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"Which translation of the Orphic hymns should I use?" "Which is the best translation of the Orphic hymns?" You decide!
Below are the translations for Selene, Hermes and Kronos from the following books:
This does not cover the fact that each of these books has additional material, eg extensive historical context, suggestions for use in ritual, etc etc. It's purely to compare the translations.
SELENE
Selene, bull-horned Mene, night-runner,
roamer through the nightly air, torch bearing
fair-starred maiden, Mene, you wax and wane
both male and female, a shining lover
of horses, mother of time, fruit-bearing,
amber, somber, shining down in the night,
all-seeing, wakeful, full of lovely stars,
rejoicing in silence and the blessed
peace of the night, bright giver of good grace
and bringer of completion, a holy
image of the night, you lead out the stars,
your long cloak streaming, running in spirals.
All-wise maiden, come, blessed kind goddess
of beautiful stars, and shine with threefold
light, maid, redeeming your new supplicants.
bull-horned goddess Moon,
crossing the sky,
racing through night,
we honor you.
Stars attend your orbit
as you glide,
a torch in the darkness,
waxing and waning,
male and female.
We honor you.
Brooding amber
shining in the night,
all-seeing vigilance
in the sky of stars,
evening’s splendor,
like a jewel you offer
fulfillment and favor.
In your long cloak of shadow
moving in circles,
you shepherd the Milky Way.
Holy and gentle lady of the stars,
let your light shine
and save us.
O light-bringing and splendid Selene, O bull-horned Moon,
crossing the air as you race with night.
Nocturnal, torch-bearing, maiden of beautiful stars, O Moon,
waxing and waning,
feminine and masculine,
luminous, lover of horses,
mother of time, bearer of fruit,
amber-colored, moody,
shining in the night, all-seeing and vigilant,
surrounded by beautiful stars, you delight in the quiet
and in the richness of the night,
you grant fulfillment and favor
as, like a jewel, you shine in the night.
Long-cloaked marshal of the stars,
wise maiden whose motion is circular,
come, O blessed and gentle lady,
lady of the stars, through your own light
shine and save, O maiden,
your new initiates.
Selene, light-bringer of radiant gleam,
Cow-horned moon, racing through the night,
Nocturnal torch-bearing maiden of light,
Waxing and waning, male and female combined,
Luminous silver-rayed mother of Time,
You love running horses, oh fruitful deliverer,
Joy-giving, deep-hearted, big bliss distributor
Whose warm glowing orb illumines the Night,
All-seeing, ever-vigilant, beautiful, bright,
Full to bursting with stars, O pregnant Moon,
Your warm glowing orb reflects the light of high noon.
The rich quiet black is your eternal delight,
You grant favor and luck, shining jewel of the night,
Marshal of the stars, purple-cloaked, silver-veiled,
lux-lustrous initiatrix, Queen of the Night: Hail!
O maiden, bright Moon, accept your initiates’ praise.
And shine on our sanctum with your all-blessing ray
With stars surrounded, and with circuit wide Night's torch extending, thro' the heav'ns you ride:
Female and Male with borrow'd rays you shine, and now full-orb'd, now tending to decline.
Mother of ages, fruit-producing Moon [Mene], whose amber orb makes Night's reflected noon:
Lover of horses, splendid, queen of Night, all-seeing pow'r bedeck'd with starry light.
Lover of vigilance, the foe of strife, in peace rejoicing, and a prudent life:
Fair lamp of Night, its ornament and friend, who giv'st to Nature's works their destin'd end.
Queen of the stars, all-wife Diana hail! Deck'd with a graceful robe and shining veil;
Come, blessed Goddess, prudent, starry, bright, come moony-lamp with chaste and splendid light,
Shine on these sacred rites with prosp'rous rays, and pleas'd accept thy suppliant's mystic praise.
HERMES
of Maia, having an all-mighty heart.
The lord of contests and guide of mortals,
kind and clever messenger of the gods
and slayer of Argos. With your winged
feet, you are a friend to humans, and you
are a prophet of the word to mortals.
You delight in exercise, in deceit
and trickery, and you wear the sacred
band. Interpreter of all, you preside
over the profits of business, driving
off all our cares, you who hold in your hands
the blameless weapon of peace. Blessed
god of Korykos, bringer of good luck,
with many stories, helper in business
and friend to mortals in need, you possess
the venerable and dreadful weapon
of language. Hear me in my prayers and bring
a noble end to life in deeds, and graceful
remembrances of reputation.
son of mother Maia,
your grandfather Atlas
shoulders the world,
Hermes, subtle and clever,
kindly judge our competitions.
Guide of the dead,
you lulled then killed
hundred-eyed Argos
to give the peacock
beautiful feathers.
We honor you,
child who made Apollo’s lyre.
Doorways, roads,
and borders amuse you.
You love secrets, tricks,
gambling, and gymnastics.
Gracious sage,
good shepherd,
trusted guardian,
on winged sandals
you fly between worlds.
Free us from worry,
lover of prophets
and profits.
Interpreter of all,
in your hand you hold
the pure instrument of peace.
Your gifts are casually found treasures.
God of the fickleness
of thought and speech,
friend to thieves and liars,
protect us from them.
With the touch of your wand
you bring dreams,
sleep, or death.
We honor you,
guide us through
this world and the next.
messenger of Zeus, son of Maia,
almighty in heart, lord of the deceased,
judge of contests,
gentle and clever, O Argeiphontes,
you are the guide of the flying sandals,
a man-loving prophet to mortals.
A vigorous god, you delight
in exercise and in deceit.
Interpreter of all you are
and a profiteer who frees us of cares,
who holds in his hands the blameless tool of peace.
Lord of Korykos, blessed,
helpful, and skilled in words,
you assist in work and you are
a friend of mortals in need.
You wield the dreaded, the respected weapon of speech.
Hear my prayer and grant
a good end to a life of industry,
gracious talk,
and mindfulness.
Almighty heart-bearer, Lord of the Game.
Wily wise messenger, O killer of Argos,
Winged-footed philanthropist, lover of logos,
Prophet of athletes, who rejoices in fraud,
Rearing up lies, you’re the capitalist’s god.
But those same hands offer genuine peace,
Blameless, irreproachable machines of surcease.
Corcian luckbringer, blessed loquacious one,
Comrade of the worker and those under the gun,
Employing clever rhetoric, the fearsome weapon of speech,
Listen to your mystics as we pray and beseech:
Give a good end to a life of good works,
Grant us memory, charisma, and eloquent words
She doesn’t normally do this, Hermes is the exception, so version 1 is probably the most indicative of the other hymns
I sing of High Hermes, belov’d worker of wonder,
First Pleiades conceived when she dreamed of bright Thunder.
All-powerful game-master, lord of the dead,
true-thinking foreteller of what lies ahead,
Code-cracking con-artist, jail-breaking the shibboleth,
killed peacock-eyed Argos when you bored him to death.
Winged-sandaled human-friend, fast philanthropic prophet,
rejoicing in racers and instructing pickpockets.
You spin hermeneutics like you’re spitting hot rhymes;
You’re the father of fraud, rearing up lies.
But that same trickster offers genuine peace,
Blameless, irreproachable machine of surcease.
Corycian luckbringer, blessed loquacious one,
Comrade of the worker and those under the gun,
Employing clever rhetoric, venerable friend,
Pray for your initiates when our lifetimes end:
Boast about our work and our charismatic rhymes,
Memorialize our memories for future lifetimes
Studious of contests, ruler of mankind, with heart almighty, and a prudent mind.
Celestial messenger, of various skill, whose pow'rful arts could watchful Argus kill:
With winged feet, 'tis thine thro' air to course, O friend of man, and prophet of discourse:
Great life-supporter, to rejoice is thine, in arts gymnastic, and in fraud divine:
With pow'r endu'd all language to explain, of care the loos'ner, and the source of gain.
Whose hand contains of blameless peace the rod, Corucian, blessed, profitable God;
Of various speech, whose aid in works we find, and in necessities to mortals kind:
Dire weapon of the tongue, which men revere, be present, Hermes, and thy suppliant hear;
Assist my works, conclude my life with peace, give graceful speech, and me memory's increase
KRONOS
and men, clever, pure, all-mighty Titan:
you exhaust all things, and then restore them.
Adamant are the chains you wind about
the boundless universe; Kronos, father
of aeon, Kronos, sung in many myths.
You are the child of Gaia and star-filled
Ouranos. Birth, growth, and withering,
Rhea’s husband, o honored Prometheus
who lives in every part of the cosmos:
wily, brave creator, hear the request
in my voice: send always a prosperous
and a blameless conclusion to my life
of immortals and mortals,
pure, mighty, resourceful,
you consume all
to nourish all.
Your unbreakable chains
bind everything to time.
We honor you.
Kronos, maker of spirals,
wily shifter of stories,
first child of earth and starry heaven,
in you we have birth and decline.
With one hand you give hope
and with the other cruelty.
You end struggle and suffering
but also contentment and love.
Revered source of foresight,
husband of Rhea the divine,
ancient root of all,
you are everywhere,
give a noble end to a good life.
of blessed gods and men,
resourceful, pure and mighty,
O powerful Titan,
you consume all things
and replenish them, too.
Unbreakable is the hold you have
on the boundless cosmos,
O Kronos, begetter of time,
Kronos of the shifting stories,
child of Earth,
child of starry Sky.
In you there is birth and decline,
O revered and prudent lord of Rhea, you are the progenitor,
you dwell in every part of the world.
I am a suppliant, hear my voice,
O wily and brave one, and to a good life bring a blameless end.
Wily-minded, undefiled, strong, valiant Titan
Who devours all things, but resurrects them as well:
You hold fast the whole cosmos with your binding spell.
Kronos of Aeons, O Kronos the All-Father,
Your stories are changeable, confounding the scholars.
You’re the sproutling of Earth and the star-spangled Sky,
You give birth to all growth and you make all things die.
Cruel consort of Rhea, from whom all things Flow,
The whole cosmos is founded on your dwelling below.
With Promethean foresight you steer past all obstruction
And your crooked counsel is most clever instruction.
We beg, hear our voice, and attend to our cry,
Grant a long blameless life, until our time to die.
Endu'd with various council, pure and strong, to whom perfection and decrease belong.
Consum'd by thee all forms that hourly die, by thee restor'd, their former place supply;
The world immense in everlasting chains, strong and ineffable thy pow'r contains
Father of vast eternity, divine, O mighty Saturn [Kronos], various speech is thine:
Blossom of earth and of the starry skies, husband of Rhea, and Prometheus wife.
Obstetric Nature, venerable root, from which the various forms of being shoot;
No parts peculiar can thy pow'r enclose, diffus'd thro' all, from which the world arose,
O, best of beings, of a subtle mind, propitious hear to holy pray'rs inclin'd;
The sacred rites benevolent attend, and grant a blameless life, a blessed end.
(My personal preference is Lucid & Pontiac, with Athanassakil & Wolkow a close second. I like some of the internal/line phrasing of Mastros, but find the rhyming scheme unbearably twee. But I'm sharing the comparisons so you don't have to rely on anyone else's personal preferences to decide which to get)
Below are the translations for Selene, Hermes and Kronos from the following books:
- The Orphic Hymns by Patrick Dunn (2018)
- Tamra Lucid and Ronnie Pontiac (2023)*
- Apostolos N. Athanassakis and Benjamin M. Wolkow (2013)
- Sara L. Mastros (2019)
- Thomas Taylor (1792) (out of copyright, )
This does not cover the fact that each of these books has additional material, eg extensive historical context, suggestions for use in ritual, etc etc. It's purely to compare the translations.
SELENE
Selene: Patrick Dunn
Hear, royal goddess, light-bearing, divineSelene, bull-horned Mene, night-runner,
roamer through the nightly air, torch bearing
fair-starred maiden, Mene, you wax and wane
both male and female, a shining lover
of horses, mother of time, fruit-bearing,
amber, somber, shining down in the night,
all-seeing, wakeful, full of lovely stars,
rejoicing in silence and the blessed
peace of the night, bright giver of good grace
and bringer of completion, a holy
image of the night, you lead out the stars,
your long cloak streaming, running in spirals.
All-wise maiden, come, blessed kind goddess
of beautiful stars, and shine with threefold
light, maid, redeeming your new supplicants.
Selene: Lucid and Pontiac
Splendid bringer of light,bull-horned goddess Moon,
crossing the sky,
racing through night,
we honor you.
Stars attend your orbit
as you glide,
a torch in the darkness,
waxing and waning,
male and female.
We honor you.
Brooding amber
shining in the night,
all-seeing vigilance
in the sky of stars,
evening’s splendor,
like a jewel you offer
fulfillment and favor.
In your long cloak of shadow
moving in circles,
you shepherd the Milky Way.
Holy and gentle lady of the stars,
let your light shine
and save us.
Selene: Athanassakis & Wolkow
Hear me, O divine queen,O light-bringing and splendid Selene, O bull-horned Moon,
crossing the air as you race with night.
Nocturnal, torch-bearing, maiden of beautiful stars, O Moon,
waxing and waning,
feminine and masculine,
luminous, lover of horses,
mother of time, bearer of fruit,
amber-colored, moody,
shining in the night, all-seeing and vigilant,
surrounded by beautiful stars, you delight in the quiet
and in the richness of the night,
you grant fulfillment and favor
as, like a jewel, you shine in the night.
Long-cloaked marshal of the stars,
wise maiden whose motion is circular,
come, O blessed and gentle lady,
lady of the stars, through your own light
shine and save, O maiden,
your new initiates.
Selene: Mastros
Hear us, holy Goddess, night-shining queenSelene, light-bringer of radiant gleam,
Cow-horned moon, racing through the night,
Nocturnal torch-bearing maiden of light,
Waxing and waning, male and female combined,
Luminous silver-rayed mother of Time,
You love running horses, oh fruitful deliverer,
Joy-giving, deep-hearted, big bliss distributor
Whose warm glowing orb illumines the Night,
All-seeing, ever-vigilant, beautiful, bright,
Full to bursting with stars, O pregnant Moon,
Your warm glowing orb reflects the light of high noon.
The rich quiet black is your eternal delight,
You grant favor and luck, shining jewel of the night,
Marshal of the stars, purple-cloaked, silver-veiled,
lux-lustrous initiatrix, Queen of the Night: Hail!
O maiden, bright Moon, accept your initiates’ praise.
And shine on our sanctum with your all-blessing ray
Selene: Taylor
Hear, Goddess queen, diffusing silver light, bull-horn'd and wand'ring thro' the gloom of Night.With stars surrounded, and with circuit wide Night's torch extending, thro' the heav'ns you ride:
Female and Male with borrow'd rays you shine, and now full-orb'd, now tending to decline.
Mother of ages, fruit-producing Moon [Mene], whose amber orb makes Night's reflected noon:
Lover of horses, splendid, queen of Night, all-seeing pow'r bedeck'd with starry light.
Lover of vigilance, the foe of strife, in peace rejoicing, and a prudent life:
Fair lamp of Night, its ornament and friend, who giv'st to Nature's works their destin'd end.
Queen of the stars, all-wife Diana hail! Deck'd with a graceful robe and shining veil;
Come, blessed Goddess, prudent, starry, bright, come moony-lamp with chaste and splendid light,
Shine on these sacred rites with prosp'rous rays, and pleas'd accept thy suppliant's mystic praise.
HERMES
Hermes: Patrick Dunn
Hear me, Hermes, herald of Zeus and sonof Maia, having an all-mighty heart.
The lord of contests and guide of mortals,
kind and clever messenger of the gods
and slayer of Argos. With your winged
feet, you are a friend to humans, and you
are a prophet of the word to mortals.
You delight in exercise, in deceit
and trickery, and you wear the sacred
band. Interpreter of all, you preside
over the profits of business, driving
off all our cares, you who hold in your hands
the blameless weapon of peace. Blessed
god of Korykos, bringer of good luck,
with many stories, helper in business
and friend to mortals in need, you possess
the venerable and dreadful weapon
of language. Hear me in my prayers and bring
a noble end to life in deeds, and graceful
remembrances of reputation.
Hermes: Lucid and Pontiac
Messenger of Zeus,son of mother Maia,
your grandfather Atlas
shoulders the world,
Hermes, subtle and clever,
kindly judge our competitions.
Guide of the dead,
you lulled then killed
hundred-eyed Argos
to give the peacock
beautiful feathers.
We honor you,
child who made Apollo’s lyre.
Doorways, roads,
and borders amuse you.
You love secrets, tricks,
gambling, and gymnastics.
Gracious sage,
good shepherd,
trusted guardian,
on winged sandals
you fly between worlds.
Free us from worry,
lover of prophets
and profits.
Interpreter of all,
in your hand you hold
the pure instrument of peace.
Your gifts are casually found treasures.
God of the fickleness
of thought and speech,
friend to thieves and liars,
protect us from them.
With the touch of your wand
you bring dreams,
sleep, or death.
We honor you,
guide us through
this world and the next.
Hermes: Athanassakis & Wolkow
Hear me, Hermes,messenger of Zeus, son of Maia,
almighty in heart, lord of the deceased,
judge of contests,
gentle and clever, O Argeiphontes,
you are the guide of the flying sandals,
a man-loving prophet to mortals.
A vigorous god, you delight
in exercise and in deceit.
Interpreter of all you are
and a profiteer who frees us of cares,
who holds in his hands the blameless tool of peace.
Lord of Korykos, blessed,
helpful, and skilled in words,
you assist in work and you are
a friend of mortals in need.
You wield the dreaded, the respected weapon of speech.
Hear my prayer and grant
a good end to a life of industry,
gracious talk,
and mindfulness.
Hermes: Mastros
I call Hermes, God’s envoy, the son of Queen May,Almighty heart-bearer, Lord of the Game.
Wily wise messenger, O killer of Argos,
Winged-footed philanthropist, lover of logos,
Prophet of athletes, who rejoices in fraud,
Rearing up lies, you’re the capitalist’s god.
But those same hands offer genuine peace,
Blameless, irreproachable machines of surcease.
Corcian luckbringer, blessed loquacious one,
Comrade of the worker and those under the gun,
Employing clever rhetoric, the fearsome weapon of speech,
Listen to your mystics as we pray and beseech:
Give a good end to a life of good works,
Grant us memory, charisma, and eloquent words
Hermes: Mastros Version 2
Mastros included a second version of the Hermes hymn, a more creative interpretation.She doesn’t normally do this, Hermes is the exception, so version 1 is probably the most indicative of the other hymns
I sing of High Hermes, belov’d worker of wonder,
First Pleiades conceived when she dreamed of bright Thunder.
All-powerful game-master, lord of the dead,
true-thinking foreteller of what lies ahead,
Code-cracking con-artist, jail-breaking the shibboleth,
killed peacock-eyed Argos when you bored him to death.
Winged-sandaled human-friend, fast philanthropic prophet,
rejoicing in racers and instructing pickpockets.
You spin hermeneutics like you’re spitting hot rhymes;
You’re the father of fraud, rearing up lies.
But that same trickster offers genuine peace,
Blameless, irreproachable machine of surcease.
Corycian luckbringer, blessed loquacious one,
Comrade of the worker and those under the gun,
Employing clever rhetoric, venerable friend,
Pray for your initiates when our lifetimes end:
Boast about our work and our charismatic rhymes,
Memorialize our memories for future lifetimes
Hermes: Taylor
Hermes, draw near, and to my pray'r incline, angel of Jove [Zeus], and Maia's son divine;Studious of contests, ruler of mankind, with heart almighty, and a prudent mind.
Celestial messenger, of various skill, whose pow'rful arts could watchful Argus kill:
With winged feet, 'tis thine thro' air to course, O friend of man, and prophet of discourse:
Great life-supporter, to rejoice is thine, in arts gymnastic, and in fraud divine:
With pow'r endu'd all language to explain, of care the loos'ner, and the source of gain.
Whose hand contains of blameless peace the rod, Corucian, blessed, profitable God;
Of various speech, whose aid in works we find, and in necessities to mortals kind:
Dire weapon of the tongue, which men revere, be present, Hermes, and thy suppliant hear;
Assist my works, conclude my life with peace, give graceful speech, and me memory's increase
KRONOS
Kronos: Patrick Dunn
Ever-young father of the blessed godsand men, clever, pure, all-mighty Titan:
you exhaust all things, and then restore them.
Adamant are the chains you wind about
the boundless universe; Kronos, father
of aeon, Kronos, sung in many myths.
You are the child of Gaia and star-filled
Ouranos. Birth, growth, and withering,
Rhea’s husband, o honored Prometheus
who lives in every part of the cosmos:
wily, brave creator, hear the request
in my voice: send always a prosperous
and a blameless conclusion to my life
Kronos: Lucid and Pontiac
Eternal fatherof immortals and mortals,
pure, mighty, resourceful,
you consume all
to nourish all.
Your unbreakable chains
bind everything to time.
We honor you.
Kronos, maker of spirals,
wily shifter of stories,
first child of earth and starry heaven,
in you we have birth and decline.
With one hand you give hope
and with the other cruelty.
You end struggle and suffering
but also contentment and love.
Revered source of foresight,
husband of Rhea the divine,
ancient root of all,
you are everywhere,
give a noble end to a good life.
Kronos: Athanassakis & Wolkow
Everlasting fatherof blessed gods and men,
resourceful, pure and mighty,
O powerful Titan,
you consume all things
and replenish them, too.
Unbreakable is the hold you have
on the boundless cosmos,
O Kronos, begetter of time,
Kronos of the shifting stories,
child of Earth,
child of starry Sky.
In you there is birth and decline,
O revered and prudent lord of Rhea, you are the progenitor,
you dwell in every part of the world.
I am a suppliant, hear my voice,
O wily and brave one, and to a good life bring a blameless end.
Kronos: Mastros
Evergreen king, holy father of both gods and menWily-minded, undefiled, strong, valiant Titan
Who devours all things, but resurrects them as well:
You hold fast the whole cosmos with your binding spell.
Kronos of Aeons, O Kronos the All-Father,
Your stories are changeable, confounding the scholars.
You’re the sproutling of Earth and the star-spangled Sky,
You give birth to all growth and you make all things die.
Cruel consort of Rhea, from whom all things Flow,
The whole cosmos is founded on your dwelling below.
With Promethean foresight you steer past all obstruction
And your crooked counsel is most clever instruction.
We beg, hear our voice, and attend to our cry,
Grant a long blameless life, until our time to die.
Kronos: Taylor
Etherial father, mighty Titan, hear, great fire of Gods and men, whom all revere:Endu'd with various council, pure and strong, to whom perfection and decrease belong.
Consum'd by thee all forms that hourly die, by thee restor'd, their former place supply;
The world immense in everlasting chains, strong and ineffable thy pow'r contains
Father of vast eternity, divine, O mighty Saturn [Kronos], various speech is thine:
Blossom of earth and of the starry skies, husband of Rhea, and Prometheus wife.
Obstetric Nature, venerable root, from which the various forms of being shoot;
No parts peculiar can thy pow'r enclose, diffus'd thro' all, from which the world arose,
O, best of beings, of a subtle mind, propitious hear to holy pray'rs inclin'd;
The sacred rites benevolent attend, and grant a blameless life, a blessed end.
Post automatically merged:
(My personal preference is Lucid & Pontiac, with Athanassakil & Wolkow a close second. I like some of the internal/line phrasing of Mastros, but find the rhyming scheme unbearably twee. But I'm sharing the comparisons so you don't have to rely on anyone else's personal preferences to decide which to get)
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