§5ΙΕΡΕΥΣ
Ἀλλ’, ὦ Τιτάνων ἄριστε, τῶν μὲν τοιούτων οὐ δέομαι, σὺ δὲ ἀλλ’ ἐκεῖνό μοι ἀπόκριναι, ὃ μάλιστα ἐπόθουν εἰδέναι, καί μοι ἢν εἴπῃς αὐτό, ἱκανὴν ἔσει τὴν ἀμοιβὴν ἀποδεδωκὼς ἀντὶ τῆς θυσίας, καὶ πρὸς τὸ λοιπὸν ἀφίημί σοι τὰ χρέα.
PRIEST But, O best of the Titans, I have no need of such things; but do answer me instead that which I have most desired to know, and if you tell it to me, you will have given a sufficient return in place of the sacrifice, and for the future I release you from your debts.
ΚΡΟΝΟΣ
Ἐρώτα μόνον. ἀποκρινοῦμαι γάρ, ἢν εἰδὼς τύχω.
CRONUS Only ask; for I will answer, if I happen to know.
ΙΕΡΕΥΣ
Τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἐκεῖνο, εἰ ἀληθῆ ταῦτά ἐστιν ἃ περὶ σοῦ ἀκούομεν, ὡς κατήσθιες τὰ γεννώμενα ὑπὸ τῆς Ῥέας, ἐκείνη δὲ ὑφελομένη τὸν Δία λίθον ὑποβαλλομένη ἀντὶ τοῦ βρέφους ἔδωκέ σοι καταπιεῖν, ὁ δὲ εἰς ἡλικίαν ἀφικόμενος ἐξήλασέ σε τῆς ἀρχῆς πολέμῳ κρατήσας, εἶτα ἐς τὸν Τάρταρον φέρων ἐνέβαλε πεδήσας αὐτόν τε καὶ τὸ συμμαχικὸν ἅπαν, ὁπόσον μετὰ σοῦ παρετάττετο.
PRIEST First of all that matter, whether those things we hear about you are true, how you swallowed down the children born of Rhea, and she, having secretly taken Zeus away and substituted a stone in place of the infant, gave it to you to swallow down, and he, when he reached manhood, drove you out of your rule, having conquered you in war, and then carrying you off, cast you into Tartarus, having bound both you and all your allied force, as many as were marshaled on your side.
ΚΡΟΝΟΣ
Εἰ μὴ ἑορτήν, ὦ οὗτος, ἤγομεν καὶ μεθύειν ἐφεῖτο καὶ λοιδορεῖσθαι τοῖς δεσπόταις ἐπ’ ἐξουσίας, ἔγνως ἂν ὡς ὀργίζεσθαι γοῦν ἐφεῖταί μοι, τοιαῦτα ἐρωτήσας, οὐκ αἰδεσθεὶς πολιὸν οὕτω καὶ πρεσβύτην θεόν.
CRONUS Look here, if we were not celebrating a festival, and if it were not permitted to be drunk and to abuse one's masters with impunity, you would have known that it is permitted to me at least to be angry, when you ask such things, without respecting a god so grey-haired and aged.
ΙΕΡΕΥΣ
Κἀγὼ ταῦτα, ὦ Κρόνε, οὐ παρ’ ἐμαυτοῦ φημι, ἀλλ’ Ἡσίοδος καὶ Ὅμηρος, ὀκνῶ γὰρ λέγειν ὅτι καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι ἅπαντες ἄνθρωποι σχεδὸν ταῦτα πεπιστεύκασι περὶ σοῦ.
PRIEST And I, O Cronus, do not say these things of my own accord, but Hesiod and Homer say so; for I hesitate to say that almost all other men too have believed these things about you.
§6ΚΡΟΝΟΣ
Οἴει γὰρ τὸν ποιμένα ἐκεῖνον, τὸν ἀλαζόνα, ὑγιές τι περὶ ἐμοῦ εἰδέναι;
CRONUS Do you really think that that shepherd, that charlatan, knows anything sound about me?
σκόπει δὲ οὕτως.
Consider it in this way.
ἔσθ’ ὅστις ἄνθρωπος (οὐ γὰρ θεὸν ἐρῶ) ὑπομείνειεν ἂν ἑκὼν αὐτὸς καταφαγεῖν τὰ τέκνα, εἰ μή τις Θυέστης ὢν ἀσεβεῖ ἀδελφῷ περιπεσὼν ἤσθιε;
Is there any man—for I will not say a god—who would willingly endure to devour his own children, unless he were some Thyestes, who fell into the hands of an impious brother and ate?
καὶ εἰ τοῦτο μανείη, πῶς ἀγνοήσει λίθον ἀντὶ βρέφους ἐσθίων, εἰ μὴ ἀνάλγητος εἴη τοὺς ὀδόντας;
And even if he were so mad as this, how would he not notice that he was eating a stone instead of a baby, unless his teeth were utterly unfeeling?
ἀλλ’ οὔτε ἐπολεμήσαμεν οὔτε ὁ Ζεὺς βίᾳ τὴν ἀρχὴν, ἑκόντος δέ μου παραδόντος αὐτῷ καὶ ὑπεκστάντος, ἄρχει.
But we neither fought a war, nor did Zeus take the rule by force; rather, he rules because I willingly handed it over to him and stepped aside.
ὅτι μὲν γὰρ οὔτε πεπέδημαι οὔτε ἐν τῷ Ταρτάρῳ εἰμί, καὶ αὐτὸς ὁρᾷς οἶμαι εἰ μὴ τυφλὸς ὥσπερ Ὅμηρος εἶ.
For that I am neither bound nor in Tartarus, you yourself see, I think, unless you are as blind as Homer.
§7ΙΕΡΕΥΣ
Τί παθὼν δέ, ὦ Κρόνε, ἀφῆκας τὴν ἀρχήν;
PRIEST What happened to you, then, O Cronus, that you gave up the rule?
ΚΡΟΝΟΣ
Ἐγώ σοι φράσω.
CRONUS I will tell you.
τὸ μὲν ὅλον, γέρων ἤδη καὶ ποδαγρὸς ὑπὸ τοῦ χρόνου ὤν.
In general, because I am already old and gouty through time.
διὸ καὶ πεπεδῆσθαί με οἱ πολλοὶ εἴκασαν.
Therefore indeed the multitude imagined that I was bound.
οὐ γὰρ ἠδυνάμην διαρκεῖν πρὸς οὕτω πολλὴν τὴν ἀδικίαν τῶν νῦν, ἀλλ’ ἀεὶ ἀναθεῖν ἔδει ἄνω καὶ κάτω τὸν κεραυνὸν διηρμένον τοὺς ἐπιόρκους ἢ ἱεροσύλους ἢ βιαίους καταφλέγοντα, καὶ τὸ πρᾶγμα πάνυ ἐργῶδες ἦν καὶ νεανικόν.
For I was not able to hold out against so much injustice of the men of today, but it was necessary always to run up and down brandishing the thunderbolt, burning up perjurers or temple-robbers or violent men, and the business was altogether troublesome and fit for a young man.
ἐξέστην οὖν εὖ ποιῶν τῷ Διί.
I therefore abdicated, acting wisely, in favor of Zeus.
καὶ ἄλλως δὲ καλῶς ἔχειν ἐδόκει μοι διανείμαντα τοῖς παισὶν οὖσι τὴν ἀρχὴν αὐτὸν εὐωχεῖσθαι τὰ πολλὰ ἐφ’ ἡσυχίας οὔτε τοῖς εὐχομένοις χρηματίζοντα οὔτε ὑπὸ τῶν τἀναντία αἰτούντων ἐνοχλούμενον οὔτε βροντῶντα ἢ ἀστράπτοντα ἢ χάλαζαν ἐνίοτε βάλλειν ἀναγκαζόμενον· ἀλλὰ πρεσβυτικόν τινα τοῦτον ἥδιστον βίον διάγω ζωρότερον πίνων τὸ νέκταρ, τῷ Ἰαπετῷ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις τοῖς ἡλικιώταις προσμυθολογῶν· ὁ δὲ ἄρχει μυρία ἔχων πράγματα.
And besides, it seemed to me to be well to distribute the rule among my children and myself to feast for the most part in quiet, neither giving audience to those who pray, nor being troubled by those who ask for opposite things, nor being compelled to thunder or lighten or sometimes to throw hail; but I lead this sweetest life suitable for an old man, drinking my nectar unmixed, and chatting with Iapetus and the others of my age; while he rules, having ten thousand troubles.
πλὴν ὀλίγας ταύτας ἡμέρας ἐφ’ οἷς εἶπον ὑπεξελέσθαι μοι ἔδοξε καὶ ἀναλαμβάνω τὴν ἀρχήν, ὡς ὑπομνήσαιμι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους οἷος ἦν ὁ ἐπ’ ἐμοῦ βίος, ὁπότε ἄσπορα καὶ ἀνήροτα πάντα ἐφύετο αὐτοῖς, οὐ στάχυες, ἀλλ’ ἕτοιμος ἄρτος καὶ κρέα ἐσκευασμένα, καὶ ὁ οἶνος ἔρρει ποταμηδὸν καὶ πηγαὶ μέλιτος καὶ γάλακτος· ἀγαθοὶ γὰρ ἦσαν καὶ χρυσοῖ ἅπαντες.
However, these few days, for the reasons I have mentioned, it seemed good to me to set apart, and I resume the rule, so that I may remind men what life was like in my time, when all things grew for them without sowing and without plowing, not ears of corn, but ready bread and prepared meats, and wine flowed like a river, and fountains of honey and milk; for all were good and of gold.
αὕτη μοι ἡ αἰτία τῆς ὀλιγοχρονίου ταύτης δυναστείας, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἁπανταχοῦ κρότος καὶ ᾠδὴ καὶ παιδιὰ καὶ ἰσοτιμία πᾶσι καὶ δούλοις καὶ ἐλευθέροις.
This is my reason for this short-lived sovereignty, and because of this there is everywhere hand-clapping, song, play, and equal status for all, both slaves and free.
οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἐπ’ ἐμοῦ δοῦλος ἦν.
For in my time no one was a slave.