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1. (Fr. 1)
. . . Polydeukes . . .
I pay no heed to Lykaithos among the dead,
but Enarsphoros and swift footed Sebros,
and ... the violent,
and ... in his helmet, (5)
and Euteiches and lord Areios
and ... ... the most eminent of demi-gods;
and ... ... the commander
. . . the great, and Eurytos
. . . in the battle rout (10)
. . . those who were bravest,
. . . shall we pass over.
They were defeated by Destiny
and Contrivance, oldest of all
the gods. The valor of humankind (15)
must not, unshod, take wing to heaven,
nor attempt to marry Aphrodite
the Cyprian queen, or some . . .
. . . or a daughter of Porkos
. . . but the Graces . . . Zeus's house (20)
. . . with love in their glances.
[six lines missing]
. . . youth perished
[two lines missing]
. . . went; one of them by an arrow, (30)
. . . by a marble millstone . . .
. . . Hades . . .
[one line missing]
. . . and unforgettable things
they suffered, having devised deeds of wickedness.
(35)
There is such a thing as retribution
from the gods.
That man is blessed who with cheerful heart
weaves out his day
free from tears. I, for my part, sing
of Agido's radiant light; I see (40)
her as the sun, which on our behalf
Agido summons to shine
as witness. But I can neither praise
nor censure her: our illustrious chorus leader
forbids it utterly, for she herself appears (45)
to stand out as supreme, just as if one
were to set among grazing herds a horse
of sturdy build, a prize winning champion with clattering
hooves,
one of those winged steeds in dreams.
You see her, don't you? The racehorse
(50)
is Enetic; but the hair
of my cousin
Hagesichora has a bloom upon it
as of pure gold,
and her silvery face-- (55)
why do I tell you openly?
Here she is, Hagesichora!
But she who is second to Agido in beauty
will run as a Colaxaian with an Ibenian;
for while we carry (60)
a plough to Her of the Morning Twilight,
the Pleiades, rising through the ambrosial night
like the star Sirios, fight against us.
No abundance of crimson cloth
is great enough to ward them off, (65)
no intricate snake,
all gold, nor headband
from Lydia, ornament
of soft eyed girls,
nor even Nanno's tresses, (70)
nor yet again Areta, like a goddess in looks,
nor Thylakis and Kleesithera;
nor, going to Ainesimbrota's, will you say:
"May Astaphis be mine,
may Philylla turn her gaze this way, (75)
and Damareta and lovely Ianthemis"--
no, it is Hagesichora who makes me pine.
For is not the lovely ankled
Hagesichora present here,
remaining near Agido (80)
and praising our festival?
Accept, O gods,
their prayers: for to gods belong fulfillment
and consummation. O leader of the chorus,
I would say that alone I am (85)
only a girl screeching at random like an owl
from a rafter, though I also yearn most of all
to please Her of the Dawn, for of our troubles
she has proved herself a healer.
But it is through Hagesichora that girls (90)
have set their feet on the paths of lovely peace.
For the trace horse
in the same way must be . . .
and in a ship as well the helmsman
most of all must be heeded. (95)
The Sirens, it is true,
have more songful voices,
for they are goddesses, but set against eleven
she sings like ten young girls;
her utterance rings as clear as that of a swan upon the
streams (100)
of Xanthos; and she, with her lovely yellow tresses. .
[4 lines missing]
2. (Fr. 3)
Muses of Olympos, fill my heart
with yearning for a new song:
I am eager to hear
the maidenly voice
of girls singing a lovely tune to the sky (5)
[one line missing]
. . . will scatter sweet sleep from my eyelids,
and leads me to go into the assembly
. . . where I shall shake my yellow hair....
. . . tender feet . . .
[lines 11-60 missing]
. . . with desire that loosens limbs, and more meltingly
than sleep or death she casts her glances:
not to no purpose is she sweet.
But Astymeloisa offers me no
answer;
rather, holding the garland, (65)
like a star flashing through
the radiant heavens,
or a golden sapling, or soft down ....
[one line missing]
. . . she stepped through on tapered feet; (70)
making her locks beautiful, the moist charm of Kinyras
sits on the maiden's flowing hair.
. . . through the crowd
Astymeloisa
makes her way as the people's darling . . .
. . . taking . . . (75)
. . . I say . . .
. . . if only a silver cup . . .
[one line missing]
. . . to see if she might love me . . .
. . . coming closer, she might take my tender hand, (80)
immediately I would become her suppliant . . .
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SONG FOR A CHOIR OF
VIRGINS
(The choir
consists of ten virgins. The half choirs speak in the first
person singular, in friendly rivalry, each praising its own
half choir leaders.)
THE WHOLE
CHOIR
There is a vengeance from the gods,
but happy is the man who weaves the fabric of his days with
peace,
and without tears.
AGIDO'S
HALF-CHOIR
But I sing
of Agido's light. I see her
like the sun who shines on us
by order of Agido.
HAGESICHORA'S
HALF-CHOIR
Our splendid
leader will not have us praise
or abuse her, for her brilliance
is as if among a herd of cattle
one had set a champion racehorse,
sinewy, strong, with thunder ringing hooves,
a creature from a dream with wings.
Do you see? The horse is Venetian,
and the mane of our cousin
Hagesichora is a blossom
of the purest gold,
and below is her silver face.
Can I tell you this more clearly?
There you have Hagesichora.
In beauty she may be second to Agido
but she will run like a
Skythian horse against a Lydian racer.
For as we carry Orthria's plow
so the Pleiades of dawn will rise
and strive against us
like the burning star of Sirios through the ambrosial
night.
AGIDO'S
HALF-CHOIR
All our wealth of purple dye
or the dappled snake of full gold
about our wrist or our Lydian
wimple that is the sweet glory
of all these tender eyed girls,
no, nothing will keep them off.
Not Nanno's soft braids,
nor Areta's godlike beauty,
neither Thylakis nor Kleësisera.
HAGESICHORA'S
HALF-CHOIR
You need not go to Ainesimbrota
and say: let Astaphis be mine,
have Philylla look my way,
and Damareta and darling Ianthemis.
For Hagesichora is our saviour.
Is Hagesichora of the lovely
ankles not right here with us?
AGIDO'S
HALF-CHOIR
Yes, she waits by our Agido,
and commends our ceremonies.
O gods, receive our prayers,
for you determine everything
accomplished. My choir leader,
I tell you I a girl shrieked
in vain like an owl
from the roof tops.
HAGESICHORA S
HALF CHOIR
But my great wish
is to please the Lady of the Dawn
who has healed our sore wounds.
Only Hagesichora could give
her girls the peace they desired.
THE WHOLE
CHOIR
A great chariot simply follows
the course of its trace horse;
in a vessel all must swiftly
heed the shouting of the helmsman,
so our combined choir may not
sing more sweetly than the Sirens--
for they are gods--but how we sang,
we ten girls with even one away!
And her song is like a swan
by the Xanthos river, and she
with the splendor of her blond hair.
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