§12.192ὣς φάσαν ἱεῖσαι ὄπα κάλλιμον· αὐτὰρ ἐμὸν κῆρ §12.193ἤθελʼ ἀκουέμεναι, λῦσαί τʼ ἐκέλευον ἑταίρους §12.194ὀφρύσι νευστάζων· οἱ δὲ προπεσόντες ἔρεσσον.
So they spoke, sending forth their beautiful voice; but my heart desired to listen, and I bade my companions to loose me, nodding with my brows; but they bent forward and rowed.
§12.195αὐτίκα δʼ ἀνστάντες Περιμήδης Εὐρύλοχός τε §12.196πλείοσί μʼ ἐν δεσμοῖσι δέον μᾶλλόν τε πίεζον.
And straightway Perimedes and Eurylochus, rising up, bound me with yet more bonds and pressed me tighter.
§12.197αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δὴ τάς γε παρήλασαν, οὐδʼ ἔτʼ ἔπειτα §12.198φθογγῆς Σειρήνων ἠκούομεν οὐδέ τʼ ἀοιδῆς, §12.199αἶψʼ ἀπὸ κηρὸν ἕλοντο ἐμοὶ ἐρίηρες ἑταῖροι, §12.200ὅν σφιν ἐπʼ ὠσὶν ἄλειψʼ, ἐμέ τʼ ἐκ δεσμῶν ἀνέλυσαν.
But when they had driven past them, and no longer thereafter did we hear the voice of the Sirens nor their song, straightway my trusty companions took away the wax which I had anointed upon their ears, and freed me from my bonds.
§12.201ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ τὴν νῆσον ἐλείπομεν, αὐτίκʼ ἔπειτα §12.202καπνὸν καὶ μέγα κῦμα ἴδον καὶ δοῦπον ἄκουσα.
But when we were indeed leaving the island, immediately thereafter I saw smoke and a great wave, and heard a thundering din.
§12.203τῶν δʼ ἄρα δεισάντων ἐκ χειρῶν ἔπτατʼ ἐρετμά, §12.204βόμβησαν δʼ ἄρα πάντα κατὰ ῥόον· ἔσχετο δʼ αὐτοῦ §12.205νηῦς, ἐπεὶ οὐκέτʼ ἐρετμὰ προήκεα χερσὶν ἔπειγον.
And from my terrified men the oars flew from their hands, and they all splashed in the running stream; and the ship stopped there, since they no longer pressed forward the tapered oars with their hands.
§12.206αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ διὰ νηὸς ἰὼν ὤτρυνον ἑταίρους §12.207μειλιχίοις ἐπέεσσι παρασταδὸν ἄνδρα ἕκαστον· §12.208ὦ φίλοι, οὐ γάρ πώ τι κακῶν ἀδαήμονές εἰμεν· §12.209οὐ μὲν δὴ τόδε μεῖζον ἕπει κακόν, ἢ ὅτε Κύκλωψ §12.210εἴλει ἐνὶ σπῆι γλαφυρῷ κρατερῆφι βίηφιν· §12.211ἀλλὰ καὶ ἔνθεν ἐμῇ ἀρετῇ, βουλῇ τε νόῳ τε, §12.212ἐκφύγομεν, καί που τῶνδε μνήσεσθαι ὀίω.
But I, going through the ship, encouraged my companions with gentle words, standing by each man: "O friends, for we are by no means unacquainted with evils; surely this evil is no greater than when the Cyclops penned us in his hollow cave by his mighty force; yet even from there, by my courage, counsel, and mind, we escaped, and I think we shall one day remember these things as well.
§12.213νῦν δʼ ἄγεθʼ, ὡς ἂν ἐγὼ εἴπω, πειθώμεθα πάντες.
Now come, as I shall say, let us all obey.
§12.214ὑμεῖς μὲν κώπῃσιν ἁλὸς ῥηγμῖνα βαθεῖαν §12.215τύπτετε κληίδεσσιν ἐφήμενοι, αἴ κέ ποθι Ζεὺς §12.216δώῃ τόνδε γʼ ὄλεθρον ὑπεκφυγέειν καὶ ἀλύξαι· §12.217σοὶ δέ, κυβερνῆθʼ, ὧδʼ ἐπιτέλλομαι· ἀλλʼ ἐνὶ θυμῷ §12.218βάλλευ, ἐπεὶ νηὸς γλαφυρῆς οἰήια νωμᾷς.
Do you smite the deep surf of the sea with your oars as you sit upon your benches, if perchance Zeus may grant us to escape this destruction and avoid it; and to you, helmsman, I charge this: lay it in your heart, since you guide the steering-oars of our hollow ship.
§12.219τούτου μὲν καπνοῦ καὶ κύματος ἐκτὸς ἔεργε §12.220νῆα, σὺ δὲ σκοπέλου ἐπιμαίεο, μή σε λάθῃσι §12.221κεῖσʼ ἐξορμήσασα καὶ ἐς κακὸν ἄμμε βάλῃσθα. §12.222ὣς ἐφάμην, οἱ δʼ ὦκα ἐμοῖς ἐπέεσσι πίθοντο.
Keep the ship outside of this smoke and wave, and do you hug the cliff, lest she slip away from you rushing thither, and you cast us into disaster." So I spoke, and they quickly obeyed my words.
§12.223Σκύλλην δʼ οὐκέτʼ ἐμυθεόμην, ἄπρηκτον ἀνίην, §12.224μή πώς μοι δείσαντες ἀπολλήξειαν ἑταῖροι §12.225εἰρεσίης, ἐντὸς δὲ πυκάζοιεν σφέας αὐτούς.
But of Scylla I spoke no more, an incurable grief, lest my companions, fearing, should cease from rowing and hide themselves within the ship.
§12.226καὶ τότε δὴ Κίρκης μὲν ἐφημοσύνης ἀλεγεινῆς §12.227λανθανόμην, ἐπεὶ οὔ τί μʼ ἀνώγει θωρήσσεσθαι· §12.228αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ καταδὺς κλυτὰ τεύχεα καὶ δύο δοῦρε §12.229μάκρʼ ἐν χερσὶν ἑλὼν εἰς ἴκρια νηὸς ἔβαινον §12.230πρῴρης· ἔνθεν γάρ μιν ἐδέγμην πρῶτα φανεῖσθαι §12.231Σκύλλην πετραίην, ἥ μοι φέρε πῆμʼ ἑτάροισιν.
And then indeed, of Circe's painful command I forgot, since she bade me by no means to arm myself; but I, putting on my famous armor and taking two long spears in my hands, went onto the deck of the ship, at the prow; for from there I expected her first to appear, rocky Scylla, who was to bring ruin to my companions.
But nowhere could I descry her, and my eyes grew weary as I looked every way toward the misty rock.
§12.234ἡμεῖς μὲν στεινωπὸν ἀνεπλέομεν γοόωντες· §12.235ἔνθεν μὲν Σκύλλη, ἑτέρωθι δὲ δῖα Χάρυβδις §12.236δεινὸν ἀνερροίβδησε θαλάσσης ἁλμυρὸν ὕδωρ.
So we sailed up the strait, weeping; on one side was Scylla, and on the other divine Charybdis terribly sucked down the salty water of the sea.
§12.237ἦ τοι ὅτʼ ἐξεμέσειε, λέβης ὣς ἐν πυρὶ πολλῷ §12.238πᾶσʼ ἀναμορμύρεσκε κυκωμένη, ὑψόσε δʼ ἄχνη §12.239ἄκροισι σκοπέλοισιν ἐπʼ ἀμφοτέροισιν ἔπιπτεν· §12.240ἀλλʼ ὅτʼ ἀναβρόξειε θαλάσσης ἁλμυρὸν ὕδωρ, §12.241πᾶσʼ ἔντοσθε φάνεσκε κυκωμένη, ἀμφὶ δὲ πέτρη §12.242δεινὸν ἐβεβρύχει, ὑπένερθε δὲ γαῖα φάνεσκε §12.243ψάμμῳ κυανέη· τοὺς δὲ χλωρὸν δέος ᾕρει.
Verily, when she vomited it up, like a cauldron on a great fire she would seethe and bubble all over, and high up the spray would fall upon the tops of both the cliffs; but when she swallowed down the salty water of the sea, she showed all within, seething, and the rock around bellowed terribly, and below the earth appeared dark with sand; and pale fear seized my men.
§12.244ἡμεῖς μὲν πρὸς τὴν ἴδομεν δείσαντες ὄλεθρον· §12.245τόφρα δέ μοι Σκύλλη γλαφυρῆς ἐκ νηὸς ἑταίρους §12.246ἓξ ἕλεθʼ, οἳ χερσίν τε βίηφί τε φέρτατοι ἦσαν.
We looked toward her, fearing destruction; meanwhile Scylla snatched from my hollow ship six of my companions, who were the best in strength and might.
§12.247σκεψάμενος δʼ ἐς νῆα θοὴν ἅμα καὶ μεθʼ ἑταίρους §12.248ἤδη τῶν ἐνόησα πόδας καὶ χεῖρας ὕπερθεν §12.249ὑψόσʼ ἀειρομένων· ἐμὲ δὲ φθέγγοντο καλεῦντες §12.250ἐξονομακλήδην, τότε γʼ ὕστατον, ἀχνύμενοι κῆρ.
And looking onto the swift ship and also for my companions, already I perceived their feet and hands above, raised on high; and they cried out, calling me by name, for that last time, grieved at heart.
§12.251ὡς δʼ ὅτʼ ἐπὶ προβόλῳ ἁλιεὺς περιμήκεϊ ῥάβδῳ §12.252ἰχθύσι τοῖς ὀλίγοισι δόλον κατὰ εἴδατα βάλλων §12.253ἐς πόντον προΐησι βοὸς κέρας ἀγραύλοιο, §12.254ἀσπαίροντα δʼ ἔπειτα λαβὼν ἔρριψε θύραζε, §12.255ὣς οἵ γʼ ἀσπαίροντες ἀείροντο προτὶ πέτρας· §12.256αὐτοῦ δʼ εἰνὶ θύρῃσι κατήσθιε κεκληγῶτας §12.257χεῖρας ἐμοὶ ὀρέγοντας ἐν αἰνῇ δηιοτῆτι·
And as when a fisherman on a jutting rock with a long rod casts baits as a snare for little fish, and lets down into the sea the horn of an ox of the field, and then takes the gasping fish and flings it ashore, so they, gasping, were raised up toward the rocks; and there at her doors she devoured them, as they shrieked and stretched out their hands to me in their terrible struggle.