§977κατὰ δὲ τακόμενοι μέλεοι μελέαν πάθαν §980κλαῖον, ματρὸς ἔχοντες ἀνύμφευτον γονάν· §981ἁ δὲ σπέρμα μὲν ἀρχαιογόνων §982ἄντασʼ Ἐρεχθεϊδᾶν, §983τηλεπόροις δʼ ἐν ἄντροις §984τράφη θυέλλαισιν ἐν πατρῴαις §985Βορεὰς ἅμιππος ὀρθόποδος ὑπὲρ πάγου §986θεῶν παῖς.
And wasting away in misery, they wept for their miserable fate, holding a mother's unwedded birth. But she met with the seed of the ancient Erechtheids, and in far-off caves she was nurtured among her father’s tempests, a child of the gods, Boreas’ daughter, swift as horses over the steep hill.
ἀλλὰ κἀπʼ ἐκείνᾳ §987Μοῖραι μακραίωνες ἔσχον, ὦ παῖ. §988Θήβης ἄνακτες, ἥκομεν κοινὴν ὁδὸν §989δύʼ ἐξ ἑνὸς βλέποντε· τοῖς τυφλοῖσι γὰρ §990αὕτη κέλευθος ἐκ προηγητοῦ πέλει. §991τί δʼ ἔστιν, ὦ γεραιὲ Τειρεσία, νέον; §992ἐγὼ διδάξω, καὶ σὺ τῷ μάντει πιθοῦ. §993οὔκουν πάρος γε σῆς ἀπεστάτουν φρενός. §994τοιγὰρ διʼ ὀρθῆς τήνδʼ ἐναυκλήρεις πόλιν. §995ἔχω πεπονθὼς μαρτυρεῖν ὀνήσιμα. §996φρόνει βεβὼς αὖ νῦν ἐπὶ ξυροῦ τύχης. §997τί δʼ ἔστιν; ὡς ἐγὼ τὸ σὸν φρίσσω στόμα.
But even against her the long-lived Fates pressed hard, my child. Princes of Thebes, we have come, two looking from one eye, on a common path; for to the blind this is the way, following a guide. What is it, old Teiresias, that is new? I will teach you, and do you obey the seer. Indeed, in the past I did not stand aloof from your counsel. Therefore you did steer this city on a straight course. I have benefited and can bear witness to it. Know, then, that you are standing once again on the razor’s edge of fortune. What is it?
§998γνώσει, τέχνης σημεῖα τῆς ἐμῆς κλύων. §999εἰς γὰρ παλαιὸν θᾶκον ὀρνιθοσκόπον §1000ἵζων, ἵνʼ ἦν μοι παντὸς οἰωνοῦ λιμήν, §1001ἀγνῶτʼ ἀκούω φθόγγον ὀρνίθων, κακῷ §1002κλάζοντας οἴστρῳ καὶ βεβαρβαρωμένῳ. §1003καὶ σπῶντας ἐν χηλαῖσιν ἀλλήλους φοναῖς §1004ἔγνων· πτερῶν γὰρ ῥοῖβδος οὐκ ἄσημος ἦν. §1005εὐθὺς δὲ δείσας ἐμπύρων ἐγευόμην §1006βωμοῖσι παμφλέκτοισιν· ἐκ δὲ θυμάτων §1007Ἥφαιστος οὐκ ἔλαμπεν, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ σποδῷ §1008μυδῶσα κηκὶς μηρίων ἐτήκετο §1009κἄτυφε κἀνέπτυε, καὶ μετάρσιοι §1010χολαὶ διεσπείροντο, καὶ καταρρυεῖς §1011μηροὶ καλυπτῆς ἐξέκειντο πιμελῆς. §1012τοιαῦτα παιδὸς τοῦδʼ ἐμάνθανον πάρα, §1013φθίνοντʼ ἀσήμων ὀργίων μαντεύματα. §1014ἐμοὶ γὰρ οὗτος ἡγεμών, ἄλλοις δʼ ἐγώ. §1015καὶ ταῦτα τῆς σῆς ἐκ φρενὸς νοσεῖ πόλις. §1016βωμοὶ γὰρ ἡμῖν ἐσχάραι τε παντελεῖς §1017πλήρεις ὑπʼ οἰωνῶν τε καὶ κυνῶν βορᾶς §1018τοῦ δυσμόρου πεπτῶτος Οἰδίπου γόνου. §1019κᾆτʼ οὐ δέχονται θυστάδας λιτὰς ἔτι §1020θεοὶ παρʼ ἡμῶν οὐδὲ μηρίων φλόγα, §1021οὐδʼ ὄρνις εὐσήμους ἀπορροιβδεῖ βοάς §1022ἀνδροφθόρου βεβρῶτες αἵματος λίπος. §1023ταῦτʼ οὖν, τέκνον, φρόνησον.
How I shudder at your words! You will know, when you hear the signs of my art. For sitting on my ancient seat of bird-divination, where I had a harbor for every omen-bird, I heard an unknown voice of birds, shrieking with a boding and barbarian fury. And I knew they were tearing each other with bloody talons; for the whirring of wings was not without meaning. And straightway in fear I made trial of burnt sacrifices on the fully blazed altars; but from the offerings Hephaestus did not shine, but upon the ashes a damp slime melted from the thigh-pieces and smoked and sputtered, and the gall-bladders were scattered aloft, and the dripping thigh-bones fell bare of the enclosing fat. Such failed prophecies of unmeaning rites I learned from this boy; for he is a guide to me, as I am to others. And this city is sick because of your counsel; for our altars and hearths are all full of the food brought by birds and dogs from the fallen son of unfortunate Oedipus. Therefore the gods no longer accept our sacrificial prayers nor the flame of thigh-pieces, nor does any bird shriek forth clear-omened cries, having fed on the fat of a slain man's blood. Reflect on these things, my child.
ἀνθρώποισι γὰρ §1024τοῖς πᾶσι κοινόν ἐστι τοὐξαμαρτάνειν· §1025ἐπεὶ δʼ ἁμάρτῃ, κεῖνος οὐκέτʼ ἔστʼ ἀνὴρ §1026ἄβουλος οὐδʼ ἄνολβος, ὅστις ἐς κακὸν §1027πεσὼν ἀκῆται μηδʼ ἀκίνητος πέλῃ. §1028αὐθαδία τοι σκαιότητʼ ὀφλισκάνει. §1029ἀλλʼ εἶκε τῷ θανόντι μηδʼ ὀλωλότα §1030κέντει· τίς ἀλκὴ τὸν θανόντʼ ἐπικτανεῖν;
For to all men error is common; but when a man has erred, he is no longer unwise or unblest, who having fallen into evil heals his mistake and does not remain stubborn. Stubbornness indeed incurs the charge of folly. But yield to the dead and do not stab the fallen. What strength is there in killing the dead again? Having thought well for you, I speak well.
§1031εὖ σοι φρονήσας εὖ λέγω. τὸ μανθάνειν δʼ §1032ἥδιστον εὖ λέγοντος, εἰ κέρδος λέγοι. §1033ὦ πρέσβυ, πάντες ὥστε τοξόται σκοποῦ §1034τοξεύετʼ ἀνδρὸς τοῦδε, κοὐδὲ μαντικῆς §1035ἄπρακτος ὑμῖν εἰμι· τῶν δʼ ὑπαὶ γένους §1036ἐξημπόλημαι κἀμπεφόρτισμαι πάλαι. §1037κερδαίνετʼ, ἐμπολᾶτε τἀπὸ Σάρδεων §1038ἤλεκτρον, εἰ βούλεσθε, καὶ τὸν Ἰνδικὸν §1039χρυσόν· τάφῳ δʼ ἐκεῖνον οὐχὶ κρύψετε, §1040οὐδʼ εἰ θέλουσʼ οἱ Ζηνὸς αἰετοὶ βορὰν §1041φέρειν νιν ἁρπάζοντες ἐς Διὸς θρόνους, §1042οὐδʼ ὣς μίασμα τοῦτο μὴ τρέσας ἐγὼ §1043θάπτειν παρήσω κεῖνον· εὖ γὰρ οἶδʼ ὅτι §1044θεοὺς μιαίνειν οὔτις ἀνθρώπων σθένει. §1045πίπτουσι δʼ, ὦ γεραιὲ Τειρεσία, βροτῶν §1046χοἰ πολλὰ δεινοὶ πτώματʼ αἴσχρʼ, ὅταν λόγους §1047αἰσχροὺς καλῶς λέγωσι τοῦ κέρδους χάριν. §1048φεῦ. §1048aἆρʼ οἶδεν ἀνθρώπων τις, ἆρα φράζεται, §1049τί χρῆμα;
And to learn from one who speaks well is most pleasant, if he speaks for your gain. Old man, you all, like archers at a target, shoot your arrows at this man, nor am I untried by your seercraft; by that tribe I have long been bought and sold and made a cargo. Gain your profit, buy and sell the electrum of Sardis, if you will, and the Indian gold; but you shall not hide him in a grave, not even if Zeus's eagles wish to carry his flesh, snatching it, to the throne of Zeus— not even so, fearing this defilement, will I permit his burial; for I well know that no human being has the power to defile the gods. But, old Teiresias, even the very clever among mortals fall with shameful falls, when they speak shameful thoughts gracefully for the sake of gain. Alas! Does any man know, does any man consider— What is it?
ποῖον τοῦτο πάγκοινον λέγεις; §1050ὅσῳ κράτιστον κτημάτων εὐβουλία; §1051ὅσῳπερ, οἶμαι, μὴ φρονεῖν πλείστη βλάβη. §1052ταύτης σὺ μέντοι τῆς νόσου πλήρης ἔφυς. §1053οὐ βούλομαι τὸν μάντιν ἀντειπεῖν κακῶς. §1054καὶ μὴν λέγεις, ψευδῆ με θεσπίζειν λέγων. §1055τὸ μαντικὸν γὰρ πᾶν φιλάργυρον γένος. §1056τὸ δʼ ἐκ τυράννων αἰσχροκέρδειαν φιλεῖ. §1057ἆρʼ οἶσθα ταγοὺς ὄντας ἃν λέγῃς λέγων; §1058οἶδʼ· ἐξ ἐμοῦ γὰρ τήνδʼ ἔχεις σώσας πόλιν. §1059σοφὸς σὺ μάντις, ἀλλὰ τἀδικεῖν φιλῶν. §1060ὄρσεις με τἀκίνητα διὰ φρενῶν φράσαι. §1061κίνει, μόνον δὲ μὴ ʼπὶ κέρδεσιν λέγων. §1062οὕτω γὰρ ἤδη καὶ δοκῶ τὸ σὸν μέρος. §1063ὡς μὴ ʼμπολήσων ἴσθι τὴν ἐμὴν φρένα.
What general truth is this you speak? How much the best of possessions is good counsel? As much, I think, as lack of sense is the greatest harm. Yet you are full of this very sickness. I do not wish to answer the seer with insults. And yet you do, saying that I prophesy falsely. For the whole tribe of seers is fond of money. And that of tyrants loves shameful gain. Do you know that whatever you say, you say of your rulers? I know; for through me you hold this city, having saved it. You are a wise seer, but fond of doing injustice. You will rouse me to speak the secrets of my soul. Speak them, only speak not for the sake of gain. Indeed, I think I shall not speak for your gain even now. Know that you shall not traffic in my resolve.