Reader
Reader | Hymn to Zeus, Hymn 1
Hymn to Zeus
Cleanthes of Assos
Text
Position
Line 1 of 39
| Line Ref | E. H. Blakeney | English |
|---|---|
| Κύδιστ᾽ ἀθανάτων, πολυώνυμε, παγκρατὲς ἀεὶ | Primary Most glorious of Immortals, mighty God, |
| Ζεῦ, φύσεως ἀρχηγέ, νόμου μέτα πάντα κυβερνῶν, | Primary Invoked by many a name, O sovran King |
| χαῖρε· σὲ γὰρ πάντεσσι θέμις θνητοῖσι προσαυδᾶν. | Primary Of universal Nature, piloting this world in harmony with Law, all hail! |
| ἐκ σοῦ γὰρ γένος ἐσμέν, ἑνὸς | Primary Thee it is meet that mortals should invoke, |
| μίμημα λαχόντες | Primary For we Thine offspring are, |
| μοῦνον, ὅσα ζώει τε καὶ ἕρπει θνήτ᾽ ἐπὶ γαῖαν. | Primary and sole of all created things that live and move on earth |
| τῷ σε καθυμνήσω, καὶ σὺν κράτος αἰὲν ἀείσω. | Primary receive from Thee the image of the One. |
| σοὶ δὴ πᾶς ὅδε κόσμος ἑλισσόμενος περὶ γαῖαν | Primary Therefore I praise Thee, |
| πείθεται, ᾗ κεν ἄγῃς, καὶ ἑκὼν ὑπὸ σεῖο κρατεῖται· | Primary and shall hymn Thy power unceasingly. |
| τοῖον ἔχεις ὑποεργὸν ἀνικήτοις ἐνὶ χερσὶν | Primary Thee the wide world obeys, |
| ἀμφήκη, πυρόεντα, ἀειζώοντα κεραυνόν. | Primary as onward ever in its course it rolls where'er Thou guidest, and rejoices still beneath Thy sway. |
| τοῦ γὰρ ὑπὸ πληγῆς φύσεως πάντ᾽ ἐρρίγασιν, | Primary So strong a minister is held by Thine unconquerable hands, |
| ᾧ σὺ κατευθύνεις κοινὸν λόγον ὃς διὰ πάντων | Primary that two-edged thunderbolt of living fire |
| φοιτᾷ, μιγνύμενος μεγάλους μικροῖς τε φάεσσιν, | Primary that never fails. |
| ὡς τόσσος γεγαὼς, ὕπατος βασιλεὺς διὰ παντός. | Primary Under its dreadful blow all Nature reels; |
| οὐδέ τι γίγνεται ἔργον ἐπὶ χθανὶ σοῦ δίχα, δαῖμον, | Primary therewith Thou dost direct the Universal Reason |
| οὔτε κατ' αἰθέριον θεῖον πόλον οὔτ᾽ ἐνὶ πόντῳ, | Primary which, commixt with all the greater and the lesser lights, |
| πλὴν ὁπόσα ῥέζουσι κακοὶ σφετέρῃσιν ἀνοίαις. | Primary moves through the Universe. |
| ἀλλὰ σὺ καὶ τὰ περισσὰ ἐπίστασαι ἄρτια θεῖναι, | Primary How great Thou art, the Lord supreme for ever and for aye! |
| καὶ κοσμεῖν τὰ ἄκοσμα, καὶ οὐ φίλα σοὶ φίλα ἐστίν. | Primary No work is wrought apart from Thee, O God, |
| ὧδε γὰρ εἰς ἕν ἅπαντα συνήρμοκας ἐσθλὰ κακοῖσιν, | Primary or in the world, or in the heaven above, |
| ὥσθ᾽ ἕνα γίγνεσθαι πάντων λόγον αἰὲν ἐόντα, | Primary or on the deep, |
| ὃν φεύγοντες ἐῶσιν ὅσοι θνητῶν κακοί εἰσι | Primary save only what is done by sinners in their folly. |
| δύσμοροι, οἵ τ᾽ ἀγαθῶν μὲν ἀεὶ κτῆσιν ποθέοντες | Primary Nay, Thou canst make the rough smooth, |
| οὔτ᾽ ἐσορῶσι θεοῦ κοινὸν νόμον, οὔτε κλύουσιν, | Primary bring wondrous order forth from chaos; |
| ᾧ κεν πειθόμενοι σὺν νῷ βίον ἐσθλὸν ἔχοιεν, | Primary in Thy sight unloveliness seems beautiful; |
| αὐτοὶ δ᾽ αὖθ᾽ ὁρμῶσιν ἄνευ καλοῦ ἄλλος ἐπ᾽ ἄλλα. | Primary for so Thou hast fitted things together, |
| οἱ μὲν ὑπὲρ δόξης σπουδὴν δυσέριστον ἔχοντες, | Primary good and evil, |
| οἱ δ᾽ ἐπὶ κερδοσύνας τετραμμένοι οὐδενὶ κόσμῳ, | Primary that there reigns one everlasting Reason in them all. |
| ἄλλοι δ᾽ εἰς ἄνεσιν καὶ σώματος ἡδέα ἔργα, | Primary The wicked heed not this, but suffer it to slip, to their undoing; |
| σπεύδοντες μάλα πάμπαν ἐναντία τῶνδε γενέσθαι, | Primary these are they who, yearning ever to secure the good, mark not nor hear the law of God, |
| ἀλλὰ Ζεῦ πάνδωρε, κελαινεφές, ἀρχικέραυνε, | Primary by wise obedience unto which they might attain a nobler life, with Reason harmonized. |
| ἀνθρώπους ῥύσιο ἀπειροσύνης ἀπὸ λυγρῆς, | Primary But now, unbid, they pass on divers paths, each his own way, yet knowing not the truth: |
| ἣν σύ, πάτερ, σκέδασον ψυχῆς ἀπο, δὸς δὲ κυρῆσαι | Primary some in unlovely striving for renown, |
| γνώμης, ᾗ πίσυνος σὺ δίκης μέτα πάντα κυβερνᾷς, | Primary some bent on lawless gains, on pleasure some, |
| ὄφρ᾽ ἂν τιμηθέντες ἀμειβώμεσθά σε τιμῇ | Primary working their own undoings self-deceived. |
| ὑμνοῦντες τὰ σὰ ἔργα διηνεκές, ὡς ἐπέοικε | Primary O Thou most bounteous God that sittest throned in clouds, the Lord of lightning, save mankind from grievous ignorance! |
| θνητὸν ἐόντ᾽, ἐπεὶ οὔτε βροτοῖς γέρας ἄλλο τι μεῖζον, | Primary Oh, scatter it far from their souls, and grant them to achieve true knowledge, on whose might Thou dost rely to govern all the world in righteousness; |
| οὔτε θεοῖς, ἢ κοινὸν ἀεὶ νόμον ἐν δίκῃ ὑμνεῖν. | Primary that so, being honoured, we may Thee requite with honour, chanting without pause Thy deeds, as all men should; since greater guerdon ne'er befalls or man or god than evermore duly to praise the Universal Law. |