5.24
[1] At Psȳchē statim resurgentis eius crūre dexterō manibus ambābus adrēptō sublīmis ēvectiōnis appendix miseranda et per nūbilās plagās pendulī comitātūs extrēma cōnsequia tandem fessa dēlābitur solō. [2] Nec deus amātor humī iacentem dēserēns involāvit proximam cupressum dēque eius altō cacūmine sīc eam graviter commōtus adfātur: [3] “Ego quidem, simplicissima Psȳchē, parentis meae Veneris praeceptōrum immemor, quae tē miserī extrēmīque hominis dēvīnctam cupīdine īnfimō mātrimōniō addīcī iusserat, ipse potius amātor advolāvī tibi. [4] Sed hoc fēcī leviter, sciō, et praeclārus ille sagittārius ipse mē tēlō meō percussī tēque coniugem meam fēcī, ut bēstia scīlicet tibi vidērer et ferrō caput exciderēs meum quod istōs amātōrēs tuōs oculōs gerit. [5] Haec tibi identidem semper cavenda cēnsēbam, haec benivolē remonēbam. Sed illae quidem cōnsiliātrīcēs ēgregiae tuae tam perniciōsī magisteriī dabunt āctūtum mihi poenās, tē vērō tantum fugā meā pūnīverō.” Et cum terminō sermōnis pinnīs in altum sē prōripuit.
Psyche hangs onto Cupid’s leg as he flies away. He explains the difficulty of their situation.
appendix miseranda: “pitiful addition” (in apposition to Psyche)
pendulī comitātūs extrēma cōnsequia: “the trailing accompaniment of a dangling follower;” (“a very artificial expression even for [Apuleius]” (Kenney)).
tandem fessa dēlābitur solō: Allusion to Plato, Phaedrus 248c: “Whenever [the soul], lacking the strength to follow [God], does not see [truth], and becomes heavy, experiencing some misfortune and being filled with forgetfulness and wickedness, it loses its feathers and falls to earth.”
tē…addīcī: indirect command whose subject is tē; here, addīcī means “be awarded” in a negative sense.
leviter: translate as “unthinkingly”
praeclārus: translate as “illustrious”
istōs amātōrēs tuōs oculōs: “those eyes, your lovers”
haec…cavenda cēnsēbam: cavenda is a passive periphrastic (supply esse) in an indirect statement governed by cēnsēbam.
ēgregiae: This is sarcasm.
dabunt…poenās: “suffer punishment for” (+ gen.) (A&G 352)
ēvectio, -ōnis f.: flight
nūbilus, -a, -um: cloudy
involō, -āre: fly into
cupressus, -ī f.: cypress
sagittārius, -iī m.: archer
identidem: (adv.) again and again, repeatedly
benivolē: (adv.) kindly
remoneō, -ēre, -uī, -itum: warn again
cōnsiliātrix, -īcis f.: (female) counselor
magisterium, -iī n.: guidance
āctūtum: (adv.) immediately, forthwith
tantum: see 5.3.3
pūniō, -īre, -īvī, -ītum: punish, take revenge
prōripiō, -ere, -uī, -itum: See 5.21.2