Atlantis: The Antedeluvian World — Page 6
On one occasion, when he was drawing them on to speak of antiquity, he began to tell about the most ancient things in our part of the world--about Phoroneus, who is called 'the first,' and about Niobe; and, after the Deluge, to tell of the lives of Deucalion and Pyrrha; and he traced the genealogy of their descendants, and attempted to reckon how many years old were the events of which he was speaking, and to give the dates.
ある時、彼が人々に古代のことを語らせようとしていたとき、彼は私たちの世界のこの地域における最も古いことについて語り始めた――「最初の人」と呼ばれるポロネウスについて、またニオベについて。そして大洪水の後、デウカリオンとピュラの生涯について語り、彼らの子孫の系譜をたどり、自分が語っている出来事がどれほど昔のことであるかを計算し、年代を示そうとした。
Thereupon, one of the priests, who was of very great age; said, 'O Solon, Solon, you Hellenes are but children, and there is never an old man who is an Hellene.'
すると、非常に高齢の神官の一人が言った。「おお、ソロンよ、ソロンよ、あなたたちギリシア人はただの子供に過ぎず、老人と呼べるギリシア人など一人もいない。」
Solon, bearing this, said, 'What do you mean?'
ソロンはこれを聞いて、「それはどういう意味ですか？」と言った。
'I mean to say,' he replied, 'that in mind you are all young; there is no old opinion handed down among you by ancient tradition, nor any science which is hoary with age.
「つまり」と彼は答えた。「精神においてあなたたちは皆若い。古い伝統によって受け継がれた古来の意見もなく、年月を経た学問もない。
And I will tell you the reason of this: there have been, and there will be again, many destructions of mankind arising out of many causes.
その理由をお話しましょう。これまでも、そしてこれからも、様々な原因によって人類の多くの滅亡が起きてきたし、また起きるであろう。
There is a story which even you have preserved, that once upon a time Phaëthon, the son of Helios, having yoked the steeds in his father's chariot, because he was not able to drive them in the path of his father, burnt up all that was upon the earth, and was himself destroyed by a thunderbolt.
あなたたちの間にも伝わっている話がある。昔、ヘリオスの息子パエトンが父の戦車に馬をつないだが、父と同じ道筋に馬を御することができず、地上にあるすべてのものを焼き尽くし、自らも雷に打たれて滅んだという話だ。
Vocabulary
- ある
- aru — to exist; to be present or available
- 人々
- hitobito — people; persons; multiple individuals
- 古代
- kodai — ancient times; antiquity; ancient period
- こと
- koto — thing; matter; fact; occurrence or event
- 語ら
- katara — to speak; to tell; to narrate or recount
- せよ
- seyo — imperative form of 'suru'; do; perform
- とき
- toki — time; moment; occasion; when something occurs
- たち
- tachi — plural suffix for people; group members
- 世界
- sekai — world; the earth; global sphere
- この
- kono — this; these; referring to nearby things
- 地域
- chiiki — area; region; district; locality
- おける
- okeru — occurring in; taking place in; situated in
- 最も
- motto — most; the greatest degree of something
- 古い
- furui — old; ancient; aged or dated
- 語り
- katari — narrative; tale; story or account
- 始め
- hajime — beginning; start; commencement or origin
- 最初
- saisho — first; initial; beginning or earliest
- 呼ば
- yoba — to call; to name; to summon or address
- れる
- reru — passive voice marker; can be done
- また
- mata — again; also; and; furthermore or too
- そして
- soshite — and; and then; thereupon; next
- 生涯
- shougai — lifetime; life course; entire lifespan
- 彼ら
- karera — they; them; those people mentioned
- 子孫
- shison — descendants; offspring; posterity or heirs
- 系譜
- keifu — genealogy; pedigree; family tree or lineage
- たどり
- tadori — to trace; to follow; to pursue path
- 自分
- jibun — oneself; myself; yourself; own self
- 語っ
- katatt — to speak; to tell; to recount or narrate
- いる
- iru — to be; to exist; auxiliary for continuous action
- 出来事
- dekigoto — event; occurrence; incident; happening
- どれ
- dore — which one; which thing; what
- ほど
- hodo — extent; degree; about; approximately or so
- 計算
- keisan — calculation; computation; counting or reckoning
- 年代
- nendai — age; period; era; years or epoch
- 示そ
- shimeso — to show; to indicate; to demonstrate
- する
- suru — to do; to make; to perform or act
- 非常
- hijou —
- 高齢
- kourei — advanced age; old age; aged state
- 神官
- shinkan — priest; shrine official; religious functionary
- 一人
- hitori — one person; alone; single individual
- 言っ
- iitt — to say; to speak; to tell or state
- あなた
- anata — you; yourself; addressing second person
- ギリシア
- girisha — Greece; Greek; relating to Greece
- ただ
- tada — only; merely; just; simply or alone
- 子供
- kodomo — child; children; young person or offspring
- 過ぎ
- sugi — to pass; to exceed; to go beyond
- 老人
- roujin — old person; elderly person; aged individual
- 呼べる
- yoberu — can be called; can be named or addressed
- など
- nado — et cetera; and so on; such as
- ない
- nai — not; no; absence; negative auxiliary
- これ
- kore — this; this one; this thing here
- 聞い
- kikit — to hear; to listen; to ask or inquire
- それ
- sore — that; that one; that thing there
- どういう
- dooyuu — what kind of; what; how; what sort
- 意味
- imi — meaning; significance; sense or import
- です
- desu — is; to be; polite copula marker
- つまり
- tsumari — that is; in other words; in short
- 答え
- kotae — answer; reply; response or solution
- 精神
- seishin — spirit; mind; soul; mental state
- 若い
- wakai — young; youthful; of youth or youth
- 伝統
- dentou — tradition; convention; custom or heritage
- よっ
- yott — by; with; through; by means of
- 受け継が
- uketsuiga — to inherit; to succeed; to take over
- 古来
- kora — since ancient times; from antiquity
- 意見
- iken — opinion; view; idea or perspective
- なく
- naku — not; without; in absence of
- 年月
- nengetsu — years and months; passage of time
- 学問
- gakumon — learning; study; scholarship or academics
- その
- sono — that; that kind of; such or those
- 理由
- riyuu — reason; cause; grounds or motivation
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →