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

//- meta
	slug: "hymns/proteus"
	lang: en
	title: "Orphic Hymn to Proteus"
	pageCreated: "2026-04-21"

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

block navbar
	ul
		li.nav-arrow.nav-arrow-left: a(href="/hymns/nereids") #[span.dingbat ☙] #[b(lang="grc") Νηρηιδων] #[i To the Nereids]
		li.nav-current ΚΕʹ · XXV
		li.nav-arrow.nav-arrow-right: a(href="/hymns/gaea") #[i To Gæa] #[b(lang="grc") Γης] #[span.dingbat ❧]

block ancient-pic
	img(src="/hymns/thumbnails/proteus-ancient.jpg" alt="Ancient relief of Proteus")

block modern-pic
	img(src="/hymns/thumbnails/proteus-modern.jpg" alt="Modern engraving of Proteus")

block greek
	h1 Πρωτέως
	div.offering Θυμίαμα στύρακα
	p.hymn-greek
		:format-hymn
			Πρωτέα κικλήσκω, πόντου κληῖδας ἔχοντα,
			πρωτογενῆ, πάσης φύσεως ἀρχὰς ὃς ἔφηνεν
			ὕλην ἀλλάσσων ἱερὴν ἰδέαις πολυμόρφοις,
			πάντιμος, πολύβουλος, ἐπιστάμενος τά τ’ ἐόντα
			ὅσσα τε πρόσθεν ἔην ὅσα τ’ ἔσσεται ὕστερον αὖτις·
			πάντα γὰρ αὐτὸς ἔχων μεταβάλλεται, οὐδέ τις ἄλλος
			ἀθανάτων, οἳ ἔχουσιν ἕδος ωιφόεντος Ὀλύμπου
			καὶ πόντον καὶ γαῖαν ἐνηέριοί τε ποτώνται·
			πάντα γὰρ ἐν Πρωτεῖ πρώτη φύσις ἐγκατέθηκε.
			ἀλλά, πάτερ, μόλε μυστιπόλοις ὁσίῃσι προνοίαις
			πέμπων εὐόλβου βιότου τέλος ἐσθλὸν ἐπ’ ἔργοις. 

block english
	h1 To Proteus#[+sn(1)]
	div.offering The fumigation from storax
	p.hymn-english Proteus i call, whom Fate decrees, to keep#[br]the keys which lock the chambers of the deep;#[br]first-born, by whose illustrious pow’r alone#[br]all Nature’s principles are clearly shewn:#[br]matter to change with various forms is Thine,#[br]matter unform’d, capacious, and divine.#[br]All-honour’d, prudent, whose sagacious mind#[br]knows all that was, and is, of ev’ry kind,#[br]with all that shall be in succeeding time;#[br]so vast Thy wisdom, wond’rous, and sublime:#[br]for all things Nature first to Thee consign’d,#[br]and in Thy essence omniform confin’d.#[br]Come, blessed father, to our rites attend,#[br]and grant our happy lives a prosp’rous end.
	+sn(1)
		p According to Proclus #[abbr.cite(title="Commentary on Plato’s Republic, page 97") in Plat. Repub. p. 97], Proteus, though inferior to the primary Gods, is immortal: and though not a Deity, is a certain angelic mind of the order of #[span.theonym(greek="Poseidon") Neptune], comprehending in Himself all the forms of things generated in the universe.