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Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §4.43.1-4.43.5

Deliverance from the Storm and Phineus' Sons

Passage 279 of 406 · Greek

Summary

During their voyage, the Argonauts encounter a great storm but are saved through Orpheus' prayers and the miracle of the Dioscuri, landing in Thrace where they discover Phineus' two sons being unjustly punished due to the false accusations of their stepmother.

§4.43.1ἐπιγενομένου δὲ μεγάλου χειμῶνος, καὶ τῶν ἀριστέων ἀπογινωσκόντων τὴν σωτηρίαν, φασὶν Ὀρφέα, τῆς τελετῆς μόνον τῶν συμπλεόντων μετεσχηκότα, ποιήσασθαι τοῖς Σαμόθρᾳξι τὰς ὑπὲρ τῆς σωτηρίας εὐχάς.
And when a great storm arose and the heroes were despairing of their safety, they say that Orpheus, who was the only one of those sailing with them who had been initiated into the mysteries, made vows to the gods of Samothrace for their safety.
§4.43.2εὐθὺς δὲ τοῦ πνεύματος ἐνδόντος, καὶ δυοῖν ἀστέρων ἐπὶ τὰς τῶν Διοσκόρων κεφαλὰς ἐπιπεσόντων, ἅπαντας μὲν ἐκπλαγῆναι τὸ παράδοξον, ὑπολαβεῖν δὲ θεῶν προνοίᾳ τῶν κινδύνων ἑαυτοὺς ἀπηλλάχθαι.
And immediately, when the wind subsided and two stars fell upon the heads of the Dioscuri, everyone was astonished at the unexpected event, and they believed that by the providence of the gods they had been delivered from their dangers.
διὸ καὶ τοῖς ἐπιγινομένοις παραδοσίμου γεγενημένης τῆς περιπετείας, ἀεὶ τοὺς χειμαζομένους τῶν πλεόντων εὐχὰς μὲν τίθεσθαι τοῖς Σαμόθρᾳξι, τὰς δὲ τῶν ἀστέρων παρουσίας ἀναπέμπειν εἰς τὴν τῶν Διοσκόρων ἐπιφάνειαν.
Therefore, as this occurrence was handed down to posterity, those of the sailors who are caught in storms always make vows to the gods of Samothrace and attribute the presence of the stars to the epiphany of the Dioscuri.
§4.43.3οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ τότε λήξαντος τοῦ χειμῶνος ἀποβῆναι μὲν τοὺς ἀριστεῖς τῆς Θρᾴκης εἰς τὴν ὑπὸ Φινέως βασιλευομένην χώραν, περιπεσεῖν δὲ δυσὶ νεανίσκοις ἐπὶ τιμωρίᾳ διωρυγμένοις καὶ μάστιξι πληγὰς συνεχεῖς λαμβάνουσι· τούτους δʼ ὑπάρχειν Φινέως υἱοὺς καὶ Κλεοπάτρας, ἥν φασιν ἐξ Ὠρειθυίας τῆς Ἐρεχθέως γεννηθῆναι καὶ Βορέου, διὰ μητρυιᾶς τόλμαν καὶ διαβολὰς ψευδεῖς τυγχάνοντας ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς ἀδίκως τῆς προειρημένης τιμωρίας·
In any case, when the storm had then ceased, the heroes landed in that part of Thrace which was ruled by Phineus, and they came upon two young men who had been confined in a trench for punishment and were receiving continuous blows with whips; and these, they say, were the sons of Phineus and Cleopatra, who they say was born of Oreithyia, the daughter of Erechtheus, and Boreas, but who, because of the audacity and false accusations of their stepmother, were unjustly suffering the aforementioned punishment at the hands of their father.
§4.43.4τὸν γὰρ Φινέα γεγαμηκότα Ἰδαίαν τὴν Δαρδάνου τοῦ Σκυθῶν βασιλέως θυγατέρα, καὶ διὰ τὸν πρὸς αὐτὴν ἔρωτα πάντα χαριζόμενον, πιστεῦσαι διότι τῇ μητρυιᾷ βίαν ἐφʼ ὕβρει προσήγαγον οἱ πρόγονοι, βουλόμενοι τῇ μητρὶ χαρίζεσθαι.
For Phineus, having married Idaea, the daughter of Dardanus the king of the Scythians, and yielding to her in all things because of his love for her, believed that his stepsons had offered violence to their stepmother to insult her, wishing to gratify their mother.
§4.43.5τῶν δὲ περὶ τὸν Ἡρακλέα παραδόξως ἐπιφανέντων, φασὶ τοὺς μὲν ἐν ταῖς ἀνάγκαις ὄντας ἐπικαλέσασθαι καθάπερ θεοὺς τοὺς ἀριστεῖς, καὶ τὰς αἰτίας δηλώσαντας τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς παρανομίας δεῖσθαι τῶν ἀτυχημάτων αὐτοὺς ἐξελέσθαι.
And when Heracles and his men appeared unexpectedly, they say that those who were in distress called upon the heroes as if they were gods, and having explained the causes of their father's lawless conduct, begged them to rescue them from their misfortunes.

Notes

  1. 4.43.1τοῖς Σαμόθρᾳξι — The dative τοῖς Σαμόθρᾳξι does not refer merely to the people of Samothrace, but rather to the deities worshiped on Samothrace (such as the Cabeiri), functioning here as the indirect object of the prayer.
  2. 4.43.3διωρυγμένοις — Perfect passive participle dative of διορύσσω (to dig through). Here it indicates that the young men are "confined in a dug-out trench or pit."
  3. 4.43.4οἱ πρόγονοι — While πρόγονος usually means "ancestor," here it refers to the children of Phineus' former wife (Cleopatra), a very rare usage meaning "stepsons" or "sons from the former marriage."
  4. 4.43.5δεῖσθαι τῶν ἀτυχημάτων αὐτοὺς ἐξελέσθαι — An accusative with infinitive construction depending on δεῖσθαι (to beg). αὐτοὺς is the subject of the infinitive ἐξελέσθαι (that they should rescue), and the genitive τῶν ἀτυχημάτων is a genitive of separation governed by ἐξελέσθαι.

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §4.43.1-4.43.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc5:4.43.1-4.43.5

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