Humanitext Reader

Aristophanes · Birds §904-989b

Arrival and Expulsion of the Poet and the Oracle-Monger

Passage 13 of 22 · Greek

Summary

A poor poet and a suspicious oracle-monger arrive at the newly founded Cloudcuckooland to extort clothing and offerings, but both are eventually rejected and chased away by Pisthetaerus.

§904Νεφελοκοκκυγίαν τὰν εὐδαίμονα §905κλῇσον ὦ Μοῦσα τεαῖς ἐν ὓμνων ἀοιδαῖς.
Sing of happy Cloudcuckooland, O Muse, in the songs of your hymns.
§906τουτὶ τὸ πρᾶγμα ποδαπόν;
Pisthetaerus: What on earth is this creature?
εἰπέ μοι τίς εἶ;
Tell me, who are you?
§907ἐγὼ μελιγλώσσων ἐπέων ἱεὶς ἀοιδὰν §908Μουσάων θεράπων ὀτρηρός, §910κατὰ τὸν Ὅμηρον.
Poet: I am a singer pouring forth honey-tongued words, a nimble servant of the Muses, according to Homer.
§911ἔπειτα δῆτα δοῦλος ὢν κόμην ἔχεις;
Pisthetaerus: Then indeed, being a servant, do you have long hair?
§912οὔκ, ἀλλὰ πάντες ἐσμὲν οἱ διδάσκαλοι §913Μουσάων θεράποντες ὀτρηροί, §914κατὰ τὸν Ὅμηρον.
Poet: No, but all we teachers are nimble servants of the Muses, according to Homer.
§915οὐκ ἐτὸς ὀτρηρὸν καὶ τὸ ληδάριον ἔχεις.
Pisthetaerus: No wonder you have a nimble (threadbare) little cloak.
§916ἀτὰρ ὦ ποιητὰ κατὰ τί δεῦρʼ ἀνεφθάρης;
But, O poet, what brought you here to your ruin?
§917μέλη πεποίηκʼ ἐς τὰς Νεφελοκοκκυγίας §918τὰς ὑμετέρας κύκλιά τε πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ §919καὶ παρθένεια καὶ κατὰ τὰ Σιμωνίδου.
Poet: I have composed songs for your Cloudcuckooland, many beautiful lyric dityrambs, and maiden-songs, and some in the style of Simonides.
§920ταυτὶ σὺ πότʼ ἐποίησας;
Pisthetaerus: When did you compose these?
ἀπὸ ποίου χρόνου;
From what time?
§921πάλαι πάλαι δὴ τήνδʼ ἐγὼ κλῄζω πόλιν.
Poet: Long, long ago indeed have I been singing of this city.
§922οὐκ ἄρτι θύω τὴν δεκάτην ταύτης ἐγώ, §923καὶ τοὔνομʼ ὥσπερ παιδίῳ νῦν δὴ ʼθέμην;
Pisthetaerus: Am I not just now sacrificing for its tenth day, and have I not just now given it a name as if to a child?
§924ἀλλά τις ὠκεῖα Μουσάων φάτις §925οἷάπερ ἵππων ἀμαρυγά.
Poet: But swift is the voice of the Muses, like the flash of horses.
§926σὺ δὲ πάτερ κτίστορ Αἴτνας, §927ζαθέων ἱερῶν ὁμώνυμε, §928δὸς ἐμὶν ὅ τι περ §929τεᾷ κεφαλᾷ θέλῃς §930πρόφρων δόμεν ἐμὶν τείν.
And you, O father, founder of Aetna, namesake of the holy temples, give to me whatever you wish with your noble heart to give readily to me.
§931τουτὶ παρέξει τὸ κακὸν ἡμῖν πράγματα, §932εἰ μή τι τούτῳ δόντες ἀποφευξούμεθα.
Pisthetaerus: This nuisance will cause us trouble, unless we escape him by giving him something.
§933οὗτος, σὺ μέντοι σπολάδα καὶ χιτῶνʼ ἔχεις, §934ἀπόδυθι καὶ δὸς τῷ ποιητῇ τῷ σοφῷ.
You there, you indeed have a leather jerkin and a tunic, strip and give it to the wise poet.
§935ἔχε τὴν σπολάδα· πάντως δέ μοι ῥιγῶν δοκεῖς.
Take the jerkin; you certainly seem to me to be shivering.
§936τόδε μὲν οὐκ ἀέκουσα φίλα §937Μοῦσα δῶρον δέχεται· §938τὺ δὲ τεᾷ φρενὶ μάθε Πινδάρειον ἔπος — §940ἅνθρωπος ἡμῶν οὐκ ἀπαλλαχθήσεται.
Poet: Not unwillingly does the dear Muse accept this gift; but learn in your mind the Pindaric word— Pisthetaerus: The man will not get off our backs.
§941νομάδεσσι γὰρ ἐν Σκύθαις §942ἀλᾶται Στράτων, §943ὃς ὑφαντοδόνατον ἔσθος οὐ πέπαται· §944ἀκλεὴς δʼ ἔβα σπολὰς ἄνευ χιτῶνος. §945ξύνες ὅ τοι λέγω.
Poet: "For among the nomad Scythians Straton wanders, who possesses no woven garment; inglorious goes the jerkin without a tunic." Understand what I say to you.
§946ξυνῆχʼ ὅτι βούλει τὸν χιτωνίσκον λαβεῖν.
Pisthetaerus: I understand that you want to get the little tunic.
§947ἀπόδυθι· δεῖ γὰρ τὸν ποιητὴν ὠφελεῖν.
Strip; for we must help the poet.
§948ἄπελθε τουτονὶ λαβών.
Depart, taking this.
§948bἀπέρχομαι, §949κἀς τὴν πόλιν γʼ ἐλθὼν ποιήσω τοιαδί· §950κλῇσον ὦ χρυσόθρονε τὰν τρομερὰν κρυεράν· §951νιφόβολα πεδία πολύπορά τʼ ἤλυθον ἀλαλάν.
Poet: I am departing, and when I go to the city I will make such songs: Sing, O golden-throned one, of the shivering, freezing land; to the snow-swept and many-pathwayed plains I came, shouting the war-cry.
§952νὴ τὸν Δίʼ ἀλλʼ ἤδη πέφευγας ταυταγὶ §955τὰ κρυερὰ τονδὶ τὸν χιτωνίσκον λαβών.
Pisthetaerus: By Zeus, but you have already escaped those freezing colds by taking this little tunic.
§956τουτὶ μὰ Δίʼ ἐγὼ τὸ κακὸν οὐδέποτʼ ἤλπισα, §957οὕτω ταχέως τοῦτον πεπύσθαι τὴν πόλιν.
By Zeus, I never expected this nuisance, that this fellow would have heard of the city so quickly.
§958αὖθις σὺ περιχώρει λαβὼν τὴν χέρνιβα.
You, go round again, taking the lustral water.
§959εὐφημία ʼστω.
Priest: Let there be silence.
§959bμὴ κατάρξῃ τοῦ τράγου.
Oracle-monger: Do not begin the sacrifice of the goat.
§960σὺ δʼ εἶ τίς;
Pisthetaerus: And who are you?
§960bὅστις;
Oracle-monger: Who?
χρησμολόγος.
An oracle-monger.
§960cοἴμωζέ νυν.
Pisthetaerus: Go weep then!
§961ὦ δαιμόνιε τὰ θεῖα μὴ φαύλως φέρε· §962ὡς ἔστι Βάκιδος χρησμὸς ἄντικρυς λέγων §963ἐς τὰς Νεφελοκοκκυγίας.
Oracle-monger: O wondrous man, do not treat divine things lightly; for there is an oracle of Bakis which speaks directly to Cloudcuckooland.
§963bκὔπειτα πῶς §964ταῦτʼ οὐκ ἐχρησμολόγεις σὺ πρὶν ἐμὲ τὴν πόλιν §965τήνδʼ οἰκίσαι;
Pisthetaerus: And then how is it that you did not prophesy this before I founded this city?
§965bτὸ θεῖον ἐνεπόδιζέ με.
Oracle-monger: The divine power hindered me.
§966ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν οἷόν ἐστʼ ἀκοῦσαι τῶν ἐπῶν.
Pisthetaerus: Well, there is nothing like hearing the words.
§967ἀλλʼ ὅταν οἰκήσωσι λύκοι πολιαί τε κορῶναι §968ἐν ταὐτῷ τὸ μεταξὺ Κορίνθου καὶ Σικυῶνος, — §969τί οὖν προσήκει δῆτʼ ἐμοὶ Κορινθίων;
Oracle-monger: "But when wolves and gray crows dwell together in the same place between Corinth and Sicyon—" Pisthetaerus: What then do Corinthians have to do with me?
§970ᾐνίξαθʼ ὁ Βάκις τοῦτο πρὸς τὸν ἀέρα.
Oracle-monger: Bakis riddled this concerning the air.
§971πρῶτον Πανδώρᾳ θῦσαι λευκότριχα κριόν· §972ὃς δέ κʼ ἐμῶν ἐπέων ἔλθῃ πρώτιστα προφήτης, §973τῷ δόμεν ἱμάτιον καθαρὸν καὶ καινὰ πέδιλα — §974ἔνεστι καὶ τὰ πέδιλα;
"First sacrifice to Pandora a white-wool ram; and whoever comes first as interpreter of my words, to him give a clean cloak and new sandals—" Pisthetaerus: Are the sandals also in there?
§974bλαβὲ τὸ βιβλίον.
Oracle-monger: Take the book.
§975καὶ φιάλην δοῦναι, καὶ σπλάγχνων χεῖρʼ ἐπιπλῆσαι. §976καὶ σπλάγχνα διδόνʼ ἔνεστι;
"and to give a cup, and to fill his hand with entrails." Pisthetaerus: Is giving entrails also in there?
§976bλαβὲ τὸ βιβλίον.
Oracle-monger: Take the book.
§977κἂν μὲν θέσπιε κοῦρε ποιῇς ταῦθʼ ὡς ἐπιτέλλω, §978αἰετὸς ἐν νεφέλῃσι γενήσεαι· αιʼ δέ κε μὴ δῷς, §979οὐκ ἔσει οὐ τρυγὼν οὐδʼ αἰετὸς οὐ δρυκολάπτης. §980καὶ ταῦτʼ ἔνεστʼ ἐνταῦθα;
"And if, divine youth, you do these things as I command, you will become an eagle in the clouds; but if you do not give them, you will be neither turtledove, nor eagle, nor woodpecker." Pisthetaerus: Is that also in there?
§980bλαβὲ τὸ βιβλίον.
Oracle-monger: Take the book.
§981οὐδὲν ἄρʼ ὅμοιός ἐσθʼ ὁ χρησμὸς τουτῳί, §982ὃν ἐγὼ παρὰ τἀπόλλωνος ἐξεγραψάμην· §983αὐτὰρ ἐπὴν ἄκλητος ἰὼν ἄνθρωπος ἀλαζὼν §984λυπῇ θύοντας καὶ σπλαγχνεύειν ἐπιθυμῇ, §985δὴ τότε χρὴ τύπτειν αὐτὸν πλευρῶν τὸ μεταξὺ — §986οὐδὲν λέγειν οἶμαί σε.
Pisthetaerus: The oracle is then nothing like this one, which I copied out from Apollo: "But when an uninvited, cheating man comes and annoys those who sacrifice, wishing to taste the entrails, then indeed one must strike him between the ribs—" Oracle-monger: I think you are talking nonsense.
§986bλαβὲ τὸ βιβλίον.
Pisthetaerus: Take the book.
§987καὶ φείδου μηδὲν μηδʼ αἰετοῦ ἐν νεφέλῃσιν, §988μήτʼ ἢν Λάμπων ᾖ μήτʼ ἢν ὁ μέγας Διοπείθης. §989καὶ ταῦτʼ ἔνεστʼ ἐνταῦθα;
"And spare nothing, not even an eagle in the clouds, whether it be Lampon or the great Diopithes." Oracle-monger: Is that also in there?
§989bλαβὲ τὸ βιβλίον.
Pisthetaerus: Take the book.

Notes

  1. 915ὀτρηρόν — The adjective ὀτρηρός ('nimble, busy') modifying the cloak (ληδάριον) functions as a pun on τρηρός ('full of holes, worn out'), mocking the poet's threadbare clothing.
  2. 928δὸς ἐμὶν ὅ τι περ — A parody of Pindar's ode to Hieron I of Syracuse (the founder of Aetna). It features Doric dialectal forms such as the dative pronouns ἐμὶν and τείν (930) to mimic the solemn lyric style.
  3. 957πεπύσθαι τὴν πόλιν — An accusative with infinitive (AcI) construction serving as the object of ἤλπισα. τοῦτον is the subject accusative, πεπύσθαι (perfect infinitive of πυνθάνομαι) is the infinitive, and τὴν πόλιν is its object, meaning 'that this fellow had heard about the city'.
  4. 973δόμεν — An epic or Homeric infinitive used in place of an imperative (infinitive for imperative), mimicking the archaic and solemn style of oracular texts.

Cite this passage

Aristophanes, Birds §904-989b. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0019.tlg006.humanitext-grc2:904-989b

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