§7.800ΑΘ. δεδόχθω μὲν δή, φαμέν, τὸ ἄτοπον τοῦτο, νόμους τὰς ᾠδὰς ἡμῖν γεγονέναι, καὶ καθάπερ οἱ παλαιοὶ τότε περὶ κιθαρῳδίαν οὕτω πως, ὡς ἔοικεν, ὠνόμασαν—ὥστε τάχʼ ἂν οὐδʼ ἐκεῖνοι παντάπασί γʼ ἂν ἀφεστῶτες εἶεν τοῦ νῦν λεγομένου, καθʼ ὕπνον δὲ οἷόν πού τις ἢ καὶ ὕπαρ ἐγρηγορὼς ὠνείρωξεν μαντευόμενος αὐτό—τὸ δʼ οὖν δόγμα περὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦτʼ ἔστω· παρὰ τὰ δημόσια μέλη τε καὶ ἱερὰ καὶ τὴν τῶν νέων σύμπασαν χορείαν μηδεὶς μᾶλλον ἢ παρʼ ὁντινοῦν ἄλλον τῶν νόμων φθεγγέσθω μηδʼ ἐν ὀρχήσει κινείσθω.
ATH.: Let this strange thing, we say, be agreed upon: that our songs have become laws for us, and just as the ancients of that time concerning cithara-singing in some such way, as it seems, named them—so that perhaps even they would not be altogether removed from what is now being said, but as if in sleep someone, or even awake in broad daylight, dreamed it, prophesying it—at any rate, let this be the decision about it: against the public songs and sacred ones and the entire choral dance of the young, let no one voice any sound or move in dance any more than against any other of the laws.
καὶ ὁ μὲν τοιοῦτος ἀζήμιος ἀπαλλαττέσθω, τὸν δὲ μὴ πειθόμενον, καθάπερ ἐρρήθη νυνδή, νομοφύλακές τε καὶ ἱέρειαι καὶ ἱερῆς κολαζόντων.
And let such a person depart unpunished, but him who is disobedient, as was just said, let the guardians of the laws and the priestesses and priests punish.
κείσθω δὲ νῦν ἡμῖν ταῦτα τῷ λόγῳ;
Shall we now establish these things for us in our discourse?
ΚΛ. κείσθω.
CL.: Let them be established.
ΑΘ. τίνα δὴ τρόπον αὐτὰ νομοθετῶν τις μὴ παντάπασιν καταγέλαστος γίγνοιτʼ ἄν;
ATH.: In what way then might someone, in legislating these things, not become altogether ridiculous?
ἴδωμεν δὴ τὸ τοιόνδʼ ἔτι περὶ αὐτά.
Let us see still some such point concerning them.
ἀσφαλέστατον καθάπερ ἐκμαγεῖʼ ἄττʼ αὐτοῖσιν πρῶτον πλάσασθαι τῷ λόγῳ, λέγω δὲ ἓν μὲν τῶν ἐκμαγείων εἶναι τοιόνδε τι· θυσίας γενομένης καὶ ἱερῶν καυθέντων κατὰ νόμον, εἴ τῴ τις, φαμέν, ἰδίᾳ παραστὰς τοῖς βωμοῖς τε καὶ ἱεροῖς, ὑὸς ἢ καὶ ἀδελφός, βλασφημοῖ πᾶσαν βλασφημίαν, ἆρʼ οὐκ, ἂν φαῖμεν, ἀθυμίαν καὶ κακὴν ὄτταν καὶ μαντείαν πατρὶ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἂν οἰκείοις φθέγγοιτο ἐντιθείς;
It is safest first to shape in our discourse, as it were, certain moulds for them; and I say that one of the moulds is of this sort: when a sacrifice has taken place and the offerings are burned according to law, if someone, we say, standing privately by the altars and sacred offerings, a son or even a brother, should speak all kinds of ill-omened words, would he not, we should say, voice words that instill dejection, evil omen, and prophecy of ruin in his father and the other relatives?
ΚΛ. τί μήν;
CL.: How indeed?
ΑΘ. ἐν τοίνυν τοῖς παρʼ ἡμῖν τόποις τοῦτʼ ἐστὶν ταῖς πόλεσι γιγνόμενον ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν σχεδὸν ὀλίγου πάσαις· δημοσίᾳ γάρ τινα θυσίαν ὅταν ἀρχή τις θύσῃ, μετὰ ταῦτα χορὸς οὐχ εἷς ἀλλὰ πλῆθος χορῶν ἥκει, καὶ στάντες οὐ πόρρω τῶν βωμῶν ἀλλὰ παρʼ αὐτοὺς ἐνίοτε, πᾶσαν βλασφημίαν τῶν ἱερῶν καταχέουσιν, ῥήμασί τε καὶ ῥυθμοῖς καὶ γοωδεστάταις ἁρμονίαις συντείνοντες τὰς τῶν ἀκροωμένων ψυχάς, καὶ ὃς ἂν δακρῦσαι μάλιστα τὴν θύσασαν παραχρῆμα ποιήσῃ πόλιν, οὗτος τὰ νικητήρια φέρει.
ATH.: Now in our regions, this is what happens in almost all cities, so to speak; for when some magistrate performs a public sacrifice, after this not one chorus but a multitude of choruses arrive, and standing not far from the altars, but sometimes right beside them, they pour all kinds of ill-omened speech over the offerings, straining the souls of the hearers with words, rhythms, and most mournful harmonies, and whoever can make the city that has just sacrificed weep the most, he carries off the victory.
τοῦτον δὴ τὸν νόμον ἆρʼ οὐκ ἀποψηφιζόμεθα;
Shall we not vote against this custom?
καὶ εἴ ποτʼ ἄρα δεῖ τοιούτων οἴκτων γίγνεσθαι τοὺς πολίτας ἐπηκόους, ὁπόταν ἡμέραι μὴ καθαραί τινες ἀλλὰ ἀποφράδες ὦσιν, τόθʼ ἥκειν δέον ἂν εἴη μᾶλλον χορούς τινας ἔξωθεν μεμισθωμένους ᾠδούς, οἷον οἱ περὶ τοὺς τελευτήσαντας μισθούμενοι Καρικῇ τινι μούσῃ προπέμπουσι τοὺς τελευτήσαντας;
And if indeed it is ever necessary for the citizens to be audience to such laments, when there are certain days not clean but ill-omened, then it would rather be necessary for certain hired singers to come from outside, just as those hired about the deceased escort the departed with some Carian music?
τοιοῦτόν που πρέπον ἂν εἴη καὶ περὶ τὰς τοιαύτας ᾠδὰς γιγνόμενον, καὶ δὴ καὶ στολή γέ που ταῖς ἐπικηδείοις ᾠδαῖς οὐ στέφανοι πρέποιεν ἂν οὐδʼ ἐπίχρυσοι κόσμοι, πᾶν δὲ τοὐναντίον, ἵνʼ ὅτι τάχιστα περὶ αὐτῶν λέγων ἀπαλλάττωμαι.
Some such thing would indeed be fitting also concerning such songs, and indeed a garment, not crowns or gilded ornaments, would be fitting for funeral songs, but entirely the opposite, so that I may get rid of speaking about them as quickly as possible.
τὸ δὲ τοσοῦτον ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐπανερωτῶ πάλιν, τῶν ἐκμαγείων ταῖς ᾠδαῖς εἰ πρῶτον ἓν τοῦθʼ ἡμῖν ἀρέσκον κείσθω.
But I ask ourselves again this much: let this first one of the moulds for the songs be established as pleasing to us.
ΚΛ. τὸ ποῖον;
CL.: What sort of thing?