§280μηδέν τι μᾶλλον ἢ νοσῶν εὐφραίνεται;
Is he any more glad than when he was sick?
§281ὡς ὧδʼ ἐχόντων τῶνδʼ ἐπίστασθαί σε χρή.
You must understand that things are thus.
§282τίς γάρ ποτʼ ἀρχὴ τοῦ κακοῦ προσέπτατο;
What beginning of the evil ever flew upon him?
§283δήλωσον ἡμῖν τοῖς ξυναλγοῦσιν τύχας.
Show the fortunes to us who suffer with you.
§284ἅπαν μαθήσῃ τοὔργον, ὡς κοινωνὸς ὤν.
You shall learn the whole deed, as a sharer in it.
§285κεῖνος γὰρ ἄκρας νυκτός, ἡνίχʼ ἕσπεροι §286λαμπτῆρες οὐκέτʼ ᾖθον, ἄμφηκες λαβὼν §287ἐμαίετʼ ἔγχος ἐξόδους ἕρπειν κενάς.
For he, at dead of night, when the evening lamps no longer burned, taking a two-edged sword, sought to make a profitless excursion.
And I rebuked him and said, "What are you doing, Ajax?
Why do you set out on this attempt uncalled, neither summoned by messengers, nor having heard any trumpet?
ἀλλὰ νῦν γε πᾶς εὕδει στρατός. §292ὃ δʼ εἶπε πρός με βαίʼ, ἀεὶ δʼ ὑμνούμενα· §293γύναι, γυναιξὶ κόσμον ἡ σιγὴ φέρει. §294κἀγὼ μαθοῦσʼ ἔληξʼ, ὃ δʼ ἐσσύθη μόνος.
But now indeed the whole army is asleep." But he spoke to me few words, but always chanted: "Woman, silence brings ornament to women." And I, having learned this, ceased; but he rushed out alone.
§295καὶ τὰς ἐκεῖ μὲν οὐκ ἔχω λέγειν πάθας· §296εἴσω δʼ ἐσῆλθε συνδέτους ἄγων ὁμοῦ §297ταύρους, κύνας βοτῆρας, εὔερόν τʼ ἄγραν.
And I cannot speak of the sufferings there; but he came inside leading together, bound, bulls, shepherd dogs, and a woolly prey.
§298καὶ τοὺς μὲν ηὐχένιζε, τοὺς δʼ ἄνω τρέπων §299ἔσφαζε κἀρράχιζε, τοὺς δὲ δεσμίους §300ᾐκίζεθʼ ὥστε φῶτας ἐν ποίμναις πίτνων.
And of some he cut the throats, and some, turning them upward, he slaughtered and split their spines, and others, bound, he abused as if they were men, falling upon the flocks.
§301τέλος δʼ ἀπᾴξας διὰ θυρῶν σκιᾷ τινι §302λόγους ἀνέσπα τοὺς μὲν Ἀτρειδῶν κάτα, §303τοὺς δʼ ἀμφʼ Ὀδυσσεῖ, συντιθεὶς γέλων πολύν, §304ὅσην κατʼ αὐτῶν ὕβριν ἐκτείσαιτʼ ἰών·
At last, rushing out through the doors, to some shadow he hurled words, some against the Atreidae, and some about Odysseus, joining with them much laughter, declaring how great an insult he had gone and avenged upon them.
And then, having rushed back inside the house again, he returned to his senses with difficulty, somehow, in time.
§307καὶ πλῆρες ἄτης ὡς διοπτεύει στέγος, §308παίσας κάρα ʼθώυξεν· ἐν δʼ ἐρειπίοις §309νεκρῶν ἐρεισθεὶς ἕζετʼ ἀρνείου φόνου, §310κόμην ἀπρὶξ ὄνυξι συλλαβὼν χερί.
And as he looked upon the house full of ruin, striking his head, he wailed aloud; and in the ruins of the slaughtered sheep, he sat collapsed in the blood, grasping his hair tightly with his nails and hand.
§311καὶ τὸν μὲν ἧστο πλεῖστον ἄφθογγος χρόνον·
And for the longest time, he sat speechless.
§312ἔπειτʼ ἐμοὶ τὰ δείνʼ ἐπηπείλησʼ ἔπη, §313εἰ μὴ φανοίην πᾶν τὸ συντυχὸν πάθος, §314κἀνήρετʼ ἐν τῷ πράγματος κυροῖ ποτε.
Then he threatened me with terrifying words, if I should not reveal all the misfortune that had happened, and asked in what state of affairs he actually found himself.
And I, friends, fearing what had been done, told him everything as much as I knew well.
And he straightway wailed bitter laments, such as I had never heard from him before.
§319πρὸς γὰρ κακοῦ τε καὶ βαρυψύχου γόους §320τοιούσδʼ ἀεί ποτʼ ἀνδρὸς ἐξηγεῖτʼ ἔχειν· §321ἀλλʼ ἀψόφητος ὀξέων κωκυμάτων §322ὑπεστέναζε ταῦρος ὣς βρυχώμενος.
For he always explained that such wailings belonged to a cowardly and heavy-spirited man; but without the sound of sharp shrieks, he groaned low, like a roaring bull.
§323νῦν δʼ ἐν τοιᾷδε κείμενος κακῇ τύχῃ §324ἄσιτος ἁνήρ, ἄποτος, ἐν μέσοις βοτοῖς §325σιδηροκμῆσιν ἥσυχος θακεῖ πεσών.
But now, lying in such evil fortune, the man, without food, without drink, in the midst of the beasts slain by the sword, sits quietly where he fell.
And it is clear that he is desiring to do some evil; for such indeed are the words he speaks and laments.
But, O friends, for this cause was I sent, go in and help, if you have any power.
§330φίλων γὰρ οἱ τοιοίδε νικῶνται λόγοις.
For such men as he are conquered by the words of friends.
Tecmessa, daughter of Teleutas, you speak terrible things to us, that our master has been driven mad by evils.
§333ἰώ μοί μοι.
Oh, alas for me!
§334τάχʼ, ὡς ἔοικε, μᾶλλον·
Quickly, it seems, it grows worse.
ἢ οὐκ ἠκούσατε §335Αἴαντος οἵαν τήνδε θωύσσει βοήν;
Or did you not hear what a cry Ajax is shouting here?
§336ἰώ μοί μοι.
Oh, alas for me!
The man seems either to be sick, or present to be distressed with the past sicknesses that abide with him.
§339ἰὼ παῖ παῖ.
Oh, my child, my child!
§340ὤμοι τάλαινʼ·
Alas, wretched me!
Εὐρύσακες, ἀμφὶ σοὶ βοᾷ.
Eurysaces, he is shouting about you.
§341τί ποτε μενοινᾷ;
What is he planning?
ποῦ ποτʼ εἶ;
Where are you?
τάλαινʼ ἐγώ.
Wretched me!
§342Τεῦκρον καλῶ.
I call Teucer!
ποῦ Τεῦκρος;
Where is Teucer?
ἢ τὸν εἰσαεὶ §343λεηλατήσει χρόνον, ἐγὼ δʼ ἀπόλλυμαι;
Will he forever plunder, while I am perishing?
§344ἁνὴρ φρονεῖν ἔοικεν.
The man seems to be sane.
ἀλλʼ ἀνοίγετε.
But open the door.
§345τάχʼ ἄν τινʼ αἰδῶ κἀπʼ ἐμοὶ βλέψας λάβοι.
Perhaps, on seeing me, he might feel some shame.
Behold, I open it; and you may look upon the deeds of this man, and how he himself fares.
§348ἰώ, §349φίλοι ναυβάται, μόνοι ἐμῶν φίλων §350μόνοι ἔτʼ ἐμμένοντες ὀρθῷ νόμῳ, §351ἴδεσθέ μʼ οἷον ἄρτι κῦ- §352μα φοινίας ὑπὸ ζάλης §353ἀμφίδρομον κυκλεῖται.
Oh, my friend-mariners, you alone of my friends alone still remaining faithful to the right law, behold me, what a wave under the bloody storm is swirling around me.
§354οἴμʼ ὡς ἔοικας ὀρθὰ μαρτυρεῖν ἄγαν.
Alas, how too truly you seem to have testified.
§355δηλοῖ δὲ τοὔργον ὡς ἀφροντίστως ἔχει.
The deed shows how distracted he is.
§356ἰώ, §357γένος ναΐας ἀρωγὸν τέχνας, §358ἅλιον ὃς ἐπέβας ἑλίσσων πλάταν, §359σέ τοι σέ τοι μόνον δέδορ- §360κα πημονὰν ἐπαρκέσοντʼ.
Oh, race that helps in the naval art, you who went upon the sea, wielding the oar, you, indeed you alone have I seen as one who will ward off my disaster.
§361ἀλλά με συνδάιξον.
But slay me as well!
Speak no ill-omened words; do not, by adding evil to evil, make the remedy a greater pain than the ruin.
§364ὁρᾷς τὸν θρασύν, τὸν εὐκάρδιον, §365τὸν ἐν δαΐοις ἄτρεστον μάχαις, §366ἐν ἀφόβοις με θηρσὶ δεινὸν χέρας
Do you see the bold, the stout-hearted one, the fearless one in hostile battles, laying his terrible hands upon harmless beasts?
§367οἴμοι γέλωτος, οἷον ὑβρίσθην ἄρα.
Alas for the laughter! How I have been insulted then!