# The Iliad, Book 3: The Duel of Paris and Menelaus, and Helen on the Wall

Ἰλιάς · Homer · The Wrath

Paris and Menelaus fight a duel for Helen. Helen names the Greek chiefs for Priam from the wall. Aphrodite snatches Paris from defeat.

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/iliad/3. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/iliad/3.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/iliad/<line id>.m4a.

**1** αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ κόσμηθεν ἅμʼ ἡγεμόνεσσιν ἕκαστοι,  
But when each contingent was marshaled with its leaders,

**2** Τρῶες μὲν κλαγγῇ τʼ ἐνοπῇ τʼ ἴσαν ὄρνιθες ὣς  
the Trojans advanced with clamor and shouting, like birds,
> The bird simile opens: Homer opens the two armies' advance with a paired simile: the Trojans as noisy migratory birds, the disciplined Achaeans marching in silence. The contrast in sound is the point — it characterizes the two hosts before either side has struck a blow.

**3** ἠΰτε περ κλαγγὴ γεράνων πέλει οὐρανόθι πρό·  
as when the clamor of cranes rises before the sky;

**4** αἵ τʼ ἐπεὶ οὖν χειμῶνα φύγον καὶ ἀθέσφατον ὄμβρον  
when they have fled the winter storm and boundless rain,

**5** κλαγγῇ ταί γε πέτονται ἐπʼ ὠκεανοῖο ῥοάων  
with clamor they fly over the streams of Ocean,

**6** ἀνδράσι Πυγμαίοισι φόνον καὶ κῆρα φέρουσαι·  
bringing slaughter and death to the men of the Pygmies;

**7** ἠέριαι δʼ ἄρα ταί γε κακὴν ἔριδα προφέρονται.  
and high in the air they carry cruel strife before them.
> "High in the air," not "at dawn": ἠέριαι here is the Homeric spelling of ἀέριος, "in the air, high up" (from ἀήρ, "mist/air"), describing the cranes' flight — not the unrelated-looking ἠέριος, "at daybreak" (from ἦρι), which would introduce a stray time reference with no anchor in the simile. The image continues straight from the birds' clamor and flight over Ocean's streams in the preceding lines.

**8** οἳ δʼ ἄρʼ ἴσαν σιγῇ μένεα πνείοντες Ἀχαιοὶ  
But the Achaeans advanced in silence, breathing fury,
> "Breathing fury": μένεα πνείοντες, literally "breathing forth their fighting-spirit," is a vivid Homeric idiom for barely contained battle-rage — the same physical image recurs elsewhere in the poem for armies or heroes keyed up for a fight.

**9** ἐν θυμῷ μεμαῶτες ἀλεξέμεν ἀλλήλοισιν.  
eager at heart to defend one another.

**10** εὖτʼ ὄρεος κορυφῇσι Νότος κατέχευεν ὀμίχλην  
As when the South Wind pours mist over the mountain peaks,

**11** ποιμέσιν οὔ τι φίλην, κλέπτῃ δέ τε νυκτὸς ἀμείνω,  
no friend to shepherds, but better than night for a thief,

**12** τόσσόν τίς τʼ ἐπιλεύσσει ὅσον τʼ ἐπὶ λᾶαν ἵησιν·  
and a man sees no farther than he can throw a stone;

**13** ὣς ἄρα τῶν ὑπὸ ποσσὶ κονίσαλος ὄρνυτʼ ἀελλὴς  
so beneath their feet a whirling dust cloud rose

**14** ἐρχομένων· μάλα δʼ ὦκα διέπρησσον πεδίοιο.  
as they went; and very swiftly they crossed the plain.

**15** οἳ δʼ ὅτε δὴ σχεδὸν ἦσαν ἐπʼ ἀλλήλοισιν ἰόντες,  
Now when they had come near, advancing on one another,

**16** Τρωσὶν μὲν προμάχιζεν Ἀλέξανδρος θεοειδὴς  
godlike Paris strode out as champion for the Trojans,
> "Godlike" Paris — a distinct epithet: θεοειδής, "of godlike form," is Paris's own standing epithet in the Greek — a different word from δῖος, which we already render "godlike" for other heroes (swift-footed godlike Achilles, godlike Agamemnon). The two Greek words happen to share the same English rendering here, since both point to a shining, more-than-human bearing; this is recorded as its own locked table entry, not a silent reuse of δῖος.

**17** παρδαλέην ὤμοισιν ἔχων καὶ καμπύλα τόξα  
wearing a panther's skin upon his shoulders, and a curved bow,

**18** καὶ ξίφος· αὐτὰρ δοῦρε δύω κεκορυθμένα χαλκῷ  
and a sword; and brandishing two spears tipped with bronze
> Dual number: δοῦρε, "two spears," is a dual form (paired with δύω, "two"), the same grammatical number used in Book 1 for exactly two combatants — here Homer marks precisely two spears, not a general plural.

**19** πάλλων Ἀργείων προκαλίζετο πάντας ἀρίστους  
he challenged all the best of the Argives

**20** ἀντίβιον μαχέσασθαι ἐν αἰνῇ δηϊοτῆτι.  
to fight him man to man in the dread strife of war.

**21** τὸν δʼ ὡς οὖν ἐνόησεν ἀρηΐφιλος Μενέλαος  
But when Menelaus, dear to Ares, marked him
> "Dear to Ares": ἀρηΐφιλος, "dear to Ares," is a standing epithet for Menelaus, distinct from βοὴν ἀγαθὸς Μενέλαος, "Menelaus, good at the war-cry" (locked in Book 2) — two genuine Homeric epithets for the same hero, each held to its own fixed wording.

**22** ἐρχόμενον προπάροιθεν ὁμίλου μακρὰ βιβάντα,  
coming out before the throng with long strides,

**23** ὥς τε λέων ἐχάρη μεγάλῳ ἐπὶ σώματι κύρσας  
As a lion rejoices when it comes upon a great carcass,

**24** εὑρὼν ἢ ἔλαφον κεραὸν ἢ ἄγριον αἶγα  
finding either a horned stag or a wild goat,

**25** πεινάων· μάλα γάρ τε κατεσθίει, εἴ περ ἂν αὐτὸν  
being hungry; for it devours it greedily, even if

**26** σεύωνται ταχέες τε κύνες θαλεροί τʼ αἰζηοί·  
swift dogs and vigorous young men set upon it;

**27** ὣς ἐχάρη Μενέλαος Ἀλέξανδρον θεοειδέα  
so Menelaus rejoiced when his eyes fell upon

**28** ὀφθαλμοῖσιν ἰδών· φάτο γὰρ τίσεσθαι ἀλείτην·  
godlike Paris; for he thought to punish the transgressor;

**29** αὐτίκα δʼ ἐξ ὀχέων σὺν τεύχεσιν ἆλτο χαμᾶζε.  
and at once he leapt to the ground from his chariot in his armor.

**30** τὸν δʼ ὡς οὖν ἐνόησεν Ἀλέξανδρος θεοειδὴς  
But when godlike Paris marked him

**31** ἐν προμάχοισι φανέντα, κατεπλήγη φίλον ἦτορ,  
appearing among the champions, his heart was struck with terror,

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

**33** ὡς δʼ ὅτε τίς τε δράκοντα ἰδὼν παλίνορσος ἀπέστη  
And as one who has seen a serpent starts back
> The serpent simile: A second simile marks Paris's retreat, mirroring his opponent's lion simile above in structure but not in courage — a man recoiling from a snake in a mountain glen, trembling and pale, rather than a hunter rejoicing over prey.

**34** οὔρεος ἐν βήσσῃς, ὑπό τε τρόμος ἔλλαβε γυῖα,  
in a mountain glen, and trembling seizes his limbs,

**35** ἂψ δʼ ἀνεχώρησεν, ὦχρός τέ μιν εἷλε παρειάς,  
and he retreats again, and paleness takes hold of his cheeks,

**36** ὣς αὖτις καθʼ ὅμιλον ἔδυ Τρώων ἀγερώχων  
so back into the throng of the lordly Trojans

**37** δείσας Ἀτρέος υἱὸν Ἀλέξανδρος θεοειδής.  
godlike Paris shrank, in fear of the son of Atreus.

**38** τὸν δʼ Ἕκτωρ νείκεσσεν ἰδὼν αἰσχροῖς ἐπέεσσιν·  
Then Hector saw him, and rebuked him with shameful words:

**39** Δύσπαρι εἶδος ἄριστε γυναιμανὲς ἠπεροπευτὰ  
"Evil Paris, best in looks, woman-mad, deceiver,
> "Evil Paris" — a coined insult, not a standing epithet: Δύσπαρι fuses the pejorative prefix δυσ- ("bad, ill-starred") directly onto Paris's name, a one-off coinage that exists only in Hector's mouth here and does not recur as a standing formula elsewhere in the poem.

**40** αἴθʼ ὄφελες ἄγονός τʼ ἔμεναι ἄγαμός τʼ ἀπολέσθαι·  
would that you had never been born, or had died unwed;
> Wish contrary to fact: αἴθε with ὄφελες and an infinitive is the regular Greek idiom for an unfulfillable wish about the past — "would that," with the sense that the wished-for thing did not happen and cannot now be undone.

**41** καί κε τὸ βουλοίμην, καί κεν πολὺ κέρδιον ἦεν  
that indeed I would wish, and it would have been far better,

**42** ἢ οὕτω λώβην τʼ ἔμεναι καὶ ὑπόψιον ἄλλων.  
than to be thus a disgrace and a thing others look at askance.

**43** ἦ που καγχαλόωσι κάρη κομόωντες Ἀχαιοὶ  
Surely the long-haired Achaeans laugh aloud,

**44** φάντες ἀριστῆα πρόμον ἔμμεναι, οὕνεκα καλὸν  
thinking you the best man among our champions, because your form

**45** εἶδος ἔπʼ, ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἔστι βίη φρεσὶν οὐδέ τις ἀλκή.  
is fair, but there is no strength in your heart, nor any courage.

**46** ἦ τοιόσδε ἐὼν ἐν ποντοπόροισι νέεσσι  
Was it being such a man that, in your sea-faring ships,

**47** πόντον ἐπιπλώσας, ἑτάρους ἐρίηρας ἀγείρας,  
you sailed the sea, gathering trusted comrades,

**48** μιχθεὶς ἀλλοδαποῖσι γυναῖκʼ εὐειδέʼ ἀνῆγες  
and mingling with men of a foreign land, carried off a fair woman

**49** ἐξ ἀπίης γαίης νυὸν ἀνδρῶν αἰχμητάων  
from a distant land, the bride of spear-wielding men,

**50** πατρί τε σῷ μέγα πῆμα πόληΐ τε παντί τε δήμῳ,  
a great sorrow to your father, and to your city, and to all your people,

**51** δυσμενέσιν μὲν χάρμα, κατηφείην δὲ σοὶ αὐτῷ;  
a joy to your enemies, but shame to yourself?

**52** οὐκ ἂν δὴ μείνειας ἀρηΐφιλον Μενέλαον;  
Will you then not stand and face Menelaus, dear to Ares?

**53** γνοίης χʼ οἵου φωτὸς ἔχεις θαλερὴν παράκοιτιν·  
You would learn what manner of man's blooming wife you hold;

**54** οὐκ ἄν τοι χραίσμῃ κίθαρις τά τε δῶρʼ Ἀφροδίτης  
your lyre would not help you then, nor the gifts of Aphrodite,

**55** ἥ τε κόμη τό τε εἶδος ὅτʼ ἐν κονίῃσι μιγείης.  
nor your hair, nor your beauty, once you lay mingled with the dust.

**56** ἀλλὰ μάλα Τρῶες δειδήμονες· ἦ τέ κεν ἤδη  
But the Trojans are altogether too fearful; surely by now

**57** λάϊνον ἕσσο χιτῶνα κακῶν ἕνεχʼ ὅσσα ἔοργας.  
you would have worn a tunic of stone for the wrongs you have done."

**58** τὸν δʼ αὖτε προσέειπεν Ἀλέξανδρος θεοειδής·  
Then godlike Paris answered him:

**59** Ἕκτορ ἐπεί με κατʼ αἶσαν ἐνείκεσας οὐδʼ ὑπὲρ αἶσαν·  
"Hector, since you have rebuked me justly, and not beyond what is just —

**60** αἰεί τοι κραδίη πέλεκυς ὥς ἐστιν ἀτειρὴς  
always your heart is like an axe, unwearied,
> The axe simile: Paris answers Hector's fury not with denial but with a striking image of praise: Hector's resolve is like a shipwright's axe, driven by a craftsman's hand straight through the timber — an unexpected note of admiration inside a speech of self-defense.

**61** ὅς τʼ εἶσιν διὰ δουρὸς ὑπʼ ἀνέρος ὅς ῥά τε τέχνῃ  
that goes through a timber in a man's hands, who by his craft

**62** νήϊον ἐκτάμνῃσιν, ὀφέλλει δʼ ἀνδρὸς ἐρωήν·  
hews out a ship's beam, and adds force to the man's stroke;

**63** ὣς σοὶ ἐνὶ στήθεσσιν ἀτάρβητος νόος ἐστί·  
so within your breast your mind is undaunted.

**64** μή μοι δῶρʼ ἐρατὰ πρόφερε χρυσέης Ἀφροδίτης·  
Do not throw in my face the lovely gifts of golden Aphrodite;

**65** οὔ τοι ἀπόβλητʼ ἐστὶ θεῶν ἐρικυδέα δῶρα  
not to be cast away are the glorious gifts of the gods,

**66** ὅσσά κεν αὐτοὶ δῶσιν, ἑκὼν δʼ οὐκ ἄν τις ἕλοιτο·  
whatever they themselves give, and no man could take them by choosing.

**67** νῦν αὖτʼ εἴ μʼ ἐθέλεις πολεμίζειν ἠδὲ μάχεσθαι,  
But now, if you wish me to war and to fight,

**68** ἄλλους μὲν κάθισον Τρῶας καὶ πάντας Ἀχαιούς,  
seat the other Trojans and all the Achaeans down,

**69** αὐτὰρ ἔμʼ ἐν μέσσῳ καὶ ἀρηΐφιλον Μενέλαον  
and set me in the middle, and Menelaus, dear to Ares,

**70** συμβάλετʼ ἀμφʼ Ἑλένῃ καὶ κτήμασι πᾶσι μάχεσθαι·  
to fight for Helen and all her possessions;

**71** ὁππότερος δέ κε νικήσῃ κρείσσων τε γένηται,  
and whichever of us wins and proves the stronger,
> General subjunctive with κε: ὁππότερος ... κε νικήσῃ, "whichever of us wins," uses the aorist subjunctive with κε for an indefinite future condition — a generalizing "whichever/whenever" clause whose outcome is not yet known, the standard Greek construction for stating the terms of a contest in advance.

**72** κτήμαθʼ ἑλὼν εὖ πάντα γυναῖκά τε οἴκαδʼ ἀγέσθω·  
let him take all the goods fairly and lead the woman home;

**73** οἳ δʼ ἄλλοι φιλότητα καὶ ὅρκια πιστὰ ταμόντες  
and let the rest, cutting friendship and trusted oaths,
> "Trusted oaths" — first partial appearance: ὅρκια πιστά, "trusted oaths," is a recurring Homeric bigram for a solemn, binding treaty-oath (it recurs at 3.245 and again in Book 4, where the treaty is broken). The full phrase recurs at line 94, where Menelaus echoes Paris's proposal (τάμωμεν, "let us cut," replacing the participle ταμόντες); only lines 105 and 107 use the bare form ὅρκια, rendered "the oaths." The phrase is held as "trusted oaths" wherever it occurs, though it is not yet formally locked until its fuller appearances later in Book 3.

**74** ναίοιτε Τροίην ἐριβώλακα, τοὶ δὲ νεέσθων  
dwell, you Trojans, in deep-soiled Troy, and let the others go home
> Optative of wish: ναίοιτε is a present optative, the mood Greek uses for a wish or a hoped-for future state rather than a plain command — Paris is proposing terms, not ordering them.

**75** Ἄργος ἐς ἱππόβοτον καὶ Ἀχαιΐδα καλλιγύναικα.  
to horse-pasturing Argos, and Achaea, land of fair women."
> Two new standing epithets: ἱππόβοτον, "horse-pasturing" (of Argos), and καλλιγύναικα, "of fair women" (of Achaea), are both fixed epithets for these home regions of the Achaean forces, distinct in kind from the martial epithets used for the armies themselves.

**76** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, Ἕκτωρ δʼ αὖτʼ ἐχάρη μέγα μῦθον ἀκούσας,  
So he spoke, and Hector rejoiced greatly, hearing his words,

**77** καί ῥʼ ἐς μέσσον ἰὼν Τρώων ἀνέεργε φάλαγγας  
and going into the middle he held back the ranks of the Trojans,

**78** μέσσου δουρὸς ἑλών· τοὶ δʼ ἱδρύνθησαν ἅπαντες.  
taking hold of his spear at the middle; and they all sat down.

**79** τῷ δʼ ἐπετοξάζοντο κάρη κομόωντες Ἀχαιοὶ  
But the long-haired Achaeans aimed their bows at him,

**80** ἰοῖσίν τε τιτυσκόμενοι λάεσσί τʼ ἔβαλλον·  
taking aim with arrows, and cast stones at him too;

**81** αὐτὰρ ὃ μακρὸν ἄϋσεν ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων·  
but Agamemnon, lord of men, cried out loudly:

**82** ἴσχεσθʼ Ἀργεῖοι, μὴ βάλλετε κοῦροι Ἀχαιῶν·  
"Hold, Argives; do not shoot, you sons of the Achaeans;

**83** στεῦται γάρ τι ἔπος ἐρέειν κορυθαίολος Ἕκτωρ.  
for Hector of the flashing helm intends to speak a word."

**84** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἳ δʼ ἔσχοντο μάχης ἄνεῴ τʼ ἐγένοντο  
So he spoke, and they held back from battle and fell silent

**85** ἐσσυμένως· Ἕκτωρ δὲ μετʼ ἀμφοτέροισιν ἔειπε·  
at once; and Hector spoke among both armies:

**86** κέκλυτέ μευ Τρῶες καὶ ἐϋκνήμιδες Ἀχαιοὶ  
"Hear me, you Trojans and well-greaved Achaeans,

**87** μῦθον Ἀλεξάνδροιο, τοῦ εἵνεκα νεῖκος ὄρωρεν.  
the word of Paris, for whose sake this quarrel has arisen.

**88** ἄλλους μὲν κέλεται Τρῶας καὶ πάντας Ἀχαιοὺς  
He bids the other Trojans and all the Achaeans

**89** τεύχεα κάλʼ ἀποθέσθαι ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ,  
lay their fine armor down upon the all-nurturing earth,
> "All-nurturing" earth: πουλυβότειρα, "much-nourishing" or "all-nurturing," is a standing Homeric epithet for the earth as the mother and sustainer of all living things — a fixed formula distinct from any single-scene description of the ground.

**90** αὐτὸν δʼ ἐν μέσσῳ καὶ ἀρηΐφιλον Μενέλαον  
while he himself, in the middle, and Menelaus, dear to Ares,

**91** οἴους ἀμφʼ Ἑλένῃ καὶ κτήμασι πᾶσι μάχεσθαι.  
fight alone for Helen and all her possessions.

**92** ὁππότερος δέ κε νικήσῃ κρείσσων τε γένηται  
And whichever of them wins and proves the stronger,

**93** κτήμαθʼ ἑλὼν εὖ πάντα γυναῖκά τε οἴκαδʼ ἀγέσθω·  
let him take all the goods fairly and lead the woman home;

**94** οἳ δʼ ἄλλοι φιλότητα καὶ ὅρκια πιστὰ τάμωμεν.  
and let the rest of us cut friendship and trusted oaths."

**95** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἳ δʼ ἄρα πάντες ἀκὴν ἐγένοντο σιωπῇ·  
So he spoke, and they all fell hushed in silence;

**96** τοῖσι δὲ καὶ μετέειπε βοὴν ἀγαθὸς Μενέλαος·  
and among them Menelaus, good at the war-cry, spoke in turn:

**97** κέκλυτε νῦν καὶ ἐμεῖο· μάλιστα γὰρ ἄλγος ἱκάνει  
"Hear now from me as well; for grief comes most of all

**98** θυμὸν ἐμόν, φρονέω δὲ διακρινθήμεναι ἤδη  
upon my heart, and I think it is time at last that

**99** Ἀργείους καὶ Τρῶας, ἐπεὶ κακὰ πολλὰ πέπασθε  
Argives and Trojans should be parted, since you have suffered many evils

**100** εἵνεκʼ ἐμῆς ἔριδος καὶ Ἀλεξάνδρου ἕνεκʼ ἀρχῆς·  
on account of my quarrel and the wrong Paris began;

**101** ἡμέων δʼ ὁπποτέρῳ θάνατος καὶ μοῖρα τέτυκται  
and for whichever of us death and fate are appointed,

**102** τεθναίη· ἄλλοι δὲ διακρινθεῖτε τάχιστα.  
let him die; and let the rest of you part most quickly.

**103** οἴσετε ἄρνʼ, ἕτερον λευκόν, ἑτέρην δὲ μέλαιναν,  
Bring two lambs, one white, one black,

**104** Γῇ τε καὶ Ἠελίῳ· Διὶ δʼ ἡμεῖς οἴσομεν ἄλλον·  
for Earth and the Sun; and we ourselves will bring another for Zeus.

**105** ἄξετε δὲ Πριάμοιο βίην, ὄφρʼ ὅρκια τάμνῃ  
And bring the mighty Priam himself, that he may cut the oaths

**106** αὐτός, ἐπεί οἱ παῖδες ὑπερφίαλοι καὶ ἄπιστοι,  
in person, since his sons are overweening and untrustworthy,

**107** μή τις ὑπερβασίῃ Διὸς ὅρκια δηλήσηται.  
lest someone by transgression violate the oaths of Zeus.

**108** αἰεὶ δʼ ὁπλοτέρων ἀνδρῶν φρένες ἠερέθονται·  
The minds of younger men are always fickle as air;

**109** οἷς δʼ ὁ γέρων μετέῃσιν ἅμα πρόσσω καὶ ὀπίσσω  
but where an old man is present, he looks at once before and after,

**110** λεύσσει, ὅπως ὄχʼ ἄριστα μετʼ ἀμφοτέροισι γένηται.  
so that what comes about is by far the best for both sides.

**111** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἳ δʼ ἐχάρησαν Ἀχαιοί τε Τρῶές τε  
So he spoke, and both Achaeans and Trojans rejoiced,

**112** ἐλπόμενοι παύσασθαι ὀϊζυροῦ πολέμοιο.  
hoping to have rest at last from wretched war.

**113** καί ῥʼ ἵππους μὲν ἔρυξαν ἐπὶ στίχας, ἐκ δʼ ἔβαν αὐτοί,  
And they reined in their horses along the ranks, and got down themselves,

**114** τεύχεά τʼ ἐξεδύοντο· τὰ μὲν κατέθεντʼ ἐπὶ γαίῃ  
and stripped off their armor; and they laid it upon the ground

**115** πλησίον ἀλλήλων, ὀλίγη δʼ ἦν ἀμφὶς ἄρουρα·  
close to one another, and little ground lay between.

**116** Ἕκτωρ δὲ προτὶ ἄστυ δύω κήρυκας ἔπεμπε  
And Hector sent two heralds to the city

**117** καρπαλίμως ἄρνάς τε φέρειν Πρίαμόν τε καλέσσαι·  
with speed, to fetch the lambs and to summon Priam;

**118** αὐτὰρ ὃ Ταλθύβιον προΐει κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων  
while the lord Agamemnon sent Talthybius

**119** νῆας ἔπι γλαφυρὰς ἰέναι, ἠδʼ ἄρνʼ ἐκέλευεν  
to go to the hollow ships, and bade him bring a lamb;

**120** οἰσέμεναι· ὃ δʼ ἄρʼ οὐκ ἀπίθησʼ Ἀγαμέμνονι δίῳ.  
and he did not disobey godlike Agamemnon.
> δῖος for Agamemnon: Here δῖος, "godlike," is the familiar epithet already locked for other heroes (swift-footed godlike Achilles); applied to Agamemnon it is the same Greek word and the same English rendering as elsewhere, kept distinct from θεοειδής, Paris's own separate "godlike" epithet noted above at line 16.

**121** Ἶρις δʼ αὖθʼ Ἑλένῃ λευκωλένῳ ἄγγελος ἦλθεν  
But Iris came again as a messenger to white-armed Helen,

**122** εἰδομένη γαλόῳ Ἀντηνορίδαο δάμαρτι,  
in the likeness of her sister-in-law, wife to the son of Antenor,

**123** τὴν Ἀντηνορίδης εἶχε κρείων Ἑλικάων  
whom Antenor's son, lord Helicaon, had taken to wife,
> Bare κρείων, a generic honorific: κρείων here is the plain adjective "mighty, lordly," attached to Helicaon, a minor figure — not the fixed formula εὐρὺ κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων or κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων already locked for Agamemnon. The same word serves as an ordinary honorific for any man of rank.

**124** Λαοδίκην Πριάμοιο θυγατρῶν εἶδος ἀρίστην.  
Laodice, most beautiful in form of Priam's daughters.

**125** τὴν δʼ εὗρʼ ἐν μεγάρῳ· ἣ δὲ μέγαν ἱστὸν ὕφαινε  
She found her in the hall; and Helen was weaving a great web,

**126** δίπλακα πορφυρέην, πολέας δʼ ἐνέπασσεν ἀέθλους  
a double cloak of purple, and into it she wove many struggles

**127** Τρώων θʼ ἱπποδάμων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν χαλκοχιτώνων,  
of the horse-taming Trojans and the bronze-clad Achaeans,
> "Horse-taming" Trojans: ἱπποδάμων, "horse-taming," is a standing epithet for the Trojans, paired here with the already-locked χαλκοχιτώνων "bronze-clad" for the Achaeans — Homer names each side by the gear or skill that defines it.

**128** οὕς ἑθεν εἵνεκʼ ἔπασχον ὑπʼ Ἄρηος παλαμάων·  
which for her sake they had endured at the hands of Ares.

**129** ἀγχοῦ δʼ ἱσταμένη προσέφη πόδας ὠκέα Ἶρις·  
Standing close by, swift-footed Iris spoke to her:
> Verbatim formula, deictic shift: This exact half-line already appears at Book 2, line 790 ("Standing close by, swift-footed Iris spoke to them"), there addressing the assembled Trojan elders. The Greek is textually identical here, but the addressee has changed from a group to Helen alone; the formula's implicit object is not part of the Greek line itself, so "to her" replaces "to them" while every other word of the rendering is held fixed.

**130** δεῦρʼ ἴθι νύμφα φίλη, ἵνα θέσκελα ἔργα ἴδηαι  
"Come here, dear bride, that you may see the wondrous deeds

**131** Τρώων θʼ ἱπποδάμων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν χαλκοχιτώνων,  
of the horse-taming Trojans and the bronze-clad Achaeans,

**132** οἳ πρὶν ἐπʼ ἀλλήλοισι φέρον πολύδακρυν Ἄρηα  
who before were bringing tearful war upon each other

**133** ἐν πεδίῳ ὀλοοῖο λιλαιόμενοι πολέμοιο·  
in the plain, longing for deadly battle;

**134** οἳ δὴ νῦν ἕαται σιγῇ, πόλεμος δὲ πέπαυται,  
but now they sit in silence, and the war has ceased,

**135** ἀσπίσι κεκλιμένοι, παρὰ δʼ ἔγχεα μακρὰ πέπηγεν.  
leaning on their shields, their long spears planted beside them.

**136** αὐτὰρ Ἀλέξανδρος καὶ ἀρηΐφιλος Μενέλαος  
But Paris and Menelaus, dear to Ares,
> "Dear to Ares" — a new Menelaus epithet: ἀρηΐφιλος, "dear to Ares," is a distinct standing epithet for Menelaus from βοὴν ἀγαθὸς Μενέλαος, "good at the war-cry," already locked in Book 2 — each held to its own fixed wording.

**137** μακρῇς ἐγχείῃσι μαχήσονται περὶ σεῖο·  
will fight with long spears for your sake;

**138** τῷ δέ κε νικήσαντι φίλη κεκλήσῃ ἄκοιτις.  
and to the victor you will be called dear wife."

**139** ὣς εἰποῦσα θεὰ γλυκὺν ἵμερον ἔμβαλε θυμῷ  
So speaking, the goddess cast into her heart sweet longing

**140** ἀνδρός τε προτέρου καὶ ἄστεος ἠδὲ τοκήων·  
for her former husband, and her city, and her parents;

**141** αὐτίκα δʼ ἀργεννῇσι καλυψαμένη ὀθόνῃσιν  
and at once, veiling herself in shining linen,

**142** ὁρμᾶτʼ ἐκ θαλάμοιο τέρεν κατὰ δάκρυ χέουσα  
she hastened from her chamber, shedding a soft tear,

**143** οὐκ οἴη, ἅμα τῇ γε καὶ ἀμφίπολοι δύʼ ἕποντο,  
not alone, for with her two handmaids followed,

**144** Αἴθρη Πιτθῆος θυγάτηρ, Κλυμένη τε βοῶπις·  
Aethra, daughter of Pittheus, and ox-eyed Clymene;

**145** αἶψα δʼ ἔπειθʼ ἵκανον ὅθι Σκαιαὶ πύλαι ἦσαν.  
and quickly then they came to where the Scaean gates stood.

**146** οἳ δʼ ἀμφὶ Πρίαμον καὶ Πάνθοον ἠδὲ Θυμοίτην  
There, around Priam and Panthous and Thymoetes

**147** Λάμπόν τε Κλυτίον θʼ Ἱκετάονά τʼ ὄζον Ἄρηος  
and Lampus and Clytius and Hicetaon, scion of Ares,
> "Scion of Ares" — reused formula: ὄζος Ἄρηος, literally "branch/shoot of Ares," already locked as "scion of Ares" for Pylaeus in Book 2; the same fixed wording is reused here for Hicetaon, a different man honored with the identical martial-lineage formula.

**148** Οὐκαλέγων τε καὶ Ἀντήνωρ πεπνυμένω ἄμφω  
and Ucalegon and wise Antenor, both of them,
> Dual number, paired epithet: πεπνυμένω is dual, marking Ucalegon and Antenor as a matched pair of "wise" elders — the same rendering "wise" already holds for πεπνυμένος across this translation's sibling Odyssey drafts (e.g. "wise Telemachus"), carried forward here for consistency across both poems.

**149** ἥατο δημογέροντες ἐπὶ Σκαιῇσι πύλῃσι,  
the elders of the people sat at the Scaean gates,

**150** γήραϊ δὴ πολέμοιο πεπαυμένοι, ἀλλʼ ἀγορηταὶ  
too old now for war, but speakers still

**151** ἐσθλοί, τεττίγεσσιν ἐοικότες οἵ τε καθʼ ὕλην  
noble, like cicadas that in the forest

**152** δενδρέῳ ἐφεζόμενοι ὄπα λειριόεσσαν ἱεῖσι·  
perch upon a tree and send forth a lily-soft voice;

**153** τοῖοι ἄρα Τρώων ἡγήτορες ἧντʼ ἐπὶ πύργῳ.  
such were the leaders of the Trojans, sitting on the tower.

**154** οἳ δʼ ὡς οὖν εἴδονθʼ Ἑλένην ἐπὶ πύργον ἰοῦσαν,  
And when they saw Helen coming to the tower,

**155** ἦκα πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἔπεα πτερόεντʼ ἀγόρευον·  
quietly to one another they spoke winged words:
> "Winged words" — reused formula: ἔπεα πτερόεντα, Homer's standing speech-formula, already locked as "winged words" in Book 2; held to the same fixed phrase here even though the surrounding verb (ἀγόρευον, "they spoke," rather than προσηύδα) differs.

**156** οὐ νέμεσις Τρῶας καὶ ἐϋκνήμιδας Ἀχαιοὺς  
"It is no cause for anger that Trojans and well-greaved Achaeans

**157** τοιῇδʼ ἀμφὶ γυναικὶ πολὺν χρόνον ἄλγεα πάσχειν·  
should suffer long affliction for such a woman;

**158** αἰνῶς ἀθανάτῃσι θεῇς εἰς ὦπα ἔοικεν·  
terribly she resembles the immortal goddesses to look upon;

**159** ἀλλὰ καὶ ὧς τοίη περ ἐοῦσʼ ἐν νηυσὶ νεέσθω,  
but even so, lovely as she is, let her go home in the ships,

**160** μηδʼ ἡμῖν τεκέεσσί τʼ ὀπίσσω πῆμα λίποιτο.  
and not be left behind as a curse to us and to our children."

**161** ὣς ἄρʼ ἔφαν, Πρίαμος δʼ Ἑλένην ἐκαλέσσατο φωνῇ·  
So they spoke, and Priam called out to Helen:

**162** δεῦρο πάροιθʼ ἐλθοῦσα φίλον τέκος ἵζευ ἐμεῖο,  
"Come here in front of me, dear child, and sit beside me,

**163** ὄφρα ἴδῃ πρότερόν τε πόσιν πηούς τε φίλους τε·  
that you may see your former husband, your kinsmen, and your friends;

**164** οὔ τί μοι αἰτίη ἐσσί, θεοί νύ μοι αἴτιοί εἰσιν  
you are no cause of blame to me; the gods, I think, are to blame,
> A wordplay on blame: Priam pairs αἰτίη ("cause of blame," applied to Helen) with αἴτιοι ("responsible," applied to the gods) — the same root used to acquit one party and indict another in a single breath, absolving Helen by name before the Achaeans below even arrive at the wall.

**165** οἵ μοι ἐφώρμησαν πόλεμον πολύδακρυν Ἀχαιῶν·  
who roused against me this tearful war of the Achaeans;

**166** ὥς μοι καὶ τόνδʼ ἄνδρα πελώριον ἐξονομήνῃς  
so that you may also name for me this huge man,

**167** ὅς τις ὅδʼ ἐστὶν Ἀχαιὸς ἀνὴρ ἠΰς τε μέγας τε.  
who this Achaean is, so noble and so great.

**168** ἤτοι μὲν κεφαλῇ καὶ μείζονες ἄλλοι ἔασι,  
There are others, indeed, taller by a head,

**169** καλὸν δʼ οὕτω ἐγὼν οὔ πω ἴδον ὀφθαλμοῖσιν,  
but a man so handsome I have never yet seen with my eyes,

**170** οὐδʼ οὕτω γεραρόν· βασιλῆϊ γὰρ ἀνδρὶ ἔοικε.  
nor so majestic; he resembles a kingly man."

**171** τὸν δʼ Ἑλένη μύθοισιν ἀμείβετο δῖα γυναικῶν·  
Then Helen, the shining one among women, answered him in speech:

**172** αἰδοῖός τέ μοί ἐσσι φίλε ἑκυρὲ δεινός τε·  
"You are to me an object of reverence, dear father-in-law, and of awe;

**173** ὡς ὄφελεν θάνατός μοι ἁδεῖν κακὸς ὁππότε δεῦρο  
would that evil death had pleased me, when hither

**174** υἱέϊ σῷ ἑπόμην θάλαμον γνωτούς τε λιποῦσα  
I followed your son, forsaking my bridal chamber and my kin,

**175** παῖδά τε τηλυγέτην καὶ ὁμηλικίην ἐρατεινήν.  
my darling child, and the lovely companions of my girlhood.

**176** ἀλλὰ τά γʼ οὐκ ἐγένοντο· τὸ καὶ κλαίουσα τέτηκα.  
But that did not happen; and so I waste away in tears.

**177** τοῦτο δέ τοι ἐρέω ὅ μʼ ἀνείρεαι ἠδὲ μεταλλᾷς·  
But this I will tell you, what you ask and inquire of me:

**178** οὗτός γʼ Ἀτρεΐδης εὐρὺ κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων,  
this is the son of Atreus, the wide-ruling lord Agamemnon,
> Three distinct Agamemnon formulas: εὐρὺ κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων is held to "the wide-ruling lord Agamemnon," kept distinct from bare κρείων Ἀγαμέμνων ("the lord Agamemnon") and from ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων ("Agamemnon, lord of men") — three separate Greek phrases, three fixed English renderings, per the locked table.

**179** ἀμφότερον βασιλεύς τʼ ἀγαθὸς κρατερός τʼ αἰχμητής·  
both a good king and a mighty spearman;

**180** δαὴρ αὖτʼ ἐμὸς ἔσκε κυνώπιδος, εἴ ποτʼ ἔην γε.  
and he was my husband's brother — mine, shameless creature that I am, if I ever indeed was.
> "Dog-faced" — Helen's self-blame: κυνώπιδος, literally "dog-eyed/dog-faced," is a harsh term of shamelessness that Helen turns on herself even as she names her kinship to Agamemnon. Homer does not soften it, and this translation keeps its bluntness rather than smoothing it into a milder word.

**181** ὣς φάτο, τὸν δʼ ὁ γέρων ἠγάσσατο φώνησέν τε·  
So she spoke, and the old man marveled at him, and said:

**182** ὦ μάκαρ Ἀτρεΐδη μοιρηγενὲς ὀλβιόδαιμον,  
"O blessed son of Atreus, child of fate, favored of fortune,
> Compound fortune-epithets: μοιρηγενής ("born to a fated share") and ὀλβιόδαιμον ("blessed in one's guardian spirit") are rare compound epithets, both built from words for fate and divine favor — Priam marvels at Agamemnon's sheer scale of command as a mark of extraordinary luck.

**183** ἦ ῥά νύ τοι πολλοὶ δεδμήατο κοῦροι Ἀχαιῶν.  
truly many sons of the Achaeans are subject to you.

**184** ἤδη καὶ Φρυγίην εἰσήλυθον ἀμπελόεσσαν,  
I have gone, too, into Phrygia rich in vines,

**185** ἔνθα ἴδον πλείστους Φρύγας ἀνέρας αἰολοπώλους  
where I saw the Phrygian men, most numerous, with their swift horses,

**186** λαοὺς Ὀτρῆος καὶ Μυγδόνος ἀντιθέοιο,  
the people of Otreus and godlike Mygdon,

**187** οἵ ῥα τότʼ ἐστρατόωντο παρʼ ὄχθας Σαγγαρίοιο·  
who then were encamped along the banks of the Sangarius;

**188** καὶ γὰρ ἐγὼν ἐπίκουρος ἐὼν μετὰ τοῖσιν ἐλέχθην  
for I too was numbered among them as an ally

**189** ἤματι τῷ ὅτε τʼ ἦλθον Ἀμαζόνες ἀντιάνειραι·  
on the day when the Amazons, peers of men, came against them;

**190** ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ οἳ τόσοι ἦσαν ὅσοι ἑλίκωπες Ἀχαιοί.  
but not even they were so many as the bright-eyed Achaeans.

**191** δεύτερον αὖτʼ Ὀδυσῆα ἰδὼν ἐρέεινʼ ὁ γεραιός·  
Then the old man, seeing Odysseus, asked in turn:

**192** εἴπʼ ἄγε μοι καὶ τόνδε φίλον τέκος ὅς τις ὅδʼ ἐστί·  
"Come, tell me also of this man, dear child, who he is;

**193** μείων μὲν κεφαλῇ Ἀγαμέμνονος Ἀτρεΐδαο,  
shorter by a head than Agamemnon, son of Atreus,

**194** εὐρύτερος δʼ ὤμοισιν ἰδὲ στέρνοισιν ἰδέσθαι.  
but broader to look upon in shoulders and chest.

**195** τεύχεα μέν οἱ κεῖται ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ,  
His armor lies upon the all-nurturing earth,

**196** αὐτὸς δὲ κτίλος ὣς ἐπιπωλεῖται στίχας ἀνδρῶν·  
but he himself, like a bellwether, ranges through the ranks of men;

**197** ἀρνειῷ μιν ἔγωγε ἐΐσκω πηγεσιμάλλῳ,  
I liken him to a thick-fleeced ram,

**198** ὅς τʼ οἰῶν μέγα πῶϋ διέρχεται ἀργεννάων.  
that passes through a great flock of white sheep."

**199** τὸν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειθʼ Ἑλένη Διὸς ἐκγεγαυῖα·  
Then Helen, born of Zeus, answered him:
> "Born of Zeus" — distinct from διογενής: Διὸς ἐκγεγαυῖα, "having been born of Zeus," names Helen's own divine parentage (Zeus fathered her on Leda) and is kept as its own fixed phrase, "born of Zeus," distinct from the vocative pattern already locked as "[Name], sprung from Zeus" for διογενής/διογενές.

**200** οὗτος δʼ αὖ Λαερτιάδης πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς,  
"This, in turn, is the son of Laertes, Odysseus of many wiles,

**201** ὃς τράφη ἐν δήμῳ Ἰθάκης κραναῆς περ ἐούσης  
who was raised in the land of rugged Ithaca,

**202** εἰδὼς παντοίους τε δόλους καὶ μήδεα πυκνά.  
knowing every manner of guile and shrewd counsel."

**203** τὴν δʼ αὖτʼ Ἀντήνωρ πεπνυμένος ἀντίον ηὔδα·  
Then wise Antenor spoke to her in answer:

**204** ὦ γύναι ἦ μάλα τοῦτο ἔπος νημερτὲς ἔειπες·  
"Woman, this word you have spoken is very true;

**205** ἤδη γὰρ καὶ δεῦρό ποτʼ ἤλυθε δῖος Ὀδυσσεὺς  
for once godlike Odysseus came here also,

**206** σεῦ ἕνεκʼ ἀγγελίης σὺν ἀρηϊφίλῳ Μενελάῳ·  
on an embassy for your sake, with Menelaus, dear to Ares;

**207** τοὺς δʼ ἐγὼ ἐξείνισσα καὶ ἐν μεγάροισι φίλησα,  
and I received them as guests and welcomed them in my halls,

**208** ἀμφοτέρων δὲ φυὴν ἐδάην καὶ μήδεα πυκνά.  
and learned the bearing and the shrewd counsel of them both.

**209** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ Τρώεσσιν ἐν ἀγρομένοισιν ἔμιχθεν  
But when they mingled with the assembled Trojans,

**210** στάντων μὲν Μενέλαος ὑπείρεχεν εὐρέας ὤμους,  
standing, Menelaus overtopped him with his broad shoulders;

**211** ἄμφω δʼ ἑζομένω γεραρώτερος ἦεν Ὀδυσσεύς·  
but when both were seated, Odysseus was the more stately.

**212** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ μύθους καὶ μήδεα πᾶσιν ὕφαινον  
But when they wove their words and counsels before all,

**213** ἤτοι μὲν Μενέλαος ἐπιτροχάδην ἀγόρευε,  
Menelaus indeed spoke fluently,

**214** παῦρα μὲν ἀλλὰ μάλα λιγέως, ἐπεὶ οὐ πολύμυθος  
few words, but very clear, since he was not a man of many words

**215** οὐδʼ ἀφαμαρτοεπής· ἦ καὶ γένει ὕστερος ἦεν.  
nor one who missed his mark in speaking, though younger in years.

**216** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ πολύμητις ἀναΐξειεν Ὀδυσσεὺς  
But when Odysseus of many wiles sprang up to speak,

**217** στάσκεν, ὑπαὶ δὲ ἴδεσκε κατὰ χθονὸς ὄμματα πήξας,  
he would stand still, and look down, fixing his eyes upon the ground,
> Iterative -σκε verb forms: στάσκεν and ἴδεσκε carry the old iterative suffix -σκε, marking habitual or repeated action in past time ("he would stand," "he would look," each time he rose to speak) — a distinct Homeric verb formation from the simple past, used here to paint Odysseus's fixed mannerism.

**218** σκῆπτρον δʼ οὔτʼ ὀπίσω οὔτε προπρηνὲς ἐνώμα,  
and neither move his staff backward nor forward,

**219** ἀλλʼ ἀστεμφὲς ἔχεσκεν ἀΐδρεϊ φωτὶ ἐοικώς·  
but hold it rigid, like a man who knew nothing;

**220** φαίης κε ζάκοτόν τέ τινʼ ἔμμεναι ἄφρονά τʼ αὔτως.  
you would say he was some sullen fellow, and nothing but a fool.

**221** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ ὄπα τε μεγάλην ἐκ στήθεος εἵη  
But when he let loose his great voice from his chest,

**222** καὶ ἔπεα νιφάδεσσιν ἐοικότα χειμερίῃσιν,  
and words like the snowflakes of winter,
> The snowflake simile: Odysseus's torrent of words is likened to winter snowflakes — thick, unbroken, overwhelming. It is one of the poem's most quoted images and the source of the enduring figure of "Odyssean eloquence."

**223** οὐκ ἂν ἔπειτʼ Ὀδυσῆΐ γʼ ἐρίσσειε βροτὸς ἄλλος·  
then no other mortal could rival Odysseus;

**224** οὐ τότε γʼ ὧδʼ Ὀδυσῆος ἀγασσάμεθʼ εἶδος ἰδόντες.  
and then we no longer marveled, seeing him, at his mere looks."

**225** τὸ τρίτον αὖτʼ Αἴαντα ἰδὼν ἐρέεινʼ ὃ γεραιός·  
A third time, seeing Ajax, the old man asked:

**226** τίς τὰρ ὅδʼ ἄλλος Ἀχαιὸς ἀνὴρ ἠΰς τε μέγας τε  
"Who, then, is this other Achaean, so noble and so great,

**227** ἔξοχος Ἀργείων κεφαλήν τε καὶ εὐρέας ὤμους;  
towering above the Argives in head and broad shoulders?"

**228** τὸν δʼ Ἑλένη τανύπεπλος ἀμείβετο δῖα γυναικῶν·  
Then Helen of the trailing robe, the shining one among women, answered him:
> "Of the trailing robe" — new Helen epithet: τανύπεπλος, "long-robed," is a new standing epithet for Helen, paired here with the already-locked δῖα γυναικῶν "the shining one among women" — two distinct Greek phrases held to their own fixed wording.

**229** οὗτος δʼ Αἴας ἐστὶ πελώριος ἕρκος Ἀχαιῶν·  
"That is huge Ajax, son of Telamon, bulwark of the Achaeans;
> "Bulwark of the Achaeans": ἕρκος, "fence, defensive wall," makes Ajax himself a living rampart for the army — a new standing epithet, held to this exact wording wherever it recurs. First use of "Ajax, son of Telamon" in this scene, per the disambiguation rule; bare "Ajax" is fine for the rest of the scene.

**230** Ἰδομενεὺς δʼ ἑτέρωθεν ἐνὶ Κρήτεσσι θεὸς ὣς  
and on the other side, among the Cretans, Idomeneus, like a god,

**231** ἕστηκʼ, ἀμφὶ δέ μιν Κρητῶν ἀγοὶ ἠγερέθονται.  
stands, and around him the leaders of the Cretans are gathered.

**232** πολλάκι μιν ξείνισσεν ἀρηΐφιλος Μενέλαος  
Often did Menelaus, dear to Ares, entertain him

**233** οἴκῳ ἐν ἡμετέρῳ ὁπότε Κρήτηθεν ἵκοιτο.  
in our house, whenever he came from Crete.

**234** νῦν δʼ ἄλλους μὲν πάντας ὁρῶ ἑλίκωπας Ἀχαιούς,  
Now all the rest of the bright-eyed Achaeans I see,

**235** οὕς κεν ἐῢ γνοίην καί τʼ οὔνομα μυθησαίμην·  
whom I could well recognize, and name by name;

**236** δοιὼ δʼ οὐ δύναμαι ἰδέειν κοσμήτορε λαῶν  
but two marshals of the people I cannot see,

**237** Κάστορά θʼ ἱππόδαμον καὶ πὺξ ἀγαθὸν Πολυδεύκεα  
Castor, tamer of horses, and Polydeuces, good with his fists,

**238** αὐτοκασιγνήτω, τώ μοι μία γείνατο μήτηρ.  
my own brothers, whom one mother bore with me.

**239** ἢ οὐχ ἑσπέσθην Λακεδαίμονος ἐξ ἐρατεινῆς,  
Either they did not follow from lovely Lacedaemon,

**240** ἢ δεύρω μὲν ἕποντο νέεσσʼ ἔνι ποντοπόροισι,  
or they came here indeed, in the sea-faring ships,

**241** νῦν αὖτʼ οὐκ ἐθέλουσι μάχην καταδύμεναι ἀνδρῶν  
but now are unwilling to enter the battle of men,

**242** αἴσχεα δειδιότες καὶ ὀνείδεα πόλλʼ ἅ μοί ἐστιν.  
fearing the shame and the many reproaches that are mine."

**243** ὣς φάτο, τοὺς δʼ ἤδη κάτεχεν φυσίζοος αἶα  
So she spoke; but already the life-giving earth held them fast,
> "Life-giving earth" — a death euphemism: φυσίζοος αἶα, "the earth that gives growth to life," is an unsettling formula to use for burial — the same soil that bears crops now covers Castor and Polydeuces. Homer's irony sharpens the pathos: Helen does not know they are already dead.

**244** ἐν Λακεδαίμονι αὖθι φίλῃ ἐν πατρίδι γαίῃ.  
there in Lacedaemon, in their own dear native land.

**245** κήρυκες δʼ ἀνὰ ἄστυ θεῶν φέρον ὅρκια πιστὰ  
And the heralds carried through the city the trusted oaths of the gods,
> "Trusted oaths" — locked: ὅρκια πιστά, "trusted oaths," recurs six times across this chunk alone (lines 245, 252, 256, 269, 280, 323) and again in Book 4, where the treaty is broken. First noted as a likely lock at Book 3 c00, line 73 — now formally LOCKED: hold "trusted oaths" for the full phrase everywhere it occurs; the bare ὅρκια ("oaths") without πιστά, as at line 299, is rendered simply "oaths." (Line 279's ἐπίορκον, "perjured," is a related but distinct compound adjective, not the noun ὅρκια itself; line 321 contains no ὅρκια-root word at all.)

**246** ἄρνε δύω καὶ οἶνον ἐΰφρονα καρπὸν ἀρούρης  
two lambs, and heartening wine, the fruit of the field,

**247** ἀσκῷ ἐν αἰγείῳ· φέρε δὲ κρητῆρα φαεινὸν  
in a goatskin; and the herald Idaeus carried the gleaming mixing bowl
> Idaeus, Priam's herald: Idaeus is Priam's own herald, distinct from Talthybius (Agamemnon's herald) and Eurybates (Odysseus's), both already locked. He is not to be confused with Mount Ida, which shares the same root and appears a few lines later in Agamemnon's oath-prayer.

**248** κῆρυξ Ἰδαῖος ἠδὲ χρύσεια κύπελλα·  
and the golden cups;

**249** ὄτρυνεν δὲ γέροντα παριστάμενος ἐπέεσσιν·  
and standing beside the old man he roused him with these words:

**250** ὄρσεο Λαομεδοντιάδη, καλέουσιν ἄριστοι  
"Rise, son of Laomedon; the best men are calling,
> Priam, son of Laomedon: Λαομεδοντιάδη, "son of Laomedon," is a patronymic vocative addressing Priam by his father — Laomedon, the earlier king of Troy who famously cheated both Apollo and Poseidon of their wages for building Troy's walls, is not yet a drafted name-table entry beyond this patronymic.

**251** Τρώων θʼ ἱπποδάμων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν χαλκοχιτώνων  
of the horse-taming Trojans and the bronze-clad Achaeans,
> "Horse-taming Trojans" — confirmed reuse: ἱππόδαμος, "horse-taming," is the standard Homeric standing epithet for the Trojans as a people, distinct from any Achaean epithet; already locked earlier in this book at c01, lines 127 and 131 (the Teichoscopia) — confirmed held to the same wording, "horse-taming Trojans," here and at every recurrence.

**252** ἐς πεδίον καταβῆναι ἵνʼ ὅρκια πιστὰ τάμητε·  
to go down to the plain, that you may cut the trusted oaths;
> "To cut oaths": the treaty idiom: τάμνειν ὅρκια, "to cut oaths," is the fixed Homeric idiom for solemnizing a treaty, taken from the act of cutting the sacrificial victims' throats that seals it. English has no equivalent idiom, so where the Greek verb is present we render it literally ("cut the trusted oaths") to keep the physical image; where only the noun stands without the verb, "trusted oaths" alone carries the sense.

**253** αὐτὰρ Ἀλέξανδρος καὶ ἀρηΐφιλος Μενέλαος  
But Paris and Menelaus, dear to Ares,

**254** μακρῇς ἐγχείῃσι μαχήσοντʼ ἀμφὶ γυναικί·  
will fight with long spears for the sake of the woman;

**255** τῷ δέ κε νικήσαντι γυνὴ καὶ κτήμαθʼ ἕποιτο·  
and to the one who wins, let the woman and her goods follow;

**256** οἳ δʼ ἄλλοι φιλότητα καὶ ὅρκια πιστὰ ταμόντες  
and the rest of us, cutting friendship and trusted oaths,

**257** ναίοιμεν Τροίην ἐριβώλακα, τοὶ δὲ νέονται  
shall dwell in deep-soiled Troy, while they sail home again

**258** Ἄργος ἐς ἱππόβοτον καὶ Ἀχαιΐδα καλλιγύναικα.  
to horse-pasturing Argos, and Achaea, land of fair women."

**259** ὣς φάτο ῥίγησεν δʼ ὃ γέρων, ἐκέλευσε δʼ ἑταίρους  
So he spoke, and the old man shuddered, and bade his companions

**260** ἵππους ζευγνύμεναι· τοὶ δʼ ὀτραλέως ἐπίθοντο.  
yoke the horses; and swiftly they obeyed.

**261** ἂν δʼ ἄρʼ ἔβη Πρίαμος, κατὰ δʼ ἡνία τεῖνεν ὀπίσσω·  
Then Priam mounted, and drew the reins back taut behind him;

**262** πὰρ δέ οἱ Ἀντήνωρ περικαλλέα βήσετο δίφρον·  
and beside him Antenor mounted the splendid chariot;

**263** τὼ δὲ διὰ Σκαιῶν πεδίον δʼ ἔχον ὠκέας ἵππους.  
and the two of them drove the swift horses through the Scaean gates to the plain.

**264** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δή ῥʼ ἵκοντο μετὰ Τρῶας καὶ Ἀχαιούς,  
But when they had come among the Trojans and Achaeans,

**265** ἐξ ἵππων ἀποβάντες ἐπὶ χθόνα πουλυβότειραν  
they stepped down from the chariot onto the all-nurturing earth,

**266** ἐς μέσσον Τρώων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν ἐστιχόωντο.  
and walked forward into the middle ground between Trojans and Achaeans.

**267** ὄρνυτο δʼ αὐτίκʼ ἔπειτα ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων,  
At once then Agamemnon, lord of men, rose up,

**268** ἂν δʼ Ὀδυσεὺς πολύμητις· ἀτὰρ κήρυκες ἀγαυοὶ  
and Odysseus of many wiles rose with him; and the noble heralds

**269** ὅρκια πιστὰ θεῶν σύναγον, κρητῆρι δὲ οἶνον  
gathered together the trusted oaths of the gods, and in the mixing bowl the wine

**270** μίσγον, ἀτὰρ βασιλεῦσιν ὕδωρ ἐπὶ χεῖρας ἔχευαν.  
they mixed, and poured water over the hands of the kings.

**271** Ἀτρεΐδης δὲ ἐρυσσάμενος χείρεσσι μάχαιραν,  
And the son of Atreus, drawing with his hands the knife

**272** ἥ οἱ πὰρ ξίφεος μέγα κουλεόν αἰὲν ἄωρτο,  
that always hung beside the great sheath of his sword,

**273** ἀρνῶν ἐκ κεφαλέων τάμνε τρίχας· αὐτὰρ ἔπειτα  
cut hairs from the heads of the lambs; and then

**274** κήρυκες Τρώων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν νεῖμαν ἀρίστοις.  
the heralds of the Trojans and Achaeans gave it out to the chiefs.

**275** τοῖσιν δʼ Ἀτρεΐδης μεγάλʼ εὔχετο χεῖρας ἀνασχών·  
And among them the son of Atreus, lifting up his hands, prayed aloud:

**276** Ζεῦ πάτερ Ἴδηθεν μεδέων κύδιστε μέγιστε,  
"Father Zeus, ruling from Ida, most glorious, most great,
> "Father Zeus, ruling from Ida" — locked: This whole-line invocation recurs verbatim later in this same chunk (line 320, the armies' shared prayer) and again elsewhere in the poem; the wording "Father Zeus, ruling from Ida, most glorious, most great," is LOCKED for every recurrence. Ἴδηθεν, "from Ida," names Mount Ida, the mountain overlooking Troy from which Zeus watches the war throughout the poem.

**277** Ἠέλιός θʼ, ὃς πάντʼ ἐφορᾷς καὶ πάντʼ ἐπακούεις,  
and Helios, who look upon all things and hear all things,
> Helios, the Sun: Ἠέλιος, the Sun, is invoked here by his proper name as an oath-witness, in keeping with his traditional power to see and hear everything beneath him; rendered "Helios" rather than "the Sun" to keep him as a distinct divine figure among the other witnesses named in this prayer (Earth, the rivers, the powers below) — LOCKED as "Helios."

**278** καὶ ποταμοὶ καὶ γαῖα, καὶ οἳ ὑπένερθε καμόντας  
and the rivers, and the earth, and you who beneath the ground

**279** ἀνθρώπους τίνυσθον ὅτις κʼ ἐπίορκον ὀμόσσῃ,  
punish men who have died, whoever swears a false oath —

**280** ὑμεῖς μάρτυροι ἔστε, φυλάσσετε δʼ ὅρκια πιστά·  
be witnesses, and watch over the trusted oaths.

**281** εἰ μέν κεν Μενέλαον Ἀλέξανδρος καταπέφνῃ  
If Paris should slay Menelaus,

**282** αὐτὸς ἔπειθʼ Ἑλένην ἐχέτω καὶ κτήματα πάντα,  
then let him keep Helen for himself, and all her goods,

**283** ἡμεῖς δʼ ἐν νήεσσι νεώμεθα ποντοπόροισιν·  
and we will sail home in our sea-faring ships;

**284** εἰ δέ κʼ Ἀλέξανδρον κτείνῃ ξανθὸς Μενέλαος,  
but if golden-haired Menelaus should kill Paris,
> "Golden-haired" Menelaus: ξανθός, "tawny, golden-haired," is a standing epithet marking Menelaus's fair coloring, distinct from ἀρηΐφιλος "dear to Ares" and βοὴν ἀγαθὸς "good at the war-cry," already locked for him — a third genuine epithet, each held to its own wording.

**285** Τρῶας ἔπειθʼ Ἑλένην καὶ κτήματα πάντʼ ἀποδοῦναι,  
then let the Trojans give back Helen and all her goods,

**286** τιμὴν δʼ Ἀργείοις ἀποτινέμεν ἥν τινʼ ἔοικεν,  
and pay recompense to the Argives, whatever is fitting,

**287** ἥ τε καὶ ἐσσομένοισι μετʼ ἀνθρώποισι πέληται.  
such as will be remembered even among men to come.

**288** εἰ δʼ ἂν ἐμοὶ τιμὴν Πρίαμος Πριάμοιό τε παῖδες  
But if, when Paris has fallen, Priam and the sons of Priam

**289** τίνειν οὐκ ἐθέλωσιν Ἀλεξάνδροιο πεσόντος,  
are unwilling to pay me such recompense,

**290** αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ καὶ ἔπειτα μαχήσομαι εἵνεκα ποινῆς  
then I myself will go on fighting for the sake of that recompense,
> ποινή: blood-price and recompense: ποινή names the compensation owed for a wrong — most often the blood-price paid to a slain man's kin, extended here to the payment owed for the wrong of Helen's abduction; the same root that gives the later Greek word for punishment.

**291** αὖθι μένων, ἧός κε τέλος πολέμοιο κιχείω.  
remaining here, until I win the war's fulfillment."

**292** ἦ, καὶ ἀπὸ στομάχους ἀρνῶν τάμε νηλέϊ χαλκῷ·  
So he spoke, and cut the lambs' throats with the pitiless bronze,
> "The pitiless bronze": νηλὴς χαλκός, "pitiless bronze," is a recurring Homeric formula naming the killing weapon itself as merciless rather than the man who wields it — the same grim personifying move Homer makes with weapons throughout the battle books.

**293** καὶ τοὺς μὲν κατέθηκεν ἐπὶ χθονὸς ἀσπαίροντας  
and laid them down upon the ground, gasping,

**294** θυμοῦ δευομένους· ἀπὸ γὰρ μένος εἵλετο χαλκός.  
their life failing; for the bronze had taken the strength from them.

**295** οἶνον δʼ ἐκ κρητῆρος ἀφυσσόμενοι δεπάεσσιν  
And drawing wine from the mixing bowl into their cups,

**296** ἔκχεον, ἠδʼ εὔχοντο θεοῖς αἰειγενέτῃσιν.  
they poured it out, and prayed to the gods who live forever.

**297** ὧδε δέ τις εἴπεσκεν Ἀχαιῶν τε Τρώων τε·  
And thus would one say, of the Achaeans or the Trojans:

**298** Ζεῦ κύδιστε μέγιστε καὶ ἀθάνατοι θεοὶ ἄλλοι  
"Zeus, most glorious, most great, and you other immortal gods,

**299** ὁππότεροι πρότεροι ὑπὲρ ὅρκια πημήνειαν  
whichever side first does harm beyond the oaths,

**300** ὧδέ σφʼ ἐγκέφαλος χαμάδις ῥέοι ὡς ὅδε οἶνος  
may their brains flow to the ground like this wine,

**301** αὐτῶν καὶ τεκέων, ἄλοχοι δʼ ἄλλοισι δαμεῖεν.  
theirs and their children's, and their wives be made subject to others."

**302** ὣς ἔφαν, οὐδʼ ἄρα πώ σφιν ἐπεκραίαινε Κρονίων.  
So they spoke; but the son of Cronos did not yet grant them fulfillment.

**303** τοῖσι δὲ Δαρδανίδης Πρίαμος μετὰ μῦθον ἔειπε·  
And among them Priam, son of Dardanus, spoke a word:
> Priam, son of Dardanus: Δαρδανίδης names Priam by his remote ancestor Dardanus, founder of the Trojan royal line, distinct from the immediate patronymic Λαομεδοντιάδης "son of Laomedon" used earlier in this chunk (line 250) — both patronymics belong to Priam, naming him at different depths of the same genealogy.

**304** κέκλυτέ μευ Τρῶες καὶ ἐϋκνήμιδες Ἀχαιοί·  
"Hear me, you Trojans and well-greaved Achaeans;

**305** ἤτοι ἐγὼν εἶμι προτὶ Ἴλιον ἠνεμόεσσαν  
I myself will go to windy Ilion

**306** ἄψ, ἐπεὶ οὔ πω τλήσομʼ ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖσιν ὁρᾶσθαι  
again, since I cannot yet bear to look with my own eyes

**307** μαρνάμενον φίλον υἱὸν ἀρηϊφίλῳ Μενελάῳ·  
upon my dear son fighting with Menelaus, dear to Ares;

**308** Ζεὺς μέν που τό γε οἶδε καὶ ἀθάνατοι θεοὶ ἄλλοι  
Zeus, I suppose, and the other immortal gods know this,

**309** ὁπποτέρῳ θανάτοιο τέλος πεπρωμένον ἐστίν.  
for which of the two the end of death is fated."

**310** ἦ ῥα καὶ ἐς δίφρον ἄρνας θέτο ἰσόθεος φώς,  
So speaking, the godlike man laid the lambs in the chariot,

**311** ἂν δʼ ἄρʼ ἔβαινʼ αὐτός, κατὰ δʼ ἡνία τεῖνεν ὀπίσσω·  
and mounted himself, and drew the reins back taut behind him;

**312** πὰρ δέ οἱ Ἀντήνωρ περικαλλέα βήσετο δίφρον.  
and beside him Antenor mounted the splendid chariot.

**313** τὼ μὲν ἄρʼ ἄψορροι προτὶ Ἴλιον ἀπονέοντο·  
And the two of them turned back and went again toward Ilion.

**314** Ἕκτωρ δὲ Πριάμοιο πάϊς καὶ δῖος Ὀδυσσεὺς  
But Hector, son of Priam, and godlike Odysseus

**315** χῶρον μὲν πρῶτον διεμέτρεον, αὐτὰρ ἔπειτα  
first measured out the ground, and then

**316** κλήρους ἐν κυνέῃ χαλκήρεϊ πάλλον ἑλόντες,  
took lots and shook them in a bronze-fitted helmet,

**317** ὁππότερος δὴ πρόσθεν ἀφείη χάλκεον ἔγχος.  
to see which of the two should cast his bronze spear first.

**318** λαοὶ δʼ ἠρήσαντο, θεοῖσι δὲ χεῖρας ἀνέσχον,  
And the armies prayed, and lifted their hands to the gods,

**319** ὧδε δέ τις εἴπεσκεν Ἀχαιῶν τε Τρώων τε·  
and thus would one say, of the Achaeans or the Trojans:

**320** Ζεῦ πάτερ Ἴδηθεν μεδέων κύδιστε μέγιστε  
"Father Zeus, ruling from Ida, most glorious, most great,

**321** ὁππότερος τάδε ἔργα μετʼ ἀμφοτέροισιν ἔθηκε,  
whichever of the two brought about these deeds for both sides,

**322** τὸν δὸς ἀποφθίμενον δῦναι δόμον Ἄϊδος εἴσω,  
grant that he die and go down to the house of Hades,

**323** ἡμῖν δʼ αὖ φιλότητα καὶ ὅρκια πιστὰ γενέσθαι.  
and that friendship and trusted oaths be ours again."

**324** ὣς ἄρʼ ἔφαν, πάλλεν δὲ μέγας κορυθαίολος Ἕκτωρ  
So they spoke; and great Hector of the flashing helm shook the helmet,

**325** ἂψ ὁρόων· Πάριος δὲ θοῶς ἐκ κλῆρος ὄρουσεν.  
looking away as he did so; and swiftly the lot of Paris leapt out.

**326** οἳ μὲν ἔπειθʼ ἵζοντο κατὰ στίχας, ἧχι ἑκάστῳ  
Then the rest sat down in their ranks, where each man's

**327** ἵπποι ἀερσίποδες καὶ ποικίλα τεύχεʼ ἔκειτο·  
high-stepping horses and richly wrought armor lay;

**328** αὐτὰρ ὅ γʼ ἀμφʼ ὤμοισιν ἐδύσετο τεύχεα καλὰ  
but he began to put on the fine armor about his shoulders,

**329** δῖος Ἀλέξανδρος Ἑλένης πόσις ἠϋκόμοιο.  
godlike Paris, husband of lovely-haired Helen.

**330** κνημῖδας μὲν πρῶτα περὶ κνήμῃσιν ἔθηκε  
First he set greaves about his shins,

**331** καλάς, ἀργυρέοισιν ἐπισφυρίοις ἀραρυίας·  
fine ones, fitted with silver ankle-pieces;

**332** δεύτερον αὖ θώρηκα περὶ στήθεσσιν ἔδυνεν  
and next he put on about his chest the corselet

**333** οἷο κασιγνήτοιο Λυκάονος· ἥρμοσε δʼ αὐτῷ.  
of his own brother Lycaon, and fitted it to himself.
> Lycaon, brother of Paris — not the father of Pandarus: This Lycaon is a son of Priam, Paris's own brother, whose corselet Paris borrows here; he is a different figure from the Λυκάων already locked in Book 2's lockings as the father of Pandarus (Book 2 c09, line 826). Same name, two unrelated men — disambiguate by context wherever either recurs.

**334** ἀμφὶ δʼ ἄρʼ ὤμοισιν βάλετο ξίφος ἀργυρόηλον  
And about his shoulders he slung his silver-studded sword

**335** χάλκεον, αὐτὰρ ἔπειτα σάκος μέγα τε στιβαρόν τε·  
of bronze, and then his shield, great and heavy;

**336** κρατὶ δʼ ἐπʼ ἰφθίμῳ κυνέην εὔτυκτον ἔθηκεν  
and upon his strong head he set a well-made helmet

**337** ἵππουριν· δεινὸν δὲ λόφος καθύπερθεν ἔνευεν·  
with a horsehair crest; and terribly the plume nodded above it;

**338** εἵλετο δʼ ἄλκιμον ἔγχος, ὅ οἱ παλάμηφιν ἀρήρει.  
and he took up a strong spear, that fitted his grip.

**339** ὣς δʼ αὔτως Μενέλαος ἀρήϊος ἔντεʼ ἔδυνεν.  
In the same way warlike Menelaus put on his armor.

**340** οἳ δʼ ἐπεὶ οὖν ἑκάτερθεν ὁμίλου θωρήχθησαν,  
Now when they had armed on each side of the throng,

**341** ἐς μέσσον Τρώων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν ἐστιχόωντο  
and walked forward into the middle ground between Trojans and Achaeans,

**342** δεινὸν δερκόμενοι· θάμβος δʼ ἔχεν εἰσορόωντας  
glaring terribly; and awe held the onlookers,
> "Glaring terribly": δεινὸν δερκόμενοι, literally "looking terribly," is held to this exact wording; it is related to but distinct from the locked hupodra formula τὸν δʼ ἄρʼ ὑπόδρα ἰδὼν προσέφη ("glaring at him from under his brows"), which marks an angry retort in speech rather than a champion's bearing before combat.

**343** Τρῶάς θʼ ἱπποδάμους καὶ ἐϋκνήμιδας Ἀχαιούς.  
both the horse-taming Trojans and the well-greaved Achaeans.

**344** καί ῥʼ ἐγγὺς στήτην διαμετρητῷ ἐνὶ χώρῳ  
And they took their stand close together in the measured ground,
> The measured ground: διαμετρητῷ, "measured out," names the marked-off space between the two armies where formal single combat takes place — a deliberate, ritual arena, not just open plain.

**345** σείοντʼ ἐγχείας ἀλλήλοισιν κοτέοντε.  
brandishing their spears at one another in fury.

**346** πρόσθε δʼ Ἀλέξανδρος προΐει δολιχόσκιον ἔγχος,  
Paris hurled first, his long-shadowed spear,
> "Long-shadowed spear": δολιχόσκιον, "long-shadowed," names the ash-wood shaft casting a long shadow as it is hurled — a recurring Homeric epithet for the spear, first drafted here and reused verbatim four lines later for Menelaus's throw (line 355).

**347** καὶ βάλεν Ἀτρεΐδαο κατʼ ἀσπίδα πάντοσε ἴσην,  
and struck the son of Atreus on his shield, equal on every side,

**348** οὐδʼ ἔρρηξεν χαλκός, ἀνεγνάμφθη δέ οἱ αἰχμὴ  
but the bronze did not break through; the point bent back

**349** ἀσπίδʼ ἐνὶ κρατερῇ· ὃ δὲ δεύτερον ὄρνυτο χαλκῷ  
against the mighty shield. Then he in turn rose up with his bronze,

**350** Ἀτρεΐδης Μενέλαος ἐπευξάμενος Διὶ πατρί·  
the son of Atreus, Menelaus, praying to father Zeus:

**351** Ζεῦ ἄνα δὸς τίσασθαι ὅ με πρότερος κάκʼ ἔοργε  
"Zeus, our lord, grant me vengeance on him who first did me wrong,

**352** δῖον Ἀλέξανδρον, καὶ ἐμῇς ὑπὸ χερσὶ δάμασσον,  
godlike Paris, and subdue him beneath my hands,
> δῖος applied to Paris, distinct from θεοειδής: δῖος, "godlike" — the same generic epithet already locked for other heroes (godlike Agamemnon, swift-footed godlike Achilles) — is here applied to Paris. It is a different Greek word from Paris's own standing epithet θεοειδής, "of godlike form" (also rendered "godlike Paris"); the two share an English rendering by coincidence, not by conflation, matching the precedent set for Agamemnon's δῖος at Book 3, chunk 0, line 120.

**353** ὄφρα τις ἐρρίγῃσι καὶ ὀψιγόνων ἀνθρώπων  
so that even men yet to be born may shudder

**354** ξεινοδόκον κακὰ ῥέξαι, ὅ κεν φιλότητα παράσχῃ.  
to wrong a host who has offered him friendship."

**355** ἦ ῥα καὶ ἀμπεπαλὼν προΐει δολιχόσκιον ἔγχος,  
So he spoke, and poising it, hurled his long-shadowed spear,

**356** καὶ βάλε Πριαμίδαο κατʼ ἀσπίδα πάντοσε ἴσην·  
and struck the son of Priam on his shield, equal on every side;

**357** διὰ μὲν ἀσπίδος ἦλθε φαεινῆς ὄβριμον ἔγχος,  
through the shining shield went the mighty spear,

**358** καὶ διὰ θώρηκος πολυδαιδάλου ἠρήρειστο·  
and through the corselet, richly worked, it drove on;

**359** ἀντικρὺ δὲ παραὶ λαπάρην διάμησε χιτῶνα  
straight on, beside his flank, it tore through the tunic,

**360** ἔγχος· ὃ δʼ ἐκλίνθη καὶ ἀλεύατο κῆρα μέλαιναν.  
the spear; but he bent aside and escaped black death.

**361** Ἀτρεΐδης δὲ ἐρυσσάμενος ξίφος ἀργυρόηλον  
Then the son of Atreus, drawing his silver-studded sword,
> "Silver-studded sword" — confirmed reuse: ξίφος ἀργυρόηλον is held to "silver-studded sword," the rendering already locked for the identical Greek phrase in Book 2 (line 45, Agamemnon's arming). The same phrase also occurs at Book 3, line 334, in Paris's arming scene (chunk 2, lines 245–339) — confirmed reconciled there as "his silver-studded sword."

**362** πλῆξεν ἀνασχόμενος κόρυθος φάλον· ἀμφὶ δʼ ἄρʼ αὐτῷ  
swung it and struck the ridge of his helmet; but around it,

**363** τριχθά τε καὶ τετραχθὰ διατρυφὲν ἔκπεσε χειρός.  
shattered in three pieces, four, it fell from his hand.

**364** Ἀτρεΐδης δʼ ᾤμωξεν ἰδὼν εἰς οὐρανὸν εὐρύν·  
Then the son of Atreus groaned, looking up to the wide heaven:

**365** Ζεῦ πάτερ οὔ τις σεῖο θεῶν ὀλοώτερος ἄλλος·  
"Father Zeus, no god is more destructive than you;

**366** ἦ τʼ ἐφάμην τίσασθαι Ἀλέξανδρον κακότητος·  
truly I thought to punish Paris for his evil,

**367** νῦν δέ μοι ἐν χείρεσσιν ἄγη ξίφος, ἐκ δέ μοι ἔγχος  
but now the sword is broken in my hands, and my spear

**368** ἠΐχθη παλάμηφιν ἐτώσιον, οὐδʼ ἔβαλόν μιν.  
flew from my grip in vain, and I did not strike him."

**369** ἦ καὶ ἐπαΐξας κόρυθος λάβεν ἱπποδασείης,  
He spoke, and rushing at him, seized his horsehair-crested helmet,

**370** ἕλκε δʼ ἐπιστρέψας μετʼ ἐϋκνήμιδας Ἀχαιούς·  
and, twisting it, dragged him toward the well-greaved Achaeans;

**371** ἄγχε δέ μιν πολύκεστος ἱμὰς ἁπαλὴν ὑπὸ δειρήν,  
and the embroidered chin-strap choked him beneath his soft throat,

**372** ὅς οἱ ὑπʼ ἀνθερεῶνος ὀχεὺς τέτατο τρυφαλείης.  
the strap that was drawn taut beneath his chin, the helmet's fastening.

**373** καί νύ κεν εἴρυσσέν τε καὶ ἄσπετον ἤρατο κῦδος,  
And now he would have dragged him off and won unspeakable glory,

**374** εἰ μὴ ἄρʼ ὀξὺ νόησε Διὸς θυγάτηρ Ἀφροδίτη,  
had not Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus, been quick to see it,
> "Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus" — new locking: Aphrodite has not yet had a formal entry in the name table; this is her first sustained appearance in the poem's drafted chunks. Διὸς θυγάτηρ Ἀφροδίτη, "Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus," names her divine parentage and is held to this exact wording wherever it recurs, kept distinct from the other Aphrodite epithets drafted in this same chunk.

**375** ἥ οἱ ῥῆξεν ἱμάντα βοὸς ἶφι κταμένοιο·  
who broke the strap, cut from an ox slain by force;

**376** κεινὴ δὲ τρυφάλεια ἅμʼ ἕσπετο χειρὶ παχείῃ.  
and the helmet came away empty, following his stout hand.

**377** τὴν μὲν ἔπειθʼ ἥρως μετʼ ἐϋκνήμιδας Ἀχαιοὺς  
This, then, the hero whirled toward the well-greaved Achaeans,

**378** ῥῖψʼ ἐπιδινήσας, κόμισαν δʼ ἐρίηρες ἑταῖροι·  
flinging it spinning, and his trusted comrades gathered it up;

**379** αὐτὰρ ὃ ἂψ ἐπόρουσε κατακτάμεναι μενεαίνων  
and he himself charged back again, furious to kill him

**380** ἔγχεϊ χαλκείῳ· τὸν δʼ ἐξήρπαξʼ Ἀφροδίτη  
with his bronze spear. But Aphrodite snatched Paris away,

**381** ῥεῖα μάλʼ ὥς τε θεός, ἐκάλυψε δʼ ἄρʼ ἠέρι πολλῇ,  
easily, as a god does, and wrapped him in thick mist,

**382** κὰδ δʼ εἷσʼ ἐν θαλάμῳ εὐώδεϊ κηώεντι.  
and set him down in his perfumed, fragrant chamber.

**383** αὐτὴ δʼ αὖ Ἑλένην καλέουσʼ ἴε· τὴν δὲ κίχανε  
She herself then went to summon Helen; and she found her

**384** πύργῳ ἐφʼ ὑψηλῷ, περὶ δὲ Τρῳαὶ ἅλις ἦσαν·  
on the high tower, with the Trojan women crowded close about her;

**385** χειρὶ δὲ νεκταρέου ἑανοῦ ἐτίναξε λαβοῦσα,  
and taking hold of her fragrant robe, she shook it,

**386** γρηῒ δέ μιν ἐϊκυῖα παλαιγενέϊ προσέειπεν  
and, likening herself to an aged woman, spoke to her,

**387** εἰροκόμῳ, ἥ οἱ Λακεδαίμονι ναιετοώσῃ  
a wool-comber who, when Helen dwelt in Lacedaemon,

**388** ἤσκειν εἴρια καλά, μάλιστα δέ μιν φιλέεσκε·  
used to work fine wool for her, and whom she loved above all;

**389** τῇ μιν ἐεισαμένη προσεφώνεε δῖʼ Ἀφροδίτη·  
likening herself to her, shining Aphrodite spoke to her:
> "Shining Aphrodite" — new locking, distinct from her other epithets: δῖα, the feminine of δῖος "godlike/shining," paired with Aphrodite's name, is rendered "shining Aphrodite" — kept distinct from Διὸς θυγάτηρ Ἀφροδίτη ("Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus") and φιλομειδὴς Ἀφροδίτη ("laughter-loving Aphrodite," line 424), three genuine standing epithets each held to its own fixed wording; this rendering is consistent with δῖος elsewhere in the poem.

**390** δεῦρʼ ἴθʼ· Ἀλέξανδρός σε καλεῖ οἶκον δὲ νέεσθαι.  
"Come here; Paris calls you to come home.

**391** κεῖνος ὅ γʼ ἐν θαλάμῳ καὶ δινωτοῖσι λέχεσσι  
That one is in his chamber, on his inlaid bed,

**392** κάλλεΐ τε στίλβων καὶ εἵμασιν· οὐδέ κε φαίης  
shining in his beauty and his garments; you would not say

**393** ἀνδρὶ μαχεσσάμενον τόν γʼ ἐλθεῖν, ἀλλὰ χορὸν δὲ  
that he had come from fighting a man, but was going instead to a dance,

**394** ἔρχεσθʼ, ἠὲ χοροῖο νέον λήγοντα καθίζειν.  
or had just now ceased from dancing and sat down to rest."

**395** ὣς φάτο, τῇ δʼ ἄρα θυμὸν ἐνὶ στήθεσσιν ὄρινε·  
So she spoke, and stirred the heart within Helen's breast;

**396** καί ῥʼ ὡς οὖν ἐνόησε θεᾶς περικαλλέα δειρὴν  
and when she then took note of the goddess's beautiful neck,

**397** στήθεά θʼ ἱμερόεντα καὶ ὄμματα μαρμαίροντα,  
and her desirable breasts, and her flashing eyes,

**398** θάμβησέν τʼ ἄρʼ ἔπειτα ἔπος τʼ ἔφατʼ ἔκ τʼ ὀνόμαζε·  
she marveled then, and spoke a word, and called her by name:

**399** δαιμονίη, τί με ταῦτα λιλαίεαι ἠπεροπεύειν;  
"Strange one, why do you long to beguile me in this way?
> "Strange one" — an address of unease at the divine: δαιμονίη is an address one uses toward someone acting beyond ordinary human bounds — half wonder, half rebuke. Helen recognizes the goddess beneath the disguise and answers her with this uneasy, pointed word rather than an ordinary greeting.

**400** ἦ πῄ με προτέρω πολίων εὖ ναιομενάων  
Will you lead me yet farther still, to some well-peopled city,

**401** ἄξεις, ἢ Φρυγίης ἢ Μῃονίης ἐρατεινῆς,  
either in Phrygia or lovely Maeonia,

**402** εἴ τίς τοι καὶ κεῖθι φίλος μερόπων ἀνθρώπων·  
if there too you have some man dear to you among mortal speakers —

**403** οὕνεκα δὴ νῦν δῖον Ἀλέξανδρον Μενέλαος  
since now, because Menelaus has beaten godlike Paris,

**404** νικήσας ἐθέλει στυγερὴν ἐμὲ οἴκαδʼ ἄγεσθαι,  
and wishes to lead me, hateful as I am, home again,

**405** τοὔνεκα δὴ νῦν δεῦρο δολοφρονέουσα παρέστης;  
for this, then, have you come here now, weaving your treachery?

**406** ἧσο παρʼ αὐτὸν ἰοῦσα, θεῶν δʼ ἀπόεικε κελεύθου,  
Go sit beside him yourself; renounce the paths of the gods,
> Imperative of defiance: ἀπόεικε, an aorist imperative from ἀπεῖκε ("withdraw, give way"), is a blunt command aimed at a goddess by a mortal woman — one of the boldest speech acts in the poem, and grammatically no different in form from an order one mortal might give another.

**407** μηδʼ ἔτι σοῖσι πόδεσσιν ὑποστρέψειας Ὄλυμπον,  
and let your feet never again turn back to Olympus,

**408** ἀλλʼ αἰεὶ περὶ κεῖνον ὀΐζυε καί ἑ φύλασσε,  
but forever grieve for him and keep watch over him,
> "Grieve" — Helen's curse, not a softened image: ὀΐζυε is the imperative of ὀϊζύω, "to suffer hardship, be wretched, wail" (root ὀϊζύς, "woe, misery") — Helen is not asking Aphrodite to watch protectively over Paris but commanding her, as a curse, to become as miserable in servitude to him as Helen herself now is. Held to "grieve," not a gentler image, per the fidelity mandate against softening her defiant speech.

**409** εἰς ὅ κέ σʼ ἢ ἄλοχον ποιήσεται ἢ ὅ γε δούλην.  
until he makes you his wife, or else his slave.

**410** κεῖσε δʼ ἐγὼν οὐκ εἶμι· νεμεσσητὸν δέ κεν εἴη·  
I will not go there; it would be shameful

**411** κείνου πορσανέουσα λέχος· Τρῳαὶ δέ μʼ ὀπίσσω  
to tend his bed; all the women of Troy hereafter

**412** πᾶσαι μωμήσονται· ἔχω δʼ ἄχεʼ ἄκριτα θυμῷ.  
will blame me for it, every one; and I have griefs beyond number in my heart."

**413** τὴν δὲ χολωσαμένη προσεφώνεε δῖʼ Ἀφροδίτη·  
Then, in anger, shining Aphrodite spoke to her:

**414** μή μʼ ἔρεθε σχετλίη, μὴ χωσαμένη σε μεθείω,  
"Do not provoke me, rash woman, lest in my wrath I abandon you,

**415** τὼς δέ σʼ ἀπεχθήρω ὡς νῦν ἔκπαγλʼ ἐφίλησα,  
and hate you then as terribly as I now love you,

**416** μέσσῳ δʼ ἀμφοτέρων μητίσομαι ἔχθεα λυγρὰ  
and contrive grim hatred between both peoples,

**417** Τρώων καὶ Δαναῶν, σὺ δέ κεν κακὸν οἶτον ὄληαι.  
Trojans and Danaans, and you perish by an evil fate."

**418** ὣς ἔφατʼ, ἔδεισεν δʼ Ἑλένη Διὸς ἐκγεγαυῖα,  
So she spoke, and Helen, born of Zeus, was afraid,

**419** βῆ δὲ κατασχομένη ἑανῷ ἀργῆτι φαεινῷ  
and went, wrapped in her shining, radiant mantle,

**420** σιγῇ, πάσας δὲ Τρῳὰς λάθεν· ἦρχε δὲ δαίμων.  
in silence, unseen by all the Trojan women; and the goddess led the way.

**421** αἳ δʼ ὅτʼ Ἀλεξάνδροιο δόμον περικαλλέʼ ἵκοντο,  
And when they came to the beautiful house of Paris,

**422** ἀμφίπολοι μὲν ἔπειτα θοῶς ἐπὶ ἔργα τράποντο,  
the handmaids at once turned quickly to their tasks,

**423** ἣ δʼ εἰς ὑψόροφον θάλαμον κίε δῖα γυναικῶν.  
but she, the shining one among women, went to the high-roofed chamber.

**424** τῇ δʼ ἄρα δίφρον ἑλοῦσα φιλομειδὴς Ἀφροδίτη  
There, taking up a chair, laughter-loving Aphrodite
> "Laughter-loving Aphrodite" — new locking: φιλομειδής, "laughter-loving" or "smile-loving," is Aphrodite's most famous standing epithet across Greek epic; it is held to "laughter-loving Aphrodite" wherever it recurs, distinct from Διὸς θυγάτηρ ("daughter of Zeus") and δῖα ("shining"), the other two Aphrodite epithets locked in this chunk.

**425** ἀντίʼ Ἀλεξάνδροιο θεὰ κατέθηκε φέρουσα·  
herself set it down, facing Paris, carrying it there.

**426** ἔνθα κάθιζʼ Ἑλένη κούρη Διὸς αἰγιόχοιο  
There Helen sat down, daughter of Zeus who bears the aegis,

**427** ὄσσε πάλιν κλίνασα, πόσιν δʼ ἠνίπαπε μύθῳ·  
turning her eyes away, and rebuked her husband in speech:

**428** ἤλυθες ἐκ πολέμου· ὡς ὤφελες αὐτόθʼ ὀλέσθαι  
"So you have come back from the fighting; would that you had died there,

**429** ἀνδρὶ δαμεὶς κρατερῷ, ὃς ἐμὸς πρότερος πόσις ἦεν.  
beaten by the mighty man who was my former husband.

**430** ἦ μὲν δὴ πρίν γʼ εὔχεʼ ἀρηϊφίλου Μενελάου  
Truly before now you boasted that against Menelaus, dear to Ares,

**431** σῇ τε βίῃ καὶ χερσὶ καὶ ἔγχεϊ φέρτερος εἶναι·  
you were the better man in strength, and in hands, and with the spear;

**432** ἀλλʼ ἴθι νῦν προκάλεσσαι ἀρηΐφιλον Μενέλαον  
but go now, challenge Menelaus, dear to Ares,

**433** ἐξαῦτις μαχέσασθαι ἐναντίον· ἀλλά σʼ ἔγωγε  
once again to fight you face to face; but I myself

**434** παύεσθαι κέλομαι, μηδὲ ξανθῷ Μενελάῳ  
bid you hold back, and not with golden-haired Menelaus
> "Golden-haired Menelaus" — confirmed match with chunk 2: ξανθός, "tawny, golden" (of hair), is a standing epithet for Menelaus, distinct from ἀρηΐφιλος ("dear to Ares") and βοὴν ἀγαθὸς ("good at the war-cry") already locked. The same epithet-name unit (nominative ξανθὸς Μενέλαος) is drafted at Book 3, line 284 in chunk 2 as "golden-haired Menelaus" — this dative occurrence at line 434 is held to that identical wording per the epithet-stability rule.

**435** ἀντίβιον πόλεμον πολεμίζειν ἠδὲ μάχεσθαι  
wage war and fight man to man in open combat,

**436** ἀφραδέως, μή πως τάχʼ ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ δουρὶ δαμήῃς.  
recklessly, lest somehow you fall quickly by his spear."

**437** τὴν δὲ Πάρις μύθοισιν ἀμειβόμενος προσέειπε·  
Then Paris answered her, and said in speech:

**438** μή με γύναι χαλεποῖσιν ὀνείδεσι θυμὸν ἔνιπτε·  
"Do not taunt me, woman, with harsh reproaches;

**439** νῦν μὲν γὰρ Μενέλαος ἐνίκησεν σὺν Ἀθήνῃ,  
for now Menelaus has won, with Athena's help,

**440** κεῖνον δʼ αὖτις ἐγώ· πάρα γὰρ θεοί εἰσι καὶ ἡμῖν.  
but another time I will win him; for we too have gods on our side.

**441** ἀλλʼ ἄγε δὴ φιλότητι τραπείομεν εὐνηθέντε·  
But come, let us turn to bed and take our pleasure in love;

**442** οὐ γάρ πώ ποτέ μʼ ὧδέ γʼ ἔρως φρένας ἀμφεκάλυψεν,  
never has desire so wholly enfolded my heart,

**443** οὐδʼ ὅτε σε πρῶτον Λακεδαίμονος ἐξ ἐρατεινῆς  
not even when first, from lovely Lacedaemon,

**444** ἔπλεον ἁρπάξας ἐν ποντοπόροισι νέεσσι,  
I sailed off, having seized you, in my ships that cross the sea,

**445** νήσῳ δʼ ἐν Κραναῇ ἐμίγην φιλότητι καὶ εὐνῇ,  
and on the island of Cranae lay with you in love and in bed,

**446** ὥς σεο νῦν ἔραμαι καί με γλυκὺς ἵμερος αἱρεῖ.  
as I desire you now, and sweet longing seizes me."

**447** ἦ ῥα, καὶ ἄρχε λέχος δὲ κιών· ἅμα δʼ εἵπετʼ ἄκοιτις.  
He spoke, and led the way to bed; and his wife followed with him.

**448** τὼ μὲν ἄρʼ ἐν τρητοῖσι κατεύνασθεν λεχέεσσιν,  
So the two of them lay down together on the corded bed,

**449** Ἀτρεΐδης δʼ ἀνʼ ὅμιλον ἐφοίτα θηρὶ ἐοικὼς  
but the son of Atreus prowled through the throng, like a wild beast,
> The wild-beast simile: θηρὶ ἐοικώς, "like a wild beast," casts Menelaus's search through the ranks as a hunting animal's prowl — a stark contrast to the lion simile that greeted his first sight of Paris (line 23), now curdled into frustrated, thwarted rage after the goddess has stolen his prey away.

**450** εἴ που ἐσαθρήσειεν Ἀλέξανδρον θεοειδέα.  
if anywhere he might catch sight of godlike Paris.

**451** ἀλλʼ οὔ τις δύνατο Τρώων κλειτῶν τʼ ἐπικούρων  
But no one among the Trojans or their famed allies

**452** δεῖξαι Ἀλέξανδρον τότʼ ἀρηϊφίλῳ Μενελάῳ·  
could point out Paris then to Menelaus, dear to Ares;

**453** οὐ μὲν γὰρ φιλότητί γʼ ἐκεύθανον εἴ τις ἴδοιτο·  
for not out of love would they have hidden him, had anyone seen him;

**454** ἶσον γάρ σφιν πᾶσιν ἀπήχθετο κηρὶ μελαίνῃ.  
for he was hated by all of them alike as black death.

**455** τοῖσι δὲ καὶ μετέειπεν ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγαμέμνων·  
Then among them spoke Agamemnon, lord of men:

**456** κέκλυτέ μευ Τρῶες καὶ Δάρδανοι ἠδʼ ἐπίκουροι·  
"Hear me, you Trojans and Dardanians and allies;

**457** νίκη μὲν δὴ φαίνετʼ ἀρηϊφίλου Μενελάου,  
the victory plainly belongs to Menelaus, dear to Ares;
> Echo of the oath-terms (chunk 2, lines 245–339): This line and the two that follow restate, in the voice of victory now declared, the very terms Menelaus himself set at the oath-swearing (chunk 2, lines 284–287): the winner takes the woman and her possessions, with recompense besides. Line 460 (ἥ τε καὶ ἐσσομένοισι μετʼ ἀνθρώποισι πέληται) is textually identical to line 287 and is held to that chunk's exact wording, "such as will be remembered even among men to come"; line 459 shares the clause τιμὴν ἀποτινέμεν ἥν τινʼ ἔοικεν with line 286 ("pay recompense ... whatever is fitting") and is aligned to match, though the two lines are not fully identical Greek.

**458** ὑμεῖς δʼ Ἀργείην Ἑλένην καὶ κτήμαθʼ ἅμʼ αὐτῇ  
so give back Argive Helen, and the possessions with her,

**459** ἔκδοτε, καὶ τιμὴν ἀποτινέμεν ἥν τινʼ ἔοικεν,  
and pay recompense, whatever is fitting,

**460** ἥ τε καὶ ἐσσομένοισι μετʼ ἀνθρώποισι πέληται.  
such as will be remembered even among men to come."

**461** ὣς ἔφατʼ Ἀτρεΐδης, ἐπὶ δʼ ᾔνεον ἄλλοι Ἀχαιοί.  
So spoke the son of Atreus, and the other Achaeans shouted their assent.

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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.