Excerpt from The Ideas That Have Influenced Civilization, in the Original Documents, Vol. 2
Begin we to sing with the Heliconian Muses, who keep safe the spacious and divine mount of Helicon, and also with delicate feet dance about the violet-hued fount and altars of the mighty son of Cronos: and likewise having bathed their soft skins in the Permessus, or Hippocrene, or sacred Olmius, are wont to institute on the top of Helicon choral dances, beautiful and lovely, and move nimbly with their feet. Then starting thence, shrouded in thick darkness, by night they are wont to wend their way, uttering sounds exceeding sweet, while they celebrate ?gis-bearing Jove, and majestic Juno, the Argive goddess, treading-proudly in golden sandals; and gleaming-eyed Athene, daughter of ?gis-bearing Jove; Ph?bus Apollo; Artemis, arrow-queen; and earth-encompassing, earth-shaking Poseidon; august Themis; Aphrodite shooting lovely-glances; and Hebe of-the-golden-crown; and fair Dione; Aurora, and the great Sun, and the resplendent Moon; Latona, and Iapetus, and wily Cronos; Earth, mighty Ocean, and dark Night, and the holy race of other ever-living immortals, who erst taught Hesiod a lovely song, as he fed his lambs beneath divine Helicon. But first of all the goddesses, the Olympian Muses, daughters of aegis-bearing Jove, addressed me in a speech such as this:
"Ye shepherds, dwelling a-field, base subjects for reproach, nought but gluttons, we know to sing many fictions like to truths, and we know, when we will, to speak what is true."
Thus said the daughters, ready-in-speech, of mighty Jove, and gave me as a staff a branch of very luxuriant olive to pluck, (a branch) wondrous to behold; and breathed into me a voice divine, that I might sing of both the future and the past.
And they bade me hymn the race of ever-living blessed gods, but first and last ever to sing of themselves. Yet why should these tales be told by me touching the sacred oak, or rock? Come though!
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