主題: 女巫Circe
我還挺喜歡女巫Circe，和Medea一樣，這兩位女巫都美極了，而且擅長「製藥」，如果她們來到現代，可以開大藥廠，打倒所有疾病。
我今天是從第十卷133行開始閱讀，Odysseus和同伴們奮力逃離巨人食人島，死傷不少，終於脫離險境。來到了Aeaea島，就是Circe住的地方，史詩給這位女巫的出場介紹如下: δεινὴ θεὸς αὐδήεσσα, αὐτοκασιγνήτη ὀλοόφρονος Αἰήταο:
ἄμφω δ᾽ ἐκγεγάτην φαεσιμβρότου Ἠελίοιομητρός τ᾽ ἐκ Πέρσης, τὴν Ὠκεανὸς τέκε παῖδα
(Odyssey 10. 136-139)，這真是位令人欽佩的女神，會說人類的語言(αὐδήεις, speaking with human voice)，她可是壞心腸Aeetes的妹妹，也就是Medea的姑姑。Circe 和Aeetes的父親是著名的太陽神Helios，母親是Perse。Odysseus等人先等兩天，一群人也餓了，第三天才派人去島上打聽打聽，正當 Odysseus思量如何是好，出現一隻長角巨鹿，看來是有東西可吃了! Odysseus對準鹿的背，銅矛正好穿過鹿身。Odysseus隨手採一些藤蔓枝條 (Odyssey 10. 166) 做繩子捆住這鹿。
隔日，他們抽籤分成兩隊，一隊留下跟著Odysseus。另一半共22人跟著Eurylochus，他們出發到了Circe的住處，看見許多狼和獅子，因為吃了Circe的迷藥(evil drug), 這些動物，直立而行，沒有攻擊力，像是奴隸，還會討主人歡欣。之後我們就知道，這些動物都是人，被Circe的魔法變成的。
裡面巨大的織布前，正是Circe。好戲登場。
‘ βῆ δ᾽ ἰέναι, ἅμα τῷ γε δύω καὶ εἴκοσ᾽ ἑταῖροι
κλαίοντες: κατὰ δ᾽ ἄμμε λίπον γοόωντας ὄπισθεν.
εὗρον δ᾽ ἐν βήσσῃσι τετυγμένα δώματα Κίρκης
ξεστοῖσιν λάεσσι, περισκέπτῳ ἐνὶ χώρῳ:
ἀμφὶ δέ μιν λύκοι ἦσαν ὀρέστεροι ἠδὲ λέοντες,
τοὺς αὐτὴ κατέθελξεν, ἐπεὶ κακὰ φάρμακ᾽ ἔδωκεν.
οὐδ᾽ οἵ γ᾽ ὡρμήθησαν ἐπ᾽ ἀνδράσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄρα τοί γε
οὐρῇσιν μακρῇσι περισσαίνοντες ἀνέσταν.
ὡς δ᾽ ὅτ᾽ ἂν ἀμφὶ ἄνακτα κύνες δαίτηθεν ἰόντα
σαίνωσ᾽, αἰεὶ γάρ τε φέρει μειλίγματα θυμοῦ,
ὣς τοὺς ἀμφὶ λύκοι κρατερώνυχες ἠδὲ λέοντες
σαῖνον: τοὶ δ᾽ ἔδεισαν, ἐπεὶ ἴδον αἰνὰ πέλωρα.
ἔσταν δ᾽ ἐν προθύροισι θεᾶς καλλιπλοκάμοιο,
Κίρκης δ᾽ ἔνδον ἄκουον ἀειδούσης ὀπὶ καλῇ,
ἱστὸν ἐποιχομένης μέγαν ἄμβροτον, οἷα θεάων
λεπτά τε καὶ χαρίεντα καὶ ἀγλαὰ ἔργα πέλονται.
τοῖσι δὲ μύθων ἦρχε Πολίτης ὄρχαμος ἀνδρῶν,
ὅς μοι κήδιστος ἑτάρων ἦν κεδνότατός τε: (Odyssey 10. 208-225)
約略畫出Circe的家族圖:
下面資料與圖片出處: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circe
In Greek mythology, Circe (/ˈsɜrsiː/; Greek Κίρκη
Kírkē pronounced [kírkɛ͜ɛ]) was a goddess of magic (or sometimes a nymph,
witch, enchantress or sorceress). By most accounts, Circe was the daughter of
Helios, the god of the sun, and Perse, an Oceanid. Her brothers were Aeetes,
the keeper of the Golden Fleece, and Perses. Her sister was Pasiphaë, the wife
of King Minos and mother of the Minotaur. Other accounts make her the daughter
of Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft herself.
下面資料與圖片出處: http://www.maicar.com/GML/Circe.html
If these were visions, those who came to her abode
could hallucinate as much as she did, and if not, her world was in fact
transformed. For Circe is said to have been surrounded by all kinds of beasts
which cannot be seen elsewhere, having an appearance that reminds of what earth
produced out of primeval slime. And yet, when others came to the palace of
Circe, they also saw many beasts, but of the regular kind, that is, such as
lions, bears and wolves, which however, acted as domesticated animals, showing
their kindness by wagging their tails. Some say that these were actually the
drugged victims of Circe.
Circe
turns Odysseus' comrades into swines | od199gen: "Now when she had given
them the potion, and they had drunk it off, then she presently smote them with
her wand, and penned them in the sties. And they had the heads, and voice, and
bristles, and shape of swine, but their minds remained unchanged even as before." (Hom.Od.10.236). Bonaventura
Genelli (1798 – 1868).
