The Heroides
Epistulae
Headnote
The Heroides — Ovid’s "letters of heroines" — are a set of verse epistles, composed in elegiac couplets, in which the great women of myth and legend write to the men who have left, betrayed, or never yet possessed them. The conceit is Ovid’s own invention and he was proud of it: a single dramatic moment, caught at the pitch of feeling, unfolded as a letter in the woman’s own voice. Penelope waits for Ulysses; Dido faces Aeneas’s departing sails with a sword in her lap; Medea, scorned for a Corinthian bride, feels her mind already turning to "something greater"; Sappho, the one historical voice among them, writes to the boy Phaon before the Leucadian leap. Each letter is a sustained rhetorical complaint, built like a declamation — thesis, mythological proof, witty reversal — and yet the pathos is real even where Ovid lets the irony glint through it. That doubleness, that both the grief and the wit are true at once, is the achievement of the collection.
The first fifteen are single letters. The speakers are Penelope (1), Phyllis (2), Briseis (3), Phaedra (4), Oenone (5), Hypsipyle (6), Dido (7), Hermione (8), Deianira (9), Ariadne (10), Canace (11), Medea (12), Laodamia (13), Hypermestra (14), and Sappho (15) — the last addressed not to a husband or seducer but, in the figure of the historical poetess, to her own faithlessness and her own art. The remaining six form three paired exchanges, letter and reply: Paris and Helen (16–17), Leander and Hero (18–19), and Acontius and Cydippe (20–21). The double letters are later and more elaborate, trading the single voice of the earlier poems for a duet — seduction met with indignation that slowly softens, longing answered across a storm-bound strait, a trickster’s plea answered by his victim’s reluctant surrender.
The voices flex across the whole range of female situation — the faithful wife, the abandoned bride, the incestuous stepmother, the murderous sorceress, the girl trapped by her own oath — but the register stays recognizably Ovid’s: the urgent first person, the direct present-tense address to the absent man, the heaped mythological exempla marshalled in proof, the epigrammatic turn that lands the couplet. The women argue their cases as a trained rhetorician would, and the wit of the staging never quite lets the reader forget that these are performances; but the women are not less moving for being eloquent, and the best of the letters — Dido’s, Ariadne’s, Medea’s, Sappho’s — are among the most affecting things Ovid wrote.
The translation renders the Latin line for line where the sense allows, preserving the couplet’s two-beat shape so that the closing turn still lands. Divine and heroic names are carried in their standard classical forms — Roman where Ovid uses them (Venus, Cupid, Diana, Juno) — and the dense mythological allusion, the genealogies and catalogues that the heroines pile up, is unpacked in the glossary rather than in the verse, so that the lines move as the heroine’s own speech and not as glossed exposition.
Contents
Book 1
Your Penelope sends you this, slow Ulysses;
but write nothing back to me — come yourself!
Troy lies fallen, surely, hateful to the daughters of the Greeks;
Priam and the whole of Troy were scarcely worth so much.
O that then, when he was making for Lacedaemon under sail,
the adulterer had been drowned in the raging seas!
I would not have lain cold in a deserted bed,
nor, left behind, complain that the days go slow;
nor, as I sought to cheat the spacious night,
would the hanging web tire my widowed hands.
but write nothing back to me — come yourself!
Troy lies fallen, surely, hateful to the daughters of the Greeks;
Priam and the whole of Troy were scarcely worth so much.
O that then, when he was making for Lacedaemon under sail,
the adulterer had been drowned in the raging seas!
I would not have lain cold in a deserted bed,
nor, left behind, complain that the days go slow;
nor, as I sought to cheat the spacious night,
would the hanging web tire my widowed hands.
Haec tua Penelope lento tibi mittit, Ulixe;
Nil mihi rescribas attinet: ipse veni!
Troia iacet certe, Danais invisa puellis;
Vix Priamus tanti totaque Troia fuit.
O utinam tum, cum Lacedaemona classe petebat,
Obrutus insanis esset adulter aquis!
Non ego deserto iacuissem frigida lecto,
Nec quererer tardos ire relicta dies;
Nec mihi quaerenti spatiosam fallere noctem
Lassaret viduas pendula tela manus.
Nil mihi rescribas attinet: ipse veni!
Troia iacet certe, Danais invisa puellis;
Vix Priamus tanti totaque Troia fuit.
O utinam tum, cum Lacedaemona classe petebat,
Obrutus insanis esset adulter aquis!
Non ego deserto iacuissem frigida lecto,
Nec quererer tardos ire relicta dies;
Nec mihi quaerenti spatiosam fallere noctem
Lassaret viduas pendula tela manus.
When did I not fear dangers graver than the true?
Love is a thing brimful of anxious fear.
I kept imagining the violent Trojans bearing down on you;
at the name of Hector I was always pale.
Whether someone told that Antilochus had been beaten by the foe,
Antilochus was the cause of my fear;
or that the son of Menoetius had fallen in borrowed arms,
I wept that stratagems too can fail of their reward.
Tlepolemus had warmed his Lycian spear with blood;
by Tlepolemus’ death my dread was made new.
Love is a thing brimful of anxious fear.
I kept imagining the violent Trojans bearing down on you;
at the name of Hector I was always pale.
Whether someone told that Antilochus had been beaten by the foe,
Antilochus was the cause of my fear;
or that the son of Menoetius had fallen in borrowed arms,
I wept that stratagems too can fail of their reward.
Tlepolemus had warmed his Lycian spear with blood;
by Tlepolemus’ death my dread was made new.
Quando ego non timui graviora pericula veris?
Res est solliciti plena timoris amor.
In te fingebam violentos Troas ituros;
Nomine in Hectoreo pallida semper eram.
Sive quis Antilochum narrabat ab hoste revictum,
Antilochus nostri causa timoris erat;
Sive Menoetiaden falsis cecidisse sub armis,
Flebam successu posse carere dolos.
Sanguine Tlepolemus Lyciam tepefecerat hastam;
Tlepolemi leto cura novata mea est.
Res est solliciti plena timoris amor.
In te fingebam violentos Troas ituros;
Nomine in Hectoreo pallida semper eram.
Sive quis Antilochum narrabat ab hoste revictum,
Antilochus nostri causa timoris erat;
Sive Menoetiaden falsis cecidisse sub armis,
Flebam successu posse carere dolos.
Sanguine Tlepolemus Lyciam tepefecerat hastam;
Tlepolemi leto cura novata mea est.
In short, whoever was cut down in the Achaean camp,
the heart of this lover turned colder than ice.
But a fair god looked kindly on my chaste love:
Troy is turned to ashes, my husband safe.
The Argive leaders are home, the altars smoke;
barbarian spoil is laid before our fathers’ gods.
The young wives bring glad gifts for their husbands saved;
those men sing of Troy’s doom conquered by their own.
Righteous old men and trembling girls look on in wonder;
a wife hangs on the lips of her storytelling husband.
the heart of this lover turned colder than ice.
But a fair god looked kindly on my chaste love:
Troy is turned to ashes, my husband safe.
The Argive leaders are home, the altars smoke;
barbarian spoil is laid before our fathers’ gods.
The young wives bring glad gifts for their husbands saved;
those men sing of Troy’s doom conquered by their own.
Righteous old men and trembling girls look on in wonder;
a wife hangs on the lips of her storytelling husband.
Denique, quisquis erat castris iugulatus Achivis,
Frigidius glacie pectus amantis erat.
Sed bene consuluit casto deus aequus amori.
Versa est in cineres sospite Troia viro.
Argolici rediere duces, altaria fumant;
Ponitur ad patrios barbara praeda deos.
Grata ferunt nymphae pro salvis dona maritis;
Illi victa suis Troica fata canunt.
Mirantur iustique senes trepidaeque puellae;
Narrantis coniunx pendet ab ore viri.
Frigidius glacie pectus amantis erat.
Sed bene consuluit casto deus aequus amori.
Versa est in cineres sospite Troia viro.
Argolici rediere duces, altaria fumant;
Ponitur ad patrios barbara praeda deos.
Grata ferunt nymphae pro salvis dona maritis;
Illi victa suis Troica fata canunt.
Mirantur iustique senes trepidaeque puellae;
Narrantis coniunx pendet ab ore viri.
And someone, the table set, points out the savage battles,
and paints all Pergamum in a little wine:
’This way ran Simois; here is the Sigean land;
here stood the lofty palace of old Priam.
There the son of Aeacus, there Ulysses pitched his tent;
here mangled Hector terrified the galloping horses.’
For old Nestor had told the whole of it to your son,
sent to seek you, and he to me.
He told too of Rhesus and Dolon cut down by the sword,
how the one was betrayed by sleep, the other by a trick.
and paints all Pergamum in a little wine:
’This way ran Simois; here is the Sigean land;
here stood the lofty palace of old Priam.
There the son of Aeacus, there Ulysses pitched his tent;
here mangled Hector terrified the galloping horses.’
For old Nestor had told the whole of it to your son,
sent to seek you, and he to me.
He told too of Rhesus and Dolon cut down by the sword,
how the one was betrayed by sleep, the other by a trick.
Atque aliquis posita monstrat fera proelia mensa,
Pingit et exiguo Pergama tota mero:
’Hac ibat Simois; haec est Sigeia tellus;
Hic steterat Priami regia celsa senis.
Illic Aeacides, illic tendebat Ulixes;
Hic lacer admissos terruit Hector equos.’
Omnia namque tuo senior te quaerere misso
Rettulerat nato Nestor, at ille mihi.
Rettulit et ferro Rhesumque Dolonaque caesos,
Utque sit hic somno proditus, ille dolo.
Pingit et exiguo Pergama tota mero:
’Hac ibat Simois; haec est Sigeia tellus;
Hic steterat Priami regia celsa senis.
Illic Aeacides, illic tendebat Ulixes;
Hic lacer admissos terruit Hector equos.’
Omnia namque tuo senior te quaerere misso
Rettulerat nato Nestor, at ille mihi.
Rettulit et ferro Rhesumque Dolonaque caesos,
Utque sit hic somno proditus, ille dolo.
You dared — o too, too forgetful of your own! —
to enter the Thracian camp by a nighttime trick
and to butcher so many men at one stroke, helped by one alone!
But you used to be so careful — and mindful, first, of me!
My breast kept fluttering with fear, until you, victorious,
were said to have ridden the Ismarian horses through the allied ranks.
But what does it profit me that Ilium is scattered by your arms,
and that what was wall is now level ground,
if I stay on just as I stayed while Troy still stood,
and my husband is gone, to be missed with no end in sight?
to enter the Thracian camp by a nighttime trick
and to butcher so many men at one stroke, helped by one alone!
But you used to be so careful — and mindful, first, of me!
My breast kept fluttering with fear, until you, victorious,
were said to have ridden the Ismarian horses through the allied ranks.
But what does it profit me that Ilium is scattered by your arms,
and that what was wall is now level ground,
if I stay on just as I stayed while Troy still stood,
and my husband is gone, to be missed with no end in sight?
Ausus es — o nimium nimiumque oblite tuorum! —
Thracia nocturno tangere castra dolo
Totque simul mactare viros, adiutus ab uno!
At bene cautus eras et memor ante mei!
Usque metu micuere sinus, dum victor amicum
Dictus es Ismariis isse per agmen equis.
Sed mihi quid prodest vestris disiecta lacertis
Ilios et, murus quod fuit, esse solum,
Si maneo, qualis Troia durante manebam,
Virque mihi dempto fine carendus abest?
Thracia nocturno tangere castra dolo
Totque simul mactare viros, adiutus ab uno!
At bene cautus eras et memor ante mei!
Usque metu micuere sinus, dum victor amicum
Dictus es Ismariis isse per agmen equis.
Sed mihi quid prodest vestris disiecta lacertis
Ilios et, murus quod fuit, esse solum,
Si maneo, qualis Troia durante manebam,
Virque mihi dempto fine carendus abest?
For others Pergamum is razed; for me alone it stands,
which the settler plows as victor with a captive ox.
Now there is grain where Troy was, and the soil, fat
with Phrygian blood, runs riot, ripe for the sickle;
the half-buried bones of men are struck by the curved plows,
and grass hides over the toppled houses.
Victor, you are away, and I may not learn what holds you back,
or in what corner of the world you hide, hard as iron!
Whoever turns a foreign prow toward these shores
goes off only after being asked many things of you,
which the settler plows as victor with a captive ox.
Now there is grain where Troy was, and the soil, fat
with Phrygian blood, runs riot, ripe for the sickle;
the half-buried bones of men are struck by the curved plows,
and grass hides over the toppled houses.
Victor, you are away, and I may not learn what holds you back,
or in what corner of the world you hide, hard as iron!
Whoever turns a foreign prow toward these shores
goes off only after being asked many things of you,
Diruta sunt aliis, uni mihi Pergama restant,
Incola captivo quae bove victor arat.
Iam seges est, ubi Troia fuit, resecandaque falce
Luxuriat Phrygio sanguine pinguis humus;
Semisepulta virum curvis feriuntur aratris
Ossa, ruinosas occulit herba domos.
Victor abes, nec scire mihi, quae causa morandi,
Aut in quo lateas ferreus orbe, licet!
Quisquis ad haec vertit peregrinam litora puppim,
Ille mihi de te multa rogatus abit,
Incola captivo quae bove victor arat.
Iam seges est, ubi Troia fuit, resecandaque falce
Luxuriat Phrygio sanguine pinguis humus;
Semisepulta virum curvis feriuntur aratris
Ossa, ruinosas occulit herba domos.
Victor abes, nec scire mihi, quae causa morandi,
Aut in quo lateas ferreus orbe, licet!
Quisquis ad haec vertit peregrinam litora puppim,
Ille mihi de te multa rogatus abit,
and into his hand is given a paper marked by my fingers,
to deliver to you, if only he should see you anywhere.
I sent to Pylos, ancient Nestor’s Neleian fields;
the rumor sent back from Pylos is unsure.
I sent to Sparta too; Sparta also knows nothing true.
What lands do you live in, or where do you linger away?
Better that the walls of Phoebus were standing even now —
alas, how fickle, I rage against my own vows!
I would know where you fought, would fear the war alone,
and my complaint would be one joined with many.
to deliver to you, if only he should see you anywhere.
I sent to Pylos, ancient Nestor’s Neleian fields;
the rumor sent back from Pylos is unsure.
I sent to Sparta too; Sparta also knows nothing true.
What lands do you live in, or where do you linger away?
Better that the walls of Phoebus were standing even now —
alas, how fickle, I rage against my own vows!
I would know where you fought, would fear the war alone,
and my complaint would be one joined with many.
Quamque tibi reddat, si te modo viderit usquam,
Traditur huic digitis charta notata meis.
Nos Pylon, antiqui Neleia Nestoris arva,
Misimus; incerta est fama remissa Pylo.
Misimus et Sparten; Sparte quoque nescia veri.
Quas habitas terras, aut ubi lentus abes?
Utilius starent etiamnunc moenia Phoebi —
Irascor votis, heu, levis ipsa meis!
Scirem ubi pugnares, et tantum bella timerem,
Et mea cum multis iuncta querela foret.
Traditur huic digitis charta notata meis.
Nos Pylon, antiqui Neleia Nestoris arva,
Misimus; incerta est fama remissa Pylo.
Misimus et Sparten; Sparte quoque nescia veri.
Quas habitas terras, aut ubi lentus abes?
Utilius starent etiamnunc moenia Phoebi —
Irascor votis, heu, levis ipsa meis!
Scirem ubi pugnares, et tantum bella timerem,
Et mea cum multis iuncta querela foret.
What I should fear I cannot tell — yet, frantic, I fear it all,
and a broad field lies open to my cares.
Whatever perils the sea holds, whatever the land,
I suspect to be the causes of so long a delay.
While I foolishly fear these things, you — such is your men’s lust —
may be held captive by a foreign love.
Perhaps you even tell how rustic a wife you have,
fit for nothing but keeping the wool from going coarse.
May I be wrong, and may this charge melt into thin air,
and may you not, free to return, choose to stay away!
and a broad field lies open to my cares.
Whatever perils the sea holds, whatever the land,
I suspect to be the causes of so long a delay.
While I foolishly fear these things, you — such is your men’s lust —
may be held captive by a foreign love.
Perhaps you even tell how rustic a wife you have,
fit for nothing but keeping the wool from going coarse.
May I be wrong, and may this charge melt into thin air,
and may you not, free to return, choose to stay away!
Quid timeam, ignoro — timeo tamen omnia demens,
Et patet in curas area lata meas.
Quaecumque aequor habet, quaecumque pericula tellus,
Tam longae causas suspicor esse morae.
Haec ego dum stulte metuo, quae vestra libido est,
Esse peregrino captus amore potes.
Forsitan et narres, quam sit tibi rustica coniunx,
Quae tantum lanas non sinat esse rudes.
Fallar, et hoc crimen tenues vanescat in auras,
Neve, revertendi liber, abesse velis!
Et patet in curas area lata meas.
Quaecumque aequor habet, quaecumque pericula tellus,
Tam longae causas suspicor esse morae.
Haec ego dum stulte metuo, quae vestra libido est,
Esse peregrino captus amore potes.
Forsitan et narres, quam sit tibi rustica coniunx,
Quae tantum lanas non sinat esse rudes.
Fallar, et hoc crimen tenues vanescat in auras,
Neve, revertendi liber, abesse velis!
My father Icarius presses me to leave the widowed bed
and keeps reproaching my measureless delays.
Let him reproach forever — yours I am, yours I must be called;
Penelope will always be the wife of Ulysses.
Yet he is bent by my devotion and chaste prayers,
and tempers his own force of his own accord.
The men of Dulichium and Same and those high Zacynthos bore,
a wanton throng, the suitors, swarm upon me,
and they lord it in your hall with none to forbid them;
my vitals — your wealth — are being torn apart.
and keeps reproaching my measureless delays.
Let him reproach forever — yours I am, yours I must be called;
Penelope will always be the wife of Ulysses.
Yet he is bent by my devotion and chaste prayers,
and tempers his own force of his own accord.
The men of Dulichium and Same and those high Zacynthos bore,
a wanton throng, the suitors, swarm upon me,
and they lord it in your hall with none to forbid them;
my vitals — your wealth — are being torn apart.
Me pater Icarius viduo discedere lecto
Cogit et immensas increpat usque moras.
Increpet usque licet — tua sum, tua dicar oportet;
Penelope coniunx semper Ulixis ero.
Ille tamen pietate mea precibusque pudicis
Frangitur et vires temperat ipse suas.
Dulichii Samiique et quos tulit alta Zacynthos,
Turba ruunt in me luxuriosa proci,
Inque tua regnant nullis prohibentibus aula;
Viscera nostra, tuae dilacerantur opes.
Cogit et immensas increpat usque moras.
Increpet usque licet — tua sum, tua dicar oportet;
Penelope coniunx semper Ulixis ero.
Ille tamen pietate mea precibusque pudicis
Frangitur et vires temperat ipse suas.
Dulichii Samiique et quos tulit alta Zacynthos,
Turba ruunt in me luxuriosa proci,
Inque tua regnant nullis prohibentibus aula;
Viscera nostra, tuae dilacerantur opes.
Why should I name for you Pisander, Polybus, and dreadful Medon,
and the greedy hands of Eurymachus and Antinous,
and the rest, all of whom — you, shamefully gone —
feed yourself with goods won by your own blood?
Beggar Irus and Melanthius, who drives in the flock to be eaten,
come last, the crowning shame upon your losses.
We are three in number, and unwarlike: a wife without strength,
old Laertes, and the boy Telemachus.
He was lately all but taken from me by an ambush,
as he made ready, against all our wills, to sail for Pylos.
and the greedy hands of Eurymachus and Antinous,
and the rest, all of whom — you, shamefully gone —
feed yourself with goods won by your own blood?
Beggar Irus and Melanthius, who drives in the flock to be eaten,
come last, the crowning shame upon your losses.
We are three in number, and unwarlike: a wife without strength,
old Laertes, and the boy Telemachus.
He was lately all but taken from me by an ambush,
as he made ready, against all our wills, to sail for Pylos.
Quid tibi Pisandrum Polybumque Medontaque dirum
Eurymachique avidas Antinoique manus
Atque alios referam, quos omnis turpiter absens
Ipse tuo partis sanguine rebus alis?
Irus egens pecorisque Melanthius actor edendi
Ultimus accedunt in tua damna pudor.
Tres sumus inbelles numero, sine viribus uxor
Laertesque senex Telemachusque puer.
Ille per insidias paene est mihi nuper ademptus,
Dum parat invitis omnibus ire Pylon.
Eurymachique avidas Antinoique manus
Atque alios referam, quos omnis turpiter absens
Ipse tuo partis sanguine rebus alis?
Irus egens pecorisque Melanthius actor edendi
Ultimus accedunt in tua damna pudor.
Tres sumus inbelles numero, sine viribus uxor
Laertesque senex Telemachusque puer.
Ille per insidias paene est mihi nuper ademptus,
Dum parat invitis omnibus ire Pylon.
The gods, I pray, ordain it: that, the fates running in order,
he close my eyes, and he yours!
On our side stand the keeper of the cattle and the aged nurse,
and, third, the faithful warden of the filthy sty;
but Laertes, useless as he is in arms,
cannot hold the kingdom in the midst of foes —
to Telemachus a stronger age will come, if only he lives;
now that age should have been guarded by a father’s help —
nor have I the strength to drive the enemy from the house.
Come the quicker, you, the harbor and altar of your own!
he close my eyes, and he yours!
On our side stand the keeper of the cattle and the aged nurse,
and, third, the faithful warden of the filthy sty;
but Laertes, useless as he is in arms,
cannot hold the kingdom in the midst of foes —
to Telemachus a stronger age will come, if only he lives;
now that age should have been guarded by a father’s help —
nor have I the strength to drive the enemy from the house.
Come the quicker, you, the harbor and altar of your own!
Di, precor, hoc iubeant, ut euntibus ordine fatis
Ille meos oculos conprimat, ille tuos!
Hac faciunt custosque boum longaevaque nutrix,
Tertius inmundae cura fidelis harae;
Sed neque Laertes, ut qui sit inutilis armis,
Hostibus in mediis regna tenere potest —
Telemacho veniet, vivat modo, fortior aetas;
Nunc erat auxiliis illa tuenda patris —
Nec mihi sunt vires inimicos pellere tectis.
Tu citius venias, portus et ara tuis!
Ille meos oculos conprimat, ille tuos!
Hac faciunt custosque boum longaevaque nutrix,
Tertius inmundae cura fidelis harae;
Sed neque Laertes, ut qui sit inutilis armis,
Hostibus in mediis regna tenere potest —
Telemacho veniet, vivat modo, fortior aetas;
Nunc erat auxiliis illa tuenda patris —
Nec mihi sunt vires inimicos pellere tectis.
Tu citius venias, portus et ara tuis!
You have a son — and may you keep him, I pray — who in his tender years
should have been schooled in his father’s arts.
Look to Laertes; that you may close his eyes for him,
he holds off the final day of his fate.
And surely I, who was a girl when you set out,
though you come at once, will seem grown an old woman.
should have been schooled in his father’s arts.
Look to Laertes; that you may close his eyes for him,
he holds off the final day of his fate.
And surely I, who was a girl when you set out,
though you come at once, will seem grown an old woman.
Est tibi sitque, precor, natus, qui mollibus annis
In patrias artes erudiendus erat.
Respice Laerten; ut tu sua lumina condas,
Extremum fati sustinet ille diem.
Certe ego, quae fueram te discedente puella,
Protinus ut venias, facta videbor anus.
In patrias artes erudiendus erat.
Respice Laerten; ut tu sua lumina condas,
Extremum fati sustinet ille diem.
Certe ego, quae fueram te discedente puella,
Protinus ut venias, facta videbor anus.
Book 2
Your hostess Phyllis of Rhodope complains, Demophoon,
that you stay away beyond the time you promised.
When once the moon’s horns had closed into a full orb,
your anchor was pledged to our shores —
four times the moon has hidden, four times grown whole again;
and no Sithonian wave brings the Attic ships.
If you count the time — and we lovers count it well —
my complaint does not arrive before its day.
Hope, too, was slow; the things that, once believed, will hurt us
we are slow to believe. Now you wrong me, though your lover would not have it.
that you stay away beyond the time you promised.
When once the moon’s horns had closed into a full orb,
your anchor was pledged to our shores —
four times the moon has hidden, four times grown whole again;
and no Sithonian wave brings the Attic ships.
If you count the time — and we lovers count it well —
my complaint does not arrive before its day.
Hope, too, was slow; the things that, once believed, will hurt us
we are slow to believe. Now you wrong me, though your lover would not have it.
Hospita, Demophoon, tua te Rhodopeia Phyllis
Ultra promissum tempus abesse queror.
Cornua cum lunae pleno semel orbe coissent,
Litoribus nostris ancora pacta tua est —
Luna quater latuit, toto quater orbe recrevit;
Nec vehit Actaeas Sithonis unda rates.
Tempora si numeres — bene quae numeramus amantes —
Non venit ante suam nostra querela diem.
Spes quoque lenta fuit; tarde, quae credita laedunt,
Credimus. invita nunc es amante nocens.
Ultra promissum tempus abesse queror.
Cornua cum lunae pleno semel orbe coissent,
Litoribus nostris ancora pacta tua est —
Luna quater latuit, toto quater orbe recrevit;
Nec vehit Actaeas Sithonis unda rates.
Tempora si numeres — bene quae numeramus amantes —
Non venit ante suam nostra querela diem.
Spes quoque lenta fuit; tarde, quae credita laedunt,
Credimus. invita nunc es amante nocens.
Often I lied to myself on your behalf, often I thought
the stormy South winds were bringing back your white sails.
I cursed Theseus, supposing he would not let you go;
yet perhaps he never held back your course.
At times I feared that, as you steered for the shallows of Hebrus,
your ship had foundered, wrecked in the whitening water.
Often, a suppliant, that you, villain, might be well,
I worshipped the gods with prayer at incense-burning rites;
often, seeing the winds favor in sky and sea,
I said to myself: ’if he is well, he comes.’
the stormy South winds were bringing back your white sails.
I cursed Theseus, supposing he would not let you go;
yet perhaps he never held back your course.
At times I feared that, as you steered for the shallows of Hebrus,
your ship had foundered, wrecked in the whitening water.
Often, a suppliant, that you, villain, might be well,
I worshipped the gods with prayer at incense-burning rites;
often, seeing the winds favor in sky and sea,
I said to myself: ’if he is well, he comes.’
Saepe fui mendax pro te mihi, saepe putavi
Alba procellosos vela referre Notos.
Thesea devovi, quia te dimittere nollet;
Nec tenuit cursus forsitan ille tuos.
Interdum timui, ne, dum vada tendis ad Hebri,
Mersa foret cana naufraga puppis aqua.
Saepe deos supplex, ut tu, scelerate, valeres,
Cum prece turicremis sum venerata sacris;
Saepe, videns ventos caelo pelagoque faventes,
Ipsa mihi dixi: ’si valet ille, venit.’
Alba procellosos vela referre Notos.
Thesea devovi, quia te dimittere nollet;
Nec tenuit cursus forsitan ille tuos.
Interdum timui, ne, dum vada tendis ad Hebri,
Mersa foret cana naufraga puppis aqua.
Saepe deos supplex, ut tu, scelerate, valeres,
Cum prece turicremis sum venerata sacris;
Saepe, videns ventos caelo pelagoque faventes,
Ipsa mihi dixi: ’si valet ille, venit.’
In short, faithful love invented whatever obstructs a man in haste,
and I was ingenious at finding excuses.
But you stay away, slow; the gods you swore by do not bring you back,
nor, moved by my love, do you return.
Demophoon, you gave both your words and your sails to the winds;
I complain the sails want a return, the words want faith.
Tell me, what did I do, except love unwisely?
By my offense I could only have deserved you the more.
There is one crime in me: that I took you in, villain;
but this crime has the weight and look of a merit.
and I was ingenious at finding excuses.
But you stay away, slow; the gods you swore by do not bring you back,
nor, moved by my love, do you return.
Demophoon, you gave both your words and your sails to the winds;
I complain the sails want a return, the words want faith.
Tell me, what did I do, except love unwisely?
By my offense I could only have deserved you the more.
There is one crime in me: that I took you in, villain;
but this crime has the weight and look of a merit.
Denique fidus amor, quidquid properantibus obstat,
Finxit, et ad causas ingeniosa fui.
At tu lentus abes; nec te iurata reducunt
Numina, nec nostro motus amore redis.
Demophoon, ventis et verba et vela dedisti;
Vela queror reditu, verba carere fide.
Dic mihi, quid feci, nisi non sapienter amavi?
Crimine te potui demeruisse meo.
Unum in me scelus est, quod te, scelerate, recepi;
Sed scelus hoc meriti pondus et instar habet.
Finxit, et ad causas ingeniosa fui.
At tu lentus abes; nec te iurata reducunt
Numina, nec nostro motus amore redis.
Demophoon, ventis et verba et vela dedisti;
Vela queror reditu, verba carere fide.
Dic mihi, quid feci, nisi non sapienter amavi?
Crimine te potui demeruisse meo.
Unum in me scelus est, quod te, scelerate, recepi;
Sed scelus hoc meriti pondus et instar habet.
Where now are the oaths and the faith, the right hand joined to right hand,
and the god so often on your lying lips?
Where now is the Hymen promised for the years we’d share,
who was my surety and pledge of marriage?
By the sea, all of it churned by winds and waves,
over which you had come, over which you meant to go,
and by your grandfather — unless he too is a fiction —
who soothes the seas the winds have roused, you swore to me;
by Venus and the weapons that do too much against me —
the one weapon the bow, the other the torch —
and the god so often on your lying lips?
Where now is the Hymen promised for the years we’d share,
who was my surety and pledge of marriage?
By the sea, all of it churned by winds and waves,
over which you had come, over which you meant to go,
and by your grandfather — unless he too is a fiction —
who soothes the seas the winds have roused, you swore to me;
by Venus and the weapons that do too much against me —
the one weapon the bow, the other the torch —
Iura fidesque ubi nunc, commissaque dextera dextrae,
Quique erat in falso plurimus ore deus?
Promissus socios ubi nunc Hymenaeus in annos,
Qui mihi coniugii sponsor et obses erat?
Per mare, quod totum ventis agitatur et undis,
Per quod nempe ieras, per quod iturus eras,
Perque tuum mihi iurasti — nisi fictus et ille est —
Concita qui ventis aequora mulcet, avum,
Per Venerem nimiumque mihi facientia tela —
Altera tela arcus, altera tela faces —
Quique erat in falso plurimus ore deus?
Promissus socios ubi nunc Hymenaeus in annos,
Qui mihi coniugii sponsor et obses erat?
Per mare, quod totum ventis agitatur et undis,
Per quod nempe ieras, per quod iturus eras,
Perque tuum mihi iurasti — nisi fictus et ille est —
Concita qui ventis aequora mulcet, avum,
Per Venerem nimiumque mihi facientia tela —
Altera tela arcus, altera tela faces —
and by Juno, who kindly presides over the marriage-bed,
and by the mystic rites of the torch-bearing goddess.
If of so many wronged each god should avenge his own godhead,
you alone will not suffice for the penalties.
Ah, in my madness I even mended your battered ships,
that the keel I’d be deserted by might be sound,
and gave the oars by which you’d take your flight from me.
Alas! I suffer wounds dealt by my own weapons!
I trusted your coaxing words, of which you had a store;
I trusted your lineage and your great names;
and by the mystic rites of the torch-bearing goddess.
If of so many wronged each god should avenge his own godhead,
you alone will not suffice for the penalties.
Ah, in my madness I even mended your battered ships,
that the keel I’d be deserted by might be sound,
and gave the oars by which you’d take your flight from me.
Alas! I suffer wounds dealt by my own weapons!
I trusted your coaxing words, of which you had a store;
I trusted your lineage and your great names;
Iunonemque, toris quae praesidet alma maritis,
Et per taediferae mystica sacra deae.
Si de tot laesis sua numina quisque deorum
Vindicet, in poenas non satis unus eris.
Ah, laceras etiam puppes furiosa refeci,
Ut, qua desererer, firma carina foret,
Remigiumque dedi, quod me fugiturus haberes.
Heu! patior telis vulnera facta meis!
Credidimus blandis, quorum tibi copia, verbis;
Credidimus generi nominibusque tuis;
Et per taediferae mystica sacra deae.
Si de tot laesis sua numina quisque deorum
Vindicet, in poenas non satis unus eris.
Ah, laceras etiam puppes furiosa refeci,
Ut, qua desererer, firma carina foret,
Remigiumque dedi, quod me fugiturus haberes.
Heu! patior telis vulnera facta meis!
Credidimus blandis, quorum tibi copia, verbis;
Credidimus generi nominibusque tuis;
I trusted your tears — or are these too schooled to feign?
Have they also their arts, and go where they are bid?
I trusted the gods as well. What use now are so many pledges?
By any one of them I could well have been won.
Nor does it grieve me that I helped you with harbor and place —
this should have been the sum of all my service!
That I shamefully crowned my hospitality with the marriage-bed,
and laid side against side, I repent.
The night before that one — I would rather it had been
my last, while I could die Phyllis still honorable.
Have they also their arts, and go where they are bid?
I trusted the gods as well. What use now are so many pledges?
By any one of them I could well have been won.
Nor does it grieve me that I helped you with harbor and place —
this should have been the sum of all my service!
That I shamefully crowned my hospitality with the marriage-bed,
and laid side against side, I repent.
The night before that one — I would rather it had been
my last, while I could die Phyllis still honorable.
Credidimus lacrimis — an et hae simulare docentur?
Hae quoque habent artes, quaque iubentur, eunt?
Dis quoque credidimus. quo iam tot pignora nobis?
Parte satis potui qualibet inde capi.
Nec moveor, quod te iuvi portuque locoque —
Debuit haec meriti summa fuisse mei!
Turpiter hospitium lecto cumulasse iugali
Paenitet, et lateri conseruisse latus.
Quae fuit ante illam, mallem suprema fuisset
Nox mihi, dum potui Phyllis honesta mori.
Hae quoque habent artes, quaque iubentur, eunt?
Dis quoque credidimus. quo iam tot pignora nobis?
Parte satis potui qualibet inde capi.
Nec moveor, quod te iuvi portuque locoque —
Debuit haec meriti summa fuisse mei!
Turpiter hospitium lecto cumulasse iugali
Paenitet, et lateri conseruisse latus.
Quae fuit ante illam, mallem suprema fuisset
Nox mihi, dum potui Phyllis honesta mori.
I hoped for better, because I thought I had earned it;
whatever hope comes from desert comes justly.
To deceive a trusting girl is no laborious glory.
My openness deserved goodwill.
Both loving and a woman, I was deceived by your words.
May the gods grant this be the height of your renown!
Among the sons of Aegeus may you be set up in the city’s heart,
your father standing before, magnificent with his titles.
When Sciron has been read out, and grim Procrustes,
and Sinis, and the form mixed of bull and man,
whatever hope comes from desert comes justly.
To deceive a trusting girl is no laborious glory.
My openness deserved goodwill.
Both loving and a woman, I was deceived by your words.
May the gods grant this be the height of your renown!
Among the sons of Aegeus may you be set up in the city’s heart,
your father standing before, magnificent with his titles.
When Sciron has been read out, and grim Procrustes,
and Sinis, and the form mixed of bull and man,
Speravi melius, quia me meruisse putavi;
Quaecumque ex merito spes venit, aequa venit.
Fallere credentem non est operosa puellam
Gloria. simplicitas digna favore fuit.
Sum decepta tuis et amans et femina verbis.
Di faciant, laudis summa sit ista tuae!
Inter et Aegidas, media statuaris in urbe,
Magnificus titulis stet pater ante suis.
Cum fuerit Sciron lectus torvusque Procrustes
Et Sinis et tauri mixtaque forma viri
Quaecumque ex merito spes venit, aequa venit.
Fallere credentem non est operosa puellam
Gloria. simplicitas digna favore fuit.
Sum decepta tuis et amans et femina verbis.
Di faciant, laudis summa sit ista tuae!
Inter et Aegidas, media statuaris in urbe,
Magnificus titulis stet pater ante suis.
Cum fuerit Sciron lectus torvusque Procrustes
Et Sinis et tauri mixtaque forma viri
and Thebes subdued in war, and the two-formed creatures routed,
and the dark god’s blind palace battered down —
after those let your image be marked with this title:
’This is he whose loving hostess was taken by guile.’
Of your father’s whole great throng of deeds,
only the deserted Cretan girl lodged in your mind.
The one thing that excuses him, that alone you admire in him;
you play the heir, traitor, of your father’s fraud.
She — and I do not envy her — enjoys a better husband
and rides aloft on haltered tigers;
and the dark god’s blind palace battered down —
after those let your image be marked with this title:
’This is he whose loving hostess was taken by guile.’
Of your father’s whole great throng of deeds,
only the deserted Cretan girl lodged in your mind.
The one thing that excuses him, that alone you admire in him;
you play the heir, traitor, of your father’s fraud.
She — and I do not envy her — enjoys a better husband
and rides aloft on haltered tigers;
Et domitae bello Thebae fusique bimembres
Et pulsata nigri regia caeca dei —
Hoc tua post illos titulo signetur imago:
Hic est, cuius amans hospita capta dolo est.
De tanta rerum turba factisque parentis
Sedit in ingenio Cressa relicta tuo.
Quod solum excusat, solum miraris in illo;
Heredem patriae, perfide, fraudis agis.
Illa — nec invideo — fruitur meliore marito
Inque capistratis tigribus alta sedet;
Et pulsata nigri regia caeca dei —
Hoc tua post illos titulo signetur imago:
Hic est, cuius amans hospita capta dolo est.
De tanta rerum turba factisque parentis
Sedit in ingenio Cressa relicta tuo.
Quod solum excusat, solum miraris in illo;
Heredem patriae, perfide, fraudis agis.
Illa — nec invideo — fruitur meliore marito
Inque capistratis tigribus alta sedet;
but the scorned Thracians shun marriage with me,
because I am said to have set a stranger above my own.
And someone says, ’Let her be off now to learned Athens;
there will be another to rule warlike Thrace.
The outcome proves the deed.’ May he go without success,
I pray, whoever thinks deeds are to be judged by their event!
But if my waters should foam beneath your oar,
then, then I’d be said to have looked to my people’s good —
but I did not, nor shall my palace receive you,
nor shall you bathe your weary limbs in Bistonian water!
because I am said to have set a stranger above my own.
And someone says, ’Let her be off now to learned Athens;
there will be another to rule warlike Thrace.
The outcome proves the deed.’ May he go without success,
I pray, whoever thinks deeds are to be judged by their event!
But if my waters should foam beneath your oar,
then, then I’d be said to have looked to my people’s good —
but I did not, nor shall my palace receive you,
nor shall you bathe your weary limbs in Bistonian water!
At mea despecti fugiunt conubia Thraces,
Quod ferar externum praeposuisse meis.
Atque aliquis ’iam nunc doctas eat,’ inquit, ’Athenas;
Armiferam Thracen qui regat, alter erit.
Exitus acta probat.’ careat successibus, opto,
Quisquis ab eventu facta notanda putat!
At si nostra tuo spumescant aequora remo,
Iam mihi, iam dicar consuluisse meis —
Sed neque consului, nec te mea regia tanget
Fessaque Bistonia membra lavabis aqua!
Quod ferar externum praeposuisse meis.
Atque aliquis ’iam nunc doctas eat,’ inquit, ’Athenas;
Armiferam Thracen qui regat, alter erit.
Exitus acta probat.’ careat successibus, opto,
Quisquis ab eventu facta notanda putat!
At si nostra tuo spumescant aequora remo,
Iam mihi, iam dicar consuluisse meis —
Sed neque consului, nec te mea regia tanget
Fessaque Bistonia membra lavabis aqua!
That image of you departing clings before my eyes,
as your fleet, about to go, crowded my harbor.
You dared to embrace me, and, fallen upon your lover’s neck,
to join long, lingering, pressing kisses,
and to mingle your tears with mine,
and to grieve that the breeze was fair for your sails,
and, departing, to say to me in a last voice:
’Phyllis, be sure you wait for your Demophoon!’
Wait — for you who left, never to see me again?
Wait for the sails denied to my sea?
as your fleet, about to go, crowded my harbor.
You dared to embrace me, and, fallen upon your lover’s neck,
to join long, lingering, pressing kisses,
and to mingle your tears with mine,
and to grieve that the breeze was fair for your sails,
and, departing, to say to me in a last voice:
’Phyllis, be sure you wait for your Demophoon!’
Wait — for you who left, never to see me again?
Wait for the sails denied to my sea?
Illa meis oculis species abeuntis inhaeret,
Cum premeret portus classis itura meos.
Ausus es amplecti colloque infusus amantis
Oscula per longas iungere pressa moras
Cumque tuis lacrimis lacrimas confundere nostras,
Quodque foret velis aura secunda, queri
Et mihi discedens suprema dicere voce:
’Phylli, fac expectes Demophoonta tuum!’
Expectem, qui me numquam visurus abisti?
Expectem pelago vela negata meo?
Cum premeret portus classis itura meos.
Ausus es amplecti colloque infusus amantis
Oscula per longas iungere pressa moras
Cumque tuis lacrimis lacrimas confundere nostras,
Quodque foret velis aura secunda, queri
Et mihi discedens suprema dicere voce:
’Phylli, fac expectes Demophoonta tuum!’
Expectem, qui me numquam visurus abisti?
Expectem pelago vela negata meo?
And yet I wait — only come back, though late to your lover,
so that your faith has failed in its timing alone!
What do I pray, poor wretch? Another wife holds you now,
perhaps, and a love that has favored me ill;
and now I have slipped your mind: you know no Phyllis, I think.
Ah me! if you ask who Phyllis is, and from where —
I, Demophoon, who, when long wanderings had driven you,
gave you Thracian harbors and a host’s welcome,
whose wealth my riches swelled, to whom in your need, rich,
I gave many gifts, and was going to give many more;
so that your faith has failed in its timing alone!
What do I pray, poor wretch? Another wife holds you now,
perhaps, and a love that has favored me ill;
and now I have slipped your mind: you know no Phyllis, I think.
Ah me! if you ask who Phyllis is, and from where —
I, Demophoon, who, when long wanderings had driven you,
gave you Thracian harbors and a host’s welcome,
whose wealth my riches swelled, to whom in your need, rich,
I gave many gifts, and was going to give many more;
Et tamen expecto — redeas modo serus amanti,
Ut tua sit solo tempore lapsa fides!
Quid precor infelix? te iam tenet altera coniunx
Forsitan et, nobis qui male favit, amor;
Iamque tibi excidimus, nullam, puto, Phyllida nosti.
Ei mihi! si, quae sim Phyllis et unde, rogas —
Quae tibi, Demophoon, longis erroribus acto
Threicios portus hospitiumque dedi,
Cuius opes auxere meae, cui dives egenti
Munera multa dedi, multa datura fui;
Ut tua sit solo tempore lapsa fides!
Quid precor infelix? te iam tenet altera coniunx
Forsitan et, nobis qui male favit, amor;
Iamque tibi excidimus, nullam, puto, Phyllida nosti.
Ei mihi! si, quae sim Phyllis et unde, rogas —
Quae tibi, Demophoon, longis erroribus acto
Threicios portus hospitiumque dedi,
Cuius opes auxere meae, cui dives egenti
Munera multa dedi, multa datura fui;
who laid beneath you the vast realm of Lycurgus,
scarcely fit to be ruled in a woman’s name,
where icy Rhodope reaches to shadowy Haemus,
and sacred Hebrus drives out his gathered waters,
to whom my virginity was offered under sinister birds,
my chaste girdle unbound by a treacherous hand!
Tisiphone as bridesmaid howled in that chamber,
and the off-course bird sang a mournful song;
Allecto was there, collared with little snakes,
and the lights that stirred were of a funeral torch!
scarcely fit to be ruled in a woman’s name,
where icy Rhodope reaches to shadowy Haemus,
and sacred Hebrus drives out his gathered waters,
to whom my virginity was offered under sinister birds,
my chaste girdle unbound by a treacherous hand!
Tisiphone as bridesmaid howled in that chamber,
and the off-course bird sang a mournful song;
Allecto was there, collared with little snakes,
and the lights that stirred were of a funeral torch!
Quae tibi subieci latissima regna Lycurgi,
Nomine femineo vix satis apta regi,
Qua patet umbrosum Rhodope glacialis ad Haemum,
Et sacer admissas exigit Hebrus aquas,
Cui mea virginitas avibus libata sinistris
Castaque fallaci zona recincta manu!
Pronuba Tisiphone thalamis ululavit in illis,
Et cecinit maestum devia carmen avis;
Adfuit Allecto brevibus torquata colubris,
Suntque sepulcrali lumina mota face!
Nomine femineo vix satis apta regi,
Qua patet umbrosum Rhodope glacialis ad Haemum,
Et sacer admissas exigit Hebrus aquas,
Cui mea virginitas avibus libata sinistris
Castaque fallaci zona recincta manu!
Pronuba Tisiphone thalamis ululavit in illis,
Et cecinit maestum devia carmen avis;
Adfuit Allecto brevibus torquata colubris,
Suntque sepulcrali lumina mota face!
Yet in grief I tread the crags and the brushwood shores,
and all the broad coast that lies open to my eyes.
Whether the ground loosens by day, or the cold stars
shine, I look out to see what wind drives the straits;
and whatever sails I have spied coming from afar,
at once I take them for my gods.
I run forward into the surf, the waves scarce holding me back,
where the restless sea spreads its first waters.
The nearer they come, the less and less I keep my feet;
I swoon, and fall, to be caught up by my maids.
and all the broad coast that lies open to my eyes.
Whether the ground loosens by day, or the cold stars
shine, I look out to see what wind drives the straits;
and whatever sails I have spied coming from afar,
at once I take them for my gods.
I run forward into the surf, the waves scarce holding me back,
where the restless sea spreads its first waters.
The nearer they come, the less and less I keep my feet;
I swoon, and fall, to be caught up by my maids.
Maesta tamen scopulos fruticosaque litora calco
Quaeque patent oculis litora lata meis.
Sive die laxatur humus, seu frigida lucent
Sidera, prospicio, quis freta ventus agat;
Et quaecumque procul venientia lintea vidi,
Protinus illa meos auguror esse deos.
In freta procurro, vix me retinentibus undis,
Mobile qua primas porrigit aequor aquas.
Quo magis accedunt, minus et minus utilis adsto;
Linquor et ancillis excipienda cado.
Quaeque patent oculis litora lata meis.
Sive die laxatur humus, seu frigida lucent
Sidera, prospicio, quis freta ventus agat;
Et quaecumque procul venientia lintea vidi,
Protinus illa meos auguror esse deos.
In freta procurro, vix me retinentibus undis,
Mobile qua primas porrigit aequor aquas.
Quo magis accedunt, minus et minus utilis adsto;
Linquor et ancillis excipienda cado.
There is a bay, curved gently into a drawn bow;
its outermost horns stand stiff with sheer rock.
From here it was my mind to fling my body into the waves below;
and, since you keep deceiving me, so it shall be.
Let the waves carry me, flung down, to your shores,
and let me meet your eyes unburied!
Though in hardness you outdo iron and adamant and yourself,
you will say: ’Not thus, Phyllis, should you have followed me!’
Often I thirst for poisons; often it pleases me to die
run through by the sword, in a bloody death.
its outermost horns stand stiff with sheer rock.
From here it was my mind to fling my body into the waves below;
and, since you keep deceiving me, so it shall be.
Let the waves carry me, flung down, to your shores,
and let me meet your eyes unburied!
Though in hardness you outdo iron and adamant and yourself,
you will say: ’Not thus, Phyllis, should you have followed me!’
Often I thirst for poisons; often it pleases me to die
run through by the sword, in a bloody death.
Est sinus, adductos modice falcatus in arcus;
Ultima praerupta cornua mole rigent.
Hinc mihi suppositas inmittere corpus in undas
Mens fuit; et, quoniam fallere pergis, erit.
Ad tua me fluctus proiectam litora portent,
Occurramque oculis intumulata tuis!
Duritia ferrum ut superes adamantaque teque,
’Non tibi sic,’ dices, ’Phylli, sequendus eram!’
Saepe venenorum sitis est mihi; saepe cruenta
Traiectam gladio morte perire iuvat.
Ultima praerupta cornua mole rigent.
Hinc mihi suppositas inmittere corpus in undas
Mens fuit; et, quoniam fallere pergis, erit.
Ad tua me fluctus proiectam litora portent,
Occurramque oculis intumulata tuis!
Duritia ferrum ut superes adamantaque teque,
’Non tibi sic,’ dices, ’Phylli, sequendus eram!’
Saepe venenorum sitis est mihi; saepe cruenta
Traiectam gladio morte perire iuvat.
My neck, too, because it offered itself to be clasped
by faithless arms, I am glad to wind in a noose.
It is settled: to redeem my tender honor by a timely death.
In the choosing of that death there will be little delay.
You will be inscribed upon my tomb as the hateful cause.
By this verse, or one like it, you will be known:
’Demophoon her guest gave loving Phyllis to death;
he furnished the cause of her dying, she the hand.’
by faithless arms, I am glad to wind in a noose.
It is settled: to redeem my tender honor by a timely death.
In the choosing of that death there will be little delay.
You will be inscribed upon my tomb as the hateful cause.
By this verse, or one like it, you will be known:
’Demophoon her guest gave loving Phyllis to death;
he furnished the cause of her dying, she the hand.’
Colla quoque, infidis quia se nectenda lacertis
Praebuerunt, laqueis inplicuisse iuvat.
Stat nece matura tenerum pensare pudorem.
In necis electu parva futura mora est.
Inscribere meo causa invidiosa sepulcro.
Aut hoc aut simili carmine notus eris:
Phyllida Demophoon leto dedit hospes amantem;
Ille necis causam praebuit, ipsa manum.
Praebuerunt, laqueis inplicuisse iuvat.
Stat nece matura tenerum pensare pudorem.
In necis electu parva futura mora est.
Inscribere meo causa invidiosa sepulcro.
Aut hoc aut simili carmine notus eris:
Phyllida Demophoon leto dedit hospes amantem;
Ille necis causam praebuit, ipsa manum.
Book 3
The letter you are reading comes from stolen Briseis,
its Greek scarcely well-formed by a barbarian hand.
Whatever blots you see, my tears made them;
yet tears too carry the weight of a voice.
If it is allowed me to complain a little of you,
my master and my man, of master and man I will complain a little.
That I was handed over quickly to the king who demanded me
is no fault of yours — though this too is your fault;
for the moment Eurybates and Talthybius summoned me,
I was given over as a companion to Eurybates and Talthybius.
its Greek scarcely well-formed by a barbarian hand.
Whatever blots you see, my tears made them;
yet tears too carry the weight of a voice.
If it is allowed me to complain a little of you,
my master and my man, of master and man I will complain a little.
That I was handed over quickly to the king who demanded me
is no fault of yours — though this too is your fault;
for the moment Eurybates and Talthybius summoned me,
I was given over as a companion to Eurybates and Talthybius.
Quam legis, a rapta Briseide littera venit,
Vix bene barbarica Graeca notata manu.
Quascumque adspicies, lacrimae fecere lituras;
Sed tamen et lacrimae pondera vocis habent.
Si mihi pauca queri de te dominoque viroque
Fas est, de domino pauca viroque querar.
Non, ego poscenti quod sum cito tradita regi,
Culpa tua est — quamvis haec quoque culpa tua est;
Nam simul Eurybates me Talthybiusque vocarunt,
Eurybati data sum Talthybioque comes.
Vix bene barbarica Graeca notata manu.
Quascumque adspicies, lacrimae fecere lituras;
Sed tamen et lacrimae pondera vocis habent.
Si mihi pauca queri de te dominoque viroque
Fas est, de domino pauca viroque querar.
Non, ego poscenti quod sum cito tradita regi,
Culpa tua est — quamvis haec quoque culpa tua est;
Nam simul Eurybates me Talthybiusque vocarunt,
Eurybati data sum Talthybioque comes.
Each casting his eyes on the other’s face,
they asked in silence where our love had gone.
I could have been put off; a delay of the penalty would have been welcome.
Ah me! departing I gave no kisses;
but tears I gave without end, and I tore my hair —
unlucky, I seemed to myself to be taken captive twice!
Often I longed to slip my guard and return,
but there was an enemy to seize me, timid as I was.
If I went out, I feared to be caught in the night,
though I’d be going as a gift to one of Priam’s daughters.
they asked in silence where our love had gone.
I could have been put off; a delay of the penalty would have been welcome.
Ah me! departing I gave no kisses;
but tears I gave without end, and I tore my hair —
unlucky, I seemed to myself to be taken captive twice!
Often I longed to slip my guard and return,
but there was an enemy to seize me, timid as I was.
If I went out, I feared to be caught in the night,
though I’d be going as a gift to one of Priam’s daughters.
Alter in alterius iactantes lumina vultum
Quaerebant taciti, noster ubi esset amor.
Differri potui; poenae mora grata fuisset.
Ei mihi! discedens oscula nulla dedi;
At lacrimas sine fine dedi rupique capillos —
Infelix iterum sum mihi visa capi!
Saepe ego decepto volui custode reverti,
Sed, me qui timidam prenderet, hostis erat.
Si progressa forem, caperer ne, nocte, timebam,
Quamlibet ad Priami munus itura nurum.
Quaerebant taciti, noster ubi esset amor.
Differri potui; poenae mora grata fuisset.
Ei mihi! discedens oscula nulla dedi;
At lacrimas sine fine dedi rupique capillos —
Infelix iterum sum mihi visa capi!
Saepe ego decepto volui custode reverti,
Sed, me qui timidam prenderet, hostis erat.
Si progressa forem, caperer ne, nocte, timebam,
Quamlibet ad Priami munus itura nurum.
But grant I was given, since I had to be given — so many nights I am gone
and not recalled; you hold off, and your anger is slow.
The son of Menoetius himself, when I was being handed over,
said in my ear, ’Why weep? You will be here in a little while.’
And not only do you not recall me — you fight against my being given back, Achilles!
Go now, and bear the name of an eager lover!
There came to you the sons of Telamon and Amyntor —
the one nearer in degree of blood, the other a companion —
and the son of Laertes, in whose company I was to come back
(great gifts swelled their coaxing prayers):
and not recalled; you hold off, and your anger is slow.
The son of Menoetius himself, when I was being handed over,
said in my ear, ’Why weep? You will be here in a little while.’
And not only do you not recall me — you fight against my being given back, Achilles!
Go now, and bear the name of an eager lover!
There came to you the sons of Telamon and Amyntor —
the one nearer in degree of blood, the other a companion —
and the son of Laertes, in whose company I was to come back
(great gifts swelled their coaxing prayers):
Sed data sim, quia danda fui — tot noctibus absum
Nec repetor; cessas, iraque lenta tua est.
Ipse Menoetiades tum, cum tradebar, in aurem
’Quid fles? hic parvo tempore,’ dixit, ’eris.’
Nec repetisse parum; pugnas ne reddar, Achille!
I nunc et cupidi nomen amantis habe!
Venerunt ad te Telamone et Amyntore nati —
Ille gradu propior sanguinis, ille comes —
Laertaque satus, per quos comitata redirem
(auxerunt blandas grandia dona preces)
Nec repetor; cessas, iraque lenta tua est.
Ipse Menoetiades tum, cum tradebar, in aurem
’Quid fles? hic parvo tempore,’ dixit, ’eris.’
Nec repetisse parum; pugnas ne reddar, Achille!
I nunc et cupidi nomen amantis habe!
Venerunt ad te Telamone et Amyntore nati —
Ille gradu propior sanguinis, ille comes —
Laertaque satus, per quos comitata redirem
(auxerunt blandas grandia dona preces)
twenty tawny cauldrons of wrought bronze,
and seven tripods, equal in weight and in craft;
to these were added twice five talents of gold,
twice six horses always used to win,
and — what is needless — girls of surpassing beauty,
women of Lesbos, bodies taken from an overthrown house,
and, with all these — but you have no need of a wife — a wife,
one girl out of Agamemnon’s three daughters.
If I had to be ransomed from the son of Atreus at a price,
what you ought to have given, you refuse to receive!
and seven tripods, equal in weight and in craft;
to these were added twice five talents of gold,
twice six horses always used to win,
and — what is needless — girls of surpassing beauty,
women of Lesbos, bodies taken from an overthrown house,
and, with all these — but you have no need of a wife — a wife,
one girl out of Agamemnon’s three daughters.
If I had to be ransomed from the son of Atreus at a price,
what you ought to have given, you refuse to receive!
Viginti fulvos operoso ex aere lebetas,
Et tripodas septem pondere et arte pares;
Addita sunt illis auri bis quinque talenta,
Bis sex adsueti vincere semper equi,
Quodque supervacuum est, forma praestante puellae
Lesbides, eversa corpora capta domo,
Cumque tot his — sed non opus est tibi coniuge — coniunx
Ex Agamemnoniis una puella tribus.
Si tibi ab Atride pretio redimenda fuissem,
Quae dare debueras, accipere illa negas!
Et tripodas septem pondere et arte pares;
Addita sunt illis auri bis quinque talenta,
Bis sex adsueti vincere semper equi,
Quodque supervacuum est, forma praestante puellae
Lesbides, eversa corpora capta domo,
Cumque tot his — sed non opus est tibi coniuge — coniunx
Ex Agamemnoniis una puella tribus.
Si tibi ab Atride pretio redimenda fuissem,
Quae dare debueras, accipere illa negas!
By what fault did I deserve to be made cheap to you, Achilles?
Where has your fickle love so quickly fled from me?
Or does grim fortune press the wretched stubbornly,
and no gentler hour come to evils once begun?
I saw the walls of Lyrnesus razed by your warfare —
and I had been a great part of my own country;
I saw three fall, sharers alike of birth and of death,
whose mother was the same who was mine;
I saw, great as he was, my husband stretched on the bloody ground,
tossing his gore-stained breast.
Where has your fickle love so quickly fled from me?
Or does grim fortune press the wretched stubbornly,
and no gentler hour come to evils once begun?
I saw the walls of Lyrnesus razed by your warfare —
and I had been a great part of my own country;
I saw three fall, sharers alike of birth and of death,
whose mother was the same who was mine;
I saw, great as he was, my husband stretched on the bloody ground,
tossing his gore-stained breast.
Qua merui culpa fieri tibi vilis, Achille?
Quo levis a nobis tam cito fugit amor?
An miseros tristis fortuna tenaciter urget,
Nec venit inceptis mollior hora malis?
Diruta Marte tuo Lyrnesia moenia vidi —
Et fueram patriae pars ego magna meae;
Vidi consortes pariter generisque necisque
Tres cecidisse, quibus, quae mihi, mater erat;
Vidi, quantus erat, fusum tellure cruenta
Pectora iactantem sanguinolenta virum.
Quo levis a nobis tam cito fugit amor?
An miseros tristis fortuna tenaciter urget,
Nec venit inceptis mollior hora malis?
Diruta Marte tuo Lyrnesia moenia vidi —
Et fueram patriae pars ego magna meae;
Vidi consortes pariter generisque necisque
Tres cecidisse, quibus, quae mihi, mater erat;
Vidi, quantus erat, fusum tellure cruenta
Pectora iactantem sanguinolenta virum.
Yet for all those lost I had you alone in their stead;
you were my master, you my husband, you my brother.
You yourself, swearing by the godhead of your watery mother,
told me it had been to my good to be taken —
yes, so that, though I come dowered, you may push me off,
and flee, with me, the wealth that is offered you!
Indeed there is even a rumor that, when tomorrow’s Dawn has shone,
you mean to give your sails to the cloud-bearing south winds.
When that wickedness reached my fearful ears, poor wretch,
my breast was emptied of blood and of spirit.
you were my master, you my husband, you my brother.
You yourself, swearing by the godhead of your watery mother,
told me it had been to my good to be taken —
yes, so that, though I come dowered, you may push me off,
and flee, with me, the wealth that is offered you!
Indeed there is even a rumor that, when tomorrow’s Dawn has shone,
you mean to give your sails to the cloud-bearing south winds.
When that wickedness reached my fearful ears, poor wretch,
my breast was emptied of blood and of spirit.
Tot tamen amissis te conpensavimus unum;
Tu dominus, tu vir, tu mihi frater eras.
Tu mihi, iuratus per numina matris aquosae,
Utile dicebas ipse fuisse capi —
Scilicet ut, quamvis veniam dotata, repellas
Et mecum fugias quae tibi dantur opes!
Quin etiam fama est, cum crastina fulserit Eos,
Te dare nubiferis lintea velle Notis.
Quod scelus ut pavidas miserae mihi contigit aures,
Sanguinis atque animi pectus inane fuit.
Tu dominus, tu vir, tu mihi frater eras.
Tu mihi, iuratus per numina matris aquosae,
Utile dicebas ipse fuisse capi —
Scilicet ut, quamvis veniam dotata, repellas
Et mecum fugias quae tibi dantur opes!
Quin etiam fama est, cum crastina fulserit Eos,
Te dare nubiferis lintea velle Notis.
Quod scelus ut pavidas miserae mihi contigit aures,
Sanguinis atque animi pectus inane fuit.
You will go — o wretched me! — to whom do you leave me, violent man?
Who will be a gentle solace to me, deserted?
May I first, I pray, be swallowed by a sudden gaping of the earth,
or be burned by the red fire of a hurled bolt,
before the seas grow white with Phthian oars without me,
and I, left behind, see your ships go!
If now your homecoming and your father’s household gods please you,
I am no great baggage for your fleet.
A captive, I will follow my victor, not a bride her husband;
I have a hand fit to soften wool.
Who will be a gentle solace to me, deserted?
May I first, I pray, be swallowed by a sudden gaping of the earth,
or be burned by the red fire of a hurled bolt,
before the seas grow white with Phthian oars without me,
and I, left behind, see your ships go!
If now your homecoming and your father’s household gods please you,
I am no great baggage for your fleet.
A captive, I will follow my victor, not a bride her husband;
I have a hand fit to soften wool.
Ibis et — o miseram! — cui me, violente, relinquis?
Quis mihi desertae mite levamen erit?
Devorer ante, precor, subito telluris hiatu
Aut rutilo missi fulminis igne cremer,
Quam sine me Pthiis canescant aequora remis,
Et videam puppes ire relicta tuas!
Si tibi iam reditusque placent patriique Penates,
Non ego sum classi sarcina magna tuae.
Victorem captiva sequar, non nupta maritum;
Est mihi, quae lanas molliat, apta manus.
Quis mihi desertae mite levamen erit?
Devorer ante, precor, subito telluris hiatu
Aut rutilo missi fulminis igne cremer,
Quam sine me Pthiis canescant aequora remis,
Et videam puppes ire relicta tuas!
Si tibi iam reditusque placent patriique Penates,
Non ego sum classi sarcina magna tuae.
Victorem captiva sequar, non nupta maritum;
Est mihi, quae lanas molliat, apta manus.
Far the loveliest among Achaean matrons,
a wife will go — and let her go — into your chamber,
a daughter-in-law worthy of her father-in-law, grandson of Jove and Aegina,
one whom old Nereus would wish for as a wife’s grandsire.
I, lowly, and your handmaid, will spin the wool I’m dealt,
and my threads will lessen the full distaffs.
Only let your wife not harry me, I beg —
who in some way or other will not be fair to me —
and do not let my hair be torn before your face,
and say lightly: ’this one too was mine.’
a wife will go — and let her go — into your chamber,
a daughter-in-law worthy of her father-in-law, grandson of Jove and Aegina,
one whom old Nereus would wish for as a wife’s grandsire.
I, lowly, and your handmaid, will spin the wool I’m dealt,
and my threads will lessen the full distaffs.
Only let your wife not harry me, I beg —
who in some way or other will not be fair to me —
and do not let my hair be torn before your face,
and say lightly: ’this one too was mine.’
Inter Achaeiadas longe pulcherrima matres
In thalamos coniunx ibit eatque tuos,
Digna nurus socero, Iovis Aeginaeque nepote,
Cuique senex Nereus prosocer esse velit.
Nos humiles famulaeque tuae data pensa trahemus,
Et minuent plenas stamina nostra colos.
Exagitet ne me tantum tua, deprecor, uxor —
Quae mihi nescio quo non erit aequa modo —
Neve meos coram scindi patiare capillos
Et leviter dicas: ’haec quoque nostra fuit.’
In thalamos coniunx ibit eatque tuos,
Digna nurus socero, Iovis Aeginaeque nepote,
Cuique senex Nereus prosocer esse velit.
Nos humiles famulaeque tuae data pensa trahemus,
Et minuent plenas stamina nostra colos.
Exagitet ne me tantum tua, deprecor, uxor —
Quae mihi nescio quo non erit aequa modo —
Neve meos coram scindi patiare capillos
Et leviter dicas: ’haec quoque nostra fuit.’
Or you may let it be, so long as I am not left in contempt —
ah, here, wretched me, this fear shakes my bones.
Yet what do you wait for? Agamemnon repents his anger,
and mournful Greece lies before your feet.
Conquer your own temper and your anger, you who conquer all else!
Why does tireless Hector mangle the Danaan strength?
Take up your arms, son of Aeacus — but with me first taken back —
and, with Mars favoring, press the routed men!
For my sake your anger was stirred; for my sake let it cease,
and let me be the cause and the measure of your grief.
ah, here, wretched me, this fear shakes my bones.
Yet what do you wait for? Agamemnon repents his anger,
and mournful Greece lies before your feet.
Conquer your own temper and your anger, you who conquer all else!
Why does tireless Hector mangle the Danaan strength?
Take up your arms, son of Aeacus — but with me first taken back —
and, with Mars favoring, press the routed men!
For my sake your anger was stirred; for my sake let it cease,
and let me be the cause and the measure of your grief.
Vel patiare licet, dum ne contempta relinquar —
Hic mihi vae! miserae concutit ossa metus.
Quid tamen expectas? Agamemnona paenitet irae,
Et iacet ante tuos Graecia maesta pedes.
Vince animos iramque tuam, qui cetera vincis!
Quid lacerat Danaas inpiger Hector opes?
Arma cape, Aeacide, sed me tamen ante recepta,
Et preme turbatos Marte favente viros!
Propter me mota est, propter me desinat ira,
Simque ego tristitiae causa modusque tuae.
Hic mihi vae! miserae concutit ossa metus.
Quid tamen expectas? Agamemnona paenitet irae,
Et iacet ante tuos Graecia maesta pedes.
Vince animos iramque tuam, qui cetera vincis!
Quid lacerat Danaas inpiger Hector opes?
Arma cape, Aeacide, sed me tamen ante recepta,
Et preme turbatos Marte favente viros!
Propter me mota est, propter me desinat ira,
Simque ego tristitiae causa modusque tuae.
And do not think it shameful to give way to my prayers;
the son of Oeneus was turned to arms by his wife’s prayer.
The tale I have heard, you know it. Bereft of her brothers,
the mother cursed the hope and the life of her son.
There was a war; he, fierce, withdrew from the arms he had laid down,
and with stubborn mind refused his country aid.
His wife alone bent the man. Luckier she!
But my words fall, of no weight at all.
Yet I am not indignant, nor have I carried myself as a wife,
though, a slave, I was often summoned to my master’s bed.
the son of Oeneus was turned to arms by his wife’s prayer.
The tale I have heard, you know it. Bereft of her brothers,
the mother cursed the hope and the life of her son.
There was a war; he, fierce, withdrew from the arms he had laid down,
and with stubborn mind refused his country aid.
His wife alone bent the man. Luckier she!
But my words fall, of no weight at all.
Yet I am not indignant, nor have I carried myself as a wife,
though, a slave, I was often summoned to my master’s bed.
Nec tibi turpe puta precibus succumbere nostris;
Coniugis Oenides versus in arma prece est.
Res audita mihi, nota est tibi. fratribus orba
Devovit nati spemque caputque parens.
Bellum erat; ille ferox positis secessit ab armis
Et patriae rigida mente negavit opem.
Sola virum coniunx flexit. felicior illa!
At mea pro nullo pondere verba cadunt.
Nec tamen indignor nec me pro coniuge gessi
Saepius in domini serva vocata torum.
Coniugis Oenides versus in arma prece est.
Res audita mihi, nota est tibi. fratribus orba
Devovit nati spemque caputque parens.
Bellum erat; ille ferox positis secessit ab armis
Et patriae rigida mente negavit opem.
Sola virum coniunx flexit. felicior illa!
At mea pro nullo pondere verba cadunt.
Nec tamen indignor nec me pro coniuge gessi
Saepius in domini serva vocata torum.
A certain captive woman, I remember, called me mistress.
’To my servitude,’ I said, ’you add the burden of a name.’
Yet by the bones of my husband, ill-covered in a hasty tomb,
bones ever to be revered in my judgment;
and by the brave souls of my three brothers, my divinities,
who lie nobly for their country, and with their country;
and by your head and mine, which we have joined as one,
and by your swords, weapons my people came to know —
I swear the Mycenaean shared no bed with me;
if I lie, may you abandon me!
’To my servitude,’ I said, ’you add the burden of a name.’
Yet by the bones of my husband, ill-covered in a hasty tomb,
bones ever to be revered in my judgment;
and by the brave souls of my three brothers, my divinities,
who lie nobly for their country, and with their country;
and by your head and mine, which we have joined as one,
and by your swords, weapons my people came to know —
I swear the Mycenaean shared no bed with me;
if I lie, may you abandon me!
Me quaedam, memini, dominam captiva vocabat.
’Servitio,’ dixi, ’nominis addis onus.’
Per tamen ossa viri subito male tecta sepulcro,
Semper iudiciis ossa verenda meis;
Perque trium fortes animas, mea numina, fratrum,
Qui bene pro patria cum patriaque iacent;
Perque tuum nostrumque caput, quae iunximus una,
Perque tuos enses, cognita tela meis —
Nulla Mycenaeum sociasse cubilia mecum
Iuro; fallentem deseruisse velis!
’Servitio,’ dixi, ’nominis addis onus.’
Per tamen ossa viri subito male tecta sepulcro,
Semper iudiciis ossa verenda meis;
Perque trium fortes animas, mea numina, fratrum,
Qui bene pro patria cum patriaque iacent;
Perque tuum nostrumque caput, quae iunximus una,
Perque tuos enses, cognita tela meis —
Nulla Mycenaeum sociasse cubilia mecum
Iuro; fallentem deseruisse velis!
If I should say to you now, bravest one: ’swear you too
that you have taken no joys apart from me!’ you would refuse.
But the Danaans think you grieve — while your plectrum is plied,
and a soft mistress holds you in her warm embrace!
And does anyone ask why you refuse to fight?
Fighting hurts; the lyre and the song and Venus give delight.
It is safer to have lain on a couch, to have held a girl,
to have struck the Thracian lyre with the fingers,
than to bear in the hands the shield and the sharp-pointed spear,
and to prop a helmet on flattened hair.
that you have taken no joys apart from me!’ you would refuse.
But the Danaans think you grieve — while your plectrum is plied,
and a soft mistress holds you in her warm embrace!
And does anyone ask why you refuse to fight?
Fighting hurts; the lyre and the song and Venus give delight.
It is safer to have lain on a couch, to have held a girl,
to have struck the Thracian lyre with the fingers,
than to bear in the hands the shield and the sharp-pointed spear,
and to prop a helmet on flattened hair.
Si tibi nunc dicam, fortissime: ’tu quoque iura
Nulla tibi sine me gaudia capta!’ neges.
At Danai maerere putant — tibi plectra moventur,
Te tenet in tepido mollis amica sinu!
Et quisquam quaerit, quare pugnare recuses?
Pugna nocet, citharae voxque Venusque iuvant.
Tutius est iacuisse toro, tenuisse puellam,
Threiciam digitis increpuisse lyram,
Quam manibus clipeos et acutae cuspidis hastam,
Et galeam pressa sustinuisse coma.
Nulla tibi sine me gaudia capta!’ neges.
At Danai maerere putant — tibi plectra moventur,
Te tenet in tepido mollis amica sinu!
Et quisquam quaerit, quare pugnare recuses?
Pugna nocet, citharae voxque Venusque iuvant.
Tutius est iacuisse toro, tenuisse puellam,
Threiciam digitis increpuisse lyram,
Quam manibus clipeos et acutae cuspidis hastam,
Et galeam pressa sustinuisse coma.
But once illustrious deeds pleased you above safety,
and glory won in war was sweet.
Or did you approve of fierce wars only while you were capturing me,
and does your glory lie conquered together with my country?
The gods forbid! and may the Pelian spear, I pray,
brandished by a strong arm, pass through Hector’s flank!
Send me, you Danaans! As your envoy I will entreat my master,
and bring many kisses mixed with your messages.
More than Phoenix, more than eloquent Ulysses,
more, believe me, than the brother of Teucer will I achieve.
and glory won in war was sweet.
Or did you approve of fierce wars only while you were capturing me,
and does your glory lie conquered together with my country?
The gods forbid! and may the Pelian spear, I pray,
brandished by a strong arm, pass through Hector’s flank!
Send me, you Danaans! As your envoy I will entreat my master,
and bring many kisses mixed with your messages.
More than Phoenix, more than eloquent Ulysses,
more, believe me, than the brother of Teucer will I achieve.
Sed tibi pro tutis insignia facta placebant,
Partaque bellando gloria dulcis erat.
An tantum dum me caperes, fera bella probabas,
Cumque mea patria laus tua victa iacet?
Di melius! validoque, precor, vibrata lacerto
Transeat Hectoreum Pelias hasta latus!
Mittite me, Danai! dominum legata rogabo
Multaque mandatis oscula mixta feram.
Plus ego quam Phoenix, plus quam facundus Ulixes,
Plus ego quam Teucri, credite, frater agam.
Partaque bellando gloria dulcis erat.
An tantum dum me caperes, fera bella probabas,
Cumque mea patria laus tua victa iacet?
Di melius! validoque, precor, vibrata lacerto
Transeat Hectoreum Pelias hasta latus!
Mittite me, Danai! dominum legata rogabo
Multaque mandatis oscula mixta feram.
Plus ego quam Phoenix, plus quam facundus Ulixes,
Plus ego quam Teucri, credite, frater agam.
It is something to have touched your neck with the wonted arms,
and to have reminded your eyes by my presence.
Though you be merciless, and fiercer than your mother’s waves,
even if I keep silent, you will be broken by my tears.
Now too — so may your father Peleus fill out all his years,
so may Pyrrhus go to arms under your auspices! —
look back on anxious Briseis, brave Achilles,
and do not, iron-hearted, burn the wretch with a slow delay!
Or, if your love has turned to loathing of me,
her whom you force to live without you, force to die!
and to have reminded your eyes by my presence.
Though you be merciless, and fiercer than your mother’s waves,
even if I keep silent, you will be broken by my tears.
Now too — so may your father Peleus fill out all his years,
so may Pyrrhus go to arms under your auspices! —
look back on anxious Briseis, brave Achilles,
and do not, iron-hearted, burn the wretch with a slow delay!
Or, if your love has turned to loathing of me,
her whom you force to live without you, force to die!
Est aliquid collum solitis tetigisse lacertis,
Praesentisque oculos admonuisse sui.
Sis licet inmitis matrisque ferocior undis,
Ut taceam, lacrimis conminuere meis.
Nunc quoque — sic omnes Peleus pater inpleat annos,
Sic eat auspiciis Pyrrhus ad arma tuis! —
Respice sollicitam Briseida, fortis Achille,
Nec miseram lenta ferreus ure mora!
Aut, si versus amor tuus est in taedia nostri,
Quam sine te cogis vivere, coge mori!
Praesentisque oculos admonuisse sui.
Sis licet inmitis matrisque ferocior undis,
Ut taceam, lacrimis conminuere meis.
Nunc quoque — sic omnes Peleus pater inpleat annos,
Sic eat auspiciis Pyrrhus ad arma tuis! —
Respice sollicitam Briseida, fortis Achille,
Nec miseram lenta ferreus ure mora!
Aut, si versus amor tuus est in taedia nostri,
Quam sine te cogis vivere, coge mori!
And as you are doing, you will force it. My body and my color are gone;
yet one hope of you alone holds up this breath.
If I am robbed of it, I will rejoin my brothers and my husband —
nor is it glorious for you to bid a woman die.
But why bid it? Strike at my body with drawn steel;
I have blood to pour from a pierced breast.
Let that sword of yours seek me out, which, had the goddess allowed,
was about to go into the son of Atreus’ breast!
Ah, rather keep my life, your own gift!
What you, as victor, had given to an enemy, I, your love, ask for.
yet one hope of you alone holds up this breath.
If I am robbed of it, I will rejoin my brothers and my husband —
nor is it glorious for you to bid a woman die.
But why bid it? Strike at my body with drawn steel;
I have blood to pour from a pierced breast.
Let that sword of yours seek me out, which, had the goddess allowed,
was about to go into the son of Atreus’ breast!
Ah, rather keep my life, your own gift!
What you, as victor, had given to an enemy, I, your love, ask for.
Utque facis, coges. abiit corpusque colorque;
Sustinet hoc animae spes tamen una tui.
Qua si destituor, repetam fratresque virumque —
Nec tibi magnificum femina iussa mori.
Cur autem iubeas? stricto pete corpora ferro;
Est mihi qui fosso pectore sanguis eat.
Me petat ille tuus, qui, si dea passa fuisset,
Ensis in Atridae pectus iturus erat!
A, potius serves nostram, tua munera, vitam!
Quod dederas hosti victor, amica rogo.
Sustinet hoc animae spes tamen una tui.
Qua si destituor, repetam fratresque virumque —
Nec tibi magnificum femina iussa mori.
Cur autem iubeas? stricto pete corpora ferro;
Est mihi qui fosso pectore sanguis eat.
Me petat ille tuus, qui, si dea passa fuisset,
Ensis in Atridae pectus iturus erat!
A, potius serves nostram, tua munera, vitam!
Quod dederas hosti victor, amica rogo.
Those you could better destroy, Neptune’s Pergama
supply; seek your matter for slaughter from the foe.
Only me — whether you make ready to drive your fleet with the oar,
or stay — by a master’s right, bid come!
supply; seek your matter for slaughter from the foe.
Only me — whether you make ready to drive your fleet with the oar,
or stay — by a master’s right, bid come!
Perdere quos melius possis, Neptunia praebent
Pergama; materiam caedis ab hoste pete.
Me modo, sive paras inpellere remige classem,
Sive manes, domini iure venire iube!
Pergama; materiam caedis ab hoste pete.
Me modo, sive paras inpellere remige classem,
Sive manes, domini iure venire iube!
Book 4
The Cretan girl sends to the Amazon’s son the greeting
which, unless you give it, she herself will go without.
Read it through, whatever it is — what harm will a read letter do?
There may even be something in it to please you;
by these characters secrets travel over land and sea.
Even an enemy reads the writing he gets from an enemy.
Three times I tried to speak with you, three times my useless tongue
stuck fast; three times the sound halted at my lips.
Where it is allowed and follows, shame must be mixed with love;
what I was ashamed to say, love bade me write.
which, unless you give it, she herself will go without.
Read it through, whatever it is — what harm will a read letter do?
There may even be something in it to please you;
by these characters secrets travel over land and sea.
Even an enemy reads the writing he gets from an enemy.
Three times I tried to speak with you, three times my useless tongue
stuck fast; three times the sound halted at my lips.
Where it is allowed and follows, shame must be mixed with love;
what I was ashamed to say, love bade me write.
Quam nisi tu dederis, caritura est ipsa, salutem
Mittit Amazonio Cressa puella viro.
Perlege, quodcumque est — quid epistula lecta nocebit?
Te quoque in hac aliquid quod iuvet esse potest;
His arcana notis terra pelagoque feruntur.
Inspicit acceptas hostis ab hoste notas.
Ter tecum conata loqui ter inutilis haesit
Lingua, ter in primo restitit ore sonus.
Qua licet et sequitur, pudor est miscendus amori;
Dicere quae puduit, scribere iussit amor.
Mittit Amazonio Cressa puella viro.
Perlege, quodcumque est — quid epistula lecta nocebit?
Te quoque in hac aliquid quod iuvet esse potest;
His arcana notis terra pelagoque feruntur.
Inspicit acceptas hostis ab hoste notas.
Ter tecum conata loqui ter inutilis haesit
Lingua, ter in primo restitit ore sonus.
Qua licet et sequitur, pudor est miscendus amori;
Dicere quae puduit, scribere iussit amor.
Whatever Love has commanded, it is not safe to scorn;
he reigns, and holds his right even over the lordly gods.
He said to me, as I first hesitated to write:
’Write! that iron man will give his hands up, beaten.’
Let him be near, and as he warms my marrow with greedy fire,
so let him fix your heart upon my prayers!
It is not through wantonness that I would break the marriage-bond;
my repute — inquire, I’d have you — is clear of any crime.
Love comes the heavier for coming late — I burn within;
I burn, and my breast holds a hidden wound.
he reigns, and holds his right even over the lordly gods.
He said to me, as I first hesitated to write:
’Write! that iron man will give his hands up, beaten.’
Let him be near, and as he warms my marrow with greedy fire,
so let him fix your heart upon my prayers!
It is not through wantonness that I would break the marriage-bond;
my repute — inquire, I’d have you — is clear of any crime.
Love comes the heavier for coming late — I burn within;
I burn, and my breast holds a hidden wound.
Quidquid Amor iussit, non est contemnere tutum;
Regnat et in dominos ius habet ille deos.
Ille mihi primo dubitanti scribere dixit:
’Scribe! dabit victas ferreus ille manus.’
Adsit et, ut nostras avido fovet igne medullas,
Figat sic animos in mea vota tuos!
Non ego nequitia socialia foedera rumpam;
Fama — velim quaeras — crimine nostra vacat.
Venit amor gravius, quo serius — urimur intus;
Urimur, et caecum pectora vulnus habent.
Regnat et in dominos ius habet ille deos.
Ille mihi primo dubitanti scribere dixit:
’Scribe! dabit victas ferreus ille manus.’
Adsit et, ut nostras avido fovet igne medullas,
Figat sic animos in mea vota tuos!
Non ego nequitia socialia foedera rumpam;
Fama — velim quaeras — crimine nostra vacat.
Venit amor gravius, quo serius — urimur intus;
Urimur, et caecum pectora vulnus habent.
Just as first yokes hurt the tender bullocks,
and a horse caught from the herd scarcely bears the bit,
so an untaught heart bears its first loves ill and hardly,
and this burden does not sit fitly on my mind.
It becomes an art, when the offense is learned from tender years;
she to whom it comes when her time is spent loves the worse.
You will take the first-fruits of my well-guarded fame,
and the two of us will become guilty alike.
It is something to pluck the orchard from full boughs,
and to pick the first rose with a delicate nail.
and a horse caught from the herd scarcely bears the bit,
so an untaught heart bears its first loves ill and hardly,
and this burden does not sit fitly on my mind.
It becomes an art, when the offense is learned from tender years;
she to whom it comes when her time is spent loves the worse.
You will take the first-fruits of my well-guarded fame,
and the two of us will become guilty alike.
It is something to pluck the orchard from full boughs,
and to pick the first rose with a delicate nail.
Scilicet ut teneros laedunt iuga prima iuvencos,
Frenaque vix patitur de grege captus equus,
Sic male vixque subit primos rude pectus amores,
Sarcinaque haec animo non sedet apta meo.
Ars fit, ubi a teneris crimen condiscitur annis;
Cui venit exacto tempore, peius amat.
Tu nova servatae capies libamina famae,
Et pariter nostrum fiet uterque nocens.
Est aliquid, plenis pomaria carpere ramis,
Et tenui primam delegere ungue rosam.
Frenaque vix patitur de grege captus equus,
Sic male vixque subit primos rude pectus amores,
Sarcinaque haec animo non sedet apta meo.
Ars fit, ubi a teneris crimen condiscitur annis;
Cui venit exacto tempore, peius amat.
Tu nova servatae capies libamina famae,
Et pariter nostrum fiet uterque nocens.
Est aliquid, plenis pomaria carpere ramis,
Et tenui primam delegere ungue rosam.
Yet if that earlier whiteness, in which I bore myself blameless,
had to be marked by an unwonted stain,
still it has fallen out well that I am scorched by a worthy fire;
worse than the adultery is a base adulterer.
If Juno should yield me her brother and her husband,
I think I would set Hippolytus before Jove!
Now too — you will hardly believe it — I am driven to unknown pursuits;
I have an urge to go among the savage beasts.
Now my chief goddess is she marked out by the curved bow,
the Delian; I myself follow your judgment.
had to be marked by an unwonted stain,
still it has fallen out well that I am scorched by a worthy fire;
worse than the adultery is a base adulterer.
If Juno should yield me her brother and her husband,
I think I would set Hippolytus before Jove!
Now too — you will hardly believe it — I am driven to unknown pursuits;
I have an urge to go among the savage beasts.
Now my chief goddess is she marked out by the curved bow,
the Delian; I myself follow your judgment.
Si tamen ille prior, quo me sine crimine gessi,
Candor ab insolita labe notandus erat,
At bene successit, digno quod adurimur igni;
Peius adulterio turpis adulter obest.
Si mihi concedat Iuno fratremque virumque,
Hippolytum videor praepositura Iovi!
Iam quoque — vix credes — ignotas mittor in artes;
Est mihi per saevas impetus ire feras.
Iam mihi prima dea est arcu praesignis adunco
Delia; iudicium subsequor ipsa tuum.
Candor ab insolita labe notandus erat,
At bene successit, digno quod adurimur igni;
Peius adulterio turpis adulter obest.
Si mihi concedat Iuno fratremque virumque,
Hippolytum videor praepositura Iovi!
Iam quoque — vix credes — ignotas mittor in artes;
Est mihi per saevas impetus ire feras.
Iam mihi prima dea est arcu praesignis adunco
Delia; iudicium subsequor ipsa tuum.
I long to go into the woodland and, when the deer are penned in the nets,
to urge the swift hounds along the high ridges,
or to brandish the quivering javelin with arm thrown back,
or to lay my body on the grassy ground.
Often it pleases me to wheel the light chariot in the dust,
twisting with the reins the mouth of a bolting horse;
now I am swept along like the Eleleides driven by Bacchus’ frenzies,
and the women who beat the drums beneath the Idaean hill,
or like those whom the half-divine Dryads and the two-horned Fauns
have stunned, touched by their power.
to urge the swift hounds along the high ridges,
or to brandish the quivering javelin with arm thrown back,
or to lay my body on the grassy ground.
Often it pleases me to wheel the light chariot in the dust,
twisting with the reins the mouth of a bolting horse;
now I am swept along like the Eleleides driven by Bacchus’ frenzies,
and the women who beat the drums beneath the Idaean hill,
or like those whom the half-divine Dryads and the two-horned Fauns
have stunned, touched by their power.
In nemus ire libet pressisque in retia cervis
Hortari celeris per iuga summa canes,
Aut tremulum excusso iaculum vibrare lacerto,
Aut in graminea ponere corpus humo.
Saepe iuvat versare leves in pulvere currus
Torquentem frenis ora fugacis equi;
Nunc feror, ut Bacchi furiis Eleleides actae,
Quaeque sub Idaeo tympana colle movent,
Aut quas semideae Dryades Faunique bicornes
Numine contactas attonuere suo.
Hortari celeris per iuga summa canes,
Aut tremulum excusso iaculum vibrare lacerto,
Aut in graminea ponere corpus humo.
Saepe iuvat versare leves in pulvere currus
Torquentem frenis ora fugacis equi;
Nunc feror, ut Bacchi furiis Eleleides actae,
Quaeque sub Idaeo tympana colle movent,
Aut quas semideae Dryades Faunique bicornes
Numine contactas attonuere suo.
For they tell me everything, when that frenzy has slackened;
love, my accomplice, burns me, and I keep silent.
Perhaps I pay this love as a debt of my line’s destiny,
and Venus exacts her tribute from the whole race.
Jupiter loved Europa — she is the first source of the line —
a bull disguising the god.
My mother Pasiphae, mounting beneath a deluded bull,
brought forth in her womb her crime and her burden.
The faithless son of Aegeus, following the guiding thread,
escaped the winding house by my sister’s help.
love, my accomplice, burns me, and I keep silent.
Perhaps I pay this love as a debt of my line’s destiny,
and Venus exacts her tribute from the whole race.
Jupiter loved Europa — she is the first source of the line —
a bull disguising the god.
My mother Pasiphae, mounting beneath a deluded bull,
brought forth in her womb her crime and her burden.
The faithless son of Aegeus, following the guiding thread,
escaped the winding house by my sister’s help.
Namque mihi referunt, cum se furor ille remisit,
Omnia; me tacitam conscius urit amor.
Forsitan hunc generis fato reddamus amorem,
Et Venus ex tota gente tributa petat.
Iuppiter Europen — prima est ea gentis origo —
Dilexit, tauro dissimulante deum.
Pasiphae mater, decepto subdita tauro,
Enixa est utero crimen onusque suo.
Perfidus Aegides, ducentia fila secutus,
Curva meae fugit tecta sororis ope.
Omnia; me tacitam conscius urit amor.
Forsitan hunc generis fato reddamus amorem,
Et Venus ex tota gente tributa petat.
Iuppiter Europen — prima est ea gentis origo —
Dilexit, tauro dissimulante deum.
Pasiphae mater, decepto subdita tauro,
Enixa est utero crimen onusque suo.
Perfidus Aegides, ducentia fila secutus,
Curva meae fugit tecta sororis ope.
See, now I too, lest I be thought too little a child of Minos,
go last into the common law of my race!
This too is fated: one house has pleased two women;
your beauty captures me, my sister was captured by your father.
Theseus’ son and Theseus carried off two sisters —
set up a double trophy from our house!
At the time when I entered Ceres’ Eleusis,
I wish the soil of Cnossos had kept me back!
Then above all (though even before you pleased me)
a keen love lodged in my inmost bones.
go last into the common law of my race!
This too is fated: one house has pleased two women;
your beauty captures me, my sister was captured by your father.
Theseus’ son and Theseus carried off two sisters —
set up a double trophy from our house!
At the time when I entered Ceres’ Eleusis,
I wish the soil of Cnossos had kept me back!
Then above all (though even before you pleased me)
a keen love lodged in my inmost bones.
En, ego nunc, ne forte parum Minoia credar,
In socias leges ultima gentis eo!
Hoc quoque fatale est: placuit domus una duabus;
Me tua forma capit, capta parente soror.
Thesides Theseusque duas rapuere sorores —
Ponite de nostra bina tropaea domo!
Tempore quo nobis inita est Cerealis Eleusin,
Gnosia me vellem detinuisset humus!
Tunc mihi praecipue (nec non tamen ante placebas)
Acer in extremis ossibus haesit amor.
In socias leges ultima gentis eo!
Hoc quoque fatale est: placuit domus una duabus;
Me tua forma capit, capta parente soror.
Thesides Theseusque duas rapuere sorores —
Ponite de nostra bina tropaea domo!
Tempore quo nobis inita est Cerealis Eleusin,
Gnosia me vellem detinuisset humus!
Tunc mihi praecipue (nec non tamen ante placebas)
Acer in extremis ossibus haesit amor.
Your robe was white, your hair bound round with flowers,
a modest blush had tinged your golden face,
and the face that other women call stern and grim,
by Phaedra’s judgment, instead of stern, was brave.
Keep far from me young men trimmed like a woman! —
a man’s beauty loves to be groomed within a modest bound.
That sternness of yours becomes you, and your hair set without art,
and the light dust on your splendid face.
Whether you bend back the struggling neck of a fierce horse,
I marvel at your feet wheeling in a tight ring;
a modest blush had tinged your golden face,
and the face that other women call stern and grim,
by Phaedra’s judgment, instead of stern, was brave.
Keep far from me young men trimmed like a woman! —
a man’s beauty loves to be groomed within a modest bound.
That sternness of yours becomes you, and your hair set without art,
and the light dust on your splendid face.
Whether you bend back the struggling neck of a fierce horse,
I marvel at your feet wheeling in a tight ring;
Candida vestis erat, praecincti flore capilli,
Flava verecundus tinxerat ora rubor,
Quemque vocant aliae vultum rigidumque trucemque,
Pro rigido Phaedra iudice fortis erat.
Sint procul a nobis iuvenes ut femina compti! —
Fine coli modico forma virilis amat.
Te tuus iste rigor positique sine arte capilli
Et levis egregio pulvis in ore decet.
Sive ferocis equi luctantia colla recurvas,
Exiguo flexos miror in orbe pedes;
Flava verecundus tinxerat ora rubor,
Quemque vocant aliae vultum rigidumque trucemque,
Pro rigido Phaedra iudice fortis erat.
Sint procul a nobis iuvenes ut femina compti! —
Fine coli modico forma virilis amat.
Te tuus iste rigor positique sine arte capilli
Et levis egregio pulvis in ore decet.
Sive ferocis equi luctantia colla recurvas,
Exiguo flexos miror in orbe pedes;
or whether you hurl the tough spear-shaft with a strong arm,
your bold arm draws my eyes upon itself,
or whether you grip the cornel hunting-spears with their broad blade.
In short, whatever you do delights my eyes.
Only lay your hardness aside in the ridged woods;
I do not deserve to perish in your warfare.
What use to practice the pursuits of girt-up Diana,
and to have stolen from Venus the measures that are hers?
What lacks alternating rest cannot last;
rest repairs the strength and renews the weary limbs.
your bold arm draws my eyes upon itself,
or whether you grip the cornel hunting-spears with their broad blade.
In short, whatever you do delights my eyes.
Only lay your hardness aside in the ridged woods;
I do not deserve to perish in your warfare.
What use to practice the pursuits of girt-up Diana,
and to have stolen from Venus the measures that are hers?
What lacks alternating rest cannot last;
rest repairs the strength and renews the weary limbs.
Seu lentum valido torques hastile lacerto,
Ora ferox in se versa lacertus habet,
Sive tenes lato venabula cornea ferro.
Denique nostra iuvat lumina, quidquid agis.
Tu modo duritiam silvis depone iugosis;
Non sum militia digna perire tua.
Quid iuvat incinctae studia exercere Dianae,
Et Veneri numeros eripuisse suos?
Quod caret alterna requie, durabile non est;
Haec reparat vires fessaque membra novat.
Ora ferox in se versa lacertus habet,
Sive tenes lato venabula cornea ferro.
Denique nostra iuvat lumina, quidquid agis.
Tu modo duritiam silvis depone iugosis;
Non sum militia digna perire tua.
Quid iuvat incinctae studia exercere Dianae,
Et Veneri numeros eripuisse suos?
Quod caret alterna requie, durabile non est;
Haec reparat vires fessaque membra novat.
The bow — and you should copy the arms of your Diana —
if you never cease to bend it, will go slack.
Cephalus was famed in the woods, and many beasts
had fallen through the grass at his striking;
yet he gave himself not ill to be loved by Aurora.
The wise goddess went to him, away from her old husband.
Often beneath the holm-oaks some chance turf bore up
Venus and the son of Cinyras, laid down together.
The son of Oeneus too burned for Maenalian Atalanta;
she holds the beast’s spoil as a pledge of love.
if you never cease to bend it, will go slack.
Cephalus was famed in the woods, and many beasts
had fallen through the grass at his striking;
yet he gave himself not ill to be loved by Aurora.
The wise goddess went to him, away from her old husband.
Often beneath the holm-oaks some chance turf bore up
Venus and the son of Cinyras, laid down together.
The son of Oeneus too burned for Maenalian Atalanta;
she holds the beast’s spoil as a pledge of love.
Arcus — et arma tuae tibi sunt imitanda Dianae —
Si numquam cesses tendere, mollis erit.
Clarus erat silvis Cephalus, multaeque per herbas
Conciderant illo percutiente ferae;
Nec tamen Aurorae male se praebebat amandum.
Ibat ad hunc sapiens a sene diva viro.
Saepe sub ilicibus Venerem Cinyraque creatum
Sustinuit positos quaelibet herba duos.
Arsit et Oenides in Maenalia Atalanta;
Illa ferae spolium pignus amoris habet.
Si numquam cesses tendere, mollis erit.
Clarus erat silvis Cephalus, multaeque per herbas
Conciderant illo percutiente ferae;
Nec tamen Aurorae male se praebebat amandum.
Ibat ad hunc sapiens a sene diva viro.
Saepe sub ilicibus Venerem Cinyraque creatum
Sustinuit positos quaelibet herba duos.
Arsit et Oenides in Maenalia Atalanta;
Illa ferae spolium pignus amoris habet.
Let us too be counted in that company as soon as may be!
If you take away Venus, your woodland is a boor’s.
I myself will come as your companion, and neither the hidden
rocks will daunt me, nor the boar to be feared for his slanting tusk.
Two seas assail an isthmus with their waves,
and the narrow land hears both seas.
Here with you I will dwell in Troezen, the realm of Pittheus;
already now it is dearer to me than my own native land.
For a time the Neptunian hero is away, and will be long away;
the shore of his Pirithous detains him.
If you take away Venus, your woodland is a boor’s.
I myself will come as your companion, and neither the hidden
rocks will daunt me, nor the boar to be feared for his slanting tusk.
Two seas assail an isthmus with their waves,
and the narrow land hears both seas.
Here with you I will dwell in Troezen, the realm of Pittheus;
already now it is dearer to me than my own native land.
For a time the Neptunian hero is away, and will be long away;
the shore of his Pirithous detains him.
Nos quoque quam primum turba numeremur in ista!
Si Venerem tollas, rustica silva tua est.
Ipsa comes veniam, nec me latebrosa movebunt
Saxa neque obliquo dente timendus aper.
Aequora bina suis obpugnant fluctibus isthmon,
Et tenuis tellus audit utrumque mare.
Hic tecum Troezena colam, Pittheia regna;
Iam nunc est patria carior illa mea.
Tempore abest aberitque diu Neptunius heros;
Illum Pirithoi detinet ora sui.
Si Venerem tollas, rustica silva tua est.
Ipsa comes veniam, nec me latebrosa movebunt
Saxa neque obliquo dente timendus aper.
Aequora bina suis obpugnant fluctibus isthmon,
Et tenuis tellus audit utrumque mare.
Hic tecum Troezena colam, Pittheia regna;
Iam nunc est patria carior illa mea.
Tempore abest aberitque diu Neptunius heros;
Illum Pirithoi detinet ora sui.
Theseus has preferred — unless we deny the plain truth —
Pirithous to Phaedra, and Pirithous to you.
Nor is this the only injury that comes to us from him;
in great matters we have both been wronged.
The bones of my brother, shattered by his three-knotted club,
he scattered on the ground; my sister was left as prey to the beasts.
The first in valor among the axe-bearing maidens
bore you, a mother worthy of her son’s vigor;
if you ask where she is — Theseus ran her side through with the sword,
nor was the mother safe even with so great a pledge.
Pirithous to Phaedra, and Pirithous to you.
Nor is this the only injury that comes to us from him;
in great matters we have both been wronged.
The bones of my brother, shattered by his three-knotted club,
he scattered on the ground; my sister was left as prey to the beasts.
The first in valor among the axe-bearing maidens
bore you, a mother worthy of her son’s vigor;
if you ask where she is — Theseus ran her side through with the sword,
nor was the mother safe even with so great a pledge.
Praeposuit Theseus — nisi si manifesta negamus —
Pirithoum Phaedrae Pirithoumque tibi.
Sola nec haec ad nos iniuria venit ab illo;
In magnis laesi rebus uterque sumus.
Ossa mei fratris clava perfracta trinodi
Sparsit humi; soror est praeda relicta feris.
Prima securigeras inter virtute puellas
Te peperit, nati digna vigore parens;
Si quaeras, ubi sit — Theseus latus ense peregit,
Nec tanto mater pignore tuta fuit.
Pirithoum Phaedrae Pirithoumque tibi.
Sola nec haec ad nos iniuria venit ab illo;
In magnis laesi rebus uterque sumus.
Ossa mei fratris clava perfracta trinodi
Sparsit humi; soror est praeda relicta feris.
Prima securigeras inter virtute puellas
Te peperit, nati digna vigore parens;
Si quaeras, ubi sit — Theseus latus ense peregit,
Nec tanto mater pignore tuta fuit.
But she was not even wedded, nor received with the marriage-torch —
why, except that you, a bastard, should not take your father’s realm?
He has added brothers to you from me — yet of rearing them all
I was not the cause, but he.
O that, since they would harm you, fairest of all things,
my womb had burst in the midst of its labor!
Go now, revere the bed of so deserving a father —
which he himself shuns and disowns by his own deeds!
And do not let empty names frighten your mind,
because I, a stepmother, may seem about to lie with a stepson.
why, except that you, a bastard, should not take your father’s realm?
He has added brothers to you from me — yet of rearing them all
I was not the cause, but he.
O that, since they would harm you, fairest of all things,
my womb had burst in the midst of its labor!
Go now, revere the bed of so deserving a father —
which he himself shuns and disowns by his own deeds!
And do not let empty names frighten your mind,
because I, a stepmother, may seem about to lie with a stepson.
At ne nupta quidem taedaque accepta iugali —
Cur, nisi ne caperes regna paterna nothus?
Addidit et fratres ex me tibi, quos tamen omnis
Non ego tollendi causa, sed ille fuit.
O utinam nocitura tibi, pulcherrime rerum,
In medio nisu viscera rupta forent!
I nunc, sic meriti lectum reverere parentis —
Quem fugit et factis abdicat ipse suis!
Nec, quia privigno videar coitura noverca,
Terruerint animos nomina vana tuos.
Cur, nisi ne caperes regna paterna nothus?
Addidit et fratres ex me tibi, quos tamen omnis
Non ego tollendi causa, sed ille fuit.
O utinam nocitura tibi, pulcherrime rerum,
In medio nisu viscera rupta forent!
I nunc, sic meriti lectum reverere parentis —
Quem fugit et factis abdicat ipse suis!
Nec, quia privigno videar coitura noverca,
Terruerint animos nomina vana tuos.
That old scruple, doomed to die in an age to come,
was a rustic thing while Saturn held the realm.
Jupiter decreed that whatever pleased should be righteous,
and a sister married to a brother makes all things lawful.
That bond of kinship holds fast in a firm chain,
on which Venus herself has laid her own knots.
Nor is it hard, though we sin, to hide the love.
Under the name of kinship the fault can be cloaked.
If someone sees us embracing, we will both be praised;
I shall be called a faithful stepmother to my stepson.
was a rustic thing while Saturn held the realm.
Jupiter decreed that whatever pleased should be righteous,
and a sister married to a brother makes all things lawful.
That bond of kinship holds fast in a firm chain,
on which Venus herself has laid her own knots.
Nor is it hard, though we sin, to hide the love.
Under the name of kinship the fault can be cloaked.
If someone sees us embracing, we will both be praised;
I shall be called a faithful stepmother to my stepson.
Ista vetus pietas, aevo moritura futuro,
Rustica Saturno regna tenente fuit.
Iuppiter esse pium statuit, quodcumque iuvaret,
Et fas omne facit fratre marita soror.
Illa coit firma generis iunctura catena,
Inposuit nodos cui Venus ipsa suos.
Nec labor est celare, licet peccemus, amorem.
Cognato poterit nomine culpa tegi.
Viderit amplexos aliquis, laudabimur ambo;
Dicar privigno fida noverca meo.
Rustica Saturno regna tenente fuit.
Iuppiter esse pium statuit, quodcumque iuvaret,
Et fas omne facit fratre marita soror.
Illa coit firma generis iunctura catena,
Inposuit nodos cui Venus ipsa suos.
Nec labor est celare, licet peccemus, amorem.
Cognato poterit nomine culpa tegi.
Viderit amplexos aliquis, laudabimur ambo;
Dicar privigno fida noverca meo.
You will not have to unbar in the dark a harsh husband’s door,
nor will a guard need to be tricked;
as one house held the two of us, one house will hold us still;
you used to give kisses openly, openly you will give them;
you will be safe with me, and earn praise by the fault,
even though you be seen in my bed.
Only do away with delay and join the hastened bond —
so may Love, who now rages at me, spare you!
I do not disdain to plead, a suppliant and lowly.
Alas! where now do my pride and high words lie?
nor will a guard need to be tricked;
as one house held the two of us, one house will hold us still;
you used to give kisses openly, openly you will give them;
you will be safe with me, and earn praise by the fault,
even though you be seen in my bed.
Only do away with delay and join the hastened bond —
so may Love, who now rages at me, spare you!
I do not disdain to plead, a suppliant and lowly.
Alas! where now do my pride and high words lie?
Non tibi per tenebras duri reseranda mariti
Ianua, non custos decipiendus erit;
Ut tenuit domus una duos, domus una tenebit;
Oscula aperta dabas, oscula aperta dabis;
Tutus eris mecum laudemque merebere culpa,
Tu licet in lecto conspiciare meo.
Tolle moras tantum properataque foedera iunge —
Qui mihi nunc saevit, sic tibi parcat Amor!
Non ego dedignor supplex humilisque precari.
Heu! ubi nunc fastus altaque verba iacent?
Ianua, non custos decipiendus erit;
Ut tenuit domus una duos, domus una tenebit;
Oscula aperta dabas, oscula aperta dabis;
Tutus eris mecum laudemque merebere culpa,
Tu licet in lecto conspiciare meo.
Tolle moras tantum properataque foedera iunge —
Qui mihi nunc saevit, sic tibi parcat Amor!
Non ego dedignor supplex humilisque precari.
Heu! ubi nunc fastus altaque verba iacent?
And I was resolved to fight long and not to yield to the fault —
if love had any resolve in it;
beaten, I beg, and to your knees I stretch out my royal
arms! What is fitting, no lover sees.
I have lost all shame, and shame, in flight, has left its standards.
Pardon my confession, and tame your hard heart!
That my father is Minos, who holds the seas,
that thunderbolts come hurled from my great-grandfather’s hand,
that my grandfather is he whose brow is ringed with sharp rays,
who drives the warm day on his crimson axle —
if love had any resolve in it;
beaten, I beg, and to your knees I stretch out my royal
arms! What is fitting, no lover sees.
I have lost all shame, and shame, in flight, has left its standards.
Pardon my confession, and tame your hard heart!
That my father is Minos, who holds the seas,
that thunderbolts come hurled from my great-grandfather’s hand,
that my grandfather is he whose brow is ringed with sharp rays,
who drives the warm day on his crimson axle —
Et pugnare diu nec me submittere culpae
Certa fui — certi siquid haberet amor;
Victa precor genibusque tuis regalia tendo
Bracchia! quid deceat, non videt ullus amans.
Depudui, profugusque pudor sua signa reliquit.
Da veniam fasse duraque corda doma!
Quod mihi sit genitor, qui possidet aequora, Minos,
Quod veniant proavi fulmina torta manu,
Quod sit avus radiis frontem vallatus acutis,
Purpureo tepidum qui movet axe diem —
Certa fui — certi siquid haberet amor;
Victa precor genibusque tuis regalia tendo
Bracchia! quid deceat, non videt ullus amans.
Depudui, profugusque pudor sua signa reliquit.
Da veniam fasse duraque corda doma!
Quod mihi sit genitor, qui possidet aequora, Minos,
Quod veniant proavi fulmina torta manu,
Quod sit avus radiis frontem vallatus acutis,
Purpureo tepidum qui movet axe diem —
my nobility lies vanquished under love! Pity my forebears,
and, if you will not spare me, spare my own!
I have for dowry-land the island of Jove, Crete —
let my whole palace serve my Hippolytus!
Bend your fierce heart! my mother could seduce a bull;
will you yourself be crueler than a savage bull?
By Venus, who is most present with me, spare me, I pray!
So may you never love one who could scorn you;
so may the nimble goddess attend you in the secret glades,
and the deep wood furnish beasts for the killing;
and, if you will not spare me, spare my own!
I have for dowry-land the island of Jove, Crete —
let my whole palace serve my Hippolytus!
Bend your fierce heart! my mother could seduce a bull;
will you yourself be crueler than a savage bull?
By Venus, who is most present with me, spare me, I pray!
So may you never love one who could scorn you;
so may the nimble goddess attend you in the secret glades,
and the deep wood furnish beasts for the killing;
Nobilitas sub amore iacet! miserere priorum
Et, mihi si non vis parcere, parce meis!
Est mihi dotalis tellus Iovis insula, Crete —
Serviat Hippolyto regia tota meo!
Flecte, ferox, animos! potuit corrumpere taurum
Mater; eris tauro saevior ipse truci?
Per Venerem, parcas, oro, quae plurima mecum est!
Sic numquam, quae te spernere possit, ames;
Sic tibi secretis agilis dea saltibus adsit,
Silvaque perdendas praebeat alta feras;
Et, mihi si non vis parcere, parce meis!
Est mihi dotalis tellus Iovis insula, Crete —
Serviat Hippolyto regia tota meo!
Flecte, ferox, animos! potuit corrumpere taurum
Mater; eris tauro saevior ipse truci?
Per Venerem, parcas, oro, quae plurima mecum est!
Sic numquam, quae te spernere possit, ames;
Sic tibi secretis agilis dea saltibus adsit,
Silvaque perdendas praebeat alta feras;
so may the Satyrs favor you, and the mountain powers, the Pans,
and may the boar fall pierced by your front-on point;
so may the Nymphs grant you — though you are said to hate girls —
a stream of water to ease your parching thirst!
To these prayers I add my tears as well; you who read
a pleader’s words, imagine you see my tears too!
and may the boar fall pierced by your front-on point;
so may the Nymphs grant you — though you are said to hate girls —
a stream of water to ease your parching thirst!
To these prayers I add my tears as well; you who read
a pleader’s words, imagine you see my tears too!
Book 5
The nymph sends to her Paris — though he refuses to be hers —
words to be read, from the ridges of Ida.
Do you read it through? or does a new wife forbid? Read it through —
this letter was not penned by a Mycenaean hand!
Oenone of the spring, most renowned in the Phrygian woods,
wronged, I complain of you — my own, if you yourself allow it.
What god has set his power against my prayers?
What crime stands against me, that I may not remain yours?
Whatever you suffer deservedly must be borne lightly;
a penalty that comes undeserved comes to be grieved.
words to be read, from the ridges of Ida.
Do you read it through? or does a new wife forbid? Read it through —
this letter was not penned by a Mycenaean hand!
Oenone of the spring, most renowned in the Phrygian woods,
wronged, I complain of you — my own, if you yourself allow it.
What god has set his power against my prayers?
What crime stands against me, that I may not remain yours?
Whatever you suffer deservedly must be borne lightly;
a penalty that comes undeserved comes to be grieved.
Nympha suo Paridi, quamvis suus esse recuset,
Mittit ab Idaeis verba legenda iugis.
Perlegis? an coniunx prohibet nova? perlege — non est
Ista Mycenaea littera facta manu!
Pegasis Oenone, Phrygiis celeberrima silvis,
Laesa queror de te, si sinis ipse, meo.
Quis deus opposuit nostris sua numina votis?
Ne tua permaneam, quod mihi crimen obest?
Leniter, ex merito quidquid patiare, ferendum est;
Quae venit indigno poena, dolenda venit.
Mittit ab Idaeis verba legenda iugis.
Perlegis? an coniunx prohibet nova? perlege — non est
Ista Mycenaea littera facta manu!
Pegasis Oenone, Phrygiis celeberrima silvis,
Laesa queror de te, si sinis ipse, meo.
Quis deus opposuit nostris sua numina votis?
Ne tua permaneam, quod mihi crimen obest?
Leniter, ex merito quidquid patiare, ferendum est;
Quae venit indigno poena, dolenda venit.
You were not yet so great, when, content with you as husband,
I was a nymph, born of a great river.
You who are now Priam’s son — let no awe stand in truth’s way! —
were a slave; I, a nymph, endured to wed a slave!
Often among the flocks we rested, sheltered by a tree,
and the grass mixed with leaves furnished a couch;
often, as we lay on straw and on deep hay,
a lowly hut kept the hoar frost off.
Who showed you the glades fit for the hunting,
and on what crag the wild beast hid her cubs?
I was a nymph, born of a great river.
You who are now Priam’s son — let no awe stand in truth’s way! —
were a slave; I, a nymph, endured to wed a slave!
Often among the flocks we rested, sheltered by a tree,
and the grass mixed with leaves furnished a couch;
often, as we lay on straw and on deep hay,
a lowly hut kept the hoar frost off.
Who showed you the glades fit for the hunting,
and on what crag the wild beast hid her cubs?
Nondum tantus eras, cum te contenta marito
Edita de magno flumine nympha fui.
Qui nunc Priamides — absit reverentia vero! —
Servus eras; servo nubere nympha tuli!
Saepe greges inter requievimus arbore tecti,
Mixtaque cum foliis praebuit herba torum;
Saepe super stramen faenoque iacentibus alto
Defensa est humili cana pruina casa.
Quis tibi monstrabat saltus venatibus aptos,
Et tegeret catulos qua fera rupe suos?
Edita de magno flumine nympha fui.
Qui nunc Priamides — absit reverentia vero! —
Servus eras; servo nubere nympha tuli!
Saepe greges inter requievimus arbore tecti,
Mixtaque cum foliis praebuit herba torum;
Saepe super stramen faenoque iacentibus alto
Defensa est humili cana pruina casa.
Quis tibi monstrabat saltus venatibus aptos,
Et tegeret catulos qua fera rupe suos?
Often as your comrade I stretched the nets, marked with their meshes;
often I drove the swift hounds over the long ridges.
The beeches, cut by you, keep my name,
and I am read, ’Oenone,’ carved by your pruning-knife,
and there is a poplar, I remember, planted by the river’s stream,
on which is written a line that remembers us:
and as the trunk grows, so my name grows with it.
Grow, and rise up straight into my titles!
Poplar, live, I pray, you who, planted at the bank’s edge,
bear this verse on your wrinkled bark:
often I drove the swift hounds over the long ridges.
The beeches, cut by you, keep my name,
and I am read, ’Oenone,’ carved by your pruning-knife,
and there is a poplar, I remember, planted by the river’s stream,
on which is written a line that remembers us:
and as the trunk grows, so my name grows with it.
Grow, and rise up straight into my titles!
Poplar, live, I pray, you who, planted at the bank’s edge,
bear this verse on your wrinkled bark:
Retia saepe comes maculis distincta tetendi;
Saepe citos egi per iuga longa canes.
Incisae servant a te mea nomina fagi,
Et legor Oenone falce notata tua,
Populus est, memini, fluviali consita rivo,
Est in qua nostri littera scripta memor:
Et quantum trunci, tantum mea nomina crescunt.
Crescite et in titulos surgite recta meos!
Popule, vive, precor, quae consita margine ripae
Hoc in rugoso cortice carmen habes:
Saepe citos egi per iuga longa canes.
Incisae servant a te mea nomina fagi,
Et legor Oenone falce notata tua,
Populus est, memini, fluviali consita rivo,
Est in qua nostri littera scripta memor:
Et quantum trunci, tantum mea nomina crescunt.
Crescite et in titulos surgite recta meos!
Popule, vive, precor, quae consita margine ripae
Hoc in rugoso cortice carmen habes:
’When Paris can draw breath with Oenone forsaken,
the water of Xanthus will turn and run back to its source.’
Xanthus, hasten backward, and you waters, turn and flow back!
Paris has the heart to have deserted Oenone.
That day spoke my doom to wretched me; from it
began the worst winter of a changed love,
the day when Venus and Juno, and Minerva, comelier
with her arms taken up, came naked to your judgment.
My stunned breast throbbed, and a cold tremor ran,
as you told me of it, through my hard bones.
the water of Xanthus will turn and run back to its source.’
Xanthus, hasten backward, and you waters, turn and flow back!
Paris has the heart to have deserted Oenone.
That day spoke my doom to wretched me; from it
began the worst winter of a changed love,
the day when Venus and Juno, and Minerva, comelier
with her arms taken up, came naked to your judgment.
My stunned breast throbbed, and a cold tremor ran,
as you told me of it, through my hard bones.
Cum Paris Oenone poterit spirare relicta,
Ad fontem Xanthi versa recurret aqua.
Xanthe, retro propera, versaeque recurrite lymphae!
Sustinet Oenonen deseruisse Paris.
Illa dies fatum miserae mihi dixit, ab illa
Pessima mutati coepit amoris hiemps,
Qua Venus et Iuno sumptisque decentior armis
Venit in arbitrium nuda Minerva tuum.
Attoniti micuere sinus, gelidusque cucurrit,
Ut mihi narrasti, dura per ossa tremor.
Ad fontem Xanthi versa recurret aqua.
Xanthe, retro propera, versaeque recurrite lymphae!
Sustinet Oenonen deseruisse Paris.
Illa dies fatum miserae mihi dixit, ab illa
Pessima mutati coepit amoris hiemps,
Qua Venus et Iuno sumptisque decentior armis
Venit in arbitrium nuda Minerva tuum.
Attoniti micuere sinus, gelidusque cucurrit,
Ut mihi narrasti, dura per ossa tremor.
I consulted — for I was no little frightened — old women
and aged men. It was agreed to be accursed.
The fir was felled, the beams cut, and, the fleet made ready,
the blue wave received the waxed ships.
You wept as you left — at least do not deny this!
We mingled our tears, each of us in grief;
the elm is not so bound by the vines set against it
as your arms were twined about my neck.
Ah! how often, when you complained that the wind held you,
your comrades laughed — that wind was fair!
and aged men. It was agreed to be accursed.
The fir was felled, the beams cut, and, the fleet made ready,
the blue wave received the waxed ships.
You wept as you left — at least do not deny this!
We mingled our tears, each of us in grief;
the elm is not so bound by the vines set against it
as your arms were twined about my neck.
Ah! how often, when you complained that the wind held you,
your comrades laughed — that wind was fair!
Consului — neque enim modice terrebar — anusque
Longaevosque senes. constitit esse nefas.
Caesa abies, sectaeque trabes, et classe parata
Caerula ceratas accipit unda rates.
Flesti discedens — hoc saltim parce negare!
Miscuimus lacrimas maestus uterque suas;
Non sic adpositis vincitur vitibus ulmus,
Ut tua sunt collo bracchia nexa meo.
A! quotiens, cum te vento quererere teneri,
Riserunt comites — ille secundus erat!
Longaevosque senes. constitit esse nefas.
Caesa abies, sectaeque trabes, et classe parata
Caerula ceratas accipit unda rates.
Flesti discedens — hoc saltim parce negare!
Miscuimus lacrimas maestus uterque suas;
Non sic adpositis vincitur vitibus ulmus,
Ut tua sunt collo bracchia nexa meo.
A! quotiens, cum te vento quererere teneri,
Riserunt comites — ille secundus erat!
How often, sent off, you came back for kisses again!
How hardly your tongue bore to say ’farewell’!
A light breeze lifts the sails hanging from the stiff mast,
and the water, churned by the oars, grows white.
Unhappy, I follow the departing sails with my eyes,
as far as I may, and the sand is wet with my tears,
and I pray the sea-green Nereids that you may come swiftly —
yes, that you may come swiftly to my ruin!
So by my prayers you returned, only to return to another?
Ah me, for a cursed rival I was the one who coaxed!
How hardly your tongue bore to say ’farewell’!
A light breeze lifts the sails hanging from the stiff mast,
and the water, churned by the oars, grows white.
Unhappy, I follow the departing sails with my eyes,
as far as I may, and the sand is wet with my tears,
and I pray the sea-green Nereids that you may come swiftly —
yes, that you may come swiftly to my ruin!
So by my prayers you returned, only to return to another?
Ah me, for a cursed rival I was the one who coaxed!
Oscula dimissae quotiens repetita dedisti!
Quam vix sustinuit dicere lingua ’vale’!
Aura levis rigido pendentia lintea malo
Suscitat, et remis eruta canet aqua.
Prosequor infelix oculis abeuntia vela,
Qua licet, et lacrimis umet harena meis,
Utque celer venias, virides Nereidas oro —
Scilicet ut venias in mea damna celer!
Votis ergo meis alii rediture redisti?
Ei mihi, pro dira paelice blanda fui!
Quam vix sustinuit dicere lingua ’vale’!
Aura levis rigido pendentia lintea malo
Suscitat, et remis eruta canet aqua.
Prosequor infelix oculis abeuntia vela,
Qua licet, et lacrimis umet harena meis,
Utque celer venias, virides Nereidas oro —
Scilicet ut venias in mea damna celer!
Votis ergo meis alii rediture redisti?
Ei mihi, pro dira paelice blanda fui!
A natural mass looks out upon the immense deep —
it was a mountain; it withstands the waters of the sea.
From here I first knew the sails of your keel,
and I had an urge to go to you through the waves.
While I delayed, purple gleamed for me on the prow’s top —
I grew afraid; that finery was not your wont.
The ship comes nearer and, with quickening breeze, touched the land;
with trembling heart I saw a woman’s cheeks.
That had not been enough — why, frantic, did I linger? —
a shameless mistress was clinging to your bosom!
it was a mountain; it withstands the waters of the sea.
From here I first knew the sails of your keel,
and I had an urge to go to you through the waves.
While I delayed, purple gleamed for me on the prow’s top —
I grew afraid; that finery was not your wont.
The ship comes nearer and, with quickening breeze, touched the land;
with trembling heart I saw a woman’s cheeks.
That had not been enough — why, frantic, did I linger? —
a shameless mistress was clinging to your bosom!
Adspicit inmensum moles nativa profundum —
Mons fuit; aequoreis illa resistit aquis.
Hinc ego vela tuae cognovi prima carinae,
Et mihi per fluctus impetus ire fuit.
Dum moror, in summa fulsit mihi purpura prora —
Pertimui; cultus non erat ille tuus.
Fit propior terrasque cita ratis attigit aura;
Femineas vidi corde tremente genas.
Non satis id fuerat — quid enim furiosa morabar? —
Haerebat gremio turpis amica tuo!
Mons fuit; aequoreis illa resistit aquis.
Hinc ego vela tuae cognovi prima carinae,
Et mihi per fluctus impetus ire fuit.
Dum moror, in summa fulsit mihi purpura prora —
Pertimui; cultus non erat ille tuus.
Fit propior terrasque cita ratis attigit aura;
Femineas vidi corde tremente genas.
Non satis id fuerat — quid enim furiosa morabar? —
Haerebat gremio turpis amica tuo!
Then indeed I tore my dress and beat my breast,
and gashed my wet cheeks with stiffened nail,
and I filled holy Ida with plaintive wailings,
and carried these tears there, to my own rocks.
So may Helen grieve, and weep, forsaken by her husband,
and bear herself what she first brought upon me!
Now those suit you who would follow you over the open
seas and forsake their lawful husbands;
but when you were poor and drove the herds as a shepherd,
no one but Oenone was the poor man’s wife.
and gashed my wet cheeks with stiffened nail,
and I filled holy Ida with plaintive wailings,
and carried these tears there, to my own rocks.
So may Helen grieve, and weep, forsaken by her husband,
and bear herself what she first brought upon me!
Now those suit you who would follow you over the open
seas and forsake their lawful husbands;
but when you were poor and drove the herds as a shepherd,
no one but Oenone was the poor man’s wife.
Tunc vero rupique sinus et pectora planxi,
Et secui madidas ungue rigente genas,
Inplevique sacram querulis ululatibus Iden
Illuc has lacrimas in mea saxa tuli.
Sic Helene doleat defectaque coniuge ploret,
Quaeque prior nobis intulit, ipsa ferat!
Nunc tibi conveniunt, quae te per aperta sequantur
Aequora legitimos destituantque viros;
At cum pauper eras armentaque pastor agebas,
Nulla nisi Oenone pauperis uxor erat.
Et secui madidas ungue rigente genas,
Inplevique sacram querulis ululatibus Iden
Illuc has lacrimas in mea saxa tuli.
Sic Helene doleat defectaque coniuge ploret,
Quaeque prior nobis intulit, ipsa ferat!
Nunc tibi conveniunt, quae te per aperta sequantur
Aequora legitimos destituantque viros;
At cum pauper eras armentaque pastor agebas,
Nulla nisi Oenone pauperis uxor erat.
I do not wonder at riches, nor does your palace move me,
nor that I should be called one of Priam’s many daughters-in-law —
yet not that Priam would refuse to be a nymph’s father-in-law,
or that I should be a daughter-in-law for Hecuba to hide;
and I am worthy to become the matron of a powerful realm;
I have hands that a scepter might well become.
And do not scorn me because I once lay with you on beech-leaves;
I am better fitted for a purple couch.
In short, my love is safe; there no wars are prepared,
nor does the wave bring avenging ships.
nor that I should be called one of Priam’s many daughters-in-law —
yet not that Priam would refuse to be a nymph’s father-in-law,
or that I should be a daughter-in-law for Hecuba to hide;
and I am worthy to become the matron of a powerful realm;
I have hands that a scepter might well become.
And do not scorn me because I once lay with you on beech-leaves;
I am better fitted for a purple couch.
In short, my love is safe; there no wars are prepared,
nor does the wave bring avenging ships.
Non ego miror opes, nec me tua regia tangit
Nec de tot Priami dicar ut una nurus —
Non tamen ut Priamus nymphae socer esse recuset,
Aut Hecubae fuerim dissimulanda nurus;
Dignaque sum fieri rerum matrona potentis;
Sunt mihi, quas possint sceptra decere, manus.
Nec me, faginea quod tecum fronde iacebam,
Despice; purpureo sum magis apta toro.
Denique tutus amor meus est; ibi nulla parantur
Bella, nec ultrices advehit unda rates.
Nec de tot Priami dicar ut una nurus —
Non tamen ut Priamus nymphae socer esse recuset,
Aut Hecubae fuerim dissimulanda nurus;
Dignaque sum fieri rerum matrona potentis;
Sunt mihi, quas possint sceptra decere, manus.
Nec me, faginea quod tecum fronde iacebam,
Despice; purpureo sum magis apta toro.
Denique tutus amor meus est; ibi nulla parantur
Bella, nec ultrices advehit unda rates.
The runaway daughter of Tyndareus is demanded back with hostile arms;
with this dowry she comes, haughty, to your chamber.
Whether she must be given back to the Danaans, ask your brother Hector,
or Polydamas along with Deiphobus;
what grave Antenor advises, what Priam himself advises,
consult them, to whom long age has been a teacher!
A shameful first lesson, to set a stolen woman above your country.
Your cause is one to blush for; her husband takes up just arms.
Nor, if you are wise, promise yourself a faithful Spartan,
one who turned so quickly into your embraces.
with this dowry she comes, haughty, to your chamber.
Whether she must be given back to the Danaans, ask your brother Hector,
or Polydamas along with Deiphobus;
what grave Antenor advises, what Priam himself advises,
consult them, to whom long age has been a teacher!
A shameful first lesson, to set a stolen woman above your country.
Your cause is one to blush for; her husband takes up just arms.
Nor, if you are wise, promise yourself a faithful Spartan,
one who turned so quickly into your embraces.
Tyndaris infestis fugitiva reposcitur armis;
Hac venit in thalamos dote superba tuos.
Quae si sit Danais reddenda, vel Hectora fratrem,
Vel cum Deiphobo Polydamanta roga;
Quid gravis Antenor, Priamus quid suadeat ipse,
Consule, quis aetas longa magistra fuit!
Turpe rudimentum, patriae praeponere raptam.
Causa pudenda tua est; iusta vir arma movet.
Nec tibi, si sapias, fidam promitte Lacaenam,
Quae sit in amplexus tam cito versa tuos.
Hac venit in thalamos dote superba tuos.
Quae si sit Danais reddenda, vel Hectora fratrem,
Vel cum Deiphobo Polydamanta roga;
Quid gravis Antenor, Priamus quid suadeat ipse,
Consule, quis aetas longa magistra fuit!
Turpe rudimentum, patriae praeponere raptam.
Causa pudenda tua est; iusta vir arma movet.
Nec tibi, si sapias, fidam promitte Lacaenam,
Quae sit in amplexus tam cito versa tuos.
As the younger son of Atreus cries out at the broken pact of his bed,
and grieves, wounded by a foreigner’s love,
so you too will cry out. Chastity, once wounded,
is reparable by no art; it perishes once for all.
Does she burn with love of you? So she loved Menelaus too.
Now that trusting man lies in a widowed bed.
Happy Andromache, well wedded to a steadfast husband!
I should have been kept as a wife on your brother’s model;
you are lighter than leaves, when, drained of the weight of sap,
dried out, they fly on the shifting winds;
and grieves, wounded by a foreigner’s love,
so you too will cry out. Chastity, once wounded,
is reparable by no art; it perishes once for all.
Does she burn with love of you? So she loved Menelaus too.
Now that trusting man lies in a widowed bed.
Happy Andromache, well wedded to a steadfast husband!
I should have been kept as a wife on your brother’s model;
you are lighter than leaves, when, drained of the weight of sap,
dried out, they fly on the shifting winds;
Ut minor Atrides temerati foedera lecti
Clamat et externo laesus amore dolet,
Tu quoque clamabis. nulla reparabilis arte
Laesa pudicitia est; deperit illa semel.
Ardet amore tui? sic et Menelaon amavit.
Nunc iacet in viduo credulus ille toro.
Felix Andromache, certo bene nupta marito!
Uxor ad exemplum fratris habenda fui;
Tu levior foliis, tum cum sine pondere suci
Mobilibus ventis arida facta volant;
Clamat et externo laesus amore dolet,
Tu quoque clamabis. nulla reparabilis arte
Laesa pudicitia est; deperit illa semel.
Ardet amore tui? sic et Menelaon amavit.
Nunc iacet in viduo credulus ille toro.
Felix Andromache, certo bene nupta marito!
Uxor ad exemplum fratris habenda fui;
Tu levior foliis, tum cum sine pondere suci
Mobilibus ventis arida facta volant;
and there is less weight in you than in the top of an ear of corn,
which, light, stiffens, scorched by ceaseless suns.
This your sister once sang — for I recall it —
prophesying to me thus, with her hair flung loose:
’What do you do, Oenone? why entrust your seed to the sand?
You plow the shores with oxen that will avail nothing.
A Greek heifer is coming, who will destroy you and your country
and your home! ho, forbid it! A Greek heifer is coming!
While you may, sink the foul ship in the sea!
Alas! how much Phrygian blood she carries!’
which, light, stiffens, scorched by ceaseless suns.
This your sister once sang — for I recall it —
prophesying to me thus, with her hair flung loose:
’What do you do, Oenone? why entrust your seed to the sand?
You plow the shores with oxen that will avail nothing.
A Greek heifer is coming, who will destroy you and your country
and your home! ho, forbid it! A Greek heifer is coming!
While you may, sink the foul ship in the sea!
Alas! how much Phrygian blood she carries!’
Et minus est in te quam summa pondus arista,
Quae levis adsiduis solibus usta riget.
Hoc tua — nam recolo — quondam germana canebat,
Sic mihi diffusis vaticinata comis:
’Quid facis, Oenone? quid harenae semina mandas?
Non profecturis litora bubus aras.
Graia iuvenca venit, quae te patriamque domumque
Perdat! io prohibe! Graia iuvenca venit!
Dum licet, obscenam ponto demergite puppim!
Heu! quantum Phrygii sanguinis illa vehit!’
Quae levis adsiduis solibus usta riget.
Hoc tua — nam recolo — quondam germana canebat,
Sic mihi diffusis vaticinata comis:
’Quid facis, Oenone? quid harenae semina mandas?
Non profecturis litora bubus aras.
Graia iuvenca venit, quae te patriamque domumque
Perdat! io prohibe! Graia iuvenca venit!
Dum licet, obscenam ponto demergite puppim!
Heu! quantum Phrygii sanguinis illa vehit!’
The voice was in mid-course: the handmaids seized the raving girl;
but for me my golden hair stood stiff.
Ah, all too true a prophet you were to wretched me —
behold, that heifer holds my glades!
However notable her face, an adulteress she surely is;
captured by a guest, she deserted her household gods.
Some Theseus — unless I mistake the name —
some Theseus or other carried her off from her own land before.
By a young and lustful man, is she to be believed returned a virgin?
Where I learned this so well, you ask? I love.
but for me my golden hair stood stiff.
Ah, all too true a prophet you were to wretched me —
behold, that heifer holds my glades!
However notable her face, an adulteress she surely is;
captured by a guest, she deserted her household gods.
Some Theseus — unless I mistake the name —
some Theseus or other carried her off from her own land before.
By a young and lustful man, is she to be believed returned a virgin?
Where I learned this so well, you ask? I love.
Vox erat in cursu: famulae rapuere furentem;
At mihi flaventes diriguere comae.
A, nimium miserae vates mihi vera fuisti —
Possidet, en, saltus illa iuvenca meos!
Sit facie quamvis insignis, adultera certe est;
Deseruit socios hospite capta deos.
Illam de patria Theseus — nisi nomine fallor —
Nescio quis Theseus abstulit ante sua.
A iuvene et cupido credatur reddita virgo?
Unde hoc conpererim tam bene, quaeris? amo.
At mihi flaventes diriguere comae.
A, nimium miserae vates mihi vera fuisti —
Possidet, en, saltus illa iuvenca meos!
Sit facie quamvis insignis, adultera certe est;
Deseruit socios hospite capta deos.
Illam de patria Theseus — nisi nomine fallor —
Nescio quis Theseus abstulit ante sua.
A iuvene et cupido credatur reddita virgo?
Unde hoc conpererim tam bene, quaeris? amo.
You may call it force, and veil the fault with a name;
she who has been ravished so often offered herself to the ravishing.
But Oenone stays chaste to a deceiving husband —
and you yourself might have been deceived by your own laws!
Me the swift Satyrs — I lay hidden, sheltered in the woods —
sought, a wanton crew, with racing foot,
and Faunus, his horned head girt with sharp pine,
on the vast ridges where Ida swells.
Me the builder of Troy, famed for his lyre, loved,
and gave my hands access to his gifts.
she who has been ravished so often offered herself to the ravishing.
But Oenone stays chaste to a deceiving husband —
and you yourself might have been deceived by your own laws!
Me the swift Satyrs — I lay hidden, sheltered in the woods —
sought, a wanton crew, with racing foot,
and Faunus, his horned head girt with sharp pine,
on the vast ridges where Ida swells.
Me the builder of Troy, famed for his lyre, loved,
and gave my hands access to his gifts.
Vim licet appelles et culpam nomine veles;
Quae totiens rapta est, praebuit ipsa rapi.
At manet Oenone fallenti casta marito —
Et poteras falli legibus ipse tuis!
Me Satyri celeres — silvis ego tecta latebam —
Quaesierunt rapido, turba proterva, pede
Cornigerumque caput pinu praecinctus acuta
Faunus in inmensis, qua tumet Ida, iugis.
Me fide conspicuus Troiae munitor amavit,
Admisitque meas ad sua dona manus.
Quae totiens rapta est, praebuit ipsa rapi.
At manet Oenone fallenti casta marito —
Et poteras falli legibus ipse tuis!
Me Satyri celeres — silvis ego tecta latebam —
Quaesierunt rapido, turba proterva, pede
Cornigerumque caput pinu praecinctus acuta
Faunus in inmensis, qua tumet Ida, iugis.
Me fide conspicuus Troiae munitor amavit,
Admisitque meas ad sua dona manus.
Whatever herb is potent for aid, and whatever root useful
for healing grows in all the world, is mine.
Wretched me, that love cannot be cured by herbs!
Skilled, I am failed by my own art’s art.
The help that neither the earth, fertile in breeding grasses,
nor a god can give me, you can bring me.
And you can, and I have deserved it — pity a girl who is worthy!
I do not bear bloody arms with the Danaans —
but I am yours, and was yours in your boyhood years,
and yours, for what time remains, I pray to be!
for healing grows in all the world, is mine.
Wretched me, that love cannot be cured by herbs!
Skilled, I am failed by my own art’s art.
The help that neither the earth, fertile in breeding grasses,
nor a god can give me, you can bring me.
And you can, and I have deserved it — pity a girl who is worthy!
I do not bear bloody arms with the Danaans —
but I am yours, and was yours in your boyhood years,
and yours, for what time remains, I pray to be!
Quaecumque herba potens ad opem radixque medenti
Utilis in toto nascitur orbe, mea est.
Me miseram, quod amor non est medicabilis herbis!
Deficior prudens artis ab arte mea.
Quod nec graminibus tellus fecunda creandis
Nec deus, auxilium tu mihi ferre potes.
Et potes, et merui — dignae miserere puellae!
Non ego cum Danais arma cruenta fero —
Sed tua sum tecumque fui puerilibus annis
Et tua, quod superest temporis, esse precor!
Utilis in toto nascitur orbe, mea est.
Me miseram, quod amor non est medicabilis herbis!
Deficior prudens artis ab arte mea.
Quod nec graminibus tellus fecunda creandis
Nec deus, auxilium tu mihi ferre potes.
Et potes, et merui — dignae miserere puellae!
Non ego cum Danais arma cruenta fero —
Sed tua sum tecumque fui puerilibus annis
Et tua, quod superest temporis, esse precor!
Book 6
Hypsipyle of Lemnos, of Bacchus’ stock, speaks to the son of Aeson —
and how small a part of her mind was in the words!
You are said to have touched the shores of Thessaly with returning keel,
rich with the fleece of the golden ram.
I rejoice in your safety, as far as you let me; yet this very thing
I ought to have been made surer of by your own writing.
For that you did not return past my realm, as agreed,
though you wished it, you cannot lay to a lack of winds;
a letter is sealed under any wind, however contrary.
I, Hypsipyle, deserved a greeting sent.
and how small a part of her mind was in the words!
You are said to have touched the shores of Thessaly with returning keel,
rich with the fleece of the golden ram.
I rejoice in your safety, as far as you let me; yet this very thing
I ought to have been made surer of by your own writing.
For that you did not return past my realm, as agreed,
though you wished it, you cannot lay to a lack of winds;
a letter is sealed under any wind, however contrary.
I, Hypsipyle, deserved a greeting sent.
Lemnias Hypsipyle, Bacchi genus, Aesone nato
Dicit, et in verbis pars quta mentis erat:
Litora Thessaliae reduci tetigisse carina
Diceris auratae vellere dives ovis.
Gratulor incolumi, quantum sinis; hoc tamen ipsum
Debueram scripto certior esse tuo.
Nam ne pacta tibi praeter mea regna redires,
Cum cuperes, ventos non habuisse potes;
Quamlibet adverso signatur epistula vento.
Hypsipyle missa digna salute fui.
Dicit, et in verbis pars quta mentis erat:
Litora Thessaliae reduci tetigisse carina
Diceris auratae vellere dives ovis.
Gratulor incolumi, quantum sinis; hoc tamen ipsum
Debueram scripto certior esse tuo.
Nam ne pacta tibi praeter mea regna redires,
Cum cuperes, ventos non habuisse potes;
Quamlibet adverso signatur epistula vento.
Hypsipyle missa digna salute fui.
Why did rumor come to me of you sooner than a letter:
that the oxen sacred to Mars went beneath the curving yokes,
that, the seed once cast, crops of men grew up,
and had no need of your right hand for their slaughter,
that an ever-wakeful dragon guarded the spoil of the beast,
yet the tawny fleece was snatched away by your brave hand?
O, if I could say to those who doubtingly believe these things,
’He wrote it to me himself,’ how great I would be!
Why do I complain that a slow husband’s duty has lapsed?
If I remain yours, I have received a great favor!
that the oxen sacred to Mars went beneath the curving yokes,
that, the seed once cast, crops of men grew up,
and had no need of your right hand for their slaughter,
that an ever-wakeful dragon guarded the spoil of the beast,
yet the tawny fleece was snatched away by your brave hand?
O, if I could say to those who doubtingly believe these things,
’He wrote it to me himself,’ how great I would be!
Why do I complain that a slow husband’s duty has lapsed?
If I remain yours, I have received a great favor!
Cur mihi fama prior de te quam littera venit:
Isse sacros Marti sub iuga panda boves,
Seminibus iactis segetes adolesse virorum
Inque necem dextra non eguisse tua,
Pervigilem spolium pecudis servasse draconem,
Rapta tamen forti vellera fulva manu?
O ego, si possem timide credentibus ista
’Ipse mihi scripsit’ dicere, quanta forem!
Quid queror officium lenti cessasse mariti?
Obsequium, maneo si tua, grande tuli!
Isse sacros Marti sub iuga panda boves,
Seminibus iactis segetes adolesse virorum
Inque necem dextra non eguisse tua,
Pervigilem spolium pecudis servasse draconem,
Rapta tamen forti vellera fulva manu?
O ego, si possem timide credentibus ista
’Ipse mihi scripsit’ dicere, quanta forem!
Quid queror officium lenti cessasse mariti?
Obsequium, maneo si tua, grande tuli!
A barbarian sorceress is said to have come with you,
taken into the share of the marriage-bed promised to me.
Love is a credulous thing; would that I might be called rash
for charging my husband with false accusations!
Lately a Thessalian guest came to me from the Haemonian shores,
and, scarcely had he well crossed my threshold,
’My son of Aeson,’ I said, ’how does he fare?’ He, in shame,
stuck fast, his eyes fixed on the ground before him.
At once I leapt up, and, my tunic torn from my breast,
’Does he live? or,’ I cry, ’do the fates call me too?’
taken into the share of the marriage-bed promised to me.
Love is a credulous thing; would that I might be called rash
for charging my husband with false accusations!
Lately a Thessalian guest came to me from the Haemonian shores,
and, scarcely had he well crossed my threshold,
’My son of Aeson,’ I said, ’how does he fare?’ He, in shame,
stuck fast, his eyes fixed on the ground before him.
At once I leapt up, and, my tunic torn from my breast,
’Does he live? or,’ I cry, ’do the fates call me too?’
Barbara narratur venisse venefica tecum,
In mihi promissi parte recepta tori.
Credula res amor est; utinam temeraria dicar
Criminibus falsis insimulasse virum!
Nuper ab Haemoniis hospes mihi Thessalus oris
Venit et, ut tactum vix bene limen erat,
’Aesonides,’ dixi, ’quid agit meus?’ ille pudore
Haesit in opposita lumina fixus humo.
Protinus exilui tunicisque a pectore ruptis
’Vivit? an,’ exclamo, ’me quoque fata vocant?’
In mihi promissi parte recepta tori.
Credula res amor est; utinam temeraria dicar
Criminibus falsis insimulasse virum!
Nuper ab Haemoniis hospes mihi Thessalus oris
Venit et, ut tactum vix bene limen erat,
’Aesonides,’ dixi, ’quid agit meus?’ ille pudore
Haesit in opposita lumina fixus humo.
Protinus exilui tunicisque a pectore ruptis
’Vivit? an,’ exclamo, ’me quoque fata vocant?’
’He lives,’ he says. Because love is timid, I made him swear.
Scarcely, with a god as witness, was your life believed by me.
And when my spirit came back, I began to ask after your deeds.
He tells how the bronze-footed oxen of Mars were plowed with,
how serpent’s teeth were cast into the ground for seed,
and how men suddenly born bore arms —
how the earth-born peoples, destroyed in a civil war,
filled out the day-long span of their lives.
The serpent was vanquished. Again I ask whether Jason lives;
hope and fear take turns by turns.
Scarcely, with a god as witness, was your life believed by me.
And when my spirit came back, I began to ask after your deeds.
He tells how the bronze-footed oxen of Mars were plowed with,
how serpent’s teeth were cast into the ground for seed,
and how men suddenly born bore arms —
how the earth-born peoples, destroyed in a civil war,
filled out the day-long span of their lives.
The serpent was vanquished. Again I ask whether Jason lives;
hope and fear take turns by turns.
’Vivit,’ ait. timidum quod amat; iurare coegi.
Vix mihi teste deo credita vita tua est.
Utque animus rediit, tua facta requirere coepi.
Narrat aenipedes Martis arasse boves,
Vipereos dentes in humum pro semine iactos,
Et subito natos arma tulisse viros —
Terrigenas populos civili Marte peremptos
Inplesse aetatis fata diurna suae.
Devictus serpens. iterum, si vivat Iason,
Quaerimus; alternant spesque timorque vicem.
Vix mihi teste deo credita vita tua est.
Utque animus rediit, tua facta requirere coepi.
Narrat aenipedes Martis arasse boves,
Vipereos dentes in humum pro semine iactos,
Et subito natos arma tulisse viros —
Terrigenas populos civili Marte peremptos
Inplesse aetatis fata diurna suae.
Devictus serpens. iterum, si vivat Iason,
Quaerimus; alternant spesque timorque vicem.
While he tells each thing, by his zeal and the rush of his speaking
he lays bare, by his own cleverness, my wounds.
Alas! where is the pledged faith? where the rights of marriage,
and the torch fitter to go beneath a funeral pyre?
I was not known to you in stealth; Juno the bride’s-matron
was there, and Hymen, his temples bound with garlands.
But for me neither Juno nor Hymen, but the grim Fury,
bloodstained, carried the ill-omened torches before me.
What had I to do with the Minyae, what with the Dodonian pine?
What had you, steersman Tiphys, to do with my country?
he lays bare, by his own cleverness, my wounds.
Alas! where is the pledged faith? where the rights of marriage,
and the torch fitter to go beneath a funeral pyre?
I was not known to you in stealth; Juno the bride’s-matron
was there, and Hymen, his temples bound with garlands.
But for me neither Juno nor Hymen, but the grim Fury,
bloodstained, carried the ill-omened torches before me.
What had I to do with the Minyae, what with the Dodonian pine?
What had you, steersman Tiphys, to do with my country?
Singula dum narrat, studio cursuque loquendi
Detegit ingenio vulnera nostra suo.
Heu! ubi pacta fides? ubi conubialia iura
Faxque sub arsuros dignior ire rogos?
Non ego sum furto tibi cognita; pronuba Iuno
Adfuit et sertis tempora vinctus Hymen.
At mihi nec Iuno, nec Hymen, sed tristis Erinys
Praetulit infaustas sanguinolenta faces.
Quid mihi cum Minyis, quid cum Dodonide pinu?
Quid tibi cum patria, navita Tiphy, mea?
Detegit ingenio vulnera nostra suo.
Heu! ubi pacta fides? ubi conubialia iura
Faxque sub arsuros dignior ire rogos?
Non ego sum furto tibi cognita; pronuba Iuno
Adfuit et sertis tempora vinctus Hymen.
At mihi nec Iuno, nec Hymen, sed tristis Erinys
Praetulit infaustas sanguinolenta faces.
Quid mihi cum Minyis, quid cum Dodonide pinu?
Quid tibi cum patria, navita Tiphy, mea?
Here there was no ram notable for its golden wool,
nor was Lemnos the palace of old Aeetes.
At first I was resolved (but evil fates were dragging me)
to drive off the guest-host with a woman’s hand;
and the women of Lemnos know how to conquer men — too well.
By soldiery so brave my land should have been defended!
I helped the man with my city, took him into roof and heart!
Here for you twice summer and twice winter ran their course.
It was the third harvest, when you, forced to set sail,
filled out such words as these with your own tears:
nor was Lemnos the palace of old Aeetes.
At first I was resolved (but evil fates were dragging me)
to drive off the guest-host with a woman’s hand;
and the women of Lemnos know how to conquer men — too well.
By soldiery so brave my land should have been defended!
I helped the man with my city, took him into roof and heart!
Here for you twice summer and twice winter ran their course.
It was the third harvest, when you, forced to set sail,
filled out such words as these with your own tears:
Non erat hic aries villo spectabilis aureo,
Nec senis Aeetae regia Lemnos erat.
Certa fui primo (sed me mala fata trahebant)
Hospita feminea pellere castra manu;
Lemniadesque viros, nimium quoque, vincere norunt.
Milite tam forti terra tuenda fuit!
Urbe virum iuvi, tectoque animoque recepi!
Hic tibi bisque aestas bisque cucurrit hiemps.
Tertia messis erat, cum tu dare vela coactus
Inplesti lacrimis talia verba suis:
Nec senis Aeetae regia Lemnos erat.
Certa fui primo (sed me mala fata trahebant)
Hospita feminea pellere castra manu;
Lemniadesque viros, nimium quoque, vincere norunt.
Milite tam forti terra tuenda fuit!
Urbe virum iuvi, tectoque animoque recepi!
Hic tibi bisque aestas bisque cucurrit hiemps.
Tertia messis erat, cum tu dare vela coactus
Inplesti lacrimis talia verba suis:
’I am torn away, Hypsipyle; but let the fates only grant return —
I go from here your husband, your husband I will always be.
Yet what of us is hidden in your pregnant womb,
may it live, and may we both be parents of the same!’
So far, and with tears falling on your false face
I remember that you could not say the rest.
Last of your companions you board the sacred Argo.
She flies; the wind holds the hollow sails;
the blue wave is drawn from beneath the driven keel;
land is what you look on, the waters are what I see.
I go from here your husband, your husband I will always be.
Yet what of us is hidden in your pregnant womb,
may it live, and may we both be parents of the same!’
So far, and with tears falling on your false face
I remember that you could not say the rest.
Last of your companions you board the sacred Argo.
She flies; the wind holds the hollow sails;
the blue wave is drawn from beneath the driven keel;
land is what you look on, the waters are what I see.
’Abstrahor, Hypsipyle; sed dent modo fata recursus,
Vir tuus hinc abeo, vir tibi semper ero.
Quod tamen e nobis gravida celatur in alvo,
Vivat, et eiusdem simus uterque parens!’
Hactenus, et lacrimis in falsa cadentibus ora
Cetera te memini non potuisse loqui.
Ultimus e sociis sacram conscendis in Argo.
Illa volat; ventus concava vela tenet;
Caerula propulsae subducitur unda carinae;
Terra tibi, nobis adspiciuntur aquae.
Vir tuus hinc abeo, vir tibi semper ero.
Quod tamen e nobis gravida celatur in alvo,
Vivat, et eiusdem simus uterque parens!’
Hactenus, et lacrimis in falsa cadentibus ora
Cetera te memini non potuisse loqui.
Ultimus e sociis sacram conscendis in Argo.
Illa volat; ventus concava vela tenet;
Caerula propulsae subducitur unda carinae;
Terra tibi, nobis adspiciuntur aquae.
A tower, open on every side, looks round upon the waves;
there I am carried, and my face and breast are wet with tears.
Through my tears I gaze, and my eyes, favoring my longing mind,
see farther than they are wont.
Add chaste prayers, and vows mixed with fear —
now too, with you safe, to be paid by me.
Shall I pay the vows? Medea will enjoy my vows!
My heart aches, and love, mixed with anger, overflows.
Shall I bring gifts to the temples, because I lose Jason living?
Shall a victim fall, struck down, for my losses?
there I am carried, and my face and breast are wet with tears.
Through my tears I gaze, and my eyes, favoring my longing mind,
see farther than they are wont.
Add chaste prayers, and vows mixed with fear —
now too, with you safe, to be paid by me.
Shall I pay the vows? Medea will enjoy my vows!
My heart aches, and love, mixed with anger, overflows.
Shall I bring gifts to the temples, because I lose Jason living?
Shall a victim fall, struck down, for my losses?
In latus omne patens turris circumspicit undas;
Huc feror, et lacrimis osque sinusque madent.
Per lacrimas specto, cupidaeque faventia menti
Longius adsueto lumina nostra vident.
Adde preces castas inmixtaque vota timori —
Nunc quoque te salvo persoluenda mihi.
Vota ego persolvam? votis Medea fruetur!
Cor dolet, atque ira mixtus abundat amor.
Dona feram templis, vivum quod Iasona perdo?
Hostia pro damnis concidat icta meis?
Huc feror, et lacrimis osque sinusque madent.
Per lacrimas specto, cupidaeque faventia menti
Longius adsueto lumina nostra vident.
Adde preces castas inmixtaque vota timori —
Nunc quoque te salvo persoluenda mihi.
Vota ego persolvam? votis Medea fruetur!
Cor dolet, atque ira mixtus abundat amor.
Dona feram templis, vivum quod Iasona perdo?
Hostia pro damnis concidat icta meis?
I was indeed never free of care, and always feared
that your father would take a daughter-in-law from an Argive city.
I feared the Argive women — a barbarian rival harmed me!
I took my wound from an enemy I had not looked for.
Nor does she please by face and merits, but she knows spells,
and reaps dread herbs with an enchanted sickle.
She strives to draw the struggling moon down from her course,
and to hide the horses of the sun in darkness;
she curbs the waters and halts the slanting rivers;
she moves woods and living rocks from their place.
that your father would take a daughter-in-law from an Argive city.
I feared the Argive women — a barbarian rival harmed me!
I took my wound from an enemy I had not looked for.
Nor does she please by face and merits, but she knows spells,
and reaps dread herbs with an enchanted sickle.
She strives to draw the struggling moon down from her course,
and to hide the horses of the sun in darkness;
she curbs the waters and halts the slanting rivers;
she moves woods and living rocks from their place.
Non equidem secura fui semperque verebar,
Ne pater Argolica sumeret urbe nurum.
Argolidas timui — nocuit mihi barbara paelex!
Non expectata vulnus ab hoste tuli.
Nec facie meritisque placet, sed carmina novit
Diraque cantata pabula falce metit.
Illa reluctantem cursu deducere lunam
Nititur et tenebris abdere solis equos;
Illa refrenat aquas obliquaque flumina sistit;
Illa loco silvas vivaque saxa movet.
Ne pater Argolica sumeret urbe nurum.
Argolidas timui — nocuit mihi barbara paelex!
Non expectata vulnus ab hoste tuli.
Nec facie meritisque placet, sed carmina novit
Diraque cantata pabula falce metit.
Illa reluctantem cursu deducere lunam
Nititur et tenebris abdere solis equos;
Illa refrenat aquas obliquaque flumina sistit;
Illa loco silvas vivaque saxa movet.
Through the tombs she wanders, ungirt, with hair flung loose,
and gathers chosen bones from the still-warm pyres.
She curses the absent and pierces waxen images,
and drives the slender needle into the wretched liver —
and things I would better not know. Ill is love sought by herbs,
which should be won by character and beauty.
Can you embrace this woman and, left alone in one chamber,
unafraid enjoy your sleep in the silent night?
No doubt, as she forced the bulls, so she forced you to bear the yoke,
and with the power by which she charms the fierce serpents she charms you too.
and gathers chosen bones from the still-warm pyres.
She curses the absent and pierces waxen images,
and drives the slender needle into the wretched liver —
and things I would better not know. Ill is love sought by herbs,
which should be won by character and beauty.
Can you embrace this woman and, left alone in one chamber,
unafraid enjoy your sleep in the silent night?
No doubt, as she forced the bulls, so she forced you to bear the yoke,
and with the power by which she charms the fierce serpents she charms you too.
Per tumulos errat passis discincta capillis
Certaque de tepidis colligit ossa rogis.
Devovet absentis simulacraque cerea figit,
Et miserum tenuis in iecur urget acus —
Et quae nescierim melius. male quaeritur herbis
Moribus et forma conciliandus amor.
Hanc potes amplecti thalamoque relictus in uno
Inpavidus somno nocte silente frui?
Scilicet ut tauros, ita te iuga ferre coegit
Quaque feros anguis, te quoque mulcet ope.
Certaque de tepidis colligit ossa rogis.
Devovet absentis simulacraque cerea figit,
Et miserum tenuis in iecur urget acus —
Et quae nescierim melius. male quaeritur herbis
Moribus et forma conciliandus amor.
Hanc potes amplecti thalamoque relictus in uno
Inpavidus somno nocte silente frui?
Scilicet ut tauros, ita te iuga ferre coegit
Quaque feros anguis, te quoque mulcet ope.
Add that she longs to have herself credited with the deeds
of the chiefs and yours, and the wife stands in the way of your glory’s title.
And some one of Pelias’ party charges the deeds to her poisons,
and finds people to believe him:
’Not the son of Aeson, but the Phasian, daughter of Aeetes,
tore away the golden hide of Phrixus’ ram.’
Your mother Alcimede does not approve — ask your mother —
nor your father, to whom a daughter-in-law comes from the icy pole.
Let her seek herself a husband from the Tanais and the wet marshes
of Scythia, and all the way from the bank of the Phasis!
of the chiefs and yours, and the wife stands in the way of your glory’s title.
And some one of Pelias’ party charges the deeds to her poisons,
and finds people to believe him:
’Not the son of Aeson, but the Phasian, daughter of Aeetes,
tore away the golden hide of Phrixus’ ram.’
Your mother Alcimede does not approve — ask your mother —
nor your father, to whom a daughter-in-law comes from the icy pole.
Let her seek herself a husband from the Tanais and the wet marshes
of Scythia, and all the way from the bank of the Phasis!
Adde, quod adscribi factis procerumque tuisque
Sese avet, et titulo coniugis uxor obest.
Atque aliquis Peliae de partibus acta venenis
Inputat et populum, qui sibi credat, habet:
’Non haec Aesonides, sed Phasias Aeetine
Aurea Phrixeae terga revellit ovis.’
Non probat Alcimede mater tua — consule matrem —
Non pater, a gelido cui venit axe nurus.
Illa sibi a Tanai Scythiaeque paludibus udae
Quaerat et a ripa Phasidos usque virum!
Sese avet, et titulo coniugis uxor obest.
Atque aliquis Peliae de partibus acta venenis
Inputat et populum, qui sibi credat, habet:
’Non haec Aesonides, sed Phasias Aeetine
Aurea Phrixeae terga revellit ovis.’
Non probat Alcimede mater tua — consule matrem —
Non pater, a gelido cui venit axe nurus.
Illa sibi a Tanai Scythiaeque paludibus udae
Quaerat et a ripa Phasidos usque virum!
Fickle son of Aeson, more uncertain than a spring breeze,
why do your words want the weight of a promise?
My husband, you had gone from here: why did you not return mine from there?
Let me be the wife of the one come back, as I was of the one who departed!
If nobility and high-born names touch you —
lo, I am said to be born of Minoan Thoas!
Bacchus is my grandsire; the wife of Bacchus, wreathed with a crown,
outshines the lesser constellations with her own stars.
Lemnos will be your dowry, a land kindly to the tiller;
me too you can have among your dowry-goods.
why do your words want the weight of a promise?
My husband, you had gone from here: why did you not return mine from there?
Let me be the wife of the one come back, as I was of the one who departed!
If nobility and high-born names touch you —
lo, I am said to be born of Minoan Thoas!
Bacchus is my grandsire; the wife of Bacchus, wreathed with a crown,
outshines the lesser constellations with her own stars.
Lemnos will be your dowry, a land kindly to the tiller;
me too you can have among your dowry-goods.
Mobilis Aesonide vernaque incertior aura,
Cur tua polliciti pondere verba carent?
Vir meus hinc ieras: cur non meus inde redisti?
Sim reducis coniunx, sicut euntis eram!
Si te nobilitas generosaque nomina tangunt —
En, ego Minoo nata Thoante feror!
Bacchus avus; Bacchi coniunx redimita corona
Praeradiat stellis signa minora suis.
Dos tibi Lemnos erit, terra ingeniosa colenti;
Me quoque dotalis inter habere potes.
Cur tua polliciti pondere verba carent?
Vir meus hinc ieras: cur non meus inde redisti?
Sim reducis coniunx, sicut euntis eram!
Si te nobilitas generosaque nomina tangunt —
En, ego Minoo nata Thoante feror!
Bacchus avus; Bacchi coniunx redimita corona
Praeradiat stellis signa minora suis.
Dos tibi Lemnos erit, terra ingeniosa colenti;
Me quoque dotalis inter habere potes.
Now too I have given birth; congratulate us both, Jason!
Their author had made my burden sweet to me when I was with child.
I am lucky in number as well, and a twin offspring,
two pledges, I bore with Lucina’s favor.
If you ask whom they resemble, you will be recognized in them.
They do not know how to deceive; the rest they have from their father.
I almost gave them to be carried as envoys for their mother;
but a cruel stepmother held back the journey begun.
I feared Medea: Medea is more than a stepmother;
Medea’s hands are apt for every crime.
Their author had made my burden sweet to me when I was with child.
I am lucky in number as well, and a twin offspring,
two pledges, I bore with Lucina’s favor.
If you ask whom they resemble, you will be recognized in them.
They do not know how to deceive; the rest they have from their father.
I almost gave them to be carried as envoys for their mother;
but a cruel stepmother held back the journey begun.
I feared Medea: Medea is more than a stepmother;
Medea’s hands are apt for every crime.
Nunc etiam peperi; gratare ambobus, Iason!
Dulce mihi gravidae fecerat auctor onus.
Felix in numero quoque sum prolemque gemellam,
Pignora Lucina bina favente dedi.
Si quaeris, cui sint similes, cognosceris illis.
Fallere non norunt; cetera patris habent.
Legatos quos paene dedi pro matre ferendos;
Sed tenuit coeptas saeva noverca vias.
Medeam timui: plus est Medea noverca;
Medeae faciunt ad scelus omne manus.
Dulce mihi gravidae fecerat auctor onus.
Felix in numero quoque sum prolemque gemellam,
Pignora Lucina bina favente dedi.
Si quaeris, cui sint similes, cognosceris illis.
Fallere non norunt; cetera patris habent.
Legatos quos paene dedi pro matre ferendos;
Sed tenuit coeptas saeva noverca vias.
Medeam timui: plus est Medea noverca;
Medeae faciunt ad scelus omne manus.
She who could scatter her brother’s mangled body through the fields —
would she spare my pledges?
Yet this woman, o madman, carried off by Colchian poisons,
you are said to have preferred to Hypsipyle’s bed.
Shamefully she, an adulterous virgin, knew a man;
a chaste torch gave me to you and you to me.
She betrayed her father; I snatched Thoas from the slaughter.
She forsook Colchis; my Lemnos holds me.
What does it matter, if the wicked woman beats the dutiful,
and by the very crime is dowered, and has earned a husband?
would she spare my pledges?
Yet this woman, o madman, carried off by Colchian poisons,
you are said to have preferred to Hypsipyle’s bed.
Shamefully she, an adulterous virgin, knew a man;
a chaste torch gave me to you and you to me.
She betrayed her father; I snatched Thoas from the slaughter.
She forsook Colchis; my Lemnos holds me.
What does it matter, if the wicked woman beats the dutiful,
and by the very crime is dowered, and has earned a husband?
Spargere quae fratris potuit lacerata per agros
Corpora, pignoribus parceret illa meis?
Hanc tamen o demens Colchisque ablate venenis,
Diceris Hypsipyles praeposuisse toro.
Turpiter illa virum cognovit adultera virgo;
Me tibi teque mihi taeda pudica dedit.
Prodidit illa patrem; rapui de clade Thoanta.
Deseruit Colchos; me mea Lemnos habet.
Quid refert, scelerata piam si vincet et ipso
Crimine dotata est emeruitque virum?
Corpora, pignoribus parceret illa meis?
Hanc tamen o demens Colchisque ablate venenis,
Diceris Hypsipyles praeposuisse toro.
Turpiter illa virum cognovit adultera virgo;
Me tibi teque mihi taeda pudica dedit.
Prodidit illa patrem; rapui de clade Thoanta.
Deseruit Colchos; me mea Lemnos habet.
Quid refert, scelerata piam si vincet et ipso
Crimine dotata est emeruitque virum?
I blame the Lemnian women’s deed, I do not wonder at it, Jason;
such grief gives arms even to the cowardly.
Come, tell me: if, driven by hostile winds, as you ought to have been,
you and your comrade had entered my harbor,
and I had come out to meet you, my twin offspring beside me —
surely you would have had to pray the earth to gape for you! —
with what face would you look on your sons, with what on me, villain?
By what death were you worthy, as the price of your treachery?
You yourself indeed would have been safe and unharmed through me —
not because you deserve it, but because I am gentle.
such grief gives arms even to the cowardly.
Come, tell me: if, driven by hostile winds, as you ought to have been,
you and your comrade had entered my harbor,
and I had come out to meet you, my twin offspring beside me —
surely you would have had to pray the earth to gape for you! —
with what face would you look on your sons, with what on me, villain?
By what death were you worthy, as the price of your treachery?
You yourself indeed would have been safe and unharmed through me —
not because you deserve it, but because I am gentle.
Lemniadum facinus culpo, non miror, Iason;
Quamlibet ignavis iste dat arma dolor.
Dic age, si ventis, ut oportuit, actus iniquis
Intrasses portus tuque comesque meos,
Obviaque exissem fetu comitante gemello —
Hiscere nempe tibi terra roganda fuit! —
Quo vultu natos, quo me, scelerate, videres?
Perfidiae pretio qua nece dignus eras?
Ipse quidem per me tutus sospesque fuisses —
Non quia tu dignus, sed quia mitis ego.
Quamlibet ignavis iste dat arma dolor.
Dic age, si ventis, ut oportuit, actus iniquis
Intrasses portus tuque comesque meos,
Obviaque exissem fetu comitante gemello —
Hiscere nempe tibi terra roganda fuit! —
Quo vultu natos, quo me, scelerate, videres?
Perfidiae pretio qua nece dignus eras?
Ipse quidem per me tutus sospesque fuisses —
Non quia tu dignus, sed quia mitis ego.
I myself would have filled my face with the rival’s blood,
and yours, which she stole away by her poisonings!
To Medea I would have been a Medea! and if just Jupiter on high
attends at all to my prayers,
may she who has crept into my bed grieve at what Hypsipyle groans,
and herself feel her own laws;
and as I am abandoned, wife and mother of two,
so may she be robbed of husband and of as many children!
Nor may she long keep what was ill-got, and may she leave it worse —
may she be an exile and seek flight over the whole world!
and yours, which she stole away by her poisonings!
To Medea I would have been a Medea! and if just Jupiter on high
attends at all to my prayers,
may she who has crept into my bed grieve at what Hypsipyle groans,
and herself feel her own laws;
and as I am abandoned, wife and mother of two,
so may she be robbed of husband and of as many children!
Nor may she long keep what was ill-got, and may she leave it worse —
may she be an exile and seek flight over the whole world!
Paelicis ipsa meos inplessem sanguine vultus,
Quosque veneficiis abstulit illa suis!
Medeae Medea forem! quodsi quid ab alto
Iustus adest votis Iuppiter ille meis,
Quod gemit Hypsipyle, lecti quoque subnuba nostri
Maereat et leges sentiat ipsa suas;
Utque ego destituor coniunx materque duorum,
A totidem natis orba sit illa viro!
Nec male parta diu teneat peiusque relinquat —
Exulet et toto quaerat in orbe fugam!
Quosque veneficiis abstulit illa suis!
Medeae Medea forem! quodsi quid ab alto
Iustus adest votis Iuppiter ille meis,
Quod gemit Hypsipyle, lecti quoque subnuba nostri
Maereat et leges sentiat ipsa suas;
Utque ego destituor coniunx materque duorum,
A totidem natis orba sit illa viro!
Nec male parta diu teneat peiusque relinquat —
Exulet et toto quaerat in orbe fugam!
As she was a sister to her brother and a daughter to her wretched father,
so bitter may she be to her children, so bitter to her husband!
When she has used up sea and lands, let her try the air;
let her wander, helpless, hopeless, bloodied with her own slaughter!
This I, the daughter of Thoas, cheated of my marriage, pray.
Live on, bride and husband, in your accursed bed!
so bitter may she be to her children, so bitter to her husband!
When she has used up sea and lands, let her try the air;
let her wander, helpless, hopeless, bloodied with her own slaughter!
This I, the daughter of Thoas, cheated of my marriage, pray.
Live on, bride and husband, in your accursed bed!
Quam fratri germana fuit miseroque parenti
Filia, tam natis, tam sit acerba viro!
Cum mare, cum terras consumpserit, aera temptet;
Erret inops, exspes, caede cruenta sua!
Haec ego, coniugio fraudata Thoantias oro.
Vivite, devoto nuptaque virque toro!
Filia, tam natis, tam sit acerba viro!
Cum mare, cum terras consumpserit, aera temptet;
Erret inops, exspes, caede cruenta sua!
Haec ego, coniugio fraudata Thoantias oro.
Vivite, devoto nuptaque virque toro!
Book 7
Receive, son of Dardanus, the song of dying Elissa;
what you read, you read as my last words from me.
So, when the fates call, cast down in the wet grass
by the shallows of Maeander, the white swan sings.
Not because I hope you can be moved by my prayer
do I address you — I began this with a god against me;
but since I have wretchedly lost my deserts, my fame,
my body and my chaste mind, to lose words is a light thing.
Are you resolved nonetheless to go, and leave poor Dido,
and will the same winds carry off your sails and your faith?
what you read, you read as my last words from me.
So, when the fates call, cast down in the wet grass
by the shallows of Maeander, the white swan sings.
Not because I hope you can be moved by my prayer
do I address you — I began this with a god against me;
but since I have wretchedly lost my deserts, my fame,
my body and my chaste mind, to lose words is a light thing.
Are you resolved nonetheless to go, and leave poor Dido,
and will the same winds carry off your sails and your faith?
Accipe, Dardanide, moriturae carmen Elissae;
Quae legis, a nobis ultima verba legis:
Sic ubi fata vocant, udis abiectus in herbis
Ad vada Maeandri concinit albus olor.
Nec quia te nostra sperem prece posse moveri,
Adloquor — adverso movimus ista deo;
Sed merita et famam corpusque animumque pudicum
Cum male perdiderim, perdere verba leve est.
Certus es ire tamen miseramque relinquere Dido,
Atque idem venti vela fidemque ferent?
Quae legis, a nobis ultima verba legis:
Sic ubi fata vocant, udis abiectus in herbis
Ad vada Maeandri concinit albus olor.
Nec quia te nostra sperem prece posse moveri,
Adloquor — adverso movimus ista deo;
Sed merita et famam corpusque animumque pudicum
Cum male perdiderim, perdere verba leve est.
Certus es ire tamen miseramque relinquere Dido,
Atque idem venti vela fidemque ferent?
Are you resolved, Aeneas, to loose your ships along with your pledge,
and to chase Italian realms you do not know where they lie?
Does neither the new Carthage nor the rising walls
touch you, nor the supreme power handed to your scepter?
What is done you flee, what is to be done you seek; one land
must be sought through the world, one land has been sought by you.
Suppose you find the land — who will hand it over for you to hold?
Who will give his own fields to strangers to keep?
No doubt another love awaits you, and another Dido,
and another pledge to give, that you may break it again.
and to chase Italian realms you do not know where they lie?
Does neither the new Carthage nor the rising walls
touch you, nor the supreme power handed to your scepter?
What is done you flee, what is to be done you seek; one land
must be sought through the world, one land has been sought by you.
Suppose you find the land — who will hand it over for you to hold?
Who will give his own fields to strangers to keep?
No doubt another love awaits you, and another Dido,
and another pledge to give, that you may break it again.
Certus es, Aenea, cum foedere solvere naves,
Quaeque ubi sint nescis, Itala regna sequi?
Nec nova Carthago, nec te crescentia tangunt
Moenia nec sceptro tradita summa tuo?
Facta fugis, facienda petis; quaerenda per orbem
Altera, quaesita est altera terra tibi.
Ut terram invenias, quis eam tibi tradet habendam?
Quis sua non notis arva tenenda dabit?
Scilicet alter amor tibi restat et altera Dido;
Quamque iterum fallas altera danda fides.
Quaeque ubi sint nescis, Itala regna sequi?
Nec nova Carthago, nec te crescentia tangunt
Moenia nec sceptro tradita summa tuo?
Facta fugis, facienda petis; quaerenda per orbem
Altera, quaesita est altera terra tibi.
Ut terram invenias, quis eam tibi tradet habendam?
Quis sua non notis arva tenenda dabit?
Scilicet alter amor tibi restat et altera Dido;
Quamque iterum fallas altera danda fides.
When will it be that you found a city the like of Carthage,
and from a high citadel look down upon your own people?
Though all turn out well, and your prayers do not delay you,
where will you find a wife to love you so?
I burn, like waxen torches smeared with sulphur,
like pious incense set on smoking hearths.
Aeneas clings always to my waking eyes;
Aeneas night and rest bring back to my mind.
He, indeed, is thankless and deaf to my gifts,
and one I would wish to do without, if I were not a fool;
and from a high citadel look down upon your own people?
Though all turn out well, and your prayers do not delay you,
where will you find a wife to love you so?
I burn, like waxen torches smeared with sulphur,
like pious incense set on smoking hearths.
Aeneas clings always to my waking eyes;
Aeneas night and rest bring back to my mind.
He, indeed, is thankless and deaf to my gifts,
and one I would wish to do without, if I were not a fool;
Quando erit, ut condas instar Carthaginis urbem
Et videas populos altus ab arce tuos?
Omnia ut eveniant, nec te tua vota morentur,
Unde tibi, quae te sic amet, uxor erit?
Uror, ut inducto ceratae sulpure taedae,
Ut pia fumosis addita tura focis.
Aeneas oculis semper vigilantis inhaeret;
Aenean animo noxque quiesque refert.
Ille quidem male gratus et ad mea munera surdus,
Et quo, si non sim stulta, carere velim;
Et videas populos altus ab arce tuos?
Omnia ut eveniant, nec te tua vota morentur,
Unde tibi, quae te sic amet, uxor erit?
Uror, ut inducto ceratae sulpure taedae,
Ut pia fumosis addita tura focis.
Aeneas oculis semper vigilantis inhaeret;
Aenean animo noxque quiesque refert.
Ille quidem male gratus et ad mea munera surdus,
Et quo, si non sim stulta, carere velim;
yet I do not hate Aeneas, however ill he plots,
but I complain of him as faithless, and complaining I love him the worse.
Spare your daughter-in-law, Venus, and embrace your hard brother —
brother Love, let him serve as a soldier in your camp!
Or let me love, as I have begun (for I do not disdain it) —
let him furnish the matter of my longing!
I am deceived, and that image is flaunted falsely before me;
he is at odds with his own mother’s nature.
Stone and mountains and the oaks grown on high crags
begot you, the savage beasts begot you,
but I complain of him as faithless, and complaining I love him the worse.
Spare your daughter-in-law, Venus, and embrace your hard brother —
brother Love, let him serve as a soldier in your camp!
Or let me love, as I have begun (for I do not disdain it) —
let him furnish the matter of my longing!
I am deceived, and that image is flaunted falsely before me;
he is at odds with his own mother’s nature.
Stone and mountains and the oaks grown on high crags
begot you, the savage beasts begot you,
Non tamen Aenean, quamvis male cogitat, odi,
Sed queror infidum questaque peius amo.
Parce, Venus, nurui, durumque amplectere fratrem,
Frater Amor, castris militet ille tuis!
Aut ego, quae coepi, (neque enim dedignor) amorem,
Materiam curae praebeat ille meae!
Fallor, et ista mihi falso iactatur imago;
Matris ab ingenio dissidet ille suae.
Te lapis et montes innataque rupibus altis
Robora, te saevae progenuere ferae,
Sed queror infidum questaque peius amo.
Parce, Venus, nurui, durumque amplectere fratrem,
Frater Amor, castris militet ille tuis!
Aut ego, quae coepi, (neque enim dedignor) amorem,
Materiam curae praebeat ille meae!
Fallor, et ista mihi falso iactatur imago;
Matris ab ingenio dissidet ille suae.
Te lapis et montes innataque rupibus altis
Robora, te saevae progenuere ferae,
or the sea, such as you see tossed even now by winds,
over which yet you make ready to go through hostile waves.
Where do you flee? Winter stands in the way. May winter’s grace serve me!
See how the East wind churns up the upheaved waters!
What I would rather owe to you, let me owe to the storms;
the wind and the wave are juster than your heart.
I am not worth so much — why are you not reckoned unjust? —
that you should perish while you flee me over the long seas.
You drive a costly hatred, dear-bought and stubborn,
if, so long as you escape me, dying comes cheap to you.
over which yet you make ready to go through hostile waves.
Where do you flee? Winter stands in the way. May winter’s grace serve me!
See how the East wind churns up the upheaved waters!
What I would rather owe to you, let me owe to the storms;
the wind and the wave are juster than your heart.
I am not worth so much — why are you not reckoned unjust? —
that you should perish while you flee me over the long seas.
You drive a costly hatred, dear-bought and stubborn,
if, so long as you escape me, dying comes cheap to you.
Aut mare, quale vides agitari nunc quoque ventis,
Qua tamen adversis fluctibus ire paras.
Quo fugis? obstat hiemps. hiemis mihi gratia prosit!
Adspice, ut eversas concitet Eurus aquas!
Quod tibi malueram, sine me debere procellis;
Iustior est animo ventus et unda tuo.
Non ego sum tanti — quid non censeris inique? —
Ut pereas, dum me per freta longa fugis.
Exerces pretiosa odia et constantia magno,
Si, dum me careas, est tibi vile mori.
Qua tamen adversis fluctibus ire paras.
Quo fugis? obstat hiemps. hiemis mihi gratia prosit!
Adspice, ut eversas concitet Eurus aquas!
Quod tibi malueram, sine me debere procellis;
Iustior est animo ventus et unda tuo.
Non ego sum tanti — quid non censeris inique? —
Ut pereas, dum me per freta longa fugis.
Exerces pretiosa odia et constantia magno,
Si, dum me careas, est tibi vile mori.
Soon the winds will settle, and over the wave laid evenly smooth
Triton will course through the sea on his blue horses.
Would that you too were changeable with the winds!
And, unless you outdo oak in hardness, you will be.
Why, as if you did not know what mad seas can do,
do you so ill trust the water you have so often tried?
Even if, when the sea invites the way, you loose the mooring-ropes,
still the deep holds many sorrows in its broad expanse.
Nor does it profit those who try the seas to have broken faith;
that place exacts the penalties of perfidy,
Triton will course through the sea on his blue horses.
Would that you too were changeable with the winds!
And, unless you outdo oak in hardness, you will be.
Why, as if you did not know what mad seas can do,
do you so ill trust the water you have so often tried?
Even if, when the sea invites the way, you loose the mooring-ropes,
still the deep holds many sorrows in its broad expanse.
Nor does it profit those who try the seas to have broken faith;
that place exacts the penalties of perfidy,
Iam venti ponent, strataque aequaliter unda
Caeruleis Triton per mare curret equis.
Tu quoque cum ventis utinam mutabilis esses!
Et, nisi duritia robora vincis, eris.
Quid, quasi nescires, insana quid aequora possint,
Expertae totiens tam male credis aquae?
Ut, pelago suadente viam, retinacula solvas,
Multa tamen latus tristia pontus habet.
Nec violasse fidem temptantibus aequora prodest;
Perfidiae poenas exigit ille locus,
Caeruleis Triton per mare curret equis.
Tu quoque cum ventis utinam mutabilis esses!
Et, nisi duritia robora vincis, eris.
Quid, quasi nescires, insana quid aequora possint,
Expertae totiens tam male credis aquae?
Ut, pelago suadente viam, retinacula solvas,
Multa tamen latus tristia pontus habet.
Nec violasse fidem temptantibus aequora prodest;
Perfidiae poenas exigit ille locus,
above all when love has been wronged, because the mother of the Loves
is said to have been born, naked, from Cytherean waters.
Ruined, I fear to ruin you, or to harm the one who harms me,
or that my enemy, shipwrecked, should drink the waters of the sea.
Live, I pray! so I shall lose you better than by death.
You shall rather be called the cause of my dying.
Imagine, come, that by a swift whirlwind — let there be no weight
in the omen! — you are caught; what will your mind be?
At once the perjuries of your false tongue will rush upon you,
and Dido forced to die by Phrygian deceit;
is said to have been born, naked, from Cytherean waters.
Ruined, I fear to ruin you, or to harm the one who harms me,
or that my enemy, shipwrecked, should drink the waters of the sea.
Live, I pray! so I shall lose you better than by death.
You shall rather be called the cause of my dying.
Imagine, come, that by a swift whirlwind — let there be no weight
in the omen! — you are caught; what will your mind be?
At once the perjuries of your false tongue will rush upon you,
and Dido forced to die by Phrygian deceit;
Praecipue cum laesus amor, quia mater Amorum
Nuda Cytheriacis edita fertur aquis.
Perdita ne perdam, timeo, noceamve nocenti,
Neu bibat aequoreas naufragus hostis aquas.
Vive, precor! sic te melius quam funere perdam.
Tu potius leti causa ferere mei.
Finge, age, te rapido — nullum sit in omine pondus! —
Turbine deprendi; quid tibi mentis erit?
Protinus occurrent falsae periuria linguae,
Et Phrygia Dido fraude coacta mori;
Nuda Cytheriacis edita fertur aquis.
Perdita ne perdam, timeo, noceamve nocenti,
Neu bibat aequoreas naufragus hostis aquas.
Vive, precor! sic te melius quam funere perdam.
Tu potius leti causa ferere mei.
Finge, age, te rapido — nullum sit in omine pondus! —
Turbine deprendi; quid tibi mentis erit?
Protinus occurrent falsae periuria linguae,
Et Phrygia Dido fraude coacta mori;
before your eyes will stand the image of your deceived wife,
sorrowful and bloodstained, with hair flowing loose.
What is worth so much, that you should then say ’I have deserved it! forgive!’
and think that whatever bolts fall are hurled at you?
Give a short space to the savagery of the sea and of yourself;
a great reward for delay is a way that will be safe.
And though you care less for this, let the boy Iulus be spared!
It is enough for you to bear the title of my death.
What has the boy Ascanius deserved, what the Penates gods?
Shall the wave overwhelm the gods snatched from the flames?
sorrowful and bloodstained, with hair flowing loose.
What is worth so much, that you should then say ’I have deserved it! forgive!’
and think that whatever bolts fall are hurled at you?
Give a short space to the savagery of the sea and of yourself;
a great reward for delay is a way that will be safe.
And though you care less for this, let the boy Iulus be spared!
It is enough for you to bear the title of my death.
What has the boy Ascanius deserved, what the Penates gods?
Shall the wave overwhelm the gods snatched from the flames?
Coniugis ante oculos deceptae stabit imago
Tristis et effusis sanguinolenta comis.
Quid tanti est ut tum ’merui! concedite!’ dicas,
Quaeque cadent, in te fulmina missa putes?
Da breve saevitiae spatium pelagique tuaeque;
Grande morae pretium tuta futura via est.
Haec minus ut cures, puero parcatur Iulo!
Te satis est titulum mortis habere meae.
Quid puer Ascanius, quid di meruere Penates?
Ignibus ereptos obruet unda deos?
Tristis et effusis sanguinolenta comis.
Quid tanti est ut tum ’merui! concedite!’ dicas,
Quaeque cadent, in te fulmina missa putes?
Da breve saevitiae spatium pelagique tuaeque;
Grande morae pretium tuta futura via est.
Haec minus ut cures, puero parcatur Iulo!
Te satis est titulum mortis habere meae.
Quid puer Ascanius, quid di meruere Penates?
Ignibus ereptos obruet unda deos?
But you do not carry them with you, nor did the holy things
and the father you boast of, faithless one, press your shoulders.
You lie in everything, for your tongue does not begin
its deceiving with me, nor am I the first to be punished.
If you should ask where the mother of lovely Iulus is —
she died, left alone by a hard husband!
This you had told me — it warned me enough! Burn me,
I deserve it; my punishment will be less than my fault.
Nor have I any doubt that your own gods condemn you.
Over sea, over land, a seventh winter tosses you.
and the father you boast of, faithless one, press your shoulders.
You lie in everything, for your tongue does not begin
its deceiving with me, nor am I the first to be punished.
If you should ask where the mother of lovely Iulus is —
she died, left alone by a hard husband!
This you had told me — it warned me enough! Burn me,
I deserve it; my punishment will be less than my fault.
Nor have I any doubt that your own gods condemn you.
Over sea, over land, a seventh winter tosses you.
Sed neque fers tecum, nec, quae mihi, perfide, iactas,
Presserunt umeros sacra paterque tuos.
Omnia mentiris, neque enim tua fallere lingua
Incipit a nobis, primaque plector ego.
Si quaeras, ubi sit formosi mater Iuli —
Occidit a duro sola relicta viro!
Haec mihi narraras — sat me monuere! merentem
Ure; minor culpa poena futura mea est.
Nec mihi mens dubia est, quin te tua numina damnent.
Per mare, per terras septima iactat hiemps.
Presserunt umeros sacra paterque tuos.
Omnia mentiris, neque enim tua fallere lingua
Incipit a nobis, primaque plector ego.
Si quaeras, ubi sit formosi mater Iuli —
Occidit a duro sola relicta viro!
Haec mihi narraras — sat me monuere! merentem
Ure; minor culpa poena futura mea est.
Nec mihi mens dubia est, quin te tua numina damnent.
Per mare, per terras septima iactat hiemps.
Cast up by the waves, I received you in a safe anchorage,
and, scarcely having well heard your name, gave you a kingdom.
Yet would that I had been content with these services,
and that the rumor of our union were buried for me!
That day did the harm, on which a dark rain with sudden waters
drove us beneath a sloping cave.
I had heard a voice; I thought the nymphs had wailed —
it was the Eumenides who gave the signs of my doom!
Exact your penalties, wronged honor! and you, faith of Sychaeus
violated, to whom, wretched me, full of shame I go.
and, scarcely having well heard your name, gave you a kingdom.
Yet would that I had been content with these services,
and that the rumor of our union were buried for me!
That day did the harm, on which a dark rain with sudden waters
drove us beneath a sloping cave.
I had heard a voice; I thought the nymphs had wailed —
it was the Eumenides who gave the signs of my doom!
Exact your penalties, wronged honor! and you, faith of Sychaeus
violated, to whom, wretched me, full of shame I go.
Fluctibus eiectum tuta statione recepi
Vixque bene audito nomine regna dedi.
His tamen officiis utinam contenta fuissem,
Et mihi concubitus fama sepulta foret!
Illa dies nocuit, qua nos declive sub antrum
Caeruleus subitis conpulit imber aquis.
Audieram vocem; nymphas ululasse putavi —
Eumenides fati signa dedere mei!
Exige, laese pudor, poenas! violate Sychaei
Ad quas, me miseram, plena pudoris eo.
Vixque bene audito nomine regna dedi.
His tamen officiis utinam contenta fuissem,
Et mihi concubitus fama sepulta foret!
Illa dies nocuit, qua nos declive sub antrum
Caeruleus subitis conpulit imber aquis.
Audieram vocem; nymphas ululasse putavi —
Eumenides fati signa dedere mei!
Exige, laese pudor, poenas! violate Sychaei
Ad quas, me miseram, plena pudoris eo.
I have Sychaeus consecrated in a marble shrine
(set boughs and white wool cover it).
From there I felt myself called four times by a known voice;
he himself said in a thin sound, ’Elissa, come!’
There is no delay, I come, I come, your wife by right;
yet I am slow through shame at my offense.
Pardon my fault! a worthy author deceived me;
he takes the odium from my guilt.
A goddess for mother, and an aged father, the pious burden of his son,
rightly gave me hope of a husband who would stay.
(set boughs and white wool cover it).
From there I felt myself called four times by a known voice;
he himself said in a thin sound, ’Elissa, come!’
There is no delay, I come, I come, your wife by right;
yet I am slow through shame at my offense.
Pardon my fault! a worthy author deceived me;
he takes the odium from my guilt.
A goddess for mother, and an aged father, the pious burden of his son,
rightly gave me hope of a husband who would stay.
Est mihi marmorea sacratus in aede Sychaeus
(Oppositae frondes velleraque alba tegunt).
Hinc ego me sensi noto quater ore citari;
Ipse sono tenui dixit ’Elissa, veni!’
Nulla mora est, venio, venio tibi debita coniunx;
Sum tamen admissi tarda pudore mei.
Da veniam culpae! decepit idoneus auctor;
Invidiam noxae detrahit ille meae.
Diva parens seniorque pater, pia sarcina nati,
Spem mihi mansuri rite dedere viri.
(Oppositae frondes velleraque alba tegunt).
Hinc ego me sensi noto quater ore citari;
Ipse sono tenui dixit ’Elissa, veni!’
Nulla mora est, venio, venio tibi debita coniunx;
Sum tamen admissi tarda pudore mei.
Da veniam culpae! decepit idoneus auctor;
Invidiam noxae detrahit ille meae.
Diva parens seniorque pater, pia sarcina nati,
Spem mihi mansuri rite dedere viri.
If I had to err, my error has honorable causes;
add faith to it, and there would be nothing in it to regret.
The course of fate that ran before lasts to the end,
and pursues the very last moments of my life.
My husband fell, slaughtered at the household altars,
and my brother holds the rewards of so great a crime;
I am driven into exile and leave my husband’s ashes and my country,
and am borne on uncertain ways with an enemy in pursuit.
I land on these shores, and, escaped from my brother and the sea,
I buy the shore which I gave to you, faithless one.
add faith to it, and there would be nothing in it to regret.
The course of fate that ran before lasts to the end,
and pursues the very last moments of my life.
My husband fell, slaughtered at the household altars,
and my brother holds the rewards of so great a crime;
I am driven into exile and leave my husband’s ashes and my country,
and am borne on uncertain ways with an enemy in pursuit.
I land on these shores, and, escaped from my brother and the sea,
I buy the shore which I gave to you, faithless one.
Si fuit errandum, causas habet error honestas;
Adde fidem, nulla parte pigendus erit.
Durat in extremum vitaeque novissima nostrae
Prosequitur fati, qui fuit ante, tenor.
Occidit internas coniunx mactatus ad aras,
Et sceleris tanti praemia frater habet;
Exul agor cineresque viri patriamque relinquo,
Et feror in dubias hoste sequente vias.
Adplicor his oris fratrique elapsa fretoque
Quod tibi donavi, perfide, litus emo.
Adde fidem, nulla parte pigendus erit.
Durat in extremum vitaeque novissima nostrae
Prosequitur fati, qui fuit ante, tenor.
Occidit internas coniunx mactatus ad aras,
Et sceleris tanti praemia frater habet;
Exul agor cineresque viri patriamque relinquo,
Et feror in dubias hoste sequente vias.
Adplicor his oris fratrique elapsa fretoque
Quod tibi donavi, perfide, litus emo.
I founded a city and fixed walls spreading wide,
a thing of envy to the neighboring lands.
Wars swell; a foreigner and a woman, I am assailed with wars,
and scarcely make ready the gates and arms of a raw city.
I pleased a thousand suitors, who banded together complaining
that I had preferred some unknown man to their chambers.
Why do you hesitate to hand me bound to Gaetulian Iarbas?
I would have offered my arms to your crime.
There is also a brother, whose impious hand demands
to be spattered with my blood, as it was spattered with my husband’s.
a thing of envy to the neighboring lands.
Wars swell; a foreigner and a woman, I am assailed with wars,
and scarcely make ready the gates and arms of a raw city.
I pleased a thousand suitors, who banded together complaining
that I had preferred some unknown man to their chambers.
Why do you hesitate to hand me bound to Gaetulian Iarbas?
I would have offered my arms to your crime.
There is also a brother, whose impious hand demands
to be spattered with my blood, as it was spattered with my husband’s.
Urbem constitui lateque patentia fixi
Moenia finitimis invidiosa locis.
Bella tument; bellis peregrina et femina temptor,
Vixque rudis portas urbis et arma paro.
Mille procis placui, qui me coiere querentes
Nescio quem thalamis praeposuisse suis.
Quid dubitas vinctam Gaetulo tradere Iarbae?
Praebuerim sceleri bracchia nostra tuo.
Est etiam frater, cuius manus inpia poscit
Respergi nostro, sparsa cruore viri.
Moenia finitimis invidiosa locis.
Bella tument; bellis peregrina et femina temptor,
Vixque rudis portas urbis et arma paro.
Mille procis placui, qui me coiere querentes
Nescio quem thalamis praeposuisse suis.
Quid dubitas vinctam Gaetulo tradere Iarbae?
Praebuerim sceleri bracchia nostra tuo.
Est etiam frater, cuius manus inpia poscit
Respergi nostro, sparsa cruore viri.
Lay down the gods, and the holy things you profane by your touch!
An impious right hand does not well worship the heavenly ones.
If you were to be the worshipper of gods escaped from the fire,
the gods regret having escaped the flames.
Perhaps too you leave Dido pregnant, villain,
and a part of you lies hidden, shut within my body.
The pitiable infant will be added to its mother’s fate,
and you will be the author of the funeral of one not yet born,
and the brother of Iulus will die together with his mother,
and one penalty will carry off the two, joined as one.
An impious right hand does not well worship the heavenly ones.
If you were to be the worshipper of gods escaped from the fire,
the gods regret having escaped the flames.
Perhaps too you leave Dido pregnant, villain,
and a part of you lies hidden, shut within my body.
The pitiable infant will be added to its mother’s fate,
and you will be the author of the funeral of one not yet born,
and the brother of Iulus will die together with his mother,
and one penalty will carry off the two, joined as one.
Pone deos et quae tangendo sacra profanas!
Non bene caelestis inpia dextra colit.
Si tu cultor eras elapsis igne futurus,
Paenitet elapsos ignibus esse deos.
Forsitan et gravidam Dido, scelerate, relinquas,
Parsque tui lateat corpore clausa meo.
Accedet fatis matris miserabilis infans,
Et nondum nato funeris auctor eris,
Cumque parente sua frater morietur Iuli,
Poenaque conexos auferet una duos.
Non bene caelestis inpia dextra colit.
Si tu cultor eras elapsis igne futurus,
Paenitet elapsos ignibus esse deos.
Forsitan et gravidam Dido, scelerate, relinquas,
Parsque tui lateat corpore clausa meo.
Accedet fatis matris miserabilis infans,
Et nondum nato funeris auctor eris,
Cumque parente sua frater morietur Iuli,
Poenaque conexos auferet una duos.
’But a god bids me go.’ Would he had forbidden you to come,
and that Punic soil had not been trodden by Trojans!
Under this god as guide, surely, you are driven by hostile winds,
and wear out long seasons on the raging sea?
Hardly would Pergamum have been worth seeking again with such toil,
had it been as great, with Hector living, as it once was.
It is not your native Simois you make for, but the waters of Tiber —
and, even should you arrive where you wish, you will be a stranger;
and since the land you seek lies hidden and shuns your keels,
scarcely will it fall to you, an old man, to reach it.
and that Punic soil had not been trodden by Trojans!
Under this god as guide, surely, you are driven by hostile winds,
and wear out long seasons on the raging sea?
Hardly would Pergamum have been worth seeking again with such toil,
had it been as great, with Hector living, as it once was.
It is not your native Simois you make for, but the waters of Tiber —
and, even should you arrive where you wish, you will be a stranger;
and since the land you seek lies hidden and shuns your keels,
scarcely will it fall to you, an old man, to reach it.
’Sed iubet ire deus.’ vellem, vetuisset adire,
Punica nec Teucris pressa fuisset humus!
Hoc duce nempe deo ventis agitaris iniquis
Et teris in rabido tempora longa freto?
Pergama vix tanto tibi erant repetenda labore,
Hectore si vivo quanta fuere forent.
Non patrium Simoenta petis, sed Thybridis undas —
Nempe ut pervenias, quo cupis, hospes eris;
Utque latet vitatque tuas abstrusa carinas,
Vix tibi continget terra petita seni.
Punica nec Teucris pressa fuisset humus!
Hoc duce nempe deo ventis agitaris iniquis
Et teris in rabido tempora longa freto?
Pergama vix tanto tibi erant repetenda labore,
Hectore si vivo quanta fuere forent.
Non patrium Simoenta petis, sed Thybridis undas —
Nempe ut pervenias, quo cupis, hospes eris;
Utque latet vitatque tuas abstrusa carinas,
Vix tibi continget terra petita seni.
Take rather these peoples for your dowry, with all the wandering done,
and the wealth of Pygmalion that I brought.
Move Ilium more happily into a Tyrian city,
and hold the state and the sacred scepter in a king’s place!
If your mind is greedy for war, if Iulus seeks
whence a triumph won by his own warfare may go forth,
we will provide an enemy for him to conquer, that nothing be lacking;
this place admits the laws of peace, this place admits arms.
Only do you, by your mother and your brother’s weapons, the arrows,
and by the gods, companions of your flight, the Dardan holy things —
and the wealth of Pygmalion that I brought.
Move Ilium more happily into a Tyrian city,
and hold the state and the sacred scepter in a king’s place!
If your mind is greedy for war, if Iulus seeks
whence a triumph won by his own warfare may go forth,
we will provide an enemy for him to conquer, that nothing be lacking;
this place admits the laws of peace, this place admits arms.
Only do you, by your mother and your brother’s weapons, the arrows,
and by the gods, companions of your flight, the Dardan holy things —
Hos potius populos in dotem, ambage remissa,
Accipe et advectas Pygmalionis opes.
Ilion in Tyriam transfer felicius urbem
Resque loco regis sceptraque sacra tene!
Si tibi mens avida est belli, si quaerit Iulus,
Unde suo partus Marte triumphus eat,
Quem superet, nequid desit, praebebimus hostem;
Hic pacis leges, hic locus arma capit.
Tu modo, per matrem fraternaque tela, sagittas,
Perque fugae comites, Dardana sacra, deos —
Accipe et advectas Pygmalionis opes.
Ilion in Tyriam transfer felicius urbem
Resque loco regis sceptraque sacra tene!
Si tibi mens avida est belli, si quaerit Iulus,
Unde suo partus Marte triumphus eat,
Quem superet, nequid desit, praebebimus hostem;
Hic pacis leges, hic locus arma capit.
Tu modo, per matrem fraternaque tela, sagittas,
Perque fugae comites, Dardana sacra, deos —
so may all whom fierce Mars brings home from your race
prevail, and may that be the limit of your loss,
and may Ascanius happily fill out his years,
and may the bones of old Anchises lie softly! —
spare, I pray, the house that gives itself to you to hold!
What crime do you charge me with except to have loved?
I am no Phthian woman, nor sprung from great Mycenae,
nor did my husband and my father stand against you.
If you are ashamed of a wife, let me be called not wife but hostess;
so long as she is yours, Dido will bear to be anything.
prevail, and may that be the limit of your loss,
and may Ascanius happily fill out his years,
and may the bones of old Anchises lie softly! —
spare, I pray, the house that gives itself to you to hold!
What crime do you charge me with except to have loved?
I am no Phthian woman, nor sprung from great Mycenae,
nor did my husband and my father stand against you.
If you are ashamed of a wife, let me be called not wife but hostess;
so long as she is yours, Dido will bear to be anything.
Sic superent, quoscumque tua de gente reportat
Mars ferus, et damni sit modus ille tui,
Ascaniusque suos feliciter inpleat annos,
Et senis Anchisae molliter ossa cubent! —
Parce, precor, domui, quae se tibi tradit habendam!
Quod crimen dicis praeter amasse meum?
Non ego sum Pthias magnisque oriunda Mycenis,
Nec steterunt in te virque paterque meus.
Si pudet uxoris, non nupta, sed hospita dicar;
Dum tua sit, Dido quidlibet esse feret.
Mars ferus, et damni sit modus ille tui,
Ascaniusque suos feliciter inpleat annos,
Et senis Anchisae molliter ossa cubent! —
Parce, precor, domui, quae se tibi tradit habendam!
Quod crimen dicis praeter amasse meum?
Non ego sum Pthias magnisque oriunda Mycenis,
Nec steterunt in te virque paterque meus.
Si pudet uxoris, non nupta, sed hospita dicar;
Dum tua sit, Dido quidlibet esse feret.
Known to me are the straits that beat the African shore;
at fixed seasons they grant and deny a passage.
When the breeze grants a way, you will spread your sails to the winds;
now light seaweed holds the stranded ship.
Charge me to watch the time; you will go more surely,
nor, if you wish it, will I myself let you stay.
Your comrades too demand rest, and the battered fleet,
half-repaired, asks for a little delay;
for my services, and for whatever else I shall owe you besides,
for the hope of marriage I ask a little time —
at fixed seasons they grant and deny a passage.
When the breeze grants a way, you will spread your sails to the winds;
now light seaweed holds the stranded ship.
Charge me to watch the time; you will go more surely,
nor, if you wish it, will I myself let you stay.
Your comrades too demand rest, and the battered fleet,
half-repaired, asks for a little delay;
for my services, and for whatever else I shall owe you besides,
for the hope of marriage I ask a little time —
Nota mihi freta sunt Afrum plangentia litus;
Temporibus certis dantque negantque viam.
Cum dabit aura viam, praebebis carbasa ventis;
Nunc levis eiectam continet alga ratem.
Tempus ut observem, manda mihi; certius ibis,
Nec te, si cupies, ipsa manere sinam.
Et socii requiem poscunt, laniataque classis
Postulat exiguas semirefecta moras;
Pro meritis et siqua tibi debebimus ultra,
Pro spe coniugii tempora parva peto —
Temporibus certis dantque negantque viam.
Cum dabit aura viam, praebebis carbasa ventis;
Nunc levis eiectam continet alga ratem.
Tempus ut observem, manda mihi; certius ibis,
Nec te, si cupies, ipsa manere sinam.
Et socii requiem poscunt, laniataque classis
Postulat exiguas semirefecta moras;
Pro meritis et siqua tibi debebimus ultra,
Pro spe coniugii tempora parva peto —
until the seas grow gentle, and my love, until by time and habit
I learn well to be able to bear my sorrows bravely.
If not, I have the mind to pour out my life;
you cannot long be cruel to me.
Would that you might see what the image of the writer is!
I write, and a Trojan sword lies in my lap,
and over my cheeks the tears slide down onto the drawn sword,
which soon, instead of tears, will be stained with blood.
How well your gifts suit my fate!
At small cost you furnish out my tomb.
I learn well to be able to bear my sorrows bravely.
If not, I have the mind to pour out my life;
you cannot long be cruel to me.
Would that you might see what the image of the writer is!
I write, and a Trojan sword lies in my lap,
and over my cheeks the tears slide down onto the drawn sword,
which soon, instead of tears, will be stained with blood.
How well your gifts suit my fate!
At small cost you furnish out my tomb.
Dum freta mitescunt et amor, dum tempore et usu
Fortiter edisco tristia posse pati.
Si minus, est animus nobis effundere vitam;
In me crudelis non potes esse diu.
Adspicias utinam, quae sit scribentis imago!
Scribimus, et gremio Troicus ensis adest,
Perque genas lacrimae strictum labuntur in ensem,
Qui iam pro lacrimis sanguine tinctus erit.
Quam bene conveniunt fato tua munera nostro!
Instruis inpensa nostra sepulcra brevi.
Fortiter edisco tristia posse pati.
Si minus, est animus nobis effundere vitam;
In me crudelis non potes esse diu.
Adspicias utinam, quae sit scribentis imago!
Scribimus, et gremio Troicus ensis adest,
Perque genas lacrimae strictum labuntur in ensem,
Qui iam pro lacrimis sanguine tinctus erit.
Quam bene conveniunt fato tua munera nostro!
Instruis inpensa nostra sepulcra brevi.
Nor is my breast now struck by a weapon for the first time;
that place holds the wound of cruel love.
Anna, sister, sister Anna, too aware of my fault,
soon you will give the last gifts to my ashes.
Nor, consumed on the pyre, shall I be inscribed ’Elissa, wife of Sychaeus’;
this verse alone will stand on the marble of my tomb:
’Aeneas furnished both the cause of death and the sword;
Dido herself fell, using her own hand.’
that place holds the wound of cruel love.
Anna, sister, sister Anna, too aware of my fault,
soon you will give the last gifts to my ashes.
Nor, consumed on the pyre, shall I be inscribed ’Elissa, wife of Sychaeus’;
this verse alone will stand on the marble of my tomb:
’Aeneas furnished both the cause of death and the sword;
Dido herself fell, using her own hand.’
Nec mea nunc primum feriuntur pectora telo;
Ille locus saevi vulnus amoris habet.
Anna soror, soror Anna, meae male conscia culpae,
Iam dabis in cineres ultima dona meos.
Nec consumpta rogis inscribar Elissa Sychaei,
Hoc tantum in tumuli marmore carmen erit:
Praebuit Aeneas et causam mortis et ensem;
Ipsa sua Dido concidit usa manu.
Ille locus saevi vulnus amoris habet.
Anna soror, soror Anna, meae male conscia culpae,
Iam dabis in cineres ultima dona meos.
Nec consumpta rogis inscribar Elissa Sychaei,
Hoc tantum in tumuli marmore carmen erit:
Praebuit Aeneas et causam mortis et ensem;
Ipsa sua Dido concidit usa manu.
Book 8
I, Hermione, address one lately both my cousin and my husband.
Now my cousin; another holds the name of husband:
Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, spirited in his father’s image,
holds me shut up, against right and against duty.
What I could, I refused, that I might not be held unresisting;
for the rest, a woman’s hands had no strength.
’What do you do, son of Aeacus? I am not without an avenger,’ I said:
’This girl, Pyrrhus, is under a master of her own!’
He, deafer than the sea, as I cried out the name of Orestes,
dragged me by my unbound hair into his house.
Now my cousin; another holds the name of husband:
Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, spirited in his father’s image,
holds me shut up, against right and against duty.
What I could, I refused, that I might not be held unresisting;
for the rest, a woman’s hands had no strength.
’What do you do, son of Aeacus? I am not without an avenger,’ I said:
’This girl, Pyrrhus, is under a master of her own!’
He, deafer than the sea, as I cried out the name of Orestes,
dragged me by my unbound hair into his house.
Alloquor Hermione nuper fratremque virumque.
Nunc fratrem; nomen coniugis alter habet:
Pyrrhus Achillides, animosus imagine patris,
Inclusam contra iusque piumque tenet.
Quod potui, renui, ne non invita tenerer;
Cetera femineae non valuere manus.
’Quid facis, Aeacide? non sum sine vindice,’ dixi:
’Haec tibi sub domino est, Pyrrhe, puella suo!’
Surdior ille freto clamantem nomen Orestae
Traxit inornatis in sua tecta comis.
Nunc fratrem; nomen coniugis alter habet:
Pyrrhus Achillides, animosus imagine patris,
Inclusam contra iusque piumque tenet.
Quod potui, renui, ne non invita tenerer;
Cetera femineae non valuere manus.
’Quid facis, Aeacide? non sum sine vindice,’ dixi:
’Haec tibi sub domino est, Pyrrhe, puella suo!’
Surdior ille freto clamantem nomen Orestae
Traxit inornatis in sua tecta comis.
What worse should I have borne, a slave with Lacedaemon taken,
if a barbarian horde were carrying off Greek women?
More sparingly did conquering Achaea harry Andromache,
when Danaan fire was burning the wealth of Phrygia.
But you, if a loyal care of me touches you, Orestes,
lay no timid hands on what is your right!
If someone should drive off the cattle from the opened stalls,
you would take up arms — yet, your wife snatched away, be slow?
Let your father-in-law be your example, reclaimer of a stolen wife,
for whom a woman was a righteous cause of war!
if a barbarian horde were carrying off Greek women?
More sparingly did conquering Achaea harry Andromache,
when Danaan fire was burning the wealth of Phrygia.
But you, if a loyal care of me touches you, Orestes,
lay no timid hands on what is your right!
If someone should drive off the cattle from the opened stalls,
you would take up arms — yet, your wife snatched away, be slow?
Let your father-in-law be your example, reclaimer of a stolen wife,
for whom a woman was a righteous cause of war!
Quid gravius capta Lacedaemone serva tulissem,
Si raperet Graias barbara turba nurus?
Parcius Andromachen vexavit Achaia victrix,
Cum Danaus Phrygias ureret ignis opes.
At tu, cura mei si te pia tangit, Oreste,
Inice non timidas in tua iura manus!
An siquis rapiat stabulis armenta reclusis,
Arma feras, rapta coniuge lentus eris?
Sit socer exemplo nuptae repetitor ademptae,
Cui pia militiae causa puella fuit!
Si raperet Graias barbara turba nurus?
Parcius Andromachen vexavit Achaia victrix,
Cum Danaus Phrygias ureret ignis opes.
At tu, cura mei si te pia tangit, Oreste,
Inice non timidas in tua iura manus!
An siquis rapiat stabulis armenta reclusis,
Arma feras, rapta coniuge lentus eris?
Sit socer exemplo nuptae repetitor ademptae,
Cui pia militiae causa puella fuit!
If that father-in-law had idly snored in his widowed hall,
my mother would be married to Paris, as she was before.
Do not make ready a thousand ships nor billowing sails,
nor the masses of the Danaan soldiery — come yourself!
Even so I should have been reclaimed; nor is it shameful for a husband
to have borne hard wars for a dear marriage-bed.
What of this, that the same Pelopian Atreus is grandfather to us both,
and, were you not my husband, you were my kinsman.
As husband, I pray, help your wife; as kinsman, your kinswoman!
Two names press upon your duty.
my mother would be married to Paris, as she was before.
Do not make ready a thousand ships nor billowing sails,
nor the masses of the Danaan soldiery — come yourself!
Even so I should have been reclaimed; nor is it shameful for a husband
to have borne hard wars for a dear marriage-bed.
What of this, that the same Pelopian Atreus is grandfather to us both,
and, were you not my husband, you were my kinsman.
As husband, I pray, help your wife; as kinsman, your kinswoman!
Two names press upon your duty.
Si socer ignavus vidua stertisset in aula,
Nupta foret Paridi mater, ut ante fuit.
Nec tu mille rates sinuosaque vela pararis
Nec numeros Danai militis — ipse veni!
Sic quoque eram repetenda tamen, nec turpe marito
Aspera pro caro bella tulisse toro.
Quid, quod avus nobis idem Pelopeius Atreus,
Et, si non esses vir mihi, frater eras.
Vir, precor, uxori, frater succurre sorori!
Instant officio nomina bina tuo.
Nupta foret Paridi mater, ut ante fuit.
Nec tu mille rates sinuosaque vela pararis
Nec numeros Danai militis — ipse veni!
Sic quoque eram repetenda tamen, nec turpe marito
Aspera pro caro bella tulisse toro.
Quid, quod avus nobis idem Pelopeius Atreus,
Et, si non esses vir mihi, frater eras.
Vir, precor, uxori, frater succurre sorori!
Instant officio nomina bina tuo.
Tyndareus, weighty in life and in years as my warrant,
gave me to you; my grandfather held the decision over his granddaughter.
But my father had promised me to the son of Aeacus, unaware of the deed;
my grandfather, prior in order, prevails over my father.
When I married you, my marriage-torch harmed no one;
if I am joined to Pyrrhus, you will be the one wronged in me.
And my father Menelaus will pardon our love —
he himself yielded to the darts of the swift god.
The love he allowed himself, he will grant his son-in-law;
my mother, beloved, will profit me by her example.
gave me to you; my grandfather held the decision over his granddaughter.
But my father had promised me to the son of Aeacus, unaware of the deed;
my grandfather, prior in order, prevails over my father.
When I married you, my marriage-torch harmed no one;
if I am joined to Pyrrhus, you will be the one wronged in me.
And my father Menelaus will pardon our love —
he himself yielded to the darts of the swift god.
The love he allowed himself, he will grant his son-in-law;
my mother, beloved, will profit me by her example.
Me tibi Tyndareus, vita gravis auctor et annis,
Tradidit; arbitrium neptis habebat avus.
At pater Aeacidae promiserat inscius acti;
Plus patre, quo prior est ordine, pollet avus.
Cum tibi nubebam, nulli mea taeda nocebat;
Si iungar Pyrrho, tu mihi laesus eris.
Et pater ignoscet nostro Menelaus amori —
Succubuit telis praepetis ipse dei.
Quem sibi permisit, genero concedet amorem;
Proderit exemplo mater amata suo.
Tradidit; arbitrium neptis habebat avus.
At pater Aeacidae promiserat inscius acti;
Plus patre, quo prior est ordine, pollet avus.
Cum tibi nubebam, nulli mea taeda nocebat;
Si iungar Pyrrho, tu mihi laesus eris.
Et pater ignoscet nostro Menelaus amori —
Succubuit telis praepetis ipse dei.
Quem sibi permisit, genero concedet amorem;
Proderit exemplo mater amata suo.
You are to me what my father is to my mother; the part the Dardanian
stranger once played, Pyrrhus plays.
Though he boast without end of his father’s deeds,
you too have a father’s deeds to tell.
The son of Tantalus ruled all, and Achilles himself.
This man was a part of the army; that one was the leader of leaders.
You too, through your forefather Pelops and Pelops’ father,
if you count the ones between, will be fifth from Jove.
Nor do you lack valor. You bore hateful arms,
but — what could you do? — your father put them on you.
stranger once played, Pyrrhus plays.
Though he boast without end of his father’s deeds,
you too have a father’s deeds to tell.
The son of Tantalus ruled all, and Achilles himself.
This man was a part of the army; that one was the leader of leaders.
You too, through your forefather Pelops and Pelops’ father,
if you count the ones between, will be fifth from Jove.
Nor do you lack valor. You bore hateful arms,
but — what could you do? — your father put them on you.
Tu mihi, quod matri pater est; quas egerat olim
Dardanius partis advena, Pyrrhus agit.
Ille licet patriis sine fine superbiat actis;
Et tu, quae referas facta parentis, habes.
Tantalides omnis ipsumque regebat Achillem.
Hic pars militiae; dux erat ille ducum.
Tu quoque per proavum Pelopem Pelopisque parentem,
Si medios numeres, a Iove quintus eris.
Nec virtute cares. arma invidiosa tulisti,
Sed tibi — quid faceres? — induit illa pater.
Dardanius partis advena, Pyrrhus agit.
Ille licet patriis sine fine superbiat actis;
Et tu, quae referas facta parentis, habes.
Tantalides omnis ipsumque regebat Achillem.
Hic pars militiae; dux erat ille ducum.
Tu quoque per proavum Pelopem Pelopisque parentem,
Si medios numeres, a Iove quintus eris.
Nec virtute cares. arma invidiosa tulisti,
Sed tibi — quid faceres? — induit illa pater.
I wish you had been brave in a better matter;
the cause was not chosen for your work, but given.
Yet you fulfilled it; and Aegisthus, his throat opened,
bloodied the house, which your father had bloodied before.
The son of Aeacus rails at it and turns your praise to crimes —
and yet he endures the sight of me.
I burst, and my face swells along with my mind,
and my breast, scorched with shut-in fires, aches.
Has anyone, to Hermione’s face, flung Orestes in reproach,
and I have no strength, nor is a fierce sword at hand?
the cause was not chosen for your work, but given.
Yet you fulfilled it; and Aegisthus, his throat opened,
bloodied the house, which your father had bloodied before.
The son of Aeacus rails at it and turns your praise to crimes —
and yet he endures the sight of me.
I burst, and my face swells along with my mind,
and my breast, scorched with shut-in fires, aches.
Has anyone, to Hermione’s face, flung Orestes in reproach,
and I have no strength, nor is a fierce sword at hand?
Materia vellem fortis meliore fuisses;
Non lecta est operi, sed data causa tuo.
Hanc tamen inplesti; iuguloque Aegisthus aperto
Tecta cruentavit, quae pater ante tuus.
Increpat Aeacides laudemque in crimina vertit —
Et tamen adspectus sustinet ille meos.
Rumpor, et ora mihi pariter cum mente tumescunt,
Pectoraque inclusis ignibus usta dolent.
Hermione coram quisquamne obiecit Orestae,
Nec mihi sunt vires, nec ferus ensis adest?
Non lecta est operi, sed data causa tuo.
Hanc tamen inplesti; iuguloque Aegisthus aperto
Tecta cruentavit, quae pater ante tuus.
Increpat Aeacides laudemque in crimina vertit —
Et tamen adspectus sustinet ille meos.
Rumpor, et ora mihi pariter cum mente tumescunt,
Pectoraque inclusis ignibus usta dolent.
Hermione coram quisquamne obiecit Orestae,
Nec mihi sunt vires, nec ferus ensis adest?
At least I may weep; by weeping I pour out my anger,
and over my breast the tears go like a river.
These alone I always have, and always pour out;
my uncared-for cheeks are wet with a perennial spring.
Is it by the destiny of our race, which strays into our own years,
that we, the mothers of Tantalus’ line, are fit plunder?
I will not recount the lie of the river-swan,
nor complain that Jove hid himself in feathers.
Where the outstretched Isthmus keeps two seas far apart,
Hippodamia was carried off on a stranger’s wheels;
and over my breast the tears go like a river.
These alone I always have, and always pour out;
my uncared-for cheeks are wet with a perennial spring.
Is it by the destiny of our race, which strays into our own years,
that we, the mothers of Tantalus’ line, are fit plunder?
I will not recount the lie of the river-swan,
nor complain that Jove hid himself in feathers.
Where the outstretched Isthmus keeps two seas far apart,
Hippodamia was carried off on a stranger’s wheels;
Flere licet certe; flendo defundimus iram,
Perque sinum lacrimae fluminis instar eunt.
Has solas habeo semper semperque profundo;
Ument incultae fonte perenne genae.
Num generis fato, quod nostros errat in annos,
Tantalides matres apta rapina sumus?
Non ego fluminei referam mendacia cygni
Nec querar in plumis delituisse Iovem.
Qua duo porrectus longe freta distinet Isthmos,
Vecta peregrinis Hippodamia rotis;
Perque sinum lacrimae fluminis instar eunt.
Has solas habeo semper semperque profundo;
Ument incultae fonte perenne genae.
Num generis fato, quod nostros errat in annos,
Tantalides matres apta rapina sumus?
Non ego fluminei referam mendacia cygni
Nec querar in plumis delituisse Iovem.
Qua duo porrectus longe freta distinet Isthmos,
Vecta peregrinis Hippodamia rotis;
the Taenarian woman, snatched across the sea by an Idaean guest,
turned the Argive hands to arms on her behalf.
I scarcely remember, yet I remember. All was grief,
all was full of anxious fear;
my grandfather wept, and my aunt Phoebe, and the twin brothers,
Leda prayed to the gods above and to her own Jove.
I myself, tearing my hair, not yet long,
kept crying: ’without me — without me, mother — do you go?’
For my husband was away! Lest I be thought not of Pelops’ line,
behold, I was made ready as booty for Neoptolemus!
turned the Argive hands to arms on her behalf.
I scarcely remember, yet I remember. All was grief,
all was full of anxious fear;
my grandfather wept, and my aunt Phoebe, and the twin brothers,
Leda prayed to the gods above and to her own Jove.
I myself, tearing my hair, not yet long,
kept crying: ’without me — without me, mother — do you go?’
For my husband was away! Lest I be thought not of Pelops’ line,
behold, I was made ready as booty for Neoptolemus!
Taenaris Idaeo trans aequor ab hospite rapta
Argolicas pro se vertit in arma manus.
Vix equidem memini, memini tamen. omnia luctus,
Omnia solliciti plena timoris erant;
Flebat avus Phoebeque soror fratresque gemelli,
Orabat superos Leda suumque Iovem.
Ipsa ego, non longos etiamtunc scissa capillos,
Clamabam: ’sine me, me sine, mater, abis?’
Nam coniunx aberat! ne non Pelopeia credar,
Ecce, Neoptolemo praeda parata fui!
Argolicas pro se vertit in arma manus.
Vix equidem memini, memini tamen. omnia luctus,
Omnia solliciti plena timoris erant;
Flebat avus Phoebeque soror fratresque gemelli,
Orabat superos Leda suumque Iovem.
Ipsa ego, non longos etiamtunc scissa capillos,
Clamabam: ’sine me, me sine, mater, abis?’
Nam coniunx aberat! ne non Pelopeia credar,
Ecce, Neoptolemo praeda parata fui!
Would that the son of Peleus had escaped Apollo’s bow!
The father would condemn his son’s insolent deeds;
neither once did it please, nor now would it have pleased Achilles,
that a husband should weep, widowed, for a wife carried off.
What wrong of mine made the powers of heaven unjust,
that I — alas, wretched me! — should complain that a star stands against me?
As a small child I was without my mother, my father bore arms,
and, though both lived, I was bereft of both.
I brought you no childish endearments, my mother, in my early years,
spoken as a girl with uncertain tongue;
The father would condemn his son’s insolent deeds;
neither once did it please, nor now would it have pleased Achilles,
that a husband should weep, widowed, for a wife carried off.
What wrong of mine made the powers of heaven unjust,
that I — alas, wretched me! — should complain that a star stands against me?
As a small child I was without my mother, my father bore arms,
and, though both lived, I was bereft of both.
I brought you no childish endearments, my mother, in my early years,
spoken as a girl with uncertain tongue;
Pelides utinam vitasset Apollinis arcus!
Damnaret nati facta proterva pater;
Nec quondam placuit nec nunc placuisset Achilli
Abducta viduum coniuge flere virum.
Quae mea caelestis iniuria fecit iniquos,
Quod mihi — vae miserae! — sidus obesse querar?
Parva mea sine matre fui, pater arma ferebat,
Et duo cum vivant, orba duobus eram.
Non tibi blanditias primis, mea mater, in annis
Incerto dictas ore puella tuli;
Damnaret nati facta proterva pater;
Nec quondam placuit nec nunc placuisset Achilli
Abducta viduum coniuge flere virum.
Quae mea caelestis iniuria fecit iniquos,
Quod mihi — vae miserae! — sidus obesse querar?
Parva mea sine matre fui, pater arma ferebat,
Et duo cum vivant, orba duobus eram.
Non tibi blanditias primis, mea mater, in annis
Incerto dictas ore puella tuli;
I did not catch at your neck with little arms,
nor sit, a welcome burden, in your lap.
You had no care of my upbringing, nor, betrothed to a husband,
did I enter a new chamber with my mother making it ready.
I had gone out to meet you on your return — I will confess the truth —
nor was my parent’s face known to me!
Yet I knew that you were Helen, because you were the most beautiful;
you yourself had to ask which was your daughter!
This one part has gone well for me, that Orestes was my husband;
he too, unless he fights for himself, will be taken away.
nor sit, a welcome burden, in your lap.
You had no care of my upbringing, nor, betrothed to a husband,
did I enter a new chamber with my mother making it ready.
I had gone out to meet you on your return — I will confess the truth —
nor was my parent’s face known to me!
Yet I knew that you were Helen, because you were the most beautiful;
you yourself had to ask which was your daughter!
This one part has gone well for me, that Orestes was my husband;
he too, unless he fights for himself, will be taken away.
Non ego captavi brevibus tua colla lacertis
Nec gremio sedi sarcina grata tuo.
Non cultus tibi cura mei, nec pacta marito
Intravi thalamos matre parante novos.
Obvia prodieram reduci tibi — vera fatebor —
Nec facies nobis nota parentis erat!
Te tamen esse Helenen, quod eras pulcherrima, sensi;
Ipsa requirebas, quae tua nata foret!
Pars haec una mihi, coniunx bene cessit Orestes;
Is quoque, ni pro se pugnat, ademptus erit.
Nec gremio sedi sarcina grata tuo.
Non cultus tibi cura mei, nec pacta marito
Intravi thalamos matre parante novos.
Obvia prodieram reduci tibi — vera fatebor —
Nec facies nobis nota parentis erat!
Te tamen esse Helenen, quod eras pulcherrima, sensi;
Ipsa requirebas, quae tua nata foret!
Pars haec una mihi, coniunx bene cessit Orestes;
Is quoque, ni pro se pugnat, ademptus erit.
Pyrrhus holds me captive, his father safely home and victor —
this gift fallen Troy has given me!
Yet when high Titan presses on with his radiant horses,
unhappy, I enjoy a freer kind of misery;
but when night has hidden me, wailing in the chamber and groaning bitterly,
and I have lain down on the mournful bed,
instead of sleep my eyes ply welling tears,
and, as I may, I flee the man as from an enemy.
Often I am numb with my woes and, forgetful of circumstance and place,
unknowing I have touched the Scyrian limbs with my hand,
this gift fallen Troy has given me!
Yet when high Titan presses on with his radiant horses,
unhappy, I enjoy a freer kind of misery;
but when night has hidden me, wailing in the chamber and groaning bitterly,
and I have lain down on the mournful bed,
instead of sleep my eyes ply welling tears,
and, as I may, I flee the man as from an enemy.
Often I am numb with my woes and, forgetful of circumstance and place,
unknowing I have touched the Scyrian limbs with my hand,
Pyrrhus habet captam reduce et victore parente —
Hoc munus nobis diruta Troia dedit!
Cum tamen altus equis Titan radiantibus instant,
Perfruor infelix liberiore malo;
Nox ubi me thalamis ululantem et acerba gementem
Condidit in maesto procubuique toro,
Pro somno lacrimis oculi funguntur obortis,
Quaque licet, fugio sicut ab hoste virum.
Saepe malis stupeo rerumque oblita locique
Ignara tetigi Scyria membra manu,
Hoc munus nobis diruta Troia dedit!
Cum tamen altus equis Titan radiantibus instant,
Perfruor infelix liberiore malo;
Nox ubi me thalamis ululantem et acerba gementem
Condidit in maesto procubuique toro,
Pro somno lacrimis oculi funguntur obortis,
Quaque licet, fugio sicut ab hoste virum.
Saepe malis stupeo rerumque oblita locique
Ignara tetigi Scyria membra manu,
and when I have felt the wrong, I leave the body ill-touched,
and believe I have polluted hands.
Often, instead of the name of Neoptolemus, the name of Orestes
comes out, and I love the slip of the voice as an omen.
By my unhappy race I swear, and by the father of the race,
who shakes the seas, the lands, and his own realms;
by the bones of your father, my uncle, which owe it to you
that they lie bravely avenged beneath the mound —
either I will die before my time and be quenched in my early years,
or I, a daughter of Tantalus, will be the wife of a son of Tantalus!
and believe I have polluted hands.
Often, instead of the name of Neoptolemus, the name of Orestes
comes out, and I love the slip of the voice as an omen.
By my unhappy race I swear, and by the father of the race,
who shakes the seas, the lands, and his own realms;
by the bones of your father, my uncle, which owe it to you
that they lie bravely avenged beneath the mound —
either I will die before my time and be quenched in my early years,
or I, a daughter of Tantalus, will be the wife of a son of Tantalus!
Utque nefas sensi, male corpora tacta relinquo
Et mihi pollutas credor habere manus.
Saepe Neoptolemi pro nomine nomen Orestae
Exit, et errorem vocis ut omen amo.
Per genus infelix iuro generisque parentem,
Qui freta, qui terras et sua regna quatit;
Per patris ossa tui, patrui mihi, quae tibi debent,
Quod se sub tumulo fortiter ulta iacent —
Aut ego praemoriar primoque exstinguar in aevo,
Aut ego Tantalidae Tantalis uxor ero!
Et mihi pollutas credor habere manus.
Saepe Neoptolemi pro nomine nomen Orestae
Exit, et errorem vocis ut omen amo.
Per genus infelix iuro generisque parentem,
Qui freta, qui terras et sua regna quatit;
Per patris ossa tui, patrui mihi, quae tibi debent,
Quod se sub tumulo fortiter ulta iacent —
Aut ego praemoriar primoque exstinguar in aevo,
Aut ego Tantalidae Tantalis uxor ero!
Book 9
I, a letter, am sent to the son of Alceus by your wife, sharer of your mind —
if Deianira is still your wife:
I congratulate you that Oechalia is added to our titles;
I lament that the victor has yielded to the conquered.
A rumor has suddenly reached the Pelasgian cities,
discolored, and not to be owned by your deeds:
that he whom Juno and the boundless chain of labors
never broke has had Iole’s yoke laid on him.
This Eurystheus would wish, this the Thunderer’s sister would wish,
and your stepmother would be glad at the stain upon your life;
if Deianira is still your wife:
I congratulate you that Oechalia is added to our titles;
I lament that the victor has yielded to the conquered.
A rumor has suddenly reached the Pelasgian cities,
discolored, and not to be owned by your deeds:
that he whom Juno and the boundless chain of labors
never broke has had Iole’s yoke laid on him.
This Eurystheus would wish, this the Thunderer’s sister would wish,
and your stepmother would be glad at the stain upon your life;
Mittor ad Alciden a coniuge conscia mentis
Littera, si coniunx Deianira tua est:
Gratulor Oechaliam titulis accedere nostris;
Victorem victae succubuisse queror.
Fama Pelasgiadas subito pervenit in urbes
Decolor et factis infitianda tuis,
Quem numquam Iuno seriesque inmensa laborum
Fregerit, huic Iolen inposuisse iugum.
Hoc velit Eurystheus, velit hoc germana Tonantis,
Laetaque sit vitae labe noverca tuae;
Littera, si coniunx Deianira tua est:
Gratulor Oechaliam titulis accedere nostris;
Victorem victae succubuisse queror.
Fama Pelasgiadas subito pervenit in urbes
Decolor et factis infitianda tuis,
Quem numquam Iuno seriesque inmensa laborum
Fregerit, huic Iolen inposuisse iugum.
Hoc velit Eurystheus, velit hoc germana Tonantis,
Laetaque sit vitae labe noverca tuae;
but not he to whom one short night — if it is believed —
was given, as he labored, that you might be conceived so great.
Venus has harmed you more than Juno: she, by pressing you down,
exalted you; this one holds your neck beneath a lowly foot.
Look at the world made peaceful by your avenging strength,
wherever blue Nereus girdles the broad earth.
To you the peace of the land, to you the safe seas owe themselves;
you have filled both houses of the sun with your services.
The heaven that is to bear you, you yourself once bore;
with Hercules set beneath it, Atlas held up the stars.
was given, as he labored, that you might be conceived so great.
Venus has harmed you more than Juno: she, by pressing you down,
exalted you; this one holds your neck beneath a lowly foot.
Look at the world made peaceful by your avenging strength,
wherever blue Nereus girdles the broad earth.
To you the peace of the land, to you the safe seas owe themselves;
you have filled both houses of the sun with your services.
The heaven that is to bear you, you yourself once bore;
with Hercules set beneath it, Atlas held up the stars.
At non ille, brevis cui nox — si creditur — una
Luctanti, ut tantus conciperere, fuit.
Plus tibi quam Iuno, nocuit Venus: illa premendo
Sustulit, haec humili sub pede colla tenet.
Respice vindicibus pacatum viribus orbem,
Qua latam Nereus caerulus ambit humum.
Se tibi pax terrae, tibi se tuta aequora debent;
Inplesti meritis solis utramque domum.
Quod te laturum est, caelum prius ipse tulisti;
Hercule supposito sidera fulsit Atlans.
Luctanti, ut tantus conciperere, fuit.
Plus tibi quam Iuno, nocuit Venus: illa premendo
Sustulit, haec humili sub pede colla tenet.
Respice vindicibus pacatum viribus orbem,
Qua latam Nereus caerulus ambit humum.
Se tibi pax terrae, tibi se tuta aequora debent;
Inplesti meritis solis utramque domum.
Quod te laturum est, caelum prius ipse tulisti;
Hercule supposito sidera fulsit Atlans.
What have you won but notoriety for your wretched shame,
if you heap a base mark upon your earlier deeds?
Do they tell that you gripped fast the twin serpents,
when, tender in the cradle, you were already worthy of Jove?
You began better than you end; the last yield to the first;
unlike are this man and that boy.
Him whom a thousand beasts, whom the Sthenelean foe,
whom Juno could not conquer, love conquers.
But I am called well-married, because I am named the wife of Hercules,
and have for father-in-law him who thunders on high with swift horses.
if you heap a base mark upon your earlier deeds?
Do they tell that you gripped fast the twin serpents,
when, tender in the cradle, you were already worthy of Jove?
You began better than you end; the last yield to the first;
unlike are this man and that boy.
Him whom a thousand beasts, whom the Sthenelean foe,
whom Juno could not conquer, love conquers.
But I am called well-married, because I am named the wife of Hercules,
and have for father-in-law him who thunders on high with swift horses.
Quid nisi notitia est misero quaesita pudori,
Si cumulas turpi facta priora nota?
Tene ferunt geminos pressisse tenaciter angues,
Cum tener in cunis iam Iove dignus eras?
Coepisti melius quam desinis; ultima primis
Cedunt; dissimiles hic vir et ille puer.
Quem non mille ferae, quem non Stheneleius hostis,
Non potuit Iuno vincere, vincit amor.
At bene nupta feror, quia nominer Herculis uxor,
Sitque socer, rapidis qui tonat altus equis.
Si cumulas turpi facta priora nota?
Tene ferunt geminos pressisse tenaciter angues,
Cum tener in cunis iam Iove dignus eras?
Coepisti melius quam desinis; ultima primis
Cedunt; dissimiles hic vir et ille puer.
Quem non mille ferae, quem non Stheneleius hostis,
Non potuit Iuno vincere, vincit amor.
At bene nupta feror, quia nominer Herculis uxor,
Sitque socer, rapidis qui tonat altus equis.
As ill-matched bullocks come badly to the plow,
so a lesser wife is oppressed by a great husband.
It is no honor but a burden, a show that will hurt the one who bears it;
if you would marry fitly, marry an equal.
My husband is always away, better known to me as a guest than a spouse,
and pursues monsters and dreadful beasts.
I myself, busy with chaste vows in a widowed house,
am tormented lest my husband fall by a hostile foe;
among serpents and boars and greedy lions
I am tossed, and dogs that will fasten with their triple jaws.
so a lesser wife is oppressed by a great husband.
It is no honor but a burden, a show that will hurt the one who bears it;
if you would marry fitly, marry an equal.
My husband is always away, better known to me as a guest than a spouse,
and pursues monsters and dreadful beasts.
I myself, busy with chaste vows in a widowed house,
am tormented lest my husband fall by a hostile foe;
among serpents and boars and greedy lions
I am tossed, and dogs that will fasten with their triple jaws.
Quam male inaequales veniunt ad aratra iuvenci,
Tam premitur magno coniuge nupta minor.
Non honor est sed onus species laesura ferentis;
Siqua voles apte nubere, nube pari.
Vir mihi semper abest, et coniuge notior hospes,
Monstraque terribiles persequiturque feras.
Ipsa domo vidua votis operata pudicis
Torqueor, infesto ne vir ab hoste cadat;
Inter serpentes aprosque avidosque leones
Iactor et haesuros terna per ora canes.
Tam premitur magno coniuge nupta minor.
Non honor est sed onus species laesura ferentis;
Siqua voles apte nubere, nube pari.
Vir mihi semper abest, et coniuge notior hospes,
Monstraque terribiles persequiturque feras.
Ipsa domo vidua votis operata pudicis
Torqueor, infesto ne vir ab hoste cadat;
Inter serpentes aprosque avidosque leones
Iactor et haesuros terna per ora canes.
The entrails of cattle, and the empty phantoms of sleep,
and omens sought in the secret night, disturb me.
Unhappy, I go fowling for the murmurs of uncertain rumor,
and fear falls by doubtful hope, and hope by fear.
My mother is away and complains that she pleased a powerful god,
and neither father Amphitryon nor the boy Hyllus is here;
Eurystheus the taskmaster, by the cunning of unjust Juno,
is felt by us, and the goddess’s long anger.
Is it too little for me to bear these things? You add foreign loves,
and any woman can become a mother by you.
and omens sought in the secret night, disturb me.
Unhappy, I go fowling for the murmurs of uncertain rumor,
and fear falls by doubtful hope, and hope by fear.
My mother is away and complains that she pleased a powerful god,
and neither father Amphitryon nor the boy Hyllus is here;
Eurystheus the taskmaster, by the cunning of unjust Juno,
is felt by us, and the goddess’s long anger.
Is it too little for me to bear these things? You add foreign loves,
and any woman can become a mother by you.
Me pecudum fibrae simulacraque inania somni
Ominaque arcana nocte petita movent.
Aucupor infelix incertae murmura famae,
Speque timor dubia spesque timore cadit.
Mater abest queriturque deo placuisse potenti,
Nec pater Amphitryon nec puer Hyllus adest;
Arbiter Eurystheus astu Iunonis iniquae
Sentitur nobis iraque longa deae.
Haec mihi ferre parum? peregrinos addis amores,
Et mater de te quaelibet esse potest.
Ominaque arcana nocte petita movent.
Aucupor infelix incertae murmura famae,
Speque timor dubia spesque timore cadit.
Mater abest queriturque deo placuisse potenti,
Nec pater Amphitryon nec puer Hyllus adest;
Arbiter Eurystheus astu Iunonis iniquae
Sentitur nobis iraque longa deae.
Haec mihi ferre parum? peregrinos addis amores,
Et mater de te quaelibet esse potest.
I will not recount Auge, ravished in the vales of Parthenius,
nor your offspring, nymph of Ormenus;
nor shall the sisters be your reproach, throng of Teuthras,
of whose company not one was left untouched by you.
One adultery, a recent crime, will be charged to you by me,
whence I am made a stepmother to Lydian Lamus.
Maeander, so often a wanderer in the same lands,
who often twists his weary waters back upon themselves,
saw necklaces hung on the neck of Hercules,
that neck to which the sky was a small burden.
nor your offspring, nymph of Ormenus;
nor shall the sisters be your reproach, throng of Teuthras,
of whose company not one was left untouched by you.
One adultery, a recent crime, will be charged to you by me,
whence I am made a stepmother to Lydian Lamus.
Maeander, so often a wanderer in the same lands,
who often twists his weary waters back upon themselves,
saw necklaces hung on the neck of Hercules,
that neck to which the sky was a small burden.
Non ego Partheniis temeratam vallibus Augen,
Nec referam partus, Ormeni nympha, tuos;
Non tibi crimen erunt, Teuthrantia turba, sorores,
Quarum de populo nulla relicta tibi est.
Una, recens crimen, referetur adultera nobis,
Unde ego sum Lydo facta noverca Lamo.
Maeandros, terris totiens errator in isdem,
Qui lassas in se saepe retorquet aquas,
Vidit in Herculeo suspensa monilia collo
Illo, cui caelum sarcina parva fuit.
Nec referam partus, Ormeni nympha, tuos;
Non tibi crimen erunt, Teuthrantia turba, sorores,
Quarum de populo nulla relicta tibi est.
Una, recens crimen, referetur adultera nobis,
Unde ego sum Lydo facta noverca Lamo.
Maeandros, terris totiens errator in isdem,
Qui lassas in se saepe retorquet aquas,
Vidit in Herculeo suspensa monilia collo
Illo, cui caelum sarcina parva fuit.
Were you not ashamed to bind your strong arms with gold,
and to set jewels against those solid muscles?
Yes, beneath those arms the Nemean pest gave up its life,
from which your left shoulder has its covering!
You dared to bind your shaggy hair with a turban!
The white poplar is fitter for Hercules’ hair.
And do you not think it disgraced you to be girt with a Maeonian sash,
in the manner of a wanton girl?
Does the image of cruel Diomedes not come to your mind,
the savage who fed his mares on a banquet of men?
and to set jewels against those solid muscles?
Yes, beneath those arms the Nemean pest gave up its life,
from which your left shoulder has its covering!
You dared to bind your shaggy hair with a turban!
The white poplar is fitter for Hercules’ hair.
And do you not think it disgraced you to be girt with a Maeonian sash,
in the manner of a wanton girl?
Does the image of cruel Diomedes not come to your mind,
the savage who fed his mares on a banquet of men?
Non puduit fortis auro cohibere lacertos,
Et solidis gemmas opposuisse toris?
Nempe sub his animam pestis Nemeaea lacertis
Edidit, unde umerus tegmina laevus habet!
Ausus es hirsutos mitra redimire capillos!
Aptior Herculeae populus alba comae.
Nec te Maeonia lascivae more puellae
Incingi zona dedecuisse putas?
Non tibi succurrit crudi Diomedis imago,
Efferus humana qui dape pavit equas?
Et solidis gemmas opposuisse toris?
Nempe sub his animam pestis Nemeaea lacertis
Edidit, unde umerus tegmina laevus habet!
Ausus es hirsutos mitra redimire capillos!
Aptior Herculeae populus alba comae.
Nec te Maeonia lascivae more puellae
Incingi zona dedecuisse putas?
Non tibi succurrit crudi Diomedis imago,
Efferus humana qui dape pavit equas?
If Busiris had seen you in that dress,
surely you, the victor, would have shamed him, the vanquished.
Let Antaeus strip the ribbons from that hard neck,
lest he be ashamed to have fallen beneath a soft man.
Among the Ionian girls you are said to have held a wool-basket,
and to have quailed at your mistress’s threats.
Do you not shrink, son of Alceus, from setting the hand
victorious in a thousand labors on the smooth wool-baskets,
and drawing out coarse threads with your sturdy thumb,
and weighing back equal portions to your notorious mistress?
surely you, the victor, would have shamed him, the vanquished.
Let Antaeus strip the ribbons from that hard neck,
lest he be ashamed to have fallen beneath a soft man.
Among the Ionian girls you are said to have held a wool-basket,
and to have quailed at your mistress’s threats.
Do you not shrink, son of Alceus, from setting the hand
victorious in a thousand labors on the smooth wool-baskets,
and drawing out coarse threads with your sturdy thumb,
and weighing back equal portions to your notorious mistress?
Si te vidisset cultu Busiris in isto,
Huic victor victo nempe pudendus eras.
Detrahat Antaeus duro redimicula collo,
Ne pigeat molli succubuisse viro.
Inter Ioniacas calathum tenuisse puellas
Diceris et dominae pertimuisse minas.
Non fugis, Alcide, victricem mille laborum
Rasilibus calathis inposuisse manum,
Crassaque robusto deducis pollice fila,
Aequaque famosae pensa rependis erae?
Huic victor victo nempe pudendus eras.
Detrahat Antaeus duro redimicula collo,
Ne pigeat molli succubuisse viro.
Inter Ioniacas calathum tenuisse puellas
Diceris et dominae pertimuisse minas.
Non fugis, Alcide, victricem mille laborum
Rasilibus calathis inposuisse manum,
Crassaque robusto deducis pollice fila,
Aequaque famosae pensa rependis erae?
Ah, how often, while you twist the threads with hard fingers,
your too-mighty hands have crushed the spindles!
Before your mistress’s feet you would sit,
and tell the deeds you ought to have hidden —
how, namely, the throats crushed, the monstrous water-snakes
wrapped your infant hand with their coils,
how the Tegean boar on cypress-bearing Erymanthus
lies, and bruises the ground with its huge weight.
Not the faces fixed on the Thracian doors are passed over by you,
nor the mares fat with the slaughter of men;
your too-mighty hands have crushed the spindles!
Before your mistress’s feet you would sit,
and tell the deeds you ought to have hidden —
how, namely, the throats crushed, the monstrous water-snakes
wrapped your infant hand with their coils,
how the Tegean boar on cypress-bearing Erymanthus
lies, and bruises the ground with its huge weight.
Not the faces fixed on the Thracian doors are passed over by you,
nor the mares fat with the slaughter of men;
A, quotiens digitis dum torques stamina duris,
Praevalidae fusos conminuere manus!
Ante pedes dominae
Factaque narrabas dissimulanda tibi —
Scilicet inmanes elisis faucibus hydros
Infantem caudis involuisse manum,
Ut Tegeaeus aper cupressifero Erymantho
Incubet et vasto pondere laedat humum.
Non tibi Threiciis adfixa penatibus ora,
Non hominum pingues caede tacentur equae;
Praevalidae fusos conminuere manus!
Ante pedes dominae
Factaque narrabas dissimulanda tibi —
Scilicet inmanes elisis faucibus hydros
Infantem caudis involuisse manum,
Ut Tegeaeus aper cupressifero Erymantho
Incubet et vasto pondere laedat humum.
Non tibi Threiciis adfixa penatibus ora,
Non hominum pingues caede tacentur equae;
and the triple prodigy, Geryon rich in Iberian cattle,
though in three bodies he was one;
and Cerberus, parted from one trunk into as many dogs,
his hair menacing with entwined snake;
and the serpent that teemed again from a fertile wound,
fruitful, and grown rich from its own losses;
and the one that hung, a heavy burden, between your left side
and left arm, its throat squeezed shut;
and the mounted host, ill-trusting in its feet and its double form,
driven from the Thessalian ridges.
though in three bodies he was one;
and Cerberus, parted from one trunk into as many dogs,
his hair menacing with entwined snake;
and the serpent that teemed again from a fertile wound,
fruitful, and grown rich from its own losses;
and the one that hung, a heavy burden, between your left side
and left arm, its throat squeezed shut;
and the mounted host, ill-trusting in its feet and its double form,
driven from the Thessalian ridges.
Prodigiumque triplex, armenti dives Hiberi
Geryones, quamvis in tribus unus erat;
Inque canes totidem trunco digestus ab uno
Cerberos inplicitis angue minante comis;
Quaeque redundabat fecundo vulnere serpens
Fertilis et damnis dives ab ipsa suis;
Quique inter laevumque latus laevumque lacertum
Praegrave conpressa fauce pependit onus;
Et male confisum pedibus formaque bimembri
Pulsum Thessalicis agmen equestre iugis.
Geryones, quamvis in tribus unus erat;
Inque canes totidem trunco digestus ab uno
Cerberos inplicitis angue minante comis;
Quaeque redundabat fecundo vulnere serpens
Fertilis et damnis dives ab ipsa suis;
Quique inter laevumque latus laevumque lacertum
Praegrave conpressa fauce pependit onus;
Et male confisum pedibus formaque bimembri
Pulsum Thessalicis agmen equestre iugis.
Can you tell these things, decked out in a Sidonian cloak?
Does your tongue, checked by such finery, not fall silent?
The nymph, daughter of Iardanus, decked herself too in your arms,
and bore off famous trophies from her captive man.
Go now, lift up your spirit and recount your brave deeds;
by right she was the man that you were not.
By so much are you less than she, as it was a greater thing,
greatest of beings, to conquer you than those whom you conquered.
To her passes the measure of your achievements —
yield up your goods; your mistress is the heir of your glory.
Does your tongue, checked by such finery, not fall silent?
The nymph, daughter of Iardanus, decked herself too in your arms,
and bore off famous trophies from her captive man.
Go now, lift up your spirit and recount your brave deeds;
by right she was the man that you were not.
By so much are you less than she, as it was a greater thing,
greatest of beings, to conquer you than those whom you conquered.
To her passes the measure of your achievements —
yield up your goods; your mistress is the heir of your glory.
Haec tu Sidonio potes insignitus amictu
Dicere? non cultu lingua retenta silet?
Se quoque nympha tuis ornavit Iardanis armis
Et tulit a capto nota tropaea viro.
I nunc, tolle animos et fortia gesta recense;
Quo tu non esses, iure vir illa fuit.
Qua tanto minor es, quanto te, maxime rerum,
Quam quos vicisti, vincere maius erat.
Illi procedit rerum mensura tuarum —
Cede bonis; heres laudis amica tuae.
Dicere? non cultu lingua retenta silet?
Se quoque nympha tuis ornavit Iardanis armis
Et tulit a capto nota tropaea viro.
I nunc, tolle animos et fortia gesta recense;
Quo tu non esses, iure vir illa fuit.
Qua tanto minor es, quanto te, maxime rerum,
Quam quos vicisti, vincere maius erat.
Illi procedit rerum mensura tuarum —
Cede bonis; heres laudis amica tuae.
O shame! the rough pelt stripped from the shaggy lion’s ribs
has covered her soft side!
You are deceived and do not know — that is no spoil of the lion,
but yours, and you are the conqueror of the beast, she of you.
A woman has carried the darts black with Lernaean poisons,
scarcely fit to carry the distaff heavy with wool,
and armed her hand with the club that tames wild beasts,
and looked in the mirror at the arms of my husband!
Yet these things I had only heard; I could refuse to believe the rumor,
and a soft grief came to my senses from the ear —
has covered her soft side!
You are deceived and do not know — that is no spoil of the lion,
but yours, and you are the conqueror of the beast, she of you.
A woman has carried the darts black with Lernaean poisons,
scarcely fit to carry the distaff heavy with wool,
and armed her hand with the club that tames wild beasts,
and looked in the mirror at the arms of my husband!
Yet these things I had only heard; I could refuse to believe the rumor,
and a soft grief came to my senses from the ear —
O pudor! hirsuti costis exuta leonis
Aspera texerunt vellera molle latus!
Falleris et nescis — non sunt spolia illa leonis,
Sed tua, tuque feri victor es, illa tui.
Femina tela tulit Lernaeis atra venenis,
Ferre gravem lana vix satis apta colum,
Instruxitque manum clava domitrice ferarum,
Vidit et in speculo coniugis arma mei!
Haec tamen audieram; licuit non credere famae,
Et venit ad sensus mollis ab aure dolor —
Aspera texerunt vellera molle latus!
Falleris et nescis — non sunt spolia illa leonis,
Sed tua, tuque feri victor es, illa tui.
Femina tela tulit Lernaeis atra venenis,
Ferre gravem lana vix satis apta colum,
Instruxitque manum clava domitrice ferarum,
Vidit et in speculo coniugis arma mei!
Haec tamen audieram; licuit non credere famae,
Et venit ad sensus mollis ab aure dolor —
before my eyes a foreign rival is led in,
nor am I allowed to hide what I suffer!
You do not let me turn away; through the city’s midst the captive
comes, to be looked on by unwilling eyes.
Nor does she come with unkempt hair in the captives’ manner,
confessing her fortune by a fitting face;
she walks abroad conspicuous in broad gold,
just as you too were arrayed in Phrygia.
She gives her face to the people, lofty as if Hercules were conquered;
you would think Oechalia stood, with her father alive.
nor am I allowed to hide what I suffer!
You do not let me turn away; through the city’s midst the captive
comes, to be looked on by unwilling eyes.
Nor does she come with unkempt hair in the captives’ manner,
confessing her fortune by a fitting face;
she walks abroad conspicuous in broad gold,
just as you too were arrayed in Phrygia.
She gives her face to the people, lofty as if Hercules were conquered;
you would think Oechalia stood, with her father alive.
Ante meos oculos adducitur advena paelex,
Nec mihi, quae patior, dissimulare licet!
Non sinis averti; mediam captiva per urbem
Invitis oculis adspicienda venit.
Nec venit incultis captarum more capillis,
Fortunam vultu fassa decente suam;
Ingreditur late lato spectabilis auro,
Qualiter in Phrygia tu quoque cultus eras.
Dat vultum populo sublimis ut Hercule victo;
Oechaliam vivo stare parente putes.
Nec mihi, quae patior, dissimulare licet!
Non sinis averti; mediam captiva per urbem
Invitis oculis adspicienda venit.
Nec venit incultis captarum more capillis,
Fortunam vultu fassa decente suam;
Ingreditur late lato spectabilis auro,
Qualiter in Phrygia tu quoque cultus eras.
Dat vultum populo sublimis ut Hercule victo;
Oechaliam vivo stare parente putes.
Perhaps too, the Aetolian Deianira driven out,
the rival, her name laid by, will be the wife,
and a notorious Hymen will join the shameful bodies
of Eurytus’ daughter Iole and the Aonian son of Alceus.
My mind flees at the thought, and a chill walks through my limbs,
and my hand lies in my lap, grown faint.
Me too, among many, but me you loved without reproach.
Do not regret it — twice I was your cause of battle.
Weeping, Achelous gathered his horn on the wet banks,
and plunged his maimed brow in the muddy water;
the rival, her name laid by, will be the wife,
and a notorious Hymen will join the shameful bodies
of Eurytus’ daughter Iole and the Aonian son of Alceus.
My mind flees at the thought, and a chill walks through my limbs,
and my hand lies in my lap, grown faint.
Me too, among many, but me you loved without reproach.
Do not regret it — twice I was your cause of battle.
Weeping, Achelous gathered his horn on the wet banks,
and plunged his maimed brow in the muddy water;
Forsitan et pulsa Aetolide Deianira
Nomine deposito paelicis uxor erit,
Eurytidosque Ioles atque Aonii Alcidae
Turpia famosus corpora iunget Hymen.
Mens fugit admonitu, frigusque perambulat artus,
Et iacet in gremio languida facta manus.
Me quoque cum multis, sed me sine crimine amasti.
Ne pigeat, pugnae bis tibi causa fui.
Cornua flens legit ripis Achelous in udis
Truncaque limosa tempora mersit aqua;
Nomine deposito paelicis uxor erit,
Eurytidosque Ioles atque Aonii Alcidae
Turpia famosus corpora iunget Hymen.
Mens fugit admonitu, frigusque perambulat artus,
Et iacet in gremio languida facta manus.
Me quoque cum multis, sed me sine crimine amasti.
Ne pigeat, pugnae bis tibi causa fui.
Cornua flens legit ripis Achelous in udis
Truncaque limosa tempora mersit aqua;
the half-man Nessus fell in lotus-bearing Euenus,
and the horse’s blood stained the waters.
But why do I recount these things? As I write, rumor comes as messenger
that my husband is perishing by the corruption of my tunic.
Ah me! what have I done? whither has frenzy driven me, who love?
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
Shall your husband be torn apart in the midst of Oeta,
and you, the cause of so great a crime, survive?
If I still have anything done by which I may be believed
the wife of Hercules, my death shall be the pledge of our marriage!
and the horse’s blood stained the waters.
But why do I recount these things? As I write, rumor comes as messenger
that my husband is perishing by the corruption of my tunic.
Ah me! what have I done? whither has frenzy driven me, who love?
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
Shall your husband be torn apart in the midst of Oeta,
and you, the cause of so great a crime, survive?
If I still have anything done by which I may be believed
the wife of Hercules, my death shall be the pledge of our marriage!
Semivir occubuit in lotifero Eueno
Nessus, et infecit sanguis equinus aquas.
Sed quid ego haec refero? scribenti nuntia venit
Fama, virum tunicae tabe perire meae.
Ei mihi! quid feci? quo me furor egit amantem?
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
An tuus in media coniunx lacerabitur Oeta,
Tu sceleris tanti causa superstes eris?
Siquid adhuc habeo facti, cur Herculis uxor
Credar, coniugii mors mea pignus erit!
Nessus, et infecit sanguis equinus aquas.
Sed quid ego haec refero? scribenti nuntia venit
Fama, virum tunicae tabe perire meae.
Ei mihi! quid feci? quo me furor egit amantem?
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
An tuus in media coniunx lacerabitur Oeta,
Tu sceleris tanti causa superstes eris?
Siquid adhuc habeo facti, cur Herculis uxor
Credar, coniugii mors mea pignus erit!
You too, Meleager, will recognize a sister in me!
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
Alas, accursed house! Agrios sits on the high throne;
a bare old age weighs down forsaken Oeneus.
My brother Tydeus is an exile on unknown shores;
the other was set, alive, in the fatal fire;
my mother drove the steel through her own breast.
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
This one thing I beg, by the most sacred laws of our bed,
that I may not seem to have plotted against your life.
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
Alas, accursed house! Agrios sits on the high throne;
a bare old age weighs down forsaken Oeneus.
My brother Tydeus is an exile on unknown shores;
the other was set, alive, in the fatal fire;
my mother drove the steel through her own breast.
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
This one thing I beg, by the most sacred laws of our bed,
that I may not seem to have plotted against your life.
Tu quoque cognosces in me, Meleagre, sororem!
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
Heu devota domus! solio sedet Agrios alto;
Oenea desertum nuda senecta premit.
Exulat ignotis Tydeus germanus in oris;
Alter fatali vivus in igne situs;
Exegit ferrum sua per praecordia mater.
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
Deprecor hoc unum per iura sacerrima lecti,
Ne videar fatis insidiata tuis.
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
Heu devota domus! solio sedet Agrios alto;
Oenea desertum nuda senecta premit.
Exulat ignotis Tydeus germanus in oris;
Alter fatali vivus in igne situs;
Exegit ferrum sua per praecordia mater.
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
Deprecor hoc unum per iura sacerrima lecti,
Ne videar fatis insidiata tuis.
Nessus, when his greedy breast was struck by the arrow,
said, ’This blood has the power of love.’
I sent you a robe smeared with the poison of Nessus.
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
And now farewell, aged father, and my sister Gorge,
and my country, and my brother taken from his country,
and you, the daylight last today to my eyes,
and husband — but oh, may you live! — and farewell, boy Hyllus!
said, ’This blood has the power of love.’
I sent you a robe smeared with the poison of Nessus.
Wicked Deianira, why do you hesitate to die?
And now farewell, aged father, and my sister Gorge,
and my country, and my brother taken from his country,
and you, the daylight last today to my eyes,
and husband — but oh, may you live! — and farewell, boy Hyllus!
Nessus, ut est avidum percussus harundine pectus,
’Hic,’ dixit, ’vires sanguis amoris habet.’
Inlita Nesseo misi tibi texta veneno.
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
Iamque vale, seniorque pater germanaque Gorge,
Et patria et patriae frater adempte tuae,
Et tu lux oculis hodierna novissima nostris,
Virque — sed o possis! — et puer Hylle, vale!
’Hic,’ dixit, ’vires sanguis amoris habet.’
Inlita Nesseo misi tibi texta veneno.
Inpia quid dubitas Deianira mori?
Iamque vale, seniorque pater germanaque Gorge,
Et patria et patriae frater adempte tuae,
Et tu lux oculis hodierna novissima nostris,
Virque — sed o possis! — et puer Hylle, vale!
Book 10
She whom you left to the beasts, wicked Theseus, even now
lives — and would you have her bear even this with a calm mind?
Every kind of wild beast I have found gentler than you;
entrusted to none could I have fared worse than to you.
What you read, Theseus, I send you from that shore
from which the sails bore off your ship without me,
on which my sleep wickedly betrayed me, and you,
who through a crime laid an ambush against my slumber.
It was the time when the earth is first sprinkled
with glassy frost, and the birds, hidden in the leaves, complain.
lives — and would you have her bear even this with a calm mind?
Every kind of wild beast I have found gentler than you;
entrusted to none could I have fared worse than to you.
What you read, Theseus, I send you from that shore
from which the sails bore off your ship without me,
on which my sleep wickedly betrayed me, and you,
who through a crime laid an ambush against my slumber.
It was the time when the earth is first sprinkled
with glassy frost, and the birds, hidden in the leaves, complain.
Illa relicta feris etiamnunc, improbe Theseu,
Vivit: et haec aequa mente tulisse velis:
Mitius inveni quam te genus omne ferarum;
Credita non ulli quam tibi peius eram.
Quae legis, ex illo, Theseu, tibi litore mitto
Unde tuam sine me vela tulere ratem,
In quo me somnusque meus male prodidit et tu,
Per facinus somnis insidiate meis.
Tempus erat, vitrea quo primum terra pruina
Spargitur et tectae fronde queruntur aves.
Vivit: et haec aequa mente tulisse velis:
Mitius inveni quam te genus omne ferarum;
Credita non ulli quam tibi peius eram.
Quae legis, ex illo, Theseu, tibi litore mitto
Unde tuam sine me vela tulere ratem,
In quo me somnusque meus male prodidit et tu,
Per facinus somnis insidiate meis.
Tempus erat, vitrea quo primum terra pruina
Spargitur et tectae fronde queruntur aves.
Half-waking, and languid with sleep, I moved,
half on my back, my hands to grasp at Theseus —
there was no one! I draw back my hands and try again,
and move my arms over the bed — there was no one!
Fear shook off sleep; terrified, I rise,
and my limbs are flung from the widowed bed.
At once my breast sounded under my striking palms,
and my hair, disordered as it was from sleep, was torn.
There was a moon; I look to see if I can make out anything but shores.
What my eyes might see, they have nothing but the shore.
half on my back, my hands to grasp at Theseus —
there was no one! I draw back my hands and try again,
and move my arms over the bed — there was no one!
Fear shook off sleep; terrified, I rise,
and my limbs are flung from the widowed bed.
At once my breast sounded under my striking palms,
and my hair, disordered as it was from sleep, was torn.
There was a moon; I look to see if I can make out anything but shores.
What my eyes might see, they have nothing but the shore.
Incertum vigilans ac somno languida movi
Thesea prensuras semisupina manus —
Nullus erat! referoque manus iterumque retempto,
Perque torum moveo bracchia — nullus erat!
Excussere metus somnum; conterrita surgo,
Membraque sunt viduo praecipitata toro.
Protinus adductis sonuerunt pectora palmis,
Utque erat e somno turbida, rupta coma est.
Luna fuit; specto, siquid nisi litora cernam.
Quod videant oculi, nil nisi litus habent.
Thesea prensuras semisupina manus —
Nullus erat! referoque manus iterumque retempto,
Perque torum moveo bracchia — nullus erat!
Excussere metus somnum; conterrita surgo,
Membraque sunt viduo praecipitata toro.
Protinus adductis sonuerunt pectora palmis,
Utque erat e somno turbida, rupta coma est.
Luna fuit; specto, siquid nisi litora cernam.
Quod videant oculi, nil nisi litus habent.
Now this way, now that, and to both sides without order, I run;
the deep sand slows my girlish feet.
Meanwhile along the whole shore I cried ’Theseus!’:
the hollow rocks gave back your name,
and as often as I called you, so often the place itself called.
The place itself wished to bring help to the wretched.
There was a hill — sparse bushes show on its top;
from it a crag, gnawed by the hoarse waters, hangs.
I climb — my spirit gave me strength — and so far and wide
I measure the deep waters with my gaze.
the deep sand slows my girlish feet.
Meanwhile along the whole shore I cried ’Theseus!’:
the hollow rocks gave back your name,
and as often as I called you, so often the place itself called.
The place itself wished to bring help to the wretched.
There was a hill — sparse bushes show on its top;
from it a crag, gnawed by the hoarse waters, hangs.
I climb — my spirit gave me strength — and so far and wide
I measure the deep waters with my gaze.
Nunc huc, nunc illuc, et utroque sine ordine, curro;
Alta puellares tardat harena pedes.
Interea toto clamavi in litore ’Theseu!’:
Reddebant nomen concava saxa tuum,
Et quotiens ego te, totiens locus ipse vocabat.
Ipse locus miserae ferre volebat opem.
Mons fuit — apparent frutices in vertice rari;
Hinc scopulus raucis pendet adesus aquis.
Adscendo — vires animus dabat — atque ita late
Aequora prospectu metior alta meo.
Alta puellares tardat harena pedes.
Interea toto clamavi in litore ’Theseu!’:
Reddebant nomen concava saxa tuum,
Et quotiens ego te, totiens locus ipse vocabat.
Ipse locus miserae ferre volebat opem.
Mons fuit — apparent frutices in vertice rari;
Hinc scopulus raucis pendet adesus aquis.
Adscendo — vires animus dabat — atque ita late
Aequora prospectu metior alta meo.
From there I — for I found even the winds cruel —
saw the sails stretched taut by the headlong South wind.
When I saw it — though I would think I did not deserve to have seen it —
I grew colder than ice and half-dead.
Nor does grief let me languish long; by it I am roused,
I am roused and call Theseus at the top of my voice.
’Where do you flee?’ I cry; ’come back, wicked Theseus!
Turn your ship! it does not have its full number!’
So I; what my voice lacked I filled out with beating;
blows were mingled with my words.
saw the sails stretched taut by the headlong South wind.
When I saw it — though I would think I did not deserve to have seen it —
I grew colder than ice and half-dead.
Nor does grief let me languish long; by it I am roused,
I am roused and call Theseus at the top of my voice.
’Where do you flee?’ I cry; ’come back, wicked Theseus!
Turn your ship! it does not have its full number!’
So I; what my voice lacked I filled out with beating;
blows were mingled with my words.
Inde ego — nam ventis quoque sum crudelibus usa —
Vidi praecipiti carbasa tenta Noto.
Ut vidi haut dignam quae me vidisse putarem,
Frigidior glacie semianimisque fui.
Nec languere diu patitur dolor; excitor illo,
Excitor et summa Thesea voce voco.
’Quo fugis?’ exclamo; ’scelerate revertere Theseu!
Flecte ratem! numerum non habet illa suum!’
Haec ego; quod voci deerat, plangore replebam;
Verbera cum verbis mixta fuere meis.
Vidi praecipiti carbasa tenta Noto.
Ut vidi haut dignam quae me vidisse putarem,
Frigidior glacie semianimisque fui.
Nec languere diu patitur dolor; excitor illo,
Excitor et summa Thesea voce voco.
’Quo fugis?’ exclamo; ’scelerate revertere Theseu!
Flecte ratem! numerum non habet illa suum!’
Haec ego; quod voci deerat, plangore replebam;
Verbera cum verbis mixta fuere meis.
If you could not hear, at least that you might see,
my hands, waved far and wide, gave signs;
and I set white veils on a long rod —
to remind you, no doubt, who had forgotten me!
And now you were snatched from my eyes. Then at last I wept;
my soft cheeks had before been numb with grief.
What better could my eyes do than weep for me,
after I had ceased to see your sails?
Either I wandered alone with hair flung loose,
like a Bacchante stirred by the Ogygian god,
my hands, waved far and wide, gave signs;
and I set white veils on a long rod —
to remind you, no doubt, who had forgotten me!
And now you were snatched from my eyes. Then at last I wept;
my soft cheeks had before been numb with grief.
What better could my eyes do than weep for me,
after I had ceased to see your sails?
Either I wandered alone with hair flung loose,
like a Bacchante stirred by the Ogygian god,
Si non audires, ut saltem cernere posses,
Iactatae late signa dedere manus;
Candidaque inposui longae velamina virgae —
Scilicet oblitos admonitura mei!
Iamque oculis ereptus eras. tum denique flevi;
Torpuerant molles ante dolore genae.
Quid potius facerent, quam me mea lumina flerent,
Postquam desieram vela videre tua?
Aut ego diffusis erravi sola capillis,
Qualis ab Ogygio concita Baccha deo,
Iactatae late signa dedere manus;
Candidaque inposui longae velamina virgae —
Scilicet oblitos admonitura mei!
Iamque oculis ereptus eras. tum denique flevi;
Torpuerant molles ante dolore genae.
Quid potius facerent, quam me mea lumina flerent,
Postquam desieram vela videre tua?
Aut ego diffusis erravi sola capillis,
Qualis ab Ogygio concita Baccha deo,
or, gazing out on the sea, I sat cold upon a rock,
and as much stone as my seat was, so much stone was I myself.
Often I go back to the bed that had received us both,
but was not to show us both again,
and I touch your traces — what I can, in your stead —
and the covers that grew warm with your limbs.
I lie down, and with my tears streaming over the soaked bed,
’Two of us,’ I cry, ’pressed you — give back the two!
We came here both; why do we not depart both?
Faithless little bed, where is the greater part of us?’
and as much stone as my seat was, so much stone was I myself.
Often I go back to the bed that had received us both,
but was not to show us both again,
and I touch your traces — what I can, in your stead —
and the covers that grew warm with your limbs.
I lie down, and with my tears streaming over the soaked bed,
’Two of us,’ I cry, ’pressed you — give back the two!
We came here both; why do we not depart both?
Faithless little bed, where is the greater part of us?’
Aut mare prospiciens in saxo frigida sedi,
Quamque lapis sedes, tam lapis ipsa fui.
Saepe torum repeto, qui nos acceperat ambos,
Sed non acceptos exhibiturus erat,
Et tua, quae possum pro te, vestigia tango
Strataque quae membris intepuere tuis.
Incumbo, lacrimisque toro manante profusis,
’Pressimus,’ exclamo, ’te duo — redde duos!
Venimus huc ambo; cur non discedimus ambo?
Perfide, pars nostri, lectule, maior ubi est?’
Quamque lapis sedes, tam lapis ipsa fui.
Saepe torum repeto, qui nos acceperat ambos,
Sed non acceptos exhibiturus erat,
Et tua, quae possum pro te, vestigia tango
Strataque quae membris intepuere tuis.
Incumbo, lacrimisque toro manante profusis,
’Pressimus,’ exclamo, ’te duo — redde duos!
Venimus huc ambo; cur non discedimus ambo?
Perfide, pars nostri, lectule, maior ubi est?’
What shall I do? where shall I take myself, alone? the island lies untilled.
I see no works of men, none of oxen.
Sea girds every side of the land; nowhere a sailor,
no ship to go upon the uncertain ways.
Suppose companions and winds and a ship were given me —
what should I make for? my father’s land denies me approach.
Though I glide on a lucky ship over the calmed seas,
though Aeolus rein the winds — I shall be an exile!
I shall not look on you, Crete, parted among a hundred cities,
land known to the boy Jove,
I see no works of men, none of oxen.
Sea girds every side of the land; nowhere a sailor,
no ship to go upon the uncertain ways.
Suppose companions and winds and a ship were given me —
what should I make for? my father’s land denies me approach.
Though I glide on a lucky ship over the calmed seas,
though Aeolus rein the winds — I shall be an exile!
I shall not look on you, Crete, parted among a hundred cities,
land known to the boy Jove,
Quid faciam? quo sola ferar? vacat insula cultu.
Non hominum video, non ego facta boum.
Omne latus terrae cingit mare; navita nusquam,
Nulla per ambiguas puppis itura vias.
Finge dari comitesque mihi ventosque ratemque —
Quid sequar? accessus terra paterna negat.
Ut rate felici pacata per aequora labar,
Temperet ut ventos Aeolus — exul ero!
Non ego te, Crete centum digesta per urbes,
Adspiciam, puero cognita terra Iovi,
Non hominum video, non ego facta boum.
Omne latus terrae cingit mare; navita nusquam,
Nulla per ambiguas puppis itura vias.
Finge dari comitesque mihi ventosque ratemque —
Quid sequar? accessus terra paterna negat.
Ut rate felici pacata per aequora labar,
Temperet ut ventos Aeolus — exul ero!
Non ego te, Crete centum digesta per urbes,
Adspiciam, puero cognita terra Iovi,
since my father, and the land ruled by a just parent —
names dear to me — were betrayed by my deed.
When, lest you, victorious, should die in the winding house,
I gave you threads to guide your steps in a guide’s stead,
then you said to me: ’I swear by these very perils,
that you shall be mine while both of us live.’
We live, and I am not yours, Theseus — if she lives at all,
a woman buried by the fraud of a perjured man.
Me too you should have struck, wicked one, with the club
with which you killed my brother; then the faith you gave would have been discharged by my death.
names dear to me — were betrayed by my deed.
When, lest you, victorious, should die in the winding house,
I gave you threads to guide your steps in a guide’s stead,
then you said to me: ’I swear by these very perils,
that you shall be mine while both of us live.’
We live, and I am not yours, Theseus — if she lives at all,
a woman buried by the fraud of a perjured man.
Me too you should have struck, wicked one, with the club
with which you killed my brother; then the faith you gave would have been discharged by my death.
Ut pater et tellus iusto regnata parenti
Prodita sunt facto, nomina cara, meo.
Cum tibi, ne victor tecto morerere recurvo,
Quae regerent passus, pro duce fila dedi,
Tum mihi dicebas: ’per ego ipsa pericula iuro,
Te fore, dum nostrum vivet uterque, meam.’
Vivimus, et non sum, Theseu, tua — si modo vivit
Femina periuri fraude sepulta viri.
Me quoque, qua fratrem mactasses, inprobe, clava;
Esset, quam dederas, morte soluta fides.
Prodita sunt facto, nomina cara, meo.
Cum tibi, ne victor tecto morerere recurvo,
Quae regerent passus, pro duce fila dedi,
Tum mihi dicebas: ’per ego ipsa pericula iuro,
Te fore, dum nostrum vivet uterque, meam.’
Vivimus, et non sum, Theseu, tua — si modo vivit
Femina periuri fraude sepulta viri.
Me quoque, qua fratrem mactasses, inprobe, clava;
Esset, quam dederas, morte soluta fides.
Now I recall not only what I am to suffer,
but whatever any abandoned woman can suffer:
a thousand shapes of perishing come to my mind,
and death holds less of pain than the delay of death.
Now, now I suspect that, from this side or that, will come
wolves to tear my flesh with greedy tooth.
Who knows whether this land breeds tawny lions too?
Perhaps the island holds savage tigers as well.
And the straits are said to cast up great seals!
Who forbids swords too to go through my side?
but whatever any abandoned woman can suffer:
a thousand shapes of perishing come to my mind,
and death holds less of pain than the delay of death.
Now, now I suspect that, from this side or that, will come
wolves to tear my flesh with greedy tooth.
Who knows whether this land breeds tawny lions too?
Perhaps the island holds savage tigers as well.
And the straits are said to cast up great seals!
Who forbids swords too to go through my side?
Nunc ego non tantum, quae sum passura, recordor,
Et quaecumque potest ulla relicta pati:
Occurrunt animo pereundi mille figurae,
Morsque minus poenae quam mora mortis habet.
Iam iam venturos aut hac aut suspicor illac,
Qui lanient avido viscera dente, lupos.
Quis scit an et fulvos tellus alat ista leones?
Forsitan et saevas tigridas insula habet.
Et freta dicuntur magnas expellere phocas!
Quis vetat et gladios per latus ire meum?
Et quaecumque potest ulla relicta pati:
Occurrunt animo pereundi mille figurae,
Morsque minus poenae quam mora mortis habet.
Iam iam venturos aut hac aut suspicor illac,
Qui lanient avido viscera dente, lupos.
Quis scit an et fulvos tellus alat ista leones?
Forsitan et saevas tigridas insula habet.
Et freta dicuntur magnas expellere phocas!
Quis vetat et gladios per latus ire meum?
Only let me not be bound, a captive, by a hard chain,
nor draw great portions of wool with a slave’s hand —
I, whose father is Minos, whose mother is the daughter of Phoebus,
and, what I remember more, who was betrothed to you!
If I have looked on sea, on lands, and on the outstretched shores,
many things on land, many on the waters, threaten me.
The sky remained — I fear the images of the gods!
I am left, prey and food for ravening beasts;
or if men dwell and live here, I distrust them —
wronged, I have learned to fear foreign men.
nor draw great portions of wool with a slave’s hand —
I, whose father is Minos, whose mother is the daughter of Phoebus,
and, what I remember more, who was betrothed to you!
If I have looked on sea, on lands, and on the outstretched shores,
many things on land, many on the waters, threaten me.
The sky remained — I fear the images of the gods!
I am left, prey and food for ravening beasts;
or if men dwell and live here, I distrust them —
wronged, I have learned to fear foreign men.
Tantum ne religer dura captiva catena,
Neve traham serva grandia pensa manu,
Cui pater est Minos, cui mater filia Phoebi,
Quodque magis memini, quae tibi pacta fui!
Si mare, si terras porrectaque litora vidi,
Multa mihi terrae, multa minantur aquae.
Caelum restabat — timeo simulacra deorum!
Destitutor rabidis praeda cibusque feris;
Sive colunt habitantque viri, diffidimus illis —
Externos didici laesa timere viros.
Neve traham serva grandia pensa manu,
Cui pater est Minos, cui mater filia Phoebi,
Quodque magis memini, quae tibi pacta fui!
Si mare, si terras porrectaque litora vidi,
Multa mihi terrae, multa minantur aquae.
Caelum restabat — timeo simulacra deorum!
Destitutor rabidis praeda cibusque feris;
Sive colunt habitantque viri, diffidimus illis —
Externos didici laesa timere viros.
Would that Androgeos lived! and that you had not paid for your impious
deeds, land of Cecrops, with your own dead;
nor would your uplifted right hand, Theseus, have slain with a knotted club
the creature part man, part bull;
nor would I have given you the threads to show your way back,
threads drawn back again through your gathering hands.
I do not wonder, indeed, that victory stands with you,
and that the monster, laid low, beat the Cretan ground.
Your iron heart could not be pierced by the horn;
even had you no shield, you were safe in your breast.
deeds, land of Cecrops, with your own dead;
nor would your uplifted right hand, Theseus, have slain with a knotted club
the creature part man, part bull;
nor would I have given you the threads to show your way back,
threads drawn back again through your gathering hands.
I do not wonder, indeed, that victory stands with you,
and that the monster, laid low, beat the Cretan ground.
Your iron heart could not be pierced by the horn;
even had you no shield, you were safe in your breast.
Viveret Androgeos utinam! nec facta luisses
Inpia funeribus, Cecropi terra, tuis;
Nec tua mactasset nodoso stipite, Theseu,
Ardua parte virum dextera, parte bovem;
Nec tibi, quae reditus monstrarent, fila dedissem,
Fila per adductas saepe recepta manus.
Non equidem miror, si stat victoria tecum,
Strataque Cretaeam belua planxit humum.
Non poterant figi praecordia ferrea cornu;
Ut te non tegeres, pectore tutus eras.
Inpia funeribus, Cecropi terra, tuis;
Nec tua mactasset nodoso stipite, Theseu,
Ardua parte virum dextera, parte bovem;
Nec tibi, quae reditus monstrarent, fila dedissem,
Fila per adductas saepe recepta manus.
Non equidem miror, si stat victoria tecum,
Strataque Cretaeam belua planxit humum.
Non poterant figi praecordia ferrea cornu;
Ut te non tegeres, pectore tutus eras.
There you carried flint, there you carried adamant,
there you have a Theseus to outdo the flint.
Cruel sleep, why did you hold me helpless?
Or I should have been pressed once for all by eternal night.
You too are cruel, winds, and too ready,
and breezes too dutiful toward my tears.
Cruel the right hand that killed my brother and me,
and the faith given when I asked it — an empty word!
Against me sleep and wind and faith have conspired;
I, one girl, was betrayed by three causes!
there you have a Theseus to outdo the flint.
Cruel sleep, why did you hold me helpless?
Or I should have been pressed once for all by eternal night.
You too are cruel, winds, and too ready,
and breezes too dutiful toward my tears.
Cruel the right hand that killed my brother and me,
and the faith given when I asked it — an empty word!
Against me sleep and wind and faith have conspired;
I, one girl, was betrayed by three causes!
Illic tu silices, illic adamanta tulisti,
Illic, qui silices, Thesea, vincat, habes.
Crudeles somni, quid me tenuistis inertem?
Aut semel aeterna nocte premenda fui.
Vos quoque crudeles, venti, nimiumque parati
Flaminaque in lacrimas officiosa meas.
Dextera crudelis, quae me fratremque necavit,
Et data poscenti, nomen inane, fides!
In me iurarunt somnus ventusque fidesque;
Prodita sum causis una puella tribus!
Illic, qui silices, Thesea, vincat, habes.
Crudeles somni, quid me tenuistis inertem?
Aut semel aeterna nocte premenda fui.
Vos quoque crudeles, venti, nimiumque parati
Flaminaque in lacrimas officiosa meas.
Dextera crudelis, quae me fratremque necavit,
Et data poscenti, nomen inane, fides!
In me iurarunt somnus ventusque fidesque;
Prodita sum causis una puella tribus!
So then, dying, I shall not see my mother’s tears,
nor will there be one to close my eyes with his fingers?
Will my unhappy breath go out into foreign airs,
and no friendly hand anoint my laid-out limbs?
Will the sea-birds stand over my unburied bones?
Is this the tomb my services deserve?
You will go to the harbors of Cecrops and, received in your country,
when you have stood high before the face of your throng
and told well the death of the bull-and-man,
and the stone house cut through by uncertain ways,
nor will there be one to close my eyes with his fingers?
Will my unhappy breath go out into foreign airs,
and no friendly hand anoint my laid-out limbs?
Will the sea-birds stand over my unburied bones?
Is this the tomb my services deserve?
You will go to the harbors of Cecrops and, received in your country,
when you have stood high before the face of your throng
and told well the death of the bull-and-man,
and the stone house cut through by uncertain ways,
Ergo ego nec lacrimas matris moritura videbo,
Nec, mea qui digitis lumina condat, erit?
Spiritus infelix peregrinas ibit in auras,
Nec positos artus unguet amica manus?
Ossa superstabunt volucres inhumata marinae?
Haec sunt officiis digna sepulcra meis?
Ibis Cecropios portus patriaque receptus,
Cum steteris turbae celsus in ore tuae
Et bene narraris letum taurique virique
Sectaque per dubias saxea tecta vias,
Nec, mea qui digitis lumina condat, erit?
Spiritus infelix peregrinas ibit in auras,
Nec positos artus unguet amica manus?
Ossa superstabunt volucres inhumata marinae?
Haec sunt officiis digna sepulcra meis?
Ibis Cecropios portus patriaque receptus,
Cum steteris turbae celsus in ore tuae
Et bene narraris letum taurique virique
Sectaque per dubias saxea tecta vias,
tell too of me, left on a lonely land!
I am not to be stolen away from your titles.
Aegeus is not your father, nor are you the son of Aethra,
daughter of Pittheus; the rocks and the sea begot you!
Would the gods had made you see me from the top of your stern;
my sad form would have moved your face!
Now too, not with your eyes, but, as you can, see with your mind
one clinging to a crag that the wandering water beats.
See the hair let down in the mourner’s manner,
and the tunic heavy with tears as if with rain.
I am not to be stolen away from your titles.
Aegeus is not your father, nor are you the son of Aethra,
daughter of Pittheus; the rocks and the sea begot you!
Would the gods had made you see me from the top of your stern;
my sad form would have moved your face!
Now too, not with your eyes, but, as you can, see with your mind
one clinging to a crag that the wandering water beats.
See the hair let down in the mourner’s manner,
and the tunic heavy with tears as if with rain.
Me quoque narrato sola tellure relictam!
Non ego sum titulis subripienda tuis.
Nec pater est Aegeus, nec tu Pittheidos Aethrae
Filius; auctores saxa fretumque tui!
Di facerent, ut me summa de puppe videres;
Movisset vultus maesta figura tuos!
Nunc quoque non oculis, sed, qua potes, adspice mente
Haerentem scopulo, quem vaga pulsat aqua.
Adspice demissos lugentis more capillos
Et tunicas lacrimis sicut ab imbre gravis.
Non ego sum titulis subripienda tuis.
Nec pater est Aegeus, nec tu Pittheidos Aethrae
Filius; auctores saxa fretumque tui!
Di facerent, ut me summa de puppe videres;
Movisset vultus maesta figura tuos!
Nunc quoque non oculis, sed, qua potes, adspice mente
Haerentem scopulo, quem vaga pulsat aqua.
Adspice demissos lugentis more capillos
Et tunicas lacrimis sicut ab imbre gravis.
My body shivers, like crops driven by the north winds,
and the letter, pressed by a trembling finger, falters.
I do not entreat you by my service, since it turned out ill;
let no gratitude be owed for my deed.
But neither let there be punishment! if I am not the cause of your safety,
yet there is no reason that you should be the cause of my death.
These hands, worn out with beating my mournful breast,
unhappy, I stretch out to you across the wide seas;
these locks — what remain of them — in grief I show you!
By the tears your deeds set flowing I pray —
and the letter, pressed by a trembling finger, falters.
I do not entreat you by my service, since it turned out ill;
let no gratitude be owed for my deed.
But neither let there be punishment! if I am not the cause of your safety,
yet there is no reason that you should be the cause of my death.
These hands, worn out with beating my mournful breast,
unhappy, I stretch out to you across the wide seas;
these locks — what remain of them — in grief I show you!
By the tears your deeds set flowing I pray —
Corpus, ut inpulsae segetes aquilonibus, horret,
Litteraque articulo pressa tremente labat.
Non te per meritum, quoniam male cessit, adoro;
Debita sit facto gratia nulla meo.
Sed ne poena quidem! si non ego causa salutis,
Non tamen est, cur sis tu mihi causa necis.
Has tibi plangendo lugubria pectora lassas
Infelix tendo trans freta lata manus;
Hos tibi — qui superant — ostendo maesta capillos!
Per lacrimas oro, quas tua facta movent —
Litteraque articulo pressa tremente labat.
Non te per meritum, quoniam male cessit, adoro;
Debita sit facto gratia nulla meo.
Sed ne poena quidem! si non ego causa salutis,
Non tamen est, cur sis tu mihi causa necis.
Has tibi plangendo lugubria pectora lassas
Infelix tendo trans freta lata manus;
Hos tibi — qui superant — ostendo maesta capillos!
Per lacrimas oro, quas tua facta movent —
turn your ship, Theseus, and glide back with sail reversed!
If I die first, you will yet carry home my bones!
If I die first, you will yet carry home my bones!
Flecte ratem, Theseu, versoque relabere velo!
Si prius occidero, tu tamen ossa feres!
Si prius occidero, tu tamen ossa feres!
Book 11
The daughter of Aeolus sends to the son of Aeolus the greeting
she herself does not have, and words marked by an armed hand;
if any of the writing wanders in dark blots,
the little book will have been stained by its mistress’s blood.
My right hand holds the pen, the other holds drawn steel,
and the unrolled paper lies in my lap.
This is the image of Aeolus’ daughter writing to her brother;
thus, it seems, I can please my hard father.
I could wish he himself were here, spectator of my death,
and that the deed were carried out before its author’s eyes!
she herself does not have, and words marked by an armed hand;
if any of the writing wanders in dark blots,
the little book will have been stained by its mistress’s blood.
My right hand holds the pen, the other holds drawn steel,
and the unrolled paper lies in my lap.
This is the image of Aeolus’ daughter writing to her brother;
thus, it seems, I can please my hard father.
I could wish he himself were here, spectator of my death,
and that the deed were carried out before its author’s eyes!
Aeolis Aeolidae, quam non habet ipsa, salutem
Mittit et armata verba notata manu;
Siqua tamen caecis errabunt scripta lituris,
Oblitus a dominae caede libellus erit.
Dextra tenet calamum, strictum tenet altera ferrum,
Et iacet in gremio charta soluta meo.
Haec est Aeolidos fratri scribentis imago;
Sic videor duro posse placere patri.
Ipse necis cuperem nostrae spectator adesset,
Auctorisque oculis exigeretur opus!
Mittit et armata verba notata manu;
Siqua tamen caecis errabunt scripta lituris,
Oblitus a dominae caede libellus erit.
Dextra tenet calamum, strictum tenet altera ferrum,
Et iacet in gremio charta soluta meo.
Haec est Aeolidos fratri scribentis imago;
Sic videor duro posse placere patri.
Ipse necis cuperem nostrae spectator adesset,
Auctorisque oculis exigeretur opus!
Savage as he is, and far fiercer than his own East winds,
he would have watched my wounds with dry cheeks.
Surely it is something, to live among the savage winds;
he suits the temper of his own people.
He commands Notus and Zephyr and the Sithonian Aquilo,
and your wings, headlong Eurus.
He commands, alas! the winds, but does not command his swelling anger,
and holds realms smaller than his own vices.
What use is it that, raised to heaven through ancestral names,
I can count Jove among my kin?
he would have watched my wounds with dry cheeks.
Surely it is something, to live among the savage winds;
he suits the temper of his own people.
He commands Notus and Zephyr and the Sithonian Aquilo,
and your wings, headlong Eurus.
He commands, alas! the winds, but does not command his swelling anger,
and holds realms smaller than his own vices.
What use is it that, raised to heaven through ancestral names,
I can count Jove among my kin?
Ut ferus est multoque suis truculentior Euris,
Spectasset siccis vulnera nostra genis.
Scilicet est aliquid, cum saevis vivere ventis;
Ingenio populi convenit ille sui.
Ille Noto Zephyroque et Sithonio Aquiloni
Imperat et pinnis, Eure proterve, tuis.
Imperat heu! ventis, tumidae non imperat irae,
Possidet et vitiis regna minora suis.
Quid iuvat admotam per avorum nomina caelo
Inter cognatos posse referre Iovem?
Spectasset siccis vulnera nostra genis.
Scilicet est aliquid, cum saevis vivere ventis;
Ingenio populi convenit ille sui.
Ille Noto Zephyroque et Sithonio Aquiloni
Imperat et pinnis, Eure proterve, tuis.
Imperat heu! ventis, tumidae non imperat irae,
Possidet et vitiis regna minora suis.
Quid iuvat admotam per avorum nomina caelo
Inter cognatos posse referre Iovem?
Do I any the less hold the deadly steel, a funeral gift,
in a woman’s hand — weapons not my own?
O Macareus, would that the hour which joined us into one
had come later than my death!
Why did you ever love me, brother, more than a brother should,
and why was I to you what a sister ought not to be?
I too caught fire, and such a god as I used to hear of,
some god I felt in my warming heart.
The color had fled my face; leanness had shrunk my limbs;
my mouth, forced, took the smallest food;
in a woman’s hand — weapons not my own?
O Macareus, would that the hour which joined us into one
had come later than my death!
Why did you ever love me, brother, more than a brother should,
and why was I to you what a sister ought not to be?
I too caught fire, and such a god as I used to hear of,
some god I felt in my warming heart.
The color had fled my face; leanness had shrunk my limbs;
my mouth, forced, took the smallest food;
Num minus infestum, funebria munera, ferrum
Feminea teneo, non mea tela, manu?
O utinam, Macareu, quae nos commisit in unum,
Venisset leto serior hora meo!
Cur umquam plus me, frater, quam frater amasti,
Et tibi, non debet quod soror esse, fui?
Ipsa quoque incalui, qualemque audire solebam,
Nescio quem sensi corde tepente deum.
Fugerat ore color; macies adduxerat artus;
Sumebant minimos ora coacta cibos;
Feminea teneo, non mea tela, manu?
O utinam, Macareu, quae nos commisit in unum,
Venisset leto serior hora meo!
Cur umquam plus me, frater, quam frater amasti,
Et tibi, non debet quod soror esse, fui?
Ipsa quoque incalui, qualemque audire solebam,
Nescio quem sensi corde tepente deum.
Fugerat ore color; macies adduxerat artus;
Sumebant minimos ora coacta cibos;
sleep came not easily, and the night was a year long to me,
and I gave groans though hurt by no pain.
Nor could I give myself a reason why I did these things,
nor did I know what a lover was; yet that I was.
My nurse first felt the trouble with her old woman’s mind;
my nurse first said to me, ’Daughter of Aeolus, you are in love!’
I blushed, and shame cast my eyes down to my lap;
these in my silence were signs enough of confession.
And now the weight of my ruined womb was swelling,
and the stolen burden weighed on my sick limbs.
and I gave groans though hurt by no pain.
Nor could I give myself a reason why I did these things,
nor did I know what a lover was; yet that I was.
My nurse first felt the trouble with her old woman’s mind;
my nurse first said to me, ’Daughter of Aeolus, you are in love!’
I blushed, and shame cast my eyes down to my lap;
these in my silence were signs enough of confession.
And now the weight of my ruined womb was swelling,
and the stolen burden weighed on my sick limbs.
Nec somni faciles et nox erat annua nobis,
Et gemitum nullo laesa dolore dabam.
Nec, cur haec facerem, poteram mihi reddere causam
Nec noram, quid amans esset; at illud eram.
Prima malum nutrix animo praesensit anili;
Prima mihi nutrix ’Aeoli,’ dixit, ’amas!’
Erubui, gremioque pudor deiecit ocellos;
Haec satis in tacita signa fatentis erant.
Iamque tumescebant vitiati pondera ventris,
Aegraque furtivum membra gravabat onus.
Et gemitum nullo laesa dolore dabam.
Nec, cur haec facerem, poteram mihi reddere causam
Nec noram, quid amans esset; at illud eram.
Prima malum nutrix animo praesensit anili;
Prima mihi nutrix ’Aeoli,’ dixit, ’amas!’
Erubui, gremioque pudor deiecit ocellos;
Haec satis in tacita signa fatentis erant.
Iamque tumescebant vitiati pondera ventris,
Aegraque furtivum membra gravabat onus.
What herbs, what drugs did my nurse not bring me
and apply with a bold hand,
that the growing burden might be shaken out from deep
within me — this one thing we hid from you?
Ah, too tenacious of life, the infant withstood the arts
brought against it, and was safe from a hidden enemy!
Now nine times had Phoebus’ most beautiful sister risen,
and a new Moon was driving her light-bringing horses.
Not knowing what cause gave me sudden pains,
I was raw for childbirth, and a new recruit.
and apply with a bold hand,
that the growing burden might be shaken out from deep
within me — this one thing we hid from you?
Ah, too tenacious of life, the infant withstood the arts
brought against it, and was safe from a hidden enemy!
Now nine times had Phoebus’ most beautiful sister risen,
and a new Moon was driving her light-bringing horses.
Not knowing what cause gave me sudden pains,
I was raw for childbirth, and a new recruit.
Quas mihi non herbas, quae non medicamina nutrix
Attulit audaci supposuitque manu,
Ut penitus nostris — hoc te celavimus unum —
Visceribus crescens excuteretur onus?
A, nimium vivax admotis restitit infans
Artibus et tecto tutus ab hoste fuit!
Iam noviens erat orta soror pulcherrima Phoebi,
Et nova luciferos Luna movebat equos.
Nescia, quae faceret subitos mihi causa dolores,
Et rudis ad partus et nova miles eram.
Attulit audaci supposuitque manu,
Ut penitus nostris — hoc te celavimus unum —
Visceribus crescens excuteretur onus?
A, nimium vivax admotis restitit infans
Artibus et tecto tutus ab hoste fuit!
Iam noviens erat orta soror pulcherrima Phoebi,
Et nova luciferos Luna movebat equos.
Nescia, quae faceret subitos mihi causa dolores,
Et rudis ad partus et nova miles eram.
Nor did I keep in my cry. ’Why,’ she says, ’do you betray your crimes?’
and the knowing old woman pressed shut the mouth that screamed.
What shall I do, unhappy? pain forces me to utter groans,
but fear and the nurse and shame itself forbid.
I hold in my groans and catch back the words that slip out,
and am forced to drink down my own tears.
Death was before my eyes, and Lucina denied her aid —
and, were I to die, my death too would be a heavy crime —
when, bending over me, your tunic and hair torn,
you warmed my crushed breast again with your own,
and the knowing old woman pressed shut the mouth that screamed.
What shall I do, unhappy? pain forces me to utter groans,
but fear and the nurse and shame itself forbid.
I hold in my groans and catch back the words that slip out,
and am forced to drink down my own tears.
Death was before my eyes, and Lucina denied her aid —
and, were I to die, my death too would be a heavy crime —
when, bending over me, your tunic and hair torn,
you warmed my crushed breast again with your own,
Nec tenui vocem. ’quid,’ ait, ’tua crimina prodis?’
Oraque clamantis conscia pressit anus.
Quid faciam infelix? gemitus dolor edere cogit,
Sed timor et nutrix et pudor ipse vetant.
Contineo gemitus elapsaque verba reprendo
Et cogor lacrimas conbibere ipsa meas.
Mors erat ante oculos, et opem Lucina negabat —
Et grave, si morerer, mors quoque crimen erat —
Cum super incumbens scissa tunicaque comaque
Pressa refovisti pectora nostra tuis,
Oraque clamantis conscia pressit anus.
Quid faciam infelix? gemitus dolor edere cogit,
Sed timor et nutrix et pudor ipse vetant.
Contineo gemitus elapsaque verba reprendo
Et cogor lacrimas conbibere ipsa meas.
Mors erat ante oculos, et opem Lucina negabat —
Et grave, si morerer, mors quoque crimen erat —
Cum super incumbens scissa tunicaque comaque
Pressa refovisti pectora nostra tuis,
and said to me, ’Live, sister, o dearest sister,
live, and do not in one body destroy two!
Let good hope give you strength; for you will be wed to your brother.
You will be the wife of him by whom you are a mother.’
Dead though I was, believe me, yet at your words I revived:
and the crime and burden of my womb was laid down.
Why do you congratulate yourself? Aeolus sits in the middle of his hall;
the crime must be stolen from a father’s eyes.
With grain and branches of the pale olive
and light fillets the busy old woman hides the infant,
live, and do not in one body destroy two!
Let good hope give you strength; for you will be wed to your brother.
You will be the wife of him by whom you are a mother.’
Dead though I was, believe me, yet at your words I revived:
and the crime and burden of my womb was laid down.
Why do you congratulate yourself? Aeolus sits in the middle of his hall;
the crime must be stolen from a father’s eyes.
With grain and branches of the pale olive
and light fillets the busy old woman hides the infant,
Et mihi ’vive, soror, soror o carissima,’ dixti;
’Vive nec unius corpore perde duos!
Spes bona det vires; fratri nam nupta futura es.
Illius, de quo mater, et uxor eris.’
Mortua, crede mihi, tamen ad tua verba revixi:
Et positum est uteri crimen onusque mei.
Quid tibi grataris? media sedet Aeolus aula;
Crimina sunt oculis subripienda patris.
Frugibus infantem ramisque albentis olivae
Et levibus vittis sedula celat anus,
’Vive nec unius corpore perde duos!
Spes bona det vires; fratri nam nupta futura es.
Illius, de quo mater, et uxor eris.’
Mortua, crede mihi, tamen ad tua verba revixi:
Et positum est uteri crimen onusque mei.
Quid tibi grataris? media sedet Aeolus aula;
Crimina sunt oculis subripienda patris.
Frugibus infantem ramisque albentis olivae
Et levibus vittis sedula celat anus,
and performs feigned rites and says words of prayer;
the people give way to the rites, my father himself gives way.
Now she was near the threshold — a wailing came
to the father’s ears, and the child is betrayed by his own evidence!
Aeolus snatches the infant and unmasks the false rites;
the palace rings with his mad voice.
As the sea grows tremulous when grazed by a slight breeze,
as the ash-twig is shaken by the warm South wind,
so you might see my pale limbs quiver;
the bed was shaken by the body laid on it.
the people give way to the rites, my father himself gives way.
Now she was near the threshold — a wailing came
to the father’s ears, and the child is betrayed by his own evidence!
Aeolus snatches the infant and unmasks the false rites;
the palace rings with his mad voice.
As the sea grows tremulous when grazed by a slight breeze,
as the ash-twig is shaken by the warm South wind,
so you might see my pale limbs quiver;
the bed was shaken by the body laid on it.
Fictaque sacra facit dicitque precantia verba;
Dat populus sacris, dat pater ipse viam.
Iam prope limen erat — patrias vagitus ad auris
Venit, et indicio proditur ille suo!
Eripit infantem mentitaque sacra revelat
Aeolus; insana regia voce sonat.
Ut mare fit tremulum, tenui cum stringitur aura,
Ut quatitur tepido fraxina virga Noto,
Sic mea vibrari pallentia membra videres;
Quassus ab inposito corpore lectus erat.
Dat populus sacris, dat pater ipse viam.
Iam prope limen erat — patrias vagitus ad auris
Venit, et indicio proditur ille suo!
Eripit infantem mentitaque sacra revelat
Aeolus; insana regia voce sonat.
Ut mare fit tremulum, tenui cum stringitur aura,
Ut quatitur tepido fraxina virga Noto,
Sic mea vibrari pallentia membra videres;
Quassus ab inposito corpore lectus erat.
He rushes in and publishes my shame with his shouting,
and scarcely keeps his hands from my wretched face.
I myself, in shame, poured forth nothing but tears;
my tongue, held back, had grown numb with cold fear.
And now he had ordered the little grandson given to dogs and birds,
and left out in lonely places.
The poor thing gave a wail — you would think it had understood —
and with what voice it could, it begged its grandfather.
What do you think my mind was then, brother —
for you can gather it from your own heart —
and scarcely keeps his hands from my wretched face.
I myself, in shame, poured forth nothing but tears;
my tongue, held back, had grown numb with cold fear.
And now he had ordered the little grandson given to dogs and birds,
and left out in lonely places.
The poor thing gave a wail — you would think it had understood —
and with what voice it could, it begged its grandfather.
What do you think my mind was then, brother —
for you can gather it from your own heart —
Inruit et nostrum vulgat clamore pudorem,
Et vix a misero continet ore manus.
Ipsa nihil praeter lacrimas pudibunda profudi;
Torpuerat gelido lingua retenta metu.
Iamque dari parvum canibusque avibusque nepotem
Iusserat, in solis destituique locis.
Vagitus dedit ille miser — sensisse putares —
Quaque suum poterat voce rogabat avum.
Quid mihi tunc animi credis, germane, fuisse —
Nam potes ex animo colligere ipse tuo —
Et vix a misero continet ore manus.
Ipsa nihil praeter lacrimas pudibunda profudi;
Torpuerat gelido lingua retenta metu.
Iamque dari parvum canibusque avibusque nepotem
Iusserat, in solis destituique locis.
Vagitus dedit ille miser — sensisse putares —
Quaque suum poterat voce rogabat avum.
Quid mihi tunc animi credis, germane, fuisse —
Nam potes ex animo colligere ipse tuo —
when the enemy, before my eyes, carried off my own flesh
into the high woods, to be eaten by mountain wolves?
He had gone out from the chamber; then at last I could beat my breast
and run my nails over my cheeks.
Meanwhile a guard of my father, with mournful face,
came and uttered shameful words from his mouth:
’Aeolus sends you this sword’ — he handed over the sword —
’and bids you know, from your desert, what it means.’
I know, and I will use the violent sword bravely;
I will bury my father’s gift in my breast.
into the high woods, to be eaten by mountain wolves?
He had gone out from the chamber; then at last I could beat my breast
and run my nails over my cheeks.
Meanwhile a guard of my father, with mournful face,
came and uttered shameful words from his mouth:
’Aeolus sends you this sword’ — he handed over the sword —
’and bids you know, from your desert, what it means.’
I know, and I will use the violent sword bravely;
I will bury my father’s gift in my breast.
Cum mea me coram silvas inimicus in altas
Viscera montanis ferret edenda lupis?
Exierat thalamo; tunc demum pectora plangi
Contigit inque meas unguibus ire genas.
Interea patrius vultu maerente satelles
Venit et indignos edidit ore sonos:
’Aeolus hunc ensem mittit tibi’ — tradidit ensem —
’Et iubet ex merito scire, quid iste velit.’
Scimus, et utemur violento fortiter ense;
Pectoribus condam dona paterna meis.
Viscera montanis ferret edenda lupis?
Exierat thalamo; tunc demum pectora plangi
Contigit inque meas unguibus ire genas.
Interea patrius vultu maerente satelles
Venit et indignos edidit ore sonos:
’Aeolus hunc ensem mittit tibi’ — tradidit ensem —
’Et iubet ex merito scire, quid iste velit.’
Scimus, et utemur violento fortiter ense;
Pectoribus condam dona paterna meis.
With these gifts, father, do you endow my marriage?
With this dowry, father, will your daughter be rich?
Carry far off, deceived Hymenaeus, your marriage-torches,
and flee these accursed halls with hurried foot!
Bring against me the torches you bear, black Furies,
and let my pyre blaze from that fire!
Marry, happy sisters, under a better fate,
yet still be mindful of me who am lost!
What did the boy do, born so few hours ago?
By what deed did he, scarcely well born, wrong his grandfather?
With this dowry, father, will your daughter be rich?
Carry far off, deceived Hymenaeus, your marriage-torches,
and flee these accursed halls with hurried foot!
Bring against me the torches you bear, black Furies,
and let my pyre blaze from that fire!
Marry, happy sisters, under a better fate,
yet still be mindful of me who am lost!
What did the boy do, born so few hours ago?
By what deed did he, scarcely well born, wrong his grandfather?
His mea muneribus, genitor, conubia donas?
Hac tua dote, pater, filia dives erit?
Tolle procul, decepte, faces, Hymenaee, maritas
Et fuge turbato tecta nefanda pede!
Ferte faces in me quas fertis, Erinyes atrae,
Et meus ex isto luceat igne rogus!
Nubite felices Parca meliore sorores,
Amissae memores sed tamen este mei!
Quid puer admisit tam paucis editus horis?
Quo laesit facto vix bene natus avum?
Hac tua dote, pater, filia dives erit?
Tolle procul, decepte, faces, Hymenaee, maritas
Et fuge turbato tecta nefanda pede!
Ferte faces in me quas fertis, Erinyes atrae,
Et meus ex isto luceat igne rogus!
Nubite felices Parca meliore sorores,
Amissae memores sed tamen este mei!
Quid puer admisit tam paucis editus horis?
Quo laesit facto vix bene natus avum?
If he could have deserved death, let him be thought to have deserved it —
ah, the poor thing is punished for my offense!
Son, your mother’s grief, prey of the raging beasts,
ah me! torn to pieces on your birthday;
son, pitiable pledge of a too-ill-starred love —
this was your first day, this was your last.
It was not granted me to drench you with my due tears,
nor to bring shorn locks to your tomb;
I did not lie over you, I did not gather cold kisses.
Greedy beasts tear my own flesh apart.
ah, the poor thing is punished for my offense!
Son, your mother’s grief, prey of the raging beasts,
ah me! torn to pieces on your birthday;
son, pitiable pledge of a too-ill-starred love —
this was your first day, this was your last.
It was not granted me to drench you with my due tears,
nor to bring shorn locks to your tomb;
I did not lie over you, I did not gather cold kisses.
Greedy beasts tear my own flesh apart.
Si potuit meruisse necem, meruisse putetur —
A, miser admisso plectitur ille meo!
Nate, dolor matris, rabidarum praeda ferarum,
Ei mihi! natali dilacerate tuo;
Nate, parum fausti miserabile pignus amoris —
Haec tibi prima dies, haec tibi summa fuit.
Non mihi te licuit lacrimis perfundere iustis,
In tua non tonsas ferre sepulcra comas;
Non super incubui, non oscula frigida carpsi.
Diripiunt avidae viscera nostra ferae.
A, miser admisso plectitur ille meo!
Nate, dolor matris, rabidarum praeda ferarum,
Ei mihi! natali dilacerate tuo;
Nate, parum fausti miserabile pignus amoris —
Haec tibi prima dies, haec tibi summa fuit.
Non mihi te licuit lacrimis perfundere iustis,
In tua non tonsas ferre sepulcra comas;
Non super incubui, non oscula frigida carpsi.
Diripiunt avidae viscera nostra ferae.
I too will follow the infant’s shade with a wound of my own,
nor will I long be called a mother, nor bereaved.
But you, o hoped for in vain by your wretched sister,
gather, I pray, the scattered limbs of your son,
and bring them back to their mother, and lay them in a shared tomb,
and let one urn, however narrow, hold us two!
Live, mindful of me, and pour your tears upon my wounds,
and do not, a lover, shrink from your lover’s body.
Do you, I beg, carry out the charge of the sister you loved too well;
I myself will obey my father’s charge!
nor will I long be called a mother, nor bereaved.
But you, o hoped for in vain by your wretched sister,
gather, I pray, the scattered limbs of your son,
and bring them back to their mother, and lay them in a shared tomb,
and let one urn, however narrow, hold us two!
Live, mindful of me, and pour your tears upon my wounds,
and do not, a lover, shrink from your lover’s body.
Do you, I beg, carry out the charge of the sister you loved too well;
I myself will obey my father’s charge!
Ipsa quoque infantis cum vulnere prosequar umbras
Nec mater fuero dicta nec orba diu.
Tu tamen, o frustra miserae sperate sorori,
Sparsa, precor, nati collige membra tui,
Et refer ad matrem socioque inpone sepulcro,
Urnaque nos habeat quamlibet arta duos!
Vive memor nostri, lacrimasque in vulnera funde,
Neve reformida corpus amantis amans.
Tu, rogo, dilectae nimium mandata sororis
Perfice; mandatis obsequar ipsa patris!
Nec mater fuero dicta nec orba diu.
Tu tamen, o frustra miserae sperate sorori,
Sparsa, precor, nati collige membra tui,
Et refer ad matrem socioque inpone sepulcro,
Urnaque nos habeat quamlibet arta duos!
Vive memor nostri, lacrimasque in vulnera funde,
Neve reformida corpus amantis amans.
Tu, rogo, dilectae nimium mandata sororis
Perfice; mandatis obsequar ipsa patris!
Book 12
Medea — an exile, destitute, scorned — speaks to her new-wed husband:
or have you no time to spare from your kingdom?
Yet for you, I remember, I, queen of the Colchians, had time to spare,
when you begged that my art should bring you aid.
Then the sisters who dispense the threads of mortals
ought to have unwound my spindles.
Then I, Medea, could have died well! whatever life I have
drawn out from that time has been a punishment.
Ah me! why did the Pelian timber, driven by youthful arms,
ever seek the ram of Phrixus?
or have you no time to spare from your kingdom?
Yet for you, I remember, I, queen of the Colchians, had time to spare,
when you begged that my art should bring you aid.
Then the sisters who dispense the threads of mortals
ought to have unwound my spindles.
Then I, Medea, could have died well! whatever life I have
drawn out from that time has been a punishment.
Ah me! why did the Pelian timber, driven by youthful arms,
ever seek the ram of Phrixus?
Exul, inops, contempta novo Medea marito
Dicit: an a regnis tempora nulla vacant?
At tibi Colchorum, memini, regina vacavi,
Ars mea cum peteres ut tibi ferret opem.
Tunc quae dispensant mortalia fila sorores
Debuerant fusos evoluisse meos.
Tum potui Medea mori bene! quidquid ab illo
Produxi vitam tempore, poena fuit.
Ei mihi! cur umquam iuvenalibus acta lacertis
Phrixeam petiit Pelias arbor ovem?
Dicit: an a regnis tempora nulla vacant?
At tibi Colchorum, memini, regina vacavi,
Ars mea cum peteres ut tibi ferret opem.
Tunc quae dispensant mortalia fila sorores
Debuerant fusos evoluisse meos.
Tum potui Medea mori bene! quidquid ab illo
Produxi vitam tempore, poena fuit.
Ei mihi! cur umquam iuvenalibus acta lacertis
Phrixeam petiit Pelias arbor ovem?
Why did we Colchians ever see the Magnesian Argo,
and you, the Greek throng, drink the water of Phasis?
Why did your golden hair please me more than was right,
and your beauty and the feigned charm of your tongue?
Or, since once the strange ship had come to our sands
and brought its bold men,
the unmindful son of Aeson should have gone, undrugged,
into the panting fires and the scorching mouths of the bulls;
he should have cast the seed — as many foes as seed —
that the sower might fall by his own sowing!
and you, the Greek throng, drink the water of Phasis?
Why did your golden hair please me more than was right,
and your beauty and the feigned charm of your tongue?
Or, since once the strange ship had come to our sands
and brought its bold men,
the unmindful son of Aeson should have gone, undrugged,
into the panting fires and the scorching mouths of the bulls;
he should have cast the seed — as many foes as seed —
that the sower might fall by his own sowing!
Cur umquam Colchi Magnetida vidimus Argo,
Turbaque Phasiacam Graia bibistis aquam?
Cur mihi plus aequo flavi placuere capilli
Et decor et linguae gratia ficta tuae?
Aut, semel in nostras quoniam nova puppis harenas
Venerat audacis attuleratque viros,
Isset anhelatos non praemedicatus in ignes
Inmemor Aesonides oraque adusta boum;
Semina iecisset totidem quot semina et hostes,
Ut caderet cultu cultor ab ipse suo!
Turbaque Phasiacam Graia bibistis aquam?
Cur mihi plus aequo flavi placuere capilli
Et decor et linguae gratia ficta tuae?
Aut, semel in nostras quoniam nova puppis harenas
Venerat audacis attuleratque viros,
Isset anhelatos non praemedicatus in ignes
Inmemor Aesonides oraque adusta boum;
Semina iecisset totidem quot semina et hostes,
Ut caderet cultu cultor ab ipse suo!
How much treachery would have perished with you, villain,
how many evils would have been taken from my head!
There is some pleasure in reproaching an ingrate with his debt.
This I will enjoy; this is the only joy I shall have of you.
Bidden to turn the untried ship to Colchis,
you entered the blessed realm of my country.
There I, Medea, was what your new bride is here;
as rich as her father is to her, so rich was mine to me.
He holds two-sea’d Ephyre; mine held all as far as snowy Scythia,
where the left shore of the Pontus lies.
how many evils would have been taken from my head!
There is some pleasure in reproaching an ingrate with his debt.
This I will enjoy; this is the only joy I shall have of you.
Bidden to turn the untried ship to Colchis,
you entered the blessed realm of my country.
There I, Medea, was what your new bride is here;
as rich as her father is to her, so rich was mine to me.
He holds two-sea’d Ephyre; mine held all as far as snowy Scythia,
where the left shore of the Pontus lies.
Quantum perfidiae tecum, scelerate, perisset,
Dempta forent capiti quam mala multa meo!
Est aliqua ingrato meritum exprobrare voluptas.
Hac fruar; haec de te gaudia sola feram.
Iussus inexpertam Colchos advertere puppim
Intrasti patriae regna beata meae.
Hoc illic Medea fui, nova nupta quod hic est;
Quam pater est illi, tam mihi dives erat.
Hic Ephyren bimarem, Scythia tenus ille nivosa
Omne tenet, Ponti qua plaga laeva iacet.
Dempta forent capiti quam mala multa meo!
Est aliqua ingrato meritum exprobrare voluptas.
Hac fruar; haec de te gaudia sola feram.
Iussus inexpertam Colchos advertere puppim
Intrasti patriae regna beata meae.
Hoc illic Medea fui, nova nupta quod hic est;
Quam pater est illi, tam mihi dives erat.
Hic Ephyren bimarem, Scythia tenus ille nivosa
Omne tenet, Ponti qua plaga laeva iacet.
You receive the Pelasgian youths in hospitality, Aeetes,
and you, Greek bodies, press the embroidered couches.
Then I saw you, then I began to know what you were;
that was the first ruin of my mind.
I both saw and was lost; nor did I burn with familiar fires,
as a pine torch burns before the great gods.
You were handsome, and my own fates were dragging me;
your eyes had stolen away my sight.
Faithless one, you saw it — for who hides love well?
The flame stands out, betrayed by its own evidence.
and you, Greek bodies, press the embroidered couches.
Then I saw you, then I began to know what you were;
that was the first ruin of my mind.
I both saw and was lost; nor did I burn with familiar fires,
as a pine torch burns before the great gods.
You were handsome, and my own fates were dragging me;
your eyes had stolen away my sight.
Faithless one, you saw it — for who hides love well?
The flame stands out, betrayed by its own evidence.
Accipis hospitio iuvenes, Aeeta, Pelasgos,
Et premitis pictos, corpora Graia, toros.
Tunc ego te vidi, tunc coepi scire, quid esses;
Illa fuit mentis prima ruina meae.
Et vidi et perii; nec notis ignibus arsi,
Ardet ut ad magnos pinea taeda deos.
Et formosus eras, et me mea fata trahebant;
Abstulerant oculi lumina nostra tui.
Perfide, sensisti — quis enim bene celat amorem?
Eminet indicio prodita flamma suo.
Et premitis pictos, corpora Graia, toros.
Tunc ego te vidi, tunc coepi scire, quid esses;
Illa fuit mentis prima ruina meae.
Et vidi et perii; nec notis ignibus arsi,
Ardet ut ad magnos pinea taeda deos.
Et formosus eras, et me mea fata trahebant;
Abstulerant oculi lumina nostra tui.
Perfide, sensisti — quis enim bene celat amorem?
Eminet indicio prodita flamma suo.
Meanwhile the hard law is told to you, that you should press
the necks of the wild bulls beneath the unaccustomed plowshare.
They were the bulls of Mars, savage beyond their horns,
whose terrible breath was fire;
their feet were solid bronze, and bronze stretched over their nostrils,
blackened, this too, by their own breathing.
Besides, you are bidden to scatter with a doomed hand,
over the broad fields, seed that would breed peoples,
who would seek your body with the weapons born with them;
that is a harvest unkind to its own farmer.
the necks of the wild bulls beneath the unaccustomed plowshare.
They were the bulls of Mars, savage beyond their horns,
whose terrible breath was fire;
their feet were solid bronze, and bronze stretched over their nostrils,
blackened, this too, by their own breathing.
Besides, you are bidden to scatter with a doomed hand,
over the broad fields, seed that would breed peoples,
who would seek your body with the weapons born with them;
that is a harvest unkind to its own farmer.
Dicitur interea tibi lex ut dura ferorum
Insolito premeres vomere colla boum.
Martis erant tauri plus quam per cornua saevi,
Quorum terribilis spiritus ignis erat;
Aere pedes solidi praetentaque naribus aera,
Nigra per adflatus haec quoque facta suos.
Semina praeterea populos genitura iuberis
Spargere devota lata per arva manu,
Qui peterent natis secum tua corpora telis;
Illa est agricolae messis iniqua suo.
Insolito premeres vomere colla boum.
Martis erant tauri plus quam per cornua saevi,
Quorum terribilis spiritus ignis erat;
Aere pedes solidi praetentaque naribus aera,
Nigra per adflatus haec quoque facta suos.
Semina praeterea populos genitura iuberis
Spargere devota lata per arva manu,
Qui peterent natis secum tua corpora telis;
Illa est agricolae messis iniqua suo.
To make the eyes of the guardian, that know not how to yield to sleep,
give way — that is the last labor, to cheat him by some art.
Aeetes had spoken; you all rise up in gloom,
and the high table leaves the purple couches.
How far from you then was the dowry-kingdom of Creusa,
and your father-in-law, and the daughter of great Creon!
You go off sad; with wet eyes I follow you departing,
and my tongue said in a thin murmur: ’farewell!’
When, sorely wounded, I touched the bed set in my chamber,
the night, long as it was, passed for me in tears;
give way — that is the last labor, to cheat him by some art.
Aeetes had spoken; you all rise up in gloom,
and the high table leaves the purple couches.
How far from you then was the dowry-kingdom of Creusa,
and your father-in-law, and the daughter of great Creon!
You go off sad; with wet eyes I follow you departing,
and my tongue said in a thin murmur: ’farewell!’
When, sorely wounded, I touched the bed set in my chamber,
the night, long as it was, passed for me in tears;
Lumina custodis succumbere nescia somno,
Ultimus est aliqua decipere arte labor.
Dixerat Aeetes; maesti consurgitis omnes,
Mensaque purpureos deserit alta toros.
Quam tibi tunc longe regnum dotale Creusae
Et socer et magni nata Creontis erat!
Tristis abis; oculis abeuntem prosequor udis,
Et dixit tenui murmure lingua: ’vale!’
Ut positum tetigi thalamo male saucia lectum,
Acta est per lacrimas nox mihi, quanta fuit;
Ultimus est aliqua decipere arte labor.
Dixerat Aeetes; maesti consurgitis omnes,
Mensaque purpureos deserit alta toros.
Quam tibi tunc longe regnum dotale Creusae
Et socer et magni nata Creontis erat!
Tristis abis; oculis abeuntem prosequor udis,
Et dixit tenui murmure lingua: ’vale!’
Ut positum tetigi thalamo male saucia lectum,
Acta est per lacrimas nox mihi, quanta fuit;
before my eyes were the bulls and the accursed crops,
before my eyes was the ever-wakeful serpent.
On this side love, on that fear; fear itself increases love.
It was morning, and my dear sister, received into my chamber,
found me with hair disheveled and lying face down,
and everything full of my tears.
She begs aid for the Minyae. One asks, the other obtains:
what she begs, we give to the youth, the son of Aeson.
There is a grove dark with pitch-pines and the foliage of holm-oak;
scarcely may the sun’s rays reach there.
before my eyes was the ever-wakeful serpent.
On this side love, on that fear; fear itself increases love.
It was morning, and my dear sister, received into my chamber,
found me with hair disheveled and lying face down,
and everything full of my tears.
She begs aid for the Minyae. One asks, the other obtains:
what she begs, we give to the youth, the son of Aeson.
There is a grove dark with pitch-pines and the foliage of holm-oak;
scarcely may the sun’s rays reach there.
Ante oculos taurique meos segetesque nefandae,
Ante meos oculos pervigil anguis erat.
Hinc amor, hinc timor est; ipsum timor auget amorem.
Mane erat, et thalamo cara recepta soror
Disiectamque comas adversaque in ora iacentem
Invenit, et lacrimis omnia plena meis.
Orat opem Minyis. alter petit, impetrat alter:
Aesonio iuveni quod rogat illa, damus.
Est nemus et piceis et frondibus ilicis atrum;
Vix illuc radiis solis adire licet.
Ante meos oculos pervigil anguis erat.
Hinc amor, hinc timor est; ipsum timor auget amorem.
Mane erat, et thalamo cara recepta soror
Disiectamque comas adversaque in ora iacentem
Invenit, et lacrimis omnia plena meis.
Orat opem Minyis. alter petit, impetrat alter:
Aesonio iuveni quod rogat illa, damus.
Est nemus et piceis et frondibus ilicis atrum;
Vix illuc radiis solis adire licet.
In it are — at least there were — the shrines of Diana;
the goddess stands, made of gold by a barbarian hand.
Do you know it? or have the places, with me, slipped your mind? We came there.
You began first to speak thus with faithless mouth:
’Fortune has handed you the right and the decision of my safety,
and my life and death are in your hand.
To be able to destroy is enough, if the mere power pleases anyone;
but, saved, I will be a greater glory to you.
By our troubles, I pray, of which you can be the relief,
by your race, and the godhead of your all-seeing grandsire,
the goddess stands, made of gold by a barbarian hand.
Do you know it? or have the places, with me, slipped your mind? We came there.
You began first to speak thus with faithless mouth:
’Fortune has handed you the right and the decision of my safety,
and my life and death are in your hand.
To be able to destroy is enough, if the mere power pleases anyone;
but, saved, I will be a greater glory to you.
By our troubles, I pray, of which you can be the relief,
by your race, and the godhead of your all-seeing grandsire,
Sunt in eo — fuerant certe — delubra Dianae;
Aurea barbarica stat dea facta manu.
Noscis? an exciderunt mecum loca? venimus illuc.
Orsus es infido sic prior ore loqui:
’Ius tibi et arbitrium nostrae fortuna salutis
Tradidit, inque tua est vitaque morsque manu.
Perdere posse sat est, siquem iuvet ipsa potestas;
Sed tibi servatus gloria maior ero.
Per mala nostra precor, quorum potes esse levamen,
Per genus, et numen cuncta videntis avi,
Aurea barbarica stat dea facta manu.
Noscis? an exciderunt mecum loca? venimus illuc.
Orsus es infido sic prior ore loqui:
’Ius tibi et arbitrium nostrae fortuna salutis
Tradidit, inque tua est vitaque morsque manu.
Perdere posse sat est, siquem iuvet ipsa potestas;
Sed tibi servatus gloria maior ero.
Per mala nostra precor, quorum potes esse levamen,
Per genus, et numen cuncta videntis avi,
by the three faces and the secret rites of Diana,
and, if perchance this nation has any gods —
O maiden, pity me, pity mine;
make me, by your kindness, yours for all time!
But if perchance you do not scorn a Pelasgian for husband —
but whence should I have gods so kind, and mine? —
my breath will vanish into thin air before
any but you be a bride in my chamber!
Let Juno be witness, who presides over the rites of marriage,
and the goddess in whose marble shrine we are!’
and, if perchance this nation has any gods —
O maiden, pity me, pity mine;
make me, by your kindness, yours for all time!
But if perchance you do not scorn a Pelasgian for husband —
but whence should I have gods so kind, and mine? —
my breath will vanish into thin air before
any but you be a bride in my chamber!
Let Juno be witness, who presides over the rites of marriage,
and the goddess in whose marble shrine we are!’
Per triplicis vultus arcanaque sacra Dianae,
Et si forte aliquos gens habet ista deos —
O virgo, miserere mei, miserere meorum;
Effice me meritis tempus in omne tuum!
Quodsi forte virum non dedignare Pelasgum —
Sed mihi tam faciles unde meosque deos? —
Spiritus ante meus tenues vanescet in auras
Quam thalamo nisi tu nupta sit ulla meo!
Conscia sit Iuno sacris praefecta maritis,
Et dea marmorea cuius in aede sumus!’
Et si forte aliquos gens habet ista deos —
O virgo, miserere mei, miserere meorum;
Effice me meritis tempus in omne tuum!
Quodsi forte virum non dedignare Pelasgum —
Sed mihi tam faciles unde meosque deos? —
Spiritus ante meus tenues vanescet in auras
Quam thalamo nisi tu nupta sit ulla meo!
Conscia sit Iuno sacris praefecta maritis,
Et dea marmorea cuius in aede sumus!’
These things — and how small a part are they! — moved the heart
of a simple girl, and your right hand was joined to mine.
I saw your tears too — there was a part of fraud in them as well.
So quickly was I, a girl, captured by your words.
You yoke the bronze-footed bulls with body unburned,
and split the solid ground with the bidden plowshare.
You fill the fields with poisoned teeth for seed,
and a soldier is born, holding swords and shields.
I myself, who had given the drugs, sat pale,
when I saw the sudden men holding arms,
of a simple girl, and your right hand was joined to mine.
I saw your tears too — there was a part of fraud in them as well.
So quickly was I, a girl, captured by your words.
You yoke the bronze-footed bulls with body unburned,
and split the solid ground with the bidden plowshare.
You fill the fields with poisoned teeth for seed,
and a soldier is born, holding swords and shields.
I myself, who had given the drugs, sat pale,
when I saw the sudden men holding arms,
Haec animum — et quota pars haec sunt! — movere puellae
Simplicis, et dextrae dextera iuncta meae.
Vidi etiam lacrimas — sua pars et fraudis in illis.
Sic cito sum verbis capta puella tuis.
Iungis aenipedes inadusto corpore tauros
Et solidam iusso vomere findis humum.
Arva venenatis pro semine dentibus inples,
Nascitur et gladios scutaque miles habens.
Ipsa ego, quae dederam medicamina, pallida sedi,
Cum vidi subitos arma tenere viros,
Simplicis, et dextrae dextera iuncta meae.
Vidi etiam lacrimas — sua pars et fraudis in illis.
Sic cito sum verbis capta puella tuis.
Iungis aenipedes inadusto corpore tauros
Et solidam iusso vomere findis humum.
Arva venenatis pro semine dentibus inples,
Nascitur et gladios scutaque miles habens.
Ipsa ego, quae dederam medicamina, pallida sedi,
Cum vidi subitos arma tenere viros,
until the earth-born brothers, a marvelous deed,
joined their drawn hands against one another.
Lo, the sleepless watcher, bristling with rattling scales,
hisses and sweeps the ground with his coiling breast!
Where then was your dowry’s wealth? where was your royal wife,
and the Isthmus that parts the waters of the twin seas?
I, who am now at last become a barbarian to you,
now poor to you, now seen by you as harmful,
lulled the flaming eyes with drugged sleep,
and gave you the fleece, safe, to seize.
joined their drawn hands against one another.
Lo, the sleepless watcher, bristling with rattling scales,
hisses and sweeps the ground with his coiling breast!
Where then was your dowry’s wealth? where was your royal wife,
and the Isthmus that parts the waters of the twin seas?
I, who am now at last become a barbarian to you,
now poor to you, now seen by you as harmful,
lulled the flaming eyes with drugged sleep,
and gave you the fleece, safe, to seize.
Donec terrigenae, facinus mirabile, fratres
Inter se strictas conseruere manus.
Insopor ecce vigil squamis crepitantibus horrens
Sibilat et torto pectore verrit humum!
Dotis opes ubi erant? ubi erat tibi regia coniunx,
Quique maris gemini distinet Isthmos aquas?
Illa ego, quae tibi sum nunc denique barbara facta,
Nunc tibi sum pauper, nunc tibi visa nocens,
Flammea subduxi medicato lumina somno,
Et tibi, quae raperes, vellera tuta dedi.
Inter se strictas conseruere manus.
Insopor ecce vigil squamis crepitantibus horrens
Sibilat et torto pectore verrit humum!
Dotis opes ubi erant? ubi erat tibi regia coniunx,
Quique maris gemini distinet Isthmos aquas?
Illa ego, quae tibi sum nunc denique barbara facta,
Nunc tibi sum pauper, nunc tibi visa nocens,
Flammea subduxi medicato lumina somno,
Et tibi, quae raperes, vellera tuta dedi.
My father was betrayed, I left my kingdom and country;
the gift of being allowed to be in exile, I took!
My virginity became the booty of a foreign robber;
my best sister, with my dear mother, was left behind.
But fleeing, I did not leave you, brother, without me!
In this one place my letter fails.
What my right hand dared to do, it does not dare to write.
So I — but along with you — ought to have been torn apart.
Yet I did not fear — for what should I fear after those deeds? —
to trust myself to the sea, a woman and now a criminal.
the gift of being allowed to be in exile, I took!
My virginity became the booty of a foreign robber;
my best sister, with my dear mother, was left behind.
But fleeing, I did not leave you, brother, without me!
In this one place my letter fails.
What my right hand dared to do, it does not dare to write.
So I — but along with you — ought to have been torn apart.
Yet I did not fear — for what should I fear after those deeds? —
to trust myself to the sea, a woman and now a criminal.
Proditus est genitor, regnum patriamque reliqui;
Munus, in exilio quod licet esse, tuli!
Virginitas facta est peregrini praeda latronis;
Optima cum cara matre relicta soror.
At non te fugiens sine me, germane, reliqui!
Deficit hoc uno littera nostra loco.
Quod facere ausa mea est, non audet scribere dextra.
Sic ego, sed tecum, dilaceranda fui.
Nec tamen extimui — quid enim post illa timerem? —
Credere me pelago, femina iamque nocens.
Munus, in exilio quod licet esse, tuli!
Virginitas facta est peregrini praeda latronis;
Optima cum cara matre relicta soror.
At non te fugiens sine me, germane, reliqui!
Deficit hoc uno littera nostra loco.
Quod facere ausa mea est, non audet scribere dextra.
Sic ego, sed tecum, dilaceranda fui.
Nec tamen extimui — quid enim post illa timerem? —
Credere me pelago, femina iamque nocens.
Where is the divine power? where the gods? Let us undergo on the deep
our deserved penalties, you for fraud, I for credulity!
Would that the Symplegades had crushed us, pressed together,
and my bones clung to your bones;
or that ravening Scylla had sunk us to be eaten by her dogs —
Scylla ought to have harmed ungrateful men;
and she who spews up as many waves and sucks back as many,
should have plunged us too beneath the Trinacrian water!
Safe and victorious you return to the Haemonian cities;
the golden fleece is set before your fathers’ gods.
our deserved penalties, you for fraud, I for credulity!
Would that the Symplegades had crushed us, pressed together,
and my bones clung to your bones;
or that ravening Scylla had sunk us to be eaten by her dogs —
Scylla ought to have harmed ungrateful men;
and she who spews up as many waves and sucks back as many,
should have plunged us too beneath the Trinacrian water!
Safe and victorious you return to the Haemonian cities;
the golden fleece is set before your fathers’ gods.
Numen ubi est? ubi di? meritas subeamus in alto,
Tu fraudis poenas, credulitatis ego!
Compressos utinam Symplegades elisissent,
Nostraque adhaererent ossibus ossa tuis;
Aut nos Scylla rapax canibus mersisset edendos —
Debuit ingratis Scylla nocere viris;
Quaeque vomit totidem fluctus totidemque resorbet,
Nos quoque Trinacriae supposuisset aquae!
Sospes ad Haemonias victorque reverteris urbes;
Ponitur ad patrios aurea lana deos.
Tu fraudis poenas, credulitatis ego!
Compressos utinam Symplegades elisissent,
Nostraque adhaererent ossibus ossa tuis;
Aut nos Scylla rapax canibus mersisset edendos —
Debuit ingratis Scylla nocere viris;
Quaeque vomit totidem fluctus totidemque resorbet,
Nos quoque Trinacriae supposuisset aquae!
Sospes ad Haemonias victorque reverteris urbes;
Ponitur ad patrios aurea lana deos.
Why should I tell of the daughters of Pelias, guilty through piety,
and the father’s limbs cut up by a maiden’s hand?
Though others blame me, you must praise me,
for whom I was so often forced to be guilty.
You dared — o, fitting words fail a just grief! —
you dared to say, ’Leave the house of Aeson!’
Bidden, I left the house, accompanied by my two children,
and by the love of you, which always follows me.
When suddenly the chanted Hymen came to my ears,
and the torches flashed with kindled fire,
and the father’s limbs cut up by a maiden’s hand?
Though others blame me, you must praise me,
for whom I was so often forced to be guilty.
You dared — o, fitting words fail a just grief! —
you dared to say, ’Leave the house of Aeson!’
Bidden, I left the house, accompanied by my two children,
and by the love of you, which always follows me.
When suddenly the chanted Hymen came to my ears,
and the torches flashed with kindled fire,
Quid referam Peliae natas pietate nocentes
Caesaque virginea membra paterna manu?
Ut culpent alii, tibi me laudare necesse est,
Pro quo sum totiens esse coacta nocens.
Ausus es — o, iusto desunt sua verba dolori! —
Ausus es ’Aesonia,’ dicere, ’cede domo!’
Iussa domo cessi natis comitata duobus
Et, qui me sequitur semper, amore tui.
Ut subito nostras Hymen cantatus ad aures
Venit, et accenso lampades igne micant,
Caesaque virginea membra paterna manu?
Ut culpent alii, tibi me laudare necesse est,
Pro quo sum totiens esse coacta nocens.
Ausus es — o, iusto desunt sua verba dolori! —
Ausus es ’Aesonia,’ dicere, ’cede domo!’
Iussa domo cessi natis comitata duobus
Et, qui me sequitur semper, amore tui.
Ut subito nostras Hymen cantatus ad aures
Venit, et accenso lampades igne micant,
and the pipe poured out wedding songs for you,
but for me more mournful than a funeral trumpet,
I was terrified, nor did I yet think there could be such a crime;
yet there was a chill in all my breast.
The crowd rushes and shouts ’Hymen, Hymenaeus!’ again and again —
the nearer that voice, the worse it was for me.
Here and there the servants wept and hid their tears —
who would wish to be the messenger of so great an evil?
For me too, whatever it was, it was better not to know;
yet, as if I knew, my mind was sad,
but for me more mournful than a funeral trumpet,
I was terrified, nor did I yet think there could be such a crime;
yet there was a chill in all my breast.
The crowd rushes and shouts ’Hymen, Hymenaeus!’ again and again —
the nearer that voice, the worse it was for me.
Here and there the servants wept and hid their tears —
who would wish to be the messenger of so great an evil?
For me too, whatever it was, it was better not to know;
yet, as if I knew, my mind was sad,
Tibiaque effundit socialia carmina vobis,
At mihi funerea flebiliora tuba,
Pertimui, nec adhuc tantum scelus esse putabam;
Sed tamen in toto pectore frigus erat.
Turba ruunt et ’Hymen,’ clamant, ’Hymenaee!’ frequenter —
Quo propior vox haec, hoc mihi peius erat.
Diversi flebant servi lacrimasque tegebant —
Quis vellet tanti nuntius esse mali?
Me quoque, quidquid erat, potius nescire iuvabat;
Sed tamquam scirem, mens mea tristis erat,
At mihi funerea flebiliora tuba,
Pertimui, nec adhuc tantum scelus esse putabam;
Sed tamen in toto pectore frigus erat.
Turba ruunt et ’Hymen,’ clamant, ’Hymenaee!’ frequenter —
Quo propior vox haec, hoc mihi peius erat.
Diversi flebant servi lacrimasque tegebant —
Quis vellet tanti nuntius esse mali?
Me quoque, quidquid erat, potius nescire iuvabat;
Sed tamquam scirem, mens mea tristis erat,
when the younger of my boys (by chance, or in eagerness to see,
he stood at the outer threshold of the double door)
says, ’Come here just now, mother! Father Jason
leads the procession, and, golden, drives his harnessed horses!’
At once, my garment torn, I beat my breast,
nor was my face safe from my nails.
My spirit urged me to go into the midst of the throng
and snatch the garlands from their well-set hair;
I scarcely held myself from crying, my hair torn,
’He is mine!’ and laying hands on him.
he stood at the outer threshold of the double door)
says, ’Come here just now, mother! Father Jason
leads the procession, and, golden, drives his harnessed horses!’
At once, my garment torn, I beat my breast,
nor was my face safe from my nails.
My spirit urged me to go into the midst of the throng
and snatch the garlands from their well-set hair;
I scarcely held myself from crying, my hair torn,
’He is mine!’ and laying hands on him.
Cum minor e pueris (casu studione videndi
Constitit ad geminae limina prima foris)
’Huc modo, mater, adi! pompam pater,’ inquit, ’Iason
Ducit et adiunctos aureus urget equos!’
Protinus abscissa planxi mea pectora veste,
Tuta nec a digitis ora fuere meis.
Ire animus mediae suadebat in agmina turbae
Sertaque conpositis demere rapta comis;
Vix me continui, quin dilaniata capillos
Clamarem ’meus est!’ iniceremque manus.
Constitit ad geminae limina prima foris)
’Huc modo, mater, adi! pompam pater,’ inquit, ’Iason
Ducit et adiunctos aureus urget equos!’
Protinus abscissa planxi mea pectora veste,
Tuta nec a digitis ora fuere meis.
Ire animus mediae suadebat in agmina turbae
Sertaque conpositis demere rapta comis;
Vix me continui, quin dilaniata capillos
Clamarem ’meus est!’ iniceremque manus.
Wronged father, rejoice! rejoice, forsaken Colchians!
Take, shade of my brother, these offerings to the dead;
I am deserted, having lost kingdom and country and home
and a husband, who alone was everything to me!
The serpent, then, I could overcome, and the raging bulls;
one man alone I could not master,
and I, who drove back the fierce fires with learned drugs,
am unable to escape my own flames.
My spells and herbs and arts themselves desert me;
the goddess does nothing, nothing the rites of mighty Hecate.
Take, shade of my brother, these offerings to the dead;
I am deserted, having lost kingdom and country and home
and a husband, who alone was everything to me!
The serpent, then, I could overcome, and the raging bulls;
one man alone I could not master,
and I, who drove back the fierce fires with learned drugs,
am unable to escape my own flames.
My spells and herbs and arts themselves desert me;
the goddess does nothing, nothing the rites of mighty Hecate.
Laese pater, gaude! Colchi gaudete relicti!
Inferias umbrae fratris habete mei;
Deseror amissis regno patriaque domoque
Coniuge, qui nobis omnia solus erat!
Serpentis igitur potui taurosque furentes;
Unum non potui perdomuisse virum,
Quaeque feros pepuli doctis medicatibus ignes,
Non valeo flammas effugere ipsa meas.
Ipsi me cantus herbaeque artesque relinquunt;
Nil dea, nil Hecates sacra potentis agunt.
Inferias umbrae fratris habete mei;
Deseror amissis regno patriaque domoque
Coniuge, qui nobis omnia solus erat!
Serpentis igitur potui taurosque furentes;
Unum non potui perdomuisse virum,
Quaeque feros pepuli doctis medicatibus ignes,
Non valeo flammas effugere ipsa meas.
Ipsi me cantus herbaeque artesque relinquunt;
Nil dea, nil Hecates sacra potentis agunt.
The day is not pleasing to me; the bitter nights are passed awake,
and gentle sleep is far from my wretched breast.
I, who cannot lull myself, could lull the dragon;
my care is more useful to anyone than to me.
The limbs I saved, a rival now embraces,
and she has the fruits of my labor.
Perhaps too, while you seek to boast yourself to your foolish wife
and to say things fit for unjust ears,
you invent new charges against my face and my character.
Let her laugh and be glad at my faults!
and gentle sleep is far from my wretched breast.
I, who cannot lull myself, could lull the dragon;
my care is more useful to anyone than to me.
The limbs I saved, a rival now embraces,
and she has the fruits of my labor.
Perhaps too, while you seek to boast yourself to your foolish wife
and to say things fit for unjust ears,
you invent new charges against my face and my character.
Let her laugh and be glad at my faults!
Non mihi grata dies; noctes vigilantur amarae,
Et tener a misero pectore somnus abest.
Quae me non possum, potui sopire draconem;
Utilior cuivis quam mihi cura mea est.
Quos ego servavi, paelex amplectitur artus,
Et nostri fructus illa laboris habet.
Forsitan et, stultae dum te iactare maritae
Quaeris et iniustis auribus apta loqui,
In faciem moresque meos nova crimina fingas.
Rideat et vitiis laeta sit illa meis!
Et tener a misero pectore somnus abest.
Quae me non possum, potui sopire draconem;
Utilior cuivis quam mihi cura mea est.
Quos ego servavi, paelex amplectitur artus,
Et nostri fructus illa laboris habet.
Forsitan et, stultae dum te iactare maritae
Quaeris et iniustis auribus apta loqui,
In faciem moresque meos nova crimina fingas.
Rideat et vitiis laeta sit illa meis!
Let her laugh and lie aloft in Tyrian purple —
she will weep, and, burned, will outdo my fires!
While steel and flames and the juice of poison are at hand,
no enemy of Medea will go unavenged!
But if perchance prayers touch your iron heart,
now hear words humbler than my spirit!
I am as much a suppliant to you as you were often to me,
nor do I delay to fall down before your feet.
If I am cheap to you, look to our common children;
a cruel stepmother will rage against my offspring.
she will weep, and, burned, will outdo my fires!
While steel and flames and the juice of poison are at hand,
no enemy of Medea will go unavenged!
But if perchance prayers touch your iron heart,
now hear words humbler than my spirit!
I am as much a suppliant to you as you were often to me,
nor do I delay to fall down before your feet.
If I am cheap to you, look to our common children;
a cruel stepmother will rage against my offspring.
Rideat et Tyrio iaceat sublimis in ostro —
Flebit et ardores vincet adusta meos!
Dum ferrum flammaeque aderunt sucusque veneni,
Hostis Medeae nullus inultus erit!
Quodsi forte preces praecordia ferrea tangunt,
Nunc animis audi verba minora meis!
Tam tibi sum supplex, quam tu mihi saepe fuisti,
Nec moror ante tuos procubuisse pedes.
Si tibi sum vilis, communis respice natos;
Saeviet in partus dira noverca meos.
Flebit et ardores vincet adusta meos!
Dum ferrum flammaeque aderunt sucusque veneni,
Hostis Medeae nullus inultus erit!
Quodsi forte preces praecordia ferrea tangunt,
Nunc animis audi verba minora meis!
Tam tibi sum supplex, quam tu mihi saepe fuisti,
Nec moror ante tuos procubuisse pedes.
Si tibi sum vilis, communis respice natos;
Saeviet in partus dira noverca meos.
They are too like you, and I am moved by the likeness,
and as often as I see them, my eyes grow wet.
By the gods above I pray, by the light of my ancestral flame,
by my service and by our children, our two pledges —
give back the bed, for which, mad, I left so many things;
add faith to your words and bring back your aid!
I do not implore you against bulls and men,
nor that the serpent, conquered, may lie quiet by your aid;
I seek you, whom I earned, whom you yourself gave to me,
with whom, the father, I became a parent alike.
and as often as I see them, my eyes grow wet.
By the gods above I pray, by the light of my ancestral flame,
by my service and by our children, our two pledges —
give back the bed, for which, mad, I left so many things;
add faith to your words and bring back your aid!
I do not implore you against bulls and men,
nor that the serpent, conquered, may lie quiet by your aid;
I seek you, whom I earned, whom you yourself gave to me,
with whom, the father, I became a parent alike.
Et nimium similes tibi sunt, et imagine tangor,
Et quotiens video, lumina nostra madent.
Per superos oro, per avitae lumina flammae,
Per meritum et natos, pignora nostra, duos —
Redde torum, pro quo tot res insana reliqui;
Adde fidem dictis auxiliumque refer!
Non ego te inploro contra taurosque virosque,
Utque tua serpens victa quiescat ope;
Te peto, quem merui, quem nobis ipse dedisti,
Cum quo sum pariter facta parente parens.
Et quotiens video, lumina nostra madent.
Per superos oro, per avitae lumina flammae,
Per meritum et natos, pignora nostra, duos —
Redde torum, pro quo tot res insana reliqui;
Adde fidem dictis auxiliumque refer!
Non ego te inploro contra taurosque virosque,
Utque tua serpens victa quiescat ope;
Te peto, quem merui, quem nobis ipse dedisti,
Cum quo sum pariter facta parente parens.
Where is my dowry, you ask? I counted it out in that field
which you had to plow if you would carry off the fleece.
That golden ram, notable for his deep wool,
is my dowry, which, were I to say ’give it back!’, you would refuse.
My dowry is yourself, safe; my dowry is the Greek youth!
Go now, villain, set your Sisyphean wealth against that!
That you live, that you have a bride and a powerful father-in-law,
this very thing — that you can be ungrateful — is my doing.
Whom indeed at once — but what use is it to foretell
the punishment? my anger is in labor with huge threats.
which you had to plow if you would carry off the fleece.
That golden ram, notable for his deep wool,
is my dowry, which, were I to say ’give it back!’, you would refuse.
My dowry is yourself, safe; my dowry is the Greek youth!
Go now, villain, set your Sisyphean wealth against that!
That you live, that you have a bride and a powerful father-in-law,
this very thing — that you can be ungrateful — is my doing.
Whom indeed at once — but what use is it to foretell
the punishment? my anger is in labor with huge threats.
Dos ubi sit, quaeris? campo numeravimus illo,
Qui tibi laturo vellus arandus erat.
Aureus ille aries villo spectabilis alto
Dos mea, quam, dicam si tibi ’redde!,’ neges.
Dos mea tu sospes; dos est mea Graia iuventus!
I nunc, Sisyphias, inprobe, confer opes!
Quod vivis, quod habes nuptam socerumque potentis,
Hoc ipsum, ingratus quod potes esse, meum est.
Quos equidem actutum — sed quid praedicere poenam
Attinet? ingentis parturit ira minas.
Qui tibi laturo vellus arandus erat.
Aureus ille aries villo spectabilis alto
Dos mea, quam, dicam si tibi ’redde!,’ neges.
Dos mea tu sospes; dos est mea Graia iuventus!
I nunc, Sisyphias, inprobe, confer opes!
Quod vivis, quod habes nuptam socerumque potentis,
Hoc ipsum, ingratus quod potes esse, meum est.
Quos equidem actutum — sed quid praedicere poenam
Attinet? ingentis parturit ira minas.
Where anger leads, I will follow! perhaps I shall repent the deed —
and I repent having looked to the good of a faithless husband.
Let that god see to it, who now turns my heart about!
Something greater, surely, my mind is plotting!
and I repent having looked to the good of a faithless husband.
Let that god see to it, who now turns my heart about!
Something greater, surely, my mind is plotting!
Quo feret ira, sequar! facti fortasse pigebit —
Et piget infido consuluisse viro.
Viderit ista deus, qui nunc mea pectora versat!
Nescio quid certe mens mea maius agit!
Et piget infido consuluisse viro.
Viderit ista deus, qui nunc mea pectora versat!
Nescio quid certe mens mea maius agit!
Book 13
Laodamia, a loving wife of Haemonia, sends to her Haemonian husband
the greeting she wishes to go where it is sent.
Rumor says you are detained at Aulis by a holding wind.
But when you were fleeing from me, where was this wind then?
Then the seas should have withstood your oars;
that was the fitting time for cruel waters.
I would have given my husband more kisses and more charges;
and there are many things I wished to say to you.
You were snatched headlong from here, and the wind that called your sails,
which the sailors wanted, not I, was blowing;
the greeting she wishes to go where it is sent.
Rumor says you are detained at Aulis by a holding wind.
But when you were fleeing from me, where was this wind then?
Then the seas should have withstood your oars;
that was the fitting time for cruel waters.
I would have given my husband more kisses and more charges;
and there are many things I wished to say to you.
You were snatched headlong from here, and the wind that called your sails,
which the sailors wanted, not I, was blowing;
Mittit et optat amans, quo mittitur, ire salutem
Haemonis Haemonio Laodamia viro.
Aulide te fama est vento retinente morari.
At me cum fugeres, hic ubi ventus erat?
Tum freta debuerant vestris obsistere remis;
Illud erat saevis utile tempus aquis.
Oscula plura viro mandataque plura dedissem;
Et sunt quae volui dicere multa tibi.
Raptus es hinc praeceps, et qui tua vela vocaret,
Quem cuperent nautae, non ego, ventus erat;
Haemonis Haemonio Laodamia viro.
Aulide te fama est vento retinente morari.
At me cum fugeres, hic ubi ventus erat?
Tum freta debuerant vestris obsistere remis;
Illud erat saevis utile tempus aquis.
Oscula plura viro mandataque plura dedissem;
Et sunt quae volui dicere multa tibi.
Raptus es hinc praeceps, et qui tua vela vocaret,
Quem cuperent nautae, non ego, ventus erat;
the wind was fit for sailors, not fit for a lover.
I am loosed from your embrace, Protesilaus,
and my tongue left the charges unfinished as I gave them;
scarcely could I say that sad ’farewell!’
Boreas bore down and stretched the snatched-away sails,
and now my Protesilaus was far off.
While I could watch my husband, to watch was a joy,
and I followed your eyes always with mine;
when I could not see you, I could see your sails,
and the sails long held my gaze.
I am loosed from your embrace, Protesilaus,
and my tongue left the charges unfinished as I gave them;
scarcely could I say that sad ’farewell!’
Boreas bore down and stretched the snatched-away sails,
and now my Protesilaus was far off.
While I could watch my husband, to watch was a joy,
and I followed your eyes always with mine;
when I could not see you, I could see your sails,
and the sails long held my gaze.
Ventus erat nautis aptus, non aptus amanti.
Solvor ab amplexu, Protesilae, tuo,
Linguaque mandantis verba inperfecta reliquit;
Vix illud potui dicere triste ’vale!’
Incubuit Boreas abreptaque vela tetendit,
Iamque meus longe Protesilaus erat.
Dum potui spectare virum, spectare iuvabat,
Sumque tuos oculos usque secuta meis;
Ut te non poteram, poteram tua vela videre,
Vela diu vultus detinuere meos.
Solvor ab amplexu, Protesilae, tuo,
Linguaque mandantis verba inperfecta reliquit;
Vix illud potui dicere triste ’vale!’
Incubuit Boreas abreptaque vela tetendit,
Iamque meus longe Protesilaus erat.
Dum potui spectare virum, spectare iuvabat,
Sumque tuos oculos usque secuta meis;
Ut te non poteram, poteram tua vela videre,
Vela diu vultus detinuere meos.
But after I saw neither you nor the fleeing sails,
and there was nothing for me to look at but the sea,
the light too went with you, and, with darkness rising over me, bloodless,
I am said to have sunk down on a failing knee.
Scarcely could my father-in-law Iphiclus, scarcely aged Acastus,
scarcely my sorrowing mother revive me with cold water;
they did a kindly service, but useless to me.
I am angry that I, wretched, was not allowed to die!
When my spirit returned, my griefs returned with it.
A lawful love gnawed my chaste breast.
and there was nothing for me to look at but the sea,
the light too went with you, and, with darkness rising over me, bloodless,
I am said to have sunk down on a failing knee.
Scarcely could my father-in-law Iphiclus, scarcely aged Acastus,
scarcely my sorrowing mother revive me with cold water;
they did a kindly service, but useless to me.
I am angry that I, wretched, was not allowed to die!
When my spirit returned, my griefs returned with it.
A lawful love gnawed my chaste breast.
At postquam nec te nec vela fugacia vidi,
Et quod spectarem nil nisi pontus erat,
Lux quoque tecum abiit, tenebrisque exanguis obortis
Succiduo dicor procubuisse genu.
Vix socer Iphiclus, vix me grandaevus Acastus,
Vix mater gelida maesta refecit aqua;
Officium fecere pium, sed inutile nobis.
Indignor miserae non licuisse mori!
Ut rediit animus, pariter rediere dolores.
Pectora legitimus casta momordit amor.
Et quod spectarem nil nisi pontus erat,
Lux quoque tecum abiit, tenebrisque exanguis obortis
Succiduo dicor procubuisse genu.
Vix socer Iphiclus, vix me grandaevus Acastus,
Vix mater gelida maesta refecit aqua;
Officium fecere pium, sed inutile nobis.
Indignor miserae non licuisse mori!
Ut rediit animus, pariter rediere dolores.
Pectora legitimus casta momordit amor.
I have no care to give my hair to be combed,
nor do I wish to cover my body with a gilded robe.
Like those whom the Two-horned One is believed to have touched
with his vine-wreathed wand, I go this way and that, where frenzy drives me.
The matrons of Phylace gather and cry to me:
’Put on your royal robes, Laodamia!’
Shall I, forsooth, wear wools steeped in purple,
while he wages war beneath the walls of Ilium?
Shall I comb my hair, while his head is pressed by a helmet?
Shall I wear new clothes, while my husband bears hard arms?
nor do I wish to cover my body with a gilded robe.
Like those whom the Two-horned One is believed to have touched
with his vine-wreathed wand, I go this way and that, where frenzy drives me.
The matrons of Phylace gather and cry to me:
’Put on your royal robes, Laodamia!’
Shall I, forsooth, wear wools steeped in purple,
while he wages war beneath the walls of Ilium?
Shall I comb my hair, while his head is pressed by a helmet?
Shall I wear new clothes, while my husband bears hard arms?
Nec mihi pectendos cura est praebere capillos,
Nec libet aurata corpora veste tegi.
Ut quas pampinea tetigisse Bicorniger hasta,
Creditur, huc illuc, qua furor egit, eo.
Conveniunt matres Phylaceides et mihi clamant:
’Indue regales, Laudamia, sinus!’
Scilicet ipsa geram saturatas murice lanas,
Bella sub Iliacis moenibus ille geret?
Ipsa comas pectar, galea caput ille premetur?
Ipsa novas vestes, dura vir arma feret?
Nec libet aurata corpora veste tegi.
Ut quas pampinea tetigisse Bicorniger hasta,
Creditur, huc illuc, qua furor egit, eo.
Conveniunt matres Phylaceides et mihi clamant:
’Indue regales, Laudamia, sinus!’
Scilicet ipsa geram saturatas murice lanas,
Bella sub Iliacis moenibus ille geret?
Ipsa comas pectar, galea caput ille premetur?
Ipsa novas vestes, dura vir arma feret?
So far as I can, by my unkempt state let me be said to imitate
your toils, and let me pass this time of war in sorrow.
Evil Paris, son of Priam, beautiful to the ruin of your own,
may you be as feeble a foe as you were a wicked guest!
Either I would you had found fault with the beauty of the Taenarian wife,
or that yours had displeased her!
You, Menelaus, who toil too much for your stolen wife,
ah me, to how many will you be a lamentable avenger!
Gods, I pray, turn the sinister omen from us,
and may my husband dedicate his arms to Jove the Restorer!
your toils, and let me pass this time of war in sorrow.
Evil Paris, son of Priam, beautiful to the ruin of your own,
may you be as feeble a foe as you were a wicked guest!
Either I would you had found fault with the beauty of the Taenarian wife,
or that yours had displeased her!
You, Menelaus, who toil too much for your stolen wife,
ah me, to how many will you be a lamentable avenger!
Gods, I pray, turn the sinister omen from us,
and may my husband dedicate his arms to Jove the Restorer!
Qua possum, squalore tuos imitata labores
Dicar, et haec belli tempora tristis agam.
Dyspari Priamide, damno formose tuorum,
Tam sis hostis iners, quam malus hospes eras!
Aut te Taenariae faciem culpasse maritae,
Aut illi vellem displicuisse tuam!
Tu, qui pro rapta nimium, Menelae, laboras,
Ei mihi, quam multis flebilis ultor eris!
Di, precor, a nobis omen removete sinistrum,
Et sua det Reduci vir meus arma Iovi!
Dicar, et haec belli tempora tristis agam.
Dyspari Priamide, damno formose tuorum,
Tam sis hostis iners, quam malus hospes eras!
Aut te Taenariae faciem culpasse maritae,
Aut illi vellem displicuisse tuam!
Tu, qui pro rapta nimium, Menelae, laboras,
Ei mihi, quam multis flebilis ultor eris!
Di, precor, a nobis omen removete sinistrum,
Et sua det Reduci vir meus arma Iovi!
But I am afraid, as often as the pitiable war comes to mind;
my tears flow like snow melting in the sun.
Ilium and Tenedos and Simois and Xanthus and Ida —
they are names almost to be feared by their very sound.
Nor would the guest have dared to carry her off, unless he could
defend himself; he knew his own strength.
He had come, as the report goes, conspicuous with much gold,
and one to carry the wealth of Phrygia on his person,
powerful in fleet and men, by which fierce wars are waged —
and how great a part of his kingdom follows him?
my tears flow like snow melting in the sun.
Ilium and Tenedos and Simois and Xanthus and Ida —
they are names almost to be feared by their very sound.
Nor would the guest have dared to carry her off, unless he could
defend himself; he knew his own strength.
He had come, as the report goes, conspicuous with much gold,
and one to carry the wealth of Phrygia on his person,
powerful in fleet and men, by which fierce wars are waged —
and how great a part of his kingdom follows him?
Sed timeo, quotiens subiit miserabile bellum;
More nivis lacrimae sole madentis eunt.
Ilion et Tenedos Simoisque et Xanthus et Ide
Nomina sunt ipso paene timenda sono.
Nec rapere ausurus, nisi se defendere posset,
Hospes erat; vires noverat ille suas.
Venerat, ut fama est, multo spectabilis auro
Quique suo Phrygias corpore ferret opes,
Classe virisque potens, per quae fera bella geruntur —
Et sequitur regni pars quotacumque sui?
More nivis lacrimae sole madentis eunt.
Ilion et Tenedos Simoisque et Xanthus et Ide
Nomina sunt ipso paene timenda sono.
Nec rapere ausurus, nisi se defendere posset,
Hospes erat; vires noverat ille suas.
Venerat, ut fama est, multo spectabilis auro
Quique suo Phrygias corpore ferret opes,
Classe virisque potens, per quae fera bella geruntur —
Et sequitur regni pars quotacumque sui?
By these things I suspect you were conquered, Ledaean sister of the twins;
these, I think, can do harm to the Danaans.
Beware of Hector, whoever he is, if I am your care;
keep the name stamped on a remembering heart!
When you have avoided him, remember to avoid the rest,
and think there are many Hectors there;
and be sure you say, as often as you make ready to fight:
’Laodamia bade me spare myself for her.’
If it is fated that Troy fall beneath the Argive soldier,
it will fall without your taking any wound.
these, I think, can do harm to the Danaans.
Beware of Hector, whoever he is, if I am your care;
keep the name stamped on a remembering heart!
When you have avoided him, remember to avoid the rest,
and think there are many Hectors there;
and be sure you say, as often as you make ready to fight:
’Laodamia bade me spare myself for her.’
If it is fated that Troy fall beneath the Argive soldier,
it will fall without your taking any wound.
His ego te victam, consors Ledaea gemellis,
Suspicor; haec Danais posse nocere puto.
Hectora, quisquis is est, si sum tibi cura, caveto;
Signatum memori pectore nomen habe!
Hunc ubi vitaris, alios vitare memento
Et multos illic Hectoras esse puta;
Et facito dicas, quotiens pugnare parabis:
’Parcere me iussit Laodamia sibi.’
Si cadere Argolico fas est sub milite Troiam,
Te quoque non ullum vulnus habente cadet.
Suspicor; haec Danais posse nocere puto.
Hectora, quisquis is est, si sum tibi cura, caveto;
Signatum memori pectore nomen habe!
Hunc ubi vitaris, alios vitare memento
Et multos illic Hectoras esse puta;
Et facito dicas, quotiens pugnare parabis:
’Parcere me iussit Laodamia sibi.’
Si cadere Argolico fas est sub milite Troiam,
Te quoque non ullum vulnus habente cadet.
Let Menelaus fight and press against the opposing foe;
a wife must be sought by the husband from the midst of enemies.
Your cause is different; do you only fight to live,
and to be able to return to your lady’s loyal embrace.
Spare, sons of Dardanus, I pray, out of so many foes, this one,
lest my blood flow from that body!
He is not one whom it befits to clash with naked steel,
and to bear a savage heart against the men opposed;
he can love far more strongly than he can fight.
Let others wage wars; let Protesilaus love!
a wife must be sought by the husband from the midst of enemies.
Your cause is different; do you only fight to live,
and to be able to return to your lady’s loyal embrace.
Spare, sons of Dardanus, I pray, out of so many foes, this one,
lest my blood flow from that body!
He is not one whom it befits to clash with naked steel,
and to bear a savage heart against the men opposed;
he can love far more strongly than he can fight.
Let others wage wars; let Protesilaus love!
Pugnet et adversos tendat Menelaus in hostis;
Hostibus e mediis nupta petenda viro est.
Causa tua est dispar; tu tantum vivere pugna,
Inque pios dominae posse redire sinus.
Parcite, Dardanidae, de tot, precor, hostibus uni,
Ne meus ex illo corpore sanguis eat!
Non est quem deceat nudo concurrere ferro,
Saevaque in oppositos pectora ferre viros;
Fortius ille potest multo, quam pugnat, amare.
Bella gerant alii; Protesilaus amet!
Hostibus e mediis nupta petenda viro est.
Causa tua est dispar; tu tantum vivere pugna,
Inque pios dominae posse redire sinus.
Parcite, Dardanidae, de tot, precor, hostibus uni,
Ne meus ex illo corpore sanguis eat!
Non est quem deceat nudo concurrere ferro,
Saevaque in oppositos pectora ferre viros;
Fortius ille potest multo, quam pugnat, amare.
Bella gerant alii; Protesilaus amet!
Now I confess — I wished to call you back, and my heart urged it;
but my tongue stopped, in fear of an ill omen.
When you wished to go out from your father’s doors toward Troy,
your foot, stumbling on the threshold, gave a sign.
When I saw it, I groaned, and said in my silent breast:
’May these be signs, I pray, of a husband who will return!’
This I now tell you, that you be not bold in arms;
see that all this fear of mine goes into the winds!
A lot too marks out some man by an unjust fate,
who first of the Danaans shall touch the Trojan ground.
but my tongue stopped, in fear of an ill omen.
When you wished to go out from your father’s doors toward Troy,
your foot, stumbling on the threshold, gave a sign.
When I saw it, I groaned, and said in my silent breast:
’May these be signs, I pray, of a husband who will return!’
This I now tell you, that you be not bold in arms;
see that all this fear of mine goes into the winds!
A lot too marks out some man by an unjust fate,
who first of the Danaans shall touch the Trojan ground.
Nunc fateor — volui revocare, animusque ferebat;
Substitit auspicii lingua timore mali.
Cum foribus velles ad Troiam exire paternis,
Pes tuus offenso limine signa dedit.
Ut vidi, ingemui, tacitoque in pectore dixi:
’Signa reversuri sint, precor, ista viri!’
Haec tibi nunc refero, ne sis animosus in armis;
Fac, meus in ventos hic timor omnis eat!
Sors quoque nescio quem fato designat iniquo,
Qui primus Danaum Troada tangat humum.
Substitit auspicii lingua timore mali.
Cum foribus velles ad Troiam exire paternis,
Pes tuus offenso limine signa dedit.
Ut vidi, ingemui, tacitoque in pectore dixi:
’Signa reversuri sint, precor, ista viri!’
Haec tibi nunc refero, ne sis animosus in armis;
Fac, meus in ventos hic timor omnis eat!
Sors quoque nescio quem fato designat iniquo,
Qui primus Danaum Troada tangat humum.
Unhappy she who first will mourn a husband taken!
May the gods grant that you not wish to be foremost!
Among a thousand ships let yours be the thousandth,
and last of all churn the wearied waters!
This too I warn beforehand: be the last to leave the ship;
the land you hasten to is not your fatherland.
When you come back, drive the keel with oar and sail,
and on your own shore stay your swift step!
Whether Phoebus is hidden or rides high over the lands,
come swift to me by day, come to me by night,
May the gods grant that you not wish to be foremost!
Among a thousand ships let yours be the thousandth,
and last of all churn the wearied waters!
This too I warn beforehand: be the last to leave the ship;
the land you hasten to is not your fatherland.
When you come back, drive the keel with oar and sail,
and on your own shore stay your swift step!
Whether Phoebus is hidden or rides high over the lands,
come swift to me by day, come to me by night,
Infelix, quae prima virum lugebit ademptum!
Di faciant, ne tu strenuus esse velis!
Inter mille rates tua sit millensima puppis,
Iamque fatigatas ultima verset aquas!
Hoc quoque praemoneo: de nave novissimus exi;
Non est, quo properas, terra paterna tibi.
Cum venies, remoque move veloque carinam
Inque tuo celerem litore siste gradum!
Sive latet Phoebus seu terris altior exstat,
Tu mihi luce celer, tu mihi nocte veni,
Di faciant, ne tu strenuus esse velis!
Inter mille rates tua sit millensima puppis,
Iamque fatigatas ultima verset aquas!
Hoc quoque praemoneo: de nave novissimus exi;
Non est, quo properas, terra paterna tibi.
Cum venies, remoque move veloque carinam
Inque tuo celerem litore siste gradum!
Sive latet Phoebus seu terris altior exstat,
Tu mihi luce celer, tu mihi nocte veni,
yet by night more than by day — night is dear to girls
whose neck has an arm laid beneath it.
In my widowed bed I go hunting for lying dreams;
while I lack the true, false joys delight me.
But why does your pale image come before me?
Why does much complaint come from your lips?
I am shaken from sleep and worship the phantoms of the night;
no Thessalian altar lacks my smoke;
I offer incense and a tear besides, by which, sprinkled, it glows,
as a flame is wont to rise when wine is poured on it.
whose neck has an arm laid beneath it.
In my widowed bed I go hunting for lying dreams;
while I lack the true, false joys delight me.
But why does your pale image come before me?
Why does much complaint come from your lips?
I am shaken from sleep and worship the phantoms of the night;
no Thessalian altar lacks my smoke;
I offer incense and a tear besides, by which, sprinkled, it glows,
as a flame is wont to rise when wine is poured on it.
Nocte tamen quam luce magis — nox grata puellis
Quarum suppositus colla lacertus habet.
Aucupor in lecto mendaces caelibe somnos;
Dum careo veris gaudia falsa iuvant.
Sed tua cur nobis pallens occurrit imago?
Cur venit a labris multa querela tuis?
Excutior somno simulacraque noctis adoro;
Nulla caret fumo Thessalis ara meo;
Tura damus lacrimamque super, qua sparsa relucet,
Ut solet adfuso surgere flamma mero.
Quarum suppositus colla lacertus habet.
Aucupor in lecto mendaces caelibe somnos;
Dum careo veris gaudia falsa iuvant.
Sed tua cur nobis pallens occurrit imago?
Cur venit a labris multa querela tuis?
Excutior somno simulacraque noctis adoro;
Nulla caret fumo Thessalis ara meo;
Tura damus lacrimamque super, qua sparsa relucet,
Ut solet adfuso surgere flamma mero.
When shall I, embracing you returned with eager arms,
be undone, languid, by my very joy?
When will it be that, closely joined with me in one bed,
you tell the splendid deeds of your campaign?
While you tell me these things, however much it will please me to hear,
yet you will take many kisses, and give many.
Always in these things the well-telling words come fittingly to a halt;
the tongue is readier to tell after a sweet delay.
But when Troy comes to mind, the winds and the sea come too;
good hope, beaten by anxious fear, falls.
be undone, languid, by my very joy?
When will it be that, closely joined with me in one bed,
you tell the splendid deeds of your campaign?
While you tell me these things, however much it will please me to hear,
yet you will take many kisses, and give many.
Always in these things the well-telling words come fittingly to a halt;
the tongue is readier to tell after a sweet delay.
But when Troy comes to mind, the winds and the sea come too;
good hope, beaten by anxious fear, falls.
Quando ego, te reducem cupidis amplexa lacertis,
Languida laetitia solvar ab ipsa mea?
Quando erit, ut lecto mecum bene iunctus in uno
Militiae referas splendida facta tuae?
Quae mihi dum referes, quamvis audire iuvabit,
Multa tamen capies oscula, multa dabis.
Semper in his apte narrantia verba resistunt;
Promptior est dulci lingua referre mora.
Sed cum Troia subit, subeunt ventique fretumque;
Spes bona sollicito victa timore cadit.
Languida laetitia solvar ab ipsa mea?
Quando erit, ut lecto mecum bene iunctus in uno
Militiae referas splendida facta tuae?
Quae mihi dum referes, quamvis audire iuvabit,
Multa tamen capies oscula, multa dabis.
Semper in his apte narrantia verba resistunt;
Promptior est dulci lingua referre mora.
Sed cum Troia subit, subeunt ventique fretumque;
Spes bona sollicito victa timore cadit.
This too, that the winds forbid the keels to put out,
moves me — you make ready to go on unwilling waters.
Who would wish to return to his country when the wind forbids?
Yet from your country you set sail though the sea forbids!
Neptune himself grants no passage to his own city.
Where do you rush? each of you, return to your homes!
Where do you rush, Danaans? hear the forbidding winds!
This delay is no sudden chance, but a god’s.
What is sought by so great a war but a base adulteress?
While you may, turn back your sails, you ships of Inachus!
moves me — you make ready to go on unwilling waters.
Who would wish to return to his country when the wind forbids?
Yet from your country you set sail though the sea forbids!
Neptune himself grants no passage to his own city.
Where do you rush? each of you, return to your homes!
Where do you rush, Danaans? hear the forbidding winds!
This delay is no sudden chance, but a god’s.
What is sought by so great a war but a base adulteress?
While you may, turn back your sails, you ships of Inachus!
Hoc quoque, quod venti prohibent exire carinas,
Me movet — invitis ire paratis aquis.
Quis velit in patriam vento prohibente reverti?
A patria pelago vela vetante datis!
Ipse suam non praebet iter Neptunus ad urbem.
Quo ruitis? vestras quisque redite domos!
Quo ruitis, Danai? ventos audite vetantis!
Non subiti casus, numinis ista mora est.
Quid petitur tanto nisi turpis adultera bello?
Dum licet, Inachiae vertite vela rates!
Me movet — invitis ire paratis aquis.
Quis velit in patriam vento prohibente reverti?
A patria pelago vela vetante datis!
Ipse suam non praebet iter Neptunus ad urbem.
Quo ruitis? vestras quisque redite domos!
Quo ruitis, Danai? ventos audite vetantis!
Non subiti casus, numinis ista mora est.
Quid petitur tanto nisi turpis adultera bello?
Dum licet, Inachiae vertite vela rates!
But what am I doing? do I call them back? Away with the omen of a recall,
and may a kindly breeze favor the calmed waters!
I envy the Trojan women, who, though they will see the tearful
funerals of their own, and the enemy will not be far,
will themselves with their own hands, a new bride, set the helmet
on a brave husband and give him the Dardan arms.
She will give the arms, and while she gives the arms, will at the same time take kisses —
this kind of service will be sweet to both —
and she will lead her husband forth, and give him charges to return,
and will say: ’see that you bring back these arms to Jove!’
and may a kindly breeze favor the calmed waters!
I envy the Trojan women, who, though they will see the tearful
funerals of their own, and the enemy will not be far,
will themselves with their own hands, a new bride, set the helmet
on a brave husband and give him the Dardan arms.
She will give the arms, and while she gives the arms, will at the same time take kisses —
this kind of service will be sweet to both —
and she will lead her husband forth, and give him charges to return,
and will say: ’see that you bring back these arms to Jove!’
Sed quid ago? revoco? revocaminis omen abesto,
Blandaque conpositas aura secundet aquas!
Troasin invideo, quae si lacrimosa suorum
Funera conspicient, nec procul hostis erit,
Ipsa suis manibus forti nova nupta marito
Inponet galeam Dardanaque arma dabit.
Arma dabit, dumque arma dabit, simul oscula sumet —
Hoc genus officii dulce duobus erit —
Producetque virum, dabit et mandata reverti
Et dicet: ’referas ista fac arma Iovi!’
Blandaque conpositas aura secundet aquas!
Troasin invideo, quae si lacrimosa suorum
Funera conspicient, nec procul hostis erit,
Ipsa suis manibus forti nova nupta marito
Inponet galeam Dardanaque arma dabit.
Arma dabit, dumque arma dabit, simul oscula sumet —
Hoc genus officii dulce duobus erit —
Producetque virum, dabit et mandata reverti
Et dicet: ’referas ista fac arma Iovi!’
He, carrying his lady’s fresh charges with him,
will fight warily and look back toward home.
She will take off his shield when he returns and unbind his helmet,
and receive his weary body on her breast.
We are in uncertainty; anxious fear forces us
to think all that can happen has already happened.
Yet while you bear arms, a soldier in a far-off world,
I have a wax that gives back your features;
to it I speak the caresses, to it the words owed to you,
and it receives my embraces.
will fight warily and look back toward home.
She will take off his shield when he returns and unbind his helmet,
and receive his weary body on her breast.
We are in uncertainty; anxious fear forces us
to think all that can happen has already happened.
Yet while you bear arms, a soldier in a far-off world,
I have a wax that gives back your features;
to it I speak the caresses, to it the words owed to you,
and it receives my embraces.
Ille ferens dominae mandata recentia secum
Pugnabit caute respicietque domum.
Exuet haec reduci clipeum galeamque resolvet,
Excipietque suo corpora lassa sinu.
Nos sumus incertae; nos anxius omnia cogit,
Quae possunt fieri, facta putare timor.
Dum tamen arma geres diverso miles in orbe,
Quae referat vultus est mihi cera tuos;
Illi blanditias, illi tibi debita verba
Dicimus, amplexus accipit illa meos.
Pugnabit caute respicietque domum.
Exuet haec reduci clipeum galeamque resolvet,
Excipietque suo corpora lassa sinu.
Nos sumus incertae; nos anxius omnia cogit,
Quae possunt fieri, facta putare timor.
Dum tamen arma geres diverso miles in orbe,
Quae referat vultus est mihi cera tuos;
Illi blanditias, illi tibi debita verba
Dicimus, amplexus accipit illa meos.
Believe me, the image is more than it seems;
add a voice to the wax, and it will be Protesilaus.
I gaze at it and hold it to my breast in place of my true husband,
and complain to it, as if it could answer words.
By your return and your body, my divinities, I swear,
and by the matched torches of our love and our marriage,
that I will come to you as your companion, wherever you are called,
whether — what, alas, I fear — or whether you survive.
My letter will be closed with a small charge at the end:
if you have any care of me, have care of yourself!
add a voice to the wax, and it will be Protesilaus.
I gaze at it and hold it to my breast in place of my true husband,
and complain to it, as if it could answer words.
By your return and your body, my divinities, I swear,
and by the matched torches of our love and our marriage,
that I will come to you as your companion, wherever you are called,
whether — what, alas, I fear — or whether you survive.
My letter will be closed with a small charge at the end:
if you have any care of me, have care of yourself!
Crede mihi, plus est, quam quod videatur, imago;
Adde sonum cerae, Protesilaus erit.
Hanc specto teneoque sinu pro coniuge vero,
Et, tamquam possit verba referre, queror.
Per reditus corpusque tuum, mea numina, iuro,
Perque pares animi coniugiique faces,
Me tibi venturam comitem, quocumque vocaris,
Sive — quod heu! timeo — sive superstes eris.
Ultima mandato claudetur epistula parvo:
Si tibi cura mei, sit tibi cura tui!
Adde sonum cerae, Protesilaus erit.
Hanc specto teneoque sinu pro coniuge vero,
Et, tamquam possit verba referre, queror.
Per reditus corpusque tuum, mea numina, iuro,
Perque pares animi coniugiique faces,
Me tibi venturam comitem, quocumque vocaris,
Sive — quod heu! timeo — sive superstes eris.
Ultima mandato claudetur epistula parvo:
Si tibi cura mei, sit tibi cura tui!
Book 14
Hypermestra sends this to the one out of so many cousins lately hers —
the rest of the company lies low through the brides’ crime.
I am kept shut in the house and confined with heavy chains;
the cause of my punishment is that I was loyal.
Because my hand shrank from driving the steel into your throat,
I am accused; I would be praised, had I dared the crime.
Better to be accused than to have so pleased my father;
I do not regret having hands free of slaughter.
Though my father burn me with the fire we did not profane,
and thrust into my face the torches that attended the rites;
the rest of the company lies low through the brides’ crime.
I am kept shut in the house and confined with heavy chains;
the cause of my punishment is that I was loyal.
Because my hand shrank from driving the steel into your throat,
I am accused; I would be praised, had I dared the crime.
Better to be accused than to have so pleased my father;
I do not regret having hands free of slaughter.
Though my father burn me with the fire we did not profane,
and thrust into my face the torches that attended the rites;
Mittit Hypermestra de tot modo fratribus uni —
Cetera nuptarum crimine turba iacet.
Clausa domo teneor gravibusque coercita vinclis;
Est mihi supplicii causa fuisse piam.
Quod manus extimuit iugulo demittere ferrum,
Sum rea; laudarer, si scelus ausa forem.
Esse ream praestat, quam sic placuisse parenti;
Non piget inmunes caedis habere manus.
Me pater igne licet, quem non violavimus, urat,
Quaeque aderant sacris, tendat in ora faces;
Cetera nuptarum crimine turba iacet.
Clausa domo teneor gravibusque coercita vinclis;
Est mihi supplicii causa fuisse piam.
Quod manus extimuit iugulo demittere ferrum,
Sum rea; laudarer, si scelus ausa forem.
Esse ream praestat, quam sic placuisse parenti;
Non piget inmunes caedis habere manus.
Me pater igne licet, quem non violavimus, urat,
Quaeque aderant sacris, tendat in ora faces;
or though he cut my throat with the sword he gave for an evil use,
so that by the death my husband did not die, his wife may die —
yet he will not bring it about that my dying lips say ’I repent!’
She is not loyal who regrets being loyal.
Let Danaus repent the crime, and my savage sisters;
this outcome is wont to follow wicked deeds.
My heart shudders at the memory of the night defiled with blood,
and a sudden trembling hampers the bones of my right hand.
She whom you might think could have done a husband’s murder
is afraid to write of a murder not done by her!
so that by the death my husband did not die, his wife may die —
yet he will not bring it about that my dying lips say ’I repent!’
She is not loyal who regrets being loyal.
Let Danaus repent the crime, and my savage sisters;
this outcome is wont to follow wicked deeds.
My heart shudders at the memory of the night defiled with blood,
and a sudden trembling hampers the bones of my right hand.
She whom you might think could have done a husband’s murder
is afraid to write of a murder not done by her!
Aut illo iugulet, quem non bene tradidit ensem,
Ut, qua non cecidit vir nece, nupta cadam —
Non tamen, ut dicant morientia ’paenitet!’ ora,
Efficiet. non est, quam piget esse, pia.
Paeniteat sceleris Danaum saevasque sorores;
Hic solet eventus facta nefanda sequi.
Cor pavet admonitu temeratae sanguine noctis,
Et subitus dextrae praepedit ossa tremor.
Quam tu caede putes fungi potuisse mariti,
Scribere de facta non sibi caede timet!
Ut, qua non cecidit vir nece, nupta cadam —
Non tamen, ut dicant morientia ’paenitet!’ ora,
Efficiet. non est, quam piget esse, pia.
Paeniteat sceleris Danaum saevasque sorores;
Hic solet eventus facta nefanda sequi.
Cor pavet admonitu temeratae sanguine noctis,
Et subitus dextrae praepedit ossa tremor.
Quam tu caede putes fungi potuisse mariti,
Scribere de facta non sibi caede timet!
Yet I will try. The dusk had just come over the earth;
it was the last part of the day and the first of the night.
We daughters of Inachus are led beneath the roof of great Pelasgus,
and the father-in-law himself receives his armed daughters-in-law.
On all sides the lamps, bound with gold, shine;
impious incense is given to the unwilling hearths;
the crowd cries ’Hymen, Hymenaeus!’ He fled from those who called;
the wife of Jove herself withdrew from her own city!
Lo, unsteady with wine, thronged by the shouting of their companions,
fresh flowers binding their wine-soaked hair,
it was the last part of the day and the first of the night.
We daughters of Inachus are led beneath the roof of great Pelasgus,
and the father-in-law himself receives his armed daughters-in-law.
On all sides the lamps, bound with gold, shine;
impious incense is given to the unwilling hearths;
the crowd cries ’Hymen, Hymenaeus!’ He fled from those who called;
the wife of Jove herself withdrew from her own city!
Lo, unsteady with wine, thronged by the shouting of their companions,
fresh flowers binding their wine-soaked hair,
Sed tamen experiar. modo facta crepuscula terris;
Ultima pars lucis primaque noctis erat.
Ducimur Inachides magni sub tecta Pelasgi,
Et socer armatas accipit ipse nurus.
Undique conlucent praecinctae lampades auro;
Dantur in invitos inpia tura focos;
Vulgus ’Hymen, Hymenaee!’ vocant. fugit ille vocantis;
Ipsa Iovis coniunx cessit ab urbe sua!
Ecce, mero dubii, comitum clamore frequentes,
Flore novo madidas inpediente comas,
Ultima pars lucis primaque noctis erat.
Ducimur Inachides magni sub tecta Pelasgi,
Et socer armatas accipit ipse nurus.
Undique conlucent praecinctae lampades auro;
Dantur in invitos inpia tura focos;
Vulgus ’Hymen, Hymenaee!’ vocant. fugit ille vocantis;
Ipsa Iovis coniunx cessit ab urbe sua!
Ecce, mero dubii, comitum clamore frequentes,
Flore novo madidas inpediente comas,
glad, they are carried into the chambers — chambers, their own tombs! —
and press the couches worthy of a funeral with their bodies.
And now, heavy with food and wine and sleep, they lay,
and deep, untroubled quiet was over Argos —
around me I seemed to hear the groans of the dying;
and indeed I was hearing it, and what I feared was real.
My blood goes away, and warmth leaves my mind and body,
and I lay grown cold on the new bed.
As the slender ears of corn quiver in a gentle Zephyr,
as a cold breeze shakes the poplar’s leaves,
and press the couches worthy of a funeral with their bodies.
And now, heavy with food and wine and sleep, they lay,
and deep, untroubled quiet was over Argos —
around me I seemed to hear the groans of the dying;
and indeed I was hearing it, and what I feared was real.
My blood goes away, and warmth leaves my mind and body,
and I lay grown cold on the new bed.
As the slender ears of corn quiver in a gentle Zephyr,
as a cold breeze shakes the poplar’s leaves,
In thalamos laeti — thalamos, sua busta! — feruntur
Strataque corporibus funere digna premunt.
Iamque cibo vinoque graves somnoque iacebant,
Securumque quies alta per Argos erat —
Circum me gemitus morientum audire videbar;
Et tamen audibam, quodque verebar erat.
Sanguis abit, mentemque calor corpusque relinquit,
Inque novo iacui frigida facta toro.
Ut leni Zephyro graciles vibrantur aristae,
Frigida populeas ut quatit aura comas,
Strataque corporibus funere digna premunt.
Iamque cibo vinoque graves somnoque iacebant,
Securumque quies alta per Argos erat —
Circum me gemitus morientum audire videbar;
Et tamen audibam, quodque verebar erat.
Sanguis abit, mentemque calor corpusque relinquit,
Inque novo iacui frigida facta toro.
Ut leni Zephyro graciles vibrantur aristae,
Frigida populeas ut quatit aura comas,
so, or even more, I trembled. You yourself lay there,
and you were the sleep the wine had given you.
The orders of my violent father shook off my fear;
I rise up and take the weapon with a trembling hand.
I will not speak falsely: three times my hand raised the sharp sword,
three times, the sword ill-lifted, the hand fell back.
I brought to your throat — let me confess the truth to you! —
I brought to your throat my father’s weapon;
but fear and loyalty stood in the way of the cruel attempt,
and my chaste right hand shrank from the appointed work.
and you were the sleep the wine had given you.
The orders of my violent father shook off my fear;
I rise up and take the weapon with a trembling hand.
I will not speak falsely: three times my hand raised the sharp sword,
three times, the sword ill-lifted, the hand fell back.
I brought to your throat — let me confess the truth to you! —
I brought to your throat my father’s weapon;
but fear and loyalty stood in the way of the cruel attempt,
and my chaste right hand shrank from the appointed work.
Aut sic, aut etiam tremui magis. ipse iacebas,
Quemque tibi dederant vina, soporis eras.
Excussere metum violenti iussa parentis;
Erigor et capio tela tremente manu.
Non ego falsa loquar: ter acutum sustulit ensem,
Ter male sublato reccidit ense manus.
Admovi iugulo — sine me tibi vera fateri! —
Admovi iugulo tela paterna tuo;
Sed timor et pietas crudelibus obstitit ausis,
Castaque mandatum dextra refugit opus.
Quemque tibi dederant vina, soporis eras.
Excussere metum violenti iussa parentis;
Erigor et capio tela tremente manu.
Non ego falsa loquar: ter acutum sustulit ensem,
Ter male sublato reccidit ense manus.
Admovi iugulo — sine me tibi vera fateri! —
Admovi iugulo tela paterna tuo;
Sed timor et pietas crudelibus obstitit ausis,
Castaque mandatum dextra refugit opus.
Tearing my purple robe, tearing my hair,
in a faint voice I said such words as these:
’Your father, Hypermestra, is cruel; carry out your parent’s orders;
let this man go as companion to his brothers!
I am a woman and a maiden, gentle by nature and in years;
soft hands are not made for fierce weapons.
Come now, while he lies there, imitate your brave sisters —
it is likely the husbands have all been slain!
If this hand could commit any murder,
it would be bloodstained with its own mistress’s death.
in a faint voice I said such words as these:
’Your father, Hypermestra, is cruel; carry out your parent’s orders;
let this man go as companion to his brothers!
I am a woman and a maiden, gentle by nature and in years;
soft hands are not made for fierce weapons.
Come now, while he lies there, imitate your brave sisters —
it is likely the husbands have all been slain!
If this hand could commit any murder,
it would be bloodstained with its own mistress’s death.
Purpureos laniata sinus, laniata capillos
Exiguo dixi talia verba sono:
’Saevus, Hypermestra, pater est tibi; iussa parentis
Effice; germanis sit comes iste suis!
Femina sum et virgo, natura mitis et annis;
Non faciunt molles ad fera tela manus.
Quin age, dumque iacet, fortis imitare sorores —
Credibile est caesos omnibus esse viros!
Si manus haec aliquam posset committere caedem,
Morte foret dominae sanguinolenta suae.
Exiguo dixi talia verba sono:
’Saevus, Hypermestra, pater est tibi; iussa parentis
Effice; germanis sit comes iste suis!
Femina sum et virgo, natura mitis et annis;
Non faciunt molles ad fera tela manus.
Quin age, dumque iacet, fortis imitare sorores —
Credibile est caesos omnibus esse viros!
Si manus haec aliquam posset committere caedem,
Morte foret dominae sanguinolenta suae.
They have earned this death by keeping their cousins’ realm;
with a destitute old man, we, a destitute crowd, go wandering.
Suppose the men deserved to die — what have we ourselves done?
By what offense of mine am I not allowed to be loyal?
What have I to do with the sword? what use are warlike weapons to a girl?
Wool and the distaff are fitter for my fingers.’
So I; and while I lament, my tears follow their own words
and fall from my eyes onto your limbs.
While you reach for embraces and toss your sleeping arms,
your hand was almost wounded by the weapon.
with a destitute old man, we, a destitute crowd, go wandering.
Suppose the men deserved to die — what have we ourselves done?
By what offense of mine am I not allowed to be loyal?
What have I to do with the sword? what use are warlike weapons to a girl?
Wool and the distaff are fitter for my fingers.’
So I; and while I lament, my tears follow their own words
and fall from my eyes onto your limbs.
While you reach for embraces and toss your sleeping arms,
your hand was almost wounded by the weapon.
Hanc meruere necem patruelia regna tenendo;
Cum sene nos inopi turba vagamur inops.
Finge viros meruisse mori — quid fecimus ipsae?
Quo mihi commisso non licet esse piae?
Quid mihi cum ferro? quo bellica tela puellae?
Aptior est digitis lana colusque meis.’
Haec ego; dumque queror, lacrimae sua verba sequuntur
Deque meis oculis in tua membra cadunt.
Dum petis amplexus sopitaque bracchia iactas,
Paene manus telo saucia facta tua est.
Cum sene nos inopi turba vagamur inops.
Finge viros meruisse mori — quid fecimus ipsae?
Quo mihi commisso non licet esse piae?
Quid mihi cum ferro? quo bellica tela puellae?
Aptior est digitis lana colusque meis.’
Haec ego; dumque queror, lacrimae sua verba sequuntur
Deque meis oculis in tua membra cadunt.
Dum petis amplexus sopitaque bracchia iactas,
Paene manus telo saucia facta tua est.
And now I feared my father and my father’s servants and the daylight —
these words of mine drove off your sleep:
’Rise up, son of Belus, one out of so many brothers lately!
This night, unless you hasten, will be everlasting for you!’
Terrified, you spring up; all the sluggishness of sleep flees;
you see the brave weapon in my timid hand.
To you, asking the cause, I said, ’while night permits, escape!’
While the dark night permits, you flee, I myself stay.
It was morning, and Danaus counts up his sons-in-law lying
from the slaughter. Of the full tally of the crime you alone are missing.
these words of mine drove off your sleep:
’Rise up, son of Belus, one out of so many brothers lately!
This night, unless you hasten, will be everlasting for you!’
Terrified, you spring up; all the sluggishness of sleep flees;
you see the brave weapon in my timid hand.
To you, asking the cause, I said, ’while night permits, escape!’
While the dark night permits, you flee, I myself stay.
It was morning, and Danaus counts up his sons-in-law lying
from the slaughter. Of the full tally of the crime you alone are missing.
Iamque patrem famulosque patris lucemque timebam
Expulerunt somnos haec mea dicta tuos:
’Surge age, Belide, de tot modo fratribus unus!
Nox tibi, ni properas, ista perennis erit!’
Territus exsurgis; fugit omnis inertia somni;
Adspicis in timida fortia tela manu.
Quaerenti causam ’dum nox sinit, effuge!’ dixi.
Dum nox atra sinit, tu fugis, ipsa moror.
Mane erat, et Danaus generos ex caede iacentis
Dinumerat. summae criminis unus abes.
Expulerunt somnos haec mea dicta tuos:
’Surge age, Belide, de tot modo fratribus unus!
Nox tibi, ni properas, ista perennis erit!’
Territus exsurgis; fugit omnis inertia somni;
Adspicis in timida fortia tela manu.
Quaerenti causam ’dum nox sinit, effuge!’ dixi.
Dum nox atra sinit, tu fugis, ipsa moror.
Mane erat, et Danaus generos ex caede iacentis
Dinumerat. summae criminis unus abes.
He bears ill the loss of one kinsman’s death,
and complains that there is too little blood shed.
I am dragged from my father’s feet, and, seized by the hair —
such rewards my loyalty earned! — the prison holds me.
No doubt from that time Juno’s anger persists,
since one was made an ox from a human, and a goddess from an ox.
Yet it was punishment enough that the tender girl lowed,
and could not, lately so beautiful, please Jove.
The new heifer stood on the bank of her liquid father,
and saw horns not her own in her father’s waters,
and complains that there is too little blood shed.
I am dragged from my father’s feet, and, seized by the hair —
such rewards my loyalty earned! — the prison holds me.
No doubt from that time Juno’s anger persists,
since one was made an ox from a human, and a goddess from an ox.
Yet it was punishment enough that the tender girl lowed,
and could not, lately so beautiful, please Jove.
The new heifer stood on the bank of her liquid father,
and saw horns not her own in her father’s waters,
Fert male cognatae iacturam mortis in uno
Et queritur facti sanguinis esse parum.
Abstrahor a patriis pedibus, raptamque capillis —
Haec meruit pietas praemia! — carcer habet.
Scilicet ex illo Iunonia permanet ira,
Cum bos ex homine est, ex bove facta dea.
At satis est poenae teneram mugisse puellam
Nec, modo formosam, posse placere Iovi.
Adstitit in ripa liquidi nova vacca parentis,
Cornuaque in patriis non sua vidit aquis,
Et queritur facti sanguinis esse parum.
Abstrahor a patriis pedibus, raptamque capillis —
Haec meruit pietas praemia! — carcer habet.
Scilicet ex illo Iunonia permanet ira,
Cum bos ex homine est, ex bove facta dea.
At satis est poenae teneram mugisse puellam
Nec, modo formosam, posse placere Iovi.
Adstitit in ripa liquidi nova vacca parentis,
Cornuaque in patriis non sua vidit aquis,
and trying to complain she gave forth a lowing from her mouth,
and was frightened at her shape, frightened at her own voice.
Why do you rage, unhappy one? why do you wonder at yourself in your shadow?
why do you count the feet made for your new body?
You, the rival of great Jove, to be feared by his sister,
relieve your great hunger with leaves and turf,
you drink at a spring and gaze, stunned, at your own form,
and fear lest the arms you bear should wound you,
and you who lately were rich, that you might seem worthy even of Jove,
now lie down naked on the naked ground.
and was frightened at her shape, frightened at her own voice.
Why do you rage, unhappy one? why do you wonder at yourself in your shadow?
why do you count the feet made for your new body?
You, the rival of great Jove, to be feared by his sister,
relieve your great hunger with leaves and turf,
you drink at a spring and gaze, stunned, at your own form,
and fear lest the arms you bear should wound you,
and you who lately were rich, that you might seem worthy even of Jove,
now lie down naked on the naked ground.
Conatoque queri mugitus edidit ore
Territaque est forma, territa voce sua.
Quid furis, infelix? quid te miraris in umbra?
Quid numeras factos ad nova membra pedes?
Illa Iovis magni paelex metuenda sorori
Fronde levas nimiam caespitibusque famem,
Fonte bibis spectasque tuam stupefacta figuram
Et, te ne feriant, quae geris, arma, times,
Quaeque modo, ut posses etiam Iove digna videri,
Dives eras, nuda nuda recumbis humo.
Territaque est forma, territa voce sua.
Quid furis, infelix? quid te miraris in umbra?
Quid numeras factos ad nova membra pedes?
Illa Iovis magni paelex metuenda sorori
Fronde levas nimiam caespitibusque famem,
Fonte bibis spectasque tuam stupefacta figuram
Et, te ne feriant, quae geris, arma, times,
Quaeque modo, ut posses etiam Iove digna videri,
Dives eras, nuda nuda recumbis humo.
Over sea, over lands, and over kindred rivers you run;
the sea grants, the rivers grant, the land grants you a way.
What is the cause of your flight? why do you wander the long seas?
You cannot escape your own face.
Daughter of Inachus, where do you hasten? you both pursue and flee the same thing;
you are guide to your companion, and companion yourself to your guide.
The Nile, let out by seven mouths into the sea,
stripped the maddened rival of her cow-face.
Why do I tell of distant things, for which hoary age
is my authority? See, my own years give me what to lament.
the sea grants, the rivers grant, the land grants you a way.
What is the cause of your flight? why do you wander the long seas?
You cannot escape your own face.
Daughter of Inachus, where do you hasten? you both pursue and flee the same thing;
you are guide to your companion, and companion yourself to your guide.
The Nile, let out by seven mouths into the sea,
stripped the maddened rival of her cow-face.
Why do I tell of distant things, for which hoary age
is my authority? See, my own years give me what to lament.
Per mare, per terras cognataque flumina curris;
Dat mare, dant amnes, dat tibi terra viam.
Quae tibi causa fugae? quid tu freta longa pererras?
Non poteris vultus effugere ipsa tuos.
Inachi, quo properas? eadem sequerisque fugisque;
Tu tibi dux comiti, tu comes ipsa duci.
Per septem Nilus portus emissus in aequor
Exuit insana paelicis ora bove.
Ultima quid refero, quorum mihi cana senectus
Auctor? dant anni, quod querar, ecce, mei.
Dat mare, dant amnes, dat tibi terra viam.
Quae tibi causa fugae? quid tu freta longa pererras?
Non poteris vultus effugere ipsa tuos.
Inachi, quo properas? eadem sequerisque fugisque;
Tu tibi dux comiti, tu comes ipsa duci.
Per septem Nilus portus emissus in aequor
Exuit insana paelicis ora bove.
Ultima quid refero, quorum mihi cana senectus
Auctor? dant anni, quod querar, ecce, mei.
My father and my uncle wage wars; from kingdom and home
we are driven; the farthest world holds the outcasts.
Of the throng of brothers the tiniest part remains.
I weep for those given to death, and for those who dealt it;
for as many brothers as I had, so many sisters perished to me.
Let both companies receive my tears!
Lo, I, because you live, am kept to be tortured for punishment;
what will happen to the guilty, when I am tried for a praiseworthy deed,
and, once the hundredth of a kindred company,
unhappy, with one brother surviving, must fall?
we are driven; the farthest world holds the outcasts.
Of the throng of brothers the tiniest part remains.
I weep for those given to death, and for those who dealt it;
for as many brothers as I had, so many sisters perished to me.
Let both companies receive my tears!
Lo, I, because you live, am kept to be tortured for punishment;
what will happen to the guilty, when I am tried for a praiseworthy deed,
and, once the hundredth of a kindred company,
unhappy, with one brother surviving, must fall?
Bella pater patruusque gerunt; regnoque domoque
Pellimur; eiectos ultimus orbis habet.
De fratrum populo pars exiguissima restat.
Quique dati leto, quaeque dedere, fleo;
Nam mihi quot fratres, totidem periere sorores.
Accipiat lacrimas utraque turba meas!
En, ego, quod vivis, poenae crucianda reservor;
Quid fiet sonti, cum rea laudis agar
Et consanguineae quondam centensima turbae
Infelix uno fratre manente cadam?
Pellimur; eiectos ultimus orbis habet.
De fratrum populo pars exiguissima restat.
Quique dati leto, quaeque dedere, fleo;
Nam mihi quot fratres, totidem periere sorores.
Accipiat lacrimas utraque turba meas!
En, ego, quod vivis, poenae crucianda reservor;
Quid fiet sonti, cum rea laudis agar
Et consanguineae quondam centensima turbae
Infelix uno fratre manente cadam?
But you, Lynceus, if you have any care for a loyal sister,
and are worthy of the gifts I gave you,
either bring help, or give me to death, and my body, its life done,
lay besides on a secret pyre,
and bury my bones, drenched with faithful tears,
and let my tomb be carved with a short inscription:
’Exiled Hypermestra, the unjust reward of loyalty:
the death she warded from her cousin, she herself has borne.’
I would like to write more, but my hand has sunk under the chain’s weight,
and fear itself takes away my strength.
and are worthy of the gifts I gave you,
either bring help, or give me to death, and my body, its life done,
lay besides on a secret pyre,
and bury my bones, drenched with faithful tears,
and let my tomb be carved with a short inscription:
’Exiled Hypermestra, the unjust reward of loyalty:
the death she warded from her cousin, she herself has borne.’
I would like to write more, but my hand has sunk under the chain’s weight,
and fear itself takes away my strength.
At tu, siqua piae, Lynceu, tibi cura sororis,
Quaeque tibi tribui munera, dignus habes,
Vel fer opem, vel dede neci defunctaque vita
Corpora furtivis insuper adde rogis,
Et sepeli lacrimis perfusa fidelibus ossa,
Sculptaque sint titulo nostra sepulcra brevi:
’Exul Hypermestra, pretium pietatis iniquum,
Quam mortem fratri depulit, ipsa tulit.’
Scribere plura libet, sed pondere lapsa catenae
Est manus, et vires subtrahit ipse timor.
Quaeque tibi tribui munera, dignus habes,
Vel fer opem, vel dede neci defunctaque vita
Corpora furtivis insuper adde rogis,
Et sepeli lacrimis perfusa fidelibus ossa,
Sculptaque sint titulo nostra sepulcra brevi:
’Exul Hypermestra, pretium pietatis iniquum,
Quam mortem fratri depulit, ipsa tulit.’
Scribere plura libet, sed pondere lapsa catenae
Est manus, et vires subtrahit ipse timor.
Book 15
Tell me, when the writing of my zealous hand was looked upon,
was it at once known by your eyes as mine —
or, unless you had read the name of the author, Sappho,
would you not know whence this brief work is set going?
Perhaps too you may ask why my songs are in alternating measures,
when I am more suited to lyric strains.
My love must be wept — elegy is the song of weeping;
no lyre suits my tears.
I burn, as a fertile field burns, its harvests kindled,
when the unbridled East winds drive the fire.
was it at once known by your eyes as mine —
or, unless you had read the name of the author, Sappho,
would you not know whence this brief work is set going?
Perhaps too you may ask why my songs are in alternating measures,
when I am more suited to lyric strains.
My love must be wept — elegy is the song of weeping;
no lyre suits my tears.
I burn, as a fertile field burns, its harvests kindled,
when the unbridled East winds drive the fire.
Ecquid, ut adspecta est studiosae littera dextrae,
Protinus est oculis cognita nostra tuis —
An, nisi legisses auctoris nomina Sapphus,
Hoc breve nescires unde movetur opus?
Forsitan et quare mea sint alterna requiras
Carmina, cum lyricis sim magis apta modis.
Flendus amor meus est — elegiae flebile carmen;
Non facit ad lacrimas barbitos ulla meas.
Uror, ut indomitis ignem exercentibus Euris
Fertilis accensis messibus ardet ager.
Protinus est oculis cognita nostra tuis —
An, nisi legisses auctoris nomina Sapphus,
Hoc breve nescires unde movetur opus?
Forsitan et quare mea sint alterna requiras
Carmina, cum lyricis sim magis apta modis.
Flendus amor meus est — elegiae flebile carmen;
Non facit ad lacrimas barbitos ulla meas.
Uror, ut indomitis ignem exercentibus Euris
Fertilis accensis messibus ardet ager.
You haunt, Phaon, the distant fields of Typhoeus’ Etna;
a heat no less than Etna’s fire holds me.
Nor do songs come to me, that I might join to the strings I have set;
songs are the work of an unburdened mind!
Neither the girls of Pyrrha nor of Methymna,
nor the rest of the Lesbian throng, please me.
Cheap is Anactorie to me, cheap fair Cydro;
Atthis is not pleasing to my eyes, as before,
and a hundred others, whom here I loved without reproach;
wicked one, what belonged to many, you alone now hold.
a heat no less than Etna’s fire holds me.
Nor do songs come to me, that I might join to the strings I have set;
songs are the work of an unburdened mind!
Neither the girls of Pyrrha nor of Methymna,
nor the rest of the Lesbian throng, please me.
Cheap is Anactorie to me, cheap fair Cydro;
Atthis is not pleasing to my eyes, as before,
and a hundred others, whom here I loved without reproach;
wicked one, what belonged to many, you alone now hold.
Arva, Phaon, celebras diversa Typhoidos Aetnae;
Me calor Aetnaeo non minor igne tenet.
Nec mihi, dispositis quae iungam carmina nervis,
Proveniunt; vacuae carmina mentis opus!
Nec me Pyrrhiades Methymniadesve puellae,
Nec me Lesbiadum cetera turba iuvant.
Vilis Anactorie, vilis mihi candida Cydro;
Non oculis grata est Atthis, ut ante, meis,
Atque aliae centum, quas hic sine crimine amavi;
Inprobe, multarum quod fuit, unus habes.
Me calor Aetnaeo non minor igne tenet.
Nec mihi, dispositis quae iungam carmina nervis,
Proveniunt; vacuae carmina mentis opus!
Nec me Pyrrhiades Methymniadesve puellae,
Nec me Lesbiadum cetera turba iuvant.
Vilis Anactorie, vilis mihi candida Cydro;
Non oculis grata est Atthis, ut ante, meis,
Atque aliae centum, quas hic sine crimine amavi;
Inprobe, multarum quod fuit, unus habes.
You have beauty, you have years fit for play —
O beauty, treacherous to my eyes!
Take the lyre and the quiver — you will become Apollo plain to see;
let horns come to your head — you will be Bacchus!
Phoebus loved Daphne, and Bacchus the Cnosian girl,
and neither one knew lyric measures;
but for me the Pegasian Muses dictate the sweetest songs;
already my name is sung in all the world.
Nor has Alcaeus more praise, my fellow in homeland and lyre,
though he sound more grandly.
O beauty, treacherous to my eyes!
Take the lyre and the quiver — you will become Apollo plain to see;
let horns come to your head — you will be Bacchus!
Phoebus loved Daphne, and Bacchus the Cnosian girl,
and neither one knew lyric measures;
but for me the Pegasian Muses dictate the sweetest songs;
already my name is sung in all the world.
Nor has Alcaeus more praise, my fellow in homeland and lyre,
though he sound more grandly.
Est in te facies, sunt apti lusibus anni —
O facies oculis insidiosa meis!
Sume fidem et pharetram — fies manifestus Apollo;
Accedant capiti cornua — Bacchus eris!
Et Phoebus Daphnen, et Cnosida Bacchus amavit,
Nec norat lyricos illa vel illa modos;
At mihi Pegasides blandissima carmina dictant;
Iam canitur toto nomen in orbe meum.
Nec plus Alcaeus, consors patriaeque lyraeque,
Laudis habet, quamvis grandius ille sonet.
O facies oculis insidiosa meis!
Sume fidem et pharetram — fies manifestus Apollo;
Accedant capiti cornua — Bacchus eris!
Et Phoebus Daphnen, et Cnosida Bacchus amavit,
Nec norat lyricos illa vel illa modos;
At mihi Pegasides blandissima carmina dictant;
Iam canitur toto nomen in orbe meum.
Nec plus Alcaeus, consors patriaeque lyraeque,
Laudis habet, quamvis grandius ille sonet.
If grudging nature has denied me beauty,
weigh the loss of beauty against my genius.
Though I be short, yet I have a name to fill all lands;
I myself bear the measure of my name.
If I am not fair, Cepheian Andromeda pleased Perseus,
dark with the color of her own country.
And white doves are often joined to dappled ones,
and the black turtledove is loved by the green bird.
If none is to be yours but she who can seem worthy of you in beauty,
then none will be yours.
weigh the loss of beauty against my genius.
Though I be short, yet I have a name to fill all lands;
I myself bear the measure of my name.
If I am not fair, Cepheian Andromeda pleased Perseus,
dark with the color of her own country.
And white doves are often joined to dappled ones,
and the black turtledove is loved by the green bird.
If none is to be yours but she who can seem worthy of you in beauty,
then none will be yours.
Si mihi difficilis formam natura negavit,
Ingenio formae damna repende meo.
Sim brevis, at nomen, quod terras inpleat omnes,
Est mihi; mensuram nominis ipsa fero.
Candida si non sum, placuit Cepheia Perseo
Andromede, patriae fusca colore suae.
Et variis albae iunguntur saepe columbae,
Et niger a viridi turtur amatur ave.
Si, nisi quae facie poterit te digna videri,
Nulla futura tua est, nulla futura tua est.
Ingenio formae damna repende meo.
Sim brevis, at nomen, quod terras inpleat omnes,
Est mihi; mensuram nominis ipsa fero.
Candida si non sum, placuit Cepheia Perseo
Andromede, patriae fusca colore suae.
Et variis albae iunguntur saepe columbae,
Et niger a viridi turtur amatur ave.
Si, nisi quae facie poterit te digna videri,
Nulla futura tua est, nulla futura tua est.
Yet when I read my verses, I seemed beautiful enough;
you kept swearing that I alone was fit to speak.
I was singing, I remember — lovers remember everything —
and as I sang you gave me stolen kisses.
These too you praised, and I pleased in every part —
but then above all, when the work of love is done.
Then my wantonness pleased you more than usual,
and the quick stirring and the words fit for play,
and that, when the pleasure of us both had mingled,
the greatest languor was in our spent bodies.
you kept swearing that I alone was fit to speak.
I was singing, I remember — lovers remember everything —
and as I sang you gave me stolen kisses.
These too you praised, and I pleased in every part —
but then above all, when the work of love is done.
Then my wantonness pleased you more than usual,
and the quick stirring and the words fit for play,
and that, when the pleasure of us both had mingled,
the greatest languor was in our spent bodies.
At mea cum legerem, sat iam formosa videbar;
Unam iurabas usque decere loqui.
Cantabam, memini — meminerunt omnia amantes —
Oscula cantanti tu mihi rapta dabas.
Haec quoque laudabas, omnique a parte placebam —
Sed tum praecipue, cum fit amoris opus.
Tunc te plus solito lascivia nostra iuvabat,
Crebraque mobilitas aptaque verba ioco,
Et quod, ubi amborum fuerat confusa voluptas,
Plurimus in lasso corpore languor erat.
Unam iurabas usque decere loqui.
Cantabam, memini — meminerunt omnia amantes —
Oscula cantanti tu mihi rapta dabas.
Haec quoque laudabas, omnique a parte placebam —
Sed tum praecipue, cum fit amoris opus.
Tunc te plus solito lascivia nostra iuvabat,
Crebraque mobilitas aptaque verba ioco,
Et quod, ubi amborum fuerat confusa voluptas,
Plurimus in lasso corpore languor erat.
Now the Sicilian girls come to you as fresh prey.
What have I to do with Lesbos? I wish to be a Sicilian.
O send the wanderer back from your land,
mothers of Nisus’s city and brides of Nisus’s city,
and let not the lies of his coaxing tongue deceive you!
What he says to you, he had said before to me.
You too, Erycina, who haunt the Sican mountains —
for I am yours — look to your poet, goddess!
Or does grievous fortune carry on the course it began,
and stay always bitter in its own running?
What have I to do with Lesbos? I wish to be a Sicilian.
O send the wanderer back from your land,
mothers of Nisus’s city and brides of Nisus’s city,
and let not the lies of his coaxing tongue deceive you!
What he says to you, he had said before to me.
You too, Erycina, who haunt the Sican mountains —
for I am yours — look to your poet, goddess!
Or does grievous fortune carry on the course it began,
and stay always bitter in its own running?
Nunc tibi Sicelides veniunt nova praeda puellae.
Quid mihi cum Lesbo? Sicelis esse volo.
O vos erronem tellure remittite vestra,
Nisiades matres Nisiadesque nurus,
Nec vos decipiant blandae mendacia linguae!
Quae dicit vobis, dixerat ante mihi.
Tu quoque, quae montes celebras, Erycina, Sicanos —
Nam tua sum — vati consule, diva, tuae!
An gravis inceptum peragit fortuna tenorem
Et manet in cursu semper acerba suo?
Quid mihi cum Lesbo? Sicelis esse volo.
O vos erronem tellure remittite vestra,
Nisiades matres Nisiadesque nurus,
Nec vos decipiant blandae mendacia linguae!
Quae dicit vobis, dixerat ante mihi.
Tu quoque, quae montes celebras, Erycina, Sicanos —
Nam tua sum — vati consule, diva, tuae!
An gravis inceptum peragit fortuna tenorem
Et manet in cursu semper acerba suo?
Six birthdays had gone for me, when the gathered bones of my parent,
before his day, drank my tears.
My idle brother burned, caught by the love of a harlot,
and bore losses mixed with base disgrace;
made poor, he crosses the blue seas with a nimble oar,
and the wealth he badly lost, he now badly seeks.
Me too he hates, because I gave him much good and faithful counsel;
this my frankness, this my dutiful tongue earned me.
And as if there lacked things to wear me out without end,
a little daughter heaps up my cares.
before his day, drank my tears.
My idle brother burned, caught by the love of a harlot,
and bore losses mixed with base disgrace;
made poor, he crosses the blue seas with a nimble oar,
and the wealth he badly lost, he now badly seeks.
Me too he hates, because I gave him much good and faithful counsel;
this my frankness, this my dutiful tongue earned me.
And as if there lacked things to wear me out without end,
a little daughter heaps up my cares.
Sex mihi natales ierant, cum lecta parentis
Ante diem lacrimas ossa bibere meas.
Arsit iners frater meretricis captus amore
Mixtaque cum turpi damna pudore tulit;
Factus inops agili peragit freta caerula remo,
Quasque male amisit, nunc male quaerit opes.
Me quoque, quod monui bene multa fideliter, odit;
Hoc mihi libertas, hoc pia lingua dedit.
Et tamquam desint, quae me sine fine fatigent,
Accumulat curas filia parva meas.
Ante diem lacrimas ossa bibere meas.
Arsit iners frater meretricis captus amore
Mixtaque cum turpi damna pudore tulit;
Factus inops agili peragit freta caerula remo,
Quasque male amisit, nunc male quaerit opes.
Me quoque, quod monui bene multa fideliter, odit;
Hoc mihi libertas, hoc pia lingua dedit.
Et tamquam desint, quae me sine fine fatigent,
Accumulat curas filia parva meas.
Last of all you are added as a cause of my laments.
My ship is not driven by its own wind.
See, my hair lies scattered on my neck without order,
nor does a bright gem press my fingers;
I am clad in a cheap robe, there is no gold in my hair,
my locks have no gifts of the Arabs.
For whom, unhappy, should I be adorned, or to please whom should I labor?
You, the one cause of my grooming, are away.
My heart is soft and woundable by light darts,
and there is always a cause why I always love —
My ship is not driven by its own wind.
See, my hair lies scattered on my neck without order,
nor does a bright gem press my fingers;
I am clad in a cheap robe, there is no gold in my hair,
my locks have no gifts of the Arabs.
For whom, unhappy, should I be adorned, or to please whom should I labor?
You, the one cause of my grooming, are away.
My heart is soft and woundable by light darts,
and there is always a cause why I always love —
Ultima tu nostris accedis causa querelis.
Non agitur vento nostra carina suo.
Ecce, iacent collo sparsi sine lege capilli,
Nec premit articulos lucida gemma meos;
Veste tegor vili, nullum est in crinibus aurum,
Non Arabum noster dona capillus habet.
Cui colar infelix, aut cui placuisse laborem?
Ille mei cultus unicus auctor abes.
Molle meum levibusque cor est violabile telis,
Et semper causa est, cur ego semper amem —
Non agitur vento nostra carina suo.
Ecce, iacent collo sparsi sine lege capilli,
Nec premit articulos lucida gemma meos;
Veste tegor vili, nullum est in crinibus aurum,
Non Arabum noster dona capillus habet.
Cui colar infelix, aut cui placuisse laborem?
Ille mei cultus unicus auctor abes.
Molle meum levibusque cor est violabile telis,
Et semper causa est, cur ego semper amem —
whether the Sisters laid down this law at my birth
and no stern threads were given to my life,
or whether pursuits pass into character, and Thalia, mistress of my art,
makes my nature soft.
What wonder, if the age of first down has carried me away,
and the years a man may love?
I feared you would snatch him in Cephalus’s stead, Aurora —
and you would, but your first plunder holds you!
If she who beholds all things, Phoebe, should behold him,
Phaon will be bidden to prolong his sleep;
and no stern threads were given to my life,
or whether pursuits pass into character, and Thalia, mistress of my art,
makes my nature soft.
What wonder, if the age of first down has carried me away,
and the years a man may love?
I feared you would snatch him in Cephalus’s stead, Aurora —
and you would, but your first plunder holds you!
If she who beholds all things, Phoebe, should behold him,
Phaon will be bidden to prolong his sleep;
Sive ita nascenti legem dixere Sorores
Nec data sunt vitae fila severa meae,
Sive abeunt studia in mores, artisque magistra
Ingenium nobis molle Thalia facit.
Quid mirum, si me primae lanuginis aetas
Abstulit, atque anni quos vir amare potest?
Hunc ne pro Cephalo raperes, Aurora, timebam —
Et faceres, sed te prima rapina tenet!
Hunc si conspiciat quae conspicit omnia Phoebe,
Iussus erit somnos continuare Phaon;
Nec data sunt vitae fila severa meae,
Sive abeunt studia in mores, artisque magistra
Ingenium nobis molle Thalia facit.
Quid mirum, si me primae lanuginis aetas
Abstulit, atque anni quos vir amare potest?
Hunc ne pro Cephalo raperes, Aurora, timebam —
Et faceres, sed te prima rapina tenet!
Hunc si conspiciat quae conspicit omnia Phoebe,
Iussus erit somnos continuare Phaon;
Venus would have carried him to heaven in her ivory car,
but she sees that he could please her own Mars too.
O neither yet a young man, nor now a boy, a useful age,
O ornament and great glory of your time,
come here, and glide back, handsome one, into my arms!
I do not pray that you love, but that you allow yourself to be loved.
I write, and my eyes are bedewed with welling tears;
see how many a blot there is in this place!
If you were so resolved to go from here, you might have gone more gently,
and at least have said, ’Girl of Lesbos, farewell!’
but she sees that he could please her own Mars too.
O neither yet a young man, nor now a boy, a useful age,
O ornament and great glory of your time,
come here, and glide back, handsome one, into my arms!
I do not pray that you love, but that you allow yourself to be loved.
I write, and my eyes are bedewed with welling tears;
see how many a blot there is in this place!
If you were so resolved to go from here, you might have gone more gently,
and at least have said, ’Girl of Lesbos, farewell!’
Hunc Venus in caelum curru vexisset eburno,
Sed videt et Marti posse placere suo.
O nec adhuc iuvenis, nec iam puer, utilis aetas,
O decus atque aevi gloria magna tui,
Huc ades inque sinus, formose, relabere nostros!
Non ut ames oro, verum ut amere sinas.
Scribimus, et lacrimis oculi rorantur obortis;
Adspice, quam sit in hoc multa litura loco!
Si tam certus eras hinc ire, modestius isses,
Et modo dixisses ’Lesbi puella, vale!’
Sed videt et Marti posse placere suo.
O nec adhuc iuvenis, nec iam puer, utilis aetas,
O decus atque aevi gloria magna tui,
Huc ades inque sinus, formose, relabere nostros!
Non ut ames oro, verum ut amere sinas.
Scribimus, et lacrimis oculi rorantur obortis;
Adspice, quam sit in hoc multa litura loco!
Si tam certus eras hinc ire, modestius isses,
Et modo dixisses ’Lesbi puella, vale!’
You did not take with you my tears, nor my kisses;
in short, I did not fear what I was to grieve over.
I have nothing of you with me but only the injury; nor do you
have any pledge of your lover to remind you of her.
I gave no charges, nor indeed would I have given any charge,
except that you should not wish to be forgetful of me.
By your love — may it never depart far from you! —
and by the nine goddesses, my divinities, I swear,
when someone said to me, ’your joys are fleeing,’
I could neither weep for long, nor speak!
in short, I did not fear what I was to grieve over.
I have nothing of you with me but only the injury; nor do you
have any pledge of your lover to remind you of her.
I gave no charges, nor indeed would I have given any charge,
except that you should not wish to be forgetful of me.
By your love — may it never depart far from you! —
and by the nine goddesses, my divinities, I swear,
when someone said to me, ’your joys are fleeing,’
I could neither weep for long, nor speak!
Non tecum lacrimas, non oscula nostra tulisti;
Denique non timui, quod dolitura fui.
Nil de te mecum est nisi tantum iniuria; nec tu,
Admoneat quod te, pignus, amantis, habes.
Non mandata dedi, neque enim mandata dedissem
Ulla, nisi ut nolles inmemor esse mei.
Per tibi — qui numquam longe discedat! — amorem,
Perque novem iuro, numina nostra, deas,
Cum mihi nescio quis ’fugiunt tua gaudia’ dixit,
Nec me flere diu, nec potuisse loqui!
Denique non timui, quod dolitura fui.
Nil de te mecum est nisi tantum iniuria; nec tu,
Admoneat quod te, pignus, amantis, habes.
Non mandata dedi, neque enim mandata dedissem
Ulla, nisi ut nolles inmemor esse mei.
Per tibi — qui numquam longe discedat! — amorem,
Perque novem iuro, numina nostra, deas,
Cum mihi nescio quis ’fugiunt tua gaudia’ dixit,
Nec me flere diu, nec potuisse loqui!
Both tears failed my eyes and words my palate,
and my breast was bound tight with icy cold.
After my grief found itself, I was not ashamed to beat my breast
nor to shriek aloud with torn hair,
no otherwise than if a loving mother carried the lifeless body
of her lost son to the built-up pyre.
My brother Charaxus rejoices and grows fat on my grief,
and goes and comes before my eyes,
and, that the cause of my grief may seem shameful,
says, ’Why does she grieve? surely her daughter lives!’
and my breast was bound tight with icy cold.
After my grief found itself, I was not ashamed to beat my breast
nor to shriek aloud with torn hair,
no otherwise than if a loving mother carried the lifeless body
of her lost son to the built-up pyre.
My brother Charaxus rejoices and grows fat on my grief,
and goes and comes before my eyes,
and, that the cause of my grief may seem shameful,
says, ’Why does she grieve? surely her daughter lives!’
Et lacrimae deerant oculis et verba palato,
Adstrictum gelido frigore pectus erat.
Postquam se dolor invenit, nec pectora plangi
Nec puduit scissis exululare comis,
Non aliter, quam si nati pia mater adempti
Portet ad exstructos corpus inane rogos.
Gaudet et e nostro crescit maerore Charaxus
Frater, et ante oculos itque reditque meos,
Utque pudenda mei videatur causa doloris,
’Quid dolet haec? certe filia vivit!’ ait.
Adstrictum gelido frigore pectus erat.
Postquam se dolor invenit, nec pectora plangi
Nec puduit scissis exululare comis,
Non aliter, quam si nati pia mater adempti
Portet ad exstructos corpus inane rogos.
Gaudet et e nostro crescit maerore Charaxus
Frater, et ante oculos itque reditque meos,
Utque pudenda mei videatur causa doloris,
’Quid dolet haec? certe filia vivit!’ ait.
Shame and love do not come to the same point. The whole crowd saw;
I was laid bare in the breast with torn robe.
You are my care, Phaon; my dreams bring you back —
dreams brighter than a beautiful day.
There I find you, though you are away in distant regions;
but sleep does not hold joys long enough.
Often I seem to load your arms upon my neck,
often to have laid mine beneath yours;
I recognize the kisses, which you used to join with the tongue,
used to take aptly and aptly give.
I was laid bare in the breast with torn robe.
You are my care, Phaon; my dreams bring you back —
dreams brighter than a beautiful day.
There I find you, though you are away in distant regions;
but sleep does not hold joys long enough.
Often I seem to load your arms upon my neck,
often to have laid mine beneath yours;
I recognize the kisses, which you used to join with the tongue,
used to take aptly and aptly give.
Non veniunt in idem pudor atque amor. omne videbat
Vulgus; eram lacero pectus aperta sinu.
Tu mihi cura, Phaon; te somnia nostra reducunt —
Somnia formoso candidiora die.
Illic te invenio, quamvis regionibus absis;
Sed non longa satis gaudia somnus habet
Saepe tuos nostra cervice onerare lacertos,
Saepe tuae videor supposuisse meos;
Oscula cognosco, quae tu committere lingua
Aptaque consueras accipere, apta dare.
Vulgus; eram lacero pectus aperta sinu.
Tu mihi cura, Phaon; te somnia nostra reducunt —
Somnia formoso candidiora die.
Illic te invenio, quamvis regionibus absis;
Sed non longa satis gaudia somnus habet
Saepe tuos nostra cervice onerare lacertos,
Saepe tuae videor supposuisse meos;
Oscula cognosco, quae tu committere lingua
Aptaque consueras accipere, apta dare.
Sometimes I coax, and speak words most like the true,
and my lips keep watch for my senses.
I am ashamed to tell what follows, but all of it happens,
and it pleases, and I cannot stay dry.
But when Titan shows himself, and all things with him,
I complain that sleep so quickly forsook me;
I seek the caves and the grove, as though grove and caves could help —
they were privy to my delights.
There, out of my mind, like one whom raging Enyo has touched,
I am borne, my hair lying loose on my neck.
and my lips keep watch for my senses.
I am ashamed to tell what follows, but all of it happens,
and it pleases, and I cannot stay dry.
But when Titan shows himself, and all things with him,
I complain that sleep so quickly forsook me;
I seek the caves and the grove, as though grove and caves could help —
they were privy to my delights.
There, out of my mind, like one whom raging Enyo has touched,
I am borne, my hair lying loose on my neck.
Blandior interdum verisque simillima verba
Eloquor, et vigilant sensibus ora meis.
Ulteriora pudet narrare, sed omnia fiunt,
Et iuvat, et siccae non licet esse mihi.
At cum se Titan ostendit et omnia secum,
Tam cito me somnos destituisse queror;
Antra nemusque peto, tamquam nemus antraque prosint —
Conscia deliciis illa fuere meis.
Illuc mentis inops, ut quam furialis Enyo
Attigit, in collo crine iacente feror.
Eloquor, et vigilant sensibus ora meis.
Ulteriora pudet narrare, sed omnia fiunt,
Et iuvat, et siccae non licet esse mihi.
At cum se Titan ostendit et omnia secum,
Tam cito me somnos destituisse queror;
Antra nemusque peto, tamquam nemus antraque prosint —
Conscia deliciis illa fuere meis.
Illuc mentis inops, ut quam furialis Enyo
Attigit, in collo crine iacente feror.
My eyes see the caves hanging with rough tufa,
which to me were like Mygdonian marble;
I find the wood, which often furnished us a bed
and, shady, covered us with its thick foliage —
but I do not find the lord of the wood and of me.
The place is cheap ground; he was the dowry of the place.
I knew the grass of the turf, familiar to me, that I had pressed;
the herbage was bowed down by our weight.
I lay down and touched the place, on the side where you had been;
the grass, once dear, drank up my tears.
which to me were like Mygdonian marble;
I find the wood, which often furnished us a bed
and, shady, covered us with its thick foliage —
but I do not find the lord of the wood and of me.
The place is cheap ground; he was the dowry of the place.
I knew the grass of the turf, familiar to me, that I had pressed;
the herbage was bowed down by our weight.
I lay down and touched the place, on the side where you had been;
the grass, once dear, drank up my tears.
Antra vident oculi scabro pendentia tofo,
Quae mihi Mygdonii marmoris instar erant;
Invenio silvam, quae saepe cubilia nobis
Praebuit et multa texit opaca coma —
Sed non invenio dominum silvaeque meumque.
Vile solum locus est; dos erat ille loci.
Cognovi pressas noti mihi caespitis herbas;
De nostro curvum pondere gramen erat.
Incubui tetigique locum, qua parte fuisti;
Grata prius lacrimas conbibit herba meas.
Quae mihi Mygdonii marmoris instar erant;
Invenio silvam, quae saepe cubilia nobis
Praebuit et multa texit opaca coma —
Sed non invenio dominum silvaeque meumque.
Vile solum locus est; dos erat ille loci.
Cognovi pressas noti mihi caespitis herbas;
De nostro curvum pondere gramen erat.
Incubui tetigique locum, qua parte fuisti;
Grata prius lacrimas conbibit herba meas.
Indeed the branches too seem to mourn, their leaves laid down,
and no birds make their sweet plaint;
only the most sorrowful Daulian bird, the mother who avenged her husband
impiously, sings together of Ismarian Itys.
The bird sings Itys, Sappho sings her deserted loves —
so far; all the rest is silent as in midnight.
There is a bright spring, clearer than any glass,
a sacred spring — many think it holds a divine power —
over which the watery lotus spreads its branches,
a wood in itself; the ground is green with tender turf.
and no birds make their sweet plaint;
only the most sorrowful Daulian bird, the mother who avenged her husband
impiously, sings together of Ismarian Itys.
The bird sings Itys, Sappho sings her deserted loves —
so far; all the rest is silent as in midnight.
There is a bright spring, clearer than any glass,
a sacred spring — many think it holds a divine power —
over which the watery lotus spreads its branches,
a wood in itself; the ground is green with tender turf.
Quin etiam rami positis lugere videntur
Frondibus, et nullae dulce queruntur aves;
Sola virum non ulta pie maestissima mater
Concinit Ismarium Daulias ales Ityn.
Ales Ityn, Sappho desertos cantat amores —
Hactenus; ut media cetera nocte silent.
Est nitidus vitroque magis perlucidus omni
Fons sacer — hunc multi numen habere putant —
Quem supra ramos expandit aquatica lotos,
Una nemus; tenero caespite terra viret.
Frondibus, et nullae dulce queruntur aves;
Sola virum non ulta pie maestissima mater
Concinit Ismarium Daulias ales Ityn.
Ales Ityn, Sappho desertos cantat amores —
Hactenus; ut media cetera nocte silent.
Est nitidus vitroque magis perlucidus omni
Fons sacer — hunc multi numen habere putant —
Quem supra ramos expandit aquatica lotos,
Una nemus; tenero caespite terra viret.
Here, when, weeping, I had laid my weary limbs,
a single Naiad stood before my eyes.
She stood and said: ’since you burn with unequal fires,
the land of Ambracia must be sought by you.
Phoebus from on high looks out over the open sea, as far as it spreads —
the people call it the Actian and the Leucadian.
From here Deucalion, fired with love of Pyrrha,
threw himself, and pressed the waters with body unhurt.
Without delay, love turned and fled the sluggish breast of the sunken man,
and Deucalion was relieved of his fire.
a single Naiad stood before my eyes.
She stood and said: ’since you burn with unequal fires,
the land of Ambracia must be sought by you.
Phoebus from on high looks out over the open sea, as far as it spreads —
the people call it the Actian and the Leucadian.
From here Deucalion, fired with love of Pyrrha,
threw himself, and pressed the waters with body unhurt.
Without delay, love turned and fled the sluggish breast of the sunken man,
and Deucalion was relieved of his fire.
Hic ego cum lassos posuissem flebilis artus,
Constitit ante oculos Naias una meos.
Constitit et dixit: ’quoniam non ignibus aequis
Ureris, Ambracia est terra petenda tibi.
Phoebus ab excelso, quantum patet, adspicit aequor —
Actiacum populi Leucadiumque vocant.
Hinc se Deucalion Pyrrhae succensus amore
Misit, et inlaeso corpore pressit aquas.
Nec mora, versus amor fugit lentissima mersi
Pectora, Deucalion igne levatus erat.
Constitit ante oculos Naias una meos.
Constitit et dixit: ’quoniam non ignibus aequis
Ureris, Ambracia est terra petenda tibi.
Phoebus ab excelso, quantum patet, adspicit aequor —
Actiacum populi Leucadiumque vocant.
Hinc se Deucalion Pyrrhae succensus amore
Misit, et inlaeso corpore pressit aquas.
Nec mora, versus amor fugit lentissima mersi
Pectora, Deucalion igne levatus erat.
That place holds this law. Seek at once high
Leucas, and do not fear to leap from the rock!’
When she had warned me, she went, with her voice; I rise terrified,
nor did my eyes hold back their tears.
I will go, o nymph, and seek the rocks you showed;
let fear, conquered by mad love, be far off!
Whatever will be, will be better than now! Breeze, come beneath me,
and let my body have no great weight!
You too, gentle Love, set your wings beneath me as I fall,
lest I be, dead, a reproach to the Leucadian water!
Leucas, and do not fear to leap from the rock!’
When she had warned me, she went, with her voice; I rise terrified,
nor did my eyes hold back their tears.
I will go, o nymph, and seek the rocks you showed;
let fear, conquered by mad love, be far off!
Whatever will be, will be better than now! Breeze, come beneath me,
and let my body have no great weight!
You too, gentle Love, set your wings beneath me as I fall,
lest I be, dead, a reproach to the Leucadian water!
Hanc legem locus ille tenet. pete protinus altam
Leucada nec saxo desiluisse time!’
Ut monuit, cum voce abiit; ego territa surgo,
Nec lacrimas oculi continuere mei.
Ibimus, o nymphe, monstrataque saxa petemus;
Sit procul insano victus amore timor!
Quidquid erit, melius quam nunc erit! aura, subito
Et mea non magnum corpora pondus habe!
Tu quoque, mollis Amor, pennas suppone cadenti,
Ne sim Leucadiae mortua crimen aquae!
Leucada nec saxo desiluisse time!’
Ut monuit, cum voce abiit; ego territa surgo,
Nec lacrimas oculi continuere mei.
Ibimus, o nymphe, monstrataque saxa petemus;
Sit procul insano victus amore timor!
Quidquid erit, melius quam nunc erit! aura, subito
Et mea non magnum corpora pondus habe!
Tu quoque, mollis Amor, pennas suppone cadenti,
Ne sim Leucadiae mortua crimen aquae!
Then I will lay down my lyre to Phoebus, a shared gift,
and beneath it there will be a verse or two:
’In gratitude I have laid down the lyre to you, Phoebus, I, the poetess Sappho:
it suits me, it suits you.’
Yet why do you send me, wretched, to the Actian shores,
when you yourself could bring back your fugitive foot?
You can be more healing to me than the Leucadian wave;
both in beauty and in worth you will be a Phoebus to me.
Or can you, o fiercer than any rock and wave,
if I die, bear the title of my death?
and beneath it there will be a verse or two:
’In gratitude I have laid down the lyre to you, Phoebus, I, the poetess Sappho:
it suits me, it suits you.’
Yet why do you send me, wretched, to the Actian shores,
when you yourself could bring back your fugitive foot?
You can be more healing to me than the Leucadian wave;
both in beauty and in worth you will be a Phoebus to me.
Or can you, o fiercer than any rock and wave,
if I die, bear the title of my death?
Inde chelyn Phoebo, communia munera, ponam,
Et sub ea versus unus et alter erunt:
Grata lyram posui tibi, Phoebe, poetria Sappho:
Convenit illa mihi, convenit illa tibi.
Cur tamen Actiacas miseram me mittis ad oras,
Cum profugum possis ipse referre pedem?
Tu mihi Leucadia potes esse salubrior unda;
Et forma et meritis tu mihi Phoebus eris.
An potes, o scopulis undaque ferocior omni,
Si moriar, titulum mortis habere meae?
Et sub ea versus unus et alter erunt:
Grata lyram posui tibi, Phoebe, poetria Sappho:
Convenit illa mihi, convenit illa tibi.
Cur tamen Actiacas miseram me mittis ad oras,
Cum profugum possis ipse referre pedem?
Tu mihi Leucadia potes esse salubrior unda;
Et forma et meritis tu mihi Phoebus eris.
An potes, o scopulis undaque ferocior omni,
Si moriar, titulum mortis habere meae?
Ah, how much better my breast could be joined with you
than be given to the rocks, to be cast headlong down!
This is that breast, Phaon, which you used to praise,
and which so often seemed full of genius to you.
Now I would I were eloquent! grief stands in the way of my arts,
and all my genius has halted at my woes.
My old powers do not answer me for songs;
the plectrum lies mute with grief, with grief the lyre.
Women of sea-girt Lesbos, daughters about to wed and wed,
women of Lesbos, names sung to the Aeolian lyre,
than be given to the rocks, to be cast headlong down!
This is that breast, Phaon, which you used to praise,
and which so often seemed full of genius to you.
Now I would I were eloquent! grief stands in the way of my arts,
and all my genius has halted at my woes.
My old powers do not answer me for songs;
the plectrum lies mute with grief, with grief the lyre.
Women of sea-girt Lesbos, daughters about to wed and wed,
women of Lesbos, names sung to the Aeolian lyre,
Ah quanto melius iungi mea pectora tecum
Quam poterant saxis praecipitanda dari!
Haec sunt illa, Phaon, quae tu laudare solebas,
Visaque sunt totiens ingeniosa tibi.
Nunc vellem facunda forem! dolor artibus obstat,
Ingeniumque meis substitit omne malis.
Non mihi respondent veteres in carmina vires;
Plectra dolore iacent muta, dolore lyra.
Lesbides aequoreae, nupturaque nuptaque proles,
Lesbides, Aeolia nomina dicta lyra,
Quam poterant saxis praecipitanda dari!
Haec sunt illa, Phaon, quae tu laudare solebas,
Visaque sunt totiens ingeniosa tibi.
Nunc vellem facunda forem! dolor artibus obstat,
Ingeniumque meis substitit omne malis.
Non mihi respondent veteres in carmina vires;
Plectra dolore iacent muta, dolore lyra.
Lesbides aequoreae, nupturaque nuptaque proles,
Lesbides, Aeolia nomina dicta lyra,
women of Lesbos, you whom I loved and who made me infamous,
cease to come, a throng, to my lyre!
Phaon has carried off all that pleased you before in me,
wretched me — I just now almost said ’mine!’
Bring it about that he return; your poet too will return.
He gives strength to my genius, he takes it away.
Do I accomplish anything with prayers, or is his boorish heart moved?
Or is it unmoved, and do the Zephyrs carry off my falling words?
The winds that carry off my words, I wish they brought back your sails;
this task, sluggard, would befit you, if you were wise.
cease to come, a throng, to my lyre!
Phaon has carried off all that pleased you before in me,
wretched me — I just now almost said ’mine!’
Bring it about that he return; your poet too will return.
He gives strength to my genius, he takes it away.
Do I accomplish anything with prayers, or is his boorish heart moved?
Or is it unmoved, and do the Zephyrs carry off my falling words?
The winds that carry off my words, I wish they brought back your sails;
this task, sluggard, would befit you, if you were wise.
Lesbides, infamem quae me fecistis amatae,
Desinite ad citharas turba venire mea!
Abstulit omne Phaon, quod vobis ante placebat,
Me miseram, dixi quam modo paene ’meus!’
Efficite ut redeat; vates quoque vestra redibit.
Ingenio vires ille dat, ille rapit.
Ecquid ago precibus, pectusve agreste movetur?
An riget, et Zephyri verba caduca ferunt?
Qui mea verba ferunt, vellem tua vela referrent;
Hoc te, si saperes, lente, decebat opus.
Desinite ad citharas turba venire mea!
Abstulit omne Phaon, quod vobis ante placebat,
Me miseram, dixi quam modo paene ’meus!’
Efficite ut redeat; vates quoque vestra redibit.
Ingenio vires ille dat, ille rapit.
Ecquid ago precibus, pectusve agreste movetur?
An riget, et Zephyri verba caduca ferunt?
Qui mea verba ferunt, vellem tua vela referrent;
Hoc te, si saperes, lente, decebat opus.
Whether you return, and votive gifts are made ready for your ship,
why do you tear my breast with delay?
Loose the ship! Venus, born of the sea, makes the sea kind to a lover.
The breeze will give you a course; only loose the ship!
Cupid himself, sitting at the stern, will steer;
he himself will set and furl the sails with a tender hand.
But if it pleases you to have fled far from Pelasgian Sappho —
yet you will not find why I deserved to be fled from —
let at least a cruel letter say this to the wretch,
that I may seek my fate in the Leucadian water!
why do you tear my breast with delay?
Loose the ship! Venus, born of the sea, makes the sea kind to a lover.
The breeze will give you a course; only loose the ship!
Cupid himself, sitting at the stern, will steer;
he himself will set and furl the sails with a tender hand.
But if it pleases you to have fled far from Pelasgian Sappho —
yet you will not find why I deserved to be fled from —
let at least a cruel letter say this to the wretch,
that I may seek my fate in the Leucadian water!
Sive redis, puppique tuae votiva parantur
Munera, quid laceras pectora nostra mora?
Solve ratem! Venus orta mari mare praestat amanti.
Aura dabit cursum; tu modo solve ratem!
Ipse gubernabit residens in puppe Cupido;
Ipse dabit tenera vela legetque manu.
Sive iuvat longe fugisse Pelasgida Sappho —
Non tamen invenies, cur ego digna fugi —
Hoc saltem miserae crudelis epistula dicat,
Ut mihi Leucadiae fata petantur aquae!
Munera, quid laceras pectora nostra mora?
Solve ratem! Venus orta mari mare praestat amanti.
Aura dabit cursum; tu modo solve ratem!
Ipse gubernabit residens in puppe Cupido;
Ipse dabit tenera vela legetque manu.
Sive iuvat longe fugisse Pelasgida Sappho —
Non tamen invenies, cur ego digna fugi —
Hoc saltem miserae crudelis epistula dicat,
Ut mihi Leucadiae fata petantur aquae!
Book 16
This greeting I, son of Priam, send to you, daughter of Leda,
which can be given to me only if you give it.
Shall I speak out, or is there no need of a token to point out the flame,
and does my love already show more than I would wish?
I would rather it lay hidden, until times be given
for a joy that will hold no fears mixed in,
but I dissemble badly; for who could hide a fire,
which is always betrayed by its own light?
Yet if you wait for me to add a word too to the matter —
I burn! you have the words that announce my heart.
which can be given to me only if you give it.
Shall I speak out, or is there no need of a token to point out the flame,
and does my love already show more than I would wish?
I would rather it lay hidden, until times be given
for a joy that will hold no fears mixed in,
but I dissemble badly; for who could hide a fire,
which is always betrayed by its own light?
Yet if you wait for me to add a word too to the matter —
I burn! you have the words that announce my heart.
Hanc tibi Priamides mitto, Ledaea, salutem,
Quae tribui sola te mihi dante potest.
Eloquar, an flammae non est opus indice notae,
Et plus quam vellem iam meus extat amor?
Ille quidem lateat malim, dum tempora dentur
Laetitiae mixtos non habitura metus,
Sed male dissimulo; quis enim celaverit ignem,
Lumine qui semper proditur ipse suo?
Si tamen expectas, vocem quoque rebus ut addam —
Uror! habes animi nuntia verba mei.
Quae tribui sola te mihi dante potest.
Eloquar, an flammae non est opus indice notae,
Et plus quam vellem iam meus extat amor?
Ille quidem lateat malim, dum tempora dentur
Laetitiae mixtos non habitura metus,
Sed male dissimulo; quis enim celaverit ignem,
Lumine qui semper proditur ipse suo?
Si tamen expectas, vocem quoque rebus ut addam —
Uror! habes animi nuntia verba mei.
Spare me, I pray, for confessing, and do not read the rest with a hard face,
but with one befitting your beauty.
It is welcome already, that my letter, received,
gives hope that I too may in this way be received.
I pray she may make it good, and not have promised you to me in vain,
who urged on me this journey — the mother of Love;
for I — that you may not sin in ignorance — come by divine prompting,
and no slight godhead attends my undertaking.
I ask rewards indeed great, but not undeserved;
Cytherea has promised you to my chamber.
but with one befitting your beauty.
It is welcome already, that my letter, received,
gives hope that I too may in this way be received.
I pray she may make it good, and not have promised you to me in vain,
who urged on me this journey — the mother of Love;
for I — that you may not sin in ignorance — come by divine prompting,
and no slight godhead attends my undertaking.
I ask rewards indeed great, but not undeserved;
Cytherea has promised you to my chamber.
Parce, precor, fasso, nec vultu cetera duro
Perlege, sed formae conveniente tuae.
Iamdudum gratum est, quod epistula nostra recepta
Spem facit, hoc recipi me quoque posse modo.
Quae rata sit, nec te frustra promiserit, opto,
Hoc mihi quae suasit, mater Amoris, iter;
Namque ego divino monitu — ne nescia pecces —
Advehor, et coepto non leve numen adest.
Praemia magna quidem, sed non indebita, posco;
Pollicita est thalamo te Cytherea meo.
Perlege, sed formae conveniente tuae.
Iamdudum gratum est, quod epistula nostra recepta
Spem facit, hoc recipi me quoque posse modo.
Quae rata sit, nec te frustra promiserit, opto,
Hoc mihi quae suasit, mater Amoris, iter;
Namque ego divino monitu — ne nescia pecces —
Advehor, et coepto non leve numen adest.
Praemia magna quidem, sed non indebita, posco;
Pollicita est thalamo te Cytherea meo.
With her as guide, from the Sigean shore I made my doubtful
ways over the long seas in a ship of Phereclus.
She gave easy breezes and favoring winds —
no wonder she has power over the sea, born of the sea.
May she persist, and as she helped the sea’s swell, so help my breast’s;
and bring my prayers into their own harbors.
I brought these flames; I did not find them here.
These were the cause for me of so long a journey,
for neither grim winter nor wandering drove me here;
the Taenarian land was the goal my fleet sought.
ways over the long seas in a ship of Phereclus.
She gave easy breezes and favoring winds —
no wonder she has power over the sea, born of the sea.
May she persist, and as she helped the sea’s swell, so help my breast’s;
and bring my prayers into their own harbors.
I brought these flames; I did not find them here.
These were the cause for me of so long a journey,
for neither grim winter nor wandering drove me here;
the Taenarian land was the goal my fleet sought.
Hac duce Sigeo dubias a litore feci
Longa Phereclea per freta puppe vias.
Illa dedit faciles auras ventosque secundos —
In mare nimirum ius habet orta mari.
Perstet et ut pelagi, sic pectoris adiuvet aestum;
Deferat in portus et mea vota suos.
Attulimus flammas, non hic invenimus, illas.
Hae mihi tam longae causa fuere viae,
Nam neque tristis hiemps neque nos huc appulit error;
Taenaris est classi terra petita meae.
Longa Phereclea per freta puppe vias.
Illa dedit faciles auras ventosque secundos —
In mare nimirum ius habet orta mari.
Perstet et ut pelagi, sic pectoris adiuvet aestum;
Deferat in portus et mea vota suos.
Attulimus flammas, non hic invenimus, illas.
Hae mihi tam longae causa fuere viae,
Nam neque tristis hiemps neque nos huc appulit error;
Taenaris est classi terra petita meae.
Nor believe that I cleave the sea in a ship laden with merchandise —
may the gods keep the wealth I have!
Nor do I come as a sightseer to the Greek cities —
the towns of my kingdom are richer.
I seek you, whom golden Venus pledged to my bed;
I desired you before you were known to me.
I saw your face in my mind before with my eye;
rumor, your first messenger, brought me the wound.
Nor is it strange, if, since the bow is so strong,
I love, struck from afar by its flying darts.
may the gods keep the wealth I have!
Nor do I come as a sightseer to the Greek cities —
the towns of my kingdom are richer.
I seek you, whom golden Venus pledged to my bed;
I desired you before you were known to me.
I saw your face in my mind before with my eye;
rumor, your first messenger, brought me the wound.
Nor is it strange, if, since the bow is so strong,
I love, struck from afar by its flying darts.
Nec me crede fretum merces portante carina
Findere — quas habeo, di tueantur opes!
Nec venio Graias veluti spectator ad urbes —
Oppida sunt regni divitiora mei.
Te peto, quam pepigit lecto Venus aurea nostro;
Te prius optavi, quam mihi nota fores.
Ante tuos animo vidi quam lumine vultus;
Prima tulit vulnus nuntia fama tui.
Nec tamen est mirum, si sic cum polleat arcus,
Missilibus telis eminus ictus amo.
Findere — quas habeo, di tueantur opes!
Nec venio Graias veluti spectator ad urbes —
Oppida sunt regni divitiora mei.
Te peto, quam pepigit lecto Venus aurea nostro;
Te prius optavi, quam mihi nota fores.
Ante tuos animo vidi quam lumine vultus;
Prima tulit vulnus nuntia fama tui.
Nec tamen est mirum, si sic cum polleat arcus,
Missilibus telis eminus ictus amo.
So it pleased the fates; lest you try to overturn them,
receive my words, reported with true faith.
I was still held in my mother’s womb, the birth delaying;
already her belly was heavy with its due weight.
She seemed to herself, in the image of a dream,
to bring forth a huge fire-bearing torch from her full womb.
Terrified she rises, and the dread visions of the dark night
she told to old Priam; he reports them to the seers.
A seer sings that Ilium will burn with Paris’s fire —
that torch was the torch of my heart, as it now is!
receive my words, reported with true faith.
I was still held in my mother’s womb, the birth delaying;
already her belly was heavy with its due weight.
She seemed to herself, in the image of a dream,
to bring forth a huge fire-bearing torch from her full womb.
Terrified she rises, and the dread visions of the dark night
she told to old Priam; he reports them to the seers.
A seer sings that Ilium will burn with Paris’s fire —
that torch was the torch of my heart, as it now is!
Sic placuit fatis; quae ne convellere temptes,
Accipe cum vera dicta relata fide.
Matris adhuc utero partu remorante tenebar;
Iam gravidus iusto pondere venter erat.
Illa sibi ingentem visa est sub imagine somni
Flammiferam pleno reddere ventre facem.
Territa consurgit metuendaque noctis opacae
Visa seni Priamo; vatibus ille refert.
Arsurum Paridis vates canit Ilion igni —
Pectoris, ut nunc est, fax fuit illa mei!
Accipe cum vera dicta relata fide.
Matris adhuc utero partu remorante tenebar;
Iam gravidus iusto pondere venter erat.
Illa sibi ingentem visa est sub imagine somni
Flammiferam pleno reddere ventre facem.
Territa consurgit metuendaque noctis opacae
Visa seni Priamo; vatibus ille refert.
Arsurum Paridis vates canit Ilion igni —
Pectoris, ut nunc est, fax fuit illa mei!
My beauty and the vigor of my mind, though I seemed of the commons,
were a sign of hidden nobility.
There is a place in the midst of the wooded valleys of Ida,
remote and thick with pitch-pines and holm-oaks,
which is grazed neither by the peaceful sheep nor the crag-loving she-goat
nor the slow ox with its broad mouth.
From here, looking out on the walls of Dardania and its lofty roofs
and the seas, I was leaning against a tree —
Lo! the earth seemed to me to move under the beat of feet —
I will speak truth that will scarcely find belief as truth —
were a sign of hidden nobility.
There is a place in the midst of the wooded valleys of Ida,
remote and thick with pitch-pines and holm-oaks,
which is grazed neither by the peaceful sheep nor the crag-loving she-goat
nor the slow ox with its broad mouth.
From here, looking out on the walls of Dardania and its lofty roofs
and the seas, I was leaning against a tree —
Lo! the earth seemed to me to move under the beat of feet —
I will speak truth that will scarcely find belief as truth —
Forma vigorque animi, quamvis de plebe videbar,
Indicium tectae nobilitatis erat.
Est locus in mediis nemorosae vallibus Idae
Devius et piceis ilicibusque frequens,
Qui nec ovis placidae nec amantis saxa capellae
Nec patulo tardae carpitur ore bovis.
Hinc ego Dardaniae muros excelsaque tecta
Et freta prospiciens arbore nixus eram —
Ecce! pedum pulsu visa est mihi terra moveri —
Vera loquar veri vix habitura fidem —
Indicium tectae nobilitatis erat.
Est locus in mediis nemorosae vallibus Idae
Devius et piceis ilicibusque frequens,
Qui nec ovis placidae nec amantis saxa capellae
Nec patulo tardae carpitur ore bovis.
Hinc ego Dardaniae muros excelsaque tecta
Et freta prospiciens arbore nixus eram —
Ecce! pedum pulsu visa est mihi terra moveri —
Vera loquar veri vix habitura fidem —
there stood before my eyes, driven on swift wings,
the grandson of great Atlas and of Pleione —
it was lawful to have seen it, may it be lawful to report what I saw! —
and in the god’s fingers was a golden wand;
and three goddesses at once, Venus and, with Pallas, Juno,
set their tender feet on the grass.
I was stunned, and a cold shudder had raised my hair,
when the winged messenger said to me, ’lay aside your fear!
You are the judge of beauty; settle the goddesses’ contest;
which one is worthy by beauty to conquer the other two!’
the grandson of great Atlas and of Pleione —
it was lawful to have seen it, may it be lawful to report what I saw! —
and in the god’s fingers was a golden wand;
and three goddesses at once, Venus and, with Pallas, Juno,
set their tender feet on the grass.
I was stunned, and a cold shudder had raised my hair,
when the winged messenger said to me, ’lay aside your fear!
You are the judge of beauty; settle the goddesses’ contest;
which one is worthy by beauty to conquer the other two!’
Constitit ante oculos actus velocibus alis
Atlantis magni Pleionesque nepos —
Fas vidisse fuit, fas sit mihi visa referre! —
Inque dei digitis aurea virga fuit;
Tresque simul divae, Venus et cum Pallade Iuno,
Graminibus teneros inposuere pedes.
Obstipui, gelidusque comas erexerat horror,
Cum mihi ’pone metum!’ nuntius ales ait,
’Arbiter es formae; certamina siste dearum;
Vincere quae forma digna sit una duas!’
Atlantis magni Pleionesque nepos —
Fas vidisse fuit, fas sit mihi visa referre! —
Inque dei digitis aurea virga fuit;
Tresque simul divae, Venus et cum Pallade Iuno,
Graminibus teneros inposuere pedes.
Obstipui, gelidusque comas erexerat horror,
Cum mihi ’pone metum!’ nuntius ales ait,
’Arbiter es formae; certamina siste dearum;
Vincere quae forma digna sit una duas!’
And, lest I refuse, he commands it in the words of Jove, and at once
lifts himself by the ethereal road to the stars.
My mind grew strong, and sudden boldness came,
and I did not fear to scan each one with my gaze.
All were worthy to win, and I, the judge, complained
that not all could keep their case.
Yet even then one of them pleased me more,
that you may know it was she from whom love is stirred.
And so great is their care to win; with huge gifts they burn
to tempt my judgment.
lifts himself by the ethereal road to the stars.
My mind grew strong, and sudden boldness came,
and I did not fear to scan each one with my gaze.
All were worthy to win, and I, the judge, complained
that not all could keep their case.
Yet even then one of them pleased me more,
that you may know it was she from whom love is stirred.
And so great is their care to win; with huge gifts they burn
to tempt my judgment.
Neve recusarem, verbis Iovis imperat et se
Protinus aetheria tollit in astra via.
Mens mea convaluit, subitoque audacia venit,
Nec timui vultu quamque notare meo.
Vincere erant omnes dignae iudexque querebar
Non omnes causam posse tenere suam.
Sed tamen ex illis iam tunc magis una placebat,
Hanc esse ut scires, unde movetur amor.
Tantaque vincendi cura est; ingentibus ardent
Iudicium donis sollicitare meum.
Protinus aetheria tollit in astra via.
Mens mea convaluit, subitoque audacia venit,
Nec timui vultu quamque notare meo.
Vincere erant omnes dignae iudexque querebar
Non omnes causam posse tenere suam.
Sed tamen ex illis iam tunc magis una placebat,
Hanc esse ut scires, unde movetur amor.
Tantaque vincendi cura est; ingentibus ardent
Iudicium donis sollicitare meum.
The wife of Jove flaunts kingdoms, his daughter valor;
I myself waver whether I wish to be powerful or brave.
Sweetly Venus smiled; ’let neither gift touch you, Paris,
both of them full of anxious fear!’ she said;
’We will give what you may love, and the daughter of fair Leda,
fairer still, will go into your embraces!’
She spoke, and, her gifts and her beauty alike approved,
she, victorious, carried her foot back to heaven.
Meanwhile — the fates turned to fortune, I believe —
I am recognized as a royal boy by sure signs.
I myself waver whether I wish to be powerful or brave.
Sweetly Venus smiled; ’let neither gift touch you, Paris,
both of them full of anxious fear!’ she said;
’We will give what you may love, and the daughter of fair Leda,
fairer still, will go into your embraces!’
She spoke, and, her gifts and her beauty alike approved,
she, victorious, carried her foot back to heaven.
Meanwhile — the fates turned to fortune, I believe —
I am recognized as a royal boy by sure signs.
Regna Iovis coniunx, virtutem filia iactat;
Ipse potens dubito fortis an esse velim.
Dulce Venus risit; ’nec te, Pari, munera tangant
Utraque suspensi plena timoris!’ ait;
’Nos dabimus, quod ames, et pulchrae filia Ledae
Ibit in amplexus pulchrior illa tuos!’
Dixit, et ex aequo donis formaque probatis
Victorem caelo rettulit illa pedem.
Interea — credo versis ad prospera fatis —
Regius adgnoscor per rata signa puer.
Ipse potens dubito fortis an esse velim.
Dulce Venus risit; ’nec te, Pari, munera tangant
Utraque suspensi plena timoris!’ ait;
’Nos dabimus, quod ames, et pulchrae filia Ledae
Ibit in amplexus pulchrior illa tuos!’
Dixit, et ex aequo donis formaque probatis
Victorem caelo rettulit illa pedem.
Interea — credo versis ad prospera fatis —
Regius adgnoscor per rata signa puer.
The house is glad at a son recovered after long times,
and Troy adds this too to its festal days.
And as I desire you, so girls have desired me;
you alone can hold the prayer of many!
Nor have only the daughters of kings and chiefs sought me,
but I was the care and love even of nymphs.
What face should I admire above Oenone’s? in the world
there is no daughter-in-law worthier of Priam than you.
But disgust of them all comes over me, since
the hope of marriage with you, daughter of Tyndareus, has arisen.
and Troy adds this too to its festal days.
And as I desire you, so girls have desired me;
you alone can hold the prayer of many!
Nor have only the daughters of kings and chiefs sought me,
but I was the care and love even of nymphs.
What face should I admire above Oenone’s? in the world
there is no daughter-in-law worthier of Priam than you.
But disgust of them all comes over me, since
the hope of marriage with you, daughter of Tyndareus, has arisen.
Laeta domus nato post tempora longa recepto est,
Addit et ad festos hunc quoque Troia diem.
Utque ego te cupio, sic me cupiere puellae;
Multarum votum sola tenere potes!
Nec tantum regum natae petiere ducumque,
Sed nymphis etiam curaque amorque fui.
Quam super Oenones faciem mirarer? in orbe
Nec Priamo est a te dignior ulla nurus.
Sed mihi cunctarum subeunt fastidia, postquam
Coniugii spes est, Tyndari, facta tui.
Addit et ad festos hunc quoque Troia diem.
Utque ego te cupio, sic me cupiere puellae;
Multarum votum sola tenere potes!
Nec tantum regum natae petiere ducumque,
Sed nymphis etiam curaque amorque fui.
Quam super Oenones faciem mirarer? in orbe
Nec Priamo est a te dignior ulla nurus.
Sed mihi cunctarum subeunt fastidia, postquam
Coniugii spes est, Tyndari, facta tui.
Waking I saw you with my eyes, by night in my mind,
when the eyes lie conquered by gentle sleep.
What will you do present, who pleased before being seen?
I burned, though that fire was far off,
nor could I owe that hope to myself any longer,
without seeking my prayers by the blue road.
The Trojan pine-woods are felled by the Phrygian axe,
and every tree useful for the waters of the sea;
lofty Gargara is stripped of its tall forests,
and long Ida gives me countless beams.
when the eyes lie conquered by gentle sleep.
What will you do present, who pleased before being seen?
I burned, though that fire was far off,
nor could I owe that hope to myself any longer,
without seeking my prayers by the blue road.
The Trojan pine-woods are felled by the Phrygian axe,
and every tree useful for the waters of the sea;
lofty Gargara is stripped of its tall forests,
and long Ida gives me countless beams.
Te vigilans oculis, animo te nocte videbam,
Lumina cum placido victa sopore iacent.
Quid facies praesens, quae nondum visa placebas?
Ardebam, quamvis hic procul ignis erat,
Nec potui debere mihi spem longius istam,
Caerulea peterem quin mea vota via.
Troica caeduntur Phrygia pineta securi
Quaeque erat aequoreis utilis arbor aquis;
Ardua proceris spoliantur Gargara silvis,
Innumerasque mihi longa dat Ida trabes.
Lumina cum placido victa sopore iacent.
Quid facies praesens, quae nondum visa placebas?
Ardebam, quamvis hic procul ignis erat,
Nec potui debere mihi spem longius istam,
Caerulea peterem quin mea vota via.
Troica caeduntur Phrygia pineta securi
Quaeque erat aequoreis utilis arbor aquis;
Ardua proceris spoliantur Gargara silvis,
Innumerasque mihi longa dat Ida trabes.
Oaks to found swift ships are bent,
and the curved hull is woven with its ribs.
We add the yards and the sails that follow the mast;
and the curved stern receives its painted gods;
on the one in which I myself sail, attended by little Cupid,
stands painted the goddess, the surety of my marriage with you.
After the last hand was laid on the finished fleet,
at once it pleased me to go upon the Aegean waters —
but my father and mother check my wishes by entreaty,
and with loving voice delay the journey I had planned;
and the curved hull is woven with its ribs.
We add the yards and the sails that follow the mast;
and the curved stern receives its painted gods;
on the one in which I myself sail, attended by little Cupid,
stands painted the goddess, the surety of my marriage with you.
After the last hand was laid on the finished fleet,
at once it pleased me to go upon the Aegean waters —
but my father and mother check my wishes by entreaty,
and with loving voice delay the journey I had planned;
Fundatura citas flectuntur robora naves,
Texitur et costis panda carina suis.
Addimus antennas et vela sequentia malo;
Accipit et pictos puppis adunca deos;
Qua tamen ipse vehor, comitata Cupidine parvo
Sponsor coniugii stat dea picta tui.
Inposita est factae postquam manus ultima classi,
Protinus Aegaeis ire lubebat aquis —
At pater et genetrix inhibent mea vota rogando
Propositumque pia voce morantur iter;
Texitur et costis panda carina suis.
Addimus antennas et vela sequentia malo;
Accipit et pictos puppis adunca deos;
Qua tamen ipse vehor, comitata Cupidine parvo
Sponsor coniugii stat dea picta tui.
Inposita est factae postquam manus ultima classi,
Protinus Aegaeis ire lubebat aquis —
At pater et genetrix inhibent mea vota rogando
Propositumque pia voce morantur iter;
and my sister Cassandra, with her hair loose as it was,
when our ships were now ready to give their sails,
cries out, ’Where do you rush? you will bring back fires with you!
You do not know how great a flame is sought across these waters!’
The prophetess was true; I have found the fires she spoke of,
and savage love blazes in my soft breast!
I come out from the harbors, and, using bearing winds,
I land on your shores, nymph of Oebalus.
Your husband receives me in hospitality — this too was done
not without the counsel and the divine powers of the gods!
when our ships were now ready to give their sails,
cries out, ’Where do you rush? you will bring back fires with you!
You do not know how great a flame is sought across these waters!’
The prophetess was true; I have found the fires she spoke of,
and savage love blazes in my soft breast!
I come out from the harbors, and, using bearing winds,
I land on your shores, nymph of Oebalus.
Your husband receives me in hospitality — this too was done
not without the counsel and the divine powers of the gods!
Et soror, effusis ut erat, Cassandra, capillis,
Cum vellent nostrae iam dare vela rates,
’Quo ruis?’ exclamat, ’referes incendia tecum!
Quanta per has nescis flamma petatur aquas!’
Vera fuit vates; dictos invenimus ignes,
Et ferus in molli pectore flagrat amor!
Portubus egredior, ventisque ferentibus usus
Applicor in terras, Oebali nympha, tuas.
Excipit hospitio vir me tuus — hoc quoque factum
Non sine consilio numinibusque deum!
Cum vellent nostrae iam dare vela rates,
’Quo ruis?’ exclamat, ’referes incendia tecum!
Quanta per has nescis flamma petatur aquas!’
Vera fuit vates; dictos invenimus ignes,
Et ferus in molli pectore flagrat amor!
Portubus egredior, ventisque ferentibus usus
Applicor in terras, Oebali nympha, tuas.
Excipit hospitio vir me tuus — hoc quoque factum
Non sine consilio numinibusque deum!
He indeed showed me whatever in all Lacedaemon
was worth showing and notable;
but for me, longing to see your praised beauty,
there was nothing else by which my eyes could be caught.
When I saw you, I was stunned, and felt my inmost heart,
thunderstruck, swell with new cares.
Such a face, as far as I recall, she had,
Cytherea, when she came to my judgment.
Had you come likewise into that contest,
the palm of Venus would have been in doubt!
was worth showing and notable;
but for me, longing to see your praised beauty,
there was nothing else by which my eyes could be caught.
When I saw you, I was stunned, and felt my inmost heart,
thunderstruck, swell with new cares.
Such a face, as far as I recall, she had,
Cytherea, when she came to my judgment.
Had you come likewise into that contest,
the palm of Venus would have been in doubt!
Ille quidem ostendit, quidquid Lacedaemone tota
Ostendi dignum conspicuumque fuit;
Sed mihi laudatam cupienti cernere formam
Lumina nil aliud quo caperentur erat.
Ut vidi, obstipui praecordiaque intima sensi
Attonitus curis intumuisse novis.
His similes vultus, quantum reminiscor, habebat
Venit in arbitrium cum Cytherea meum.
Si tu venisses pariter certamen in illud,
In dubio Veneris palma futura fuit!
Ostendi dignum conspicuumque fuit;
Sed mihi laudatam cupienti cernere formam
Lumina nil aliud quo caperentur erat.
Ut vidi, obstipui praecordiaque intima sensi
Attonitus curis intumuisse novis.
His similes vultus, quantum reminiscor, habebat
Venit in arbitrium cum Cytherea meum.
Si tu venisses pariter certamen in illud,
In dubio Veneris palma futura fuit!
Rumor indeed has made great proclamations of you,
and no land is ignorant of your face;
nor anywhere in Phrygia, nor from the sun’s rising,
has any other among the beautiful so great a name!
But believe this from me! — your glory is less than the truth,
and rumor is almost grudging about your beauty;
I find here more than she had promised,
and your glory is outdone by its own subject.
So Theseus, who knew all things, burned with reason,
and you seemed worthy plunder for so great a man,
and no land is ignorant of your face;
nor anywhere in Phrygia, nor from the sun’s rising,
has any other among the beautiful so great a name!
But believe this from me! — your glory is less than the truth,
and rumor is almost grudging about your beauty;
I find here more than she had promised,
and your glory is outdone by its own subject.
So Theseus, who knew all things, burned with reason,
and you seemed worthy plunder for so great a man,
Magna quidem de te rumor praeconia fecit,
Nullaque de facie nescia terra tua est;
Nec tibi par usquam Phrygia nec solis ab ortu
Inter formosas altera nomen habet!
Crede sed hoc nobis! — minor est tua gloria vero,
Famaque de forma paene maligna tua est;
Plus hic invenio, quam quod promiserat illa,
Et tua materia gloria victa sua est.
Ergo arsit merito, qui noverat omnia, Theseus,
Et visa es tanto digna rapina viro,
Nullaque de facie nescia terra tua est;
Nec tibi par usquam Phrygia nec solis ab ortu
Inter formosas altera nomen habet!
Crede sed hoc nobis! — minor est tua gloria vero,
Famaque de forma paene maligna tua est;
Plus hic invenio, quam quod promiserat illa,
Et tua materia gloria victa sua est.
Ergo arsit merito, qui noverat omnia, Theseus,
Et visa es tanto digna rapina viro,
when, in the manner of your people, you played naked
in the gleaming wrestling-ground, a woman mixed with naked men.
That he carried you off, I praise; I wonder that he ever gave you back.
So good a prize should have been held firmly.
This head would have parted from a bloody neck
before you were dragged from my chamber.
Would my hands ever wish to let you go?
Would I, living, let you leave my embrace?
If you had to be given back, yet I would have taken something first,
nor would my love have been wholly idle.
in the gleaming wrestling-ground, a woman mixed with naked men.
That he carried you off, I praise; I wonder that he ever gave you back.
So good a prize should have been held firmly.
This head would have parted from a bloody neck
before you were dragged from my chamber.
Would my hands ever wish to let you go?
Would I, living, let you leave my embrace?
If you had to be given back, yet I would have taken something first,
nor would my love have been wholly idle.
More tuae gentis nitida dum nuda palaestra
Ludis et es nudis femina mixta viris.
Quod rapuit, laudo; miror, quod reddidit umquam.
Tam bona constanter praeda tenenda fuit.
Ante recessisset caput hoc cervice cruenta,
Quam tu de thalamis abstraherere meis.
Tene manus umquam nostrae dimittere vellent?
Tene meo paterer vivus abire sinu?
Si reddenda fores, aliquid tamen ante tulissem,
Nec Venus ex toto nostra fuisset iners.
Ludis et es nudis femina mixta viris.
Quod rapuit, laudo; miror, quod reddidit umquam.
Tam bona constanter praeda tenenda fuit.
Ante recessisset caput hoc cervice cruenta,
Quam tu de thalamis abstraherere meis.
Tene manus umquam nostrae dimittere vellent?
Tene meo paterer vivus abire sinu?
Si reddenda fores, aliquid tamen ante tulissem,
Nec Venus ex toto nostra fuisset iners.
Either your virginity would have been tasted by me, or that
which could be snatched with virginity unharmed.
Only give yourself, and you will know what Paris’s constancy is;
only the flame of the pyre will end my flames.
I set you above the kingdoms which once the wife and sister of Jove
promised me as the greatest gift;
and so long as I could throw my arms about your neck,
valor was scorned, though Pallas offered it.
Nor do I regret it, nor will I ever seem to have chosen foolishly;
my mind stays firm in its wish.
which could be snatched with virginity unharmed.
Only give yourself, and you will know what Paris’s constancy is;
only the flame of the pyre will end my flames.
I set you above the kingdoms which once the wife and sister of Jove
promised me as the greatest gift;
and so long as I could throw my arms about your neck,
valor was scorned, though Pallas offered it.
Nor do I regret it, nor will I ever seem to have chosen foolishly;
my mind stays firm in its wish.
Vel mihi virginitas esset libata, vel illud
Quod poterat salva virginitate rapi.
Da modo te, quae sit Paridis constantia, nosces;
Flamma rogi flammas finiet una meas.
Praeposui regnis ego te, quae maxima quondam
Pollicita est nobis nupta sororque Iovis;
Dumque tuo possem circumdare bracchia collo,
Contempta est virtus Pallade dante mihi.
Nec piget, aut umquam stulte legisse videbor;
Permanet in voto mens mea firma suo.
Quod poterat salva virginitate rapi.
Da modo te, quae sit Paridis constantia, nosces;
Flamma rogi flammas finiet una meas.
Praeposui regnis ego te, quae maxima quondam
Pollicita est nobis nupta sororque Iovis;
Dumque tuo possem circumdare bracchia collo,
Contempta est virtus Pallade dante mihi.
Nec piget, aut umquam stulte legisse videbor;
Permanet in voto mens mea firma suo.
Only do not let my hope fall to the ground,
I beg, O you, worthy to be sought with so great a toil!
I, no base man, do not seek marriage with a noble unworthily,
nor, believe me, will you be my wife to your shame.
A Pleiad, if you seek, you will find in my line, and Jove,
to say nothing of the ancestors between;
my father holds the realms of Asia, than which no shore is happier,
scarcely to be traversed in its immense bounds.
Countless cities you will see and golden roofs,
and temples you would say befit their gods.
I beg, O you, worthy to be sought with so great a toil!
I, no base man, do not seek marriage with a noble unworthily,
nor, believe me, will you be my wife to your shame.
A Pleiad, if you seek, you will find in my line, and Jove,
to say nothing of the ancestors between;
my father holds the realms of Asia, than which no shore is happier,
scarcely to be traversed in its immense bounds.
Countless cities you will see and golden roofs,
and temples you would say befit their gods.
Spem modo ne nostram fieri patiare caducam,
Deprecor, o tanto digna labore peti!
Non ego coniugium generosae degener opto,
Nec mea, crede mihi, turpiter uxor eris.
Pliada, si quaeres, in nostra gente Iovemque
Invenies, medios ut taceamus avos;
Regna parens Asiae, qua nulla beatior ora est,
Finibus inmensis vix obeunda, tenet.
Innumeras urbes atque aurea tecta videbis,
Quaeque suos dicas templa decere deos.
Deprecor, o tanto digna labore peti!
Non ego coniugium generosae degener opto,
Nec mea, crede mihi, turpiter uxor eris.
Pliada, si quaeres, in nostra gente Iovemque
Invenies, medios ut taceamus avos;
Regna parens Asiae, qua nulla beatior ora est,
Finibus inmensis vix obeunda, tenet.
Innumeras urbes atque aurea tecta videbis,
Quaeque suos dicas templa decere deos.
You will behold Ilium and its walls strengthened with high towers,
built by the music of Phoebus’s lyre.
Why should I tell you of the multitude and number of men?
That land scarcely supports its own people.
The Trojan matrons will meet you in a dense throng,
and our halls will not hold the Phrygian brides.
O how often you will say: ’how poor is our Achaia!’
any one house will hold the wealth of a city.
Nor would it be right for me to scorn your Sparta;
the land in which you were born is blessed to me.
built by the music of Phoebus’s lyre.
Why should I tell you of the multitude and number of men?
That land scarcely supports its own people.
The Trojan matrons will meet you in a dense throng,
and our halls will not hold the Phrygian brides.
O how often you will say: ’how poor is our Achaia!’
any one house will hold the wealth of a city.
Nor would it be right for me to scorn your Sparta;
the land in which you were born is blessed to me.
Ilion adspicies firmataque turribus altis
Moenia, Phoebeae structa canore lyrae.
Quid tibi de turba narrem numeroque virorum?
Vix populum tellus sustinet illa suum.
Occurrent denso tibi Troades agmine matres,
Nec capient Phrygias atria nostra nurus.
O quotiens dices: ’quam pauper Achaia nostra est!’
Una domus quaevis urbis habebit opes.
Nec mihi fas fuerit Sparten contemnere vestram;
In qua tu nata es, terra beata mihi est.
Moenia, Phoebeae structa canore lyrae.
Quid tibi de turba narrem numeroque virorum?
Vix populum tellus sustinet illa suum.
Occurrent denso tibi Troades agmine matres,
Nec capient Phrygias atria nostra nurus.
O quotiens dices: ’quam pauper Achaia nostra est!’
Una domus quaevis urbis habebit opes.
Nec mihi fas fuerit Sparten contemnere vestram;
In qua tu nata es, terra beata mihi est.
But Sparta is thrifty, and you are worthy of rich adornment;
that place does not suit such beauty.
It befits this beauty to enjoy endless lavish furnishings
and to revel in new delights.
When you see the adornment of the men of our race,
what kind do you think the Dardanian brides have?
Only show yourself kind, and do not disdain a Phrygian husband,
girl born in the Therapnaean countryside.
A Phrygian, and born of our blood, was he who now,
drinking with the gods, mixes water with nectar.
that place does not suit such beauty.
It befits this beauty to enjoy endless lavish furnishings
and to revel in new delights.
When you see the adornment of the men of our race,
what kind do you think the Dardanian brides have?
Only show yourself kind, and do not disdain a Phrygian husband,
girl born in the Therapnaean countryside.
A Phrygian, and born of our blood, was he who now,
drinking with the gods, mixes water with nectar.
Parca sed est Sparte, tu cultu divite digna;
Ad talem formam non facit iste locus.
Hanc faciem largis sine fine paratibus uti
Deliciisque decet luxuriare novis.
Cum videas cultus nostra de gente virorum,
Qualem Dardanias credis habere nurus?
Da modo te facilem, nec dedignare maritum,
Rure Therapnaeo nata puella, Phrygem.
Phryx erat et nostro genitus de sanguine, qui nunc
Cum dis potando nectare miscet aquas.
Ad talem formam non facit iste locus.
Hanc faciem largis sine fine paratibus uti
Deliciisque decet luxuriare novis.
Cum videas cultus nostra de gente virorum,
Qualem Dardanias credis habere nurus?
Da modo te facilem, nec dedignare maritum,
Rure Therapnaeo nata puella, Phrygem.
Phryx erat et nostro genitus de sanguine, qui nunc
Cum dis potando nectare miscet aquas.
A Phrygian was Aurora’s husband, yet the goddess who ends
the last journey of night carried him off.
A Phrygian too was Anchises, with whom the mother of the winged Loves
is glad to have lain on Ida’s ridges.
Nor, I think, with beauty and years compared, will Menelaus
be preferred to me, with you as judge.
At least I will not give you a father-in-law who puts to flight the bright
lights of day, who turns his frightened horses from the feast;
nor is Priam’s father stained with the murder of a father-in-law,
and one who marks the Myrtoan waters with his crime;
the last journey of night carried him off.
A Phrygian too was Anchises, with whom the mother of the winged Loves
is glad to have lain on Ida’s ridges.
Nor, I think, with beauty and years compared, will Menelaus
be preferred to me, with you as judge.
At least I will not give you a father-in-law who puts to flight the bright
lights of day, who turns his frightened horses from the feast;
nor is Priam’s father stained with the murder of a father-in-law,
and one who marks the Myrtoan waters with his crime;
Phryx erat Aurorae coniunx, tamen abstulit illum
Extremum noctis quae dea finit iter.
Phryx etiam Anchises, volucrum cui mater Amorum
Gaudet in Idaeis concubuisse iugis.
Nec, puto, conlatis forma Menelaus et annis
Iudice te nobis anteferendus erit.
Non dabimus certe socerum tibi clara fugantem
Lumina, qui trepidos a dape vertat equos;
Nec Priamo pater est soceri de caede cruentus
Et qui Myrtoas crimine signat aquas;
Extremum noctis quae dea finit iter.
Phryx etiam Anchises, volucrum cui mater Amorum
Gaudet in Idaeis concubuisse iugis.
Nec, puto, conlatis forma Menelaus et annis
Iudice te nobis anteferendus erit.
Non dabimus certe socerum tibi clara fugantem
Lumina, qui trepidos a dape vertat equos;
Nec Priamo pater est soceri de caede cruentus
Et qui Myrtoas crimine signat aquas;
nor in our great-grandsire’s case are apples grasped at in the Stygian water,
nor is moisture sought in the midst of the waters.
Yet what does this matter, if he who holds you is sprung from those,
and Jupiter is forced to be a father-in-law to that house?
Alas, the outrage! that unworthy man holds you through whole nights,
and fully enjoys your embrace;
but you are seen by me scarcely at last when the table is set,
and this time too has many things to wound me.
May such banquets befall my enemies
as I often endure when the wine is set out!
nor is moisture sought in the midst of the waters.
Yet what does this matter, if he who holds you is sprung from those,
and Jupiter is forced to be a father-in-law to that house?
Alas, the outrage! that unworthy man holds you through whole nights,
and fully enjoys your embrace;
but you are seen by me scarcely at last when the table is set,
and this time too has many things to wound me.
May such banquets befall my enemies
as I often endure when the wine is set out!
Nec proavo Stygia nostro captantur in unda
Poma, nec in mediis quaeritur umor aquis.
Quid tamen hoc refert, si te tenet ortus ab illis,
Cogitur huic domui Iuppiter esse socer?
Heu facinus! totis indignus noctibus ille
Te tenet, amplexu perfruiturque tuo;
At mihi conspiceris posita vix denique mensa,
Multaque quae laedant hoc quoque tempus habet.
Hostibus eveniant convivia talia nostris,
Experior posito qualia saepe mero!
Poma, nec in mediis quaeritur umor aquis.
Quid tamen hoc refert, si te tenet ortus ab illis,
Cogitur huic domui Iuppiter esse socer?
Heu facinus! totis indignus noctibus ille
Te tenet, amplexu perfruiturque tuo;
At mihi conspiceris posita vix denique mensa,
Multaque quae laedant hoc quoque tempus habet.
Hostibus eveniant convivia talia nostris,
Experior posito qualia saepe mero!
I regret the hospitality, when, while I watch, that boor
lays his arms on your neck.
I burst with envy — for why should I not tell it all? —
when he warms your limbs with his garment thrown over them.
But when you gave kisses, not chary, before me,
I set the cup I had taken before my eyes;
I cast down my eyes when he holds you more closely,
and the food grows sluggish in my unwilling mouth.
Often I gave groans; and I noted that you — wanton! —
did not hold back a laugh at my groaning.
lays his arms on your neck.
I burst with envy — for why should I not tell it all? —
when he warms your limbs with his garment thrown over them.
But when you gave kisses, not chary, before me,
I set the cup I had taken before my eyes;
I cast down my eyes when he holds you more closely,
and the food grows sluggish in my unwilling mouth.
Often I gave groans; and I noted that you — wanton! —
did not hold back a laugh at my groaning.
Paenitet hospitii, cum me spectante lacertos
Inponit collo rusticus iste tuo.
Rumpor et invidia — quid enim non omnia narrem? —
Membra superiecta cum tua veste fovet.
Oscula cum vero coram non dura daretis,
Ante oculos posui pocula sumpta meos;
Lumina demitto cum te tenet artius ille,
Crescit et invito lentus in ore cibus.
Saepe dedi gemitus; et te — lasciva! — notavi
In gemitu risum non tenuisse meo.
Inponit collo rusticus iste tuo.
Rumpor et invidia — quid enim non omnia narrem? —
Membra superiecta cum tua veste fovet.
Oscula cum vero coram non dura daretis,
Ante oculos posui pocula sumpta meos;
Lumina demitto cum te tenet artius ille,
Crescit et invito lentus in ore cibus.
Saepe dedi gemitus; et te — lasciva! — notavi
In gemitu risum non tenuisse meo.
Often I wished to quench the flame with wine, but it
grew, and drunkenness was fire upon fire,
and, that I might not see much, I lie back with my neck turned away;
but you yourself at once call back my eyes.
What I should do, I am unsure; it is my grief to see those things,
but a greater grief to be away from your face.
As far as is allowed and I can, I struggle to hide my frenzy;
but yet my dissembled love shows.
Nor do I deceive you; you feel my wounds, you feel them!
and would that they were known to you alone!
grew, and drunkenness was fire upon fire,
and, that I might not see much, I lie back with my neck turned away;
but you yourself at once call back my eyes.
What I should do, I am unsure; it is my grief to see those things,
but a greater grief to be away from your face.
As far as is allowed and I can, I struggle to hide my frenzy;
but yet my dissembled love shows.
Nor do I deceive you; you feel my wounds, you feel them!
and would that they were known to you alone!
Saepe mero volui flammam compescere, at illa
Crevit, et ebrietas ignis in igne fuit,
Multaque ne videam, versa cervice recumbo;
Sed revocas oculos protinus ipsa meos.
Quid faciam, dubito; dolor est meus illa videre,
Sed dolor a facie maior abesse tua.
Qua licet et possum, luctor celare furorem;
Sed tamen apparet dissimulatus amor.
Nec tibi verba damus; sentis mea vulnera, sentis!
Atque utinam soli sint ea nota tibi!
Crevit, et ebrietas ignis in igne fuit,
Multaque ne videam, versa cervice recumbo;
Sed revocas oculos protinus ipsa meos.
Quid faciam, dubito; dolor est meus illa videre,
Sed dolor a facie maior abesse tua.
Qua licet et possum, luctor celare furorem;
Sed tamen apparet dissimulatus amor.
Nec tibi verba damus; sentis mea vulnera, sentis!
Atque utinam soli sint ea nota tibi!
Ah, how often I turned my face away as tears came,
lest he should ask the cause of my weeping!
Ah, how often, drunk, I told of some love affair,
referring every word to my own wound,
and gave a hint of myself under a feigned name!
That lover, if you do not know, was I in truth.
Indeed, that I might use words more freely,
more than once drunkenness was feigned by me.
Your breast, I remember, was betrayed by your loose tunic
and, bare, gave my eyes an entrance —
lest he should ask the cause of my weeping!
Ah, how often, drunk, I told of some love affair,
referring every word to my own wound,
and gave a hint of myself under a feigned name!
That lover, if you do not know, was I in truth.
Indeed, that I might use words more freely,
more than once drunkenness was feigned by me.
Your breast, I remember, was betrayed by your loose tunic
and, bare, gave my eyes an entrance —
A, quotiens lacrimis venientibus ora reflexi,
Ne causam fletus quaereret ille mei!
A, quotiens aliquem narravi potus amorem,
Ad vulnus referens singula verba meum,
Indiciumque mei ficto sub nomine feci!
Ille ego, si nescis, verus amator eram.
Quin etiam, ut possem verbis petulantius uti,
Non semel ebrietas est simulata mihi.
Prodita sunt, memini, tunica tua pectora laxa
Atque oculis aditum nuda dedere meis —
Ne causam fletus quaereret ille mei!
A, quotiens aliquem narravi potus amorem,
Ad vulnus referens singula verba meum,
Indiciumque mei ficto sub nomine feci!
Ille ego, si nescis, verus amator eram.
Quin etiam, ut possem verbis petulantius uti,
Non semel ebrietas est simulata mihi.
Prodita sunt, memini, tunica tua pectora laxa
Atque oculis aditum nuda dedere meis —
a breast whiter than pure snow, or than milk, or than Jove
when he embraced your mother.
While I was stunned at the sight — for I happened to hold the cup —
the twisted handle slipped from my fingers.
If you had given kisses to your daughter, I at once gladly took them
from the tender lips of Hermione.
And now, lying back, I sang of old loves,
and now by a nod I gave signs that should be hidden.
And the foremost of your companions, Clymene and Aethra,
I lately dared to approach with coaxing words,
when he embraced your mother.
While I was stunned at the sight — for I happened to hold the cup —
the twisted handle slipped from my fingers.
If you had given kisses to your daughter, I at once gladly took them
from the tender lips of Hermione.
And now, lying back, I sang of old loves,
and now by a nod I gave signs that should be hidden.
And the foremost of your companions, Clymene and Aethra,
I lately dared to approach with coaxing words,
Pectora vel puris nivibus vel lacte tuamve
Complexo matrem candidiora Iove.
Dum stupeo visis — nam pocula forte tenebam —
Tortilis a digitis excidit ansa meis.
Oscula si natae dederas, ego protinus illa
Hermiones tenero laetus ab ore tuli.
Et modo cantabam veteres resupinus amores,
Et modo per nutum signa tegenda dabam.
Et comitum primas, Clymenen Aethramque, tuarum
Ausus sum blandis nuper adire sonis,
Complexo matrem candidiora Iove.
Dum stupeo visis — nam pocula forte tenebam —
Tortilis a digitis excidit ansa meis.
Oscula si natae dederas, ego protinus illa
Hermiones tenero laetus ab ore tuli.
Et modo cantabam veteres resupinus amores,
Et modo per nutum signa tegenda dabam.
Et comitum primas, Clymenen Aethramque, tuarum
Ausus sum blandis nuper adire sonis,
who, having spoken nothing to me but that they were afraid,
left my entreaties in the middle of my praying.
Would the gods had made you the prize of a great contest,
and that the victor could have you in his bed! —
as Hippomenes took the daughter of Schoeneus as the prize of the race,
as Hippodamia came into Phrygian arms,
as fierce Alcides broke the horns of Achelous,
while he sought your embraces, Deianira.
My boldness would have gone bravely under these terms,
and you would know you were the work of my toil.
left my entreaties in the middle of my praying.
Would the gods had made you the prize of a great contest,
and that the victor could have you in his bed! —
as Hippomenes took the daughter of Schoeneus as the prize of the race,
as Hippodamia came into Phrygian arms,
as fierce Alcides broke the horns of Achelous,
while he sought your embraces, Deianira.
My boldness would have gone bravely under these terms,
and you would know you were the work of my toil.
Quae mihi non aliud, quam formidare, locutae
Orantis medias deseruere preces.
Di facerent, pretium magni certaminis esses,
Teque suo posset victor habere toro! —
Ut tulit Hippomenes Schoeneida praemia cursus,
Venit ut in Phrygios Hippodamia sinus,
Ut ferus Alcides Acheloia cornua fregit,
Dum petit amplexus, Deianira, tuos.
Nostra per has leges audacia fortiter isset,
Teque mei scires esse laboris opus.
Orantis medias deseruere preces.
Di facerent, pretium magni certaminis esses,
Teque suo posset victor habere toro! —
Ut tulit Hippomenes Schoeneida praemia cursus,
Venit ut in Phrygios Hippodamia sinus,
Ut ferus Alcides Acheloia cornua fregit,
Dum petit amplexus, Deianira, tuos.
Nostra per has leges audacia fortiter isset,
Teque mei scires esse laboris opus.
Now nothing is left me but to entreat you, beautiful one,
and to embrace your feet, if you allow it.
O ornament, O present glory of your twin brothers,
O worthy of Jove for a husband, were you not born of Jove,
either I will seek again the Sigean harbors with you as wife,
or here I will be covered, an exile, by Taenarian earth!
My breast is not lightly grazed at the surface by an arrow;
my wound has gone down to the bone!
That this would happen to me — for I recall it — that I should be pierced
by a heavenly arrow, my truthful sister had foretold.
and to embrace your feet, if you allow it.
O ornament, O present glory of your twin brothers,
O worthy of Jove for a husband, were you not born of Jove,
either I will seek again the Sigean harbors with you as wife,
or here I will be covered, an exile, by Taenarian earth!
My breast is not lightly grazed at the surface by an arrow;
my wound has gone down to the bone!
That this would happen to me — for I recall it — that I should be pierced
by a heavenly arrow, my truthful sister had foretold.
Nunc mihi nil superest nisi te, formosa, precari,
Amplectique tuos, si patiare, pedes.
O decus, o praesens geminorum gloria fratrum,
O Iove digna viro, ni Iove nata fores,
Aut ego Sigeos repetam te coniuge portus,
Aut hic Taenaria contegar exul humo!
Non mea sunt summa leviter destricta sagitta
Pectora; descendit vulnus ad ossa meum!
Hoc mihi — nam repeto — fore, ut a caeleste sagitta
Figar, erat verax vaticinata soror.
Amplectique tuos, si patiare, pedes.
O decus, o praesens geminorum gloria fratrum,
O Iove digna viro, ni Iove nata fores,
Aut ego Sigeos repetam te coniuge portus,
Aut hic Taenaria contegar exul humo!
Non mea sunt summa leviter destricta sagitta
Pectora; descendit vulnus ad ossa meum!
Hoc mihi — nam repeto — fore, ut a caeleste sagitta
Figar, erat verax vaticinata soror.
Spare, Helen, to scorn a love granted by the fates —
so may you have the gods kind to your wishes!
Many things indeed come to mind; but that we may say more face to face,
receive me in your bed in the silent night.
Or are you ashamed, and do you fear to violate wedded love
and to cheat the chaste rights of a lawful bed?
Ah, too naive Helen — not to say boorish —
do you think this beauty can be free of fault?
Either you must change your face, or not be hard;
chastity has a great quarrel with beauty.
so may you have the gods kind to your wishes!
Many things indeed come to mind; but that we may say more face to face,
receive me in your bed in the silent night.
Or are you ashamed, and do you fear to violate wedded love
and to cheat the chaste rights of a lawful bed?
Ah, too naive Helen — not to say boorish —
do you think this beauty can be free of fault?
Either you must change your face, or not be hard;
chastity has a great quarrel with beauty.
Parce datum fatis, Helene, contemnere amorem —
Sic habeas faciles in tua vota deos!
Multa quidem subeunt; sed coram ut plura loquamur,
Excipe me lecto nocte silente tuo.
An pudet et metuis Venerem temerare maritam
Castaque legitimi fallere iura tori?
A, nimium simplex Helene, ne rustica dicam,
Hanc faciem culpa posse carere putas?
Aut faciem mutes aut sis non dura, necesse est;
Lis est cum forma magna pudicitiae.
Sic habeas faciles in tua vota deos!
Multa quidem subeunt; sed coram ut plura loquamur,
Excipe me lecto nocte silente tuo.
An pudet et metuis Venerem temerare maritam
Castaque legitimi fallere iura tori?
A, nimium simplex Helene, ne rustica dicam,
Hanc faciem culpa posse carere putas?
Aut faciem mutes aut sis non dura, necesse est;
Lis est cum forma magna pudicitiae.
Jupiter delights in these stolen joys, golden Venus delights in them;
these thefts, surely, gave you Jove for a father.
Scarcely, if there is force of character in the seed,
can the daughter of both Jove and Leda be chaste.
Yet be chaste then, when my Troy holds you,
and let me alone, I beg, be your only fault.
Now let us commit the sin that the marriage-hour will correct,
if only Venus has not promised me in vain!
Your husband himself advises you to this by his acts, not his voice,
and, lest he hinder his guest’s stolen joys, he is away.
these thefts, surely, gave you Jove for a father.
Scarcely, if there is force of character in the seed,
can the daughter of both Jove and Leda be chaste.
Yet be chaste then, when my Troy holds you,
and let me alone, I beg, be your only fault.
Now let us commit the sin that the marriage-hour will correct,
if only Venus has not promised me in vain!
Your husband himself advises you to this by his acts, not his voice,
and, lest he hinder his guest’s stolen joys, he is away.
Iuppiter his gaudet, gaudet Venus aurea furtis;
Haec tibi nempe patrem furta dedere Iovem.
Vix fieri, si sunt vires in semine morum,
Et Iovis et Ledae filia casta potest.
Casta tamen tum sis, cum te mea Troia tenebit,
Et tua sim, quaeso, crimina solus ego.
Nunc ea peccemus quae corriget hora iugalis,
Si modo promisit non mihi vana Venus!
Ipse tibi hoc suadet rebus, non voce, maritus,
Neve sui furtis hospitis obstet, abest.
Haec tibi nempe patrem furta dedere Iovem.
Vix fieri, si sunt vires in semine morum,
Et Iovis et Ledae filia casta potest.
Casta tamen tum sis, cum te mea Troia tenebit,
Et tua sim, quaeso, crimina solus ego.
Nunc ea peccemus quae corriget hora iugalis,
Si modo promisit non mihi vana Venus!
Ipse tibi hoc suadet rebus, non voce, maritus,
Neve sui furtis hospitis obstet, abest.
He had no fitter time in which to see the Cretan realms —
O man of marvelous shrewdness!
’My affairs, and the guest of Ida, I charge to you,’ he said as he left,
’take care, wife, of our guest in my stead.’
You neglect, I swear, the charges of your absent husband!
You have no care at all of your guest.
Do you hope that this man, a fellow without heart,
can rightly know the dowry of your beauty, daughter of Tyndareus?
You are deceived — he knows it not; nor, if he thought the goods
he holds were great, would he entrust them to a foreigner.
O man of marvelous shrewdness!
’My affairs, and the guest of Ida, I charge to you,’ he said as he left,
’take care, wife, of our guest in my stead.’
You neglect, I swear, the charges of your absent husband!
You have no care at all of your guest.
Do you hope that this man, a fellow without heart,
can rightly know the dowry of your beauty, daughter of Tyndareus?
You are deceived — he knows it not; nor, if he thought the goods
he holds were great, would he entrust them to a foreigner.
Non habuit tempus, quo Cresia regna videret,
Aptius — o mira calliditate virum!
’Res, et ut Idaei mando tibi,’ dixit iturus,
’Curam pro nobis hospitis, uxor, agas.’
Neclegis absentis, testor, mandata mariti!
Cura tibi non est hospitis ulla tui.
Huncine tu speras, hominem sine pectore, dotes
Posse satis formae, Tyndari, nosse tuae?
Falleris — ignorat; nec, si bona magna putaret,
Quae tenet, externo crederet illa viro.
Aptius — o mira calliditate virum!
’Res, et ut Idaei mando tibi,’ dixit iturus,
’Curam pro nobis hospitis, uxor, agas.’
Neclegis absentis, testor, mandata mariti!
Cura tibi non est hospitis ulla tui.
Huncine tu speras, hominem sine pectore, dotes
Posse satis formae, Tyndari, nosse tuae?
Falleris — ignorat; nec, si bona magna putaret,
Quae tenet, externo crederet illa viro.
Though neither my voice nor my passion stir you,
we are compelled to make use of his very convenience —
or we shall be fools, so as to outdo even him,
if so secure a time passes by unused.
Almost with his own hands he leads your lover to you;
use the simplicity of the man who charged you!
You lie alone in a widowed bed through so long a night;
in a widowed bed I too lie alone.
Let shared joys join you to me and me to you;
that night will be brighter than midday.
we are compelled to make use of his very convenience —
or we shall be fools, so as to outdo even him,
if so secure a time passes by unused.
Almost with his own hands he leads your lover to you;
use the simplicity of the man who charged you!
You lie alone in a widowed bed through so long a night;
in a widowed bed I too lie alone.
Let shared joys join you to me and me to you;
that night will be brighter than midday.
Ut te nec mea vox nec te meus incitet ardor,
Cogimur ipsius commoditate frui —
Aut erimus stulti, sic ut superemus et ipsum,
Si tam securum tempus abibit iners.
Paene suis ad te manibus deducit amantem;
Utere mandantis simplicitate viri!
Sola iaces viduo tam longa nocte cubili;
In viduo iaceo solus et ipse toro.
Te mihi meque tibi communia gaudia iungant;
Candidior medio nox erit illa die.
Cogimur ipsius commoditate frui —
Aut erimus stulti, sic ut superemus et ipsum,
Si tam securum tempus abibit iners.
Paene suis ad te manibus deducit amantem;
Utere mandantis simplicitate viri!
Sola iaces viduo tam longa nocte cubili;
In viduo iaceo solus et ipse toro.
Te mihi meque tibi communia gaudia iungant;
Candidior medio nox erit illa die.
Then I will swear to you by any gods you please, and bind
myself by my words to your own rites;
then, if my confidence in myself is not deceptive,
I will bring it about, in person, that you seek my realms.
If you are ashamed, and fear to seem to have followed me,
I myself will be the defendant of this charge, without you;
for I will follow the deed of the son of Aegeus and of your brothers.
You can be touched by no nearer example.
Theseus carried you off, they the twin daughters of Leucippus;
I shall be counted the fourth among the examples.
myself by my words to your own rites;
then, if my confidence in myself is not deceptive,
I will bring it about, in person, that you seek my realms.
If you are ashamed, and fear to seem to have followed me,
I myself will be the defendant of this charge, without you;
for I will follow the deed of the son of Aegeus and of your brothers.
You can be touched by no nearer example.
Theseus carried you off, they the twin daughters of Leucippus;
I shall be counted the fourth among the examples.
Tunc ego iurabo quaevis tibi numina meque
Adstringam verbis in sacra vestra meis;
Tunc ego, si non est fallax fiducia nostri,
Efficiam praesens, ut mea regna petas.
Si pudet et metuis ne me videare secuta,
Ipse reus sine te criminis huius ero;
Nam sequar Aegidae factum fratrumque tuorum.
Exemplo tangi non propiore potes.
Te rapuit Theseus, geminas Leucippidas illi;
Quartus in exemplis adnumerabor ego.
Adstringam verbis in sacra vestra meis;
Tunc ego, si non est fallax fiducia nostri,
Efficiam praesens, ut mea regna petas.
Si pudet et metuis ne me videare secuta,
Ipse reus sine te criminis huius ero;
Nam sequar Aegidae factum fratrumque tuorum.
Exemplo tangi non propiore potes.
Te rapuit Theseus, geminas Leucippidas illi;
Quartus in exemplis adnumerabor ego.
The Trojan fleet is at hand, equipped with arms and men;
soon the oar and the breeze will make swift ways.
You will go, a mighty queen, through the Dardanian cities,
and the crowd will believe a new goddess is present,
and wherever you set your steps, flames will burn cinnamon,
and the slain victim will beat the bloody ground.
My father and brothers, and my sisters with my mother,
and all the women of Ilium, and all Troy, will give you gifts.
Ah me! scarcely any part of the future is told by me.
You will receive more than my letter recounts.
soon the oar and the breeze will make swift ways.
You will go, a mighty queen, through the Dardanian cities,
and the crowd will believe a new goddess is present,
and wherever you set your steps, flames will burn cinnamon,
and the slain victim will beat the bloody ground.
My father and brothers, and my sisters with my mother,
and all the women of Ilium, and all Troy, will give you gifts.
Ah me! scarcely any part of the future is told by me.
You will receive more than my letter recounts.
Troica classis adest armis instructa virisque;
Iam facient celeres remus et aura vias.
Ibis Dardanias ingens regina per urbes,
Teque novam credet vulgus adesse deam,
Quaque feres gressus, adolebunt cinnama flammae,
Caesaque sanguineam victima planget humum.
Dona pater fratresque et cum genetrice sorores
Iliadesque omnes totaque Troia dabit.
Ei mihi! pars a me vix dicitur ulla futuri.
Plura feres, quam quae littera nostra refert.
Iam facient celeres remus et aura vias.
Ibis Dardanias ingens regina per urbes,
Teque novam credet vulgus adesse deam,
Quaque feres gressus, adolebunt cinnama flammae,
Caesaque sanguineam victima planget humum.
Dona pater fratresque et cum genetrice sorores
Iliadesque omnes totaque Troia dabit.
Ei mihi! pars a me vix dicitur ulla futuri.
Plura feres, quam quae littera nostra refert.
Nor, when carried off, fear that fierce wars will follow us,
and that great Greece will rouse its strength.
Of so many carried off before, was any sought back by arms?
Believe me, that matter holds empty fears.
The Thracians took the daughter of Erechtheus in the name of Aquilo,
and the Bistonian shore was safe from war;
the Pagasaean Jason carried off the Phasian woman in his new ship,
nor was the Thessalian land harmed by a Colchian hand.
He who carried you off, Theseus, carried off the daughter of Minos too;
yet Minos called no Cretans to arms.
and that great Greece will rouse its strength.
Of so many carried off before, was any sought back by arms?
Believe me, that matter holds empty fears.
The Thracians took the daughter of Erechtheus in the name of Aquilo,
and the Bistonian shore was safe from war;
the Pagasaean Jason carried off the Phasian woman in his new ship,
nor was the Thessalian land harmed by a Colchian hand.
He who carried you off, Theseus, carried off the daughter of Minos too;
yet Minos called no Cretans to arms.
Nec tu rapta time, ne nos fera bella sequantur,
Concitet et vires Graecia magna suas.
Tot prius abductis ecqua est repetita per arma?
Crede mihi, vanos res habet ista metus.
Nomine ceperunt Aquilonis Erechthida Thraces,
Et tuta a bello Bistonis ora fuit;
Phasida puppe nova vexit Pagasaeus Iason,
Laesa neque est Colcha Thessala terra manu.
Te quoque qui rapuit, rapuit Minoida Theseus;
Nulla tamen Minos Cretas ad arma vocat.
Concitet et vires Graecia magna suas.
Tot prius abductis ecqua est repetita per arma?
Crede mihi, vanos res habet ista metus.
Nomine ceperunt Aquilonis Erechthida Thraces,
Et tuta a bello Bistonis ora fuit;
Phasida puppe nova vexit Pagasaeus Iason,
Laesa neque est Colcha Thessala terra manu.
Te quoque qui rapuit, rapuit Minoida Theseus;
Nulla tamen Minos Cretas ad arma vocat.
In these matters the terror is wont to be greater than the danger itself,
and what one may fear, one is ashamed to have feared.
Yet suppose, if you will, that a huge war arises —
I too have strength, and my weapons do harm.
Asia’s resource is no less than your land’s;
it is rich in men, rich, it abounds in horses.
Nor will the son of Atreus, Menelaus, have more spirit
than Paris, nor be preferred in arms.
Almost a boy, I recovered the herds carried off, the enemies slain,
and from that took the cause of my name;
and what one may fear, one is ashamed to have feared.
Yet suppose, if you will, that a huge war arises —
I too have strength, and my weapons do harm.
Asia’s resource is no less than your land’s;
it is rich in men, rich, it abounds in horses.
Nor will the son of Atreus, Menelaus, have more spirit
than Paris, nor be preferred in arms.
Almost a boy, I recovered the herds carried off, the enemies slain,
and from that took the cause of my name;
Terror in his ipso maior solet esse periclo,
Quaeque timere licet, pertimuisse pudet.
Finge tamen, si vis, ingens consurgere bellum —
Et mihi sunt vires, et mea tela nocent.
Nec minor est Asiae quam vestrae copia terrae;
Illa viris dives, dives abundat equis.
Nec plus Atrides animi Menelaus habebit
Quam Paris aut armis anteferendus erit.
Paene puer caesis abducta armenta recepi,
Hostibus et causam nominis inde tuli;
Quaeque timere licet, pertimuisse pudet.
Finge tamen, si vis, ingens consurgere bellum —
Et mihi sunt vires, et mea tela nocent.
Nec minor est Asiae quam vestrae copia terrae;
Illa viris dives, dives abundat equis.
Nec plus Atrides animi Menelaus habebit
Quam Paris aut armis anteferendus erit.
Paene puer caesis abducta armenta recepi,
Hostibus et causam nominis inde tuli;
almost a boy, I beat young men in various contests,
among whom were Ilioneus and Deiphobus;
and lest you think I am to be feared only at close quarters,
my arrow is fixed in the place I bid it.
Can you grant him these deeds of his early youth?
Can you furnish the son of Atreus with my skill?
If you grant everything, will you give him Hector for a brother?
He alone will be the equal of countless soldiery!
You do not know what I am worth, and my strength escapes you;
you are ignorant to what man you are to be wedded.
among whom were Ilioneus and Deiphobus;
and lest you think I am to be feared only at close quarters,
my arrow is fixed in the place I bid it.
Can you grant him these deeds of his early youth?
Can you furnish the son of Atreus with my skill?
If you grant everything, will you give him Hector for a brother?
He alone will be the equal of countless soldiery!
You do not know what I am worth, and my strength escapes you;
you are ignorant to what man you are to be wedded.
Paene puer iuvenes vario certamine vici,
In quibus Ilioneus Deiphobusque fuit;
Neve putes, non me nisi comminus esse timendum,
Figitur in iusso nostra sagitta loco.
Num potes haec illi primae dare facta iuventae?
Instruere Atriden num potes arte mea?
Omnia si dederis, numquid dabis Hectora fratrem?
Unus is innumeri militis instar erit!
Quid valeam nescis, et te mea robora fallunt;
Ignoras, cui sis nupta futura viro.
In quibus Ilioneus Deiphobusque fuit;
Neve putes, non me nisi comminus esse timendum,
Figitur in iusso nostra sagitta loco.
Num potes haec illi primae dare facta iuventae?
Instruere Atriden num potes arte mea?
Omnia si dederis, numquid dabis Hectora fratrem?
Unus is innumeri militis instar erit!
Quid valeam nescis, et te mea robora fallunt;
Ignoras, cui sis nupta futura viro.
Either, then, they will seek you back with no tumult of war,
or the Doric camps will yield to my warfare.
Nor would I disdain to take up the sword for so great a wife.
Great prizes set the contest going.
You too, if the whole world should contend over you,
will bear a name from eternal posterity.
Only, with hope not timid, depart from here with the gods favorable;
and exact the gifts promised, with full faith.
or the Doric camps will yield to my warfare.
Nor would I disdain to take up the sword for so great a wife.
Great prizes set the contest going.
You too, if the whole world should contend over you,
will bear a name from eternal posterity.
Only, with hope not timid, depart from here with the gods favorable;
and exact the gifts promised, with full faith.
Aut igitur nullo belli repetere tumultu,
Aut cedent Marti Dorica castra meo.
Nec tamen indigner pro tanta sumere ferrum
Coniuge. certamen praemia magna movent.
Tu quoque, si de te totus contenderit orbis,
Nomen ab aeterna posteritate feres
Spe modo non timida dis hinc egressa secundis;
Exige cum plena munera pacta fide.
Aut cedent Marti Dorica castra meo.
Nec tamen indigner pro tanta sumere ferrum
Coniuge. certamen praemia magna movent.
Tu quoque, si de te totus contenderit orbis,
Nomen ab aeterna posteritate feres
Spe modo non timida dis hinc egressa secundis;
Exige cum plena munera pacta fide.
Book 17
Now that your letter has violated my eyes,
the glory of not writing back seemed no light thing.
You have dared, a stranger, profaning the sacred bonds of hospitality,
to assail the lawful faith of a wedded wife!
So it was for this, then, that the Taenarian shore received you
in its harbor, borne over the windy seas,
and that our palace did not bar its doors against you,
though you came from a foreign people,
that the reward of so great a kindness should be an injury!
Coming in thus, were you a guest or an enemy?
the glory of not writing back seemed no light thing.
You have dared, a stranger, profaning the sacred bonds of hospitality,
to assail the lawful faith of a wedded wife!
So it was for this, then, that the Taenarian shore received you
in its harbor, borne over the windy seas,
and that our palace did not bar its doors against you,
though you came from a foreign people,
that the reward of so great a kindness should be an injury!
Coming in thus, were you a guest or an enemy?
Nunc oculos tua cum violarit epistula nostros,
Non rescribendi gloria visa levis.
Ausus es hospitii temeratis advena sacris
Legitimam nuptae sollicitare fidem!
Scilicet idcirco ventosa per aequora vectum
Excepit portu Taenaris ora suo,
Nec tibi, diversa quamvis e gente venires,
Oppositas habuit regia nostra fores,
Esset ut officii merces iniuria tanti!
Qui sic intrabas, hospes an hostis eras?
Non rescribendi gloria visa levis.
Ausus es hospitii temeratis advena sacris
Legitimam nuptae sollicitare fidem!
Scilicet idcirco ventosa per aequora vectum
Excepit portu Taenaris ora suo,
Nec tibi, diversa quamvis e gente venires,
Oppositas habuit regia nostra fores,
Esset ut officii merces iniuria tanti!
Qui sic intrabas, hospes an hostis eras?
And I do not doubt that this complaint of mine, just as it is,
will be called boorish in your judgment.
Boorish let me be, indeed, so long as I am not forgetful of modesty,
and the course of my life is without stain.
If I have no grim look on a feigned face,
nor sit scowling with hard-set brows,
yet my repute is bright, and so far I have lived without reproach,
and no adulterer has any boast of me.
The more I wonder what is the confidence of your venture,
and what reason gave you hope of my bed.
will be called boorish in your judgment.
Boorish let me be, indeed, so long as I am not forgetful of modesty,
and the course of my life is without stain.
If I have no grim look on a feigned face,
nor sit scowling with hard-set brows,
yet my repute is bright, and so far I have lived without reproach,
and no adulterer has any boast of me.
The more I wonder what is the confidence of your venture,
and what reason gave you hope of my bed.
Nec dubito, quin haec, cum sit tam iusta, vocetur
Rustica iudicio nostra querela tuo.
Rustica sim sane, dum non oblita pudoris,
Dumque tenor vitae sit sine labe meae.
Si non est ficto tristis mihi vultus in ore,
Nec sedeo duris torva superciliis,
Fama tamen clara est, et adhuc sine crimine vixi,
Et laudem de me nullus adulter habet.
Quo magis admiror, quae sit fiducia coepti,
Spemque tori dederit quae tibi causa mei.
Rustica iudicio nostra querela tuo.
Rustica sim sane, dum non oblita pudoris,
Dumque tenor vitae sit sine labe meae.
Si non est ficto tristis mihi vultus in ore,
Nec sedeo duris torva superciliis,
Fama tamen clara est, et adhuc sine crimine vixi,
Et laudem de me nullus adulter habet.
Quo magis admiror, quae sit fiducia coepti,
Spemque tori dederit quae tibi causa mei.
Is it because the Neptunian hero did me violence,
that, once carried off, I seem worthy to be carried off a second time too?
The crime would have been mine, had I been won over;
since I was carried off, what was mine but unwillingness?
Yet he did not get from the deed the fruit he sought;
I came back, having suffered nothing but fear.
As I struggled, the wanton one took only a few kisses;
nothing further of me has he.
Your wickedness would not have been content with these —
the gods be thanked! he was not like you.
that, once carried off, I seem worthy to be carried off a second time too?
The crime would have been mine, had I been won over;
since I was carried off, what was mine but unwillingness?
Yet he did not get from the deed the fruit he sought;
I came back, having suffered nothing but fear.
As I struggled, the wanton one took only a few kisses;
nothing further of me has he.
Your wickedness would not have been content with these —
the gods be thanked! he was not like you.
An, quia vim nobis Neptunius attulit heros,
Rapta semel videor bis quoque digna rapi?
Crimen erat nostrum, si delenita fuissem;
Cum sim rapta, meum quid nisi nolle fuit?
Non tamen e facto fructum tulit ille petitum;
Excepto redii passa timore nihil.
Oscula luctanti tantummodo pauca protervus
Abstulit; ulterius nil habet ille mei.
Quae tua nequitia est, non his contenta fuisset —
Di melius! similis non fuit ille tui.
Rapta semel videor bis quoque digna rapi?
Crimen erat nostrum, si delenita fuissem;
Cum sim rapta, meum quid nisi nolle fuit?
Non tamen e facto fructum tulit ille petitum;
Excepto redii passa timore nihil.
Oscula luctanti tantummodo pauca protervus
Abstulit; ulterius nil habet ille mei.
Quae tua nequitia est, non his contenta fuisset —
Di melius! similis non fuit ille tui.
He gave me back untouched, and his restraint lessened the crime,
and it is plain the young man repented of the deed;
did Theseus repent, that Paris should succeed him,
so that my name might never not be on someone’s lips?
Yet I am not angry — for who is angry at a lover? —
if only the love you profess is not feigned.
For of this too I am unsure — not that confidence is lacking,
or that my own beauty is not well known to me;
but because credulity is wont to be a loss to girls,
and your words are said to lack faith.
and it is plain the young man repented of the deed;
did Theseus repent, that Paris should succeed him,
so that my name might never not be on someone’s lips?
Yet I am not angry — for who is angry at a lover? —
if only the love you profess is not feigned.
For of this too I am unsure — not that confidence is lacking,
or that my own beauty is not well known to me;
but because credulity is wont to be a loss to girls,
and your words are said to lack faith.
Reddidit intactam, minuitque modestia crimen,
Et iuvenem facti paenituisse patet;
Thesea paenituit, Paris ut succederet illi,
Ne quando nomen non sit in ore meum?
Nec tamen irascor — quis enim succenset amanti? —
Si modo, quem praefers, non simulatur amor.
Hoc quoque enim dubito — non quod fiducia desit,
Aut mea sit facies non bene nota mihi;
Sed quia credulitas damno solet esse puellis,
Verbaque dicuntur vestra carere fide.
Et iuvenem facti paenituisse patet;
Thesea paenituit, Paris ut succederet illi,
Ne quando nomen non sit in ore meum?
Nec tamen irascor — quis enim succenset amanti? —
Si modo, quem praefers, non simulatur amor.
Hoc quoque enim dubito — non quod fiducia desit,
Aut mea sit facies non bene nota mihi;
Sed quia credulitas damno solet esse puellis,
Verbaque dicuntur vestra carere fide.
But others sin, and a chaste matron is rare.
Who forbids my name to be among the rare?
For as to your thinking my mother a fit example,
by whose case you suppose I too can be swayed,
there is an error in my mother’s offense, deceived under a false shape;
the adulterer was hidden in feathers.
I, if I sin, can have been ignorant of nothing, nor will there be any
error to shadow the guilt of the deed.
She erred to good purpose, and redeemed her fault by its author.
By what Jove shall I be called fortunate in my fault?
Who forbids my name to be among the rare?
For as to your thinking my mother a fit example,
by whose case you suppose I too can be swayed,
there is an error in my mother’s offense, deceived under a false shape;
the adulterer was hidden in feathers.
I, if I sin, can have been ignorant of nothing, nor will there be any
error to shadow the guilt of the deed.
She erred to good purpose, and redeemed her fault by its author.
By what Jove shall I be called fortunate in my fault?
At peccant aliae, matronaque rara pudica est.
Quis prohibet raris nomen inesse meum?
Nam mea quod visa est tibi mater idonea, cuius
Exemplo flecti me quoque posse putes,
Matris in admisso falsa sub imagine lusae
Error inest; pluma tectus adulter erat.
Nil ego, si peccem, possum nescisse, nec ullus
Error qui facti crimen obumbret erit.
Illa bene erravit vitiumque auctore redemit.
Felix in culpa quo Iove dicar ego?
Quis prohibet raris nomen inesse meum?
Nam mea quod visa est tibi mater idonea, cuius
Exemplo flecti me quoque posse putes,
Matris in admisso falsa sub imagine lusae
Error inest; pluma tectus adulter erat.
Nil ego, si peccem, possum nescisse, nec ullus
Error qui facti crimen obumbret erit.
Illa bene erravit vitiumque auctore redemit.
Felix in culpa quo Iove dicar ego?
But you flaunt your race and forefathers and royal names.
This house is bright enough in its own nobility.
To say nothing of Jupiter, great-grandsire of my father-in-law, and all
the glory of Tantalid Pelops and of Tyndareus,
Leda, deceived by the swan, gives me Jove for a parent,
she who credulously cherished the false bird in her lap.
Go now and recount the far-spread origins of the Phrygian race
and Priam with his Laomedon!
Whom I do indeed respect; but he who is your great glory
as fifth, will be first from my name.
This house is bright enough in its own nobility.
To say nothing of Jupiter, great-grandsire of my father-in-law, and all
the glory of Tantalid Pelops and of Tyndareus,
Leda, deceived by the swan, gives me Jove for a parent,
she who credulously cherished the false bird in her lap.
Go now and recount the far-spread origins of the Phrygian race
and Priam with his Laomedon!
Whom I do indeed respect; but he who is your great glory
as fifth, will be first from my name.
Sed genus et proavos et regia nomina iactas.
Clara satis domus haec nobilitate sua est.
Iuppiter ut soceri proavus taceatur et omne
Tantalidae Pelopis Tyndareique decus,
Dat mihi Leda Iovem cygno decepta parentem,
Quae falsam gremio credula fovit avem.
I nunc et Phrygiae late primordia gentis
Cumque suo Priamum Laumedonte refer!
Quos ego suspicio; sed qui tibi gloria magna est
Quintus, is a nostro nomine primus erit.
Clara satis domus haec nobilitate sua est.
Iuppiter ut soceri proavus taceatur et omne
Tantalidae Pelopis Tyndareique decus,
Dat mihi Leda Iovem cygno decepta parentem,
Quae falsam gremio credula fovit avem.
I nunc et Phrygiae late primordia gentis
Cumque suo Priamum Laumedonte refer!
Quos ego suspicio; sed qui tibi gloria magna est
Quintus, is a nostro nomine primus erit.
Though I think the scepters of your land are powerful,
yet I do not think these of mine are less than those.
If indeed this place is surpassed in riches and in the number of men,
still your land is, for certain, a barbarian one.
Your rich letter indeed promises gifts so great
that they could move the goddesses themselves;
but if I now wished to cross the bounds of modesty,
you yourself would be a better cause of the fault.
Either I will keep my fame forever without stain,
or I will follow you rather than your gifts;
yet I do not think these of mine are less than those.
If indeed this place is surpassed in riches and in the number of men,
still your land is, for certain, a barbarian one.
Your rich letter indeed promises gifts so great
that they could move the goddesses themselves;
but if I now wished to cross the bounds of modesty,
you yourself would be a better cause of the fault.
Either I will keep my fame forever without stain,
or I will follow you rather than your gifts;
Sceptra tuae quamvis rear esse potentia terrae,
Non tamen haec illis esse minora puto.
Si iam divitiis locus hic numeroque virorum
Vincitur, at certe barbara terra tua est.
Munera tanta quidem promittit epistula dives
Ut possint ipsas illa movere deas;
Sed si iam vellem fines transire pudoris,
Tu melior culpae causa futurus eras.
Aut ego perpetuo famam sine labe tenebo,
Aut ego te potius quam tua dona sequar;
Non tamen haec illis esse minora puto.
Si iam divitiis locus hic numeroque virorum
Vincitur, at certe barbara terra tua est.
Munera tanta quidem promittit epistula dives
Ut possint ipsas illa movere deas;
Sed si iam vellem fines transire pudoris,
Tu melior culpae causa futurus eras.
Aut ego perpetuo famam sine labe tenebo,
Aut ego te potius quam tua dona sequar;
and though I do not despise them, yet gifts are always most welcome
which their giver makes precious.
It is far more that you love me, that I am to you a cause of toil,
that your hope has come across such long waters.
Those things too which you now do, shameless one, when the table is set,
I notice, though I try to pretend not —
when now you gaze at me with wanton, bold eyes,
which, pressing on me, my eyes can scarcely bear,
and now you sigh, now you take the cup next to me,
and you drink from the part where I drank.
which their giver makes precious.
It is far more that you love me, that I am to you a cause of toil,
that your hope has come across such long waters.
Those things too which you now do, shameless one, when the table is set,
I notice, though I try to pretend not —
when now you gaze at me with wanton, bold eyes,
which, pressing on me, my eyes can scarcely bear,
and now you sigh, now you take the cup next to me,
and you drink from the part where I drank.
Utque ea non sperno, sic acceptissima semper
Munera sunt, auctor quae pretiosa facit.
Plus multo est, quod amas, quod sum tibi causa laboris,
Quod per tam longas spes tua venit aquas.
Illa quoque, adposita quae nunc facis, inprobe, mensa,
Quamvis experiar dissimulare, noto —
Cum modo me spectas oculis, lascive, protervis,
Quos vix instantes lumina nostra ferunt,
Et modo suspiras, modo pocula proxima nobis
Sumis, quaque bibi, tu quoque parte bibis.
Munera sunt, auctor quae pretiosa facit.
Plus multo est, quod amas, quod sum tibi causa laboris,
Quod per tam longas spes tua venit aquas.
Illa quoque, adposita quae nunc facis, inprobe, mensa,
Quamvis experiar dissimulare, noto —
Cum modo me spectas oculis, lascive, protervis,
Quos vix instantes lumina nostra ferunt,
Et modo suspiras, modo pocula proxima nobis
Sumis, quaque bibi, tu quoque parte bibis.
Ah, how often I noticed signs given with the fingers, how often hidden ones
given with an almost-speaking brow!
And often I feared lest my husband see them,
and I blushed at the not-well-hidden signs!
Often, in a faint murmur or none at all, I said:
’This man has no shame.’ nor was that word of mine false.
On the round of the table too I read, under my name,
’I love,’ which a letter traced in wine had made.
Yet I denied with a refusing eye that I believed it —
ah me, now I have learned that I too can speak so!
given with an almost-speaking brow!
And often I feared lest my husband see them,
and I blushed at the not-well-hidden signs!
Often, in a faint murmur or none at all, I said:
’This man has no shame.’ nor was that word of mine false.
On the round of the table too I read, under my name,
’I love,’ which a letter traced in wine had made.
Yet I denied with a refusing eye that I believed it —
ah me, now I have learned that I too can speak so!
A, quotiens digitis, quotiens ego tecta notavi
Signa supercilio paene loquente dari!
Et saepe extimui ne vir meus illa videret,
Non satis occultis erubuique notis!
Saepe vel exiguo vel nullo murmure dixi:
’Nil pudet hunc.’ nec vox haec mea falsa fuit.
Orbe quoque in mensae legi sub nomine nostro,
Quod deducta mero littera fecit, amo.
Credere me tamen hoc oculo renuente negavi —
Ei mihi, iam didici sic ego posse loqui!
Signa supercilio paene loquente dari!
Et saepe extimui ne vir meus illa videret,
Non satis occultis erubuique notis!
Saepe vel exiguo vel nullo murmure dixi:
’Nil pudet hunc.’ nec vox haec mea falsa fuit.
Orbe quoque in mensae legi sub nomine nostro,
Quod deducta mero littera fecit, amo.
Credere me tamen hoc oculo renuente negavi —
Ei mihi, iam didici sic ego posse loqui!
By these caresses, if I were to sin,
I would be swayed; by these my heart could be captured.
You have too, I confess, a rare beauty, and a girl
could wish to go into your embraces;
but let another rather be made happy without crime,
than that my modesty fall to a foreign love.
Learn only, by my example, to be able to do without the beautiful;
it is a virtue to have abstained from goods that please.
How many young men, do you think, who are wise, desire what you desire?
Or are you, Paris, the only one with eyes?
I would be swayed; by these my heart could be captured.
You have too, I confess, a rare beauty, and a girl
could wish to go into your embraces;
but let another rather be made happy without crime,
than that my modesty fall to a foreign love.
Learn only, by my example, to be able to do without the beautiful;
it is a virtue to have abstained from goods that please.
How many young men, do you think, who are wise, desire what you desire?
Or are you, Paris, the only one with eyes?
His ego blanditiis, si peccatura fuissem,
Flecterer; his poterant pectora nostra capi.
Est quoque, confiteor, facies tibi rara, potestque
Velle sub amplexus ire puella tuos;
Altera vel potius felix sine crimine fiat,
Quam cadat externo noster amore pudor.
Disce modo exemplo formosis posse carere;
Est virtus placitis abstinuisse bonis.
Quam multos credis iuvenes optare quod optas,
Qui sapiant? oculos an Paris unus habes?
Flecterer; his poterant pectora nostra capi.
Est quoque, confiteor, facies tibi rara, potestque
Velle sub amplexus ire puella tuos;
Altera vel potius felix sine crimine fiat,
Quam cadat externo noster amore pudor.
Disce modo exemplo formosis posse carere;
Est virtus placitis abstinuisse bonis.
Quam multos credis iuvenes optare quod optas,
Qui sapiant? oculos an Paris unus habes?
You do not see more, but you dare more rashly:
you have no more heart, but too much brazenness.
Then I could wish you had come in your swift ship,
when my virginity was sought by a thousand suitors;
had I seen you, you would have been first of the thousand.
My husband himself will grant pardon to my judgment.
You come, too late, to joys possessed and taken before you;
your hope was slow; what you seek, another has.
Yet though I might have wished to become your Trojan wife,
Menelaus does not hold me against my will either.
you have no more heart, but too much brazenness.
Then I could wish you had come in your swift ship,
when my virginity was sought by a thousand suitors;
had I seen you, you would have been first of the thousand.
My husband himself will grant pardon to my judgment.
You come, too late, to joys possessed and taken before you;
your hope was slow; what you seek, another has.
Yet though I might have wished to become your Trojan wife,
Menelaus does not hold me against my will either.
Non tu plus cernis, sed plus temerarius audes:
Nec tibi plus cordis, sed nimis oris, adest.
Tunc ego te vellem celeri venisse carina,
Cum mea virginitas mille petita procis;
Si te vidissem, primus de mille fuisses.
Iudicio veniam vir dabit ipse meo.
Ad possessa venis praeceptaque gaudia, serus;
Spes tua lenta fuit; quod petis, alter habet.
Ut tamen optarim fieri tua Troica coniunx,
Invitam sic me nec Menelaus habet.
Nec tibi plus cordis, sed nimis oris, adest.
Tunc ego te vellem celeri venisse carina,
Cum mea virginitas mille petita procis;
Si te vidissem, primus de mille fuisses.
Iudicio veniam vir dabit ipse meo.
Ad possessa venis praeceptaque gaudia, serus;
Spes tua lenta fuit; quod petis, alter habet.
Ut tamen optarim fieri tua Troica coniunx,
Invitam sic me nec Menelaus habet.
Cease, I pray, to shake my soft heart with words,
and do not harm me, whom you say you love;
but let me keep the lot that fortune has assigned,
and do not crave the shameful spoil of my modesty!
But Venus bargained this, and in the valleys of lofty Ida
three goddesses showed themselves naked to you,
and while one would give a kingdom, another the glory of war,
the third said, ’You will be the husband of Tyndareus’s daughter!’
I can scarcely believe that heavenly bodies
submitted their beauty to your judgment,
and do not harm me, whom you say you love;
but let me keep the lot that fortune has assigned,
and do not crave the shameful spoil of my modesty!
But Venus bargained this, and in the valleys of lofty Ida
three goddesses showed themselves naked to you,
and while one would give a kingdom, another the glory of war,
the third said, ’You will be the husband of Tyndareus’s daughter!’
I can scarcely believe that heavenly bodies
submitted their beauty to your judgment,
Desine molle, precor, verbis convellere pectus,
Neve mihi, quam te dicis amare, noce;
Sed sine quam tribuit sortem fortuna tueri,
Nec spolium nostri turpe pudoris ave!
At Venus hoc pacta est, et in altae vallibus Idae
Tres tibi se nudas exhibuere deae,
Unaque cum regnum, belli daret altera laudem,
’Tyndaridis coniunx,’ tertia dixit, ’eris!’
Credere vix equidem caelestia corpora possum
Arbitrio formam supposuisse tuo,
Neve mihi, quam te dicis amare, noce;
Sed sine quam tribuit sortem fortuna tueri,
Nec spolium nostri turpe pudoris ave!
At Venus hoc pacta est, et in altae vallibus Idae
Tres tibi se nudas exhibuere deae,
Unaque cum regnum, belli daret altera laudem,
’Tyndaridis coniunx,’ tertia dixit, ’eris!’
Credere vix equidem caelestia corpora possum
Arbitrio formam supposuisse tuo,
and even if this is true, surely the other part is invented,
by which I am said to have been given as the price of the judgment.
I have not such confidence in my body, that I should think
I was the greatest gift, with a goddess as witness.
My beauty is content to be approved by the eyes of men;
Venus as my praiser brings me envy.
But I deny nothing; I even favor those praises —
for why should my mind, or my voice, deny what it wishes to be?
And do not be angry that I have believed you too grudgingly;
belief in great matters is wont to be slow.
by which I am said to have been given as the price of the judgment.
I have not such confidence in my body, that I should think
I was the greatest gift, with a goddess as witness.
My beauty is content to be approved by the eyes of men;
Venus as my praiser brings me envy.
But I deny nothing; I even favor those praises —
for why should my mind, or my voice, deny what it wishes to be?
And do not be angry that I have believed you too grudgingly;
belief in great matters is wont to be slow.
Utque sit hoc verum, certe pars altera ficta est,
Iudicii pretium qua data dicor ego.
Non est tanta mihi fiducia corporis, ut me
Maxima teste dea dona fuisse putem.
Contenta est oculis hominum mea forma probari;
Laudatrix Venus est invidiosa mihi.
Sed nihil infirmo; faveo quoque laudibus istis —
Nam, mens, vox quare, quod cupit esse, neget?
Nec tu succense, nimium mihi creditus aegre;
Tarda solet magnis rebus inesse fides.
Iudicii pretium qua data dicor ego.
Non est tanta mihi fiducia corporis, ut me
Maxima teste dea dona fuisse putem.
Contenta est oculis hominum mea forma probari;
Laudatrix Venus est invidiosa mihi.
Sed nihil infirmo; faveo quoque laudibus istis —
Nam, mens, vox quare, quod cupit esse, neget?
Nec tu succense, nimium mihi creditus aegre;
Tarda solet magnis rebus inesse fides.
My first pleasure, then, is to have pleased Venus;
the next, that I seemed to you the greatest prize,
and that you preferred neither Pallas’s honors nor Juno’s,
when you had heard of them, to the goods of Helen.
So then I am valor, I am to you a noble kingdom!
I would be iron, if I did not love this heart.
Iron, believe me, I am not; but I resist loving
one whom I scarcely think can become mine.
Why should I try to cleave the thirsty shore with a curved plow,
and follow a hope that the very place denies?
the next, that I seemed to you the greatest prize,
and that you preferred neither Pallas’s honors nor Juno’s,
when you had heard of them, to the goods of Helen.
So then I am valor, I am to you a noble kingdom!
I would be iron, if I did not love this heart.
Iron, believe me, I am not; but I resist loving
one whom I scarcely think can become mine.
Why should I try to cleave the thirsty shore with a curved plow,
and follow a hope that the very place denies?
Prima mea est igitur Veneri placuisse voluptas;
Proxima, me visam praemia summa tibi,
Nec te Palladios nec te Iunonis honores
Auditis Helenae praeposuisse bonis.
Ergo ego sum virtus, ego sum tibi nobile regnum!
Ferrea sim, si non hoc ego pectus amem.
Ferrea, crede mihi, non sum; sed amare repugno
Illum, quem fieri vix puto posse meum.
Quid bibulum curvo proscindere litus aratro,
Spemque sequi coner quam locus ipse negat?
Proxima, me visam praemia summa tibi,
Nec te Palladios nec te Iunonis honores
Auditis Helenae praeposuisse bonis.
Ergo ego sum virtus, ego sum tibi nobile regnum!
Ferrea sim, si non hoc ego pectus amem.
Ferrea, crede mihi, non sum; sed amare repugno
Illum, quem fieri vix puto posse meum.
Quid bibulum curvo proscindere litus aratro,
Spemque sequi coner quam locus ipse negat?
I am untrained in the theft of love, and by no art —
the gods are my witnesses — have I deceived my faithful husband.
Now too, in that I commit my words to a silent page,
my letter performs a new office.
Happy they who have practice! I, ignorant of such things,
suspect the path of guilt is hard.
Fear itself is an evil; even now I am confounded, and think
that all eyes are upon my face.
Nor do I think this falsely; I have felt the crowd’s ill murmurs,
and Aethra has reported certain words to me.
the gods are my witnesses — have I deceived my faithful husband.
Now too, in that I commit my words to a silent page,
my letter performs a new office.
Happy they who have practice! I, ignorant of such things,
suspect the path of guilt is hard.
Fear itself is an evil; even now I am confounded, and think
that all eyes are upon my face.
Nor do I think this falsely; I have felt the crowd’s ill murmurs,
and Aethra has reported certain words to me.
Sum rudis ad Veneris furtum, nullaque fidelem —
Di mihi sunt testes — lusimus arte virum.
Nunc quoque, quod tacito mando mea verba libello,
Fungitur officio littera nostra novo.
Felices, quibus usus adest! ego nescia rerum
Difficilem culpae suspicor esse viam.
Ipse malo metus est; iam nunc confundor, et omnes
In nostris oculos vultibus esse reor.
Nec reor hoc falso; sensi mala murmura vulgi,
Et quasdam voces rettulit Aethra mihi.
Di mihi sunt testes — lusimus arte virum.
Nunc quoque, quod tacito mando mea verba libello,
Fungitur officio littera nostra novo.
Felices, quibus usus adest! ego nescia rerum
Difficilem culpae suspicor esse viam.
Ipse malo metus est; iam nunc confundor, et omnes
In nostris oculos vultibus esse reor.
Nec reor hoc falso; sensi mala murmura vulgi,
Et quasdam voces rettulit Aethra mihi.
But do you dissemble, unless you would rather desist!
But why desist? you can dissemble.
Play, but secretly! a greater, not the greatest, freedom
is given us, because Menelaus is away.
He indeed has gone far off, the matter so compelling;
great and just was the cause of his sudden journey —
or so it seemed to me. I, when he wavered whether to go,
said, ’Go, but see that you return as soon as may be!’
Glad at the omen, he gave me kisses, and said, ’let my affairs and house
and the Trojan guest be your care.’
But why desist? you can dissemble.
Play, but secretly! a greater, not the greatest, freedom
is given us, because Menelaus is away.
He indeed has gone far off, the matter so compelling;
great and just was the cause of his sudden journey —
or so it seemed to me. I, when he wavered whether to go,
said, ’Go, but see that you return as soon as may be!’
Glad at the omen, he gave me kisses, and said, ’let my affairs and house
and the Trojan guest be your care.’
At tu dissimula, nisi si desistere mavis!
Sed cur desistas? dissimulare potes.
Lude, sed occulte! maior, non maxima, nobis
Est data libertas, quod Menelaus abest.
Ille quidem procul est, ita re cogente, profectus;
Magna fuit subitae iustaque causa viae —
Aut mihi sic visum est. ego, cum dubitaret an iret,
’Quam primum,’ dixi, ’fac rediturus eas!’
Omine laetatus dedit oscula, ’res’ que ’domusque
Et tibi sit curae Troicus hospes,’ ait.
Sed cur desistas? dissimulare potes.
Lude, sed occulte! maior, non maxima, nobis
Est data libertas, quod Menelaus abest.
Ille quidem procul est, ita re cogente, profectus;
Magna fuit subitae iustaque causa viae —
Aut mihi sic visum est. ego, cum dubitaret an iret,
’Quam primum,’ dixi, ’fac rediturus eas!’
Omine laetatus dedit oscula, ’res’ que ’domusque
Et tibi sit curae Troicus hospes,’ ait.
I scarcely held back a laugh, and while I struggle to check it,
I could say nothing to him but ’they shall be.’
He has indeed set sail for Crete with favoring winds;
but do not for that think all things are allowed!
My husband is away from here in such a way that, absent, he yet guards me —
or do you not know that kings have long hands?
My beauty too is a burden; for the more steadily I am praised
by your mouths, the more justly he fears.
The very glory that pleases, as things are, is a loss to me,
and it would have been better to have cheated rumor.
I could say nothing to him but ’they shall be.’
He has indeed set sail for Crete with favoring winds;
but do not for that think all things are allowed!
My husband is away from here in such a way that, absent, he yet guards me —
or do you not know that kings have long hands?
My beauty too is a burden; for the more steadily I am praised
by your mouths, the more justly he fears.
The very glory that pleases, as things are, is a loss to me,
and it would have been better to have cheated rumor.
Vix tenui risum, quem dum conpescere luctor,
Nil illi potui dicere praeter ’erit.’
Vela quidem Creten ventis dedit ille secundis;
Sed tu non ideo cuncta licere puta!
Sic meus hinc vir abest ut me custodiat absens —
An nescis longas regibus esse manus?
Forma quoque est oneri; nam quo constantius ore
Laudamur vestro, iustius ille timet.
Quae iuvat, ut nunc est, eadem mihi gloria damno est,
Et melius famae verba dedisse fuit.
Nil illi potui dicere praeter ’erit.’
Vela quidem Creten ventis dedit ille secundis;
Sed tu non ideo cuncta licere puta!
Sic meus hinc vir abest ut me custodiat absens —
An nescis longas regibus esse manus?
Forma quoque est oneri; nam quo constantius ore
Laudamur vestro, iustius ille timet.
Quae iuvat, ut nunc est, eadem mihi gloria damno est,
Et melius famae verba dedisse fuit.
And do not wonder that he has left me here alone with you;
he trusted my character and my life.
For my face he fears, in my life he trusts, and
my probity makes him secure, my beauty makes him afraid.
You urge that the time freely given be not wasted,
and that we use the convenience of a guileless husband.
And I both wish and fear, nor is my will yet
fully resolved; my heart wavers in doubt.
My husband is away from us, and you sleep without a wife,
and in turn your beauty captures me, mine captures you;
he trusted my character and my life.
For my face he fears, in my life he trusts, and
my probity makes him secure, my beauty makes him afraid.
You urge that the time freely given be not wasted,
and that we use the convenience of a guileless husband.
And I both wish and fear, nor is my will yet
fully resolved; my heart wavers in doubt.
My husband is away from us, and you sleep without a wife,
and in turn your beauty captures me, mine captures you;
Nec, quod abest hic me tecum, mirare, relicta;
Moribus et vitae credidit ille meae.
De facie metuit, vitae confidit, et illum
Securum probitas, forma timere facit.
Tempora ne pereant ultro data praecipis, utque
Simplicis utamur commoditate viri.
Et libet et timeo, nec adhuc exacta voluntas
Est satis; in dubio pectora nostra labant.
Et vir abest nobis, et tu sine coniuge dormis,
Inque vicem tua me, te mea forma capit;
Moribus et vitae credidit ille meae.
De facie metuit, vitae confidit, et illum
Securum probitas, forma timere facit.
Tempora ne pereant ultro data praecipis, utque
Simplicis utamur commoditate viri.
Et libet et timeo, nec adhuc exacta voluntas
Est satis; in dubio pectora nostra labant.
Et vir abest nobis, et tu sine coniuge dormis,
Inque vicem tua me, te mea forma capit;
and the nights are long, and now we come together in talk,
and you — wretched me! — are charming, and one house holds us.
And may I die, if everything does not invite the fault;
yet I am held back by some fear or other!
What you ill persuade, would that you could well compel!
My boorishness should have been shaken off by force.
Sometimes an injury is useful to the very ones who suffer it.
So, surely, I would have been made happy by compulsion.
While it is new, let us rather fight the love begun!
A fresh flame, sprinkled with a little water, dies down.
and you — wretched me! — are charming, and one house holds us.
And may I die, if everything does not invite the fault;
yet I am held back by some fear or other!
What you ill persuade, would that you could well compel!
My boorishness should have been shaken off by force.
Sometimes an injury is useful to the very ones who suffer it.
So, surely, I would have been made happy by compulsion.
While it is new, let us rather fight the love begun!
A fresh flame, sprinkled with a little water, dies down.
Et longae noctes, et iam sermone coimus,
Et tu, me miseram! blandus, et una domus.
Et peream, si non invitant omnia culpam;
Nescio quo tardor sed tamen ipsa metu!
Quod male persuades, utinam bene cogere posses!
Vi mea rusticitas excutienda fuit.
Utilis interdum est ipsis iniuria passis.
Sic certe felix esse coacta forem.
Dum novus est, potius coepto pugnemus amori!
Flamma recens parva sparsa residit aqua.
Et tu, me miseram! blandus, et una domus.
Et peream, si non invitant omnia culpam;
Nescio quo tardor sed tamen ipsa metu!
Quod male persuades, utinam bene cogere posses!
Vi mea rusticitas excutienda fuit.
Utilis interdum est ipsis iniuria passis.
Sic certe felix esse coacta forem.
Dum novus est, potius coepto pugnemus amori!
Flamma recens parva sparsa residit aqua.
In guests love is not constant; it wanders, as they do,
and when you would hope nothing firmer, it flees.
Hypsipyle is witness, witness is the Minoan maiden,
both deceived in beds never made good.
You too, faithless one, are said to have forsaken
your beloved Oenone through many years.
Nor do you yourself deny it; and to inquire everything about you
has been, if you do not know, my greatest care.
Add that, even should you wish to remain constant in love,
you cannot. Already the Phrygians make ready your sails;
and when you would hope nothing firmer, it flees.
Hypsipyle is witness, witness is the Minoan maiden,
both deceived in beds never made good.
You too, faithless one, are said to have forsaken
your beloved Oenone through many years.
Nor do you yourself deny it; and to inquire everything about you
has been, if you do not know, my greatest care.
Add that, even should you wish to remain constant in love,
you cannot. Already the Phrygians make ready your sails;
Certus in hospitibus non est amor; errat, ut ipsi,
Cumque nihil speres firmius esse, fugit.
Hypsipyle testis, testis Minoia virgo est,
In non exhibitis utraque lusa toris.
Tu quoque dilectam multos, infide, per annos
Diceris Oenonen destituisse tuam.
Nec tamen ipse negas; et nobis omnia de te
Quaerere, si nescis, maxima cura fuit.
Adde, quod, ut cupias constans in amore manere,
Non potes. expediunt iam tua vela Phryges;
Cumque nihil speres firmius esse, fugit.
Hypsipyle testis, testis Minoia virgo est,
In non exhibitis utraque lusa toris.
Tu quoque dilectam multos, infide, per annos
Diceris Oenonen destituisse tuam.
Nec tamen ipse negas; et nobis omnia de te
Quaerere, si nescis, maxima cura fuit.
Adde, quod, ut cupias constans in amore manere,
Non potes. expediunt iam tua vela Phryges;
while you talk with me, while the hoped-for night is being prepared,
a wind will already be there to carry you to your homeland.
In mid-course you will leave the joys still full of newness;
with the winds our love will depart.
Or shall I follow, as you urge, and see the praised Pergamum,
and be the granddaughter-in-law of great Laomedon?
I do not so despise the proclamations of winged rumor,
that it should fill the lands with reproaches of me.
What will Sparta be able to say of me, what all Achaia,
what the peoples of Asia, what your Troy?
a wind will already be there to carry you to your homeland.
In mid-course you will leave the joys still full of newness;
with the winds our love will depart.
Or shall I follow, as you urge, and see the praised Pergamum,
and be the granddaughter-in-law of great Laomedon?
I do not so despise the proclamations of winged rumor,
that it should fill the lands with reproaches of me.
What will Sparta be able to say of me, what all Achaia,
what the peoples of Asia, what your Troy?
Dum loqueris mecum, dum nox sperata paratur,
Qui ferat in patriam, iam tibi ventus erit.
Cursibus in mediis novitatis plena relinques
Gaudia; cum ventis noster abibit amor.
An sequar, ut suades, laudataque Pergama visam
Pronurus et magni Laumedontis ero?
Non ita contemno volucris praeconia famae,
Ut probris terras inpleat illa meis.
Quid de me poterit Sparte, quid Achaia tota,
Quid gentes Asiae, quid tua Troia loqui?
Qui ferat in patriam, iam tibi ventus erit.
Cursibus in mediis novitatis plena relinques
Gaudia; cum ventis noster abibit amor.
An sequar, ut suades, laudataque Pergama visam
Pronurus et magni Laumedontis ero?
Non ita contemno volucris praeconia famae,
Ut probris terras inpleat illa meis.
Quid de me poterit Sparte, quid Achaia tota,
Quid gentes Asiae, quid tua Troia loqui?
What will Priam think of me, what Priam’s wife,
and your many brothers, and the Dardanian brides?
And you yourself, how will you be able to hope I will be faithful,
and not be anxious from your own example?
Whoever, a stranger, enters the Ilian harbors,
will be to you a cause of anxious fear.
How often, angry, will you say to me ’adulteress!’
forgetting that your own crime is in my fault!
You will become at once the censor and the author of the offense.
Earth, I pray, bury my face before that!
and your many brothers, and the Dardanian brides?
And you yourself, how will you be able to hope I will be faithful,
and not be anxious from your own example?
Whoever, a stranger, enters the Ilian harbors,
will be to you a cause of anxious fear.
How often, angry, will you say to me ’adulteress!’
forgetting that your own crime is in my fault!
You will become at once the censor and the author of the offense.
Earth, I pray, bury my face before that!
Quid Priamus de me, Priami quid sentiet uxor,
Totque tui fratres Dardanidesque nurus?
Tu quoque, qui poteris fore me sperare fidelem,
Et non exemplis anxius esse tuis?
Quicumque Iliacos intraverit advena portus,
Is tibi solliciti causa timoris erit.
Ipse mihi quotiens iratus ’adultera!’ dices,
Oblitus nostro crimen inesse tuum!
Delicti fies idem reprehensor et auctor.
Terra, precor, vultus obruat ante meos!
Totque tui fratres Dardanidesque nurus?
Tu quoque, qui poteris fore me sperare fidelem,
Et non exemplis anxius esse tuis?
Quicumque Iliacos intraverit advena portus,
Is tibi solliciti causa timoris erit.
Ipse mihi quotiens iratus ’adultera!’ dices,
Oblitus nostro crimen inesse tuum!
Delicti fies idem reprehensor et auctor.
Terra, precor, vultus obruat ante meos!
But I shall enjoy the wealth of Ilium and a blessed luxury,
and receive gifts richer than you promised;
purple, no doubt, and precious weavings will be given me,
and I shall be rich with a heaped-up weight of gold!
Pardon my confession — your gifts are not worth so much;
somehow or other that land of yours holds me back.
Who will help me, if I am wronged, on the Phrygian shores?
Whence shall I seek my brothers, whence a parent’s aid?
Faithless Jason promised Medea everything —
was she any the less driven from the house of Aeson?
and receive gifts richer than you promised;
purple, no doubt, and precious weavings will be given me,
and I shall be rich with a heaped-up weight of gold!
Pardon my confession — your gifts are not worth so much;
somehow or other that land of yours holds me back.
Who will help me, if I am wronged, on the Phrygian shores?
Whence shall I seek my brothers, whence a parent’s aid?
Faithless Jason promised Medea everything —
was she any the less driven from the house of Aeson?
At fruar Iliacis opibus cultuque beato,
Donaque promissis uberiora feram;
Purpura nempe mihi pretiosaque texta dabuntur,
Congestoque auri pondere dives ero!
Da veniam fassae — non sunt tua munera tanti;
Nescio quo tellus me tenet ista modo.
Quis mihi, si laedar, Phrygiis succurret in oris?
Unde petam fratres, unde parentis opem?
Omnia Medeae fallax promisit Iason —
Pulsa est Aesonia num minus illa domo?
Donaque promissis uberiora feram;
Purpura nempe mihi pretiosaque texta dabuntur,
Congestoque auri pondere dives ero!
Da veniam fassae — non sunt tua munera tanti;
Nescio quo tellus me tenet ista modo.
Quis mihi, si laedar, Phrygiis succurret in oris?
Unde petam fratres, unde parentis opem?
Omnia Medeae fallax promisit Iason —
Pulsa est Aesonia num minus illa domo?
There was no Aeetes for the scorned woman to return to,
no mother Idyia, no sister Chalciope.
Nothing of the kind do I fear — but neither did Medea fear it!
Good hope is often deceived by its own foreboding.
You will find that, for all the ships now tossed on the deep,
the sea was gentle as they left the harbor.
The torch too frightens me, which your mother seemed to have brought forth,
bloody, before the day of birth;
and I fear the warnings of the seers, who are said to have foretold
that Ilium would burn with Pelasgian fire.
no mother Idyia, no sister Chalciope.
Nothing of the kind do I fear — but neither did Medea fear it!
Good hope is often deceived by its own foreboding.
You will find that, for all the ships now tossed on the deep,
the sea was gentle as they left the harbor.
The torch too frightens me, which your mother seemed to have brought forth,
bloody, before the day of birth;
and I fear the warnings of the seers, who are said to have foretold
that Ilium would burn with Pelasgian fire.
Non erat Aeetes, ad quem despecta rediret,
Non Idyia parens Chalciopeve soror.
Tale nihil timeo — sed nec Medea timebat!
Fallitur augurio spes bona saepe suo.
Omnibus invenies, quae nunc iactantur in alto,
Navibus a portu lene fuisse fretum.
Fax quoque me terret, quam se peperisse cruentam
Ante diem partus est tua visa parens;
Et vatum timeo monitus, quos igne Pelasgo
Ilion arsurum praemonuisse ferunt.
Non Idyia parens Chalciopeve soror.
Tale nihil timeo — sed nec Medea timebat!
Fallitur augurio spes bona saepe suo.
Omnibus invenies, quae nunc iactantur in alto,
Navibus a portu lene fuisse fretum.
Fax quoque me terret, quam se peperisse cruentam
Ante diem partus est tua visa parens;
Et vatum timeo monitus, quos igne Pelasgo
Ilion arsurum praemonuisse ferunt.
And as Cytherea favors you, because she conquered and holds
the double trophy won through your judgment,
so I fear those two who, if your boast is true,
lost their case with you as judge;
and I do not doubt that, if I follow you, arms will be made ready.
Our love, ah me! will go through swords.
Did the Atracian Hippodamia force the Haemonian men
to declare fierce wars on the Centaurs —
and do you think Menelaus will be slow in so just an anger,
and my twin brothers, and Tyndareus?
the double trophy won through your judgment,
so I fear those two who, if your boast is true,
lost their case with you as judge;
and I do not doubt that, if I follow you, arms will be made ready.
Our love, ah me! will go through swords.
Did the Atracian Hippodamia force the Haemonian men
to declare fierce wars on the Centaurs —
and do you think Menelaus will be slow in so just an anger,
and my twin brothers, and Tyndareus?
Utque favet Cytherea tibi, quia vicit habetque
Parta per arbitrium bina tropaea tuum,
Sic illas vereor, quae, si tua gloria vera est,
Iudice te causam non tenuere duae;
Nec dubito, quin, te si prosequar, arma parentur.
Ibit per gladios, ei mihi! noster amor.
An fera Centauris indicere bella coegit
Atracis Haemonios Hippodamia viros —
Tu fore tam iusta lentum Menelaon in ira
Et geminos fratres Tyndareumque putas?
Parta per arbitrium bina tropaea tuum,
Sic illas vereor, quae, si tua gloria vera est,
Iudice te causam non tenuere duae;
Nec dubito, quin, te si prosequar, arma parentur.
Ibit per gladios, ei mihi! noster amor.
An fera Centauris indicere bella coegit
Atracis Haemonios Hippodamia viros —
Tu fore tam iusta lentum Menelaon in ira
Et geminos fratres Tyndareumque putas?
As for your boasting well and telling of brave deeds,
that face of yours is at odds with your words.
Your body is more fit for Venus than for Mars.
Let the brave wage wars; you, Paris, love always!
Bid Hector, whom you praise, fight for you;
a different warfare is worthy of your works.
These arts I, if I were wise and a little bolder,
would use; any girl will use them, if she is wise —
or perhaps I, my modesty laid aside, will grow wise,
and, conquered in time, will give my long-delayed hands.
that face of yours is at odds with your words.
Your body is more fit for Venus than for Mars.
Let the brave wage wars; you, Paris, love always!
Bid Hector, whom you praise, fight for you;
a different warfare is worthy of your works.
These arts I, if I were wise and a little bolder,
would use; any girl will use them, if she is wise —
or perhaps I, my modesty laid aside, will grow wise,
and, conquered in time, will give my long-delayed hands.
Quod bene te iactes et fortia facta loquaris,
A verbis facies dissidet ista tuis.
Apta magis Veneri, quam sunt tua corpora Marti.
Bella gerant fortes, tu, Pari, semper ama!
Hectora, quem laudas, pro te pugnare iubeto;
Militia est operis altera digna tuis.
His ego, si saperem pauloque audacior essem,
Uterer; utetur, siqua puella sapit —
Aut ego deposito sapiam fortasse pudore
Et dabo cunctatas tempore victa manus.
A verbis facies dissidet ista tuis.
Apta magis Veneri, quam sunt tua corpora Marti.
Bella gerant fortes, tu, Pari, semper ama!
Hectora, quem laudas, pro te pugnare iubeto;
Militia est operis altera digna tuis.
His ego, si saperem pauloque audacior essem,
Uterer; utetur, siqua puella sapit —
Aut ego deposito sapiam fortasse pudore
Et dabo cunctatas tempore victa manus.
As for your asking that we speak of these things in secret, face to face,
I know what you are after, and what you call a ’conversation’;
but you are in too much haste, and your harvest is still in the blade.
Delay may perhaps be a friend to your wish.
So far; let my letter, the confidant of a secret and stealthy mind,
now with weary thumb halt its work.
The rest let us speak through my companions Clymene and Aethra,
who are my two attendants and my counsel.
I know what you are after, and what you call a ’conversation’;
but you are in too much haste, and your harvest is still in the blade.
Delay may perhaps be a friend to your wish.
So far; let my letter, the confidant of a secret and stealthy mind,
now with weary thumb halt its work.
The rest let us speak through my companions Clymene and Aethra,
who are my two attendants and my counsel.
Quod petis, ut furtim praesentes ista loquamur,
Scimus, quid captes conloquiumque voces;
Sed nimium properas, et adhuc tua messis in herba est.
Et mora sit voto forsan amica tuo.
Hactenus; arcanum furtivae conscia mentis
Littera iam lasso pollice sistat opus.
Cetera per socias Clymenen Aethramque loquamur,
Quae mihi sunt comites consiliumque duae.
Scimus, quid captes conloquiumque voces;
Sed nimium properas, et adhuc tua messis in herba est.
Et mora sit voto forsan amica tuo.
Hactenus; arcanum furtivae conscia mentis
Littera iam lasso pollice sistat opus.
Cetera per socias Clymenen Aethramque loquamur,
Quae mihi sunt comites consiliumque duae.
Book 18
The man of Abydos sends you, girl of Sestos, the greeting
he would rather bring, if the sea’s swell would fall.
If the gods are kind to me, if they are favorable in love,
you will read these words of mine with unwilling eyes.
But they are not kind; for why do they delay my prayers,
and not allow me to run through the familiar water?
You yourself see the sky blacker than pitch, and the straits
turbid with winds, scarcely to be crossed even by hollow ships.
One sailor, and he a bold one, by whom my letter
is delivered to you, set out from harbor;
he would rather bring, if the sea’s swell would fall.
If the gods are kind to me, if they are favorable in love,
you will read these words of mine with unwilling eyes.
But they are not kind; for why do they delay my prayers,
and not allow me to run through the familiar water?
You yourself see the sky blacker than pitch, and the straits
turbid with winds, scarcely to be crossed even by hollow ships.
One sailor, and he a bold one, by whom my letter
is delivered to you, set out from harbor;
Mittit Abydenus, quam mallet ferre, salutem,
Si cadat unda maris, Sesti puella, tibi.
Si mihi di faciles, si sunt in amore secundi,
Invitis oculis haec mea verba leges.
Sed non sunt faciles; nam cur mea vota morantur
Currere me nota nec patiuntur aqua?
Ipsa vides caelum pice nigrius et freta ventis
Turbida perque cavas vix adeunda rates.
Unus, et hic audax, a quo tibi littera nostra
Redditur, e portu navita movit iter;
Si cadat unda maris, Sesti puella, tibi.
Si mihi di faciles, si sunt in amore secundi,
Invitis oculis haec mea verba leges.
Sed non sunt faciles; nam cur mea vota morantur
Currere me nota nec patiuntur aqua?
Ipsa vides caelum pice nigrius et freta ventis
Turbida perque cavas vix adeunda rates.
Unus, et hic audax, a quo tibi littera nostra
Redditur, e portu navita movit iter;
I would have boarded, except that, when he was loosing the prow’s cables,
all Abydos was on the lookout.
I could not have hidden it from my parents, as before,
and the love we wish to keep covered would not have lain hidden.
At once, writing this, I said, ’Go, lucky letter!
Soon she will stretch out her lovely hand to you.
Perhaps she will even touch you with her lips brought close,
when she wishes to break your seals with her snowy tooth.’
Having said such words to myself in a faint murmur,
my right hand spoke the rest with the paper.
all Abydos was on the lookout.
I could not have hidden it from my parents, as before,
and the love we wish to keep covered would not have lain hidden.
At once, writing this, I said, ’Go, lucky letter!
Soon she will stretch out her lovely hand to you.
Perhaps she will even touch you with her lips brought close,
when she wishes to break your seals with her snowy tooth.’
Having said such words to myself in a faint murmur,
my right hand spoke the rest with the paper.
Adscensurus eram, nisi quod, cum vincula prorae
Solveret, in speculis omnis Abydos erat.
Non poteram celare meos, velut ante, parentes,
Quemque tegi volumus, non latuisset amor.
Protinus haec scribens, ’felix, i, littera!’ dixi,
’Iam tibi formosam porriget illa manum.
Forsitan admotis etiam tangere labellis,
Rumpere dum niveo vincula dente volet.’
Talibus exiguo dictis mihi murmure verbis,
Cetera cum charta dextra locuta mea est.
Solveret, in speculis omnis Abydos erat.
Non poteram celare meos, velut ante, parentes,
Quemque tegi volumus, non latuisset amor.
Protinus haec scribens, ’felix, i, littera!’ dixi,
’Iam tibi formosam porriget illa manum.
Forsitan admotis etiam tangere labellis,
Rumpere dum niveo vincula dente volet.’
Talibus exiguo dictis mihi murmure verbis,
Cetera cum charta dextra locuta mea est.
But how much rather would I have it swim than write,
and carry me busily through the accustomed waters!
It is indeed fitter to deal strokes to a calm sea;
yet it is also a fit servant of my feeling.
The seventh night passes, a span longer to me than a year,
while the troubled sea seethes with roaring waters.
If on these nights I have seen sleep soothing my breast,
let the delay of the raging strait be long!
Sitting on some rock, I gaze sadly at your shores,
and where I cannot go in body, I am borne in mind.
and carry me busily through the accustomed waters!
It is indeed fitter to deal strokes to a calm sea;
yet it is also a fit servant of my feeling.
The seventh night passes, a span longer to me than a year,
while the troubled sea seethes with roaring waters.
If on these nights I have seen sleep soothing my breast,
let the delay of the raging strait be long!
Sitting on some rock, I gaze sadly at your shores,
and where I cannot go in body, I am borne in mind.
At quanto mallem, quam scriberet, illa nataret,
Meque per adsuetas sedula ferret aquas!
Aptior illa quidem placido dare verbera ponto;
Est tamen et sensus apta ministra mei.
Septima nox agitur, spatium mihi longius anno,
Sollicitum raucis ut mare fervet aquis.
His ego si vidi mulcentem pectora somnum
Noctibus, insani sit mora longa freti!
Rupe sedens aliqua specto tua litora tristis
Et, quo non possum corpore, mente feror.
Meque per adsuetas sedula ferret aquas!
Aptior illa quidem placido dare verbera ponto;
Est tamen et sensus apta ministra mei.
Septima nox agitur, spatium mihi longius anno,
Sollicitum raucis ut mare fervet aquis.
His ego si vidi mulcentem pectora somnum
Noctibus, insani sit mora longa freti!
Rupe sedens aliqua specto tua litora tristis
Et, quo non possum corpore, mente feror.
My sight even sees, or thinks it sees, the wakeful light
on the top of your tower.
Three times my clothing was laid down on the dry sand;
three times, naked, I tried to take the hard journey —
the swollen sea stood against my youthful attempts,
and plunged my swimming face under its opposing waters.
But you, most untamable of the rushing winds,
why do you wage fixed battles with me?
Against me, Boreas, if you do not know it, not the waters, you rage!
What would you do, if love were not known to you?
on the top of your tower.
Three times my clothing was laid down on the dry sand;
three times, naked, I tried to take the hard journey —
the swollen sea stood against my youthful attempts,
and plunged my swimming face under its opposing waters.
But you, most untamable of the rushing winds,
why do you wage fixed battles with me?
Against me, Boreas, if you do not know it, not the waters, you rage!
What would you do, if love were not known to you?
Lumina quin etiam summa vigilantia turre
Aut videt aut acies nostra videre putat.
Ter mihi deposita est in sicca vestis harena;
Ter grave temptavi carpere nudus iter —
Obstitit inceptis tumidum iuvenalibus aequor,
Mersit et adversis ora natantis aquis.
At tu, de rapidis inmansuetissime ventis,
Quid mecum certa proelia mente geris?
In me, si nescis, Borea, non aequora, saevis!
Quid faceres, esset ni tibi notus amor?
Aut videt aut acies nostra videre putat.
Ter mihi deposita est in sicca vestis harena;
Ter grave temptavi carpere nudus iter —
Obstitit inceptis tumidum iuvenalibus aequor,
Mersit et adversis ora natantis aquis.
At tu, de rapidis inmansuetissime ventis,
Quid mecum certa proelia mente geris?
In me, si nescis, Borea, non aequora, saevis!
Quid faceres, esset ni tibi notus amor?
Cold as you are, do you, shameless one, deny that you once
grew warm with Attic fires?
If someone wished to close against you, as you were about to snatch
your joys, the airy approaches, how would you bear it?
Spare me, I pray, and stir a gentle breeze more moderately —
so may Hippotades lay no harsh command on you!
I ask in vain; he himself murmurs against my prayers,
and nowhere restrains the waters he shakes.
Now would that Daedalus would give me his bold wings —
though the Icarian shore is near from here!
grew warm with Attic fires?
If someone wished to close against you, as you were about to snatch
your joys, the airy approaches, how would you bear it?
Spare me, I pray, and stir a gentle breeze more moderately —
so may Hippotades lay no harsh command on you!
I ask in vain; he himself murmurs against my prayers,
and nowhere restrains the waters he shakes.
Now would that Daedalus would give me his bold wings —
though the Icarian shore is near from here!
Tam gelidus quod sis, num te tamen, inprobe, quondam
Ignibus Actaeis incaluisse negas?
Gaudia rapturo siquis tibi claudere vellet
Aerios aditus, quo paterere modo?
Parce, precor, facilemque move moderatius auram —
Imperet Hippotades sic tibi triste nihil!
Vana peto; precibusque meis obmurmurat ipse
Quasque quatit, nulla parte coercet aquas.
Nunc daret audaces utinam mihi Daedalus alas —
Icarium quamvis hinc prope litus abest!
Ignibus Actaeis incaluisse negas?
Gaudia rapturo siquis tibi claudere vellet
Aerios aditus, quo paterere modo?
Parce, precor, facilemque move moderatius auram —
Imperet Hippotades sic tibi triste nihil!
Vana peto; precibusque meis obmurmurat ipse
Quasque quatit, nulla parte coercet aquas.
Nunc daret audaces utinam mihi Daedalus alas —
Icarium quamvis hinc prope litus abest!
Whatever will be, I will bear it, only let me lift my body
into the air, which has often hung in the doubtful water.
Meanwhile, while the winds and the strait deny me everything,
I turn over in my mind the first times of my stolen love.
Night was beginning — for it is a pleasure to remember —
when, a lover, I went out from my father’s doors.
Without delay, my fear laid aside together with my clothes,
I threw my supple arms into the liquid sea.
The moon was giving an almost trembling light to me as I went,
like a dutiful companion on my way.
into the air, which has often hung in the doubtful water.
Meanwhile, while the winds and the strait deny me everything,
I turn over in my mind the first times of my stolen love.
Night was beginning — for it is a pleasure to remember —
when, a lover, I went out from my father’s doors.
Without delay, my fear laid aside together with my clothes,
I threw my supple arms into the liquid sea.
The moon was giving an almost trembling light to me as I went,
like a dutiful companion on my way.
Quidquid erit, patiar, liceat modo corpus in auras
Tollere, quod dubia saepe pependit aqua.
Interea, dum cuncta negant ventique fretumque,
Mente agito furti tempora prima mei.
Nox erat incipiens — namque est meminisse voluptas —
Cum foribus patriis egrediebar amans.
Nec mora, deposito pariter cum veste timore
Iactabam liquido bracchia lenta mari.
Luna fere tremulum praebebat lumen eunti
Ut comes in nostras officiosa vias.
Tollere, quod dubia saepe pependit aqua.
Interea, dum cuncta negant ventique fretumque,
Mente agito furti tempora prima mei.
Nox erat incipiens — namque est meminisse voluptas —
Cum foribus patriis egrediebar amans.
Nec mora, deposito pariter cum veste timore
Iactabam liquido bracchia lenta mari.
Luna fere tremulum praebebat lumen eunti
Ut comes in nostras officiosa vias.
Looking up at her, I said, ’be favorable, bright goddess,
and let the Latmian rocks come to your mind!
Endymion does not let you be of a stern heart.
Turn, I pray, your face toward my stolen love!
You, a goddess, slipping down from heaven, sought a mortal;
let me speak truth! — she whom I pursue is herself a goddess.
Not to mention manners worthy of a heavenly breast,
her beauty falls to none but true goddesses.
No face is before Venus’s and your own;
and do not trust my words — see for yourself!
and let the Latmian rocks come to your mind!
Endymion does not let you be of a stern heart.
Turn, I pray, your face toward my stolen love!
You, a goddess, slipping down from heaven, sought a mortal;
let me speak truth! — she whom I pursue is herself a goddess.
Not to mention manners worthy of a heavenly breast,
her beauty falls to none but true goddesses.
No face is before Venus’s and your own;
and do not trust my words — see for yourself!
Hanc ego suspiciens, ’faveas, dea candida,’ dixi,
’Et subeant animo Latmia saxa tuo!
Non sinit Endymion te pectoris esse severi.
Flecte, precor, vultus ad mea furta tuos!
Tu dea mortalem caelo delapsa petebas;
Vera loqui liceat! — quam sequor ipsa dea est.
Neu referam mores caelesti pectore dignos,
Forma nisi in veras non cadit illa deas.
A Veneris facie non est prior ulla tuaque;
Neve meis credas vocibus, ipsa vide!
’Et subeant animo Latmia saxa tuo!
Non sinit Endymion te pectoris esse severi.
Flecte, precor, vultus ad mea furta tuos!
Tu dea mortalem caelo delapsa petebas;
Vera loqui liceat! — quam sequor ipsa dea est.
Neu referam mores caelesti pectore dignos,
Forma nisi in veras non cadit illa deas.
A Veneris facie non est prior ulla tuaque;
Neve meis credas vocibus, ipsa vide!
As much as, when you shine silver with pure rays,
all the stars yield to your flames,
by so much is she more beautiful than all the beautiful.
If you doubt it, Cynthia, your light is blind.’
Having said this, or at least nothing different from this,
I was borne through the waters that yielded of their own accord to me.
The wave shone with the reflected image of the moon,
and there was a daylight brightness in the silent night;
and no voice anywhere, no sound came to my ears
but the murmur of the water parted by my body.
all the stars yield to your flames,
by so much is she more beautiful than all the beautiful.
If you doubt it, Cynthia, your light is blind.’
Having said this, or at least nothing different from this,
I was borne through the waters that yielded of their own accord to me.
The wave shone with the reflected image of the moon,
and there was a daylight brightness in the silent night;
and no voice anywhere, no sound came to my ears
but the murmur of the water parted by my body.
Quantum, cum fulges radiis argentea puris,
Concedunt flammis sidera cuncta tuis,
Tanto formosis formosior omnibus illa est.
Si dubitas, caecum, Cynthia, lumen habes.’
Haec ego, vel certe non his diversa, locutus
Per mihi cedentes sponte ferebar aquas.
Unda repercussae radiabat imagine lunae,
Et nitor in tacita nocte diurnus erat;
Nullaque vox usquam, nullum veniebat ad aures
Praeter dimotae corpore murmur aquae.
Concedunt flammis sidera cuncta tuis,
Tanto formosis formosior omnibus illa est.
Si dubitas, caecum, Cynthia, lumen habes.’
Haec ego, vel certe non his diversa, locutus
Per mihi cedentes sponte ferebar aquas.
Unda repercussae radiabat imagine lunae,
Et nitor in tacita nocte diurnus erat;
Nullaque vox usquam, nullum veniebat ad aures
Praeter dimotae corpore murmur aquae.
The halcyons alone, mindful of their loved Ceyx,
seemed to me to make some sweet plaint.
And now, my arms weary beneath both shoulders,
I raise myself up bravely high to the surface of the water.
When I spied the light afar, ’my fire is in it:
those shores,’ I said, ’hold my light!’
And suddenly strength returned to my weary arms,
and the wave seemed softer to me than it had been.
That I may not feel the cold of the icy deep,
the love that burns in my eager heart provides.
seemed to me to make some sweet plaint.
And now, my arms weary beneath both shoulders,
I raise myself up bravely high to the surface of the water.
When I spied the light afar, ’my fire is in it:
those shores,’ I said, ’hold my light!’
And suddenly strength returned to my weary arms,
and the wave seemed softer to me than it had been.
That I may not feel the cold of the icy deep,
the love that burns in my eager heart provides.
Alcyones solae, memores Ceycis amati,
Nescio quid visae sunt mihi dulce queri.
Iamque fatigatis umero sub utroque lacertis
Fortiter in summas erigor altus aquas.
Ut procul aspexi lumen, ’meus ignis in illo est:
Illa meum,’ dixi, ’litora lumen habent!’
Et subito lassis vires rediere lacertis,
Visaque, quam fuerat, mollior unda mihi.
Frigora ne possim gelidi sentire profundi,
Qui calet in cupido pectore, praestat amor.
Nescio quid visae sunt mihi dulce queri.
Iamque fatigatis umero sub utroque lacertis
Fortiter in summas erigor altus aquas.
Ut procul aspexi lumen, ’meus ignis in illo est:
Illa meum,’ dixi, ’litora lumen habent!’
Et subito lassis vires rediere lacertis,
Visaque, quam fuerat, mollior unda mihi.
Frigora ne possim gelidi sentire profundi,
Qui calet in cupido pectore, praestat amor.
The more I approach and the nearer the shores become,
and the less is left, the more I delight to go.
But when I too can be seen, at once, a spectator, you add
courage, and make me strong.
Now I even labor to please my lady by swimming,
and throw my arms before your eyes.
Your nurse scarcely keeps you from going down into the deep —
for this too I saw, nor did I deceive myself.
Yet she did not bring it about, though she held you back as you went,
that your foot was not wetted by the first water.
and the less is left, the more I delight to go.
But when I too can be seen, at once, a spectator, you add
courage, and make me strong.
Now I even labor to please my lady by swimming,
and throw my arms before your eyes.
Your nurse scarcely keeps you from going down into the deep —
for this too I saw, nor did I deceive myself.
Yet she did not bring it about, though she held you back as you went,
that your foot was not wetted by the first water.
Quo magis accedo propioraque litora fiunt,
Quoque minus restat, plus libet ire mihi.
Cum vero possum cerni quoque, protinus addis
Spectatrix animos, ut valeamque facis.
Nunc etiam nando dominae placuisse laboro,
Atque oculis iacto bracchia nostra tuis.
Te tua vix prohibet nutrix descendere in altum —
Hoc quoque enim vidi, nec mihi verba dabam.
Nec tamen effecit, quamvis retinebat euntem,
Ne fieret prima pes tuus udus aqua.
Quoque minus restat, plus libet ire mihi.
Cum vero possum cerni quoque, protinus addis
Spectatrix animos, ut valeamque facis.
Nunc etiam nando dominae placuisse laboro,
Atque oculis iacto bracchia nostra tuis.
Te tua vix prohibet nutrix descendere in altum —
Hoc quoque enim vidi, nec mihi verba dabam.
Nec tamen effecit, quamvis retinebat euntem,
Ne fieret prima pes tuus udus aqua.
You receive me with an embrace and join happy kisses —
kisses, great gods, worth seeking across the sea! —
and you give me the cloaks taken from your own shoulders,
and dry my hair drenched with the sea’s rain.
The rest the night, and we, and the tower that knows our secret,
and the light that shows me my way through the shallows, know.
The joys of that night can no more be counted
than the seaweed of the Hellespontine sea;
the shorter the time given us for our stolen love,
the more care was taken that it should not be idle.
kisses, great gods, worth seeking across the sea! —
and you give me the cloaks taken from your own shoulders,
and dry my hair drenched with the sea’s rain.
The rest the night, and we, and the tower that knows our secret,
and the light that shows me my way through the shallows, know.
The joys of that night can no more be counted
than the seaweed of the Hellespontine sea;
the shorter the time given us for our stolen love,
the more care was taken that it should not be idle.
Excipis amplexu feliciaque oscula iungis —
Oscula, di magni, trans mare digna peti! —
Eque tuis demptos umeris mihi tradis amictus,
Et madidam siccas aequoris imbre comam.
Cetera nox et nos et turris conscia novit,
Quodque mihi lumen per vada monstrat iter.
Non magis illius numerari gaudia noctis
Hellespontiaci quam maris alga potest;
Quo brevius spatium nobis ad furta dabatur,
Hoc magis est cautum, ne foret illud iners.
Oscula, di magni, trans mare digna peti! —
Eque tuis demptos umeris mihi tradis amictus,
Et madidam siccas aequoris imbre comam.
Cetera nox et nos et turris conscia novit,
Quodque mihi lumen per vada monstrat iter.
Non magis illius numerari gaudia noctis
Hellespontiaci quam maris alga potest;
Quo brevius spatium nobis ad furta dabatur,
Hoc magis est cautum, ne foret illud iners.
And now, the wife of Tithonus about to put the night to flight,
Lucifer, the forerunner of Aurora, had risen;
we heap up hasty kisses snatched without order,
and complain that the nights’ delays are short.
And so, having lingered, at the nurse’s bitter warning
I make for the cold shores, leaving your tower.
We part weeping, and I seek again the maiden’s sea,
looking back at my lady as long as I may.
If the truth be believed, coming from here I seem a swimmer,
but when I return I seem to myself a shipwrecked man.
Lucifer, the forerunner of Aurora, had risen;
we heap up hasty kisses snatched without order,
and complain that the nights’ delays are short.
And so, having lingered, at the nurse’s bitter warning
I make for the cold shores, leaving your tower.
We part weeping, and I seek again the maiden’s sea,
looking back at my lady as long as I may.
If the truth be believed, coming from here I seem a swimmer,
but when I return I seem to myself a shipwrecked man.
Iamque fugatura Tithoni coniuge noctem
Praevius Aurorae Lucifer ortus erat;
Oscula congerimus properata sine ordine raptim
Et querimur parvas noctibus esse moras.
Atque ita cunctatus monitu nutricis amaro
Frigida deserta litora turre peto.
Digredimur flentes, repetoque ego virginis aequor
Respiciens dominam, dum licet, usque meam.
Siqua fides vero est, veniens hinc esse natator,
Cum redeo, videor naufragus esse mihi.
Praevius Aurorae Lucifer ortus erat;
Oscula congerimus properata sine ordine raptim
Et querimur parvas noctibus esse moras.
Atque ita cunctatus monitu nutricis amaro
Frigida deserta litora turre peto.
Digredimur flentes, repetoque ego virginis aequor
Respiciens dominam, dum licet, usque meam.
Siqua fides vero est, veniens hinc esse natator,
Cum redeo, videor naufragus esse mihi.
This too, if you will believe it: the way to you seems downhill;
when I come back from you, it is a slope of sluggish water.
Unwilling I seek my homeland — who could believe it? —
unwilling, certainly, I now linger in my own city.
Ah me! why, joined in heart, are we separated by the waters,
and one mind, yet one land does not hold us two?
Let either your Sestos take me, or my Abydos take you;
your land pleases me as much as mine pleases you.
Why am I thrown into confusion whenever the sea is troubled?
Why can the wind, a trifling cause, stand in my way?
when I come back from you, it is a slope of sluggish water.
Unwilling I seek my homeland — who could believe it? —
unwilling, certainly, I now linger in my own city.
Ah me! why, joined in heart, are we separated by the waters,
and one mind, yet one land does not hold us two?
Let either your Sestos take me, or my Abydos take you;
your land pleases me as much as mine pleases you.
Why am I thrown into confusion whenever the sea is troubled?
Why can the wind, a trifling cause, stand in my way?
Hoc quoque, si credes: ad te via prona videtur;
A te cum redeo, clivus inertis aquae.
Invitus repeto patriam — quis credere possit?
Invitus certe nunc moror urbe mea.
Ei mihi! cur animis iuncti secernimur undis,
Unaque mens, tellus non habet una duos?
Vel tua me Sestos, vel te mea sumat Abydos;
Tam tua terra mihi, quam tibi nostra placet.
Cur ego confundor, quotiens confunditur aequor?
Cur mihi, causa levis, ventus obesse potest?
A te cum redeo, clivus inertis aquae.
Invitus repeto patriam — quis credere possit?
Invitus certe nunc moror urbe mea.
Ei mihi! cur animis iuncti secernimur undis,
Unaque mens, tellus non habet una duos?
Vel tua me Sestos, vel te mea sumat Abydos;
Tam tua terra mihi, quam tibi nostra placet.
Cur ego confundor, quotiens confunditur aequor?
Cur mihi, causa levis, ventus obesse potest?
Now the curving dolphins know our loves,
and I think I am not unknown to the fishes.
Now the worn track of my accustomed waters lies open,
no otherwise than a road pressed by many a wheel.
Before, I complained that I had no road but this;
but now I complain that, because of the winds, even this is lacking.
The waters of the daughter of Athamas grow white with monstrous waves,
and a ship scarcely stays safe in its own harbor;
this sea, when it first got the name it bears from the drowned maiden,
was such, I think, as this.
and I think I am not unknown to the fishes.
Now the worn track of my accustomed waters lies open,
no otherwise than a road pressed by many a wheel.
Before, I complained that I had no road but this;
but now I complain that, because of the winds, even this is lacking.
The waters of the daughter of Athamas grow white with monstrous waves,
and a ship scarcely stays safe in its own harbor;
this sea, when it first got the name it bears from the drowned maiden,
was such, I think, as this.
Iam nostros curvi norunt delphines amores,
Ignotum nec me piscibus esse reor.
Iam patet attritus solitarum limes aquarum,
Non aliter multa quam via pressa rota.
Quod mihi non esset nisi sic iter, ante querebar;
At nunc per ventos hoc quoque deesse queror.
Fluctibus inmodicis Athamantidos aequora canent,
Vixque manet portu tuta carina suo;
Hoc mare, cum primum de virgine nomina mersa,
Quae tenet, est nanctum, tale fuisse puto.
Ignotum nec me piscibus esse reor.
Iam patet attritus solitarum limes aquarum,
Non aliter multa quam via pressa rota.
Quod mihi non esset nisi sic iter, ante querebar;
At nunc per ventos hoc quoque deesse queror.
Fluctibus inmodicis Athamantidos aequora canent,
Vixque manet portu tuta carina suo;
Hoc mare, cum primum de virgine nomina mersa,
Quae tenet, est nanctum, tale fuisse puto.
This place is infamous enough for the loss of Helle,
and, though it spare me, its very name holds a crime.
I envy Phrixus, whom safe across the grim straits
the golden, wool-bearing ram carried;
yet I ask no service of beast or ship,
provided only the waters be given me that I may cleave with my body.
I need nothing in any part; only let there be a chance of swimming,
and I will be at once ship, sailor, and passenger!
Nor do I follow Helice, or the Bear that Tyre uses;
our love does not heed the common stars.
and, though it spare me, its very name holds a crime.
I envy Phrixus, whom safe across the grim straits
the golden, wool-bearing ram carried;
yet I ask no service of beast or ship,
provided only the waters be given me that I may cleave with my body.
I need nothing in any part; only let there be a chance of swimming,
and I will be at once ship, sailor, and passenger!
Nor do I follow Helice, or the Bear that Tyre uses;
our love does not heed the common stars.
Est satis amissa locus hic infamis ab Helle,
Utque mihi parcat, nomine crimen habet.
Invideo Phrixo, quem per freta tristia tutum
Aurea lanigero vellere vexit ovis;
Nec tamen officium pecoris navisve requiro,
Dummodo, quas findam corpore, dentur aquae.
Parte egeo nulla; fiat modo copia nandi,
Idem navigium, navita, vector ero!
Nec sequor aut Helicen, aut, qua Tyros utitur, Arcton;
Publica non curat sidera noster amor.
Utque mihi parcat, nomine crimen habet.
Invideo Phrixo, quem per freta tristia tutum
Aurea lanigero vellere vexit ovis;
Nec tamen officium pecoris navisve requiro,
Dummodo, quas findam corpore, dentur aquae.
Parte egeo nulla; fiat modo copia nandi,
Idem navigium, navita, vector ero!
Nec sequor aut Helicen, aut, qua Tyros utitur, Arcton;
Publica non curat sidera noster amor.
Let another look at Andromeda and the bright Crown,
and the Parrhasian Bear that gleams at the cold pole;
but I do not wish what Perseus and Liber-with-Jove loved
to be the guide of my uncertain way.
There is another light, far surer to me than these,
with which as guide my love does not stray in the dark;
while I look at it, I would go to Colchis and the furthest parts of Pontus,
and where the Thessalian pine made its way,
and I could outdo in swimming the youth Palaemon,
and him whom the suddenly-bitten herb made a god.
and the Parrhasian Bear that gleams at the cold pole;
but I do not wish what Perseus and Liber-with-Jove loved
to be the guide of my uncertain way.
There is another light, far surer to me than these,
with which as guide my love does not stray in the dark;
while I look at it, I would go to Colchis and the furthest parts of Pontus,
and where the Thessalian pine made its way,
and I could outdo in swimming the youth Palaemon,
and him whom the suddenly-bitten herb made a god.
Andromedan alius spectet claramque Coronam,
Quaeque micat gelido Parrhasis Ursa polo;
At mihi, quod Perseus et cum Iove Liber amarunt,
Indicium dubiae non placet esse viae.
Est aliud lumen, multo mihi certius istis,
Non errat tenebris quo duce noster amor;
Hoc ego dum spectem, Colchos et in ultima Ponti,
Quaque viam fecit Thessala pinus, eam,
Et iuvenem possim superare Palaemona nando
Morsaque quem subito reddidit herba deum.
Quaeque micat gelido Parrhasis Ursa polo;
At mihi, quod Perseus et cum Iove Liber amarunt,
Indicium dubiae non placet esse viae.
Est aliud lumen, multo mihi certius istis,
Non errat tenebris quo duce noster amor;
Hoc ego dum spectem, Colchos et in ultima Ponti,
Quaque viam fecit Thessala pinus, eam,
Et iuvenem possim superare Palaemona nando
Morsaque quem subito reddidit herba deum.
Often my arms grow faint with ceaseless strokes,
and, weary, are scarcely dragged through the immense waters.
When I have said to them: ’a reward not cheap for your toil,
soon I will give you my lady’s neck to hold,’
at once they grow strong, and strain toward their reward,
like a swift horse loosed from the Elean barrier.
So I keep my own love, by which I burn,
and pursue you, a girl more worthy of heaven.
Worthy of heaven you are indeed — but stay yet on earth,
or tell me by what road I too may go to the gods above!
and, weary, are scarcely dragged through the immense waters.
When I have said to them: ’a reward not cheap for your toil,
soon I will give you my lady’s neck to hold,’
at once they grow strong, and strain toward their reward,
like a swift horse loosed from the Elean barrier.
So I keep my own love, by which I burn,
and pursue you, a girl more worthy of heaven.
Worthy of heaven you are indeed — but stay yet on earth,
or tell me by what road I too may go to the gods above!
Saepe per adsiduos languent mea bracchia motus,
Vixque per inmensas fessa trahuntur aquas.
His ego cum dixi: ’pretium non vile laboris,
Iam dominae vobis colla tenenda dabo,’
Protinus illa valent, atque ad sua praemia tendunt,
Ut celer Eleo carcere missus equus.
Ipse meos igitur servo, quibus uror, amores
Teque, magis caelo digna puella, sequor.
Digna quidem caelo es — sed adhuc tellure morare,
Aut dic, ad superos et mihi qua sit iter!
Vixque per inmensas fessa trahuntur aquas.
His ego cum dixi: ’pretium non vile laboris,
Iam dominae vobis colla tenenda dabo,’
Protinus illa valent, atque ad sua praemia tendunt,
Ut celer Eleo carcere missus equus.
Ipse meos igitur servo, quibus uror, amores
Teque, magis caelo digna puella, sequor.
Digna quidem caelo es — sed adhuc tellure morare,
Aut dic, ad superos et mihi qua sit iter!
You are here, and you touch your wretched lover but little,
and the straits grow troubled with my mind.
What good is it to me that I am not parted by a broad sea?
Does this so brief water stand against us any the less?
I am unsure whether I would rather, removed far off in all the world,
have my hope too far away, along with my lady.
The nearer you now are, the nearer the flame I burn with,
and the thing itself is not always present, but the hope is always present.
Almost I touch what I love with my hand, so great is the nearness;
but often, alas, this ’almost’ moves me to tears!
and the straits grow troubled with my mind.
What good is it to me that I am not parted by a broad sea?
Does this so brief water stand against us any the less?
I am unsure whether I would rather, removed far off in all the world,
have my hope too far away, along with my lady.
The nearer you now are, the nearer the flame I burn with,
and the thing itself is not always present, but the hope is always present.
Almost I touch what I love with my hand, so great is the nearness;
but often, alas, this ’almost’ moves me to tears!
Hic es, et exigue misero contingis amanti,
Cumque mea fiunt turbida mente freta.
Quid mihi, quod lato non separor aequore, prodest?
Num minus haec nobis tam brevis obstat aqua?
An malim, dubito, toto procul orbe remotus
Cum domina longe spem quoque habere meam.
Quo propius nunc es, flamma propiore calesco,
Et res non semper, spes mihi semper adest.
Paene manu quod amo, tanta est vicinia, tango;
Saepe sed, heu, lacrimas hoc mihi ’paene’ movet!
Cumque mea fiunt turbida mente freta.
Quid mihi, quod lato non separor aequore, prodest?
Num minus haec nobis tam brevis obstat aqua?
An malim, dubito, toto procul orbe remotus
Cum domina longe spem quoque habere meam.
Quo propius nunc es, flamma propiore calesco,
Et res non semper, spes mihi semper adest.
Paene manu quod amo, tanta est vicinia, tango;
Saepe sed, heu, lacrimas hoc mihi ’paene’ movet!
What else is it but to wish to grasp the fleeing apples,
and to follow the hope of a stream that recedes from your very mouth?
So then I shall never hold you, except when the wave wills,
and no stormy season will see me happy,
and, though nothing is less firm than wind and wave,
will my hope always be in winds and water?
Yet it is still summer. What, when the Pleiad has hurt the sea for me,
and Arctophylax and the Olenian goat?
Either I do not know how rash I am, or love, not cautious,
will then too send me into the straits;
and to follow the hope of a stream that recedes from your very mouth?
So then I shall never hold you, except when the wave wills,
and no stormy season will see me happy,
and, though nothing is less firm than wind and wave,
will my hope always be in winds and water?
Yet it is still summer. What, when the Pleiad has hurt the sea for me,
and Arctophylax and the Olenian goat?
Either I do not know how rash I am, or love, not cautious,
will then too send me into the straits;
Velle quid est aliud fugientia prendere poma
Spemque suo refugi fluminis ore sequi?
Ergo ego te numquam, nisi cum volet unda, tenebo,
Et me felicem nulla videbit hiemps,
Cumque minus firmum nil sit quam ventus et unda,
In ventis et aqua spes mea semper erit?
Aestus adhuc tamen est. quid, cum mihi laeserit aequor
Plias et Arctophylax Oleniumque pecus?
Aut ego non novi, quam sim temerarius, aut me
In freta non cautus tum quoque mittet amor;
Spemque suo refugi fluminis ore sequi?
Ergo ego te numquam, nisi cum volet unda, tenebo,
Et me felicem nulla videbit hiemps,
Cumque minus firmum nil sit quam ventus et unda,
In ventis et aqua spes mea semper erit?
Aestus adhuc tamen est. quid, cum mihi laeserit aequor
Plias et Arctophylax Oleniumque pecus?
Aut ego non novi, quam sim temerarius, aut me
In freta non cautus tum quoque mittet amor;
and lest you think I promise this because the time is far off,
I will give you pledges of my promise, not slow.
Let the sea be swollen for a few nights yet,
and I will try to go through the unwilling waters;
either a lucky boldness will fall to me, safe,
or death will be the end of my anxious love!
Yet I will pray that I be cast up on those shores of yours,
and that your harbors hold my shipwrecked limbs;
for you will weep, and deign to touch my body,
and will say, ’I was the cause of this man’s death!’
I will give you pledges of my promise, not slow.
Let the sea be swollen for a few nights yet,
and I will try to go through the unwilling waters;
either a lucky boldness will fall to me, safe,
or death will be the end of my anxious love!
Yet I will pray that I be cast up on those shores of yours,
and that your harbors hold my shipwrecked limbs;
for you will weep, and deign to touch my body,
and will say, ’I was the cause of this man’s death!’
Neve putes id me, quod abest, promittere, tempus,
Pignora polliciti non tibi tarda dabo.
Sit tumidum paucis etiamnunc noctibus aequor,
Ire per invitas experiemur aquas;
Aut mihi continget felix audacia salvo,
Aut mors solliciti finis amoris erit!
Optabo tamen ut partis expellar in illas,
Et teneant portus naufraga membra tuos;
Flebis enim tactuque meum dignabere corpus
Et ’mortis,’ dices, ’huic ego causa fui!’
Pignora polliciti non tibi tarda dabo.
Sit tumidum paucis etiamnunc noctibus aequor,
Ire per invitas experiemur aquas;
Aut mihi continget felix audacia salvo,
Aut mors solliciti finis amoris erit!
Optabo tamen ut partis expellar in illas,
Et teneant portus naufraga membra tuos;
Flebis enim tactuque meum dignabere corpus
Et ’mortis,’ dices, ’huic ego causa fui!’
No doubt you are offended at the omen of my death,
and my letter is hateful to you in this part.
I stop — cease complaining! but that the sea may end its anger,
add, I beg, your prayers to mine.
We need a brief peace, while I am carried across;
when I have reached your shores, let the storm hold on!
There is the fit dock for my keel,
and my vessel stands in no water better.
There let Boreas shut me in, where it is sweet to linger!
Then I will be slow to swim, then I will be cautious,
and my letter is hateful to you in this part.
I stop — cease complaining! but that the sea may end its anger,
add, I beg, your prayers to mine.
We need a brief peace, while I am carried across;
when I have reached your shores, let the storm hold on!
There is the fit dock for my keel,
and my vessel stands in no water better.
There let Boreas shut me in, where it is sweet to linger!
Then I will be slow to swim, then I will be cautious,
Scilicet interitus offenderis omine nostri,
Litteraque invisa est hac mea parte tibi.
Desino — parce queri! sed uti mare finiat iram,
Accedant, quaeso, fac tua vota meis.
Pace brevi nobis opus est, dum transferor isto;
Cum tua contigero litora, perstet hiemps!
Istic est aptum nostrae navale carinae,
Et melius nulla stat mea puppis aqua.
Illic me claudat Boreas, ubi dulce morari est!
Tunc piger ad nandum, tunc ego cautus ero,
Litteraque invisa est hac mea parte tibi.
Desino — parce queri! sed uti mare finiat iram,
Accedant, quaeso, fac tua vota meis.
Pace brevi nobis opus est, dum transferor isto;
Cum tua contigero litora, perstet hiemps!
Istic est aptum nostrae navale carinae,
Et melius nulla stat mea puppis aqua.
Illic me claudat Boreas, ubi dulce morari est!
Tunc piger ad nandum, tunc ego cautus ero,
and I will make no reproaches to the deaf waves,
nor complain that the strait is grim for me as I swim.
Let the winds and your tender arms hold me alike,
and there let me be hindered by two causes!
When the storm allows, I will use the oars of my body;
only keep the light always in view!
Meanwhile let my letter spend the night with you in my stead,
which I pray I myself may follow with the least delay!
nor complain that the strait is grim for me as I swim.
Let the winds and your tender arms hold me alike,
and there let me be hindered by two causes!
When the storm allows, I will use the oars of my body;
only keep the light always in view!
Meanwhile let my letter spend the night with you in my stead,
which I pray I myself may follow with the least delay!
Nec faciam surdis convicia fluctibus ulla,
Triste nataturo nec querar esse fretum.
Me pariter venti teneant tenerique lacerti,
Per causas istic inpediarque duas!
Cum patietur hiemps, remis ego corporis utar;
Lumen in adspectu tu modo semper habe!
Interea pro me pernoctet epistula tecum,
Quam precor ut minima prosequar ipse mora!
Triste nataturo nec querar esse fretum.
Me pariter venti teneant tenerique lacerti,
Per causas istic inpediarque duas!
Cum patietur hiemps, remis ego corporis utar;
Lumen in adspectu tu modo semper habe!
Interea pro me pernoctet epistula tecum,
Quam precor ut minima prosequar ipse mora!
Book 19
The greeting you sent me in words, Leander —
that I may have it sent in deeds — come!
Every delay that puts off joys is long to me.
Pardon my confession; I do not love patiently!
We burn with an equal fire, but I am unequal to you in strength:
I suspect men’s nature is the stronger.
As the body, so the mind is weak in tender girls —
I shall fail, if you add a delay of but a little time!
You men spend your long hours, now in hunting, now in tending
the pleasant countryside, with varied delay.
that I may have it sent in deeds — come!
Every delay that puts off joys is long to me.
Pardon my confession; I do not love patiently!
We burn with an equal fire, but I am unequal to you in strength:
I suspect men’s nature is the stronger.
As the body, so the mind is weak in tender girls —
I shall fail, if you add a delay of but a little time!
You men spend your long hours, now in hunting, now in tending
the pleasant countryside, with varied delay.
Quam mihi misisti verbis, Leandre, salutem
Ut possim missam rebus habere, veni!
Longa mora est nobis omnis, quae gaudia differt.
Da veniam fassae; non patienter amo!
Urimur igne pari, sed sum tibi viribus inpar:
Fortius ingenium suspicor esse viris.
Ut corpus, teneris ita mens infirma puellis —
Deficiam, parvi temporis adde moram!
Vos modo venando, modo rus geniale colendo
Ponitis in varia tempora longa mora.
Ut possim missam rebus habere, veni!
Longa mora est nobis omnis, quae gaudia differt.
Da veniam fassae; non patienter amo!
Urimur igne pari, sed sum tibi viribus inpar:
Fortius ingenium suspicor esse viris.
Ut corpus, teneris ita mens infirma puellis —
Deficiam, parvi temporis adde moram!
Vos modo venando, modo rus geniale colendo
Ponitis in varia tempora longa mora.
Either the forum holds you, or the gifts of the oiled wrestling-ground,
or you bend with the bridle the neck of an obedient horse;
now you take a bird with a snare, now a fish with a hook;
the later hours are washed away with wine set out.
Shut off from these, even if I burned less keenly,
there is nothing left for me to do but love.
What is left I do, and you, o my only delight,
I love even more than can be repaid to me!
Either I whisper of you with my white-haired nurse,
and wonder what cause delays your coming;
or you bend with the bridle the neck of an obedient horse;
now you take a bird with a snare, now a fish with a hook;
the later hours are washed away with wine set out.
Shut off from these, even if I burned less keenly,
there is nothing left for me to do but love.
What is left I do, and you, o my only delight,
I love even more than can be repaid to me!
Either I whisper of you with my white-haired nurse,
and wonder what cause delays your coming;
Aut fora vos retinent aut unctae dona palaestrae,
Flectitis aut freno colla sequacis equi;
Nunc volucrem laqueo, nunc piscem ducitis hamo;
Diluitur posito serior hora mero.
His mihi summotae, vel si minus acriter urar,
Quod faciam, superest praeter amare nihil.
Quod superest facio, teque, o mea sola voluptas,
Plus quoque, quam reddi quod mihi possit, amo!
Aut ego cum cana de te nutrice susurro,
Quaeque tuum, miror, causa moretur iter;
Flectitis aut freno colla sequacis equi;
Nunc volucrem laqueo, nunc piscem ducitis hamo;
Diluitur posito serior hora mero.
His mihi summotae, vel si minus acriter urar,
Quod faciam, superest praeter amare nihil.
Quod superest facio, teque, o mea sola voluptas,
Plus quoque, quam reddi quod mihi possit, amo!
Aut ego cum cana de te nutrice susurro,
Quaeque tuum, miror, causa moretur iter;
or, gazing at the sea, I scold with words almost your own
the waters roused by the hateful wind;
or, when the heavy wave has relaxed its rage a little,
I complain that you can indeed come, but will not;
and while I complain, tears flow down my loving eyes,
which the knowing old woman dries with trembling thumb.
Often I look to see if your footprints are on the shore,
as though the sand kept the marks set on it;
and that I may ask about you and write to you, I look for anyone
who has come from Abydos, or anyone going to Abydos.
the waters roused by the hateful wind;
or, when the heavy wave has relaxed its rage a little,
I complain that you can indeed come, but will not;
and while I complain, tears flow down my loving eyes,
which the knowing old woman dries with trembling thumb.
Often I look to see if your footprints are on the shore,
as though the sand kept the marks set on it;
and that I may ask about you and write to you, I look for anyone
who has come from Abydos, or anyone going to Abydos.
Aut mare prospiciens odioso concita vento
Corripio verbis aequora paene tuis;
Aut, ubi saevitiae paulum gravis unda remisit,
Posse quidem, sed te nolle venire, queror;
Dumque queror lacrimae per amantia lumina manant,
Pollice quas tremulo conscia siccat anus.
Saepe tui specto si sint in litore passus,
Inpositas tamquam servet harena notas;
Utque rogem de te et scribam tibi, siquis Abydo
Venerit, aut, quaero, siquis Abydon eat.
Corripio verbis aequora paene tuis;
Aut, ubi saevitiae paulum gravis unda remisit,
Posse quidem, sed te nolle venire, queror;
Dumque queror lacrimae per amantia lumina manant,
Pollice quas tremulo conscia siccat anus.
Saepe tui specto si sint in litore passus,
Inpositas tamquam servet harena notas;
Utque rogem de te et scribam tibi, siquis Abydo
Venerit, aut, quaero, siquis Abydon eat.
Why should I tell how often I give kisses to the clothes
which you lay aside as you set out into the Hellespontine water?
So when the daylight is done and the friendlier hour of night
has shown the bright stars, the day driven off,
at once on the top of the house we set the wakeful lamp,
the sign and token of your accustomed way,
and, drawing out the twisted threads with the turned spindle,
we cheat the slow delays with a woman’s art.
What do I talk of, you ask, meanwhile, in so long a time?
Nothing but Leander’s name is on my lips.
which you lay aside as you set out into the Hellespontine water?
So when the daylight is done and the friendlier hour of night
has shown the bright stars, the day driven off,
at once on the top of the house we set the wakeful lamp,
the sign and token of your accustomed way,
and, drawing out the twisted threads with the turned spindle,
we cheat the slow delays with a woman’s art.
What do I talk of, you ask, meanwhile, in so long a time?
Nothing but Leander’s name is on my lips.
Quid referam, quotiens dem vestibus oscula, quas tu
Hellespontiaca ponis iturus aqua?
Sic ubi lux acta est et noctis amicior hora
Exhibuit pulso sidera clara die,
Protinus in summo vigilantia lumina tecto
Ponimus, adsuetae signa notamque viae,
Tortaque versato ducentes stamina fuso
Feminea tardas fallimus arte moras.
Quid loquar interea tam longo tempore, quaeris?
Nil nisi Leandri nomen in ore meo est.
Hellespontiaca ponis iturus aqua?
Sic ubi lux acta est et noctis amicior hora
Exhibuit pulso sidera clara die,
Protinus in summo vigilantia lumina tecto
Ponimus, adsuetae signa notamque viae,
Tortaque versato ducentes stamina fuso
Feminea tardas fallimus arte moras.
Quid loquar interea tam longo tempore, quaeris?
Nil nisi Leandri nomen in ore meo est.
’Do you think now, nurse, that my joy has left his house,
or are all awake, and does he fear his own people?
Do you think he is now laying his clothes from his shoulders,
now anointing his limbs with rich oil of Pallas?’
She nods, more or less; not that she cares for our kisses,
but creeping sleep moves her old woman’s head.
And after the least delay, ’now surely he is at sea,’ I say,
’and tosses his supple arms in the parted waters.’
And when I have finished a few threads touched to the ground,
I ask whether you can be in mid-strait.
or are all awake, and does he fear his own people?
Do you think he is now laying his clothes from his shoulders,
now anointing his limbs with rich oil of Pallas?’
She nods, more or less; not that she cares for our kisses,
but creeping sleep moves her old woman’s head.
And after the least delay, ’now surely he is at sea,’ I say,
’and tosses his supple arms in the parted waters.’
And when I have finished a few threads touched to the ground,
I ask whether you can be in mid-strait.
’Iamne putas exisse domo mea gaudia, nutrix,
An vigilant omnes, et timet ille suos?
Iamne suas umeris illum deponere vestes,
Pallade iam pingui tinguere membra putas?’
Adnuit illa fere; non nostra quod oscula curet,
Sed movet obrepens somnus anile caput.
Postque morae minimum ’iam certe navigat,’ inquam,
’Lentaque dimotis bracchia iactat aquis.’
Paucaque cum tacta perfeci stamina terra,
An medio possis, quaerimus, esse freto.
An vigilant omnes, et timet ille suos?
Iamne suas umeris illum deponere vestes,
Pallade iam pingui tinguere membra putas?’
Adnuit illa fere; non nostra quod oscula curet,
Sed movet obrepens somnus anile caput.
Postque morae minimum ’iam certe navigat,’ inquam,
’Lentaque dimotis bracchia iactat aquis.’
Paucaque cum tacta perfeci stamina terra,
An medio possis, quaerimus, esse freto.
And now we look out, now with timid voice we pray
that a helpful breeze give you an easy way;
with our ears we catch at uncertain sounds, and every
noise we believe to be the noise of your coming.
So when the greatest part of the beguiled night is passed for me,
sleep steals secretly upon my weary eyes.
Perhaps, unwilling, you nevertheless sleep with me, shameless one,
and, though you yourself will not come, you come.
For now I seem to watch you swimming near already,
now to bear your wet arms upon my shoulders,
that a helpful breeze give you an easy way;
with our ears we catch at uncertain sounds, and every
noise we believe to be the noise of your coming.
So when the greatest part of the beguiled night is passed for me,
sleep steals secretly upon my weary eyes.
Perhaps, unwilling, you nevertheless sleep with me, shameless one,
and, though you yourself will not come, you come.
For now I seem to watch you swimming near already,
now to bear your wet arms upon my shoulders,
Et modo prospicimus, timida modo voce precamur,
Ut tibi det faciles utilis aura vias;
Auribus incertas voces captamus, et omnem
Adventus strepitum credimus esse tui.
Sic ubi deceptae pars est mihi maxima noctis
Acta, subit furtim lumina fessa sopor.
Forsitan invitus mecum tamen, inprobe, dormis,
Et, quamquam non vis ipse venire, venis.
Nam modo te videor prope iam spectare natantem,
Bracchia nunc umeris umida ferre meis,
Ut tibi det faciles utilis aura vias;
Auribus incertas voces captamus, et omnem
Adventus strepitum credimus esse tui.
Sic ubi deceptae pars est mihi maxima noctis
Acta, subit furtim lumina fessa sopor.
Forsitan invitus mecum tamen, inprobe, dormis,
Et, quamquam non vis ipse venire, venis.
Nam modo te videor prope iam spectare natantem,
Bracchia nunc umeris umida ferre meis,
now to give, as I am wont, garments to your dripping limbs,
now to warm your breast joined to my bosom,
and many things besides that a modest tongue must keep silent,
which it pleases to have done, but shames to tell when done.
Wretched me! this pleasure is brief and not real;
for you are always wont to depart along with sleep.
O, let us eager lovers at last unite more firmly,
and let our joys not lack a true faith!
Why have I, cold, passed so many widowed nights?
Why are you so often away from me, slow lingerer?
now to warm your breast joined to my bosom,
and many things besides that a modest tongue must keep silent,
which it pleases to have done, but shames to tell when done.
Wretched me! this pleasure is brief and not real;
for you are always wont to depart along with sleep.
O, let us eager lovers at last unite more firmly,
and let our joys not lack a true faith!
Why have I, cold, passed so many widowed nights?
Why are you so often away from me, slow lingerer?
Nunc dare, quae soleo, madidis velamina membris,
Pectora nunc nostro iuncta fovere sinu
Multaque praeterea linguae reticenda modestae,
Quae fecisse iuvat, facta referre pudet.
Me miseram! brevis est haec et non vera voluptas;
Nam tu cum somno semper abire soles.
Firmius, o, cupidi tandem coeamus amantes,
Nec careant vera gaudia nostra fide!
Cur ego tot viduas exegi frigida noctes?
Cur totiens a me, lente morator, abes?
Pectora nunc nostro iuncta fovere sinu
Multaque praeterea linguae reticenda modestae,
Quae fecisse iuvat, facta referre pudet.
Me miseram! brevis est haec et non vera voluptas;
Nam tu cum somno semper abire soles.
Firmius, o, cupidi tandem coeamus amantes,
Nec careant vera gaudia nostra fide!
Cur ego tot viduas exegi frigida noctes?
Cur totiens a me, lente morator, abes?
The sea, I admit, is not now manageable for a swimmer;
but last night the breeze was gentler.
Why was it let pass? why did you not fear what was to come?
why did so good a passage perish, and was not seized by you?
Even if at once a like chance of crossing be given you,
that earlier one was surely better, in that it was earlier.
But the calm sea’s face is quickly changed.
When you hurry, you often come in less time.
Caught here, I think, you would have nothing to complain of,
and no storm would harm you while you embraced me.
but last night the breeze was gentler.
Why was it let pass? why did you not fear what was to come?
why did so good a passage perish, and was not seized by you?
Even if at once a like chance of crossing be given you,
that earlier one was surely better, in that it was earlier.
But the calm sea’s face is quickly changed.
When you hurry, you often come in less time.
Caught here, I think, you would have nothing to complain of,
and no storm would harm you while you embraced me.
Est mare, confiteor, non nunc tractabile nanti;
Nocte sed hesterna lenior aura fuit.
Cur ea praeterita est? cur non ventura timebas?
Tam bona cur periit, nec tibi rapta via est?
Protinus ut similis detur tibi copia cursus,
Hoc melior certe, quo prior, illa fuit.
At cito mutata est pacati forma profundi.
Tempore, cum properas, saepe minore venis.
Hic, puto, deprensus nil, quod querereris, haberes,
Meque tibi amplexo nulla noceret hiemps.
Nocte sed hesterna lenior aura fuit.
Cur ea praeterita est? cur non ventura timebas?
Tam bona cur periit, nec tibi rapta via est?
Protinus ut similis detur tibi copia cursus,
Hoc melior certe, quo prior, illa fuit.
At cito mutata est pacati forma profundi.
Tempore, cum properas, saepe minore venis.
Hic, puto, deprensus nil, quod querereris, haberes,
Meque tibi amplexo nulla noceret hiemps.
Surely then I would gladly hear the winds sounding,
and would never pray the waters to be calm.
Yet what has happened, that you are more fearful of the wave
and now dread the strait you once despised?
For I remember, when, as you came, the sea was no less
savage and threatening, or not much less;
when I cried to you: ’be rash in such a way
that your valor be not to be wept by me, poor wretch!’
Whence this new fear, and whither has that boldness fled?
Where is that great swimmer who scorned the waters?
and would never pray the waters to be calm.
Yet what has happened, that you are more fearful of the wave
and now dread the strait you once despised?
For I remember, when, as you came, the sea was no less
savage and threatening, or not much less;
when I cried to you: ’be rash in such a way
that your valor be not to be wept by me, poor wretch!’
Whence this new fear, and whither has that boldness fled?
Where is that great swimmer who scorned the waters?
Certe ego tum ventos audirem laeta sonantis,
Et numquam placidas esse precarer aquas.
Quid tamen evenit, cur sis metuentior undae
Contemptumque prius nunc vereare fretum?
Nam memini, cum te saevum veniente minaxque
Non minus, aut multo non minus, aequor erat;
Cum tibi clamabam: ’sic tu temerarius esto,
Ne miserae virtus sit tua flenda mihi!’
Unde novus timor hic, quoque illa audacia fugit?
Magnus ubi est spretis ille natator aquis?
Et numquam placidas esse precarer aquas.
Quid tamen evenit, cur sis metuentior undae
Contemptumque prius nunc vereare fretum?
Nam memini, cum te saevum veniente minaxque
Non minus, aut multo non minus, aequor erat;
Cum tibi clamabam: ’sic tu temerarius esto,
Ne miserae virtus sit tua flenda mihi!’
Unde novus timor hic, quoque illa audacia fugit?
Magnus ubi est spretis ille natator aquis?
Yet be this rather than what you used to be before,
and make your way safe over a calm sea —
provided you are the same, provided we are loved as you write,
and that flame become not cold ash.
I fear not so much the winds that delay my prayers,
as that your love, like the wind, may stray,
that I may not be worth so much, and the perils outweigh their cause,
and that I may seem a reward less than the toil.
Sometimes I fear lest I be hurt by my country, and a Thracian girl
be called unequal to an Abydene bed.
and make your way safe over a calm sea —
provided you are the same, provided we are loved as you write,
and that flame become not cold ash.
I fear not so much the winds that delay my prayers,
as that your love, like the wind, may stray,
that I may not be worth so much, and the perils outweigh their cause,
and that I may seem a reward less than the toil.
Sometimes I fear lest I be hurt by my country, and a Thracian girl
be called unequal to an Abydene bed.
Sis tamen hoc potius, quam quod prius esse solebas,
Et facias placidum per mare tutus iter —
Dummodo sis idem, dum sic, ut scribis, amemur,
Flammaque non fiat frigidus illa cinis.
Non ego tam ventos timeo mea vota morantes,
Quam similis vento ne tuus erret amor,
Ne non sim tanti, superentque pericula causam,
Et videar merces esse labore minor.
Interdum metuo, patria ne laedar et inpar
Dicar Abydeno Thressa puella toro.
Et facias placidum per mare tutus iter —
Dummodo sis idem, dum sic, ut scribis, amemur,
Flammaque non fiat frigidus illa cinis.
Non ego tam ventos timeo mea vota morantes,
Quam similis vento ne tuus erret amor,
Ne non sim tanti, superentque pericula causam,
Et videar merces esse labore minor.
Interdum metuo, patria ne laedar et inpar
Dicar Abydeno Thressa puella toro.
Yet I can bear all things more patiently than if
you spend your leisure caught by some rival or other,
if alien arms come about your neck,
and a new love becomes the end of our love.
Ah, rather may I die than be wounded by that crime,
and may my fate come before your fault!
Nor do I say these things because you have given me signs of coming grief,
or because I am troubled by some new rumor.
But I fear everything — for who has ever loved free of care?
And distance forces the absent to fear the more.
you spend your leisure caught by some rival or other,
if alien arms come about your neck,
and a new love becomes the end of our love.
Ah, rather may I die than be wounded by that crime,
and may my fate come before your fault!
Nor do I say these things because you have given me signs of coming grief,
or because I am troubled by some new rumor.
But I fear everything — for who has ever loved free of care?
And distance forces the absent to fear the more.
Ferre tamen possum patientius omnia, quam si
Otia nescio qua paelice captus agis,
In tua si veniunt alieni colla lacerti,
Fitque novus nostri finis amoris amor.
A, potius peream, quam crimine vulnerer isto,
Fataque sint culpa nostra priora tua!
Nec, quia venturi dederis mihi signa doloris,
Haec loquor aut fama sollicitata nova.
Omnia sed vereor — quis enim securus amavit?
Cogit et absentes plura timere locus.
Otia nescio qua paelice captus agis,
In tua si veniunt alieni colla lacerti,
Fitque novus nostri finis amoris amor.
A, potius peream, quam crimine vulnerer isto,
Fataque sint culpa nostra priora tua!
Nec, quia venturi dederis mihi signa doloris,
Haec loquor aut fama sollicitata nova.
Omnia sed vereor — quis enim securus amavit?
Cogit et absentes plura timere locus.
Happy those whom their own presence bids know
true wrongs, and forbids to fear false ones!
Me an injury moves as much when empty as when real deceives,
and each error stings me alike.
O that you would come, or that the wind, or your father,
and surely no woman, be the cause of delay!
But if I learn of any woman, believe me, I shall die of grief;
sin at once, then, if you seek my death!
But you will not sin, and I am frightened by these things in vain,
and an envious storm fights to keep you from coming.
true wrongs, and forbids to fear false ones!
Me an injury moves as much when empty as when real deceives,
and each error stings me alike.
O that you would come, or that the wind, or your father,
and surely no woman, be the cause of delay!
But if I learn of any woman, believe me, I shall die of grief;
sin at once, then, if you seek my death!
But you will not sin, and I am frightened by these things in vain,
and an envious storm fights to keep you from coming.
Felices illas, sua quas praesentia nosse
Crimina vera iubet, falsa timere vetat!
Nos tam vana movet, quam facta iniuria fallit,
Incitat et morsus error uterque pares.
O utinam venias, aut ut ventusve paterve
Causaque sit certe femina nulla morae!
Quodsi quam sciero, moriar, mihi crede, dolendo;
Iamdudum pecca, si mea fata petis!
Sed neque peccabis, frustraque ego terreor istis,
Quoque minus venias, invida pugnat hiemps.
Crimina vera iubet, falsa timere vetat!
Nos tam vana movet, quam facta iniuria fallit,
Incitat et morsus error uterque pares.
O utinam venias, aut ut ventusve paterve
Causaque sit certe femina nulla morae!
Quodsi quam sciero, moriar, mihi crede, dolendo;
Iamdudum pecca, si mea fata petis!
Sed neque peccabis, frustraque ego terreor istis,
Quoque minus venias, invida pugnat hiemps.
Wretched me! with how great a wave the shores are beaten,
and the day lies hidden, buried in a dark cloud!
Perhaps the loving mother of Helle has come to the sea,
and weeps for her drowned daughter with dewy waters —
or does a stepmother, turned into a sea-goddess, harass the sea
named from the hated name of her stepdaughter?
As things now are, that place does not favor tender girls;
in this water Helle perished, in this I am wronged.
But you, Neptune, mindful of your own flames,
ought to have let no love be hindered by the winds —
and the day lies hidden, buried in a dark cloud!
Perhaps the loving mother of Helle has come to the sea,
and weeps for her drowned daughter with dewy waters —
or does a stepmother, turned into a sea-goddess, harass the sea
named from the hated name of her stepdaughter?
As things now are, that place does not favor tender girls;
in this water Helle perished, in this I am wronged.
But you, Neptune, mindful of your own flames,
ought to have let no love be hindered by the winds —
Me miseram! quanto planguntur litora fluctu,
Et latet obscura condita nube dies!
Forsitan ad pontum mater pia venerit Helles,
Mersaque roratis nata fleatur aquis —
An mare ab inviso privignae nomine dictum
Vexat in aequoream versa noverca deam?
Non favet, ut nunc est, teneris locus iste puellis;
Hac Helle periit, hac ego laedor aqua.
At tibi flammarum memori, Neptune, tuarum
Nullus erat ventis inpediendus amor —
Et latet obscura condita nube dies!
Forsitan ad pontum mater pia venerit Helles,
Mersaque roratis nata fleatur aquis —
An mare ab inviso privignae nomine dictum
Vexat in aequoream versa noverca deam?
Non favet, ut nunc est, teneris locus iste puellis;
Hac Helle periit, hac ego laedor aqua.
At tibi flammarum memori, Neptune, tuarum
Nullus erat ventis inpediendus amor —
if neither Amymone, nor Tyro, most praised in beauty,
is an empty tale of your transgression,
and bright Alcyone, and Calyce daughter of Hecataeon,
and Medusa, her hair not yet entwined with snakes,
and golden Laodice, and Celaeno received into heaven,
and those whose names I remember to have read.
These at least, and more, the poets sing, Neptune,
to have laid their soft side against your side.
Why then, having so often known the powers of love,
do you close with a whirlwind the way accustomed to us?
is an empty tale of your transgression,
and bright Alcyone, and Calyce daughter of Hecataeon,
and Medusa, her hair not yet entwined with snakes,
and golden Laodice, and Celaeno received into heaven,
and those whose names I remember to have read.
These at least, and more, the poets sing, Neptune,
to have laid their soft side against your side.
Why then, having so often known the powers of love,
do you close with a whirlwind the way accustomed to us?
Si neque Amymone nec, laudatissima forma,
Criminis est Tyro fabula vana tui,
Lucidaque Alcyone Calyceque Hecataeone nata,
Et nondum nexis angue Medusa comis,
Flavaque Laudice caeloque recepta Celaeno,
Et quarum memini nomina lecta mihi.
Has certe pluresque canunt, Neptune, poetae
Molle latus lateri conposuisse tuo.
Cur igitur, totiens vires expertus amoris,
Adsuetum nobis turbine claudis iter?
Criminis est Tyro fabula vana tui,
Lucidaque Alcyone Calyceque Hecataeone nata,
Et nondum nexis angue Medusa comis,
Flavaque Laudice caeloque recepta Celaeno,
Et quarum memini nomina lecta mihi.
Has certe pluresque canunt, Neptune, poetae
Molle latus lateri conposuisse tuo.
Cur igitur, totiens vires expertus amoris,
Adsuetum nobis turbine claudis iter?
Spare us, fierce one, and mingle your battles in the broad sea!
This brief water keeps two lands apart.
It befits you, great as you are, either to toss great ships,
or to be savage even against whole fleets;
it is base for the god of the sea to frighten a swimming youth,
and that glory is less than any standing pool’s.
Noble indeed he is, and bright in origin, but he does not
draw his line from Ulysses, whom you suspect.
Grant pardon and save us two! he swims, but on the same
waters hang Leander’s body and my hope.
This brief water keeps two lands apart.
It befits you, great as you are, either to toss great ships,
or to be savage even against whole fleets;
it is base for the god of the sea to frighten a swimming youth,
and that glory is less than any standing pool’s.
Noble indeed he is, and bright in origin, but he does not
draw his line from Ulysses, whom you suspect.
Grant pardon and save us two! he swims, but on the same
waters hang Leander’s body and my hope.
Parce, ferox, latoque mari tua proelia misce!
Seducit terras haec brevis unda duas.
Te decet aut magnas magnum iactare carinas,
Aut etiam totis classibus esse trucem;
Turpe deo pelagi iuvenem terrere natantem,
Gloriaque est stagno quolibet ista minor.
Nobilis ille quidem est et clarus origine, sed non
A tibi suspecto ducit Ulixe genus.
Da veniam servaque duos! natat ille, sed isdem
Corpus Leandri, spes mea pendet aquis.
Seducit terras haec brevis unda duas.
Te decet aut magnas magnum iactare carinas,
Aut etiam totis classibus esse trucem;
Turpe deo pelagi iuvenem terrere natantem,
Gloriaque est stagno quolibet ista minor.
Nobilis ille quidem est et clarus origine, sed non
A tibi suspecto ducit Ulixe genus.
Da veniam servaque duos! natat ille, sed isdem
Corpus Leandri, spes mea pendet aquis.
Lo, the lamp has sputtered! — for we write with it set by us —
it has sputtered, and given us favorable signs.
See, the nurse drips wine on the lucky flames,
and says, ’tomorrow we shall be more,’ and herself drinks.
Make us more, gliding across the conquered waters,
O you, received deep into my whole heart!
Return to your camp, deserter of an allied love;
why are my limbs laid down in the middle of the bed?
There is nothing for you to fear! Venus herself will favor your daring,
and, born of the sea, will smooth the watery ways.
it has sputtered, and given us favorable signs.
See, the nurse drips wine on the lucky flames,
and says, ’tomorrow we shall be more,’ and herself drinks.
Make us more, gliding across the conquered waters,
O you, received deep into my whole heart!
Return to your camp, deserter of an allied love;
why are my limbs laid down in the middle of the bed?
There is nothing for you to fear! Venus herself will favor your daring,
and, born of the sea, will smooth the watery ways.
Sternuit en lumen! — posito nam scribimus illo —
Sternuit et nobis prospera signa dedit.
Ecce, merum nutrix faustos instillat in ignes,
’Cras’ que ’erimus plures,’ inquit, et ipsa bibit.
Effice nos plures, evicta per aequora lapsus,
O penitus toto corde recepte mihi!
In tua castra redi, socii desertor amoris;
Ponuntur medio cur mea membra toro?
Quod timeas, non est! auso Venus ipsa favebit,
Sternet et aequoreas aequore nata vias.
Sternuit et nobis prospera signa dedit.
Ecce, merum nutrix faustos instillat in ignes,
’Cras’ que ’erimus plures,’ inquit, et ipsa bibit.
Effice nos plures, evicta per aequora lapsus,
O penitus toto corde recepte mihi!
In tua castra redi, socii desertor amoris;
Ponuntur medio cur mea membra toro?
Quod timeas, non est! auso Venus ipsa favebit,
Sternet et aequoreas aequore nata vias.
I myself often long to go through the midst of the waves,
but this strait is wont to be safer for men.
For why, when Phrixus and Phrixus’s sister crossed it,
did the woman alone give her name to the vast waters?
Perhaps you fear lest, for the return, time be lacking,
or that you cannot bear the burden of a double toil.
But let us, from opposite sides, meet in the middle of the sea,
and give kisses, meeting, on the surface of the water,
and so each return again to our own cities;
that would be little, but more than nothing!
but this strait is wont to be safer for men.
For why, when Phrixus and Phrixus’s sister crossed it,
did the woman alone give her name to the vast waters?
Perhaps you fear lest, for the return, time be lacking,
or that you cannot bear the burden of a double toil.
But let us, from opposite sides, meet in the middle of the sea,
and give kisses, meeting, on the surface of the water,
and so each return again to our own cities;
that would be little, but more than nothing!
Ire libet medias ipsi mihi saepe per undas,
Sed solet hoc maribus tutius esse fretum.
Nam cur hac vectis Phrixo Phrixique sorore
Sola dedit vastis femina nomen aquis?
Forsitan ad reditum metuas ne tempora desint,
Aut gemini nequeas ferre laboris onus.
At nos diversi medium coeamus in aequor
Obviaque in summis oscula demus aquis,
Atque ita quisque suas iterum redeamus ad urbes;
Exiguum, sed plus quam nihil illud erit!
Sed solet hoc maribus tutius esse fretum.
Nam cur hac vectis Phrixo Phrixique sorore
Sola dedit vastis femina nomen aquis?
Forsitan ad reditum metuas ne tempora desint,
Aut gemini nequeas ferre laboris onus.
At nos diversi medium coeamus in aequor
Obviaque in summis oscula demus aquis,
Atque ita quisque suas iterum redeamus ad urbes;
Exiguum, sed plus quam nihil illud erit!
O that either this modesty, which forces us to love in secret,
or our love, timid of rumor, would give way!
Now, things ill-matched, passion and reverence fight.
Which to follow, is in doubt; the one is fitting, the other pleases.
As soon as the Pagasaean Jason entered Colchis,
he carried off the Phasian woman, placed on his swift ship;
as soon as the Idaean adulterer came to Lacedaemon,
he returned at once with his plunder.
You, as often as you seek what you love, so often you leave it,
and as often as it is hard for ships to go, you swim.
or our love, timid of rumor, would give way!
Now, things ill-matched, passion and reverence fight.
Which to follow, is in doubt; the one is fitting, the other pleases.
As soon as the Pagasaean Jason entered Colchis,
he carried off the Phasian woman, placed on his swift ship;
as soon as the Idaean adulterer came to Lacedaemon,
he returned at once with his plunder.
You, as often as you seek what you love, so often you leave it,
and as often as it is hard for ships to go, you swim.
Vel pudor hic utinam, qui nos clam cogit amare,
Vel timidus famae cedere vellet amor!
Nunc, male res iunctae, calor et reverentia pugnant.
Quid sequar, in dubio est; haec decet, ille iuvat.
Ut semel intravit Colchos Pagasaeus Iason,
Inpositam celeri Phasida puppe tulit;
Ut semel Idaeus Lacedaemona venit adulter,
Cum praeda rediit protinus ille sua.
Tu quam saepe petis, quod amas, tam saepe relinquis,
Et quotiens grave sit puppibus ire, natas.
Vel timidus famae cedere vellet amor!
Nunc, male res iunctae, calor et reverentia pugnant.
Quid sequar, in dubio est; haec decet, ille iuvat.
Ut semel intravit Colchos Pagasaeus Iason,
Inpositam celeri Phasida puppe tulit;
Ut semel Idaeus Lacedaemona venit adulter,
Cum praeda rediit protinus ille sua.
Tu quam saepe petis, quod amas, tam saepe relinquis,
Et quotiens grave sit puppibus ire, natas.
Yet so, o youth, conqueror of the swollen waters,
so scorn the strait that you also dread it!
Ships built with art are sunk by the sea;
do you think your arms can do more than oars?
What you desire — to swim — this, Leander, the sailors fear;
this is wont to be the end when ships are wrecked.
Wretched me! I wish not to persuade you to what I urge,
and I pray you yourself may be braver than my warnings —
provided only you arrive, and, often tossed through the waves,
throw your weary arms about my shoulders!
so scorn the strait that you also dread it!
Ships built with art are sunk by the sea;
do you think your arms can do more than oars?
What you desire — to swim — this, Leander, the sailors fear;
this is wont to be the end when ships are wrecked.
Wretched me! I wish not to persuade you to what I urge,
and I pray you yourself may be braver than my warnings —
provided only you arrive, and, often tossed through the waves,
throw your weary arms about my shoulders!
Sic tamen, o iuvenis tumidarum victor aquarum,
Sic facito spernas, ut vereare, fretum!
Arte laboratae merguntur ab aequore naves;
Tu tua plus remis bracchia posse putas?
Quod cupis, hoc nautae metuunt, Leandre, natare;
Exitus hic fractis puppibus esse solet.
Me miseram! cupio non persuadere, quod hortor,
Sisque, precor, monitis fortior ipse meis —
Dummodo pervenias excussaque saepe per undas
Inicias umeris bracchia lassa meis!
Sic facito spernas, ut vereare, fretum!
Arte laboratae merguntur ab aequore naves;
Tu tua plus remis bracchia posse putas?
Quod cupis, hoc nautae metuunt, Leandre, natare;
Exitus hic fractis puppibus esse solet.
Me miseram! cupio non persuadere, quod hortor,
Sisque, precor, monitis fortior ipse meis —
Dummodo pervenias excussaque saepe per undas
Inicias umeris bracchia lassa meis!
But whenever I turn toward the blue waves,
my frightened heart grows numb with some chill or other.
And no less am I troubled by the vision of last night,
though it has been atoned for by my offerings.
For near dawn, when the lamp was now drowsing,
the time when true dreams are wont to be seen,
the threads fell from my fingers, loosed in sleep,
and I gave my neck to the pillow to be borne.
Here I seemed to myself, with no uncertain conviction,
to see a dolphin swimming through the windy waves,
my frightened heart grows numb with some chill or other.
And no less am I troubled by the vision of last night,
though it has been atoned for by my offerings.
For near dawn, when the lamp was now drowsing,
the time when true dreams are wont to be seen,
the threads fell from my fingers, loosed in sleep,
and I gave my neck to the pillow to be borne.
Here I seemed to myself, with no uncertain conviction,
to see a dolphin swimming through the windy waves,
Sed mihi, caeruleas quotiens obvertor ad undas,
Nescio quo pavidum frigore pectus hebet.
Nec minus hesternae confundor imagine noctis,
Quamvis est sacris illa piata meis.
Namque sub aurora, iam dormitante lucerna,
Somnia quo cerni tempore vera solent,
Stamina de digitis cecidere sopore remissis,
Collaque pulvino nostra ferenda dedi.
Hic ego ventosas nantem delphina per undas
Cernere non dubia sum mihi visa fide,
Nescio quo pavidum frigore pectus hebet.
Nec minus hesternae confundor imagine noctis,
Quamvis est sacris illa piata meis.
Namque sub aurora, iam dormitante lucerna,
Somnia quo cerni tempore vera solent,
Stamina de digitis cecidere sopore remissis,
Collaque pulvino nostra ferenda dedi.
Hic ego ventosas nantem delphina per undas
Cernere non dubia sum mihi visa fide,
and after the surge had dashed him on the thirsty sands,
the wave and life together forsook the wretched creature.
Whatever it means, I am afraid; do not laugh at my dreams,
nor trust your arms to the sea unless it is calm!
If you do not spare yourself, spare the girl you love,
who will never be safe unless you are safe!
Yet there is hope of a near peace in the breaking waves;
do you cleave the calm ways with all your breast!
Meanwhile, since the straits are not passable for a swimmer,
let a letter sent soothe the hateful delays.
the wave and life together forsook the wretched creature.
Whatever it means, I am afraid; do not laugh at my dreams,
nor trust your arms to the sea unless it is calm!
If you do not spare yourself, spare the girl you love,
who will never be safe unless you are safe!
Yet there is hope of a near peace in the breaking waves;
do you cleave the calm ways with all your breast!
Meanwhile, since the straits are not passable for a swimmer,
let a letter sent soothe the hateful delays.
Quem postquam bibulis inlisit fluctus harenis,
Unda simul miserum vitaque deseruit.
Quidquid id est, timeo; nec tu mea somnia ride
Nec nisi tranquillo bracchia crede mari!
Si tibi non parcis, dilectae parce puellae,
Quae numquam nisi te sospite sospes ero!
Spes tamen est fractis vicinae pacis in undis;
Tu placidas toto pectore finde vias!
Interea nanti, quoniam freta pervia non sunt,
Leniat invisas littera missa moras.
Unda simul miserum vitaque deseruit.
Quidquid id est, timeo; nec tu mea somnia ride
Nec nisi tranquillo bracchia crede mari!
Si tibi non parcis, dilectae parce puellae,
Quae numquam nisi te sospite sospes ero!
Spes tamen est fractis vicinae pacis in undis;
Tu placidas toto pectore finde vias!
Interea nanti, quoniam freta pervia non sunt,
Leniat invisas littera missa moras.
Book 20
Receive, Cydippe, the name of scorned Acontius,
of him who gave you words on the apple.
Lay aside your fear! you will swear nothing here again to your lover;
it is enough that you were promised to me once.
Read it through! so may the weakness depart from that body of yours,
for it is my grief that any part of you should ache!
Why does shame come over you first? for, just as in Diana’s temple,
I suspect your noble cheeks have blushed.
I ask for marriage and the pledged faith, not for crime;
I love as a husband owed to you, not as an adulterer.
of him who gave you words on the apple.
Lay aside your fear! you will swear nothing here again to your lover;
it is enough that you were promised to me once.
Read it through! so may the weakness depart from that body of yours,
for it is my grief that any part of you should ache!
Why does shame come over you first? for, just as in Diana’s temple,
I suspect your noble cheeks have blushed.
I ask for marriage and the pledged faith, not for crime;
I love as a husband owed to you, not as an adulterer.
Accipe, Cydippe, despecti nomen Aconti,
Illius, in pomo qui tibi verba dedit.
Pone metum! nihil hic iterum iurabis amanti;
Promissam satis est te semel esse mihi.
Perlege! discedat sic corpore languor ab isto,
Quod meus est ulla parte dolere dolor!
Quid pudor ante subit? nam, sicut in aede Dianae,
Suspicor ingenuas erubuisse genas.
Coniugium pactamque fidem, non crimina posco;
Debitus ut coniunx, non ut adulter amo.
Illius, in pomo qui tibi verba dedit.
Pone metum! nihil hic iterum iurabis amanti;
Promissam satis est te semel esse mihi.
Perlege! discedat sic corpore languor ab isto,
Quod meus est ulla parte dolere dolor!
Quid pudor ante subit? nam, sicut in aede Dianae,
Suspicor ingenuas erubuisse genas.
Coniugium pactamque fidem, non crimina posco;
Debitus ut coniunx, non ut adulter amo.
You may go over again the words which the fruit, plucked from the tree,
carried to your chaste hands when I threw it;
you will find there that you pledge what I desire —
and which I would rather you, maiden, than the goddess, remembered.
Now too I crave the same thing, but that same thing more keenly;
the flame has taken on strength and grown by delay,
and the love which was never small has now, by long time
and by the hope you had given me, increased.
You had given me hope, my passion here believed you.
You cannot deny this deed, with the goddess as witness.
carried to your chaste hands when I threw it;
you will find there that you pledge what I desire —
and which I would rather you, maiden, than the goddess, remembered.
Now too I crave the same thing, but that same thing more keenly;
the flame has taken on strength and grown by delay,
and the love which was never small has now, by long time
and by the hope you had given me, increased.
You had given me hope, my passion here believed you.
You cannot deny this deed, with the goddess as witness.
Verba licet repetas, quae demptus ab arbore fetus
Pertulit ad castas me iaciente manus;
Invenies illic, id te spondere, quod opto
Te potius, virgo, quam meminisse deam.
Nunc quoque avemus idem, sed idem tamen acrius illud;
Adsumpsit vires auctaque flamma mora est,
Quique fuit numquam parvus, nunc tempore longo
Et spe, quam dederas tu mihi, crevit amor.
Spem mihi tu dederas, meus hic tibi credidit ardor.
Non potes hoc factum teste negare dea.
Pertulit ad castas me iaciente manus;
Invenies illic, id te spondere, quod opto
Te potius, virgo, quam meminisse deam.
Nunc quoque avemus idem, sed idem tamen acrius illud;
Adsumpsit vires auctaque flamma mora est,
Quique fuit numquam parvus, nunc tempore longo
Et spe, quam dederas tu mihi, crevit amor.
Spem mihi tu dederas, meus hic tibi credidit ardor.
Non potes hoc factum teste negare dea.
She was present, and, as she was there, marked your words,
and seemed, with a nod of her hair, to have taken in what was said.
You may say you were deceived by my trick,
so long as love is named the cause of my trick.
What did my trick seek but the one thing, to be joined to you?
That very thing you complain of can win you over to me.
I am not by nature, nor by practice, so cunning;
you, girl, believe me, make me clever.
To me, by words composed — if I have achieved anything —
ingenious Love bound you.
and seemed, with a nod of her hair, to have taken in what was said.
You may say you were deceived by my trick,
so long as love is named the cause of my trick.
What did my trick seek but the one thing, to be joined to you?
That very thing you complain of can win you over to me.
I am not by nature, nor by practice, so cunning;
you, girl, believe me, make me clever.
To me, by words composed — if I have achieved anything —
ingenious Love bound you.
Adfuit et, praesens ut erat, tua verba notavit
Et visa est mota dicta tulisse coma.
Deceptam dicas nostra te fraude licebit,
Dum fraudis nostrae causa feratur amor.
Fraus mea quid petiit, nisi uti tibi iungerer, unum?
Id te, quod quereris, conciliare potest.
Non ego natura nec sum tam callidus usu;
Sollertem tu me, crede, puella, facis.
Te mihi conpositis — siquid tamen egimus — a me
Adstrinxit verbis ingeniosus Amor.
Et visa est mota dicta tulisse coma.
Deceptam dicas nostra te fraude licebit,
Dum fraudis nostrae causa feratur amor.
Fraus mea quid petiit, nisi uti tibi iungerer, unum?
Id te, quod quereris, conciliare potest.
Non ego natura nec sum tam callidus usu;
Sollertem tu me, crede, puella, facis.
Te mihi conpositis — siquid tamen egimus — a me
Adstrinxit verbis ingeniosus Amor.
By words dictated by him I made the betrothal,
and with Love as my counsel in law I was crafty.
Let ’fraud’ be the name for this deed, and let me be called guileful,
if it is guile to wish to hold what you love!
Lo, again I write and send entreating words!
This is a second fraud, and you have something to complain of.
If I harm you because I love, I confess, I will harm you without end,
and will pursue you forever, however you guard against being pursued.
Others have carried off the girls they liked by the sword;
shall a letter carefully written be a crime in me?
and with Love as my counsel in law I was crafty.
Let ’fraud’ be the name for this deed, and let me be called guileful,
if it is guile to wish to hold what you love!
Lo, again I write and send entreating words!
This is a second fraud, and you have something to complain of.
If I harm you because I love, I confess, I will harm you without end,
and will pursue you forever, however you guard against being pursued.
Others have carried off the girls they liked by the sword;
shall a letter carefully written be a crime in me?
Dictatis ab eo feci sponsalia verbis,
Consultoque fui iuris Amore vafer.
Sit fraus huic facto nomen, dicarque dolosus,
Si tamen est, quod ames, velle tenere dolus!
En, iterum scribo mittoque rogantia verba!
Altera fraus haec est, quodque queraris habes.
Si noceo, quod amo, fateor, sine fine nocebo,
Teque, peti caveas tu licet, usque petam.
Per gladios alii placitas rapuere puellas;
Scripta mihi caute littera crimen erit?
Consultoque fui iuris Amore vafer.
Sit fraus huic facto nomen, dicarque dolosus,
Si tamen est, quod ames, velle tenere dolus!
En, iterum scribo mittoque rogantia verba!
Altera fraus haec est, quodque queraris habes.
Si noceo, quod amo, fateor, sine fine nocebo,
Teque, peti caveas tu licet, usque petam.
Per gladios alii placitas rapuere puellas;
Scripta mihi caute littera crimen erit?
May the gods grant that I can lay on more knots,
that your faith be free in no part!
A thousand tricks remain — I sweat at the foot of the hill;
my passion will leave nothing untried.
Let it be doubtful whether you can be caught; you will surely be hunted.
The outcome is in the gods’ hands, but you will be caught nonetheless.
Though you escape part, you will not elude all the nets,
which Love has spread for you, more than you think.
If arts do not avail, I will come to arms,
and you, snatched, will be borne into my longing bosom.
that your faith be free in no part!
A thousand tricks remain — I sweat at the foot of the hill;
my passion will leave nothing untried.
Let it be doubtful whether you can be caught; you will surely be hunted.
The outcome is in the gods’ hands, but you will be caught nonetheless.
Though you escape part, you will not elude all the nets,
which Love has spread for you, more than you think.
If arts do not avail, I will come to arms,
and you, snatched, will be borne into my longing bosom.
Di faciant, possim plures inponere nodos,
Ut tua sit nulla libera parte fides!
Mille doli restant — clivo sudamus in imo;
Ardor inexpertum nil sinet esse meus.
Sit dubium, possisne capi; captabere certe.
Exitus in dis est, sed capiere tamen.
Ut partem effugias, non omnia retia falles,
Quae tibi, quam credis, plura tetendit Amor.
Si non proficient artes, veniemus ad arma,
Inque tui cupido rapta ferere sinu.
Ut tua sit nulla libera parte fides!
Mille doli restant — clivo sudamus in imo;
Ardor inexpertum nil sinet esse meus.
Sit dubium, possisne capi; captabere certe.
Exitus in dis est, sed capiere tamen.
Ut partem effugias, non omnia retia falles,
Quae tibi, quam credis, plura tetendit Amor.
Si non proficient artes, veniemus ad arma,
Inque tui cupido rapta ferere sinu.
I am not one to blame the deed of Paris,
nor anyone who was a man, that he might be one.
I too — but I am silent! though death be the penalty of this rape,
it will be less than not to have had you.
Either you should be less beautiful, and you would be sought more modestly;
by your beauty we are forced to be bold.
You do this, and your eyes, to which the fiery
stars yield, which were the cause of my flame;
this your golden hair does, and your ivory neck,
and your hands, which, I pray, may come about my neck,
nor anyone who was a man, that he might be one.
I too — but I am silent! though death be the penalty of this rape,
it will be less than not to have had you.
Either you should be less beautiful, and you would be sought more modestly;
by your beauty we are forced to be bold.
You do this, and your eyes, to which the fiery
stars yield, which were the cause of my flame;
this your golden hair does, and your ivory neck,
and your hands, which, I pray, may come about my neck,
Non sum, qui soleam Paridis reprehendere factum,
Nec quemquam, qui vir, posset ut esse, fuit.
Nos quoque — sed taceo! mors huius poena rapinae
Ut sit, erit, quam te non habuisse, minor.
Aut esses formosa minus, peterere modeste;
Audaces facie cogimur esse tua.
Tu facis hoc oculique tui, quibus ignea cedunt
Sidera, qui flammae causa fuere meae;
Hoc faciunt flavi crines et eburnea cervix,
Quaeque, precor, veniant in mea colla manus,
Nec quemquam, qui vir, posset ut esse, fuit.
Nos quoque — sed taceo! mors huius poena rapinae
Ut sit, erit, quam te non habuisse, minor.
Aut esses formosa minus, peterere modeste;
Audaces facie cogimur esse tua.
Tu facis hoc oculique tui, quibus ignea cedunt
Sidera, qui flammae causa fuere meae;
Hoc faciunt flavi crines et eburnea cervix,
Quaeque, precor, veniant in mea colla manus,
and your grace, and a face modest without rusticity,
and feet such as I would scarcely think even Thetis’s to be.
If I could praise the rest, I would be happier,
nor do I doubt that the whole work is equal to itself.
Driven by this beauty, it is no wonder
if I wished to have a pledge of your word.
In short, until you are forced to confess yourself caught,
be a girl caught by my snares.
I will bear the odium; let its reward be given to one who bears it.
Why should its own fruit be absent from so great a crime?
and feet such as I would scarcely think even Thetis’s to be.
If I could praise the rest, I would be happier,
nor do I doubt that the whole work is equal to itself.
Driven by this beauty, it is no wonder
if I wished to have a pledge of your word.
In short, until you are forced to confess yourself caught,
be a girl caught by my snares.
I will bear the odium; let its reward be given to one who bears it.
Why should its own fruit be absent from so great a crime?
Et decor et vultus sine rusticitate pudentes,
Et, Thetidis qualis vix rear esse, pedes.
Cetera si possem laudare, beatior essem,
Nec dubito, totum quin sibi par sit opus.
Hac ego conpulsus, non est mirabile, forma
Si pignus volui vocis habere tuae.
Denique, dum captam tu te cogare fateri,
Insidiis esto capta puella meis.
Invidiam patiar; passo sua praemia dentur.
Cur suus a tanto crimine fructus abest?
Et, Thetidis qualis vix rear esse, pedes.
Cetera si possem laudare, beatior essem,
Nec dubito, totum quin sibi par sit opus.
Hac ego conpulsus, non est mirabile, forma
Si pignus volui vocis habere tuae.
Denique, dum captam tu te cogare fateri,
Insidiis esto capta puella meis.
Invidiam patiar; passo sua praemia dentur.
Cur suus a tanto crimine fructus abest?
Telamon took Hesione, Achilles took Briseis;
each, surely, followed the man who conquered her.
You may accuse me as much as you like and be angry;
let me only be able to enjoy you, though you are angry.
I myself, who cause it, will lessen the anger I have caused,
if only a little chance of appeasing you be given.
Let me, weeping, stand before your face,
and let me add words to my tears,
and, as slaves are wont, when they fear cruel blows,
stretch out submissive hands toward your knees!
each, surely, followed the man who conquered her.
You may accuse me as much as you like and be angry;
let me only be able to enjoy you, though you are angry.
I myself, who cause it, will lessen the anger I have caused,
if only a little chance of appeasing you be given.
Let me, weeping, stand before your face,
and let me add words to my tears,
and, as slaves are wont, when they fear cruel blows,
stretch out submissive hands toward your knees!
Hesionen Telamon, Briseida cepit Achilles;
Utraque victorem nempe secuta virum.
Quamlibet accuses et sis irata licebit,
Irata liceat dum mihi posse frui.
Idem, qui facimus, factam tenuabimus iram,
Copia placandi sit modo parva tui.
Ante tuos liceat flentem consistere vultus
Et liceat lacrimis addere verba suis,
Utque solent famuli, cum verbera saeva verentur,
Tendere submissas ad tua crura manus!
Utraque victorem nempe secuta virum.
Quamlibet accuses et sis irata licebit,
Irata liceat dum mihi posse frui.
Idem, qui facimus, factam tenuabimus iram,
Copia placandi sit modo parva tui.
Ante tuos liceat flentem consistere vultus
Et liceat lacrimis addere verba suis,
Utque solent famuli, cum verbera saeva verentur,
Tendere submissas ad tua crura manus!
You do not know your rights; summon me! why am I accused in absence?
Bid me come, long since, after the manner of a mistress.
You may yourself, imperious, tear my hair,
and let my face be bruised by your fingers.
I will endure all; only perhaps I will fear
lest that hand of yours be hurt against my body.
But bind me neither with fetters nor with chains —
I will be kept bound by a firm love of you!
When your anger has glutted itself well and as much as you wish,
you will say to yourself: ’how patiently he loves!’
Bid me come, long since, after the manner of a mistress.
You may yourself, imperious, tear my hair,
and let my face be bruised by your fingers.
I will endure all; only perhaps I will fear
lest that hand of yours be hurt against my body.
But bind me neither with fetters nor with chains —
I will be kept bound by a firm love of you!
When your anger has glutted itself well and as much as you wish,
you will say to yourself: ’how patiently he loves!’
Ignoras tua iura; voca! cur arguor absens?
Iamdudum dominae more venire iube.
Ipsa meos scindas licet imperiosa capillos,
Oraque sint digitis livida nostra tuis.
Omnia perpetiar; tantum fortasse timebo,
Corpore laedatur ne manus ista meo.
Sed neque conpedibus nec me conpesce catenis —
Servabor firmo vinctus amore tui!
Cum bene se quantumque voles satiaverit ira,
Ipsa tibi dices: ’quam patienter amat!’
Iamdudum dominae more venire iube.
Ipsa meos scindas licet imperiosa capillos,
Oraque sint digitis livida nostra tuis.
Omnia perpetiar; tantum fortasse timebo,
Corpore laedatur ne manus ista meo.
Sed neque conpedibus nec me conpesce catenis —
Servabor firmo vinctus amore tui!
Cum bene se quantumque voles satiaverit ira,
Ipsa tibi dices: ’quam patienter amat!’
You will say to yourself, when you see all things borne:
’one who serves so well, let him serve me!’
Now, an unlucky defendant, I am tried in absence, and my cause, though it is
the best, perishes with no one to plead it.
This too — however much my writing is an injury —
you have something to complain of, but surely of me alone.
The Delian goddess did not deserve to be cheated along with me; if you will not
give back what was promised to me, give it back to the goddess.
She was present and saw, when you, deceived, blushed,
and stored your voice in a remembering ear.
’one who serves so well, let him serve me!’
Now, an unlucky defendant, I am tried in absence, and my cause, though it is
the best, perishes with no one to plead it.
This too — however much my writing is an injury —
you have something to complain of, but surely of me alone.
The Delian goddess did not deserve to be cheated along with me; if you will not
give back what was promised to me, give it back to the goddess.
She was present and saw, when you, deceived, blushed,
and stored your voice in a remembering ear.
Ipsa tibi dices, ubi videris omnia ferri:
’Tam bene qui servit, serviat iste mihi!’
Nunc reus infelix absens agor, et mea, cum sit
Optima, non ullo causa tuente perit.
Hoc quoque — quantumvis sit scriptum iniuria nostrum,
Quod de me solo, nempe, queraris, habes.
Non meruit falli mecum quoque Delia; si non
Vis mihi promissum reddere, redde deae.
Adfuit et vidit, cum tu decepta rubebas,
Et vocem memori condidit aure tuam.
’Tam bene qui servit, serviat iste mihi!’
Nunc reus infelix absens agor, et mea, cum sit
Optima, non ullo causa tuente perit.
Hoc quoque — quantumvis sit scriptum iniuria nostrum,
Quod de me solo, nempe, queraris, habes.
Non meruit falli mecum quoque Delia; si non
Vis mihi promissum reddere, redde deae.
Adfuit et vidit, cum tu decepta rubebas,
Et vocem memori condidit aure tuam.
May the omens be void of fulfillment! nothing is more violent than she,
when she sees her own godhead wronged, which I would not wish.
The Calydonian boar will be witness, so savage, that the mother
was found more savage than he against her son.
Witness too Actaeon, once thought a wild beast by those
with whom he himself had before given beasts to death;
and the proud mother who, with stone rising over her body,
even now stands weeping on the Mygdonian ground.
Ah me! Cydippe, I am afraid to tell you the truth,
lest I seem to warn you with a false motive of my own;
when she sees her own godhead wronged, which I would not wish.
The Calydonian boar will be witness, so savage, that the mother
was found more savage than he against her son.
Witness too Actaeon, once thought a wild beast by those
with whom he himself had before given beasts to death;
and the proud mother who, with stone rising over her body,
even now stands weeping on the Mygdonian ground.
Ah me! Cydippe, I am afraid to tell you the truth,
lest I seem to warn you with a false motive of my own;
Omina re careant! nihil est violentius illa,
Cum sua, quod nolim, numina laesa videt.
Testis erit Calydonis aper, sic saevus, ut illo
Sit magis in natum saeva reperta parens.
Testis et Actaeon, quondam fera creditus illis,
Ipse dedit leto cum quibus ante feras;
Quaeque superba parens saxo per corpus oborto
Nunc quoque Mygdonia flebilis adstat humo.
Ei mihi! Cydippe, timeo tibi dicere verum,
Ne videar causa falsa monere mea;
Cum sua, quod nolim, numina laesa videt.
Testis erit Calydonis aper, sic saevus, ut illo
Sit magis in natum saeva reperta parens.
Testis et Actaeon, quondam fera creditus illis,
Ipse dedit leto cum quibus ante feras;
Quaeque superba parens saxo per corpus oborto
Nunc quoque Mygdonia flebilis adstat humo.
Ei mihi! Cydippe, timeo tibi dicere verum,
Ne videar causa falsa monere mea;
yet it must be said. This is the reason, believe me, that, sick,
you often lie abed at the very time of marrying.
She herself looks to your good, she labors that you be not forsworn,
and wishes you safe, with your faith safe.
Hence it comes that, as often as you try to prove faithless,
so often she corrects your sin.
Forbear to stir the fierce bow of the spirited maiden-goddess;
she can still be made gentle, if you allow it.
Forbear, I pray, to ruin your tender limbs with fevers;
let that face be kept for me to enjoy.
you often lie abed at the very time of marrying.
She herself looks to your good, she labors that you be not forsworn,
and wishes you safe, with your faith safe.
Hence it comes that, as often as you try to prove faithless,
so often she corrects your sin.
Forbear to stir the fierce bow of the spirited maiden-goddess;
she can still be made gentle, if you allow it.
Forbear, I pray, to ruin your tender limbs with fevers;
let that face be kept for me to enjoy.
Dicendum tamen est. hoc est, mihi crede, quod aegra
Ipso nubendi tempore saepe iaces.
Consulit ipsa tibi, neu sis periura, laborat,
Et salvam salva te cupit esse fide.
Inde fit ut, quotiens existere perfida temptas,
Peccatum totiens corrigat illa tuum.
Parce movere feros animosae virginis arcus;
Mitis adhuc fieri, si patiare, potest.
Parce, precor, teneros corrumpere febribus artus;
Servetur facies ista fruenda mihi.
Ipso nubendi tempore saepe iaces.
Consulit ipsa tibi, neu sis periura, laborat,
Et salvam salva te cupit esse fide.
Inde fit ut, quotiens existere perfida temptas,
Peccatum totiens corrigat illa tuum.
Parce movere feros animosae virginis arcus;
Mitis adhuc fieri, si patiare, potest.
Parce, precor, teneros corrumpere febribus artus;
Servetur facies ista fruenda mihi.
Let your features, born for my burning, be kept,
and the soft blush that lies beneath your snowy face.
And if any enemy fights to keep you from becoming mine,
let it fare with him as you are wont to fare with me when sick!
I am tortured alike whether you marry or are sick,
and I cannot say which of the two I would less wish;
sometimes I am wasted with grief, that I am the cause of your pain,
and think you are hurt by my cunning.
I pray that the perjuries against my mistress fall upon my own head;
let her punishment be safely mine!
and the soft blush that lies beneath your snowy face.
And if any enemy fights to keep you from becoming mine,
let it fare with him as you are wont to fare with me when sick!
I am tortured alike whether you marry or are sick,
and I cannot say which of the two I would less wish;
sometimes I am wasted with grief, that I am the cause of your pain,
and think you are hurt by my cunning.
I pray that the perjuries against my mistress fall upon my own head;
let her punishment be safely mine!
Serventur vultus ad nostra incendia nati,
Quique subest niveo lenis in ore rubor.
Hostibus et siquis, ne fias nostra, repugnat,
Sic sit ut invalida te solet esse mihi!
Torqueor ex aequo vel te nubente vel aegra
Dicere nec possum, quid minus ipse velim;
Maceror interdum, quod sim tibi causa dolendi
Teque mea laedi calliditate puto.
In caput ut nostrum dominae periuria quaeso
Eveniant; poena tuta sit illa mea!
Quique subest niveo lenis in ore rubor.
Hostibus et siquis, ne fias nostra, repugnat,
Sic sit ut invalida te solet esse mihi!
Torqueor ex aequo vel te nubente vel aegra
Dicere nec possum, quid minus ipse velim;
Maceror interdum, quod sim tibi causa dolendi
Teque mea laedi calliditate puto.
In caput ut nostrum dominae periuria quaeso
Eveniant; poena tuta sit illa mea!
Yet, that I may not be ignorant of how you fare, often to your threshold
I go anxiously this way and that, dissembling;
I secretly follow your maid and your manservant, asking
what sleep or food has done you good.
Wretched me, that I do not carry out the doctors’ orders,
and chafe your hands, and sit by your bed!
And again wretched, that while I am removed far from there,
perhaps another, whom I would least wish, is present!
He chafes those hands of yours, and sits by you, sick,
hateful to the gods above, and to me with the gods;
I go anxiously this way and that, dissembling;
I secretly follow your maid and your manservant, asking
what sleep or food has done you good.
Wretched me, that I do not carry out the doctors’ orders,
and chafe your hands, and sit by your bed!
And again wretched, that while I am removed far from there,
perhaps another, whom I would least wish, is present!
He chafes those hands of yours, and sits by you, sick,
hateful to the gods above, and to me with the gods;
Ne tamen ignorem, quid agas, ad limina crebro
Anxius huc illuc dissimulanter eo;
Subsequor ancillam furtim famulumque, requirens
Profuerint somni quid tibi quidve cibi.
Me miserum, quod non medicorum iussa ministro,
Effingoque manus, adsideoque toro!
Et rursus miserum, quod me procul inde remoto,
Quem minime vellem, forsitan alter adest!
Ille manus istas effingit, et adsidet aegrae
Invisus superis cum superisque mihi,
Anxius huc illuc dissimulanter eo;
Subsequor ancillam furtim famulumque, requirens
Profuerint somni quid tibi quidve cibi.
Me miserum, quod non medicorum iussa ministro,
Effingoque manus, adsideoque toro!
Et rursus miserum, quod me procul inde remoto,
Quem minime vellem, forsitan alter adest!
Ille manus istas effingit, et adsidet aegrae
Invisus superis cum superisque mihi,
and while he feels your leaping pulse with his thumb,
under that pretext he often holds your white arms,
and handles your breast, and perhaps joins kisses.
That is a reward fuller than his service deserves!
Who allowed you to reap my harvests before me?
who made you a path to another’s hedge?
That breast is mine! shamefully you take my kisses!
take your hands from the body promised to me!
Shameless one, take your hands away! she whom you touch will be mine;
if you do that hereafter, you will be an adulterer.
under that pretext he often holds your white arms,
and handles your breast, and perhaps joins kisses.
That is a reward fuller than his service deserves!
Who allowed you to reap my harvests before me?
who made you a path to another’s hedge?
That breast is mine! shamefully you take my kisses!
take your hands from the body promised to me!
Shameless one, take your hands away! she whom you touch will be mine;
if you do that hereafter, you will be an adulterer.
Dumque suo temptat salientem pollice venam,
Candida per causam bracchia saepe tenet,
Contrectatque sinus, et forsitan oscula iungit.
Officio merces plenior ista suo est!
Quis tibi permisit nostras praecerpere messes?
Ad saepem alterius quis tibi fecit iter?
Iste sinus meus est! mea turpiter oscula sumis!
A mihi promisso corpore tolle manus!
Inprobe, tolle manus! quam tangis, nostra futura est;
Postmodo si facies istud, adulter eris.
Candida per causam bracchia saepe tenet,
Contrectatque sinus, et forsitan oscula iungit.
Officio merces plenior ista suo est!
Quis tibi permisit nostras praecerpere messes?
Ad saepem alterius quis tibi fecit iter?
Iste sinus meus est! mea turpiter oscula sumis!
A mihi promisso corpore tolle manus!
Inprobe, tolle manus! quam tangis, nostra futura est;
Postmodo si facies istud, adulter eris.
Choose from the unclaimed one whom no other claims for himself;
if you do not know it, that property has its own owner.
And do not believe me — let the form of the contract be read out;
and lest you say it is false, make her herself read it!
From another’s chamber — to you, to you I say it — get out!
What are you doing here? get out! that bed is not free!
For though you too have the other words of a double pact,
your case will not for that be equal to mine.
She pledged herself to me, her father pledged her to you, but she comes first;
yet surely she is nearer to herself than her father is.
if you do not know it, that property has its own owner.
And do not believe me — let the form of the contract be read out;
and lest you say it is false, make her herself read it!
From another’s chamber — to you, to you I say it — get out!
What are you doing here? get out! that bed is not free!
For though you too have the other words of a double pact,
your case will not for that be equal to mine.
She pledged herself to me, her father pledged her to you, but she comes first;
yet surely she is nearer to herself than her father is.
Elige de vacuis quam non sibi vindicet alter;
Si nescis, dominum res habet ista suum.
Nec mihi credideris — recitetur formula pacti;
Neu falsam dicas esse, fac ipsa legat!
Alterius thalamo, tibi nos, tibi dicimus, exi!
Quid facis hic? exi! non vacat iste torus!
Nam quod habes et tu gemini verba altera pacti,
Non erit idcirco par tua causa meae.
Haec mihi se pepigit, pater hanc tibi, primus ab illa;
Sed propior certe quam pater ipsa sibi est.
Si nescis, dominum res habet ista suum.
Nec mihi credideris — recitetur formula pacti;
Neu falsam dicas esse, fac ipsa legat!
Alterius thalamo, tibi nos, tibi dicimus, exi!
Quid facis hic? exi! non vacat iste torus!
Nam quod habes et tu gemini verba altera pacti,
Non erit idcirco par tua causa meae.
Haec mihi se pepigit, pater hanc tibi, primus ab illa;
Sed propior certe quam pater ipsa sibi est.
Her father promised her, she swore herself to her lover;
he called men to witness, she called a goddess.
He fears to be called a liar, she fears to be called perjured too;
do you doubt whether this fear or that is greater?
In short, that you may compare the perils of both,
look to the outcomes — she lies sick, he is well.
We two as well enter the contest with unlike feelings;
neither is our hope equal, nor our fear alike.
You seek from safety; to me a rejection is heavier than death,
and I already love what you, perhaps, will come to love.
he called men to witness, she called a goddess.
He fears to be called a liar, she fears to be called perjured too;
do you doubt whether this fear or that is greater?
In short, that you may compare the perils of both,
look to the outcomes — she lies sick, he is well.
We two as well enter the contest with unlike feelings;
neither is our hope equal, nor our fear alike.
You seek from safety; to me a rejection is heavier than death,
and I already love what you, perhaps, will come to love.
Promisit pater hanc, haec se iuravit amanti;
Ille homines, haec est testificata deam.
Hic metuit mendax, haec et periura vocari;
An dubitas, hic sit maior an ille metus?
Denique, ut amborum conferre pericula possis,
Respice ad eventus — haec cubat, ille valet.
Nos quoque dissimili certamina mente subimus;
Nec spes par nobis nec timor aequus adest.
Tu petis ex tuto; gravior mihi morte repulsa est,
Idque ego iam, quod tu forsan amabis, amo.
Ille homines, haec est testificata deam.
Hic metuit mendax, haec et periura vocari;
An dubitas, hic sit maior an ille metus?
Denique, ut amborum conferre pericula possis,
Respice ad eventus — haec cubat, ille valet.
Nos quoque dissimili certamina mente subimus;
Nec spes par nobis nec timor aequus adest.
Tu petis ex tuto; gravior mihi morte repulsa est,
Idque ego iam, quod tu forsan amabis, amo.
If you had any care for justice or for right,
you yourself ought to have yielded to my flames.
Now, since this fierce man fights for an unjust cause,
to what does my letter return, Cydippe?
He makes you lie sick and be suspected by Diana;
bid him, if you are wise, not to come near your threshold.
By his doing you undergo such savage perils of your life —
and would that he who stirs them might fall in your stead!
If you reject him, and do not love one whom the goddess condemns,
then you at once, and I surely, will be safe.
you yourself ought to have yielded to my flames.
Now, since this fierce man fights for an unjust cause,
to what does my letter return, Cydippe?
He makes you lie sick and be suspected by Diana;
bid him, if you are wise, not to come near your threshold.
By his doing you undergo such savage perils of your life —
and would that he who stirs them might fall in your stead!
If you reject him, and do not love one whom the goddess condemns,
then you at once, and I surely, will be safe.
Si tibi iustitiae, si recti cura fuisset,
Cedere debueras ignibus ipse meis.
Nunc, quoniam ferus hic pro causa pugnat iniqua,
Ad quid, Cydippe, littera nostra redit?
Hic facit ut iaceas et sis suspecta Dianae;
Hunc tu, si sapias, limen adire vetes.
Hoc faciente subis tam saeva pericula vitae —
Atque utinam pro te, qui movet illa, cadat!
Quem si reppuleris, nec, quem dea damnat, amaris,
Tu tunc continuo, certe ego salvus ero.
Cedere debueras ignibus ipse meis.
Nunc, quoniam ferus hic pro causa pugnat iniqua,
Ad quid, Cydippe, littera nostra redit?
Hic facit ut iaceas et sis suspecta Dianae;
Hunc tu, si sapias, limen adire vetes.
Hoc faciente subis tam saeva pericula vitae —
Atque utinam pro te, qui movet illa, cadat!
Quem si reppuleris, nec, quem dea damnat, amaris,
Tu tunc continuo, certe ego salvus ero.
Stop your fear, maiden! you will gain a steadfast health,
only see that you worship the temple that knows your promise;
the heavenly powers do not rejoice in a slaughtered ox,
but in the faith that must be kept even without a witness.
That they may be well, other women endure the knife and fire,
and to others a bitter juice brings grim aid.
There is no need of these; only avoid perjury,
and save at once yourself and me and the faith you gave!
Ignorance will grant pardon for your past fault —
the covenant you read had slipped from your mind.
only see that you worship the temple that knows your promise;
the heavenly powers do not rejoice in a slaughtered ox,
but in the faith that must be kept even without a witness.
That they may be well, other women endure the knife and fire,
and to others a bitter juice brings grim aid.
There is no need of these; only avoid perjury,
and save at once yourself and me and the faith you gave!
Ignorance will grant pardon for your past fault —
the covenant you read had slipped from your mind.
Siste metum, virgo! stabili potiere salute,
Fac modo polliciti conscia templa colas;
Non bove mactato caelestia numina gaudent,
Sed, quae praestanda est et sine teste, fide.
Ut valeant aliae, ferrum patiuntur et ignes,
Fert aliis tristem sucus amarus opem.
Nil opus est istis; tantum periuria vita
Teque simul serva meque datamque fidem!
Praeteritae veniam dabit ignorantia culpae —
Exciderant animo foedera lecta tuo.
Fac modo polliciti conscia templa colas;
Non bove mactato caelestia numina gaudent,
Sed, quae praestanda est et sine teste, fide.
Ut valeant aliae, ferrum patiuntur et ignes,
Fert aliis tristem sucus amarus opem.
Nil opus est istis; tantum periuria vita
Teque simul serva meque datamque fidem!
Praeteritae veniam dabit ignorantia culpae —
Exciderant animo foedera lecta tuo.
You have just now been warned by my voice, along with those mishaps
which you are wont to suffer, as often as you try to deceive.
Even if you escape these too, surely in childbirth you will pray
that she bring you her light-bringing hands?
She will hear, and, recalling what she heard, will ask
by what husband that childbed of yours comes about.
You will promise an offering — she knows you promise falsely;
you will swear — she knows you can deceive the gods!
It is not about me that I am concerned; I labor with a greater care.
My breast is anxious for your sake.
which you are wont to suffer, as often as you try to deceive.
Even if you escape these too, surely in childbirth you will pray
that she bring you her light-bringing hands?
She will hear, and, recalling what she heard, will ask
by what husband that childbed of yours comes about.
You will promise an offering — she knows you promise falsely;
you will swear — she knows you can deceive the gods!
It is not about me that I am concerned; I labor with a greater care.
My breast is anxious for your sake.
Admonita es modo voce mea cum casibus istis,
Quos, quotiens temptas fallere, ferre soles.
His quoque vitatis in partu nempe rogabis,
Ut tibi luciferas adferat illa manus?
Audiet et repetens quae sunt audita requiret,
Iste tibi de quo coniuge partus eat.
Promittes votum — scit te promittere falso;
Iurabis — scit te fallere posse deos!
Non agitur de me; cura maiore laboro.
Anxia sunt causa pectora nostra tua.
Quos, quotiens temptas fallere, ferre soles.
His quoque vitatis in partu nempe rogabis,
Ut tibi luciferas adferat illa manus?
Audiet et repetens quae sunt audita requiret,
Iste tibi de quo coniuge partus eat.
Promittes votum — scit te promittere falso;
Iurabis — scit te fallere posse deos!
Non agitur de me; cura maiore laboro.
Anxia sunt causa pectora nostra tua.
Why did your frightened parents lately weep over you in doubt,
whom you keep ignorant of your fault?
And why should they be ignorant? you may tell your mother everything.
Your deeds, Cydippe, hold nothing to blush at.
See that you tell in order how you first became known to me
while you yourself were making the rites of the quivered goddess;
how, when you were suddenly seen — if perhaps you noticed —
I stood still, my eyes fixed on your body;
and how, while I marvel at you too much — a sure sign of madness —
my cloak slipped and fell from my shoulder;
whom you keep ignorant of your fault?
And why should they be ignorant? you may tell your mother everything.
Your deeds, Cydippe, hold nothing to blush at.
See that you tell in order how you first became known to me
while you yourself were making the rites of the quivered goddess;
how, when you were suddenly seen — if perhaps you noticed —
I stood still, my eyes fixed on your body;
and how, while I marvel at you too much — a sure sign of madness —
my cloak slipped and fell from my shoulder;
Cur modo te dubiam pavidi flevere parentes,
Ignaros culpae quos facis esse tuae?
Et cur ignorent? matri licet omnia narres.
Nil tua, Cydippe, facta ruboris habent.
Ordine fac referas ut sis mihi cognita primum
Sacra pharetratae dum facit ipsa deae;
Ut te conspecta subito, si forte notasti,
Restiterim fixis in tua membra genis;
Et, te dum nimium miror, nota certa furoris,
Deciderint umero pallia lapsa meo;
Ignaros culpae quos facis esse tuae?
Et cur ignorent? matri licet omnia narres.
Nil tua, Cydippe, facta ruboris habent.
Ordine fac referas ut sis mihi cognita primum
Sacra pharetratae dum facit ipsa deae;
Ut te conspecta subito, si forte notasti,
Restiterim fixis in tua membra genis;
Et, te dum nimium miror, nota certa furoris,
Deciderint umero pallia lapsa meo;
how afterward, from I know not where, a rolling apple came,
bearing insidious words in cunning letters,
and because it was read with holy Diana present,
that your faith was bound, with the goddess as witness.
Yet, lest she be ignorant of what the meaning of the writing is,
tell her again now the words once read by you.
’Marry, I pray,’ she will say, ’him to whom the good gods join you;
let him whom you swore to become be my son-in-law.
Whoever he is, let him please us, since he pleases Diana first!’
Such will your mother be, if only she is a mother.
bearing insidious words in cunning letters,
and because it was read with holy Diana present,
that your faith was bound, with the goddess as witness.
Yet, lest she be ignorant of what the meaning of the writing is,
tell her again now the words once read by you.
’Marry, I pray,’ she will say, ’him to whom the good gods join you;
let him whom you swore to become be my son-in-law.
Whoever he is, let him please us, since he pleases Diana first!’
Such will your mother be, if only she is a mother.
Postmodo nescio qua venisse volubile malum,
Verba ferens doctis insidiosa notis,
Quod quia sit lectum sancta praesente Diana,
Esse tuam vinctam numine teste fidem
Ne tamen ignoret, scripti sententia quae sit,
Lecta tibi quondam nunc quoque verba refer.
’Nube, precor,’ dicet, ’cui te bona numina iungunt;
Quem fore iurasti, sit gener ille mihi.
Quisquis is est, placeat, quoniam placet ante Dianae!’
Talis erit mater, si modo mater erit.
Verba ferens doctis insidiosa notis,
Quod quia sit lectum sancta praesente Diana,
Esse tuam vinctam numine teste fidem
Ne tamen ignoret, scripti sententia quae sit,
Lecta tibi quondam nunc quoque verba refer.
’Nube, precor,’ dicet, ’cui te bona numina iungunt;
Quem fore iurasti, sit gener ille mihi.
Quisquis is est, placeat, quoniam placet ante Dianae!’
Talis erit mater, si modo mater erit.
But still, see that she ask who and what I am.
She will find that the goddess has looked to your good.
An island, once most famous for its Corycian nymphs,
is girdled by the Aegean sea, Cea by name.
That is my homeland; nor, if you approve high-born
names, am I shown to be sprung from despised ancestors.
I have wealth too, and a character without reproach;
and, if nothing more, Love joins me to you.
You would seek such a husband even unsworn;
and sworn, even were I not such, I should be kept.
She will find that the goddess has looked to your good.
An island, once most famous for its Corycian nymphs,
is girdled by the Aegean sea, Cea by name.
That is my homeland; nor, if you approve high-born
names, am I shown to be sprung from despised ancestors.
I have wealth too, and a character without reproach;
and, if nothing more, Love joins me to you.
You would seek such a husband even unsworn;
and sworn, even were I not such, I should be kept.
Sed tamen ut quaerat quis sim qualisque, videto.
Inveniet vobis consuluisse deam.
Insula, Coryciis quondam celeberrima nymphis,
Cingitur Aegaeo, nomine Cea, mari.
Illa mihi patria est; nec, si generosa probatis
Nomina, despectis arguor ortus avis.
Sunt et opes nobis, sunt et sine crimine mores;
Amplius utque nihil, me tibi iungit Amor.
Appeteres talem vel non iurata maritum;
Iuratae vel non talis habendus eram.
Inveniet vobis consuluisse deam.
Insula, Coryciis quondam celeberrima nymphis,
Cingitur Aegaeo, nomine Cea, mari.
Illa mihi patria est; nec, si generosa probatis
Nomina, despectis arguor ortus avis.
Sunt et opes nobis, sunt et sine crimine mores;
Amplius utque nihil, me tibi iungit Amor.
Appeteres talem vel non iurata maritum;
Iuratae vel non talis habendus eram.
The archer Phoebe bade me write this to you in dreams;
Love bade me write this to you waking;
of these two, the arrows of the one have already harmed me;
beware lest the shafts of the other harm you!
Our safety is joined — pity both me and yourself;
why do you hesitate to bring one aid to two?
And if it comes to pass, when the given signals shall sound,
and Delos shall be stained with votive blood,
a golden image of the lucky apple will be set up,
and the cause will be written in two little verses:
Love bade me write this to you waking;
of these two, the arrows of the one have already harmed me;
beware lest the shafts of the other harm you!
Our safety is joined — pity both me and yourself;
why do you hesitate to bring one aid to two?
And if it comes to pass, when the given signals shall sound,
and Delos shall be stained with votive blood,
a golden image of the lucky apple will be set up,
and the cause will be written in two little verses:
Haec tibi me in somnis iaculatrix scribere Phoebe;
Haec tibi me vigilem scribere iussit Amor;
E quibus alterius mihi iam nocuere sagittae,
Alterius noceant ne tibi tela, cave!
Iuncta salus nostra est — miserere meique tuique;
Quid dubitas unam ferre duobus opem?
Quod si contigerit, cum iam data signa sonabunt,
Tinctaque votivo sanguine Delos erit,
Aurea ponetur mali felicis imago,
Causaque versiculis scripta duobus erit:
Haec tibi me vigilem scribere iussit Amor;
E quibus alterius mihi iam nocuere sagittae,
Alterius noceant ne tibi tela, cave!
Iuncta salus nostra est — miserere meique tuique;
Quid dubitas unam ferre duobus opem?
Quod si contigerit, cum iam data signa sonabunt,
Tinctaque votivo sanguine Delos erit,
Aurea ponetur mali felicis imago,
Causaque versiculis scripta duobus erit:
’By the image of this apple Acontius bears witness
that what was written on it has been fulfilled.’
Lest a longer letter weary your sick body,
let it be closed with the wonted ending: farewell!
that what was written on it has been fulfilled.’
Lest a longer letter weary your sick body,
let it be closed with the wonted ending: farewell!
Effigie pomi testatur Acontius huius
Quae fuerint in eo scripta fuisse rata.
Longior infirmum ne lasset epistula corpus
Clausaque consueto sit sibi fine: vale!
Quae fuerint in eo scripta fuisse rata.
Longior infirmum ne lasset epistula corpus
Clausaque consueto sit sibi fine: vale!
Book 21
Your letter, Acontius, has reached where it is wont,
and almost laid an ambush against my eyes.
I was afraid, and read your writing without a murmur,
lest my unwitting tongue swear by some gods.
And you would have tried to catch me again, I think, except that, as you yourself confess,
you knew it was enough that I was promised once.
Nor was I going to read it, but, had I been hard to you,
the anger of the cruel goddess would perhaps have grown.
Though I do everything, though I offer pious incense to Diana,
yet she favors you more than is just,
and almost laid an ambush against my eyes.
I was afraid, and read your writing without a murmur,
lest my unwitting tongue swear by some gods.
And you would have tried to catch me again, I think, except that, as you yourself confess,
you knew it was enough that I was promised once.
Nor was I going to read it, but, had I been hard to you,
the anger of the cruel goddess would perhaps have grown.
Though I do everything, though I offer pious incense to Diana,
yet she favors you more than is just,
Littera pervenit tua, quo consuevit, Aconti,
Et paene est oculis insidiate meis.
Pertimui, scriptumque tuum sine murmure legi,
Iuraret ne quos inscia lingua deos.
Et, puto, captasses iterum, nisi, ut ipse fateris,
Promissam scires me satis esse semel.
Nec lectura fui, sed, si tibi dura fuissem,
Aucta foret saevae forsitan ira deae.
Omnia cum faciam, cum dem pia tura Dianae,
Illa tamen iusta plus tibi parte favet,
Et paene est oculis insidiate meis.
Pertimui, scriptumque tuum sine murmure legi,
Iuraret ne quos inscia lingua deos.
Et, puto, captasses iterum, nisi, ut ipse fateris,
Promissam scires me satis esse semel.
Nec lectura fui, sed, si tibi dura fuissem,
Aucta foret saevae forsitan ira deae.
Omnia cum faciam, cum dem pia tura Dianae,
Illa tamen iusta plus tibi parte favet,
and, as you wish to be believed, avenges you with mindful anger;
scarcely was she such toward her own Hippolytus.
But the maiden-goddess would better have favored a maiden’s years,
which I fear she means to make few for me.
For a weakness clings to me from causes that do not show;
and, worn out, I am helped by no physician’s aid.
How thin do you think I now am, scarcely able to write this back,
and how pale, scarcely able to raise my limbs on my elbow?
Now fear is added too, lest anyone but my confidant the nurse
perceive that there are exchanges of talk between us.
scarcely was she such toward her own Hippolytus.
But the maiden-goddess would better have favored a maiden’s years,
which I fear she means to make few for me.
For a weakness clings to me from causes that do not show;
and, worn out, I am helped by no physician’s aid.
How thin do you think I now am, scarcely able to write this back,
and how pale, scarcely able to raise my limbs on my elbow?
Now fear is added too, lest anyone but my confidant the nurse
perceive that there are exchanges of talk between us.
Utque cupis credi, memori te vindicat ira;
Talis in Hippolyto vix fuit illa suo.
At melius virgo favisset virginis annis,
Quos vereor paucos ne velit esse mihi.
Languor enim causis non apparentibus haeret;
Adiuvor et nulla fessa medentis ope.
Quam tibi nunc gracilem vix haec rescribere quamque
Pallida vix cubito membra levare putas?
Nunc timor accedit, ne quis nisi conscia nutrix
Colloquii nobis sentiat esse vices.
Talis in Hippolyto vix fuit illa suo.
At melius virgo favisset virginis annis,
Quos vereor paucos ne velit esse mihi.
Languor enim causis non apparentibus haeret;
Adiuvor et nulla fessa medentis ope.
Quam tibi nunc gracilem vix haec rescribere quamque
Pallida vix cubito membra levare putas?
Nunc timor accedit, ne quis nisi conscia nutrix
Colloquii nobis sentiat esse vices.
She sits before the doors, and to those within who ask what I am doing,
that I may write in safety, says, ’she sleeps.’
Soon, when sleep, the best excuse for a long privacy,
by its tardy delay ceases to be believable,
and now she sees those coming whom it is hard not to admit,
she clears her throat and gives me the signs we agreed on.
In haste I leave my words unfinished, just as they were,
and the begun letter is hidden in my trembling bosom.
Then, taken up again, it wearies my fingers;
you yourself see how great a labor you are to me.
that I may write in safety, says, ’she sleeps.’
Soon, when sleep, the best excuse for a long privacy,
by its tardy delay ceases to be believable,
and now she sees those coming whom it is hard not to admit,
she clears her throat and gives me the signs we agreed on.
In haste I leave my words unfinished, just as they were,
and the begun letter is hidden in my trembling bosom.
Then, taken up again, it wearies my fingers;
you yourself see how great a labor you are to me.
Ante fores sedet haec quid agamque rogantibus intus,
Ut possim tuto scribere, ’dormit,’ ait.
Mox, ubi, secreti longi causa optima, somnus
Credibilis tarda desinit esse mora,
Iamque venire videt quos non admittere durum est,
Excreat et dicta dat mihi signa nota.
Sicut erant, properans verba inperfecta relinquo,
Et tegitur trepido littera coepta sinu.
Inde meos digitos iterum repetita fatigat;
Quantus sis nobis adspicis ipse labor.
Ut possim tuto scribere, ’dormit,’ ait.
Mox, ubi, secreti longi causa optima, somnus
Credibilis tarda desinit esse mora,
Iamque venire videt quos non admittere durum est,
Excreat et dicta dat mihi signa nota.
Sicut erant, properans verba inperfecta relinquo,
Et tegitur trepido littera coepta sinu.
Inde meos digitos iterum repetita fatigat;
Quantus sis nobis adspicis ipse labor.
May I perish if you deserved it, to speak the truth;
but I am better to you than is just, than you deserve.
So then, for your sake, so often uncertain of my life,
do I and have I paid the penalty of your contrivances?
Is this the reward that falls to me for a beauty proud
in you as its praiser? and does it harm me to have pleased?
Had I seemed ugly to you — which I would prefer —
my faulted body would lack no remedy;
now, praised, I groan, now by your rivalry
you destroy me, and I am wounded by my own good.
but I am better to you than is just, than you deserve.
So then, for your sake, so often uncertain of my life,
do I and have I paid the penalty of your contrivances?
Is this the reward that falls to me for a beauty proud
in you as its praiser? and does it harm me to have pleased?
Had I seemed ugly to you — which I would prefer —
my faulted body would lack no remedy;
now, praised, I groan, now by your rivalry
you destroy me, and I am wounded by my own good.
Quo peream si dignus eras, ut vera loquamur;
Sed melior iusto quamque mereris ego.
Ergo te propter totiens incerta salutis
Commentis poenas doque dedique tuis?
Haec nobis formae te laudatore superbae
Contingit merces? et placuisse nocet?
Si tibi deformis, quod mallem, visa fuissem,
Culpatum nulla corpus egeret ope;
Nunc laudata gemo, nunc me certamine vestro
Perditis, et proprio vulneror ipsa bono.
Sed melior iusto quamque mereris ego.
Ergo te propter totiens incerta salutis
Commentis poenas doque dedique tuis?
Haec nobis formae te laudatore superbae
Contingit merces? et placuisse nocet?
Si tibi deformis, quod mallem, visa fuissem,
Culpatum nulla corpus egeret ope;
Nunc laudata gemo, nunc me certamine vestro
Perditis, et proprio vulneror ipsa bono.
While neither you yield, nor he thinks himself second,
you stand in the way of his wishes, he of yours.
I myself am tossed like a ship which steady Boreas
drives out to the deep, while the tide and wave carry it back,
and when the day longed for by my dear parents draws near,
an excessive fever of the body comes at the same time —
ah me, at the very time of marriage cruel
Persephone, harsh, knocks at our doors!
Now I am ashamed, and fear, though I am conscious of no guilt,
lest I seem to have deserved the gods’ offense.
you stand in the way of his wishes, he of yours.
I myself am tossed like a ship which steady Boreas
drives out to the deep, while the tide and wave carry it back,
and when the day longed for by my dear parents draws near,
an excessive fever of the body comes at the same time —
ah me, at the very time of marriage cruel
Persephone, harsh, knocks at our doors!
Now I am ashamed, and fear, though I am conscious of no guilt,
lest I seem to have deserved the gods’ offense.
Dum neque tu cedis, nec se putat ille secundum,
Tu votis obstas illius, ille tuis.
Ipsa velut navis iactor quam certus in altum
Propellit Boreas, aestus et unda refert,
Cumque dies caris optata parentibus instat,
Inmodicus pariter corporis ardor adest —
Ei mihi, coniugii tempus crudelis ad ipsum
Persephone nostras pulsat acerba fores!
Iam pudet, et timeo, quamvis mihi conscia non sim,
Offensos videar ne meruisse deos.
Tu votis obstas illius, ille tuis.
Ipsa velut navis iactor quam certus in altum
Propellit Boreas, aestus et unda refert,
Cumque dies caris optata parentibus instat,
Inmodicus pariter corporis ardor adest —
Ei mihi, coniugii tempus crudelis ad ipsum
Persephone nostras pulsat acerba fores!
Iam pudet, et timeo, quamvis mihi conscia non sim,
Offensos videar ne meruisse deos.
One man maintains these things happen by chance, but another
denies that this man is acceptable to the gods;
and lest you think rumor says nothing against you too,
a part think these things are done by your sorceries.
The cause lies hidden, my ills are plain; you, with peace set aside,
wage bitter battles, and I am punished!
Come, tell me now, and do not deceive in your wonted way:
what will you do in hatred, when you harm me thus by love?
If you hurt what you love, you will wisely love an enemy —
I pray, that you may save me, dreadful one, be willing to destroy me!
denies that this man is acceptable to the gods;
and lest you think rumor says nothing against you too,
a part think these things are done by your sorceries.
The cause lies hidden, my ills are plain; you, with peace set aside,
wage bitter battles, and I am punished!
Come, tell me now, and do not deceive in your wonted way:
what will you do in hatred, when you harm me thus by love?
If you hurt what you love, you will wisely love an enemy —
I pray, that you may save me, dreadful one, be willing to destroy me!
Accidere haec aliquis casu contendit, at alter
Acceptum superis hunc negat esse virum;
Neve nihil credas in te quoque dicere famam,
Facta veneficiis pars putat ista tuis.
Causa latet, mala nostra patent; vos pace movetis
Aspera submota proelia, plector ego!
Dic age nunc, solitoque tibi ne decipe more:
Quid facies odio, sic ubi amore noces?
Si laedis, quod amas, hostem sapienter amabis —
Me, precor, ut serves, perdere, dire, velis!
Acceptum superis hunc negat esse virum;
Neve nihil credas in te quoque dicere famam,
Facta veneficiis pars putat ista tuis.
Causa latet, mala nostra patent; vos pace movetis
Aspera submota proelia, plector ego!
Dic age nunc, solitoque tibi ne decipe more:
Quid facies odio, sic ubi amore noces?
Si laedis, quod amas, hostem sapienter amabis —
Me, precor, ut serves, perdere, dire, velis!
Either you now have no care for the girl you hoped for,
whom, cruel, you let perish by an unworthy wasting,
or, if the cruel goddess is begged for me by you in vain,
you have no favor with her to boast of to me.
Choose what you will pretend: you do not wish to appease Diana —
then you are forgetful of me; you cannot — then she is yours!
Would that either never, or not at that time,
Delos in the Aegean waters had been known to me!
Then my ship was launched on a difficult sea,
and the hour was sinister for the journey begun.
whom, cruel, you let perish by an unworthy wasting,
or, if the cruel goddess is begged for me by you in vain,
you have no favor with her to boast of to me.
Choose what you will pretend: you do not wish to appease Diana —
then you are forgetful of me; you cannot — then she is yours!
Would that either never, or not at that time,
Delos in the Aegean waters had been known to me!
Then my ship was launched on a difficult sea,
and the hour was sinister for the journey begun.
Aut tibi iam nulla est speratae cura puellae,
Quam ferus indigna tabe perire sinis,
Aut, dea si frustra pro me tibi saeva rogatur,
Qua mihi te iactes, gratia nulla tua est.
Elige, quid fingas: non vis placare Dianam —
Inmemor es nostri; non potes — illa tui est!
Vel numquam mallem vel non mihi tempore in illo
Esset in Aegaeis cognita Delos aquis!
Tunc mea difficili deducta est aequore navis,
Et fuit ad coeptas hora sinistra vias.
Quam ferus indigna tabe perire sinis,
Aut, dea si frustra pro me tibi saeva rogatur,
Qua mihi te iactes, gratia nulla tua est.
Elige, quid fingas: non vis placare Dianam —
Inmemor es nostri; non potes — illa tui est!
Vel numquam mallem vel non mihi tempore in illo
Esset in Aegaeis cognita Delos aquis!
Tunc mea difficili deducta est aequore navis,
Et fuit ad coeptas hora sinistra vias.
With what foot did I set out! with what foot did I move from the threshold!
with what foot did I touch the painted decking of the swift ship!
Yet twice the sails came back with a contrary wind —
I lie, ah madwoman! that wind was favorable!
It was favorable, the wind that carried me back as I went,
and that, too little kindly, hindered my journey.
And would that it had been steady against my sails —
but it is foolish to complain of the wind’s fickleness.
Stirred by the fame of the place, I hastened to see Delos,
and seemed to make the journey in too sluggish a ship.
with what foot did I touch the painted decking of the swift ship!
Yet twice the sails came back with a contrary wind —
I lie, ah madwoman! that wind was favorable!
It was favorable, the wind that carried me back as I went,
and that, too little kindly, hindered my journey.
And would that it had been steady against my sails —
but it is foolish to complain of the wind’s fickleness.
Stirred by the fame of the place, I hastened to see Delos,
and seemed to make the journey in too sluggish a ship.
Quo pede processi! quo me pede limine movi!
Picta citae tetigi quo pede texta ratis!
Bis tamen adverso redierunt carbasa vento —
Mentior, a demens! ille secundus erat!
Ille secundus erat qui me referebat euntem,
Quique parum felix inpediebat iter.
Atque utinam constans contra mea vela fuisset —
Sed stultum est venti de levitate queri.
Mota loci fama properabam visere Delon
Et facere ignava puppe videbar iter.
Picta citae tetigi quo pede texta ratis!
Bis tamen adverso redierunt carbasa vento —
Mentior, a demens! ille secundus erat!
Ille secundus erat qui me referebat euntem,
Quique parum felix inpediebat iter.
Atque utinam constans contra mea vela fuisset —
Sed stultum est venti de levitate queri.
Mota loci fama properabam visere Delon
Et facere ignava puppe videbar iter.
How often I reproached the slow oars,
and complained that the sails were given too little wind!
And now I had passed Myconos, now Tenos and Andros,
and white Delos was before my eyes;
when I saw it afar, ’why do you flee me, island?’ I said,
’do you drift, as before, in the great sea?’
I had set foot on the land, when, the daylight now nearly done,
the sun wished to take the yoke from his crimson horses.
After the same sun called them back to their accustomed risings,
my hair is dressed at my mother’s bidding.
and complained that the sails were given too little wind!
And now I had passed Myconos, now Tenos and Andros,
and white Delos was before my eyes;
when I saw it afar, ’why do you flee me, island?’ I said,
’do you drift, as before, in the great sea?’
I had set foot on the land, when, the daylight now nearly done,
the sun wished to take the yoke from his crimson horses.
After the same sun called them back to their accustomed risings,
my hair is dressed at my mother’s bidding.
Quam saepe ut tardis feci convicia remis,
Questaque sum vento lintea parca dari!
Et iam transieram Myconon, iam Tenon et Andron,
Inque meis oculis candida Delos erat;
Quam procul ut vidi, ’quid me fugis, insula,’ dixi,
’Laberis in magno numquid, ut ante, mari?’
Institeram terrae, cum iam prope luce peracta
Demere purpureis sol iuga vellet equis.
Quos idem solitos postquam revocavit ad ortus,
Comuntur nostrae matre iubente comae.
Questaque sum vento lintea parca dari!
Et iam transieram Myconon, iam Tenon et Andron,
Inque meis oculis candida Delos erat;
Quam procul ut vidi, ’quid me fugis, insula,’ dixi,
’Laberis in magno numquid, ut ante, mari?’
Institeram terrae, cum iam prope luce peracta
Demere purpureis sol iuga vellet equis.
Quos idem solitos postquam revocavit ad ortus,
Comuntur nostrae matre iubente comae.
She herself gave gems to my fingers and gold to my hair,
and herself put garments on my shoulders.
At once, going out, to the gods to whom the island is sacred
we give golden incense and wine in salutation;
and while my mother stains the altars with votive blood,
and heaps the cut entrails on the smoking hearths,
my attentive nurse leads me too into the lofty temples,
and we wander with straying foot through the sacred places.
And now I walk in the porticoes, now I admire the gifts of kings
and the statues standing in every place;
and herself put garments on my shoulders.
At once, going out, to the gods to whom the island is sacred
we give golden incense and wine in salutation;
and while my mother stains the altars with votive blood,
and heaps the cut entrails on the smoking hearths,
my attentive nurse leads me too into the lofty temples,
and we wander with straying foot through the sacred places.
And now I walk in the porticoes, now I admire the gifts of kings
and the statues standing in every place;
Ipsa dedit gemmas digitis et crinibus aurum,
Et vestes umeris induit ipsa meis.
Protinus egressae superis, quibus insula sacra est,
Flava salutatis tura merumque damus;
Dumque parens aras votivo sanguine tingit,
Sectaque fumosis ingerit exta focis,
Sedula me nutrix altas quoque ducit in aedes,
Erramusque vago per loca sacra pede.
Et modo porticibus spatior modo munera regum
Miror et in cunctis stantia signa locis;
Et vestes umeris induit ipsa meis.
Protinus egressae superis, quibus insula sacra est,
Flava salutatis tura merumque damus;
Dumque parens aras votivo sanguine tingit,
Sectaque fumosis ingerit exta focis,
Sedula me nutrix altas quoque ducit in aedes,
Erramusque vago per loca sacra pede.
Et modo porticibus spatior modo munera regum
Miror et in cunctis stantia signa locis;
I admire too the altar built of countless horns,
and the tree against which the goddess leaned in giving birth,
and whatever else besides Delos holds — for I neither remember
nor care to tell all I saw there.
Perhaps, while I looked at these things, I was looked at by you, Acontius,
and my simplicity seemed able to be caught.
I return to the temple of Diana, lofty with its steps —
what place ought to have been safer than this?
An apple is thrown before my feet with such a verse —
ah me, even now I have almost sworn to you again!
and the tree against which the goddess leaned in giving birth,
and whatever else besides Delos holds — for I neither remember
nor care to tell all I saw there.
Perhaps, while I looked at these things, I was looked at by you, Acontius,
and my simplicity seemed able to be caught.
I return to the temple of Diana, lofty with its steps —
what place ought to have been safer than this?
An apple is thrown before my feet with such a verse —
ah me, even now I have almost sworn to you again!
Miror et innumeris structam de cornibus aram,
Et de qua pariens arbore nixa dea est,
Et quae praeterea — neque enim meminive libetve
Quidquid ibi vidi dicere — Delos habet.
Forsitan haec spectans a te spectabar, Aconti,
Visaque simplicitas est mea posse capi.
In templum redeo gradibus sublime Dianae —
Tutior hoc ecquis debuit esse locus?
Mittitur ante pedes malum cum carmine tali —
Ei mihi, iuravi nunc quoque paene tibi!
Et de qua pariens arbore nixa dea est,
Et quae praeterea — neque enim meminive libetve
Quidquid ibi vidi dicere — Delos habet.
Forsitan haec spectans a te spectabar, Aconti,
Visaque simplicitas est mea posse capi.
In templum redeo gradibus sublime Dianae —
Tutior hoc ecquis debuit esse locus?
Mittitur ante pedes malum cum carmine tali —
Ei mihi, iuravi nunc quoque paene tibi!
The nurse picked it up and, wondering, said, ’read it through!’
I read your snares, great poet!
At the word ’marriage’ spoken, confounded with shame,
I felt myself blush over all my cheeks,
and I kept my eyes as if fixed on my lap —
eyes made the servants of your design.
Shameless one, why do you rejoice? or what glory is won for you?
or what praise have you, a man, from a girl outwitted?
I had not stood, shield-bearing, with the axe taken up,
like Penthesilea on the Trojan soil;
I read your snares, great poet!
At the word ’marriage’ spoken, confounded with shame,
I felt myself blush over all my cheeks,
and I kept my eyes as if fixed on my lap —
eyes made the servants of your design.
Shameless one, why do you rejoice? or what glory is won for you?
or what praise have you, a man, from a girl outwitted?
I had not stood, shield-bearing, with the axe taken up,
like Penthesilea on the Trojan soil;
Sustulit hoc nutrix mirataque ’perlege!’ dixit.
Insidias legi, magne poeta, tuas!
Nomine coniugii dicto confusa pudore,
Sensi me totis erubuisse genis,
Luminaque in gremio veluti defixa tenebam —
Lumina propositi facta ministra tui.
Inprobe, quid gaudes? aut quae tibi gloria parta est?
Quidve vir elusa virgine laudis habes?
Non ego constiteram sumpta peltata securi,
Qualis in Iliaco Penthesilea solo;
Insidias legi, magne poeta, tuas!
Nomine coniugii dicto confusa pudore,
Sensi me totis erubuisse genis,
Luminaque in gremio veluti defixa tenebam —
Lumina propositi facta ministra tui.
Inprobe, quid gaudes? aut quae tibi gloria parta est?
Quidve vir elusa virgine laudis habes?
Non ego constiteram sumpta peltata securi,
Qualis in Iliaco Penthesilea solo;
no belt chased with Amazonian gold
was brought back to you as plunder, as from Hippolyte.
Why do you exult, if your words tricked me,
and I, a girl too little prudent, was caught by guile?
An apple caught Cydippe, an apple caught the daughter of Schoeneus;
you now, forsooth, will be a second Hippomenes!
But it would have been better, if that boy held you,
who, you say, has I know not what torches,
not to corrupt hope by fraud, in the way of good men;
I should have been won by entreaty, not caught!
was brought back to you as plunder, as from Hippolyte.
Why do you exult, if your words tricked me,
and I, a girl too little prudent, was caught by guile?
An apple caught Cydippe, an apple caught the daughter of Schoeneus;
you now, forsooth, will be a second Hippomenes!
But it would have been better, if that boy held you,
who, you say, has I know not what torches,
not to corrupt hope by fraud, in the way of good men;
I should have been won by entreaty, not caught!
Nullus Amazonio caelatus balteus auro,
Sicut ab Hippolyte, praeda relata tibi est.
Verba quid exultas tua si mihi verba dederunt,
Sumque parum prudens capta puella dolis?
Cydippen pomum, pomum Schoeneida cepit;
Tu nunc Hippomenes scilicet alter eris!
At fuerat melius, si te puer iste tenebat,
Quem tu nescio quas dicis habere faces,
More bonis solito spem non corrumpere fraude;
Exoranda tibi, non capienda fui!
Sicut ab Hippolyte, praeda relata tibi est.
Verba quid exultas tua si mihi verba dederunt,
Sumque parum prudens capta puella dolis?
Cydippen pomum, pomum Schoeneida cepit;
Tu nunc Hippomenes scilicet alter eris!
At fuerat melius, si te puer iste tenebat,
Quem tu nescio quas dicis habere faces,
More bonis solito spem non corrumpere fraude;
Exoranda tibi, non capienda fui!
Why, when you sought me, did you not think those things should be declared
on account of which you yourself were to be sought by me?
Why did you wish to compel rather than to persuade,
if I could be won when the terms were heard?
What good to you now is the form of the oath,
and a tongue that called the present goddess to witness?
It is the mind that swears. But with that I swore nothing;
that alone can add faith to words.
Purpose and the prudent judgment of the mind swear,
and no bonds avail but those of the judgment.
on account of which you yourself were to be sought by me?
Why did you wish to compel rather than to persuade,
if I could be won when the terms were heard?
What good to you now is the form of the oath,
and a tongue that called the present goddess to witness?
It is the mind that swears. But with that I swore nothing;
that alone can add faith to words.
Purpose and the prudent judgment of the mind swear,
and no bonds avail but those of the judgment.
Cur, me cum peteres, ea non profitenda putabas,
Propter quae nobis ipse petendus eras?
Cogere cur potius quam persuadere volebas,
Si poteram audita condicione capi?
Quid tibi nunc prodest iurandi formula iuris
Linguaque praesentem testificata deam?
Quae iurat, mens est. sed nil iuravimus illa;
Illa fidem dictis addere sola potest.
Consilium prudensque animi sententia iurat,
Et nisi iudicii vincula nulla valent.
Propter quae nobis ipse petendus eras?
Cogere cur potius quam persuadere volebas,
Si poteram audita condicione capi?
Quid tibi nunc prodest iurandi formula iuris
Linguaque praesentem testificata deam?
Quae iurat, mens est. sed nil iuravimus illa;
Illa fidem dictis addere sola potest.
Consilium prudensque animi sententia iurat,
Et nisi iudicii vincula nulla valent.
If I willed to promise you our marriage,
exact the due rights of the promised bed;
but if I gave nothing but a voice without the heart,
you hold in vain words bereft of their force.
I did not swear — I read swearing words;
you were not to be chosen as my husband in that way.
Deceive others so — let a letter succeed the apple!
If this avails, take great wealth from the rich;
make kings swear they will give you their kingdoms,
and let whatever pleases you in all the world be yours!
exact the due rights of the promised bed;
but if I gave nothing but a voice without the heart,
you hold in vain words bereft of their force.
I did not swear — I read swearing words;
you were not to be chosen as my husband in that way.
Deceive others so — let a letter succeed the apple!
If this avails, take great wealth from the rich;
make kings swear they will give you their kingdoms,
and let whatever pleases you in all the world be yours!
Si tibi coniugium volui promittere nostrum,
Exige polliciti debita iura tori;
Sed si nil dedimus praeter sine pectore vocem,
Verba suis frustra viribus orba tenes.
Non ego iuravi — legi iurantia verba;
Vir mihi non isto more legendus eras.
Decipe sic alias — succedat epistula pomo!
Si valet hoc, magnas ditibus aufer opes;
Fac iurent reges sua se tibi regna daturos,
Sitque tuum toto quidquid in orbe placet!
Exige polliciti debita iura tori;
Sed si nil dedimus praeter sine pectore vocem,
Verba suis frustra viribus orba tenes.
Non ego iuravi — legi iurantia verba;
Vir mihi non isto more legendus eras.
Decipe sic alias — succedat epistula pomo!
Si valet hoc, magnas ditibus aufer opes;
Fac iurent reges sua se tibi regna daturos,
Sitque tuum toto quidquid in orbe placet!
You are much greater than Diana herself in this, believe me,
if your letter has so present a divine power.
Yet when I have said this, when, firm, I have denied myself to you,
when the case of my promise has been well pleaded,
I confess, I fear the anger of the cruel daughter of Latona,
and suspect that my body is hurt from that cause.
For why, as often as the marriage-rites are prepared,
do the limbs of the bride-to-be so often sink in weakness?
Three times now, coming to the set altars, Hymenaeus
has fled, and turned his back at the chamber’s threshold,
if your letter has so present a divine power.
Yet when I have said this, when, firm, I have denied myself to you,
when the case of my promise has been well pleaded,
I confess, I fear the anger of the cruel daughter of Latona,
and suspect that my body is hurt from that cause.
For why, as often as the marriage-rites are prepared,
do the limbs of the bride-to-be so often sink in weakness?
Three times now, coming to the set altars, Hymenaeus
has fled, and turned his back at the chamber’s threshold,
Maior es hoc ipsa multum, mihi crede, Diana,
Si tua tam praesens littera numen habet.
Cum tamen haec dixi, cum me tibi firma negavi,
Cum bene promissi causa peracta mei est,
Confiteor, timeo saevae Latoidos iram
Et corpus laedi suspicor inde meum.
Nam quare, quotiens socialia sacra parantur,
Nupturae totiens languida membra cadunt?
Ter mihi iam veniens positas Hymenaeus ad aras
Fugit, et a thalami limine terga dedit,
Si tua tam praesens littera numen habet.
Cum tamen haec dixi, cum me tibi firma negavi,
Cum bene promissi causa peracta mei est,
Confiteor, timeo saevae Latoidos iram
Et corpus laedi suspicor inde meum.
Nam quare, quotiens socialia sacra parantur,
Nupturae totiens languida membra cadunt?
Ter mihi iam veniens positas Hymenaeus ad aras
Fugit, et a thalami limine terga dedit,
and scarcely with sluggish hand do the lamps, so often poured full,
revive; scarcely does he catch the torches with the kindled fire.
Often the ointments drip from his garlanded hair,
and the shining mantle trails with much saffron.
When he has touched the threshold, he sees tears and the fear of death
and many things far removed from his own adornment,
and he is ashamed to rise glad in a sorrowing crowd,
and the redness that was in the mantle passes into his face.
He himself throws down the garlands drawn from his brow,
and wipes the thick perfumes from his shining hair;
revive; scarcely does he catch the torches with the kindled fire.
Often the ointments drip from his garlanded hair,
and the shining mantle trails with much saffron.
When he has touched the threshold, he sees tears and the fear of death
and many things far removed from his own adornment,
and he is ashamed to rise glad in a sorrowing crowd,
and the redness that was in the mantle passes into his face.
He himself throws down the garlands drawn from his brow,
and wipes the thick perfumes from his shining hair;
Vixque manu pigra totiens infusa resurgunt
Lumina, vix moto corripit igne faces.
Saepe coronatis stillant unguenta capillis
Et trahitur multo splendida palla croco.
Cum tetigit limen, lacrimas mortisque timorem
Cernit et a cultu multa remota suo,
Et pudet in tristi laetum consurgere turba,
Quique erat in palla, transit in ora rubor.
Proicit ipse sua deductas fronte coronas,
Spissaque de nitidis tergit amoma comis;
Lumina, vix moto corripit igne faces.
Saepe coronatis stillant unguenta capillis
Et trahitur multo splendida palla croco.
Cum tetigit limen, lacrimas mortisque timorem
Cernit et a cultu multa remota suo,
Et pudet in tristi laetum consurgere turba,
Quique erat in palla, transit in ora rubor.
Proicit ipse sua deductas fronte coronas,
Spissaque de nitidis tergit amoma comis;
but for me, alas, wretched! my limbs are scorched with fevers,
and my coverlets have a weight heavier than is right,
and I see my weeping parents over my face,
and instead of the marriage-torch the torch of death is present for me.
Spare one who suffers, goddess glad in your painted quiver,
and give me now the health-bringing aid of your brother.
It is base for you, that he should drive off the causes of death,
while you, on the other side, hold the title of my death.
Did I ever, when you wished to bathe in a shady spring,
unawares bring my face to your waters,
and my coverlets have a weight heavier than is right,
and I see my weeping parents over my face,
and instead of the marriage-torch the torch of death is present for me.
Spare one who suffers, goddess glad in your painted quiver,
and give me now the health-bringing aid of your brother.
It is base for you, that he should drive off the causes of death,
while you, on the other side, hold the title of my death.
Did I ever, when you wished to bathe in a shady spring,
unawares bring my face to your waters,
At mihi, vae miserae! torrentur febribus artus
Et gravius iusto pallia pondus habent,
Nostraque plorantes video super ora parentes,
Et face pro thalami fax mihi mortis adest.
Parce laboranti, picta dea laeta pharetra,
Daque salutiferam iam mihi fratris opem.
Turpe tibi est, illum causas depellere leti,
Te contra titulum mortis habere meae.
Numquid, in umbroso cum velles fonte lavari,
Inprudens vultus ad tua labra tuli,
Et gravius iusto pallia pondus habent,
Nostraque plorantes video super ora parentes,
Et face pro thalami fax mihi mortis adest.
Parce laboranti, picta dea laeta pharetra,
Daque salutiferam iam mihi fratris opem.
Turpe tibi est, illum causas depellere leti,
Te contra titulum mortis habere meae.
Numquid, in umbroso cum velles fonte lavari,
Inprudens vultus ad tua labra tuli,
or pass by your altars among so many gods,
or was my mother scorned over your mother?
I have done no wrong, except that I read words of perjury
and was schooled in a too-unlucky verse.
You too, on my behalf, if you do not feign your love,
bring incense; let the hands that harmed me do good!
Why, you who are angry that the girl pledged to you
is not yet yours, do you act so that she cannot become yours?
All things are to be hoped from me living; why does the cruel
goddess take my life from me, and from you the hope of me?
or was my mother scorned over your mother?
I have done no wrong, except that I read words of perjury
and was schooled in a too-unlucky verse.
You too, on my behalf, if you do not feign your love,
bring incense; let the hands that harmed me do good!
Why, you who are angry that the girl pledged to you
is not yet yours, do you act so that she cannot become yours?
All things are to be hoped from me living; why does the cruel
goddess take my life from me, and from you the hope of me?
Praeteriive tuas de tot caelestibus aras,
Ave mea spreta est vestra parente parens?
Nil ego peccavi, nisi quod periuria legi
Inque parum fausto carmine docta fui.
Tu quoque pro nobis, si non mentiris amorem,
Tura feras; prosint, quae nocuere, manus!
Cur, qui succenses quod adhuc tibi pacta puella
Non tua sit, fieri ne tua possit, agis?
Omnia de viva tibi sunt speranda; quid aufert
Saeva mihi vitam, spem tibi diva mei?
Ave mea spreta est vestra parente parens?
Nil ego peccavi, nisi quod periuria legi
Inque parum fausto carmine docta fui.
Tu quoque pro nobis, si non mentiris amorem,
Tura feras; prosint, quae nocuere, manus!
Cur, qui succenses quod adhuc tibi pacta puella
Non tua sit, fieri ne tua possit, agis?
Omnia de viva tibi sunt speranda; quid aufert
Saeva mihi vitam, spem tibi diva mei?
And do not believe that the man to whom I am destined as wife
warms my sick limbs with hand laid over them.
He sits by me indeed, as far as is allowed,
but he remembers that my bed is a maiden’s.
Now too he seems to have perceived something about me;
for tears often fall, the cause hidden,
and he caresses less boldly, and gives rare kisses,
and calls me his with a timid mouth.
Nor do I wonder he has perceived it, since I betray myself by open signs;
I turn onto my right side when he comes,
warms my sick limbs with hand laid over them.
He sits by me indeed, as far as is allowed,
but he remembers that my bed is a maiden’s.
Now too he seems to have perceived something about me;
for tears often fall, the cause hidden,
and he caresses less boldly, and gives rare kisses,
and calls me his with a timid mouth.
Nor do I wonder he has perceived it, since I betray myself by open signs;
I turn onto my right side when he comes,
Nec tu credideris illum, cui destinor uxor,
Aegra superposita membra fovere manu.
Adsidet ille quidem, quantum permittitur, ipse
Sed meminit nostrum virginis esse torum.
Iam quoque nescio quid de me sensisse videtur;
Nam lacrimae causa saepe latente cadunt,
Et minus audacter blanditur et oscula rara
Applicat et timido me vocat ore suam.
Nec miror sensisse, notis cum prodar apertis;
In dextrum versor, cum venit ille, latus,
Aegra superposita membra fovere manu.
Adsidet ille quidem, quantum permittitur, ipse
Sed meminit nostrum virginis esse torum.
Iam quoque nescio quid de me sensisse videtur;
Nam lacrimae causa saepe latente cadunt,
Et minus audacter blanditur et oscula rara
Applicat et timido me vocat ore suam.
Nec miror sensisse, notis cum prodar apertis;
In dextrum versor, cum venit ille, latus,
and do not speak, and feign sleep with covered eye,
and push back his hand as it seeks my touch.
He groans and sighs with a silent breast, and holds me
as offended with him, though he does not deserve it.
Ah me, that you rejoice, and that disposition of mine pleases you!
Ah me, that I have confessed my feelings to you!
But if I had any anger, you would more justly have deserved it,
you who spread the nets for me.
You write, that it may be allowed you to visit my feeble body.
You are far from me, and yet from there you do harm.
and push back his hand as it seeks my touch.
He groans and sighs with a silent breast, and holds me
as offended with him, though he does not deserve it.
Ah me, that you rejoice, and that disposition of mine pleases you!
Ah me, that I have confessed my feelings to you!
But if I had any anger, you would more justly have deserved it,
you who spread the nets for me.
You write, that it may be allowed you to visit my feeble body.
You are far from me, and yet from there you do harm.
Nec loquor, et tecto simulatur lumine somnus,
Captantem tactus reicioque manum.
Ingemit et tacito suspirat pectore, meque
Offensam, quamvis non mereatur, habet.
Ei mihi, quod gaudes, et te iuvat ista voluntas!
Ei mihi, quod sensus sum tibi fassa meos!
At mihi siqua foret, tu nostra iustius ira,
Qui mihi tendebas retia, dignus eras.
Scribis, ut invalidum liceat tibi visere corpus.
Es procul a nobis, et tamen inde noces.
Captantem tactus reicioque manum.
Ingemit et tacito suspirat pectore, meque
Offensam, quamvis non mereatur, habet.
Ei mihi, quod gaudes, et te iuvat ista voluntas!
Ei mihi, quod sensus sum tibi fassa meos!
At mihi siqua foret, tu nostra iustius ira,
Qui mihi tendebas retia, dignus eras.
Scribis, ut invalidum liceat tibi visere corpus.
Es procul a nobis, et tamen inde noces.
I wondered why your name was Acontius;
you have a point that deals a wound from afar.
Certainly I have not yet recovered from such a wound,
struck from afar by your writing as by a javelin.
Yet why should you come here? indeed you would see a pitiable body,
the great trophies of your own cleverness!
I am fallen away with leanness; my color is bloodless, such as
I recall in my mind was on your apple,
nor do my white cheeks glow with mingled red.
The look of new marble is wont to be such;
you have a point that deals a wound from afar.
Certainly I have not yet recovered from such a wound,
struck from afar by your writing as by a javelin.
Yet why should you come here? indeed you would see a pitiable body,
the great trophies of your own cleverness!
I am fallen away with leanness; my color is bloodless, such as
I recall in my mind was on your apple,
nor do my white cheeks glow with mingled red.
The look of new marble is wont to be such;
Mirabar quare tibi nomen Acontius esset;
Quod faciat longe vulnus, acumen habes.
Certe ego convalui nondum de vulnere tali,
Ut iaculo scriptis eminus icta tuis.
Quid tamen huc venias? sane miserabile corpus,
Ingenii videas magna tropaea tui!
Concidimus macie; color est sine sanguine, qualem
In pomo refero mente fuisse tuo,
Candida nec mixto sublucent ora rubore.
Forma novi talis marmoris esse solet;
Quod faciat longe vulnus, acumen habes.
Certe ego convalui nondum de vulnere tali,
Ut iaculo scriptis eminus icta tuis.
Quid tamen huc venias? sane miserabile corpus,
Ingenii videas magna tropaea tui!
Concidimus macie; color est sine sanguine, qualem
In pomo refero mente fuisse tuo,
Candida nec mixto sublucent ora rubore.
Forma novi talis marmoris esse solet;
such is the color of silver at banquets,
which, touched by the chill of cold water, grows pale.
If you saw me now, you would deny I had been seen before,
and would say, ’she was not sought by my art,’
and you will release the faith of the promise, that I be not joined to you,
and will wish the goddess not to remember it.
Perhaps you will even make me swear the contrary again,
and will send me other words to read.
Yet would that you might sit by me, as you yourself asked,
and see the languid limbs of your betrothed!
which, touched by the chill of cold water, grows pale.
If you saw me now, you would deny I had been seen before,
and would say, ’she was not sought by my art,’
and you will release the faith of the promise, that I be not joined to you,
and will wish the goddess not to remember it.
Perhaps you will even make me swear the contrary again,
and will send me other words to read.
Yet would that you might sit by me, as you yourself asked,
and see the languid limbs of your betrothed!
Argenti color est inter convivia talis,
Quod tactum gelidae frigore pallet aquae.
Si me nunc videas, visam prius esse negabis,
’Arte nec est,’ dices, ’ista petita mea,’
Promissique fidem, ne sim tibi iuncta, remittes,
Et cupies illud non meminisse deam.
Forsitan et facies iurem ut contraria rursus,
Quaeque legam mittes altera verba mihi.
Sed tamen adsideas utinam, quod et ipse rogabas,
Et videas sponsae languida membra tuae!
Quod tactum gelidae frigore pallet aquae.
Si me nunc videas, visam prius esse negabis,
’Arte nec est,’ dices, ’ista petita mea,’
Promissique fidem, ne sim tibi iuncta, remittes,
Et cupies illud non meminisse deam.
Forsitan et facies iurem ut contraria rursus,
Quaeque legam mittes altera verba mihi.
Sed tamen adsideas utinam, quod et ipse rogabas,
Et videas sponsae languida membra tuae!
Though your heart be now harder than iron, Acontius,
you yourself would beg pardon with my own words.
Yet, lest you not know by what aid I may recover,
it is inquired of the god at Delphi, who chants the fates.
He too, as wandering rumor now whispers,
complains of a faith neglected, with his sister as witness.
This the god, this the seer, this the published oracles say —
ah! no divine powers are lacking to your wish!
Whence this favor for you? unless perhaps some new
writing has been found which, when read, captures the great gods.
you yourself would beg pardon with my own words.
Yet, lest you not know by what aid I may recover,
it is inquired of the god at Delphi, who chants the fates.
He too, as wandering rumor now whispers,
complains of a faith neglected, with his sister as witness.
This the god, this the seer, this the published oracles say —
ah! no divine powers are lacking to your wish!
Whence this favor for you? unless perhaps some new
writing has been found which, when read, captures the great gods.
Durius ut ferro iam sit tibi pectus, Aconti,
Tu veniam nostris vocibus ipse petas.
Ne tamen ignores ope qua revalescere possim,
Quaeritur a Delphis fata canente deo.
Is quoque nescio quam, nunc ut vaga fama susurrat,
Neclectam queritur teste sorore fidem.
Hoc deus, hoc vates, hoc edita carmina dicunt —
A! desunt voto numina nulla tuo!
Unde tibi favor hic? nisi si nova forte reperta est
Quae capiat magnos littera lecta deos.
Tu veniam nostris vocibus ipse petas.
Ne tamen ignores ope qua revalescere possim,
Quaeritur a Delphis fata canente deo.
Is quoque nescio quam, nunc ut vaga fama susurrat,
Neclectam queritur teste sorore fidem.
Hoc deus, hoc vates, hoc edita carmina dicunt —
A! desunt voto numina nulla tuo!
Unde tibi favor hic? nisi si nova forte reperta est
Quae capiat magnos littera lecta deos.
And, you holding the gods, I myself follow the will of the gods,
and gladly give my conquered hands to your wishes;
and I have confessed to my mother the covenant of my deceived tongue,
keeping my eyes fixed on the ground full of shame.
The rest is your care; this too is more than a maiden should do,
that my paper did not fear to speak with you.
Now I have wearied my feeble limbs enough with the pen,
and my sick hand refuses its office any longer.
What remains, except that — since I desire now to be joined with you —
my letter add: Farewell?
and gladly give my conquered hands to your wishes;
and I have confessed to my mother the covenant of my deceived tongue,
keeping my eyes fixed on the ground full of shame.
The rest is your care; this too is more than a maiden should do,
that my paper did not fear to speak with you.
Now I have wearied my feeble limbs enough with the pen,
and my sick hand refuses its office any longer.
What remains, except that — since I desire now to be joined with you —
my letter add: Farewell?
Teque tenente deos numen sequor ipsa deorum,
Doque libens victas in tua vota manus;
Fassaque sum matri deceptae foedera linguae
Lumina fixa tenens plena pudoris humo.
Cetera cura tua est; plus hoc quoque virgine factum,
Non timuit tecum quod mea charta loqui.
Iam satis invalidos calamo lassavimus artus,
Et manus officium longius aegra negat.
Quid, nisi, quod cupio me iam coniungere tecum,
Restat, ut adscribat littera nostra: Vale?
Doque libens victas in tua vota manus;
Fassaque sum matri deceptae foedera linguae
Lumina fixa tenens plena pudoris humo.
Cetera cura tua est; plus hoc quoque virgine factum,
Non timuit tecum quod mea charta loqui.
Iam satis invalidos calamo lassavimus artus,
Et manus officium longius aegra negat.
Quid, nisi, quod cupio me iam coniungere tecum,
Restat, ut adscribat littera nostra: Vale?