Act 1, Scene 3

[A wasteland near the royal castle at Fores. Thunder and lightning, enter the three Witches.]

First Witch

Where hast thou been, sister?

Second Witch

Third Witch

First Witch

A sailor's wife had chestnuts in her lap,

And munched, and munched, and munched. 'Give me,' quoth I.

'Aroint thee , witch' the rump-fed ronyon cries.

Her husband's to Aleppo gone, master o' the Tiger.

But in a sieve, I'll thither sail,

And, like a rat without a tail,

I'll do, I'll do, and I'll do.

Second Witch

First Witch

Third Witch

First Witch

I myself have all the other,

And the very ports they blow  —

All the quarters that they know

I will drain him dry as hay.

Sleep shall neither night nor day

Hang upon his penthouse lid.

He shall live a man forbid .

Weary seven nights, nine times nine ,

Shall he dwindle, peak and pine .

Though his bark cannot be lost,

Yet it shall be tempest-tossed.

Second Witch

First Witch

Here I have a pilot's thumb,

Wrecked as homeward he did come.

[Drumming offstage]

Third Witch

All

The weird sisters , hand in hand,

Posters of the sea and land,

Thrice to thine and thrice to mine,

And thrice again to make up nine.

Peace, the charm's wound up .

[Enter Macbeth and Banquo]

Macbeth

So foul and fair a day I have not seen.

Banquo

How far is't called to Forres ?

[Enter Witches]

So withered and so wild in their attire,

That look not like the inhabitants o' the earth,

[To the witches]

Live you or are you aught

[The witches signal for Banquo to be silent]

You seem to understand me,

By each at once her chappy finger laying

Upon her skinny lips. You should be women,

And yet your beards forbid me to interpret

Macbeth

                           Speak, if you can; what are you?

First Witch

All hail, Macbeth. Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis.

Second Witch

All hail, Macbeth. Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor.

Third Witch

All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter .

Banquo

[To Macbeth] Good sir, why do you start , and seem to fear

Things that do sound so fair ?[To Witches] I' the name of truth,

Are ye fantastical , or that indeed

Which outwardly ye show? My noble partner

You greet with present grace and great prediction

Of noble having and of royal hope,

That he seems rapt withal . To me you speak not.

If you can look into the seeds of time,

And say which grain will grow and which will not,

Speak then to me, who neither beg nor fear

Your favors, nor your hate.

First Witch

Second Witch

Third Witch

First Witch

Lesser than Macbeth, and greater.

Second Witch

Not so happy, yet much happier.

Third Witch

Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none.

So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo.

First Witch

Banquo and Macbeth, all hail.

Macbeth

Stay, you imperfect speakers, tell me more:

By Sinel's death I know I am Thane of Glamis;

But how of Cawdor? The Thane of Cawdor lives,

A prosperous gentleman. And to be king

Stands not within the prospect of belief,

No more than to be Cawdor. Say from whence

You owe this strange intelligence, or why

Upon this blasted heath you stop our way

With such prophetic greeting? Speak, I charge you.

[Witches vanish]

Banquo

The earth hath bubbles, as the water has,

And these are of them. Whither are they vanished?

Macbeth

Into the air; and what seemed corporal melted

As breath into the wind. Would they had stayed.

Banquo

Were such things here as we do speak about,

Or have we eaten on the insane root

That takes the reason prisoner?

Macbeth

Your children shall be kings.

Banquo

Macbeth

And Thane of Cawdor too. Went it not so?

Banquo

To the selfsame tune and words.

[Enter Ross and Angus]

Banquo

Ross

The king hath happily received, Macbeth,

The news of thy success; and when he reads

Thy personal venture in the rebels' fight,

His wonders and his praises do contend

Which should be thine or his — silenced with that .

In viewing o'er the rest o' the selfsame day,

He finds thee in the stout Norwegian ranks,

Nothing afeard of what thyself didst make,

Strange images of death. As thick as hail

Came post with post , and every one did bear

Thy praises in his kingdom's great defense,

And poured them down before him.

Angus

To give thee from our royal master thanks,

Only to herald thee into his sight,

Ross

And, for an earnest of a greater honor,

He bade me, from him, call thee Thane of Cawdor —

In which addition , hail, most worthy thane,

Banquo

                        What, can the devil speak true?

Macbeth

The Thane of Cawdor lives. Why do you dress me

Angus

                                Who was the thane lives yet ,

But under heavy judgment bears that life

Which he deserves to lose. Whether he was combined

With those of Norway, or did line the rebel

With hidden help and vantage — or that with both

He labored in his country's wreck, I know not.

But treasons capital , confessed and proved,

Macbeth

[To himself (aside)] Glamis, and Thane of Cawdor;

The greatest is behind .[To Ross and Angus] Thanks for your pains.

[To Banquo] Do you not hope your children shall be kings,

When those that gave the Thane of Cawdor to me

Promised no less to them?

Banquo

Might yet enkindle you unto the crown

Besides the Thane of Cawdor. But 'tis strange

And oftentimes, to win us to our harm,

The instruments of darkness tell us truths,

Win us with honest trifles, to betray's

[To Ross and Angus] Cousins , a word, I pray you.

[Banquo joins Ross and Angus; Macbeth speaks to himself]

Macbeth

[Aside] Two truths are told

As happy prologues to the swelling act

Of the imperial theme.[To Ross and Angus] I thank you, gentlemen.

[Aside] This supernatural soliciting

Cannot be ill, cannot be good. If ill,

Why hath it given me earnest of success,

Commencing in a truth? I am Thane of Cawdor.

If good, why do I yield to that suggestion

Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair,

And make my seated heart knock at my ribs,

Against the use of nature? Present fears

Are less than horrible imaginings.

My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical ,

Shakes so my single state of man  that function

Is smothered in surmise — and nothing is,

Banquo

Look, how our partner's rapt .

Macbeth

[Aside] If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me,

Banquo

Like our strange garments cleave not to their mould

Macbeth

[Aside] Come what come may,

Time and the hour runs through the roughest day.

Banquo

Worthy Macbeth, we stay upon your leisure.

Macbeth

Give me your favor; my dull brain was wrought

With things forgotten. Kind gentlemen, your pains

Are registered where every day I turn

The leaf to read them. Let us toward the king.

[To Banquo] Think upon what hath chanced , and at more time ,

The interim having weighed it, let us speak

Our free hearts each to other .

Banquo

Macbeth

Till then, enough. Come, friends.

[Exit]