Monday, June 1, 2026 · 天火 · tianmu.org
Greek
Sacred and philosophical texts from the ancient Greek tradition.
✦ ─── ⟐ ─── ✦
Texts
Ancient Art and Ritual — Jane HarrisonAncient Art and Ritual by Jane Ellen Harrison — the foundational work connecting Greek art, myth, and religious ritual. Harrison argues that art and ritual share a common origin in the emotions of the prehistoric community, and that Greek drama grew directly from the ritual dances of Dionysus.ArgonauticaThe only complete Hellenistic epic — Apollonius of Rhodes' tale of Jason, the Golden Fleece, and Medea's love rendered with unprecedented psychological depth.Dialogues of Plato — JowettTwenty-three dialogues of Plato in Benjamin Jowett's Oxford translation — the Apology, Crito, Phaedo, Phaedrus, Symposium, Gorgias, Meno, Ion, Republic extracts, Timaeus, Theaetetus, Parmenides, Sophist, Statesman, Philebus, and others.Eleusinian and Bacchic MysteriesThomas Taylor's foundational exposition of the ancient Greek Mystery rites — the soul's descent into matter, suffering, purification, and return to divine unity.Golden Verses of Pythagoras — FirthThe Golden Verses of Pythagoras and other Pythagorean fragments — the foundational ethical text of the Pythagorean school, with Hierocles' commentary and other fragments. Translated by Florence M. Firth (1904).Greek Popular Religion — NilssonMartin Nilsson's authoritative survey of Greek popular religion — the rural cults, chthonic powers, mystery rites, hero worship, and oracles that lay beneath the Olympian surface. The religion as ordinary Greeks practiced it, not as Homer imagined it.HesiodThe farmer-poet's twin pillars of Greek religion — Works and Days on justice and honest labour, and the Theogony on the genealogy of the gods.Homeric Hymn to AphroditeThe Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite — the goddess of love, subjected to her own power, falls for the mortal Anchises on Mount Ida. Good Works Translation from the Ancient Greek.Homeric Hymn to ApolloThe longest and most celebrated of the Homeric Hymns — the birth of Apollo on Delos and the founding of his oracle at Delphi. Translated from Ancient Greek by the New Tianmu Anglican Church.Homeric Hymn to DemeterThe Homeric Hymn to Demeter — the oldest account of Persephone's abduction and the founding of the Eleusinian Mysteries. Good Works Translation from the Ancient Greek.Homerica — Epic Cycle and Minor Works (Evelyn-White)Homerica — Epic Cycle Fragments and Minor Works in Evelyn-White's translation: the Cypria, Aethiopis, Little Iliad, Sack of Ilium, The Returns, The Telegony; the Battle of Frogs and Mice; Homeric Fragments; and the Contest of Homer and Hesiod. The lost epics of the Greek Epic Cycle.IliadThe foundation stone of Western literature — Homer's epic of the wrath of Achilles and the siege of Troy in twenty-four books.Introduction to Greek ReligionAn introduction to the religious landscape of ancient Greece — its gods, its poets, its mysteries, its philosophers, and the texts that shaped a civilisation's understanding of the divine.Mycenaean Origin of Greek Mythology — NilssonMartin Nilsson's Sather Lectures arguing that Greek mythology originated in the Mycenaean Bronze Age — that Mycenae, Tiryns, Thebes, and Orchomenos were the real places behind the myths of heroes, and that the collapse of the Mycenaean world in the 12th century BCE crystallized the mythological tradition.Myths of Crete and Pre-Hellenic Europe — MackenzieDonald Mackenzie's exploration of Minoan and Mycenaean mythology — the pre-Greek religious world of Crete, the Great Mother goddess, the bull cult, and the Bronze Age foundations beneath classical Greek myth.Myths of Greece and Rome — HarrisonJane Harrison's survey of Greek and Roman mythology — the creation myths, the Olympians, the hero cycles, and the mystery cults — by the pioneer of ritual approaches to ancient religion.OdysseyHomer's archetype of every journey narrative — Odysseus's ten-year voyage home through monsters, gods, and the longing the Greeks called nostos.Orphic Fragment — Acheron, Tartarus, and the Lots BelowKern fragment 222 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Proclus on Orphic Acheron, Tartarus, purified and unjust souls, and Plato's underworld lots.Orphic Fragment — Animal Souls and Hermes' DescentKern fragment 223 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Proclus on animal souls, rebirth, and Hermes leading immortal human souls below the earth.Orphic Fragment — Aphrodite from the FoamKern fragment 127 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witness: Heaven bringing forth Aphrodite from the foam around his generative parts cast into the sea, with Year, Rivalry, and Deception present at her birth.Orphic Fragment — Athena's Weaving ArtKern fragment 178 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witnesses: Athena as foremost among the immortals in weaving, the divine arts as demiurgic powers, Kore's life-weaving order, Circe's golden weaving, and daimonic guardians of human craft.Orphic Fragment — Changing Lives and BodiesKern fragment 224 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Olympiodorus on souls changing lives, human rebirth, and passage into animal bodies.Orphic Fragment — Dionysus, the Titans, and Human BirthKern fragment 220 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Olympiodorus on the four Orphic kingships, Dionysus torn by the Titans, Zeus' thunderbolt, and human birth from the Titanic soot.Orphic Fragment — Earthquake Omens of the ZodiacKern fragment 285 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek poem On Earthquakes, a zodiacal omen text on earthquakes by night or day as the Sun passes through Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.Orphic Fragment — Icarius, Erigone, and the OscillaKern fragment 244 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Latin witness in Servius and the Vatican Mythographers on Icarius, Erigone, the Athenian plague, hanging rites, oscilla, floral phallic figures, and an Orphic attribution.Orphic Fragment — Iphiclus Above the Dry FieldKern fragment 284 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Tzetzes' Greek witness to an Orphic line-cluster on Iphiclus running over stalks without harming the dry grain-field.Orphic Fragment — Katarchai and the Zodiacal BeginningsKern fragment 288 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek electional-astrological witnesses on beginnings under tropical, double-bodied, and fixed zodiacal signs, with a related verse parallel from Ammon's Katarchai.Orphic Fragment — Mother-Father and the Fiery ThroneKern fragment 248 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Clement of Alexandria and Eusebius in the Diathekai or Orphic Testament tradition, on the ruler of aether, Hades, sea, and earth, the Moirai, winds, clouds, the fiery throne, angels, seasons, Mother-Father, and the Pantokrator.Orphic Fragment — Shut the Doors and Look to the One GodKern fragment 245 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Pseudo-Justin and Cyril of Alexandria in the Diathekai or Orphic Testament tradition, on shutting the doors to the profane, Musaeus, truth, the divine word, the one self-born ruler of the cosmos, Zeus, cloud, heaven, earth, Ocean, mountains, rivers, and sea.Orphic Fragment — Soul from Aether and ZeusKern fragment 228 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Vettius Valens on the soul rooted from aether, divine breath, Zeus, and mortal bodies.Orphic Fragment — Soul, Water, Earth, and AetherKern fragment 226 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Clement of Alexandria on soul, water, earth, aether, and Heraclitus' related saying.Orphic Fragment — The Bacchica and the Great Rites at PhlyaKern fragment 243 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Hippolytus on Musaeus, Linus, Orpheus, the Bacchica, womb, serpent, navel, the Great rites at Phlya, portico imagery, and Sethian interpretation.Orphic Fragment — The Guard, Dionysiac Tokens, and Titanic FaultsKern fragment 221 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Proclus on Plato's Phaedo, the secret guard, rites for purified and unpurified souls, Hades roads, Dionysiac tokens, and Titanic faults.Orphic Fragment — The Gurob Papyrus Sacred LawKern fragment 31 from the Gurob papyrus, translated from the damaged Greek ritual witness on Brimo, Demeter, Rhea, the Kouretes, Protogonos, Eubouleus, Erikapaios, Dionysus, and ritual tokens.Orphic Fragment — The Hidden God and the Chaldaean KnowerKern fragment 246 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Clement of Alexandria's Greek witnesses in the Diathekai or Orphic Testament tradition, on Orpheus' palinode of truth, the invisible God, the Chaldaean knower, heaven as throne, earth as footstool, divine kingship, war, and tearful pains.Orphic Fragment — The Holy Word and the Golden ThroneKern fragment 247 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek Aristobulian redaction preserved by Eusebius in the Diathekai or Orphic Testament tradition, on the divine voice as works, the Holy Word, the immortal shaper of the world, the Chaldaean knower, heaven, earth, Ocean, the golden throne, and guarding the saying in the breast.Orphic Fragment — The Long-Lived PalmKern fragment 225 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Plutarch on the date-palm as a long-lived plant and an Orphic line on palm shoots.Orphic Fragment — The Miserable Race of MortalsKern fragment 233 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in John Malalas, with parallels in George Cedrenus and the Suda, on the miserable human race, its earthly burden, ignorance, and lack of foresight.Orphic Fragment — Themis, Ananke, and the MoiraiKern fragment 126 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witness: Themis as mother of the Moirai and leader of cosmic order, and another Ananke before the Moirai.Orphic Fragment — Turning Wheels and BranchesKern fragment 227 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from the Greek witness in Clement of Alexandria on symbolic actions, turning wheels, branches given to worshippers, and the circular course of mortal things.Orphic Fragment — Zagreus' Death in Himerius and FirmicusKern fragment 214 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in Himerius and Julius Firmicus Maternus: a rhetorical version of the Titans' attack on young Dionysus and a hostile euhemeristic Christian account of the Zagreus myth and its ritual signs.Orphic Fragment — Zeus First and LastKern fragment 168 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Porphyry, Eusebius, Stobaeus, and Proclus: the great Rhapsodic hymn to Zeus as first, last, head, middle, cosmic body, royal mind, and maker who brings the world forth again.Orphic Fragment — Zeus Swallows PhanesKern fragment 167 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus: Zeus swallowing Protogonos-Erikepaios, mixing Phanes' power into his own limbs, and drawing all things back together inside his belly.Orphic Fragments — A Woman-Saying and the True BacchoiKern fragments 234-235 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Clement of Alexandria and Olympiodorus on a hostile woman-saying, the narthex-bearers and true Bacchoi, initiation, purification, matter, Titans, and Dionysus.Orphic Fragments — Allegory, Dionysus, and HecateKern fragments 33-46 from early Orphic testimonia, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses on allegory, Dionysus and the Titans, Chronos and Eros, the Muses, Hecate, Persephone, Minthe, Sinope, and Hecuba.Orphic Fragments — Aphrodite, Eros, and Cosmic FriendshipKern fragments 183-184 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witnesses: Zeus bringing forth the second Aphrodite, the sea receiving the seed of great Zeus, and Aphrodite and Eros as hypercosmic causes of beauty, order, harmony, communion, and friendship.Orphic Fragments — Apollo the Sun and Athena AreteKern fragments 172-177 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in Proclus and Fulgentius: Apollo identified with the sun, Apollo and Marsyas as musical allegory, Athena born from Zeus' head, Athena as Arete, and Athena as accomplisher of Zeus' great works and mind.Orphic Fragments — Apollo's Gathering, the Sun, and the Mystic WinnowKern fragments 211-213 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in Olympiodorus, Proclus, Servius, and the Vatican Mythographers: Apollo gathering the divided Dionysus, the Sun's communion with Dionysus through Apollo, and the mystic winnow as a sign of Iacchic purification.Orphic Fragments — Artemis, Hecate, and KoreKern fragments 187-188 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witnesses: Artemis and Athena preserving Kore's virginity, Artemis as a life-giving and perfecting power, Artemis-Hecate, Kore's threefold rule as Artemis, Persephone, and Athena, and divine companies around the moon and sun.Orphic Fragments — Asclepius, Memory, and TycheKern fragments 202-204 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus, Olympiodorus, and Simplicius: health and Asclepius, the ascending orders of memory up to Orphic Mnemo, and Tyche's Orphic name-relations with Artemis, the Moon, and Hecate.Orphic Fragments — Athena and the First KouretesKern fragments 185-186 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witnesses: Athena's rhythmic dance, her leadership of the Kouretes, the first Kouretes dedicated to Athena's order, and the Kourete divinity that gives undefiled intellect, unbending motion, and implacable power.Orphic Fragments — Atlas and the Wine-Name of DionysusKern fragments 215-216 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Simplicius: Atlas' allotment after the Dionysian division, the western Titan supporting heaven, and Proclus' explanation of Oinos, Wine, as a name for Dionysus and his divided creation.Orphic Fragments — Birds, Rites, and the Soul's GuardKern fragments 1-20 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses to early Orphic cosmogony, ritual books, afterlife purification, the body as prison and tomb of the soul, Titanic nature, Ocean and Tethys, divine genealogies, armored Kore dances, and the law of Adrasteia.Orphic Fragments — Chronos, Chaos, and the Silver EggKern fragments 60-76 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses at the opening of the Rhapsodic theogony: Chronos, Aether, Chaos, Night, the silver egg, Phanes, Metis, Erikepaios, Protogonos, the cosmic circle, Giants, and four-eyed Phanes.Orphic Fragments — Cyclopes, Hephaestus, and AglaiaKern fragments 179-182 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Syrianus: the first craft-handed Cyclopes, Hephaestus forging heaven, Athena and Kore's weaving, Aglaia adorning the starry sky, and the divine ordering of fixed, planetary, and sublunary realms.Orphic Fragments — Demeter and Kore MonogeneiaKern fragments 189-190 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witnesses: Demeter dividing the double nourishments among the gods, devising attendants, ambrosia, red nectar, and the works of bees, and Kore as Monogeneia, ruling over encosmic things.Orphic Fragments — Dionysus' Mirror, Heart, and the TitansKern fragments 209-210 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Plotinus, Olympiodorus, Proclus, Damascius, Nonnus, and later mythographic sources: Dionysus' mirror, Apollo gathering him, Hephaestus' mirror as a symbol of divided creation, Athena preserving the heart, and the Titans' sevenfold division of the child.Orphic Fragments — Earth, the Titans, and Ocean's CircleKern fragments 114-116 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Eustathius: Earth secretly bearing seven daughters and seven sons from Heaven, the Titan and Titaness ordering, Ocean's tireless circle around Earth, and Ocean as source of all motion with ten channels.Orphic Fragments — Gold Leaves of Memory and ReturnKern fragment 32 from the Petelia, Eleutherna, Thurii, and Rome gold leaves, translated from Greek witnesses on Memory's water, Earth and starry Heaven, Persephone, purity, and divine return.Orphic Fragments — Heaven, Earth, and the First MarriageKern fragments 109-113 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Hermias, Proclus, Alexander of Aphrodisias, and Damascius: Night bearing Earth and Heaven, the Cyclopes and Hundred-handers, Heaven ruling after Night, the first marriage of Heaven and Earth, and Heaven as guardian.Orphic Fragments — Helios, Dionysus, and PhanesKern fragments 236-237 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in Macrobius on Helios as all-ruler, the Sun as all things, Zeus Dionysus, Phanes, Eubouleus, Antauges, and Dionysus' circular motion through heaven.Orphic Fragments — Hera, Hestia, and HeimarmeneKern fragments 161-163 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Damascius and Proclus: Hera and Hestia as life-giving goddesses, Zeus nourished by Adrasteia, Ananke beside him, Heimarmene born from him, and Hera joined to Zeus as mother of all he fathers.Orphic Fragments — Hipta, Bendis, and AttisKern fragments 199-201 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Damascius, with related Orphic hymn witnesses printed by Kern: Hipta as the soul of the whole and receiver of Dionysus, Bendis among the names of the Moon, and Attis and Adonis in the theologians' secret tradition.Orphic Fragments — Hymns, Nature, and the Sacred NameKern fragments 304-308 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Orphic Hymns on the Lycomidae, Eros, physical hymns, Dionysus, and a sacred name-array attributed to Orpheus the theologian.Orphic Fragments — Kore, the Korybants, and the Heavenly RobeKern fragments 191-192 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus, Porphyry, and Damascius: the Kouretes around the demiurge, the Korybants guarding Kore, Kore as weaver and overseer of what is sown, and the cosmic robe woven with the Father.Orphic Fragments — Kore's Abduction, the Scorpion, and the EumenidesKern fragments 195-198 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Proclus' Greek witnesses: Kore with Zeus and Plouton, the autumnal hour of Aphrodite, Kore weaving the scorpion before her abduction, Persephone's fruitful power, the Eumenides below the earth, and the double Koric order.Orphic Fragments — Kore's Unfinished Loom and Apollo's Fiery ChildrenKern fragments 193-194 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Tzetzes and Proclus: Kore moving along the unfinished, flowered loom, the communion of the Koric and Apollonian divine series, and Demeter's Orphic speech that Kore will bear Apollo's fire-bright children.Orphic Fragments — Kraters, Bacchus, and Nymph-WaterKern fragments 217-219 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus, Damascius, and Clement of Alexandria: Orphic and Platonic kraters, Bacchus completing Zeus' work, and Orpheus' use of the Phrygian word bedu for the bright water of the Nymphs.Orphic Fragments — Kronos and the Human RacesKern fragments 139-142 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Latin and Greek witnesses in Lactantius and Proclus: Kronos ruling among mortals, the golden, silver, and Titanic human races, Kronos over the silver race, and the ageless black-haired Kronian order.Orphic Fragments — Kronos, Night, and RheaKern fragments 128-134 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Damascius: the Orphic succession from Heaven to Kronos to Zeus, Zeus swallowing Phanes, Night nourishing Kronos, Kronos' ageless black beard, Rhea as the fold of Kronian power, and Rhea as mother of the demiurge.Orphic Fragments — Kronos, the Swallowed Stone, and SleepKern fragments 146-149 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Damascius, a scholion on Lycophron, Proclus, and Clement of Alexandria: Kronos as Titan, the stone swallowed in place of Zeus, and Kronos overtaken by sleep after deceit.Orphic Fragments — Kronos, the Titans, and TartarusKern fragments 117-122 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Damascius: Kronos ranked above Ocean, Thaumas and Bia in the same divine order, Titanic overbearingness, the Olympian defeat of the Titans, heavenly races cast into Tartarus, and the Orphic casting-down at the edge of demiurgy.Orphic Fragments — Material Mind and the Crater of ForgetfulnessKern fragments 240-242 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Latin and Greek witnesses in Macrobius on hyle, nectar, the Lethean river, Liber as material mind divided by the Titans and restored whole, the Crater of Liber, forgetfulness, and Apollo Patroios.Orphic Fragments — New Gods, Dionysus, and the Royal SceptreKern fragments 205-208 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus, Clement of Alexandria, and Olympiodorus: the new gods and the cycle of mortal rebirth, the Dionysus-disappearance poem behind a Homeric olive image, Dionysus as the new god, and Zeus giving him the royal sceptre.Orphic Fragments — Night and Orpheus' Song of OriginsEarly Orphic fragments from Kern's 1922 collection, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses on Night, the Orphic theogony, Orpheus' Argonautic song, and Stoic interpretation.Orphic Fragments — Night, Ocean, and the Breath of the SoulFour early Orphic fragments from Kern's 1922 collection, translated from Aristotle's Greek witnesses on Night, Ocean, animal formation, and the soul.Orphic Fragments — Night's Adyton and AdrasteiaKern fragments 104-106 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Hermias: Phanes and Night in the hidden adyton, the life-giving krater, Adrasteia before Night's cave, and Night as ambrosial nurse of the gods.Orphic Fragments — Night's Oracle and the Golden ChainKern fragments 164-166 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus: Zeus entering Night's oracle before demiurgy, asking how all things can be one and separate, receiving Night's aetherial enclosure, and stretching the golden chain.Orphic Fragments — Ocean, Styx, and the Rivers BelowKern fragments 123-125 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Olympiodorus and Porphyry: the four rivers below, their elemental and directional correspondences, the Orphic Styx, and the Acherusian lake as airy.Orphic Fragments — Ocean's Hesitation and the Titan SuccessionKern fragments 135-138 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and a scholion on Hesiod: Ocean hesitating during the plot against Heaven, the Titans' name and ancient darkness, Kronos cutting and being cut, and Zeus containing what he begets.Orphic Fragments — Oracles and Alchemical SayingsKern fragments 332-333 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses to the Orphic Chresmoi: Orpheus as poet and seer, prophetic verses, Thracian tablets, and Agathodaemon's alchemical commentary on an alleged oracle of Orpheus.Orphic Fragments — Persephone's Descent and Baubo at EleusisKern fragments 50-53 from the Demeter and Kore cycle, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses on Persephone's descent, Eubouleus, Triptolemus, the Thesmophoria, Baubo, Iacchos, and the Eleusinian kykeon.Orphic Fragments — Phanes and the Six Divine KingsKern fragments 107-108 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Alexander of Aphrodisias, Syrianus, Proclus, Olympiodorus, Hermias, Simplicius, and Damascius: Phanes as first king, the succession through Night, Heaven, Kronos, Zeus, and Dionysus, and Erikepaios distributing the cosmos.Orphic Fragments — Phanes, the Moon, and the Cosmic HouseKern fragments 88-98 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in the Rhapsodic theogony: Phanes as maker and parent, the imperishable house of the gods, the supercelestial region, the moon as another earth, the sun's guardianship, nature's works, the misty cave, and Night's generation.Orphic Fragments — Physika, Plants, and Medical MagicKern fragments 318-331 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses to Orphic Physika, plant lore, herb medicine, deadly drugs, charms, embryology, and anatomical magic.Orphic Fragments — Planetary Entries and Saturn's TrinesKern fragments 286-287 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek astrological witnesses on planetary entries, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, the Moon, angular places, trines, and the favorable entry of Mars into Saturn's place.Orphic Fragments — Prometheus, Themis, and Rhea-DemeterKern fragments 143-145 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus: Prometheus as guardian of human descent, Themis at the beginnings of demiurgy, Night's oracle about Rhea bearing Zeus, and Rhea becoming Demeter.Orphic Fragments — Release from the CycleKern fragments 229-230 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Simplicius on release from the cycle of generation, the wheel of fate, and relief from misery.Orphic Fragments — Spurious and Doubtful NoticesKern fragments 350-363 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in the Spuria vel dubia appendix: doubtful notices on the Great Works, Hera-Aphrodite, Persephone's path, heavenly and abyssal matter, tears and laughter of gods, the middle, hexameter, Gregory's theologian line, astrology, Chaos, Eumenides, sweet-bitter Love, Narcissus, and aquatic powers.Orphic Fragments — The Bacchic Vestment and the One SunKern fragments 238-239 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in Macrobius on Liber and the Sun as one god, the sacred Bacchic vestment, fawn-skin, golden belt, Ocean's circle, Eubouleus, and the unity of Zeus, Hades, Helios, and Dionysus.Orphic Fragments — The Diktyon and Argo's EpigramKern fragments 289-290 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Orphic Diktyon on Nisa and the Nisaean horse, and to an epigram attributed to Orpheus on Jason's Argo.Orphic Fragments — The Dodecaeterides and the Weather YearsKern fragments 249-270 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses for the Orphic Dodecaeterides, on the twelve-year Chaldaean cycle, the Great Year, zodiacal weather years, crops, cattle, plague, storms, farming signs, bees, and winter cold.Orphic Fragments — The Ephemerides and the Lunar DaysKern fragments 271-279 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses for the Orphic Ephemerides, on lunar days, useful and illuminated days, the one-horned calf of the month, Ares, Apollo's seventh day, Ate's seventeenth day, transactions on the thirtieth day, and the moon's return.Orphic Fragments — The Georgica and the Farming MoonKern fragments 280-283 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses for the Orphic Georgica, on farming, ploughing, vine-planting, Demeter, Bacchus, the Moon in Aries, Virgo as a planting sign, Icarius, and lunar days judged by signs and stars.Orphic Fragments — The Hymn to NumberKern fragments 309-317 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Orphic Hymn to Number on the monad, triad, hexad, hebdomad, ennead, tetrad, decad, Hecate, and the maxim that all things are like number.Orphic Fragments — The Katabasis into HadesKern fragments 293-296 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses to an Orphic Katabasis into Hades: Egypt, Orpheus and Eurydice, Night's oracle, Styx, and Charon receiving Heracles.Orphic Fragments — The Katharmoi, Beans, and LawKern fragments 291-292 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Orphic Katharmoi on the bean taboo, parents, law, and the end of a flesh-eating human age.Orphic Fragments — The Kouretes and Adrasteia's Bronze SoundKern fragments 150-152 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Damascius, Proclus, and Olympiodorus: Rhea giving birth to the Kouretes, their pure guarding order around Zeus and the demiurgic gods, and Adrasteia's bronze sound that turns the gods toward her.Orphic Fragments — The Oaths of Heaven and the Eight GodsKern fragments 299-300 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Orphic Oaths on Heaven, the Father's voice, the divine Word, and the eight ruling gods: Fire, Water, Earth, Heaven, Moon, Sun, Phanes, and Night.Orphic Fragments — The Rites of Dionysus and Mother EarthKern fragments 301-303 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Orphic Teletai on Dionysus, the vine, Demeter as Mother Earth, and Dionysus born from Zeus and Persephone and torn apart by Titans.Orphic Fragments — The Sicilian Gold Leaf and Kore's DescentKern fragments 47-49 from the Demeter and Kore cycle, translated from Greek witnesses on a damaged Sicilian gold leaf, an Orphic opening about Demeter, and the Berlin papyrus account of Kore's descent.Orphic Fragments — The Smaller KraterKern fragments 297-298 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses to the Smaller Krater on Hermes, the Nymphs, Hephaestus, Demeter, Poseidon, Ares, Aphrodite, Dionysus, Themis, Apollo, Asclepius, Mnemosyne, and Zeus as life.Orphic Fragments — The Three Nights and the Royal SceptreKern fragments 99-103 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Hermias, Damascius, Proclus, Alexander of Aphrodisias, and Syrianus: the three Nights, Night's hidden order, the royal sceptre handed down from Phanes, and Night's unerring prophecy.Orphic Fragments — Three Hundred Years and Dionysiac ReleaseKern fragments 231-232 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Olympiodorus on the three-hundred-year circuit of souls, return to generation, Dionysus as Releaser, and rites seeking release from ancestral lawlessness.Orphic Fragments — Unplaced Sayings and Sacred LinesKern fragments 334-349 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses to unplaced Orphic sayings on closed doors, Reverence and Wealth, Zeus and parents, Zeus as father, divine names, Muses, Achelous-water, sight and light, sleep, Athena and hands, Hermetic harmony, and nature as God's art.Orphic Fragments — Water, Time, and the Birth of PhanesKern fragments 54-59 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses on the Hieronymus/Hellanicus theogony: water and earth, ageless Time, Necessity, the cosmic egg, Phanes, Ocean, the Titans, Echidna, and Zeus' violent succession myths.Orphic Fragments — Wings, Eros, and the Light of PhanesKern fragments 77-87 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek and Latin witnesses in the Rhapsodic theogony: fourfold Phanes, golden wings, animal heads, Erikepaios, noetic Eros, Metis, Phanes' radiance, and the hymn to Protogonos.Orphic Fragments — Zeus All-Seeing and BromiosKern fragments 169-171 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Aristocritus, Proclus, and Gregory Nazianzen: Zeus' godlike providence, the all-seeing Zeus-Bromios, Eros and Metis in Zeus, and a polemical witness to Zeus swallowing the gods.Orphic Fragments — Zeus, Justice, and the Star-WorldsFour early Orphic fragments from Kern's 1922 collection, translated from Greek source witnesses on Zeus, Dike, and each star as a world.Orphic Fragments — Zeus, Rhea, and Kronos' Honey-BondsKern fragments 153-155 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in the Martyrdom of Theodotus, Porphyry, Proclus, Olympiodorus, and Damascius: a polemical Zeus genealogy, Kronos trapped with honey, the Kronian bonds, and Zeus' prayer to Kronos.Orphic Fragments — Zeus' Purifications, Sceptre, and DikeKern fragments 156-160 from Otto Kern's 1922 Orphicorum fragmenta, translated from Greek witnesses in Proclus and Hermias: Zeus bringing purifications from Crete, the twenty-four-measure sceptre, Dike following Zeus, Justice as daughter of Law and Piety, and Law seated beside Zeus.Orphic HymnsEighty-seven ritual hymns to the gods from the Orphic mysteries — the most complete liturgical document from Greco-Roman antiquity.The Discourses of EpictetusThe Discourses of Epictetus, Books III and IV — recorded by Arrian of Nicomedia; translated by W. A. Oldfather. Loeb Classical Library, 1928. Practical Stoic philosophy on freedom, desire, discipline of assent, and the examined life.The Dramas of Aeschylus — MorsheadThe complete dramas of Aeschylus in E.D.A. Morshead's Victorian translation — the Oresteia trilogy (Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, The Eumenides), Prometheus Bound, The Persians, Seven Against Thebes, and The Suppliants.The Dramas of Euripides — ColeridgeThe complete surviving dramas of Euripides — Medea, Hippolytus, The Bacchae, The Trojan Women, Hecuba, Electra, Orestes, Iphigenia in Tauris, Iphigenia at Aulis, Helen, Alcestis, The Cyclops, Andromache, Ion, Heracles, The Children of Heracles, The Suppliant Women, Phoenician Women, and Rhesus — in the translation by E.P. Coleridge and others.The Dramas of Sophocles — StorrThe complete surviving dramas of Sophocles in F. Storr's translation — Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone, Ajax, Electra, Philoctetes, and The Trachiniae. The seven extant plays of the greatest Greek tragedian.The Heroes — Charles KingsleyCharles Kingsley's classic retelling of the Greek hero myths for children — Perseus and the Gorgon, the Argonauts and the Golden Fleece, Theseus and the Minotaur. The Victorian mythological primer that shaped generations of readers.The Homeric Hymns — Evelyn-WhiteThe complete Homeric Hymns — all 33 hymns to the Olympian gods — in Hugh G. Evelyn-White's 1914 translation. To Demeter, Hermes, Aphrodite, Apollo (Delian and Pythian), Dionysus, Ares, Helios, Selene, and all the lesser hymns.The Hymns of Orpheus — Thomas TaylorThe complete Orphic Hymns in Thomas Taylor's 1792 translation, with his extensive philosophical commentary — 87 hymns to Hecate, Zeus, Dionysus, the Sun, and the full Olympian and chthonic pantheon, framed by Taylor's Neoplatonist introduction and notes.The Meditations of Marcus AureliusThe private philosophical notebooks of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius — twelve books of Stoic reflection on duty, impermanence, reason, and the examined life, written in Greek during military campaigns on the northern frontier, circa AD 161–180.
✦ ─── ⟐ ─── ✦
Looking for the Tianmu translations? Click here!