Symphosius Riddle 43: Cucurbita

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Fri 01 Jul 2022
Original text:

Pendeo, dum nascor; rursus, dum pendeo, tumesco.
Pendens commoveor ventis et nutrior undis.
Pendula si non sim, non sum iam iamque futura.

Translation:

I hang, while I am born; again, while I hang, I grow.
Hanging I am moved by the winds and fed by the waters.
If I am not hanging, I will soon not be.

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Gourd


Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

  • line 1: tumesco > cresco


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