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The Orphic Hymns
the Orphic tradition · Hymn 65, lines 4–5 · Strife without the Muses
65.4
The Orphic Hymns 65.4 · Strife without the Muses
More of Ares, the god who loves blood and the din of battle.
· · ·
τʼ1
t’
and
χαίρων2
chaírōn
rejoicing
in
ἀνδροφόνῳ3
androphónōi
man-slaying
αἵματί4
haímatí
blood
, πολεμόκλονε5
polemóklone
raiser of the din of war
, φρικτέ6
phrikté
dreadful oneto be shuddered at
, ὃς7
hòs
you who
ποθέεις8
pothéeis
long for
δῆριν9
dêrin
the strife
of
ξίφεσίν10
xíphesín
swords
τε11
te
—
καὶ12
kaì
and
ἔγχεσι13
énchesi
spears
, ἄμουσον14
ámouson
that knows no Musewithout the Muses
; and rejoicing in man-slaying blood, raiser of the din of war, dreadful one, you who long for the strife of swords and spears, that knows no Muse;
and rejoicing in man-slaying blood, raiser of the din of war, dreadful one, you who long for the strife of swords and spears, that knows no Muse;
Interpretation
rejoicing in blood that kills men, raiser of the din of war, dreadful one, you who long for the strife of swords and spears, a strife that knows no Muse;
Amousos means "without the Muses." In everyday Greek it was said of a person with no ear for music and no education, a boor, and here it is the last word of the portrait: Ares longs for a strife that has no music in it. Dēris, the word for that strife, is Homer's word for battle. The Muses, goddesses of song and of learning, receive their own hymn a little later in this book (76), where they are asked to bring good fame and the wish to excel.
65.6
The Orphic Hymns 65.6 · Turn to love, wine and the harvest
The prayer asks the god of war to stop the fighting and turn his strength toward peaceful work.
· · ·
Stop the raging strife, ease the heart-grieving toil, and incline toward the longing of Kypris and the revels of Lyaios, changing the strength of arms into the works of Deo.