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Reader | Orphic Hymns, Hymn 1
Orphic Hymns
Orphic tradition
Text
Position
Line 1 of 11
| Line Ref | Thomas Taylor | English |
|---|---|
| 1 | Primary O venerable goddess, hear my pray'r, for labour pains are thy peculiar care; |
| 2 | Primary In thee, when stretch'd upon the bed of grief, the sex as in a mirror view relief. |
| 3 | Primary Guard of the race, endued with gentle mind, to helpless youth, benevolent and kind; |
| 4 | Primary Benignant nourisher; great Nature's key belongs to no divinity but thee. |
| 5 | Primary Thou dwell'st with all immanifest to sight, and solemn festivals are thy delight. |
| 6 | Primary Thine is the talk to loose the virgin's zone, and thou in ev'ry work art seen and known. |
| 7 | Primary With births you sympathize, tho' pleas'd to see the numerous offspring of fertility; |
| 8 | Primary When rack'd with nature's pangs and sore distress'd, the sex invoke thee, as the soul's sure rest; |
| 9 | Primary For thou alone can'st give relief to pain, which art attempts to ease, but tries in vain; |
| 10 | Primary Assisting goddess [Eileithyia], venerable pow'r, who bring'st relief in labour's dreadful hour; |
| 11 | Primary Hear, blessed Dian [Artemis], and accept my pray'r, and make the infant race thy constant care. |