1. APHRODITE: Eros, my boy, you must watch what you’re about. I don’t mean on earth, when you persuade men to work against themselves or each other, but in heaven too, when you make Zeus turn into shape after shape, changing him into whatever you choose for the time, and bring Lady Moon down from the sky, and sometimes keep the Sun-god lingering at Clymene’s side forgetful of his driving. You may go scot-free for the liberties you take with me, your mother but you’ve had the audacity even to turn the thoughts of Rhea to love of boys and have her pining for that Phrygian lad —at her time of life, too, and she the mother of so many gods! Now you’ve driven her mad, and she’s taken her team of lions and her Corybants, who are just as mad as herself, and is wandering up and down Ida; she keeps shrieking for Attis, while the Corybants slash their arms with swords, or let down their hair and rush madly over the mountains, or blow on the horn, thunder on the drums, or bang cymbals; it’s just chaotic frenzy all over Ida. So I fear everything; yes, your mother’s afraid of such goings on, for you’re just one big nuisance, and I’m scared that one day Rhea, in a fit of madness, or, more likely, when still in her right mind, will tell her Corybants to catch you and tear you to pieces or throw you to her lions. That’s what I fear, when I see you running such risks.
1. ΑΦΡΟΔΙΤΗ: Ὦ τέκνον Ἔρως, ὅρα οἷα ποιεῖς· οὐ τὰ ἐν τῇ γῇ λέγω, ὁπόσα τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἀναπείθεις καθ' αὑτῶν ἢ κατ' ἀλλήλων ἐργάζεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, ὃς τὸν μὲν Δία πολύμορφον ἐπιδεικνύεις ἀλλάττων ἐς ὅ τι ἄν σοι ἐπὶ τοῦ καιροῦ δοκῇ, τὴν Σελήνην δὲ καθαιρεῖς ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, τὸν Ἥλιον δὲ παρὰ τῇ Κλυμένῃ βραδύνειν ἐνίοτε ἀναγκάζεις ἐπιλελησμένον τῆς ἱππασίας· ἃ μὲν γὰρ ἐς ἐμὲ τὴν μητέρα ὑβρίζεις, θαρρῶν ποιεῖς. ἀλλὰ σύ, ὦ τολμηρότατε, καὶ τὴν Ῥέαν αὐτὴν γραῦν ἤδη καὶ μητέρα τοσούτων θεῶν οὖσαν ἀνέπεισας παιδεραστεῖν καὶ τὸ Φρύγιον μειράκιον ποθεῖν, καὶ νῦν ἐκείνη μέμηνεν ὑπὸ σοῦ καὶ ζευξαμένη τοὺς λέοντας, παραλαβοῦσα καὶ τοὺς Κορύβαντας ἅτε μανικοὺς καὶ αὐτοὺς ὄντας, ἄνω καὶ κάτω τὴν Ἴδην περιπολοῦσιν, ἡ μὲν ὀλολύζουσα ἐπὶ τῷ Ἄττῃ, οἱ Κορύβαντες δὲ ὁ μὲν αὐτῶν τέμνεται ξίφει τὸν πῆχυν, ὁ δὲ ἀνεὶς τὴν κόμην ἵεται μεμηνὼς διὰ τῶν ὀρῶν, ὁ δὲ αὐλεῖ τῷ κέρατι, ὁ δὲ ἐπιβομβεῖ τῷ τυμπάνῳ ἢ ἐπικτυπεῖ τῷ κυμβάλῳ, καὶ ὅλως θόρυβος καὶ μανία τὰ ἐν τῇ Ἴδῃ ἅπαντά ἐστι. δέδια τοίνυν ἅπαντα, δέδια τὸ τοιοῦτο ἡ τὸ μέγα σε κακὸν ἐγὼ τεκοῦσα, μὴ ἀπομανεῖσά ποτε ἡ Ῥέα ἢ καὶ μᾶλλον ἔτι ἐν αὑτῇ οὖσα κελεύσῃ τοὺς Κορύβαντας συλλαβόντας σε διασπάσασθαι ἢ τοῖς λέουσι παραβαλεῖν· ταῦτα δέδια κινδυνεύοντά σε ὁρῶσα.
2. EROS: Don’t worry, mother; I’m quite used to the lions already; I often get up on their backs, grab hold of their manes and have a ride on them, and they make a fuss of me, letting me put my hand in their mouths, and licking it all over, and then let me take it out again. But what time will Rhea have to devote to me? She’s thinking of Attis the whole time. Anyway, what harm do I do by showing what beauty is like? It’s up to you to keep your hands off things of beauty; so you shouldn’t blame me for this. Or would you rather stop loving Ares and have him stop loving you?
2. ΕΡΩΣ: Θάρρει, μῆτερ, ἐπεὶ καὶ τοῖς λέουσιν αὐτοῖς ἤδη ξυνήθης εἰμί, καὶ πολλάκις ἐπαναβὰς ἐπὶ τὰ νῶτα καὶ τῆς κόμης λαβόμενος ἡνιοχῶ αὐτούς, οἱ δὲ σαίνουσί με καὶ χεῖρα δεχόμενοι ἐς τὸ στόμα περιλιχμησάμενοι ἀποδιδόασί μοι. αὐτὴ μὲν γὰρ ἡ Ῥέα πότε ἂν ἐκείνη σχολὴν ἀγάγοι ἐπ' ἐμὲ ὅλη οὖσα ἐν τῷ Ἄττῃ; καίτοι τί ἐγὼ ἀδικῶ δεικνὺς τὰ καλὰ οἷά ἐστιν; ὑμεῖς δὲ μὴ ἐφίεσθε τῶν καλῶν· μὴ τοίνυν ἐμὲ αἰτιᾶσθε τούτων. ἢ θέλεις σύ, ὦ μῆτερ, αὐτὴ μηκέτι ἐρᾶν μήτε σὲ τοῦ Ἄρεως μήτε ἐκεῖνον σοῦ;