Works of Nonnus

by Nonnus

  καὶ σοφὸν ἀγρεύσαντες ὁμόχρονον ὄρνιν ἐλαίης

  αἰετὸν ὑψιπέτην ἱερεύσατε κυανοχαίτῃ,

  495 λύθρον ἐπισπένδοντες ἁλιπλανέεσσι κολώναις

  καὶ Διὶ καὶ μακάρεσσι: καὶ ἄστατος οὐκέτι πέτρη

  πλάζεται ὑγροφόρητος, ἀκινήτοις δὲ θεμέθλοις

  αὐτομάτη ζωσθεῖσα συνάπτεται ἄζυγι πέτρῃ.

  πήξατε δ᾽ ἀμφοτέραις ἐπικείμενον ἄστυ κολώναις

  500 ἀμφοτέρης ἑκάτερθεν ἐπὶ κρηπῖδι θαλάσσης.’

  [493] “‘You must catch this wise bird, the highflying eagle agemate of the olive, and sacrifice him to Seabluehair. Pour out his blood on the seawandering cliffs to Zeus and the Blessed. Then the rock wanders no longer driven over the waters; but it is fixed upon immovable foundations and unites itself bound to the free rock. Found upon both rocks a builded city, with quays on two seas, on both sides.’

  τοῖον ἔπος μαντῷον ἀνήρυγον: ἐγρόμενοι δὲ

  Γηγενέες δεδόνηντο, καὶ οὔασιν αἰὲν ἑκάστου

  θέσκελος ἀπλανέων ἐπεβόμβεε μῦθος ὀνείρων.

  τοῖσι δ᾽ ἐγὼ τέρας ἄλλο μετὰ πτερόεντας ὀνείρους

  505 ἀχνυμένοις ἀνέφηνα, φιλόκτιτον ἦθος ἀέξων

  ἐσσόμενος πολιοῦχος: ὑπερκύψας δὲ θαλάσσης

  ἀντίτυπον μίμημα φέρων ἰσόζυγι μορφῇ

  εἰς πλόον αὐτοδίδακτον ἐνήχετο ναυτίλος ἰχθύς:

  τὸν τότε παπταίνοντες ἐοικότα νηὶ θαλάσσης

  510 καὶ πλόον εὐποίητον ἄτερ καμάτοιο μαθόντες,

  καὶ σχεδίην πήξαντες ὁμοίιον ἰχθύι πόντου

  ναυτιλίης τύπον ἶσον ἐμιμήσαντο θαλάσσης.

  καὶ πλόος ἦν: πισύρων δὲ λίθων ἰσοελκέι φόρτῳ

  ναυτιλίην ἰσόμετρον ἐπιστώσαντο θαλάσσῃ,

  515 καὶ γεράνων ἀτίνακτον ἐμιμήσαντο πορείην.

  αἳ στομάτων ἔντοσθεν ἀοσσητῆρα κελεύθου

  λᾶαν ἐλαφρίζουσι καταχθέα, μή ποτε κείνων

  ἱπταμένων πτερὰ κοῦφα παραπλάγξειεν ἀήτης,

  εἰσόκε χῶρον ἐκεῖνον ἐσέδρακον, ἧχι θυέλλαις

  520 εἰς πλόον αὐτοκέλευθον ἐναυτίλλοντο κολῶναι.

  [501] “Such was my prophetic message. The Earthborn awaking were stirred, and the divine message of the unerring dreams still rang in the ears of each. I showed yet another marvel after the winged dreams to these troubled ones, indulging my mood of founding cities, myself destined to be City-holder: out of the sea popped a nautilus fish, perfect image of what I meant and shaped like a ship, sailing on its voyage selftaught. Thus observing this creature so like a ship of the sea, they learnt without trouble how to make a voyage, they built a craft like to a fish of the deep and imitated its navigation of the sea. Then came a voyage: with four stones of an equal weight they trusted their balanced navigation to the sea, imitating the steady flight of the crane; for she carries a ballast-stone in her mouth to help her course, lest the wind should beat her light wings aside as she flies. They went on until they saw that place, where the rocks were driven by the gales to navigate by themselves.

  καὶ σχεδίην ἔστησαν ἁλιστεφάνῳ παρὰ νήσῳ,

  καὶ σπιλάδων ἐπέβαινον, ὅπῃ φυτὸν ἦεν Ἀθήνης.

  τοῖσι δὲ μαιομένοισιν ἐφέστιον ὄρνιν ἐλαίης

  αἰετὸς ἠερόφοιτος ἑκούσιον εἰς μόρον ἔστη:

  525 Γηγενέες δὲ λαβόντες ἐύπτερον ἔνθεον ἄγρην,

  ἂψ ἀνασειράζοντες ὀπισθοτόνοιο καρήνου

  γυμνὸν ἐφαπλώσαντες ἐλεύθερον ἀνθερεῶνα,

  αἰετὸν αὐτοκέλευθον ἐδαιτρεύσαντο μαχαίρῃ

  Ζηνὶ καὶ ὑγρομέδοντι: δαϊζομένου δὲ σιδήρῳ

  530 ἔμφρονος οἰωνοῖο νεοσφαγέων ἀπὸ λαιμῶν

  θέσκελον ἔρρεεν αἷμα, θαλασσοπόρους δὲ κολώνας

  δαιμονίαις λιβάδεσσιν ἐπερρίζωσε θαλάσσῃ

  ἄγχι Τύρου παρὰ πόντον: ἐπ᾽ ἀρραγέεσσι δὲ πέτραις

  Γηγενέες βαθύκολπον ἐδωμήσαντο τιθήνην.

  [521] “There they stayed their craft beside the seagirt isle, and climbed the cliffs where the tree of Athena stood. When they tried to catch the eagle which was at home on the olive tree, he flew down willingly and awaited his fate. The Earthborn took their winged prey inspired, and drawing the head backwards they stretched out the neck free and bare, they sacrificed with the knife that selfsurrendered eagle to Zeus and the Lord of the waters. As the sage bird was sacrificed, the blood of prophecy gushed from the throat newly cut, and with those divine drops rooted the seafaring rocks at the bottom near to Tyre on the sea; and upon those unassailable rocks the Earthborn built up their deepbreasted nurse.

  535 σοὶ μέν, ἄναξ Διόνυσε, πεδοτρεφὲς αἷμα Γιγάντων

  ἔννεπον αὐτολόχευτον Ὀλύμπιον, ὄφρα δαείης

  ὑμετέρων προγόνων Τυρίην αὐτόχθονα φύτλην:

  ἀμφὶ δὲ πηγάων μυθήσομαι: ἀρχέγονοι γὰρ

  παρθενικαὶ πάρος ἦσαν ἐχέφρονες, ὧν ἐπὶ μίτρῃ

  540 θερμὸς Ἔρως κεχόλωτο, καὶ ἱμερόεν βέλος ἕλκων

  τοῖον ἀλεξιγάμοισιν ἔπος ξυνώσατο Νύμφαις:

  Ν̔ηὶς Ἀβαρβαρέη φιλοπάρθενε, δέξο καὶ αὐτὴ

  τοῦτο βέλος, τό περ ἔσχεν ὅλη φύσις: ἐνθάδε πήξω

  παστάδα Καλλιρόης, Δροσερῆς δ᾽ ὑμέναιον ἀείσω.

  545 ἀλλ᾽ ἐρέεις: ‘μεθέπω διερὸν γένος, ἐκ δὲ ῥοάων

  αὐτοτελὴς γενόμην, καὶ ἐμὴ τροφὸς ἔπλετο πηγή.’

  νηιὰς ἦν Κλυμένη καὶ ἀπόσπορος Ὠκεανοῖο:

  ἀλλὰ γάμοις ὑπόειξεν, ἐνυμφεύθη δὲ καὶ αὐτή,

  ὡς ἴδε λάτριν Ἔρωτος ἀρείονα κυανοχαίτην

  550 οἴστρῳ Κυπριδίῳ δεδονημένον: ἀρχέγονος δὲ

  Ὠκεανὸς ποταμοῖσι καὶ ὕδασι πᾶσι κελεύων

  Τηθύος οἶδεν ἔρωτα καὶ εὐύδρους ὑμεναίους.

  τέτλαθι καὶ σὺ φέρειν ἴσα Τηθύι. τοσσατίης δὲ

  ἐξ ἁλὸς αἷμα φέρουσα καὶ οὐκ ὀλίγης ἀπὸ πηγῆς

  555 ἱμείρει Γαλάτεια μελιζομένου Πολυφήμου,

  καὶ βυθίη χερσαῖον ἔχει πόσιν, ἐκ δὲ θαλάσσης

  πηκτίδι θελγομένη μετανάστιος εἰς χθόνα βαί�
�ει.

  καὶ πηγαὶ δεδάασιν ἐμὸν βέλος: οὔ σε διδάξω

  ἵμερον ὑδατόεντα: ποθοβλήτοιο δὲ πηγῆς

  560 ἔκλυες ὑγρὸν ἔρωτα Συρηκοσίης Ἀρεθούσης:

  Ἀλφειὸν δεδάηκας, ὃς ἰκμαλέῳ παρὰ παστῷ

  ὑδρηλαῖς παλάμαις περιβάλλεται ἠθάδα Νύμφην.

  πηγῆς αἷμα φέρουσα τί τέρπεαι ἰοχεαίρῃ;

  Ἄρτεμις οὐ βλάστησεν ἀφ᾽ ὕδατος, ὡς Ἀφροδίτη.

  ἔννεπε Καλλιρόῃ: Δροσερῇ μὴ κρύπτε καὶ αὐτῇ.

  565 Κύπριδι μᾶλλον ὄφελλες ἄγειν χάριν, ὅττι καὶ αὐτὴ

  αὐχένα κάμψεν Ἔρωτι, καὶ εἰ τροφός ἐστιν Ἐρώτων.

  δέχνυσο κέντρα πόθοιο, καὶ ὑγρονόμον σε καλέσσω

  εἰς γενεήν, ἐς ἔρωτα κασιγνήτην Ἀφροδίτης.᾿

  570 τοῖον ἔπος κατέλεξεν: ὀπισθοτόνοιο δὲ τόξου

  τριπλόα πέμπε βέλεμνα, καὶ εὐύδρῳ παρὰ παστῷ

  Νηιάδων φιλότητι συνήρμοσεν υἷας ἀρούρης,

  καὶ Τυρίης ἔσπειρε θεηγενὲς αἷμα γενέθλης.’

  [535] “There, Lord Dionysos, I have told you of the soilbred race of the Earthborn, selfborn, Olympian, that you might know how the Tyrian breed of your ancestors sprang out of the earth. Now I will speak of the fountains. In the olden days they were chaste maidens primeval, but hot Eros was angered against their maiden girdles, and drawing a shaft of love he spoke thus to the marriage-hating nymphs: ‘Naiad Abarbarie, so fond of your maidenhood, you too receive this shaft, which nature has felt. Here I will build Callirhoe’s bridechamber, here I will sing Drosera’s wedding hymn — But you will say, Mine is a watery race, I came selfborn from the streams, and my nurse was a fountain. — Yes, Clymene was a Naiad, and the offspring of Oceanos; but she yielded to wedlock, she also was a bride, when she saw Seabluehair the mighty a lackey of Eros, and shaken with the passion of Cypris. Primeval Oceanos, who commands all rivers and waters, knows love for Tethys and a watery wedding. Make the best of it, and endure as Tethys did. Another sprung from the sea so great and not from a little fountain, Galateia, has desire for melodious Polyphemos; the deepsea maiden has a husband from the land, she migrates from sea to land, enchanted by the lute. Fountains also have known my shafts. I need not teach you of love in the waters; you have heard of the watery passion of Syracusan Arethusa, that lovestricken fountain; you have heard of Alpheios, who in a watery bower embraces the indwelling nymph with watery hands. You — the offspring of a fountain — why are you pleased with the Archeress? Artemis did not come from the water like Aphrodite. Tell that to Callirhoe, do not hide it from Drosera herself. You ought rather to please Cypris, because she herself bent her neck to Eros even though she is nurse of the loves. Accept the stings of desire, and I will call you by birth one waterwalking, by love sister of Aphrodite.’ So he spoke; and from his backbent bow let fly three shots. Then in that watery bower he joined in love sons of the soil to the Naiads, and sowed the divine race of your family.”

  τοῖα μὲν Ἡρακλέης πρόμος αἰθέρος ἔννεπε Βάκχῳ

  575 τερψινόοις ὀάροισιν: ὁ δέ φρένα τέρπετο μύθῳ,

  καὶ πόρεν Ἡρακλῆι, τὸν οὐρανίη κάμε τέχνη,

  χρυσοφαῆ κρητῆρα σελασφόρον: Ἡρακλέης δὲ

  ἀστραίῳ Διόνυσον ἀνεχλαίνωσε χιτῶνι

  [574] So much Heracles leader of heaven said to Bacchos in pleasant gossip. He was delighted at heart by the tale, and offered to Heracles a mixing-bowl of gold bright and shining, which the art of heaven had made; Heracles clad Dionysos in a starry robe.

  καὶ θεὸν ἀστροχίτωνα Τύρου πολιοῦχον ἐάσας

  580 Ἀσσυρίης ἑτέρης ἐπεβήσατο Βάκχος ἀρούρης.

  [579] Then Bacchos left the Starclad god, cityholder of Tyre, and went on to another district of Assyria.

  BOOK 41

  πρῶτον τεσσαρακοστὸν ἔχει, πίθεν υἱέι Μύρρης

  ἄλλην Κύπριν ἔτικτεν Ἀμυμώνην Ἀφροδίτη.

  ἄρτι μέν ὀφρυόεντος ὑπὲρ Λιβάνοιο καρήνων

  πήξας ἀγλαόκαρπον ἐπὶ χθονὶ βότρυν ὀπώρης

  οἰνοτόκους ἐμέθυσσεν ὅλης κενεῶνας ἀρούρης:

  καὶ Παφίης δόμον εἶδε γαμήλιον: ἡμερίδων δὲ

  5 ἔρνεσιν ἀρτιφύτοισι βαθύσκιον ἄλσος ἐρέψας

  ἀμπελόεν πόρε δῶρον Ἀδώνιδι καὶ Κυθερείῃ.

  καὶ Χαρίτων χορὸς ἦεν: ἀεξιφύτοιο δὲ λόχμης

  ἡμερίδων ζωστῆρι θορὼν ἐπιβήτορι παλμῷ

  κισσὸς ἀερσιπότητος ἐμιτρώθη κυπαρίσσῳ

  BOOK XLI

  The forty-first tells how Aphrodite bore Amymone a second Cypris to the son of Myrrha.

  ALREADY he had planted in the earth the clustering vintage of his glorious fruit under the beetling crags of Lebanon, and intoxicated all the winebearing bottoms of the land. He saw the wedding-chamber of Paphia; there with newgrown shoots of the gardenvine he roofed a deep-shaded grove, then presented the viny gift to Adonis and Cythereia. There was also a troop of Graces; and from the luxuriant coppice high leapt the ivy in his girdle of cultivated vine, and climbed aloft embracing the cypress.

  10 ἀλλὰ θεμιστοπόλου Βερόης παρὰ γείτονι πέζῃ

  ὕμνον Ἀμυμώνης, Λιβανηίδες εἴπατε Μοῦσαι,

  καὶ βυθίου Κρονίδαο καὶ εὐύμνοιο Λυαίου

  [10] Come now, ye Muses of Lebanon on the neighbouring land of Beroe, that handmaiden of law! recite the lay of Amymone, the war between Cronides of the deep and well-besung Lyaios, the war of waters and the strife of the vine.

  Ἄρεα κυματόεντα καὶ ἀμπελόεσσαν Ἐνυώ.

  ἔστι πόλις Βερόη, βιότου τρόπις, ὅρμος Ἐρώτων,

  15 ποντοπαγής, εὔνησος, ἐύχλοος, οὖ ῥάχις ἰσθμοῦ

  στεινὴ μῆκος ἔχοντος, ὅπῃ διδύμης μέσος ἅλμης

  κύμασιν ἀμφοτέροισιν ἱμάσσεται ὄρθιος αὐχήν:

  ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν βαθύδενδρον ὑπὸ ῥάχιν αἴθοπος Εὔρου

  Ἀσσυρίῳ Λιβάνῳ παραπέπταται, ἧχι πολίταις

  20 ὄρθια συρίζουσα βιοσσόος ἔρχεται αὔρη,

  εὐόδμοις ἀνέμοισι τινασσομένων κυπαρίσσων...

  σύννομος ἰχθυβολῆι γέρων ἐμελίζετο ποιμήν.

  καί δόμος ἀγρονόμων, ὅθι πολλάκις ἐγγύθι λόχμης

  Πανὶ μελιζομένῳ δρεπανηφόρος ἤντετο Δηώ,

  καί τις ἐφ᾽ ἱστοβοῆι γεωμόρος αὐχένα κάμψας,

  25 ῥαίνων ἀρτιχάρακτον ὀπισθοβόλῳ χθόνα καρπῷ,

  γείτονι μηλοβοτῆρι παρὰ σφυρὰ φορβάδος ὕλης,

  σφίγξας σύζυγα ταῦρον, ὁμίλεε κυρτὸς ἀροτρεύς.
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  ἄλλα δὲ πὰρ πελάγεσσιν ἔχει πόλις, ἧχι τιταίνει

  στέρνα Ποσειδάωνι, καὶ ἔμβρυον αὐχένα κούρης

  30 πήχεϊ μυδαλέῳ περιβάλλεται ὑγρὸς ἀκοίτης,

  πέμπων ὑδατόεντα φιλήματα χείλεσι νύμφης:

  καὶ βυθίη ἀπὸ χειρὸς ὁμευνέτις ἠθάδι κόλπῳ

  ἕδνα Ποσειδάωνος ἁλίτροφα πώεα λίμνης

  δέχνυται, ἰχθυόεντα πολύχροα δεῖπνα τραπέζης,

  35 εἰναλίῃ Νηρῆος ἐπισκαίροντα τραπέζῃ,

  ἀρκτῴην παρὰ πέζαν, ὅπῃ βαθυκύμονος ἀκτῆς

  μηκεδανῷ κενεῶνι βορήιος ἕλκεται αὐλών.

  ἀμφὶ δέ τερψινόοιο μεσημβρινὸν αὐχένα γαίης

  εἰς ῥαχίην Νοτίην ψαμαθώδεές εἰσιν ἀταρποὶ

  40 εἰς χθόνα Σιδονίην, ὅθι ποικίλα δένδρεα κήπων

  καὶ σταφυλαὶ κομόωσι, τανυπτόρθοις δὲ πετήλοις

  δάσκιος ἀπλανέεσσι τιταίνεται οἶμος ὁδίταις.

  δοχμώσας δὲ ῥέεθρον ἐπ᾽ ᾐόνι πόντος ἀράσσει

  ἀμφὶ δύσιν κυανωπόν, ὅπῃ λιγυηχέι ταρσῷ

  45 ἑσπερίων Ζεφύροιο καθιππεύοντος ἐναύλων

  συριγμῷ δροσόεντι Λίβυς ῥιπίζεται ἀγκών,

  ἀνθεμόεις ὅθι χῶρος, ὅπῃ παρὰ γείτονι πόντῳ

  φυταλιαὶ θαλέουσι, καὶ εὐπετάλων ἀπὸ δένδρων

  ἄσθματι βομβήεντι μελίζεται ἔμπνοος ὕλη.