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μήνην ἀείδειν τανυσίπτερον ἔσπετε, Μοῦσαι,
ἡδυεπεῖς κοῦραι Κρονίδεω Διός, ἵστορες ᾠδῆς:
ἧς ἄπο αἴγλη γαῖαν ἑλίσσεται οὐρανόδεικτος
κρατὸς ἀπ᾽ ἀθανάτοιο, πολὺς δ᾽ ὑπὸ κόσμος ὄρωρεν
5αἴγλης λαμπούσης: στίλβει δέ τ᾽ ἀλάμπετος ἀὴρ
χρυσέου ἀπὸ στεφάνου, ἀκτῖνες δ᾽ ἐνδιάονται,
εὖτ᾽ ἂν ἀπ᾽ Ὠκεανοῖο λοεσσαμένη χρόα καλόν,
εἵματα ἑσσαμένη τηλαυγέα δῖα Σελήνη,
ζευξαμένη πώλους ἐριαύχενας, αἰγλήεντας,
ἐσσυμένως προτέρωσ᾽ ἐλάσῃ καλλίτριχας ἵππους, 10
ἑσπερίη, διχόμηνος: ὃ δὲ πλήθει μέγας ὄγμος
λαμπρόταταί τ᾽ αὐγαὶ τότ᾽ ἀεξομένης τελέθουσιν
οὐρανόθεν: τέκμωρ δὲ βροτοῖς καὶ σῆμα τέτυκται.
τῇ ῥά ποτε Κρονίδης ἐμίγη φιλότητι καὶ εὐνῇ:
ἣ δ᾽ ὑποκυσαμένη Πανδείην γείνατο κούρην, 15
ἐκπρεπὲς εἶδος ἔχουσαν ἐν ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖσι.
χαῖρε, ἄνασσα, θεὰ λευκώλενε, δῖα Σελήνη,
πρόφρον, ἐυπλόκαμος: σέο δ᾽ ἀρχόμενος κλέα φωτῶν
ᾁσομαι ἡμιθέων, ὧν κλείουσ᾽ ἔργματ᾽ ἀοιδοί,
Μουσάων θεράποντες, ἀπὸ στομάτων ἐροέντων. 20
And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song,
tell of the long-winged1 Moon. From her immortal head
a radiance is shown from heaven and embraces earth;
and great is the beauty that ariseth
from her shining light. The air, unlit before, [5]
glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear,
whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body
in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming raiment,
and yoked her strong-necked, shining team,
drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, [10]
at eventime in the mid-month:
then her great orbit is full and then her beams
shine brightest as she increases.
So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men.
Once the Son of Cronos was joined with her in love; [15]
and she conceived and bare a daughter Pandia,
exceeding lovely amongst the deathless gods.
Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen!
And now I will leave you and sing the glories of men half-divine, whose deeds minstrels,
the servants of the Muses, celebrate with lovely lips. [20]
Anonymous. The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914.
The epithet is a usual one for birds, cp. Hesiod, Works and Days, 210; as applied to Selene it may merely indicate her passage, like a bird, through the air, or mean “far-flying.”