Complete Works of Achilles Tatius

by Achilles Tatius

  [1] Κοινοῦμαι δὴ τῷ Σατύρῳ τὸ πᾶν καὶ συμπράττειν ἠξίουν: ὁ δὲ ἔλεγε καὶ αὐτὸς μὲν ἐγνωκέναι, πρὶν παῤ ἐμοῦ μαθεῖν, ὀκνεῖν δὲ ἐλέγχειν βουλόμενον λαθεῖν. Ὁ γὰρ μετὰ κλοπῆς ἐρῶν ἂν ἐλεγχθῇ πρός τινος, ὡς ὀνειδίζοντα τὸν ἐλέγξαντα μισεῖ. [2] ‘Ἤδη δὲ’ ἔφη ‘καὶ τὸ αὐτόματον ἡμῶν προὐνόησεν. Ἡ γὰρ τὸν θάλαμον αὐτῆς πεπιστευμένη Κλειὼ κεκοινώνηκέ μοι καὶ ἔχει πρός με ὡς ἐραστήν. Ταύτην παρασκευάσω κατὰ μικρὸν πρὸς ἡμᾶς οὕτως ἔχειν, [3] ὡς καὶ συναίρεσθαι πρὸς τὸ ἔργον. Δεῖ δέ σε τὴν κόρην μὴ μέχρι τῶν ὀμμάτων μόνον πειρᾶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ῥῆμα δριμύτερον εἰπεῖν. Τότε δὲ πρόσαγε τὴν δευτέραν μηχανήν. [4] Θίγε χειρός, θλῖψον δάκτυλον, θλίβων στέναξον. Ἢν δὲ ταῦτά σου ποιοῦντος καρτερῇ καὶ προσίηται, σὸν ἔργον ἤδη δέσποινάν τε καλεῖν καὶ φιλῆσαι τράχηλον.’ ‘Πιθανῶς μὲν’ ἔφην ‘νὴ τὴν Ἀθηνᾶν, ἐς τὸ ἔργον παιδοτριβεῖς: δέδοικα δὲ μὴ ἄτολμος καὶ δειλὸς ἔρωτος ἀθλητὴς γένωμαι.’ [5] ‘Ἔρως, ὦ γενναῖε’ ἔφη ‘δειλίας οὐκ ἀνέχεται. Ὁρᾷς αὐτοῦ τὸ σχῆμα ὥς ἐστι στρατιωτικόν; τόξα καὶ φαρέτρα καὶ βέλη καὶ πῦρ, ἀνδρεῖα πάντα καὶ τόλμης γέμοντα. Τοιοῦτον οὖν ἐν σεαυτῷ θεὸν ἔχων δειλὸς εἶ καὶ φοβῇ; [6] Ὅρα μὴ καταψεύσῃ τοῦ θεοῦ. Ἀρχὴν δέ σοι ἐγὼ παρέξω. Τὴν Κλειὼ γὰρ ἀπάξω μάλιστα ὅταν ἐπιτήδειον ἴδω καιρὸν τοῦ σε τῇ παρθένῳ δύνασθαι συνεῖναι μόνῃ.’

  4. I imparted the whole story to Satyrus and asked for his assistance: he replied that he had perceived how things were before I had told him, but had shrunk from questioning me and had preferred to seem to remain ignorant; for the secret lover, when questioned, often contracts a hatred of the questioner as if he were offering him some insult. “However,” said he, “things have already of their own accord fallen out to our advantage; for Clio, the serving-maid entrusted with the care of your sweetheart’s chamber, confides in me and regards me as her lover. I hope little by little to be able to wheedle her and make her so favourably disposed to us that she will lend her assistance to the final effort. But as for you, you must not be content with making advances to her with glances of your eyes alone; you must use a direct and outright form of speech. Then bring forward your second line, touch her hand, squeeze a finger, and sigh as you squeeze; if she allows you to do this and seems to approve, your next step is to call her your princess and to kiss her on the neck.”

  “You are a plausible trainer, I vow,” said I, “for the difficult accomplishment; but I fear that I shall prove a backward and cowardly performer.”

  “Love,” he answered, “tolerates no cowardice at all: look how warlike is his appearance — bow, quiver, arrows, and fire — all of them the furniture of courage, and rich with venturous enterprise. With such a god as that within you, can you be backward and fearful? Be careful not to give him the lie. However, I will give you an opening: I will distract Clio directly I see the most favourable time for you to be alone and by yourself to have a private conversation with the maiden.”

  [1] Ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐχώρησεν ἔξω τῶν θυρῶν: ἐγὼ δὲ κατ̓ ἐμαυτὸν γενόμενος καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Σατύρου παροξυνθείς, ἤσκουν ἐμαυτὸν εἰς εὐτολμίαν πρὸς τὴν παρθένον. ‘Μέχρι τίνος, ἄνανδρε, σιγᾷς; τί δὲ δειλὸς εἶ στρατιώτης ἀνδρείου θεοῦ; τὴν κόρην προσελθεῖν σοὶ περιμένεις;’ Εἶτα προσετίθην ‘τί γάρ, [2] ὦ κακόδαιμον, οὐ σωφρονεῖς; τί δὲ οὐκ ἐρᾷς ὧν σε δεῖ; παρθένον ἔνδον ἔχεις ἄλλην καλήν: ταύτης ἔρα, ταύτην βλέπε, ταύτην ἔξεστί σοι γαμεῖν.’ Ἐδόκουν πεπεῖσθαι: κάτωθεν δὲ ὥσπερ ἐκ τῆς καρδίας ὁ ἔρως ἀντεφθέγγετο ‘ναί, τολμηρέ, κατ̓ ἐμοῦ στρατεύῃ καὶ ἀντιπαρατάττῃ; ἵπταμαι καὶ τοξεύω καὶ φλέγω: πῶς δυνήσῃ με φυγεῖν; Ἂν ψυλάξῃ μου τὸ τόξον, οὐκ ἔχεις φυλάξασθαι τὸ πῦρ: ἂν δὲ κατασβέσῃς σωφροσύνῃ τὴν φλόγα, αὐτῷ σε καταλήψομαι τῷ πτερῷ.’

  5. This said, he left the room: when I was by myself, stimulated by Satyrus’ words, I began to screw up my courage for the coming attack. “How long,” said I, “do you mean to keep silent, you coward? Why are you so fearful a soldier of so brave a god? Do you expect the maiden to make the first advances toward you?” Then I went on:

  But why cannot you control yourself, fool? Why not love where duty bids you? You have another in the house — a virgin, and fair: love her, look at her, marriage with her is in your power.” I thought that I had persuaded myself, but deep down love answered, as though speaking from my heart: “Ha, insolent, do you dare to take arms and set yourself up to do battle with me? I can fly, I can shoot, I can burn, how can you avoid me? If you escape my bow, you cannot escape my fire; and if you can quench my fire by your self-control, I shall yet catch you with my wings.”

  [1] Ταῦτα διαλεγόμενος ἔλαθον ἐπιστὰς ἀπροοράτως τῇ κόρῃ καὶ ὠχρίασα ἰδὼν ἐξαίφνης, εἶτ̓ ἐφοινίχθην: μόνη δ̓ ἦν καὶ οὐδὲ ἡ Κλειὼ συμπαρῆν: ὅμως δ̓ οὖν, ὡς ἂν τεθορυβημένος οὐκ ἔχων τί εἴπω ‘χαῖρε’ [2] ἔφην ‘δέσποινα.’ Ἡ δὲ μειδιάσασα γλυκὺ καὶ ἐμφανίσασα διὰ τοῦ γέλωτος ὅτι συνῆκε πῶς εἶπον τὸ ‘χαῖρε δέσποινα,’ εἶπεν ‘ἐγὼ σή; μὴ τοῦτ̓ εἴπῃς.’ ‘Καὶ μὴν πέπρακέ μέ τίς σοι θεῶν, ὥσπερ καὶ τὸν Ἡρακλέα τῇ Ὀμφάλῃ.’ ‘Τὸν Ἑρμῆν λέγεις; [3] τούτῳ τὴν πρᾶσιν ἐκέλευσεν ὁ Ζεύς,’ καὶ ἅμα ἐγέλασε. ‘Ποῖον Ἑρμῆν; τί ληρεῖς’ εἶπον ‘εἰδυῖα σαφῶς ὃ λέγω;’ Ὡς δὲ περιέπλεκον λόγους ἐκ λόγων, τὸ αὐτόματόν μοι συνήργησεν.

  6. While I was thus arguing with myself, I unexpectedly found that I was standing in the maiden’s presence, and at the sudden sight of her I turned pale and then blushed red: she was all alone, not even Clio with her. However, I could say nothing in my agitation, but did my best with “Greetings, my princess.” She smiled very sweetly, showing through her smile that she understood why I greeted her as my princess, and said: “I your princess? Do not call me by such a name.”

  “Say not so,” said I: “one of the gods has sold me into captivity to you, as he did Hercules (Hercules had committed some crime; opinions differ as to whether he had killed somebody or stolen a tripod from Apollo’s shrine. To expiate this he was ordered by Zeus, using Hermes as messenger, to be a slave for a time of Omphale, Queen of Lydia.) to Omphale.”

  “Is it Hermes you mean,” said she, “whom Zeus sent to effect the sale?” and burst out laughing. “Hermes, indeed!” I answered. “How can you talk such nonsense, when you know well enough what I mean?” One such repartee led to another, and my good luck helped me.

>   [1] Ἔτυχε τῇ προτεραίᾳ ταύτης ἡμέρᾳ περὶ μεσημβρίαν ἡ παῖς ψάλλουσα κιθάρᾳ, ἐπιπαρῆν δὲ αὐτῇ καὶ ἡ Κλειὼ καὶ παρεκάθητο, διεβάδιζον δὲ ἐγώ: καί τις ἐξαίφνης μέλιττά ποθεν ἐπιπτᾶσα τῆς Κλειοῦς ἐπάταξε τὴν χεῖρα. [2] Καὶ ἡ μὲν ἀνέκραγεν, ἡ δὲ παῖς ἀναθοροῦσα καὶ καταθεμένη τὴν κιθάραν κατενόει τὴν πληγὴν καὶ ἅμα παρῄνει λέγουσα μηδὲν ἄχθεσθαι: παύσειν γὰρ αὐτὴν τῆς ἀλγηδόνος δύο ἐπᾴσασαν ῥήματα: διδαχθῆναι γὰρ αὐτὰ ὑπό τινος Αἰγυπτίας εἰς πληγὰς σφηκῶν καὶ μελιττῶν. [3] Καὶ ἅμα ἐπῇδε, καὶ ἔλεγεν ἡ Κλειὼ μετὰ μικρὸν ῥᾴων γεγονέναι. Τότε οὖν κατὰ τύχην μέλιττά τις ἢ σφὴξ περιβομβήσασα κύκλῳ μου τὸ πρόσωπον παρέπτη: κἀγὼ τὸ ἐνθύμιον λαμβάνω καὶ τὴν χεῖρα ἐπιβαλὼν τοῖς προσώποις προσεποιούμην πεπλῆχθαι καὶ ἀλγεῖν. [4] Ἡ δὲ παῖς προσελθοῦσα εἷλκε τὴν χεῖρα καὶ ἐπυνθάνετο ποῦ ἐπατάχθην: κἀγὼ ‘κατὰ τοῦ χείλους’ ἔφην: ‘ἀλλὰ τί οὐκ ἐπᾴδεις, φιλτάτη;’ Ἡ δὲ προσῆλθέ τε καὶ ἀνέθηκεν, ὡς ἐπᾴσουσα, τὸ στόμα, καί τι ἐψιθύριζεν, [5] ἐπιπολῆς ψαύουσά μου τῶν χειλέων. Κἀγὼ κατεφίλουν σιωπῇ, κλέπτων τῶν φιλημάτων τὸν ψόφον, ἡ δὲ ἀνοίγουσα καὶ κλείουσα τῶν χειλέων τὴν συμβολήν, τῷ τῆς ἐπῳδῆς ψιθυρίσματι φιλήματα ἐποίει τὴν ἐπῳδήν. Κἀγὼ τότε δὴ περιβαλὼν φανερῶς κατεφίλουν, ἡ δὲ διασχοῦσα ‘τί ποιεῖς;’ ἔφη. ‘καὶ σὺ κατεπᾴδεις;’ ‘Τὴν ἐπῳδὸν’ εἶπον ‘φιλῶ, ὅτι [6] μου τὴν ὀδύνην ἰάσω.’ Ὡς δὲ συνῆκεν ὃ λέγω καὶ ἐμειδίασε, θαρρήσας εἶπον ‘οἴμοι, φιλτάτη, πάλιν τέτρωμαι χαλεπώτερον: ἐπὶ γὰρ τὴν καρδίαν κατέρρευσε τὸ τραῦμα καὶ ζητεῖ σου τὴν ἐπῳδήν. Ἦ που καὶ σὺ μέλιτταν ἐπὶ τοῦ στόματος φέρεις: καὶ γὰρ μέλιτος γέμεις, καὶ τιτρώσκει σου τὰ φιλήματα. [7] Ἀλλὰ δέομαι, κατέπᾳσον αὖθις καὶ μὴ ταχὺ τὴν ἐπῳδὴν παραδράμῃς, μὴ πάλιν ἀγριάνῃ τὸ τραῦμα.’ Καὶ ἅμα λέγων τὴν χεῖρα βιαιότερον περιέβαλλον καὶ ἐφίλουν ἐλευθερώτερον: ἡ δὲ ἠνείχετο, κωλύουσα δῆθεν.

  7. Now it had happened on the day before that while the maiden was playing on her harp, Clio was sitting by her and I was walking about the room: and suddenly a bee flew in from somewhere and stung Clio on the hand, who gave a loud scream. Leucippe jumped up, laid down her harp, examined the wound, and did her best to comfort her, telling her not to complain; for she could ease her of the pain by saying over it a couple of charms which she had learned of a gipsy against the stings of wasps and bees: and she pronounced them, and almost immediately Clio said that she was much better. Well, on this second occasion there happened to be some wasp or bee buzzing about and flying round my face, so I adopted the idea, and putting my hand to my face, pretended that I had been stung and was in pain. The maiden came over to me, drew my hand away, and asked me where the sting was: “On the lip,” said I: “will you not repeat the charm, my dearest?” She came close to me and put her mouth close to mine, so as to work the charm, and murmured something while she touched the tip of my lips; and I gently kissed her, avoiding all the noise of an ordinary salute, until, in the successive opening and shutting of her lips as she murmured it, she converted the charm into a series of kisses: then at last I actually threw my arms round her and kissed her fully without further pretence. At this she started back, crying: “What are you doing? Are you saying a charm too?”

  “No,” said I, “I am kissing the charmer who has cured me of my pain.” As she did not misunderstand my words, and smiled, I plucked up my courage and went on:— “Ah, my dearest, I am stung again, and worse: this time the wound has reached my heart and needs your charm to heal it. I think you must have a bee on your lips, so full of honey are you, and your kisses sting. I implore you to repeat your charm once more, and do not hurry over it and make the wound worse again.” So speaking, I put my arm more boldly round her and kissed her with more freedom than before: and she let me do it, while pretending to resist.

  [1] κἀν τούτῳ πόρρωθεν ἰδόντες προσιοῦσαν τὴν θεράπαιναν διελύθημεν, ἐγὼ μὲν ἄκων καὶ λυπούμενος, ἡ δ̓ οὐκ οἶδ̓ ὅπως. Ῥᾴων οὖν ἐγεγόνειν καὶ μεστὸς ἐλπίδων, ᾐσθόμην δὲ ἐπικαθημένου μοι τοῦ φιλήματος ὥσπερ σώματος, καὶ ἐφύλαττον ἀκριβῶς ὡς θησαυρὸν τὸ φίλημα τηρῶν ἡδονῆς, ὃ πρῶτόν [2] ἐστιν ἐραστῇ γλυκύ. Καὶ γὰρ ἀπὸ τοῦ καλλίστου τῶν τοῦ σώματος ὀργάνων τίκτεται: στόμα γὰρ φωνῆς ὄργανον: φωνὴ δὲ ψυχῆς σκιά. Αἱ γὰρ τῶν στομάτων συμβολαὶ κιρνάμεναι καταπέμπουσι κατὰ τῶν στέρνων τὴν ἡδονὴν καὶ ἕλκουσι τὰς ψυχὰς πρὸς τὰ φιλήματα. [3] Οὐκ οἶδα δὲ οὕτω πρότερον ἡσθεὶς ἐκ τῆς καρδίας: καὶ τότε πρῶτον ἔμαθον ὅτι μηδὲν ἐρίζει πρὸς ἡδονὴν φιλήματι ἐρωτικῷ.

  8. At that moment we saw her serving-maid approaching from a distance and sprang apart: with me it went much against the grain and to my displeasure — what her feelings were I do not know.

  This experience made me feel less unhappy, and I began to be full of hope: I felt as if the kiss, like some material object, were still on my lips and preserved it jealously, keeping it as a kind of treasury of delight; the kiss is the lover’s first favour. It is of the fairest part of the whole body — the mouthy which is the instrument of the voice, and the voice is the reflection of the soul. When lovers’ lips meet and mingle together they send down a stream of pleasure beneath the breast and draw up the soul to the lips. (Cf ch xxxvii. The idea is a commonplace of Greek and Latin literature, from a famous epigram of Plato’s onward; and Tennyson’s Fatima: “With one long kiss he drew My whole soul through my lips.”) I know that never before this did I feel such pleasure in my inmost heart: then for the first time I learned that there is no pleasure on earth comparable with a lover’s kiss.

  [1] Ἐπειδὴ δὲ τοῦ δείπνου καιρὸς ἦν, πάλιν ὁμοίως συνεπίνομεν: ᾠνοχόει δὲ ὁ Σάτυρος ἡμῖν καί τι ποιεῖ ἐρωτικόν. Διαλλάσσει τὰ ἐκπώματα καὶ τὸ μὲν ἐμὸν τῇ κόρῃ προστίθησι, τὸ δὲ ἐκείνης ἐμοὶ καὶ ἐγχέων ἀμφοτέροις καὶ ἐγκερασάμενος ὤρεγεν. [2] Ἐγὼ δὲ ἐπιτηρήσας τὸ μέρος τοῦ ἐκπώματος, ἔνθα τὸ χεῖλος ἡ κόρη πίνουσα προσέθηκεν, ἐναρμοσάμενος ἔπινον, ἐπιστολιμαῖον τοῦτο φίλημα ποιῶν, καὶ ἅμα κατεφίλουν τὸ ἔκπωμα. [3] Ὡς δὲ εἶδεν ἡ παρθένος, συνῆκεν ὅτι τοῦ χείλους αὐτῆς καταφιλῶ καὶ τὴν σκιάν. Ἀλλ̓ ὅγε Σάτυρος συμφ�
�ονήσας πάλιν τὰ ἐκπώματα διήλλαξεν ἡμῖν. Τότε δὴ καὶ τὴν κόρην εἶδον τὰ ἐμὰ μιμουμένην καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ πίνουσαν καὶ ἔχαιρον ἤδη πλέον. Καὶ τρίτον ἐγένετο τοῦτο καὶ τέταρτον καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν τῆς ἡμέρας οὕτως ἀλλήλοις προὐπίνομεν τὰ φιλήματα.

  9. When the time for dinner came, we drank with one another as before. Satyrus was serving the wine, and he devised a trick such as lovers enjoy. He exchanged our cups, giving mine to Leucippe and hers to me, after he had put in the wine and made the mixture: I had observed which part of the cup she had touched when drinking, and then set my own lips upon the same place when I drank myself, so that as my mouth touched the brim I seemed to be sending her a kiss by proxy: when she saw this, she comprehended at once that I was glad enough to kiss even the shadow of her lips. Presently Satyrus once more stole away the cups and again exchanged them: then I saw her copying my procedure and drinking from the same spot where I had drunk, and at this I was still more delighted. This happened a third and a fourth time, and indeed for the rest of that evening we were thus pledging kisses to one another.

  [1] Μετὰ δὲ τὸ δεῖπνον ὁ Σάτυρός μοι προσελθὼν ἔφη ‘νῦν μὲν ἀνδρίζεσθαι καιρός. Ἡ γὰρ μήτηρ τῆς κόρης, ὡς οἶδας, μαλακίζεται καὶ καθ̓ αὑτὴν ἀναπαύεται: μόνη δὲ ἡ παῖς βαδιεῖται κατὰ τὰ εἰθισμένα τῆς Κλειοῦς ἑπομένης, πρὶν ἐπὶ τὸν ὕπνον τραπῆναι. [2] Ἐγὼ δέ σοι ταύτην ἀπάξω διαλεγόμενος.’ Ταῦτα εἰπὼν τῇ Κλειοῖ μὲν αὐτός, ἐγὼ δὲ τῇ παιδὶ διαλαχόντες ἐφηδρεύομεν. Καὶ οὕτως ἐγένετο. Ἀπεσπάσθη καὶ ἡ Κλειώ, ἡ δὲ παρθένος ἐν τῷ περιπάτῳ καταλέλειπτο. [3] Ἐπιτηρήσας οὖν ὅτε τὸ πολὺ τῆς αὐγῆς ἐμαραίνετο, πρόσειμι θρασύτερος γενόμενος πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐκ τῆς πρώτης προσβολῆς, ὥσπερ στρατιώτης ἤδη νενικηκὼς καὶ τοῦ πολέμου καταπεφρονηκώς: πολλὰ γὰρ ἦν τὰ τότε ὁπλίζοντά με θαρρεῖν, οἶνος, ἔρως, ἐλπίς, ἐρημία: καὶ οὐδὲν εἰπών, ἀλλ̓ ὡς ἀπὸ συγκειμένου λόγου, ὡς εἶχον, περιχυθεὶς τὴν κόρην κατεφίλουν. [4] Ὡς δὲ καὶ ἐπεχείρουν τι προὔργου ποιεῖν, ψόφος τις ἡμῶν κατόπιν γίνεται: καὶ ταραχθέντες ἀνεπηδήσαμεν. Καὶ ἡ μὲν ἐπέκεινα τρέπεται τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ δωμάτιον αὑτῆς, ἐγὼ δὲ ἐπὶ θάτερα, σφόδρα ἀνιώμενος, ἔργον οὕτω καλὸν ἀπολέσας, [5] καὶ τὸν ψόφον λοιδορῶν. Ἐν τούτῳ δὲ ὁ Σάτυρος ὑπαντιάζει μοι φαιδρῷ τῷ προσώπῳ: καθορᾶν γάρ μοι ἐδόκει ὅσα ἐπράττομεν, ὑπό τινι τῶν δένδρων λοχῶν μή τις ἡμῖν ἐπέλθῃ: καὶ αὐτὸς ἦν ὁ ποιήσας τὸν ψόφον, προσιόντα θεασάμενός τινα.