# The Odyssey, Book 24: The Ghosts of the Suitors; Laertes; Peace on Ithaca

Ὀδύσσεια · Homer · The Homecoming

The suitors' souls go down to Hades. Odysseus finds his old father Laertes in the orchard. The families of the dead come for revenge, and Athena ends it.

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/odyssey/24. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/odyssey/24.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/odyssey/<line id>.m4a.

**1** Ἑρμῆς δὲ ψυχὰς Κυλλήνιος ἐξεκαλεῖτο  
Meanwhile Cyllenian Hermes was calling forth the souls
> psychê = soul/ghost: Here psychê means the spirit of the dead, the shade that survives in Hades. It is the keyword that opens the so-called second Nekyia.

**2** ἀνδρῶν μνηστήρων· ἔχε δὲ ῥάβδον μετὰ χερσὶν  
of the suitors; and he held the wand in his hands,

**3** καλὴν χρυσείην, τῇ τʼ ἀνδρῶν ὄμματα θέλγει  
the fair golden one, with which he charms the eyes of men,

**4** ὧν ἐθέλει, τοὺς δʼ αὖτε καὶ ὑπνώοντας ἐγείρει·  
of whomever he wishes, and again wakes others even from sleep;

**5** τῇ ῥʼ ἄγε κινήσας, ταὶ δὲ τρίζουσαι ἕποντο.  
with this he roused and drove them, and they followed gibbering.
> the squeak of the dead: The verb describes a thin, shrill squeaking, the sound bats and ghosts make. Homer uses the same word again in the simile that follows.

**6** ὡς δʼ ὅτε νυκτερίδες μυχῷ ἄντρου θεσπεσίοιο  
As when bats in the recess of an awesome cave
> Homeric simile marker: The formula 'as when' introduces an extended epic simile. The point of comparison resolves at line 9 with 'so' (ὣς).

**7** τρίζουσαι ποτέονται, ἐπεί κέ τις ἀποπέσῃσιν  
flit squeaking, whenever one of them falls

**8** ὁρμαθοῦ ἐκ πέτρης, ἀνά τʼ ἀλλήλῃσιν ἔχονται,  
from the cluster on the rock, and they cling to one another,

**9** ὣς αἱ τετριγυῖαι ἅμʼ ἤϊσαν· ἦρχε δʼ ἄρα σφιν  
so they went together, squeaking; and leading them on was

**10** Ἑρμείας ἀκάκητα κατʼ εὐρώεντα κέλευθα.  
Hermes the kindly guide, down the dank ways.
> Epithet of Hermes: A fixed ornamental epithet, roughly 'the kindly' or 'the helper.' Formulaic epithets are a hallmark of oral hexameter.

**11** πὰρ δʼ ἴσαν Ὠκεανοῦ τε ῥοὰς καὶ Λευκάδα πέτρην,  
They passed the streams of Okeanos and the White Rock,

**12** ἠδὲ παρʼ Ἠελίοιο πύλας καὶ δῆμον ὀνείρων  
and past the gates of the Sun and the land of dreams

**13** ἤϊσαν· αἶψα δʼ ἵκοντο κατʼ ἀσφοδελὸν λειμῶνα,  
they went; and soon they came to the meadow of asphodel,

**14** ἔνθα τε ναίουσι ψυχαί, εἴδωλα καμόντων.  
where the souls dwell, the phantoms of those worn out by death.
> phantoms of the dead: An eidôlon is an image or apparition; 'those worn out' (kamontôn) is a Homeric euphemism for the dead, literally 'those who have labored to exhaustion.'

**15** εὗρον δὲ ψυχὴν Πηληϊάδεω Ἀχιλῆος  
They found the soul of Achilles son of Peleus

**16** καὶ Πατροκλῆος καὶ ἀμύμονος Ἀντιλόχοιο  
and of Patroklos and of blameless Antilochos

**17** Αἴαντός θʼ, ὃς ἄριστος ἔην εἶδός τε δέμας τε  
and of Ajax, who was the best in form and frame

**18** τῶν ἄλλων Δαναῶν μετʼ ἀμύμονα Πηλεΐδαο  
of the other Danaans, after the blameless son of Peleus.

**19** ὣς οἱ μὲν περὶ κεῖνον ὁμίλεον· ἀγχίμολον δὲ  
So these were gathered about him; and close at hand

**20** ἤλυθʼ ἔπι ψυχὴ Ἀγαμέμνονος Ἀτρεΐδαο  
came up the soul of Agamemnon son of Atreus,

**21** ἀχνυμένη· περὶ δʼ ἄλλαι ἀγηγέραθʼ, ὅσσαι ἅμʼ αὐτῷ  
grieving; and round him were assembled the others, all who
> Participle of grief: A present middle participle, 'grieving,' agreeing with psychê (soul). Such participles let Homer pack feeling into a single descriptive word.

**22** οἴκῳ ἐν Αἰγίσθοιο θάνον καὶ πότμον ἐπέσπον.  
in the house of Aigisthos died and met their doom with him.

**23** τὸν προτέρη ψυχὴ προσεφώνεε Πηλεΐωνος·  
To him the soul of the son of Peleus spoke first:

**24** Ἀτρεΐδη, περὶ μέν σʼ ἔφαμεν Διὶ τερπικεραύνῳ  
"Son of Atreus, we used to say that of all heroes
> Zeus who delights in thunder: The dative epithet 'who delights in the thunderbolt' is a stock title for Zeus. The dative marks the one to whom Agamemnon was thought dear.

**25** ἀνδρῶν ἡρώων φίλον ἔμμεναι ἤματα πάντα,  
you were dearest to Zeus who delights in thunder, all your days,

**26** οὕνεκα πολλοῖσίν τε καὶ ἰφθίμοισιν ἄνασσες  
because you ruled over many mighty men

**27** δήμῳ ἔνι Τρώων, ὅθι πάσχομεν ἄλγεʼ Ἀχαιοί.  
in the land of the Trojans, where we Achaeans suffered pains.

**28** ἦ τʼ ἄρα καὶ σοὶ πρῶϊ παραστήσεσθαι ἔμελλεν  
Yet on you too, all too early, was destined to come

**29** μοῖρʼ ὀλοή, τὴν οὔ τις ἀλεύεται ὅς κε γένηται.  
deadly fate, which no man born can escape.

**30** ὡς ὄφελες τιμῆς ἀπονήμενος, ἧς περ ἄνασσες,  
Would that, in the enjoyment of the honor over which you ruled,

**31** δήμῳ ἔνι Τρώων θάνατον καὶ πότμον ἐπισπεῖν·  
you had met death and your doom in the land of the Trojans;

**32** τῷ κέν τοι τύμβον μὲν ἐποίησαν Παναχαιοί,  
then all the Achaeans would have made you a tomb,

**33** ἠδέ κε καὶ σῷ παιδὶ μέγα κλέος ἤραʼ ὀπίσσω·  
and for your son too you would have won great glory hereafter.
> kleos = glory: Kleos is the renown that outlives a man, 'what is heard' of him. Winning it for one's heirs is a central heroic value.

**34** νῦν δʼ ἄρα σʼ οἰκτίστῳ θανάτῳ εἵμαρτο ἁλῶναι.  
But now it was your fate to be caught by a most pitiful death."

**35** τὸν δʼ αὖτε ψυχὴ προσεφώνεεν Ἀτρείδαο·  
Then the soul of the son of Atreus answered him:

**36** ὄλβιε Πηλέος υἱέ, θεοῖς ἐπιείκελʼ Ἀχιλλεῦ,  
"Blessed son of Peleus, godlike Achilles,
> olbios = blessed: Olbios denotes deep, fortunate happiness. Agamemnon calls the dead Achilles 'blessed' because he died gloriously and was honored, unlike Agamemnon himself.

**37** ὃς θάνες ἐν Τροίῃ ἑκὰς Ἄργεος· ἀμφὶ δέ σʼ ἄλλοι  
you who died at Troy far from Argos; and around you others,

**38** κτείνοντο Τρώων καὶ Ἀχαιῶν υἷες ἄριστοι,  
the best sons of the Trojans and the Achaeans, were being killed,

**39** μαρνάμενοι περὶ σεῖο· σὺ δʼ ἐν στροφάλιγγι κονίης  
fighting over you; and you in the whirling cloud of dust

**40** κεῖσο μέγας μεγαλωστί, λελασμένος ἱπποσυνάων.  
lay mighty in your might, forgetful of your horsemanship.
> mighty in your might: A famous figura etymologica, 'great greatly,' or 'mighty in your might.' The same phrase describes Patroklos' slaying of Kebriones (Hector's charioteer) in the Iliad (16.776) — Patroklos, not Achilles, kills Kebriones in that episode.

**41** ἡμεῖς δὲ πρόπαν ἦμαρ ἐμαρνάμεθʼ· οὐδέ κε πάμπαν  
We fought the whole day long; nor would we ever

**42** παυσάμεθα πτολέμου, εἰ μὴ Ζεὺς λαίλαπι παῦσεν.  
have ceased from the battle, had not Zeus stopped it with a storm.

**43** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί σʼ ἐπὶ νῆας ἐνείκαμεν ἐκ πολέμοιο,  
But when we had carried you out of the fighting to the ships,

**44** κάτθεμεν ἐν λεχέεσσι, καθήραντες χρόα καλὸν  
we laid you on a bier, when we had cleansed your fair flesh

**45** ὕδατί τε λιαρῷ καὶ ἀλείφατι· πολλὰ δέ σʼ ἀμφὶ  
with warm water and with oil; and over you many

**46** δάκρυα θερμὰ χέον Δαναοὶ κείροντό τε χαίτας.  
hot tears the Danaans shed, and shore off their hair.

**47** μήτηρ δʼ ἐξ ἁλὸς ἦλθε σὺν ἀθανάτῃς ἁλίῃσιν  
Your mother came up from the sea with the immortal sea-nymphs,

**48** ἀγγελίης ἀΐουσα· βοὴ δʼ ἐπὶ πόντον ὀρώρει  
having heard the news; and a cry rose over the deep,

**49** θεσπεσίη, ὑπὸ δὲ τρόμος ἔλλαβε πάντας Ἀχαιούς·  
an awesome cry, and trembling seized all the Achaeans.

**50** καί νύ κʼ ἀναΐξαντες ἔβαν κοίλας ἐπὶ νῆας,  
And now they would have sprung up and gone to the hollow ships,

**51** εἰ μὴ ἀνὴρ κατέρυκε παλαιά τε πολλά τε εἰδώς,  
had not a man held them back, one who knew much and ancient lore,

**52** Νέστωρ, οὗ καὶ πρόσθεν ἀρίστη φαίνετο βουλή·  
Nestor, whose counsel had before this too seemed best;

**53** ὅ σφιν ἐϋφρονέων ἀγορήσατο καὶ μετέειπεν·  
with kind intent he spoke and addressed them:

**54** ἴσχεσθʼ, Ἀργεῖοι, μὴ φεύγετε, κοῦροι
                        Ἀχαιῶν·  
'Hold, Argives; do not flee, you young men of the Achaeans.
> Imperatives of command: Nestor uses a present middle imperative ('hold yourselves') and a present imperative with mê ('do not flee'). Mê plus the present imperative tells them to stop an action already underway.

**55** μήτηρ ἐξ ἁλὸς ἥδε σὺν ἀθανάτῃς ἁλίῃσιν  
This is his mother, coming up from the sea with the immortal sea-nymphs,

**56** ἔρχεται, οὗ παιδὸς τεθνηότος ἀντιόωσα.  
to meet the body of her dead son.'

**57** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἱ δʼ ἔσχοντο φόβου μεγάθυμοι
                     Ἀχαιοί·  
So he spoke, and the great-hearted Achaeans ceased their fear.

**58** ἀμφὶ δέ σʼ ἔστησαν κοῦραι ἁλίοιο γέροντος  
Around you stood the daughters of the old man of the sea,

**59** οἴκτρʼ ὀλοφυρόμεναι, περὶ δʼ ἄμβροτα εἵματα ἕσσαν.  
wailing piteously, and they wrapped you in immortal garments.

**60** Μοῦσαι δʼ ἐννέα πᾶσαι ἀμειβόμεναι ὀπὶ καλῇ  
And the nine Muses, all of them, answering one another with lovely voice,

**61** θρήνεον· ἔνθα κεν οὔ τινʼ ἀδάκρυτόν γʼ ἐνόησας  
sang the dirge; there you could not have noticed a single one

**62** Ἀργείων· τοῖον γὰρ ὑπώρορε Μοῦσα λίγεια.  
of the Argives without tears, so did the clear-voiced Muse stir them.

**63** ἑπτὰ δὲ καὶ δέκα μέν σε ὁμῶς νύκτας τε καὶ ἦμαρ  
For seventeen nights alike, and through the day,

**64** κλαίομεν ἀθάνατοί τε θεοὶ θνητοί τʼ ἄνθρωποι·  
we wept for you, immortal gods and mortal men;

**65** ὀκτωκαιδεκάτῃ δʼ ἔδομεν πυρί, πολλὰ δέ σʼ ἀμφὶ  
on the eighteenth we gave you to the fire, and around you many

**66** μῆλα κατεκτάνομεν μάλα πίονα καὶ ἕλικας βοῦς.  
sheep we slaughtered, very fat, and shambling cattle.

**67** καίεο δʼ ἔν τʼ ἐσθῆτι θεῶν καὶ ἀλείφατι πολλῷ  
You were burned in the raiment of the gods and in abundant oil

**68** καὶ μέλιτι γλυκερῷ· πολλοὶ δʼ ἥρωες Ἀχαιοὶ  
and sweet honey; and many heroes of the Achaeans

**69** τεύχεσιν ἐρρώσαντο πυρὴν πέρι καιομένοιο,  
rushed about in their armor around the blazing pyre,

**70** πεζοί θʼ ἱππῆές τε· πολὺς δʼ ὀρυμαγδὸς ὀρώρει  
footmen and charioteers; and a great din arose.

**71** αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δή σε φλὸξ ἤνυσεν Ἡφαίστοιο,  
But when the flame of Hephaistos had finished its work on you,

**72** ἠῶθεν δή τοι λέγομεν λεύκʼ ὀστέʼ, Ἀχιλλεῦ,  
at dawn we gathered your white bones, Achilles,

**73** οἴνῳ ἐν ἀκρήτῳ καὶ ἀλείφατι· δῶκε δὲ μήτηρ  
in unmixed wine and in oil; and your mother gave

**74** χρύσεον ἀμφιφορῆα· Διωνύσοιο δὲ δῶρον  
a golden urn; she said it was the gift of Dionysos

**75** φάσκʼ ἔμεναι, ἔργον δὲ περικλυτοῦ Ἡφαίστοιο.  
and the work of the far-famed Hephaistos.

**76** ἐν τῷ τοι κεῖται λεύκʼ ὀστέα, φαίδιμʼ Ἀχιλλεῦ,  
In it your white bones lie, glorious Achilles,

**77** μίγδα δὲ Πατρόκλοιο Μενοιτιάδαο θανόντος,  
mingled with those of the dead Patroklos son of Menoitios,

**78** χωρὶς δʼ Ἀντιλόχοιο, τὸν ἔξοχα τῖες ἁπάντων  
and apart those of Antilochos, whom you honored above all

**79** τῶν ἄλλων ἑτάρων, μετὰ Πάτροκλόν γε θανόντα.  
the rest of your companions, after the dead Patroklos.

**80** ἀμφʼ αὐτοῖσι δʼ ἔπειτα μέγαν καὶ ἀμύμονα τύμβον  
And over them then a great and faultless tomb

**81** χεύαμεν Ἀργείων ἱερὸς στρατὸς αἰχμητάων  
we heaped up, the holy host of Argive spearmen,

**82** ἀκτῇ ἔπι προὐχούσῃ, ἐπὶ πλατεῖ Ἑλλησπόντῳ,  
on a jutting headland, by the broad Hellespont,

**83** ὥς κεν τηλεφανὴς ἐκ ποντόφιν ἀνδράσιν εἴη  
so that it might be seen far off from the sea by men,
> Purpose with an optative: The construction 'so that it might be' uses an optative in a purpose clause after a past-tense main verb. The optative marks the goal of the action as it stood in the past.

**84** τοῖς οἳ νῦν γεγάασι καὶ οἳ μετόπισθεν ἔσονται.  
both those who now are alive and those who shall be hereafter.

**85** μήτηρ δʼ αἰτήσασα θεοὺς περικαλλέʼ ἄεθλα  
And your mother, asking the gods for them, set most beautiful prizes

**86** θῆκε μέσῳ ἐν ἀγῶνι ἀριστήεσσιν Ἀχαιῶν.  
in the midst of the contest for the chieftains of the Achaeans.
> agôn = contest: The agôn is the gathering-place and the games held there, here the funeral contests for Achilles. The English word 'agony' descends from this root of struggle.

**87** ἤδη μὲν πολέων τάφῳ ἀνδρῶν ἀντεβόλησας  
By now you have come upon the funerals of many men,

**88** ἡρώων, ὅτε κέν ποτʼ ἀποφθιμένου βασιλῆος  
of heroes, when at the death of some king

**89** ζώννυνταί τε νέοι καὶ ἐπεντύνονται ἄεθλα·  
the young men gird themselves and make ready for the games;

**90** ἀλλά κε κεῖνα μάλιστα ἰδὼν θηήσαο θυμῷ,  
but those above all you would have marveled at in your heart, seeing

**91** οἷʼ ἐπὶ σοὶ κατέθηκε θεὰ περικαλλέʼ ἄεθλα,  
what kind of most beautiful prizes the goddess set for you,

**92** ἀργυρόπεζα Θέτις· μάλα γὰρ φίλος ἦσθα θεοῖσιν.  
silver-footed Thetis; for you were very dear to the gods.
> silver-footed Thetis: A standing epithet for Achilles' sea-nymph mother, 'silver-footed.' Such name-plus-epithet formulas fit the metrical slot at line's end.

**93** ὣς σὺ μὲν οὐδὲ θανὼν ὄνομʼ ὤλεσας, ἀλλά τοι αἰεὶ  
So you, even in death, have not lost your name, but always

**94** πάντας ἐπʼ ἀνθρώπους κλέος ἔσσεται ἐσθλόν, Ἀχιλλεῦ,  
among all men your glory will be noble, Achilles.
> noble glory: Achilles' kleos is 'noble' (esthlon) and undying. The line states the epic's own promise: the hero's renown survives in the song itself.

**95** αὐτὰρ ἐμοὶ τί τόδʼ ἦδος, ἐπεὶ πόλεμον τολύπευσα;  
But for me, what joy is this, now that I have wound up the war?

**96** ἐν νόστῳ γάρ μοι Ζεὺς μήσατο λυγρὸν ὄλεθρον  
For on my homecoming Zeus contrived a wretched ruin for me
> nostos = homecoming: Nostos, the return home, is the governing theme of the Odyssey. Agamemnon's ruined nostos is the dark mirror of Odysseus' successful one.

**97** Αἰγίσθου ὑπὸ χερσὶ καὶ οὐλομένης ἀλόχοιο.  
by the hands of Aigisthos and of my accursed wife."

**98** ὣς οἱ μὲν τοιαῦτα πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀγόρευον,  
So they spoke such things to one another,

**99** ἀγχίμολον δέ σφʼ ἦλθε διάκτορος ἀργεϊφόντης,  
and close at hand came up to them the guide, the slayer of Argos,
> Hermes' epithets: 'Guide' (diaktoros) and 'slayer of Argos' (argeiphontes) are formulaic titles of Hermes, naming his role as escort of souls. The epithets identify the god without naming him.

**100** ψυχὰς μνηστήρων κατάγων Ὀδυσῆϊ δαμέντων,  
leading down the souls of the suitors slain by Odysseus,

**101** τὼ δʼ ἄρα θαμβήσαντʼ ἰθὺς κίον, ὡς ἐσιδέσθην.  
and the two of them, astonished, went straight up, when they saw them.
> Dual number: The forms 'the two' (tô) and 'they saw' (esidesthên) are duals, used for the pair Achilles and Agamemnon. Homeric Greek keeps the dual for natural pairs.

**102** ἔγνω δὲ ψυχὴ Ἀγαμέμνονος Ἀτρεΐδαο  
And the soul of Agamemnon son of Atreus recognized

**103** παῖδα φίλον Μελανῆος, ἀγακλυτὸν Ἀμφιμέδοντα·  
the dear son of Melaneus, far-famed Amphimedon;

**104** ξεῖνος γάρ οἱ ἔην Ἰθάκῃ ἔνι οἰκία ναίων.  
for he had been his host, dwelling in his house on Ithaca.

**105** τὸν προτέρη ψυχὴ προσεφώνεεν Ἀτρεΐδαο·  
To him the soul of the son of Atreus spoke first:

**106** Ἀμφίμεδον, τί παθόντες ἐρεμνὴν γαῖαν ἔδυτε  
"Amphimedon, what has befallen you, that you have gone down beneath the dark earth,

**107** πάντες κεκριμένοι καὶ ὁμήλικες; οὐδέ κεν ἄλλως  
all of you chosen men and of one age? Not otherwise

**108** κρινάμενος λέξαιτο κατὰ πτόλιν ἄνδρας ἀρίστους.  
could one pick out and gather the best men in a city.

**109** ἦ ὔμμʼ ἐν νήεσσι Ποσειδάων ἐδάμασσεν,  
Was it on shipboard that Poseidon overcame you,

**110** ὄρσας ἀργαλέους ἀνέμους καὶ κύματα μακρά;  
raising harsh winds and long waves?

**111** ἦ που ἀνάρσιοι ἄνδρες ἐδηλήσαντʼ ἐπὶ χέρσου  
Or did hostile men do you harm on dry land

**112** βοῦς περιταμνομένους ἠδʼ οἰῶν πώεα καλά,  
as you cut out their cattle and fine flocks of sheep,

**113** ἠὲ περὶ πτόλιος μαχεούμενοι ἠδὲ γυναικῶν;  
or while fighting for their city and their women?

**114** εἰπέ μοι εἰρομένῳ· ξεῖνος δέ τοι εὔχομαι εἶναι.  
Tell me, since I ask; I claim to be your guest-friend.

**115** ἦ οὐ μέμνῃ ὅτε κεῖσε κατήλυθον ὑμέτερον δῶ,  
Do you not remember when I came down there to your house,

**116** ὀτρυνέων Ὀδυσῆα σὺν ἀντιθέῳ Μενελάῳ  
to urge Odysseus, along with godlike Menelaus,

**117** Ἴλιον εἰς ἅμʼ ἕπεσθαι ἐϋσσέλμων ἐπὶ νηῶν;  
to follow us to Ilion on the well-benched ships?

**118** μηνὶ δʼ ἄρʼ οὔλῳ πάντα περήσαμεν εὐρέα πόντον,  
A whole month it took us to cross the wide sea,

**119** σπουδῇ παρπεπιθόντες Ὀδυσσῆα πτολίπορθον.  
with hard effort persuading Odysseus, sacker of cities."
> Sacker-of-cities epithet: A standing epithet (πτολίπορθος) for Odysseus, literally 'city-destroying.' Homeric epithets are fixed formulas that help the oral poet fill the metrical line.

**120** τὸν δʼ αὖτε ψυχὴ προσεφώνεεν Ἀμφιμέδοντος·  
Then the ghost of Amphimedon answered him in turn:

**121** Ἀτρεΐδη κύδιστε, ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν Ἀγάμεμνον,  
"Most glorious son of Atreus, Agamemnon, lord of men,

**122** μέμνημαι τάδε πάντα, διοτρεφές, ὡς ἀγορεύεις·  
I remember all of this, Zeus-nurtured one, as you say it;

**123** σοὶ δʼ ἐγὼ εὖ μάλα πάντα καὶ ἀτρεκέως καταλέξω,  
and I will recount it all to you well and exactly,

**124** ἡμετέρου θανάτοιο κακὸν τέλος, οἷον ἐτύχθη.  
the evil end of our death, how it came to pass.

**125** μνώμεθʼ Ὀδυσσῆος δὴν οἰχομένοιο δάμαρτα·  
We were courting the wife of long-departed Odysseus;
> Genitive of the absent man: δὴν οἰχομένοιο is a genitive participle modifying Odysseus, 'long gone away.' The genitive marks possession of the wife (δάμαρτα) being courted.

**126** ἡ δʼ οὔτʼ ἠρνεῖτο στυγερὸν γάμον οὔτʼ ἐτελεύτα,  
and she neither refused the hateful marriage nor brought it about,

**127** ἡμῖν φραζομένη θάνατον καὶ κῆρα μέλαιναν,  
plotting for us death and black doom,

**128** ἀλλὰ δόλον τόνδʼ ἄλλον ἐνὶ φρεσὶ μερμήριξε·  
but this other trick she devised in her heart:

**129** στησαμένη μέγαν ἱστὸν ἐνὶ μεγάροισιν ὕφαινε,  
she set up a great loom in the halls and began to weave,

**130** λεπτὸν καὶ περίμετρον· ἄφαρ δʼ ἡμῖν μετέειπε·  
a fine and oversized web; and at once she said to us:

**131** κοῦροι ἐμοὶ μνηστῆρες, ἐπεὶ θάνε δῖος
                        Ὀδυσσεύς,  
'Young men, my suitors, since godlike Odysseus is dead,

**132** μίμνετʼ ἐπειγόμενοι τὸν ἐμὸν γάμον, εἰς ὅ κε φᾶρος  
hold back, eager though you are for my marriage, until I finish

**133** ἐκτελέσω, μή μοι μεταμώνια νήματʼ ὄληται,  
this robe—so my spun thread may not be wasted in vain—

**134** Λαέρτῃ ἥρωϊ ταφήϊον, εἰς ὅτε κέν μιν  
a burial shroud for the hero Laertes, against the time when

**135** μοῖρʼ ὀλοὴ καθέλῃσι τανηλεγέος θανάτοιο,  
the ruinous fate of death that lays men low takes him down,

**136** μή τίς μοι κατὰ δῆμον Ἀχαιϊάδων νεμεσήσῃ,  
lest some Achaean woman through the land reproach me,

**137** αἴ κεν ἄτερ σπείρου κεῖται πολλὰ κτεατίσσας.  
if he should lie without a shroud, who had won so much.'

**138** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, ἡμῖν δʼ αὖτʼ ἐπεπείθετο θυμὸς
                     ἀγήνωρ.  
So she spoke, and our proud hearts were persuaded.

**139** ἔνθα καὶ ἠματίη μὲν ὑφαίνεσκεν μέγαν ἱστόν,  
So by day she would weave at the great web,
> Iterative imperfect: ὑφαίνεσκεν has the -σκ- suffix marking repeated, habitual past action: 'she used to weave.' The next line's ἀλλύεσκεν ('she would unravel') matches it.

**140** νύκτας δʼ ἀλλύεσκεν, ἐπεὶ δαΐδας παραθεῖτο.  
but by night she would unravel it, once she set torches beside her.

**141** ὣς τρίετες μὲν ἔληθε δόλῳ καὶ ἔπειθεν Ἀχαιούς·  
So for three years she fooled the Achaeans by her trick and convinced them;

**142** ἀλλʼ ὅτε τέτρατον ἦλθεν ἔτος καὶ ἐπήλυθον ὧραι,  
but when the fourth year came and the seasons came round,

**143** μηνῶν φθινόντων, περὶ δʼ ἤματα πόλλʼ ἐτελέσθη,  
as the months waned and many days were fulfilled,

**144** καὶ τότε δή τις ἔειπε γυναικῶν, ἣ σάφα ᾔδη,  
then one of the women, who knew it clearly, told us,

**145** καὶ τήν γʼ ἀλλύουσαν ἐφεύρομεν ἀγλαὸν ἱστόν.  
and we caught her unraveling the shining web.

**146** ὣς τὸ μὲν ἐξετέλεσσε καὶ οὐκ ἐθέλουσʼ, ὑπʼ ἀνάγκης.  
So she finished it, against her will, under compulsion.

**147** εὖθʼ ἡ φᾶρος ἔδειξεν, ὑφήνασα μέγαν ἱστόν,  
When she showed the robe, having woven the great web

**148** πλύνασʼ, ἠελίῳ ἐναλίγκιον ἠὲ σελήνῃ,  
and washed it, gleaming like the sun or the moon,

**149** καὶ τότε δή ῥʼ Ὀδυσῆα κακός ποθεν ἤγαγε δαίμων  
just then some evil power brought Odysseus from somewhere
> daimon: δαίμων here is a vague divine force, not a named god. Amphimedon, ignorant of Athena's plan, calls the agent that returned Odysseus 'an evil power' from his own ruined point of view.

**150** ἀγροῦ ἐπʼ ἐσχατιήν, ὅθι δώματα ναῖε συβώτης.  
to the edge of the farm, where the swineherd had his dwelling.

**151** ἔνθʼ ἦλθεν φίλος υἱὸς Ὀδυσσῆος θείοιο,  
There came the dear son of godlike Odysseus,

**152** ἐκ Πύλου ἠμαθόεντος ἰὼν σὺν νηῒ μελαίνῃ·  
returning from sandy Pylos in his black ship;

**153** τὼ δὲ μνηστῆρσιν θάνατον κακὸν ἀρτύναντε  
and the two of them, having contrived an evil death for the suitors,
> Dual participle: ἀρτύναντε is a dual form: it refers to exactly two people, Odysseus and Telemachus together. Homeric Greek keeps the dual for natural pairs.

**154** ἵκοντο προτὶ ἄστυ περικλυτόν, ἦ τοι Ὀδυσσεὺς  
came to the famous town—Odysseus, in fact,

**155** ὕστερος, αὐτὰρ Τηλέμαχος πρόσθʼ ἡγεμόνευε.  
later, while Telemachus led the way before him.

**156** τὸν δὲ συβώτης ἦγε κακὰ χροῒ εἵματʼ ἔχοντα,  
The swineherd brought him wearing wretched clothes on his body,

**157** πτωχῷ λευγαλέῳ ἐναλίγκιον ἠδὲ γέροντι  
looking like a pitiful beggar and an old man

**158** σκηπτόμενον· τὰ δὲ λυγρὰ περὶ χροῒ εἵματα ἕστο·  
leaning on a staff; and the sorry rags clothed his body.

**159** οὐδέ τις ἡμείων δύνατο γνῶναι τὸν ἐόντα  
None of us was able to recognize who he was

**160** ἐξαπίνης προφανέντʼ, οὐδʼ οἳ προγενέστεροι ἦσαν,  
when he suddenly appeared, not even the older ones among us,

**161** ἀλλʼ ἔπεσίν τε κακοῖσιν ἐνίσσομεν ἠδὲ βολῇσιν.  
but we kept assailing him with foul words and with blows.

**162** αὐτὰρ ὁ τῆος ἐτόλμα ἐνὶ μεγάροισιν ἑοῖσι  
Yet for a time he endured it in his own halls,
> much-enduring: The verb τλάω ('endure, bear up') is bound to Odysseus throughout the poem (πολύτλας, 'much-enduring'). Here his restraint under abuse is exactly that defining patience.

**163** βαλλόμενος καὶ ἐνισσόμενος τετληότι θυμῷ·  
being struck and reviled, with an enduring heart;

**164** ἀλλʼ ὅτε δή μιν ἔγειρε Διὸς νοός αἰγιόχοιο,  
but when the will of aegis-bearing Zeus roused him,
> aegis-bearing Zeus: αἰγίοχος ('aegis-holding') is a fixed epithet of Zeus. The aegis is his terrifying storm-shield. Epithets like this are formulaic building blocks of the hexameter line.

**165** σὺν μὲν Τηλεμάχῳ περικαλλέα τεύχεʼ ἀείρας  
together with Telemachus he took up the splendid armor

**166** ἐς θάλαμον κατέθηκε καὶ ἐκλήϊσεν ὀχῆας,  
and laid it away in the storeroom and shot home the bolts;

**167** αὐτὰρ ὁ ἣν ἄλοχον πολυκερδείῃσιν ἄνωγε  
then in his great cunning he bade his wife

**168** τόξον μνηστήρεσσι θέμεν πολιόν τε σίδηρον,  
set out for the suitors the bow and the gray iron,

**169** ἡμῖν αἰνομόροισιν ἀέθλια καὶ φόνου ἀρχήν.  
as a contest for us, ill-fated men, and the beginning of slaughter.
> ill-fated: αἰνόμορος, 'doomed to a dreadful fate,' is how Amphimedon brands himself and his fellow suitors—a grim hindsight epithet for men who walked into the contest of the bow.

**170** οὐδέ τις ἡμείων δύνατο κρατεροῖο βιοῖο  
And none of us was able, from the mighty bow,

**171** νευρὴν ἐντανύσαι, πολλὸν δʼ ἐπιδευέες ἦμεν.  
to string the bowstring; we fell far short of it.

**172** ἀλλʼ ὅτε χεῖρας ἵκανεν Ὀδυσσῆος μέγα τόξον,  
But when the great bow came to the hands of Odysseus,

**173** ἔνθʼ ἡμεῖς μὲν πάντες ὁμοκλέομεν ἐπέεσσι  
then all of us together shouted out in protest

**174** τόξον μὴ δόμεναι, μηδʼ εἰ μάλα πολλʼ ἀγορεύοι·  
that the bow not be given him, no matter how much he argued;

**175** Τηλέμαχος δέ μιν οἶος ἐποτρύνων ἐκέλευσεν.  
but Telemachus alone urged him on and commanded it.

**176** αὐτὰρ ὁ δέξατο χειρὶ πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς,  
Then he took it in his hand, much-enduring godlike Odysseus,
> much-enduring godlike Odysseus: This whole noun-epithet phrase is a recurring formula filling the line's end. 'much-enduring' (πολύτλας) is Odysseus' signature epithet across the poem.

**177** ῥηϊδίως δʼ ἐτάνυσσε βιόν, διὰ δʼ ἧκε σιδήρου,  
and easily strung the bow and sent the arrow through the iron;

**178** στῆ δʼ ἄρʼ ἐπʼ οὐδὸν ἰών, ταχέας δʼ ἐκχεύατʼ ὀϊστοὺς  
then he stepped onto the threshold and poured out the swift arrows,

**179** δεινὸν παπταίνων, βάλε δʼ Ἀντίνοον βασιλῆα.  
glaring terribly, and struck Antinous the king.

**180** αὐτὰρ ἔπειτʼ ἄλλοις ἐφίει βέλεα στονόεντα,  
Then he let fly his grievous shafts at the others,

**181** ἄντα τιτυσκόμενος· τοὶ δʼ ἀγχιστῖνοι ἔπιπτον.  
taking aim straight ahead; and they fell thick upon one another.

**182** γνωτὸν δʼ ἦν ὅ ῥά τίς σφι θεῶν ἐπιτάρροθος ἦεν·  
It was plain that some one of the gods was his helper;

**183** αὐτίκα γὰρ κατὰ δώματʼ ἐπισπόμενοι μένεϊ σφῷ  
for at once, ranging through the halls in their fury,

**184** κτεῖνον ἐπιστροφάδην, τῶν δὲ στόνος ὤρνυτʼ ἀεικὴς  
they kept killing right and left, and an unseemly groaning rose

**185** κράτων τυπτομένων, δάπεδον δʼ ἅπαν αἵματι θῦεν.  
from heads being struck, and the whole floor ran with blood.
> ran/seethed with blood: θῦεν evokes a seething, surging flow. Homer makes the carnage vivid: the entire floor 'seethed' with blood, a concrete image of the massacre.

**186** ὣς ἡμεῖς, Ἀγάμεμνον, ἀπωλόμεθʼ, ὧν ἔτι καὶ νῦν  
Thus we perished, Agamemnon, and even now still

**187** σώματʼ ἀκηδέα κεῖται ἐνὶ μεγάροις Ὀδυσῆος·  
our bodies lie uncared-for in the halls of Odysseus;

**188** οὐ γάρ πω ἴσασι φίλοι κατὰ δώμαθʼ ἑκάστου,  
for our friends in each man's home do not yet know,

**189** οἵ κʼ ἀπονίψαντες μέλανα βρότον ἐξ ὠτειλέων  
who would wash the black gore from our wounds

**190** κατθέμενοι γοάοιεν· ὃ γὰρ γέρας ἐστὶ θανόντων.  
and lay us out and mourn us; for that is the due of the dead."

**191** τὸν δʼ αὖτε ψυχὴ προσεφώνεεν Ἀτρεΐδαο·  
Then the ghost of the son of Atreus answered him in turn:

**192** ὄλβιε Λαέρταο πάϊ, πολυμήχανʼ Ὀδυσσεῦ,  
"Fortunate son of Laertes, resourceful Odysseus,
> Vocative address: Ὀδυσσεῦ is vocative, the case of direct address, paired with the epithet πολυμήχανος ('of many devices'). Agamemnon's ghost addresses Amphimedon's shade and praises the living Odysseus through a rhetorical apostrophe — Odysseus is alive on Ithaca at this point, not present in Hades as a shade.

**193** ἦ ἄρα σὺν μεγάλῃ ἀρετῇ ἐκτήσω ἄκοιτιν.  
truly with great excellence did you win your wife.

**194** ὡς ἀγαθαὶ φρένες ἦσαν ἀμύμονι Πηνελοπείῃ,  
How good was the mind of blameless Penelope,

**195** κούρῃ Ἰκαρίου· ὡς εὖ μέμνητʼ Ὀδυσῆος,  
daughter of Icarius—how well she remembered Odysseus,

**196** ἀνδρὸς κουριδίου· τῷ οἱ κλέος οὔ ποτʼ ὀλεῖται  
her wedded husband. Therefore the fame of her excellence
> kleos: κλέος is undying glory carried by song—the reputation that outlives death. Penelope earns kleos through her fidelity, a striking honor for a woman in Homer.

**197** ἧς ἀρετῆς, τεύξουσι δʼ ἐπιχθονίοισιν ἀοιδὴν  
will never perish, and the immortals will fashion for those on earth

**198** ἀθάνατοι χαρίεσσαν ἐχέφρονι Πηνελοπείῃ,  
a graceful song in honor of prudent Penelope—

**199** οὐχ ὡς Τυνδαρέου κούρη κακὰ μήσατο ἔργα,  
not as the daughter of Tyndareus devised wicked deeds,

**200** κουρίδιον κτείνασα πόσιν, στυγερὴ δέ τʼ ἀοιδὴ  
killing her wedded husband; and a hateful song

**201** ἔσσετʼ ἐπʼ ἀνθρώπους, χαλεπὴν δέ τε φῆμιν ὀπάσσει  
will arise among men, and she will bring harsh repute

**202** θηλυτέρῃσι γυναιξί, καὶ ἥ κʼ εὐεργὸς ἔῃσιν.  
upon womankind, even on her who is virtuous."

**203** ὣς οἱ μὲν τοιαῦτα πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀγόρευον,  
Thus the two of them spoke such things to each other,

**204** ἑσταότʼ εἰν Ἀΐδαο δόμοις, ὑπὸ κεύθεσι γαίης·  
standing in the house of Hades, beneath the hidden depths of earth.

**205** οἱ δʼ ἐπεὶ ἐκ πόλιος κατέβαν, τάχα δʼ ἀγρὸν
                  ἵκοντο  
But the others, once they had come down from the city, quickly reached the farm,

**206** καλὸν Λαέρταο τετυγμένον, ὅν ῥά ποτʼ αὐτὸς  
the fine, well-built farm of Laertes, which once he himself,

**207** Λαέρτης κτεάτισσεν, ἐπεὶ μάλα πόλλʼ ἐμόγησεν.  
Laertes, had won, after he had labored hard for it.

**208** ἔνθα οἱ οἶκος ἔην, περὶ δὲ κλίσιον θέε πάντη,  
There was his house, and a hut ran round it on every side,

**209** ἐν τῷ σιτέσκοντο καὶ ἵζανον ἠδὲ ἴαυον  
in which the slaves used to eat and sit and sleep,

**210** δμῶες ἀναγκαῖοι, τοί οἱ φίλα ἐργάζοντο.  
the bondsmen of necessity, who did the work he wished.

**211** ἐν δὲ γυνὴ Σικελὴ γρηῢς πέλεν, ἥ ῥα γέροντα  
And among them was a Sicilian woman, an old one, who tended the old man
> Imperfect of 'to be': πέλεν is an imperfect ('there was, used to be'), a Homeric verb of being. The augment is absent, as often in epic verse, giving the bare stem πελ-.

**212** ἐνδυκέως κομέεσκεν ἐπʼ ἀγροῦ, νόσφι πόληος.  
with care out on the farm, far from the city.

**213** ἔνθʼ Ὀδυσεὺς δμώεσσι καὶ υἱέϊ μῦθον ἔειπεν·  
There Odysseus spoke a word to the slaves and his son:

**214** ὑμεῖς μὲν νῦν ἔλθετʼ ἐϋκτίμενον δόμον εἴσω,  
"You go now inside the well-built house,
> Aorist imperative: ἔλθετε is a plural aorist imperative, 'go!'—a direct command to several people. Odysseus orders the household ahead while he tests his father.

**215** δεῖπνον δʼ αἶψα συῶν ἱερεύσατε ὅς τις ἄριστος·  
and quickly slaughter for dinner whichever pig is best;

**216** αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ πατρὸς πειρήσομαι ἡμετέροιο,  
but I will make trial of our father,

**217** αἴ κέ μʼ ἐπιγνώῃ καὶ φράσσεται ὀφθαλμοῖσιν,  
to see whether he will recognize me and know me with his eyes,

**218** ἦέ κεν ἀγνοιῇσι, πολὺν χρόνον ἀμφὶς ἐόντα.  
or fail to know me, after I have been so long away."

**219** ὣς εἰπὼν δμώεσσιν ἀρήϊα τεύχεʼ ἔδωκεν.  
So speaking, he gave the warlike armor to the slaves.

**220** οἱ μὲν ἔπειτα δόμονδε θοῶς κίον, αὐτὰρ Ὀδυσσεὺς  
They then went swiftly homeward, while Odysseus

**221** ἆσσον ἴεν πολυκάρπου ἀλωῆς πειρητίζων.  
drew nearer to the fruitful orchard, making trial of his father.

**222** οὐδʼ εὗρεν Δολίον, μέγαν ὄρχατον ἐσκαταβαίνων,  
He did not find Dolios as he went down into the great orchard,

**223** οὐδέ τινα δμώων οὐδʼ υἱῶν· ἀλλʼ ἄρα τοί γε  
nor any of the slaves nor of the sons; but they, as it happened,
> Partitive genitive: The genitive plurals here mark the group from which 'any' is drawn: none of the slaves, none of the sons. A common Homeric way of expressing 'any of X'.

**224** αἱμασιὰς λέξοντες ἀλωῆς ἔμμεναι ἕρκος  
had gone to gather stones for walls, to be a fence for the orchard,

**225** ᾤχοντʼ, αὐτὰρ ὁ τοῖσι γέρων ὁδὸν ἡγεμόνευε.  
and the old man led them on their way.

**226** τὸν δʼ οἶον πατέρʼ εὗρεν ἐϋκτιμένῃ ἐν ἀλωῇ,  
So he found his father alone in the well-tended orchard,

**227** λιστρεύοντα φυτόν· ῥυπόωντα δὲ ἕστο χιτῶνα  
hoeing about a plant. He wore a filthy tunic,

**228** ῥαπτὸν ἀεικέλιον, περὶ δὲ κνήμῃσι βοείας  
patched and shabby, and round his shins he had oxhide

**229** κνημῖδας ῥαπτὰς δέδετο, γραπτῦς ἀλεείνων,  
leggings, stitched and tied on, to ward off the scratches,

**230** χειρῖδάς τʼ ἐπὶ χερσὶ βάτων ἕνεκʼ· αὐτὰρ ὕπερθεν  
and gloves on his hands because of the brambles; and on top,

**231** αἰγείην κυνέην κεφαλῇ ἔχε, πένθος ἀέξων.  
he wore a goatskin cap on his head, nursing his grief.
> Feeding his sorrow: The phrase literally means 'increasing his grief'; the image is of mourning that is cultivated and kept alive rather than set aside.

**232** τὸν δʼ ὡς οὖν ἐνόησε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεὺς  
When much-enduring noble Odysseus saw him,

**233** γήραϊ τειρόμενον, μέγα δὲ φρεσὶ πένθος ἔχοντα,  
worn down by old age and holding a great grief in his heart,

**234** στὰς ἄρʼ ὑπὸ βλωθρὴν ὄγχνην κατὰ δάκρυον εἶβε.  
he stood beneath a tall pear tree and let a tear fall.

**235** μερμήριξε δʼ ἔπειτα κατὰ φρένα καὶ κατὰ θυμὸν  
Then he pondered in his mind and in his heart
> Aorist of deliberation: The aorist μερμήριξε ('he pondered, debated') opens a typical Homeric scene of weighing two courses of action, set out first by infinitives (ll. 236–237: κύσσαι, περιφῦναι, εἰπεῖν) and then by optatives (l. 238: ἐξερέοιτο, πειρήσαιτο).

**236** κύσσαι καὶ περιφῦναι ἑὸν πατέρʼ, ἠδὲ ἕκαστα  
whether to kiss and embrace his father, and tell him each thing,

**237** εἰπεῖν, ὡς ἔλθοι καὶ ἵκοιτʼ ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν,  
how he had come back and reached his native land,

**238** ἦ πρῶτʼ ἐξερέοιτο ἕκαστά τε πειρήσαιτο.  
or whether to question him first and make trial of him point by point.

**239** ὧδε δέ οἱ φρονέοντι δοάσσατο κέρδιον εἶναι,  
And as he pondered, this seemed to him the better course:

**240** πρῶτον κερτομίοις ἐπέεσσιν πειρηθῆναι.  
first to make trial of him with mocking words.

**241** τὰ φρονέων ἰθὺς κίεν αὐτοῦ δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς.  
With this in mind, noble Odysseus went straight up to him.

**242** ἦ τοι ὁ μὲν κατέχων κεφαλὴν φυτὸν ἀμφελάχαινε·  
He, head bent low, was hoeing around the plant,

**243** τὸν δὲ παριστάμενος προσεφώνεε φαίδιμος υἱός·  
and his glorious son stood beside him and spoke:

**244** ὦ γέρον, οὐκ ἀδαημονίη σʼ ἔχει ἀμφιπολεύειν  
"Old man, you lack no skill in tending

**245** ὄρχατον, ἀλλʼ εὖ τοι κομιδὴ ἔχει, οὐδέ τι πάμπαν,  
an orchard; your care of it is good, and there is nothing at all,

**246** οὐ φυτόν, οὐ συκέη, οὐκ ἄμπελος, οὐ μὲν ἐλαίη,  
no plant, no fig, no vine, no olive,

**247** οὐκ ὄγχνη, οὐ πρασιή τοι ἄνευ κομιδῆς κατὰ κῆπον.  
no pear, no garden bed in the plot, that lacks your care.

**248** ἄλλο δέ τοι ἐρέω, σὺ δὲ μὴ χόλον ἔνθεο θυμῷ  
But I will tell you something else, and do not take it to heart in anger:

**249** αὐτόν σʼ οὐκ ἀγαθὴ κομιδὴ ἔχει, ἀλλʼ ἅμα γῆρας  
you yourself get no good care; rather, along with a sorry old age

**250** λυγρὸν ἔχεις αὐχμεῖς τε κακῶς καὶ ἀεικέα ἕσσαι.  
you bear it, and you are filthy and squalid and meanly clothed.

**251** οὐ μὲν ἀεργίης γε ἄναξ ἕνεκʼ οὔ σε κομίζει,  
It is not for idleness that your master neglects you,

**252** οὐδέ τί τοι δούλειον ἐπιπρέπει εἰσοράασθαι  
and there is nothing servile to behold in your

**253** εἶδος καὶ μέγεθος· βασιλῆϊ γὰρ ἀνδρὶ ἔοικας.  
form and stature: you look like a kingly man.
> Dative with ἔοικας: ἔοικας ('you resemble') takes the dative: βασιλῆϊ ἀνδρί, 'like a kingly man'. The dative marks the person resembled.

**254** τοιούτῳ δὲ ἔοικας, ἐπεὶ λούσαιτο φάγοι τε,  
You look like the kind of man who, once he had bathed and eaten,

**255** εὑδέμεναι μαλακῶς· ἡ γὰρ δίκη ἐστὶ γερόντων.  
would sleep soft: for that is the due of old men.
> δίκη as 'what is fitting': Here δίκη means not 'justice' in a legal sense but 'the way of things' or 'the proper due'—the treatment that custom owes to the old.

**256** ἀλλʼ ἄγε μοι τόδε εἰπὲ καὶ ἀτρεκέως κατάλεξον,  
But come, tell me this, and recount it truthfully:

**257** τεῦ δμὼς εἶς ἀνδρῶν; τεῦ δʼ ὄρχατον ἀμφιπολεύεις;  
whose slave are you? whose orchard do you tend?

**258** καὶ μοι τοῦτʼ ἀγόρευσον ἐτήτυμον, ὄφρʼ ἐῢ εἰδῶ,  
And tell me this truly too, so that I may know well:

**259** εἰ ἐτεόν γʼ Ἰθάκην τήνδʼ ἱκόμεθʼ, ὥς μοι ἔειπεν  
is this really Ithaca that we have come to, as that man told me,

**260** οὗτος ἀνὴρ νῦν δὴ ξυμβλήμενος ἐνθάδʼ ἰόντι,  
the one I met just now as I was coming here—

**261** οὔ τι μάλʼ ἀρτίφρων, ἐπεὶ οὐ τόλμησεν ἕκαστα  
not a very sensible fellow, for he could not bring himself, point by point,

**262** εἰπεῖν ἠδʼ ἐπακοῦσαι ἐμὸν ἔπος, ὡς ἐρέεινον  
to tell me or to listen to my words, when I asked

**263** ἀμφὶ ξείνῳ ἐμῷ, ἤ που ζώει τε καὶ ἔστιν  
about a guest-friend of mine, whether he is still alive and present,

**264** ἦ ἤδη τέθνηκε καὶ εἰν Ἀΐδαο δόμοισιν.  
or has already died and gone to the house of Hades.

**265** ἐκ γάρ τοι ἐρέω, σὺ δὲ σύνθεο καί μευ ἄκουσον·  
For I will tell you outright, and you mark and hear me:

**266** ἄνδρα ποτʼ ἐξείνισσα φίλῃ ἐνὶ πατρίδι γαίῃ  
I once entertained a man in my own native land

**267** ἡμέτερόνδʼ ἐλθόντα, καὶ οὔ πω τις βροτὸς ἄλλος  
when he came to our house, and never yet did any other mortal

**268** ξείνων τηλεδαπῶν φιλίων ἐμὸν ἵκετο δῶμα·  
of guests from far-off lands come dearer to my home.

**269** εὔχετο δʼ ἐξ Ἰθάκης γένος ἔμμεναι, αὐτὰρ ἔφασκε  
He claimed his lineage was from Ithaca, and he said

**270** Λαέρτην Ἀρκεισιάδην πατέρʼ ἔμμεναι αὐτῷ.  
that Laertes son of Arceisius was his father.

**271** τὸν μὲν ἐγὼ πρὸς δώματʼ ἄγων ἐῢ ἐξείνισσα,  
I led him to my house and entertained him well,

**272** ἐνδυκέως φιλέων, πολλῶν κατὰ οἶκον ἐόντων,  
feasting him kindly, for there was abundance in the house,

**273** καί οἱ δῶρα πόρον ξεινήϊα, οἷα ἐῴκει.  
and I gave him guest-gifts, such as were fitting.

**274** χρυσοῦ μέν οἱ δῶκʼ εὐεργέος ἑπτὰ τάλαντα,  
I gave him seven talents of well-wrought gold,

**275** δῶκα δέ οἱ κρητῆρα πανάργυρον ἀνθεμόεντα,  
I gave him a mixing-bowl all of silver, worked with flowers,

**276** δώδεκα δʼ ἁπλοΐδας χλαίνας, τόσσους δὲ τάπητας,  
twelve cloaks of single fold, and as many rugs,

**277** τόσσα δὲ φάρεα καλά, τόσους δʼ ἐπὶ τοῖσι χιτῶνας,  
as many fine mantles, and as many tunics besides,

**278** χωρὶς δʼ αὖτε γυναῖκας, ἀμύμονα ἔργα ἰδυίας,  
and apart from these, women skilled in faultless handiwork,

**279** τέσσαρας εἰδαλίμας, ἃς ἤθελεν αὐτὸς ἑλέσθαι.  
four shapely ones, whom he wished to choose for himself."

**280** τὸν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειτα πατὴρ κατὰ δάκρυον
                  εἴβων·  
Then his father answered him, shedding a tear:

**281** ξεῖνʼ, ἦ τοι μὲν γαῖαν ἱκάνεις, ἣν ἐρεείνεις,  
"Stranger, you have indeed come to the land you ask about,

**282** ὑβρισταὶ δʼ αὐτὴν καὶ ἀτάσθαλοι ἄνδρες ἔχουσιν·  
but insolent and reckless men hold it now.
> Insolence and recklessness: ὑβρισταί (men of hubris) paired with ἀτάσθαλοι (reckless wrongdoers) names exactly the fault of the suitors: violent disregard for limits and the gods.

**283** δῶρα δʼ ἐτώσια ταῦτα χαρίζεο, μυρίʼ ὀπάζων·  
These gifts you gave were given in vain, lavishing them by the thousand;

**284** εἰ γάρ μιν ζωόν γʼ ἐκίχεις Ἰθάκης ἐνὶ δήμῳ,  
for if you had found him alive in the land of Ithaca,

**285** τῷ κέν σʼ εὖ δώροισιν ἀμειψάμενος ἀπέπεμψε  
he would have sent you away well repaid with gifts in return

**286** καὶ ξενίῃ ἀγαθῇ ἡ γὰρ θέμις, ὅς τις ὑπάρξῃ.  
and with good hospitality—for that is the right, when one begins it.
> θέμις as established custom: θέμις names what is right by divine and social custom—here, the obligation to repay a guest who has shown generosity first.

**287** ἀλλʼ ἄγε μοι τόδε εἰπὲ καὶ ἀτρεκέως κατάλεξον,  
But come, tell me this, and recount it truthfully:

**288** πόστον δὴ ἔτος ἐστίν, ὅτε ξείνισσας ἐκεῖνον  
how many years is it now, since you entertained that man,

**289** σὸν ξεῖνον δύστηνον, ἐμὸν παῖδʼ, εἴ ποτʼ ἔην γε,  
your guest, ill-fated, my son—if ever he truly was—
> "If ever he truly was": This bitter formula expresses a grieving doubt that the absent son ever really existed, so long has he been gone. It recurs as a touchstone of loss in the poem.

**290** δύσμορον; ὅν που τῆλε φίλων καὶ πατρίδος αἴης  
doomed; whom, far perhaps from his friends and his native land,

**291** ἠέ που ἐν πόντῳ φάγον ἰχθύες, ἢ ἐπὶ χέρσου  
either the fishes have eaten somewhere in the sea, or on dry land

**292** θηρσὶ καὶ οἰωνοῖσιν ἕλωρ γένετʼ· οὐδέ ἑ μήτηρ  
he has become prey to beasts and birds; nor did his mother

**293** κλαῦσε περιστείλασα πατήρ θʼ, οἵ μιν τεκόμεσθα·  
wrap and mourn him, nor his father, we who bore him;

**294** οὐδʼ ἄλοχος πολύδωρος, ἐχέφρων Πηνελόπεια,  
nor did his richly-dowered wife, prudent Penelope,

**295** κώκυσʼ ἐν λεχέεσσιν ἑὸν πόσιν, ὡς ἐπεῴκει,  
wail for her husband upon his bier, as was fitting,

**296** ὀφθαλμοὺς καθελοῦσα· τὸ γὰρ γέρας ἐστὶ θανόντων.  
and close his eyes: for that is the due of the dead.

**297** καί μοι τοῦτʼ ἀγόρευσον ἐτήτυμον, ὄφρʼ ἐῢ εἰδῶ·  
And tell me this truly too, so that I may know well:

**298** τίς πόθεν εἶς ἀνδρῶν; πόθι τοι πόλις ἠδὲ τοκῆες;  
who are you, and from where among men? where is your city and your parents?
> The Homeric questioning formula: This stock string of questions—who, whence, where your city and kin—is the formulaic Homeric way of demanding a stranger's identity.

**299** ποῦ δὲ νηῦς ἕστηκε θοή, ἥ σʼ ἤγαγε δεῦρο  
And where is the swift ship moored that brought you here,

**300** ἀντιθέους θʼ ἑτάρους; ἦ ἔμπορος εἰλήλουθας  
and your godlike companions? Or did you come as a passenger

**301** νηὸς ἐπʼ ἀλλοτρίης, οἱ δʼ ἐκβήσαντες ἔβησαν;  
on another man's ship, and they set you ashore and went away?"

**302** τὸν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη πολύμητις
                  Ὀδυσσεύς·  
Then Odysseus of many counsels answered him:
> "Of many counsels": πολύμητις ('of many devices/counsels') is the stock epithet of Odysseus, marking his cunning. Such formulaic epithets fill the metrical line and characterize the hero.

**303** τοιγὰρ ἐγώ τοι πάντα μάλʼ ἀτρεκέως καταλέξω.  
"Then I will recount everything to you quite truthfully.

**304** εἰμὶ μὲν ἐξ Ἀλύβαντος, ὅθι κλυτὰ δώματα ναίω,  
I am from Alybas, where I dwell in a famous house,

**305** υἱὸς Ἀφείδαντος Πολυπημονίδαο ἄνακτος·  
the son of lord Apheidas, son of Polypemon;

**306** αὐτὰρ ἐμοί γʼ ὄνομʼ ἐστὶν Ἐπήριτος· ἀλλά με δαίμων  
and my own name is Eperitus. But a god

**307** πλάγξʼ ἀπὸ Σικανίης δεῦρʼ ἐλθέμεν οὐκ ἐθέλοντα·  
drove me off course from Sicania to come here against my will,

**308** νηῦς δέ μοι ἥδʼ ἕστηκεν ἐπʼ ἀγροῦ νόσφι πόληος.  
and my ship lies there off the country, away from the city.

**309** αὐτὰρ Ὀδυσσῆϊ τόδε δὴ πέμπτον ἔτος ἐστίν,  
As for Odysseus, this is now the fifth year

**310** ἐξ οὗ κεῖθεν ἔβη καὶ ἐμῆς ἀπελήλυθε πάτρης,  
since he went away from there and left my country,

**311** δύσμορος· ἦ τέ οἱ ἐσθλοὶ ἔσαν ὄρνιθες ἰόντι,  
ill-fated man; yet the birds were favorable for him as he set out,

**312** δεξιοί, οἷς χαίρων μὲν ἐγὼν ἀπέπεμπον ἐκεῖνον,  
on the right, rejoicing in which I sent him on his way,

**313** χαῖρε δὲ κεῖνος ἰών· θυμὸς δʼ ἔτι νῶϊν ἐώλπει  
and he went rejoicing; and our hearts still hoped
> Dual pronoun: νῶϊν is the dual 'for us two', referring to the pair—Odysseus and his fictional host. Homer often uses the dual for natural pairs.

**314** μίξεσθαι ξενίῃ ἠδʼ ἀγλαὰ δῶρα διδώσειν.  
to meet again in friendship and exchange splendid gifts."

**315** ὣς φάτο, τὸν δʼ ἄχεος νεφέλη ἐκάλυψε μέλαινα·  
So he spoke, and a black cloud of grief covered him over;
> The black cloud of grief: Grief (ἄχος) is figured as a black cloud that wraps the mourner—a recurring Homeric image for the onset of overwhelming sorrow.

**316** ἀμφοτέρῃσι δὲ χερσὶν ἑλὼν κόνιν αἰθαλόεσσαν  
and with both hands he took up the sooty dust

**317** χεύατο κὰκ κεφαλῆς πολιῆς, ἁδινὰ στεναχίζων.  
and poured it over his gray head, groaning thick and fast.

**318** τοῦ δʼ ὠρίνετο θυμός, ἀνὰ ῥῖνας δέ οἱ ἤδη  
And the heart of Odysseus was stirred, and up through his nostrils now

**319** δριμὺ μένος προὔτυψε φίλον πατέρʼ εἰσορόωντι.  
a sharp force surged as he looked on his dear father.

**320** κύσσε δέ μιν περιφὺς ἐπιάλμενος, ἠδὲ προσηύδα·  
He sprang forward, clasped and kissed him, and spoke:

**321** κεῖνος μέν τοι ὅδʼ αὐτὸς ἐγώ, πάτερ, ὃν σὺ
                     μεταλλᾷς,  
"Father, I myself am the very man you ask about—

**322** ἤλυθον εἰκοστῷ ἔτεϊ ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν.  
I have come in the twentieth year to my native land.

**323** ἀλλʼ ἴσχεο κλαυθμοῖο γόοιό τε δακρυόεντος.  
But hold back from weeping and tearful lament.
> Middle imperative: ἴσχεο ('hold yourself back, cease') is a present middle imperative; the middle voice turns the action on the subject—restrain yourself.

**324** ἐκ γάρ τοι ἐρέω· μάλα δὲ χρὴ σπευδέμεν ἔμπης·  
For I will tell you outright; and we must make great haste regardless:

**325** μνηστῆρας κατέπεφνον ἐν ἡμετέροισι δόμοισι,  
I have slain the suitors in our own house,

**326** λώβην τινύμενος θυμαλγέα καὶ κακὰ ἔργα.  
avenging their heart-galling outrage and their evil deeds."

**327** τὸν δʼ αὖ Λαέρτης ἀπαμείβετο φώνησέν τε·  
Then Laertes answered him in turn and said:

**328** εἰ μὲν δὴ Ὀδυσεύς γε ἐμὸς πάϊς ἐνθάδʼ ἱκάνεις,  
"If you really are my son Odysseus come back here,

**329** σῆμά τί μοι νῦν εἰπὲ ἀριφραδές, ὄφρα πεποίθω.  
give me now some clear sign, that I may be convinced."
> σῆμα: a proof-sign: A σῆμα is a token or recognizable sign used to confirm identity—here Laertes demands one, as Penelope did, before he will believe.

**330** τὸν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη πολύμητις
                  Ὀδυσσεύς·  
Then Odysseus of many counsels answered him:

**331** οὐλὴν μὲν πρῶτον τήνδε φράσαι ὀφθαλμοῖσι,  
"First, then, look closely at this scar with your own eyes,

**332** τὴν ἐν Παρνησῷ μʼ ἔλασεν σῦς λευκῷ ὀδόντι  
the one a boar dealt me with his white tusk on Parnassus

**333** οἰχόμενον· σὺ δέ με προΐεις καὶ πότνια μήτηρ  
when I had gone there. You and my honored mother sent me

**334** ἐς πατέρʼ Αὐτόλυκον μητρὸς φίλον, ὄφρʼ ἂν ἑλοίμην  
to Autolycus, my mother's own father, so that I might receive

**335** δῶρα, τὰ δεῦρο μολών μοι ὑπέσχετο καὶ κατένευσεν.  
the gifts he promised me with a nod when he came here.

**336** εἰ δʼ ἄγε τοι καὶ δένδρεʼ ἐϋκτιμένην κατʼ ἀλωὴν  
Come, and I will name for you the trees in the well-tended orchard

**337** εἴπω, ἅ μοί ποτʼ ἔδωκας, ἐγὼ δʼ ᾔτεόν σε ἕκαστα  
that you once gave me. I begged you for each of them,

**338** παιδνὸς ἐών, κατὰ κῆπον ἐπισπόμενος· διὰ δʼ αὐτῶν  
being a child, following you through the garden. Among them
> "Being a child": The adjective παιδνός marks Odysseus as a small boy at the time, underscoring the intimate, early memory he shares with his father as proof of identity.

**339** ἱκνεύμεσθα, σὺ δʼ ὠνόμασας καὶ ἔειπες ἕκαστα.  
we walked, and you named and pointed out each one.

**340** ὄγχνας μοι δῶκας τρισκαίδεκα καὶ δέκα μηλέας,  
You gave me thirteen pear trees and ten apple trees,

**341** συκέας τεσσαράκοντʼ· ὄρχους δέ μοι ὧδʼ ὀνόμηνας  
forty fig trees; and you named for me, in the same way,

**342** δώσειν πεντήκοντα, διατρύγιος δὲ ἕκαστος  
fifty rows of vines you would give, and each one of them

**343** ἤην· ἔνθα δʼ ἀνὰ σταφυλαὶ παντοῖαι ἔασιν—  
ripened in turn—and on them grow grapes of every kind,

**344** ὁππότε δὴ Διὸς ὧραι ἐπιβρίσειαν ὕπερθεν.  
whenever the seasons of Zeus weigh heavy from above."

**345** ὣς φάτο, τοῦ δʼ αὐτοῦ λύτο γούνατα καὶ φίλον
                  ἦτορ,  
So he spoke, and Laertes' knees and dear heart gave way on the spot,
> "His knees gave way": "His knees were loosened" is a Homeric formula usually marking death in battle; here it conveys Laertes nearly fainting from overwhelming emotion as he recognizes his son.

**346** σήματʼ ἀναγνόντος τά οἱ ἔμπεδα πέφραδʼ Ὀδυσσεύς.  
as he knew the sure signs that Odysseus had pointed out.
> Recognition tokens (sêmata): The σήματα are the concrete proofs—scar and named trees—by which a person is identified. Recognition by such signs is a recurring structural device throughout the Odyssey.

**347** ἀμφὶ δὲ παιδὶ φίλῳ βάλε πήχεε· τὸν δὲ ποτὶ οἷ  
He threw both arms around his dear son, and much-enduring
> Dual: "both arms": πήχεε is a dual form, denoting exactly the two forearms thrown around the son. Homer keeps the old dual number alive for naturally paired things like arms.

**348** εἷλεν ἀποψύχοντα πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς.  
noble Odysseus drew him close as he was fainting.

**349** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ἄμπνυτο καὶ ἐς φρένα θυμὸς ἀγέρθη,  
But when he had caught his breath and his spirit gathered in his chest,

**350** ἐξαῦτις μύθοισιν ἀμειβόμενος προσέειπε·  
once more he spoke in answer and addressed him:

**351** Ζεῦ πάτερ, ἦ ῥα ἔτʼ ἔστε θεοὶ κατὰ μακρὸν
                     Ὄλυμπον,  
"Father Zeus, so you gods do still exist on high Olympus,

**352** εἰ ἐτεὸν μνηστῆρες ἀτάσθαλον ὕβριν ἔτισαν.  
if the suitors have truly paid for their reckless arrogance.
> Reckless arrogance (hybris): ὕβρις paired with ἀτάσθαλος names the suitors' insolent, self-destructive overreach against the gods' order. Their punishment confirms that divine justice still operates.

**353** νῦν δʼ αἰνῶς δείδοικα κατὰ φρένα μὴ τάχα πάντες  
But now I am terribly afraid in my heart that soon all

**354** ἐνθάδʼ ἐπέλθωσιν Ἰθακήσιοι, ἀγγελίας δὲ  
the Ithacans will come against us here, and will send word

**355** πάντη ἐποτρύνωσι Κεφαλλήνων πολίεσσι.  
everywhere to rouse the cities of the Cephallenians."

**356** τὸν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη πολύμητις
                  Ὀδυσσεύς·  
Then resourceful Odysseus answered him and said:
> The epithet "resourceful Odysseus": πολύμητις ("of many counsels") is Odysseus' signature formulaic epithet, filling the verse-end. Such fixed epithets are a hallmark of oral hexameter composition.

**357** θάρσει, μή τοι ταῦτα μετὰ φρεσὶ σῇσι μελόντων.  
"Take heart, and do not let these things trouble your mind.

**358** ἀλλʼ ἴομεν προτὶ οἶκον, ὃς ὀρχάτου ἐγγύθι κεῖται·  
But let us go to the house that lies near the orchard;

**359** ἔνθα δὲ Τηλέμαχον καὶ βουκόλον ἠδὲ συβώτην  
there I sent ahead Telemachus and the cowherd and the swineherd,

**360** προὔπεμψʼ, ὡς ἂν δεῖπνον ἐφοπλίσσωσι τάχιστα.  
so that they might make the meal ready as quickly as possible."

**361** ὣς ἄρα φωνήσαντε βάτην πρὸς δώματα καλά.  
So having spoken, the two went off toward the fine house.
> Dual verb: "the two went": βάτην is a dual aorist, marking father and son moving as a natural pair. Homer favors the dual for two persons acting together.

**362** οἱ δʼ ὅτε δή ῥʼ ἵκοντο δόμους εὖ ναιετάοντας,  
And when they reached the well-built dwelling,

**363** εὗρον Τηλέμαχον καὶ βουκόλον ἠδὲ συβώτην  
they found Telemachus and the cowherd and the swineherd

**364** ταμνομένους κρέα πολλὰ κερῶντάς τʼ αἴθοπα οἶνον.  
carving plenty of meat and mixing the gleaming wine.
> "Gleaming wine": αἶθοψ ("fiery, sparkling") is a stock epithet for wine, evoking its glinting dark color. It belongs to Homer's repertoire of fixed phrases like "wine-dark sea."

**365** τόφρα δὲ Λαέρτην μεγαλήτορα ᾧ ἐνὶ οἴκῳ  
Meanwhile, in the house, the great-hearted Laertes

**366** ἀμφίπολος Σικελὴ λοῦσεν καὶ χρῖσεν ἐλαίῳ,  
the Sicilian handmaid bathed and anointed with oil,

**367** ἀμφὶ δʼ ἄρα χλαῖναν καλὴν βάλεν· αὐτὰρ Ἀθήνη  
and threw a fine cloak about him. Then Athena,

**368** ἄγχι παρισταμένη μέλεʼ ἤλδανε ποιμένι λαῶν,  
standing close beside him, filled out the limbs of the shepherd of the people,
> "Shepherd of the people": ποιμὴν λαῶν is a recurring epithet for kings and leaders, casting the ruler as a herdsman caring for his flock. Athena restores this kingly vigor to the aged Laertes.

**369** μείζονα δʼ ἠὲ πάρος καὶ πάσσονα θῆκεν ἰδέσθαι.  
and made him taller than before and broader to behold.

**370** ἐκ δʼ ἀσαμίνθου βῆ· θαύμαζε δέ μιν φίλος υἱός,  
He stepped out of the bath; and his dear son marveled at him

**371** ὡς ἴδεν ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖς ἐναλίγκιον ἄντην·  
when he saw him face to face, like the immortal gods.

**372** καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·  
And he spoke to him with winged words:
> "Winged words": ἔπεα πτερόεντα ("winged words") is among the most frequent Homeric formulas introducing direct speech, picturing words flying from speaker to hearer.

**373** ὦ πάτερ, ἦ μάλα τίς σε θεῶν αἰειγενετάων  
"Father, surely one of the everlasting gods

**374** εἶδός τε μέγεθός τε ἀμείνονα θῆκεν ἰδέσθαι.  
has made you better to behold in form and stature."

**375** τὸν δʼ αὖ Λαέρτης πεπνυμένος ἀντίον ηὔδα·  
Then wise Laertes spoke to him in reply:

**376** αἲ γάρ, Ζεῦ τε πάτερ καὶ Ἀθηναίη καὶ Ἄπολλον,  
"Would, by Father Zeus and Athena and Apollo,

**377** οἷος Νήρικον εἷλον, ἐϋκτίμενον πτολίεθρον,  
that, as I was when I took Nericum, the well-built citadel,

**378** ἀκτὴν ἠπείροιο, Κεφαλλήνεσσιν ἀνάσσων,  
a headland of the mainland, while I ruled the Cephallenians—

**379** τοῖος ἐών τοι χθιζὸς ἐν ἡμετέροισι δόμοισιν,  
that being such a man I had stood yesterday in our house,

**380** τεύχεʼ ἔχων ὤμοισιν, ἐφεστάμεναι καὶ ἀμύνειν  
with armor on my shoulders, to stand by you and fight off

**381** ἄνδρας μνηστῆρας· τῷ κε σφέων γούνατʼ ἔλυσα  
the suitors! Then I would have loosened the knees of many
> "Loosened their knees": "To loosen the knees" is the standard Homeric idiom for killing a man in battle. Laertes wishes he could have struck down many suitors himself.

**382** πολλῶν ἐν μεγάροισι, σὺ δὲ φρένας ἔνδον ἐγήθεις.  
of them in the halls, and you would have rejoiced at heart within."

**383** ὣς οἷ μὲν τοιαῦτα πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀγόρευον.  
So they spoke such things to one another.

**384** οἱ δʼ ἐπεὶ οὖν παύσαντο πόνου τετύκοντό τε δαῖτα,  
But the others, when they had ceased their labor and prepared the feast,

**385** ἑξείης ἕζοντο κατὰ κλισμούς τε θρόνους τε·  
sat down in order on the couches and the chairs.

**386** ἔνθʼ οἱ μὲν δείπνῳ ἐπεχείρεον, ἀγχίμολον δὲ  
There they were setting to the meal, when close at hand

**387** ἦλθʼ ὁ γέρων Δολίος, σὺν δʼ υἱεῖς τοῖο γέροντος,  
came old Dolius, and with him the old man's sons,

**388** ἐξ ἔργων μογέοντες, ἐπεὶ προμολοῦσα κάλεσσεν  
weary from their work, for their mother had gone out and called them,

**389** μήτηρ γρηῦς Σικελή, ἥ σφεας τρέφε καί ῥα γέροντα  
the old Sicilian woman, who raised them and tended the old man

**390** ἐνδυκέως κομέεσκεν, ἐπεὶ κατὰ γῆρας ἔμαρψεν.  
carefully, now that age had taken hold of him.

**391** οἱ δʼ ὡς οὖν Ὀδυσῆα ἴδον φράσσαντό τε θυμῷ,  
When they saw Odysseus and knew him in their hearts,

**392** ἔσταν ἐνὶ μεγάροισι τεθηπότες· αὐτὰρ Ὀδυσσεὺς  
they stood in the halls amazed; but Odysseus

**393** μειλιχίοις ἐπέεσσι καθαπτόμενος προσέειπεν·  
spoke to them, greeting them with gentle words:

**394** ὦ γέρον, ἵζʼ ἐπὶ δεῖπνον, ἀπεκλελάθεσθε δὲ
                     θάμβευς·  
"Old man, sit down to the meal, and let go your astonishment;

**395** δηρὸν γὰρ σίτῳ ἐπιχειρήσειν μεμαῶτες  
for though eager to set to the food, we have long been

**396** μίμνομεν ἐν μεγάροις, ὑμέας ποτιδέγμενοι αἰεί.  
waiting here in the halls, always expecting you."

**397** ὣς ἄρ ἔφη, Δολίος δʼ ἰθὺς κίε χεῖρε πετάσσας  
So he spoke, and Dolius came straight up with both hands

**398** ἀμφοτέρας, Ὀδυσεῦς δὲ λαβὼν κύσε χεῖρʼ ἐπὶ καρπῷ,  
spread wide; and Odysseus took his hand and kissed it at the wrist,

**399** καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·  
and he spoke to him with winged words:

**400** ὦ φίλʼ, ἐπεὶ νόστησας ἐελδομένοισι μάλʼ ἡμῖν  
"Dear friend, since you have come home to us who longed for you

**401** οὐδʼ ἔτʼ ὀϊομένοισι, θεοὶ δέ σʼ ἀνήγαγον αὐτοί,  
and no longer expected you, and the gods themselves have brought you back,

**402** οὖλέ τε καὶ μάλα χαῖρε, θεοὶ δέ τοι ὄλβια δοῖεν.  
welcome, and great joy to you, and may the gods grant you blessings.
> "Blessings" (olbia): ὄλβια denotes prosperity and blessed good fortune granted by the gods. The wish frames Odysseus' return as a divine favor that should overflow onto his loyal servants.

**403** καί μοι τοῦτʼ ἀγόρευσον ἐτήτυμον, ὄφρʼ ἐῢ εἰδῶ,  
And tell me this truly, so that I may know it well:

**404** ἢ ἤδη σάφα οἶδε περίφρων Πηνελόπεια  
does prudent Penelope already know clearly

**405** νοστήσαντά σε δεῦρʼ, ἦ ἄγγελον ὀτρύνωμεν.  
that you have come back here, or shall we send a messenger?"

**406** τὸν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς  
Then resourceful Odysseus answered him and said:

**407** ὦ γέρον, ἤδη οἶδε· τί σε χρὴ ταῦτα πένεσθαι;  
"Old man, she knows already. Why should you trouble yourself with that?"

**408** ὣς φάθʼ, ὁ δʼ αὖτις ἄρʼ ἕζετʼ ἐϋξέστου ἐπὶ
                  δίφρου.  
So he spoke, and Dolius sat down again on the polished stool.

**409** ὣς δʼ αὔτως παῖδες Δολίου κλυτὸν ἀμφʼ Ὀδυσῆα  
And in the same way the sons of Dolius, around famous Odysseus,

**410** δεικανόωντʼ ἐπέεσσι καὶ ἐν χείρεσσι φύοντο,  
greeted him with words and clung to his hands,

**411** ἑξείης δʼ ἕζοντο παραὶ Δολίον, πατέρα σφόν.  
and then sat down in order beside Dolius, their father.

**412** ὣς οἱ μὲν περὶ δεῖπνον ἐνὶ μεγάροισι πένοντο·  
So they busied themselves with the meal in the halls.

**413** Ὄσσα δʼ ἄρʼ ἄγγελος ὦκα κατὰ πτόλιν ᾤχετο πάντη,  
But Rumor went swiftly as a messenger throughout the city everywhere,

**414** μνηστήρων στυγερὸν θάνατον καὶ κῆρʼ ἐνέπουσα.  
telling of the hateful death and doom of the suitors.

**415** οἱ δʼ ἄρʼ ὁμῶς ἀΐοντες ἐφοίτων ἄλλοθεν ἄλλος  
And the people, hearing it together, came thronging from every side

**416** μυχμῷ τε στοναχῇ τε δόμων προπάροιθʼ Ὀδυσῆος,  
with moaning and groaning before the house of Odysseus.

**417** ἐκ δὲ νέκυς οἴκων φόρεον καὶ θάπτον ἕκαστοι,  
They carried the dead out of the house and buried them, each his own,

**418** τοὺς δʼ ἐξ ἀλλάων πολίων οἶκόνδε ἕκαστον  
and those from other cities they sent each one homeward,

**419** πέμπον ἄγειν ἁλιεῦσι θοῇς ἐπὶ νηυσὶ τιθέντες·  
placing them on swift ships for the fishermen to carry.

**420** αὐτοὶ δʼ εἰς ἀγορὴν κίον ἀθρόοι, ἀχνύμενοι κῆρ.  
Then they themselves went in a body to the assembly, grieving at heart.

**421** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ἤγερθεν ὁμηγερέες τʼ ἐγένοντο,  
And when they were gathered and come together,

**422** τοῖσιν δʼ Εὐπείθης ἀνά θʼ ἵστατο καὶ μετέειπε·  
Eupeithes rose up among them and spoke:

**423** παιδὸς γάρ οἱ ἄλαστον ἐνὶ φρεσὶ πένθος ἔκειτο,  
for unforgettable grief for his son lay upon his heart,
> "Unforgettable grief": ἄλαστον πένθος is grief that cannot be forgotten or laid to rest. The phrase marks Eupeithes' sorrow as the driving force of his call for vengeance.

**424** Ἀντινόου, τὸν πρῶτον ἐνήρατο δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς·  
for Antinous, whom noble Odysseus had killed first.

**425** τοῦ ὅ γε δάκρυ χέων ἀγορήσατο καὶ μετέειπεν·  
Weeping for him, he addressed the assembly and spoke:

**426** ὦ φίλοι, ἦ μέγα ἔργον ἀνὴρ ὅδʼ ἐμήσατʼ
                     Ἀχαιούς·  
"Friends, truly this man has plotted a great evil against the Achaeans.

**427** τοὺς μὲν σὺν νήεσσιν ἄγων πολέας τε καὶ ἐσθλοὺς  
Some he led away in his ships, many and brave,

**428** ὤλεσε μὲν νῆας γλαφυράς, ἀπὸ δʼ ὤλεσε λαούς·  
and he lost the hollow ships and lost the men;

**429** τοὺς δʼ ἐλθὼν ἔκτεινε Κεφαλλήνων ὄχʼ ἀρίστους,  
and now, coming home, he has killed the very best of the Cephallenians.

**430** ἀλλʼ ἄγετε, πρὶν τοῦτον ἢ ἐς Πύλον ὦκα ἱκέσθαι  
But come, before this man can quickly reach either Pylos

**431** ἢ καὶ ἐς Ἤλιδα δῖαν, ὅθι κρατέουσιν Ἐπειοί,  
or bright Elis, where the Epeans hold sway,

**432** ἴομεν· ἦ καὶ ἔπειτα κατηφέες ἐσσόμεθʼ αἰεί·  
let us go; or else we shall be downcast forever after.

**433** λώβη γὰρ τάδε γʼ ἐστὶ καὶ ἐσσομένοισι πυθέσθαι,  
For this is a disgrace even for men yet to come to hear of,
> Disgrace (lôbê): λώβη is outrage or shame that stains one's honor. Eupeithes argues that failing to take revenge would brand the Ithacans with lasting disgrace in the eyes of posterity.

**434** εἰ δὴ μὴ παίδων τε κασιγνήτων τε φονῆας  
if we do not take vengeance on the slayers of our sons

**435** τισόμεθʼ. οὐκ ἂν ἐμοί γε μετὰ φρεσὶν ἡδὺ γένοιτο  
and our brothers. To my mind it would be no sweet thing

**436** ζωέμεν, ἀλλὰ τάχιστα θανὼν φθιμένοισι μετείην.  
to go on living; rather, let me die at once and be among the dead.
> Optative of wish: μετείην is a present optative expressing Eupeithes' wish to be among the dead. The optative is Homer's standard mood for stating a longed-for outcome.

**437** ἀλλʼ ἴομεν, μὴ φθέωσι περαιωθέντες ἐκεῖνοι.  
But let us go, before they get across to the mainland ahead of us."

**438** ὣς φάτο δάκρυ χέων, οἶκτος δʼ ἕλε πάντας
                  Ἀχαιούς.  
So he spoke, weeping, and pity seized all the Achaeans.

**439** ἀγχίμολον δέ σφʼ ἦλθε Μέδων καὶ θεῖος ἀοιδὸς  
But close at hand came Medon and the divine singer

**440** ἐκ μεγάρων Ὀδυσῆος, ἐπεί σφεας ὕπνος ἀνῆκεν,  
out of the halls of Odysseus, when sleep had released them,

**441** ἔσταν δʼ ἐν μέσσοισι· τάφος δʼ ἕλεν ἄνδρα ἕκαστον.  
They took their stand in the middle, and astonishment seized every man.

**442** τοῖσι δὲ καὶ μετέειπε Μέδων πεπνυμένα εἰδώς·  
And among them spoke Medon, skilled in prudent counsel:

**443** κέκλυτε δὴ νῦν μευ, Ἰθακήσιοι· οὐ γὰρ
                     Ὀδυσσεὺς  
"Hear me now, men of Ithaca; for it was not without

**444** ἀθανάτων ἀέκητι θεῶν τάδʼ ἐμήσατο ἔργα·  
the will of the immortal gods that Odysseus contrived these deeds.
> Aorist middle: ἐμήσατο is aorist middle of μήδομαι, 'devise, contrive.' The middle voice marks the action as done by and for the subject's own purpose.

**445** αὐτὸς ἐγὼν εἶδον θεὸν ἄμβροτον, ὅς ῥʼ Ὀδυσῆϊ  
I myself saw an immortal god, who stood close beside

**446** ἐγγύθεν ἑστήκει καὶ Μέντορι πάντα ἐῴκει.  
Odysseus and looked in every way like Mentor.

**447** ἀθάνατος δὲ θεὸς τοτὲ μὲν προπάροιθʼ Ὀδυσῆος  
And the immortal god at one moment appeared in front of Odysseus,
> Correlative men/de: The pair τοτὲ μέν … τοτὲ δέ ('at one time … at another') balances two alternating moments, a classic use of the men/de structure.

**448** φαίνετο θαρσύνων, τοτὲ δὲ μνηστῆρας ὀρίνων  
giving him courage, and at another, driving the suitors in panic,

**449** θῦνε κατὰ μέγαρον· τοὶ δʼ ἀγχιστῖνοι ἔπιπτον.  
he raged through the hall; and they fell in heaps, one upon another."

**450** ὣς φάτο, τοὺς δʼ ἄρα πάντας ὑπὸ χλωρὸν δέος
                  ᾕρει.  
So he spoke, and pale fear took hold of them all.
> "Pale fear": χλωρὸν δέος, literally 'green/pale dread,' is a fixed Homeric phrase for the bloodless pallor that grips a terrified person.

**451** τοῖσι δὲ καὶ μετέειπε γέρων ἥρως Ἁλιθέρσης  
And among them spoke also the old hero Halitherses,

**452** Μαστορίδης· ὁ γὰρ οἶος ὅρα πρόσσω καὶ ὀπίσσω·  
son of Mastor; for he alone saw both before and behind.

**453** ὅ σφιν ἐϋφρονέων ἀγορήσατο καὶ μετέειπε·  
With good will toward them he addressed and spoke among them:

**454** κέκλυτε δὴ νῦν μευ, Ἰθακήσιοι, ὅττι κεν
                     εἴπω·  
"Hear me now, men of Ithaca, in what I shall say:

**455** ὑμετέρῃ κακότητι, φίλοι, τάδε ἔργα γένοντο·  
through your own cowardice, friends, these deeds have come to pass.

**456** οὐ γὰρ ἐμοὶ πείθεσθʼ, οὐ Μέντορι ποιμένι λαῶν,  
For you did not obey me, nor Mentor, shepherd of the people,

**457** ὑμετέρους παῖδας καταπαυέμεν ἀφροσυνάων,  
to make your sons cease from their reckless folly,

**458** οἳ μέγα ἔργον ἔρεξαν ἀτασθαλίῃσι κακῇσι,  
who wrought a great wrong in their wicked recklessness,

**459** κτήματα κείροντες καὶ ἀτιμάζοντες ἄκοιτιν  
wasting the goods and dishonoring the wife

**460** ἀνδρὸς ἀριστῆος· τὸν δʼ οὐκέτι φάντο νέεσθαι.  
of the best of men; for they thought he would return no more.

**461** καὶ νῦν ὧδε γένοιτο. πίθεσθέ μοι ὡς ἀγορεύω·  
Now too let it be thus: obey me as I speak.
> Aorist imperative: πίθεσθε is the aorist middle imperative of πείθομαι, 'obey,' a sharp command to act now rather than continuously.

**462** μὴ ἴομεν, μή πού τις ἐπίσπαστον κακὸν εὕρῃ.  
Let us not go out, lest some man bring on himself self-inflicted ruin."
> Fearing clause: μή with the aorist subjunctive εὕρῃ expresses fear or precaution: 'lest someone find/bring on himself an evil.'

**463** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἱ δʼ ἄρʼ ἀνήϊξαν μεγάλῳ ἀλαλητῷ  
So he spoke, but they sprang up with a great war-cry,

**464** ἡμίσεων πλείους· τοὶ δʼ ἀθρόοι αὐτόθι μίμνον·  
more than half of them; but the rest stayed there together.

**465** οὐ γὰρ σφιν ἅδε μῦθος ἐνὶ φρεσίν, ἀλλʼ Εὐπείθει  
For his counsel did not please them in their hearts, but Eupeithes

**466** πείθοντʼ· αἶψα δʼ ἔπειτʼ ἐπὶ τεύχεα ἐσσεύοντο.  
they obeyed; and at once they rushed away for their armor.

**467** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ἕσσαντο περὶ χροῒ νώροπα χαλκόν,  
And when they had clothed their bodies in flashing bronze,
> "Flashing bronze": νῶροψ χαλκός is a formulaic phrase for gleaming bronze armor; the adjective evokes the metal's bright, dazzling glint.

**468** ἀθρόοι ἠγερέθοντο πρὸ ἄστεος εὐρυχόροιο.  
they gathered together in front of the spacious city.

**469** τοῖσιν δʼ Εὐπείθης ἡγήσατο νηπιέῃσι·  
And Eupeithes led them on in his folly;

**470** φῆ δʼ ὅ γε τίσεσθαι παιδὸς φόνον, οὐδʼ ἄρʼ ἔμελλεν  
he said he would avenge the murder of his son, but he was not

**471** ἂψ ἀπονοστήσειν, ἀλλʼ αὐτοῦ πότμον ἐφέψειν.  
to return back home, but there to meet his own doom.

**472** αὐτὰρ Ἀθηναίη Ζῆνα Κρονίωνα προσηύδα·  
But Athena spoke to Zeus, son of Kronos:

**473** ὦ πάτερ ἡμέτερε, Κρονίδη, ὕπατε κρειόντων,  
"Our father, son of Kronos, highest of rulers,
> Vocative of address: Κρονίδη is vocative, the case of direct address; Athena calls upon Zeus by his patronymic, 'son of Kronos.'

**474** εἰπέ μοι εἰρομένῃ, τί νύ τοι νόος ἔνδοθι κεύθει;  
tell me, since I ask: what purpose does your mind hide within?

**475** ἢ προτέρω πόλεμόν τε κακὸν καὶ φύλοπιν αἰνὴν  
Will you set on further the evil war and grim battle-strife,

**476** τεύξεις, ἦ φιλότητα μετʼ ἀμφοτέροισι τίθησθα;  
or do you establish friendship between both sides?"

**477** τὴν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη νεφεληγερέτα Ζεύς·  
Then Zeus the cloud-gatherer answered her and spoke:
> "Cloud-gatherer Zeus": νεφεληγερέτα, 'cloud-gatherer,' is one of Zeus's standard Homeric epithets, marking him as the god of storm and sky.

**478** τέκνον ἐμόν, τί με ταῦτα διείρεαι ἠδὲ μεταλλᾷς;  
"My child, why do you question and probe me about these things?

**479** οὐ γὰρ δὴ τοῦτον μὲν ἐβούλευσας νόον αὐτή,  
For did you not yourself devise this very plan,

**480** ὡς ἦ τοι κείνους Ὀδυσεὺς ἀποτίσεται ἐλθών;  
that Odysseus, coming home, should take revenge on them?

**481** ἔρξον ὅπως ἐθέλεις· ἐρέω τέ τοι ὡς ἐπέοικεν.  
Do as you wish; but I will tell you what is fitting.

**482** ἐπεὶ δὴ μνηστῆρας ἐτίσατο δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς,  
Since noble Odysseus has taken revenge on the suitors,

**483** ὅρκια πιστὰ ταμόντες ὁ μὲν βασιλευέτω αἰεί,  
let them swear faithful oaths, and let him be king forever,

**484** ἡμεῖς δʼ αὖ παίδων τε κασιγνήτων τε φόνοιο  
and let us in turn cause forgetting of the slaughter

**485** ἔκλησιν θέωμεν· τοὶ δʼ ἀλλήλους φιλεόντων  
of their sons and brothers; and let them love one another

**486** ὡς τὸ πάρος, πλοῦτος δὲ καὶ εἰρήνη ἅλις ἔστω.  
as before, and let there be wealth and peace in plenty."

**487** ὣς εἰπὼν ὤτρυνε πάρος μεμαυῖαν Ἀθήνην,  
So speaking, he stirred on Athena, already eager,

**488** βῆ δὲ κατʼ Οὐλύμποιο καρήνων ἀΐξασα.  
and she went darting down from the peaks of Olympus.

**489** οἱ δʼ ἐπεὶ οὖν σίτοιο μελίφρονος ἐξ ἔρον ἕντο,  
Now when they had put from themselves the desire for honey-sweet food,
> Formulaic meal-end: This recurring Homeric line, 'they sent out the desire (for food),' formulaically marks the end of a meal; ἕντο is aorist middle of ἵημι.

**490** τοῖς δʼ ἄρα μύθων ἦρχε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς·  
among them much-enduring noble Odysseus began to speak:
> "Much-enduring Odysseus": πολύτλας ('much-enduring') δῖος ('noble') Ὀδυσσεύς is the hero's most frequent formulaic epithet-phrase in the poem.

**491** ἐξελθών τις ἴδοι μὴ δὴ σχεδὸν ὦσι κιόντες.  
"Let someone go out and see whether they are not already near at hand."

**492** ὣς ἔφατʼ· ἐκ δʼ υἱὸς Δολίου κίεν, ὡς ἐκέλευεν·  
So he spoke; and a son of Dolios went out, as he ordered.

**493** στῆ δʼ ἄρʼ ἐπʼ οὐδὸν ἰών, τοὺς δὲ σχεδὸν ἔσιδε πάντας·  
He went and stood on the threshold, and saw them all close by;

**494** αἶψα δʼ Ὀδυσσῆα ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·  
and at once he spoke winged words to Odysseus:
> "Winged words": ἔπεα πτερόεντα, 'winged words,' is among the most common Homeric formulas for speech that flies swiftly to its hearer.

**495** οἵδε δὴ ἐγγὺς ἔασʼ· ἀλλʼ ὁπλιζώμεθα θᾶσσον.  
"Here they are, close by; let us arm ourselves quickly."

**496** ὣς ἔφαθʼ, οἱ δʼ ὤρνυντο καὶ ἐν τεύχεσσι δύοντο,  
So he spoke, and they rose and sank into their armor,

**497** τέσσαρες ἀμφʼ Ὀδυσῆʼ, ἓξ δʼ υἱεῖς οἱ Δολίοιο·  
the four around Odysseus, and the six sons of Dolios;

**498** ἐν δʼ ἄρα Λαέρτης Δολίος τʼ ἐς τεύχεʼ ἔδυνον,  
and among them Laertes and Dolios put on their armor,

**499** καὶ πολιοί περ ἐόντες, ἀναγκαῖοι πολεμισταί.  
gray-haired though they were, warriors by necessity.

**500** αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ἕσσαντο περὶ χροῒ νώροπα χαλκόν,  
And when they had clothed their bodies in flashing bronze,

**501** ὤϊξάν ῥα θύρας, ἐκ δʼ ἤϊον, ἄρχε δʼ Ὀδυσσεύς.  
they opened the doors and went out, and Odysseus led the way.

**502** τοῖσι δʼ ἐπʼ ἀγχίμολον θυγάτηρ Διὸς ἦλθεν Ἀθήνη  
And near to them came Athena, daughter of Zeus,

**503** Μέντορι εἰδομένη ἠμὲν δέμας ἠδὲ καὶ αὐδήν.  
likened to Mentor in both form and voice.

**504** τὴν μὲν ἰδὼν γήθησε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς·  
Seeing her, much-enduring noble Odysseus rejoiced;

**505** αἶψα δὲ Τηλέμαχον προσεφώνεεν ὃν φίλον υἱόν·  
and at once he addressed Telemachus, his own dear son:

**506** Τηλέμαχʼ, ἤδη μὲν τόδε γʼ εἴσεαι αὐτὸς
                     ἐπελθών,  
"Telemachus, now you yourself will learn this, going forward

**507** ἀνδρῶν μαρναμένων ἵνα τε κρίνονται ἄριστοι,  
into the place where men fight and the best are judged,

**508** μή τι καταισχύνειν πατέρων γένος, οἳ τὸ πάρος περ  
not to bring any shame on the race of your fathers, who before now

**509** ἀλκῇ τʼ ἠνορέῃ τε κεκάσμεθα πᾶσαν ἐπʼ αἶαν.  
have excelled in strength and manhood over all the earth."

**510** τὸν δʼ αὖ Τηλέμαχος πεπνυμένος ἀντίον ηὔδα·  
Then prudent Telemachus answered him in turn:
> Perfect participle 'prudent': πεπνυμένος, 'prudent, sensible,' is a perfect middle participle used as a stock epithet of Telemachus, formed with reduplication.

**511** ὄψεαι, αἴ κʼ ἐθέλῃσθα, πάτερ φίλε, τῷδʼ ἐπὶ θυμῷ  
"You will see, dear father, if you wish, that with this spirit

**512** οὔ τι καταισχύνοντα τεὸν γένος, ὡς ἀγορεύεις.  
I shall in no way shame your race, as you say."

**513** ὣς φάτο, Λαέρτης δʼ ἐχάρη καὶ μῦθον ἔειπε·  
So he spoke, and Laertes rejoiced and uttered his word:

**514** τίς νύ μοι ἡμέρη ἥδε, θεοὶ φίλοι; ἦ μάλα χαίρω·  
"What a day is this for me, dear gods! I rejoice greatly:

**515** υἱός θʼ υἱωνός τʼ ἀρετῆς πέρι δῆριν ἔχουσιν.  
my son and my grandson are contending over valor."

**516** τὸν δὲ παρισταμένη προσέφη γλαυκῶπις Ἀθήνη·  
Then standing beside him, gray-eyed Athena spoke:
> "Gray-eyed Athena": γλαυκῶπις, 'gray-eyed' or 'bright-eyed,' is Athena's most characteristic epithet, evoking the gleam of her keen gaze.

**517** ὦ Ἀρκεισιάδη, πάντων πολὺ φίλταθʼ ἑταίρων,  
"Son of Arceisius, far the dearest of all my companions,

**518** εὐξάμενος κούρῃ γλαυκώπιδι καὶ Διὶ πατρί,  
having prayed to the gray-eyed maiden and to Zeus the father,

**519** αἶψα μαλʼ ἀμπεπαλὼν προΐει δολιχόσκιον ἔγχος.  
at once draw back and hurl your long-shadowing spear."
> "Long-shadowing spear": δολιχόσκιον ἔγχος, 'the long-shadowing spear,' is a fixed Homeric epithet; the spear is so long it casts a long shadow.

**520** ὣς φάτο, καί ῥʼ ἔμπνευσε μένος μέγα Παλλὰς
                  Ἀθήνη  
So she spoke, and Pallas Athena breathed great strength into him.

**521** εὐξάμενος δʼ ἄρʼ ἔπειτα Διὸς κούρῃ μεγάλοιο,  
Then having prayed to the daughter of great Zeus,

**522** αἶψα μάλʼ ἀμπεπαλὼν προΐει δολιχόσκιον ἔγχος,  
at once he drew back and hurled his long-shadowing spear,

**523** καὶ βάλεν Εὐπείθεα κόρυθος διὰ χαλκοπαρῄου.  
and struck Eupeithes through his bronze-cheeked helmet.

**524** ἡ δʼ οὐκ ἔγχος ἔρυτο, διαπρὸ δὲ εἴσατο χαλκός,  
It did not hold back the spear, and the bronze drove straight through;

**525** δούπησεν δὲ πεσών, ἀράβησε δὲ τεύχεʼ ἐπʼ αὐτῷ.  
he fell with a thud, and his armor clattered about him.

**526** ἐν δʼ ἔπεσον προμάχοις Ὀδυσεὺς καὶ φαίδιμος υἱός,  
Then Odysseus and his glorious son fell upon the front-fighters,

**527** τύπτον δὲ ξίφεσίν τε καὶ ἔγχεσιν ἀμφιγύοισι.  
and struck them with swords and double-edged spears.

**528** καί νύ κε δὴ πάντας ὄλεσαν καὶ ἔθηκαν ἀνόστους,  
And now they would have killed them all and left them without return,
> Unfulfilled ("if not") condition: The κε(ν) with past indicative plus the εἰ μή clause forms a contrary-to-fact condition: what would have happened 'had not' Athena intervened.

**529** εἰ μὴ Ἀθηναίη, κούρη Διὸς αἰγιόχοιο,  
had not Athena, daughter of aegis-bearing Zeus,
> "Aegis-bearing": αἰγίοχος, 'aegis-bearing,' is a standard epithet of Zeus; the aegis is his dread storm-shield (later shared with Athena).

**530** ἤϋσεν φωνῇ, κατὰ ἔσχεθε λαὸν ἅπαντα.  
cried aloud with her voice and held back the whole host.

**531** ἴσχεσθε πτολέμου, Ἰθακήσιοι, ἀργαλέοιο,  
"Hold back from the grievous war, men of Ithaca,
> Imperative 'hold back': ἴσχεσθε is the present middle imperative of ἴσχω, commanding the men to restrain themselves from battle at once.

**532** ὥς κεν ἀναιμωτί γε διακρινθῆτε τάχιστα.  
so that you may be parted as quickly as possible, without bloodshed."

**533** ὣς φάτʼ Ἀθηναίη, τοὺς δὲ χλωρὸν δέος εἷλεν·  
So spoke Athena, and pale fear seized them.

**534** τῶν δʼ ἄρα δεισάντων ἐκ χειρῶν ἔπτατο τεύχεα,  
And as they took fright, the weapons flew from their hands,

**535** πάντα δʼ ἐπὶ χθονὶ πῖπτε, θεᾶς ὄπα φωνησάσης·  
and all fell to the ground as the goddess uttered her voice;

**536** πρὸς δὲ πόλιν τρωπῶντο λιλαιόμενοι βιότοιο.  
and they turned toward the city, longing to live.

**537** σμερδαλέον δʼ ἐβόησε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς,  
But terribly shouted much-enduring noble Odysseus,

**538** οἴμησεν δὲ ἀλεὶς ὥς τʼ αἰετὸς ὑψιπετήεις.  
and gathering himself he swooped like a high-flying eagle.
> Eagle simile: Odysseus is compared to a 'high-flying eagle' (αἰετὸς ὑψιπετήεις), a swift, lethal predator stooping on its prey.

**539** καὶ τότε δὴ Κρονίδης ἀφίει ψολόεντα κεραυνόν,  
And then the son of Kronos let fly a smoking thunderbolt,

**540** κὰδ δʼ ἔπεσε πρόσθε γλαυκώπιδος ὀβριμοπάτρης.  
and it fell before the gray-eyed daughter of a mighty father.

**541** δὴ τότʼ Ὀδυσσῆα προσέφη γλαυκῶπις Ἀθήνη·  
Then gray-eyed Athena spoke to Odysseus:

**542** διογενὲς Λαερτιάδη, πολυμήχανʼ Ὀδυσσεῦ,  
"Zeus-born son of Laertes, resourceful Odysseus,
> "Resourceful Odysseus": πολυμήχανος, 'of many devices, resourceful,' is Odysseus's signature epithet, naming the cunning that defines him.

**543** ἴσχεο, παῦε δὲ νεῖκος ὁμοιΐου πολέμοιο,  
hold back, and stop the strife of leveling war,

**544** μή πως τοι Κρονίδης κεχολώσεται εὐρύοπα Ζεύς.  
lest the son of Kronos, far-seeing Zeus, grow angry with you."
> Cautionary clause: μή with the future κεχολώσεται warns of a feared outcome: 'lest Zeus become angry.' The verb is a future perfect of χολόομαι, 'be enraged.'

**545** ὣς φάτʼ Ἀθηναίη, ὁ δʼ ἐπείθετο, χαῖρε δὲ θυμῷ.  
So spoke Athena, and he obeyed, and rejoiced in his heart.

**546** ὅρκια δʼ αὖ κατόπισθε μετʼ ἀμφοτέροισιν ἔθηκεν  
And afterward she set oaths between both sides,

**547** Παλλὰς Ἀθηναίη, κούρη Διὸς αἰγιόχοιο,  
Pallas Athena, daughter of aegis-bearing Zeus,

**548** Μέντορι εἰδομένη ἠμὲν δέμας ἠδὲ καὶ αὐδήν.  
likened to Mentor in both form and voice.

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Source text: public domain (Homer, ancient; Greek per the Murray/Allen 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.