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The Orphic Hymns
the Orphic tradition · Hymn 30, lines 6–7 · Son of Zeus and Persephone
30.6
The Orphic Hymns 30.6 · Son of Zeus and Persephone
He is the son of Zeus and Persephone, born in secret.
· · ·
Εὐβουλεῦ1
Eubouleû
Eubouleusgood counsel
, πολύβουλε2
polýboule
rich in counsel
, τεκνωθείς3
teknōtheís
begotten
Διὸς4
Diòs
of Zeus
καὶ5
kaì
and
Φερσεφονείης6
Phersephoneíēs
of Persephone
ἀρρήτοις7
arrḗtois
in an unspeakable
λέκτροισι8
léktroisi
bed
, ἄμβροτε9
ámbrote
immortal
δαῖμον10
daîmon
goddaimon
; Eubouleus, rich in counsel, begotten of Zeus and of Persephone in an unspeakable bed, immortal god;
Eubouleus, rich in counsel, begotten of Zeus and of Persephone in an unspeakable bed, immortal god;
Interpretation
Eubouleus, rich in counsel, begotten of Zeus and Persephone in a bed that may not be spoken of, immortal god;
The hymn now says plainly what the hymn to Persephone hinted: Dionysus is the son of Zeus and Persephone, born of an "unspeakable" union. This is the Orphic Dionysus, the child some ancient writers call Zagreus. In the story as later writers tell it, the Titans lured the child away and tore him apart, and Zeus struck them with his thunderbolt; Hymn 37 prays to the Titans as the ancestors of mortals. The name Eubouleus, "good counsel," was given to Zeus and to the king of the dead as well.
30.8
The Orphic Hymns 30.8 · Come with your nurses
The prayer: hear us, and come kindly, with the nymphs who nursed you.
· · ·
Hear my voice, blessed one, and breathe on us sweetly, blameless, with a kindly heart, with your well-girdled nurses.