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Herodotus · Histories §2.111.1-2.111.4

Blinding of Pheros and the Recovery of His Sight

Passage 327 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

After Sesostris' death, his son Pheros succeeded to the throne; he was blinded for his impious act against the Nile, but recovered his sight by following an oracle to wash his eyes with the urine of a faithful woman, after which he burned the unfaithful ones.

§2.111.1Σεσώστριος δὲ τελευτήσαντος ἐκδέξασθαι ἔλεγον τὴν βασιληίην τὸν παῖδα αὐτοῦ Φερῶν, τὸν ἀποδέξασθαι μὲν οὐδεμίαν στρατηίην, συνενειχθῆναι δέ οἱ τυφλὸν γενέσθαι διὰ τοιόνδε πρῆγμα.
\nWhen Sesostris died, they said that his son Pheros succeeded to the kingdom.
τοῦ ποταμοῦ κατελθόντος μέγιστα δὴ τότε ἐπʼ ὀκτωκαίδεκα πήχεας, ὡς ὑπερέβαλε τὰς ἀρούρας, πνεύματος ἐμπεσόντος κυματίης ὁ ποταμὸς ἐγένετο· §2.111.2τὸν δὲ βασιλέα λέγουσι τοῦτον ἀτασθαλίῃ χρησάμενον, λαβόντα αἰχμὴν βαλεῖν ἐς μέσας τὰς δίνας τοῦ ποταμοῦ, μετὰ δὲ αὐτίκα καμόντα αὐτὸν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τυφλωθῆναι.
He undertook no military expedition, but it happened to him to become blind because of the following event: the river having then risen to its greatest height of eighteen cubits, when it overflowed the fields, a wind fell upon it and the river became very rough with waves.\n\nThey say that this king, acting with impious folly, took a spear and cast it into the midst of the eddies of the river, and immediately after he suffered in his eyes and became blind.
δέκα μὲν δὴ ἔτεα εἶναί μιν τυφλόν, ἑνδεκάτῳ δὲ ἔτεϊ ἀπικέσθαι οἱ μαντήιον ἐκ Βουτοῦς πόλιος ὡς ἐξήκει τέ οἱ ὁ χρόνος τῆς ζημίης καὶ ἀναβλέψει γυναικὸς οὔρῳ νιψάμενος τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς, ἥτις παρὰ τὸν ἑωυτῆς ἄνδρα μοῦνον πεφοίτηκε, ἄλλων ἀνδρῶν ἐοῦσα ἄπειρος. §2.111.3καὶ τὸν πρώτης τῆς ἑωυτοῦ γυναικὸς πειρᾶσθαι, μετὰ δέ, ὡς οὐκ ἀνέβλεπε, ἐπεξῆς πασέων πειρᾶσθαι· ἀναβλέψαντα δὲ συναγαγεῖν τὰς γυναῖκας τῶν ἐπειρήθη, πλὴν ἢ τῆς τῷ οὔρῳ νιψάμενος ἀνέβλεψε, ἐς μίαν πόλιν, ἣ νῦν καλέεται Ἐρυθρὴ βῶλος· ἐς ταύτην συναλίσαντα ὑποπρῆσαι πάσας σὺν αὐτῇ τῇ πόλι· §2.111.4τῆς δὲ νιψάμενος τῷ οὔρῳ ἀνέβλεψε, ταύτην δὲ ἔσχε αὐτὸς γυναῖκα.
For ten years he was blind, but in the eleventh year there came to him an oracle from the city of Buto, saying that the time of his correction was expired, and that he should recover his sight by washing his eyes with the urine of a woman who had accompanied only her own husband and was inexperienced of other men.\n\nAnd first he made trial of his own wife, and after that, as he did not recover his sight, he made trial of all of them one after another; and when he recovered his sight, he collected the women of whom he had made trial, except her by whose urine he had recovered his sight, into one city which is now called Red Clod; and having gathered them into this place, he burned them all together with the city itself.\n\nBut as for the woman by whose urine he had recovered his sight, he took her to be his own wife.
ἀναθήματα δὲ ἀποφυγὼν τὴν πάθην τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἄλλα τε ἀνὰ τὰ ἱρὰ πάντα τὰ λόγιμα ἀνέθηκε καὶ τοῦ γε λόγον μάλιστα ἄξιον ἐστὶ ἔχειν, ἐς τοῦ Ἡλίου τὸ ἱρὸν ἀξιοθέητα ἀνέθηκε ἔργα, ὀβελοὺς δύο λιθίνους, ἐξ ἑνὸς ἐόντα ἑκάτερον λίθου, μῆκος μὲν ἑκάτερον πηχέων ἑκατόν, εὖρος δὲ ὀκτὼ πηχέων.
Having escaped from this disease of his eyes, he dedicated other offerings in all the famous temples, and especially, what is most worthy of mention, he dedicated to the temple of Helios wonderful works, namely two stone obelisks, each made of a single stone, each being a hundred cubits in length and eight cubits in breadth.

Notes

  1. 2.111.1συνενειχθῆναι δέ οἱ τυφλὸν γενέσθαι — Meaning "it happened to him to become blind." The verb συμφέρω (here in the Ionic passive aorist infinitive συνενειχθῆναι) means "to happen," taking the accusative with infinitive clause τυφλὸν γενέσθαι as its subject and οἱ (to him, dative) as the indirect object.
  2. 2.111.2καμόντα αὐτὸν τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς — Meaning "he himself having suffered in his eyes." καμόντα is the aorist active participle of κάμνω (to suffer, grow ill) in the accusative, agreeing with the subject of the infinitive in the main clause, τὸν δὲ βασιλέα... τοῦτον. τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς is an accusative of respect (specification).
  3. 2.111.3τῶν ἐπειρήθη, πλὴν ἢ τῆς — Meaning "of those whom he had tried, except her." τῶν is the genitive of the relative pronoun (with the antecedent omitted), governed by the verb πειρῶμαι (to try), which takes a genitive. τῆς following πλὴν ἤ (except) is also a relative pronoun in the genitive, either by attraction from the omitted antecedent or governed in relation to the main action.
  4. 2.111.4τοῦ γε λόγον μάλιστα ἄξιον ἐστὶ ἔχειν — Meaning "of which it is especially worth making mention." τοῦ is the neuter singular demonstrative pronoun in the genitive, associated with ἔχειν λόγον (to make mention of, take account of). ἄξιον ἐστὶ (it is worthy) governs the infinitive ἔχειν.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §2.111.1-2.111.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:2.111.1-2.111.4

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