EL CONSEJO DE LOS DIOSES

by
Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish
to Contemporary English
by Jose Fadul
Reunion of the Gods on Mount Olympus:
Jupiter is seated on a
throne of gold and precious
stones, bearing in his hand
a scepter of cypress. At his
feet is the eagle, whose
metallic plumage shimmers
with various colors;
thunderbolts, his terrible
arms, lie on the floor. At his
right is his wife, the jealous Juno, with a
refulgent diadem and the peacock of
vanity. At his left is the wise Pallas
(Minerva), his daughter and adviser,
adorned with her helmet and awesome
shield, crowned with green olive and
gracefully bearing her heavy spear.
Forming a prominent contrast is Saturn
sitting on his heels and staring at the
beautiful group. In gracious mess reclines
the lovely Venus on a bed of roses,
crowned with fragrant myrtle, caressing

El Consejo de los Dioses

(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
2
Cupid. Divine Apollo suavely strikes his
lyre of gold and mother-of-pearl, dallying
with the eight Muses (daughters of Jupiter
and Mnemosyne, goddess of memory),
who are Calliope, muse of heroic poetry;
Melpomene, muse of tragedy; Thalia, muse
of comedy; Polyhymnia, muse of rhetoric;
Erato, muse of lyric poetry; Euterpe, muse
of song and music; Urania, muse of
astronomy; and Clio, muse of history.
Completing that select circle are: Bellona,
Alcides, and Momus. Behind Jupiter and
Juno are Hebe and Ganymede. On the
right side of Jupiter sits Justice on a
throne, her attributes in her hands.
Enter the ninth muse, Terpsichore, the muse
of dance, followed by nymphs, naiads, and
undines who, scattering flowers, dance to the
lyres of Apollo and Erato and the flute of
Euterpe. After the dance, they group
themselves on either side of the stage. Enter
Mercury.
MERCURY: (removing his
Phrygian cap) I have obeyed
your orders, sovereign father.
Neptune and his court cannot
come; they fear to lose
commands of the seas
because of the boldness of
men. Vulcan is still at work on
the thunderbolts you ordered
him to make, with which to
arm Olympus, and is finishing
them now. As for Pluto ...
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
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JUPITER: (interrupting) Enough! I don’t need
them either. Hebe! Ganymede! Serve the nectar
so the immortals may drink. (Hebe and
Ganymede obey.)
Enter Bacchus on foot and Silenus, riding
on an ass, singing:
He who wishes to live
and to make diversions,
let him abandon Minerva
and tend my vines ...
MINERVA: (loudly) Silence! Don’t
you see that mighty Jupiter is about
to speak?
SILENUS: So what? Is the conqueror of the
Titans annoyed? The gods are drinking nectar;
so, anyone can express merriment as he pleases.
But I see that my disciple has offended you, and
you use this as an excuse...
MOMUS: (mockingly) Defend him,
Silenus, so that they won't say your
followers have so much bad manners.
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
4
Minerva, about to speak, is silenced by gesture of
Jupiter, but expresses her disdain with a smile
that alerts the delicate serenity of her shapely
lips. Meanwhile, the gods have finished their
nectar and have begun to chat among
themselves.
JUPITER: There was a time, great gods, when
the proud sons of earth attempted to climb
Olympus by piling mountain upon mountain, so
they could wrest away my power. And there is no
doubt at all that they would have succeeded if
your arms and my terrible thunderbolts had not
hurled them down to Tartarus, burying the others
in the bowels of fiery Etna. This happy event do I
wish to celebrate with all the pomp of the
immortals, now that Earth, following its eternal
course, has returned to that very same point in
its orbit that it occupied then. Thus I--the king of
the gods--desire to begin this feast with a literary
contest. I have here a magnificent war trumpet,
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
5
a lyre and a crown of laurel, all exquisitely made.
The trumpet is of a metal known only to Vulcan,
more precious than gold and silver; the lyre like
that of Apollo, is of gold and mother-of-pearl,
fashioned also by Vulcan, but its strings, wrought
by the Muses, have no equal; and the crown
woven by the Graces of the finest laurel growing
in my immortal gardens, shines more brilliantly
than all the crowns of the kings on earth. These
three prizes are of equal value; and who has
most ably cultivated the letters and the virtues
shall be the owner of these magnificent jewels.
Show me, therefore, the mortal whom you deem
worthy to receive them.
JUNO: (rising proudly) Allow
me, Jupiter, to speak first, since
I am your wife and the mother
of the most powerful gods. No
one better than me can present
to you so perfect a mortal as
the divine Homer. Who indeed
would dare dispute his
supremacy? For no work can
compete with his Iliad, so brave
and bold, and with his Odyssey, so reflective and
prudent. Who, like him, has sung your grandeur
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
6
and that of the other gods so magnificently, as if
he had surprised us right here on Olympus and
been present at our gatherings? Who has done
more than him to keep the odorous incense of
Arabia burning abundantly before our images as
well as fat sacrificial offerings, whose delectable
smoke, rising in capricious spirals, please us
enough to placate our anger? Who, like him, has
recounted the most sublime battles in more
splendid verses? He sang of divinity, of
knowledge, of virtue, of bravery, of heroism and
disaster, using all the notes of his lyre. It is he
who deserves the prize, for I believe, as all
Olympus believes, that nobody else has made
himself so worthy of our esteem.
VENUS: Excuse me,
sister, wife of great
Jove, if I do not share
your estimable option.
And you, Jupiter,
visible only to
immortals, be lenient
to my pleas. I pray you not to allow that he who
sang of my son Aeneas should be vanquished by
Homer. Remember the lyre of Virgil, which sang
of our glories and made sweet even the laments
of tragic love. His most sweet and melancholy
verses stir the soul; he praised piety in the
person of the son of Anchises: his battles are no
less glorious those fought at the foot of the
Trojan walls. Aeneas is greater and more virtuous
than the irritable Achilles. In short, to mind, Virgil
is far superior to the poet of Chios. Is it not true
that he fulfills all the requirements laid down by
your holy mind?
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
7
Having spoken, she returns to recline gracefully
on her couch, like the gracious Undine, who,
cuddling on the foam of the waves, forms the
most precious jewel of a lovely poetical lake.
JUNO: (enraged) What! And why is the Roman
poet to be preferred to the Greek? How can
Virgil, a mere imitator, be greater than Homer?
Since when has the copy been better than the
original? (In a disdainful tone) Ah, beautiful
Venus, I see you are mistaken and I am not
surprised: for when the subject is not love, it's
over your head. Besides, the heart and the
passions never knew how to reason. Abandon the
argument, I beg you -- in the name of your
innumerable lovers...
VENUS: (blushingly interrupting) O most fair
Juno, as jealous as you are vengeful! In spite of
your excellent memory, which ever recalls the
golden apple so unjustly denied your famous and
never quite fully regarded charms, I see with
disgust that you have forgotten the gross insults
your favorite Homer hurled against us. However,
if you yourself find him reasonable and truthful,
that’s fine -- and I felicitate you for it; but as for
me, let the gods of Olympus say...
MOMUS: (interrupting) Yes!
Let them say that you praise
Virgil because … it is said,
he behaved well with you;
and that Juno defends
Homer because he is the
poet of vengeance; and that
both of you are really
merely trading caresses and
compliments! But you,
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
8
Jupiter, why do you not intervene in this debate?
There you sit, like a stunned fool listening to the
trilogies at the Olympian feasts!
JUNO: (loudly) Husband, why do you allow this
deformed and ugly monster to insult us? Kick him
out of Olympus, for his breath stinks! Besides...
MOMUS: Glory to Juno, who never insults, for
she merely called me ugly and deformed! (The
gods laugh.)
JUNO: (paling and frowning, and darting
lightning looks at everyone. especially Momus)
Shut up, god of mockery! By the Stygian lake...!
But enough of this, and let Minerva speak, whose
opinion has always been mine since time
immemorial.
MOMUS: Yes! Another one like you, famous
meddlers, who are always found where they
should not be!
MINERVA: (pretending not
to hear; removing her
helmet to reveal her stern
smooth brow, mansion of
intelligence; and speaking
in a clear silvery voice) I
beg you to hear me, mighty
son of Saturn, who shakes
Olympus with your terrible
frown; and you, wise and
venerated gods, who direct
and govern mankind.
Please do not take my
words wrong, ever
submitted to the will of the
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
9
Thunder hurler. If by chance my arguments lack
weight in your eyes, then refute them and weigh
them on the scales of Justice.
There is in ancient Hesperia, beyond the
Pyrenees, a man whose fame has crossed, with
the swiftness of a lightning flash, the space that
separates the world of mortals from Olympus.
Ignored and unknown, he became the toy of
envy and vile passions, overwhelmed by disaster,
the sad fate of great spirits. It seemed indeed
that the world had extracted from Tartarus all its
sufferings and torments and had heaped them on
his unhappy person. But, in spite of so many
sufferings and injustices, he has not cared to
return blow for blow, but, being too good and too
great to be vengeful, he has rather sought to
correct and educate his fellowmen, by creating
an immortal work: his Don Quixote. I speak then
of Cervantes, of this son of Spain, who is to be
her pride but is now perishing in the most
dreadful misery. The Quixote, his great labor, is a
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
10
whip that punishes and corrects, drawing not
blood but laughter; it is a nectar that contains
the virtues of a bitter medicine; it is a caressing
hand that energetically disciplines human
passions. If you ask me what obstacles he
overcame, please listen to me for a moment and
you shall know.
The world found itself invaded by a kind of
madness, dismal and frenzied, spread by the
idiotic pens of feverish imaginations. Bad taste
prevailed and time was wasted in the reading of
malicious books. Then there appeared this
brilliant light to dispel the darkness of the
intelligence; and as birds flee at the sight of the
hunter or at the whistling of an arrow, so
vanished with the errors, the bad taste and the
absurd beliefs, sinking into the night of oblivion.
And while it is true that the singer of Ileum, in his
sonorous verses, was the first to open the temple
of the Muses and to celebrate the heroism of
mortals and the wisdom of the immortals; while
it is true that the swan of Mantua exalted the
piousness of him who rescued the gods from the
conflagration of his native land and who
renounced the delights of Venus to obey your will
-- you, Jupiter, greatest of all the gods -- and
that the most delicate sentiments sprang from
his lyre, his melancholy music transporting the
mind to other realms; it is also no less certain
that neither Homer nor Virgil reformed the
manners of their age, as did Cervantes. At his
appearance, truth once more occupied her
throne, announcing a new era to the world, and
then corrupted. If you ask me about his beauties,
though I know them well, I propose that you ask
Apollo, supreme judge on the matter, if the
author of Quixote has burned incense on his
immortal altars.
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
11
APOLLO: Receive, O my father, these arguments
of mine with the same pleasure that you listen,
on still nights, to the complaints of Philomela.
The Nine Sisters and I have read in the gardens
of Parnassus this book of which the wise Minerva
spoke. Its merry style and pleasant rhythm
sound in my ears like a sonorous fountain
springing at the mouth of Umbrian cave. (I beg
you not to think me partisan because Cervantes
dedicated to me many of his beautiful pages!) If
even in the extreme poverty that breeds the
hunger, misery and woes that afflict the hapless,
a humble son of mine has nevertheless been able
to lift up to me his songs and to harmonize his
accents, offering me a tribute more gorgeous and
precious than my glittering chariot or my
indomitable horses; if in a stinking dungeon,
unhappy prison of a soul that yearns to fly, his
well trained pen was able to pour forth torrents
of dazzling poetry far sweeter and richer than the
waters of the golden Pactolus, why, then, should
we deny his superiority and not give him the
victory as the greatest genius the universe has
ever seen? His Quixote is the favorite book of the
Muses; and while with its humor it consoles the
depressed and the melancholy and enlightens the
ignorant, it is at the same time a history, the
most faithful history of Spanish customs. I am,
therefore, of the same opinion as the wise Pallas
--and may the gods who do not share that
opinion forgive me.
JUNO: If the greatest merit of Cervantes consists
in having endured so many misfortunes, and
since, in other respects, he surpasses no one, if
indeed he is not surpassed, then I can also say
that Homer, blind and miserable, once subsisted
on public charity (which Cervantes never did),
wandering through the towns and cities with his
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
12
lyre as his only friend and living in the most
complete misery. This do you remember well,
ungrateful Apollo.
VENUS: So what? And Virgil--has he not also
been poor? Did he not live for a long time on a
single loaf of bread, a gift of Caesar? The
melancholy that breathes from his works--does it
not tell enough of how much his sensitive and
delicate heart must have suffered? Could he have
suffered less than the brilliant Homer or the gay
Cervantes?
MINERVA: All that is true, no doubt. But you
must not forget that Cervantes was wounded,
overpowered and taken captive on the
inhospitable soil of Africa, where he drained to
the dregs the chalice of bitterness living under
the constant threat of death.
Jupiter gestures that he agrees with Minerva.
MARS: (rising and speaking with a voice of
thunder and wrath) No, by my spear! No! Never!
While a drop of immortal blood warms my veins,
Cervantes shall not win! How can I permit a book
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
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to rise victorious that hurls my glory to the
ground and makes mock my feasts? Jupiter, I
helped you one time; so listen to my reasons.
JUNO: (very angry) Listen, Oh Jupiter the Judge,
the reasons of valiant Mars, as sensible as he is
courageous. Light and truth spring from his
words. How indeed can we permit this man
whose glory Time has respected (and let Saturn
speak out) to see himself displaced by a onearmed
upstart, the scorn of society?
MARS: And if you, father of gods and men, doubt
the force of my arguments, inquire of these
others if there be any among then who would
sustain his reasons with his arm! (He strides
arrogantly to the center, defying all with a look
and brandishing his sword.)
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
14
MINERVA: (stepping forward with proud
expression and flashing eyes, but speaking in a
serene voice) Foolish Mars, who has forgotten the
Trojan field where you were wounded by a mere
mortal if your reasons are backed by your sword,
mine fear no combat with them on your ground.
But, so I may not be called reckless, I wish to
show you how wrong you are. Cervantes followed
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
15
your banners and served you heroically on the
waters of Lepanto where he would have lost his
life had Destiny not meant him for greater end. If
he abandoned the sword to take up the pen, it
was by the will of the immortals and not to
disparage you, as you may have imagined in your
wild delirium. (Speaking more gently) Do not
then be ungrateful, you whose generous heart is
inaccessible to rancor and odious passions.
Cervantes ridiculed knight errantry because it
was no longer proper to his time. Besides those
are not the combats that do you honor, but
battles in the open field, as you well know. These
are my arguments; and if they don’t convince
you, I accept your challenge.
Having spoken Minerva, like a lightning-loaded
cloud approaching another over the center of the
ocean when the sky darkens, slowly marches
forward, clasping her formidable shield and
lowering her spear, a terrible angel of
destruction, of tranquil but terrifying look, the
sound of her voice striking fear.
Bellona places herself beside Mars, ready to
help him. On seeing this, Apollo drops his lyre
and seizes his bow, draws an arrow from his
golden quiver and, placing himself besides
Minerva, pulls his bow, ready to shoot.
Olympus, on the verge of collapse, shakes; the
light of day darkens and the gods tremble.
JUPITER: (shouting enraged and wielding a
thunderbolt) Go back to your seats, Minerva,
Apollo! And you, Mars and Bellona, do not
provoke celestial fury! (Like cruel wild beasts in
an iron cage obeying the voice of their bold
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
16
master, those four gods return to their respective
seats, scared by the threat of the son of Cybele,
who, on seeing their obedience, speaks more
gently.) I shall put an end this dispute. Justice
shall weigh the books with strict impartiality; and
what she decrees shall be followed in the world,
while you shall accept her immutable judgment.
Justice descends from her
throne and goes to the center,
bearing impartial scales, on
which Mercury places the
Aenied and the Quixote. After
oscillating for a long time, the
needle finally points to the
middle, indicating that the
books have equal weights.
Venus is shocked but keeps silent.
Mercury removes the Aenied and replaces it
with the Iliad. A smile appears on the lips of
Juno, a smile that speedily vanishes when she
sees the two scales bearing the Quixote and the
Iliad rising and falling.
Suspense grips everyone; no one speaks, no
one breathes.
A zephyr flies overhead and lands on the branch
of a tree, to await the verdict of Destiny.
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
17
At last the scales rest equal and remain still.
JUPITER: (in a solemn voice) Gods and
goddesses, Justice believes them equal! Bow
your heads, then, and let us give the trumpet to
Homer, the lyre to Virgil, and the laurel crown to
Cervantes, while Fame shall publish in the world
the verdict of Destiny, and Apollo shall intone a
hymn to the new star that from now on shall
shine in the sky of glory and occupy a seat in the
temple of immortality.
APOLLO: (playing his lyre--at whose sound
Olympus is illuminated--and intoning the hymn of
glory that resounds all over the coliseum): Hail to
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
18
thee, greatest of men, favorite son of the Muses,
core of the intense light that shall illuminate the
universe -- hail! Praise to your name, splendid
luminary, around who, in the days to come, shall
revolve a thousand intellectuals, admirers of your
glory! Hail, masterpiece of the land of the
Almighty, pride of Spain! Most beautiful of the
flowers that crown my brows, I salute you! You
shall eclipse the glories of antiquity; your name,
written in letters of gold in the temple of
immortality, shall be the despair of other
geniuses! Mighty giant, you shall be invincible!
Rising like a superb monument in the midst of
your century, you shall draw all eyes. Your
powerful arm shall vanquish your enemies as a
hungry fire consumes dry straw. Go, inspired
Muses; gather fragrant myrtle, beauteous laurel
and red roses, and weave immortal crowns for
Cervantes. Pan and Silenus, and you fauns and
merry satyrs, dance on the carpet of the dark
forests, while the nereids, the naiads, the noisy
undines and the playful nymphs, scattering a
thousand fragrant flowers, embellish with their
songs the solitude of the seas, the lakes, the
water falls and the rivers, and agitate the clear
surface of the fountains in their diverse games.
The Muses, nymphs, naiads, etc., begin to dance,
as well as Bacchus, Momus, Silenus and
Ganymede, Terpsichore being the lead dancer.
Apollo and Erato play the lyre; Euterpe, the flute;
Clio, the trumpet; and Calliope, the bugle.
Meanwhile, the gods and goddesses arrange
themselves on either side of the stage, which has
been cleared of their thrones. Marcha Real is
played and a second curtain opens, revealing an
illuminated bust of Cervantes being crowned by
one of the mortals.
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
19
-- End --
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
20
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
21
EL CONSEJO DE LOS DIOSES
by
Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish
to Contemporary English,
and annotated [in square brackets]
by Jose Fadul
Reunion of the Gods on Mount Olympus:
Jupiter [the chief deity, god of the skies:
also known as the Greek Zeus] is seated
on a throne of gold and precious stones,
bearing in his hand a scepter of cypress. At
his feet is the eagle, whose metallic
plumage shimmers with various colors;
thunderbolts, his terrible arms, lie on the
floor. At his right is his wife, the jealous
Juno [the sister and wife of Jupiter, queen
of the gods, and goddess of marriage: also
known as the Greek Hera], with a refulgent
diadem and the peacock of vanity. At his
left is the wise Pallas [the goddess of
wisdom, skills, and warfare; she is also
known as Athena.] (Minerva), his daughter
and adviser, adorned with her helmet and
awesome shield, crowned with green olive
and gracefully bearing her heavy spear.
Forming a prominent contrast is Saturn
[the god of agriculture, also known as the
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
22
Greek Cronus] sitting on his heels and
staring at the beautiful group. In gracious
mess reclines the lovely Venus [the
goddess of love and beauty; also known as
the Greek Aphrodite] on a bed of roses,
crowned with fragrant myrtle, caressing
Cupid [the god of love, son of Venus:
usually represented as a winged boy with
bow and arrow also known as the Greek
Eros]. Delightful Apollo [the god of music,
poetry, prophecy, and medicine,
represented as exemplifying manly youth
and beauty.] suavely strikes his lyre of
gold and mother-of-pearl, dallying with the
eight Muses (daughters of Jupiter and
Mnemosyne, goddess of memory), who are
Calliope, muse of heroic poetry;
Melpomene, muse of tragedy; Thalia, muse
of comedy; Polyhymnia, muse of rhetoric;
Erato, muse of lyric poetry; Euterpe, muse
of song and music; Urania, muse of
astronomy; and Clio, muse of history.
Completing that select circle are Mars [the
god of war; also known as the Greek
Ares.] , Bellona [Wife (or sister) of Mars;
goddess of war], Alcides [the son of Zeus
and Alcmene, renowned for his strength
and courage perhaps better known by the
name, Hercules] and Momus [Note: a god
of mockery and censure]. Behind Jupiter and
Juno are, Hebe [Note: the goddess of
youth] and Ganymede [Note: a beautiful
youth carried off by Zeus to be the cupbearer to
the gods.]. On the right side of Jupiter sits
Justice [“Justice is not formally a part of
the Roman pantheon but is treated as such
in this play.] on a throne, her attributes in
her hands [that is, a sword and balancing
scales].
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
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Enter the ninth muse, Terpsichore, the muse
of dance, followed by nymphs, naiads, and
undines [minor nature gods and goddesses,
living in rivers, mountains and trees. An
undine is a feminine water spirit who can
acquire a soul by marrying and bearing a child
to a human], who, scattering flowers, dance to
the lyres of Apollo and Erato and the flute of
Euterpe. After the dance, they group
themselves on either side of the stage. Enter
Mercury [the messenger of the gods, the god
of commerce, manual skill, eloquence,
cleverness, travel, and robbery: also known as
the Greek Hermes].
MERCURY: (removing his Phrygian cap) I have
obeyed your orders, sovereign father. Neptune
and his court cannot come; they fear to lose
commands of the seas because of the boldness of
men. Vulcan is still at work on the thunderbolts
you ordered him to make, with which to arm
Olympus, and is finishing them now. As for
Pluto...
JUPITER: (interrupting) Enough! I don’t need
them either. Hebe! Ganymede! Serve the nectar
so the immortals may drink. (Hebe and
Ganymede obey.)
Enter Bacchus [the god of wine and
revelry: also known as the Greek
Dionysus] on foot and Silenus [the foster
father and tutor of Dionysus and leader of
the satyrs (minor woodland deities with
the head and trunk of a human, the hind
legs of a goat, the ears and tail of a horse
and short horns; they are known for their
disorderly and lecherous merry-making),
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
24
traditionally pictured as a fat, drunken,
fun-loving old man with pointed ears.] on
an ass, singing:
He who wishes to live
and to make diversions,
let him abandon Minerva
and tend my vines...
MINERVA: (loudly) Silence! Don’t you see that
mighty Jupiter would speak?
SILENUS: So what? Is the conqueror of the
Titans annoyed? The gods are drinking nectar;
so, anyone can express merriment as he pleases.
But I see that my disciple has offended you, and
you use this as an excuse...
MOMUS: (mockingly) Defend him, Silenus, so
they won't say that your followers have plenty of
bad manners.
Minerva, about to speak, is silenced by
gesture of Jupiter, but expresses her disdain with
a smile that alerts the delicate serenity of her
shapely lips. Meanwhile, the gods have finished
their nectar and have begun to chat among
themselves.
JUPITER: There was a time, great gods, when
the proud sons of earth attempted to climb
Olympus by piling mountain upon mountain, so
they could wrest away my power. And there is no
doubt at all that they would have succeeded if
your arms and my terrible thunderbolts had not
hurled them down to Tartarus [The deepest
chamber of the underworld and prison of the
world’s dead], burying the others in the bowels of
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
25
fiery Etna. This happy event do I wish to
celebrate with all the pomp of the immortals,
now that Earth, following its eternal course, has
returned to that very same point in its orbit that
it occupied then. Thus I--the king of the gods--
desire to begin this feast with a literary contest. I
have here a magnificent war trumpet, a lyre and
a crown of laurel, all exquisitely made. The
trumpet is of a metal known only to Vulcan, more
precious than gold and silver; the lyre like that of
Apollo, is of gold and mother-of-pearl, fashioned
also by Vulcan, but its strings, wrought by the
Muses, have no equal; and the crown woven by
the Graces of the finest laurel growing in my
immortal gardens, shines more brilliantly than all
the crowns of the kings on earth. These three
prizes are of equal value; and who has most ably
cultivated the letters and the virtues shall be the
owner of these magnificent jewels. Show me,
therefore, the mortal whom you deem worthy to
receive them.
JUNO: (rising proudly) Allow me, Jupiter, to
speak first, since I am your wife and the mother
of the most powerful gods. No one better than
me can present to you so perfect a mortal as the
divine Homer. Who indeed would dare dispute his
supremacy? For no work can compete with his
Iliad, so brave and bold, and with his Odyssey, so
reflective and prudent. Who, like him, has sung
your grandeur and that of the other gods so
magnificently, as if he had surprised us right here
on Olympus and been present at our gatherings?
Who has done more than him to keep the
odorous incense of Arabia burning abundantly
before our images as well as fat sacrificial
offerings, whose delectable smoke, rising in
capricious spirals, please us enough to placate
our anger? Who, like him, has recounted the
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
26
most sublime battles in more splendid verses? He
sang of divinity, of knowledge, of virtue, of
bravery, of heroism and disaster, using all the
notes of his lyre. It is he who deserves the prize,
for I believe, as all Olympus believes, that
nobody else has made himself so worthy of our
esteem.
VENUS: Excuse me, sister, wife of great Jove, if
I do not share your estimable option. And you,
Jupiter, visible only to immortals, be lenient to
my pleas. I pray you not to allow that he who
sang [he is the epic poet Virgil who wrote the
Aeneid of whom Aeneas is the hero.] of my son
Aeneas [Upon escaping ruined Troy, Aeneas
wanders for years before coming to Latium and
so is considered the forefather of the Romans.]
should be vanquished by Homer [The epic poet
who wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey where we
find Achilles.]. Call to mind the lyre of Virgil,
which sang of our glories and made sweet even
the laments of tragic love. His most sweet and
melancholy verses stir the soul; he praised piety
in the person of the son of Anchises [that is,
Aeneas of whom Anchises is his father]: his
battles are no less glorious those fought at the
foot of the Trojan walls. Aeneas is greater and
more virtuous than the irritable Achilles [The
hero of The Iliad]. In short, to mind, Virgil is far
superior to the poet of Chios [an Island in the
Aegean Sea. A legend holds that Homer was a
blind beggar from that island]. Is it not true that
he fulfills all the requirements laid down by your
holy mind?
Having spoken, she returns to recline gracefully
on her couch, like the gracious Undine, who,
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
27
cuddling on the foam of the waves, forms the
most precious jewel of a lovely poetical lake.
JUNO: (enraged) What! And why is the Roman
poet to be preferred to the Greek? How can
Virgil, a mere imitator, be greater than Homer?
Since when has the copy been better than the
original? (In a disdainful tone) Ah, beautiful
Venus, I see you are mistaken and I am not
surprised: for when the subject is not love, it's
over your head. Besides, the heart and the
passions never knew how to reason. Abandon the
argument, I beg you -- in the name of your
innumerable lovers...
VENUS: (blushingly interrupting) O most fair
Juno, as jealous as you are vengeful! In spite of
your excellent memory, which ever recalls the
golden apple so unjustly denied your famous and
never quite fully regarded charms, I see with
disgust that you have forgotten the gross insults
your favorite Homer hurled against us. However,
if you yourself find him reasonable and truthful,
that’s fine -- and I felicitate you for it; but as for
me, let the gods of Olympus say...
MOMUS: (interrupting) Yes! Let them say that
you praise Virgil because … it is said, he behaved
well with you; and that Juno defends Homer
because he is the poet of vengeance; and that
both of you are really merely trading caresses
and compliments! But you, Jupiter, why do you
not intervene in this debate? There you sit, like a
stunned fool listening to the trilogies at the
Olympian feasts!
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
28
JUNO: (loudly) Husband, why do you allow this
deformed and ugly monster to insult us? Kick him
out of Olympus, for his breath stinks! Besides...
MOMUS: Glory to Juno, who never insults, for
she merely called me ugly and deformed! (The
gods laugh.)
JUNO: (paling and frowning, and darting
lightning looks at everyone. especially Momus)
Shut up, god of mockery! By the Stygian lake
[reference to the River Styx which transported
the dead to the infernal regions = “by the rivers
of hell!”]...! But enough of this, and let Minerva
speak, whose opinion has always been mine
since time immemorial.
MOMUS: Yes! Another one like you, famous
meddlers, who are always found where they
should not be!
MINERVA: (pretending not to hear; removing
her helmet to reveal her stern smooth brow,
mansion of intelligence; and speaking in a clear
silvery voice) I beg you to hear me, mighty son
of Saturn, who shakes Olympus with your terrible
frown; and you, wise and venerated gods, who
direct and govern mankind. Please do not take
my words wrong, ever submitted to the will of
the Lightning Thrower [that is, Jupiter]. If by
chance my arguments lack weight in your eyes,
then refute them and weigh them on the scales
of Justice.
There is in ancient Hesperia [the Roman name
for Spain], beyond the Pyrenees [the mountain
range that separates Spain from France and the
rest of Europe], a man whose fame has crossed,
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
29
with the swiftness of a lightning flash, the space
that separates the world of mortals from
Olympus. Ignored and unknown, he became the
plaything of envy and vile passions, overwhelmed
by disaster, the sad fate of great spirits. It
seemed indeed that the world had extracted from
Tartarus all its sufferings and torments and had
heaped them on his unhappy person. But, in
spite of so many sufferings and injustices, he has
not cared to return blow for blow, but, being too
good and too great to be vengeful, he has rather
sought to correct and educate his fellowmen, by
creating an immortal work: his Don Quixote. I
speak then of Cervantes, of this son of Spain,
who is to be her pride but is now perishing in the
most dreadful misery. The Quixote, his great
labor, is a whip that punishes and corrects,
drawing not blood but laughter; it is a nectar that
contains the virtues of a bitter medicine; it is a
caressing hand that energetically disciplines
human passions. If you ask me what obstacles he
overcame, please listen to me for a moment and
you shall know.
The world found itself invaded by a kind of
foolishness, dismal and frenzied, spread by the
idiotic pens of feverish imaginations. Bad taste
prevailed and time was wasted in the reading of
malicious books. Then there appeared this
brilliant light to dispel the darkness of the
intelligence; and as birds flee at the sight of the
hunter or at the whistling of an arrow, so
vanished with the errors, the bad taste and the
absurd beliefs, sinking into the night of oblivion.
And while it is true that the singer of Ileum [that
is, Homer], in his sonorous verses, was the first
to open the temple of the Muses and to celebrate
the heroism of mortals and the wisdom of the
immortals; while it is true that the swan of
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
30
Mantua [swan of Mantua--Virgil’s nickname given
by post-Renaissance writers] exalted the
piousness of him who rescued the gods from the
conflagration of his native land and who
renounced the delights of Venus to obey your will
--you, Jupiter, greatest of all the gods--and that
the most delicate sentiments sprang from his
lyre, his melancholy music transporting the mind
to other realms; it is also no less certain that
neither Homer nor Virgil reformed the manners of
their age, as did Cervantes. At his appearance,
truth again occupied her throne, announcing a
new era to the world, and then corrupted. If you
ask me about his beauties, though I know them
well, I propose that you ask Apollo, supreme
judge on the matter, if the author of Quixote has
burned incense on his immortal altars.
APOLLO: Receive, O my father, these arguments
of mine with the same pleasure that you listen,
on still nights, to the complaints of Philomela.
The Nine Sisters [that is, the Muses] and I have
read in the gardens of Parnassus [that is,
gardens of poetic activity.] this book of which the
wise Minerva spoke. Its merry style and pleasant
rhythm sound in my ears like a sonorous fountain
springing at the mouth of Umbrian cave. (I beg
you not to think me partisan because Cervantes
dedicated to me many of his beautiful pages!) If
even in the extreme poverty that breeds the
hunger, misery and woes that afflict the hapless,
a humble son of mine has nevertheless been able
to lift up to me his songs and to harmonize his
accents, offering me a tribute more gorgeous and
precious than my glittering chariot or my
indomitable horses; if in a stinking dungeon,
unhappy prison of a soul that yearns to fly, his
well-trained pen was able to pour forth torrents
of dazzling poetry far sweeter and richer than the
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
31
waters of the golden Pactolus [at this River King
Midus was able to rid himself of the curse that
caused everything he touched to turn to gold.
Gold is supposed to be found in the sands of its
riverbanks.], why, then, should we deny his
superiority and not give him the victory as the
greatest genius the universe has ever seen? His
Quixote is the favorite book of the Muses; and
while with its humor it consoles the depressed
and the melancholy and enlightens the ignorant,
it is at the same time a history, the most faithful
history of Spanish customs. I am, therefore, of
the same opinion as the wise Pallas--and may the
gods who do not share that opinion forgive me.
JUNO: If the greatest merit of Cervantes consists
in having endured so many misfortunes, and
since, in other respects, he surpasses no one, if
indeed he is not surpassed, then I can also say
that Homer, blind and miserable, once subsisted
on public charity (which Cervantes never did),
wandering through the towns and cities with his
lyre as his only friend and living in the most
complete misery. This do you remember well,
ungrateful Apollo.
VENUS: So what? And Virgil--has he not also
been poor? Did he not live for a long time on a
single loaf of bread, a gift of Caesar? The
melancholy that breathes from his works -- does
it not tell enough of how much his sensitive and
delicate heart must have suffered? Could he have
suffered less than the brilliant Homer or the witty
Cervantes?
MINERVA: All that is true, no doubt. But you
must not forget that Cervantes was wounded,
overpowered and taken captive on the
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
32
inhospitable soil of Africa, where he drained to
the dregs the chalice of bitterness living under
the constant threat of death.
Jupiter gestures that he agrees with Minerva.
MARS: (rising and speaking with a voice of
thunder and wrath) No, by my spear! No! Never!
While a drop of immortal blood warms my veins,
Cervantes shall not win! How can I permit a book
to rise victorious that hurls my glory to the
ground and makes mock my feasts? Jupiter, I
helped you one time; so listen to my reasons.
JUNO: (very angry) Listen, Oh Jupiter the Judge,
the reasons of valiant Mars, as sensible as he is
courageous. Light and truth spring from his
words. How indeed can we permit this man
whose glory Time has respected (and let Saturn
speak out) to see himself displaced by a onearmed
upstart, the scorn of society?
MARS: And if you, father of gods and men, doubt
the force of my arguments, inquire of these
others if there be any among then who would
sustain his reasons with his arm! (He strides
arrogantly to the center, defying all with a look
and brandishing his sword.)
MINERVA: (stepping forward with proud
expression and flashing eyes, but speaking in a
serene voice) Foolish Mars, who has forgotten the
Trojan field where you were wounded by a mere
mortal [with the help of the goddess Juno, the
warrior Diomedes drove a spear into Mars in the
battle for Troy.]: if your reasons are backed by
your sword, mine fear no combat with them on
your ground. But, so I may not be called
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
33
reckless, I wish to show you how wrong you are.
Cervantes followed your banners and served you
heroically on the waters of Lepanto [In this battle
Cervantes lost the use of his left hand as he
fought the Turks in 1571.], where he would have
lost his life had Destiny not meant him for
greater end. If he abandoned the sword to take
up the pen, it was by the will of the immortals
and not to disparage you, as you may have
imagined in your wild delirium. (Speaking more
gently) Do not then be ungrateful, you whose
generous heart is inaccessible to rancor and
odious passions. Cervantes ridiculed knight
errantry because it was no longer proper to his
time. Besides those are not the combats that do
you honor, but battles in the open field, as you
well know. These are my arguments; and if they
don’t convince you, I accept your challenge.
Having spoken Minerva, like a lightning-loaded
cloud approaching another over the center of the
ocean when the sky darkens, slowly marches
forward, clasping her formidable shield and
lowering her spear, a terrible angel of
destruction, of tranquil but terrifying look, the
sound of her voice striking fear.
Bellona places herself beside Mars, ready to
help him. On seeing this, Apollo drops his lyre
and seizes his bow, draws an arrow from his
golden quiver and, placing himself besides
Minerva, pulls his bow, ready to shoot.
Olympus, on the verge of collapse, shudders;
the light of day darkens and the gods tremble.
JUPITER: (shouting enraged and wielding a
thunderbolt) Go back to your seats, Minerva,
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
34
Apollo! And you, Mars and Bellona, do not
provoke celestial fury! (Like cruel wild beasts in
an iron cage obeying the voice of their bold
master, those four gods return to their respective
seats, scared by the threat of the son of Cybele,
who, on seeing their obedience, speaks more
gently.) I shall put an end this dispute. Justice
shall weigh the books with strict impartiality; and
what she decrees shall be followed in the world,
while you shall accept her immutable judgment.
Justice descends from her throne and goes to
the center, bearing impartial scales, on which
Mercury places the Aenied and the Quixote. After
oscillating for a long time, the needle finally
points to the middle, indicating that the books
are equal.
Venus is shocked but keeps silent.
Mercury removes the Aenied and replaces it
with the Iliad. A smile appears on the lips of
Juno, a smile that speedily vanishes when she
sees the two scales bearing the Quixote and the
Iliad rising and falling.
Suspense grips everyone; no one speaks, no
one breathes.
A zephyr [a soft, gentle west wind represented
by a gentle, light fabric.] flies overhead and lands
on the branch of a tree, to await the verdict of
Destiny.
At last the scales rest equal and remain still.
JUPITER: (in a solemn voice) Gods and
goddesses, Justice believes them equal! Bow,
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
35
your heads then, and let us give the trumpet to
Homer, the lyre to Virgil, and the laurel crown to
Cervantes, while Fame shall publish in the world
the verdict of Destiny and Apollo shall play a
hymn to the new star that from now on shall
shine in the sky of glory and occupy a seat in the
temple of immortality.
APOLLO: (playing his lyre -- at whose sound
Olympus is illuminated-- and playing the hymn of
glory that resounds all over the coliseum): Hail to
thee, greatest of men, favorite son of the Muses,
core of the intense light that shall illuminate the
universe -- hail! Praise to your name, splendid
luminary, around who, in the days to come, shall
revolve a thousand intellectuals, admirers of your
glory! Hail, masterpiece of the land of the
Almighty, pride of Spain! Most beautiful of the
flowers that crown my brows, I salute you! You
shall eclipse the glories of antiquity; your name,
written in letters of gold in the temple of
immortality, shall be the despair of other
geniuses! Mighty giant, you shall be invincible!
Rising like a superb monument in the midst of
your century, you shall draw all eyes to yourself.
Your powerful arm shall vanquish your enemies
as a hungry fire consumes dry straw. Go,
inspired Muses; gather fragrant myrtle,
beauteous laurel and red roses, and weave
immortal crowns for Cervantes.
Pan [a god of fields, forests, wild animals, flocks,
and shepherds, represented as having the legs,
horns and ears of a goat: also known as the
Roman Faunus. Often playing a reed pipe.], and
Silenus, and young fauns and merry satyrs,
dance on the carpet of the dark forests, while the
nereids [that is, fairies], the naiads, the noisy
El Consejo de los Dioses
(“Council of the Gods”)
by Jose Protasio Rizal
Translated from Spanish to English by Jose Fadul
36
undines and the playful nymphs, scattering a
thousand fragrant flowers, embellish with their
songs the solitude of the seas, the lakes, the
water falls and the rivers, and agitate the clear
surface of the fountains in their diverse games.
The Muses, nymphs, naiads, etc., begin to dance,
as well as Bacchus, Momus, Silenus and
Ganymede, Terpsichore being the leader dancer.
Apollo and Erato play the lyre; Euterpe, the flute;
Clio, the trumpet; and Calliope, the bugle.
Meanwhile, the gods and goddesses arrange
themselves on either side of the stage, which has
been cleared of their thrones. Marcha Real
[“Royal March” – Spain’s National Anthem] is
played and a second curtain opens, revealing an
illuminated bust of Cervantes being crowned by
one of the mortals.