1. POSEIDON: May I have a word with Zeus, Hermes?HERMES: Impossible, Poseidon. POSEIDON: Just tell him I’m here.
1. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Ἔστιν, ὦ Ἑρμῆ, νῦν ἐντυχεῖν τῷ Διί;ΕΡΜΗΣ: Οὐδαμῶς, ὦ Πόσειδον. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Ὅμως προσάγγειλον αὐτῷ.
HERMES: Don’t bother us, I tell you. It’s not convenient. You can’t see him just now. POSEIDON: He’s not with Hera, is he?
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Μὴ ἐνόχλει, φημί· ἄκαιρον γάρ ἐστιν, ὥστε οὐκ ἂν ἴδοις αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ παρόντι. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Μῶν τῇ Ἥρᾳ σύνεστιν;
HERMES: No, it’s something quite different. POSEIDON: I know what you mean. He’s got Ganymede in there.
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Οὔκ, ἀλλ’ ἑτεροῖόν τί ἐστιν. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Συνίημι· ὁ Γανυμήδης ἔνδον.
HERMES: No, it’s not that either. He’s poorly. POSEIDON: How come, Hermes? That’s surprising.
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Οὐδὲ τοῦτο· ἀλλὰ μαλακῶς ἔχει αὐτός. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Πόθεν, ὦ Ἑρμῆ; δεινὸν γὰρ τοῦτο φῄς.
HERMES: I’m ashamed to tell you; it’s so awful. POSEIDON: There’s nothing wrong with telling Uncle Poseidon.
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Αἰσχύνομαι εἰπεῖν, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Ἀλλὰ οὐ χρὴ πρὸς ἐμὲ θεῖόν γε ὄντα.
HERMES: He’s just had a baby, uncle. POSEIDON: Nonsense. How could he? Who’s the father? Was he a man-woman, then, without us knowing? His belly didn’t show he was pregnant.
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Τέτοκεν ἀρτίως, ὦ Πόσειδον. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Ἄπαγε, τέτοκεν ἐκεῖνος; ἐκ τίνος; οὐκοῦν ἐλελήθει ἡμᾶς ἀνδρόγυνος ὤν; ἀλλὰ οὐδὲ ἐπεσήμανεν ἡ γαστὴρ αὐτῷ ὄγκον τινά.
HERMES: True enough; the child wasn’t there. POSEIDON: Oh, I’ve got it. He produced it out of his head again, just as he did Athena. He’s got a prolific head.
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Εὖ λέγεις· οὐ γὰρ ἐκείνη εἶχε τὸ ἔμβρυον. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Οἶδα· ἐκ τῆς κεφαλῆς ἔτεκεν αὖθις ὥσπερ τὴν Ἀθηνᾶν· τοκάδα γὰρ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἔχει.
HERMES: No, it was from his thigh that Semele’s child came. POSEIDON: Bravo! He’s a fine one for you. Gets pregnant from head to toe. Breeds all over his body. But who is Semele?
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Οὔκ, ἀλλὰ ἐν τῷ μηρῷ ἐκύει τὸ τῆς Σεμέλης βρέφος. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Εὖ γε ὁ γενναῖος, ὡς ὅλος ἡμῖν κυοφορεῖ καὶ πανταχόθι τοῦ σώματος. ἀλλὰ τίς ἡ Σεμέλη ἐστί;
2. HERMES: She’s from Thebes—one of Cadmus’ daughters. He got her into trouble. POSEIDON: And then had the baby himself, instead of her?
2. ΕΡΜΗΣ: Θηβαία, τῶν Κάδμου θυγατέρων μία. ταύτῃ συνελθὼν ἐγκύμονα ἐποίησεν. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Εἶτα ἔτεκεν, ὦ Ἑρμῆ, ἀντ' ἐκείνης;
HERMES: Exactly, even if you do think it odd. The fact is that Hera—you know how jealous she is—talked Semele into persuading Zeus to visit her complete with thunder and lightning. He agreed, and came with his thunderbolt too; the roof caught fire, and Semele was burnt up, and he told me to cut open her womb, and bring him the half-formed seven-month child. When I did so, he cut a slit in his own thigh, and slipped it in to finish its growth there; now, two months later, he’s brought it into the world, and he’s ill from the birth-pains. POSEIDON: Then, where’s the baby now?
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Καὶ μάλα, εἰ καὶ παράδοξον εἶναί σοι δοκεῖ· τὴν μὲν γὰρ Σεμέλην ὑπελθοῦσαι ἡ Ἥρα—οἶσθα ὡς ζηλότυπός ἐστι—πείθει αἰτῆσαι παρὰ τοῦ Διὸς μετὰ βροντῶν καὶ ἀστραπῶν ἥκειν παρ' αὐτήν· ὡς δὲ ἐπείσθη καὶ ἧκεν ἔχων καὶ τὸν κεραυνόν, ἀνεφλέγη ὁ ὄροφος, καὶ ἡ Σεμέλη μὲν διαφθείρεται ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρός, ἐμὲ δὲ κελεύει ἀνατεμόντα τὴν γαστέρα τῆς γυναικὸς ἀνακομίσαι ἀτελὲς ἔτι αὐτῷ τὸ ἔμβρυον ἑπτάμηνον· καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἐποίησα, διελὼν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ μηρὸν ἐντίθησιν, ὡς ἀποτελεσθείη ἐνταῦθα, καὶ νῦν τρίτῳ ἤδη μηνὶ ἐξέτεκεν αὐτὸ καὶ μαλακῶς ἀπὸ τῶν ὠδίνων ἔχει. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Νῦν οὖν ποῦ τὸ βρέφος ἐστίν;
HERMES: I took him to Nysa, and gave him to the Nymphs to bring up. His name is Dionysus. POSEIDON: Is my brother, then, both father and mother of Dionysus?
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Ἐς τὴν Νῦσαν ἀποκομίσας παρέδωκα ταῖς Νύμφαις ἀνατρέφειν Διόνυσον αὐτὸν ἐπονομασθέντα. ΠΟΣΕΙΔΩΝ: Οὐκοῦν ἀμφότερα τοῦ Διονύσου τούτου καὶ μήτηρ καὶ πατὴρ ὁ ἀδελφός ἐστιν;
HERMES: So it seems. But I’ll be off now to bring him water for his wound, and give him the other attentions usual after a confinement.
ΕΡΜΗΣ: Ἔοικεν. ἄπειμι δ’ οὖν ὕδωρ αὐτῷ πρὸς τὸ τραῦμα οἴσων καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ποιήσων ἃ νομίζεται ὥσπερ λεχοῖ.