§340ἱππείῳ γένει πολεύων.
plowing with the horse breed.
§343κουφονόων τε φῦλον ὀρνίθων ἀμφιβαλὼν ἄγει §345καὶ θηρῶν ἀγρίων ἔθνη πόντου τʼ εἰναλίαν φύσιν §346σπείραισι δικτυοκλώστοις, §347περιφραδὴς ἀνήρ·
And the tribe of light-witted birds he leads away, casting his nets around them, and the beasts of the wild and the salty brood of the sea, in the meshes of his woven nets, man, excellent in counsel.
§348κρατεῖ δὲ μηχαναῖς ἀγραύλου §350θηρὸς ὀρεσσιβάτα, λασιαύχενά θʼ §351ἵππον ὀχμάζεται ἀμφὶ λόφον ζυγῶν §352οὔρειόν τʼ ἀκμῆτα ταῦρον.
And he rules by his crafts the beast that roams the hills, and the shaggy-necked horse he tames under the yoke upon its neck, and the tireless bull of the mountains.
§355καὶ φθέγμα καὶ ἀνεμόεν φρόνημα καὶ ἀστυνόμους §356ὀργὰς ἐδιδάξατο καὶ δυσαύλων §357πάγων ὑπαίθρεια καὶ δύσομβρα φεύγειν βέλη §358παντοπόρος· ἄπορος ἐπʼ οὐδὲν ἔρχεται §360τὸ μέλλον· Ἅιδα μόνον φεῦξιν οὐκ ἐπάξεται· §361νόσων δʼ ἀμηχάνων φυγὰς ξυμπέφρασται.
And speech and wind-swift thought and the customs that rule cities he has taught himself, and how to flee the cold of frosty skies under the open air, and the hostile shafts of rain, all-resourceful; clueless he meets nothing that is to come; from Hades alone he shall not secure escape; yet from hopeless diseases he has devised escapes.
§365σοφόν τι τὸ μηχανόεν τέχνας ὑπὲρ ἐλπίδʼ ἔχων §366τοτὲ μὲν κακόν, ἄλλοτʼ ἐπʼ ἐσθλὸν ἕρπει, §367νόμους γεραίρων χθονὸς θεῶν τʼ ἔνορκον δίκαν, §370ὑψίπολις· ἄπολις ὅτῳ τὸ μὴ καλὸν §371ξύνεστι τόλμας χάριν.
Possessing a cunning resourcefulness of art beyond expectation, now to evil, now to good he wends his way, honoring the laws of the land and the sworn justice of the gods, high in his city; but outlawed is he with whom dwells what is not good, because of his daring.
μήτʼ ἐμοὶ παρέστιος §375γένοιτο μήτʼ ἴσον φρονῶν ὃς τάδʼ ἔρδει.
Never may he share my hearth, nor be of one mind with me, who does such deeds.
πῶς εἰδὼς ἀντιλογήσω §378τήνδʼ οὐκ εἶναι παῖδʼ Ἀντιγόνην.
Knowing her, how can I deny that this maiden is Antigone?
O unhappy one, and daughter of unhappy father, Oedipus!
§381τί ποτʼ;
What is this?
Surely they are not leading you because you disobed the royal laws, and they caught you in foolishness?
This is she, the one who did the deed; we caught her burying him.
ἀλλὰ ποῦ Κρέων;
But where is Creon?
§386ὅδʼ ἐκ δόμων ἄψορρος εἰς δέον περᾷ.
Here he comes back from the house, just in time.
§387τί δʼ ἔστι;
What is it?
ποίᾳ ξύμμετρος προὔβην τύχῃ;
With what fortune have I come opportunely?
§388ἄναξ, βροτοῖσιν οὐδέν ἔστʼ ἀπώμοτον.
My lord, nothing is impossible to swear off for mortals.
§389ψεύδει γὰρ ἡ ʼπίνοια τὴν γνώμην· ἐπεὶ §390σχολῇ ποθʼ ἥξειν δεῦρʼ ἂν ἐξηύχουν ἐγὼ §391ταῖς σαῖς ἀπειλαῖς αἷς ἐχειμάσθην τότε
For after-thought belies the resolution; since I boasted indeed that I would be slow to come here again, by reason of your threats with which I was then battered.
§392ἀλλʼ ἡ γὰρ ἐκτὸς καὶ παρʼ ἐλπίδας χαρὰ §393ἔοικεν ἄλλῃ μῆκος οὐδὲν ἡδονῇ, §394ἥκω, διʼ ὅρκων καίπερ ὢν ἀπώμοτος, §395κόρην ἄγων τήνδʼ, ἣ καθῃρέθη τάφον §396κοσμοῦσα.
But, since the joy that is outside and beyond hope is like no other pleasure in magnitude, I have come, though bound by oaths not to do so, bringing this maiden, who was caught adorning the grave.
κλῆρος ἐνθάδʼ οὐκ ἐπάλλετο, §397ἀλλʼ ἔστʼ ἐμὸν θοὔρμαιον, οὐκ ἄλλου, τόδε.
No lot was shaken here, but this stroke of luck is mine, and no one else's.
And now, my lord, take her yourself, as you wish, and judge her and examine her.
ἐγὼ δʼ ἐλεύθερος §400δίκαιός εἰμι τῶνδʼ ἀπηλλάχθαι κακῶν.
But I have a right to be released and free from these troubles.
§401ἄγεις δὲ τήνδε τῷ τρόπῳ πόθεν λαβών;
But in what way and whence did you take and bring her?
§402αὕτη τὸν ἄνδρʼ ἔθαπτε· πάντʼ ἐπίστασαι.
She was burying the man; you know all.
§403ἦ καὶ ξυνίης καὶ λέγεις ὀρθῶς ἃ φῄς;
Do you indeed understand and speak correctly what you say?
I saw her burying the corpse which you forbade.
ἆρʼ ἔνδηλα καὶ σαφῆ λέγω;
Do I speak clearly and plainly?
§406καὶ πῶς ὁρᾶται κἀπίληπτος ᾑρέθη;
And how was she seen and caught in the act?
§407τοιοῦτον ἦν τὸ πρᾶγμʼ.
The matter was thus.
ὅπως γὰρ ἥκομεν, §408πρὸς σοῦ τὰ δείνʼ ἐκεῖνʼ ἐπηπειλημένοι, §409πᾶσαν κόνιν σήραντες, ἣ κατεῖχε τὸν §410νέκυν, μυδῶν τε σῶμα γυμνώσαντες εὖ, §411καθήμεθʼ ἄκρων ἐκ πάγων ὑπήνεμοι, §412ὀσμὴν ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ μὴ βάλοι πεφευγότες, §413ἐγερτὶ κινῶν ἄνδρʼ ἀνὴρ ἐπιρρόθοις §414κακοῖσιν, εἴ τις τοῦδʼ ἀκηδήσοι πόνου.
For when we had come, threatened by those terrible threats from you, having swept away all the dust that covered the corpse, and having stripped bare the decaying body, we sat on the brow of the hill, out of the wind, fleeing the stench from it lest it strike us, each man encouraging the other with sharp reproaches, if anyone should be careless of this task.
§415χρόνον τάδʼ ἦν τοσοῦτον, ἔστʼ ἐν αἰθέρι §416μέσῳ κατέστη λαμπρὸς ἡλίου κύκλος §417καὶ καῦμʼ ἔθαλπε·
This went on for a long time, until in the mid-heaven the bright orb of the sun stood, and the heat was burning.
καὶ τότʼ ἐξαίφνης χθονὸς §418τυφὼς ἀείρας σκηπτόν οὐράνιον ἄχος, §419πίμπλησι πεδίον, πᾶσαν αἰκίζων φόβην §420ὕλης πεδιάδος, ἐν δʼ ἐμεστώθη μέγας §421αἰθήρ· μύσαντες δʼ εἴχομεν θείαν νόσον.
And then suddenly from the earth a whirlwind raised a dust-storm, a heavenly trouble, and filled the plain, ruining all the foliage of the woodland, and the wide ether was filled with it; and closing our eyes, we endured the divine plague.
§422καὶ τοῦδʼ ἀπαλλαγέντος ἐν χρόνῳ μακρῷ, §423ἡ παῖς ὁρᾶται, κἀνακωκύει πικρᾶς §424ὄρνιθος ὀξὺν φθόγγον, ὡς ὅταν κενῆς §425εὐνῆς νεοσσῶν ὀρφανὸν βλέψῃ λέχος.
And when this had passed away after a long time, the maiden was seen, and she wailed with the sharp cry of a bitter bird, as when she beholds the bed of her empty nest reft of its young.
§426οὕτω δὲ χαὔτη, ψιλὸν ὡς ὁρᾷ νέκυν, §427γόοισιν ἐξῴμωξεν, ἐκ δʼ ἀρὰς κακὰς §428ἠρᾶτο τοῖσι τοὔργον ἐξειργασμένοις.
Even so she, when she saw the corpse bare, burst out into wailing, and uttered terrible curses against those who had done the deed.
§429καὶ χερσὶν εὐθὺς διψίαν φέρει κόνιν, §430ἔκ τʼ εὐκροτήτου χαλκέας ἄρδην πρόχου §431χοαῖσι τρισπόνδοισι τὸν νέκυν στέφει.
And straightway she brought thirsty dust in her hands, and from a well-wrought bronze pitcher, held high, with threefold libations she crowned the dead.
And we, seeing it, rushed forward and together seized her, while she was not at all dismayed.
§434καὶ τάς τε πρόσθεν τάς τε νῦν ἠλέγχομεν §435πράξεις· ἄπαρνος δʼ οὐδενὸς καθίστατο, §436ἅμʼ ἡδέως ἔμοιγε κἀλγεινῶς ἅμα.
And we charged her with both her past and present deeds; and she denied nothing, which was at once pleasant to me and at the same time painful.
For to escape from troubles oneself is most pleasant, but to bring friends into trouble is painful.
ἀλλὰ πάντα ταῦθʼ ἥσσω λαβεῖν
But all these things are of less account for me to take