§1Ἔστιν ἐν Συρίῃ πόλις οὐ πολλὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ Εὐφρήτεω ποταμοῦ, καλέεται δὲ Ἱρή, καὶ ἔστιν ἱρὴ τῆς Ἥρης τῆς Ἀσσυρίης.
There is a city in Syria, not far from the river Euphrates, and it is called Hiera, and it is sacred to the Assyrian Hera.
δοκέει δέ μοι, τόδε τὸ οὔνομα οὐκ ἅμα τῇ πόλει οἰκεομένῃ ἐγένετο, ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν ἀρχαῖον ἄλλο ἦν, μετὰ δὲ σφίσι τῶν ἱρῶν μεγάλων γιγνομένων ἐς τόδε ἡ ἐπωνυμίη ἀπίκετο.
But it seems to me that this name did not arise at the same time as the city was inhabited; rather, its ancient name was different, but later, as their sacred rites became great, this appellation came to them.
περὶ ταύτης ὦν τῆς πόλιος ἔρχομαι ἐρέων ὁκόσα ἐν αὐτῇ Ἔστιν· ἐρέω δὲ καὶ νόμους τοῖσιν ἐς τὰ ἱρὰ χρέωνται, καὶ πανηγύριας τὰς ἄγουσιν καὶ θυσίας τὰς ἐπιτελέουσιν.
Now, concerning this city, I am going to tell of all the things that are in it; and I will also speak of the laws they use for sacred matters, and the festivals they keep, and the sacrifices they perform.
ἐρέω δὲ καὶ ὁκόσα καὶ περὶ τῶν τὸ ἱρὸν εἱσαμένων μυθολογέουσι, καὶ τὸν νηὸν ὅκως ἐγένετο.
And I will also tell all that they mythologize about those who founded the temple, and how the temple came to be.
γράφω δὲ Ἀσσύριος ἐών, καὶ τῶν ἀπηγέομαι τὰ μὲν αὐτοψίῃ μαθών, τὰ δὲ παρὰ τῶν ἱρέων ἐδάην, ὁκόσα ἐόντα ἐμεῦ πρεσβύτερα ἐγὼ ἱστορέω.
I write as an Assyrian, and of the things I relate, some I learned by my own sight, and others I was taught by the priests, all that was older than myself which I investigated.
§2πρῶτοι μὲν ὦν ἀνθρώπων τῶν ἡμεῖς ἴδμεν Αἰγύπτιοι λέγονται θεῶν τε ἐννοίην λαβεῖν καὶ ἱρὰ εἵσασθαι καὶ τεμένεα καὶ πανηγύριας ἀποδεῖξαι.
Now, of the men whom we know, the Egyptians are said to have been the first to conceive of the gods, and to establish temples, define sacred precincts, and institute festivals.
πρῶτοι δὲ καὶ οὐνόματα ἱρὰ ἔγνωσαν καὶ λόγους ἱροὺς ἔλεξαν.
They were also the first to know sacred names and to speak sacred stories.
μετὰ δὲ οὐ πολλοστῷ χρόνῳ παρʼ Αἰγυπτίων λόγον Ἀσσύριοι ἐς θεοὺς ἤκουσαν, καὶ ἱρὰ καὶ νηοὺς ἤγειραν, ἐν τοῖς καὶ ἀγάλματα ἔθεντο καὶ ξόανα ἐστήσαντο.
And not long after, the Assyrians heard from the Egyptians the doctrine concerning the gods, and raised temples and shrines, in which they also placed images and set up wooden statues.
§3τὸ δὲ παλαιὸν καὶ παρʼ Αἰγυπτίοισιν ἀξόανοι νηοὶ ἔσαν.
In ancient times, even among the Egyptians, there were temples without wooden statues.
καὶ ἔστιν ἱρὰ καὶ ἐν Συρίῃ οὐ παρὰ πολὺ τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοισιν ἰσοχρονέοντα, τῶν ἐγὼ πλεῖστα ὄπωπα, τό γε τοῦ Ἡρακλέος τὸ ἐν Τύρῳ, οὐ τούτου τοῦ Ἡρακλέος τὸν Ἕλληνες ἀείδουσιν, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἐγὼ λέγω πολλὸν ἀρχαιότερος καὶ Τύριος ἥρως ἐστίν.
And there are temples in Syria too, not much later in time than those of the Egyptians, of which I have seen many, particularly that of Heracles in Tyre—not of that Heracles whom the Greeks sing of, but the one I mean is much older and is a Tyrian hero.
§4ἔνι δὲ καὶ ἄλλο ἱρὸν ἐν Φοινίκῃ μέγα, τὸ Σιδόνιοι ἔχουσιν.
There is also another great temple in Phoenicia, which the Sidonians hold.
ὡς μὲν αὐτοὶ λέγουσιν, Ἀστάρτης ἐστίν· Ἀστάρτην δʼ ἐγὼ δοκέω Σεληναίην ἔμμεναι.
As they themselves say, it belongs to Astarte; but I think Astarte is Selene.
ὡς δέ μοί τις τῶν ἱρέων ἀπηγέετο, Εὐρώπης ἐστὶν τῆς Κάδμου ἀδελφεῆς·
But as one of the priests related to me, it belongs to Europa, the sister of Cadmus.
ταύτην δὲ ἐοῦσαν Ἀγήνορος τοῦ βασιλέως θυγατέρα, ἐπειδή τε ἀφανὴς ἐγεγόνεεν, οἱ Φοίνικες τῷ νηῷ ἐτιμήσαντο καὶ λόγον ἱρὸν ἐπʼ αὐτῇ ἔλεξαν, ὅτι ἐοῦσαν καλὴν Ζεὺς ἐπόθεεν καὶ τὸ εἶδος εἰς ταῦρον ἀμειψάμενος ἥρπασεν καί μιν ἐς Κρήτην φέρων ἀπίκετο.
She, being the daughter of King Agenor, when she disappeared, the Phoenicians honored her with the temple and told a sacred story about her, how Zeus desired her because she was beautiful, and changing his form into a bull, carried her off and arrived in Crete carrying her.
τάδε μὲν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων Φοινίκων ἤκουον, καὶ τὸ νόμισμα τῷ Σιδόνιοι χρέωνται τὴν Εὐρώπην ἐφεζομένην ἔχει τῷ ταύρῳ τῷ Διί· τὸν δὲ νηὸν οὐκ ὁμολογέουσιν Εὐρώπης ἔμμεναι.
I heard these things also from the other Phoenicians, and the coinage which the Sidonians use shows Europa seated upon the bull, which is Zeus; however, they do not agree that the temple belongs to Europa.
§5ἔχουσι δὲ καὶ ἄλλο Φοίνικες ἱρόν, οὐκ Ἀσσύριον ἀλλʼ Αἰγύπτιον, τὸ ἐξ Ἡλίου πόλιος ἐς τὴν Φοινίκην ἀπίκετο.
The Phoenicians also have another temple, not Assyrian but Egyptian, which came to Phoenicia from Heliopolis.
ἐγὼ μέν μιν οὐκ ὄπωπα, μέγα δὲ καὶ τόδε καὶ ἀρχαῖόν ἐστιν.
I myself have not seen it, but this too is great and ancient.
§6εἶδον δὲ καὶ ἐν Βύβλῳ μέγα ἱρὸν Ἀφροδίτης Βυβλίης, ἐν τῷ καὶ τὰ ὄργια ἐς Ἄδωνιν ἐπιτελέουσιν· ἐδάην δὲ καὶ τὰ ὄργια.
I also saw in Byblos a great temple of the Byblian Aphrodite, in which they also perform the rites for Adonis; and I was initiated into these rites.
λέγουσι γὰρ δὴ ὦν τὸ ἔργον τὸ ἐς Ἄδωνιν ὑπὸ τοῦ συὸς ἐν τῇ χώρῃ τῇ σφετέρῃ γενέσθαι, καὶ μνήμην τοῦ πάθεος τύπτονταί τε ἑκάστου ἔτεος καὶ θρηνέουσι καὶ τὰ ὄργια ἐπιτελέουσι καὶ σφίσι μεγάλα πένθεα ἀνὰ τὴν χώρην ἵσταται.
For they say that the deed against Adonis was done by the wild boar in their own country, and in memory of his suffering they beat their breasts every year, wail, and perform the rites, and a great mourning is established throughout their country.
ἐπεὰν δὲ ἀποτύψωνταί τε καὶ ἀποκλαύσωνται, πρῶτα μὲν καταγίζουσι τῷ Ἀδώνιδι ὅκως ἐόντι νέκυι, μετὰ δὲ τῇ ἑτέρῃ ἡμέρῃ ζώειν τέ μιν μυθολογέουσι καὶ ἐς τὸν ἠέρα πέμπουσι καὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς ξύρονται ὅκως Αἰγύπτιοι ἀποθανόντος Ἄπιος.
And when they have finished beating their breasts and weeping, they first make offerings to Adonis as to one who is dead, and then on the next day they mythologize that he is alive and send him into the air, and shave their heads just as the Egyptians do when Apis dies.
γυναικῶν δὲ ὁκόσαι οὐκ ἐθέλουσι ξύρεσθαι, τοιήνδε ζημίην ἐκτελέουσιν· ἐν μιῇ ἡμέρῃ ἐπὶ πρήσει τῆς ὥρης ἵστανται· ἡ δὲ ἀγορὴ μούνοισι ξείνοισι παρακέαται, καὶ ὁ μισθὸς ἐς τὴν Ἀφροδίτην θυσίη γίγνεται.
But those of the women who do not wish to be shaved perform the following penalty: on one day they stand for the sale of their beauty; and the market is open to strangers only, and the wages become a sacrifice to Aphrodite.