Sophocles' Ajax 295-310
Kacey King /
- Created on 2018-05-09 03:26:46
- Modified on 2018-05-09 03:36:48
- Translated by Kacey King
- Aligned by Kacey King
Ἑλληνική Transliterate
English
καὶ τὰς ἐκεῖ μὲν οὐκ ἔχω λέγειν πάθας :
ἔσω δ᾽ ἐσῆλθε συνδέτους ἄγων ὁμοῦ
ταύρους , κύνας βοτῆρας , εὔερόν τ᾽ ἄγραν .
καὶ τοὺς μὲν ηὐχένιζε , τοὺς δ᾽ ἄνω τρέπων
ἔσφαζε κἀρράχιζε , τοὺς δὲ δεσμίους
ᾐκίζεθ᾽ ὥστε φῶτας ἐν ποίμναις πίτνων .
τέλος δ᾽ ὑπᾴξας διὰ θυρῶν σκιᾷ τινι
λόγους ἀνέσπα , τοὺς μὲν Ἀτρειδῶν κάτα ,
τοὺς δ᾽ ἀμφ᾽ Ὀδυσσεῖ , συντιθεὶς γέλων πολύν ,
ὅσην κατ᾽ αὐτῶν ὕβριν ἐκτίσαιτ᾽ ἰών :
κἄπειτ᾽ ἐπᾴξας αὖθις ἐς δόμους πάλιν ,
ἔμφρων μόλις πως ξὺν χρόνῳ καθίσταται ,
καὶ πλῆρες ἄτης ὡς διοπτεύει στέγος ,
παίσας κάρα ' θώϋξεν : ἐν δ᾽ ἐρειπίοις
νεκρῶν ἐρειφθεὶς ἕζετ᾽ ἀρνείου φόνου ,
κόμην ἀπρὶξ ὄνυξι συλλαβὼν χερί .
ἔσω δ᾽ ἐσῆλθε συνδέτους ἄγων ὁμοῦ
ταύρους , κύνας βοτῆρας , εὔερόν τ᾽ ἄγραν .
καὶ τοὺς μὲν ηὐχένιζε , τοὺς δ᾽ ἄνω τρέπων
ἔσφαζε κἀρράχιζε , τοὺς δὲ δεσμίους
ᾐκίζεθ᾽ ὥστε φῶτας ἐν ποίμναις πίτνων .
τέλος δ᾽ ὑπᾴξας διὰ θυρῶν σκιᾷ τινι
λόγους ἀνέσπα , τοὺς μὲν Ἀτρειδῶν κάτα ,
τοὺς δ᾽ ἀμφ᾽ Ὀδυσσεῖ , συντιθεὶς γέλων πολύν ,
ὅσην κατ᾽ αὐτῶν ὕβριν ἐκτίσαιτ᾽ ἰών :
κἄπειτ᾽ ἐπᾴξας αὖθις ἐς δόμους πάλιν ,
ἔμφρων μόλις πως ξὺν χρόνῳ καθίσταται ,
καὶ πλῆρες ἄτης ὡς διοπτεύει στέγος ,
παίσας κάρα ' θώϋξεν : ἐν δ᾽ ἐρειπίοις
νεκρῶν ἐρειφθεὶς ἕζετ᾽ ἀρνείου φόνου ,
κόμην ἀπρὶξ ὄνυξι συλλαβὼν χερί .
Tecmessa
I cannot tell what happened there ,
but he came inside leading them bound together ,
bulls and herding dogs and his fleecy prey .
For some he beheaded them , others twisting them upwards
he slit their throats or cut through the spine
as if he were falling upon men in place of sheep .
Finally darting out through the doors
he uttered words to some shadow--now against the sons of Atreus ,
Now about Odysseus , laughing much
at how much violence he exacted on them while going .
After that he rushed once more back into the house again ,
with time somehow only just coming into his senses .
And as he looked into the room full of ruin ,
he struck his head and cried aloud , and having fallen
into the wreck of corpses of the slaughtered sheep , he sat down ,
grasping his hair tight with the nails of his hand .
I cannot tell what happened there ,
but he came inside leading them bound together ,
bulls and herding dogs and his fleecy prey .
For some he beheaded them , others twisting them upwards
he slit their throats or cut through the spine
as if he were falling upon men in place of sheep .
Finally darting out through the doors
he uttered words to some shadow--now against the sons of Atreus ,
Now about Odysseus , laughing much
at how much violence he exacted on them while going .
After that he rushed once more back into the house again ,
with time somehow only just coming into his senses .
And as he looked into the room full of ruin ,
he struck his head and cried aloud , and having fallen
into the wreck of corpses of the slaughtered sheep , he sat down ,
grasping his hair tight with the nails of his hand .