Aeneid III.396-505

Helenus continues his prophecy, and Aeneas says a hard farewell.

But avoid these lands, and this nearer coastline

of the Italian shore, washed by our own

ocean tide: hostile Greeks inhabit every town.

The Narycian Locri¹ have built a city here,

and Lyctian² Idomeneus has filled the plain

with soldiers: here is that little Petelia, of Philoctetes³,

leader of the Meliboeans, relying on its walls.

Then when your fleet has crossed the sea and anchored

and the altars are raised for your offerings on the shore,

veil your hair, clothed in your purple robes, so that

in worshipping the gods no hostile face may intrude

among the sacred flames and disturb the omens.

Let your friends adopt this mode of sacrifice, and yourself:

and let your descendants remain pure in this religion.

But when the wind carries you, on leaving, to the Sicilian shore,

and the barriers of narrow Pelorus⁴ open ahead,

make for the seas and land to port, in a long circuit:

avoid the shore and waters on the starboard side.

They say, when the two were one continuous stretch of land,

they one day broke apart, torn by the force of a vast upheaval

(time’s remote antiquity enables such great changes).

The sea flowed between them with force and severed

the Italian from the Sicilian coast, and a narrow tideway

washes the cities and fields on separate shores.

Scylla holds the right side, implacable Charybdis the left,

who, in the depths of the abyss, swallows the vast flood

three times into the downward gulf and alternately lifts

it to the air, and lashes the heavens with her waves.

But a cave surrounds Scylla with dark hiding-places,

and she thrusts her mouths out and drags ships onto the rocks.

Above she has human shape, and is a girl, with lovely breasts,

a girl, down to her sex, below it she is a sea-monster of huge size,

with dolphins’ tails joined to a belly formed of wolves.

It is better to round the point of Pachynus,

lingering, and circling Sicily on a long course,

than to once catch sight of hideous Scylla in her vast cave

and the rocks that echo to her sea-dark hounds.

Beyond this, if Helenus has any knowledge, if the seer

can be believed, if Apollo fills his spirit with truth,

son of the goddess, I will say this one thing, this one thing

that is worth all, and I’ll repeat the warning again and again,

honour great Juno’s divinity above all, with prayer, and recite

your vows to Juno freely, and win over that powerful lady

with humble gifts: so at last you’ll leave Sicily behind

and reach the coast of Italy victorious.

Once brought there, approach the city of Cumae,

the ghostly lakes, and Avernus, with its whispering groves,

gaze on the raving prophetess, who sings the fates

deep in the rock and commits names and signs to leaves.

Whatever verses the virgin writes on the leaves,

she arranges in order, and stores them high up in her cave:

they stay in place, motionless, and keep in rank.

But once a light breeze ruffles them, at the turn of a hinge,

and the opening door disturbs the delicate leaves, she never

thinks to retrieve them, as they flutter through the rocky cave

or to return them to their places or reconstitute the prophecies:

men go away unanswered, and detest the Sibyl’s lair.

Though your friends complain, and though your course

calls your sails urgently to the deep, and a following wind

might fill the canvas, don’t overvalue the loss in any delay,

but visit the prophetess, and beg her with prayers to speak

the oracle herself, and loose her voice through willing lips.

She will rehearse the peoples of Italy, the wars to come,

and how you might evade or endure each trial,

and, shown respect, she’ll grant you a favourable journey.

These are the things you can be warned of by my voice.

Go now, and by your actions raise great Troy to the stars.”

After the seer had spoken these words with benign lips,

he ordered heavy gifts of gold and carved ivory

to be carried to our ships, and stored massive silverware

in the holds, cauldrons from Dodona⁵, a hooked breastplate

woven with triple-linked gold, and a fine conical helmet

with a crest of horse-hair, Pyrrhus’s armour.

There were gifts of his own for my father too.

Helenus added horses and sea-pilots: he manned

our oars: he also equipped my friends with weapons.

Meanwhile Anchises ordered us to rig sails on the ships,

so the rushing wind would not be lost by our delay.

Apollo’s agent spoke to him with great respect:

“Anchises, worthy of proud marriage with Venus,

cared for by the gods, twice saved from the ruins of Troy,

behold your land of Italy: sail and take it.

But still you must slide past it on the seas:

the part of Italy that Apollo named is far away.

Go onward, happy in your son’s love. Why should I say more,

and delay your catching the rising wind?”

Andromache also, grieved at this final parting, brought robes

embroidered with gold weave, and a Phrygian cloak

for Ascanius, nor did she fail to honour him,

and loaded him down with gifts of cloth, and said:

“Take these as well, my child, remembrances for you

from my hand, and witness of the lasting love of Andromache,

Hector’s wife. Take these last gifts from your kin,

O you, the sole image left to me of my Astyanax.

He had the same eyes, the same hands, the same lips:

and now he would be growing up like you, equal in age.”

My tears welled as I spoke these parting words:

“Live happily, you whose fortunes are already determined:

we are summoned onwards from destiny to destiny.

For you, peace is achieved: you’ve no need to plough the levels

of the sea, you’ve no need to seek Italy’s ever-receding fields.

I wish that you might gaze at your likeness of Xanthus,

and a Troy built by your own hands, under happier auspices,

one which might be less exposed to the Greeks.

If I ever reach the Tiber and the Tiber’s neighbouring fields,

and gaze on city walls granted to my people, we’ll one day

make one Troy, in spirit, from each of our kindred cities

and allied peoples, in Epirus, in Italy, who have the same Dardanus

for ancestor, the same history: let it be left to our descendants care.”

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has autem terras Italique hanc litoris oram,

proxima quae nostri perfunditur aequoris aestu,

effuge; cuncta malis habitantur moenia Grais.

hic et Narycii posuerunt moenia Locri,

et Sallentinos obsedit milite campos               400

Lyctius Idomeneus; hic illa ducis Meliboei

parva Philoctetae subnixa Petelia muro.

quin ubi transmissae steterint trans aequora classes

et positis aris iam vota in litore solves,

purpureo velare comas adopertus amictu,               405

ne qua inter sanctos ignis in honore deorum

hostilis facies occurrat et omina turbet.

hunc socii morem sacrorum, hunc ipse teneto;

hac casti maneant in religione nepotes.

ast ubi digressum Siculae te admoverit orae               410

ventus, et angusti rarescent claustra Pelori,

laeva tibi tellus et longo laeva petantur

aequora circuitu; dextrum fuge litus et undas.

haec loca vi quondam et vasta convulsa ruina

(tantum aevi longinqua valet mutare vetustas)                415

dissiluisse ferunt, cum protinus utraque tellus

una foret: venit medio vi pontus et undis

Hesperium Siculo latus abscidit, arvaque et urbes

litore diductas angusto interluit aestu.

dextrum Scylla latus, laevum implacata Charybdis               420

obsidet, atque imo barathri ter gurgite vastos

sorbet in abruptum fluctus rursusque sub auras

erigit alternos, et sidera verberat unda.

at Scyllam caecis cohibet spelunca latebris

ora exsertantem et navis in saxa trahentem.               425

prima hominis facies et pulchro pectore virgo

pube tenus, postrema immani corpore pistrix

delphinum caudas utero commissa luporum.

praestat Trinacrii metas lustrare Pachyni

cessantem, longos et circumflectere cursus,               430

quam semel informem vasto vidisse sub antro

Scyllam et caeruleis canibus resonantia saxa.

praeterea, si qua est Heleno prudentia vati,

si qua fides, animum si veris implet Apollo,

unum illud tibi, nate dea, proque omnibus unum               435

praedicam et repetens iterumque iterumque monebo,

Iunonis magnae primum prece numen adora,

Iunoni cane vota libens dominamque potentem

supplicibus supera donis: sic denique victor

Trinacria finis Italos mittere relicta.               440

huc ubi delatus Cumaeam accesseris urbem

divinosque lacus et Averna sonantia silvis,

insanam vatem aspicies, quae rupe sub ima

fata canit foliisque notas et nomina mandat.

quaecumque in foliis descripsit carmina virgo               445

digerit in numerum atque antro seclusa relinquit:

illa manent immota locis neque ab ordine cedunt.

verum eadem, verso tenuis cum cardine ventus

impulit et teneras turbavit ianua frondes,

numquam deinde cavo volitantia prendere saxo               450

nec revocare situs aut iungere carmina curat:

inconsulti abeunt sedemque odere Sibyllae.

hic tibi ne qua morae fuerint dispendia tanti,

quamvis increpitent socii et vi cursus in altum

vela vocet, possisque sinus implere secundos,               455

quin adeas vatem precibusque oracula poscas

ipsa canat vocemque volens atque ora resolvat.

illa tibi Italiae populos venturaque bella

et quo quemque modo fugiasque ferasque laborem

expediet, cursusque dabit venerata secundos.               460

haec sunt quae nostra liceat te voce moneri.

vade age et ingentem factis fer ad aethera Troiam.'

Quae postquam vates sic ore effatus amico est,

dona dehinc auro gravia ac secto elephanto

imperat ad navis ferri, stipatque carinis               465

ingens argentum Dodonaeosque lebetas,

loricam consertam hamis auroque trilicem,

et conum insignis galeae cristasque comantis,

arma Neoptolemi. sunt et sua dona parenti.

addit equos, additque duces,               470

remigium supplet, socios simul instruit armis.

Interea classem velis aptare iubebat

Anchises, fieret vento mora ne qua ferenti.

quem Phoebi interpres multo compellat honore:

'coniugio, Anchisa, Veneris dignate superbo,               475

cura deum, bis Pergameis erepte ruinis,

ecce tibi Ausoniae tellus: hanc arripe velis.

et tamen hanc pelago praeterlabare necesse est:

Ausoniae pars illa procul quam pandit Apollo.

vade,' ait 'o felix nati pietate. quid ultra               480

provehor et fando surgentis demoror Austros?'

nec minus Andromache digressu maesta supremo

fert picturatas auri subtemine vestis

et Phrygiam Ascanio chlamydem (nec cedit honore)

textilibusque onerat donis, ac talia fatur:               485

'accipe et haec, manuum tibi quae monimenta mearum

sint, puer, et longum Andromachae testentur amorem,

coniugis Hectoreae. cape dona extrema tuorum,

o mihi sola mei super Astyanactis imago.

sic oculos, sic ille manus, sic ora ferebat;               490

et nunc aequali tecum pubesceret aevo.'

hos ego digrediens lacrimis adfabar obortis:

'vivite felices, quibus est fortuna peracta

iam sua: nos alia ex aliis in fata vocamur.

vobis parta quies: nullum maris aequor arandum,               495

arva neque Ausoniae semper cedentia retro

quaerenda. effigiem Xanthi Troiamque videtis

quam vestrae fecere manus, melioribus, opto,

auspiciis, et quae fuerit minus obvia Grais.

si quando Thybrim vicinaque Thybridis arva               500

intraro gentique meae data moenia cernam,

cognatas urbes olim populosque propinquos,

Epiro Hesperiam (quibus idem Dardanus auctor

atque idem casus), unam faciemus utramque

Troiam animis: maneat nostros ea cura nepotes.'               505

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Find the glossary for Aeneid Daily here; subscribe to receive daily posts.

1. A people from northern Greece.

2. Lyctus was a Cretan town.

3. A famous Greek warrior from the Trojan war; Petelia was the city he founded.

4. A promontory in northeastern Sicily.

5. A shrine to Jupiter near Buthrotum.