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第5章 Zeus and His Wife

宙斯和他的妻子

Hera(Juno),known to us chiefly as the wife of Zeus,was a daughter of Cronus and Rhea.Born on the islands of Samos or,some say,at Argos,she was brought up in Arcadia by Temenus,son of Pelasgus.The Seasons were her nurses.After banishing their father Cronus,Hera"s twinbrother Zeus sought her out at Gnossus in Crete or,some say,on Mount Thornax(now called Cuckoo Mountain)in Argolis,where he courted her,at first unsuccessfully.She took pity on him only when he adopted (adopted adj.被收养的,被采用的)the disguise of a bedraggled (bedraggled adj.全身泥污的,湿透的,荒废的)cuckoo,and tenderly warmed him in her bosom.There he at once resumed his true shape and ravished (ravish v.强夺)her,so that she was shamed into marrying him.

提到赫拉(朱诺),我们大抵都知道她是宙斯的妻子;她原来是克洛诺斯和瑞亚的女儿。她出生于萨摩斯群岛,也有人说是在阿尔戈斯,但她是由珀拉斯戈斯的儿子特米诺斯在阿卡迪亚抚养长大的。季节女神是她的保姆。赫拉的孪生兄弟宙斯在驱逐了父亲克洛诺斯以后到克里特的诺塞斯(一说是阿尔戈利斯的索那克斯山,现称杜鹃山)找到了她,并向她求爱,但最初并未成功。后来宙斯隐身为一只羽毛散乱的杜鹃鸟,赫拉这才可怜他,温柔疼护地把他放在怀里取暖。宙斯立刻现出原形并占有了她。她在羞惭无奈下便嫁给了他。

Hera and Zeus spent their wedding night on Samos,and it lasted three hundred years.Hera bathes regularly in the spring of Canathus,near Argos,and thus renews her virginity(virginity n.处女,处女性,童贞,未婚女子的独身生活)。

赫拉和宙斯的新婚之夜是在萨摩斯度过的,这一夜就是人间的三百年。赫拉定期在阿尔戈斯附近的卡那萨斯泉沐浴从而重获贞洁。

Zeus and Hera bickered constantly.Vexed by his infidelities,she often humiliated him by her scheming ways.Zeus never fully trusted Hera,and she knew that if offended beyond a certain point he would flog or even hurl a thunderbolt at her.She therefore resorted to ruthless (ruthless adj.无情的,残忍的)intrigue,as in the matter of Heracles"s birth;and sometimes borrowed Aphrodite"s girdle,to excite his passion and thus weaken his will.

宙斯和赫拉总是免不了吵架。赫拉对宙斯拈花惹草的行径十分生气,经常千方百计地设下圈套羞辱他。宙斯从没有真心实意地信任赫拉。而赫拉也知道,如果她冒犯他过了一定的限度,他会打她甚至用霹雳击她的。因此,她采取冷酷的计谋,例如在生赫拉克勒斯的事情上。有时,她借用阿佛洛狄特的腰带来勾起他的情欲,从而削弱他的意态。

A time came when Zeus"s pride and petulance( petulance n.闹气,性急)became so intolerable that Hera,Poseidon,Apollo,and all the other Olympian,except Hestia,surrounded him suddenly as he lay asleep on his couch and bound him with rawhide (rawhide n.生牛皮,<美>生牛皮鞭vt.用生牛皮鞭抽打adj.生牛皮的)thongs,knotted into a hundred knots,so that he could not move.He threatened them with instant death,but they had placed his thunderbolt out of reach and laughed insultingly at him.

有一次,宙斯的傲气和喜怒无常的脾气实在太叫人难以忍受。于是赫拉、波塞冬、阿波罗和除了赫斯提外所有的奥林匹斯神祗趁宙斯躺在床上熟睡之际一拥而上,用生牛皮绳把他捆绑起来并打上一百个绳结,使他动弹不得。宙斯威胁说要把他们立即处死,但他们早把霹雳放在他触手莫及的地方,所以对他的威胁报以满带嘲弄的大笑。

While they were celebrating their victory,and jealously discussing who was to be his successor,Thetis the Nereid,foreseeing a civil war on Olympus,hurried in search of the hundredhanded Briareus,who swiftly untied the thongs,using every hand at once,and released his master.Because it was Hera who had led the conspiracy (conspiracy n.共谋,阴谋)against him,Zeus hung her up from the sky with a gold bracelet about either wrist and an anvil fastened to either ankle.The other deities were vexed beyond words,but dared attempt no rescue for all her piteous(piteous adj.哀怨的,可怜的)cries.In the end Zeus undertook to free her if they swore never more to rebel against him;and this each in turn grudgingly did.Zeus punished Poseidon and Apollo by sending them as bondservants to King Laomedon,for whom they built the city of Troy;but he pardoned the others as having acted under duress (duress n.强迫,监禁)。

当他们欢庆胜利并且怀着猜忌之心讨论继承宙斯王位的人选时,海上女神特提斯看到奥林匹斯山将爆发一场内战,便急匆匆把百臂巨人布里亚柔斯找来。这位巨人把一百只手都同时用上了,迅速解开绳结给主神以自由。因为是赫拉领导了这场阴谋活动,宙斯便用金手镯铐住她的手腕,把她吊在空中,脚踝上还绑上铁钻。别的神等气恼万分,但不敢拯救赫拉,尽管她哭喊得十分凄惨。后来宙斯答应释放她,条件是大家要起誓永不再造反。诸神们虽然内心很不情愿,但还是个个作了保证。宙斯罚波塞冬和阿波罗去给拉俄墨冬国王当奴隶,他们为国王建造了特洛伊城。但宙斯宽恕了其余的神等,因为他们只不过是胁从。