Plutarch, On Isis and Osiris 71

Plutarch, priest of Apollo at Delphi, doesn’t really approve of Egyptian religion.

τοῦτο δ’ οὐχ ἥκιστα πεπόνθασιν Αἰγύπτιοι περὶ τὰ τιμώμενα τῶν ζῴων. Ἕλληνες μὲν γὰρ ἔν γε τούτοις λέγουσιν ὀρθῶς καὶ νομίζουσιν ἱερὸν Ἀφροδίτης ζῷον εἶναι τὴν περιστερὰν καὶ τὸν δράκοντα τῆς Ἀθηνᾶς καὶ τὸν κόρακα τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος καὶ τὸν κύνα τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος, ὡς Εὐριπίδης· “Ἑκάτης ἄγαλμα φωσφόρου κύων ἔσῃ”· Αἰγυπτίων δ’ οἱ πολλοὶ θεραπεύοντες αὐτὰ τὰ ζῷα καὶ περιέποντες ὡς θεοὺς οὐ γέλωτος μόνον οὐδὲ χλευασμοῦ καταπεπλήκασι τὰς ἱερουργίας, ἀλλὰ τοῦτο τῆς ἀβελτερίας ἐλάχιστόν ἐστι κακόν· δόξα δ’ ἐμφύεται δεινὴ τοὺς μὲν ἀσθενεῖς καὶ ἀκάκους εἰς ἄκρατον ὑπερείπουσα τὴν δεισιδαιμονίαν, τοῖς δὲ δριμυτέροις καὶ θρασυτέροις εἰς ἀθέους ἐμπίπτουσα καὶ θηριώδεις λογισμούς.

The Egyptians have fallen into no less an error in their worship of animals. For the Greeks speak of these matters in the correct way, and consider the dove to be the sacred animal of Aphrodite, the snake that of Athena, the raven that of Apollo, and the dog that of Artemis – as Euripides says: ‘You shall be a dog, the image of Hecate the torch-bearer.’ But most of the Egyptians do honour to the animals themselves and treat them with respect as though they were gods; not only have they filled the sacred rites with laughter and mockery – this is the smallest evil to come out of their silliness – but a terrible belief is implanted, which casts the weak and guileless into superstition and which brings down the more shrewd and bold into atheism and savage theorising.

Euripides, Bacchae 345-351

Pentheus ill-advisedly orders Tiresias’ seat of augury to be destroyed.

τῆς σῆς δ’ ἀνοίας τόνδε τὸν διδάσκαλον
δίκην μέτειμι. στειχέτω τις ὡς τάχος,
ἐλθὼν δὲ θάκους τοῦδ’ ἵν’ οἰωνοσκοπεῖ
μοχλοῖς τριαίνου κἀνάτρεψον ἔμπαλιν,
ἄνω κάτω τὰ πάντα συγχέας ὁμοῦ,
καὶ στέμματ’ ἀνέμοις καὶ θυέλλαισιν μέθες·
μάλιστα γάρ νιν δήξομαι δράσας τάδε.

I shall execute judgment on this teacher of your folly. Let someone go at full speed to the seat where this man observes the birds; prise it up with crowbars, upset it, turn everything upside down along with it, and let his garlands fly away in the winds and storms. By doing this I’ll really sting him.

Euripides, fr.1065

καὶ τῶν παλαιῶν πόλλ’ ἔπη καλῶς ἔχει·
λόγοι γὰρ ἐσθλοὶ φάρμακον φόβου βροτοῖς.

And many sayings of the ancients are well: noble words are a drug for mortals’ fear.

Euripides, Medea 618

κακοῦ γὰρ ἀνδρὸς δῶρ’ ὄνησιν οὐκ ἔχει.

Gifts from a bad man do not bring any profit.

Euripides, Aeolus fr.19

A line often quoted as a notorious example of Euripides’ alleged moral relativism.

τί δ’ αἰσχρὸν ἢν μὴ τοῖσι χρωμένοις δοκῇ;

And what is shameful if those who do it don’t think it so?

Euripides, Bacchae 1388

A favourite line of Euripides, which also appears at the end of three other plays.

πολλαὶ μορφαὶ τῶν δαιμονίων.

Many are the shapes of divinities.

Euripides, Theseus fr. 382 (Nauck)

An illiterate herdsman spells out Theseus’ name, which he has seen written on a ship.

ἐγὼ πέφυκα γραμμάτων μὲν οὐκ ἴδρις,
μορφὰς δὲ λέξω καὶ σαφῆ τεκμήρια.
κύκλος τις ὡς τόρνοισιν ἐκμετρούμενος,
οὗτος δ’ ἔχει σημεῖον ἐν μέσῳ σαφές·
τὸ δεύτερον δὲ πρῶτα μὲν γραμμαὶ δύο,
ταύτας διείργει δ’ ἐν μέσαις ἄλλη μία·
τρίτον δὲ βόστρυχός τις ὣς εἱλιγμένος·
τὸ δ’ αὖ τέταρτον ἡ μὲν εἰς ὀρθὸν μία,
λοξαὶ δ’ ἐπ’ αὐτῆς τρεῖς κατεστηριγμέναι
εἰσίν· τὸ πέμπτον δ’ οὐκ ἐν εὐμαρεῖ φράσαι·
γραμμαὶ γάρ εἰσιν ἑκ διεστώτων δύο,
αὗται δὲ συντρέχουσιν εἰς μίαν βάσιν·
τὸ λοίσθιον δὲ τῷ τρίτῳ προσεμφερές.

I’m not knowledgeable about letters, but I’ll tell you their shapes and give clear tokens. A circle, like one measured out with compasses, and it has in its middle a clear mark. The second is first two lines, and another one holds them apart at their middles. The third is like a curly lock of hair, and then the fourth has one line standing straight up, and three more fixed across it. The fifth is not easy to describe; for there are two lines which begin apart, and they run together into a single base. The last one resembles the third.

= ΘΗΣΕΥΣ. The third and final letters which the herdsman describes are of course the curly ‘lunate’ form of sigma: C.

Cicero, On Duties 3.108

Here’s the translation of the Euripides excerpt from a few posts back.

non enim falsum iurare periurare est, sed quod ex animi tui sententia iuraris, sicut verbis concipitur more nostro, id non facere periurium est. scite enim Euripides: “iuravi lingua, mentem iniuratam gero”.

For swearing to something false is not perjury, but if you swear ‘from the inclination of your mind’ – as it is verbally expressed in our law – but then do not perform your oath, that is perjury. Remember Euripides writes, ‘I have sworn with my tongue, but I bear an unsworn mind.’

Euripides, Hippolytus 612

One of Euripides’ most notorious lines – and ‘one of the most famous lines in Greek tragedy’, to quote H.C. Avery. Hippolytus has been sworn to secrecy, but before he was in full possession of the facts.

ἡ γλῶσσ’ ὀμώμοχ’, ἡ δὲ φρὴν ἀνώμοτος.

My tongue swore, but my mind was not bound by the oath.

Tomorrow we’ll see Cicero’s translation of this line into Latin.

Euripides, Alcestis 38-42

I’m currently reading Euripides’ Alcestis in the excellent edition of LPE Parker. The play opens with Apollo and Death outside the house of Admetus, who has managed to get his wife Alcestis to agree to die in his place. Death has come to keep an eye on these goings-on, and has just expressed his displeasure at finding Apollo hanging around – particularly as the archer-god is carrying his bow and arrows, and also because he had been instrumental in getting this special dispensation for Admetus.

ΑΠΟΛΛΩΝ θάρσει· δίκην τοι καὶ λόγους κέδνοὺς ἔχω.
ΘΑΝΑΤΟΣ τί δῆτα τόξων ἔργον, εἰ δίκην ἔχεις;
Απ. σύνηθες αἰεὶ ταῦτα βαστάζειν ἐμοί.
Θα. καὶ τοῖσδέ γ’ οἴκοις ἐκδίκως προσωφελεῖν.
Απ. φίλου γὰρ ἀνδρὸς συμφοραῖς βαρύνομαι.

Apollo: Don’t worry! I have a just reason and honest words.
Death: Why do you need your bow then, if you have a just reason?
Apollo: I always carry it around with me, habitually.
Death: Yes – and you habitually give help unjustly to this house.
Apollo: Yes, because I’m weighed down by the misfortunes of a man dear to me.