Euripides, Bacchae, Johann Jakob Christian Donner (Translator), 73

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Seliger, der, ein Götterfreund,

In den Weihn der Unsterblichen heimisch, das Leben rein

Der im Gebirg' umher

bewahrt,

Göttlichem Sühnefest aufjubelnd, die Seele heiligt,

Und der Kybele, der erhabenen, sich, der Allmutter, geweiht hat,
75

Und emporschwingend den Thyrsos, mit dem Epheu sich das

Zu verherrlichen Dionysos!

Haupt kränzt,

Eilt hinauf ihr, Bacchen, hinauf, ihr, die des Gottes Sohn, den Gott

Dionysos, von den Berghöhen der Phrygier in die weit-

räumigen, volkwimmelnden Gassen von Hellas führten, den
80

Gott,

Erste Gegenstrophe.

Bacchae. Euripides. Johann Jakob Christian Donner (Translator). . .

Current edition Experimental

German (J. J. C. Donner, 1845; OCR review) (OCR draft) (German) (Euripides. Deutsch in den Versmaßen der Urschrift. Volume 2, Heidelberg: C. F. Winter, 1845. Harvard OCR compared with an independent BSB copy. Native Donner verse citations, Murray reference cards, explicitly located notes and page facsimiles. Unresolved OCR, verse divisions, unlocated notes and printed errata are documented in the source review.)

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (1)

Βάκχαι Perseus (Euripides. Euripidis Fabulae, Vol. III. Murray, Gilbert, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913. (Reprinted 1920-1978)) — 64-169 focus

Χορός

Ἀσίας ἀπὸ γᾶς

ἱερὸν Τμῶλον ἀμείψασα θοάζω
65

Βρομίῳ πόνον ἡδὺν

κάματόν τʼ εὐκάματον, Βάκ-

χιον εὐαζομένα.

τίς ὁδῷ τίς ὁδῷ; τίς;

μελάθροις ἔκτοπος ἔστω, στόμα τʼ εὔφη-

μον ἅπας ἐξοσιούσθω·
70

τὰ νομισθέντα γὰρ αἰεὶ

Διόνυσον ὑμνήσω.

73

Χορός

ὦ

μάκαρ, ὅστις εὐδαίμων

τελετὰς θεῶν εἰδὼς

βιοτὰν ἁγιστεύει καὶ

θιασεύεται ψυχὰν
75

ἐν ὄρεσσι βακχεύων

ὁσίοις καθαρμοῖσιν,

τά τε ματρὸς μεγάλας ὄρ-

για Κυβέλας θεμιτεύων,

ἀνὰ θύρσον τε τινάσσων,
80

κισσῷ τε στεφανωθεὶς

Διόνυσον θεραπεύει.

ἴτε βάκχαι, ἴτε βάκχαι,

Βρόμιον παῖδα θεὸν θεοῦ

Διόνυσον κατάγουσαι
85

Φρυγίων ἐξ ὀρέων Ἑλ-

λάδος εἰς εὐρυχόρους ἀ-

γυιάς, τὸν Βρόμιον·

Χορός

ὅν

ποτʼ ἔχουσʼ ἐν ὠδίνων

λοχίαις ἀνάγκαισι

πταμένας Διὸς βροντᾶς νη-
90

δύος ἔκβολον μάτηρ

ἔτεκεν, λιποῦσʼ αἰῶ-

να κεραυνίῳ πληγᾷ·

λοχίοις δʼ αὐτίκα νιν δέ-

ξατο θαλάμαις Κρονίδας Ζεύς,
95

κατὰ μηρῷ δὲ καλύψας

χρυσέαισιν συνερείδει

περόναις κρυπτὸν ἀφʼ Ἥρας.

ἔτεκεν δʼ, ἁνίκα Μοῖραι

τέλεσαν, ταυρόκερων θεὸν
100

στεφάνωσέν τε δρακόντων

στεφάνοις, ἔνθεν ἄγραν θη-

ροτρόφον μαινάδες ἀμφι-

βάλλονται πλοκάμοις.

105

Χορός

ὦ Σεμέλας τροφοὶ Θῆ-
105

βαι, στεφανοῦσθε κισσῷ·

βρύετε βρύετε χλοήρει

μίλακι καλλικάρπῳ

καὶ καταβακχιοῦσθε δρυὸς

ἢ ἐλάτας κλάδοισι,
110

στικτῶν τʼ ἐνδυτὰ νεβρίδων

στέφετε λευκοτρίχων πλοκάμων

μαλλοῖς· ἀμφὶ δὲ νάρθηκας ὑβριστὰς

ὁσιοῦσθʼ· αὐτίκα γᾶ πᾶσα χορεύσει—

Βρόμιος ὅστις ἄγῃ θιάσουσ—
115

εἰς ὄρος εἰς ὄρος, ἔνθα μένει

θηλυγενὴς ὄχλος

ἀφʼ ἱστῶν παρὰ κερκίδων τʼ

οἰστρηθεὶς Διονύσῳ.

120

Χορός

ὦ θαλάμευμα Κουρ-
120

ήτων ζάθεοί τε Κρήτας

Διογενέτορες ἔναυλοι,

ἔνθα τρικόρυθες ἄντροις

βυρσότονον κύκλωμα τόδε

μοι Κορύβαντες ηὗρον·
125

βακχείᾳ δʼ ἀνὰ συντόνῳ

κέρασαν ἁδυβόᾳ Φρυγίων

αὐλῶν πνεύματι ματρός τε Ῥέας ἐς

χέρα θῆκαν, κτύπον εὐάσμασι Βακχᾶν·

παρὰ δὲ μαινόμενοι Σάτυροι
130

ματέρος ἐξανύσαντο θεᾶς,

ἐς δὲ χορεύματα

συνῆψαν τριετηρίδων,

αἷς χαίρει Διόνυσος.

135

Χορός

ἡδὺς ἐν ὄρεσιν, ὅταν ἐκ θιάσων δρομαί-
135

ων πέσῃ πεδόσε, νε-

βρίδος ἔχων ἱερὸν ἐνδυτόν, ἀγρεύων

αἷμα τραγοκτόνον, ὠμοφάγον χάριν, ἱέμε-

νος ἐς ὄρεα Φρύγια, Λύδιʼ, ὁ δʼ ἔξαρχος Βρόμιος,
140

εὐοἷ.

ῥεῖ δὲ γάλακτι πέδον, ῥεῖ δʼ οἴνῳ, ῥεῖ δὲ μελισσᾶν

νέκταρι.

Συρίας δʼ ὡς λιβάνου κα-

πνὸν ὁ Βακχεὺς ἀνέχων
145

πυρσώδη φλόγα πεύκας

ἐκ νάρθηκος ἀίσσει

δρόμῳ καὶ χοροῖσιν

πλανάτας ἐρεθίζων

ἰαχαῖς τʼ ἀναπάλλων,

τρυφερόν τε πλόκαμον εἰς αἰθέρα ῥίπτων.
150

ἅμα δʼ εὐάσμασι τοιάδʼ ἐπιβρέμει·

Ὦ ἴτε βάκχαι,

ὦ ἴτε βάκχαι,

Τμώλου χρυσορόου χλιδᾷ

μέλπετε τὸν Διόνυσον
155

βαρυβρόμων ὑπὸ τυμπάνων,

εὔια τὸν εὔιον ἀγαλλόμεναι θεὸν

ἐν Φρυγίαισι βοαῖς ἐνοπαῖσί τε,

λωτὸς ὅταν εὐκέλαδος
160

ἱερὸς ἱερὰ παίγματα βρέμῃ, σύνοχα

φοιτάσιν εἰς ὄρος εἰς ὄρος· ἡδομέ-
165

να δʼ ἄρα, πῶλος ὅπως ἅμα ματέρι

φορβάδι, κῶλον ἄγει ταχύπουν σκιρτήμασι βάκχα.

170

Translations (2)

The Bacchae Perseus (Euripides. The Tragedies of Euripides. Vol. I. Buckley, Theodore Alois, translator. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1850. (Modernized by Perseus.)) — 64-165 focus

Chorus

From the land of Asia ,

having left sacred Tmolus, I am swift to perform for Bromius my sweet labor and toil easily borne, celebrating the god Bacchus¹. Who is in the way? Who is in the way? Who? Let him get out of the way indoors, and let everyone keep his mouth pure ²,
65

speaking propitious things. For I will celebrate Dionysus with hymns according to eternal custom.
70

Chorus

Blessed is he who, being fortunate and knowing the rites of the gods, keeps his life pure and

has his soul initiated into the Bacchic revels, dancing in inspired frenzy over the mountains with holy purifications, and who, revering the mysteries of great mother Kybele,
75

brandishing the thyrsos, garlanded with ivy, serves Dionysus. Go, Bacchae, go, Bacchae, escorting the god Bromius, child of a god,
80

from the Phrygian mountains to the broad streets of Hellas—Bromius,
85

Chorus

Whom once, in the compulsion of birth pains,

the thunder of Zeus flying upon her, his mother cast from her womb, leaving life by the stroke of a thunderbolt. Immediately Zeus, Kronos’ son,
90

received him in a chamber fit for birth, and having covered him in his thigh shut him up with golden clasps, hidden from Hera. And he brought forth, when the Fates
95

had perfected him, the bull-horned god, and he crowned him with crowns of snakes, for which reason Maenads cloak their wild prey over their locks.
100

105

Chorus

O Thebes , nurse of Semele, crown yourself with ivy, flourish, flourish with the verdant yew bearing sweet fruit, and crown yourself in honor of Bacchus with branches of oak
105

or pine. Adorn your garments of spotted fawn-skin with fleeces of white sheep, and sport in holy games with insolent thyrsoi ³. At once all the earth will dance—
110

whoever leads the sacred band is Bromius—to the mountain, to the mountain, where the crowd of women waits, goaded away from their weaving by Dionysus.
115

120

Chorus

O secret chamber of the Kouretes and you holy Cretan caves, parents to Zeus, where the Korybantes with triple helmet invented for me in their caves this circle,
120

covered with stretched hide; and in their excited revelry they mingled it with the sweet-voiced breath of Phrygian pipes and handed it over to mother Rhea, resounding with the sweet songs of the Bacchae;
125

nearby, raving Satyrs were fulfilling the rites of the mother goddess, and they joined it to the dances of the biennial festivals, in which Dionysus rejoices.
130

135

Chorus

He is sweet in the mountains ⁴, whenever after the running dance he falls on the ground, wearing the sacred garment of fawn skin, hunting the blood of the slain goat, a raw-eaten delight, rushing to the
135

Phrygian, the Lydian mountains, and the leader of the dance is Bromius, evoe! ⁵ The plain flows with milk, it flows with wine, it flows with the nectar of bees.
140

The Bacchic one, raising the flaming torch of pine on his thyrsos, like the smoke of Syrian incense, darts about, arousing the wanderers with his racing and dancing, agitating them with his shouts,
145

casting his rich locks into the air. And among the Maenad cries his voice rings deep: ⁶ Go, Bacchae, go, Bacchae, with the luxury of Tmolus that flows with gold,
150

sing of Dionysus, beneath the heavy beat of drums, celebrating in delight the god of delight with Phrygian shouts and cries,
155

when the sweet-sounding sacred pipe sounds a sacred playful tune suited
160

to the wanderers, to the mountain, to the mountain! And the Bacchante, rejoicing like a foal with its grazing mother, rouses her swift foot in a gamboling dance.
165

The Bacchae (OCR draft) Experimental (The Bacchae. Robert Potter's English verse translation, first published in 1781–1783; text from the 1808 Oxford printing.)

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Euripides Bacchae 73

Johann Jakob Christian Donner (Translator)

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