Leap — ἅλμα

Meaning

Aphrodite appears as a Thyiad moving with a light leap on sandy shores (LV.23). The dative ἅλματι specifies her mode of bodily movement. It gives animation to the coastal scene, rather than naming an abstract elevation of the soul. The apparatus reports ἅρματι, “with a chariot,” at this locus. The printed leap is therefore a consequential choice of bodily movement over a vehicle-image.