[5,10] ὅθεν οἶμαι θῖνές τε μεγάλαι καὶ χώματα ἐν αὐτῷ γίγνονται τῆς ψάμμου, καθάπερ ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ συμβαίνει τὸ τοιοῦτον ἀπὸ πνευμάτων, ἐκεῖ μᾶλλον ὑπὸ τοῦ κλύδωνος. ἔστι δὲ καὶ τὰ κύκλῳ τοιαῦτα σχεδόν, ἐρημία καὶ θῖνες. (5,11) ἀλλὰ γὰρ δὴ τούς τε ναυαγοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς θαλάττης ἐπανιόντας καὶ εἴ τινας τῶν Λιβύων κατ´ ἀνάγκην διεξιόντας ἢ πλανωμένους ἐπιφαινόμενα ἥρπαζε τὰ θηρία. (5,12) ἡ δὲ φύσις αὐτῶν τοῦ σώματος καὶ ἡ ἰδέα τοιάδε· τὸ μὲν πρόσωπον γυναικεῖον εὐειδοῦς γυναικός, μαστοὶ δὲ καὶ στήθη πολύ τι κάλλιστα καὶ τράχηλος, ὁποῖα οὔτε παρθένου {θνητῆς} γένοιτ´ ἂν οὔτε νύμφης ἀκμαζούσης οὔτε πλάττων ἢ γράφων οὐδεὶς δυνήσεται ἀπεικάσαι· τὸ δὲ χρῶμα λαμπρότατον, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ὀμμάτων φιλοφροσύνη καὶ ἵμερος ταῖς ψυχαῖς ἐνέπιπτεν, ὁπότε προσίδοι τις· (5,13) τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν σῶμα σκληρόν τε καὶ ἄρρηκτον φολίσι, καὶ τὸ κάτω πᾶν ὄφις· ὑστάτη δὲ κεφαλὴ τοῦ ὄφεως μάλα ἀναιδής. τὰ δὲ θηρία ταῦτα πτερωτὰ μὲν οὐ λέγεται γενέσθαι, καθάπερ αἱ σφίγγες, {οὐδὲ διαλέγεσθαι, ὡς ἐκεῖναι, οὐδὲ ἄλλην ἱέναι φωνήν, (5,14) ἀλλὰ συρίττειν μόνον, ὥσπερ οἱ δράκοντες, ὀξύτατα·} τῶν δὲ πεζῶν ἁπάντων τάχιστα, ὡς μηδένα ἄν ποτε ἐκφυγεῖν αὐτά· καὶ τῶν μὲν ἄλλων ἀλκῇ κρατεῖν, ἀνθρώπων δὲ ἀπάτῃ, παραφαίνοντα τὰ στήθη καὶ τοὺς μαστούς, καὶ ἅμα προσβλέποντα καταγοητεύειν τε καὶ ἔρωτα ἐμβάλλειν δεινὸν τῆς ὁμιλίας· καὶ τοὺς μὲν προσιέναι καθάπερ γυναιξί, τὰ δὲ μένειν ἀτρεμοῦντα καὶ κάτω πολλάκις βλέποντα, (5,15) μιμούμενα γυναῖκα κοσμίαν, γενόμενον δ´ ἐγγὺς συναρπάζειν· ἔχειν γὰρ δὴ καὶ χεῖρας θηριώδεις, ἃς ὑποκρύπτειν τέως. ὁ μὲν οὖν ὄφις εὐθὺς δακὼν ἀπέκτεινεν ἀπὸ τοῦ ἰοῦ· τὸν δὲ νεκρὸν κατεσθίουσιν ἅμα τε ὁ ὄφις καὶ τὸ ἄλλο θηρίον. (5,16) ὅδε μὲν δὴ ὁ μῦθος, οὐ παιδίῳ πλασθείς, ὡς ἂν ἧττον ᾖ θρασὺ καὶ ἀκόλαστον, ἀλλὰ τοῖς μείζω καὶ τελειοτέραν ἀφροσύνην ἔχουσιν, ὑφ´ ἡμῶν δεῦρο μετενεχθεὶς τάχ´ ἂν ἱκανῶς ἐπιδεῖξαι δύναιτο ὁποῖόν ἐστι τὸ τῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν γένος, ὅτι ἄλογοι οὖσαι καὶ θηριώδεις, ἔπειτα ἡδονήν τινα παραδεικνύουσαι, προσαγόμεναι τοὺς ἀνοήτους ἀπάτῃ καὶ γοητείᾳ, διαφθείρουσιν οἴκτιστα καὶ ἐλεεινότατα. (5,17) ἃ χρὴ δεδιέναι πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν ἔχοντας, ὥσπερ ἐκεῖνα τοὺς παῖδας ὁπόταν παρὰ καιρὸν τροφῆς ἢ παιδιᾶς ἢ ἄλλου τινὸς ὀρέγωνται, καὶ ἡμᾶς, ὁπόταν ἢ τρυφῆς ἢ χρημάτων ἢ ἀφροδισίων ἢ δόξης ἢ ἄλλης τινὸς ἡδονῆς ἐρῶμεν, μήποτε προσιόντες ταῖς πανούργοις ταύταις συναρπασθῶμεν ὑπ´ αὐτῶν ἐπ´ ὀλέθρῳ καὶ διαφθορᾷ πασῶν αἰσχίστῃ. (5,18) καὶ γάρ τοι καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν τοῦ μύθου ταύτῃ τρέπειν οὐ χαλεπὸν ἀνδρὶ ἀδολέσχῃ καὶ πλείω σχεδὸν ἢ ἔδει σχολὴν ἄγοντι. προστιθέασι γὰρ ὡς δὴ βασιλεύς τις τῶν Λιβύων ἐπεχείρησεν ἀνελεῖν τόδε τὸ φῦλον τῶν θηρίων, ἀγανακτῶν τῇ διαφθορᾷ τοῦ λαοῦ. τυγχάνειν δὲ αὐτῶν πολλὰς αὐτοῦ κατῳκισμένας, ὑπὲρ τὴν Σύρτιν δρυμὸν καταλαβούσας πυκνόν τε καὶ ἄγριον. (5,19) συναγαγόντα δὴ πλῆθος στρατοῦ πολύ εἶναι γὰρ οὐκ ἀφανεῖς τοῖς τε σύρμασι τῶν ὄφεων καὶ ὀσμῆς αὐτόθεν δεινῆς φερομένης· οὕτω περισχόντα πανταχόθεν πῦρ ἐμβαλεῖν, καὶ τὰς μὲν ἀποληφθείσας ἀπολέσθαι μετὰ τῶν σκύμνων, τοὺς δὲ Λίβυας φεύγειν κατὰ τάχος ἀπὸ τοῦ χωρίου, μήτε νύκτα μήτε ἡμέραν ἀναπαυομένους, μέχρι νομίζοντες πολὺ προειληφέναι κατέζευξαν παρὰ ποταμόν τινα.

[5,10] 10 This, I presume, explains the existence there of the great sand-bars and dunes, which remind one of the similar condition created inland by the winds, though here, of course, it is due to the surf. The surrounding country is very much the same — a lonely stretch (p241) of sandy dunes. 11 However that may be, if shipwrecked mariners came inland or any Libyans were compelled to pass through or lost their way, the beasts would make their appearance and seize them. 12 The general character and appearance of their body were as follow: the face was that of a woman, a brief woman. The breast and bosom, and the neck, too, were extremely beautiful, the like of which no mortal maid or bride in the bloom of youth could claim, nor sculptor or painter will ever be able to reproduce. The complexion was of dazzling brightness, the glance of the eyes aroused affection and yearning in the souls of all that beheld. 13 The rest of the body was hard and protected by scales, and all the lower part was snake, ending in the snake's baleful head. Now the story does not say that these animals were winged like the sphinxes — nor that they, like them, spoke or made any sound whatever except a hissing noise such as dragons make, very shrill — but that they were the swiftest of all land creatures, so that no one could ever escape them. 14 And while they overcame other creatures by force, they used guile with man, giving them a glimpse of their bosom and breasts and at the same time they infatuated their victims by fixing their eyes upon them, and filled them with a passionate desire for intercourse. Then the men would approach them as they might women, while they on their part stood quite motionless, often dropping their eyes in the manner of a decorous woman. 15 But as soon as a man came within reach they seized him in their grasp; for they had clawlike hands too, which they had kept concealed at first. Then the serpent would promptly sting and kill (p243) him with his poison; and the dead body was devoured by the serpent and the rest of the beast together. 16 Now this myth, which has not been invented for a child's benefit to make it less rash and ungovernable, but for those whose folly is greater and more complete, may perhaps, now that we have brought it into this context, be able to show adequately the character of the passions, that they are irrational and brutish and that, by holding out the enticement of some pleasure, they win over the foolish by guile and witchery and bring them to a most sad and pitiable end. 17 These things we should always keep before our eyes to deter us — even as those terrifying images deter children when they want food or play or anything else unseasonably — whenever we are in love with luxury, or money, or sensual indulgence, or fame, or any other pleasure, lest, coming too near to these unscrupulous passions, we be seized by them for the most shameful destruction and ruin conceivable. 18 And, indeed, to interpret the rest of the myth in this way would not be a difficult task for a clever man who perhaps has more time at his disposal than he should have. For this is what they add to the myth. A certain king of Libya attempted to destroy this breed of animals, angered as he was at the destruction of his people. And he found that many of them had established themselves there, having taken possession of a dense wild wood beyond the Syrtis. 19 So he mustered a mighty host and found their dens. For they were not difficult to detect owing to the (p245) trails left by their serpents' tails and to the terrible stench that emanated from the dens. He thus surrounded them on all sides and hurled fire in upon them, so that, being cut off, they perished with their young. As for the Libyans, they fled with all haste from the region, resting neither night nor day, until, thinking they had gained a great start, they halted for rest beside a certain river.