Religion
The Spirit of the Sea (Mackail)
Translated by J. W. Mackail (1890) · From Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology (1890)
Small to see, I, Priapus, inhabit this spit of shore, not much bigger than a sea-gull, sharp-headed, footless, such an one as upon lonely beaches might be carved by the sons of toiling fishermen. But if any basket-finder or angler call me to succour, I rush fleeter than the blast: likewise I see the creatures that run under water; and truly the form of godhead is known from deeds, not from shape.
This translation is printed as prose in its source edition.
Cite this poem
MLA
Archias. “The Spirit of the Sea (Mackail).” Translated by J. W. Mackail. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/archias/31/.
Chicago
Archias. “The Spirit of the Sea (Mackail).” Translated by J. W. Mackail. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/archias/31/.
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