between the rock and the cold, cold sea

Διόνυσος
κᾆτα πῶς δυνήσομαι
ἄπειρος ἀθαλάττωτος ἀσαλαμίνιος
ὢν εἶτ᾽ ἐλαύνειν;

Χάρων
ῥᾷστ᾽: ἀκούσει γὰρ μέλη
κάλλιστ᾽, ἐπειδὰν ἐμβάλῃς ἅπαξ,

Διόνυσος
τίνων;

Χάρων

βατράχων κύκνων θαυμαστά.

Διόνυσος
κατακέλευε δή.

Χάρων

ὦ ὀπὸπ ὦ ὀπόπ.

Βάτραχοι

βρεκεκεκὲξ κοὰξ κοάξ,
βρεκεκεκὲξ κοὰξ κοάξ. [210]
λιμναῖα κρηνῶν τέκνα,
ξύναυλον ὕμνων βοὰν
φθεγξώμεθ᾽, εὔγηρυν ἐμὰν ἀοιδάν,
κοὰξ κοάξ,
ἣν ἀμφὶ Νυσήιον [215]
Διὸς Διόνυσον ἐν
Λίμναισιν ἰαχήσαμεν,
ἡνίχ᾽ ὁ κραιπαλόκωμος
τοῖς ἱεροῖσι Χύτροισι
χωρεῖ κατ᾽ ἐμὸν τέμενος λαῶν ὄχλος.
βρεκεκεκὲξ κοὰξ κοάξ. [220]

Διόνυσος

ἐγὼ δέ γ᾽ ἀλγεῖν ἄρχομαι
τὸν ὄρρον ὦ κοὰξ κοάξ:
ὑμῖν δ᾽ ἴσως οὐδὲν μέλει.

Βάτραχοι

βρεκεκεκὲξ κοὰξ κοάξ. [225]

Διόνυσος

ἀλλ᾽ ἐξόλοισθ᾽ αὐτῷ κοάξ:
οὐδὲν γάρ ἐστ᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἢ κοάξ.

Βάτραχοι

εἰκότως γ᾽ ὦ πολλὰ πράττων.
ἐμὲ γὰρ ἔστερξαν εὔλυροί τε Μοῦσαι
καὶ κεροβάτας Πὰν ὁ καλαμόφθογγα παίζων: [230]
προσεπιτέρπεται δ᾽ ὁ φορμικτὰς Ἀπόλλων,
ἕνεκα δόνακος, ὃν ὑπολύριον
ἔνυδρον ἐν λίμναις τρέφω.
βρεκεκεκὲξ κοάξ κοάξ. [235]

Διόνυσος

ἐγὼ δὲ φλυκταίνας γ᾽ ἔχω,
χὠ πρωκτὸς ἰδίει πάλαι,
κᾆτ᾽ αὐτίκ᾽ ἐκκύψας ἐρεῖ—

Βάτραχοι

βρεκεκεκὲξ κοὰξ κοάξ.

Διόνυσος

ἀλλ᾽ ὦ φιλῳδὸν γένος [240]
παύσασθε.


Dionysos:
And how can I,
untried, unused to the sea - who wasn't at Salamis! -
to row in the way you tell me to?

Kharon:
Easily: your body will hear
best, then you'll strike once and for all.

Dionysos:
Hear whom?

Kharon:
Marvellous swan-singing frogs.

Dionysos:
Then give the command.

Kharon:
O-opop! O-opop!

Frogs:
Brekekekex koax koax!
Brekekekex koax koax!
We spawn of the marshy mere
singing our cries in harmony
we give voice to our sweet-sounding song
(Koax! Koax!)
which near Nysa
for Dionysos son of Zeus
in the marshy pools we cried,
then when with wandering revelry
in the Khutros rites
the crowd of men journeyed to our temenos
Brekekekex koax koax!

Dionysos:
I'm really starting to suffer
my arse, koax koax!
For you it's about to be nothing eqaully. [?]
[For you it means equally nothing.]

Frogs:
Brekekekex koax koax!

Dionysos:
But you'll destroy me with it, koax!
There's nothing but only koax!

Frogs:
Naturally now, O muchly journeying one!
For both the lyre-skilled Muses love us,
and horny-hoofed Pan the reed-playing jester.
And Apollo the lyre-player rejoices in us too
on account of the reed-stalk which
we grow for the well-watered lyre-reed in lakes.
Brekekekex koax koax!

Dionysos:
I'll have such blisters,
and my arse has been sweating for ages,
in a minute, peeping out, it'll ask -

Frogs:
Brekekekex koax koax!

Dionysos:
O song-loving race,
desist!

---

And shortly, I'm off to get my arse kicked.

Διόνυσος
νὴ Δία καὶ σύ γε
ὑγίαινε. σὺ δὲ τὰ στρώματ᾽ αὖθις λάμβανε. [165]

Ξανθίας

πρὶν καὶ καταθέσθαι;

Διόνυσος
καὶ ταχέως μέντοι πάνυ.

Ξανθίας

μὴ δῆθ᾽, ἱκετεύω σ᾽, ἀλλὰ μίσθωσαί τινα
τῶν ἐκφερομένων, ὅστις ἐπὶ τοῦτ᾽ ἔρχεται.

Διόνυσος

ἐὰν δὲ μὴ εὕρω;

Ξανθίας
τότε μ᾽ ἄγειν.

Διόνυσος
καλῶς λέγεις.
καὶ γάρ τιν᾽ ἐκφέρουσι τουτονὶ νεκρόν, [170]
οὗτος, σὲ λέγω μέντοι, σὲ τὸν τεθνηκότα:
ἄνθρωπε βούλει σκευάρι᾽ εἰς Ἅιδου φέρειν;

Νέκρος

πόσ᾽ ἄττα;

Διόνυσος
ταυτί.

Νέκρος
δύο δραχμὰς μισθὸν τελεῖς;

Διόνυσος

μὰ Δί᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἔλαττον.

Νέκρος
ὑπάγεθ᾽ ὑμεῖς τῆς ὁδοῦ.

Διόνυσος

ἀνάμεινον ὦ δαιμόνι᾽, ἐὰν ξυμβῶ τί σοι. [175]

Νέκρος

εἰ μὴ καταθήσεις δύο δραχμάς, μὴ διαλέγου.

Διόνυσος

λάβ᾽ ἐννέ᾽ ὀβολούς.

Νέκρος
ἀναβιοίην νυν πάλιν.

Ξανθίας

ὡς σεμνὸς ὁ κατάρατος: οὐκ οἰμώξεται;
ἐγὼ βαδιοῦμαι.

Διόνυσος
χρηστὸς εἶ καὶ γεννάδας.
χωρῶμεν ἐπὶ τὸ πλοῖον. [180]

Χάρων
ὠὸπ παραβαλοῦ.

Ξανθίας

τουτὶ τί ἔστι;

Διόνυσος
τοῦτο; λίμνη νὴ Δία
αὕτη 'στὶν ἣν ἔφραζε, καὶ πλοῖόν γ᾽ ὁρῶ.

Ξανθίας

νὴ τὸν Ποσειδῶ κἄστι γ᾽ ὁ Χάρων οὑτοσί.

Διόνυσος

χαῖρ᾽ ὦ Χάρων, χαῖρ᾽ ὦ Χάρων, χαῖρ᾽ ὦ Χάρων.


Dionysos:
By Zeus you also
be healthy. And you, take up the baggage again.

Xanthias:
Before it's even been put down?

Dionysos:
And very quickly now indeed!

Xanthias:
Don't let there be need, I beseech you, but hire one of those being carried down [one of the dead borne down], who comes this way.

Dionysos:
And if I don't find one?

Xanthias:
Then I'm to bring them.

Dionysos:
You speak well.
For already they're carrying out some corpse here.
You there! Right, I'm talking to you, you, the dead guy.
My good fellow, do you want to carry a little bag into Hades?

Corpse:
What, how much?

Dionysos:
This one, yes.

Corpse:
Two drachmas you'll pay in wages.

Dionysos:
By Zeus, less!

Corpse:
You, carry me on along the road.

Dionysos:
Wait, O spirits! If I come to some arrangement with you.

Corpse:
If you don't lay down two drachmas, no discussion. [no deal]

Dionysos:
Take nine obols.

Corpse:
Now I'd come back to life!

Xanthias:
How accursed proud! I shan't lament him.
I'll go slowly on.

Dionysos:
Honest you are and noble.
Let's go on to the boat.

Kharon:
O-op! Come alongside.

Xanthias:
What's this?

Dionysos:
This? A lake, by Zeus.
It is the one which he pointed out, and I see the boat.

Xanthias:
By Poseidon! It's Kharon!

Dionysos:
Hey, Kharon! Hey, Kharon! Hey, Kharon!