# The Iliad, Book 14: Hera's Deception

Ἰλιάς · Homer · The Patrocleia

Hera seduces Zeus and puts him to sleep. With Poseidon free to help, Ajax knocks Hector down with a stone.

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/iliad/14. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/iliad/14.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/iliad/<line id>.m4a.

**1** Νέστορα δʼ οὐκ ἔλαθεν ἰαχὴ πίνοντά περ ἔμπης,  
Yet the battle-cry did not escape Nestor, though he was still drinking,
> Though still drinking: The particle περ and adverb ἔμπης together sharpen the concession: even though Nestor is drinking beside the wounded Machaon, the battle-cry reaches him. The participle πίνοντα describes Nestor, not Machaon.

**2** ἀλλʼ Ἀσκληπιάδην ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·  
and he addressed the son of Asclepius with winged words:

**3** φράζεο δῖε Μαχᾶον ὅπως ἔσται τάδε ἔργα·  
"Take thought, godlike Machaon, how these things will turn out.
> Take thought: φράζεο is a present middle imperative: Nestor tells Machaon to consider the worsening battle for himself. The command opens a question about what the fighting will become, not a demand that the wounded healer return to combat.

**4** μείζων δὴ παρὰ νηυσὶ βοὴ θαλερῶν αἰζηῶν.  
Greater now beside the ships rises the shout of vigorous young men.

**5** ἀλλὰ σὺ μὲν νῦν πῖνε καθήμενος αἴθοπα οἶνον  
But you sit here now and drink the gleaming wine

**6** εἰς ὅ κε θερμὰ λοετρὰ ἐϋπλόκαμος Ἑκαμήδη  
until well-tressed Hecamede has warmed hot bathwater

**7** θερμήνῃ καὶ λούσῃ ἄπο βρότον αἱματόεντα·  
and washed the bloody gore from you.
> Until she has warmed it: The aorist subjunctive θερμήνῃ completes the temporal phrase εἰς ὅ κε begun in the previous line: Machaon is to remain until Hecamede finishes heating the bath. The subject is Hecamede, who also performs the washing.

**8** αὐτὰρ ἐγὼν ἐλθὼν τάχα εἴσομαι ἐς περιωπήν.  
I will go out and quickly look from a vantage point."

**9** ὣς εἰπὼν σάκος εἷλε τετυγμένον υἷος ἑοῖο  
So he spoke, and took the well-made shield of his own son,

**10** κείμενον ἐν κλισίῃ Θρασυμήδεος ἱπποδάμοιο  
which lay in the hut of horse-taming Thrasymedes,

**11** χαλκῷ παμφαῖνον· ὃ δʼ ἔχʼ ἀσπίδα πατρὸς ἑοῖο.  
all gleaming with bronze; his son was holding his father's shield.

**12** εἵλετο δʼ ἄλκιμον ἔγχος ἀκαχμένον ὀξέϊ χαλκῷ,  
He took his stout spear, sharpened with keen bronze,
> Sharpened with keen bronze: The spear is fitted and honed with a sharp bronze point. This whole Greek line repeats Iliad 10.135 exactly, so the accepted English line is repeated exactly here.

**13** στῆ δʼ ἐκτὸς κλισίης, τάχα δʼ εἴσιδεν ἔργον ἀεικὲς  
and stood outside the hut; soon he saw a shameful work:

**14** τοὺς μὲν ὀρινομένους, τοὺς δὲ κλονέοντας ὄπισθε  
some men routed, others driving them on from behind—

**15** Τρῶας ὑπερθύμους· ἐρέριπτο δὲ τεῖχος Ἀχαιῶν.  
the high-hearted Trojans; and the Achaeans' wall lay fallen.

**16** ὡς δʼ ὅτε πορφύρῃ πέλαγος μέγα κύματι κωφῷ  
As when the great sea darkly heaves with a silent swell,
> The sea darkly heaves: πορφύρω can describe a dark, troubled surging, as color and motion mingle on the sea. Here the swell gathers but has not yet broken into moving waves, matching Nestor's divided hesitation.

**17** ὀσσόμενον λιγέων ἀνέμων λαιψηρὰ κέλευθα  
foreseeing the swift paths of the shrill winds,

**18** αὔτως, οὐδʼ ἄρα τε προκυλίνδεται οὐδετέρωσε,  
but rolls forward toward neither side,
> Toward neither side: The directional ending -σε gives οὐδετέρωσε the force of motion toward neither of two possible directions. The poised sea anticipates Nestor's two possible courses in lines 21–22.

**19** πρίν τινα κεκριμένον καταβήμεναι ἐκ Διὸς οὖρον,  
until some chosen wind comes down from Zeus,

**20** ὣς ὃ γέρων ὅρμαινε δαϊζόμενος κατὰ θυμὸν  
so the old man pondered, divided in his heart,

**21** διχθάδιʼ, ἢ μεθʼ ὅμιλον ἴοι Δαναῶν ταχυπώλων,  
between two ways: whether to enter the throng of swift-horsed Danaans

**22** ἦε μετʼ Ἀτρεΐδην Ἀγαμέμνονα ποιμένα λαῶν.  
or go to Atreus' son Agamemnon, shepherd of the people.
> Shepherd of the people: The standing metaphor calls a leader the shepherd who directs and protects his people. Here it belongs to Agamemnon and marks the command role that Odysseus will soon accuse him of failing.

**23** ὧδε δέ οἱ φρονέοντι δοάσσατο κέρδιον εἶναι  
As he thought on this, it seemed better to him

**24** βῆναι ἐπʼ Ἀτρεΐδην. οἳ δʼ ἀλλήλους ἐνάριζον  
to go to Atreus' son. Meanwhile they slaughtered one another

**25** μαρνάμενοι· λάκε δέ σφι περὶ χροῒ χαλκὸς ἀτειρὴς  
as they fought; unyielding bronze rang about their bodies

**26** νυσσομένων ξίφεσίν τε καὶ ἔγχεσιν ἀμφιγύοισι.  
as they stabbed with swords and double-pointed spears.

**27** Νέστορι δὲ ξύμβληντο διοτρεφέες βασιλῆες  
Then the Zeus-nurtured kings met Nestor
> Zeus-nurtured kings: διοτρεφής presents heroic kings as nourished or fostered by Zeus. The plural gathers the three wounded commanders under a shared royal epithet without implying that any is literally Zeus's son.

**28** πὰρ νηῶν ἀνιόντες ὅσοι βεβλήατο χαλκῷ  
as they came up from the ships, all who had been struck by bronze:

**29** Τυδεΐδης Ὀδυσεύς τε καὶ Ἀτρεΐδης Ἀγαμέμνων.  
the son of Tydeus, Odysseus, and Atreus' son Agamemnon.

**30** πολλὸν γάρ ῥʼ ἀπάνευθε μάχης εἰρύατο νῆες  
For far away from the fighting their ships had been drawn

**31** θῖνʼ ἔφʼ ἁλὸς πολιῆς· τὰς γὰρ πρώτας πεδίον δὲ  
on the shore of the gray sea; the first ships they had hauled toward the plain,

**32** εἴρυσαν, αὐτὰρ τεῖχος ἐπὶ πρύμνῃσιν ἔδειμαν.  
then built the wall behind the sterns.

**33** οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδʼ εὐρύς περ ἐὼν ἐδυνήσατο πάσας  
For even the shore, though broad, could not

**34** αἰγιαλὸς νῆας χαδέειν, στείνοντο δὲ λαοί·  
hold all the ships, and the men were crowded close.

**35** τώ ῥα προκρόσσας ἔρυσαν, καὶ πλῆσαν ἁπάσης  
So they drew them up in stepped rows, and filled
> In stepped rows: προκρόσσας pictures the ships arranged in successive projecting tiers, like courses of battlements or steps. The fleet therefore stretches back from the water rather than forming one line along the beach.

**36** ἠϊόνος στόμα μακρόν, ὅσον συνεέργαθον ἄκραι.  
the whole long mouth of shore enclosed between the headlands.

**37** τώ ῥʼ οἵ γʼ ὀψείοντες ἀϋτῆς καὶ πολέμοιο  
So, wanting a clear view of the battle-shout and war,

**38** ἔγχει ἐρειδόμενοι κίον ἀθρόοι· ἄχνυτο δέ σφι  
they came together, leaning on their spears; within their chests

**39** θυμὸς ἐνὶ στήθεσσιν. ὃ δὲ ξύμβλητο γεραιὸς  
their hearts were grieved. Then aged Nestor met them,

**40** Νέστωρ, πτῆξε δὲ θυμὸν ἐνὶ στήθεσσιν Ἀχαιῶν.  
and the hearts of the Achaeans cowered within their chests.

**41** τὸν καὶ φωνήσας προσέφη κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων·  
Then the lord Agamemnon called to him and said:

**42** ὦ Νέστορ Νηληϊάδη μέγα κῦδος Ἀχαιῶν  
"Nestor, son of Neleus, great glory of the Achaeans,
> Nestor, great glory of the Achaeans: This full address names Nestor through his father Neleus and calls him a great source of Achaean glory. The whole Greek line recurs in Books 10 and 11, and its accepted English is held verbatim here.

**43** τίπτε λιπὼν πόλεμον φθισήνορα δεῦρʼ ἀφικάνεις;  
why have you left man-destroying battle and come here?

**44** δείδω μὴ δή μοι τελέσῃ ἔπος ὄβριμος Ἕκτωρ,  
I fear mighty Hector may now fulfill the word he spoke,
> I fear he may fulfill it: After δείδω, the negative particle μή introduces what Agamemnon fears, and τελέσῃ is an aorist subjunctive. The construction looks forward to Hector completing his threat, not merely attempting it.

**45** ὥς ποτʼ ἐπηπείλησεν ἐνὶ Τρώεσσʼ ἀγορεύων  
the threat he once made while speaking among the Trojans:

**46** μὴ πρὶν πὰρ νηῶν προτὶ Ἴλιον ἀπονέεσθαι  
that he would not return from the ships toward Ilion

**47** πρὶν πυρὶ νῆας ἐνιπρῆσαι, κτεῖναι δὲ καὶ αὐτούς.  
before he burned the ships with fire and killed us too.

**48** κεῖνος τὼς ἀγόρευε· τὰ δὴ νῦν πάντα τελεῖται.  
So he spoke; and now all this is being fulfilled.

**49** ὢ πόποι ἦ ῥα καὶ ἄλλοι ἐϋκνήμιδες Ἀχαιοὶ  
Ah, can it be that the other well-greaved Achaeans too

**50** ἐν θυμῷ βάλλονται ἐμοὶ χόλον ὥς περ Ἀχιλλεὺς  
cast anger against me in their hearts, just as Achilles does,

**51** οὐδʼ ἐθέλουσι μάχεσθαι ἐπὶ πρυμνῇσι νέεσσι.  
and will not fight beside the sterns of the ships?"

**52** τὸν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειτα Γερήνιος ἱππότα Νέστωρ·  
Then Nestor, the Gerenian horseman, answered him:

**53** ἦ δὴ ταῦτά γʼ ἑτοῖμα τετεύχαται, οὐδέ κεν ἄλλως  
"These things indeed now stand accomplished, nor could

**54** Ζεὺς ὑψιβρεμέτης αὐτὸς παρατεκτήναιτο.  
Zeus who thunders on high himself contrive them otherwise.
> Zeus who thunders on high: ὑψιβρεμέτης joins height with thunderous sound: Zeus is the one who thunders from the sky. It remains distinct from the established wide-thundering and cloud-gatherer epithets.

**55** τεῖχος μὲν γὰρ δὴ κατερήριπεν, ᾧ ἐπέπιθμεν  
For the wall has fallen, the wall in which we trusted

**56** ἄρρηκτον νηῶν τε καὶ αὐτῶν εἶλαρ ἔσεσθαι·  
to be an unbroken safeguard for the ships and for ourselves.

**57** οἳ δʼ ἐπὶ νηυσὶ θοῇσι μάχην ἀλίαστον ἔχουσι  
They keep unending battle at the swift ships,

**58** νωλεμές· οὐδʼ ἂν ἔτι γνοίης μάλα περ σκοπιάζων  
without pause; no longer could you tell, though you watched closely,
> You could no longer tell: The aorist optative γνοίης with ἄν expresses what even a careful observer could no longer manage to determine. The second-person singular is general: anyone looking down would face the same confusion.

**59** ὁπποτέρωθεν Ἀχαιοὶ ὀρινόμενοι κλονέονται,  
from which side the Achaeans are routed and scattered,

**60** ὡς ἐπιμὶξ κτείνονται, ἀϋτὴ δʼ οὐρανὸν ἵκει.  
so confusedly are they killed, while the cry reaches heaven.

**61** ἡμεῖς δὲ φραζώμεθʼ ὅπως ἔσται τάδε ἔργα  
let us then consider how these things shall be —

**62** εἴ τι νόος ῥέξει· πόλεμον δʼ οὐκ ἄμμε κελεύω  
if counsel can accomplish anything. I do not urge us

**63** δύμεναι· οὐ γάρ πως βεβλημένον ἐστὶ μάχεσθαι.  
to enter the war; there is no way for a wounded man to fight."
> A man who has been struck: βεβλημένον is a perfect middle-passive participle of βάλλω: the wound is a completed blow whose effects remain. Nestor speaks generally, but all three kings before him bear such continuing wounds.

**64** τὸν δʼ αὖτε προσέειπεν ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων·  
Then Agamemnon, lord of men, addressed him in turn:

**65** Νέστορ ἐπεὶ δὴ νηυσὶν ἔπι πρυμνῇσι μάχονται,  
"Nestor, since they are fighting at the very sterns of the ships,

**66** τεῖχος δʼ οὐκ ἔχραισμε τετυγμένον, οὐδέ τι τάφρος,  
and neither the well-built wall nor the trench has helped,

**67** ᾗ ἔπι πολλὰ πάθον Δαναοί, ἔλποντο δὲ θυμῷ  
over which the Danaans labored greatly, hoping in their hearts

**68** ἄρρηκτον νηῶν τε καὶ αὐτῶν εἶλαρ ἔσεσθαι·  
to be an unbroken safeguard for the ships and for ourselves.

**69** οὕτω που Διὶ μέλλει ὑπερμενέϊ φίλον εἶναι  
So, it seems, it must be dear to Zeus, exceeding in might,

**70** νωνύμνους ἀπολέσθαι ἀπʼ Ἄργεος ἐνθάδʼ Ἀχαιούς.  
for the Achaeans to perish nameless here, far from Argos.

**71** ᾔδεα μὲν γὰρ ὅτε πρόφρων Δαναοῖσιν ἄμυνεν,  
I knew when he willingly defended the Danaans,

**72** οἶδα δὲ νῦν ὅτε τοὺς μὲν ὁμῶς μακάρεσσι θεοῖσι  
and now I know that he glorifies the Trojans like the blessed gods

**73** κυδάνει, ἡμέτερον δὲ μένος καὶ χεῖρας ἔδησεν.  
and has bound our fighting strength and our hands.

**74** ἀλλʼ ἄγεθʼ ὡς ἂν ἐγὼν εἴπω πειθώμεθα πάντες.  
Come, then, let all of us obey as I shall say:

**75** νῆες ὅσαι πρῶται εἰρύαται ἄγχι θαλάσσης  
the ships first drawn up nearest the sea

**76** ἕλκωμεν, πάσας δὲ ἐρύσσομεν εἰς ἅλα δῖαν,  
let us haul down, and draw them all into the bright sea,

**77** ὕψι δʼ ἐπʼ εὐνάων ὁρμίσσομεν, εἰς ὅ κεν ἔλθῃ  
then moor them far out upon their anchors until

**78** νὺξ ἀβρότη, ἢν καὶ τῇ ἀπόσχωνται πολέμοιο  
immortal night has come, if even then the Trojans cease from war.

**79** Τρῶες· ἔπειτα δέ κεν ἐρυσαίμεθα νῆας ἁπάσας.  
Then we might draw down all the remaining ships.

**80** οὐ γάρ τις νέμεσις φυγέειν κακόν, οὐδʼ ἀνὰ νύκτα.  
There is no shame in fleeing ruin, not even through the night.

**81** βέλτερον ὃς φεύγων προφύγῃ κακὸν ἠὲ ἁλώῃ.  
Better that a man flee and escape ruin than be taken."

**82** τὸν δʼ ἄρʼ ὑπόδρα ἰδὼν προσέφη πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς·  
Then, glaring at him from under his brows, Odysseus of many wiles spoke:

**83** Ἀτρεΐδη ποῖόν σε ἔπος φύγεν ἕρκος ὀδόντων·  
"Son of Atreus, what a word has escaped the barrier of your teeth!
> The fence of the teeth: The recurring phrase makes the teeth a barrier that should hold reckless speech inside the mouth. Odysseus turns the image into a charge that Agamemnon has let an unworthy proposal escape.

**84** οὐλόμενʼ αἴθʼ ὤφελλες ἀεικελίου στρατοῦ ἄλλου  
Accursed man, you should have commanded some other, dishonored army

**85** σημαίνειν, μὴ δʼ ἄμμιν ἀνασσέμεν, οἷσιν ἄρα Ζεὺς  
and not ruled us, to whom Zeus

**86** ἐκ νεότητος ἔδωκε καὶ ἐς γῆρας τολυπεύειν  
has granted from youth even into old age the task of winding through
> Winding war to its end: τολυπεύω properly describes winding thread into a ball, then completing a difficult course as though gathering every strand. Odysseus imagines the Achaeans working their grievous wars through from youth to death.

**87** ἀργαλέους πολέμους, ὄφρα φθιόμεσθα ἕκαστος.  
grievous wars, until each one of us perishes.

**88** οὕτω δὴ μέμονας Τρώων πόλιν εὐρυάγυιαν  
Are you truly bent on abandoning the broad-streeted city of Troy,

**89** καλλείψειν, ἧς εἵνεκʼ ὀϊζύομεν κακὰ πολλά;  
for whose sake we have suffered so many evils?

**90** σίγα, μή τίς τʼ ἄλλος Ἀχαιῶν τοῦτον ἀκούσῃ  
Be silent, lest some other Achaean hear

**91** μῦθον, ὃν οὔ κεν ἀνήρ γε διὰ στόμα πάμπαν ἄγοιτο  
this speech, which no man would ever let pass his lips

**92** ὅς τις ἐπίσταιτο ᾗσι φρεσὶν ἄρτια βάζειν  
if he knew in his mind how to speak what is sound,

**93** σκηπτοῦχός τʼ εἴη, καί οἱ πειθοίατο λαοὶ  
who held a scepter, and whose people obeyed him,

**94** τοσσοίδʼ ὅσσοισιν σὺ μετʼ Ἀργείοισιν ἀνάσσεις·  
so many as the Argives over whom you rule.

**95** νῦν δέ σευ ὠνοσάμην πάγχυ φρένας, οἷον ἔειπες·  
Now I wholly condemn your judgment for what you have said:

**96** ὃς κέλεαι πολέμοιο συνεσταότος καὶ ἀϋτῆς  
you order us, while war and the battle-shout close round us,

**97** νῆας ἐϋσσέλμους ἅλαδʼ ἑλκέμεν, ὄφρʼ ἔτι μᾶλλον  
to haul the well-benched ships into the sea, so that still more

**98** Τρωσὶ μὲν εὐκτὰ γένηται ἐπικρατέουσί περ ἔμπης,  
the Trojans' prayers may be fulfilled, though they prevail already,

**99** ἡμῖν δʼ αἰπὺς ὄλεθρος ἐπιρρέπῃ. οὐ γὰρ Ἀχαιοὶ  
and sheer destruction may tip upon us. For the Achaeans

**100** σχήσουσιν πόλεμον νηῶν ἅλα δʼ ἑλκομενάων,  
will not hold to the battle while the ships are dragged seaward,

**101** ἀλλʼ ἀποπαπτανέουσιν, ἐρωήσουσι δὲ χάρμης.  
but will keep looking back and withdraw from combat.

**102** ἔνθά κε σὴ βουλὴ δηλήσεται ὄρχαμε λαῶν.  
Then your counsel will destroy us, marshal of the people."
> Marshal of the people: ὄρχαμος is a leader who heads and orders a body of men. The respectful command-title makes Odysseus's accusation sharper: the army's own marshal is proposing the counsel that will ruin it.

**103** τὸν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειτα ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων·  
Then Agamemnon, lord of men, answered him:

**104** ὦ Ὀδυσεῦ μάλα πώς με καθίκεο θυμὸν ἐνιπῇ  
"Odysseus, you have struck deep into my heart with your rebuke,

**105** ἀργαλέῃ· ἀτὰρ οὐ μὲν ἐγὼν ἀέκοντας ἄνωγα  
harsh as it is. Yet I do not command the sons of the Achaeans

**106** νῆας ἐϋσσέλμους ἅλα δʼ ἑλκέμεν υἷας Ἀχαιῶν.  
against their will to haul the well-benched ships into the sea.

**107** νῦν δʼ εἴη ὃς τῆσδέ γʼ ἀμείνονα μῆτιν ἐνίσποι  
Now let there be someone who can tell a better plan than this,

**108** ἢ νέος ἠὲ παλαιός· ἐμοὶ δέ κεν ἀσμένῳ εἴη.  
young or old; I would welcome it."

**109** τοῖσι δὲ καὶ μετέειπε βοὴν ἀγαθὸς Διομήδης·  
and among them Diomedes, good at the war-cry, spoke:
> Good at the war-cry: This is Diomedes' standing name-and-epithet unit, marking him as a powerful voice in battle. The entire Greek line repeats Iliad 10.219 and therefore keeps the accepted English verbatim.

**110** ἐγγὺς ἀνήρ· οὐ δηθὰ ματεύσομεν· αἴ κʼ ἐθέλητε  
"The man is near; we need not seek him long, if you are willing

**111** πείθεσθαι, καὶ μή τι κότῳ ἀγάσησθε ἕκαστος  
to obey, and none of you resents me in anger

**112** οὕνεκα δὴ γενεῆφι νεώτατός εἰμι μεθʼ ὑμῖν·  
because by birth I am the youngest among you.

**113** πατρὸς δʼ ἐξ ἀγαθοῦ καὶ ἐγὼ γένος εὔχομαι εἶναι  
Yet I too claim descent from a noble father,

**114** Τυδέος, ὃν Θήβῃσι χυτὴ κατὰ γαῖα καλύπτει.  
Tydeus, whom the heaped earth covers at Thebes.

**115** πορθεῖ γὰρ τρεῖς παῖδες ἀμύμονες ἐξεγένοντο,  
For Portheus had three blameless sons,

**116** οἴκεον δʼ ἐν Πλευρῶνι καὶ αἰπεινῇ Καλυδῶνι  
and two lived in Pleuron and steep Calydon:

**117** Ἄγριος ἠδὲ Μέλας, τρίτατος δʼ ἦν ἱππότα Οἰνεὺς  
Agrius and Melas; the third was Oeneus the horseman,

**118** πατρὸς ἐμοῖο πατήρ· ἀρετῇ δʼ ἦν ἔξοχος αὐτῶν.  
my father's father, and in valor he surpassed them.

**119** ἀλλʼ ὃ μὲν αὐτόθι μεῖνε, πατὴρ δʼ ἐμὸς Ἄργεϊ νάσθη  
Oeneus remained there, but my father settled in Argos

**120** πλαγχθείς· ὡς γάρ που Ζεὺς ἤθελε καὶ θεοὶ ἄλλοι.  
after his wandering; for so, I think, Zeus and the other gods willed.

**121** Ἀδρήστοιο δʼ ἔγημε θυγατρῶν, ναῖε δὲ δῶμα  
He married one of Adrastus' daughters and lived in a house

**122** ἀφνειὸν βιότοιο, ἅλις δέ οἱ ἦσαν ἄρουραι  
rich in goods, with abundant fields

**123** πυροφόροι, πολλοὶ δὲ φυτῶν ἔσαν ὄρχατοι ἀμφίς,  
bearing wheat, and many orchards round about,

**124** πολλὰ δέ οἱ πρόβατʼ ἔσκε· κέκαστο δὲ πάντας Ἀχαιοὺς  
and he had many sheep; with the spear he surpassed

**125** ἐγχείῃ· τὰ δὲ μέλλετʼ ἀκουέμεν, εἰ ἐτεόν περ.  
all the Achaeans. You must have heard whether these things are true.

**126** τὼ οὐκ ἄν με γένος γε κακὸν καὶ ἀνάλκιδα φάντες  
Therefore, calling my birth base and me a coward,

**127** μῦθον ἀτιμήσαιτε πεφασμένον ὅν κʼ ἐῢ εἴπω.  
you should not dishonor the counsel I declare, if I speak it well.

**128** δεῦτʼ ἴομεν πόλεμον δὲ καὶ οὐτάμενοί περ ἀνάγκῃ.  
Come, let us go to the battle, wounded though we are, since we must.

**129** ἔνθα δʼ ἔπειτʼ αὐτοὶ μὲν ἐχώμεθα δηϊοτῆτος  
Once there, we ourselves shall hold back from the fighting,

**130** ἐκ βελέων, μή πού τις ἐφʼ ἕλκεϊ ἕλκος ἄρηται·  
beyond the missiles, lest someone take wound upon wound.
> Wound upon wound: Homer places two forms of ἕλκος, “wound,” together: literally, someone might take a wound on top of a wound. The verbal echo makes the wounded kings' practical limit immediate and bodily.

**131** ἄλλους δʼ ὀτρύνοντες ἐνήσομεν, οἳ τὸ πάρος περ  
But we shall urge and send in the others, those who before now,

**132** θυμῷ ἦρα φέροντες ἀφεστᾶσʼ οὐδὲ μάχονται.  
indulging their own spirit, have stood apart and will not fight."
> Pleasing their own spirit: The idiom ἦρα φέρειν means doing what pleases or gratifies someone. Here the men have been pleasing their own θυμός by staying aloof, so Diomedes proposes shame and encouragement rather than joining combat himself.

**133** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἳ δʼ ἄρα τοῦ μάλα μὲν κλύον ἠδὲ πίθοντο·  
So he spoke, and they listened closely and obeyed him.

**134** βὰν δʼ ἴμεν, ἦρχε δʼ ἄρά σφιν ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων.  
They set out, and Agamemnon, lord of men, led them.

**135** οὐδʼ ἀλαοσκοπιὴν εἶχε κλυτὸς ἐννοσίγαιος,  
Nor did the famed shaker of earth keep a blind watch,
> The famed shaker of earth: This established Poseidon title combines κλυτός, “famed,” with an earth-shaking epithet used in place of his name. The ironic ἀλαοσκοπιή says he is not watching blindly: he sees the wounded kings' movement and intervenes.

**136** ἀλλὰ μετʼ αὐτοὺς ἦλθε παλαιῷ φωτὶ ἐοικώς,  
but came among them in the likeness of an old man.

**137** δεξιτερὴν δʼ ἕλε χεῖρʼ Ἀγαμέμνονος Ἀτρεΐδαο,  
He took the right hand of Agamemnon, Atreus' son,

**138** καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·  
and speaking to him, he addressed him with winged words:
> Winged words: The recurring formula pictures spoken words flying from speaker to hearer. This whole line has appeared before with different grammatical objects; the masculine-object form is held to its established wording here.

**139** Ἀτρεΐδη νῦν δή που Ἀχιλλῆος ὀλοὸν κῆρ  
"Son of Atreus, now indeed the deadly heart of Achilles

**140** γηθεῖ ἐνὶ στήθεσσι φόνον καὶ φύζαν Ἀχαιῶν  
must rejoice within his chest as he watches the slaughter and rout of Achaeans,

**141** δερκομένῳ, ἐπεὶ οὔ οἱ ἔνι φρένες οὐδʼ ἠβαιαί.  
since there is no sense in him, not even the least.

**142** ἀλλʼ ὃ μὲν ὣς ἀπόλοιτο, θεὸς δέ ἑ σιφλώσειε·  
But may he perish as he is, and may some god maim him.

**143** σοὶ δʼ οὔ πω μάλα πάγχυ θεοὶ μάκαρες κοτέουσιν,  
Yet against you the blessed gods are not wholly angry,

**144** ἀλλʼ ἔτι που Τρώων ἡγήτορες ἠδὲ μέδοντες  
for still the leaders and rulers of the Trojans

**145** εὐρὺ κονίσουσιν πεδίον, σὺ δʼ ἐπόψεαι αὐτὸς  
will cover the broad plain with dust, and you yourself will see them

**146** φεύγοντας προτὶ ἄστυ νεῶν ἄπο καὶ κλισιάων.  
fleeing toward the city, away from the ships and huts."

**147** ὣς εἰπὼν μέγʼ ἄϋσεν ἐπεσσύμενος πεδίοιο.  
So he spoke, then shouted mightily as he rushed across the plain—

**148** ὅσσόν τʼ ἐννεάχιλοι ἐπίαχον ἢ δεκάχιλοι  
as loudly as nine thousand or ten thousand
> As loud ... so great: The comparison begins with ὅσσον here and is completed by τόσσην in line 150: as loud as thousands of men, so great was Poseidon's voice. This opening line repeats Iliad 5.860 exactly and keeps the accepted English wording.

**149** ἀνέρες ἐν πολέμῳ ἔριδα ξυνάγοντες Ἄρηος,  
men cry out in war as they join the strife of Ares,

**150** τόσσην ἐκ στήθεσφιν ὄπα κρείων ἐνοσίχθων  
so great a voice the lord Earth-shaker sent from his chest;
> The lord Earth-shaker: κρείων adds the ruling title “lord” to Poseidon's earth-shaking epithet. Its fixed wording distinguishes this unit from the different κλυτὸς ἐννοσίγαιος, “the famed shaker of earth,” at line 135.

**151** ἧκεν· Ἀχαιοῖσιν δὲ μέγα σθένος ἔμβαλʼ ἑκάστῳ  
and he cast great strength into every Achaean's

**152** καρδίῃ, ἄληκτον πολεμίζειν ἠδὲ μάχεσθαι.  
heart, to war and fight without ceasing.

**153** Ἥρη δʼ εἰσεῖδε χρυσόθρονος ὀφθαλμοῖσι  
Golden-throned Hera looked down with her eyes,
> Golden-throned Hera: The compound joins χρυσός, "gold," to θρόνος, "throne." Homer keeps this title distinct from Hera's white-armed and ox-eyed formulas.

**154** στᾶσʼ ἐξ Οὐλύμποιο ἀπὸ ῥίου· αὐτίκα δʼ ἔγνω  
standing on a ridge of Olympus; at once she knew

**155** τὸν μὲν ποιπνύοντα μάχην ἀνὰ κυδιάνειραν  
the one who ranged so swiftly through man-glorifying battle,

**156** αὐτοκασίγνητον καὶ δαέρα, χαῖρε δὲ θυμῷ·  
her own brother and her husband's brother, and her heart rejoiced.

**157** Ζῆνα δʼ ἐπʼ ἀκροτάτης κορυφῆς πολυπίδακος Ἴδης  
But Zeus she saw seated on the highest crest

**158** ἥμενον εἰσεῖδε, στυγερὸς δέ οἱ ἔπλετο θυμῷ.  
of many-fountained Ida, and he was hateful to her heart.

**159** μερμήριξε δʼ ἔπειτα βοῶπις πότνια Ἥρη  
Then ox-eyed queenly Hera pondered
> Ox-eyed queenly Hera: This is one of Hera's fixed Homeric titles. βοῶπις evokes the large, commanding eyes admired in epic diction, while πότνια marks her as a queenly mistress.

**160** ὅππως ἐξαπάφοιτο Διὸς νόον αἰγιόχοιο·  
how she might deceive the mind of aegis-bearing Zeus.

**161** ἥδε δέ οἱ κατὰ θυμὸν ἀρίστη φαίνετο βουλὴ  
And this seemed the best counsel to her spirit:

**162** ἐλθεῖν εἰς Ἴδην εὖ ἐντύνασαν ἓ αὐτήν,  
to go to Ida after carefully adorning herself,

**163** εἴ πως ἱμείραιτο παραδραθέειν φιλότητι  
in case he might desire to lie beside her in love
> A hoped-for possibility: The optative ἱμείραιτο presents the outcome Hera hopes might occur: that Zeus may desire her. εἴ πως makes the plan tentative, "in case somehow."

**164** ᾗ χροιῇ, τῷ δʼ ὕπνον ἀπήμονά τε λιαρόν τε  
against her body, and she might pour harmless, warm sleep

**165** χεύῃ ἐπὶ βλεφάροισιν ἰδὲ φρεσὶ πευκαλίμῃσι.  
over his eyelids and his shrewd mind.

**166** βῆ δʼ ἴμεν ἐς θάλαμον, τόν οἱ φίλος υἱὸς ἔτευξεν  
She went to the chamber her dear son had built for her,

**167** Ἥφαιστος, πυκινὰς δὲ θύρας σταθμοῖσιν ἐπῆρσε  
Hephaestus, who fitted close-set doors against the posts

**168** κληῗδι κρυπτῇ, τὴν δʼ οὐ θεὸς ἄλλος ἀνῷγεν·  
with a hidden bolt that no other god could open.
> A hidden fastening: κληΐς can be a key, bolt, or bar. Here the dative phrase names the concealed fastening that makes Hera's chamber private even from the gods.

**169** ἔνθʼ ἥ γʼ εἰσελθοῦσα θύρας ἐπέθηκε φαεινάς.  
She went inside and closed the shining doors.

**170** ἀμβροσίῃ μὲν πρῶτον ἀπὸ χροὸς ἱμερόεντος  
First with ambrosia she cleansed from her lovely skin

**171** λύματα πάντα κάθηρεν, ἀλείψατο δὲ λίπʼ ἐλαίῳ  
every stain, then richly anointed herself with oil,

**172** ἀμβροσίῳ ἑδανῷ, τό ῥά οἱ τεθυωμένον ἦεν·  
ambrosial and sweet, which was perfumed for her.

**173** τοῦ καὶ κινυμένοιο Διὸς κατὰ χαλκοβατὲς δῶ  
Even when it was stirred in Zeus's bronze-floored hall,
> Genitive absolute: The oil stands in the genitive with the participle κινυμένοιο, forming a genitive absolute: "even when it was stirred." The construction supplies the circumstance for the scent described next.

**174** ἔμπης ἐς γαῖάν τε καὶ οὐρανὸν ἵκετʼ ἀϋτμή.  
even so, its fragrance reached earth and heaven.

**175** τῷ ῥʼ ἥ γε χρόα καλὸν ἀλειψαμένη ἰδὲ χαίτας  
With this she anointed her fair skin, and then her hair,

**176** πεξαμένη χερσὶ πλοκάμους ἔπλεξε φαεινοὺς  
combing it with her hands, she braided shining locks,

**177** καλοὺς ἀμβροσίους ἐκ κράατος ἀθανάτοιο.  
beautiful and ambrosial, from her deathless head.

**178** ἀμφὶ δʼ ἄρʼ ἀμβρόσιον ἑανὸν ἕσαθʼ, ὅν οἱ Ἀθήνη  
Around her she put the ambrosial robe Athena

**179** ἔξυσʼ ἀσκήσασα, τίθει δʼ ἐνὶ δαίδαλα πολλά·  
had smoothed with skill and filled with many cunning designs;

**180** χρυσείῃς δʼ ἐνετῇσι κατὰ στῆθος περονᾶτο.  
with golden pins she clasped it across her breast.

**181** ζώσατο δὲ ζώνῃ ἑκατὸν θυσάνοις ἀραρυίῃ,  
She girdled herself with a belt fitted with a hundred tassels,
> A hundred tassels: θύσανοι are hanging tassels or fringes. The extravagant hundred-fold fringe turns the belt into a piece of divine ceremonial dress.

**182** ἐν δʼ ἄρα ἕρματα ἧκεν ἐϋτρήτοισι λοβοῖσι  
and set earrings in her finely pierced lobes,

**183** τρίγληνα μορόεντα· χάρις δʼ ἀπελάμπετο πολλή.  
three-clustered, berry-bright; abundant grace shone from them.
> Clustered earrings: τρίγληνα describes the earrings as having three rounded elements. μορόεντα is rare and probably likens their dark gleam or shape to mulberries.

**184** κρηδέμνῳ δʼ ἐφύπερθε καλύψατο δῖα θεάων  
Over all, the shining one among goddesses veiled herself,

**185** καλῷ νηγατέῳ· λευκὸν δʼ ἦν ἠέλιος ὥς·  
lovely and freshly made; it was white as the sun.

**186** ποσσὶ δʼ ὑπὸ λιπαροῖσιν ἐδήσατο καλὰ πέδιλα.  
beneath her glistening feet she bound fair sandals,

**187** αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δὴ πάντα περὶ χροῒ θήκατο κόσμον  
and when she had set every adornment about her body,

**188** βῆ ῥʼ ἴμεν ἐκ θαλάμοιο, καλεσσαμένη δʼ Ἀφροδίτην  
she left the chamber, called Aphrodite aside

**189** τῶν ἄλλων ἀπάνευθε θεῶν πρὸς μῦθον ἔειπε·  
from all the other gods, and spoke these words:

**190** ἦ ῥά νύ μοί τι πίθοιο φίλον τέκος ὅττί κεν εἴπω,  
"Dear child, would you perhaps comply with what I ask,
> A cautious optative: The optative πίθοιο makes Hera's question less direct: "would you perhaps comply?" Her cautious grammar suits a request whose true purpose she is hiding.

**191** ἦέ κεν ἀρνήσαιο κοτεσσαμένη τό γε θυμῷ,  
or would you refuse, angry in your heart,

**192** οὕνεκʼ ἐγὼ Δαναοῖσι, σὺ δὲ Τρώεσσιν ἀρήγεις;  
because I aid the Danaans, while you aid the Trojans?"

**193** τὴν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειτα Διὸς θυγάτηρ Ἀφροδίτη·  
Then Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus, answered her:
> Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus: The patronymic formula names Aphrodite through Zeus. Homeric traditions differ about her birth, but this passage follows the genealogy in which Zeus is her father.

**194** Ἥρη πρέσβα θεὰ θύγατερ μεγάλοιο Κρόνοιο  
"Hera, august goddess, daughter of great Cronos,

**195** αὔδα ὅ τι φρονέεις· τελέσαι δέ με θυμὸς ἄνωγεν,  
say what you have in mind; my heart urges me to fulfill it,

**196** εἰ δύναμαι τελέσαι γε καὶ εἰ τετελεσμένον ἐστίν.  
if I can fulfill it, and if it can be done."

**197** τὴν δὲ δολοφρονέουσα προσηύδα πότνια Ἥρη·  
Then queenly Hera, plotting guile, addressed her:

**198** δὸς νῦν μοι φιλότητα καὶ ἵμερον, ᾧ τε σὺ πάντας  
"Give me now the love and desire by which you master
> Love and desire: φιλότης is intimate union or affection, while ἵμερος is longing or desire. Hera asks for both the bond and the appetite that Aphrodite commands.

**199** δαμνᾷ ἀθανάτους ἠδὲ θνητοὺς ἀνθρώπους.  
all the immortals and mortal human beings.

**200** εἶμι γὰρ ὀψομένη πολυφόρβου πείρατα γαίης,  
For I am going to visit the bounds of the bountiful earth,

**201** Ὠκεανόν τε θεῶν γένεσιν καὶ μητέρα Τηθύν,  
Oceanus, source of the gods, and mother Tethys,

**202** οἵ μʼ ἐν σφοῖσι δόμοισιν ἐῢ τρέφον ἠδʼ ἀτίταλλον  
who in their own halls reared and cherished me well,

**203** δεξάμενοι Ῥείας, ὅτε τε Κρόνον εὐρύοπα Ζεὺς  
taking me from Rhea when wide-thundering Zeus set Cronos

**204** γαίης νέρθε καθεῖσε καὶ ἀτρυγέτοιο θαλάσσης·  
beneath the earth and the barren sea.

**205** τοὺς εἶμʼ ὀψομένη, καί σφʼ ἄκριτα νείκεα λύσω·  
I am going to visit them and end their unresolved quarrels;

**206** ἤδη γὰρ δηρὸν χρόνον ἀλλήλων ἀπέχονται  
for a long time now they have kept apart from one another's

**207** εὐνῆς καὶ φιλότητος, ἐπεὶ χόλος ἔμπεσε θυμῷ.  
bed and love, since anger fell upon their hearts.

**208** εἰ κείνω ἐπέεσσι παραιπεπιθοῦσα φίλον κῆρ  
If I could persuade their dear hearts with coaxing words

**209** εἰς εὐνὴν ἀνέσαιμι ὁμωθῆναι φιλότητι,  
and bring them back to bed, joined together in love,
> Optative in the condition: ἀνέσαιμι is an aorist optative governed by εἰ in Hera's imagined condition: if she could bring Oceanus and Tethys back to bed. The corresponding result follows in καλεοίμην, "they would call me," on the next line.

**210** αἰεί κέ σφι φίλη τε καὶ αἰδοίη καλεοίμην.  
they would forever call me dear and worthy of respect."

**211** τὴν δʼ αὖτε προσέειπε φιλομειδὴς Ἀφροδίτη·  
Then laughter-loving Aphrodite addressed her in turn:

**212** οὐκ ἔστʼ οὐδὲ ἔοικε τεὸν ἔπος ἀρνήσασθαι·  
"I cannot, and it would not be fitting, refuse your word,

**213** Ζηνὸς γὰρ τοῦ ἀρίστου ἐν ἀγκοίνῃσιν ἰαύεις.  
for you sleep in the embrace of Zeus, the highest god."

**214** ἦ, καὶ ἀπὸ στήθεσφιν ἐλύσατο κεστὸν ἱμάντα  
She spoke, and from her breast unfastened the embroidered sash,

**215** ποικίλον, ἔνθα δέ οἱ θελκτήρια πάντα τέτυκτο·  
intricately worked, where all her enchantments had been fashioned:

**216** ἔνθʼ ἔνι μὲν φιλότης, ἐν δʼ ἵμερος, ἐν δʼ ὀαριστὺς  
there was love, there desire, and there intimate lovers' talk;
> Three powers of attraction: The sash holds three linked forces: intimate love, desire, and ὀαριστύς, the close talk of lovers. Homer makes persuasion bodily, emotional, and verbal at once.

**217** πάρφασις, ἥ τʼ ἔκλεψε νόον πύκα περ φρονεόντων.  
persuasion, which steals the mind even from the very wise.

**218** τόν ῥά οἱ ἔμβαλε χερσὶν ἔπος τʼ ἔφατʼ ἔκ τʼ ὀνόμαζε·  
She placed it in Hera's hands, and spoke, and called her by name:

**219** τῆ νῦν τοῦτον ἱμάντα τεῷ ἐγκάτθεο κόλπῳ  
"Here now, tuck this sash into the fold of your robe,

**220** ποικίλον, ᾧ ἔνι πάντα τετεύχαται· οὐδέ σέ φημι  
intricately worked, where every charm is fashioned; I tell you,

**221** ἄπρηκτόν γε νέεσθαι, ὅ τι φρεσὶ σῇσι μενοινᾷς.  
you will not return without achieving what you plan in your heart."

**222** ὣς φάτο, μείδησεν δὲ βοῶπις πότνια Ἥρη,  
So she spoke, and ox-eyed queenly Hera smiled;

**223** μειδήσασα δʼ ἔπειτα ἑῷ ἐγκάτθετο κόλπῳ.  
still smiling, she tucked it into the fold of her robe.

**224** ἣ μὲν ἔβη πρὸς δῶμα Διὸς θυγάτηρ Ἀφροδίτη,  
Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus, went back to his house,

**225** Ἥρη δʼ ἀΐξασα λίπεν ῥίον Οὐλύμποιο,  
while Hera darted away and left the ridge of Olympus.

**226** Πιερίην δʼ ἐπιβᾶσα καὶ Ἠμαθίην ἐρατεινὴν  
She crossed Pieria and lovely Emathia,

**227** σεύατʼ ἐφʼ ἱπποπόλων Θρῃκῶν ὄρεα νιφόεντα  
then swept over the snowy mountains of the horse-breeding Thracians,

**228** ἀκροτάτας κορυφάς· οὐδὲ χθόνα μάρπτε ποδοῖιν·  
their highest peaks; her feet did not touch the ground.

**229** ἐξ Ἀθόω δʼ ἐπὶ πόντον ἐβήσετο κυμαίνοντα,  
From Athos she stepped out over the surging sea

**230** Λῆμνον δʼ εἰσαφίκανε πόλιν θείοιο Θόαντος.  
and came to Lemnos, the city of godlike Thoas.

**231** ἔνθʼ Ὕπνῳ ξύμβλητο κασιγνήτῳ Θανάτοιο,  
There she met Sleep, brother of Death,

**232** ἔν τʼ ἄρα οἱ φῦ χειρὶ ἔπος τʼ ἔφατʼ ἔκ τʼ ὀνόμαζεν·  
took his hand, and spoke to him, and called him by name:

**233** Ὕπνε ἄναξ πάντων τε θεῶν πάντων τʼ ἀνθρώπων,  
"Sleep, lord of all gods and all human beings,
> Sleep as universal lord: The vocative Ὕπνε addresses Sleep as a god in his own right. ἄναξ πάντων stresses that his power reaches both immortals and mortals.

**234** ἠμὲν δή ποτʼ ἐμὸν ἔπος ἔκλυες, ἠδʼ ἔτι καὶ νῦν  
as you once listened to my word, so obey me now,

**235** πείθευ· ἐγὼ δέ κέ τοι ἰδέω χάριν ἤματα πάντα.  
and I shall remember my gratitude to you all my days.

**236** κοίμησόν μοι Ζηνὸς ὑπʼ ὀφρύσιν ὄσσε φαεινὼ  
Lull for me the two bright eyes beneath Zeus's brows

**237** αὐτίκʼ ἐπεί κεν ἐγὼ παραλέξομαι ἐν φιλότητι.  
as soon as I lie beside him and join with him in love.

**238** δῶρα δέ τοι δώσω καλὸν θρόνον ἄφθιτον αἰεὶ  
I shall give you as gifts a beautiful golden throne, imperishable forever;

**239** χρύσεον· Ἥφαιστος δέ κʼ ἐμὸς πάϊς ἀμφιγυήεις  
my son Hephaestus, lame in both legs,
> Hephaestus, lame in both legs: ἀμφιγυήεις is the traditional Homeric epithet for Hephaestus's lameness in both legs. The god's disability and unmatched craft are presented together, without contradiction.

**240** τεύξειʼ ἀσκήσας, ὑπὸ δὲ θρῆνυν ποσὶν ἥσει,  
will fashion it with skill and set a footstool beneath,

**241** τῷ κεν ἐπισχοίης λιπαροὺς πόδας εἰλαπινάζων.  
where you may rest your glistening feet when you feast."

**242** τὴν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσεφώνεε νήδυμος Ὕπνος·  
Then sweet Sleep answered her and said:

**243** Ἥρη πρέσβα θεὰ θύγατερ μεγάλοιο Κρόνοιο  
"Hera, august goddess, daughter of great Cronos,

**244** ἄλλον μέν κεν ἔγωγε θεῶν αἰειγενετάων  
any other of the gods who live forever

**245** ῥεῖα κατευνήσαιμι, καὶ ἂν ποταμοῖο ῥέεθρα  
I could easily lull to rest, even the flowing streams
> What Sleep could do: The aorist optative κατευνήσαιμι expresses Sleep's willingness and ability in a hypothetical case: he could lull any other god. Zeus is the emphatic exception introduced two lines later.

**246** Ὠκεανοῦ, ὅς περ γένεσις πάντεσσι τέτυκται·  
of Oceanus, who has become the source of all.

**247** Ζηνὸς δʼ οὐκ ἂν ἔγωγε Κρονίονος ἆσσον ἱκοίμην  
But I would not draw near to Zeus, son of Cronos,

**248** οὐδὲ κατευνήσαιμʼ, ὅτε μὴ αὐτός γε κελεύοι.  
nor lull him to rest, unless he himself commanded me.

**249** ἤδη γάρ με καὶ ἄλλο τεὴ ἐπίνυσσεν ἐφετμὴ  
For another command of yours has already taught me wisdom,

**250** ἤματι τῷ ὅτε κεῖνος ὑπέρθυμος Διὸς υἱὸς  
on the day when that high-hearted son of Zeus

**251** ἔπλεεν Ἰλιόθεν Τρώων πόλιν ἐξαλαπάξας.  
sailed from Ilium after sacking the city of the Trojans.

**252** ἤτοι ἐγὼ μὲν ἔλεξα Διὸς νόον αἰγιόχοιο  
Then I lulled the mind of aegis-bearing Zeus,

**253** νήδυμος ἀμφιχυθείς· σὺ δέ οἱ κακὰ μήσαο θυμῷ  
pouring sweetly around him; but you planned evils in your heart,

**254** ὄρσασʼ ἀργαλέων ἀνέμων ἐπὶ πόντον ἀήτας,  
rousing blasts of harsh winds over the sea,

**255** καί μιν ἔπειτα Κόων δʼ εὖ ναιομένην ἀπένεικας  
and then you swept his son away to well-settled Cos,

**256** νόσφι φίλων πάντων. ὃ δʼ ἐπεγρόμενος χαλέπαινε  
far from all his friends. Zeus woke and raged,

**257** ῥιπτάζων κατὰ δῶμα θεούς, ἐμὲ δʼ ἔξοχα πάντων  
hurling gods about his hall, and above all he sought me.

**258** ζήτει· καί κέ μʼ ἄϊστον ἀπʼ αἰθέρος ἔμβαλε πόντῳ,  
He would have cast me out of sight from the upper air into the sea,

**259** εἰ μὴ Νὺξ δμήτειρα θεῶν ἐσάωσε καὶ ἀνδρῶν·  
had Night, who subdues gods and men, not saved me.

**260** τὴν ἱκόμην φεύγων, ὃ δʼ ἐπαύσατο χωόμενός περ.  
I reached her in my flight, and he ceased, angry though he was,

**261** ἅζετο γὰρ μὴ Νυκτὶ θοῇ ἀποθύμια ἕρδοι.  
for he feared to do anything displeasing to swift Night.

**262** νῦν αὖ τοῦτό μʼ ἄνωγας ἀμήχανον ἄλλο τελέσσαι.  
And now you bid me carry out another impossible task."

**263** τὸν δʼ αὖτε προσέειπε βοῶπις πότνια Ἥρη·  
Then ox-eyed queenly Hera addressed him in turn:

**264** Ὕπνε τί ἢ δὲ σὺ ταῦτα μετὰ φρεσὶ σῇσι μενοινᾷς;  
"Sleep, why do you ponder these things within your mind?

**265** ἦ φῂς ὣς Τρώεσσιν ἀρηξέμεν εὐρύοπα Ζῆν  
Do you think wide-thundering Zeus will aid the Trojans
> Future infinitive: ἀρηξέμεν is a Homeric future infinitive, dependent on φῄς: "do you think Zeus will aid?" Its future force points to what Sleep fears Zeus may do next.

**266** ὡς Ἡρακλῆος περιχώσατο παῖδος ἑοῖο;  
as he raged over Heracles, his own son?

**267** ἀλλʼ ἴθʼ, ἐγὼ δέ κέ τοι Χαρίτων μίαν ὁπλοτεράων  
Come now: I shall give you one of the younger Graces

**268** δώσω ὀπυιέμεναι καὶ σὴν κεκλῆσθαι ἄκοιτιν.  
to wed and to be called your wife."

**270** ὣς φάτο, χήρατο δʼ Ὕπνος, ἀμειβόμενος δὲ προσηύδα·  
So she spoke; Sleep rejoiced, and answered her:

**271** ἄγρει νῦν μοι ὄμοσσον ἀάατον Στυγὸς ὕδωρ,  
"Come, swear to me now by the inviolable water of Styx,

**272** χειρὶ δὲ τῇ ἑτέρῃ μὲν ἕλε χθόνα πουλυβότειραν,  
and with one hand take hold of the all-nourishing earth,

**273** τῇ δʼ ἑτέρῃ ἅλα μαρμαρέην, ἵνα νῶϊν ἅπαντες  
with the other the gleaming sea, so that all the gods

**274** μάρτυροι ὦσʼ οἳ ἔνερθε θεοὶ Κρόνον ἀμφὶς ἐόντες,  
below, who dwell around Cronos, may witness for us both

**275** ἦ μὲν ἐμοὶ δώσειν Χαρίτων μίαν ὁπλοτεράων  
that you truly will give me one of the younger Graces,

**276** Πασιθέην, ἧς τʼ αὐτὸς ἐέλδομαι ἤματα πάντα.  
Pasithea, whom I myself desire all my days."

**277** ὣς ἔφατʼ, οὐδʼ ἀπίθησε θεὰ λευκώλενος Ἥρη,  
So he spoke, and the goddess white-armed Hera did not disobey,

**278** ὄμνυε δʼ ὡς ἐκέλευε, θεοὺς δʼ ὀνόμηνεν ἅπαντας  
but swore as he commanded and named all the gods

**279** τοὺς ὑποταρταρίους οἳ Τιτῆνες καλέονται.  
beneath Tartarus, those who are called Titans.

**280** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ὄμοσέν τε τελεύτησέν τε τὸν ὅρκον,  
When she had sworn and brought the oath to completion,

**281** τὼ βήτην Λήμνου τε καὶ Ἴμβρου ἄστυ λιπόντε  
the two set out, leaving the cities of Lemnos and Imbros,
> The Homeric dual: Both the pronoun τώ and the verb βήτην are dual forms, used for exactly two travelers: Hera and Sleep. English expresses the same number with "the two."

**282** ἠέρα ἑσσαμένω ῥίμφα πρήσσοντε κέλευθον.  
clothed in mist, swiftly making their way.

**283** Ἴδην δʼ ἱκέσθην πολυπίδακα μητέρα θηρῶν  
They reached many-fountained Ida, mother of wild beasts,
> Ida, mother of beasts: The mountain's two-part description joins its many springs to its teeming animal life. Calling Ida "mother" makes the landscape itself fertile and animate.

**284** Λεκτόν, ὅθι πρῶτον λιπέτην ἅλα· τὼ δʼ ἐπὶ χέρσου  
at Lectum, where they first left the sea; over dry land

**285** βήτην, ἀκροτάτη δὲ ποδῶν ὕπο σείετο ὕλη.  
they went, and the highest forest shook beneath their feet.

**286** ἔνθʼ Ὕπνος μὲν ἔμεινε πάρος Διὸς ὄσσε ἰδέσθαι  
There Sleep halted before the eyes of Zeus could see him,

**287** εἰς ἐλάτην ἀναβὰς περιμήκετον, ἣ τότʼ ἐν Ἴδῃ  
climbing a towering fir tree, which then on Ida
> A fir tree: ἐλάτη is a fir, the tall conifer Sleep uses as concealment. Its exceptional height lets him watch from cover near Zeus's peak.

**288** μακροτάτη πεφυυῖα διʼ ἠέρος αἰθέρʼ ἵκανεν·  
grew tallest of all, reaching through the mist into the upper air.

**289** ἔνθʼ ἧστʼ ὄζοισιν πεπυκασμένος εἰλατίνοισιν  
There he sat, hidden thick among the fir-tree branches,

**290** ὄρνιθι λιγυρῇ ἐναλίγκιος, ἥν τʼ ἐν ὄρεσσι  
like a clear-voiced bird, which in the mountains

**291** χαλκίδα κικλήσκουσι θεοί, ἄνδρες δὲ κύμινδιν.  
the gods call Chalcis, but men Cymindis.

**292** Ἥρη δὲ κραιπνῶς προσεβήσετο Γάργαρον ἄκρον  
Hera swiftly climbed to Gargaron's crest,

**293** Ἴδης ὑψηλῆς· ἴδε δὲ νεφεληγερέτα Ζεύς.  
high on Ida; and Zeus the cloud-gatherer saw her.

**294** ὡς δʼ ἴδεν, ὥς μιν ἔρως πυκινὰς φρένας ἀμφεκάλυψεν,  
As soon as he saw her, desire enfolded his shrewd heart,
> Desire closes around the mind: Homer makes desire the grammatical subject: it surrounds Zeus's πυκιναὶ φρένες, the close-packed or shrewd faculties of thought. The image presents desire as an enclosing force rather than a decision Zeus calmly makes.

**295** οἷον ὅτε πρῶτόν περ ἐμισγέσθην φιλότητι  
as when they first had mingled together in love,

**296** εἰς εὐνὴν φοιτῶντε, φίλους λήθοντε τοκῆας.  
going to bed and escaping their dear parents' notice.
> Two lovers in the dual: The participles φοιτῶντε and λήθοντε are dual forms, presenting Zeus and Hera as a pair: the two went to bed while eluding their parents. Greek marks their paired action directly in the verb forms.

**297** στῆ δʼ αὐτῆς προπάροιθεν ἔπος τʼ ἔφατʼ ἔκ τʼ ὀνόμαζεν·  
He stood before her, spoke, and called her by name:

**298** Ἥρη πῇ μεμαυῖα κατʼ Οὐλύμπου τόδʼ ἱκάνεις;  
"Hera, what purpose brings you here down from Olympus?

**299** ἵπποι δʼ οὐ παρέασι καὶ ἅρματα τῶν κʼ ἐπιβαίης.  
There are no horses or chariot here for you to mount."

**300** τὸν δὲ δολοφρονέουσα προσηύδα πότνια Ἥρη·  
Then queenly Hera, planning deception, addressed him:
> Planning deception: The participle δολοφρονέουσα combines δόλος, a trick or snare, with the language of thought. Before Hera speaks, the narrator marks her answer as a calculated deception.

**301** ἔρχομαι ὀψομένη πολυφόρβου πείρατα γαίης,  
"I am going to see the bounds of the all-nourishing earth,

**302** Ὠκεανόν τε θεῶν γένεσιν καὶ μητέρα Τηθύν,  
Oceanus, source of the gods, and mother Tethys,

**303** οἵ με σφοῖσι δόμοισιν ἐῢ τρέφον ἠδʼ ἀτίταλλον·  
who in their own halls reared and cherished me well.

**304** τοὺς εἶμʼ ὀψομένη, καί σφʼ ἄκριτα νείκεα λύσω·  
I am going to visit them and end their unresolved quarrels;

**305** ἤδη γὰρ δηρὸν χρόνον ἀλλήλων ἀπέχονται  
for a long time now they have kept apart from one another's

**306** εὐνῆς καὶ φιλότητος, ἐπεὶ χόλος ἔμπεσε θυμῷ.  
bed and love, since anger fell upon their hearts.

**307** ἵπποι δʼ ἐν πρυμνωρείῃ πολυπίδακος Ἴδης  
My horses stand at the foothills of many-fountained Ida,

**308** ἑστᾶσʼ, οἵ μʼ οἴσουσιν ἐπὶ τραφερήν τε καὶ ὑγρήν.  
and they will bear me over dry land and over sea.
> The dry and the wet: Homer pairs substantivized adjectives: τραφερή, the dry, means land, while ὑγρή, the wet, means sea. Together they span the whole route Hera claims she is about to travel.

**309** νῦν δὲ σεῦ εἵνεκα δεῦρο κατʼ Οὐλύμπου τόδʼ ἱκάνω,  
But now for your sake I have come down here from Olympus,

**310** μή πώς μοι μετέπειτα χολώσεαι, αἴ κε σιωπῇ  
lest afterward you should be angry with me if in silence

**311** οἴχωμαι πρὸς δῶμα βαθυρρόου Ὠκεανοῖο.  
I went away to the house of deep-flowing Oceanus."

**312** τὴν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη νεφεληγερέτα Ζεύς·  
Then Zeus the cloud-gatherer answered her and said:

**313** Ἥρη κεῖσε μὲν ἔστι καὶ ὕστερον ὁρμηθῆναι,  
"Hera, you may set out for there at some later time;

**314** νῶϊ δʼ ἄγʼ ἐν φιλότητι τραπείομεν εὐνηθέντε.  
come, let us two turn now to love and lie together.
> Zeus speaks for the pair: The pronoun νῶϊ means we two, and εὐνηθέντε is a dual participle referring to Zeus and Hera lying together. The dual number makes his proposal explicitly about the pair.

**315** οὐ γάρ πώ ποτέ μʼ ὧδε θεᾶς ἔρος οὐδὲ γυναικὸς  
Never before has desire for goddess or mortal woman

**316** θυμὸν ἐνὶ στήθεσσι περιπροχυθεὶς ἐδάμασσεν,  
so poured around the heart in my breast and mastered it—
> Desire poured around the heart: The aorist passive participle περιπροχυθείς agrees with ἔρος, desire: desire is pictured as having been poured all around Zeus's heart before it masters him. The participle carries the enveloping image forward from line 294.

**317** οὐδʼ ὁπότʼ ἠρασάμην Ἰξιονίης ἀλόχοιο,  
not when I loved the wife of Ixion,

**318** ἣ τέκε Πειρίθοον θεόφιν μήστωρʼ ἀτάλαντον·  
who bore Pirithous, a counselor equal to the gods;

**319** οὐδʼ ὅτε περ Δανάης καλλισφύρου Ἀκρισιώνης,  
nor fair-ankled Danae, daughter of Acrisius,

**320** ἣ τέκε Περσῆα πάντων ἀριδείκετον ἀνδρῶν·  
who bore Perseus, most renowned of all men;

**321** οὐδʼ ὅτε Φοίνικος κούρης τηλεκλειτοῖο,  
nor the daughter of far-famed Phoenix,

**322** ἣ τέκε μοι Μίνων τε καὶ ἀντίθεον Ῥαδάμανθυν·  
who bore me Minos and godlike Rhadamanthus;

**323** οὐδʼ ὅτε περ Σεμέλης οὐδʼ Ἀλκμήνης ἐνὶ Θήβῃ,  
nor when I loved Semele or Alcmene in Thebes—

**324** ἥ ῥʼ Ἡρακλῆα κρατερόφρονα γείνατο παῖδα·  
Alcmene bore strong-hearted Heracles, her son,

**325** ἣ δὲ Διώνυσον Σεμέλη τέκε χάρμα βροτοῖσιν·  
while Semele bore Dionysus, joy to mortals—

**326** οὐδʼ ὅτε Δήμητρος καλλιπλοκάμοιο ἀνάσσης,  
nor fair-tressed Demeter, the queen,

**327** οὐδʼ ὁπότε Λητοῦς ἐρικυδέος, οὐδὲ σεῦ αὐτῆς,  
nor glorious Leto, nor even you yourself,

**328** ὡς σέο νῦν ἔραμαι καί με γλυκὺς ἵμερος αἱρεῖ.  
as I love you now, and sweet desire takes hold of me."

**329** τὸν δὲ δολοφρονέουσα προσηύδα πότνια Ἥρη·  
Then queenly Hera, planning deception, addressed him:

**330** αἰνότατε Κρονίδη ποῖον τὸν μῦθον ἔειπες.  
"Most dread son of Cronos, what a word you have spoken!
> Hera's repeated rebuke: Hera uses the same complete rebuke she has used against Zeus earlier in the poem. Its exact return makes her resistance itself formulaic even while this particular answer advances her deception.

**331** εἰ νῦν ἐν φιλότητι λιλαίεαι εὐνηθῆναι  
If now you long to lie together in love

**332** Ἴδης ἐν κορυφῇσι, τὰ δὲ προπέφανται ἅπαντα·  
on Ida's peaks, where everything lies open to sight,

**333** πῶς κʼ ἔοι εἴ τις νῶϊ θεῶν αἰειγενετάων  
what if one of the ever-living gods should
> An anxious possibility: The optative ἔοι with κεν asks what the result might be, while εἴ τις opens Hera's imagined condition: what if some god saw them? The optative keeps the scene hypothetical as she builds her objection.

**334** εὕδοντʼ ἀθρήσειε, θεοῖσι δὲ πᾶσι μετελθὼν  
see us sleeping, then go among all the gods

**335** πεφράδοι; οὐκ ἂν ἔγωγε τεὸν πρὸς δῶμα νεοίμην  
and tell them? I could never return to your house

**336** ἐξ εὐνῆς ἀνστᾶσα, νεμεσσητὸν δέ κεν εἴη.  
after rising from our bed; it would be shameful.

**337** ἀλλʼ εἰ δή ῥʼ ἐθέλεις καί τοι φίλον ἔπλετο θυμῷ,  
But if this is truly your wish and dear to your heart,

**338** ἔστιν τοι θάλαμος, τόν τοι φίλος υἱὸς ἔτευξεν  
you have a chamber your own dear son built for you—

**339** Ἥφαιστος, πυκινὰς δὲ θύρας σταθμοῖσιν ἐπῆρσεν·  
Hephaestus, who fitted close-set doors upon its posts.

**340** ἔνθʼ ἴομεν κείοντες, ἐπεί νύ τοι εὔαδεν εὐνή.  
Let us go there to lie down, since a bed pleases you."

**341** τὴν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη νεφεληγερέτα Ζεύς·  
Then Zeus the cloud-gatherer answered her and said:

**342** Ἥρη μήτε θεῶν τό γε δείδιθι μήτέ τινʼ ἀνδρῶν  
"Hera, do not fear that any god or man

**343** ὄψεσθαι· τοῖόν τοι ἐγὼ νέφος ἀμφικαλύψω  
will see you; such a cloud will I wrap around you,

**344** χρύσεον· οὐδʼ ἂν νῶϊ διαδράκοι Ἠέλιός περ,  
a golden one—not even the Sun could see us through it,
> Not even the Sun could see: The optative διαδράκοι with ἄν expresses what could happen under the proposed condition, here emphatically denied. The dual pronoun νῶϊ marks Zeus and Hera together as the pair hidden from sight.

**345** οὗ τε καὶ ὀξύτατον πέλεται φάος εἰσοράασθαι.  
though his light is keenest of all for seeing."

**346** ἦ ῥα καὶ ἀγκὰς ἔμαρπτε Κρόνου παῖς ἣν παράκοιτιν·  
So the son of Cronos caught his wife in his arms;

**347** τοῖσι δʼ ὑπὸ χθὼν δῖα φύεν νεοθηλέα ποίην,  
and divine earth sprouted fresh young grass beneath them,

**348** λωτόν θʼ ἑρσήεντα ἰδὲ κρόκον ἠδʼ ὑάκινθον  
dewy lotus, crocus, and hyacinth,

**349** πυκνὸν καὶ μαλακόν, ὃς ἀπὸ χθονὸς ὑψόσʼ ἔεργε.  
thick and soft, raising them high above the ground.

**350** τῷ ἔνι λεξάσθην, ἐπὶ δὲ νεφέλην ἕσσαντο  
There they lay down and clothed themselves in a cloud,

**351** καλὴν χρυσείην· στιλπναὶ δʼ ἀπέπιπτον ἔερσαι.  
beautiful and golden; gleaming drops of dew fell from it.

**352** ὣς ὃ μὲν ἀτρέμας εὗδε πατὴρ ἀνὰ Γαργάρῳ ἄκρῳ,  
So the father slept motionless on Gargaron's height,

**353** ὕπνῳ καὶ φιλότητι δαμείς, ἔχε δʼ ἀγκὰς ἄκοιτιν·  
subdued by sleep and love, holding his wife in his arms.
> Zeus subdued: The aorist passive participle δαμείς uses the language of overpowering or conquest: Zeus has been subdued by both sleep and love. The two dative nouns name the forces that overcome him.

**354** βῆ δὲ θέειν ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν νήδυμος Ὕπνος  
Then sweet Sleep ran toward the ships of the Achaeans

**355** ἀγγελίην ἐρέων γαιηόχῳ ἐννοσιγαίῳ·  
to tell his message to the earth-holding Earth-shaker.
> The earth-holding Earth-shaker: Two linked titles identify Poseidon without using his name: γαιήοχος presents him as holding the earth, and ἐννοσίγαιος as shaking it. The paired epithets hold together his encompassing power and its violent motion.

**356** ἀγχοῦ δʼ ἱστάμενος ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·  
Standing close beside him, he addressed him with winged words:

**357** πρόφρων νῦν Δαναοῖσι Ποσείδαον ἐπάμυνε,  
"Poseidon, now willingly defend the Danaans,

**358** καί σφιν κῦδος ὄπαζε μίνυνθά περ, ὄφρʼ ἔτι εὕδει  
and grant them glory, if only briefly, while Zeus still sleeps,

**359** Ζεύς, ἐπεὶ αὐτῷ ἐγὼ μαλακὸν περὶ κῶμʼ ἐκάλυψα·  
for I have wrapped a soft slumber all around him,

**360** Ἥρη δʼ ἐν φιλότητι παρήπαφεν εὐνηθῆναι.  
and Hera tricked him into lying with her in love."

**361** ὣς εἰπὼν ὃ μὲν ᾤχετʼ ἐπὶ κλυτὰ φῦλʼ ἀνθρώπων,  
So speaking, Sleep went away among the famed tribes of mortals,

**362** τὸν δʼ ἔτι μᾶλλον ἀνῆκεν ἀμυνέμεναι Δαναοῖσιν.  
and roused Poseidon still more to defend the Danaans.

**363** αὐτίκα δʼ ἐν πρώτοισι μέγα προθορὼν ἐκέλευσεν·  
At once he sprang far forward among the front ranks and urged them:

**364** Ἀργεῖοι καὶ δʼ αὖτε μεθίεμεν Ἕκτορι νίκην  
"Argives, do we once again yield victory to Hector,

**365** Πριαμίδῃ, ἵνα νῆας ἕλῃ καὶ κῦδος ἄρηται;  
Priam's son, so that he may take the ships and win glory?
> A purpose with ἵνα: ἵνα introduces the outcome Poseidon rejects, while ἕλῃ and ἄρηται are aorist subjunctives: ‘so that he may take’ the ships and ‘win’ glory. The middle form ἄρηται presents the glory as something Hector wins for himself.

**366** ἀλλʼ ὃ μὲν οὕτω φησὶ καὶ εὔχεται οὕνεκʼ Ἀχιλλεὺς  
That is what he claims and boasts, because Achilles

**367** νηυσὶν ἔπι γλαφυρῇσι μένει κεχολωμένος ἦτορ·  
remains beside the hollow ships, wrathful at heart.

**368** κείνου δʼ οὔ τι λίην ποθὴ ἔσσεται, εἴ κεν οἳ ἄλλοι  
We shall not feel too sorely the lack of him, if we others

**369** ἡμεῖς ὀτρυνώμεθʼ ἀμυνέμεν ἀλλήλοισιν.  
rouse ourselves to stand in one another's defense.

**370** ἀλλʼ ἄγεθʼ ὡς ἂν ἐγὼ εἴπω πειθώμεθα πάντες·  
Come, then, let all of us obey as I shall say:
> A call to joint action: πειθώμεθα is a present subjunctive used hortatorily: Poseidon includes himself in ‘let all of us obey.’ The wording of the full line is a recurring command formula and remains identical to its earlier appearances.

**371** ἀσπίδες ὅσσαι ἄρισται ἐνὶ στρατῷ ἠδὲ μέγισται  
put on whatever shields in the army are best and largest,

**372** ἑσσάμενοι, κεφαλὰς δὲ παναίθῃσιν κορύθεσσι  
hide our heads beneath helmets all ablaze,

**373** κρύψαντες, χερσίν τε τὰ μακρότατʼ ἔγχεʼ ἑλόντες  
and take the longest spears into our hands,

**374** ἴομεν· αὐτὰρ ἐγὼν ἡγήσομαι, οὐδʼ ἔτι φημὶ  
and let us go. I shall lead, and I do not think

**375** Ἕκτορα Πριαμίδην μενέειν μάλα περ μεμαῶτα.  
Hector, Priam's son, will stand firm, however fierce his fury.

**376** ὃς δέ κʼ ἀνὴρ μενέχαρμος, ἔχει δʼ ὀλίγον σάκος ὤμῳ,  
Any steadfast fighter who bears a little shield on his shoulder
> Steadfast in battle: μενέχαρμος compresses the idea of standing firm in battle into one compound. Poseidon is not criticizing the fighter's courage, only ordering him to exchange inadequate equipment for a larger shield.

**377** χείρονι φωτὶ δότω, ὃ δʼ ἐν ἀσπίδι μείζονι δύτω.  
must give it to a lesser man and arm himself with a larger one."

**378** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἳ δʼ ἄρα τοῦ μάλα μὲν κλύον ἠδὲ πίθοντο·  
So he spoke, and they listened closely and obeyed him.
> A repeated obedience formula: This entire Greek line recurs when a command is heard and accepted. Its English is therefore repeated verbatim from the established rendering.

**379** τοὺς δʼ αὐτοὶ βασιλῆες ἐκόσμεον οὐτάμενοί περ  
The wounded kings themselves marshaled the men—

**380** Τυδεΐδης Ὀδυσεύς τε καὶ Ἀτρεΐδης Ἀγαμέμνων·  
the son of Tydeus, Odysseus, and Atreus' son Agamemnon.

**381** οἰχόμενοι δʼ ἐπὶ πάντας ἀρήϊα τεύχεʼ ἄμειβον·  
They went among them all and exchanged their war gear:

**382** ἐσθλὰ μὲν ἐσθλὸς ἔδυνε, χέρεια δὲ χείρονι δόσκεν.  
a good man donned good armor, and gave the worse to a lesser man.
> Equipment matched to the fighter: Homer balances the substantival adjectives tightly: the good man takes good gear, while inferior gear goes to an inferior man. The comparative χείρονι is dative because it marks the recipient.

**383** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ἕσσαντο περὶ χροῒ νώροπα χαλκὸν  
When they had clothed their bodies round in flashing bronze,

**384** βάν ῥʼ ἴμεν· ἦρχε δʼ ἄρά σφι Ποσειδάων ἐνοσίχθων  
they set out, and Poseidon the earth-shaker led them,

**385** δεινὸν ἄορ τανύηκες ἔχων ἐν χειρὶ παχείῃ  
holding a dread, long-edged sword in his mighty hand,

**386** εἴκελον ἀστεροπῇ· τῷ δʼ οὐ θέμις ἐστὶ μιγῆναι  
like lightning. No man is permitted to meet it

**387** ἐν δαῒ λευγαλέῃ, ἀλλὰ δέος ἰσχάνει ἄνδρας.  
in grievous battle; fear holds men back.

**388** Τρῶας δʼ αὖθʼ ἑτέρωθεν ἐκόσμει φαίδιμος Ἕκτωρ.  
Across from them glorious Hector marshaled the Trojans.

**389** δή ῥα τότʼ αἰνοτάτην ἔριδα πτολέμοιο τάνυσσαν  
Then they stretched out the most dreadful strife of war—

**390** κυανοχαῖτα Ποσειδάων καὶ φαίδιμος Ἕκτωρ,  
dark-haired Poseidon and glorious Hector—
> Dark-haired Poseidon: κυανοχαίτης is Poseidon's dark-haired epithet, built from κύανος, a deep dark blue, and χαίτη, ‘hair.’ Here it stands against φαίδιμος, ‘glorious,’ applied to Hector in the balanced line.

**391** ἤτοι ὃ μὲν Τρώεσσιν, ὃ δʼ Ἀργείοισιν ἀρήγων.  
Hector aiding the Trojans, Poseidon the Argives.

**392** ἐκλύσθη δὲ θάλασσα ποτὶ κλισίας τε νέας τε  
The sea broke loose toward the huts and ships

**393** Ἀργείων· οἳ δὲ ξύνισαν μεγάλῳ ἀλαλητῷ.  
of the Argives, and the armies met with a mighty cry.

**394** οὔτε θαλάσσης κῦμα τόσον βοάᾳ ποτὶ χέρσον  
Not so loudly does a wave of the sea roar against the land,

**395** ποντόθεν ὀρνύμενον πνοιῇ Βορέω ἀλεγεινῇ·  
rising from the deep beneath the bitter blast of Boreas;

**396** οὔτε πυρὸς τόσσός γε ποτὶ βρόμος αἰθομένοιο  
nor so great is the roar of blazing fire

**397** οὔρεος ἐν βήσσῃς, ὅτε τʼ ὤρετο καιέμεν ὕλην·  
in mountain glens, when it rises to burn the woods;

**398** οὔτʼ ἄνεμος τόσσόν γε περὶ δρυσὶν ὑψικόμοισι  
nor does the wind scream so loudly round high-crested oaks,

**399** ἠπύει, ὅς τε μάλιστα μέγα βρέμεται χαλεπαίνων,  
the wind that roars most greatly in its rage,

**400** ὅσση ἄρα Τρώων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν ἔπλετο φωνὴ  
as the voice of Trojans and Achaeans, shouting terribly,
> The simile's answering clause: After three οὔτε clauses deny that wave, fire, or wind is so loud, ὅσση supplies the comparison's answer: so great was the armies' voice. The long suspended structure makes the human battle-cry surpass all three elemental sounds.

**401** δεινὸν ἀϋσάντων, ὅτʼ ἐπʼ ἀλλήλοισιν ὄρουσαν.  
when they sprang against each other.

**402** Αἴαντος δὲ πρῶτος ἀκόντισε φαίδιμος Ἕκτωρ  
Glorious Hector first cast at Ajax

**403** ἔγχει, ἐπεὶ τέτραπτο πρὸς ἰθύ οἱ, οὐδʼ ἀφάμαρτε,  
with his spear, since Ajax faced him straight on, nor did he miss,

**404** τῇ ῥα δύω τελαμῶνε περὶ στήθεσσι τετάσθην,  
striking where the two straps crossed upon his chest,
> The two crossed straps: τελαμῶνε is dual, agreeing with δύω, ‘two.’ The next line identifies the pair as the shield-strap and the sword-strap, whose crossing protects Ajax's chest from the spear.

**405** ἤτοι ὃ μὲν σάκεος, ὃ δὲ φασγάνου ἀργυροήλου·  
one of his shield, the other of his silver-studded sword;

**406** τώ οἱ ῥυσάσθην τέρενα χρόα. χώσατο δʼ Ἕκτωρ,  
and these kept his tender flesh from harm. Hector grew angry

**407** ὅττί ῥά οἱ βέλος ὠκὺ ἐτώσιον ἔκφυγε χειρός,  
because his swift weapon had flown vainly from his hand,

**408** ἂψ δʼ ἑτάρων εἰς ἔθνος ἐχάζετο κῆρʼ ἀλεείνων.  
and he shrank back into the throng of his comrades, avoiding death.

**409** τὸν μὲν ἔπειτʼ ἀπιόντα μέγας Τελαμώνιος Αἴας  
Then as he drew away, great Telamonian Ajax

**410** χερμαδίῳ, τά ῥα πολλὰ θοάων ἔχματα νηῶν  
with a stone—many such supports for the swift ships
> Supports for the beached ships: ἔχματα are props or supports placed beside the beached ships to hold them steady. Ajax seizes one of these working stones from underfoot, not a stone carried to battle as a weapon.

**411** πὰρ ποσὶ μαρναμένων ἐκυλίνδετο, τῶν ἓν ἀείρας  
rolled under the fighters' feet—lifted one,

**412** στῆθος βεβλήκει ὑπὲρ ἄντυγος ἀγχόθι δειρῆς,  
and struck him on the chest, above the shield-rim, close to the neck;

**413** στρόμβον δʼ ὣς ἔσσευε βαλών, περὶ δʼ ἔδραμε πάντῃ.  
the blow sent him spinning like a top and whirling every way.
> Spinning like a top: στρόμβος is a spinning top or whirling object. The compact comparison fixes the stone's immediate effect on Hector before the larger thunderstruck-oak simile describes his fall.

**414** ὡς δʼ ὅθʼ ὑπὸ πληγῆς πατρὸς Διὸς ἐξερίπῃ δρῦς  
As when beneath the stroke of father Zeus an oak falls

**415** πρόρριζος, δεινὴ δὲ θεείου γίγνεται ὀδμὴ  
uprooted, and a terrible smell of sulfur rises

**416** ἐξ αὐτῆς, τὸν δʼ οὔ περ ἔχει θράσος ὅς κεν ἴδηται  
from the tree; courage does not hold the man who sees it

**417** ἐγγὺς ἐών, χαλεπὸς δὲ Διὸς μεγάλοιο κεραυνός,  
from close at hand, for dread is the great thunderbolt of Zeus—

**418** ὣς ἔπεσʼ Ἕκτορος ὦκα χαμαὶ μένος ἐν κονίῃσι·  
so Hector's strength fell swiftly to the ground in the dust.

**419** χειρὸς δʼ ἔκβαλεν ἔγχος, ἐπʼ αὐτῷ δʼ ἀσπὶς ἑάφθη  
His spear dropped from his hand; his shield remained fastened

**420** καὶ κόρυς, ἀμφὶ δέ οἱ βράχε τεύχεα ποικίλα χαλκῷ.  
upon him, and his helmet, while his bronze-adorned armor rang around him.

**421** οἳ δὲ μέγα ἰάχοντες ἐπέδραμον υἷες Ἀχαιῶν  
The sons of the Achaeans ran upon him with a mighty cry,

**422** ἐλπόμενοι ἐρύεσθαι, ἀκόντιζον δὲ θαμειὰς  
hoping to drag him away, and hurled their spearpoints thickly;

**423** αἰχμάς· ἀλλʼ οὔ τις ἐδυνήσατο ποιμένα λαῶν  
yet no one could wound or strike the shepherd of the people,
> Shepherd of the people: ποιμὴν λαῶν is a standing leadership title: Hector is the ‘shepherd’ responsible for his people as a herdsman is for a flock. It identifies him by his command role while his allies close around him.

**424** οὐτάσαι οὐδὲ βαλεῖν· πρὶν γὰρ περίβησαν ἄριστοι  
for the best men had already gathered round him:

**425** Πουλυδάμας τε καὶ Αἰνείας καὶ δῖος Ἀγήνωρ  
Polydamas and Aeneas and godlike Agenor,

**426** Σαρπηδών τʼ ἀρχὸς Λυκίων καὶ Γλαῦκος ἀμύμων.  
Sarpedon, leader of the Lycians, and blameless Glaucus.

**427** τῶν δʼ ἄλλων οὔ τίς εὑ ἀκήδεσεν, ἀλλὰ πάροιθεν  
Nor did any of the others neglect him; before him

**428** ἀσπίδας εὐκύκλους σχέθον αὐτοῦ. τὸν δʼ ἄρʼ ἑταῖροι  
they held their well-rounded shields. His companions

**429** χερσὶν ἀείραντες φέρον ἐκ πόνου, ὄφρʼ ἵκεθʼ ἵππους  
lifted him in their hands and carried him from the struggle, until they reached

**430** ὠκέας, οἵ οἱ ὄπισθε μάχης ἠδὲ πτολέμοιο  
swift horses, which behind the battle and the fighting
> Behind battle and war: μάχη and πτόλεμος overlap but are not empty duplication: the first can focus on the immediate fighting, the second on war more broadly. Their pairing marks the protected rear position where Hector's team waits.

**431** ἕστασαν ἡνίοχόν τε καὶ ἅρματα ποικίλʼ ἔχοντες·  
stood with their charioteer and ornate chariot;

**432** οἳ τόν γε προτὶ ἄστυ φέρον βαρέα στενάχοντα.  
bore him toward the city, groaning heavily,

**433** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ πόρον ἷξον ἐϋρρεῖος ποταμοῖο  
But when they reached the ford of the fair-flowing river,

**434** Ξάνθου δινήεντος, ὃν ἀθάνατος τέκετο Ζεύς,  
eddying Xanthus, whom immortal Zeus begot,

**435** ἔνθά μιν ἐξ ἵππων πέλασαν χθονί, κὰδ δέ οἱ ὕδωρ  
there they lowered him from the chariot to the ground and poured water over him.

**436** χεῦαν· ὃ δʼ ἀμπνύνθη καὶ ἀνέδρακεν ὀφθαλμοῖσιν,  
He caught his breath and looked up with his eyes,

**437** ἑζόμενος δʼ ἐπὶ γοῦνα κελαινεφὲς αἷμʼ ἀπέμεσσεν·  
then rose upon his knees and vomited dark blood;
> He vomited dark blood: κελαινεφές literally suggests cloud-dark blood, and ἀπέμεσσεν states bluntly that Hector vomited it. The violence shows that his brief return to consciousness is not a recovery.

**438** αὖτις δʼ ἐξοπίσω πλῆτο χθονί, τὼ δέ οἱ ὄσσε  
then backward again he sank to the ground, and over his eyes

**439** νὺξ ἐκάλυψε μέλαινα· βέλος δʼ ἔτι θυμὸν ἐδάμνα.  
black night closed; the missile still mastered his spirit.

**440** Ἀργεῖοι δʼ ὡς οὖν ἴδον Ἕκτορα νόσφι κιόντα  
But when the Argives saw Hector being carried away from the field,

**441** μᾶλλον ἐπὶ Τρώεσσι θόρον, μνήσαντο δὲ χάρμης.  
they leapt more fiercely on the Trojans and remembered battle-joy.

**442** ἔνθα πολὺ πρώτιστος Ὀϊλῆος ταχὺς Αἴας  
Then far ahead of all, swift Ajax, son of Oileus,

**443** Σάτνιον οὔτασε δουρὶ μετάλμενος ὀξυόεντι  
sprang upon Satnius and wounded him with his sharp spear,
> Springing into the attack: μετάλμενος is an aorist middle participle, presenting Ajax's leap as the action that carries him into the spear-thrust. The participle keeps the movement and wound within one rapid attack.

**444** Ἠνοπίδην, ὃν ἄρα νύμφη τέκε νηῒς ἀμύμων  
the son of Enops, whom a blameless naiad nymph had borne

**445** Ἤνοπι βουκολέοντι παρʼ ὄχθας Σατνιόεντος.  
to Enops as he tended cattle beside the banks of the Satnioeis.

**446** τὸν μὲν Ὀϊλιάδης δουρὶ κλυτὸς ἐγγύθεν ἐλθὼν  
The famed son of Oileus came close and struck him with his spear

**447** οὖτα κατὰ λαπάρην· ὃ δʼ ἀνετράπετʼ, ἀμφὶ δʼ ἄρʼ αὐτῷ  
in the flank; he toppled backward, and around him

**448** Τρῶες καὶ Δαναοὶ σύναγον κρατερὴν ὑσμίνην.  
Trojans and Danaans joined in bitter battle.

**449** τῷ δʼ ἐπὶ Πουλυδάμας ἐγχέσπαλος ἦλθεν ἀμύντωρ  
To defend him came spear-fighting Polydamas,

**450** Πανθοΐδης, βάλε δὲ Προθοήνορα δεξιὸν ὦμον  
son of Panthous, and struck Prothoenor in the right shoulder,

**451** υἱὸν Ἀρηϊλύκοιο, διʼ ὤμου δʼ ὄβριμον ἔγχος  
the son of Areilycus; the mighty spear passed through his shoulder
> Through the shoulder: διά with the genitive ὤμου expresses passage through the shoulder. The repeated body part across lines 450–451 makes clear that the spear penetrates rather than merely striking the surface.

**452** ἔσχεν, ὃ δʼ ἐν κονίῃσι πεσὼν ἕλε γαῖαν ἀγοστῷ.  
and held him; he fell in the dust and clutched the earth in his palm.

**453** Πουλυδάμας δʼ ἔκπαγλον ἐπεύξατο μακρὸν ἀΰσας·  
Polydamas boasted terribly over him, crying aloud:

**454** οὐ μὰν αὖτʼ ὀΐω μεγαθύμου Πανθοΐδαο  
Surely I think that once again the spear from the strong hand

**455** χειρὸς ἄπο στιβαρῆς ἅλιον πηδῆσαι ἄκοντα,  
of the great-hearted son of Panthous did not leap in vain,

**456** ἀλλά τις Ἀργείων κόμισε χροΐ, καί μιν ὀΐω  
but some Argive received it in his flesh, and I think

**457** αὐτῷ σκηπτόμενον κατίμεν δόμον Ἄϊδος εἴσω.  
he will lean upon it as he goes down into the house of Hades.
> The spear as a staff: The middle participle σκηπτόμενον means 'leaning' or 'supporting himself,' while αὐτῷ points back to the spear. Polydamas turns the weapon lodged in Prothoenor into a grim walking staff for his descent to Hades.

**458** ὣς ἔφατʼ, Ἀργείοισι δʼ ἄχος γένετʼ εὐξαμένοιο·  
So he spoke, and grief came upon the Argives at his boasting,
> Grief under a taunt: ἄχος is piercing grief or distress, here sharpened by Polydamas's boast over the fallen man. Homer repeats this entire Greek line at 486 after Acamas's answering boast.

**459** Αἴαντι δὲ μάλιστα δαΐφρονι θυμὸν ὄρινε  
and above all it stirred the fighting spirit of Ajax,

**460** τῷ Τελαμωνιάδῃ· τοῦ γὰρ πέσεν ἄγχι μάλιστα.  
the son of Telamon, for the man had fallen nearest him.

**461** καρπαλίμως δʼ ἀπιόντος ἀκόντισε δουρὶ φαεινῷ.  
Swiftly he cast his shining spear at Polydamas as he withdrew.

**462** Πουλυδάμας δʼ αὐτὸς μὲν ἀλεύατο κῆρα μέλαιναν  
Polydamas himself escaped black death

**463** λικριφὶς ἀΐξας, κόμισεν δʼ Ἀντήνορος υἱὸς  
by darting sharply aside, but Antenor's son received the spear,
> A sideways dart: λικριφίς means obliquely or sideways, and ἀΐξας adds the sudden darting motion. Polydamas's quick swerve transfers the fatal cast to Archelochus.

**464** Ἀρχέλοχος· τῷ γάρ ῥα θεοὶ βούλευσαν ὄλεθρον.  
Archelochus, for the gods had planned destruction for him.

**465** τόν ῥʼ ἔβαλεν κεφαλῆς τε καὶ αὐχένος ἐν συνεοχμῷ,  
Ajax struck him at the joining of head and neck,
> Where head and neck join: συνεοχμός is a joining-place. Homer locates the impact precisely at the junction of the head and neck before narrowing it further to the top vertebra.

**466** νείατον ἀστράγαλον, ἀπὸ δʼ ἄμφω κέρσε τένοντε·  
at the topmost vertebra, and severed both tendons.

**467** τοῦ δὲ πολὺ προτέρη κεφαλὴ στόμα τε ῥῖνές τε  
His head and mouth and nostrils struck the ground

**468** οὔδεϊ πλῆντʼ ἤ περ κνῆμαι καὶ γοῦνα πεσόντος.  
far sooner than his shins and knees as he fell.

**469** Αἴας δʼ αὖτʼ ἐγέγωνεν ἀμύμονι Πουλυδάμαντι·  
Then Ajax called aloud to blameless Polydamas:

**470** φράζεο Πουλυδάμα καί μοι νημερτὲς ἐνίσπες  
Think, Polydamas, and tell me without falsehood:

**471** ἦ ῥʼ οὐχ οὗτος ἀνὴρ Προθοήνορος ἀντὶ πεφάσθαι  
is this man not worthy to have been killed in return for Prothoenor?
> A life in return: ἀντί governs the genitive Προθοήνορος and means 'in return for Prothoenor.' Ajax frames Archelochus's death as an exact exchange in the battlefield's chain of vengeance.

**472** ἄξιος; οὐ μέν μοι κακὸς εἴδεται οὐδὲ κακῶν ἔξ,  
He does not seem base to me, nor born of base men,

**473** ἀλλὰ κασίγνητος Ἀντήνορος ἱπποδάμοιο  
but a brother of Antenor, tamer of horses,

**474** ἢ πάϊς· αὐτῷ γὰρ γενεὴν ἄγχιστα ἐῴκει.  
or perhaps his son, for in birth he looked most nearly like him.

**475** ἦ ῥʼ εὖ γιγνώσκων, Τρῶας δʼ ἄχος ἔλλαβε θυμόν.  
So he spoke, though he knew him well, and grief seized the Trojans.
> Knowing all along: The present participle γιγνώσκων shows that Ajax knows Archelochus's identity while pretending uncertainty in his taunt. English needs a concessive force here: he speaks this way though he knows perfectly well.

**476** ἔνθʼ Ἀκάμας Πρόμαχον Βοιώτιον οὔτασε δουρὶ  
Then Acamas wounded Promachus the Boeotian with his spear

**477** ἀμφὶ κασιγνήτῳ βεβαώς· ὃ δʼ ὕφελκε ποδοῖιν.  
as Acamas stood over his brother, while Promachus dragged the body by the feet.

**478** τῷ δʼ Ἀκάμας ἔκπαγλον ἐπεύξατο μακρὸν ἀΰσας·  
Acamas boasted terribly over him, crying aloud:

**479** Ἀργεῖοι ἰόμωροι ἀπειλάων ἀκόρητοι  
Argives, arrow-boasters, insatiate in threats,
> "Arrow-boasters" — a disputed term: ἰόμωρος is a rare word of contested etymology, traditionally connected to ἰός "arrow" and taken as a jeer at men who only fight at a distance and boast of it, though the second element is genuinely uncertain. This repeats the rendering established at 4.242 rather than claiming more certainty than the Greek allows.

**480** οὔ θην οἴοισίν γε πόνος τʼ ἔσεται καὶ ὀϊζὺς  
surely toil and misery will not be ours alone,

**481** ἡμῖν, ἀλλά ποθʼ ὧδε κατακτενέεσθε καὶ ὔμμες.  
but you too will be killed here one day.

**482** φράζεσθʼ ὡς ὑμῖν Πρόμαχος δεδμημένος εὕδει  
Look how Promachus lies asleep, mastered

**483** ἔγχει ἐμῷ, ἵνα μή τι κασιγνήτοιό γε ποινὴ  
by my spear, so that vengeance for my brother

**484** δηρὸν ἄτιτος ἔῃ· τὼ καί κέ τις εὔχεται ἀνὴρ  
may not remain unpaid for long; therefore a man prays

**485** γνωτὸν ἐνὶ μεγάροισιν ἀρῆς ἀλκτῆρα λιπέσθαι.  
to leave a kinsman in his halls, an avenger against ruin.

**486** ὣς ἔφατʼ, Ἀργείοισι δʼ ἄχος γένετʼ εὐξαμένοιο·  
So he spoke, and grief came upon the Argives at his boasting,

**487** Πηνέλεῳ δὲ μάλιστα δαΐφρονι θυμὸν ὄρινεν·  
and above all it stirred the fighting spirit of Peneleos.

**488** ὁρμήθη δʼ Ἀκάμαντος· ὃ δʼ οὐχ ὑπέμεινεν ἐρωὴν  
He charged at Acamas, but Acamas did not withstand

**489** Πηνελέωο ἄνακτος· ὃ δʼ οὔτασεν Ἰλιονῆα  
the onset of lord Peneleos; Peneleos wounded Ilioneus,

**490** υἱὸν Φόρβαντος πολυμήλου, τόν ῥα μάλιστα  
the son of Phorbas, rich in sheep, whom above all

**491** Ἑρμείας Τρώων ἐφίλει καὶ κτῆσιν ὄπασσε·  
Hermes loved among the Trojans and endowed with possessions;
> Foremost among the Trojans: The genitive plural Τρώων is partitive: Hermes loved Phorbas most 'among the Trojans.' It sets Phorbas apart from the larger group rather than making the Trojans the object of the verb.

**492** τῷ δʼ ἄρʼ ὑπὸ μήτηρ μοῦνον τέκεν Ἰλιονῆα.  
and Ilioneus was the only son his mother bore to him.

**493** τὸν τόθʼ ὑπʼ ὀφρύος οὖτα κατʼ ὀφθαλμοῖο θέμεθλα,  
Peneleos struck him beneath the brow, at the root of the eye,
> At the eye's root: θέμεθλα are foundations or roots. Applied to the eye, the word places the spear at the base of the socket with the same concrete precision used for the rest of the wound.

**494** ἐκ δʼ ὦσε γλήνην· δόρυ δʼ ὀφθαλμοῖο διὰ πρὸ  
and drove the eyeball out; the spear passed straight through the eye

**495** καὶ διὰ ἰνίου ἦλθεν, ὃ δʼ ἕζετο χεῖρε πετάσσας  
and through the back of his head; he sank down, stretching out both hands.

**496** ἄμφω· Πηνέλεως δὲ ἐρυσσάμενος ξίφος ὀξὺ  
Then Peneleos drew his sharp sword

**497** αὐχένα μέσσον ἔλασσεν, ἀπήραξεν δὲ χαμᾶζε  
and struck the middle of his neck, lopping to the ground

**498** αὐτῇ σὺν πήληκι κάρη· ἔτι δʼ ὄβριμον ἔγχος  
the head with its helmet; the mighty spear

**499** ἦεν ἐν ὀφθαλμῷ· ὃ δὲ φὴ κώδειαν ἀνασχὼν  
was still in the eye. He raised the head aloft like a poppy-head,
> A poppy-head image: κώδεια is a poppy-head or seed capsule. Peneleos lifts the severed head by the spear as though it were the flower's heavy round head, turning a familiar natural shape into a brutal battlefield image.

**500** πέφραδέ τε Τρώεσσι καὶ εὐχόμενος ἔπος ηὔδα·  
showed it to the Trojans, and spoke a word in triumph:

**501** εἰπέμεναί μοι Τρῶες ἀγαυοῦ Ἰλιονῆος  
Trojans, tell the dear father and mother of noble Ilioneus

**502** πατρὶ φίλῳ καὶ μητρὶ γοήμεναι ἐν μεγάροισιν·  
to mourn for him in their halls,

**503** οὐδὲ γὰρ ἣ Προμάχοιο δάμαρ Ἀλεγηνορίδαο  
for the wife of Promachus, son of Alegenor,

**504** ἀνδρὶ φίλῳ ἐλθόντι γανύσσεται, ὁππότε κεν δὴ  
will not rejoice either when her dear husband comes home,

**505** ἐκ Τροίης σὺν νηυσὶ νεώμεθα κοῦροι Ἀχαιῶν.  
when we young Achaeans return with our ships from Troy.

**506** ὣς φάτο, τοὺς δʼ ἄρα πάντας ὑπὸ τρόμος ἔλλαβε γυῖα,  
So he spoke, and trembling seized the limbs of them all,

**507** πάπτηνεν δὲ ἕκαστος ὅπῃ φύγοι αἰπὺν ὄλεθρον.  
and each man glanced about for where he might flee sheer destruction.

**508** ἔσπετε νῦν μοι Μοῦσαι Ὀλύμπια δώματʼ ἔχουσαι  
Tell me now, Muses, who hold your homes on Olympus —

**509** ὅς τις δὴ πρῶτος βροτόεντʼ ἀνδράγριʼ Ἀχαιῶν  
which of the Achaeans first lifted blood-stained spoils

**510** ἤρατʼ, ἐπεί ῥʼ ἔκλινε μάχην κλυτὸς ἐννοσίγαιος.  
once the famed shaker of earth had bent the battle back.

**511** Αἴας ῥα πρῶτος Τελαμώνιος Ὕρτιον οὖτα  
First Telamonian Ajax wounded Hyrtius,

**512** Γυρτιάδην Μυσῶν ἡγήτορα καρτεροθύμων·  
son of Gyrtius and leader of the stout-hearted Mysians;

**513** Φάλκην δʼ Ἀντίλοχος καὶ Μέρμερον ἐξενάριξε·  
Antilochus killed and stripped Phalces and Mermerus;

**514** Μηριόνης δὲ Μόρυν τε καὶ Ἱπποτίωνα κατέκτα,  
Meriones killed Morys and Hippotion;

**515** Τεῦκρος δὲ Προθόωνά τʼ ἐνήρατο καὶ Περιφήτην·  
and Teucer slew Prothoon and Periphetes.

**516** Ἀτρεΐδης δʼ ἄρʼ ἔπειθʼ Ὑπερήνορα ποιμένα λαῶν  
Then the son of Atreus wounded Hyperenor, shepherd of the people,

**517** οὖτα κατὰ λαπάρην, διὰ δʼ ἔντερα χαλκὸς ἄφυσσε  
in the flank, and the bronze tore through and spilled his entrails;

**518** δῃώσας· ψυχὴ δὲ κατʼ οὐταμένην ὠτειλὴν  
his life-breath rushed out in haste through the open wound,
> Life-breath leaving the wound: ψυχή here is the life-breath that departs the body at death. It rushes out through the spear wound; the line does not describe a later, disembodied soul speaking or acting.

**519** ἔσσυτʼ ἐπειγομένη, τὸν δὲ σκότος ὄσσε κάλυψε.  
and darkness covered his eyes.

**520** πλείστους δʼ Αἴας εἷλεν Ὀϊλῆος ταχὺς υἱός·  
But swift Ajax, son of Oileus, took the most men,

**521** οὐ γάρ οἵ τις ὁμοῖος ἐπισπέσθαι ποσὶν ἦεν  
for no man was his equal in pursuing on foot

**522** ἀνδρῶν τρεσσάντων, ὅτε τε Ζεὺς ἐν φόβον ὄρσῃ.  
when men fled and Zeus stirred up the rout.
> Whenever Zeus stirs rout: The subjunctive ὄρσῃ stands in a general temporal clause with ὅτε τε: this is what happens whenever Zeus sends panic into an army. The form broadens the final line from this pursuit to a recurring truth of battle.

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Source text: public domain (Homer, ancient; Greek per the Murray text via the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA 3.0). English translation: © 2026 1732 Studios, LLC — original line-aligned draft, pending editorial review. Word-by-word morphology and syntax derived from the Perseus Ancient Greek Dependency Treebank (CC BY-SA 3.0); English glosses and notes © 2026 1732 Studios, LLC.