From the book
The Orphic Collection, Volume I: The Hymns
Attributed to Orpheus · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordΚρίνω can mean distinguish or separate, and can also mean judge or decide.
- In the Orphic HymnsAt XXXIV.19 Apollo blends the whole celestial pole while distinguishing the life-nourishing tribes.
- TranslationAt XXXIV.19 the adopted mixing participle κιρνάς stands before κρίνεις.
- A place to readDistinguishing is coordinated with cosmic blending.
- English renderings
- distinguish; judge; decide
Meaning
Κρίνω can mean distinguish or separate, and can also mean judge or decide. The hymns use both directions. Its passive participle τὸ κριθέν means what has been decided or judged; the expression does not by itself name the authority who made the decision.
Use in the book
At XXXIV.19 Apollo blends the whole celestial pole while distinguishing the life-nourishing tribes. Blending and differentiation are coordinated, not mutually cancelling operations. The verb here need not imply a courtroom verdict: it concerns the ordering of distinct kinds within a comprehensive whole. Nike’s κρίνουσα at XXXIII.4 instead concerns decision in wars and trophy-winning deeds, where her activity determines the successful side or outcome.
Nature accomplishes “what has been decided” at X.24. In LXXXVII.8 the same substantival phrase is the grammatical subject of being fulfilled in Death. The common language links decision to completion, while the different constructions keep Nature’s active accomplishing and Death’s final realization distinct. Neither passive participle identifies a judge by name, nor does it justify reconstructing a complete predestination doctrine. The hymns state the force of a settled outcome without explaining every stage by which it was reached.
Places to read
- Hymn XXXIV · Line 19Distinguishing is coordinated with cosmic blending.
- Hymn XXXIII · Line 4Nike’s judging concerns battle and victory.
- Hymn X · Line 24What is decided is the object of Nature’s accomplishment.
- Hymn LXXXVII · Line 8What is judged becomes the subject of fulfilment in Death.
Translation
At XXXIV.19 the adopted mixing participle κιρνάς stands before κρίνεις. The apparatus reports κρίνας in place of κιρνάς, which would repeat the distinguishing family. The two printed verbs must not be conflated, and the reported participle must not be counted as a second primary occurrence of κρίνω in that line.
Attested forms
κριθὲν; κρίνεις; κρίνουσα
Occurrence inventory
4 in total. X.24; XXXIII.4; XXXIV.19; LXXXVII.8