To Okeanos, God of the Ocean #HymnsOfOrpheus

Translated by Catherine Proppe  June 22, 2016

83. Ὠκεανοῦ, θυμίαμα ἀρώματα.
To Okeanos, God of the Ocean
​Divine medium: aromatics
 
Ὠκεανὸν καλέω, πατέρ’ ἄφθιτον, αἰὲν ἐόντα,
Ocean[1] I call, indestructible father, truly eternal
 
ἀθανάτων τε θεῶν γένεσιν θνητῶν τ’ ἀνθρώπων,
Parent of immortal divinities and mortal humanity
 
ὃς περικυμαίνει γαίης περιτέρμονα κύκλον·
Whose waves surround Gaia[2], to her ends encircling,
 
ἐξ οὗπερ πάντες ποταμοὶ καὶ πᾶσα θάλασσα
Font of all rivers and all seas
 
καὶ χθόνιοι γαίης πηγόρρυτοι ἰκμάδες ἁγναί.
And in the earth Gaia’s fixed flowing springs pure.
 
κλῦθι, μάκαρ, πολύολβε, θεῶν ἅγνισμα μέγιστον,
Release your blessed plenteous blessings, divine pure majesty,
 
τέρμα φίλον γαίης, ἀρχὴ πόλου, ὑγροκέλευθε,
Boundary of loving Gaia, architect of many watery paths,
 
ἔλθοις εὐμενέων μύσταις κεχαρισμένος αἰεί.
Come, kindly power, and grace the mystae evermore.
 


[1] The immortal Titan God of the Ocean is the son of Ouranos (Sky) and Gaia (Earth). Ocean is the father of all the earth’s water in consort with the Titan Goddess Tethys.

[2] Gaia is the immortal Goddess of generative earth.