Chapter 5 Iphigenia and the Taurians

After leaving Athens, Orestes and Pylades came to the temple of Apollo at Delphi.Orestes asked the gods for instructions, hoping to know his future fate.The priestess told him that, as Prince of Mykenny, he must first sail to the Tauris peninsula near Sjodon.Apollo's sister Artemis had a temple on the island. He had to use force or trickery to snatch the statue of the goddess from the temple and bring it to Athens.According to the legend of the local barbarians, this idol is a holy object that fell from the sky and has been enshrined there since ancient times.But the goddess doesn't like living in barbarian peoples, and hopes to move to a civilized place and be worshiped by civilized people.

Pylades had been with his friend and accompanied him on this dangerous mission.The Taurians were a barbaric people who killed all foreigners who landed on land as sacrifices to the goddess Artemis.During the war, the Taurians cut off the captive's head, picked it up on a bamboo pole, and erected it on the roof to let it guard the house.It is said that the hanging head can be condescending, overlooking everything, and warding off disasters for them. There is another important reason why the gods only want Orestes to go to the wild land of Tauris.In the past, Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia on the advice of the Greek prophet Calchas.When the priest killed her with a sword, suddenly a doe fell to the ground, but Iphigenia disappeared.It was the goddess Artemis who took pity on her, picked her up, and took her across the sea to the temple of the goddess of Tauris.

Here Thoas, the barbarian king, saw Iphigenia and made her priestess of the temple of Artemis.According to ancient custom, she must sacrifice to the goddess Artemis every stranger who came ashore.Most of the people sacrificed were her fellow Greeks.The function of the priestess is only to offer sacrifices to the goddess, and it is another person who drags the sacrificed people into the temple and kills them on the bench. Even so, she still feels very uncomfortable. How many years have passed, and the girl has been loyal to her duty, so she is valued by the king.The Tauris also respected him because she was beautiful and docile.One night, she dreamed that she had left this barbarian land and returned to her lovely hometown, Argos.She slept in her parents' palace, surrounded by a group of maids.Suddenly, the ground beneath his feet began to tremble.She fled out of the palace in a panic and came outside the palace. At this moment, the palace shook and collapsed.The pillars of the palace were also broken one by one, and only one pillar in the father's room was still standing.Immediately, the stigma turned into a blond human head and began to speak to her.When she awoke, she had forgotten all that had been said.She only remembers that in the dream she was still faithful to the priesthood, sprinkled holy water on the stone pillar man in her father's room so that he could be killed and sacrificed, and when she did so, she cried very sadly.

Early the next morning, Orestes and his friend Pylades landed on the shore of Tauris and walked straight to the temple of Artemis.Soon they arrived at the temple.The temple looks more like a prison.Orestes finally broke the silence, and said dejectedly: "What shall we do now? Do we go up the stairs? But once we enter this strange building, it is like entering a maze, and we cannot get out. , what should we do then? If we run into the guards and get caught, isn’t it certain death? We have all heard that the blood of many Greeks was once sprinkled on the altar of the goddess. Now go back to the ship, isn’t it more wise?"

"If we go back, it will be the first time we will run from danger," replied Pylades, "and we will trust, the Oracle of Apollo, that he will protect us! But we must get out of here now. At last So that we can hide in a cave by the sea, and we can take risks when the night is still. We already know the location of the temple, and we will always find a way to get in. As long as we get the statue, we are not afraid of not being able to find the way back !" "That's right!" said Orestes happily. "We should hide during the day and fight at night." But when the sun was clear, a shepherd came hastily from the sea to the priestess of the temple of Artemis, who was standing on the threshold of the temple.He told her that two strangers had landed ashore. "Noble priestess, prepare for the holy sacrifice!"

"Where do they come from outsiders?" Iphigenia asked melancholy. "They are all Greeks," replied the shepherd, "we know only one of them, Pylades, and they are all captured by us." "Tell me in detail," said the priestess, "what is the matter?" "We are bathing the cows in the sea," said the shepherd. "We drove the cows into the sea head by head. The sea water flows violently past the reef. This rock is called Alpine Rock by the locals. There is a cave in the rock. Conch fishermen often rest in it. A shepherd saw two people in the cave, and we were about to catch them. Suddenly, a man jumped out of the cave, shaking his head and shaking his hands violently, like a madman. Moaning and calling: 'Pylades! Pylades!

Look there, huntress of darkness, she is the dragon of the underworld, and she is about to kill me!You see, she is coming towards me with a viper coiled around her head.Look at that side again, a banshee, breathing flames from her mouth.She grabs my mother, OMG!She is going to kill me!How can I escape her clutches? '" The shepherd paused for a while, then continued, "We didn't see the terrible sight he said at all.He probably took the lowing of the cow and the barking of the dog for the voice of Furies.We were all terrified, because the stranger swung his sword, rushed madly at the cattle, and stabbed the sword in the belly of the cow.Finally, we mustered up our courage, blew the conch, summoned the nearby villagers, and rushed towards the armed outsider.He gradually shook off his madness, foamed at the mouth, and fell to the ground, unconscious.We don't know what's going on, watching him.His companion wiped the foam from his mouth and covered him with his coat.After a while, he jumped up from the ground again, protecting himself and his companions.But we were outnumbered, and they gave up their resistance.We seized them and brought them to King Thoas.The king ordered the captives to be brought to you to sacrifice to the gods.

In this way the Greeks must pay you for what you have suffered, and we can also atone for the shame they inflicted on you at the Gulf of Auris. " After the shepherd finished speaking, he waited for the order from the priestess.She asked him to send the stranger to the temple.When she was alone, she said to herself: "Oh, my heart, you used to sympathize with strangers. You wept bitterly when the Greeks fell into your hands! Now what?" ?The dream last night told me that my dear brother Orestes is no longer alive, come, I want you to taste my power!" Two captives were bound and led. "Untie the strangers!" Iphigenia ordered loudly. "You must not sacrifice the bound ones to the gods! Go to the temple quickly and make all preparations." Then she turned and asked two more questions. captive, "Who were your parents? Did you have brothers and sisters? Where did you come from? You must have traveled a long way to Tauris. But, unfortunately, there is still a long way to go, a road leading to The road to hell!"

Orestes replied: "We don't want to hear your sympathy. An executioner does not need to comfort his victim before he kills. There is no need to cry when facing the dying, sorrow! You and we No need to cry! Carry out the will of the Goddess of Fate!" "Which of you is Pylades?" asked the priestess. "It is he!" replied Orestes, pointing to his friend. "Are you brothers?" "They are not siblings, but emotionally they are better than brothers." Orestes said. "What's your name?" "Call me poor man," said Orestes, "I would rather die without a name!"

The priestess was annoyed by his tyrannical attitude, so she asked him to tell where he came from.When she heard that he came from Argos, she could not help exclaiming: "By God, are you really from there?" "Yes," said Orestes, " I'm from Mykanee, and our family is prominent and large, a happy family." "Outlander, if you come from the city of Argos," Iphigenia asked nervously, "you will know the news about Troy. I heard that the city has been destroyed, right? Helen came back Yet?" "Yes, exactly as you said." "How is the Commander-in-Chief? His name is Agamemnon, I think."

Orestes was astonished to hear this. "I don't know," he replied, turning his head away, "please don't mention these people and things anymore!" At Iphigenia's pleading, he had to say: "He is dead. , died at the hands of his wife!" The priestess gave a cry of grief, but immediately regained her composure and asked, "Is she still alive?" "No," he answered emphatically. "Her own son killed her, and he avenged his murdered father, but he must also suffer for it!" "Are the other children of Agamemnon alive?" "And two daughters, Electra and Chrysothemis." "Have you heard of the eldest daughter who was sacrificed as a sacrifice?" "A doe was killed in her stead, and she herself suddenly disappeared. Perhaps she was dead long ago!" "Is the son of Agamemnon alive?" asked the priestess uneasily. "He's alive," said Orestes, "and it's hard, he's wandering about, and he has no one to return to." When Iphigenia heard this, she immediately ordered the servants to leave.When she was alone with the two Greeks, she whispered to him: "Young man, I will save your life if you will help me to send a letter to Mykenne, your hometown and mine." !" "I would not let one man be saved, but let my friend die here," replied Orestes, "I was in misery, and he never forsaken me. How could I let him die a miserable death?" "Noble friend," said the girl pleasantly, "I hope my brother is like you! Tell you, two friends, I also have a brother, but unfortunately he is far away, and it is a pity that I cannot rescue two people at the same time." , the king will not agree anyway. Then you die and let Pylades go back. I don't care, it doesn't matter which of you two sends me the letter." "Who will kill me?" asked Orestes. "I will do it myself, this is the order of the goddess." Iphigenia replied. "Why, can a weak woman like you kill a man?" "No, I just sprinkled holy water on his head! The rest will be done by the temple servants, who will kill the strangers with sharp axes. Your ashes will be scattered on the hillside." "Oh, my God, if only my sister would bury me!" sighed Orestes. "That's impossible." The girl was deeply moved, "Your sister lives far away in Argos. But don't worry, I will extinguish the embers with sesame oil and use honey as a sacrifice, just like your own sister Decorate your grave with flowers! Now I have to go, I want to write a letter to my people!" Now only the two friends were left together, and the watchman stood at a distance, when Pylades couldn't help crying. "No, if you die, I will not live! This matter is not negotiable. I will accompany you to wander around, and I will accompany you to die. Otherwise, the Phocians and Argos will say that I I am a coward, and all the world will say that I betrayed you, and laugh at me for betraying you for my own life. They will accuse me of trying to usurp your throne, because I will be your future brother-in-law, and I am asking Electra I didn't ask for any dowry from her when I proposed, so it's easier for people to gossip. In short, I am willing and must die with you!" Orestes tried to persuade him, and while they were arguing fiercely, he suddenly saw Iphigenia returning with a letter.She made Pylades swear to deliver the letter.Iphigenia also swore to save his life.She thought for a while, thinking that the letter might be accidentally lost on the road, so she dictated the contents of the letter to Pirades. "Remember," she said, "tell Orestes son of Agamemnon that Iphigenia, who was lost on the altar at the Gulf of Oris, is alive, and she begs you..." "What, what? What do you say?" interrupted Orestes, "where is she? Has she risen from the ashes of death?" "She is in front of you!" said the priestess, "but please don't interrupt me." She continued to dictate the contents of the letter, "Dear brother Orestes! Please take me back before I die , so that I will no longer bear the pain of killing strangers here at the altar. Orestes, if you fail to complete this task, you and your family will be reviled!" Both friends were too surprised to speak.At last Pylades took the letter from her, handed it to his friend, and said to him: "Yes, I will fulfill my oath at once. Take it, Orestes, and I will give it to you." This letter is from your sister Iphigenia." The letter fell from Orestes' hand, and he went up to embrace her sister warmly.But Iphigenia did not believe it was true, until he told her something in the Atreus family that only the family knew, and she exclaimed with joy: "Oh, dear brother, so say , you are already by my side, yes, you are my younger brother!" Orestes, having regained his senses, was troubled again. "We are very happy now," he said, "but how long can this happiness last? Haven't we become sacrifices?" Iphigenia was also disturbed. "How shall I save you?" she said in a trembling voice, "how shall I send you back to Argos? But now, before the king comes to the sacrifice, tell me about the terrible things that happened at home. !" Orestes told her sister all that had happened in the house, and only the engagement of Electra to his friend Pylades made me happy.While listening, Iphigenia thought of a way to rescue her brother.Finally, she suddenly hit upon a plan. "I have found a way at last. You were mad when they caught you on the seashore, and I can use that as an excuse to tell the king that you came from Argos and killed your mother there. Of course, this It is also true. I will tell the king again, you are unclean and cannot be used as a sacrifice to the goddess. You must first go to the sea and take a bath to wash off the blood on your body. At the same time, I will tell him that your hands have touched The idol of the goddess, so it also becomes unclean, and must be washed in the sea. I am a priestess, and the idol can only be sent to the sea by myself. And I will say that Pylades is an accomplice stained with blood. Only if I say this, the king will believe it. After we have reached the sea and boarded your boat hidden in the bay, what to do next is up to you!" Now Iphigenia delivered the two captive strangers to her servants, who led them into the inner chamber of the temple. Soon, King Thoas came to the temple with his entourage and sent for the priestess.Because he didn't understand why the corpses of foreigners hadn't been burned on the pyre to worship the gods until now.Iphigenia walked out of the temple gate, holding the image of the goddess in her hands. "What is it, daughter of Agamemnon?" asked the king in amazement. "King, a terrible thing has happened here!" replied the priestess, "the two strangers caught by the sea are unclean. When they approached the idol and hugged it for protection, the idol turned away and joined The eyes were closed. You know, these two men have committed a terrible crime." Then she told the true story, and said that she was going to cleanse the two strangers and the idol.In order to reassure the king, she asked both of them to be shackled, and their heads were covered with a cloth to prevent them from seeing the sun, because they had offended heaven and earth.At the same time, she also asked the king to keep his entourage to help her guard the captives.She also came up with a clever idea, asking the king to send an envoy into the city and ordering the citizens to stay in the city to avoid being guilty of the murder of the mother, while the king must stay in the temple and burn a bonfire for purification. Incense, so that she can make a holy sacrifice immediately after her return.When the captives walked out of the temple gate, the king had to cover his head with a cloth so as not to see the evil spirits on the sinner. "If you feel that I have stayed too long at the seaside," ordered the priestess as she was about to leave, "you need not worry, but wait patiently. Remember, O King, that what we wash from our captives is It is a heinous sin!" The king agreed to all these arrangements.When Orestes and Pylades were led out of the temple gate, the king really covered his head with a cloth, and he didn't even see anything. After several hours, a messenger came running from the sea.He was sweating profusely from running, panting, standing in front of the temple gate, knocking on the closed temple gate with his hands. "Oh, open the door!" he cried, "I have bad news for you!" The temple door opened, and King Thoas came out of the temple. "Who is making noise here and destroying the tranquility of the temple?" He frowned and asked. "O king, priestess of the temple," said the emissary, "that Greek woman has fled with the strangers, and the statue of our goddess who protects us. Her cleansing words are all lies!" "What do you say?" the king was horrified. "What is wrong with this woman? Who was it that ran away with her?" "That's her brother Orestes," replied the messenger. "It happened as follows: When we reached the sea, Iphigenia bade us stop, saying that we should not come near the place of purification. She opened the Let them go before the shackles of human beings. We doubt it, but your servants, O King, obey your priestess. Then the priestess moaned, as if praying in a strange language. We We sat down where we were, and waited. Then it suddenly occurred to us that the two strangers might kill the unarmed priestess and escape. So we jumped up and hurried over, round the cliff, and saw the priestess and the stranger. When we came to the foot of the mountain, we saw a big ship parked by the sea, with fifty sailors on board. Two strangers stood on the bank and ordered the sailors on the ship to lower the ladder to pick them up. Without further hesitation, we grabbed the still The priestess on the shore. But Orestes spoke loudly about his family background and intentions, and flanked us with Pylades in an attempt to rescue the woman. Since neither we nor they had weapons, we had to fight with our bare hands. But The people on the boat rushed down with bows and arrows, and we had to retreat. So Orestes grabbed Iphigenia, waded through the shallow water, quickly climbed the ladder, and boarded the ship. Iphigenia was accompanied by The statue of the goddess Artemis. Pylades also boarded the boat with them, and the sailors rowed quickly, and the boat sailed away from the bay. However, when the boat just entered the sea, a sudden gust of wind threw the boat Pushed back to the shore. Although the sailors rowed desperately, it was useless. The daughter of Agamemnon stood up and prayed aloud: "O noble goddess Artemis, you have asked through the oracle of your brother Apollo. Go to Greece. I am your priestess, please bless me and take you back together. Please forgive me for deceiving the king here.' When the girl prayed, the sailors also prayed in unison. But the boat still pulled to the shore so I hurried back to report to you. Hurry up and send men to the sea, and you can catch them. The sea is rushing, and no stranger can escape. Poseidon, the god of the sea, is angry, and he thinks of Troy, which he built The destruction of the city caused a storm. He is the sworn enemy of the Greeks, the enemy of Atreus's family. If I understand correctly, he will certainly deliver the children of Agamemnon into your hands today. !" King Thoas had already grown impatient.As soon as the messenger finished speaking, he immediately ordered all the barbarians to ride to the sea. He was going to catch the fleeing Greeks as soon as the Greek ships reached the shore, sink the ship and all the sailors into the bottom of the sea, and push the two strangers and the priestess from the cliff into the unforgiving sea, Throw them to death. The king led the horse-riding team to the sea.Suddenly, he saw a strange celestial phenomenon in front of him, so he had to stop and dare not move forward.At this time, Pallas Athena appeared in the sky riding a brilliant colorful cloud, and said thunderously: "King Thoas, where are you leading the army? Please listen to the goddess, stop chasing, and let me protect you." The people left safely! Apollo once gave Orestes an oracle, instructing him to come to Tauris, so that he could escape the pursuit of the Furies and bring his sister back to her hometown. Artemis The statue of God shall be brought back to Athens, for she wishes to dwell in my lovely city. For me Poseidon will calm the storm and send them home. Orestes will be in the sacred grove of Athens A new temple was erected here to the goddess Artemis, where Iphigenia would continue to serve as priestess. Thoas and Taurians, you must submit to the will of the gods and calm your wrath! "King Thoas was a pious man. He threw himself on the ground and said: "Ah, Pallas Athena, it is despicable to hear God's will and not obey it, or even oppose it.Those you protect can return with the statue of the goddess Artemis.I obey the command of the gods and put down the spear! " Everything came true just as Athena had commanded.The statue of Artemis in Tauris was moved to a new temple in Athens, and Iphigenia remained her priestess.Orestes succeeded his father in Mycenae.He married Hermione, the only daughter of Menelaus and Helen, who had been betrothed to Achilles' son Neoptolemus, but Orestes killed him. died, and ascended the throne of Sparta.He conquered Argos again, so his present kingdom was much larger than that ruled by his father Agamemnon.His sister Electra married Pylades and shared with him the throne of Phocis.Chrysothemis never married.Orestes lived until he was ninety years old, when the traditional disaster befell the family of Tantalus: a poisonous snake bit his toe, and he died of poisoning.Orestes' son Tisamenos succeeded to the throne and ruled the Peloponnese.Later, the Peloponnese was taken away by the descendants of Hercules, and the myth opened a new page.