καιρός τοι πάντων γνώμαν ἴσχων
Philoctetes. Sophocles. ed. Lewis Campbell. Oxford. 1879.
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Current edition Experimental
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) (Greek) (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879))
Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.
Editions (1)
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 827-864 focus
Χορός
Ὕπνʼ ὀδύνας ἀδαής, Ὕπνε δʼ ἀλγέων,
εὐαὲς ἡμῖν ἔλθοις,
εὐαίων εὐαίων, ὦναξ·
ὄμμασι δʼ ἀντίσχοις
830
τάνδʼ αἴγλαν, ἃ τέταται τανῦν.
ἴθι ἴθι μοι παιών.
ὦ τέκνον, ὅρα ποῦ στάσει,
ποῖ δέ μοι τἀνθένδε βάσει,
φροντίδος. ὁρᾷς ἤδη.
835
πρὸς τί μενοῦμεν πράσσειν;
καιρός τοι πάντων γνώμαν ἴσχων
πολύ τι πολὺ παρὰ πόδα κράτος ἄρνυται.
Ὕπνʼ ὀδύνας ἀδαής, Ὕπνε δʼ ἀλγέων,
εὐαὲς ἡμῖν ἔλθοις,
εὐαίων εὐαίων, ὦναξ·
ὄμμασι δʼ ἀντίσχοις
830
τάνδʼ αἴγλαν, ἃ τέταται τανῦν.
ἴθι ἴθι μοι παιών.
ὦ τέκνον, ὅρα ποῦ στάσει,
ποῖ δέ μοι τἀνθένδε βάσει,
φροντίδος. ὁρᾷς ἤδη.
835
πρὸς τί μενοῦμεν πράσσειν;
καιρός τοι πάντων γνώμαν ἴσχων
πολύ τι πολὺ παρὰ πόδα κράτος ἄρνυται.
Νεοπτόλεμος
ἀλλʼ ὅδε μὲν κλύει οὐδέν, ἐγὼ δʼ ὁρῶ οὕνεκα θήραν
τήνδʼ ἁλίως ἔχομεν τόξων, δίχα τοῦδε πλέοντες.
840
τοῦδε γὰρ ὁ στέφανος, τοῦτον θεὸς εἶπε κομίζειν.
κομπεῖν δʼ ἔστʼ ἀτελῆ σὺν ψεύδεσιν αἰσχρὸν ὄνειδος.
ἀλλʼ ὅδε μὲν κλύει οὐδέν, ἐγὼ δʼ ὁρῶ οὕνεκα θήραν
τήνδʼ ἁλίως ἔχομεν τόξων, δίχα τοῦδε πλέοντες.
840
τοῦδε γὰρ ὁ στέφανος, τοῦτον θεὸς εἶπε κομίζειν.
κομπεῖν δʼ ἔστʼ ἀτελῆ σὺν ψεύδεσιν αἰσχρὸν ὄνειδος.
Χορός
ἀλλά, τέκνον, τάδε μὲν θεὸς ὄψεται·
ὧν δʼ ἂν ἀμείβῃ μʼ αὖθις,
βαιάν μοι, βαιάν, ὦ τέκνον,
845
πέμπε λόγων φάμαν·
ὡς πάντων ἐν νόσῳ εὐδρακὴς
ὕπνος ἄϋπνος λεύσσειν.
ἀλλʼ ὅτι δύνᾳ μάκιστον
κεῖνο δή μοι κεῖνο λάθρᾳ
850
ἐξιδοῦ ὅπᾳ πράξεις.
οἶσθα γὰρ ἃν αὐδῶμαι,
εἰ ταύταν τούτων γνώμαν ἴσχεις,
μάλα τοι ἄπορα πυκινοῖς ἐνιδεῖν πάθη.
ἀλλά, τέκνον, τάδε μὲν θεὸς ὄψεται·
ὧν δʼ ἂν ἀμείβῃ μʼ αὖθις,
βαιάν μοι, βαιάν, ὦ τέκνον,
845
πέμπε λόγων φάμαν·
ὡς πάντων ἐν νόσῳ εὐδρακὴς
ὕπνος ἄϋπνος λεύσσειν.
ἀλλʼ ὅτι δύνᾳ μάκιστον
κεῖνο δή μοι κεῖνο λάθρᾳ
850
ἐξιδοῦ ὅπᾳ πράξεις.
οἶσθα γὰρ ἃν αὐδῶμαι,
εἰ ταύταν τούτων γνώμαν ἴσχεις,
μάλα τοι ἄπορα πυκινοῖς ἐνιδεῖν πάθη.
Χορός
οὖρός τοι, τέκνον, οὖρος·
855
ἁνὴρ δʼ ἀνόμματος οὐδʼ ἔχων
ἀρωγὰν ἐκτέταται νύχιος,
ʽἁ̓λεὴς ὕπνος ἐσθλός,ʼ
οὐ χερός, οὐ ποδός, οὔ τινος ἄρχων,
860
ἀλλά τις ὡς Ἀΐδᾳ παρακείμενος.
ὅρα, βλέπʼ εἰ καίρια
φθέγγει· τὸ δʼ ἁλώσιμον
ἐμᾷ φροντίδι, παῖ,
πόνος ὁ μὴ φοβῶν κράτιστος.
οὖρός τοι, τέκνον, οὖρος·
855
ἁνὴρ δʼ ἀνόμματος οὐδʼ ἔχων
ἀρωγὰν ἐκτέταται νύχιος,
ʽἁ̓λεὴς ὕπνος ἐσθλός,ʼ
οὐ χερός, οὐ ποδός, οὔ τινος ἄρχων,
860
ἀλλά τις ὡς Ἀΐδᾳ παρακείμενος.
ὅρα, βλέπʼ εἰ καίρια
φθέγγει· τὸ δʼ ἁλώσιμον
ἐμᾷ φροντίδι, παῖ,
πόνος ὁ μὴ φοβῶν κράτιστος.
Translations (2)
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 839 focus
Wohl, er vernimmt nichts mehr. Doch glaube mir, daß wir des Bogens
810
Beute vergeblich errungen, entschiffen wir ohne den Mann hier.
Denn sein wartet der Kranz, ihn hieß uns bringen die Gottheit.
Unvollendeter That mit Lug sich zu rühmen, wie schmachvoll!
Gegenstrophe.
Wohl, er vernimmt nichts mehr. Doch glaube mir, daß wir des Bogens
810
Beute vergeblich errungen, entschiffen wir ohne den Mann hier.
Denn sein wartet der Kranz, ihn hieß uns bringen die Gottheit.
Unvollendeter That mit Lug sich zu rühmen, wie schmachvoll!
Der Chor.
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 827-860 focus
Chorus
Divine Sleep, god who knows no pain, Sleep, stranger to anguish, come in favor to us, come happy, and giving happiness, great King!
Keep before his eyes such light as is spread before them now. Come to him, I pray you, come with power to heal! Son, consider what position you will take, and to what strategy you will next direct our course.
830
You see his condition now! Why should we hesitate to act? Opportunity, the umpire of all contests, often wins a great victory by one swift stroke.
835
839
Divine Sleep, god who knows no pain, Sleep, stranger to anguish, come in favor to us, come happy, and giving happiness, great King!
Keep before his eyes such light as is spread before them now. Come to him, I pray you, come with power to heal! Son, consider what position you will take, and to what strategy you will next direct our course.
830
You see his condition now! Why should we hesitate to act? Opportunity, the umpire of all contests, often wins a great victory by one swift stroke.
835
Neoptolemus
No, even though he hears nothing, I see that
we have made this bow our quarry to no end, if we sail without him. His must be the victor’s crown. It is he that the god commanded we bring. It would be a foul disgrace upon us to boast of deeds in which failure and fraud had equal parts.
840
No, even though he hears nothing, I see that
we have made this bow our quarry to no end, if we sail without him. His must be the victor’s crown. It is he that the god commanded we bring. It would be a foul disgrace upon us to boast of deeds in which failure and fraud had equal parts.
840
Chorus
Well, the god must look to that, son. But when you answer me again,
softly, please, softly whisper your words. For sick men’s restless sleep is quick to vision. But, please, use your utmost care to win that prize,
845
that great prize, by stealth. For if you maintain your present purpose towards this man—you know what purpose I mean—then truly there are irremediable troubles in store, which a shrewd mind can foresee.
850
Well, the god must look to that, son. But when you answer me again,
softly, please, softly whisper your words. For sick men’s restless sleep is quick to vision. But, please, use your utmost care to win that prize,
845
that great prize, by stealth. For if you maintain your present purpose towards this man—you know what purpose I mean—then truly there are irremediable troubles in store, which a shrewd mind can foresee.
850
Chorus
Now, son, a fair wind blows you on your way: sightless and helpless, the man lies stretched in darkness—sleep in the heat is sound—
855
with no command of hands or feet, but stripped of all his powers, like one who rests with Hades. Take note, see if your pronouncements are seasonable. So far as my thoughts can seize the truth, boy, the best strategy is that which stirs no alarm.
860
Now, son, a fair wind blows you on your way: sightless and helpless, the man lies stretched in darkness—sleep in the heat is sound—
855
with no command of hands or feet, but stripped of all his powers, like one who rests with Hades. Take note, see if your pronouncements are seasonable. So far as my thoughts can seize the truth, boy, the best strategy is that which stirs no alarm.
860
Commentary
Commentary (R. C. Jebb) (OCR draft) (Commentary (R. C. Jebb))
Commentary (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) (Commentary (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) focus
827-862.
mvp-comment-578-1
Odysseus (
supr. 77, 115), whose words appear in some way to have reached the Chorus (
supr. 136 foll.), spoke only of the necessity of obtaining the bow. For this the Chorus now see the opportunity, and cannot understand the inaction of Neoptolemus, who is better informed (839-42,
cp. infr. 1329-43), and is moreover chained to the spot by remorseful sympathy with Philoctetes. This passage, which does the work of a stasimon in separating two episodia, is in so far of the nature of a commos that it contains a lyrical interchange between the Chorus and one of the persons on the stage. The text is imperfect in several places, and Bergk conjectures that four lines of Neoptolemus', answering to 839-42, have dropped out between 854, 5. It seems most probable that ll. 827-32 were sung by one half-chorus, and ll. 843-48 by the other, in subdued tones; that 833-8, 849-54 were recited severally by two of the chief choreutae, and that 855-64 were recited by the coryphaeus, or, possibly, sung by the whole Chorus. The metres of this irregular strain are dactylic, anapaestic, trochaic, iambic, and choriambic. The following is an approximate scheme of them :-
στρ. and ἀντ.
Logaoedic 1 _UU_UU_UU_U_
(?)
Anapaestic { __ | __
Choriambic _UU_ __
Logaoedic 5 __UU_U_
Iambic U_U_ __
Iambic U_U_U_
Trochaic
Iambic U_ U_U_ __
Iambic 10 U_ U_U_ __
Iambic U_U_U_U_
Paracelèusmatic, { _ UU _ UU _
with logaoedic close (?)
Logaoedic {: __
The strophe is followed by four dactylic hexameters, the antistrophe by an epode, of which this is the scheme:-
Dactylic {: _UU_UU__ | _UU_UU_ _ (?)
Iambo-trochaic 5 _U_U_U_ _ (?)
Dactylic _UU_UU_UU_UU_
Iambic U_U_U_
For νύχιος, l. 858,
cp. Eur. Hel. 1479, Suppl. 280.
837. mvp-comment-589-1 καιρός, κ.τ.λ.] 'Opportunity, which holds the clue of everything, by following closely, wins much advantage.' The Chorus hint the unwisdom of adhering to one fixed plan, when a good opportunity occurs of suddenly executing another. A conjectural reading is ῥώμαν. But γνώμαν is confirmed by the echo of the phrase in the antistrophe. Cavallin, comparing πολλά in 305 supr., explains πολύ as = πολλάκις. γνώμαν ἴσχων nearly = γνῶμα παρέχων. Cp. Εl. 75, καιρὸς γάρ, ὅσπερ ἄνδρασιν | μέγιστος ἔργου παντός ἐστ᾽ ἐπιστάτης: Pind. Pyth. 9. 78, ὁ δὲ καιρὸς ὁμοίως | παντὸς ἔχει κορυφάν. Others join πάντων κράτος = 'Opportunity, combined with judgment, carries a decided superiority in all cases.' A word is lost of the quantity of αἴσιον (C.) or ἄνδρασιν (Hermann).