Iliad book 24 line 507-551
Joyce Yang /
- Created on 2022-05-14 05:46:50
- Translated by Joyce Yang
- Aligned by Joyce Yang
Ἑλληνική Transliterate
English
ὣς φάτο , τῷ δ᾽ ἄρα πατρὸς ὑφ᾽ ἵμερον ὦρσε γόοιο :
ἁψάμενος δ᾽ ἄρα χειρὸς ἀπώσατο ἦκα γέροντα .
τὼ δὲ μνησαμένω ὃ μὲν Ἕκτορος ἀνδροφόνοιο
510κλαῖ᾽ ἁδινὰ προπάροιθε ποδῶν Ἀχιλῆος ἐλυσθείς ,
αὐτὰρ Ἀχιλλεὺς κλαῖεν ἑὸν πατέρ᾽ , ἄλλοτε δ᾽ αὖτε
Πάτροκλον : τῶν δὲ στοναχὴ κατὰ δώματ᾽ ὀρώρει .
αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥα γόοιο τετάρπετο δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς ,
καί οἱ ἀπὸ πραπίδων ἦλθ᾽ ἵμερος ἠδ᾽ ἀπὸ γυίων ,
515αὐτίκ᾽ ἀπὸ θρόνου ὦρτο , γέροντα δὲ χειρὸς ἀνίστη
οἰκτίρων πολιόν τε κάρη πολιόν τε γένειον ,
καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα :
‘ἆ δείλ᾽ , ἦ δὴ πολλὰ κάκ᾽ ἄνσχεο σὸν κατὰ θυμόν .
πῶς ἔτλης ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν ἐλθέμεν οἶος
520ἀνδρὸς ἐς ὀφθαλμοὺς ὅς τοι πολέας τε καὶ ἐσθλοὺς
υἱέας ἐξενάριξα ; σιδήρειόν νύ τοι ἦτορ .
ἀλλ᾽ ἄγε δὴ κατ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἕζευ ἐπὶ θρόνου , ἄλγεα δ᾽ ἔμπης
ἐν θυμῷ κατακεῖσθαι ἐάσομεν ἀχνύμενοί περ :
οὐ γάρ τις πρῆξις πέλεται κρυεροῖο γόοιο :
525ὡς γὰρ ἐπεκλώσαντο θεοὶ δειλοῖσι βροτοῖσι
ζώειν ἀχνυμένοις : αὐτοὶ δέ τ᾽ ἀκηδέες εἰσί .
δοιοὶ γάρ τε πίθοι κατακείαται ἐν Διὸς οὔδει
δώρων οἷα δίδωσι κακῶν , ἕτερος δὲ ἑάων :
ᾧ μέν κ᾽ ἀμμίξας δώῃ Ζεὺς τερπικέραυνος ,
530ἄλλοτε μέν τε κακῷ ὅ γε κύρεται , ἄλλοτε δ᾽ ἐσθλῷ :
ᾧ δέ κε τῶν λυγρῶν δώῃ , λωβητὸν ἔθηκε ,
καί ἑ κακὴ βούβρωστις ἐπὶ χθόνα δῖαν ἐλαύνει ,
φοιτᾷ δ᾽ οὔτε θεοῖσι τετιμένος οὔτε βροτοῖσιν .
ὣς μὲν καὶ Πηλῆϊ θεοὶ δόσαν ἀγλαὰ δῶρα
535ἐκ γενετῆς : πάντας γὰρ ἐπ᾽ ἀνθρώπους ἐκέκαστο
ὄλβῳ τε πλούτῳ τε , ἄνασσε δὲ Μυρμιδόνεσσι ,
καί οἱ θνητῷ ἐόντι θεὰν ποίησαν ἄκοιτιν .
ἀλλ᾽ ἐπὶ καὶ τῷ θῆκε θεὸς κακόν , ὅττί οἱ οὔ τι
παίδων ἐν μεγάροισι γονὴ γένετο κρειόντων ,
540ἀλλ᾽ ἕνα παῖδα τέκεν παναώριον : οὐδέ νυ τόν γε
γηράσκοντα κομίζω , ἐπεὶ μάλα τηλόθι πάτρης
ἧμαι ἐνὶ Τροίῃ , σέ τε κήδων ἠδὲ σὰ τέκνα .
καὶ σὲ γέρον τὸ πρὶν μὲν ἀκούομεν ὄλβιον εἶναι :
ὅσσον Λέσβος ἄνω Μάκαρος ἕδος ἐντὸς ἐέργει
545καὶ Φρυγίη καθύπερθε καὶ Ἑλλήσποντος ἀπείρων ,
τῶν σε γέρον πλούτῳ τε καὶ υἱάσι φασὶ κεκάσθαι .
αὐτὰρ ἐπεί τοι πῆμα τόδ᾽ ἤγαγον Οὐρανίωνες
αἰεί τοι περὶ ἄστυ μάχαι τ᾽ ἀνδροκτασίαι τε .
ἄνσχεο , μὴ δ᾽ ἀλίαστον ὀδύρεο σὸν κατὰ θυμόν :
550οὐ γάρ τι πρήξεις ἀκαχήμενος υἷος ἑῆος ,
οὐδέ μιν ἀνστήσεις , πρὶν καὶ κακὸν ἄλλο πάθῃσθα .
Great
Priam
entered
unnoticed
.
He
stood
Close to Achilles , and touching his knees ,
He kissed the dread and murderous hands
That had killed so many of his sons .
Passion sometimes blinds a man so completely
That he kills one of his own countrymen .
In exile , he comes into a wealthy house ,
And everyone stares at him with wonder .
So Achilles stared in wonder at Priam . Was he a god ?
And the others there stared
And wondered and looked at each other .
But Priam spoke , a prayer of entreaty :
" Remember your father , godlike Achilles .
He and I both are on the doorstep
Of old age . He may well be now
Surrounded by enemies wearing him down
And have no one to protect him from harm .
But then he hears that you are still alive
And his heart rejoices , and he hopes all his days
To see his dear son come back from Troy .
But what is left for me ? I had the finest sons
In all wide Troy , and not one of them is left .
Fifty I had when the Greeks came over ,
Nineteen out of one belly , and the rest
The women in my house bore to me .
It doesn ' t matter how many they were ,
The god of war has cut them down at the knees .
And the only one who could save the city
You ' ve just now killed as he fought for his country ,
My Hector . It is for him I have come to the Greek ships ,
To get him back from you . I ' ve brought
A fortune in ransom . Respect the gods , Achilles .
Think of your own father , and pity me .
I am more pitiable . I have borne what no man
Who has walked this earth has ever yet borne .
I have kissed the hand of the man who killed my son . "
He spoke , and sorrow for his own father
Welled up in Achilles . He took Priam ' s hand
And gently pushed the old man away .
The two of them remembered . Priam ,
Huddled in grief at Achilles ' feet , cried
And moaned softly for his man-slaying Hector .
And Achilles cried for his father and
For Patroclus . The sound filled the room .
Close to Achilles , and touching his knees ,
He kissed the dread and murderous hands
That had killed so many of his sons .
Passion sometimes blinds a man so completely
That he kills one of his own countrymen .
In exile , he comes into a wealthy house ,
And everyone stares at him with wonder .
So Achilles stared in wonder at Priam . Was he a god ?
And the others there stared
And wondered and looked at each other .
But Priam spoke , a prayer of entreaty :
" Remember your father , godlike Achilles .
He and I both are on the doorstep
Of old age . He may well be now
Surrounded by enemies wearing him down
And have no one to protect him from harm .
But then he hears that you are still alive
And his heart rejoices , and he hopes all his days
To see his dear son come back from Troy .
But what is left for me ? I had the finest sons
In all wide Troy , and not one of them is left .
Fifty I had when the Greeks came over ,
Nineteen out of one belly , and the rest
The women in my house bore to me .
It doesn ' t matter how many they were ,
The god of war has cut them down at the knees .
And the only one who could save the city
You ' ve just now killed as he fought for his country ,
My Hector . It is for him I have come to the Greek ships ,
To get him back from you . I ' ve brought
A fortune in ransom . Respect the gods , Achilles .
Think of your own father , and pity me .
I am more pitiable . I have borne what no man
Who has walked this earth has ever yet borne .
I have kissed the hand of the man who killed my son . "
He spoke , and sorrow for his own father
Welled up in Achilles . He took Priam ' s hand
And gently pushed the old man away .
The two of them remembered . Priam ,
Huddled in grief at Achilles ' feet , cried
And moaned softly for his man-slaying Hector .
And Achilles cried for his father and
For Patroclus . The sound filled the room .