shield-wall and the tents bearing arms, of the Danaans, and the host of horses.
§192κατεῖδον δὲ δύʼ Αἴαντε συνέδρω, §193τὸν Οἰλέως Τελαμῶνός τε γόνον, τὸν §194Σαλαμῖνος στέφανον· Πρω- §195τεσίλαόν τʼ ἐπὶ θάκοις §196πεσσῶν ἡδομένους μορ- §197φαῖσι πολυπλόκοις §198Παλαμήδεά θʼ, ὃν τέκε παῖς ὁ Ποσει- §199δᾶνος, Διομήδεά θʼ ἡδο- §200ναῖς δίσκου κεχαρημένον, §201παρὰ δὲ Μηριόνην, Ἄρεος §202ὄζον, θαῦμα βροτοῖσιν, §203τὸν ἀπὸ νησαίων τʼ ὀρέων §204Λαέρτα τόκον, ἅμα δὲ Νι- §205ρέα, κάλλιστον Ἀχαιῶν.
I saw the two Ajaxes sitting together, the son of Oileus and the son of Telamon, the crown of Salamis; and Pro- tesilaus enjoying the game of checkers with intricate turns, and Palamedes, whom the son of Poseidon begot, and Diomedes rejoicing in the pleasures of the discus; and near them Meriones, the branch of Ares, a wonder to mortals, and the son of Laertes from the island mountains, and with him Ni- reus, the most beautiful of the Achaeans.