Julian at the Mysteries
But when he found himself in darkness,
in the earth's awful depths,
with a group of unholy Greeks,
and bodiless figures appeared before him
with haloes of light,
the young Julian for a moment lost his nerve:
an impulse from his pious years came back
and he crossed himself.
The Figures vanished at once;
the haloes faded away, the lights went out.
The Greeks glanced at each other.
The young man said: 'Did you see the miracle?
I'm frightened, friends. I want to leave.
Didn't you see how the demons vanished
the second they saw me make the holy sign of the cross?'
The Greeks chuckled scornfully:
'Shame on you, shame, to talk that way
to us sophists and philosophers!
If you want to say things like that,
say them to the Bishop of Nicomedia and his priests.
The greatest gods of our glorious Greece
appeared before you.
And if they left, don't think for a minute
that they were frightened by a gesture.
It was just that when they saw you
making that vile, that crude sign,
their noble nature was disgusted
and they left you in contempt.'
This is what they said to him, and the fool
recovered from his holy, blessed fear,
convinced by the unholy words of the Greeks.
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Related quotes
Greeks Don't Want No Freaks
There was beer all over the dance floor
and the band was playin' rhythm and blues
You got down and did the gator, and half
an hour later, you were barfin' all over your
Girlfriend's shoes.
But the Greeks don't want no freaks.
The Greeks don't want no freaks
Just put a little smile on them rosy
cheeks,
'Cause the Greeks don't want no freaks.
(GATOR!!)
She was the pride and the passion of Dixie
She did exactly what her daddy had planned.
She was perfect little sister until somebody missed
her and they found her in the bushes with
the boys in the band
But the Greeks don't want no freaks
The Greeks don't want no freaks
So put a great big smile on them rosy cheeks,
'Cause the Greeks don't want no freaks
No, the Greeks don't want no freaks
Said, the Greeks don't want no freaks
Just put that monster smile on them rosy cheeks
'Cause the Greeks don't want no freaks
No, the Greeks don't want no freaks,
Ahh...
song performed by by Eagles
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
The Greeks Dont Want No Freaks
There was beer all over the dance floor
And the band was playin rhythm and blues
You got down and did the gator, and half
An hour later, you were barfin all over your
Girlfriends shoes.
But the greeks dont want no freaks.
The greeks dont want no freaks
Just put a little smile on them rosy
Cheeks,
cause the greeks dont want no freaks.
(gator!!)
She was the pride and the passion of dixie
She did exactly what her daddy had planned.
She was perfect little sister until somebody missed
Her and they found her in the bushes with
The boys in the band
But the greeks dont want no freaks
The greeks dont want no freaks
So put a great big smile on them rosy cheeks,
cause the greeks dont want no freaks
No, the greeks dont want no freaks
Said, the greeks dont want no freaks
Just put that monster smile on them rosy cheeks
cause the greeks dont want no freaks
No, the greeks dont want no freaks,
Ahh...
song performed by by Eagles
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Herodis Attikos
What glory, this, for Herodis Attikos!
Alexander of Selefkia, one of our better sophists,
on reaching Athens to lecture
finds the city deserted
because Herodis was in the country and all the young men
had followed him there to hear him.
This makes sophist Alexander
write Herodis a letter
begging him to send the Greeks back.
And the tactful Herodis answers at once:
'Along with the Greeks, I'm coming too.'
How many young men now in Alexandria,
in Antioch or Beirut
(being trained by Hellenism as its future orators),
meeting at choice banquets
where the talk is sometimes about fine sophistry,
sometimes about their exquisite love affairs,
suddenly find their attention wandering and fall silent?
Their glasses untouched,
they think about Herodis' fortune-
what other sophist has been given this kind of honour?
Whatever his wish, whatever he does,
the Greeks (the Greeks!) follow him,
not to criticize or debate,
not even to choose any longer,
only to follow.
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
When Greeks joined Greeks, then was the tug of war.
quote by Nathaniel Lee
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Returning From Greece
Well, we're nearly there, Hermippos.
Day after tomorrow, it seems - that's what the captain said.
At least we're sailing our seas,
the waters of our own countries - Cyprus, Syria, Egypt -
waters we know and love.
Why so silent? Ask your heart:
didn't you too feel happier
the further we got from Greece?
What's the point of fooling ourselves?
That wouldn't be properly Greek, would it?
It's time we admitted the truth:
we're Greeks also - what else are we?-
but with Asiatic tastes and feelings,
tastes and feelings
sometimes alien to Hellenism.
It isn't correct, Hermippos, for us philosophers
to be like some of our petty kings
(remember how we laughed at them
when they used to come to our lectures?)
who through their showy Hellenified exteriors
(Macedonian exteriors, naturally)
let a bit of Arabia peep out now and then,
a bit of Media they can't keep back.
And to what laughable lengths the fools went
trying to cover it up!
No, that's not at all correct for us.
For Greeks like us that kind of pettiness won't do.
We simply can't be ashamed
of the Syrian and Egyptian blood in our veins;
we should really honour it, delight in it.
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Lliad- in 50 words or less
Paris stole Agamemmon's woman.
Hector Killed Patroclus in a fight.
Achilles took revenge against the Trojan,
but otherwise sat sulking in his tent.
Odysseus, the ever resourceful Greek,
built a wooden horse.
Final score: Greeks 1, Trojans 0
Beware of Greeks bearing gifts!
poem by John F. McCullagh
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The units of Euripedes
Still figures of headless Greeks
wholesome forms of dominion to them
while talking all along
without heads but with heady words
leaning into the still of discovery
ages unto ages
their faces only masks
their courtyards the kingdom
of painstaking boredom
but reaping the nature of our
tortured time to come
poem by Stan Petrovich
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
A Reprobate Mind
An eloquent speech,
Of words of wisdom;
I have fed you with milk and not with meat.
I am from the land of poems,
Love and peace to you who reads;
We are still carnal and,
Not many wise and noble men are called.
The Yahdaim require a sign and,
The Greeks seek after wisdom;
But this poem is like a Succourer to you.
Owe no man anything,
Except to love one another;
By so doing you will perform the law.
Let your armour of light overcome the works of darkness,
Like their fitting retribution with a reprobate mind.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Famous Greek War Song
Sons of the Greeks, arise!
The glorious hour's gone forth,
And, worthy of such ties,
Display who gave us birth.
CHORUS.
Sons of Greeks! let us go
In arms against the foe,
Till their hated blood shall flow
In a river past our feet.
Then manfully despising
The Turkish tyrant's yoke,
Let your country see you rising,
And all her chains are broke.
Brave shades of chiefs and sages,
Behold the coming strife!
Hellenes of past ages,
Oh, start again to life!
At the sound of my trumpet, breaking
Your sleep, oh, loin with me!
And the seven-hill'd city seeking,
Fight, conquer, till we're free.
Sons of Greeks, &c.
Sparta, Sparta, why in slumbers
Lethargic dolt thou lie?
Awake, and join thy numbers
With Athens, old ally!
Leonidas recalling,
That chief of ancient song,
Who saved ye once from falling,
The terrible! the strong!
Who made that bold diversion
In old Thermopylæ
And warring with the Persian
To keep his country free;
With his three hundred waging
The battle, long he stood,
And like a lion raging,
Expired in seas of blood.
Sons of Greeks, &c.
song, translated by Byron
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
In 200 B.C.
"Alexander son of Philip, and the Greeks except the Lacedaemonians--"
We can very well imagine
that they were utterly indifferent in Sparta
to this inscription. "Except the Lacedaemonians",
but naturally. The Spartans were not
to be led and ordered about
as precious servants. Besides
a panhellenic campaign without
a Spartan king as a leader
would not have appeared very important.
O, of course "except the Lacedaemonians."
This too is a stand. Understandable.
Thus, except the Lacedaemonians at Granicus;
and then at Issus; and in the final
battle, where the formidable army was swept away
that the Persians had massed at Arbela:
which had set out from Arbela for victory, and was swept away.
And out of the remarkable panhellenic campaign,
victorious, brilliant,
celebrated, glorious
as no other had ever been glorified,
the incomparable: we emerged;
a great new Greek world.
We; the Alexandrians, the Antiocheans,
the Seleucians, and the numerous
rest of the Greeks of Egypt and Syria,
and of Media, and Persia, and the many others.
With our extensive territories,
with the varied action of thoughtful adaptations.
And the Common Greek Language
we carried to the heart of Bactria, to the Indians.
As if we were to talk of Lacedaemonians now!
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Holy War
If you will adore me
Bow before me and praise my name
If you place no God before me
Then all I have is yours to claim
And if God is in the heavens
Why did God let children die
If you dont ask these questions
There is no reasons why
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
All the visions shown before you
All the kingdoms and the thrones
All are yours if you bow before me and adore me
All this you can own
There are those that will go to heaven
There are those that will never win
No one knows what will happen
There are those that turn to sin
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
(solo)
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
The devil is in hell with the demons
This is the holy war
They lead us to our temptation
Lead us, take our souls
There is no evil in salvation
There is evil in us all
Just as satan tempted jesus
And jesus slips and falls
He is a station on the cross now
He is dying to save us all
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
If God is in heaven, wont you save me now
Oh lord forgive them for what theyve done
Lost children of babylon
Oh allah oh no oh no (? )
This is the holy war
song performed by by Thin Lizzy
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Smile
About a lady's smile, so much is said and seen
Its softness, its sweetness, its mellowness that heals
But of a lady's smile, should wary be a man
The smile of deception, the smile of betrayal
For smiles have occupied pages in history
The smiles of Delilah and Samson's tragedy
It was Helen's smile that launched a thousand ships
And caused a war between the Trojans and the Greeks
And brought much tragedy on both sides of the fence
The lessson the Trojans learned from the incidence
They took in a token left by the clever Greeks
A 'smiling' wooden horse waiting outside the gate
poem by Pacific Hernandez
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Julian Seeing Contempt
"Observing, then, that there is great contempt for the gods
among us"—he says in his solemn way.
Contempt. But what did he expect?
Let him organize religion as much as he liked,
write to the High Priest of Galatia as much as he liked,
or to others of his kind, inciting them, giving instructions.
His friends weren't Christians; that much was certain.
But even so they couldn't play
as he could (brought up a Christian)
with a new religious system,
ludicrous in both theory and application.
They were, after all, Greeks. Nothing in excess, Augustus.
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Broad Majestic Shannon
The last time I saw you was down at the greeks
There was whiskey on sunday and tears on our cheeks
You sang me a song as pure as the breeze
Blowing up the road to glenaveigh
I sat for a while at the cross at finnoe
Where young lovers would meet when the flowers were in bloom
Heard the men coming home from the fair at shinrone
Their hearts in tipperary wherever they go
Take my hand, and dry your tears babe
Take my hand, forget your fears babe
Theres no pain, theres no more sorrow
Theyre all gone, gone in the years babe
I sat for a while by the gap in the wall
Found a rusty tin can and an old hurley ball
Heard the cards being dealt, and the rosary called
And a fiddle playing sean dun na ngall
And the next time I see you well be down at the greeks
Therell be whiskey on sunday and tears on our cheeks
For its stupid to laugh and its useless to bawl
About a rusty tin can and an old hurley ball
So I walked as day was dawning
Where small birds sang and leaves were falling
Where we once watched the row boats landing
By the broad majestic shannon
song performed by by Pogues
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
We are all Greeks. Our laws, our literature, our religion, our arts, have their root in Greece.
quote by P.B. Shelley
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
The place I had lived we had Croatians to our right, Turks to the left and Russians across the street, as well as Greeks, Lebanese - you name it. I reflect on it now and realise how privileged I was. I appreciate it more and more as the years go by.
quote by Marton Csokas
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
Vote! | Copy! | In Romanian
England and Greece are friends. English blood was shed on Greek soil in the war against fascism, and Greeks gave their lives to protect English pilots.
quote by Melina Mercouri
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Left Alone
I'm alone once again
No one to talk to, but myself
Crawl into bed and cry
That seems to be the only thing i know
Hugging my pillow tight
Crying, wishing the loneliness will go away
Wishing someone would come and save me from myself
From the sadness and the fears
Left alone
No one to go home to
The sadness and tears have found their way back in
Oh what a shame
I was just happy a minute ago
But things change so fast
One thought and I'm crying again
I was left alone again
I don't feel safe
When you leave me with myself
I'm sad when...
I'm left alone
(11-21-05)
poem by Brandi Young
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
If you go back to the Greeks and Romans, they talk about all three - wine, food, and art - as a way of enhancing life.
quote by Robert Mondavi
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Holy War
If you will adore me
Bow before me and praise my name
If you place no god before me
Then all I have is yours to claim
And if God is in the heavens
Why did God let children die
If you don't ask these questions
There is no reasons why
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
All the visions shown before you
All the kingdoms and the thrones
All are yours if you bow before me and adore me
All this you can own
There are those that will go to Heaven
There are those that will never win
No one knows what will happen
There are those that turn to sin
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
(Solo)
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
The devil is in hell with the demons
This is the Holy War
They lead us to our temptation
Lead us, take our souls
There is no evil in salvation
There is evil in us all
Just as Satan tempted Jesus
And Jesus slips and falls
He is a station on The Cross now
He is dying to save us all
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way
This is the law
We are chosen
We are one
We are frightened of no one
And no one will win this war
This is the way-
song performed by by Thin Lizzy
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!