Look! Actual translation of actual Greek! We're still on the birth of Alexander.


Plutarch - Alexander 3

However, they say that in fact when Philip--after the omens--sent Chairon of Megalopolis to Delphi, an oracle was provided for Philip from the god*; the god commanded him to sacrifice to Ammon and to revere that god** especially, and to cast out his right eye, which he had pressed up to the joint of the door when he was spying on the god (in the shape of a serpent) lying with his wife.

But when Olympia (as Eratosthenes says) sent Alexander out on campaign, she told to him alone the secret concerning his parentage, and instructed him to act in a way worthy of his begetting; but others say that she denied any guilt and said, “Alexander will not stop making me look bad in front of Hera.”***

And so Alexander was born early in Hecatombeon, which [month] the Macedonians call Lous, on the sixth, on which day the temple of Ephesian Artemis was set on fire. For this, Hegesias the Magnesian made a comment chilly enough to quench that fire: for he said the temple of Artemis was destroyed in fire while she was busy delivering Alexander.

But however many of the magi as happened to be hanging around in Ephesus at the time, believing the disaster at the temple to be a sign of another disaster, ran about beating their faces and crying out that ruin and a great disaster had been born in Asia that day. And three messages concerning this time period came to Philip right as he took Potidaea: the first that the Illyrians had been defeated around Parmenio in a great battle; the second that [his] racehorse had won in the Olympics; and the third that Alexander had been born. He was pleased with these things, in truth; and the priests stirred him up yet more, proclaiming that the child, having been born during three victories, would be unconquerable.

---
* Apollo, given the source.

** Ammon, this time.

*** Hera was the goddess of home and hearth and good wives, and also the wife of Zeus. And we all know how she felt about mortal women who had sex with Zeus, willingly or not.

^ Literally, “with Hecatombeon having been stood up” and then some usage of “one” that I am not following.

.

Profile

fadeaccompli: (Default)
fadeaccompli

Most Popular Tags

Powered by Dreamwidth Studios

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags