THERMOPYLAE

 Introduction.

In Chapters 201-234 of Book VII of his "Histories", Herodotus gives an account of the heroic stand made by Leonidas, the King of Sparta, and three hundred of his fellow-countrymen against the huge Persian army of King Xerxes, which was invading Greece, at the narrow mountain pass of Thermopylae in 480 B.C. The self-sacrifice of Leonidas and his men is one of the most renowned military exploits of ancient history, and served to inspire future generations of Greeks to courageous deeds. A dramatic account of the events at Thermopylae was provided by the film "Three Hundred" (2007). Herodotus' works have recently been translated by Tom Holland (Penguin Classics 2011), as an addition to the translation of Aubrey de Selincourt (Penguin Classics, first published in 1954). The text for this translation is taken from "Herodotus, the Persian Wars", Volume III (Loeb Classical Library, first published 1922), with an English translation by A.D. Godley. This text and translation is also available on the Perseus website. In this translation, in accordance with his usual practice, Sabidius seeks to keep as close as possible to the structure of Herodotus' sentences and to the words which he employed.

1)   A description of Thermopylae and its neighbourhood (Chapter 201).

201. King Xerxes, then, was encamped in the territory of the city of Trachis, which belonged to Malis, and the Greeks (were encamped) in the pass. This place is called Thermopylae (i.e. The Hot Gates) by most of the Greeks, but Pylae (i.e. The Gates) by the natives and their neighbours. Then each lay encamped in these places, while the former was master of everything which extended from Trachis northwards, and the latter of (all) those (places) lying towards the south and on this part of the mainland.

2) Composition of the Greek force at Thermopylae; his decision to remain at Thermopylae (Chapters 202-207). 

202.  The Greeks who were awaiting the Persian in this place were these: of the Spartans, three hundred hoplites (i.e. men-at-arms), and a thousand Tegeans and Matineans, half from each (of these places), a hundred and twenty from Orchomenus in Arcadia, and a thousand from the rest of Arcadia; besides the Arcadians (there were) four hundred (men) from Corinth, and two hundred from Phlius and eighty Mycenaeans. These had come from the Peloponnese, and from the Boeotians (there were) seven hundred Thespians and four hundred Thebans.

203 (1). In addition to these, the Opuntian Locrians in full force, and a thousand Phocians were summoned. For the Greeks, themselves, had called upon them, saying through messengers that they themselves had come as an advance guard of the others, and (that) the rest of the allies were expected every day, and the sea was being carefully watched by the Athenians and the Aeginetans, and by those who had been enrolled in the naval force and (that) for them there was nothing to be afraid of. (2) For the invader of Greece was not a god, but a man, and there was no mortal, nor (ever) would be, on whom, at his birth, (some element of) evil had not been commingled (with other things) from the beginning, and with the greatest of them (receiving) the greatest (number of these). The (man) who was marching against (them), as he was a mortal, was surely bound to fall from glory, When they heard this, they came to the assistance of the Greeks at Trachis.

204.  Now all these had their own generals, each with regard to his city, but he who was admired the most and who was the leader of the whole army was Leonidas, the (son) of Anaxandrides, the (son) of Eurycrates, the (son) of Polydorus, the (son) of Alcamenes, the (son) of Telechus, the (son) of Archelaus, the (son) of Hegesilaus, the (son) of Doryssus, the (son) of Leobotes, the (son) of Echestratus, the (son) of Agis, the (son) of Eurysthenes, the (son) of Aristodemus, the (son) of Aristomachus, the (son) of Cleodaeus, the (son) of Hyllus, the (son) of Heracles, who (i.e. Leonidas) had acquired the kingship in Sparta unexpectedly.

205 (1). For, since he had two elder brothers, Cleomenes and Dorieus, he had excluded (from his mind) any thought of the kingship. But, when Cleomenes died without male issue, And Dorieus was no longer alive, as he had died also in Sicily, so indeed the kingship fell to Leonidas, because he had been born before Cleombrotus (for he was Anaxandrides' youngest son) and what is more he had married Cleomenes' daughter (i.e. Gorgo). (2) He then came to Thermopylae, having picked, in accordance with the law, three hundred men (i.e. his "ἱππεῖς", the 300 chosen men who formed the royal bodyguard), who also happened to have sons . And he came bringing also those Thebans, (whom) I mentioned when reckoning up the total, of whom Leontiades, the (son) of Eurymachus, was in command. Leonidas took pains to bring these (Thebans) alone among the Greeks for this reason, (namely) that they had been regularly accused of favouring the Medes. He summoned them to the war, as he wished to know whether they would send (their men) with (him), or whether they would plainly reject the Greek alliance. They sent the men, but with other thoughts in their minds.

206 (1). These, Leonidas and his men, the Spartans sent first, so that the rest of the allies would see them and march, and (so that) they would not take the side of the Medes as well, (as they might) if they perceived that they were delaying; for at that moment the Carneia (i.e. the national festival in honour of Apollo, held in September) was in their way, but, once they had celebrated the festival, they intended to leave a garrison at Sparta and march quickly to the rescue with their whole force. (2) So, the rest of the allies were also minded to act similarly themselves; for the Olympiad was due to fall at the same time as these activities; so they sent their advance guard, certainly not supposing that the war at Thermopylae would be concluded so quickly.

207.  Indeed, they had been minded to act in this way; but the Greeks at Thermopylae, when the Persian drew near to the entrance (to the pass), became afraid, and began to think about quitting their posts. Now, it seemed good to the rest of the Peloponnesians to return to the Peloponnese and keep the Isthmus under guard; the Phocians and the Locrians were greatly angered by this suggestion, and Leonidas voted that they should remain there, and that they should send messengers to the cities demanding that they should come to their assistance, as they were too few to ward off the host of the Medes.


3)  Persian scouts and the Greeks; Xerxes' conversation with Demaratus (Chapters 209-210). 

208 (1). While they debated these (matters), Xerxes sent a mounted scout to see how many they were
and what they might be doing. While he was still in Thessaly, he had heard that a small army was gathered there, and that their leaders were Lacedaemonians, including Leonidas, who was a descendant of Heracles. (2) When the horsemen rode up to the camp, he gazed at, and looked down on, the camp, yet not (on) all (of it); for it was not possible to see who had been stationed inside the wall, which they had repaired and (which) they were now guarding; but he did take notice of those (who were) outside, whose arms were laid in front of the wall; and it happened that at that time the Lacedaemonians had been posted outside. (3) There he saw some of the men exercising, and others combing their hair. When he saw these things, he was amazed, and made a note of their number. Having made an exact note of everything, he rode back at his leisure; for no one pursued (him) or paid much attention (to him); when he returned, he told Xerxes about all the things he had seen.

209 (1). When Xerxes heard (these things), he could not understand the truth, (namely) that they were preparing to kill to the best of their ability, or to be slain; as what they were doing appeared laughable to him, he summoned Demaratus, the (son) of Ariston, who was in his camp; (2) when he arrived, Xerxes asked him about each of these matters), as he wanted to understand what was going on with regard to the Lacedaemonians. But he said, "You heard me before concerning these men, when we were setting out for Greece, but you subjected me to laughter for saying how I saw these things would turn out. For it is my greatest concern, (O) King, to express the truth in your presence. (3) Now, hear (me) once more: these men have come to fight us over the pass, and for this they are preparing themselves. For their custom is as follows: whenever they are about to endanger their lives, they arrange (the hair on) their heads. (4) But know that, if you overcome these (men) and the force which remains behind at Sparta, there is no other nation among men which will resist and withstand you; for you are now coming face to face with the finest kingdom and city and the most valiant men among those in Greece." (5) What he was saying seemed wholly incredible to Xerxes, and he then asked in what way they would fight against his army, as they were so few. He replied, "O King, treat me as a liar, if these things I am telling you do not turn out in this way."

4) The fighting at Thermopylae and the repulse of the Persians Chapters 210-211).

210 (1). Although he said these things, he did not persuade Xerxes. Indeed, he allowed four days to pass, all the time expecting that they would take to flight; but, when on the fifth (day) they were (still) not withdrawing, but seemed to him to be remaining (there) through their arrogance and folly, he became angry and sent the Medes and the Cissians against them, telling (them) to take (them) captive, and bring (them) into his presence. (2) When the Medes bore down upon and attacked the Greeks, many (of them) fell, but others attacked as well, and were not driven back, although they suffered grievous losses, but they made (it) plain to all, and not least to the King himself, that there were many men but few warriors. The battle went on all day.

211 (1). Since the Medes were (so) roughly handled, they then withdrew (from the fight), and the Persians, whom the King called Immortals, and whom Hydarnes led, attacked in their place, (thinking) that they would make easy work (of the Greeks). (2) But, when they too joined battle with the Greeks, they fared no better than the army of the Medes, but the same (happened), because they were fighting in a narrower place and were using shorter spears than the Greeks, and could not make use of their numbers.(3) The Lacedaemonians, however, fought in a memorable manner, showing themselves (as) experienced fighters among inexperienced (ones), as when they turned their backs (and) apparently fled in a mass, and the barbarians, seeing (them) fleeing, would pursue (them) with a shout and a clash of arms, and they, allowing themselves to be overtaken, would turn around and cast down a countless number of Persians; and a few of the Spartans fell there too. When the Persians, making an attempt on the pass, and attacking in every kind of manner, could gain no (ground) at all, they drew back.

5) Flank movement by a Persian force, guided by Ephialtes, over the hills (Chapters 213-218).

212 (1). During these assaults in the battle, it is said that the King, as he watched, jumped up from his throne, fearing for his army. In this way, then, did they contend (in battle), and on the next (day) the barbarians fought with no more success. They joined battle, anticipating that, because they had suffered so many wounds, they would be so few that they would no longer be able to resist. (2) But the Greeks had been drawn up by rank in accordance with their nation, and each (of these) fought in turn, except the Phocians. They had been stationed on the mountain to guard the path. So, when the Persians found that nothing (was) in any way different from what they had experienced the (day) before, they withdrew.

213 (1). The King being at a loss as to how to deal with the present difficulty, Ephialtes, the (son) of Eurydemus, a man of Malia, came to speak with him; he, thinking that he would receive a great reward from the King, pointed out the path that led over the mountain to Thermopylae, and (thereby) caused the destruction of those Greeks remaining there. (2) Later, in fear of the Lacedaemonians, he fled to Thessaly, and, while he was in exile, a price was put on his head by the Pylagori, when the Amphictyons had assembled at Pylae. Then, some time after that, he returned to Anticyra, (where) he was slain by Athenades, a man of Trachis. (3) This Athenades slew Ephialtes for another reason, which I shall explain later in this history, but he was no less honoured by the Lacedaemonians.

214 (1). Thus Ephialtes died after these (events), yet there is another story told, (namely) that Onetes, the (son) of Phanagoras, a man of Carystus, and Corydallus of Anticyra, are the ones who spoke these words to the King , and led the Persians around the mountain, but to me (it is) not credible at all. (2) For, in the first place, one must form a judgment for this (reason), (namely) that the Pylagori of the Greeks put a price on the head, not of Onetes and Corydallus, but on (that of) Ephialtes the Trachinian, doubtless having learned the exact truth by every possible means; and, secondly, we know that Ephialtes fled for this reason. Certainly, Onetes might have known about this path, even if was not a Malian, if he had frequented the country many times. But, as Ephialtes was the (man) who guided (them) along the path around the mountain, I record him as guilty.

215.  Since Xerxes was pleased at what Ephialtes had undertaken to accomplish, he became overjoyed at once, and sent out Hydarnes and the (men) whom Hydarnes commanded; he set out from the camp at around (the time of) the lighting of the lamps. Now the native Malians had also discovered this path, and, after they had found it, they guided the Thessalians to Phocis, at the time when the Phocians, by fencing in the pass with a wall, were sheltering from invasion. For so long, indeed, had the Malians acknowledged that the path was not beneficial (to them).

216.  This path runs in the following way: it begins at the Asopus river, which flows through the gorge, and the same name Anopaea is fixed on this mountain and on the path. This Anopaea stretches across the ridge of the mountain, and ends at Alpenus, which is the city of the Locrians nearest to (that) of the Malians, and at the rock called Blackbuttock and at the seats of the Cercopes (i.e. legendary knavish dwarfs), and here is its narrowest (part).

217 (1). The Persians, having crossed the Asopus, marched all night, the mountains of Oeta being on their right and those of Trachis on their left. As dawn appeared, they came to the summit of the mountain. (2) In this (part) of the mountain, a thousand hoplites of the Phocians were on guard duty, as I have stated previously, defending their own country and keeping watch over the path. The lower (part of the) pass was guarded by those (of whom) I have spoken; and the Phocians were guarding the path across the mountain, as they had volunteered to undertake (this task) (in discussion) with Leonidas.

218 (1). The Phocians realised that they were on the summit in this way: the ascent of the Persians was concealed as the mountain was covered entirely with oak-trees. There was a stillness in the air, but a loud noise occurred like leaves being trodden under foot, whereupon the Phocians sprang up and began to don their armour, and at once the barbarians were there. (2) When they saw the men putting on their armour, they were amazed. For they had expected that no one would appear to oppose them, (and now) they were met by an army. Then Hydarnes, fearing that the Phocians were Lacedaemonians, asked Ephialtes what country this army was from, and, when he learned the truth, he drew up the Persians for battle. (3) When they were assailed by a thick shower of arrows, the Phocians went in flight to the top of the mountain, supposing that they had set out against them in the first place, and made ready to perish (there). This was their intention, but the Persians with Ephialtes and Hydarnes paid no attention (to them), and went down the mountain with all speed.


6)  Withdrawal of part of the Greek force by Leonidas' order. Final battle; annihilation of the Lacedaemomians and Thespians (Chapters 219-225).

219 (1). The seer Megistias, having examined the sacrificial offerings, was the first to warn the Greeks who were at Thermopylae that death would be awaiting them at dawn, and then afterwards deserters came who reported the circuit made by the Persians. These (men) gave their signals while it was still night, and the day-watchers, running down from the heights, (were) the third (to give this report) when daybreak was already appearing. (2) Then the Greeks held a council, and their opinions were divided; some would not allow that they should leave their post, but others wanted to free themselves, and dispersing each (band of men) took itself to its own city, but others among them got ready to remain there with Leonidas.

220 (1). Now, it is said (that) Leonidas himself sent them away, as he was concerned that they would be killed: but in his (view) it was not fitting for those among the Spartans who were there to abandon the post (that) they had come to guard at the outset. (2) In this (matter) I am rather strongly of the opinion that Leonidas, when he perceived that the allies were weak-spirited and unwilling to meet danger together with (him), bade them depart, but for him it was not honourable to go back; but, were he to remain there, he would leave (a name of) great renown, and the prosperity of Sparta would not be utterly destroyed. (3) For it had been foretold by the Pythian priestess to the Spartans, who were consulting (her) about this war right from the start after it had broken out, that either Lacedaemon would be laid waste by the barbarians or their king would be killed. She proclaimed this to them in hexameter verses, speaking as follows:

(4) "For you, O dwellers of wide-wayed Sparta, either your great and glorious city must be sacked by the sons of Perseus (i.e. the Persians), or (if) not that, then the whole land of Lacedaemon, as it pines, will mourn for a king from the line of Heracles (i.e. Leonidas). For neither the might of bulls, nor (that) of lions, can withstand this (foe) face to face; for he has the might of Zeus; I declare that he cannot be checked until he utterly tears asunder one of these (i.e. the city or the king)."

Considering this and wishing to lay up a store of glory for the Spartans alone, Leonidas sent the allies away, rather than that those departing should go away in such a disorderly manner because of a difference of opinion.

221.  The strongest proof I have of this (is) the fact that it is quite clear that Leonidas, lest he be slain with (the rest of) them, tried to dismiss Megistias, the Acarnanian, said to be a descendant of Melampus, and (who was) the seer who followed this expedition, the one who, from the sacrificial offerings, told (the Greeks) what was going to happen to them. But he, although he had been dismissed, did not himself leave, but he did send way his only son, who was serving in the army.

222.  Now, those allies who were sent away went off, and, in going, they were obeying Leonidas, and only the Thespians and the Thebans remained with the Lacedaemonians. Of these, the Thebans were remaining unwillingly and against their wishes. For Leonidas was holding them, and keeping (them) in the condition of hostages; the Thespians, however, (stayed there) most willingly, and they refused to abandon Leonidas and his companions, (and) to be freed (from his command), but stayed and died with (him); Demophilus, the (son) of Diadromes, was in command of them.

223 (1). Xerxes, after he had made libations at sunrise, waited until the time when any market-place (becomes) very full (i.e. mid-morning) and (then) made his assault; for he had been so advised by Ephialtes, as the descent from the mountain is more direct, and the way much shorter, than the circuit and the ascent. (2) So, the barbarians who were with Xerxes attacked, and the Greeks with Leonidas, (knowing) that they were proceeding towards their death, now advanced much further than (they had) at first into the wider (part) of the defile. For on the previous days a wall of fortification was being guarded, and, withdrawing gradually into the narrow (parts), they had fought (there). (3) But now they joined battle outside the narrows, and a large number of the barbarians fell (there); for the captains of their companies lashed every man with whips, urging (them) ever forward. Many of them fell into the sea and drowned, and, yet, many more were trampled alive under foot; there was no regard for who (it was that) perished. (4) For, as they knew that someone among those who were coming round the mountain was about to bring death to them, they displayed to the utmost as much bodily strength as they had towards the barbarians, (fighting) recklessly and with the frenzy of desperation.

224 (1). Now, by that time most of them already had broken spears, and they were slaying the Persians with their swords. Then, Leonidas fell in that struggle, being a most valiant warrior, and with him others famous Spartans, whose names I have learned, as being men of (great) worth, and I have also learned (the names) of all the three hundred. (2) Many other famous Persians fell there too, including two sons of Darius, Abrocomes and Hyperanthes, born to Darius by Phratagune, daughter of Artanes. Artanes was the brother of king Darius and son of Hystaspes, the (son) of Arsames. Now, when he gave his daughter in marriage to Darius, he gave his whole property as a dowry, since she was his only child.

225 (1). Two brothers of Xerxes fell in the battle there, and over the body of Leonidas there was a great struggle between the Persians and the Lacedaemonians, until, through their courage, the Greeks took it and dragged (it) away, and four times put their adversaries to flight. This (struggle) lasted until the (men) with Ephialtes arrived. (2) When the Greeks realised they had come, from then onwards the nature of the battle altered; for they withdrew back to the narrow (part) of the way, and, as they went, they passed behind the wall and took up position crowded together on the hillock, all of them that remained, except the Thebans. The hillock is at the entrance (to the pass), where now stands the stone lion in honour of Leonidas. (3) In this place, as they defended themselves with swords, as many of them as still happened to have them, and (if not) with their hands and teeth, the barbarians, (by) throwing (missiles), overwhelmed them, some pursuing (them) from the front and demolishing the wall of fortification, and others, who had surrounded (them) from all sides, standing round about.


7)  Individual instances of bravery; the commemorative inscriptions; the fortunes of the few survivors; Theban surrender to Xerxes (Chapters 226-233). 

226 (1).  Although the Lacedaemonians and the Thespians bore themselves in such a manner, yet the bravest man (of them all), it is said, was the Spartan Dieneces. They say that he spoke the following words before they joined battle with the Medes, when he had learned from a certain Trachinian, that, whenever the barbarians discharged their bowshots, the sun was hidden by the multitude of arrows; so great was their number. (2) He, not being (at all) disturbed by this, and making light of the multitude of the Medes, said that the stranger from Trachis brought them wholly good news, (for) if the Medes were keeping the sun hidden, (then) the battle against them would be in the shade and not in the sun.

227.  This saying, and others of a similar nature, they claim, Dieneces left (behind) as a memorial; after him, two Lacedaemonian brothers, Alpheus and Maron, the sons of Orsiphantus, are said to have been the most courageous. Among the Thespians, (the man) whose name was held in the highest repute was Dithyrambus, the (son) of Harmatides.

228 (1). Over those who were buried there in the very (place) where they fell, and with them those that had died before (those) who had been dismissed by Leonides had departed, there is written an inscription which says this:

"μυριάσιν ποτὲ τῇδε τριηκοσίαις ἔμαχοντο
     ἐκ Πελοποννάσου χιλιάδες τέτορες."
(Four thousand here from Pelops' land,
      Against three million once did stand.)

(2) That is inscribed for all of them, but, for the Spartans, (there is one) of their own:

"ὦ ξεῖν', ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις
     κείμεθα τοῖς κείνων ῥήμασι πειθόμενοι."
(Go tell the Spartans, O you that passes by,
    That here in obedience to their words we lie.)

(3) That (one) was for the Lacedaemonians, and this (one) was for the seer:

"μνῆμα τόδε κλεινοῖο  Μεγιστία, ὅν ποτε Μῆδοι
   Σπερχειὸν ποταμὸν κτεῖναν
μάντιος, ὃς τότε κῆρας ἐπερχομένας σάφα εἰδώς
   οὐκ ἔτλη Σπάρτης ἡγεμόνα προλιπεῖν."
(Here lies the hero Megistias who died
   When the Medes crossed over Spercheius' tide,
The seer well knew his doom was nigh,
   Yet from the Spartan king he scorned to fly.)

(4) Now, except for the seer's inscription, the Amphictyons are the ones who honoured them with inscriptions and pillars; Simonides, the (son) of Leoprepes, was the (man) who inscribed the (epitaph) of the seer Megistias, in accordance with their guest-friendship.

229 (1). It is said that of these three hundred, Eurytus and Aristodemus could both of them have agreed a common line of action, either to have returned safely together to Sparta, as they had been released by Leonidas and were lying sick in Alpeni with an extreme eye infection, or, if they did not wish to return home, to die with the others. While they could have done either of these things, they could not agree, but had different opinions. Eurytus, having learned of the Persians' circuit, (and, after) demanding his armour and putting (it) on, bid his helot lead him to the fighting; when he had led him, he (i.e. the helot) then departed after leading (him there), but he (i.e. Eurytus) rushed into the throng and perished; Aristodemus, his heart failing (him), hung back. (2) Now, if either Aristodemus alone had been sick and had returned to Sparta, or there had been a return journey involving both of them together, I do not think that the Spartans would have shown any anger towards them; but, as it was, when one of them had died, and the other, having the same excuse (as his comrade might have offered), yet was unwilling to die, they (i.e. the Spartans) were bound to display great anger towards Aristodemus.


230.  Some, then, say that Aristodemus came back safely to Sparta, and with some such excuse as this; others (say) that he had been sent from the camp (as) a messenger, and that, although he could have arrived in time for the battle, he chose not to, but lingered on the way and (so) survived, while his fellow-messenger arrived at the battle and was slain.

231.  When Aristodemus returned to Lacedaemon, he met with both censure and disgrace; he was dishonoured (by) suffering as follows: no one among the Spartans would kindle fire for him or speak with (him). And he had to face reproach, being called Aristodemus the coward.   

232.  But at the battle of Plataea (i.e. where the Spartans under Pausanias defeated the Persians in 479 B.C.) he retrieved all the blame which had been laid upon (him); it is said too that another of these three hundred had survived; his name was Pantites; as he was dishonoured, when he returned to Sparta, he hanged himself.

233 (1). The Thebans, of whom Leontiades was in command, fought against the King's army, as long as they were for a time with the Greeks under compulsion; but, when they saw the Persian side gaining the upper (hand), and, when the Greeks with Leonidas, were hurrying towards the hillock, they then separated themselves (from them) and stretched out their hands and came nearer to the barbarians, saying the truest of words, that they were on the side of the Medes and had been among the first to give earth and water to the King, that they had come to Thermopylae, while being under constraint, and were guiltless of the harm being done to the King. (2) And so, (by) saying these things, they saved their lives; for the Thessalians bore witness to their words; however, they were not fortunate in all respects; for, when the barbarians captured them as they were approaching, they killed some of them as they drew near, and, at Xerxes' command, they were branded with the King's marks, beginning with their commander Leontiades; some time afterwards (i.e. in 431 B.C.), the Plataeans murdered his son Eurymachus, when, leading four hundred Theban troops, he seized the city of Plataea.

8)  Epilogue (Chapter 234).

234.  Thus did the Greeks contend (in battle) at Thermopylae ....

THE MULTIPLE USES OF PARTICIPLES IN GREEK

Introduction.

When one is engaged in translating a piece of Ancient Greek into English, one is often surprised at the very widespread incidence of 'Participles' or 'Verbal Adjectives' in the text. Such participles are often at the centre of 'phrases', which are units of words distinguishable from 'clauses' in that, unlike the latter, they lack the presence of a 'finite verb'. For those of us who have been taught Greek syntax principally through the medium of Greek prose composition, the extent of such phrases, and the participles which are often within them, can be somewhat disconcerting, as our early learning of the language was largely structured around an understanding of clauses, firstly main clauses, and then subordinate clauses. In most of the standard grammatical textbooks of Greek, participles and their uses are dealt with on an incidental and relatively incoherent basis, and therefore the translator is likely to be unprepared for the apparently central part they tend to play in the structure of so much written Greek. This article intends to address in some detail the numerous uses to which participles are put in Greek and to highlight those uses with actual examples of how they work in practice. 

1.  The Participle - definition and description of its use.

In Greek the participle was called by the First Century B.C. Hellenistic grammarian Dionysius Thrax as 'ἡ μετοχή' (a participation), because 'it shares the specific character of verbs and of nouns' (μετέχουσα τῆς ῥημάτων καὶ τῆς τῶν ὀνοματων ἰδιότητος). A participle, like an adjective, is used to modify or qualify nouns, with which it agrees in case, number and gender, but, unlike an adjective, it can, in accordance with its verbal functions, a) take an object in the accusative or in any other case applicable to its verb, and b) express distinctions in aspect/time and in voice. In this context, the participle is one of the 'infinite' forms of a verb, i.e. it is not limited in terms of mood and person as are finite verbs. Other forms of the Verb Infinite in Greek are the 'Infinitive' and the 'Gerundive'. With regard to time, Greek verbs have separate participles to express present, past and future time; with regard to aspect such participles can also differentiate between process, event and state; and with regard to voice, Greek participles can be active, middle or passive. 

2.  Available forms of the participle.

In terms of inflexion, Greek verbs often have as many as eleven participles available, and this remarkable number, and the flexibility which they thus provide, helps to explain why their use is so common in Greek. In order to illustrate this, the participles of the paradigmatic verb 'λύω' (I loose, I free, I ransom [Middle]) are listed below, together with the three forms of the nominative singular relating to gender:

λύων, λύουσα, λῦον                                   Present Active                  Freeing

λύσας, λύσασα, λῦσαν                               Aorist Active                    Freeing, Having freed

λελυκώς, λελυκυῖα, λελυκός                      Perfect Active                   Having freed

λύσων, λύσουσα, λῦσον                             Future Active                    Being about to free

λυόμενος, λυομένη, λυόμενον                    Present Middle                   Ransoming

                                                                  Present Passive                 Being freed

λυσάμενος, λυσαμένη, λυσάμενον           Aorist Middle          Ransoming, Having ransomed

λελυμένος, λελυμένη, λελυμένον               Perfect Middle                  Having ransomed

                                                                  Perfect Passive                 Having been freed

λυσομένος, λυσομένη, λυσόμενον              Future Middle                  Being about to ransom

λελυσόμενος, λελυσομένη, λελυσόμενον Future Perfect Middle Having been about to ransom

                                                          Future Perfect Passive Having been about to be freed

λυθείς, λυθεῖσα, λυθέν                                Aorist Passive                   Being freed, Freed

λυθησομενος, λυθησομένη, λυθησόμενον  Future Passive                  Being about to be freed

(N.B. It should be noted that Greek lacks a participle relating to the Future Perfect Active. Such a participle could only be formed periphrastically.)

Partly because of the significant number of participles relating to each verb, the participle plays a greater part in Greek than in Latin, which only has three participles for any verb. Latin's lack of a Past Participle Active and a Present Participle Passive creates significant restrictions in practice. It is also worth remarking that English verbs only possess two participles, a Present Participle (e.g. Loosening) and a Past Participle Passive (e.g. Loosened); indeed to create other participles in our own language it is necessary in practice to employ auxiliary verbs such as 'having', 'being', and 'been' on a periphrastic basis, and we often use participles in a fairly loose manner, making the two we do have do almost all the work grammatically. The Greeks, on the contrary, having so many of them, used them with great precision.   

3.  Aspect and Time. 

Before looking in detail at the manifold uses of participles in Greek, it is necessary to outline how they relate to both aspect and time, as indicated in Section 1 above. The present participle represents the action as a process occurring simultaneously with the time of the main verb; the aorist participle as an action occurring simultaneously with, or prior to, the time of the main verb; the perfect participle relates to a state occurring in the present as the result of an action in the past; and the future participle is used when the action is subsequent to the action of the main verb, and often in order to express purpose or intention. Examples of these usages are set out below:

a)  ἐξῆλθον βοῶντες. They went out shouting. (Present participle: simultaneous process in past time.) 

b)  βοήσας εἶπεν.  He said with a shout.  (Aorist participle:  simultaneous event in past time.)

c)  τὴν γῆν καταλιπόντες ταχέως ἔπλευσαν. After leaving the land, they sailed quickly. (Aorist participle:  prior event in past time.)

d)  χαίρει ὥσπερ ἤδη πεποιημένων τῶν σπονδῶν. He is rejoicing as if a peace treaty has already been made.  (Perfect participle:  present state in present time.)

e)  ἥκουσιν ὑμῖν ἀγγελοῦντες.  They have come to tell you. (Future participle:  future intention in present time.)

Of all the matters concerning the use of participles in Greek, the above rules are perhaps of the greatest significance. The regular use of the Aorist participle to describe an event simultaneous to the time of the main verb, and which in English is therefore rendered by the Present participle, is perhaps the usage which most needs to be appreciated by the translator in this context.  

4.  Substantival and Adjectival uses of the Participle.

a.  The participle as a noun. 

In some instances the participle is used, together with the direct article, as a straight substitute for a noun. Examples are

i)   οἰ τεθνηκότες, the dead (lit. those who have died).  

ii)  οἰ θεώμενοι, spectators (lit. those who are watching).

b. Its use as a noun phrase in Indirect Statement. 

In Greek, verbs of knowing and perceiving are followed by an Accusative and Participle construction rather than the Accusative and Infinitive which follows verbs of saying and thinking. Some examples are shown below:

i) οἶδα αὐτὸν ἀφικόμενον.  I know that he has arrived (lit. I know him having arrived). 

ii) οἶδά σε σώφρονα ὄντα. I know that you are wise (lit. I know you being wise).

iii) ὄψονται τὴν γῆν τεμνομένην.  They will see that their land is being ravaged (lit. They will see their land being ravaged).

iv) ὄψονται τὰ σφέτερα διαφθειρόμενα. They will see that their own property is being destroyed (lit. They will see their own property being destroyed). 

With regard to the Indirect Statement, Greek differs from Latin in that, if the subject of the indirect statement is the same as that of the main verb, it is put into the Nominative rather than the Accusative case. In practice, however, it is not necessary to express the subject of the indirect statement at all, if it is the same as that of the main verb, although the pronoun αὐτός, αὐτή, αὐτό (self) may be used in the Nominative for the purpose of emphasis. This construction is well illustrated by the following sentences: 

i) ᾐσθόμην εἰς κίνδυνον καταστάς.  I perceived that I had got into danger.

ii) οἶδα αὐτὸς μὲν ὀρθῶς γιγνώσκων, ἐκείνους δὲ ἁμαπτάνοντας.  I know that I myself am right, and that they are wrong.

The following verbs of knowing and perceiving take a participle when used in Indirect Statement:

οἶδα                          I know

σύνοιδα ἐμαυτῳ       I am conscious of

ἀγνοέω                     I do not know

γιγνώσκω                 I come to know, I realise, I learn

ὀρθῶς γιγνώσκω      I am right

ἐπίσταμαι                 I understand, I know

συνίημι                     I understand

μανθάνω                   I learn, I understand

μέμνημαι                  I remember, I recall

ἐπιλανθάνομαι         I forget

αἰσθάνομαι              I perceive

ἀκούω                      I hear

ὁράω (aorist: εἶδον) I see

ἀποφαίνω                 I show, I reveal, I prove.

In addition to the above, some verbs which commonly take the Accusative and Infinitive also take the Participle on occasion. These verbs include:

ἀγγέλλω                   I report, I announce

ἀπαγγέλλω               I tell

πυνθάνομαι              I ascertain, I inquire, I learn.

For instance:

Κῦρον ἐπιστρατεύοντα ἤγγειλεν. He announced that Cyrus was marching against (them).

c.  The Participle used as an alternative to an Adjectival or Relative Clause. 

The participle can also be used adjectivally with the definite article to form noun phrases that are translated in English as Relative Clauses with pronominal antecedents. For instance:

i)  οἱ τὴν πατρίδα φιλοῦντες.  Those who love their country. 

ii)  ὁ ταῦτα λέγων.  He who is saying (or was saying) this. 

In such noun phrases, the negative is οὐ, when the sense is definite, and μή, when it is indefinite, e.g.

i)  οἱ οὐ Βουλόμενοι.  Those (particular persons) who do not wish. 

ii)  οἱ μὴ βουλόμενοι.  Whoever do not wish. 

The two illustrations of the participle used as a noun, given in Section 4a. above, are basically examples of this construction as well. 

5.  Adverbial uses of the Participle.

The most common and the most significant function of the participle in Greek is adverbial. Just as a participle is often used in Greek as a means of expressing what in English would be an adjectival or relative clause, so it is available as an alternative to subordinate adverbial clauses. When used in this way, it can be called the Circumstantial Participle, because it expresses the circumstances in which an action takes place, and its use in this way facilitates many different shades of meaning: time, cause, purpose, condition, manner, limitation. When a participle is so used, it is sometimes not clear exactly in what way it is being used. While the participle can be translated in a neutral manner, it is usually preferable for the translator to determine its sense within the context in which it appears. For instance, the words "εἰπὼν ἀπῄει" literally mean, "having spoken, he went away", but they can be translated as either "when he had spoken, he went away", "although he had spoken, he went away", or "as though he had spoken, he went away". This ambiguity can lead to differences in translations of the same piece. However, the various adverbial uses of the circumstantial participle are now considered.

a.  Temporal.

The use of participles as an alternative to a temporal clause is perhaps its commonest adverbial use. When translating into English, 'while' is the conjunction most likely to be used in tandem with a present participle; 'when', 'after', and 'before' are usual with aorist participles: e.g.

i.) οἴκαδε ἐπανελθόντες τὸν πατέρα ἐζήτουν. When they (had) returned home, they looked for their father.

ii) ἐν τοῖς ἀγροῖς μένοντες πολλὰ καὶ κακὰ ἔπασχον.  While (they were) staying in the country, they suffered many terrible things. 

b.  Causal.

When used to describe the cause or the ground of an action, a participle is often, but not always, introduced by "ἅτε" or "οἷον", inasmuch as, to signify the real cause, or by "ὡς", on the grounds that, to signify the alleged cause: e.g.

i) ἅτε πολλὰ καὶ κακὰ παθόντες, τοῖς πολεμίοις ἑαυτοὺς παρέδοσαν.  Because they had suffered many hardships, they surrendered to the enemy.

ii) τὸν Περικλέα ἐν αἰτίᾳ εἶχον ὡς πείσαντα σφᾶς πολεμεῖν.  They blamed Pericles because he had persuaded them to go to war.

c.  Conditional.

The participle may be used as a substitute for a conditional clause, i.e. the protasis of a conditional sentence. "Μή" is always used in the case of a negative condition: e.g.

i)  τοῦτο μὴ ποιοῦντες, οὐκ ἂν εὖ πράττοιεν.  Unless they did this, they would not prosper.

ii) οὐδέποτε μαθήσεται κιθαρίζειν, μὴ μελέτων.  He will never learn to play the lyre, if he does not practise (unless he practises).


d.  Concessive.

A participle is usually preceded by "καί or "καίπερ, although, when it is used concessively: e.g.

i) ἐποικτίρω αὐτὸν καίπερ ἐχθρὸν ὄντα.  I pity him though he is my enemy.

ii) καὶ πολλὰ και κακὰ πάσχοντες, οὐκ εἶξαν. Although they were suffering many hardships, they did not yield.


e.  Final.

The Future Participle is regularly employed in classical Greek to express purpose or intention, and is therefore an alternative to the Final Clause construction of  "ἵνα", in order that, or "ὅπως", in order to, plus the Conjunctive. In such instances the Future Participle may be introduced by the conjunction "ὡς" so as to imply that the participle is expressing the alleged or presumed purpose of the subject of the sentence: e.g.

i) ἦλθον λυσόμενοι τοὺς πολίτας.  They came to ransom the citizens.

ii) ἥκουσιν ὡς ὑμῖν τὰ γενόμενα ἀγγελοῦντες.  They have come to tell you what happened.


f.  Comparative.

Comparative clauses in English, used to express manner, are expressed in Greek by the conjunction "ὤσπερ", as if, as though, with the participle: e.g.

i) οὐκ ἐθέλετ' ἀκούειν, ὥσπερ ᾔδη εἰδότες.  You are unwilling to listen, as if you knew it all already.

ii) ἐχρώμην αὐτῳ ὥσπερ ὄντι καίπερ οὐκ ὄντι ἀδελφῷ.  Though he was not my brother I treated him as if were.


6.  Use of the Participle in the Genitive Absolute.

The Genitive Absolute phrase is used in Greek when the noun which the participle is qualifying has no grammatical relationship to the rest of the sentence in which it is placed, i.e. it is not the subject, the direct object or the indirect object of the main verb. The term "absolute" comes from the Latin word "absolutus", meaning, in this context, detached, separate, or unconnected, i.e. the Genitive Absolute stands as an independent construction with no syntactical relationship to the rest of the sentence. As in the case of the many types of adverbial clauses outlined above, the Genitive Absolute can therefore be translated in English by clauses beginning with a range of subordinating conjunctions, e.g. "when", "while", "as", "since", "because", although", "if". As in the case of its above uses as adverbial clauses, the choice of which introductory word to use must be determined from the sense of the sentence as a whole, but sometimes the presence of a word such as  "καίπερ" makes it clear. Examples are as follows:

a) θάλποντος τοῦ ἡλίου, ὑπο ελάᾳ ἐκάθηντο.  As the sun was hot, they were sitting under an olive- tree.

b) ἡμέρας γενομένης, ὁ πατὴρ τὸν παῖδα ἔπεμψε ζητήσοντα τὰ πρόβατα. When day came (or At daybreak), the father sent his son to look for the sheep.

c)  οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι ἔπλευσαν ἡγεμονεύοντος τοῦ Νικίου.  The Athenians sailed under the leadership of Nicias.

d) ληθέντων τῶν τειχῶν οἱ πολῖται ἐξέφευγον.  When the walls were taken, the citizens tried to escape.

e) ἀποθανόντος τοῦ Κύρου, οἰ στρατιῶται ἔφυγον.  When Cyrus was killed, the soldiers fled.

f) ὁ στρατηγὸς οὐκ ἤθελεν ἐπιτίθεσθαι τοῦ στρατεύματος οὐδένα σῖτον ἔχοντος.  The general did not wish to attack (the enemy) as his army had no food.

g) καίπερ θόρυβον ποιούντων τῶν προβάτων, ὁ αὐτουργὸς οὐκ ἔσπευδεν.  Although the sheep were making a noise, the farmer did not hurry.

h) νυκτὸς γενομένης, ἔδοξεν ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ ἄστει μένειν.  When night came (or At nightfall), we decided to stay in the city.

i) ἑσπέρας γιγνομένησς, οἱ ξένοι εἰς τὸ ἄστυ ἀφίκοντο.  As evening was coming, the strangers arrived in the city.

j) τοῦ ἀνεμοῦ μείζονος γενομενοῦ, ἡ ναῦς, ὀλίγη οὖσα, ἐν κινδυνῳ ἦν.  As the wind was growing stronger, the ship, being small, was in danger.

As indicated by a number of the above examples, it was common in Greek to commence sentences and paragraphs by a genitive absolute relating to the time of day or year, and to the state of the sun, the wind or the sea. Phrases such as "τοῦ ἡλίου ἀνατέλλοντος" (at the rising of the sun or at dawn) and "τοῦ ἡλίου καταδύντος" (the sun having set or at sunset) are common. 

7.  Use of the Participle in the Accusative Absolute.

Impersonal verbs use a participle in the Accusative, expressed in the Neuter Singular, in place of the Genitive. Impersonal verbs most commonly used in this way are: "δοκεῖ", it seems best, "ἔξεστι(ν)", it is possible, it is allowed/ permitted, and "δεῖ", it is necessary, it is a duty: e.g.

a) δόξαν τὸν παῖδα ἐς τὴν ἄγραν πέμψαι, ὁ Κροῖσος μάλιστα ἐφοβεῖτο.  When he had decided (lit. It having seemed best) to send his son to the hunt, Croesus was very afraid. ("δόξαν" is the aorist participle of δοκέω".)

b) ἐξὸν ἐς την ἀγραν ἰέναι. ὁ Ἄτυς εὐθὺς ὁρμᾶται. Permission having been given (lit. It being permitted) to go to the hunt, Atys sets out at once.

c) δέον τὸ θηρίον αἱρειν, ἐς τὸ ὄρος ἔσπευδον.  Since it was necessary (lit. It being necessary) to catch the beast, they hurried to the mountain.

Other Accusative Absolutes used in this way are:

ἀδυνατον ὄν   It being impossible (from "ἀδυνατον ἐστίν", it is impossible)
παρόν             It being possible/ allowed (from "πάρειμι", I am present)
προσηκόν       It being fitting (from "προσήκω", I have arrived, I am near)
παρασχόν       An opportunity offering (aorist participle from "παρέχω", I provide, allow, grant)
εἰρημένον       It having been stated/ laid down (perfect participle of "λέγω", I speak).


8.  Some idiomatic uses of the Participle.

a.  Supplementary participles which extend or limit the meaning of a verb.

Participles are used, like the Prolative infinitive, to carry on the meaning of certain verbs. (The word "prolative" comes from the Latin word "prolatus", the past participle of "proferre", to carry forward or complete [the meaning of the predicate].) Greek verbs that are followed by participles used in this prolative manner are as follows:

τυγχάνω     I happen
παύω          I bring to an end, I stop
παύομαι      I cease, I leave off
λήγω           I cease
ἄρχω           I begin
ἄρχομαι       I begin
διατελέω      I continue, I keep on
αἰσχύνομαι  I am ashamed at
φαίνομαι      I am plainly, I am shown to be , I am proved to be
δῆλος εἰμί    I am clearly
ἀνέχομαι      I endure
περιοράω     I overlook, disregard
χαίρω           I rejoice
ἥδομαι          I am pleased
φθάνω          I anticipate
λανθάνω       I elude the notice of, I remain hidden

Below are some examples of participles being used after these verbs:

i) οὐκ ἀνεχομαι ζῶσα.   I shall not endure to live.

ii) ἔτυχον ὁπλιται ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾷ καθεύδοντες.  Some hoplites happened to be sleeping in the market.

iii) διατελεῖ ὀργιζόμενος.  He continues to be angry.

iv) ἔτυχεν ἐλθών.  He happened to have come.

v) ἔτυχον ἐπὶ τοὺς Πέρσας στρατευόμενοι.  They were just then campaigning against the Persians.

vi) ἐπαύσαντο μαχόμενοι κελεύσαντος τοῦ στρατηγοῦ. They ceased fighting at the general's command.

vii) ἐφάνη σφόδρα αἰσχυνόμενος.  He was plainly very much ashamed.

viii) ἐχαίρομεν πάντες ἀκούσαντές σε ἀσφαλῶς αφικόμενον.  We all rejoiced to hear that you had arrived safely.

ix) τί διατελεῖς ταὐτά με ἐρωτῶν;  Why do you keep on asking me the same questions?

x) οἱ τυχόντες αὐτοῦ ἀκούσαντες σφόδρα ἐθαύμαζον.  Those who chanced to hear him were greatly surprised.

xi) ἐπαύσαντο πολεμοῦντες ἅτε ἀμφοτέρων τῶν στρατηγῶν ἀποθανόντων. They ceased making war because both the generals had been killed.

xii) δῆλοι εἰσιν οἱ πρέσβεις ψευδῆ λέγοντες.  The ambassadors were clearly telling lies.

In the case of some the supplementary participles introduced by the verbs in the above list, the participle sometimes contains the main idea of the predicate, e.g. the participles following "τυγχάνω". In the case of the last two verbs in the above list, "φθάνω, and "λανθάνω", it is usual for the construction of the sentence to be inverted, when translated into English: e.g.

xi)  ἐφθάσααμεν ἐλθόντες εἰς τὴν πόλιν.ἔφθασεν ἡμᾶς ἀφικόμενος. He arrived before us (lit. He anticipated us arriving).

xii) ἐφθάσαμεν ἐλθόντες εἰς τὴν πόλιν.  We reached the city first (lit. We were the first coming to the city).

xiii) ἔλαθεν αυτοὺς φυγών.  He escaped without them seeing him (He eluded their notice escaping).

xiv) αἱ νῆες ἔλαθον τοὺς πολεμίους εἰς τὸν λιμένα εἰσελθοῦσαι.  The ships came into the harbour without being seen by the enemy (lit. The ships escaped the notice of the enemy coming into the harbour).

In a similar manner, the translator may choose to invert a sentence in the case of other verbs (Cf. 8.b. ii. below).

b.  Verbs with different meaning when followed by the infinitive or the participle.

Two verbs, "αἰσχύνομαι" and "φαίνομαι", actually mean different things when followed a) by an infinitive, and b) by a participle.

"αἰσχύνομαι" plus the infinitive means "I am ashamed to do something (and therefore I don't do it), whereas "αἰσχύνομαι" plus the participle means "I am ashamed at doing a thing (which one does do); e.g.

i) αἰσχύνομαι λέγειν.  I am ashamed to say (and therefore I don't).

ii) αἰσχύνομαι λέγων. I say with shame that ...  (and I do).

"φαίνομαι" plus the infinitive means "I appear", whereas "φαίνομαι" plus the participle means "I am plainly, I am shown to be, I am proved to be".

iii) φαίνεται σοφὸς εἶναι. He appears to be wise.

iv) φαίνεται σοφὸς ὤν. He is manifestly (or He is shown to be) wise.

"φαίνομαι" is very often used in an impersonal construction. When "φαίνεται" is followed by the infinitive it is equivalent to "δοκεῖ" or "videtur" in Latin, i.e. "it seems"; when followed by the infinitive it is equivalent to "δῆλον ἐστιν" or "apparet" in Latin, it is manifest, evident, clear, plain, or certain. Thus, in its use with the infinitive "φαίνεται" denotes subjective belief,  whereas in its use with the participle it designates objective certainty. In Platonic dialogues, "φαίνεται" is used to signify "Yes", although it is unclear which of these two states is implied. Perhaps either, according to the context.

c.  Use of the present participle to mean "with".

"ἔχων", the Present Participle Active of "ἔχω", I have, I possess, is frequently used as equivalent to the English preposition, "with" and to the Latin "cum" plus the Ablative. The same participles of "ἄγω", I lead, I bring, and "φέρω", I carry, I bring, are used similarly; e.g.

i) ἀφίκετο ἐχων τριακοσίους ὁπλίτας.  He arrived with three hundred hoplites.

ii) ὤφθη πολλάκις ξίφος ἔχων.  He was often seen with a sword.

iii) ὁ στρατηγὸς προὐχώρει ἄνδρας μυρίους καὶ δισχιλίους ἄγων.  The general advanced with (an army of) eleven thousand men.

iv) οἱ δοῦλοι ἀφίκοντο πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ δῶρα παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως φέροντες.  The slaves came with many splendid presents from the king.

d.  Use of the participle as as an adverb.

As is the case of adjectives in general, the participle, which is a verbal adjective, is often used as a simple adverb. Examples are as follows:

i) φθάσας ἀφίκετο.  He arrived first.

ii) ἀνύσας ἄνοιγε.  Open quickly.

iii) ἀρχόμενος ἔλεγεν.  He used to say when he began.

iv) λαθὼν ἐποίησε.  He did it secretly.

v) τελευτῶν εἶπε. At last he said.


Conclusion.

This article has sought to demonstrate the central role which the participle plays in classical Greek. The inflexive prolixity of the participle was undoubtedly one reason why it was used so frequently, and the ability of writers to employ it with such precision was linked to this. Once one has become accustomed to the widespread use of the participle in Greek, one begins to appreciate how similar the structure of Greek sentences is to that of our own language, where the use of participial phrases as an alternative to subordinate clauses is so common. In Latin, because of the relative paucity of participial forms, subordinate clauses are perforce more frequent, and where participial phrases are used, many of them involve the Ablative Absolute construction, which is employed much more in Latin than its equivalent, the Genitive Absolute, is in Greek. For an analysis of the "Ablative Absolute", the reader is invited to look at the article so entitled which was published on this blog on 20th May 2012.

VIRGIL: "GEORGICS" BOOK II

Introduction.

Virgil's great work, the "Georgics" includes four books. Of these Sabidius has previously translated Books IV and I (see entries on this blog dated 11 November 2010 and 19 November 2015 respectively), and there is a fairly full introduction to the work as a whole at the beginning of the entry relating to Book IV, to which the reader is now referred. As that introduction explains, the content of Book II concentrates on the growing of trees, mainly vines and olives. 

Central to Book II is the business of planting, and in addressing this subject, Virgil details all the various methods of raising trees, describes their variety, and sets out rules for the management of each one. He then delineates the soils in which the different species most thrive. After an excursus in which he expatiates on the beauty of his homeland of Italy, he gives some directions on how best to identify the nature of each type of soil, he prescribes rules for dressing vines, olives and other plants, and concludes the book with a panegyric on the virtues of country life. 

Any translation of the "Georgics" is inevitably a fairly challenging experience, requiring as it does some knowledge of agricultural processes in general, and of the particular subjects of each of the four books in particular, but also some knowledge of the Romans' understanding of these matters, which relate after all to a time over two thousand years before the present day. At the same time, the translator has to grapple with the issues which arise whenever a piece of Latin verse is being read, namely where the order of the words, and, indeed the very words themselves and how they are connected, are adapted to meet the taxing requirements of the meter - in this case the dactylic hexameter, in which all of Virgil's poems are written. This means, for instance, that the particular word which might have best fitted what the poet was seeking to say might have been problematic in metrical terms, and so another word had to be adopted. When one considers that many Latin words can be rendered in English by a number of words often meaning very different things, it is often difficult to be sure just what Virgil is seeking to say, and quite often a phrase or indeed a passage is open to more than one interpretation. On top of such ambiguities is the way in which poetry as a medium is often used to create impressions or sensations rather than to make precise statements, and, at the same time, the figurative use of particular words, rather than their literal meaning, is natural to the composition of verse. All this helps to make the translation of "The Georgics" a demanding, albeit a rewarding, task. A number of the English translations that are currently in existence are in verse themselves, and the use of English verse as the medium of translation of a piece of Latin verse increases the possibility that such translation will involve creative rather than accurate transmission of meaning; indeed, there is a very real danger that such translation will deteriorate on occasion into something close to gibberish. In the following translation, as in the earlier ones of other books of the "Georgics", Sabidius seeks to keep as close as possible to the structure of Virgil's sentences, and to the actual words which Virgil has employed, while at the same time using English, which is demonstrably clear, and which makes sense within the context of the poem as a whole. 

The text for this translation is taken from "Virgil: The Georgics: A Poem of the Land," translated and edited by Kimberley Johnson, (Penguin, 2009), and Sabidius has made particular use of two prose translations, by Benjamin Apthorp (1826) and J.W. Mackail (1934).  

Ll. 1-8.  Invocation to Bacchus.

Thus far (my song has been about) the cultivation of the fields and the stars of heaven; now I will sing of you, (O) Bacchus, and with you, of woodland shrubs and the fruit of the slow-growing olive. (Hasten) hither, O Lenaeus (i.e. Bacchus) - here all things (are) full of your bounties, for you the earth blooms, pregnant with vine-leafed autumn, (and) the vintage foams in brimming vats - come hither, O father Lenaeus, and, having removed your buskins, soak your bared legs with me in the fresh must (i.e. unfermented wine). 

Ll. 9-38.  Variety, especially as regards trees. 

In the first place, nature is versatile at propagating trees. For some sprout spontaneously themselves with no one compelling (them), and occupy the plains and winding rivers far and wide, like the pliant brook-willow and the hardy brooms, the poplar and the willow-groves glimmering with silvery leaves. And some spring from fallen seed, like the lofty chestnuts and the durmast oak (i.e. the Italian oak with edible acorns) which has the greatest foliage in Jupiter's forest, and the oaks considered by the Greeks (to be) oracular; so too the Parnessian (i.e. sacred to the Muses) laurel, tiny beneath its mother's vast shade, thrusts itself up. These methods nature first supplied, (and) from these flourishes every kind of tree and shrub and sacred grove. There are other (techniques) which practice itself has discovered along its way. One man, tearing shoots from the tender frame of the mother-tree, plants (them) in furrows; another man buries the stems, and stakes split into four parts, and pales of sharpened hard-wood in the ground; some trees await the bent boughs of a layer and slips alive in their own soil; others need no root, and the pruner does not hesitate to return and commit the highest tree-top (shoots) to the earth. Nay, even when its trunks have been cut - marvellous to relate - , an olive root is pushed out from dry wood. And often we see branches of one kind (of tree) turn into (those) of another without any loss, and a pear-tree transformed to bear implanted apples and stony cornels blushing on plum-trees.

So, come, O farmers, (and) learn the care peculiar to each species, and tame the wild fruits by cultivation, lest the earth lies idle. It is delightful to sow Ismarus (i.e. a mountain in Thrace near the coast of the Aegean) with vines, and to clothe great Tabernus (i.e. a mountain in the Apennines in central Italy) with olives.

Ll. 39-46.  Invocation to Maecenas.

Be you at hand, and traverse together (with me) this (voyage of) toil which I have begun, O Maecenas, my pride, O (you who are) deservedly the greatest part of my fame, set sail (with me) and fly over the open sea; I cannot hope to encompass everything with my verses, not if a hundred tongues and a hundred mouths, (and) an iron voice were mine; be you at hand and coast along the shore of the nearer coast-line. Land (is) in our grasp; I shall not detain you here with feigned song and by circumlocutions and tedious preambles.

Ll. 47-135.  Variety, especially as regards trees (continued).

Trees lift themselves of their own accord into the realms of light, fruitless indeed, but they spring up fair and strong; as you see, nature lurks withing the soil. And yet even these, should one ingraft (them), or, having transplanted (them), put (them) into trenches, they will discard their woodland spirit, and through frequent cultivation they will readily follow whatever course you desire. And indeed the barren (shaft) which issues from the bottom of the trunk shall do this too, if it is spread through the empty fields; now the tree-mother's towering foliage and boughs overshadow (it), and deprives (it) of fruit as it grows, and blasts its yield. Now, the tree which rears itself from fallen seed grows slowly, destined to give shade to late-born descendants, and its fruit degenerates, forgetting its former flavour, and the grape-vine bears sorry clusters, a prey for the birds. Labour must, of course, be devoted to all, and all must be forced into furrows and tamed at great cost. But olives respond better to trunks, and vines to a layer, and Paphian (i.e. from Paphos, a town in Cyprus considered to be the birthplace of Venus) myrtle from hard-wood; from shoots are born both hardy hazels and the huge ash-tree that provided Hercules' crown and the acorns of the Chaonian father (i.e. Jupiter, to whom an oracle was dedicated at Dodona in Chaonia in North-Western Greece), and also springs the tall palm-tree and the fir destined to see the dangers of the deep. But the rough arbutus, with its walnut fruit, is grafted, and barren plane-trees bear robust apples; the beech whitens with the white of chestnuts and the ash with pear blossoms, and pigs crunch acorns under elm-trees.

Nor (is there) a single method of grafting and implanting buds. For where the buds push themselves out from the midst of the bark, and burst their delicate husks, a narrow slit is made in the knot itself: here they insert an offshoot from some strange tree, and train (it) to grow in the succulent inner bark. Or, otherwise, knotless trunks are split and an opening is cleft with wedges deep into the solid (grain), (and) then fertile shoots are set therein: no long time (passes), and a huge tree with teeming branches shoots up to heaven, and wonders at its fresh leaves and the fruit not its own.

Moreover, (there is) not one kind of sturdy elm, nor of willow and lotus, nor of Idaean cypress, nor do fat olives, (oval) orchas olives, long olives and bitter-berried pausian olives spring up in one form, nor (do) the apples and trees of Alcinous (i.e. the mythical king of Phaeacia, renowned for his gardens), nor (are) are the cuttings of Crustumian (i.e. from Crustumerium, an ancient city in the west of Italy, renowned for its pears) and Syrian pears and heavy large pears alike. Nor does the same vintage hang down from our trees as Lesbos plucks from Methymna's (i.e. from a town on the island of Lesbos in the Aegean) vine-sprouts. There are Thasian vines and there are white Mareotids (i.e. from Mareotis, a lake south of Alexandria), the former suitable for rich soil and the latter for lighter (soil), and (there are) Psithian, more fit for raisin-wine, and thin Lagean, which will one day try the feet and tie the tongue, purples and early-ripeners, and by what song shall I sing your (praise) (O) Rhaetic? So, do not compete with Falernian wine-cellars! There are also Aminnean vines (i.e. a type of grape-vine grown in Campania), a full-bodied wine, to which Tmolius (i.e. a mountain in Lydia) and king Phanaeus himself bows the knee, and the lesser Argitis (i.e. a species of white-wine), with whom no grape can vie, either for its great abundance or for enduring for so many years. Nor can I pass you over, (O) Rhodian, (you who are) welcomed by the Gods and at second courses, nor (you), Bumast, with your swollen clusters. But no (one knows) how many kinds (of wine there are), nor what their names are, (nor what) is their number; for it does not matter what their number is; (he) who wants to know it, would likewise want to learn how many grains of sand are tossed by the West Wind across the Libyan plain, or to know how many Ionian waves reach the shore, when the East Wind falls with fury upon our ships.

Nor, indeed, can all soils bear everything. Willows grow by rivers, alders in thick marshlands, and barren ash-trees on rocky mountains; the shores rejoice most in myrtles; lastly, Bacchus (i.e. the grape-vine) loves exposed hillsides, and yews the cold North Wind. Look, also, at the world, tamed by ploughmen even at its remotest spots, and the Eastern homes of Arabs and tattooed Geloni (i.e. a Scythian tribe from what is now South Russia): countries are distinguished by their trees. India alone produces black ebony, only the Sabaeans (i.e. the inhabitants of South-West Arabia, now Yemen) have sprigs of frankincense. Why should I tell you of balsams dripping from fragrant wood and of the berries of the acanthus? Why (should I tell you of) the groves of the Ethiopians, white with downy wool, and how the Chinese comb their fine fleeces from leaves, or of the jungles which India, that corner at the edge of the world, breeds nearer to the ocean, where no arrows in flight can surmount the air at the top of a tree? And, in fact, that nation (is) not backward when it has taken up its quivers. Media produces the bitter juices and the lingering taste of the blessed citron, than which no aid comes in a more timely manner, whenever cruel step-mothers have drugged the cups and mixed herbs and poisonous spells, and it drives the deadly poison from the limbs. The tree itself is large and similar in appearance to a laurel; and, if it had not wafted abroad a different scent, a laurel it would have been; its leaves do not fall in any winds; its blossom is especially tenacious; with it the Medes treat (bad) breath and stinking mouths, and cure asthmatic old men.

Ll. 136-176.  Eulogy of Italy. 

But neither the land of the Medes, most rich in forests, nor the fair Ganges and the Hermus (i.e. a river in Lydia) flecked with gold can vie with Italy for praise, nor Bactria nor India, nor all Panchaia (i.e. a legendary oasis), rich in incense-bearing sands. No bulls, breathing fire from their nostrils, have sufficiently ploughed up this place with huge dragon's teeth, nor has a cornfield (ever) bristled with the helmets and serried spears of warriors; but full harvests and Bacchus' Massic fluid fill (this land), and olives and teeming flocks occupy (it). Hence, the high-stepping war-horse struts about on the plain; hence, your white flocks, Clitumnus (i.e. a river in Umbria), and the bull, that noblest of victims, bathed in your sacred stream, have often conducted Roman triumphs to the temples of the gods. Here spring (is) perpetual and summer (is) in months other than her own. Twice (a year) the cattle (are) pregnant, (and) twice (a year) the tree (is) fit for fruit. But ravenous tigresses and the savage brood of lions are absent, nor does wolfsbane deceive its wretched pickers, nor does the scaly snake sweep his immense loops along the ground, nor rear himself up by drawing so tightly into a coil. Add so many remarkable cities, the achievement of toil, and so many towns piled up on steep rocks, and rivers gliding beneath their ancient walls. Or should I tell of the sea which washes her upper and lower (shores), or of her great lakes? Of you, mightiest Larius (i.e. Lake Como), and you, Benacus (i.e. Lake Garda), heaving with waves and the roar of the sea, or should I tell of her harbours and the dam placed on the Lucrine  (i.e. a lake in Campania, near Naples, connected to Lake Avernus by a canal constructed by Agrippa in 37 B.C.) and of the indignant sea with its great hissing noises, where the Julian wave resounds far and wide as the sea is flung back, and the Tyrrhenian (i.e. the sea off the western coast) tide is launched into the channels of Avernus (i.e. Lake Avernus, a crater lake in Campania, and the supposed location of an entrance to the Underworld) channels. Likewise, she displays in her veins streams of silver and mines of copper, and has flowed abundantly with gold. She has brought forth a valiant race of men, the Marsians and the Sabine youth, and the Ligurian inured to hardship, and the Volscians, armed with javelins, (and) she (has brought forth) the Decii, the Marii, and the mighty Camilli, the offspring of Scipio, stern in war, and you, Caesar (i.e. Octavian), the greatest of all, who, already victorious on the farthest shores of Asia, now diverts the unwarlike Indian from the towers of Rome. Hail, mighty mother of harvests, (O) land of Saturn, mighty in men; for you, I take up the themes and craft of ancient praise, daring to open up these sacred springs, and I sing the song of Ascra (i.e. a town in Northern Greece and the birthplace of Hesiod, the author of 'Works and Days') throughout the towns of Rome.

Ll. 177-258.  Variety, especially as regards trees (continued).

Now (is) a passage on the characteristics of (various) soils: what is the strength of each one, what (is) its colour, and what is its capacity for for bearing produce. Firstly, unyielding soils and unfruitful hills, where the lean clay and the pebbles in the thorny fields delight in the Palladian (i.e. of the goddess Minerva, who was reputed to have invented the olive) grove of the long-lived olive. As an indication, there is, in this same tract of land, the wild olive, springing up abundantly, and fields strewn with woodland berries. But ground which (is) rich and luxuriating in sweet moisture, and a plain which (is) thick with herbage and prolific in fruitfulness - such as we are often accustomed to look down upon in the hollow valley of a mountain; hither streams trickle from high rocks and draw down their fruitful mud - and which is raised in the south and nourishes the fern, (so) hateful to the crooked plough. This (soil) will, one day, provide you with vines of superior strength and abounding with much wine, this (soil will be) prolific of grapes and of juice, such as we pour forth in cups of gold, when the fat Etruscan has blown his ivory (horn) at the altars, and we offer up the smoking entrails in curved platters. But if (he is) keener to preserve herds (of cattle) and calves, or the offspring of sheep and goats that despoil plantations, let him seek the lawns and faraway (glades) of lush Tarentum, and a plain such as hapless Mantua has lost, feeding snow-white swans in the grassy stream. (There) neither limpid springs nor pastures will be lacking to the flocks; and as much (grass) as the herds will pluck in the long days, so much will the cool dew of a short night restore.

Earth (that is) almost black and rich under the deep-driving ploughshare, and whose soil (is) crumbling - for we imitate this by ploughing - , (is) best for corn; from no (other) plain will you see more wagons going homeward with slow-moving oxen; or from where the angry ploughman has borne away a wood and has felled copses that have lain inactive for many a year, and has grubbed up the ancient habitations of birds from their lowest roots; abandoning their nests, they make for the sky, but the unworked field gleams beneath the driven ploughshare. For the barren gravel of the hilly countryside scarcely furnishes the humble cinnamon and rosemary for the bees; and its rough tufa and chalk, gnawed away by black water-snakes, say that no other lands (are) their like in bringing sweet sustenance to serpents, and affording (them) winding retreats. (That land) which exhales thin mist and flitting smoke, and imbibes moisture and emits (it) from itself whenever it wishes, and which always clothes itself in its own green grass, and does not gall the metal with scurf and salty rust, that (land) will entwine your elms with joyous vines, that (land) is productive of oil, (and) you will experience that (land) in cultivating (it), (being) both supportive of cattle and submissive to the crooked ploughshare. Such (soil) rich Capua tills, and also the coast that borders Mount Vesuvius, and (the banks of) the Clanius (i.e. a river in Campania, prone to flooding), unjust to deserted Acerrae (i.e. a town in Campania).

Now, I shall tell (you) by what means you can distinguish each (type of soil). If you were to ask (whether) it is loose or unusually thick - since one is right for corn, the other for wine, for Ceres (where it is) thicker, and for Lyaeus (i.e. Bacchus) where (it is) most loose - first you should choose a spot with your eye, and (there) order a pit to be dug deep in the ground, and then return all the earth (to its place), and flatten the sand at the top with your feet. If earth is lacking, the soil will be loose, and more fit for cattle and fruitful vines; but if it denies that it can return to its place and earth lies on the top after the trenches have been refilled, the ground (will be) compact; expect sticky clods and lumpy ridges, and plough up the ground with sturdy bullocks. But salty ground, and what is called bitter, (as it is) unfruitful for crops - it is nether softened by ploughing, nor does it maintain its class in the case of wine or their names in the case of apples - will give such a specimen (as this): pluck down from the smoky rafters stout wicker baskets and the strainers for your wine-presses. Hither let that vicious soil and sweet water from the springs be trampled to the full; for sure, all the water will be strained, and big drops will pass through the twigs; but the taste will plainly give an indication, and distort the displeased faces of the tasters by its bitter sensation. Likewise, we learn what is rich soil briefly in this way: when squeezed by the hand, it never crumbles,  but, when handled, it sticks to the fingers like pitch. Moist (soil) produces bigger vegetables, and (is) itself duly luxuriant. Ah, may that (soil) of mine not prove too fertile, nor show itself too strong when the first ears of corn (appear)! (Soil) which is heavy tacitly betrays itself by its very weight. It is easy for the eyes to discern black (soil) at once, and what is the colour of each. But it is difficult to seek out the accursed cold: only pitch-pines and noxious yew-trees or dark ivies sometime reveal its traces.

Ll. 259-457.  Care of trees, especially vines. 

In observing these (rules), remember to bake the soil long beforehand, to cut through the spacious hillsides with trenches, (and) to expose the upturned clods to the North Wind, before you plant the glad stock of the vine. Fields with crumbling soil (are) the best: the winds and the cold frost, and the sturdy digger, shaking and stirring up his acres, take care of this. But if (there are) men whom no vigilance escapes, they look first for a kindred (piece of) ground, where the first nursery may be provided for their trees, and to which they may soon be brought and planted in rows, lest the seedlings reject the sudden shift of their mother (soil). Indeed, they even mark on the bark the quarter of the sky, so that, in whatever manner each stood, on whatever side it bore the southern heats, and wherever it turned its back to the North Pole, they may return (to the same position): so strong is the force of habit in their tender (years). Ask yourself first (whether) it is better to plant your vineyard on the hills or on a plain. If you lay out (your seeds) on the fields of a rich plain, plant (them) thickly; the vine (is) not less active in thick soil; but if you (lay out your seeds on) rising ground with mounds and sloping hillsides, give space to your rows, so that, where the trees have been planted, each path may be set perfectly square with the track cut across (it). As often in mighty war, when the extended legion has deployed its cohorts, and the column has stood firm on the open plain, and the battle-line has been put in place, and the whole earth swells with sparkling brass, nor yet have they joined in grim battle, but Mars wanders, wavering, in the midst of their arms; (so) may every one of your paths be measured in equal proportions; (this is) not only so that the prospect may feed a vacant mind, but (rather) because earth will not otherwise supply equal strength to everyone, nor will the branches be able to spread themselves into empty (space).

Perhaps too, you may ask what depths your trenches should have. I would even venture to commit my vine to a shallow furrow. A tree, on the other hand, is sunk much more deeply into the ground, especially the durmast oak, which, as much (it aims for) the heavenly breezes with its top, it aims for Tartarus with its roots. So, no wintry storms, no blasts of wind, nor heavy rainfall can overthrow it; it remains immovable, and seeing many generations of men roll by, it outlasts by its endurance many ages. Then, spreading out widely its boughs and branches hither (and) thither, it sustains in the midst of itself an enormous shade.

Do not let your vineyards slope towards the setting sun, nor plant hazel between your vines, neither gather the topmost shoots (for cuttings), nor tear your slips from the top of the tree - such (is) their love of the earth - , neither damage your seedlings with a blunted blade, nor plant (them) among the trunks of the wild olive: for often a spark of fire falls from unwary shepherds, which, lurking secretly under the resinous bark at first, catches hold of the solid wood, and, darting out into the topmost foliage, dispatches a loud sound to the heavens; thence, pursuing (its way), it reigns victorious among the branches and the lofty tops, and involves the whole wood in flames, and propels the black cloud up to the sky enveloped in a pitchy vapour, especially if an overhead storm broods over the woods, and the driving wind fans the fires. When this (happens), (the trees) have no strength from their roots (upwards),  and, although lopped, they can(not) recover and grow up again in a similar form from the depth of the earth; (only) the unfavoured wild olive, with its bitter leaves, survives.

Do not let any counsellor be so wise in your eyes as to persuade (you) to disturb the hardened ground, when the North Wind is blowing. Then, winter shuts up the fields with frost, and, although the seedling has been planted, it does not allow the frozen root to affix (itself) in the ground. Planting of the vineyard (is) best, when, in the blushing spring, the white bird, hateful to long snakes, has come, or hard upon the first frosts of autumn, when the impetuous sun has not yet reached winter with his steeds, (although) summer has already passed. Spring (is) very (beneficial) to the foliage of the groves, spring (is very) beneficial to the woodlands; in the spring the soil yearns, and cries out, for the life-generating seed. Then, the almighty father Aether descends in fructifying showers on to the bosom of his joyous spouse, and, mingling with her great body, he nourishes her brood with his great (power).  Then, the lonely thickets resound with tuneful birds, and on the days appointed the herds renew their love; (then,) the fruitful earth is in labour, and the fields extend their bosoms to the warm breezes of the West Wind; a gentle moisture abounds in everything; and the grasses dare to entrust themselves in safety to the fresh suns, nor does the vine-leaf fear the rising south winds or the rain-shower precipitated from the sky by the violent north winds, but puts forth its buds and unfolds all its leaves. I do not think that any other days had shone at the first dawn of the rising world, or had held another course: it was springtime, the wide world celebrated the spring, and the East Winds refrained from their wintry blasts, when the first beasts drank in the light (of day), and the earthy race of man raised its head from the hard fields, and wild beasts were let loose in the woods and stars in the sky. Nor could these frail creatures endure this toil, unless so great a (period of) rest came between the cold and the heat, and the indulgence of the sky spared the earth.

What is left, whatever cuttings you plant across the fields, spread rich dung (over them), and carefully cover (them) with much earth, and bury (within it) spongy stone or rough shells; for between (them), the rain will trickle and and a thin vapour creep, and the crops will raise their spirits; and, indeed, (some are) found who press hard (on the earth) from above with a stone and a great potsherd; this (is) a defence against the rains, this (is a defence) when the sultry heat splits open the gaping fields with drought.

When your seedlings have been planted, it remains to break up the earth around their heads quite often, and swing the sturdy hoes, and to work the soil under the driven ploughshare, and wheel your straining bullocks between the very rows of vines; then, to fit smooth stalks and shafts of peeled rods, stakes of ash-wood and sturdy fork-shaped poles (to the vines); by the strength of these (things), may they become accustomed to climb, to scorn the winds, and to follow from stage to stage through the tops of the elms.

And, while their early age sprouts with fresh leaves, you must spare the tender (vines), and, while the joyous vine-sprout raises itself to the sky, having been launched through the clean (air) with loose reins, the sharp edge of the pruning knife itself must not yet be applied, but the leaves should be plucked by bent-back hands and clipped here and there. Thereafter, when they have now shot up, embracing the elms with their strong stems, then prune their leaves and lop their branches - before (this) they shrink from steel - , then exercise severe dominion (over them) and check their straggling boughs.

Fences, too, should be woven (around them), and all cattle must be restrained, especially while the foliage (is) tender and unaware of hardships; besides the severe winters and the overpowering sun, the wild buffaloes and the pursuing goats continually abuse (it), (and) sheep and hungry heifers are put out to graze (on it). Nor do the chills (of winter), compounded by hoar-frost, or the severe heat (of the sun) beating down upon the scorched rocks, damage (it) so much as the flocks and the poison of their hard teeth and the scar impressed (by them) on the bitten stem. For no other offence is the goat sacrificed to Bacchus on every altar, and ancient plays go on to the stage, and (for this) the sons of Theseus (i.e. the Athenians) set aside prizes for wit around the villages and crossroads, and, joyful amidst their cups, danced on goatskins smeared (with oil). (For this reason) also the Ausonian colonists (i.e. primitive Italians from Campania) a race derived from Troy, sport in uncouth strains and with uncontrolled laughter, and put on dreadful masks of hallowed bark, and invoke you, (O) Bacchus, in joyful songs, and hang waxen effigies of you from a lofty pine-tree. Hence, every vineyard ripens with abundant produce, and hollow dells and deep lawns, and wherever the god has turned his comely head, are filled (with plenty). Therefore, shall we duly ascribe his honours to Bacchus in our native songs, and offer (him) platters and sacred cakes, and the sacrificial goat, led by the horn, will stand at the altar, and we shall roast his fat entrails on spits of hazel-wood.

There is also that other task in dressing vines, on which it is never (possible) to exhaust one's efforts sufficiently: for the whole soil must be ploughed up three or four times every year and the clods must be regularly broken up by inverted mattocks, (and) the whole grove must be relieved of foliage. Going round in a circle, his labour returns to the farmer, and the year revolves (back) on itself over its own tracks. And now, when once the vineyard has shed its lingering leaves, and the cold north wind has shaken the beauty from the woods, even then the eager countryman extends his care into the coming year, and pursues the desolate vine, trimming (it) with the crooked tooth of Saturn (i.e. the scythe, or pruning hook, the symbol of Saturn), and he shapes (it) by pruning. Let him be the first to dig the ground, let him be the first to carry home and burn the brushwood, and let him be the first to bring the stakes back under his roof; may he be the last to reap (the vintage). Twice the shade (of leaves) assails the vines, twice weeds cover the corn-fields with their dense thorns; both (these things require) hard labour: let him commend large farms, (but) let him cultivate a small (one). And besides, the rough twigs of butcher's broom throughout the wood, and the watery reed on the river-banks, are cut, and the care of the uncultivated willow keeps (him) busy. Now, the vines (are) tied, now the vineyards lay aside the pruning hook, now the last vine-dresser celebrates with song his finished rows: yet, (still) must the earth be stirred, and the dust disturbed, and now must Jupiter (i.e. the weather) be dreaded by the ripened grapes.

On the other hand, olives have no (need of) any close tending; nor do they await the sickle-shaped pruning-hook and the tenacious mattocks, when once they have stuck in the soil and borne the breezes; earth, herself, supplies enough moisture, when laid open by the hooked fang, and heavy fruits, when (laid open) by the ploughshare. Thus do I nourish the rich and peace-loving olive.

The fruit trees, too, as soon as they have felt their vigorous trunks and have acquired their strength, shoot up swiftly to the sky by their own force, and without the need of our assistance. In the meantime, in the same way the whole woodland grows heavy with produce, and the untamed haunts of birds glow with blood-red berries. The clover is grazed on (by cattle), the high forest supplies torches, and at night the fires are fed and their light shed (on us). And (still) men hesitate to sow (crops) and to bestow their care (on them). Why should I pursue grander themes? - willows and lowly brooms, (even) they provide either leafage for cattle or shade for shepherds, and a hedge for the crops and food for honey - and it is delightful to behold Cytorus (i.e. a mountain in Paphlagonia in Asia Minor) waving with box, and groves of Narycian (i.e. of Naryx, a region in southern Italy settled by Greeks) pitch, and to see fields not indebted to mattocks or the care of man. Even the barren woods on the top of the Caucasus (i.e. the mountain range which joins the Black Sea to the Caspian), which the sharp East Winds are constantly ripping into and plundering, each (one) yields different produce, pines yield wood suitable for ships, cedars and cypresses (yield wood suitable) for houses. From this source, farmers have fashioned spokes for their wheels, and wheel-drums for their wagons, and they have made curved keels for their boats. Willows are fertile in twigs, elms in leaves (for cattle-food), and myrtle (is) good for stout spear-shafts, and the cornel-cherry-tree for war, while yews are bent into Ituraean (i.e. Parthian) bows. In the same way, smooth-grained lime-trees, or box polished by the lathe, receive their shape, and are hollowed out by sharp steel. Thus too, the light alder, launched on the Po, swims on the rushing stream; thus too, bees hide their swarms in the hollow bark and in the core of a rotten holm-oak. What have the gifts of Bacchus bestowed (which is so) worthy to be equally recorded? Bacchus has also given reasons for blame; he (it was who) quelled by death the raging Centaurs, Rhoetus, and Pholus, and Hylaeus, (who) threatened the Lapiths with a huge mixing-bowl.

Ll. 458-540.  Eulogy of country life.  

O exceedingly fortunate farmers, if they did but know their own good fortune! On them, far from the clash of arms, earth, herself most just, pours from her bosom their easy sustenance. (What) if no lofty mansion with proud gates belches forth a vast tide of morning callers from all her halls, neither do they gape (in admiration) at the various door-posts (inlaid) with lovely tortoise-shells, and robes decked out with gold, and Ephyreian (i.e. Corinthian) bronze (jars), nor is their white wool dyed with an Assyrian drug, or is their use of liquid olive tainted by cinnamon; but their peace (is) untroubled, and their life does not know how to deceive, (but is) rich in various (kinds of) wealth, and the peace of broad estates - caverns and living lakes and cool Tempe (i.e. a scenic valley between Mounts Olympus and Ossa in North-West Greece), and the lowing of oxen and soft slumber under a tree - (are) not missing; there (there are) lawns, and dens for beasts (of the chase), and youth inured to toil and accustomed to thrift, worship of the gods and fathers held in veneration; among them justice set her last footprints as she departed from the earth.

But may the sweet Muses, whose sacred (symbols) I bear, being smitten with violent love, receive me first before all (other) things, and may they show (me) the pathways of the sky and the stars, the various eclipses of the sun and the travails of the moon; whence (comes) the trembling of the earth (i.e. earthquakes), by what force the seas swell high, bursting their flood-barriers and subsiding into themselves once more, why the winter suns make such haste to dip themselves in the ocean, or what hindrance obstruct the lingering nights. But if the cold blood around my heart stands in my way, so that I cannot penetrate these aspects of nature, may the countryside and the streams in the valleys abounding in water delight me, (and,) unsung, may I court the rivers and the forests. O (that I might be) where (are) the plains (of Thessaly), and the (river) Spercheus, and (Mount) Taygetus, on which Spartan maidens are revelling! O, (for the man) who shall set me down in the cool valleys of the (river) Haemus, and shelter (me) with a thick shade of boughs! Happy (is he) who can understand the causes of things, and has cast all fears and inexorable fate and the sound of ravenous Acheron under his feet. Blessed too (is) he who has got to know the rustic deities, Pan and old Silvanus, and their sisters, the Nymphs: neither the rods of public (office), nor the purple of kings, and the discord of faithless brothers, or the Dacian descending from the conspiring Danube, nor Roman revolutions and kingdoms on the verge of destruction, sway him; he neither grieves as he pities the poor, nor does he envy the rich. What fruits the boughs, what (fruits) the very fields, graciously produce of their own accord, (these) he plucks; (but) the iron laws and the maddened Forum, or the archives of the people, (these) he has not seen. Some stir up uncharted seas with oars, and (others) rush to arms, (and) penetrate the court-yards and the thresholds of kings; one (man) destines a city and its wretched homes to destruction, so that he may imbibe jewels and sleep on Tyrian purple; another hoards his wealth, and broods over gold; one (man) is stupefied, astonished at the (eloquence of the) rostra; the applause across the rows of the theatre - for (it is) redoubled among both the populace and the senators - carries off another gaping (in admiration); drenched in the blood of their brothers, they exult, and exchange their homes and sweet thresholds for exile, and they seek a homeland lying under a different sun. The farmer cleaves the earth with a crooked plough: thus (comes) the annual work-programme, thus he sustains his native-land and his little grandchildren, and his herds of of oxen and trusty bullocks. Nor (is there any) respite, but the year abounds in fruit and in the brood of the flocks, or in the sheaf of corn stalks, and it loads the furrows and overwhelms the granaries with produce.

Winter comes: the Sicyonian (i.e. of Sicyon, a town in the Peloponnese) berry is crushed in the olive-press, the hogs return brimful of acorns, and the forests yield their arbutes (i.e. wild fruits); and autumn sheds its varied produce, and, high up on the sunny rocks, the mellow vintage is ripened. Meanwhile, sweet children hang about his lips, and their chaste home keeps its purity, cows droop udders full of milk, and fat kids fight among themselves with opposing horn on the shining sward. (The farmer,) himself, celebrates festal days, stretched out on the grass, where (there is) a fire in the midst, and his companions are crowning the mixing-bowl, and he invokes you, (O) Lenaeus, as he offers a libation, and for the keepers of the flock he sets up on an elm-tree contests of the swift(-flying) javelin, and they bare their hardy bodies for the wrestling match. This life the ancient Sabines once cultivated, as did Remus and his brother (i.e. Romulus), thus Etruria grew strong, and, of course, Rome has become the fairest of places. and has enclosed her seven citadels with a single (city) wall. Even before the rule of that Dictaean king (i.e. Jupiter, who was born at Mount Dicte on the island of Crete), and before the impious race (of men) feasted on slaughtered bullocks, golden Saturn led such a life on earth; nor yet indeed had (men) heard the war-trumpets blown, nor yet (had they heard) the swords clanking as they were laid on the hard anvils.

Ll. 541-542.  Epilogue. 

But we have travelled (across) a plain immense in its extent, and now the time (has come) to unharness our horses' smoking necks.