Back to reality: some things are impossible, and some best avoided

We had myths in the last post, now we get back to reality. Let us see what we have today:

1. We start off with the "impossible things" sections, which begins with Sappho Edmonds 53, Lobel-Page 52, Campbell 52; this is a quote from Herodian, περὶ μονήρους λέξεως (On Peculiar Words), which goes «Σημειῶδες ἄρα τὸ οὐρανός, ὅτι ἤρξατο ἀπὸ φύσει μακρᾶς· Ἀλκαῖος δὲ εἰς ὧ ἀποφαίνεται τὸ ὄνομα – καὶ Σαπφώ· Ψαύειν δὲ οὐ δοκεῖ μοι ὠρανῶ δυσπαχέα» (οὐρανός, sky, is remarkable, because it begins with a [syllable that is] long by nature; Alcaeus sends the noun forth to an ω (i.e. starts it with omega, ὠρανός); and Sappho: I don't think I will touch the sky, ill-armed [as I am]; note: δυσπάχεα does not appear in Perseus, so I analyzed it as a negative prefix δυσ-, "ill-", "not well-", and πᾶχυς, "arm"); now that is inmetrical, so corrections must come in; Bergk 15 reads «ψαύην δ' ἐπε' οὐ δοκεῖ μοι / ὠράνω δυσπάχεα», thus making it part of a Sapphic stanza and keeping the omega start for "sky"; however, this version doesn't convince me, because it not only adds a word, but elides it in a weird way, cutting off half a diphthong which, in Sappho's time, was AFAIK read as a long monophthong; back in the days, I didn't even know the idea existed; then we have Edmonds 53, who emends the "sky" to starting with an omicron and δοκεῖ μοι to δοκίμωμι, as is now universally accepted AFAICT, but then ends the line with ὀράνω ἔσσα διπάχεα, showing some creativity; his version translates as «I don't think I will touch the sky, being two cubits [tall]»; then Lobel-Page (numbering it 52) emends in those ways and leaves δυσπάχεα as a locus desperatus, and in the critical note expresses doubts on the form ὀράνω and suggests that δοκίμοι μ' and other similar forms are possible; Campbell 52, finally, essentially has the same things, plus stating Bergk suggested δύσι πάχεσιν at the end, which probably happened in a different Bergk edition of Sappho, since the one I have definitely doesn't have such a suggestion; anyways, what I found was Campbell + δύσι πάχεσιν, which gives me a glyconian expanded with two dactyls, the same meter as Hector and Andromacha, rendered in exactly the same ways in the translations;
2. We then have another impossible thing with Edmonds 72, Lobel-Page 56, Campbell 56; this is yet another quote, this time from Chrysippus' περὶ ἀποφατικῶν (On Negatives), which reads «εἰ Σαπφὼ οὕτως ἀπεφήνατο· Οὐδ' ἴαν δοκίμοιμι ecc» (If Sappho negated this way: [quotation]); so it appears the only correction to the manuscript tradition, already done in Bergk 74 and taken up by the other editions, was δοκίμοιμι -> δοκίμωμι; nothing to see here then; oh wait: Edmonds has σοφίᾳ and ποι in l. 2, while Lobel-Page and Campbell have τεαύταν in l. 3; whatever I chose was probably Greek Wikisource; the meter is the greater Asclepiad, rendered as 9+7 syllables with rhymes both internal and external in English and Italian (which is unlike the usual rhythm imitation practice which would lead to –u–uu– –uu– –uu–u–), and simply kept in Latin;
3. Then we start the far more numerous advice section with Sappho advising her daughter not to lament (a death?); this is Edmonds 108, Lobel-Page 150, Campbell 150; this is a quote from Maxymus of Tyre's Orations, reading «Ἀναίθεται [ὁ Σωκράτης] τῇ Ξανθίππῃ ὀδυρομένῃ, ὅτι ἀπέθνησκεν, ἡ δὲ [Σαπφὼ] τῇ θυγατρί· οὐ γὰρ θέμις ἐν μουσοπόλων οἰκίᾳ θρῆνον εἶναι, οὐκ ἄμμι πρέπει τάδε» ([Socrates] was angry with Xanthippe for lamenting when he was dying; [Sappho] says to her daughter: it is not right that there be lamentation in a house that serves the Muses, this doesn't befit us»; apart from emending to Aeolic dialect (ἔμμεν) and introducing a potential (οὔ κ' ἄμμι πρέποι) at the end, Campbell doesn't change anything, leaving οἰκίᾳ as locus desperatus; he notes that Hartung suggested δόμῳ to fix the meter in l. 1, and that Lobel suggested swapping τάδε and πρέποι; this is indeed the only text difference between Campbell and Lobel-Page; Bergk 61 fiddles with the text, producing the lesser Asclepiads «Ἀλλ' οὐ γὰρ θέμις ἐν μοισοπόλῳ οἰκίᾳ / θρῆνον ἔμμεναι· οὐκ ἄμμι πρέπει τάδε»; Edmonds fiddles a little less: «Οὐ γὰρ θέμις ἐν μοισοπόλῳ οἰκίᾳ / θρῆνον θέμεν· οὐκ ἄμμι πρέπει τάδε», obtaining ionians a maiore by putting θέμεν for ἔμμεν and making a little fix in l. 1; this is essentially what I have, probably straight off Greek Wikisource; the meter is kept in Latin, and imitated as – –uu– –uu–u– in English and Italian;
4. We go on with another «it is not right» (this time οὐδὲ θέμις) with Lobel-Page and Campbell 71; this is from P.Oxy. 1787 fr. 6 and an addendum from P.Oxy. XXI; I won't go into the details of the possible restorations given by Campbell and Lobel-Page, I'll just say I probably chose whatever Bibliotheca Augustana gave and translated it; note also that The Rest of Sappho, in fr. 6.A.v, has a fusion of this with some other fragments taken from an Italian anthology, might want to check that out too; the meter was supposed to be ionians a maiore again, same rendering as before; I do, however, have to point out the development of my own text, which up to 24/5/11 in OS27 was as labeled Old below, and then in OS28 from 9/6/11 became the Final version; that is because, reflecting the Old text, we have the OS31 from 16/6/11 translation into Italian; the dates line up weird, I know; I'm guessing this is an older version that got placed into the file somewhere before I made the changes; I do not have further resolution in that gap, because Sappho files S13 and S14 are precisely from 24/5 and 9/6, so I'll just assume OS31 got stuck with an old translation;
5. Next is a sorta-kinda piece of advice, if the restoration I adopted (probably from Bibliotheca Augustana) is correct; this is from P.Oxy. 1356 folium 4a, and is Lobel-Page and Campbell 139; the papyrus apparently reads «θέοιδ[...].νεσω.[...].τι̣καδακ[... / θ̣ε̣[.].[.]η̣λ̣[.]...[      ]ηλα[.......», so my restoration involves supposing a missing sigma in l. 1; the meter I saw was x–u–x–u–uu–ux, and that is what I kept or imitated depending on target languages;
6. «May the gods immediately praise the tearless», said the previous fragment; so praise to someone who can control the outbursts of their sadness; and talking about outbursts, we move to Edmonds 137 Lobel-Page 158 Campbell 158, a piece of advice about controlling one's words during fits of anger; this is a quote from Plutarch, reading «Ἐν ὀργῇ σεμνότερον οὐδὲν ἡσυχίας οὔσης, ὡς ἡ Σαπφὼ παραινεῖ, σκιδναμένης ἐν στήθεσιν ὀργῆς πεφυλάχθαι γλῶσσαν μαψυλάκταν» (In times of anger nothing is more revered than silence, as Sappho advises: as anger spread through my heart I guarded my fast-barking tongue); the text in the quote is inmetrical and implying something to support that perfect infinitive; Bergk emends to μαψυλάκαν γλῶσσαν πεφύλαχθαι, fixing the meter but keeping the implied something; Edmonds emends to γλῶσσαν μαψυλάκαν πεφύλαχθε, fixing the implied something problem with a perfect imperative, but giving l. 2 a different meter than l. 1; Lobel-Page prints the quote text, adding that «recte monet Bergk infin[itivum] esse Plutarchi» (Bergk correctly warns that the infinitive is Plutarch's); Campbell, following Seidler (mentioned also by Lobel-Page) emends to μαψυλάκαν γλῶσσαν πεφύλαχθαι, which is probably the Bibliotheca Augustana text I translated, and has the implied something problem, but solves the meter problem; the Paracritical Note only notes the implied something problem; the meter I saw was –uu–x–uu–x, two adonians, and that is what I kept in Latin; the other translations use mere hendecasyllabics with rhymes; also, it seems I have a two anaclases, one double and one single, in l. 2 of the Latin version, which scans –uu–uu– – –u;
   About the translations; so; on 15/8/10 I made the translations of the "Infinitive" version with μαψυλάκαν γλῶσσαν πεφύλαχθαι; on 8/9/10, writing some of the Paracritical note, I remark that I found the γλῶσσαν μαψυλάκαν πεφύλαχθε version, presumably from Edmonds, and add the translations to it as changes to the other ones; in the note, they look exactly like those below in the Imperative tab, except the English l. 2 starts with "You stop"; the relevant extract of the note was then copied from the diary to the SPN file, expanding these alternate translations, and rendering that line as "Do stop"; this happened in SPN1, thus within 12/9; the current version is from 19:46 on 16/9/23; or at least, I think that's the correction I thought up; I definitely thought of it within 19:47:~30 that evening; there's actually another change from SPN1 I had previously missed: my->your; because of course; I just forgot about that when writing that thing into the diary;
   But there's more, in that, on 17/9/23 at 20:03, I remade the imperative version in English so it would have the right rhythm (I was singing it to the tune of "Finché del vino han calda la testa" from Don Giovanni, probably), and on 19/9/23 at 14:28 I do the same with the infinitive version;
7. We keep on the theme of rage with Sappho claiming she has a simple soul not prone to rage; this is Bergk 77, Edmonds 74, Lobel-Page and Campbell 120, and is a quote from the Etymologicum Magnum, reading «Ἀβακής· κέχρηται αὐτῷ Σαπφώ, οἶον· Ἀλλά τις οὐκ ἔμμεν παλιγκότων ὀργάνων ἀλλ' ἀβακὴν τὰν φρένα ἔχω, ἀντὶ τοῦ ἡσύχιον καὶ πρᾷον» (ἀβακής, "gentle"; Sappho used it thus: "But I am not one of those spiteful with rage, but I have a calm heart", instead of "silent and mild"); Bergk, Lobel-Page and Campbell correct the text the same way as me; Edmonds additionally emends παλιγκότων to παλίγκοτος, which is very sensible, but I keep the text I started from (probably Bibliotheca Augustana); the meter is xx–uu––uu–ux (lesser Asclepiad), and was kept or imitated;
8. The next poem, in Edmonds' restoration which I took up, has a similar claim to the above; this is Edmonds 35 and Lobel-Page and Campbell 3, and is from P.Berol. 5006 (first 10 lines) and P.Oxy. 424 (the rest); given that I just took the notation from Bibliotheca Augustana and the restorations from Edmonds, I won't say what Lobel-Page and Campbell do; I just note that both sources have been transcribed;
   Also, Diehl has a wholly different restoration, which is included at the end of the post; more precisely, at the end you will find two nav-tabs: the default one is the Diehl version, with an Italian translation in the same meter as the older translations, and the non-default tab is the Edmonds restoration with an updated version of the Italian translation; both of these translations are commented on in an item further down;
   The meter is Sapphic stanzas, and is rendered as usual; coming to the histories:
   
   1. All three translations have their first line (the δώσην from the super-incomplete first stanza) translated somewhere between 9/1 and 1/2/11, I'd say probably on 1/2 as I updated the files fragment, since it is not in the "new in Sappho" file from that day;
   2. The first translation to be completed is the Italian, which appears in the tacuinum poematum (the poem noteblock) under the date of night between 10 and 11/3/11, done in bed the night after comprehending what the fragment said (as per diary); the tacuinum reports exactly the manuscript version, while the final version, modulo a tweak for which see below, is found in the "new in Sappho" file from 16-17/3/3;
   3. The diary from 16/4/11 then tells us that, after a Latin translation test, I translated the whole thing into Latin and stanza 1 into English; this resonates quite well with the manuscripts on the printout from early Jan 2011, where we find ll. 1-6 (counting from the first complete stanza) of the English and all of the Latin; I suppose the diary was a bit imprecise on this;
   4. The rest of the English "manuscript" version is left unaltered from the final version, which, along with the Latin, first appears in the 26/4/11 "new in Sappho" file; the next item shows all the tweaks that happened between that file and the final version;
   5. On 20/9/21 at 14:00, I noted that the -qu' in amicosqu' in the Latin version is perfectly superfluous and out of place, so I decided to remove it, and I also changed «I’ve become your] tell-off,[ your he]art [enjoy / All] th[is may;» to its current form in the English; on 2/10/22 at 13:01 I change «Se restai coi nobili» to «Se tu stai coi nobili» to avoid the archaism;
   6. On 16/5/23 I realize I doubled the "tu" thanks to that Italian tweak, so I try to fix it several times, and eventually land on «Se compagno ai nobili, non ai buoni / Né ai belli (or) sei.» at 14:57, and the below version at almost 15; I also make a tweak to the English, changing "How great ill" to "What great ill" at 14:42.
9. The previous fragment, if Edmonds' restoration is correct, has καλοκἀγαθία (kalokagathia) expressed in the beginning, when Sappho says «κωὐ κάλων κἄσλων» (and not the handsome and good); this concept is very well expressed in Bergk 102 Edmonds 58 Lobel-Page 50 Campbell 50, a quote by Galen's Exhortation to learning reading thus: «Ἄμεινον οὖν ἐστιν, ἐγνωκότας τὴν μὲν τῶν μειρακίων ὥραν τοῖς ἠρινοῖς ἄνθεσιν ἐοικυῖαν, ὀλιγοχρόνιόν τε τὴν τέρψιν ἔχουσαν, ἐπαινεῖν καὶ τὴν Λεσβίαν λέγουσαν· Ὁ μὲν γὰρ καλὸς ὅσσον ἰδεῖν πέλεται, ὁ δὲ κἀγαθὸς αὐτίκα καὶ καλὸς ἔσται» (it is not better, since we know the time around 20 years of age is like spring flowers, and has short-lived enjoyment, to commend the Lesbian poet when she says: for he who is handsome stays [handsome] only when he is seen, but he who is also good will immediately also be handsome); the only controversy is how to fix the "[handsome]", that is, the fact that πέλεται seems to be missing a predicate noun; Bibliotheca Augustana follows Campbell and Lobel-Page in adding κάλος at the end of l. 1; Bergk adds ἀγαθός; Edmonds changes the line to «Ὀ μὲν γὰρ κάλος <εἴς κάλος> ὄσσον ἴδην πέλει»; in any case these are glyconians expanded with two dactyls, like Hector and Andromacha aka Sappho 44, and are rendered the same way; oh, according to the Paracritical Note we have the version κὔστερον ἔσσεται somewhere, perhaps TCPOS or Greek Wikisource;
10. Speaking of καλοκἀγαθία (kalokagathia), we proceed with Bergk 83 Edmonds 100 Lobel-Page and Campbell 148, which expresses a similar concept, substituting handsomeness and goodness with money and virtue; I do not report the quote because it merely paraphrases the text; I do not discuss controversies because I only mention I took The Complete Poems of Sappho's l. 1, which carries out the easy fix to the meter there by adding τᾶς in front of ἀρέτας, and fiddled with l. 2 autonomously to reach the same meter while keeping the concept of the locus desperatus found in that line – I also got the alternate version ἀ δ' ἀμφοτέρων κρᾶσις ἔχ' εὐδαιμονίας τὸ ἄκρον, which I thought up again at 15:56 on 18/5/23; said meter is is ionians a maiore, kept or imitated in the translations;
    22/4/23 1:44, coming to history-edit this, I thought of τᾷ δ' ἀμφοτέρων κράσει ἔν' εὐδαιμονίας τό γ' ἄκρον, which I hopefully remember to implement in the editions and the videos; in fact, I'm gonna implement it here too, since it doesn't affect the translations, and that elision on kráseï (κράσ‹εϊ› εὐδαιμονίας τό ‹γ’› ἄκρον) seems just made up to me;
    Anyway, the histories:
    
    1. The Italian is the first to be started; in particular, l. 1 is found, as «Perché il denar senza virtù non è sicur compagno,», as an S9 residue not in OSs, thus between 21/12/10 and 5/1/11; the printout of the fragments from after that date has the manuscript of l. 2 and the annotation of the below l. 2, both of which are S11 residues, thus from within 1/2/11; the last thing is the tweak, which leads from the Untweaked to the Tweaked version below, and is found on the poem noteblock after the next item; this gives two versions of the second line, both not satisfactory to me; so on 16/4/24 at 12:03 I thought of «L'uso di ambedue di contentezza ha sicur guadagno», and still wasn't satisfied, so on 21/4/24 at 0:15 I went "di grande gioia", and eventually «Dall'uso di entrambi di letizia viene un gran guadagno», which gives us the Final version below;
    2. Then we have the lost English translation; this is found at the start of a page of the poem noteblock, right after the date "10/1 nct in lct"; now, that date is incorrect and must be 10/2, otherwise this would be from before S11, yet it was lost; therefore, it means "night between 10/2 and 11/2/11 in bed"; the manuscript reads «Richness wþout virtue as a mate doþ certaintỳ disdain; / Using of them both of happyiness doþ bring a certain ṛegain.»;
    3. Then we have the Latin, manuscripted on the printout SP6 from 5/1/11, and found as an OS24 residue, thus from within 7/5/11; also, all versions of the list in OS23 from 4/5 say "ac lat e en", so both those translations were, as far as I knew, still to be done on 4/5; the manuscript reads «At divitiæ, virtus eis ni, tibi dant pericla; / Ambobus adutiAt lætitiæ magnum adest usu' aearum ambum.»;
    4. Finally, the Blog English, which is simply a residue of S13, thus between 17/5/11 and 24/5/11;
11. Talking about money, we move to an advice not to boast about a ring; this link is probably my fantasy, as the advice wasn't to boast about the richness of the woman's partner, but rather that he was going to marry her; in any case, this is Bergk 39 Edmonds 51 Lobel-Page inc. 5 v. 2 Campbell inc. 5(a), and it's a quote from Herodian (cfr. another fragment here) reading «Ἐφυλαξάμην δὲ διαλέκτους διὰ τόδ'· ἄλλ' ἄν μοι μεγαλύνεο δακτυλίῳ πέρι» (I went cautious on dialects because of this: but boast about a ring with me); Bergk removes the ἄν, Edmonds corrects it to ὂν like the others, Edmonds also doubles the nu in μεγαλύνεο and makes δακτυλίῳ into a genitive as the others; I honestly don't see why one should split τόδ' and get a locus desperatus with a weird δ' at the start of the line, instead of reading τόδ' and eliminating that problem; in other words, why should one create Campbell and Lobel-Page's problem instead of adopting Edmonds' solution? Because they didn't like an elision before a high dot, I assume; well I like a locus desperatus even less :); in any case, the meter is glyconians expanded with two dactyls, for which ditto to above; oh I also noticed the emendation of μοι to μὴ, which is decidedly appropriate, is there in Bergk, stops after Edmonds, and restarts in TCPOS or Bibliotheca Augustana; that is what I followed back in the days of translation;
12. Speaking of rings and marriage, here comes a piece of advice: find a younger bride than me, for I am old; this is Bergk 49, Edmonds 99, Lobel-Page 121, Campbell 121, and is a quote from Strobaeus reading «Σαπφοῦς· Ἀλλ' ἔων φίλος ἄμμιν λέχος ἄρνησον νεώτερον οὐ γὰρ τλάσομ' ἔγω ξυνοικεῖν νέ' οὖσα γεραίτερα» (by Sappho: [quote]); now Bergk's emendation features a few correct corrections which were followed by others, but also νέῳ εὖσα, which features the non-Aeolic εὖσα (Doric only AFAIK), and was corrected by Edmonds to νέῳ ἔσσα, with synekphonesis, and also a smart fix in the ἄμμεσιν, which was doffed for some reason; Lobel-Page and Campbell read ἔοισα γεραίτερα, and that is what got to me, though Edmonds' version is closer to the tradition; if I were to work on this now, I'd go for «Ἀλλ' ἔων φίλος ἄμμεσιν / λέχος ἄρνυσο νεώτερον / οὐ γὰρ τλάσομ' ἔγω συνοί- / κην νέῳ ἔσσα γεραίτερα», but that is not what I did back then; I kept the Campbell text, except trying to get my glyconians back by splitting λέχος between lines and having ἄρνῡσο, which would be metri causa since the natural length is ἄρνῠσο; as glyconians, these are kept in Latin and imitated by –u–uu–u– in English and Italian;
13. We end with a generic piece of advice: live quietly and don't mess around; this is Bergk 114 Edmonds 78 Lobel-Page 145 Campbell 145; it is a quote from a scholarly commentary on the Argonautics by Apollonius of Rhode, reading «χέραδες λέγονται οἱ σωροὶ τῶν μικρῶν λίθων - μέμνηται καὶ Σαπφώ· Μὴ κενὴ χεράδος (heaps of small stones are called χέραδες, "jetsam" – Sappho also remembers this: stir not the jetsam); I admit I took "jetsam" off Edmonds; another source for the same quote gives μὴ κίνει χέραδας, generating a controversy: χέραδος or χέραδας? The latter was chosen by Bergk and Edmonds, and I would choose it now as it looks like an accusative, while the genitive-looking former was Lobel-Page and Campbell's choice, for reasons I cannot comprehend; the meter is xx–uu–, a partial glyconian, and that was kept or imitated; I may have chosen the apparent genitive out of laziness, I don't remember;
14. The above fragment is a nice summary to the next poem, which is far closer to us than all the above Sappho, both in time and in language; the post ends with Chaucer's Balade de bon conseyl, or Ballad of good advice, which definitely fits into this advice post, and is delightfully welcomed because it requires no critical note whatsoever :). A file created 24/6/2009 10:55 and edited the following day 18:06 dates the translation and informs us that «get in submissiveness» was originally «r'ceive in submissiveness» and was changed for ease of pronunciation. And on 14/6/23 at 21:28 I change it further to «take in submissiveness».
15. So here we are, at the end. Basically, I came back to LPC 3, thinking it could be a wonderful illustration of how tenuous our reconstructions can be, given how different the two restorations are. In preparation for a future video, I look at the Diehl supplementum and find some integrations in the apparatus criticus, which I take up immediately.
    After understanding what it says (well, I start when I still have κἀπορίστης in my mind, hence the two lots of translation), I translate the Diehl restoration to Italian in two lots: the first two and a half line of the first complete stanza are from 12/5/23 19:59-20:05, corrected on 13/5 as I finish the translation because ἀπέλλης is not a future or an aorist but a present, the rest of the translation is from 13/5/23 at 23:48-0:08, aside from that very incomplete stanza which I only did as I added this stuff and the manuscripts here, on 16/5/23 at 0:02. Also, in the afternoon of 16/5 I wonder if the incomplete stanza is best interpreted as the desiderative optative «[–u–x Giusto trovar tu possa / Non favo]rir[mi.» I've translated or a potential optative. Since the latter produces a better-sounding translation, I choose it, and the translation is from 16:36 on 16/5.
    As for the other nav-tab, well, I need an Italian translation for the video, and I'm trying to use as much as I can of the old one, because it's not particularly terrible, and because the creative rhyme "vecchi - orecchi - me chi" is something I'm kinda proud of :). We'll see if I end up changing it so much that I count it as a remake in the index. For now I've only fixed the mistranslation of eslōn as "good" and klýtōn as "noble" in ll. 1-2, with various attempts, the one reported below being from 19:39 on 14/5/23. I then finish the review in two lots on 16/5/23: first the first 3 stanzas (not counting the incomplete one) 12:50-13:16, then, after lunch, the last stanza, 14:14-14:16, with two small tweaks done in adding it to the post, where the original read «[Con migli͜ori] c[ure; poiché cresciut]a / [Sono] se[mplice, e che ogni dio m’aiuta». 17/6/23, as I cut the video, at 15:47 I consider turning "bambinesco" to "puerile", but I'm not entirely convinced, so I'll ask Calcagno what he thinks and come back here if I decide to implement it.

With all that done, let's get to the poems!

Ψαύην δ' οὐ δοκίμωμ' ὀράνω δύσ‹ι› πάχε‹σιν›. Io non oso toccar colle mi͜e düe braccia͜ il ciel. Οὐδ' ἴαν δοκίμωμι προσίδοισαν φάος ἀλίω ἔσσεσθαι σοφίαν πάρθενον εἰς οὐδένα πω χρόνον τοιαύταν. Credo͜ impossibil ch’una che      a ’l sol vedere vale Possa͜ ancor ma͜i vantar per sé      abilità cotale In qualche tempo. οὐ γὰρ θέμις ἐν μοισοπόλων ‹δόμωι› θρῆνον θέμεν· οὔ κ’ ἄμμι πρέποι τάδε. Presso͜ un che le Muse serve non si pu͜ò Far lamento; né a no͜i s’addice ci͜ò. Old Final [. . . . . . οὐδὲ θέ]μις σε Μίκα [. . ]ελα[ . . ] ἀ̣λ̣λά σ’ ἔγωὐκ ἐάσω [… ]ν̣ φιλότ[ατ’] ἤλεο Πενθιλήᾱν̣[ [. . . . . ]δᾰ κᾰ̣[κό]τροπ’, ἄμμα[ [. . . . . . . ] μέλ̣[ος] τι γλύκερον . [u–x 5 . . . . . . . ]α μελλιχόρων[ος –x x–uu, – –u ἀεί]δει, λίγυραι δ᾽ ἄη[δοι . . . . . . . . . . . ] δροσ[ό]εσσα[–x] [x–uu – –uu – né li]ce che tu, Mica, [x–uu – –uu] non ti lascerò [u–x x–uu – –u] di Pentilo all’amo[re] salta [x–uu – –uu – –u] ma[li]gne, veste [x–uu – –uu] qualche dolce canto. [–x 5 [MISSING] x–uu – –uu] canta, e ca[nti] colla dolce x–uu – –uu – –] rugi[͜a]dosa [–x] [. . . . . . οὐδὲ θέ]μις σε Μίκα [. . ]ελα[ . . ] ἀ̣λ̣λά σ’ ἔγωὐκ ἐάσω [… τὰ]ν̣ φιλότ[ατ’] ἤλεο Πενθιλήᾱν̣[ [. . . . . ]δᾰ κᾰ̣[κό]τροπ’, ἄμμα[ [. . . . . . . ] μέλ̣[ος] τι γλύκερον . [u–x 5 . . . . . . . ]α μελλιχόφων[ος –x x–uu, – –u ἀεί]δει, λίγυραι δ᾽ ἄη[ται . . . . . . . . . . . ] δροσ[ό]εσσα[–x] [x–uu – –uu – né li]ce che tu, Mica, [x–uu – –uu –] ma non ti lascerò [x [x–uu – l]’amo[re]͜ ha͜i scelto delle Pentilée [x–uu – –uu – –u] ma[li]gne, veste [x–uu – –uu – –] qualche dolce can[to 5 x–uu – –uu – –] dalla dolce vo[ce x–uu – –uu can]ta, e stridenti bre[zze x–uu – –uu – –] rugi[͜a]dosa [–x] θέοι δ’ [ἐπαι]νέσ‹σ›ω[σιν αὔ]τικ’ ἀδακ[ρυτον] θε[. . .]ηλ[. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ]ηλα[ E chi non pi[ange] i divi [su]bito [lo]di[no] x–u– x–u –uu –ux Infinitive Imperative σκιδναμένας ἐν στήθεσιν ὄργας μαψυλάκαν γλῶσσαν πεφύλαχθαι. Mentre la rabbia mi prendeva ’l cuore Frenat’ho alla lingua ’l van clamore σκιδναμένας ἐν στήθεσιν ὄργας γλῶσσαν μαψυλάκαν πεφύλαχθε. Mentre la rabbia vi prendeva ’l cuore Frenate alla lingua ’l van clamore xx ἀλλά τις οὐκ ἔμμι παλιγκότων ὄργαν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀβάκην τὰν φρέν’ ἔχω. ux xx non m’inasprisco nella rabbia i͜o, No, ché l’animo mio semplice s’è. ux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ] δώσην. 4 Αἰ κλ]ύτων μέν τ’ ἐπ[πότεαι πεδ’ ἄνδρων κωὐ κ]άλων κἄσλων, ἐ[νέπεις δὲ χαίρην τοὶς φί]λοις, λύπης τέ μ[ε, σοὶ γένεσθαι φαὶς ἔ]μ’ ὄνειδος, 8 ἦτορ] οἰδήσαις, ἐπὶ τα̣[ῦτ’ ἀρέσκε͜ο καρδ]ίαν· ἄσαιο· τὸ γὰρ ν̤[όημμα τὦ]μον οὐκ οὔτω μ[αλάκως χόλᾳ παί- δων] διάκηται· 12 ἀλλὰ] μὴ̣ δ̣ό̣αζε· [γέροντας ὄρνῑς οὐκ ἄγρη βρό]χ̣ις· συνίημ[’ ἔγω σε οἶ πρὶν ἐσπό]λ̣ης κακότατο[ς, οἴῳ δ’ ἀντετέθη]μεν 16 δαΐῳ. Σὺ δ’ ὦ]ν ἀτέραις, με[μήλων λῳόνων, τίθ]η φρένας· εὔ[κολον γὰρ νῶν τράφοισ]α̣ τοὶς μάκα[ρας σάφ’ οἶδ’ ἔ- μοι παρέοντας.] 20 Manuscript Final ………… ………… ………… Ch’eg̣ḷị darà. 4 Se restai coi nobili, non coi buoni Né coi belli tu, aed auguri buoni Agli amici dài, e dolor mi doni, Chèd, orgoglioso 8 Fatto, me tuo biasimo dici, 'l cuore Godati, e≲sisazi, poiché≳ l'umore Nero dei fanciul non ha nel mio cuore] FacileDocile sposo; 12 Dubbi non aver: gl'uccelli vecchi Trappola non prende; <so cogl’>orecchi <A qual grande male sei> giunto, e a me chi È contraposto, 16 E qual sia; tu dunque 'l tuo pe⇓tto[cuore] muta <Con migliori cure; poich’io>, cresciuta Poi c'ho mente semplice, <so m’aiuta> Ogni dio tosto 20 ………… ………… ………… Ch’eg̣ḷị darà. 4 [Se] tu [insiem coi no]bili, [non coi] buoni Né [co͜i b]elli s[tai], ed a[uguri buoni Agli͜ a]mici [dà͜i], e dolor [mi] doni Poi ch’, [orgogli͜oso] 8 Fatto, [m]e tuo bi͜asimo [dici], [’l cuo]re [Godati],͜ e si sazi, po͜iché [l’umore Nero de͜i fanci͜ul] non ha nel [m]i͜o c[uore] F[acile] sposo; 12 Dubbi non avere: [gl’uccelli vecchi Trap]pola [non prende]; so cogl’orecchi [A qual gra]nde male [se͜i giun]to,͜ [e͜ a me chi È contrappo]sto, 16 [E qual si͜a; tu dun]que ’l tuo cuore mu[t]a [Con migli͜ori] c[ure; po͜i ch’]i͜o, [cresciut]a Po͜i [c’ho mente] se[mplice, so, m’aiuta Ogni di͜o tosto]. 20 ὀ μὲν γὰρ κάλος ὄσσον ἴδην πέλεται ‹κάλος›, ὀ δὲ κἄγαθος αὔτικα καὶ κάλος ἔσ‹σε›ται. Chi bell’è, sol per farsi veder, ‹bello› resterà, Chi͜ invec’anche buon’è, bello subito pur sa‹r›à. Ὀ πλοῦτος ἄνευ ‹τᾶς› ἀρέτας οὐκ ἀσίνης πάροικος, Τᾷ δ' ἀμφοτέρων κράσ‹ει ἔν'› εὐδαιμονίας τό ‹γ'› ἄκρον Untweaked Tweaked Final Il denaro senza ‹la› virtù non è sicur compagno, L’uso di entrambi di letizi͜a ha sicur guadagno. Il denaro senza ‹la› virtù non è sicur compagno, L’uso di entrambi di letizi͜a porta gran guadagno. Il denaro senza ‹la› virtù non è sicur compagno, Dall'uso di entrambi di letizia viene un gran guadagno. {δ’} ἀλλὰ μὴ μεγαλύν‹ν›εο δακτυλίω πέρι. Ma tu non ti vantar dell’anello ch’al dito ha͜i. ἀλλ᾽ ἔων φίλος ἄμμι λέ- χος ἄρνῡσο νεώτερον· οὐ γὰρ τλάσομ’ ἔγω συνοί- κην ἔοισα γεραιτέρα. Ma, essendomi ͜amato, tu Prendi giovane sposa, orsù: ’Nfatti io non ti sposerò, Caro, po͜i ch’i miei͜ anni ho. μὴ κίνη χέραδας Ghi͜ai͜a lasci͜a dov’è Flee fro the prees and dwelle with sothfastnesse; Suffyce unto thy good, though it be small, For hoord hath hate, and climbing tickelnesse, Prees hath envye, and wele blent overal. Savour no more than thee bihove shal, Reule wel thyself that other folk canst rede, And trouthe thee shal delivere, it is no drede. Tempest thee noght al croked to redresse In trust of hir that turneth as a bal; Gret reste stant in litel besinesse. Be war therefore to sporne ayeyns an al, Stryve not, as doth the crokke with the wal. Daunte thyself, that dauntest otheres dede, And trouthe thee shal delivere, it is no drede. That thee is sente, receyve in buxumnesse; The wrastling for this world axeth a fal. Her is non hoom, her nis but wildernesse; Forth, pilgrim, forth! Forth, beste out of thy stal! Know thy countree, look up, thank God of al; Hold the heye wey and lat thy ghost thee lede, And trouthe thee shal delivere, it is no drede. Envoy Therfore, thou Vache, leve thyn old wrecchedness; Unto the world leve now to be thral. Crye him mercy, that of his hy goodnesse Made thee of noght, and in especial Draw unto him, and pray in general For thee, and eek for other, hevenlich mede; And trouthe thee shal delivere, it is no drede.

Cǣlō tēndĕrĕ brāchĭă tāct’ ĕgŏ nōn cōnōr. I dare not try to touch the big sky with my two small arms. Nōn crēdō pŏtĭs ūmquām fĭĕrī lūcĕm hăbēnt’ ōclīs Sŏlīs pu͞ellăm hăbēr’ ūllăm ĕām tēmpŭ’ pĕrītĭăm Tālēm su͞am. I think that ne’er a girl that look      upon the sun’s light does Upon such skill will get to look:      this thing in no time was, And in none will be. Fās nōn ĕnĭm ēst po͞etăë̆ īn ‹dŏmū› Quĕrī; nĕquĕ vōs hǣc dĕcĕānt quĭdĕm. No lament’s allowed where a Muse-servant lives. Nor to you as rightful any god this gives. [x–uu – –uu –] tē [nĕquĕ] Mīcă [fā]s ēst [x–uu – –uu sē]d nōn ĕquĭdēm sĭnām tē Ămīcĭt[ĭām –uu] lēxtī tĭbĭ Pēnthĭlēăm [x–uu – –uu – –u] mă[lī]gnă, vēstĭs [x–uu – –uu] quīdām [uu] cān[tŭ’] dūlcĭs. [x–uu – –uu –] vō[cĕ]quĕ dūlcĭ’ [–x x–uu – –uu cān]tāt, strĭdŭlīquĕ vē[ntī x–uu – –uu – –uu] rōr[ĕ] plēnă[ [x–uu, – –uu, – – and nor c]an you, Mica, [x–uu, – –uu, – –u] but I won’t let you [x–uu, –] you chose the friends[hip] of the Penthile͜an girls [x–uu, – –uu, – –] ev’[li]sh [–u] dress [x x–uu, – –uu] some sweet so[ng] [u, –u–x 5 x–uu, – –uu, – –u] the sweet-voic[ed –x x–uu, – –u is sin]ging, and the screeching breezes [x–uu, – –uu, – –uu] d[e]wy [–x] [La͞u]dē[nt] dĕī nūllās qu’ hăbēt lăc[rĭmās stă]tĭm x–u– x–u –uu –ux And m[ay] th' Gods him who [sheds] no tea[rs very] quickly [pra]ise x–u– x–u –uu –ux Infinitive Imperative Cōrdă rĕplēnt’ īrā rĕtĭnu͞issĕ Īnmĕdĭtātă lătrāntēm līnguăm. Original Rhythmic remake As rage was taking over all my heart, I stopped fast-barking tongue’s noise’s a part As rage was taking over my heart, I stopped my tongue which idly would bark. Cōrdă rĕplēnt’ īrā rĕtĭnētĕ Īnmĕdĭtātă lătrāntēm līnguăm. Original Rhythmic remake As anger doth take over all your heart, Stop ye fast-barking tongue’s noise’s a part Should anger e'er take over your heart Stop ye your tongue that idly doth bark! Ēxăcērbŏr ĕg’ īr’ ha͞ud, mĭhĭ sīmplĭcĕm Mēntēm c’ īps’ hăbĕām. –uu–ux xx I do not get stubborn in anger, no, For the mind that I have simple is. –ux Manuscript Final ………………… ………………… ………………… Ēssĕ dătūrụ̆m. 4 CumSi viris bnotis neque si bonis tu Atque pulchris stasque, iubes valere Tu͞os amicos, ac mihi das dolorem, Me dtiṇbi dicens 8 Reprehensionemi', Spesuperbia, his Gaudeat cor; se pleat; ac mihi nam Cogitatio nonsic P̣facil' haud capit bi- lem puerorum. 12 Dubi' haud habe: laqueus nam aves Non capit senes; ego te scio quam Magna mala carpseri' feceris atque quantum Contr' ego ponar 16 Hostem. Ergo pectora muta, curas Meliores dans tibi: simplicem nam' ipsa Mente ialta perbene misci͞o beatos Mecum adesse. 20 ………………… ………………… ………………… Ēssĕ dătūrụ̆m. 4 [Sī vĭrīs nō]tīs [nĕquĕ sī b]ŏnīs tū Ātquĕ pūlchrīs stā[squĕ, iŭbēs vălērĕ Tu͞os ă]mīcōs, āc mĭ[hĭ] dās dŏlōrĕm, [M]ē [tĭbĭ dīcēns] 8 Rēprĕhēnsĭōnĭ’, [sŭp]ērbĭā, hī[s Ga͞udĕāt cō]r; sē plĕăt; āc [mĭ]hī năm Cō[gĭtāti͞o] sīc f[ăcĭl’] ha͞ud căpīt [bī- lēm pŭĕrōrŭm;] 12 Dūbĭ’ ha͞ud hăbē: [lăqu]ĕūs năm [āvēs Nōn căpīt sĕnēs; ĕgŏ tē] scĭō [quăm Māgnă] māl[ă fēcĕ]rĭs [ātquĕ quāntŭm Cōntr’ ĕgŏ pōn]ăr 16 [Hōstĕm. Ērgō] pēctŏră mūt[ă], cū[rās Mēlĭōrēs dāns tĭbĭ;] sīm[plĭc’ īpsă Mēntĕ āltā pērbĕnĕ sci͞o] bĕā[tōs Mēcŭm ădēssĕ]. 20 Manuscript Final ………… ………… ………… [–u] will give. 4 If with noble men, not with good or nice You do stay, and wish all your friends a nice Time, and grieve me, for, proud, not wise, You to me say 8 I've become your tell-off, your heart enjoy All this may; with it satiand be satisfiedsfied be: a boy Is m]y h[eart] not e[asily] made, [a boy Raging away;] 12 Don’t you doubt [though: never did old a bird By a tr]ap [get caught]; fully well [I’]ve heard [What gre]at ill [you’ve come to, and ’tis not blurred To me what foe 16 I’]ve [against; you there]fore, with be[tter care In it,] chan[ge] your heart; [for, since I do bea]r Easily [contempted a mind, th’ go]ds [bear Help t’ me, I know]. 20 ………… ………… ………… [–u] will give. 4 [If with no]ble men, [not] with good or [n]ice You do s[tay], and w[ish all your fr]iends [a nice Time], and grief do give m[e, for, pr]oud, not wise, You to me [say 8 I'm now your] reproach,[may your he]art [enjoy All of] th[is;] and be satisfied; [a boy Is m]y h[eart] not e[asily] made, [a boy Raging away;] 12 Don’t you doubt [though: never did old a bird By a tr]ap [get caught]; fully well [I’]ve heard [How gre]at ill [you’ve come to, and ’tis not blurred To me what foe 16 I’]ve [against; you there]fore, with be[tter care In it,] chan[ge] your heart; [for, since I do bea]r Easily [contempted a mind, th’ go]ds [bear Help t’ me, I know]. 20 Vīsū, pūlchĕr ĭ’ qu’ ūnŭm ădēst, ĭtă sōl’ ĕrĭt, Quī bōnū’st quŏquĕ, pūlchĕr ĕrīt stătĭm ētiăm ĭs. He who’s beautiful, ‹beautiful› just to be seen will stay, Who’s good too, he w‹il›l also be beautiful right away. Āt dīvĭtĭǣ, vīrtŭs ĕīs nī, tĭbĭ dānt pĕrīclă; Āt lǣtĭtĭǣ māgnŭm ădēst ūsŭ’ ĕārŭm āmbû̆m. Lost Blog Richness without virtue as a mate doth certaintỳ disdain; Using of them both of happiness doth bring a certain gain. Money without virtue is indeed a very dang’rous neighbour, But if you do use the two of them you’ll surely be much gayer. Sēd nĕ tū glŏrĭārĕ vĕlīs t’ ănŭlō tŭō. Don’t go round full of pride for the ring on your finger there. Nōbīs sēd cŭm ămātŭ’ sīs Spōns’ hăbē iŭvĕnēm tĭbī: Nūbĕr’ ha͞ud pătĭār tĭbī Ĕnīm, sīm sĕnĭōr c’ ĕgŏ. But, beïng my beloved, to find Younger wife than I am do mind: I won’t suffer to marry you For I’ve lived for years quite a few. Glārĕām nĕ mŏvē Leave the jetsam alone Flee from the crowd and dwell with certainty; Suffice unto thy good, though it be small, For hoard hath hate, and wealth uncertainty, Crowd has envy, and wealth deceives in all. Enjoy no more than what befit thee shall, Rule well thyself that other folk canst read, And truth then shalt thee save, it is no dread. Trouble thee naught all crooked to redress In trust of it which turneth as a ball1; Great slumber stays in little business. Be careful not to kick against an awl, Strive not, as doth the crock against the wall Control thyself, that control others’ deed, And truth then shalt thee save, it is no dread. What thee is sent, take in submissiveness; The fighting for this world asks for a fall. Here is no home, here’s naught but wilderness; Forth, pilgrim, forth! Forth, best out of thy stable! Know thy country, look up, thank God of all; Keep the high way, and let thy ghost thee lead, And truth then shalt thee save, it is no dread. Envoy Therefore, thou Vache2, leave thy old wretchedness; Unto the world now stop your being slave. Cry him mercy, that of his high goodness Made thee from nothing, and in specïal Draw unto him, and pray in general For thee, and also all heavenly made; And truth then shalt thee save, it is no dread.

¹ bal, in middle English, indicated any round body; in this case, hir that turneth as a bal refers to the wheel of Fortune.
² Possibly a courtier known to Chaucer who was out of favour for several years in the late fourteenth-century (Sir Philip de la Vache, 1348–c.1408).

• Sappho LPC 3, Diehl version
• Sappho LPC 3, Edmonds version

[–u– τύ κεν δοκίμοις χάριν μοι οὐκ ἀπυ]δώσην [συμφ]ύτων μέντ' ἐπτ[ατόνοις λύραισι καὶ κ]άλων κἄσλων ἐ[πέων ἀπέλλης τοὶς φί]λοις, λύπης τέ μ[ε, κἀπορίπτης εἰς ἔ]μ' ὄνειδος. [ᾦ κεν] οἰδήσαις ἐπί τ[ᾷ τε λώβᾳ καρδί]αν ἄσαιο· τὸ γὰρ [νόημμα τὦ]μον οὐκ οὔτω μ[αλάκως πρὸς ὄργαν σὰν] διάκηται. ...]. μη̣δ̣ [...

Tu] di dar[mi forse rifiuteresti Il tuo favore.] Di] p[arole] nobili e [b]elle, [na]te [Per le lire, musiche] ept[atonate, Cacci via gli a]manti, e di biasmo ondate, Con m[io] dolore, [Getti su di] me. Di c[osì insultare Me il tuo cu]or si sazi, ma non sperare [Che coll'ira] f[acil sia] contagiare [Questo m]io [cuore. ...]. nor(?) [...

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ] δώσην. 4 Αἰ κλ]ύτων μέν τ’ ἐπ[πότεαι πεδ’ ἄνδρων κωὐ κ]άλων κἄσλων, ἐ[νέπεις δὲ χαίρην τοὶς φί]λοις, λύπης τέ μ[ε, σοὶ γένεσθαι φαὶς ἔ]μ’ ὄνειδος, 8 ἦτορ] οἰδήσαις, ἐπὶ τα̣[ῦτ’ ἀρέσκε͜ο καρδ]ίαν· ἄσαιο· τὸ γὰρ ν̤[όημμα τὦ]μον οὐκ οὔτω μ[αλάκως χόλᾳ παί- δων] διάκηται· 12 ἀλλὰ] μὴ̣ δ̣ό̣αζε· [γέροντας ὄρνῑς οὐκ ἄγρη βρό]χ̣ις· συνίημ[’ ἔγω σε οἶ πρὶν ἐσπό]λ̣ης κακότατο[ς, οἴῳ δ’ ἀντετέθη]μεν 16 δαΐῳ. Σὺ δ’ ὦ]ν ἀτέραις, με[μήλων λῳόνων, τίθ]η φρένας· εὔ[κολον γὰρ νῶν τράφοισ]α̣ τοὶς μάκα[ρας σάφ’ οἶδ’ ἔ- μοι παρέοντας.] 20

… … … Che [x] darà. [Se] tu [non coi] nobili [b]elli e buoni Ma [coi n]oti r[esti, ed] a[uguri buoni [Fai ai tuoi a]mici, e dolor [mi] doni, [Tutto orgogli͜oso,] 8 Onta tua [chiamando]mi, che [il cuo]re [Goda in ciò] e si sazi, ché [un nero umore Bambinesco] inver non ha nel [m]i͜o c[uore] D[ocile] sposo; 12 Dubbi non avere: [gli uccelli vecchi Non cadranno in trap]pola; i miei orecchi Sanno [a qual gr]an mal [tu sia giun]to,͜ [e͜ a me chi Sia contrappo]sto, 16 [E qual si͜a; tu dun]que il tuo cuore mu[t]a [Con migli͜ori] c[ure: poiché cresciut]a [Sono] se[mplice, che ogni dio m’aiuta Non m'è nascosto]. 20

Mythic'lly good? Let’s hear some myths!

Today we change time period and subject completely. In the last post, the song said «It was as good as a mythical story». So I thought I'd go on and draw a couple myths from Sappho. More precisely, we have:

1. An in pompa magna start with the grand oath (μέγαν ὄρκον) sworn by Artemis in Sappho Edmonds 152, Lobel-Page Alcaeus 304, Campbell 44A; a single half-line, ἀϊπάρθενος ἔσσομαι, was quoted by Cramer's Anecdota Græca to show how the Aeolians (Αἰολεῖς) say ἀεὶ «τριχῶς», "in a threefold manner"; I honestly have no clue what that is supposed to mean, considering the quote is either corrupted or not this poem; indeed, the meter requires ἀϊ, which has nothing threefold whatsoever; in any case, the quote, found as ἀεὶ πάρθενος ἔσομαι, was corrected to the present form already in Bergk 97, minus splitting ἀϊ from πάρθενος, a split that was corrected by Edmonds; sometime after Edmonds, P.Fouad. 239 was published by Lobel and Page and assigned hesitantly to Alcaeus (hence it being an Alcaeus fragment in the Lobel-Page edition Poetarum lesbiorum fragmenta), and Treu argued for Sappho's authorship, with Campbell agreeing with him and possibly restoring the missing beginnings of the papyrus lines (except for l. 1); the glyconian expanded with two dactyls is kept in Latin and imitated as –u–uu–uu–uu–u– in Italian and English, with rhymes between consecutive lines; I don't know why this fragment was reconstructed to have this meter, but that is what I had; the original «[To her body-dissolver] not ever does love go near.» became what it is now on 29/8/21 at 12:49; on 17/9/21, respectively at 13:57 and 13:58, «per scioglier sue membra» and «I will always bear will a virgin’s name» became what they are now, with the option «in sooth» for the English one;
2. We then have a one-liner, a quotation found in book 13 of our dear old Deipnosophistæ by Athenaeus; it seems that there are no controversies whatsoever about this, not even in the manuscript tradition, which is rather a unique than a rare event; so from our in pompa magna grand oath we move towards love, with friendship being the first form of love we meet; this is Bergk 35, Edmonds 140, Lobel-Page 142 and Campbell 142; the rhythm of the hexameter was kept in the Italian and English, and the Latin version is a hexameter.
3. We then pass through Leda finding an egg; now l. 1 of that fragment is uncontroversial, there are just a couple minor fixes done to the tradition; l. 2 is "whoever prints it does whatever they want", basically; I mean, the single words are uncontroversial, but we have Bergk's πεπυκάδμενον εὔρην ... ὤϊον, apparently the closest to the tradition, then Campbell's reordering ... ὤϊον εὔρην πεπυκάδμενον, then Edmonds' creative πεπυκάδμενον ὤϊον / εὔρην, and probably other versions around the internet; I propose my own take, probably reworking Greek Wikisource and Bibliotheca Augustana; this is Bergk 62, Edmonds 97, Lobel-Page 166 and Campbell 166; note that, under the influence of Greek Wikisource and Bibliotheca Augustana, and because eggs are white and not hyacinth-colored (which means a kind of violet, or more precisely the color of hyacinth), I chose to turn ὐακίνθινον, accusative singular going with the egg, to ὐακινθίνων, genitive plural going with the flowers, which are also straight out of Greek Wikisource and Bibliotheca Augustana; the Latin version is in lesser asclepiads, and the rhythm of those lines is preserved in the Italian and English, with the first two lines rhyming, and the last line on its own; on 7/10/22 I change «Once an egg indeed find which flowèrs fully did» to «Once indeed find an egg which flowers fully did» for better rhythm;
4. We then proceed to love-related fragments, with a one-line quote found in Strabo's Geography, a line from a poem addressed to Aphrodite which mentions possible homelands for Aphrodite; I have kept the text from the tradition, but emending ἢ Πάφος to καὶ Πάφος is justified both because Paphos is a city in Cyprus, and because of Alcman's fragment about Aphrodite (Bergk 10); Edmonds' Αἴ σε is not really justified, and is Edmonds-only; this is Bergk 7, Edmonds 5, Lobel-Page 35 and Campbell 35; Latin uses a Sapphic hendecasyllabic, Italian and English simply a hendecasyllabic;
5. The following fragment is not properly a myth, but rather an invocation to Hecate; I place it in the love-related series because Hecate is called "servant of Aphrodite"; now the reference seems to say this is from a book called Piety written by Philodemus, but the way the fragment is presented suggests the source had holes; perhaps this work came to us in a fragmentary form on papyri, and we know it existed because someone mentioned it, and this particular source is assigned to that mention? In any case, the source appears to read «]φωιδετη[ / χρυσοφαηθερ[ / ]αναφροδειτ[», which was amended by Edmonds (and Lobel-Page and Campbell followed suit) to read «Σαπφὼ δὲ τὴν θεὸν· χρυσοφάην θεράπαιναν Ἀφροδίτας», that is «Sappho (calls) the goddess: golden servant of Aphrodite»; now Edmonds then proceeded to argue that this was an indirect reference to a part of an invocation, which he reconstructed as «Χρυσοφάνης ὦ Ϝεκάτα θεράπνα / Ἀφροδίτας», «O Hecate, golden servant / Of Aphrodite», as the beginning of a Sapphic stanza; Lobel-Page and Campbell are more cautious, and keep the papyrus text as «χρυσοφάη‹ν› θερ[άπαιν]αν Ἀφροδίτ[ας», and I follow suit because, well, that is what I found and translated from Bibliotheca Augustana, and I don't even know if I saw Edmonds' version; this is Edmonds 24, Lobel-Page incerti auctoris 23, and Campbell incerti auctoris 23; the Greek text scans as –uu–uu–u–u––, so dactyl+dactyl+trochee+trochaic meter was the meter I took for the Latin, and the rhythm I imitated in English and Italian;
6. Finally, an account of Eros coming down from heaven; this is Bergk 68, Edmonds 69, Lobel-Page 54 and Campbell 54; the manuscript tradition (this is a quote from Pollux's Vocabulary, book 10) has «ἔλθοντ' ἐξ ὀράνω πορφυρίαν ἔχοντα προϊέμενον χλάμυν»; Bergk already had it emended by deleting ἔχοντα, which Edmonds Lobel-Page and Campbell follow suit in doing, but Greek Wikisource doesn't, ending up with messy meter which is why I deleted it, and changing προϊέμενον to περθέμενον, the most popular choice and the one I adopted out of following Bibliotheca Augustana and Greek Wikisource, with only Edmonds trying to adhere to the tradition as much as possible and having προιέμενον, which makes «wearing a purple mantle» actually say «sending forth his purple mantle»; I don't know why περθέμενον is so popular, given that προιέμενον exists and is closer to the codices; I asked about this on Stack Exchange, but nothing so far; but whatever; the translation imitate the rhythm of the original meter, or keep the meter in the case of Latin.

Well, the original Latin version of the one about Eros, made 10/9/10 and possibly tweaked within 2/11/10, doesn't really scan unless we make vēnĭt into the present vĕnĭt. Indeed, this was pointed out in the 10/9/10 diary: «a metro declinans cum longum in breve pænultimum opus sit mi positu». Can we make it scan without that change [I assume the vĕnĭt idea?] conceived while writing this sentence 15:03 22/8/21? Yes, as found at 15:14 on 4/9/23. At 15:12 I tried «purpure' habebat amictum is», but habebat is hăbēbăt so it didn't scan. Sorry to remove the word chlamys but couldn't do better. So here we go!

.. ]σανορεσ . . [ Φοίβῳ χρυσοκό]μᾳ, τὸν ἔτικτε Κόω κ[όρα μίγεισ’ εὐρυβίᾳ Κρ]ονίδᾳ μεγαλωνύμῳ [ Ἄρτεμις δὲ θέων] μέγαν ὄρκον ἐπώμοσε· 5 «[νὴ τὰν σὰν κεφά]λαν, ἀϊπάρθενος ἔσσομαι [ἄδμης οἰοπό]λων ὀρέων κορύφαισ᾽ ἔπι [θηρεύοισ’· ἄγι καὶ τά]δε νεῦσον ἔμαν χάριν». [ὢς εἶπ’· αὐτὰρ ἔνευ]σε θέων μακάρων πάτηρ, [πάρθενον δ’ ἐλαφάβ]ολον ἀγροτέραν θέοι 10 [ἄνθρωποί τε κάλε]ισιν ἐπωνύμιον μέγα. [κήνᾳ λυσιμέλης] Ἔρος οὐδάμα πίλναται· ] . [ . ] . . . . α̣φόβε[ . . ] .́ .ω· ………… [Ad Apollo͜ a͜ure͜a chio]ma, che fece la Ce[ide Con Z]e͜us [forza immane]͜ e dal nome assa͜i celebre Gran [divin] giuramento giurò͜ un giorno ͜[Artemide]: 5 «[Per la te]sta [tu͜a], vergine sempre i͜o resterò, Per le cime de’ monti [solin]ghi [i͜o caccerò], [Vergin]: per mïo͜ amore tu [que]sto concedi,͜ [orsù]». [Disse;] de͜i be͜ati dè͜i ’l grande padre [conces]se ciò. Cacciatrice di [cervi] e [vergin] la [chiam]ano 10 Dè͜i [e uomini], con questo͜ assa͜i grande titolo. [A le͜i] mai s’avvicina [per scioglierle͜ il corpo] Amor. …………… Λάτω καὶ Νιόβα μάλα μὲν φίλαι ἦσαν ἔταιραι. Niobe͜ invero͜ e Latona carissime s’erano͜ amiche. Φαῖσι δή ποτα Λήδαν ὐακινθίνων εὔρην ὤϊον [ἀνθέ͜ων] πεπυκαδμένον [ὔπο]. Inver dicon che Leda͜ un uovo un dì trovò: Ricoperto [da fiori] di giacinto fu Che ’l trovò. Ἤ σε Κύπρος ἢ Πάφος ἢ Πάνορμος. O Cipro͜ o Pafo te, oppur Panormo. χρυσοφάη‹ν› θερ[άπαιν]αν Ἀφροδίτ[ας L’a͜urisplendente an[cel]la d’Afrodit[e Ἔλθοντ' ἐξ ὀράνω πορφυρίαν περθέμενον χλάμυν. Lui dal ciel venne giù, clamide di porpora͜ aveva su.

… [Phœ̄bō a͞urĭcŏ]mǣ, gĕnŭīt qu’ ĕă p[u͞ellă] Cœ͞i, [Pērfōrtī I]ŏvĕ [mīxtă], ĭ’ nōmĭnĕ māgnŭ’ quĭd’, [Ārtĕmīsquĕ dĕû̄m] săcrămēntă săcra͞it săcră: [Căp]ĭt’ īps’ ĕgŏ vīrgĭnĭ’ sēmpĕr ĕrō [tŭō], [Sōlĭtā]rĭû̆m īnquĕ căcūmĭnĕ mōntĭŭm [Vēnābōr: t’, ăgĕ, hǣ]c mĭhĭ dēs, mĕj ămōrĕm ŏb». [Dīxīt; ātquĕ] bĕāt’ ĕă de͞ûm gĕnĭtōr [dĕd]ĭt, [V]ēnāntēm quŏquĕ [cērvû̆m, ămīcăm] ĕām dĕī [Nōn ūllī hŏmĭnēsquĕ fĕr]ūnt, tĭtŭl’ āltŭm, ā. [Sōlvĭcōrpŏr] Ămōr prŏpĕ ūmquăm ĭt ha͞ud [ĕăm]. … ………… [Phœbus golden in h]air, whom the dau[ghter] of Cœus did bear [Mixed with Zeus] son of [Cr]onus, [the strongest,] of famous name, [Artemis] did the great [godly] oath once a-hear to swear: «[For thy head], I will always indeed a virgin’s name, [Hunting] up on the [soli]t’ry mountaintops I will go, [Virgin]; but you, [come on], grant me [th]is for the sake of me». [Thus she spoke]; ’twas the happy Gods’ father who [gran]ted so, [Virgin], killer [of deer], and the huntress now [cal]led is she By [both people] and Gods, with that title so great; and, hear, [To her body-dissolver] love never will dare go near. ………… Lātōn’ ēt Nĭŏbē quĭd’ ĕrānt cārīssĭm’ ămīcǣ. Niobe and Latona did share a very dear friendship. Dīcūnt ōlĭm ĕām Lēd’ hy̆ăcīnthĭnīs Cōntēct’ ōv’ ĕquĭdēm [flōrĭbŭ’] rēppĕrīss’ Ŭbīdām. Under hyacinth flow’rs they say that Leda did Once indeed find an egg which flowèrs fully did Cover. Tēvĕ Cȳprŭs a͞ut Păphŭs a͞ut Pănōrmŭs. Cyprus thee or Paphus or Panormus. A͞urĭnĭtēnt’ Ăphrŏdīt[ĭs] īll’ ān[cīll]ăm Golden-a-shining of Aphrodit[e] young ha[ndma]id Original Remake Īndūtūs clămy̆dēm pūrpŭrĕ’ ēx cǣrŭlĕ’ hūc vēnĭt Vēnīt cǣrŭlĕ' ābs, pūrpŭrĕūm tūnc ĕrăt e͞i săgŭm. He came down from the sky in a chlamys purple as he was clad.

True love

From the "Ballad of true love", which is the song in the last post, the step to a Shakespeare sonnet about what true love is is indeed very short, and that is why today I bring you Let me not to the marriage of true minds, a sonnet by Shakespeare which I translated to Italian… oh wait, I thought it dated back to like 2009, but it doesn't exist yet! Time to think about it then, on 23/4/18, right? I translated the couplet and the first quatrain around 20:45, then the rest shortly after 22. Let's see!

Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wand'ring bark, Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken. Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks Within his bending sickle's compass come; Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me prov'd, I never writ, nor no man ever lov'd.

Ch'io mai al matrimonio delle menti Ammetta ostacol. Ciò non è amore Che cambia quando trova cambiamenti, O lungi va s'è lungi l'amatore. Oh no! È un segno che sta sempre fisso Che guarda le tempeste e mai si scuote; Ad ogni nave in mare guida è desso, Ignoto nel valor, di altezze note. Non è giullar del Tempo, pur se gote E labbra alla sua falce strada fanno; In ore o mesi non cambia sue note: Nell'aldilà ugual lo troveranno. Quando si mostri a me che ciò è sbagliato, Mai non ho scritto né mai nullo ha amato.

Amore mio lontano

Ritorniamo sul tema della mancanza con questa canzone indonesiana che si intitola Ling Ling Ling. Ci sono piombato sopra non so come nei pressi dell'estate 2012.

1. La traduzione italiana «probabilmente risale più o meno a quel periodo», diceva questo post; siamo più precisi;
   dunque, il primo pseudotentativo di traduzione in realtà appare nel quaderno di inglese; lì dentro, alla fine, c'è una stampa di un file creato il 31/5/12 e modificato il 28/6/12, sul retro del quale una versione "aggiustata" della traduzione di Google del testo di questa canzone è annotata col delirio che è la versione "originale" sotto; la prima apparizione di una cosa del genere è nella sessione 13 del 18/6, la 12 essendo del 3/6, quindi quel foglio è di non prima del 3/6; comunque un range temporale enorme che ingloba tutto Alceo, quindi auguri a metterlo nell'indice cronologico;
   in realtà mi va di lusso, Alceo è tutto in un file del 3/6 ore 15:59 mentre la sessione 12 è delle 19:04-19:10; la bastardata invece è Time after time Rumena, che appare per la prima volta nella sessione 16 del 29/6, ma la 15 è del 23; anche su Tsí-ū lí ci va di lusso, appare nella sessione 18 del 6/7 e la 17 è del 2;
   va da sé che questo delirio non verrà mai completato, e rimarrà per sempre nella forma abbreviata con cui è annotato su quella stampa e riportato sotto;
   comunque, la mega-intro che prima o poi approderà sul blog ci dice che la traduzione buona è dell'11/8, fatta a computer; l'ultima parte non trova riscontro nei file, ma il fatto che la traduzione compaia nel file del 18/8, con il precedente che è del 5, mi fa prendere per vera questa data;
   questa dell'11/8 è la versione finale sotto, tranne che, come diceva la vecchia intro del post, «25/8/20 20:58 faccio un checkup e vedo "dalam" che lì mi pare non abbia senso, ci metto "dara", che fra l'altro ricordo da tempi che furono. / Sì però è "kekasihku", non "ke kasihku"! Quindi «per il mio amore» e «al mio amor» diventano rispettivamente «oh mio amore» alle 14:55 e «oh mio amor» alle 14:57 del 22/12/20.»; peraltro l'ultima modifica mi sono dimenticata di farla nell'ultima strofa, all'inizio della stessa, quindi provvedo ora, 11/4/22 12:36;
2. Quella Hakka invece la prima versione «è della mattina del 14/1/18» (come facessi a saperlo non lo so, forse è la data in cui l'ho trovata?), ed è opera di Anton Xie, mentre la seconda versione è una mia rivisitazione della prima, fatta per star meglio nella musica poco prima di mezzanotte il 21/4/18;
3. UPDATE Ho appena (quando scrivevo, mo' sono 4 anni quasi che sta nel post :) ) riscoperto la traduzione Cinese fatta da me il 10/6/2017, e niente, la aggiungo ora che è il 15/6/18.

Vediamo!

Ling Ling Ling Ling oh kekasihku Dara lincah Tetanggaku Diam diam Aku jatuh cinta Kepadanya Oh Ling Ling Ling Pada suatu Hari yang indah Di pesta Ulang tahunku Diam diam Dia menciumku Hadiah ulang Tahunku * Ling ling sekarang Sudah tiada lagi Dia kembali Ke negerinya Tinggallah daku Hanya seorang diri Cinta bersemi Di hatiku # Ling ling ling Ling oh kekasihku Bila kau Kembali lagi Bersamaku Seperti yang lalu Kekasihku Oh ling ling ling * # 凌凌凌凌啊我的爱人， 少女，我敏捷的邻居。 我静静地偷偷地来爱上， 来爱上她，哦凌凌凌。 曾经在美丽的一天上， 在我的生日聚会， 她偷偷地来亲一亲我： 就是我的生日礼物。 凌凌却现在她已不在这里： 她已经回到她的故乡； 而且在留下在这里的我心里 只有孤单的爱来开花。 凌凌凌凌啊我的爱人， 如果你再回到这里 跟我一起，就像已过的时， 做我爱人，哦凌凌凌。

Original Final l l l l l x il mi' amore [] [] [] [] amor per lui oh l. l. l. Un giorno ch'e= ra così bello In festa Il compleanno suo [] [] Quello fu il dono suo x me * [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] @ [] [] se tu rit tornerai ancor [] [] Per il mi' amor oh l. l. l. * # Ling Ling Ling Ling oh mio amore, Vicina mia Vivace assai. Pian piano in me Sbocciato è l’amor Verso di lei, Oh Ling Ling Ling. Un giorno bello Che facevo La festa Del compleanno mio, Tenera, lei Mi ha baciato: Che bel regalo Fatto mi ha. * Ling Ling ma però Adesso non è più qua: Al paese suo Lei ritornò. Sol vivendo, a me Un solitario amor Solo nato è Dentro il mio cuor. @ Ling Ling Ling Ling oh mïo amore. Se ancora Tu tornassi qua, Insieme a me, Così com’era allor, Oh mio amor, Oh Ling Ling Ling. * # Líng Líng Líng Líng a wǒ de àirén, Shàonǚ, wǒ mǐnjié de línjū. Wǒ jìngjìng de tóutóu de lái àishàng, Lái àishàng tā, ó Líng Líng Líng. Céngjīng zài měilì de yī tiān shàng, Zài wǒ de shēngrì jùhuì, Tā tōutōu de lái qīn yī qīn wǒ: Jiù shì wǒ de shēngrì lǐwù. Líng Líng què xiànzài tā yǐ bù zài zhèlǐ: Tā yǐjīng huí dào tā de gùxiāng; Érqiě zài liú xià zài zhèlǐ de wǒ xīnlǐ Zhǐ yǒu gūdān de ài lái kāihuā. Líng Líng Líng Líng a wǒ de àirén, Rúguǒ nǐ zài huí dào zhèlǐ Gēn wǒ yīqǐ, jiùxiàng yǐ guò de shí, Zuò wǒ àirén, ó Líng Líng Líng.

• Hakka 1
• Hakka 2

玲玲玲玲 喔吾我的爱人 恁很百参活泼隔壁个的妹子 恬恬悄悄涯我偷偷爱着爱上汝你 恁很靓美丽隔壁个的玲玲玲 风调雨顺个的好日子里 係是若你的十八岁个的生日礼 恬恬悄悄汝你过来吣吻一下吾我的面皮 汝你讲说係是若你的生日个的惊喜 玲玲玲玲今下现在汝你无不在里这里 汝你旧年走转回到唐山去 留涯我單侪独自自家自己里这里过日子 心肝肚里有譮话爱要讲说汝你知 玲玲玲玲 喔吾我的爱人 汝你几时翻再次到转来回到里这里 就像往时日日都恁很欢喜 喔吾我的爱人 玲玲玲玲

Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng ò nga òi-nyîn Àn pak-chám kak-piak kài mòi-tsîi Tiam-tiam ngâi theu-theu òi tó nyî Àn tsiang kak-piak kài Lîng Lîng Lîng Fung thiâu yì shún kài hó nyit-tsîi lí Hè nyia shıp-pat sòi kài sang-nyit-lí Tiam-tiam nyî kò-lôi cim yit-ha nga mièn-phi Nyî kóng hè nyia sang-nyit kài kiang-hi Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng kin-há nyî mô lî Nyî khíu-nyiên tséu cón thoôg-san hì Lîu ngâi tan-sâ tshíi-ka lî kò nyit-tsîi Sim-kon tú yìu voi sióng-òi kóng nyî ti Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng ò nga òi nyîn Nyî kí-sî fan tò-cón-lôi lî Tshiu-tshiong vong-sî nyit-nyit tu àn fon-hí Ò nga òi-nyîn Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng

玲玲玲玲 喔吾我（的）个的爱人 恁很百参活泼隔壁个的妹子 恬恬悄悄涯我有偷偷爱着爱上汝你 恁很靓美丽隔壁个的玲玲玲 风调雨顺个的好日子里 係是若你的十八岁个的生日礼 恬恬悄悄汝你来吣吻一下吾我的面皮 讲说係是若你的生日个的惊喜 玲玲玲今下现在再无没汝你在啊里这里 汝你旧年有走转回到唐山去 就留涯我單侪独自自家自己里这里过日子 心肝肚里有譮话爱要讲说汝你知 玲玲玲玲 喔吾我的个的爱人 汝你几时翻再次到转来回到里这里 就像往时日日都恁很欢喜 喔吾我的爱人 喔玲玲玲玲

Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng ò nga kài òi-nyîn Àn pak-chám kak-piak kài mòi-tsîi Tiam-tiam ngâi yìu theu-theu òi tó nyî Àn tsiang kak-piak kài Lîng Lîng Lîng Fung thiâu yì shún kài hó nyit-tsîi lí Hè nyia shıp-pat sòi kài sang-nyit-lí Tiam-tiam nyî lôi cim yit-ha nga mièn-phi Kóng hè nyia sang-nyit kài kiang-hi Lîng Lîng Lîng kin-há tsài mô nyî tshoi a-lî Nyî khíu-nyiên yìu tséu cón thông-san hì Tshìu lîu ngâi tan-sâ tshíi-ka lî kò nyit-tsîi Sim-kon tú yìu voi òi kóng nyî ti Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng ò nga kài òi nyîn Nyî kí-sî fan tò-cón-lôi lî Tshiu-tshiong vong-sî nyit-nyit tu àn fon-hí Ò nga òi-nyîn ò Lîng Lîng Lîng Lîng

Can I stop loving you?

And if we are parting, another question may spontaneously arise: how do I avoid loving you still, and tormenting myself with the memories of our wonderful affair which is now over? Or in other words, 能否不想你 | Nang4-fau2 bat1 soeng2 nei5? | Can I not love you?, as the song we look at today is titled. This is a Cantonese song encountered shortly after the last post's song, and translated within the same old Summer 2011 into English. Um yeah, that's a typo. I meant 2012. More precisely, the mega-intro dates most of this to 12/8/12, the untranslated part being the second section, minus its last line. I found the manuscript from that date, whose version will be given below and is lacking precisely those lines. The translation, in the form that got to this post, is found complete in the 18/8/12 file. Then I decided to make a rhyming remake. Quoting IAFI: «5/5/22 10:43, to get some rhymes into this translation, I write the first three lines, the other line is from 14/5/22 in the dead of night, the intertwining from the following morning». IAFI is a bit messy on the line division, since the "three lines" are the first 1.5 lines here, while the other line is l. 6 of the division below. On 5/8/22 I then finished it, in a moment where I didn't feel like working on my PhD thesis, between 12:39 and 13:21, and then I went for lunch :). As I add this into the post (I put the remake on the right and the non-rhyming versions on the left), at 14:07 on 6/8/22 I change «In one second, I'm / Back to always      missing thee» first to «In one sec, I'm back / To always […]» and then to the below version. So let's see it!

曾爱上妳      神话故事般美 无奈要放弃      倦了便乏味 而当天的主角      不睬不理 仿佛失声的唱机 ＃ 行李载满      离别伤心空气 门若闭上了      便再会无期 离开一生所爱      仿佛演戏 这幕故事愿忘记 ＊ 让我知      能否不想妳 相恋纵是美      分开多痛悲 woo… 愿我可      真的不想妳 从前热恋      不想再记 ＃ ＊ ＊ 纵使掷下万样念头在这地 泪已偷偷涌出心碎预备 转身一刹那 仍始终      想妳 Manuscript Final Once I loved U      it was myþically good You just want to leave      you got tired and bored The colour of the day      minds not thinks not X This is like a muted disk => Like a player mute þis is ? ? ? I want to forget þis fact Let me know:      Can I nt want U Alþough love is nice      parting’s such a pain Woo… Wish I could      truly nt wnt U Not remember      of my old love # * * Though on þis earth I’ve abandond lots o' þoxts, Tears gushed secretly, heartbreak was prepared I turn and Just a blink and I Still always      want you Once I loved you      it was mythic’lly good You just want to leave      you got tired and bored The role you have this day      you don’t care for I’m like a disc-player mute You’re baggage’s full      you leave me sad, in pain You now close the door,      “See ya when I do”, Leaving a whole life’s love      you seem to feign I want to forget this fact Let me know:      Can I not love you? Although love is nice      parting’s such a pain Woo… Wish I could      truly not love you Not remember      of my old love # * * Though on this earth I’ve abandoned lots of thoughts, Tears gushed secretly, heartbreak was prepared Just a blink and I Still always      love you

Cang4 ngoi3-soeng5 nei5      san4-waa6-gu3-si6 bun1 mei5 Mou4-noi6 jiu1 fong3-hei3      gyun6-liu5 bin6 fat6-mei6 Ji4 dong1-tin1 dik1 zyu2-gok3      bat1 coi2 bat1 lei5 Fong2-fat1 sat1-sing1 dik1 coeng3-gei1 # Hang6-lei5 zoi3-mun5      lei4-bit6 soeng1-sam1 hung1-hei3 Mun4 joek6 bai3-soeng6-liu5      bin6 zoi3-wui4 mou4-kei1 Lei4-hoi1 jat1-sang1 so2-ngoi3      fong2-fat1 jin2-hei3 Ze2 mok6 gu3-si6 jyun6 mong4-gei3 * Joeng6 ngo5 zi1      nang4 fau2 bat1 soeng2 nei5 Soeng1-lyun2 zung1-si6 mei5      fan1-hoi1 do1 tung3-bei1 Woo… Jyun6 ngo5 ho2      zan1 dik1 bat1 soeng2 nei5 Cung4-cin4 jit6-lyun2      bat1 soeng2 zoi3 gei3 # * * Zung1-sai2 zaak6-haa5/6 maan6-joeng6 nim6-tau4 zoi6 ze2 dei6 Leoi6 ji5 tau1-tau1 jung2-ceot1 sam1-seoi3 jyu6-bei5 Zyun3-san1 jat1 saat3-naa5 Jing4 ci2-zung1      soeng2 nei5 Once I loved thee,      'twas as good as can be. Now you want to flee,      bored and tired of me. Of your lead role today,      there's no care in thee, I just sit here uselessly… # You've packed your stuff,      sad and void you leave me. If you close the door,      I will never see thee! A lifelong love you leave:      was it real for thee? I don't want this me-mory! * I ask thee:      can I not miss thee? Love's all beaūty,      but it breaks painfully, Wooooh! I sure hope      to stop missing thee, Of this past love      I want no memory! # * * Though I've left a thousand thoughts I had in me With abundant tears and heartbreak in me, Instantly I'm back To always      missing thee!

Have I been deceived?

But there's nothing to do about it: it's parting time. So we wonder: was it all deception? Did she ever love me? And at one point in today's Cantonese song, titled 我笑我哭 | Ngo5 siu3 ngo5 huk1, or "I laugh and I cry", the singer asks precisely this question: «是否被愚弄 | Si6-fau2 bei6 jyu4-nung6? | Have I been deceived?». This was met a whole lot of songs later than the last song, but still within Summer 2011. The English translation was done within that timespan. How many posts are there where I wrote 2011 instead of 2012? The translation is dated to 12/8/12 by the mega-intro and is found in the form that landed here in the 18/8/12 file. Let's see the song!

又是热情话      熟悉但凌乱 以往角色      为何厌倦 语气面容      无论多温暖 这里这时一切在转 ＃ 会面又离别      是否被愚弄 我笑我哭      全无作用 又在何日      你我方可会懂 一生相爱数十次 才避免刺痛 ＊ 原来无论天天相见 亦免不了到终结 然而期限即使迫近 分手      为何在这日 @ 原来无论多么紧靠 亦有一处会失散 然而前路即使隐秘 分手      为何在这地 ＃ ＊ @ @

Jau6 si6 jit6-cing4 waa6      suk6-sik1 daan6 ling4-lyun6 Ji5-wong5 gok3-sik1      wai6-ho4 jim3-gyun6 Jyu5-hei3 min6-jung4      mou4-leon6 do1 wan1-nyun5 Ze2-leui5 ze2-si4 jat1-cai3 zoi6 zyun3 # Wui4-min6 jau6 lei4-bit6      si6-fau2 bei6 jyu4-nung6 Ngo5 siu3 ngo5 huk1      cyun4 mou4 zok3-jung6 Jau6 zoi6 ho4-jat6      nei5 ngo5 fong1 ho2 wui4 dung2 Jat1-sang1 soeng1-ngoi3 sou3 sap6 ci3 Coi4 bei6-min5 ci3-tung3 * Jyun4-loi4 mou4-leon6 tin1-tin1 soeng1-gin3 Jik6 min5-bat1-liu5 dou3 zung1-git1 Jin4-ji4 gei-haan6 zik1-si2 bik1-gan6 Fan1-sau2      wai6-ho4 zoi6 ze2 jat6 @ Jyun4-loi4 mou4-leon6 do1-mo1 gan2-kaau3 Jik6 jau5 jat1-cyu3 wui4 sat1-saan3 Jin4-ji4 cin4-lou6 zik1-si2 jan2-bei3 Fan6-sau2      wai6-ho4 zoi6 ze2 dei6 # * @ @

These are ardent words, intimate but confused.
Why did you tire      of your old place?
No matter how      warm your words and face:
Here and now all things turn around.

# We met and did part      have I been deceived?
I laugh and cry      naught is of use.
And on what day      will you me understand?
I’ve been loved so many times,
I can avoid pain!

* Who cares we once met ev’ry day,
Couldn’t miss that in the end?
Though the time limit’s coming near,
Parting:      why upon this day?

Who cares we once held very tight?
At one place you have to stray.
Though the road before us does hide,
Parting:      why upon this earth?

#

*

@

@

Who am I without you?

Yet another assertion of love today, though this time it is done by describing the solitude and inconsistency that parting causes in the singer. Today's song is a Cantonese song titled 明日我是谁 | Ming4-jat6 ngo5 si6 seoi4, or "Who will I be tomorrow?". This was met, again, sometime between Easter and summer 2012, and translated:

1. To English that summer shortly after 6/8, definitely within 18 August 2012 at 20:55, giving the original version below, which appears in the 18/8 file save for the alternate version, which seems to not appear in any file; actually, the earliest version is the third of four translations in the diary, between the 6/8/12 and 20/8/12 entries, and has the following differences with this "original version" below:
   
   • «Leaving may well» in place of «Parting may well»;
   • «with it goes [recte: went]»;
   • «Does «Who'm I» in place of «Who am I» count?
   the mega-intro dates all those translations to 6/8/12; since then, the following changes have taken place:
   
   1. Writing this draft on March 20 2018, around 15:21, I changed "As though I left and / With me carried" into "As though I put down / And a-picked up", following this Stack Exchange post; always following that, around 15:24 I changed "And ev'ry dream with it goes" to "Which follows me in all dreams"; finally, around 15:27, I created the English "Alternative", and the draft was ready, with the Blog original version from below;
   2. On 1/11/20 at 16:00 I go «WTH is this English version»? Like, «But in the end tonight it’s / Your words, o my darling.»? How did I even get that? And I fix it; I noticed it as I did my Hindi version;
   3. 22:05 8/11/20 «And we left all / The fears that we had.» gets its fix, and «A blessing phrase» becomes «This is my wish» before settling on «I wish you this»;
   4. In the evening of 20/11/20 I make some more revisions:
      
      • At 19:06, the «a-picked» becomes «I picked up», because that archaism sounds awful;
      • By the same minute, the «big hole» becomes a «huge void», and those presents with "tomorrow" become futures;
      • 19:07, and «I wish you this: / You need not again cry» becomes «This is my wish: / May you need not again cry», or so says the blog, though there wasn't an edit at that time; the supposedly changed version is actually found in a screenshot from 1:25:39 the following night, and by 1:26:06 we actually have the current version «I wish you this: / May you not need to cry again», so I don't know what happened there; I'm guessing these are changes from the recording session, and this one got changed again before being implemented; except the lyrics I was reading while recording have «This is my wish: / May you not need to cry again», and the video matches that;
      • By the same minute we have «Where that I tomorrow may go» for the penultimate line;
      These changes lead us to the current version, which almost matches the video;
2. Then to Czech much more recently to fill the empty column; storytime!
   
   1. Between 14 and 15 on February 4 2018, I make the original version, which I then send to my corrector on 20/4/18 at 23:20;
   2. On Sep 10 I received and metabolized and commented corrections:
      
      • snadný -> snadné;
      • Ale když říkám -> Ale když to říkam;
      • prázdnota -> prázdnotu;
      • Kdysi představili si osud sjedotilo nas -> Kdysi jsme si představovali, že osud nás spojil/sjednotil, which I then make into "Jsme si představovali že osud nás spojil" at 16:56;
      • Tajně opustili olbavy naše -> Tajně jsme opustili naše obavy;
      • v konci -> na konci;
      • políbím tě v ústech (earlier "políbím ústa tvá") -> Políbím ti ústa;
      • Minulost nakonec minulost -> Minulost nakonec je minulost;
      • Nemusíme opět sejít se -> Nemusíme se opět sejít; this correction somehow got lost between back then and the video, so I had the old version as up-to-date and recorded that, but now on 9/11/21 as I trace back this story I will reimplement it on the blog;
      • Kdo budeš milovat? -> Koho budeš milovat?;
      • Ve hromu a sněhu: she comments «"V bouřce" (tempesta) è meglio no? E pioggia è "v dešti"»; at 16:56 I go with "Ve hromu a krup";
      • Ne sleduj mě -> Nesleduj mě;
   3. On Sep 22 I received replies to the comments, which made the changes to "Představovali jsme si, že […]" and "Hromy a kroupy", and applied the corrections; this led to the intermediate version below; a residual question remains, so there will probably be another edit here;
   4. Welp, on 8/11/20 I open this to add a bunch of translations, and… WTH? A residual question? Well, that probably ain't gettin' an answer since I haven't heard from my corrector in like forever… more tweaks!
      
      • «Říkám ahoj nemusíš plakat opět» needs a fix, besides a linebreak;
      • «Přeji ti teď», «Přeji ti já», «Já ti přeji»… first one's good;
      • «Ať nepláčeš opět» is from 22:26; all from 22:46 8/11/20;
   5. On 11/11/20, I make some tweaks:
      
      • First of all, "Minulost nakonec je minulost" is waaaay to long for the tune, so at 11:00 I drop the nakonec, at 11:03 I unconvincedly mimic the English with "Minulost musi byt' minulost" (or is it byt?), and at 11:07 I settle for "Minulost jen je minulost", "The past is just the past";
      • At 10:59 I had already substituted "Tajně jsme opustili" with "Ignorovali jsme";
      • «Představovali / Jsme si osud nás spojil» seems to mean "we presented each other», with "si" not even being correct (isn't it "se", like "rozejit se" and "sejit se"?), so I make it «Jsme věřili / Si osud nás spojil», but of course the "si" is not "that", but I figure out it must be že only at 16:05 on 21/11/20 while editing my video; at some point the nás moves to after spojil, apparently after the video;
      • Not sure when, but "Hromy a kroupy" becomes "V hromu a kroupách"; since this version is found all the way back on 22/9/18 at 16:42 in a draft save for this post, I'm assuming this is another lost correction (alongside the sticking of ne to sleduj in the last line and the "Nemusíme se opět sejít" and the fix of the misspelling "olbavy"), and that šněhu -> kroupách is just snow->hail, with a plural I cannot justify; 9/11/21 15:31, I'm going to put "Hromy a kroupy" back in;
      with that, we're at the final version below;
3. Anyway, the new translations; I made a Hindi version in three pieces between 11:24 and 17:03 on 1/11/20, and sent it to ATajuddin 10m later; she gave a couple corrections the next day and the one after that, i.e. 2/11 and 3/11;
4. The night after 3/11/20, between 2:23 and 2:38, I make the Italian version; the alternative form is from 22:10 8/11/20; somewhere between 14:01 and 14:22 on 21/11/20, as I record my video, I truncate the "lontano" in "Guardando lontano da sol men vo";
5. Finally, between 19:48 and 19:58 on 8/11/20, I get the French version done; «Qui me suivit» changes to «Qui me va suivre» at 22:17 on 8/11/20; the alternative is from 22:28; recording the video, I opt for «va me suivre» instead of «me va suivre», and I also pronounce the e's I marked with overdots;
6. Finally? No; Not yet; planning to include it in my CD, I come here to choose between the Italian and the English translation, and meh; Italian is better for now, but neither has rhymes, so maybe I remake the English with them and it comes out better? And on 20/12/23 at 21:48-22:23, with a tweak 10mins later, I do so, and do end up including this Remake into the CD.

Let's see this song!

离别也许 是简单的一句 每次说出 偏要洒眼泪 就像在放下 也在担起 一片空虚 每一个梦 也伴随 ＃ 曾亦幻想 是天生的一对 暗暗放开 想过的顾虑 但是在最后这夜 亲一亲你的嘴 我终于狠心的说再会 ＊ 明日你是谁？ 明日我是谁？ 过去终须过去 不必再说共聚 明日你是谁？ 你会爱着谁？ 祝福一句： 你不必再滴泪 独自望这远方步去 雷电冰雪里 明日我走到何方 你莫再追 ＃ ＊ ＊ 明日我走到何方 你莫再追 Original Blog original Revised Revised Parting may well Be a simple small word Each time, saying it, I want to cry As though I left And with me carried Just a big hole And ev’ry dream With it goes. # Once we dreamt that We were born to be two And we left all The fears that we had. But in the end tonight It's your words, o my darling, I, cruel, in the end say “See ya”. * Who’re you tomorrow? Who am I tomorrow? The past must be the past You need not say we’ll meet Who’re you tomorrow? Who will be your love? A blessing phrase: You need not again cry. Alone I look far and walk in Thunder snow and hail Where will I tomorrow go? Don’t you follow. # * * 1Alternative: Wherever I tomorrow will go, Parting may well Be a simple small word Each time, saying it, I want to cry As though I put down And a-picked up Just a big hole Which follows me In all dreams. # Once we dreamt that We were born to be two And we left all The fears that we had. But in the end tonight It's your words, o my darling, I, cruel, in the end say “See ya”. * Who’re you tomorrow? Who am I tomorrow? The past must be the past You need not say we’ll meet Who’re you tomorrow? Who will be your love? A blessing phrase: You need not again cry. Alone I look far and walk in Thunder snow and hail Where will I tomorrow go?1 Don’t you follow. # * * Where will I tomorrow go? Don’t you follow. 1Alternative: Wherever I tomorrow will go, Parting may well Be a simple small word Each time, saying it, I want to cry As though I put down And I picked up Just a huge void Which follows me In all dreams. # Once we dreamt that We were born to be two We ignored all The doubts that we had. But in the end tonight Your darling lips I'm kissing, I, cruel, in the end say “See ya”. * Who’ll you be tomorrow? Who'll I be tomorrow? The past must be the past You need not say we’ll meet Who’ll you be tomorrow? Who will be your love? I wish you this: May you not need to cry again. Alone I look far and walk in Thunder snow and hail Where that I tomorrow may go,1 Don’t you follow. # * * Where that I tomorrow may go, Don’t you follow. 1Alternative: Where will I tomorrow go? Saying "breakup" Seems to be so easy, Going through one Brings tears consistently: Your past and future Both seem empty, And that empty Will follow you In every dream. # "We were born to Be together": thus thought we, As we kept Many doubts secretly. And in the end tonight I kiss your lips so gently, And bid you my goodbye so cruelly... * Who will you now be? Who will I now be? What's past will not come back: Why should we once more meet? Who will you now be? Who will your love be? My wish for thee: May you never in tears be. I look forward and walk, all lonely, Storms, winds, hail rage free. What will my destinastion now be? Don't come with me... # * * What will my destinastion now be? Don't come with me... संबंध तोड़ना: जैसे कोई सरल शब्द, हर बार जब कहता हूँ, तो रोता हूँ, शून्यता कोई मैं रखता और उठाता हूँ, जो सपनों में साथ देता। # हम सोचते थे कि जनम ही से युगल थे, सारे चिंताएं को हटाते थे, मगर अज रात अंत में चूमता तेरा मुं को, मैं अंत में क्रूरता से अलविदा कहता। * कल की तू है कौन? कल का मैं हूँ कौन? अतीत ही तो अतीत, मिलने की ज़रुरत न है। कल की तू है कौन? प्यार करेगी किस से? ना रोए तू: यह मेरी कामना। दूर देखता अकेला जाता हूँ गरज और हिमपात में। जहाँ मैं जाऊँगा कल तू ना आना। # * * जहाँ मैं जाऊँगा कल तू ना आना। Sì, lasciarsi è Solo una parola, Eppur dirla Fa sempre piangere, Come se mettessi giù E prendessi In mano un vuoto Che in sogno ti Seguirà. Ci credevamo Nati per stare insieme, Ogni dubbio Non lo affrontavam, Ma infin stasera Io ti bacio sulle labbra E crudelmente dico addïo. Chi sarai domani? Chi sarò domani? Il passato non c'è più, Rivederci non dobbiam. Domani chi sarai? Chi amerāi? Questo è il mio augurio: Che tu non debba pianger più. Guardando lontan, da sol men vo, Tuona e nevica. Dove io domani andrò,1 Non seguirmi. # * * Dove io domani andrò,1 Non seguirmi. 1Oppure: Dove andrò domani io?

Lei4-bit6 jaa5-heoi2 Si6 gaan2-daan1 dik1 jat1-geoi3 Mui5 ci3 syut3-ceot1 Pin1-jiu1/3 saa2 ngaan5-leoi6 Zau6-zoeng6 zoi6 fong3-haa5/6 Jaa5 zoi6 daam1-hei2 Jat1-pin3 hung1/3-heoi1 Mui5 jat1 go3 mung6 Jaa5 bun6-ceoi4 # Cang4 jik6 waan6 soeng2 Si6 tin1-sa(a)ng1 dik1 jat1-deoi3 Ngam3-ngam3 fong3-hoi1 Soeng2 gwo3 dik1 gu3-leoi6 Daan6-si6 zoi6 zeoi3-hau6 ze5 je6 Can1 jat1 can1 nei5 dik1 zeoi2 Ngo5 zung1-jyu1/4 han2-sam1 dik1 syut3 zoi3-wui246 * Ming4-jat6 nei5 si6 seoi4? Ming4-jat6 ngo5 si6 seoi4 Gwo3-heoi2/3 zung1 seoi1 gwo3-heoi2/3 Bat1 bit1 zoi3 syut3 gung1/6-zeoi6 Ming4-jat6 nei5 si6 seoi4? Nei5 wui246 ngoi3-zoek3/6 seoi4 Zuk1-fuk1 jat1-geoi3: Nei5 bat1 bit1 zoi3 dik1 leoi6 Duk6-zi6 mong6 ze5 jyun5-fong1 bou6-heoi2/3 Leoi4-din6 bing1 syut3 leoi5 Ming5-jat6 ngo5 zau2 dou3 ho4/6-fong1 Nei5 mok6 zoi3 zeoi1 # * * Ming5-jat6 ngo5 zau2 dou3 ho4/6-fong1 Nei5 mok6 zoi3 zeoi1 Original Intermediate Revised "Rozejít se" Možná snasdý říci Ale když říkám Vždy roním slzy Jakoby položil bych A zvedl bych Prázdnota Která sleduje mě V každém snu Kdysi představili Si osud sjedotilo nas Tajně opustili Olbavy naše Ale v konci dnes večer Políbím tě v ústech A krutě tobě říkám ahoj. Zítra kdo budeš? Zítra kdo budu? Minulost nakonec minulost Nemusíme opět sejít se Zítra kdo budeš? Kdo budeš milovat? Říkám ahoj Nemusíš plakat opět Sám zírám daleko a chodím Ve hromu a sněhu Kamkoli já zítra budu chodit Ne sleduj mě. # * * Kamkoli já zítra budu chodit,1 Ne sleduj mě. 1Alternative: Zítra já kam budu chodit? "Rozejít se" Možná snasdé říci Ale když to říkám Vždy roním slzy Jakoby položil bych A zvedl bych Prázdnotu Která sleduje mě V každém snu Představovali Jsme si, že osud nás spojil, Tajně jsme opustili Naše obavy Ale na konci dnes večer Políbím ti ústa A krutě tobě říkám ahoj. Zítra kdo budeš? Zítra kdo budu? Minulost nakonec je minulost Nemusíme se opět sejít Zítra kdo budeš? Koho budeš milovat? Říkám ahoj Nemusíš plakat opět Sám zírám daleko a chodím Hromy a kroupy Kamkoli já zítra budu chodit Nesleduj mě. # * * Kamkoli já zítra budu chodit,1 Nesleduj mě. 1Alternative: Zítra já kam budu chodit? "Rozejít se" Možná snasdé říci Ale když to říkám Vždy roním slzy Jakoby položil bych A zvedl bych Prázdnotu Která sleduje mě V každém snu # Jsme věřili Že osud spojil nás Ignorovali jsme Naše obavy Ale na konci dnes večer Políbím ti ústa A krutě tobě říkám ahoj. * Zítra kdo budeš? Zítra kdo budu? Minulost jen je minulost Nemusíme se opět sejít Zítra kdo budeš? Koho budeš milovat? Přeji ti teď: Ať nepláčeš opět Sám zírám daleko a chodím Hromy a kroupy Kamkoli já zítra budu chodit,1 Nesleduj mě. # * * Kamkoli já zítra budu chodit,1 Nesleduj mě. 1Alternative: Zítra já kam budu chodit? Sańbańdh' toṛnā: Jaise koī saral' shabd', Har' bār' jab käh'tā hūṃ', To rotā hūm, Śūnyatā koī Maiṅ rakh'tā Aur' uțhātā hūm Jo sapnoṅ meṅ Sāth' detā. # Ham soc'te the Ki janm hī se yugal' the Sāre cińtāeṅ ko Haṭāte the. Magar' āj' rātǝ ańt meṅ Cūm'tā terā muńh' ko, Maiṅ ańt meṅ krūr'tā se al'vidā käh'tā. * Kal' kī tū hai kaun'? Kal' kā maiṅ hūṁ kaun'? Atīt' hī to atīt', Mil'ne kī zarurat' na hai. Kal' kī tū hai kaun'? Pyār' karegī kis' se? Nā roe tū: Yäh' merī kām'nā. Dūr' dekh'tā akelā jātā hūṁ Garaj' aur' him'pāt' meṅ. Jahāṃ maiṅ jāūṁgā kal, Tū nā ānā. # * * Jahāṃ maiṅ jāūṁgā kal, Tū nā ānā. Oui, se laisser C'est un mot très simple, Mais chaque fois, quand je l'dis, Toujours je pleure, Comme si j'posais Et je prenais Seulment un grand vide Qui va me suivre En chaque rêve. On pensait que L'on était un couple né, Toutes nos doutės, Nous les ignorions, Mais à la fin, ce soir, En t'embrassant les lèvres, Moi cruellement je te dis "Adieu", Demain tu s'ras qui? Demain je s'rais qui? Le passé c'est passé, On doit plus se rencontrer. Demain tu s'ras qui? Tu aimeras qui? Voilà mon souhait: Que pleurer tu ne doivės plus. Tout seul je regarde loin et j'm'en vais Par tonnerre et neige. Où que je m'en aillė demain, Ne me suis plus! # * * Où que je m'en aille demain,1 Ne me suis plus! 1Ou: Où vais-je m'en aller demain?