ORPHIC CRITICAL TESTIMONY 74

OTTO KERN

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For links to many more fragments: The Orphic Fragments of Otto Kern.

SUMMARY: This testimony, from the Metamorphoses of Ovid, tells us of Orpheus, who has now lost his Eurydice for the second time, attempting to reenter the Underworld, but this time his efforts are in vain.

ORPHIC CRITICAL TESTIMONY 74.

Publii Ovidii Nasonis Metamorphoses X 72:

orantem frustraque iterum transire volentem

portitor arcuerat: septem tamen ille diebus

squalidus in ripa Cereris sine munere sedit;

cura dolorque animi lacrimaeque alimenta fuere.

esse deos Erebi crudeles questus, in altam

se recipit Rhodopen pulsumque aquilonibus Haemum.

“Orpheus implored in vain the ferryman

to help him cross the River Styx again,

but was denied the very hope of death.

Seven days he sat upon Death's river bank,

in squalid misery and without all food—

nourished by grief, anxiety, and tears—

complaining that the Gods of Erebus

were pitiless, at last he wandered back,

until he came to lofty Rhodope

and Haemus, beaten by the strong north wind.”

(trans. Brookes More, 1922)

The story of the birth of the Gods: Orphic Theogony.

We know the various qualities and characteristics of the Gods based on metaphorical stories: Mythology.

Dictionary of terms related to ancient Greek mythology: Glossary of Hellenic Mythology.

Introduction to the Thæí (the Gods): The Nature of the Gods.

How do we know there are Gods? Experiencing Gods.