the art

"ond þe þæt selre geceos, ece rædas; oferhyda ne gym"
Beowulf

"choose what is better, the eternal wisdom; heed not the blinding pride"

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

from the Metamorphoses, Book X

nec Tantalus undam
captavit refugam, stupuitque Ixionis orbis,
nec carpsere iecur volucres, urnisque vacarunt
Belides, inque tuo sedisti, Sisyphe, saxo.
tunc primum lacrimis victarum carmine fama est              
Eumenidum maduisse genas


Nor did Tantalus reach for water,
and the orb of Ixion ceased,
and the vultures,
always tearing at the tendon
of our Promethean misery,
for a moment,
even they stopped.

The Belides left their inane jars.
You, my dear Sisyphus,
you could rest,
for once,
you sat atop your rock.
It was then the first time,
Fame, conquered in song,
and the Furies,
they wept.  

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