Group 1:
Heart-shaking love
Jūdan ichi:
Kokoro yuru
Koi no sê de wa
1: To Cypris
How would anyone not be consumed,
O Cypris, queen, whom you do not love,
And for whom, though he above all wish to have
You do not hold it back? [his pain wane,
How can you strike me then idly tear me apart
With craving that has melted my knees, o greatest ones?
So many times you were at first wholly not hateful to me,
And, I say, you didn't keep
Away from me; I want to be able
To no longer thus endure this […
…] and for myself
I know this.
That it could never be possible for mortals
To be fully happy; for one person to be
With me I crave indeed […
…]
2: Two thoughts
I don't know what to say: two are my thoughts.
2: Two thoughts
Dentro nel mio cuor,
Indicibile per me,
Coppia di pensieri c'è.
2: Two thoughts
Deep within my heart,
Both unspeakable, there are
Two thoughts very far apart.
2: Omoi ga futatsu
Kokoro ni wa
Kotoba ni dekinu
Omoi ga futatsu.
3: Oh sweet mother
Sweet mother, I can indeed no longer weave my web,
Being overcome with desire of a boy because of tender Aphrodite.
4: Love shook my heart
Love shook my
Heart, like a wind that has fallen unto oaks down a mountain.
4: Wa ga kokoro yuru
Yamagami no
Kashiwa ni tsuyoku
Uchitsukuru
Kaze no gotoki ni
Wa ga kokoro yuru.
5: Bittersweet love
Body-melting love shakes me again,
A bittersweet invincible beast.
Atthis, it has become hateful to you
To give heed to me, and to Andromeda you fly away.
6a: To Arignota
Alas, Arignota! Anactoria, who is dear,
To both you and me, dwells in Sardis,
Often turning her mind hither 3
[And to] how we used to live: with certainty she believed
You to be equal to a goddes, o
Arignota, and enjoyed your singing very much; 6
Now shines she among Lydian
Women as, after sunset,
Does the rosy-fingered moon, 9
Outshining all the stars, and directs [her] light
To the briny sea
And equally to the multiflowered countryside, 12
And beautiful dew has poured down, and there have bloomed
Roses, and tender chervils,
And the flower-like melilot; 15
And wandering a lot, remembering
Of gentle Atthis, with desire
[She] devours [her] delicate mind, and [her] heart with longing, 18
And shrill are her cries for us to come there; which are not
Unheard for us, for the many-eared night
Speaks them [to us] across the straits of the sea. 21
6b: Divine beauty is not easy for us to attain
It is not easy for us to be equal
To goddesses in lovely beauty,
You have Adonis-like beauty, 24
…
… through the air
And … Aphrodite 27
Poured nectar from a golden pitcher
To us too…
… Peitho with [her] hands 30
… wished
… often
… 33
… to the Geræstium
… dear
What […] is not at all unheard of; 33
I/we will come to the temple
7: Ode to Anactoria
That man to me seems equal
To the gods, who sits before thee,
And, close [to you], listens [to you]
Sweetly speaking,
And charmingly smiling. Which truly
Shakes [my] heart in [my] chest.
Indeed, once I've seen you shortly,
No more voice comes to me,
But my tongue is snapped, a thin
Flame has immediately sneaked under my body,
With [my] eyes I see nothing,
[My] ears buzz,
Sweat pours down from me, tremor
Seizes [me] wholly, paler than grass
I am, and to myself I seem
Not far from dying⌞·
Group 2: Beauty
Jūdan ni:
Utsukushisa
kokoro wo sawaru
8: I beseech you, Gongyla
Now, my dear, I truly beseech you: take
Your milky-white robe, oh Gongyla,
And make your appearance: again Desire itself
Flutters around you,
The beautiful one; for that dress
Shakes me up when I see it, and I rejoice:
Indeed the Cyprus-Goddess herself
Blames this of you;
I pray her…
This word…
I want…
… ]
9: Ode to a beautiful woman
[……………………
……………………
…] suffered for love
……
For when I see you before [me],
Then Hermione [herself] seems to not have been
Such [a beauty] to me, and comparing you to blonde Helen
[Seems] not at all unseemly,
If it's allowed of mortals; know this, that to your
Beauty, of all my cares
I would make a sacrifice, and worth all
My desires I believe you.
To Acheron's dewy banks
I would go if you died, your fame'
I will increase as much as I can, and I crave
To spend a whole night with you.
10a: Dearest offspring of Uranus and Gaia
Some say it's a platoon of infantry, others that it's one of chivalry,
Others that it's a fleet that over this black earth
Is the most beautiful thing; I say that it's whatever
One loves.
It's entirely easy to make everyone
Understand this, for Helen, who had [next to her]
A lot of human beauty, her husband,
Best of all men,
Left, and sailed off to Troy,
And didn't remember her child or her dear parents
At all, but, not even unwilling,
Was led away
By Cypris: for she has unbending will,
And easily fulfils whatever she thinks of.
Thus I now remembered Anactoria,
Who is not present.
Her beloved footfall I would like to see,
And the bright sparkle of her face,
Rather than the chariots of the Lydians, and [Lydians]
Fighting by land in their shields.
10b: Men cannot be fully happy
It is not possible for men
To become fully happy, but [they] can pray to have
A share of good luck. And I for myself
Know this.
[Stanzas may have been lost.]
… happen
… you walked on the summit
… snow; and she often
Towards…[
As… I/they was/were led away
… can; for those
Whom I treat well, those harm me the most
Out of the blue.
11: Kleis
I have a beautiful child, similar in beauty
To golden flowers, my beloved Kleis.
In exchange for her I wouldn't take all of Lydia
Nor dear Lesbos
11: Kureisu
Atakushi no
Itoshii musume
Saku hana no
Gotoki ni kiê.
Watashi nara
Kanojo no kawari
Zentai no
Ryūdiā to
Saiai no
Resubosu shima mo
Uketoranai wa.
12: The stars and the moon
The stars around the beautiful moon
Once again hide their shiny faces
As she, being full, more than anytime shines
On the earth, silver.
12: Tsuki to hoshiboshi
Gin'iro ni
Kagayaku tsuki wa
Kono chikyū
Hikari de mitasu
Sono toki ni,
Kirêna tsuki wo
Meguru hoshi
Kagayaki kakusu
Matanaki no ma ni.
Group 3:
From joy of love
to visions of goddesses
Jūdan san:
Koi no yorokobi,
Megami no kêji
13: You came
You came, you did good, I yearned for you,
You cooled my heart which was burning with desire:
May you enjoy many good situations, equal in number to [your] life.
13: You came
Venendo qui per me, che ti bramavo,
Di certo tu un gran bene mi facesti.
Il cuore che di gran disìo m'ardeva
Venendo, nel profondo rinfrescasti.
Che tu durante tutta la tua vita
Tanti ben goda è la mia speranza.
13: Sono oide
Akogareru
Watashi no tame ni
Koko ni kite
Anata wa kitto
Yoikoto wo
Hontô ni shita.
Setsubô ga
Moeru kokoro wo
Kuru koto de
Fukaku samashita.
Zentai no
Sono jinsê ni
Yoikoto wo
Tanoshimeru koto
Kono kibô da wa.
13: Sono oide
Akogare ga
Afureru ware ni
Tomo ni ita
Anata wa masa ni
Shinsetsu wo
Oo ni shimeshita.
Setsubô ga
Moeru kokoro wo
Sono oide
Fukaku samashita.
Kono mama deの
Anata no tame ni
Togirenai
Kietsu wo torô:
Wa ga sô nozomu.
14: Idyll with Aphrodite
[Come] hither to me from Crete to this holy
Temple, where there is a truly graceful grove
Of apple trees, and there are altars burning
With incense;
In the grove, cool water flows through the boughs
Of the apple trees, and by roses the whole place
Is shaded, and from the rustling leaves
Deep sleep falls down;
And a horse-nourishing meadow has bloomed
With spring flowers, and the winds
Honey-sweetly blow, coming down
From the heads of the plants.
Pick up some chaplets and come, Cypris,
Gently pouring into golden goblets
The nectar that for [our] feasts
Was mixed as wine.
15: Handcloths
Tonight you sat me down,
O golden-garlanded Aphrodite,'
In [my] dream braiding of your immortal
Head the divine hair,
And hanging down from your hair,
Purple handcloths, which Timas
Sent you from Phocæa,
Precious gifts [hanging] down from your hair.
16: Hymn to Aphrodite
Ornate-throned immortal Aphrodite,
Wile-weaving daughter of Zeus, I beg you:
Do not overpower with ache and anguish,
O queen, my heart,
But come here, if ever in other times,
Hearing my voice from far away,
You listened, and leaving [your] father's golden
House, you came,
Yoking [your] cart, and rapid pretty
Sparrows led you over black earth,
Frequently flapping [their] wings, from the sky
Through the middle of the ether,,
And quickly they arrived; and you, o Blessed one,
A smile on [your] immortal face,
Asked what I'd suffered again, and why
I was invoking [you] again,
And what I wanted the most to happen to me,
Crazy at heart: «Whom again should I persuade
To lead you to your love as well? Who,
o Sappho, is wronging you?
Indeed if she flees, she will soon chase [you],
If she doesn't take [your] gifts, she'll give [her own],
If she doesn't love [you], she will soon,
Even if she doesn't want to».
Come to me now as well, and set me free
From oppressive anxieties, and what my heart craves
To see happen to me, make it happen; and you yourself
Be my ally.
17: Queen Hera
Let your graceful, roaring feast,
Queen Hera, be brought around me,
Which the songs of Atreus, the kings,
Prayed for,
Having completed great deeds
First around Troy, then
Having set sail hither; they could not find
Their way
Before seeking you and Zeus god of the suppliants,
And the lovely son of Thyne.
Now we too, following the old [tradition],
Make these majestic, holy,
And beautiful [rites] for you; a cowd
Of maidens and praying women makes its way hither:
They want to, packed tightly around your altar,
Measuredly cry aloud.
]
… to be …
(come to the temple?)
18: On celebrating a feast
…
They call unto…
Totally; Don't you have a way that I could,
O mother, perform
A shining feast at the [proper] time? That is
A joy to those who live but a day; may it happen
To me to be cheerful, until the gods grant us
To hear the sound
Of the harps; this…
… than now…
…giving…
…made;
. . . . .
…
… ready …
… fulfil that
… I totally …
… tongue …
…
… then you needed
… of loves
…
Group 4: Wedding songs
Jūdan yon:
Konrê no uta
19: Hector and Andromacha
Cyprus… ̣[ 22-24 letters ]αι ̣
The messenger came running, pushed forth by the might of [his] legs,
The speedy messenger of Ida, bearing these tidings:
«[
One ore more lines are missing, the last of which
Probably ended with Of Troy]
And of the rest of Asia these things were the undecaying glory;
Hector and his companions are leading
From sacred Thebes and ever-flowing Placia
The quick-glancing tender Andromacha by ship over the briny
Sea; and many golden bracelets, and purple
Robes, and beautiful flower embroideries, motley adornments,
And countless silver wine-cups, and ivory.
Thus spoke he; and readily dear father leapt up;
And the news went through the spacious city to [his] loved ones;
At once the sons of Ilium to the well-running chariots
Yoked the mules; and the whole crowd came
Of women and of tender-ankled maidens;
Separately went the daughters of Priam,
And the men yoked the horses to the chariots, and together there
All the unmarried men, and far and wide went the great [went
People, and the charioteers led the excelling foals
With white patches outside the dear city then.
Everyone says that some lines are missing here.
When once again on the carriages there went the god-like
Hector and Andromacha, then all together
The people of Troy went to set out to sacred Ilium.
And the sweet-sounding flute and the cithara mixed together
With the sound of castanets, and clear-tonedly the maidens
Sang a sacred song, and to the air there went
A divinely sweet echo, laughter …
And everywhere in the streets there was …
Bowls and cups …
Myrrh and cassia and incense [the fire] accepted [within itself].̣
And all the elder women cried aloud,
And all the men cried out a delightful high-pitched
Pæana, calling unto the far-darting sweet-lyred [Apollo],
To sing of Hector and Andromacha, the god-like ones.
The second time where I said «Missing lines here»,
Perhaps another poem by Sappho started there.
20: May you sleep
May you sleep in the bosom of a tender girlfriend .
Nemureru yô ni
Dekiaina
Kanojo dakarete
Nemureru yô ni.
21: Let's sing for the couple
[–u–x–uu–u–x
–u–x–uu–u–x
Indeed I pray for this] night
To become twice as long for me.]
May maidens before these doors,
Staying up all night, very happy bridegroom,
Sing the love of you and of
The violet-bosomed bride.
But wake up, fetch those of your age,
And set off, so that we may see
Even less sleep that the sweet-voiced
Bird will.
22: Hymenæum
Up high the roof,
Hymenæum,
Raise ye, o carpenters:
Hymenæum,
The groom is equal to Ares,
Hymenæum,
Much larger than a large man,
Hymenæum,
Superior, like the Lesbian
Hymenæum,
Singer to those of foreign lands.
Hymenæum.
13: Like the sweet apple
Sappho used to compare the bride to an apple:
As the sweet apple blushes on the high branch,
High on the highest [branch], and the pluckers forget it:
Indeed they don't forget, but can't reach [it]…
[She used] to like the groom to Achilles,
and put the young man on par with the hero in his achievements.
14: Like the hyatyncth
Like the hyacinth on the mountains is treaded on
By the feet of the shepherds, and the purple flower on the ground...
15: Happy bridegroom
Happy bridegroom, to you the wedding that you yearned for
Has been fulfilled, and you have the maiden you yearned for.
You have graceful looks, o bride, and honey-sweet
Eyes, and love has been poured on your lovable face:
With these evident things Aphrodite has exceedingly honored you.
Group 5:
Grief, rage, enmity
Jūdan go:
Kanashimi to
Ikari to teiki
16: You have left me
You have left me. Ay me! Have you
Forgotten me, my darling? Or do you love
Another person more than me?
And if so, who is (s)he?
26: Atakushi wo Hikihanaseta wa!
Atakushi wo
Hikihanasita wa!
Wasureta ka?
Atakushi yori mo
Hoka no hito
Aishite iru ka?
Dare darô ka na?
27: The moon has set
The moon has set
And the Pleiads, the night
Is half-gone, and time flies by;
Yet alone I lie.
27: Taiin ga Sude ni shizunda
Taiin ya
Subaru ga sude ni
Ano umi no
Shita ni shizunda.
Mayonaka no
Jikan ga masa ni
Hayaku tatsu.
Kono mama ware ga
Hitori de nemuru.
28: Rustic woman
What rustic woman bewitches now your mind, as she
Goes around you wearing a rustic dress,
Not being able to pull her robe above her ankles?
28: Soyana josê wa
Ashikubi no
Ue ni agenai
Hontô ni
Soyana ifuku wo
Kiru toki wa
Sono kokoro wo
Hikitsukeru
Soyana josê wa
Dare darô ka na?
29: Stand before me
And Sappho says to the one who is excessively
Admired for his looks and considered
handsome:
Stand thou here and before me, [as a] friend,
And spread out the grace in [your] eyes.
30: Dead shalt thou lie
Dead shalt thou lie, and never memory
Of thee will be until the end, for thou
Hast no share in the roses of Pieria,
But having flown 'midst lightless dead souls, thou,
Even in Hades' house uncouth, shalt wander.
31: Someone will remember
I say that even till the end someone will remember us.
32: Against Andromeda
…peaceful…
…having received from ægis-bearing Zeus…
…Cytherea, succour me as I pray [to you]…
…having a gracious heart…
…hear my prayers, if even in another time…
…having left Cyprus…
…you came to my cry…
…by painful solicitude…
[Three lost lines]
…
…
From the blessed gods … having obtained …
May you wish to cut off this calamity as well for me, you of all
The goddess with the most astute heart, oh, fulfil my wish:
You indeed loved [me] and used to grant everything for which I invoked
Now due to this defend me once more according to my wish! [[you],
«This cause is not unbecoming», said [she], «and what you wish to obtain
Is not at all much to get, for even Andromeda cannot 7
Overtly fight me, and what she did confiding in a voluptuous lifestyle
Is not [possible] to forget for the gods; and indeed you know well
That Nemesis strikes the one who is familiar with evil, and prevails over
Sappho, loving you the venerable queen of Cyprus fit wheels [everyone».
To [her] carriages, and for you she quickly went to entreat Zeus,
And a great gift the son of Cronus nodded assent for her to grant to you:
To all those whom the shining Sun surrounds with [its] beams,
Everywhere [your] noble fame [will arrive ?] …
And you on Acheron's [banks ?] …
…
[6 lost lines]
33: About her exile
… for out of my land
A conflict suddenly chased me … however the memory
Was not … but … equal to the gods.
Now though I'm roused against the culprit of these griefs
And vexations, and with the pains will Artemis the blessed one,
Who rules from above, lead elderly Andromeda under [her] cart,
And she will be ashamed of her character, not gentle, but stubborn,
For no-one halted the arrogance in her, [so she] doesn't hold back [her].
She/One could indeed quickly offer a herd of lambs to the sons [insolence
[And] enjoy the peace of music in in a graceful [of Tyndar,
Delightful place of dance, ah, if honest no longer …
[With?] Megara the mild having taken [her] clear-toned harp,
… possible to them …
… to everyone …
…
34: Against the Polyanactids
… after a short while …
… the Polyanactids …
… to the Samian women …
Make to resonate in the plectrum-welcoming
Strings, banqueting
Friendlily with such people
The harp is made to vibrate gently,
And, sweet-voiced, through the bones
It slithers, and once it's in, runs through the marrow.
35: To Apollo
Son of Leto and Zeus,
… come to the feast,
Leaving woody Grynea
And your famous oracle
…
…
… in days
… feast
…
… sing …
[And?] … sister …
Like a child …
No-one … want …
They show … again of the Polyanactids
I want to put the glutton on display.
36: Curse
… blessed one …
… [good for sailing ?]
… of the head and …
…
For what mistakes he made before, he made amends
…
With good luck … harbor …
…
Cypris, may she find you very bitter,
May Doricha not be loud-spoken
Saying that she came to a desired love
A second time.
Group 6: Sappho
and her brother
Jūdan roku:
Saffō to ani
37: To the Nereids
Queen Nereids, grant me
That my brother may come here unscathed,
And whatever he may wish in his heart,
Fulfil it;
[Let him] make amend for all his past mistake,
And be a joy for his friends
And a grief for his enemies; and for us
May nobody ever be one;
And may he wish to make his sister
More greatly honored, and may he free
From mournful grievances those, whose hearts
He formerly crushed with his
Mourning, hearing a reproach, which used to devour
Even us in [my] flesh because of the citizens' blame,
As ever, not differently, but he realized it
Not at all after long,
And even more [will he understand] if he learns
What fame is like among mortals; and you, queen Cypris,
Burying up an unbearable offense,
Be persuaded by us.
38: Prayer to avert stormy journeys
. . . . . . . . . .
… you persuaded, o blessed one,
… brightness and
. . . . .
… with good luck
… to reach a harbor
… black earth
[. . . . .
In violent storms, sailors,
Fearing for the great winds,
Throw away their cargo, and towards land
They steer the ship;
May I above all not set sail from anywhere
When a storm has arisen, nor throw
All the cargo I had into the deep sea, whether precious
Or worthless;
If Nereus, in his flowing pageant
In the sea, should happen to receive my
Cargo, I pray him to let it come to me
As quick as possible.
… works
… land
…
. . . . . ]
39: Brothers poem
«We have indeed suffered much, but may there come
Charaxus to us now with a full ship!»:
Indeed we suffer much still now, and the pain
Has reached you, wet nurse,
But you always chatter for Charaxus to come
With a full ship, which, I believe, Zeus
And all the gods know, but you needn't
Think about that,
But rather send me [out], and pray me
Tu pray queen Hera a lot
So that Charaxus may come here steering
A safe and sound ship,
And find us safe and sound; All
The rest, let us entrust to the gods:
For fair weather from great winds
Are quickly born;
And those whom the king of Olympus wants
A helper god to lead out
Of suffering, those remain blessed
And full of joy.
And we, if Larichus raises
His head, and sometime becomes a real man,
Would be set free even
From [our] great heaviness of heart.
40: To Charaxus
Version 1
. . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .
… give.
If you fly to renowned men
And not handsome and good ones, and say goodbye
To your loved ones, and pain me, saying that I
Have become your reproach,
Swollen in your heart, may your satisfy
Your heart with such things, and be satiated; for my thought
Does not easily yield to the rage
Of children;
But err not: a trap
Won't catch old birds; I know you,
To how much evilness you previously set forth,
And what foe
I'm up against. Therefore, thinking about better things,
Change your thoughts; for, since I've nurtured
An easily-satisfied mind, I know with certainty that
Are on my side. [the blessed [gods]
Version 2
. . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .
You might find it wise to not
Return my favor.
You keep away the lovers of words
Noble and beautiful, born for the seven-toned
Lyres, and pain me, and hurl
Reproach at me.
Perhaps all swollen up in this reproach, with the outrage
Satiate your heart, for my thought
Is not so easily affected
By your rage.
… nor(?) …
Group 7:
Nostalgia for youth
Jūdan shichi:
Wakamono ni
Fukai kaikyū
41: You were also a tender young child
. . . . . . . . . .
…
…
…
For you also once were a tender child
And loved to sing: come, tell yourself
All these things, and from that heart
Generously gratify us;
For we're going to a wedding; and well and clearly
You also see this; but as fast as possible
Send away all the maidens, and may the gods
Find no dishonour.
The road to great Olympus is untrodden
… for man …
[................
................]
42: O tender women
To them I said: «Tender women,
Such things as will be remembered near old age,
We too indeed in out bright youths
Have done them.
Many things indeed both beautiful and good we worked out
Back then; and to me, as I saw
You'd left the city, desire
Bit the heart
With sharp griefs.
43: If I still had milk
If my teats still had a share
Of milk, or my womb was still fit
For child-making, then with untrembling feet
I would go to another
Bed; but now already old age
Surrounds my body with a myriad wrinkles,
And Eros the pain-giver no longer
Flies toward me;
… of the noble …
… taking
The sweet-voiced harp, sing to us
Of the violet-bosomed one.
… above all of loves
… as long as (s)he wanders
…
…
44: Gifts of the Muses
Hasten ye toward the beautiful gifts of the violet-bosomed Muses,
Oh children, and [toward] the song-loving clear-toned lyre;
My once-tender body old age already
Has seized, and [my] hair, from black, has turned white,
And my heart has turned heavy, and my knees support me no longer,
Which were once as nimble in dancing as the fawns.
I often lament these things, but what could I ever do?
It's impossible for him who is human to become ageless.
Indeed once they said that rosy-fingered Dawn, leaving the
For love, went bringing Tithonus to the ends of the Earth, [reins
When he was handsome and young, but still grey old age,
In time, seized him, who had an immortal wife.
Group 8: On singing
Jūdan hachi:
Utau koto
45: Perform with a better voice
… I called …
… around …
…
… they say Eurydice,] having fled
[Aristæus who was chasing her,] was bitten [by the tooth of a snake
(And)] the gods [were wholly sad; but you, o Calliope,] her
…
… having called] unto you of [many] names,
[As she wishes, may she] perform with a [better] voice.
45: Yoriyoi koe de / Engi shiyô ni
…yonda…
…no mawari ni…
Euryudikē wa
Aru toki ni
Arisutaiosu
Nigeru toki
Hebi no ha niyori
Kajirareta
Dakara kamigami
Kanashiku ni / Kanashimi ni
Natta to hanashi / Kita monogatari (?).
Demo anata,
Ā Kariopā,
Ano kata wo …
Ooi na ga
Aru no anata wo
Yobidashita
Hito wa yoriyoi
Onsei de
Negai ni yoru to / Negai no yô ni(?)
Engi shiyô ni
46: May there now be festivity
Version 1
… not …
… I pray …
May there now be festivity …
And underground may [] have
The great glory of the Muses, having gifts as is becoming.
And everywhere] they would marvel at me while, as I am on earth,
They call [me] a clear-toned swallow if, having taken the harp,
Or the barbiton or that lyre, I sing to wedding beds.
Version 2
… not …
… I pray …
For me and my companions may there now be festivity,
And after, grown old, I die and end up underground,
Though I will keep the noble privilege of the servants of the Muses, as is
They would not marvel at me as they do now as I'm on earth; [befitting,
Let [my] clear-toned song shine if, having taken the harp,
For my loved ones …, o Muse, I should sing beautiful things.
47: To her lyre
Come indeed, divine lyre, to me
Start now to speak.
47: Raiā ni
Shinsêna
Raiā, ware ni
Utatte kite ne!
48: To my friends
These things now I will sing
Beautifully, delighting my friends.
48: Tomodachi no tame
Tomodachi wo
Yorokobasu yô
Suteki ni utau
Group 9: To friends,
advice
Jūdan kyū:
Tomodachi ni
mousu kotoba to
chūkyoku to
49: To Dica
But Sappho expresses more simply the reason for our practice of wearing garlands when she says:
But you, o Dica, put lovely garlands around your hair,
Having bound stems of anise together with your tender hands;
For it happens that even the blessed Graces had rather see
Flowery things, and turn away from the ungarlanded.
50: On summer
Wet your lung with wine, for the star is coming round,
The hour is harsh, everything is in thirst under the burning heat,
There sings from the leaves the sweet cicada, and from below the wings
It constantly pours down a clear song, when the fiery
Summer, having flown down to earth, dries everything up.
There blooms the artichoke; now women are at their ugliest,
But men are feeble, for Sirius their heads and knees
Parches.
51: To Mica
… nor is it licit for you, Mica,
… to laugh, but I will not let you
… you chose the friendship of the women of the house of Penthilus
… this, o wily one, has bitten our hearts,
For to those, not to us, you gift a sweet song,
But now there has formed a sweet-sounding harmony of breezes:
It is not indeed the flute singing this, but the shrill winds.
52: No lament is allowed
It is not licit for there to be in the house of those who serve the Muses
An unending mourning, Kleis: nor would such a thing become us.
53: He who's fair
He who is fair remains fair [only] to be seen,
He who is also good, will immediately also be fair.
54: Money without virtue
Money, not when it is alone by itself, but being also
embellished by virtue, opportunely enjoys the benefits of its own
and those of virtue, and has a wise concern for pursuing good things.
For each of these two on its own is not sweet:
Money without virtue is not a safe neighbour;
In the use of both lies the height of happiness.
55: I have a gentle mind
… for I am not one of those spiteful
with rage, but have a gentle mind. …
56: Idle-barking tongue
As anger spreads through [your] chest,
Guard ye your idly-barking tongue.
56: Iminaku sawagu Sono shita wo
Haradachi de
Kokoro nietatsu
Sono toki wa,
Iminaku sawagu
Na ga shita wo
Ono ga kokoro de
Tomeshimuru beshi.
57: I don't expect
I don't expect touch the sky with two arms.
57: Matanai
Atakushi wa
Kono ni no ude de
Oozora wo
Todokifureau
Koto wo matanai.
58: No-one I believe will
I do not believe that any maiden who has seen
The light of the sun will, at any time, be
So skilful.
Group 10: Mythology
Jūdan jū:
Shinwa no hahen
59: Coming down from the sky
Sappho is said to have been the first to mention a chlamys, when she said [this] about Eros:
[In a dream, I myself saw Eros once,]
Having come down from the sky, clad in a purple chlamys.
60: On Leda
They say that indeed Leda once found
An egg covered by flowers
Of hyacinth.
60: Rēda ni tsuite
Hito wa sô iu:
Rēdā wa
Hiashinsu hana
Kakushita no
Tamago wo itsuka
Mitsuketa wa.
61: On the doves
And their heart became cold,
And they let their wings fall.
61: Hato ni tsuite
Kokoro ni wa
Kogoeteru kara
Hane furisaseta.
61: Hato ni tsuite
Tamashii ga
Kooraseta toki,
Hane wa tsuieta.
62: Golden chickpeas
Golden chickpeas were born on the shore.
62: Ôgon no mame
Umibe nite
Umareta mame no
Iro wa ôgon.
63: Latona and Niobe
Even today free women and yonng girls
call their intimate and dear friends' companions '
like Sappho:
Leto and Niobe were very dear companions.
63: Rāto to Niobā futari
Rātō to
Niobā futari
Aishi ai
Naka mutsumajiku
Kizuna wa fukaku.
64: Forever a maiden I will be
…
To golden-haired Phoebus, whom the daughter of Coeus bore,
Having mingled with the great-named son of Cronus,
Artemis swore the gods' great oath: [god of the high clouds,
«Yea, by your head, I will forever be a maiden
Unwed, hunting on the tops of the lonely
Mountains: come, grant this for my sake».
Thus spoke [she]; and the father of the blessed gods granted it,
And both gods and men call her by the great title
Of virgin, deer shooter, huntress.
To her body-melting Eros never goes near.
…
65: There dieth, Cytherea
There dieth, o Cytherea, delicate Adonis; what shall we do?
Beat your breasts, girls, and rend your clothes.
Group 11:
But a certain wish to die
possesses me
Jūdan jūichi:
Shibô wo nozomu
66: There came Hermes
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
…
…
…
And Gongyla said: "You could never know this,
Or did you want to leave some sign
To your children?" "Of course" I replied; Hermes
Came to us, the minister of Zeus; to him
I spoke thus: "O lord of the seven-toned lyre,
Indeed by the blessed goddess
I get no pleasure from being raised too much into happiness,
But some desire to die possesses me,
And to see the dewy, lotus-covered
Banks of Acheron …
And to go down to Hades' home, and to see
The dead I crave …
… nobody …
67: I really wish I were dead
«I will never see Atthis,
And I truly wish I were dead».
And crying a lot she was leaving
Me, and told me this:
«Alas, what terrible things we've suffered,
O Sappho: unwilling indeed I leave you»
To her I replied thus:
«Leave with joy, and of me
Remember: for you know we cared for you.
If not, then I want you
To remember (which you will forget)
What dear and beautiful things we have experienced;
For many a garland of violets
And of roses and crocuses likewise
You would put round your head beside me,
And many woven
Necklaces garlands round your tender neck,
Made of dear flowers,
And with much perfume, costly
And regal, your beautiful hair
You generously anointed,
And on soft mattresses
By your tender addentants
You satisfied your longing for young women
And there never was hill nor
Temple nor spring of water
From which we kept away
Nor by springtime did noise
Fill any wood,
But our sweet singing».
Group 12: Epigrams
Jūdan jūni:
Mittsu no kêku
68: Epigram of Timas
This is the ash of Timas, whom, dead before [her] wedding
The black nuptial chamber of Persephone received;
Once she had died, all the girls of her age
With freshly-sharpened blade cut the hair off [their] head.
69: Epigram of Pelagon
To Pelagon the fisher his father, Meniscus, has gifted
Basket and oar, memorials of a sorry life.
70: Offering to Artemis
Maidens, though I have no voice, I declare this to whoever asks,
Having a tireless voice placed before [my] feet·
To Aethopia, daughter of Leto, Arista dedicated me,
Daughter of Hermoclides son of Saunaiadas,
You attendant, o queen of women: take pleasure in her
And, gracious, honour our family.