The Persians
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THE PERSIANS Adapted by Heiner Müller from a translation by Peter Witzmann English translation by Thomas Freeland Chorus Messenger Atossa Shade Of Darius Xerxes SCene: the Persian ROYAL PALACE at SUsa Chorus: The Persians, gone Into the land of Hellas, named us trusted And of their richly furnished and gold-laden Estates guardians, in accord with our age By Lord Xerxes himself, the King Descended of Darius, chosen to watch Over the land. About the return of the King And of the gold-laden army With a fatal premonition The mind too much torments itself. For the total might Of our Asian-born strength Is gone forth. After the young Manhood he calls And neither messenger nor rider Comes to the city of the Persians. And they have left Susa and Agbatana And the ancient precincts of Kission Have they left Some on horseback, others On ships, on foot also on the march The warriors forming columns, Such as Amistres and also Artaphrenes And Megabates and Astapes, © 2009 Heiner Müller PAJ 92 (2009), pp. 85–110. 85 Downloaded from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/pajj.2009.31.2.85 by guest on 30 September 2021 Marshals of the Persian Kings, the great King’s servants They hasten forth, overseers of great armies Mighty with bow and on their horses Terrible to behold, dreadful in battle In the enduring renown of their soul. And Artembares, a valiant horseman And Masistres And the mighty archer, noble Imaios And Pharandakes And the horse-driver Sosthames. Others too has the great and many-feeding Nile sent: Susiskanes Pegaston, Egypt-born And the one who rules over the holy place, Memphis The great Arsames, and he who governs Ancient Thebes, Ariomardos And the swamp-dwelling oarsmen of ships Forceful and hordes innumerable And the soft-living Lydian throngs Follow, as far as they encompass the mainland-dwelling People, whom Metrogathes And Arkteus led forth, the noble one, Kings, commanders With two- and three-shafted harness A terrible sight to see. And the gold-wealthy Sardes, moving On many wagons. The inhabitants of holy Tmolos stand ready To throw the yoke of slavery upon Hellas Mardon, Tharybdis, tireless in spear-combat. And the spear-throwing Mysians. And Babylon Rich in gold, a motley column She sends as a flock, moving by ship And trusting in bow-tensing Courage. The sword-bearing people of all Asia follow Among the masterful armies of the King. Such a flower of the land of Persia Follows the men. All around the entire Asian earth Nourished them and with a consuming Longing sighs after them. Parents and wives, counting the days Nurse their fears on the dragging time. 86 PAJ 92 Downloaded from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/pajj.2009.31.2.85 by guest on 30 September 2021 First Choral Strophe: The Persians have got there already, The King’s army Has crossed to the neighboring land On rafts bound together Crossing the Hellespont, the many-nailed way Thrown like a yoke over the neck of the sea. The heedless master of teeming Asia Drives his divine hordes of men Over all the land from the two sides, trusting In his stern commanders by sea and by land, Of a golden race a godlike man. Second Choral Strophe: Darkly with his eyes darting A murderous dragon’s glance Many-handed and with many ships Driving the Syrian chariots He leads on against the spear-famed Men and Ares, mighty with his bow. No one is proven so steadfast To withstand such a flood of men With firm control to check The irresistible swell of the sea. For the Persian army is invincible And its people warlike at heart. Third Choral Strophe: Cunning deception of God— What mortal man can escape it? With quick foot in light spring? Waving in friendship at first He leads the mortal into blindness Out of which no mortal can escape or flee. For, ordained by God, Fate Ruled from time immemorial, decreed to the Persians Wars, tower-destroying And clashes of charioteers And cities’ destruction. They learned to endure the broad-pathed sea Gray-foaming by violent gusts, the salty tide, Trusting to their slenderly made Cables and constructs, Ferrying over their people. Fourth Choral Strophe: My black-robed heart Rends itself in fear over this Oa That of the Persian army The city should hear this The great city Susa emptied of men And the city of the Kissians MÜLLER / The Persians 87 Downloaded from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/pajj.2009.31.2.85 by guest on 30 September 2021 Will resound, echoing Oa Crying this word the woman-packed throng tear Their fine linen robes. For the men Driving horses, massed afoot A swarm of Bees have left with the leader of the army crossing Where, connected from both sides The sea-shore is now part of both lands. With the men’s departure, the beds fill themselves With tears, the Persian women, each softly lamenting And longing with love for her man The warrior, the wild man, the bedmate Sent forth She stays behind alone. You, Persians, coming Into the house, ancient and worthy Let us sit and take thought Careful and deep counsel, for It must be known how it fares with Xerxes, the King Descended from Darius Whether the might of the bow has the victory Or the power of the spear-headed lance has conquered. But she, like the eyes of the gods A light moving itself the mother of the King My Queen, I Cast myself down And with words of greeting All address you. O Lady of the deep-girdled Persian women, highest Mother of Xerxes, white-haired, hear our greeting, wife of Darius Bedmate of the Persians’ God, mother also of a god If the ancient spirit of fortune has not forsaken the army. Atossa: Here have I come, leaving The gilded house, Darius’s and my Shared bed-chamber. And worry Tears my heart. To you I speak The word, never fearing for myself, friends. Rather that the great army, scattering dust upon the earth, May upset with its foot The riches, amassed by Darius, not without one of the gods. Unspeakable, twofold, the dread That in the men’s absence their mass of wealth should not be honored Nor does the light Shine on the dispossessed, however great their power. 88 PAJ 92 Downloaded from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/pajj.2009.31.2.85 by guest on 30 September 2021 Irreproachable is wealth, but for the eye there is fear. But the eye of the house is, I believe, the presence of the house’s lord. Since this is so, counselors You should be to me, Persians, faithful of old. Chorus: Know that you, Queen of this land, need not Speak twice the word or the deed That lies within our power. For well-disposed Are we to be your advisors. Atossa: With many nightly dreams Have I been visited, since my son took the army Off to the Ionian land to despoil it. But never so clearly did I see it As the night before. I will tell it to you. Two women appeared to me, beautifully dressed One overdressed in Persian finery But the other in Doric, tread before my face Greater in size than people today Both flawless in beauty And sisters of the same race, as fatherland One dwelt in Hellas By allotment, the other In the land of the Barbarians. The two had a quarrel, as it appeared to me, With one another. My son, hearing of it Drew them back, and calmed them, before his chariot He harnessed them, and laid the yoke upon their necks, And the one drew herself up powerfully In the reins with an obedient mouth But the other reared up and with her hands Shredded the chariot’s harness and tore it off violently Without bridle, and she smashed the yoke. This felled my son, and his father went to him Darius, bewailing him. Seeing this, he, Xerxes, rent his robe about his body. And even that did I see of a night, I say. As I got up and with my hands bestirred The sweet-flowing spring, with sacrifice in hand I went to the altar, to appease The calamity-averting gods I saw an eagle fly to the hearth Of Phoebus. Speechless with fear I stood, friends. Behind it, though, I saw a hawk in flight Rush upon it with beating wings And with its talons slash its head. But the eagle could do nothing but cower and submit its body. Such an image of horror, for me to see MÜLLER / The Persians 89 Downloaded from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/pajj.2009.31.2.85 by guest on 30 September 2021 For you to hear. For know well, my son If it fares well with him, will be a man much admired If it goes ill with him he need make no account of himself to the city If rescued he will nonetheless be ruler of the land. Chorus: We have no wish, Mother, to frighten you overmuch with our words, Nor to encourage you. Approach the gods with propitiations If you have seen something evil, pray that they will avert these things But effect utterly the good For you and your children The city and all your friends. Second, it is necessary To pour libations upon the earth and the departed. Gently pray that your husband Darius, whom you say you saw in the night, Send you and your child good fortune out of the earth into the light And hold back its opposite, concealed in the earth’s darkness.