ORPHIC FRAGMENT 297

OTTO KERN

HellenicGods.org

HOME         GLOSSARY          RESOURCE          ART         LOGOS         CONTACT

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


SUMMARY: This fragment, from the Byzantine Christian writer John Galenus the Deacon, contains quotations which he claims are from the Little Crater of Orpheus.

 

297. (Abel 160-162) Ἰωάννης Διάκονος Γαληνός (John Galenus the Deacon, Pediasmus) [Karl Krumbacher Geschichte der byzantinischen Litteratur2 p. 557] about Θεογονία Ἡσιόδου 943 (Thomas Gaisford Poetæ Minores Græci II 604, 3; Natalis Comes [Natale Conti] Mythologiae Ven. 1568, 47; Hans Flach Glossen und Scholien zur Hesiodischen Theogonie p. 360):

 

ὅτι δὲ καλῶς ἡμεῖς ἐξελαβόμεθα τὸν μὲν Ἄρην εἰς τὸν πόλεμον, τὸν δὲ Διόνυσον εἰς τὸν οἶνον, τὸν δὲ Ποσειδῶνα εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν, τὸν δ᾽ Ἥφαιστον εἰς τὸ πῦρ καὶ ἄλλα ἄλλως, μαρτυρεῖ καὶ ἐν τῶι μικροτέρωι Κρατῆρι ὁ Ὀρφεὺς τάδε λέγων·

 

Ἑρμῆς δ' ἑρμηνεὺς τῶν πάντων ἄγγελός ἐστι,   a

Νύμφαι ὕδωρ, πῦρ Ἥφαιστος, σῖτος Δημήτηρ,

ἡ δὲ θάλασσα Ποσειδάων μέγας ἠδ' Ἐνοσίχθων·

καὶ πόλεμος μὲν Ἄρης, εἰρήνη δ' ἔστ' Ἀφροδίτη.

οἶνος, τὸν φιλέουσι θεοὶ θνητοί τ' ἄνθρωποι,   5

ὅν τε βροτοῖς εὗρεν λυπῶν κηλήτορα πασῶν

ταυρογενὴς Διόνυσος ἐϋφροσύνην πόρε θνητοίς

ἡδίστην πάσηισί τ' ἐπ' εἰλαπίνηισι πάρεστι,

καὶ Θέμις ἥπερ ἅπασι θεμιστεύει τὰ δίκαια,

Ἥλιος ὃν καλέουσιν Ἀπόλλωνα κλυτότοξον,   10

Φοῖβον ἑκηβελέτην μάντιν πάντων ἑκάεργον,

ἰητῆρα νόσων Ἀσκληπιόν. ἓν τάδε πάντα.

 

ὅτι δὲ καὶ ἐκ τῆς Μνημοσύνης αἱ Μοῦσαι γεννῶνται καὶ ὅτι ὁ Ζεὺς καὶ αἰθὴρ λέγεται, ἄκουε τοῦ εἰρημένου Ὀρφέως·

 

Ζεὺς δέ τε πάντων ἐστὶ θεὸς πάντων τε κεραστής,   b

πνεύμασι συρίζων φωναῖσί τε ἀερομίκτοις.

 

ἦ γὰρ οὐχὶ δῆλός ἐστι τὸν αἰθέρα καλῶν οὕτω·

 

ταυτὸ καὶ ἁρμονία Μουσῶν τά τε ὄργανα πάντων   c

Μνημοσύνη πάντων πρῶτον πόρεν οὔτ ̓ ἀνεφάνθη·

ἀλλὰ χρόνος λήθηι κατεχρήσατο καὶ κατέκρυψε.

νῦν δὲ τέχναι τε λόγοι τε νόμοι θ' ὅσα τ᾽ ἔργα τέτυκται,

πάντα διὰ μνήμην διασώιζεται ἀνθρώποισιν.

 

ἔχεις ταύτας τὰς χρήσεις τῶν ὀνομάτων τῆς μεταλήψεως οὐκ ἐκ ποιητοῦ τοῦ τυχόντος ἀλλ' ἐκ σοφοῦ καὶ χρόνωι προήκοντος, ὥστε μὴ τερατολογεῖν ἡμᾶς οἴου, ὦ τέκνον.

 

 

“That we rightly relate Árîs to war, Diónysos to wine, Poseidóhn to the sea, Íphaistos to fire, these and other (deities), Orphéfs (Ὀρφεὺς) also bears witness in the Little Kratír, saying the following things:

 

‘Ærmís is the interpreter and messenger of all,   a

the Nymphai (Νύμφαι) water, fire Íphaistos, grain Dîmítîr,

great Poseidóhn: both the sea and the Earth-shaker;

and war Árîs, but peace is Aphrodítî.

Wine, which Gods and mortal men love,   5

that discovered the enchanter of all miseries to mortal men,

bull-born Diónysos gave joy to mortals,

which is pleasant and present at all banquets,

and Thǽmis who declares justice to all,

the Sun who they call Apóllôn the renowned archer,   10

ready-to-shoot Phívos, seer of all, far-shooting,

Asklîpiós healer of maladies. All these are one.’

 

“Considering that the Mousai are also begotten from Mnîmosýnî and that Zefs (Ζεὺς) is also called aithír (αἰθὴρ), hear Orphefs mentioned previously:

 

‘Zefs is both the God of everything and the one who mixes,   b

hissing with winds and voices mixing in the air.’

 

“For in truth it is not evident that you invoke the aithír in this way:

 

         ‘The same is also for the harmony of the Mousai, and all their instruments   c

which Mnîmosýnî offered, and had not revealed;

but time borrowed and concealed these with forgetfulness.

But now the arts, speeches, laws, and works that have been made,

everything is preserved for men through memory.’

 

“You have these uses of the substitution of names, not from a chance poet, but from a wise one and who came before us in time, so you must not suppose we make up these marvels.”

(trans. by the author)

 

Herm. XXVIII; Christian Lobeck Aglaophamus I pp. 537. 731; Otto Kern l. l. 389; Otto Gruppe Suppl. 735.

 

Compare section a verse 1 to ὕμνος Ὀρφέως 28 Ἑρμοῦ verse 6 ἑρμηνεῦ πάντων “interpreter of everything.” Vs. 2 ss. is suggestive of Empedocles v. Kern 389. Νύμφαι ὕδωρ “the Water Nymphs” Antigonus of Carystus Palatine Anthology IX 406, 3: κεῖμαι δ᾽ ἐν Νύμφαις, κείναις φίλος, οὐδὲ Λυαίωι “I lie among the Nymphs, a friend to them, but not to Dionysos” (cf. Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff Antigonos von Karystos p. 169); Leo Bloch in Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher Ausführliches Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie vol. 3 p. 504. Compare verses 7 and 8 to Orphic fragment 207 on Bacchus: καίπερ ἐόντι νέωι καὶ νηπίωι εἰλαπιναστῆι. “Tho’ young the God, and but an infant guest” (trans. Thomas Taylor, 1820). Verse 12 ἓν τάδε πάντα “all things are the one” to Orphic fragments 167 a 4. and 239 and passages gathered together by Christian Lobeck in Aglaophamus I 462; Otto Weinreich Neue Urkund. sur Sarapis-Religion 17. 24. Compare b 1 to ὕμνος Ὀρφέως 11. Πανός verse 12 ἀληθὴς Ζεὺς ὁ κεράστης “truthful horned Zeus.” For c 2 see Orphic fr. 203 about Μνημώ (Μνημοσύνη) “Memory.” 

 

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.

This logo is the principal symbol of this website. It is called the CESS logo, i.e. the Children of the Earth and the Starry Sky. The Pætilía (Petelia, Πετηλία) and other golden tablets having this phrase are the inspiration for the symbol. The image represents this idea: Earth (divisible substance) and the Sky (continuous substance) are the two kozmogonic substances. The twelve stars represent the Natural Laws, the dominions of the Olympian Gods. In front of these symbols is the seven-stringed kithára (cithara, κιθάρα), the the lyre of Apóllôn (Apollo, Ἀπόλλων). It (here) represents the bond between Gods and mortals and is representative that we are the children of Orphéfs (Orpheus, Ὀρφεύς).

PLEASE NOTE: Throughout the pages of this website, you will find fascinating stories about our Gods. These narratives are known as mythology, the traditional stories of the Gods and Heroes. While these tales are great mystical vehicles containing transcendent truth, they are symbolic and should not be taken literally. A literal reading will frequently yield an erroneous result. The meaning of the myths is concealed in code. To understand them requires a key. For instance, when a God kills someone, this usually means a transformation of the soul to a higher level. Similarly, sexual union with a God is a transformation.

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.

SPELLING: HellenicGods.org uses the Reuchlinian method of pronouncing ancient Greek, the system preferred by scholars from Greece itself. An approach was developed to enable the student to easily approximate the Greek words. Consequently, the way we spell words is unique, as this method of transliteration is exclusive to this website. For more information, visit these three pages: 

Pronunciation of Ancient Greek                

Transliteration of Ancient Greek                

Pronouncing the Names of the Gods in Hellenismos

PHOTO COPYRIGHT INFORMATION: The many pages of this website incorporate images, some created by the author, but many obtained from outside sources. To find out more information about these images and why this website can use them, visit this link: Photo Copyright Information

DISCLAIMER: The inclusion of images, quotations, and links from outside sources does not in any way imply agreement (or disagreement), approval (or disapproval) with the views of HellenicGods.org by the external sources from which they were obtained.

Further, the inclusion of images, quotations, and links from outside sources does not in any way imply agreement (or disagreement), approval (or disapproval) by HellenicGods.org of the contents or views of any external sources from which they were obtained.

For more information: Inquire.hellenicgods@gmail.com

For answers to many questions: Hellenismos FAQ

© 2010 by HellenicGods.org.  All Rights Reserved.

HOME           GLOSSARY          RESOURCE         ART        LOGOS         CONTACT