Xenophon of Ephesus, An Ephesian Tale 2.8.2 · 2.8.2

A dream of his father and a horse

Ταῦτα λέγοντα αὐτὸν ὕπνος καταλαμβάνει, καὶ αὐτῷ ὄναρ ἐφίσταται. Ἔδοξεν ἰδεῖν αὐτοῦ τὸν πατέρα Λυκομήδην ἐν ἐσθῆτι μελαίνῃ πλανώμενον κατὰ πᾶσαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν, ἐπιστάντα δὲ τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ λῦσαί τʼ αὐτὸν καὶ ἀφιέναι ἐκ τοῦ οἰκήματος· αὐτὸν δʼ ἵππον γενόμενον ἐπὶ πολλὴν φέρεσθαι γῆν διώκοντα ἵππον ἄλλην θήλειαν, καὶ τέλος εὑρεῖν τὴν ἵππον καὶ ἄνθρωπον γενέσθαι. Ταῦτα ὡς ἔδοξεν ἰδεῖν, ἀνέθορέ τε καὶ μικρὰ εὔελπις ἦν.

As he was saying this, sleep took hold of him, and a dream came to him. He seemed to see his father Lycomedes in black clothing, wandering over every land and sea, and then coming to the prison, setting him free and letting him go out of the cell. He himself seemed to turn into a horse and to be carried over much land, chasing another horse, a mare, and at last to find the mare and become a man. When he had dreamed this, he leapt up and was a little hopeful.

Word by word

ΤαῦταTaûtathisλέγονταlégontasayingαὐτὸνautònhimὕπνοςhýpnossleepκαταλαμβάνειkatalambáneitakes hold of,καὶkaìandαὐτῷautôito himὄναρónara dreamἐφίσταταιephístataicomes.ἜδοξενÉdoxenhe seemedἰδεῖνideînto seeαὐτοῦautoûhisτὸνtòn—πατέραpatérafatherΛυκομήδηνLykomḗdēnLycomedesἐνeninἐσθῆτιesthêticlothingμελαίνῃmelaínēiblackπλανώμενονplanṓmenonwanderingκατὰkatàoverπᾶσανpâsaneveryγῆνgênlandκαὶkaìandθάλαττανthálattansea,ἐπιστάνταepistántacoming toδὲdèandτῷtôitheδεσμωτηρίῳdesmōtēríōiprisonλῦσαίlŷsaísetting freeτʼt’—αὐτὸνautònhimκαὶkaìandἀφιέναιaphiénailetting goἐκekout ofτοῦtoûtheοἰκήματοςoikḗmatoscell·αὐτὸνautònhe himselfδʼd’andἵππονhíppona horseγενόμενονgenómenonturned intoἐπὶepìoverπολλὴνpollḕnmuchφέρεσθαιphéresthaito be carriedγῆνgênlandδιώκονταdiṓkontachasingἵππονhípponhorseἄλληνállēnanotherθήλειανthḗleiana mare,καὶkaìandτέλοςtélosat lastεὑρεῖνheureînto findτὴνtḕntheἵππονhípponmareκαὶkaìandἄνθρωπονánthrōpona manγενέσθαιgenésthaibecome.ΤαῦταTaûtathisὡςhōswhenἔδοξενédoxenhe seemedἰδεῖνideînto see,ἀνέθορέanéthoréhe leapt upτεte—καὶkaìandμικρὰmikràa littleεὔελπιςeúelpishopefulἦνênwas.

The setting

Book 2, chapter 8. Habrocomes lies alone on the floor of his prison at Tyre.

A note on this passage

The dream "comes to" him: the verb, ἐφίσταται, means "stands over," and Herodotus uses it for the dream that came to Croesus in his sleep and showed him the truth about his son (Herodotus 1.34.1). Its first part comes true two chapters later in the same words, when Apsyrtus orders λῦσαί τε αὐτόν, "to set him free" (2.10.1). The rest takes the remaining books: when the two are together again, Anthia says she has "wandered over much land and sea" (5.14.1), words that echo this dream. The father's black clothes are mourning dress; when the couple reach Ephesus at last, their parents have already died "of old age and despair" (5.15.3).

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