Chorus:Do not let anyone who is struck by misfortune make an appealand cry aloud this word, “Justice!” “Thrones of the Furies!” Perhaps some father, or mother, in new sorrow,may cry out these words piteously, now that the house of Justice is falling.
Χορός:μηδέ τις κικλῃσκέτωξυμφορᾷ τετυμμένος,τοῦτʼ ἔπος θροούμενος,ὦ δίκα,ὦ θρόνοι τʼ Ἐρινύων.ταῦτά τις τάχʼ ἂν πατὴρἢ τεκοῦσα νεοπαθὴςοἶκτον οἰκτίσαιτʼ, ἐπει-δὴ πίτνει δόμος δίκας.
Chorus:There is a time when fear is good and ought to remain seated as a guardian of the heart.
Χορός:ἔσθʼ ὅπου τὸ δεινὸν εὖ,καὶ φρενῶν ἐπίσκοπονδεῖ μένειν καθήμενον.
It is profitable to learn wisdom under strain. But who, if he did not train his heart in fear, either city or mortal,would still revere justice in the same way?
ξυμφέρεισωφρονεῖν ὑπὸ στένει.τίς δὲ μηδὲν ἐν δέεικαρδίαν ⟨ἂν⟩ ἀνατρέφωνἢ πόλις βροτός θʼ ὁμοί-ως ἔτʼ ἂν σέβοι δίκαν;
Chorus:Do not approve of a lawless life or one subject to a tyrant.The god grants power to moderation in every form, but he oversees other matters in different ways. I have a timely word of advice: arrogance is truly the child of impiety,but from health of soul comes happiness, dear to all, much prayed for.
Χορός:μήτʼ ἀνάρχετον βίονμήτε δεσποτούμενοναἰνέσῃς.παντὶ μέσῳ τὸ κράτοςθεὸς ὤπασεν, ἄλλʼἄλλᾳ δʼ ἐφορεύει.ξύμμετρον δʼ ἔπος λέγω,δυσσεβίας μὲν ὕβριςτέκος ὡς ἐτύμως·ἐκ δʼ ὑγιεί-ας φρενῶν ὁ πάμφιλοςκαὶ πολύευκτος ὄλβος.
Chorus:And as for the whole matter, I say to you: respect the altar of Justiceand do not, looking to profit, dishonor it by spurning with godless foot; for punishment will come upon you. The appointed fulfilment remains.
Χορός:ἐς τὸ πᾶν δέ σοι λέγω,βωμὸν αἴδεσαι Δίκας·μηδέ νινκέρδος ἰδὼν ἀθέῳποδὶ λὰξ ἀτίσῃς·ποινὰ γὰρ ἐπέσται.κύριον μένει τέλος.
Therefore, let a man rightly put first in honor the reverence owed to his parents, and have regard for attentions paid to guests welcomed in his house.
πρὸς τάδε τις τοκέωνσέβας εὖ προτίωνκαὶ ξενοτί-μους δόμων ἐπιστροφὰςαἰδόμενός τις ἔστω.
Chorus:Whoever is just willingly and without compulsion will not lack happiness; he will never be utterly destroyed. But I say that the man who boldly transgresses, amassing a great heap unjustly—by force,in time, he will strike his sail, when trouble seizes him as the yardarm is splintered.
Χορός:ἑκὼν δʼ ἀνάγκας ἄτερ δίκαιος ὢνοὐκ ἄνολβος ἔσται·πανώλεθρος ⟨δʼ⟩ οὔποτʼ ἂν γένοιτο.τὸν ἀντίτολμον δέ φαμι παρβάτανἄγοντα πολλὰ παντόφυρτʼ ἄνευ δίκαςβιαίως ξὺν χρόνῳ καθήσεινλαῖφος, ὅταν λάβῃ πόνοςθραυομένας κεραίας.
Chorus:He calls on those who hear nothing and he struggles in the midst of the whirling waters.
Χορός:καλεῖ δʼ ἀκούοντας οὐδὲν ⟨ἐν⟩ μέσᾳδυσπαλεῖ τε δίνᾳ·
The god laughs at the hot-headed man, seeing him, who boasted that this would never happen, exhausted by distress without remedy and unable to surmount the cresting wave. He wrecks the happiness of his earlier life on the reef of Justice,and he perishes unwept, unseen.Enter, in procession, Athena, a herald, the jury of the Areopagus, a crowd of citizens. Orestes removes to the place appointed for the accused. Apollo appears after Athena’s first speech.
γελᾷ δὲ δαίμων ἐπʼ ἀνδρὶ θερμῷ,τὸν οὔποτʼ αὐχοῦντʼ ἰδὼν ἀμαχάνοιςδύαις λαπαδνὸν οὐδʼ ὑπερθέοντʼ ἄκραν·διʼ αἰῶνος δὲ τὸν πρὶν ὄλβονἕρματι προσβαλὼν δίκαςὤλετʼ ἄκλαυτος, αἶστος.
Athena:Herald, give the signal and restrain the crowd; and let the piercing Tyrrhenian trumpet, filled with human breath, send forth its shrill blare to the people!
Ἀθηνᾶ:κήρυσσε, κῆρυξ, καὶ στρατὸν κατειργαθοῦ,ἥ τʼ οὖν διάτορος Τυρσηνικὴσάλπιγξ, βροτείου πνεύματος πληρουμένη,ὑπέρτονον γήρυμα φαινέτω στρατῷ.
For while this council-hall is filling, it is good to be silent, and for my ordinances to be learned, by the whole city for everlasting time, and by these appellants, so that their case may be decided well.Enter Apollo.
πληρουμένου γὰρ τοῦδε βουλευτηρίουσιγᾶν ἀρήγει καὶ μαθεῖν θεσμοὺς ἐμοὺςπόλιν τε πᾶσαν εἰς τὸν αἰανῆ χρόνονκαὶ τούσδʼ ὅπως ἂν εὖ καταγνωσθῇ δίκη.
Chorus:Lord Apollo, be master of what is yours.
Χορός:ἄναξ Ἄπολλον, ὧν ἔχεις αὐτὸς κράτει.
Say what part you have in this matter.
τί τοῦδε σοὶ μέτεστι πράγματος λέγε.
Apollo:I have come both to bear witness—for this man was a lawful suppliant and a guest of my sanctuary, and I am his purifier from bloodshed—and to be his advocate myself. I amresponsible for the murder of his mother. To Athena. Bring in the case, and, in accordance with your wisdom, decide it.
Ἀπόλλων:καὶ μαρτυρήσων ἦλθον—ἔστι γὰρ νόμῳἱκέτης ὅδʼ ἁνὴρ καὶ δόμων ἐφέστιοςἐμῶν, φόνου δὲ τοῦδʼ ἐγὼ καθάρσιος—καὶ ξυνδικήσων αὐτός· αἰτίαν δʼ ἔχωτῆς τοῦδε μητρὸς τοῦ φόνου. σὺ δʼ εἴσαγεὅπως ⟨τʼ⟩ ἐπίστᾳ τήνδε κύρωσον δίκην.
Athena:To the Furies. It is for you to speak—I am only bringing in the case; for the prosecutor at the beginning, speaking first, shall rightly inform us of the matter.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ὑμῶν ὁ μῦθος, εἰσάγω δὲ τὴν δίκην·ὁ γὰρ διώκων πρότερος ἐξ ἀρχῆς λέγωνγένοιτʼ ἂν ὀρθῶς πράγματος διδάσκαλος.
Chorus:We are many, but we will speak briefly. To Orestes. Answer our questions, one by one. Say first if you killed your mother.
Χορός:πολλαὶ μέν ἐσμεν, λέξομεν δὲ συντόμως.ἔπος δʼ ἀμείβου πρὸς ἔπος ἐν μέρει τιθείςτὴν μητέρʼ εἰπὲ πρῶτον εἰ κατέκτονας.
Orestes:I killed her. There is no denial of this.
Ὀρέστης:ἔκτεινα· τούτου δʼ οὔτις ἄρνησις πέλει.
Chorus:Of the three falls that win the wrestling match, this one is already ours.
Χορός:ἓν μὲν τόδʼ ἤδη τῶν τριῶν παλαισμάτων.
Orestes:You make this boast over a man who is not down yet.
Ὀρέστης:οὐ κειμένῳ πω τόνδε κομπάζεις λόγον.
Chorus:You must, however, say how you killed her.
Χορός:εἰπεῖν γε μέντοι δεῖ σʼ ὅπως κατέκτανες.
Orestes:I will say it: with drawn sword in hand, I stabbed her in the throat.
Ὀρέστης:λέγω· ξιφουλκῷ χειρὶ πρὸς δέρην τεμών.
Chorus:By whom were you persuaded and on whose advice?
Χορός:πρὸς τοῦ δʼ ἐπείσθης καὶ τίνος βουλεύμασιν;
Orestes:By the oracles of this god here; he is my witness.
Ὀρέστης:τοῖς τοῦδε θεσφάτοισι· μαρτυρεῖ δέ μοι.
Chorus:The prophet directed you to kill your mother?
Χορός:ὁ μάντις ἐξηγεῖτό σοι μητροκτονεῖν;
Orestes:Yes, and to this very hour, I do not blame my fortune.
Ὀρέστης:καὶ δεῦρό γʼ ἀεὶ τὴν τύχην οὐ μέμφομαι.
Chorus:But if the jury’s vote catches hold of you, you’ll soon speak differently.
Χορός:ἀλλʼ εἴ σε μάρψει ψῆφος, ἄλλʼ ἐρεῖς τάχα.
Orestes:I have good confidence. My father will send protection from his grave.
Ὀρέστης:πέποιθʼ. ἀρωγὰς δʼ ἐκ τάφου πέμψει πατήρ.
Chorus:Put your confidence in the dead now, after you have killed your mother!
Χορός:νεκροῖσί νυν πέπισθι μητέρα κτανών.
Orestes:I do, for she was twice afflicted with pollution.
Ὀρέστης:δυοῖν γὰρ εἶχε προσβολὰς μιασμάτοιν.
Chorus:How so? Teach the judges this.
Χορός:πῶς δή; δίδαξον τοὺς δικάζοντας τάδε.
Orestes:By murdering her husband, she killed my father.
Ὀρέστης:ἀνδροκτονοῦσα πατέρʼ ἐμὸν κατέκτανεν.
Chorus:And so, although you are alive, she is free of pollution by her death.
Χορός:τοιγὰρ σὺ μὲν ζῇς, ἡ δʼ ἐλευθέρα φόνῳ.
Orestes:But why did you not drive her into exile, while she lived?
Ὀρέστης:τί δʼ οὐκ ἐκείνην ζῶσαν ἤλαυνες φυγῇ;
Chorus:She was not related by blood to the man she killed.
Χορός:οὐκ ἦν ὅμαιμος φωτὸς ὃν κατέκτανεν.
Orestes:Then am I my mother’s kin by blood?
Ὀρέστης:ἐγὼ δὲ μητρὸς τῆς ἐμῆς ἐν αἵματι;
Chorus:How else could she have nurtured you, murderer, beneath her belt? Do you reject the nearest kinship, that of a mother?
Χορός:πῶς γάρ σʼ ἔθρεψʼ ἂν ἐντός, ὦ μιαιφόνε,ζώνης; ἀπεύχῃ μητρὸς αἷμα φίλτατον;
Orestes:Apollo, give your testimony now. Explain, on my behalf,whether I was justified in killing her. For I do not deny that I did it, as it is done. But decide whether this bloodshed was, to your mind, just or not, so that I may inform the court.
Ὀρέστης:ἤδη σὺ μαρτύρησον· ἐξηγοῦ δέ μοι,Ἄπολλον, εἴ σφε σὺν δίκῃ κατέκτανον.δρᾶσαι γὰρ ὥσπερ ἐστὶν οὐκ ἀρνούμεθα.ἀλλʼ εἰ δίκαιον εἴτε μὴ τῇ σῇ φρενὶδοκεῖ τόδʼ αἷμα, κρῖνον, ὡς τούτοις φράσω.
Apollo:I will speak justly before you, Athena’s great tribunal,—since I am a prophet, I cannot lie. I have never yet, on my oracular throne, said anything about a man or woman or city that Zeus, the father of the Olympians, did not command me to say. Learn how strong this plea of justice is;and I tell you to obey the will of my father; for an oath is not more powerful than Zeus.
Ἀπόλλων:λέξω πρὸς ὑμᾶς τόνδʼ Ἀθηναίας μέγανθεσμὸν δικαίως,—μάντις ὢν δʼ οὐ ψεύσομαι.οὐπώποτʼ εἶπον μαντικοῖσιν ἐν θρόνοις,οὐκ ἀνδρός, οὐ γυναικός, οὐ πόλεως πέρι,ὃ μὴ κελεύσαι Ζεὺς Ὀλυμπίων πατήρ.τὸ μὲν δίκαιον τοῦθʼ ὅσον σθένει μαθεῖν,βουλῇ πιφαύσκω δʼ ὔμμʼ ἐπισπέσθαι πατρός·ὅρκος γὰρ οὔτι Ζηνὸς ἰσχύει πλέον.
Chorus:Zeus, as you say, gave you this oracular command, to tell Orestes here to avenge his father’s murder but to take no account at all of the honor due his mother?
Χορός:Ζεύς, ὡς λέγεις σύ, τόνδε χρησμὸν ὤπασε,φράζειν Ὀρέστῃ τῷδε, τὸν πατρὸς φόνονπράξαντα μητρὸς μηδαμοῦ τιμὰς νέμειν;
Apollo:Yes, for it is not the same thing—the murder of a noble man, honored by a god-given scepter, and his murder indeed by a woman, not by rushing arrows sped from afar, as if by an Amazon, but as you will hear, Pallas, and thosewho are sitting to decide by vote in this matter. She received him from the expedition, where he had for the most part won success beyond expectation, in the judgment of those favorable to him; then, as he was stepping from the bath, on its very edge, she threw a cloak like a tent over it,fettered her husband in an embroidered robe, and cut him down. This was his death, as I have told it to you—the death of a man wholly majestic, commander of the fleet. As for that woman, I have described her in such a way as to whet the indignation of the people who have been appointed to decide this case.
Ἀπόλλων:οὐ γάρ τι ταὐτὸν ἄνδρα γενναῖον θανεῖνδιοσδότοις σκήπτροισι τιμαλφούμενον,καὶ ταῦτα πρὸς γυναικός, οὔ τι θουρίοιςτόξοις ἑκηβόλοισιν, ὥστʼ Ἀμαζόνος,ἀλλʼ ὡς ἀκούσῃ, Παλλὰς οἵ τʼ ἐφήμενοιψήφῳ διαιρεῖν τοῦδε πράγματος πέρι.ἀπὸ στρατείας γάρ νιν ἠμποληκότατὰ πλεῖστʼ ἄμεινον εὔφροσιν δεδεγμένη,δροίτῃ περῶντι λουτρὰ κἀπὶ τέρματιφᾶρος περεσκήνωσεν, ἐν δʼ ἀτέρμονικόπτει πεδήσασʼ ἄνδρα δαιδάλῳ πέπλῳ.ἀνδρὸς μὲν ὑμῖν οὗτος εἴρηται μόροςτοῦ παντοσέμνου, τοῦ στρατηλάτου νεῶν.ταύτην τοιαύτην εἶπον, ὡς δηχθῇ λεώς,ὅσπερ τέτακται τήνδε κυρῶσαι δίκην.
Chorus:Zeus gives greater honor to a father’s death, according to what you say; yet he himself bound his aged father, Cronus. How does this not contradict what you say? I call on you as witnesses turning to the judges to hear these things.
Χορός:πατρὸς προτιμᾷ Ζεὺς μόρον τῷ σῷ λόγῳ·αὐτὸς δʼ ἔδησε πατέρα πρεσβύτην Κρόνον.πῶς ταῦτα τούτοις οὐκ ἐναντίως λέγεις;ὑμᾶς δʼ ἀκούειν ταῦτʼ ἐγὼ μαρτύρομαι.
Apollo:Oh, monsters utterly loathed and detested by the gods!Zeus could undo fetters, there is a remedy for that, and many means of release. But when the dust has drawn up the blood of a man, once he is dead, there is no return to life. For this, my father has made no magic spells,although he arranges all other things, turning them up and down; nor does his exercise of force cost him a breath.
Ἀπόλλων:ὦ παντομισῆ κνώδαλα, στύγη θεῶν,πέδας μὲν ἂν λύσειεν, ἔστι τοῦδʼ ἄκοςκαὶ κάρτα πολλὴ μηχανὴ λυτήριος·ἀνδρὸς δʼ ἐπειδὰν αἷμʼ ἀνασπάσῃ κόνιςἅπαξ θανόντος, οὔτις ἔστʼ ἀνάστασις.τούτων ἐπῳδὰς οὐκ ἐποίησεν πατὴροὑμός, τὰ δʼ ἄλλα πάντʼ ἄνω τε καὶ κάτωστρέφων τίθησιν οὐδὲν ἀσθμαίνων μένει.
Chorus:See how you advocate acquittal for this man! After he has poured out his mother’s blood on the ground, shall he then live in his father’s house in Argos?
Χορός:πῶς γὰρ τὸ φεύγειν τοῦδʼ ὑπερδικεῖς ὅρα·τὸ μητρὸς αἷμʼ ὅμαιμον ἐκχέας πέδοιἔπειτʼ ἐν Ἄργει δώματʼ οἰκήσει πατρός;
Which of the public altars shall he use? What purification rite of the brotherhoods will receive him?
ποίοισι βωμοῖς χρώμενος τοῖς δημίοις;ποία δὲ χέρνιψ φρατέρων προσδέξεται;
Apollo:I will explain this, too, and see how correctly I will speak. The mother of what is called her child is not the parent, but the nurse of the newly-sown embryo.
Ἀπόλλων:καὶ τοῦτο λέξω, καὶ μάθʼ ὡς ὀρθῶς ἐρῶ.οὔκ ἔστι μήτηρ ἡ κεκλημένου τέκνουτοκεύς, τροφὸς δὲ κύματος νεοσπόρου.
The one who mounts is the parent, whereas she, as a stranger for a stranger, preserves the young plant, if the god does not harm it. And I will show you proof of what I say: a father might exist without a mother. A witness is here at hand, the child of Olympian Zeus,who was not nursed in the darkness of a womb, and she is such a child as no goddess could give birth to. For my part, Pallas, as in all other matters, as I know how, I will make your city and people great; and I have sent this man as a suppliant to your sanctuaryso that he may be faithful for all time, and that you, goddess, might win him and those to come after him as a new ally and so that these pledges of faith might remain always, for the later generations of these people to cherish.
τίκτει δʼ ὁ θρῴσκων, ἡ δʼ ἅπερ ξένῳ ξένηἔσωσεν ἔρνος, οἷσι μὴ βλάψῃ θεός.τεκμήριον δὲ τοῦδέ σοι δείξω λόγου.πατὴρ μὲν ἂν γένοιτʼ ἄνευ μητρός· πέλαςμάρτυς πάρεστι παῖς Ὀλυμπίου Διός,οὐδʼ ἐν σκότοισι νηδύος τεθραμμένη,ἀλλʼ οἷον ἔρνος οὔτις ἂν τέκοι θεός.ἐγὼ δέ, Παλλάς, τἄλλα θʼ ὡς ἐπίσταμαι,τὸ σὸν πόλισμα καὶ στρατὸν τεύξω μέγαν,καὶ τόνδʼ ἔπεμψα σῶν δόμων ἐφέστιον,ὅπως γένοιτο πιστὸς εἰς τὸ πᾶν χρόνουκαὶ τόνδʼ ἐπικτήσαιο σύμμαχον, θεά,καὶ τοὺς ἔπειτα, καὶ τάδʼ αἰανῶς μένοιστέργειν τὰ πιστὰ τῶνδε τοὺς ἐπισπόρους.
Athena:Am I to assume that enough has been said,and shall I now command these jurors to cast an honest vote according to their judgment?
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἤδη κελεύω τούσδʼ ἀπὸ γνώμης φέρεινψῆφον δικαίαν, ὡς ἅλις λελεγμένων;
Chorus:For our part, every bolt is already shot. But I am waiting to hear how the trial will be decided.
Χορός:ἡμῖν μὲν ἤδη πᾶν τετόξευται βέλος.μένω δʼ ἀκοῦσαι πῶς ἀγὼν κριθήσεται.
Athena:Why not? As for you, To Apollo and Orestes. how shall I arrange matters so that I will not be blamed by you?
Ἀθηνᾶ:τί γάρ; πρὸς ὑμῶν πῶς τιθεῖσʼ, ἄμομφος ὦ;
Apollo:You have heard what you have heard;and as you cast your ballots, keep the oath sacred in your hearts, friends.
Ἀπόλλων:ἠκούσαθʼ ὧν ἠκούσατʼ, ἐν δὲ καρδίᾳψῆφον φέροντες ὅρκον αἰδεῖσθε, ξένοι.
Athena:Hear now my ordinance, people of Attica, as you judge the first trial for bloodshed. In the future, even as now, this court of judges will always exist for the people of Aegeus.
Ἀθηνᾶ:κλύοιτʼ ἂν ἤδη θεσμόν, Ἀττικὸς λεώς,πρώτας δίκας κρίνοντες αἵματος χυτοῦ.ἔσται δὲ καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν Αἰγέως στρατῷαἰεὶ δικαστῶν τοῦτο βουλευτήριον.
And this Hill of Ares, the seat and camp of the Amazons, when they came with an army in resentment against Theseus, and in those days built up this new citadel with lofty towers to rival his, and sacrificed to Ares, from which this rock takes its name,the Hill of Ares: on this hill, the reverence of the citizens, and fear, its kinsman, will hold them back from doing wrong by day and night alike, so long as they themselves do not pollute the laws with evil streams; if you stain clear waterwith filth, you will never find a drink. Neither anarchy nor tyranny—this I counsel my citizens to support and respect, and not to drive fear wholly out of the city. For who among mortals, if he fears nothing, is righteous?
πάγον δʼ Ἄρειον τόνδʼ, Ἀμαζόνων ἕδρανσκηνάς θʼ, ὅτʼ ἦλθον Θησέως κατὰ φθόνονστρατηλατοῦσαι, καὶ πόλιν νεόπτολιντήνδʼ ὑψίπυργον ἀντεπύργωσαν τότε,Ἄρει δʼ ἔθυον, ἔνθεν ἔστʼ ἐπώνυμοςπέτρα, πάγος τʼ Ἄρειος· ἐν δὲ τῷ σέβαςἀστῶν φόβος τε ξυγγενὴς τὸ μὴ ἀδικεῖνσχήσει τό τʼ ἦμαρ καὶ κατʼ εὐφρόνην ὁμῶς,αὐτῶν πολιτῶν μὴ ʼπιχραινόντων νόμουςκακαῖς ἐπιρροαῖσι· βορβόρῳ δʼ ὕδωρλαμπρὸν μιαίνων οὔποθʼ εὑρήσεις ποτόν.τὸ μήτʼ ἄναρχον μήτε δεσποτούμενονἀστοῖς περιστέλλουσι βουλεύω σέβειν,καὶ μὴ τὸ δεινὸν πᾶν πόλεως ἔξω βαλεῖν.τίς γὰρ δεδοικὼς μηδὲν ἔνδικος βροτῶν;
Stand in just awe of such majesty, and you will have a defense for your land and salvation of your city, such as no man has, either among the Scythians or in Pelops’ realm. I establish this tribunal, untouched by greed,worthy of reverence, quick to anger, awake on behalf of those who sleep, a guardian of the land. I have prolonged this advice to my citizens for the future; but now you must rise and take a ballot, and decide the caseunder the sacred obligation of your oath. My word has been spoken. The judges rise from their seats and cast their ballots one by one during the following altercation.
τοιόνδε τοι ταρβοῦντες ἐνδίκως σέβαςἔρυμά τε χώρας καὶ πόλεως σωτήριονἔχοιτʼ ἄν, οἷον οὔτις ἀνθρώπων ἔχει,οὔτʼ ἐν Σκύθῃσιν οὔτε Πέλοπος ἐν τόποις.κερδῶν ἄθικτον τοῦτο βουλευτήριον,αἰδοῖον, ὀξύθυμον, εὑδόντων ὕπερἐγρηγορὸς φρούρημα γῆς καθίσταμαι.ταύτην μὲν ἐξέτεινʼ ἐμοῖς παραίνεσινἀστοῖσιν εἰς τὸ λοιπόν· ὀρθοῦσθαι δὲ χρὴκαὶ ψῆφον αἴρειν καὶ διαγνῶναι δίκηναἰδουμένους τὸν ὅρκον. εἴρηται λόγος.
Chorus:And I counsel you not to dishonor us in any way, since our company can be a burden to your land.
Χορός:καὶ μὴν βαρεῖαν τήνδʼ ὁμιλίαν χθονὸςξύμβουλός εἰμι μηδαμῶς ἀτιμάσαι.
Apollo:And I, for my part, command you to stand in fear of the oracles, both mine and Zeus’, and not cause them to be unfulfilled.
Ἀπόλλων:κἄγωγε χρησμοὺς τοὺς ἐμούς τε καὶ Διὸςταρβεῖν κελεύω μηδʼ ἀκαρπώτους κτίσαι.
Chorus:Although it is not your office, you have respect for deeds of bloodshed. You will prophesy, dispensing prophecies that are no longer pure.
Χορός:ἀλλʼ αἱματηρὰ πράγματʼ οὐ λαχὼν σέβεις,μαντεῖα δʼ οὐκέθʼ ἁγνὰ μαντεύσῃ νέμων.
Apollo:Then was my father mistaken in any way in his purposes when Ixion, who first shed blood, was a suppliant?
Ἀπόλλων:ἦ καὶ πατήρ τι σφάλλεται βουλευμάτωνπρωτοκτόνοισι προστροπαῖς Ἰξίονος;
Chorus:You do argue! But if I fail to win the case,I will once more inflict my company on this land as a burden.
Χορός:λέγεις· ἐγὼ δὲ μὴ τυχοῦσα τῆς δίκηςβαρεῖα χώρᾳ τῇδʼ ὁμιλήσω πάλιν.
Apollo:But you have no honor, among both the younger and the older gods. I will win.
Ἀπόλλων:ἀλλʼ ἔν τε τοῖς νέοισι καὶ παλαιτέροιςθεοῖς ἄτιμος εἶ σύ· νικήσω δʼ ἐγώ.
Chorus:You did such things also in the house of Pheres, when you persuaded the Fates to make mortals free from death.
Χορός:τοιαῦτʼ ἔδρασας καὶ Φέρητος ἐν δόμοις·Μοίρας ἔπεισας ἀφθίτους θεῖναι βροτούς.
Apollo:Is it not right, then, to do good for a worshipper, especially when he is in need?
Ἀπόλλων:οὔκουν δίκαιον τὸν σέβοντʼ εὐεργετεῖν,ἄλλως τε πάντως χὤτε δεόμενος τύχοι;
Chorus:It was you who destroyed the old dispensations when you beguiled the ancient goddesses with wine.
Χορός:σύ τοι παλαιὰς διανομὰς καταφθίσαςοἴνῳ παρηπάτησας ἀρχαίας θεάς.
Apollo:Soon, when you have lost the case,you will spit out your venom—no great burden to your enemies. The balloting is now ended.
Ἀπόλλων:σύ τοι τάχʼ οὐκ ἔχουσα τῆς δίκης τέλοςἐμῇ τὸν ἰὸν οὐδὲν ἐχθροῖσιν βαρύν.
Chorus:Since you, a youth, would ride me down, an old woman, I am waiting to hear the verdict in the case, since I have not decided whether to be angry at the city.
Χορός:ἐπεὶ καθιππάζῃ με πρεσβῦτιν νέος,δίκης γενέσθαι τῆσδʼ ἐπήκοος μένω,ὡς ἀμφίβουλος οὖσα θυμοῦσθαι πόλει.
Athena:It is my duty to give the final judgmentand I shall cast my vote for Orestes. For there was no mother who gave me birth; and in all things, except for marriage, whole-heartedly I am for the male and entirely on the father’s side. Therefore, I will not award greater honor to the death of a womanwho killed her husband, the master of the house. Orestes wins, even if the vote comes out equal. Cast the ballots out of the urns, as quickly as possible, you jurors who have been assigned this task. The ballots are turned out and separated.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἐμὸν τόδʼ ἔργον, λοισθίαν κρῖναι δίκην.ψῆφον δʼ Ὀρέστῃ τήνδʼ ἐγὼ προσθήσομαι.μήτηρ γὰρ οὔτις ἐστὶν ἥ μʼ ἐγείνατο,τὸ δʼ ἄρσεν αἰνῶ πάντα, πλὴν γάμου τυχεῖν,ἅπαντι θυμῷ, κάρτα δʼ εἰμὶ τοῦ πατρός.οὕτω γυναικὸς οὐ προτιμήσω μόρονἄνδρα κτανούσης δωμάτων ἐπίσκοπον.νικᾷ δʼ Ὀρέστης, κἂν ἰσόψηφος κριθῇ.ἐκβάλλεθʼ ὡς τάχιστα τευχέων πάλους,ὅσοις δικαστῶν τοῦτʼ ἐπέσταλται τέλος.
Orestes:O Phoebus Apollo! How will the trial be decided?
Ὀρέστης:ὦ Φοῖβʼ Ἄπολλον, πῶς ἀγὼν κριθήσεται;
Chorus:O Night, our dark Mother, do you see this?
Χορός:ὦ Νὺξ μέλαινα μῆτερ, ἆρʼ ὁρᾷς τάδε;
Orestes:Now I will meet my end by hanging, or I will live.
Ὀρέστης:νῦν ἀγχόνης μοι τέρματʼ, ἢ φάος βλέπειν.
Chorus:Yes, and we will be ruined, or maintain our honors further.
Χορός:ἡμῖν γὰρ ἔρρειν, ἢ πρόσω τιμὰς νέμειν.
Apollo:Correctly count the ballots cast forth, friends, and be in awe of doing wrong in the division of the votes.
Ἀπόλλων:πεμπάζετʼ ὀρθῶς ἐκβολὰς ψήφων, ξένοι,τὸ μὴ ʼδικεῖν σέβοντες ἐν διαιρέσει.
Error of judgment is the source of much distress, and the cast of a single ballot has set upright a house. The ballots are shown to Athena.
γνώμης δʼ ἀπούσης πῆμα γίγνεται μέγα,βαλοῦσά τʼ οἶκον ψῆφος ὤρθωσεν μία.
Athena:This man is acquitted on the charge of murder, for the numbers of the casts are equal. Apollo disappears.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἀνὴρ ὅδʼ ἐκπέφευγεν αἵματος δίκην·ἴσον γάρ ἐστι τἀρίθμημα τῶν πάλων.
Orestes:Pallas, savior of my house!
Ὀρέστης:ὦ Παλλάς, ὦ σώσασα τοὺς ἐμοὺς δόμους.
I was deprived of a fatherland, and it is you who have given me a home there again. The Hellenes will say, “The man is an Argive once again, and lives in his father’s heritage, by the grace of Pallas and of Loxias and of that third god, the one who accomplishes everything,”“the savior”—the one who, having respect for my father’s death, saves me, seeing those advocates of my mother. I will return to my home now, after I swear an oath to this land and to your people for the future and for all time to come,that no captain of my land will ever come here and bring a well-equipped spear against them. For I myself, then in my grave, will accomplish it by failure without remedy,making their marches spiritless and their journeys ill-omened, so that those who violate my present oath will repent their enterprise. But while the straight course is preserved, and they hold in everlasting honor this city of Pallas with their allied spears, I will be the more well-disposed to them.
γαίας πατρῴας ἐστερημένον σύ τοικατῴκισάς με· καί τις Ἑλλήνων ἐρεῖ,Ἀργεῖος ἁνὴρ αὖθις ἔν τε χρήμασινοἰκεῖ πατρῴοις, Παλλάδος καὶ Λοξίουἕκατι, καὶ τοῦ πάντα κραίνοντος τρίτουσωτῆρος, ὃς πατρῷον αἰδεσθεὶς μόρονσῴζει με, μητρὸς τάσδε συνδίκους ὁρῶν.ἐγὼ δὲ χώρᾳ τῇδε καὶ τῷ σῷ στρατῷτὸ λοιπὸν εἰς ἅπαντα πλειστήρη χρόνονὁρκωμοτήσας νῦν ἄπειμι πρὸς δόμους,μήτοι τινʼ ἄνδρα δεῦρο πρυμνήτην χθονὸςἐλθόντʼ ἐποίσειν εὖ κεκασμένον δόρυ.αὐτοὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς ὄντες ἐν τάφοις τότετοῖς τἀμὰ παρβαίνουσι νῦν ὁρκώματαἀμηχάνοισι πράξομεν δυσπραξίαις,ὁδοὺς ἀθύμους καὶ παρόρνιθας πόρουςτιθέντες, ὡς αὐτοῖσι μεταμέλῃ πόνος·ὀρθουμένων δέ, καὶ πόλιν τὴν Παλλάδοςτιμῶσιν αἰεὶ τήνδε συμμάχῳ δορί,αὐτοῖσιν ἡμεῖς ἐσμεν εὐμενέστεροι.
And so farewell—you and the people who guard your city. May your struggle with your enemies let none escape, bringing you safety and victory with the spear! Exit.
καὶ χαῖρε, καὶ σὺ καὶ πολισσοῦχος λεώς·πάλαισμʼ ἄφυκτον τοῖς ἐναντίοις ἔχοις,σωτήριόν τε καὶ δορὸς νικηφόρον.
Chorus:Younger gods, you have ridden down the ancient laws and have taken them from my hands!
Χορός:ἰὼ θεοὶ νεώτεροι, παλαιοὺς νόμουςκαθιππάσασθε κἀκ χερῶν εἵλεσθέ μου.
And I—dishonored, unhappy, deeply angry—on this land, alas, I will release venom from my heart, venom in return for my grief, drops that the land cannot endure. From it,a blight that destroys leaves, destroys children—a just return—speeding over the plain, will cast infection on the land to ruin mortals. I groan aloud. What shall I do? I am mocked by the people.
ἐγὼ δʼ ἄτιμος ἁ τάλαινα βαρύκοτοςἐν γᾷ τᾷδε, φεῦ,ἰὸν ἰὸν ἀντιπενθῆμεθεῖσα καρδίας, σταλαγμὸν χθονὶἄφορον· ἐκ δὲ τοῦλειχὴν ἄφυλλος, ἄτεκνος,ἰὼ δίκα, πέδον ἐπισύμενοςβροτοφθόρους κηλῖδας ἐν χώρᾳ βαλεῖ.στενάζω· τί ῥέξω;γελῶμαι πολίταις.
What I have suffered is unbearable. Ah, cruel indeed are the wrongs of the daughters of Night, mourning over dishonor!
δύσοισθʼ ἅπαθον.ἰὼ μεγάλα τοὶ κόραι δυστυχεῖςΝυκτὸς ἀτιμοπενθεῖς.
Athena:Be persuaded by me not to bear it with heavy lament.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἐμοὶ πίθεσθε μὴ βαρυστόνως φέρειν.
For you have not been defeated; the trial resulted fairly in an equal vote, without disgrace to you; but clear testimony from Zeus was present, and he himself who spoke the oracle himself gave witness that Orestes should not suffer harm for his deed.
οὐ γὰρ νενίκησθʼ, ἀλλʼ ἰσόψηφος δίκηἐξῆλθʼ ἀληθῶς, οὐκ ἀτιμίᾳ σέθεν·ἀλλʼ ἐκ Διὸς γὰρ λαμπρὰ μαρτύρια παρῆν,αὐτός θʼ ὁ χρήσας αὐτὸς ἦν ὁ μαρτυρῶν,ὡς ταῦτʼ Ὀρέστην δρῶντα μὴ βλάβας ἔχειν.
Do not be angry, do not hurl your heavy rage on this land, or cause barrenness, letting loose drops whose savage spirit will devour the seed. For I promise you most sacredly that you will havea cavernous sanctuary in a righteous land, where you will sit on shining thrones at your hearths, worshipped with honor by my citizens here.
ὑμεῖς δὲ μὴ θυμοῦσθε μηδὲ τῇδε γῇβαρὺν κότον σκήψητε, μηδʼ ἀκαρπίαντεύξητʼ, ἀφεῖσαι δαιμόνων σταλάγματα,βρωτῆρας αἰχμὰς σπερμάτων ἀνημέρους.ἐγὼ γὰρ ὑμῖν πανδίκως ὑπίσχομαιἕδρας τε καὶ κευθμῶνας ἐνδίκου χθονὸςλιπαροθρόνοισιν ἡμένας ἐπʼ ἐσχάραιςἕξειν ὑπʼ ἀστῶν τῶνδε τιμαλφουμένας.
Chorus:Younger gods, you have ridden down the ancient laws and have taken them from my hands!
Χορός:ἰὼ θεοὶ νεώτεροι, παλαιοὺς νόμουςκαθιππάσασθε κἀκ χερῶν εἵλεσθέ μου.
And I—dishonored, unhappy, deeply angry—on this land, alas, I will release venom from my heart, venom in return for my grief, drops that the land cannot endure. From it a blightthat destroys leaves, destroys children—a just return—speeding over the plain, will cast infection on the land to ruin mortals. I groan aloud. What shall I do? I am mocked by the people.
ἐγὼ δʼ ἄτιμος ἁ τάλαινα βαρύκοτοςἐν γᾷ τᾷδε, φεῦ,ἰὸν ἰὸν ἀντιπενθῆμεθεῖσα καρδίας, σταλαγμὸν χθονὶἄφορον· ἐκ δὲ τοῦλειχὴν ἄφυλλος, ἄτεκνος,ἰὼ δίκα, πέδον ἐπισύμενοςβροτοφθόρους κηλῖδας ἐν χώρᾳ βαλεῖ.στενάζω· τί ῥέξω;γελῶμαι πολίταις·
What I have suffered is unbearable. Ah, cruel indeed are the wrongs of the daughters of Night, mourning over dishonor!
δύσοισθʼ ἅπαθον.ἰὼ μεγάλα τοι κόραι δυστυχεῖςΝυκτὸς ἀτιμοπενθεῖς.
Athena:You are not dishonored; so, although you are goddesses, do not, in excessive rage,blight past all cure a land of mortals. I also rely on Zeus—what need is there to mention that?—and I alone of the gods know the keys to the house where his thunderbolt is sealed. But there is no need of that. So yield to my persuasionand do not hurl the words of a reckless tongue against the land, that all things bearing fruit will not prosper. Calm the black wave’s bitter anger, since you will receive proud honors and will live with me. And when you have the first-fruits of this great land forever,offerings on behalf of children and of marriage rites, you will praise my counsel.
Ἀθηνᾶ:οὐκ ἔστʼ ἄτιμοι, μηδʼ ὑπερθύμως ἄγανθεαὶ βροτῶν κτίσητε δύσκηλον χθόνα.κἀγὼ πέποιθα Ζηνί, καὶ τί δεῖ λέγειν;καὶ κλῇδας οἶδα δώματος μόνη θεῶν,ἐν ᾧ κεραυνός ἐστιν ἐσφραγισμένος·ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν αὐτοῦ δεῖ· σὺ δʼ εὐπιθὴς ἐμοὶγλώσσης ματαίας μὴ ʼκβάλῃς ἔπη χθονί,καρπὸν φέροντα πάντα μὴ πράσσειν καλῶςκοίμα κελαινοῦ κύματος πικρὸν μένοςὡς σεμνότιμος καὶ ξυνοικήτωρ ἐμοί·πολλῆς δὲ χώρας τῆσδʼ ἔτʼ ἀκροθίνιαθύη πρὸ παίδων καὶ γαμηλίου τέλουςἔχουσʼ ἐς αἰεὶ τόνδʼ ἐπαινέσεις λόγον.
Chorus:For me to suffer this, alas! For me, with ancient wisdom, to live beneath the earth, alas, without honor, unclean!
Χορός:ἐμὲ παθεῖν τάδε, φεῦ,ἐμὲ παλαιόφρονα κατά τε γᾶς οἰκεῖν,φεῦ, ἀτίετον μύσος.
I am breathing fury and utter rage. Oh, oh, the shame of it! What anguish steals into my breast! Hear my anger, motherNight; for the deceptions of the gods, hard to fight, have deprived me of my ancient honors, bringing me to nothing.
πνέω τοι μένος ἅπαντά τε κότον.οἶ οἶ δᾶ, φεῦ.τίς μʼ ὑποδύεται, ⟨τίς⟩ ὀδύνα πλευράς;θυμὸν ἄιε, μᾶτερΝύξ· ἀπὸ γάρ με τι-μᾶν δαναιᾶν θεῶνδυσπάλαμοι παρʼ οὐδὲν ἦραν δόλοι.
Athena:I will endure your anger, for you are older, and in that respect you are surely wiser than I;
Ἀθηνᾶ:ὀργὰς ξυνοίσω σοι· γεραιτέρα γὰρ εἶ.καὶ τῷ μὲν ⟨εἶ⟩ σὺ κάρτʼ ἐμοῦ σοφωτέρα·
yet Zeus has given me, too, no mean understanding. But as for you, if you go to a foreign land, you will come to love this land—I forewarn you. For time, flowing on, will bring greater honor to these citizens. And you,having a seat of honor at the house of Erechtheus, will obtain from hosts of men and women more than you could ever win from other mortals. So do not cast on my realm keen incentives to bloodshed, harmful to young hearts,maddening them with a fury not of wine; and do not, as if taking the heart out of fighting cocks, plant in my people the spirit of tribal war and boldness against each other. Let their war be with foreign enemies, and without stint for onein whom there will be a terrible passion for glory; but I say there will be no battling of birds within the home. It is possible for you to choose such things from me: bestowing good, receiving good, well honored in this land that is most beloved to the gods.
φρονεῖν δὲ κἀμοὶ Ζεὺς ἔδωκεν οὐ κακῶς.ὑμεῖς δʼ ἐς ἀλλόφυλον ἐλθοῦσαι χθόναγῆς τῆσδʼ ἐρασθήσεσθε· προυννέπω τάδε.οὑπιρρέων γὰρ τιμιώτερος χρόνοςἔσται πολίταις τοῖσδε. καὶ σὺ τιμίανἕδραν ἔχουσα πρὸς δόμοις Ἐρεχθέωςτεύξῃ παρʼ ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναικείων στόλων,ὅσων παρʼ ἄλλων οὔποτʼ ἂν σχέθοις βροτῶν.σὺ δʼ ἐν τόποισι τοῖς ἐμοῖσι μὴ βάλῃςμήθʼ αἱματηρὰς θηγάνας, σπλάγχνων βλάβαςνέων, ἀοίνοις ἐμμανεῖς θυμώμασιν,μήτʼ, ἐξελοῦσʼ ὡς καρδίαν ἀλεκτόρων,ἐν τοῖς ἐμοῖς ἀστοῖσιν ἱδρύσῃς Ἄρηἐμφύλιόν τε καὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλους θρασύν.θυραῖος ἔστω πόλεμος, οὐ μόλις παρών,ἐν ᾧ τις ἔσται δεινὸς εὐκλείας ἔρως·ἐνοικίου δʼ ὄρνιθος οὐ λέγω μάχηντοιαῦθʼ ἑλέσθαι σοι πάρεστιν ἐξ ἐμοῦ,εὖ δρῶσαν, εὖ πάσχουσαν, εὖ τιμωμένηνχώρας μετασχεῖν τῆσδε θεοφιλεστάτης.
Chorus:For me to suffer this, alas! For me, with ancient wisdom, to live beneath the earth, alas, without honor, unclean! I am breathing fury and utter rage. Oh, oh the shame of it!
Χορός:ἐμὲ παθεῖν τάδε, φεῦ,ἐμὲ παλαιόφρονα κατά τε γᾶς οἰκεῖν,φεῦ, ἀτίετον μύσος.πνέω τοι μένος ἅπαντά τε κότον.οἶ οἶ δᾶ, φεῦ.
What anguish steals into my breast! Hear my anger, mother Night; for the deceptions of the gods, hard to fight, have deprived me of my ancient honors, bringing me to nothing.
τίς μʼ ὑποδύεται, τίς ὀδύνα πλευράς;θυμὸν ἄιε, μᾶτερΝύξ· ἀπὸ γάρ με τι-μᾶν δαναιᾶν θεῶνδυσπάλαμοι παρʼ οὐδὲν ἦραν δόλοι.
Athena:No, I will not grow tired of telling you about these good things, so you will never be able to say that you, an ancient goddess, were cast out, dishonored and banished, from this land by me, a younger goddess, and by the mortal guardians of my city.
Ἀθηνᾶ:οὔτοι καμοῦμαί σοι λέγουσα τἀγαθά,ὡς μήποτʼ εἴπῃς πρὸς νεωτέρας ἐμοῦθεὸς παλαιὰ καὶ πολισσούχων βροτῶνἄτιμος ἔρρειν τοῦδʼ ἀπόξενος πέδου.
But if you give holy reverence to Persuasion, the sweetness and charm of my tongue, then you might remain. But if you are not willing to stay, then surely it would be unjust for you to inflict on this city any wrath or rage or harm to the people.
ἀλλʼ εἰ μὲν ἁγνόν ἐστί σοι Πειθοῦς σέβας;γλώσσης ἐμῆς μείλιγμα καὶ θελκτήριον,σὺ δʼ οὖν μένοις ἄν· εἰ δὲ μὴ θέλεις μένειν,οὔ τἂν δικαίως τῇδʼ ἐπιρρέποις πόλειμῆνίν τινʼ ἢ κότον τινʼ ἢ βλάβην στρατῷ.
For it is possible for you to have a share of the land justly, with full honors.
ἔξεστι γάρ σοι τῆσδε γαμόρῳ χθονὸςεἶναι δικαίως ἐς τὸ πᾶν τιμωμένῃ.
Chorus:Lady Athena, what place do you say I will have?
Χορός:ἄνασσʼ Ἀθάνα, τίνα με φὴς ἔχειν ἕδραν;
Athena:One free from all pain and distress; accept it.
Ἀθηνᾶ:πάσης ἀπήμονʼ οἰζύος· δέχου δὲ σύ.
Chorus:Say that I have accepted it, what honor awaits me?
Χορός:καὶ δὴ δέδεγμαι· τίς δέ μοι τιμὴ μένει;
Athena:That no house will flourish without you.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ὡς μή τινʼ οἶκον εὐθενεῖν ἄνευ σέθεν.
Chorus:Will you gain for me the possession of such power?
Χορός:σὺ τοῦτο πράξεις, ὥστε με σθένειν τόσον;
Athena:Yes, for we will set straight the fortunes of those who worship.
Ἀθηνᾶ:τῷ γὰρ σέβοντι συμφορὰς ὀρθώσομεν.
Chorus:And will you give me a pledge for all time?
Χορός:καί μοι πρόπαντος ἐγγύην θήσῃ χρόνου;
Athena:Yes, for I have no need to say what I will not accomplish.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἔξεστι γάρ μοι μὴ λέγειν ἃ μὴ τελῶ.
Chorus:It seems you will win me by your spells; I am letting go my anger.
Χορός:θέλξειν μʼ ἔοικας καὶ μεθίσταμαι κότου.
Athena:Then stay in the land and you will gain other friends.
Ἀθηνᾶ:τοιγὰρ κατὰ χθόνʼ οὖσʼ ἐπικτήσῃ φίλους.
Chorus:What blessings then do you advise me to invoke on this land?
Χορός:τί οὖν μʼ ἄνωγας τῇδʼ ἐφυμνῆσαι χθονί;
Athena:Blessings that aim at a victory not evil; blessings from the earth and from the waters of the seaand from the heavens: that the breathing gales of wind may approach the land in radiant sunshine, and that the fruit of the earth and offspring of grazing beasts, flourishing in overflow, may not fail my citizens in the course of time, and that the seed of mortals will be kept safe.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ὁποῖα νίκης μὴ κακῆς ἐπίσκοπα,καὶ ταῦτα γῆθεν ἔκ τε ποντίας δρόσουἐξ οὐρανοῦ τε· κἀνέμων ἀήματαεὐηλίως πνέοντʼ ἐπιστείχειν χθόνα·καρπόν τε γαίας καὶ βοτῶν ἐπίρρυτονἀστοῖσιν εὐθενοῦντα μὴ κάμνειν χρόνῳ,καὶ τῶν βροτείων σπερμάτων σωτηρίαν.
May you make more prosperous the offspring of godly men; for I, like a gardener, cherish the race of these just men, free of sorrow. Pointing to the audience. Such blessings are yours to give. I, for my part, will not allow this city to be without honor among mortals,this city victorious in the glorious contests of deadly war.
τῶν εὐσεβούντων δʼ ἐκφορωτέρα πέλοις.στέργω γάρ, ἀνδρὸς φιτυποίμενος δίκην,τὸ τῶν δικαίων τῶνδʼ ἀπένθητον γένος.τοιαῦτα σοὔστι. τῶν ἀρειφάτων δʼ ἐγὼπρεπτῶν ἀγώνων οὐκ ἀνέξομαι τὸ μὴ οὐτήνδʼ ἀστύνικον ἐν βροτοῖς τιμᾶν πόλιν.
Chorus:I will accept a home with Pallas, and I will not dishonor a city which she, with Zeus the omnipotent and Ares, holds as a fortress of the gods,the bright ornament that guards the altars of the gods of Hellas. I pray for the city, with favorable prophecy, that the bright gleam of the sun may cause blessings that give happiness to lifeto spring from the earth, in plenty.
Χορός:δέξομαι Παλλάδος ξυνοικίαν,οὐδʼ ἀτιμάσω πόλιν,τὰν καὶ Ζεὺς ὁ παγκρατὴς Ἄρης τεφρούριον θεῶν νέμει,ῥυσίβωμον Ἑλλάνων ἄγαλμα δαιμόνων·ᾇτʼ ἐγὼ κατεύχομαιθεσπίσασα πρευμενῶςἐπισσύτους βίου τύχας ὀνησίμουςγαίας ἐξαμβρῦσαιφαιδρὸν ἁλίου σέλας.
Athena:I act zealously for these citizens in this way, installing here among them divinities great and hard to please.
Ἀθηνᾶ:τάδʼ ἐγὼ προφρόνως τοῖσδε πολίταιςπράσσω, μεγάλας καὶ δυσαρέστουςδαίμονας αὐτοῦ κατανασσαμένη.
For they have been appointed to arrange everything among mortals. Yet the one who has not found them grievous does not know where the blows of life come from. For the sins of his fathersdrag him before them; destruction, in silence and hateful wrath, levels him to the dust, for all his loud boasting.
πάντα γὰρ αὗται τὰ κατʼ ἀνθρώπουςἔλαχον διέπειν.ὁ δὲ μὴ κύρσας βαρεῶν τούτωνοὐκ οἶδεν ὅθεν πληγαὶ βιότου.τὰ γὰρ ἐκ προτέρων ἀπλακήματά νινπρὸς τάσδʼ ἀπάγει, σιγῶν ⟨δʼ⟩ ὄλεθροςκαὶ μέγα φωνοῦντʼἐχθραῖς ὀργαῖς ἀμαθύνει.
Chorus:May no hurtful wind blow to harm the trees—I declare my favor—and may no burning heat, stealing the buds from plants, pass the border of its proper place; may no deadly plague draw near to kill the fruit; may the earth nurture the thriving flockswith twin offspring at the appointed time; and may the rich produce of the earth always pay the gods’ gift of lucky gain.
Χορός:δενδροπήμων δὲ μὴ πνέοι βλάβα,τὰν ἐμὰν χάριν λέγω·φλογμός τʼ ὀμματοστερὴς φυτῶν, τὸμὴ περᾶν ὅρον τόπων,μηδʼ ἄκαρπος αἰανὴς ἐφερπέτω νόσος,μῆλά τʼ εὐθενοῦντα γᾶξὺν διπλοῖσιν ἐμβρύοιςτρέφοι χρόνῳ τεταγμένῳ· γόνος ⟨δʼ⟩πλουτόχθων ἑρμαίανδαιμόνων δόσιν τίοι.
Athena:Do you hear, guards of my city,the things she will accomplish? For the lady Erinys is very powerful, both with the deathless gods and with those below the earth; and in their dealings with mankind, they accomplish matters visibly, perfectly; to some giving songs,to others a life made dim by tears.
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἦ τάδʼ ἀκούετε, πόλεως φρούριον,οἷʼ ἐπικραίνει; μέγα γὰρ δύναταιπότνιʼ Ἐρινὺς παρά τʼ ἀθανάτοιςτοῖς θʼ ὑπὸ γαῖαν, περί τʼ ἀνθρώπωνφανερῶς τελέως διαπράσσουσιν,τοῖς μὲν ἀοιδάς, τοῖς δʼ αὖ δακρύωνβίον ἀμβλωπὸν παρέχουσαι.
Chorus:I forbid deadly and untimely fate for men; grant to lovely maidens life with a husband,you that have the rightful power; you, divine Fates, our sisters by one mother, divinities who distribute justly, who have a share in every home,and whose righteous visitations press heavily at every season, most honored everywhere among the gods!
Χορός:ἀνδροκμῆτας δʼ ἀώρ-ους ἀπεννέπω τύχας,νεανίδων τʼ ἐπηράτωνἀνδροτυχεῖς βιότουςδότε, κύριʼ ἔχοντες,θεαί τʼ ὦ Μοῖραιματροκασιγνῆται,δαίμονες ὀρθονόμοι,παντὶ δόμῳ μετάκοινοι,παντὶ χρόνῳ δʼ ἐπιβριθεῖςἐνδίκοις ὁμιλίαις,πάντᾳ τιμιώταται θεῶν.
Athena:I am glad that they are zealously accomplishing these things for my land;and I am grateful to Persuasion, that her glance kept watch over my tongue and mouth, when I encountered their fierce refusal. But Zeus of the assembly has prevailed. Our rivalryin doing good is victorious forever.
Ἀθηνᾶ:τάδε τοι χώρᾳ τἠμῇ προφρόνωςἐπικραινομένωνγάνυμαι· στέργω δʼ ὄμματα Πειθοῦς,ὅτι μοι γλῶσσαν καὶ στόμʼ ἐπωπᾷπρὸς τάσδʼ ἀγρίως ἀπανηναμένας·ἀλλʼ ἐκράτησε Ζεὺς ἀγοραῖος·νικᾷ δʼ ἀγαθῶνἔρις ἡμετέρα διὰ παντός.
Chorus:I pray that discord, greedy for evil, may never clamor in this city, and may the dust not drinkthe black blood of its people and through passion cause ruinous murder for vengeance to the destruction of the state.But may they return joy for joy in a spirit of common love, and may they hate with one mind; for this is the cure of many an evil in the world.
Χορός:τὰν δʼ ἄπληστον κακῶνμήποτʼ ἐν πόλει στάσιντᾷδʼ ἐπεύχομαι βρέμειν.μηδὲ πιοῦσα κόνιςμέλαν αἷμα πολιτᾶνδιʼ ὀργὰν ποινᾶςἀντιφόνους ἄταςἁρπαλίσαι πόλεως.χάρματα δʼ ἀντιδιδοῖενκοινοφιλεῖ διανοίᾳ,καὶ στυγεῖν μιᾷ φρενί·πολλῶν γὰρ τόδʼ ἐν βροτοῖς ἄκος.
Athena:Do they not then intend to find the path of good speech?
Ἀθηνᾶ:ἆρα φρονοῦσιν γλώσσης ἀγαθῆςὁδὸν εὑρίσκειν;
From these terrible faces I see great profit for these citizens; for, if you always greatly honor with kindness the kindly ones, you will surely be pre-eminent, keeping your land and city in the straight pathof justice.
ἐκ τῶν φοβερῶν τῶνδε προσώπωνμέγα κέρδος ὁρῶ τοῖσδε πολίταις·τάσδε γὰρ εὔφρονας εὔφρονες αἰεὶμέγα τιμῶντες καὶ γῆν καὶ πόλινὀρθοδίκαιονπρέψετε πάντως διάγοντες.
Chorus:Farewell, farewell, in the wealth allotted to you by fate. Farewell, people of the city, seated near to Zeus, the beloved of the beloved maiden,learning at last the way of wisdom. The Father stands in awe of you, since you are under Pallas’ wings.
Χορός:⟨χαίρετε⟩ χαίρετʼ ἐν αἰσιμίαισι πλούτου.χαίρετʼ ἀστικὸς λεώς,ἴκταρ ἥμενοι Διός,παρθένου φίλας φίλοισωφρονοῦντες ἐν χρόνῳ.Παλλάδος δʼ ὑπὸ πτεροῖςὄντας ἅζεται πατήρ.
Athena:Farewell to you also; but I must lead the way to show you your dwellingsby the sacred light of these, your escorts. Go, and, speeding beneath the earth with these solemn sacrifices, hold back what is ruinous to the land, but send what is profitable for the city to win her victory.
Ἀθηνᾶ:χαίρετε χὐμεῖς· προτέραν δʼ ἐμὲ χρὴστείχειν θαλάμους ἀποδείξουσανπρὸς φῶς ἱερὸν τῶνδε προπομπῶν.ἴτε καὶ σφαγίων τῶνδʼ ὑπὸ σεμνῶνκατὰ γῆς σύμεναι τὸ μὲν ἀτηρὸνχώρας κατέχειν, τὸ δὲ κερδαλέονπέμπειν πόλεως ἐπὶ νίκῃ.
You who hold the city, children of Cranaus, lead on their way these new dwellers here. May there be good will in the citizens in return for good done to them!
ὑμεῖς δʼ ἡγεῖσθε, πολισσοῦχοιπαῖδες Κραναοῦ, ταῖσδε μετοίκοις.εἴη δʼ ἀγαθῶνἀγαθὴ διάνοια πολίταις.
Chorus:Farewell, farewell, again, I repeat,all you in the city, both gods and mortals, living in Pallas’ city; if you duly revere my residence among you, you will not blamethe chances of life.
Χορός:χαίρετε, χαίρετε δʼ αὖθις, ἐπανδιπλάζω,πάντες οἱ κατὰ πτόλιν,δαίμονές τε καὶ βροτοί,Παλλάδος πόλιν νέμον-τες· μετοικίαν δʼ ἐμὴνεὖ σέβοντες οὔτι μέμ-ψεσθε συμφορὰς βίου.
Athena:I approve the words of your invocation, and will escort you by the light of gleaming torches to the places below and beneath the earth, with the attendant women who guard my imagein duty bound. For the eye of the whole land of Theseus will come forth, a glorious troop of children, matrons and a band of old women. Dress them honorably in robes dyed scarlet, and let the torches’ light move on,so that this kindly company of visitors to our land may show itself afterwards in blessings that bring prosperity to men.
Ἀθηνᾶ:αἰνῶ τε μύθους τῶνδε τῶν κατευγμάτωνπέμψω τε φέγγει λαμπάδων σελασφόρωνεἰς τοὺς ἔνερθε καὶ κατὰ χθονὸς τόπουςξὺν προσπόλοισιν, αἵτε φρουροῦσιν βρέταςτοὐμὸν δικαίως. ὄμμα γὰρ πάσης χθονὸςΘησῇδος ἐξίκοιτʼ ἂν εὐκλεὴς λόχοςπαίδων, γυναικῶν, καὶ στόλος πρεσβυτίδων.φοινικοβάπτοις ἐνδυτοῖς ἐσθήμασιτιμᾶτε, καὶ τὸ φέγγος ὁρμάσθω πυρός,ὅπως ἂν εὔφρων ἥδʼ ὁμιλία χθονὸςτὸ λοιπὸν εὐάνδροισι συμφοραῖς πρέπῃ.
Chorus of the Processional Escort:Go on your way to your home, children of Night: mighty, lovers of honor, children, yet aged, under kindly escort—you who dwell in the land, refrain from inauspicious speech!Chorus of the Processional Escort:Under the primeval caverns of the earth, gaining the high honor of worship and sacrifice—all you people, refrain from inauspicious speech!
Προπομποί:βᾶτε δόμῳ, μεγάλαι φιλότιμοιΝυκτὸς παῖδες ἄπαιδες, ὑπʼ εὔφρονι πομπᾷ,Προπομποί:εὐφαμεῖτε δέ, χωρῖται,γᾶς ὑπὸ κεύθεσιν ὠγυγίοισιν,[καὶ] τιμαῖς καὶ θυσίαις περίσεπτα τυχοῦσαι,εὐφαμεῖτε δὲ πανδαμεί.
Chorus of the Processional Escort:Gracious and favorable to the land, come here, venerable goddesses, with flame-fed torch, rejoicing as you go—cry aloud now in echo to our song!
Προπομποί:ἵλαοι δὲ καὶ σύμφρονες γᾷδεῦρʼ ἴτε, σεμναί, ⟨ξὺν⟩ πυριδάπτῳλαμπάδι τερπόμεναι καθʼ ὁδόν.ὀλολύξατε νῦν ἐπὶ μολπαῖς.
Chorus of the Processional Escort:Peace endures for all time between Pallas’ citizens and these new dwellers here.Zeus who sees all and Fate have come down to lend aid—cry aloud now in echo to our song! Exeunt omnes.
Προπομποί:σπονδαὶ δʼ ἐς τὸ πᾶν ἐκ μετοίκωνΠαλλάδος ἀστοῖς. Ζεὺς ⟨ὁ⟩ πανόπταςοὕτω Μοῖρά τε συγκατέβα.ὀλολύξατε νῦν ἐπὶ μολπαῖς.