§1Πρῶτον μὲν εὐχῇ τῇδε πρεσβεύω θεῶν §2τὴν πρωτόμαντιν Γαῖαν: ἐκ δὲ τῆς Θέμιν, §3ἣ δὴ τὸ μητρὸς δευτέρα τόδ᾽ ἕζετο
First, in this prayer, I give pride of place among the gods to Earth, the first prophetess; and after her to Themis, who next, as is said, sat upon this mother's seat of prophecy.
§4μαντεῖον, ὡς λόγος τις: ἐν δὲ τῷ τρίτῳ §5λάχει, θελούσης, οὐδὲ πρὸς βίαν τινός, §6Τιτανὶς ἄλλη παῖς Χθονὸς καθέζετο,
And in the third allotment, with her consent and not by force of anyone, another Titaness, daughter of Earth, took her seat here, Phoebe.
She gave it as a birthday gift to Phoebus, who has his name from Phoebe.
§9λιπὼν δὲ λίμνην Δηλίαν τε χοιράδα, §10κέλσας ἐπ᾽ ἀκτὰς ναυπόρους τὰς Παλλάδος, §11ἐς τήνδε γαῖαν ἦλθε Παρνησοῦ θ᾽ ἕδρας.
Leaving the Delian lake and ridge, and landing on the ship-traveled shores of Pallas, he came to this land and the seats of Parnassus.
§12πέμπουσι δ᾽ αὐτὸν καὶ σεβίζουσιν μέγα §13κελευθοποιοὶ παῖδες Ἡφαίστου, χθόνα §14ἀνήμερον τιθέντες ἡμερωμένην.
And the road-building sons of Hephaestus escort him and worship him greatly, making the wild earth tame.
When he came, the people honored him greatly, and Delphus, the helmsman and king of this land.
§17τέχνης δέ νιν Ζεὺς ἔνθεον κτίσας φρένα §18ἵζει τέταρτον τοῖσδε μάντιν ἐν θρόνοις: §19Διὸς προφήτης δ᾽ ἐστὶ Λοξίας πατρός.
Zeus made his mind inspired with the prophetic art and established him on these thrones as the fourth prophet; and Loxias is the spokesman of his father Zeus.
§20τούτους ἐν εὐχαῖς φροιμιάζομαι θεούς.
These are the gods I place first in my prayers.
§21Παλλὰς προναία δ᾽ ἐν λόγοις πρεσβεύεται.
And Pallas of the Vestibule is honored in my words.
And I revere the nymphs, where the Corycian rock is hollow, beloved of birds, the haunt of divine spirits.
§24Βρόμιος ἔχει τὸν χῶρον, οὐδ᾽ ἀμνημονῶ, §25ἐξ οὗτε Βάκχαις ἐστρατήγησεν θεός, §26λαγὼ δίκην Πενθεῖ καταρράψας μόρον:
Bromius holds the place, nor do I forget it, since the god led the Bacchanals in war, plotting a doom for Pentheus like a hare's death.
§27Πλειστοῦ τε πηγὰς καὶ Ποσειδῶνος κράτος §28καλοῦσα καὶ τέλειον ὕψιστον Δία, §29ἔπειτα μάντις ἐς θρόνους καθιζάνω.
Calling upon the springs of Pleistus and the power of Poseidon, and Zeus the supreme, the fulfiller, I then seat myself as prophetess upon the throne.
And now may they grant that I obtain far the best of my former entries.
And if any from the Greeks are here, let them enter by lot, as is the custom, for I prophesy as the god guides me.
§34ἦ δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν, §35πάλιν μ᾽ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου, §36ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μ᾽ ἀκταίνειν βάσιν:
Things terrible to tell, terrible for eyes to look upon, have sent me back from the house of Loxias, so that I have no strength nor can I lift my steps.
I run with my hands, not with the swiftness of my legs, for a frightened old woman is nothing, or rather, like a child.
§39ἐγὼ μὲν ἕρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν: §40ὁρῶ δ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ὀμφαλῷ μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσῆ §41ἕδραν ἔχοντα προστρόπαιον, αἵματι §42στάζοντα χεῖρας καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος §43ἔχοντ᾽ ἐλαίας θ᾽ ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον, §44λήνει μεγίστῳ σωφρόνως ἐστεμμένον, §45ἀργῆτι μαλλῷ: τῇδε γὰρ τρανῶς ἐρῶ.
I creep towards the many-garlanded inner sanctuary, and I see at the navel-stone a man detested by the gods holding the seat of a suppliant, dripping with blood from his hands, and holding a newly-drawn sword and a high-grown branch of olive, reverently crowned with a very large tuft of wool, with white fleece; for on this point I will speak clearly.
Before this man a wondrous troop of women sleeps, sitting on the thrones.
Not women, but Gorgons I call them, nor yet will I liken them to Gorgon shapes.
§50εἶδόν ποτ᾽ ἤδη Φινέως γεγραμμένας §51δεῖπνον φερούσας: ἄπτεροί γε μὴν ἰδεῖν §52αὗται, μέλαιναι δ᾽ ἐς τὸ πᾶν βδελύκτροποι:
I saw them once before in a painting, snatching the feast of Phineus; but these are wingless to see, black, and utterly abominable in their behavior.
§53ῥέγκουσι δ᾽ οὐ πλατοῖσι φυσιάμασιν: §54ἐκ δ᾽ ὀμμάτων λείβουσι δυσφιλῆ λίβα: §55καὶ κόσμος οὔτε πρὸς θεῶν ἀγάλματα §56φέρειν δίκαιος οὔτ᾽ ἐς ἀνθρώπων στέγας.
They snort with breath that cannot be approached, and from their eyes they drip a hateful moisture; and their attire is fit neither to bring before the statues of gods nor into the homes of men.
§57τὸ φῦλον οὐκ ὄπωπα τῆσδ᾽ ὁμιλίας §58οὐδ᾽ ἥτις αἶα τοῦτ᾽ ἐπεύχεται γένος §59τρέφουσ᾽ ἀνατὶ μὴ μεταστένειν πόνον.
I have not seen the tribe of this company, nor what land boasts to nurture this race without harm, so as not to groan over its labor afterwards.
What follows now must be the care of the master of this house, Loxias himself, the mighty one.
He is a healer-prophet and a reader of portents, and for others he is a purifier of homes.
§64οὔτοι προδώσω: διὰ τέλους δέ σοι φύλαξ §65ἐγγὺς παρεστὼς καὶ πρόσω δ᾽ ἀποστατῶν §66ἐχθροῖσι τοῖς σοῖς οὐ γενήσομαι πέπων.
I will never betray you; to the end I will be your guardian, standing close by, or even when far away, and I will not grow gentle towards your enemies.
§67καὶ νῦν ἁλούσας τάσδε τὰς μάργους ὁρᾷς: §68ὕπνῳ πεσοῦσαι δ᾽ αἱ κατάπτυστοι κόραι, §69γραῖαι παλαιαὶ παῖδες, αἷς οὐ μίγνυται §70θεῶν τις οὐδ᾽ ἄνθρωπος οὐδὲ θήρ ποτε:
And now you see these mad women captured; fallen in sleep are these detestable maidens, ancient gray-haired daughters, with whom no god ever mingles, nor man, nor beast.
§71κακῶν δ᾽ ἕκατι κἀγένοντ᾽, ἐπεὶ κακὸν §72σκότον νέμονται Τάρταρόν θ᾽ ὑπὸ χθονός, §73μισήματ᾽ ἀνδρῶν καὶ θεῶν Ὀλυμπίων.
For the sake of evil they were born, since they inhabit evil darkness and Tartarus beneath the earth, hated by men and by the Olympian gods.
§74ὅμως δὲ φεῦγε μηδὲ μαλθακὸς γένῃ. §75ἐλῶσι γάρ σε καὶ δι᾽ ἠπείρου μακρᾶς §76†βιβῶντ᾽ ἀν᾽ ἀεὶ† τὴν πλανοστιβῆ χθόνα §77ὑπέρ τε πόντον καὶ περιρρύτας πόλεις.
Nevertheless, flee and do not grow soft; for they will drive you across the long mainland, as you wander forever over the wide earth, and over the sea and the wave-washed cities.