The Golden Verses of Pythagoras · 72 of 122 · tr. Florence M. Firth
Section 13 (part 39)
428 ᾮ δ᾽ ἐθέλει, μεγάλως παραγίγνεται ἠδ᾽ ὀνίνησιν· ἔν τε δίκῃ βασιλεῦσι παρ᾽ αἰδοίοισι καθίζει, 434 ἔν τ᾽ ἀγορῇ λαοῖσι μεταπρέπει, ὅν κ᾽ ἐθέλῃσιν· 430 ἠδ᾽ ὁπότ᾽ ἐς πόλεμον φθεισήνορα θωρήσσωνται ἀνέρες, ἔνθα θεὰ παραγίγνεται, οἷς κ᾽ ἐθέλῃσι νίκην προφρονέως ὀπάσαι καὶ κῦδος ὀρέξαι.
433 Ἐσθλὴ δ᾽ αὖθ᾽ ὁπότ᾽ ἄνδρες ἀεθλεύωσιν ἀγῶνι, 435 ἔνθα θεὰ καὶ τοῖς παραγίγνεται ἠδ᾽ ὀνίνησιν· νικήσας δὲ βίῃ καὶ κάρτεϊ καλὸν ἄεθλον ῥεῖα φέρει χαίρων τε, τοκεῦσι δὲ κῦδος ὀπάζει.
Ἐσθλὴ δ᾽ ἱππήεσσι παρεστάμεν, οἷς κ᾽ ἐθέλῃσιν.
Themes
◆Ritual Puritypraxis
The maintenance of a state of cleanliness—physical, moral, or spiritual—required for encounter with the divine.
The text stipulates that humans must perform holy good things according to law as a condition for divine favor.
All passages →◇Prayerpraxis
Direct address to the divine, whether petitionary, contemplative, or liturgical; speech and silence offered upward.
[auto] The passage explicitly describes humans calling upon Hecate and notes that she responds to prayers if propitious.
All passages →