Nänie

Even the beautiful must die!
That which conquers both men and gods!
Not even the brazen heart of Stygian Zeus is moved by it.
Only once did love soften the ruler of shadows,
And at the threshold, sternly,
He called back his gift.
Not even Aphrodite could heal the wound of the beautiful boy,
Cruelly carved by the boar into his delicate body.
Not even the immortal mother could save the divine hero,
When, falling at the Scaean gate, he fulfills his fate.
But she rises from the sea with all the daughters of Nereus,
And the lament begins for the glorified son.
Behold, the gods weep,
The goddesses all weep,
That the beautiful fades,
That the perfect dies.
Even to be a lament in the mouths of the beloved,
Is glorious,
For the common silently descends to Hades.
Even to be a lament in the mouths of the beloved,
Is glorious.