source ⟩ hypertext ⟩ public ⟩ hymns ⟩ couretes ⟩ en.pug

//- meta
	slug: "hymns/couretes"
	lang: en
	title: "Orphic Hymn to the Couretes"
	pageCreated: "2026-08-22"

extends ../../../views/hymns/hymnsheet.pug

block navbar
	ul
		li.nav-arrow.nav-arrow-left: a(href="/hymns/titans") #[span.dingbat ☙] #[b(lang="grc") Τιτανων] #[i To the Titans]
		li.nav-current ΛΗʹ · XXXVIII
		li.nav-arrow.nav-arrow-right: a(href="/hymns/corybas") #[i To Corybas] #[b(lang="grc") Κορυβαντος] #[span.dingbat ❧]

block ancient-pic
	img(src="/hymns/thumbnails/couretes-ancient.jpg" alt="Ancient relief of the Couretes")

block modern-pic
	img(src="/hymns/thumbnails/couretes-modern.jpg" alt="Modern painting of the Couretes")

block greek
	h1 Κουρήτων
	div.offering Θυμίαμα λίβανον
	p.hymn-greek
		:format-hymn
			Χαλκόκροτοι Κουρῆτες, Ἀρήια τεύχε’ ἔχοντες,
			οὐράνιοι χθόνιοί τε καὶ εἰνάλιοι, πολύολβοι,
			ζωιογόνοι πνοιαί, κόσμου σωτῆρες ἀγαυοί,
			οἵτε Σαμοθρῄκην, ἱερὴν χθόνα, ναιετάοντες
			κινδύνους θνητῶν ἀπερύκετε ποντοπλανήτων·
			Ὑμεῖς καὶ τελετὴν πρῶτοι μερόπεσσιν ἔθεσθε,
			ἀθάνατοι Κουρῆτες, Ἀρήια τεύχε’ ἔχοντες·
			νωμᾶτ’ Ὠκεανόν, νωμᾶθ’ ἅλα δένδρεά θ' αὕτως·
			ἐρχόμενοι γαῖαν κοναβίζετε ποσσὶν ἐλαφροῖς,
			μαρμαίροντες ὅπλοις· πτήσσουσι δὲ θῆρες ἅπαντες
			ὁρμώντων, θόρυβος δὲ βοή τ’ εἰς οὐρανὸν ἵκει,
			εἱλιγμοῖς τε ποδῶν κονίη νεφέλας ἀφικάνει
			ἐρχομένων· τότε δή ῥα καὶ ἄνθεα πάντα τέθηλε.
			Δαίμονες ἀθάνατοι, τροφέες καὶ αὖτ’ ὀλετῆρες,
			ἡνίκ’ ἂν ὁρμαίνητε χολούμενοι ἀνθρώποισιν
			ὀλλύντες βίοτον καὶ κτήματα ἠδὲ καὶ αὐτοὺς
			πιμπλάντες’ στοναχεῖ δὲ μέγας πόντος βαθυδίνης,
			δένδρη δ’ ὑψικάρην’ ἐκ ῥιζῶν ἐς χθόνα πίπτει,
			ἠχὼ δ' οὐρανίη κελαδεῖ ῥοιζήμασι φύλλων.
			Κουρῆτες Κορύβαντες, ἀνάκτορες εὐδύνατοί τε
			ἐν Σαμοθρῃκῃ ἄνακτες, ὁμοῦ Ζηνὸς κόροι αὐτοί,
			πνοιαὶ ἀέναοι, ψυχοτρόφοι, ἀεροειδεῖς,
			οἵτε καὶ οὐράνιοι δίδυμοι κλήιζεσθ’ ἐν Ὀλύμπῳ,
			εὔπνοοι, εὔδιοι, σωτήριοι ἠδὲ προσηνεῖς·
			ὡροτρόφοι, φερέκαρποι ἐπιπνείοιτε ἄνακτες.

block english
	h1 To þe Couretes#[+sn(1)]
	div.offering The fumigation from frankincense
	p.hymn-english Brass-beating Salians, ministers of Mars,#[br]who guard His arms the instruments of wars#[br]whose blessed frames, heav’n, earth, and sea compose,#[br]and from whose breath all animals arose:#[br]who dwell in Samothracia’s sacred ground,#[br]defending mortals thro’ the sea profound.#[br]Deathless #[span.theonym(greek="Couretes") Curetes], by Your pow’r alone,#[br]initial rites to men at first were shewn:#[br]who shake old Ocean thund’ring to the sky,#[br]and stubborn oaks with branches waving high.#[br]’Tis Yours in glittering arms the earth to beat,#[br]with lightly-leaping, rapid, sounding feet;#[br]then every beast the noise terrific flies,#[br]and the loud tumult wanders thro’ the skies:#[br]the dust Your feet excites with matchless force,#[br]flies to the clouds amidst their whirling course;#[br]and ev’ry flower of variegated hue,#[br]grows in the dancing motion form’d by You.#[br]Immortal Dæmons, to Your pow’rs consign’d#[br]the talk to nourish, and destroy mankind.#[br]When rushing furious with loud tumult dire,#[br]o’erwhelm’d, they perish in Your dreadful ire;#[br]and live replenish’d with the balmy air,#[br]the food of life, committed to Your care.#[br]When shook by You, the seas, with wild uproar,#[br]wide-spreading, and profoundly whirling, roar:#[br]the concave heav’ns, with Echo’s voice resound,#[br]when leaves with ruffling noise bestrew the ground.#[br]#[span.theonym(greek="Couretes") Curetes], Corybantes, ruling kings,#[br]whose praise the land of Samothracia sings:#[br]from #[span.theonym(greek="Zeus") Jove] descended; whose immortal breath#[br]sustains the soul, and wafts her back from death;#[br]aerial-form’d, much-fam’d, in heav’n Ye shine#[br]two-fold, in heav’n all-lucid and divine:#[br]blowing, serene, from whom abundance springs,#[br]nurses of seasons, fruit-producing kings.
	+sn(1)
		p The #[span.theonym(greek="Couretes") Curetes] are plainly celebrated in this Hymn as the winds; the reason of which is as follows. #[span.theonym(greek="Cronos") Saturn], who according to the Orphic theology as related by Proclus, is allotted a supercelestial and intellectual essence produced #[span.theonym(greek="Zeus") Jupiter] from Rhea. And #[span.theonym(greek="Zeus") Jupiter], or the demiurgus of the universe, silently emerged into light from the three principles, Æther, Chaos, and #[span.theonym(greek="Nyx") Night] conflicting together, and mutually concurring with, and separating from each other.
		p Now these three principles are interpreted by #[a.cite(href="https://www.loebclassics.com/display/emperor_julian-oration_v_hymn_mother_gods/1913/pb_LCL013.443.xml" title="Julian, Oration V") Julian, Orat. v.] as the Corybantes: and hence with perfect agreement to the Orphic symbolical theology, the mutual conflict of these principles, is represented by the impetuous Fury of the winds.