§1673ᾧτινι τὸν πολὺν §1674ἄλλοτε μὲν πόνον ἔμπεδον εἴχομεν, §1675ἐν πυμάτῳ δʼ ἀλόγιστα παροίσομεν §1676ἰδόντε καὶ παθόντε.
For whom we indeed at another time held constant and great labor, but at the end we shall bear away what is beyond measure, having seen and suffered.
§1677τί δʼ ἔστιν;
What is it?
§1677aἔστιν μὲν εἰκάσαι, φίλοι.
It is possible to guess, friends.
§1678βέβηκεν;
Is he gone?
§1678aὡς μάλιστʼ ἂν ἐν πόθῳ λάβοις.
In such a way as you would most desire.
§1679τί γάρ, ὅτῳ μήτʼ Ἄρης
For how indeed?
Since neither Ares nor the sea met him, but invisible plains snatched him away, carried off in some unseen fate.
§1683τάλαινα·
Wretched me!
νῶν δʼ ὀλεθρία §1684νὺξ ἐπʼ ὄμμασιν βέβακε.
And upon both of us a destructive night has come over our eyes.
For how, wandering either to some distant land or on the sea-waves, shall we keep our difficult livelihood?
§1687οὐ κάτοιδα.
I know not.
κατά με φόνιος §1688Ἀΐδας ἕλοι πατρὶ ξυνθανεῖν γεραιῷ
May murderous Hades seize me, to die together with my aged father, wretched me!
§1690τάλαιναν, ὡς ἔμοιγʼ ὁ μέλλων βίος οὐ βιωτός.
Since the life to come is not worth living for me.
§1691ὦ διδύμα τέκνων ἀρίστα, §1692τὸ φέρον ἐκ θεοῦ φέρειν, §1695μηδὲν ἄγαν φλέγεσθον· οὔ τοι κατάμεμπτʼ ἔβητον.
O best dual of children, bear what is brought by the god; do not burn with too much grief; your path was not to be blamed.
§1696πόθος τοὶ καὶ κακῶν ἄρʼ ἦν τις.
So there was indeed some longing even for hardships.
For even what was in no way dear was dear, whenever indeed I held him in my arms.
§1702ὦ πάτερ, ὦ φίλος, §1703ὦ τὸν ἀεὶ κατὰ γᾶς σκότον εἱμένος· §1704οὐδέ γʼ ἔνερθʼ ἀφίλητος ἐμοί ποτε §1705καὶ τᾷδε μὴ κυρήσῃς.
O father, O dear one, O you who are clothed in eternal darkness beneath the earth; never indeed even below shall you be unloved by me and by this girl here.
§1706ἔπραξεν;
Has he done it?
§1706aἔπραξεν οἷον ἤθελεν.
He has done as he wished.
§1707τὸ ποῖον;
In what way?
§1707aἇς ἔχρῃζε γᾶς ἐπὶ ξένας §1708ἔθανε· κοίταν δʼ ἔχει §1708aνέρθεν εὐσκίαστον αἰέν, §1709οὐδὲ πένθος ἔλιπʼ ἄκλαυτον.
On the foreign land he desired he died; and he has his bed below well-shaded forever, nor did he leave mourning unwept.
§1709aἀνὰ γὰρ ὄμμα σε τόδʼ, ὦ πάτερ, ἐμὸν §1710στένει δακρῦον, οὐδʼ ἔχω §1711πῶς με χρὴ τὸ σὸν τάλαιναν §1712ἀφανίσαι τοσόνδʼ ἄχος.
For this eye of mine, O father, weeps and groans for you, nor do I know how I, wretched one, should erase such great grief of yours.
Alas, you desired to die on a foreign land, but you died thus deserted by me.
§1715ὦ τάλαινα, τίς ἄρα με πότμος αὖθις ὧδʼ
Wretched me!
§1719ἐπαμμένει σέ τʼ, ὦ φίλα, τὰς πατρὸς ὧδʼ ἐρήμας;
What fate indeed next awaits me and you, dear sister, thus deserted by our father?
§1720ἀλλʼ ἐπεὶ ὀλβίως γʼ ἔλυσεν §1721τὸ τέλος, ὦ φίλαι, βίου, §1722λήγετε τοῦδʼ ἄχους· κακῶν γὰρ δυσάλωτος οὐδείς.
But since he happily ended the close of his life, O dear friends, cease from this grief; for no one is hard for misfortunes to capture.
§1723πάλιν, φίλα, συθῶμεν.
Let us hasten back, dear sister.
§1723aὡς τί ῥέξομεν;
To do what?
§1724ἵμερος ἔχει με.
A desire possesses me.
§1724aτίς;
What desire?
§1725τὰν χθόνιον ἑστίαν ἰδεῖν
To see the underworld home.
§1726τίνος;
Of whom?
§1726aπατρός, τάλαινʼ ἐγώ.
Of our father, wretched me!
§1727θέμις δὲ πῶς τάδʼ ἐστί;
But how is this lawful?
μῶν §1728οὐχ ὁρᾷς;
Do you not see?
§1730τί τόδε ἐπέπληξας;
Why do you rebuke me for this?
§1732ἄταφος ἔπιτνε δίχα τε παντός.
He fell without a tomb and apart from all.
§1733ἄγε με, καὶ τότʼ ἐπενάριξον.
Lead me there, and then kill me too.
Alas, most wretched, where indeed again, thus deserted and helpless, shall I lead my miserable life?
§1737φίλαι, τρέσητε μηδέν.
Dear friends, fear nothing.
§1737aἀλλὰ ποῖ φύγω;
But where shall I flee?
§1738καὶ πάρος ἀπέφυγε
Even before, you escaped.
§1738aτί;
From what?
§1740τὰ σφῷν τὸ μὴ πίτνειν κακῶς.
Your affairs falling into ruin.
§1741φρονῶ.
I understand.
§1741aτί δῆθʼ ὅπερ νοεῖς;
What then are you thinking?
§1743aμηδέ γε μάτευε.
Do not even seek it.
§1744μόγος ἔχει.
Trouble possesses us.
§1744aκαὶ πάρος ἐπεῖχε.
And before, it weighed upon you.
§1745τοτὲ μὲν ἄπορα, τοτὲ δʼ ὕπερθεν.
At one time hopeless, at another overwhelming.
§1746μέγʼ ἄρα πέλαγος ἐλάχετόν τι.
You have indeed received a great sea of trouble.
§1747ναὶ ναί.
Yes, yes.
§1747aξύμφημι καὐτός.
I agree too.
§1748αἰαῖ, ποῖ μόλωμεν, ὦ Ζεῦ;
Alas, where shall we go, O Zeus?
For to what hope does the god still drive me now?
§1751παύετε θρήνων, παῖδες· ἐν οἷς γὰρ §1752χάρις ἡ χθονία ξύνʼ ἀπόκειται, §1753πενθεῖν οὐ χρή· νέμεσις γάρ.
Cease from laments, children; for among those for whom the favor of the underworld is stored in common, one must not mourn; for it would provoke divine anger.
§1754ὦ τέκνον Αἰγέως, προσπίτνομέν σοι.
O son of Aegeus, we fall before you.
§1755τίνος, ὦ παῖδες, χρείας ἀνύσαι;
To accomplish what need, children?
§1756τύμβον θέλομεν προσιδεῖν αὐταὶ πατρὸς ἡμετέρου.
We wish to look upon our father’s tomb ourselves.
§1757ἀλλʼ οὐ θεμιτόν.
But it is not lawful.
§1758πῶς εἶπας, ἄναξ, κοίρανʼ Ἀθηνῶν;
How did you say, O lord, ruler of Athens?
§1760ὦ παῖδες, ἀπεῖπεν ἐμοὶ κεῖνος §1761μήτε πελάζειν ἐς τούσδε τόπους §1762μήτʼ ἐπιφωνεῖν μηδένα θνητῶν §1763θήκην ἱεράν, ἣν κεῖνος ἔχει.
O children, he forbade me either to approach these places, or to name to any mortal the sacred tomb which he possesses.
And he said that by doing this well I should keep the land always free from pain.
These things, therefore, our god heard, and the all-hearing Oath of Zeus.
§1768ἀλλʼ εἰ τάδʼ ἔχει κατὰ νοῦν κείνῳ, §1769ταῦτʼ ἂν ἀπαρκοῖ· Θήβας δʼ ἡμᾶς §1770τὰς ὠγυγίους πέμψον, ἐάν πως §1771διακωλύσωμεν ἰόντα φόνον §1772τοῖσιν ὁμαίμοις.
But if this is according to his mind, this must suffice; but send us to ancient Thebes, if somehow we might prevent the oncoming slaughter of our brothers.
§1773δράσω καὶ τάδε καὶ πάνθʼ ὁπόσʼ ἂν §1774μέλλω πράσσειν πρόσφορά θʼ ὑμῖν §1775καὶ τῷ κατὰ γῆς, ὃς νέον ἔρρει, §1776πρὸς χάριν· οὐ δεῖ μʼ ἀποκάμνειν.
I will do both this and all things which I am to do that are profitable for you and in favor of him beneath the earth, who has recently departed; I must not grow weary.