And no one else instead of me invented the flaxen-winged vessels of sailors that wander the sea.
§469τοιαῦτα μηχανήματ᾽ ἐξευρὼν τάλας §470βροτοῖσιν, αὐτὸς οὐκ ἔχω σόφισμ᾽ ὅτῳ §471τῆς νῦν παρούσης πημονῆς ἀπαλλαγῶ.
Having discovered such inventions for mortals, wretched as I am, I myself have no device by which I may escape from my present suffering.
§472πέπονθας αἰκὲς πῆμ᾽: ἀποσφαλεὶς φρενῶν §473πλανᾷ, κακὸς δ᾽ ἰατρὸς ὥς τις ἐς νόσον §474πεσὼν ἀθυμεῖς καὶ σεαυτὸν οὐκ ἔχεις §475εὑρεῖν ὁποίοις φαρμάκοις ἰάσιμος.
Chorus: You have suffered a shameful plight; losing your wits you wander, and like some bad physician fallen into sickness you despond, and cannot find for yourself by what kind of remedies you may be cured.
Prometheus: Hearing the rest from me, you will marvel more, what kind of arts and means I devised.
§478τὸ μὲν μέγιστον, εἴ τις ἐς νόσον πέσοι, §479οὐκ ἦν ἀλέξημ᾽ οὐδέν, οὔτε βρώσιμον, §480οὐ χριστόν, οὔτε πιστόν, ἀλλὰ φαρμάκων §481χρείᾳ κατεσκέλλοντο, πρίν γ᾽ ἐγώ σφισιν §482ἔδειξα κράσεις ἠπίων ἀκεσμάτων, §483αἷς τὰς ἁπάσας ἐξαμύνονται νόσους.
First and greatest, if anyone fell into sickness, there was no remedy at all, neither food to eat, nor ointment, nor potion, but for lack of medicine they wasted away, until I showed them the mixtures of soothing remedies, with which they ward off all diseases.
§484τρόπους τε πολλοὺς μαντικῆς ἐστοίχισα, §485κἄκρινα πρῶτος ἐξ ὀνειράτων ἃ χρὴ §486ὕπαρ γενέσθαι, κληδόνας τε δυσκρίτους §487ἐγνώρισ᾽ αὐτοῖς: ἐνοδίους τε συμβόλους:
And I organized many ways of divination, and first judged from dreams what must happen in reality, and made known to them difficult omens, and tokens met on the road.
§488γαμψωνύχων τε πτῆσιν οἰωνῶν σκεθρῶς §489διώρισ᾽, οἵτινές τε δεξιοὶ φύσιν §490εὐωνύμους τε, καὶ δίαιταν ἥντινα §491ἔχουσ᾽ ἕκαστοι, καὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλους τίνες §492ἔχθραι τε καὶ στέργηθρα καὶ συνεδρίαι: §493σπλάγχνων τε λειότητα, καὶ χροιὰν τίνα §494ἔχοντ᾽ ἂν εἴη δαίμοσιν πρὸς ἡδονήν, §495χολῆς λοβοῦ τε ποικίλην εὐμορφίαν:
And the flight of crook-clawed birds I accurately defined, both which are auspicious by nature and which are ill-omened, and what kind of life each leads, and what mutual enmities and loves and associations they have; and the smoothness of the entrails, and what color they should have to be pleasing to the gods, and the varied symmetry of the gall and lobe.
§496κνίσῃ τε κῶλα συγκαλυπτὰ καὶ μακρὰν §497ὀσφῦν πυρώσας δυστέκμαρτον ἐς τέχνην §498ὥδωσα θνητούς, καὶ φλογωπὰ σήματα §499ἐξωμμάτωσα, πρόσθεν ὄντ᾽ ἐπάργεμα.
And burning the limbs wrapped in fat and the long loin, I guided mortals into an art difficult to interpret, and I opened the eyes of fiery signs, which were dim before.
§500τοιαῦτα μὲν δὴ ταῦτ᾽: ἔνερθε δὲ χθονὸς §501κεκρυμμέν᾽ ἀνθρώποισιν ὠφελήματα, §502χαλκόν, σίδηρον, ἄργυρον, χρυσόν τε τίς §503φήσειεν ἂν πάροιθεν ἐξευρεῖν ἐμοῦ;
Such indeed were these things; and beneath the earth the hidden benefits to men, bronze, iron, silver, and gold, who could say he discovered them before me?
§504οὐδείς, σάφ᾽ οἶδα, μὴ μάτην φλύσαι θέλων.
No one, I know well, unless he wishes to babble in vain.
In a brief word learn all together, all arts came to mortals from Prometheus.
§507μή νυν βροτοὺς μὲν ὠφέλει καιροῦ πέρα, §508σαυτοῦ δ᾽ ἀκήδει δυστυχοῦντος: ὡς ἐγὼ §509εὔελπίς εἰμι τῶνδέ σ᾽ ἐκ δεσμῶν ἔτι §510λυθέντα μηδὲν μεῖον ἰσχύσειν Διός.
Chorus: Do not then benefit mortals beyond measure, and neglect yourself in your misfortune; for I am of good hope that you, yet freed from these bonds, will have power no less than Zeus.
§511οὐ ταῦτα ταύτῃ Μοῖρά πω τελεσφόρος §512κρᾶναι πέπρωται, μυρίαις δὲ πημοναῖς §513δύαις τε καμφθεὶς ὧδε δεσμὰ φυγγάνω:
Prometheus: Not yet has fate that brings fulfillment decreed to accomplish these things in this way, but bent by countless pains and calamities, thus do I escape my bonds.
§514τέχνη δ᾽ ἀνάγκης ἀσθενεστέρα μακρῷ.
Art is far weaker than necessity.
§515τίς οὖν ἀνάγκης ἐστὶν οἰακοστρόφος;
Chorus: Who then is the helmsman of necessity?
§516Μοῖραι τρίμορφοι μνήμονές τ᾽ Ἐρινύες.
Prometheus: The triple-formed Fates and the mindful Furies.
§517τούτων ἄρα Ζεύς ἐστιν ἀσθενέστερος;
Chorus: Is Zeus then weaker than these?
§518οὔκουν ἂν ἐκφύγοι γε τὴν πεπρωμένην.
Prometheus: He certainly cannot escape what is fated.
§519τί γὰρ πέπρωται Ζηνὶ πλὴν ἀεὶ κρατεῖν;
Chorus: For what is fated for Zeus, except always to rule?
§520τοῦτ᾽ οὐκέτ᾽ ἂν πύθοιο μηδὲ λιπάρει.
Prometheus: This you may not yet learn; do not entreat.
§521ἦ πού τι σεμνόν ἐστιν ὃ ξυναμπέχεις.
Chorus: Surely it is some solemn secret that you keep hidden.
§522ἄλλου λόγου μέμνησθε, τόνδε δ᾽ οὐδαμῶς §523καιρὸς γεγωνεῖν, ἀλλὰ συγκαλυπτέος §524ὅσον μάλιστα: τόνδε γὰρ σῴζων ἐγὼ §525δεσμοὺς ἀεικεῖς καὶ δύας ἐκφυγγάνω.
Prometheus: Speak of some other matter; to utter this is by no means the proper time, but it must be covered up as much as possible; for by keeping this safe I escape shameful bonds and calamities.
§526μηδάμ᾽ ὁ πάντα νέμων §527θεῖτ᾽ ἐμᾷ γνώμᾳ κράτος §528ἀντίπαλον Ζεύς, §529μηδ᾽ ἐλινύσαιμι θεοὺς ὁσίαις §530θοίναις ποτινισσομένα §531βουφόνοις παρ᾽ Ὠκεανοῦ πατρὸς ἄ- §532σβεστον πόρον, §533μηδ᾽ ἀλίτοιμι λόγοις:
Chorus: May Zeus, who dispenses all things, never set his power hostile to my will; nor may I be slow to approach the gods with holy feasts of slaughtered oxen, by the unquenchable stream of father Oceanus; nor may I offend in words.
May this remain firmly with me and never fade away.
§536ἁδύ τι θαρσαλέαις §537τὸν μακρὸν τείνειν βίον §538ἐλπίσι, φαναῖς §539θυμὸν ἀλδαίνουσαν ἐν εὐφροσύναις.
It is a sweet thing to stretch out a long life in confident hopes, nourishing the soul in bright joys.
But I shudder as I behold you worn away by countless labors.
For not fearing Zeus, in your own independent will you revere mortals too much, Prometheus.
§545φέρ᾽ ὅπως ἄχαρις χάρις, ὦ φίλος, εἰ-
Come, how is your favor thankless, O friend?
§546πὲ ποῦ τις ἀλκά;
Tell me where is there any defense?
§547τίς ἐφαμερίων ἄρηξις;
What help from ephemeral men?
οὐδ᾽ ἐδέρχθης §548ὀλιγοδρανίαν ἄκικυν, §549ἰσόνειρον, ᾇ τὸ φωτῶν §550ἀλαὸν <δέδεται> γένος ἐμπεποδισμένον:
Did you not see the powerless, dream-like weakness by which the blind race of men is fettered and bound?
Never shall the counsels of mortals transgress the harmony of Zeus.
I learned this by beholding your ruinous fortunes, Prometheus.
§555τὸ διαμφίδιον δέ μοι μέλος προσέπτα §555aτόδ᾽ ἐκεῖνό θ᾽ ὅ τ᾽ ἀμφὶ λουτρὰ §556καὶ λέχος σὸν ὑμεναίουν §557ἰότατι γάμων, ὅτε τὰν ὁμοπάτριον §558ἕδνοις ἄγαγες Ἡσιόναν §560πείθων δάμαρτα κοινόλεκτρον.
And a far different song has flown to me, this one and that which around the baths and your bridal bed we sang for your marriage, when you led Hesione, who shared the same father, with bridal gifts, persuading her to be your bedfellow and wife.
§561τίς γῆ;
Io: What land?
τί γένος;
What race?
Whom shall I say I see here tempest-tossed in stony fetters?
§564τίνος ἀμπλακίας ποινὰς ὀλέκει;
For what offense is he being destroyed as punishment?
Declare to me where in the earth I, wretched one, have wandered.
§566ἆ ἆ,
Ah! Ah!
§567χρίει τις αὖ με τὰν τάλαιναν οἶστρος:
Some gadfly stings me again, wretched that I am!
§568εἴδωλον Ἄργου γηγενοῦς, ἄλευ᾽ ἆ δᾶ: φοβοῦμαι,
An image of earth-born Argus—keep him away, O Earth! I fear him.