Hymn 31 To HeliosὝμνος πρὸς Ἥλιον
Hymnic Collection Anonymous Hymn 31 To Helios PDF
Hymn 31 To Helios is an anonymous Greek hymn preserved within a larger hymnic collection. The work opens with a traditional invocation to the Muse and a genealogical account of the sun god, born to Hyperion and Euryphaessa. It vividly depicts Helios’s daily journey across the sky in his golden chariot, his radiant appearance, and his illuminating power for gods and mortals alike. The hymn then transitions into a more philosophical celebration of Helios, reconceptualizing him not merely as a celestial divinity but as a supreme cosmic principle, a divine intellect, and the source of universal harmony and order. This latter portion employs abstract language indicative of strong Neoplatonic influence, blending traditional mythological imagery with concepts of intellectual illumination.
The hymn survives intact within an anonymous collection of Greek hymns. Its stylistic and thematic parallels with the Orphic Hymns and the hymns of Proclus suggest a probable late antique context, dating from approximately the third to the sixth centuries CE, a period marked by prominent syncretic solar theology. As an example of late antique hymnography, it reflects the theological trends that elevated Helios to a demiurgic role, notably under Emperor Julian. The work provides significant insight into the philosophical religious practices that blended traditional Greek polytheism with Platonic metaphysics, and its sophisticated conceptualization of the sun contributed to the broader transmission of Neoplatonic thought.
| unit_1 | Ἥλιον ὑμνεῖν αὖτε Διὸς τέκος ἄρχεο Μοῦσα Καλλιόπη φαέθοντα, τὸν Εὐρυφάεσσα βοῶπις γείνατο Γαίης παιδὶ καὶ Οὐρανοῦ ἀστερόεντος· γῆμε γὰρ Εὐρυφάεσσαν ἀγακλειτὴν Ὑπερίων αὐτοκασιγνήτην, ἥ οἱ τέκε κάλλιμα τέκνα Ἠῶ τε ῥοδόπηχυν ἐϋπλόκαμόν τε Σελήνην Ἠέλιόν τ’ ἀκάμαντ’ ἐπιείκελον ἀθανάτοισιν, ὃς φαίνει θνητοῖσι καὶ ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖσιν ἵπποις ἐμβεβαώς· σμερδνὸν δ’ ὅ γε δέρκεται ὄσσοις χρυσῆς ἐκ κόρυθος, λαμπραὶ δ’ ἀκτῖνες ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ αἰγλῆεν στίλβουσι, παρὰ κροτάφων τε παρειαὶ λαμπραὶ ἀπὸ κρατὸς χαρίεν κατέχουσι πρόσωπον τηλαυγές· καλὸν δὲ περὶ χροῒ λάμπεται ἔσθος λεπτουργὲς πνοιῇ ἀνέμων, ὑπὸ δ’ ἄρσενες ἵπποι ἔνθ’ ἄρ’ ὅ γε στήσας χρυσόζυγον ἅρμα καὶ ἵππους θεσπέσιος πέμπῃσι δι’ οὐρανοῦ ὠκεανὸν δέ. Χαῖρε ἄναξ, πρόφρων δὲ βίον θυμήρε’ ὄπαζε· ἐκ σέο δ’ ἀρξάμενος κλῄσω μερόπων γένος ἀνδρῶν |
| unit_2 | ἡμιθέων ὧν ἔργα θεοὶ θνητοῖσιν ἔδειξαν. |