1.
Sing, O goddess, the anger
of Achilles son of Peleus, that brought countless ills upon the
Achaeans. Many a brave soul did it send hurrying down to Hades, and many
a hero did it yield a prey to dogs and vultures, for so were the
counsels of Zeus fulfilled from the day on which the son of Atreus, king
of men, and great Achilles, first fell out with one another.
5. And which of the gods was it that set them on to quarrel? It
was the son of Zeus and Leto; for he was angry with the king and sent a
pestilence upon the host to plague the people, because the son of Atreus
had dishonoured Chryses his priest. Now Chryses had come to the ships of
the Achaeans to free his daughter, and had brought with him a great
ransom: moreover he bore in his hand the sceptre of Apollo wreathed with
a suppliant's wreath and he besought the Achaeans, but most of all the
two sons of Atreus, who were their chiefs.
"Sons of Atreus," he cried, "and all other Achaeans, may the gods who
dwell in Olympus grant you to sack the city of Priam, and to reach your
homes in safety; but free my daughter, and accept a ransom for her, in
reverence to Apollo, son of Zeus."
23. On this the rest of the Achaeans with one voice were for
respecting the priest and taking the ransom that he offered; but not so
Agamemnon, who spoke fiercely to him and sent him roughly away. "Old
man," said he, "let me not find you tarrying about our ships, nor yet
coming hereafter. Your sceptre of the god and your wreath shall profit
you nothing. I will not free her. She shall grow old in my house at
Argos far from her own home, busying herself with her loom and visiting
my couch; so go, and do not provoke me or it shall be the worse for
you."
33. The old man feared him and obeyed. Not a word he spoke, but
went by the shore of the sounding sea and prayed apart to King Apollo
whom lovely Leto had borne. "Hear me," he cried, "O god of the silver
bow, that protectest Chryse and holy Cilla and rulest Tenedos with thy
might, hear me oh thou of Sminthe. If I have ever decked your temple
with garlands, or burned your thigh-bones in fat of bulls or goats,
grant my prayer, and let your arrows avenge these my tears upon the
Danaans."
43. Thus did he pray, and Apollo heard his prayer. He came down
furious from the summits of Olympus, with his bow and his quiver upon
his shoulder, and the arrows rattled on his back with the rage that
trembled within him. He sat himself down away from the ships with a face
as dark as night, and his silver bow rang death as he shot his arrow in
the midst of them. First he smote their mules and their hounds, but
presently he aimed his shafts at the people themselves, and all day long
the pyres of the dead were burning.
53. For nine whole days he shot his arrows among the people, but
upon the tenth day Achilles called them in assembly- moved thereto by
Hera, who saw the Achaeans in their death-throes and had compassion upon
them. Then, when they were got together, he rose and spoke among them.
59. "Son of Atreus," said he, "I deem that we should now turn
roving home if we would escape destruction, for we are being cut down by
war and pestilence at once. Let us ask some priest or prophet, or some
reader of dreams (for dreams, too, are of Zeus) who can tell us why
Phoebus Apollo is so angry, and say whether it is for some vow that we
have broken, or hecatomb that we have not offered, and whether he will
accept the savour of lambs and goats without blemish, so as to take away
the plague from us."
68. With these words he sat down, and Calchas son of Thestor,
wisest of augurs, who knew things past present and to come, rose to
speak. He it was who had guided the Achaeans with their fleet to Ilius,
through the prophesyings with which Phoebus Apollo had inspired him.
With all sincerity and goodwill he addressed them thus:-
74. "Achilles, loved of heaven, you bid me tell you about the
anger of King Apollo, I will therefore do so; but consider first and
swear that you will stand by me heartily in word and deed, for I know
that I shall offend one who rules the Argives with might, to whom all
the Achaeans are in subjection. A plain man cannot stand against the
anger of a king, who if he swallow his displeasure now, will yet nurse
revenge till he has wreaked it. Consider, therefore, whether or no you
will protect me."
84. And Achilles answered, "Fear not, but speak as it is borne in
upon you from heaven, for by Apollo, Calchas, to whom you pray, and
whose oracles you reveal to us, not a Danaan at our ships shall lay his
hand upon you, while I yet live to look upon the face of the earth- no,
not though you name Agamemnon himself, who is by far the foremost of the
Achaeans."
92. Thereon the seer spoke boldly. "The god," he said, "is angry
neither about vow nor hecatomb, but for his priest's sake, whom
Agamemnon has dishonoured, in that he would not free his daughter nor
take a ransom for her; therefore has he sent these evils upon us, and
will yet send others. He will not deliver the Danaans from this
pestilence till Agamemnon has restored the girl without fee or ransom to
her father, and has sent a holy hecatomb to Chryse. Thus we may perhaps
appease him."
101. With these words he sat down, and Agamemnon rose in anger. His
heart was black with rage, and his eyes flashed fire as he scowled on
Calchas and said, "Seer of evil, you never yet prophesied smooth things
concerning me, but have ever loved to foretell that which was evil. You
have brought me neither comfort nor performance; and now you come seeing
among Danaans, and saying that Apollo has plagued us because I would not
take a ransom for this girl, the daughter of Chryses. I have set my
heart on keeping her in my own house, for I love her better even than my
own wife Clytemnestra, whose peer she is alike in form and feature, in
understanding and accomplishments. Still I will give her up if I must,
for I would have the people live, not die; but you must find me a prize
instead, or I alone among the Argives shall be without one. This is not
well; for you behold, all of you, that my prize is to go elsewhither."
121. And Achilles answered, "Most noble son of Atreus, covetous
beyond all mankind, how shall the Achaeans find you another prize? We
have no common store from which to take one. Those we took from the
cities have been awarded; we cannot disallow the awards that have been
made already. Give this girl, therefore, to the god, and if ever Zeus
grants us to sack the city of Troy we will requite you three and
fourfold."
130. Then Agamemnon said, "Achilles, valiant though you be, you
shall not thus outwit me. You shall not overreach and you shall not
persuade me. Are you to keep your own prize, while I sit tamely under my
loss and give up the girl at your bidding? Let the Achaeans find me a
prize in fair exchange to my liking, or I will come and take your own,
or that of Ajax or of Odyseus; and he to whomsoever I may come shall rue
my coming. But of this we will take thought hereafter; for the present,
let us draw a ship into the sea, and find a crew for her expressly; let
us put a hecatomb on board, and let us send Chryseis also; further, let
some chief man among us be in command, either Ajax, or Idomeneus, or
yourself, son of Peleus, mighty warrior that you are, that we may offer
sacrifice and appease the the anger of the god."
148. Achilles scowled at him and answered, "You are steeped in
insolence and lust of gain. With what heart can any of the Achaeans do
your bidding, either on foray or in open fighting? I came not warring
here for any ill the Trojans had done me. I have no quarrel with them.
They have not raided my cattle nor my horses, nor cut down my harvests
on the rich plains of Phthia; for between me and them there is a great
space, both mountain and sounding sea. We have followed you, Sir
Insolence! for your pleasure, not ours- to gain satisfaction from the
Trojans for your shameless self and for Menelaus. You forget this, and
threaten to rob me of the prize for which I have toiled, and which the
sons of the Achaeans have given me. Never when the Achaeans sack any
rich city of the Trojans do I receive so good a prize as you do, though
it is my hands that do the better part of the fighting. When the sharing
comes, your share is far the largest, and I, forsooth, must go back to
my ships, take what I can get and be thankful, when my labour of
fighting is done. Now, therefore, I shall go back to Phthia; it will be
much better for me to return home with my ships, for I will not stay
here dishonoured to gather gold and substance for you."
172. And Agamemnon answered, "Fly if you will, I shall make you no
prayers to stay you. I have others here who will do me honour, and above
all Zeus, the lord of counsel. There is no king here so hateful to me as
you are, for you are ever quarrelsome and ill affected. What though you
be brave? Was it not heaven that made you so? Go home, then, with your
ships and comrades to lord it over the Myrmidons. I care neither for you
nor for your anger; and thus will I do: since Phoebus Apollo is taking
Chryseis from me, I shall send her with my ship and my followers, but I
shall come to your tent and take your own prize Briseis, that you may
learn how much stronger I am than you are, and that another may fear to
set himself up as equal or comparable with me."
188. The son of Peleus was furious, and his heart within his shaggy
breast was divided whether to draw his sword, push the others aside, and
kill the son of Atreus, or to restrain himself and check his anger.
While he was thus in two minds, and was drawing his mighty sword from
its scabbard, Athena came down from heaven (for Hera had sent her in the
love she bore to them both), and seized the son of Peleus by his yellow
hair, visible to him alone, for of the others no man could see her.
Achilles turned in amaze, and by the fire that flashed from her eyes at
once knew that she was Athena. "Why are you here," said he, "daughter of
aegis-bearing Zeus? To see the pride of Agamemnon, son of Atreus? Let me
tell you- and it shall surely be- he shall pay for this insolence with
his life."
206. And Athena said, "I come from heaven, if you will hear me, to
bid you stay your anger. Hera has sent me, who cares for both of you
alike. Cease, then, this brawling, and do not draw your sword; rail at
him if you will, and your railing will not be vain, for I tell you- and
it shall surely be- that you shall hereafter receive gifts three times
as splendid by reason of this present insult. Hold, therefore, and
obey."
215. "Goddess," answered Achilles, "however angry a man may be, he
must do as you two command him. This will be best, for the gods ever
hear the prayers of him who has obeyed them."
219. He stayed his hand on the silver hilt of his sword, and thrust
it back into the scabbard as Athena bade him. Then she went back to
Olympus among the other gods, and to the house of aegis-bearing Zeus.
224. But the son of Peleus again began railing at the son of Atreus,
for he was still in a rage. "Wine-bibber," he cried, "with the face of a
dog and the heart of a hind, you never dare to go out with the host in
fight, nor yet with our chosen men in ambuscade. You shun this as you do
death itself. You had rather go round and rob his prizes from any man
who contradicts you. You devour your people, for you are king over a
feeble folk; otherwise, son of Atreus, henceforward you would insult no
man. Therefore I say, and swear it with a great oath- nay, by this my
sceptre which shalt sprout neither leaf nor shoot, nor bud anew from the
day on which it left its parent stem upon the mountains- for the axe
stripped it of leaf and bark, and now the sons of the Achaeans bear it
as judges and guardians of the decrees of heaven- so surely and solemnly
do I swear that hereafter they shall look fondly for Achilles and shall
not find him. In the day of your distress, when your men fall dying by
the murderous hand of Hector, you shall not know how to help them, and
shall rend your heart with rage for the hour when you offered insult to
the bravest of the Achaeans."
245. With this the son of Peleus dashed his gold-bestudded sceptre
on the ground and took his seat, while the son of Atreus was beginning
fiercely from his place upon the other side. Then uprose smooth-tongued
Nestor, the facile speaker of the Pylians, and the words fell from his
lips sweeter than honey. Two generations of men born and bred in Pylos
had passed away under his rule, and he was now reigning over the third.
With all sincerity and goodwill, therefore, he addressed them thus:-
254. "Of a truth," he said, "a great sorrow has befallen the Achaean
land. Surely Priam with his sons would rejoice, and the Trojans be glad
at heart if they could hear this quarrel between you two, who are so
excellent in fight and counsel. I am older than either of you; therefore
be guided by me. Moreover I have been the familiar friend of men even
greater than you are, and they did not disregard my counsels. Never
again can I behold such men as Pirithous and Dryas shepherd of his
people, or as Caeneus, Exadius, godlike Polyphemus, and Theseus son of
Aegeus, peer of the immortals. These were the mightiest men ever born
upon this earth: mightiest were they, and when they fought the fiercest
tribes of mountain savages they utterly overthrew them. I came from
distant Pylos, and went about among them, for they would have me come,
and I fought as it was in me to do. Not a man now living could withstand
them, but they heard my words, and were persuaded by them. So be it also
with yourselves, for this is the more excellent way. Therefore,
Agamemnon, though you be strong, take not this girl away, for the sons
of the Achaeans have already given her to Achilles; and you, Achilles,
strive not further with the king, for no man who by the grace of Zeus
wields a sceptre has like honour with Agamemnon. You are strong, and
have a goddess for your mother; but Agamemnon is stronger than you, for
he has more people under him. Son of Atreus, check your anger, I implore
you; end this quarrel with Achilles, who in the day of battle is a tower
of strength to the Achaeans."
285. And Agamemnon answered, "Sir, all that you have said is true,
but this fellow must needs become our lord and master: he must be lord
of all, king of all, and captain of all, and this shall hardly be.
Granted that the gods have made him a great warrior, have they also
given him the right to speak with railing?"
292. Achilles interrupted him. "I should be a mean coward," he
cried, "were I to give in to you in all things. Order other people
about, not me, for I shall obey no longer. Furthermore I say- and lay my
saying to your heart- I shall fight neither you nor any man about this
girl, for those that take were those also that gave. But of all else
that is at my ship you shall carry away nothing by force. Try, that
others may see; if you do, my spear shall be reddened with your blood."
304. When they had quarrelled thus angrily, they rose, and broke up
the assembly at the ships of the Achaeans. The son of Peleus went back
to his tents and ships with the son of Menoetius and his company, while
Agamemnon drew a vessel into the water and chose a crew of twenty
oarsmen. He escorted Chryseis on board and sent moreover a hecatomb for
the god. And Odyseus went as captain.
313. These, then, went on board and sailed their ways over the sea.
But the son of Atreus bade the people purify themselves; so they
purified themselves and cast their filth into the sea. Then they offered
hecatombs of bulls and goats without blemish on the sea-shore, and the
smoke with the savour of their sacrifice rose curling up towards heaven.
318. Thus did they busy themselves throughout the host. But
Agamemnon did not forget the threat that he had made Achilles, and
called his trusty messengers and squires Talthybius and Eurybates. "Go,"
said he, "to the tent of Achilles, son of Peleus; take Briseis by the
hand and bring her hither; if he will not give her I shall come with
others and take her- which will press him harder."
326. He charged them straightly further and dismissed them, whereon
they went their way sorrowfully by the seaside, till they came to the
tents and ships of the Myrmidons. They found Achilles sitting by his
tent and his ships, and ill-pleased he was when he beheld them. They
stood fearfully and reverently before him, and never a word did they
speak, but he knew them and said, "Welcome, heralds, messengers of gods
and men; draw near; my quarrel is not with you but with Agamemnon who
has sent you for the girl Briseis. Therefore, Patroclus, bring her and
give her to them, but let them be witnesses by the blessed gods, by
mortal men, and by the fierceness of Agamemnon's anger, that if ever
again there be need of me to save the people from ruin, they shall seek
and they shall not find. Agamemnon is mad with rage and knows not how to
look before and after that the Achaeans may fight by their ships in
safety."
345. Patroclus did as his dear comrade had bidden him. He brought
Briseis from the tent and gave her over to the heralds, who took her
with them to the ships of the Achaeans- and the woman was loth to go.
Then Achilles went all alone by the side of the hoar sea, weeping and
looking out upon the boundless waste of waters. He raised his hands in
prayer to his immortal mother, "Mother," he cried, "you bore me doomed
to live but for a little season; surely Zeus, who thunders from Olympus,
might have made that little glorious. It is not so. Agamemnon, son of
Atreus, has done me dishonour, and has robbed me of my prize by force."
357. As he spoke he wept aloud, and his mother heard him where she
was sitting in the depths of the sea hard by the old man her father.
Forthwith she rose as it were a grey mist out of the waves, sat down
before him as he stood weeping, caressed him with her hand, and said,
"My son, why are you weeping? What is it that grieves you? Keep it not
from me, but tell me, that we may know it together."
366. Achilles drew a deep sigh and said, "You know it; why tell you
what you know well already? We went to Thebe the strong city of Eetion,
sacked it, and brought hither the spoil. The sons of the Achaeans shared
it duly among themselves, and chose lovely Chryseis as the meed of
Agamemnon; but Chryses, priest of Apollo, came to the ships of the
Achaeans to free his daughter, and brought with him a great ransom:
moreover he bore in his hand the sceptre of Apollo, wreathed with a
suppliant's wreath, and he besought the Achaeans, but most of all the
two sons of Atreus who were their chiefs.
376. "On this the rest of the Achaeans with one voice were for
respecting the priest and taking the ransom that he offered; but not so
Agamemnon, who spoke fiercely to him and sent him roughly away. So he
went back in anger, and Apollo, who loved him dearly, heard his prayer.
Then the god sent a deadly dart upon the Argives, and the people died
thick on one another, for the arrows went everywhither among the wide
host of the Achaeans. At last a seer in the fulness of his knowledge
declared to us the oracles of Apollo, and I was myself first to say that
we should appease him. Whereon the son of Atreus rose in anger, and
threatened that which he has since done. The Achaeans are now taking the
girl in a ship to Chryse, and sending gifts of sacrifice to the god; but
the heralds have just taken from my tent the daughter of Briseus, whom
the Achaeans had awarded to myself.
393. "Help your brave son, therefore, if you are able. Go to
Olympus, and if you have ever done him service in word or deed, implore
the aid of Zeus. Ofttimes in my father's house have I heard you glory in
that you alone of the immortals saved the son of Cronos from ruin, when
the others, with Hera, Poseidon, and Pallas Athena would have put him in
bonds. It was you, goddess, who delivered him by calling to Olympus the
hundred-handed monster whom gods call Briareus, but men Aegaeon, for he
is stronger even than his father; when therefore he took his seat
all-glorious beside the son of Cronos, the other gods were afraid, and
did not bind him. Go, then, to him, remind him of all this, clasp his
knees, and bid him give succour to the Trojans. Let the Achaeans be
hemmed in at the sterns of their ships, and perish on the sea-shore,
that they may reap what joy they may of their king, and that Agamemnon
may rue his blindness in offering insult to the foremost of the
Achaeans."
413. Thetis wept and answered, "My son, woe is me that I should have
borne or suckled you. Would indeed that you had lived your span free
from all sorrow at your ships, for it is all too brief; alas, that you
should be at once short of life and long of sorrow above your peers:
woe, therefore, was the hour in which I bore you; nevertheless I will go
to the snowy heights of Olympus, and tell this tale to Zeus, if he will
hear our prayer: meanwhile stay where you are with your ships, nurse
your anger against the Achaeans, and hold aloof from fight. For Zeus
went yesterday to Oceanus, to a feast among the Ethiopians, and the
other gods went with him. He will return to Olympus twelve days hence; I
will then go to his mansion paved with bronze and will beseech him; nor
do I doubt that I shall be able to persuade him."
429. On this she left him, still furious at the loss of her that had
been taken from him. Meanwhile Odyseus reached Chryse with the hecatomb.
When they had come inside the harbour they furled the sails and laid
them in the ship's hold; they slackened the forestays, lowered the mast
into its place, and rowed the ship to the place where they would have
her lie; there they cast out their mooring-stones and made fast the
hawsers. They then got out upon the sea-shore and landed the hecatomb
for Apollo; Chryseis also left the ship, and Odyseus led her to the
altar to deliver her into the hands of her father. "Chryses," said he,
"King Agamemnon has sent me to bring you back your child, and to offer
sacrifice to Apollo on behalf of the Danaans, that we may propitiate the
god, who has now brought sorrow upon the Argives."
446. So saying he gave the girl over to her father, who received her
gladly, and they ranged the holy hecatomb all orderly round the altar of
the god. They washed their hands and took up the barley-meal to sprinkle
over the victims, while Chryses lifted up his hands and prayed aloud on
their behalf. "Hear me," he cried, "O god of the silver bow, that
protectest Chryse and holy Cilla, and rulest Tenedos with thy might.
Even as thou didst hear me aforetime when I prayed, and didst press
hardly upon the Achaeans, so hear me yet again, and stay this fearful
pestilence from the Danaans."
457. Thus did he pray, and Apollo heard his prayer. When they had
done praying and sprinkling the barley-meal, they drew back the heads of
the victims and killed and flayed them. They cut out the thigh-bones,
wrapped them round in two layers of fat, set some pieces of raw meat on
the top of them, and then Chryses laid them on the wood fire and poured
wine over them, while the young men stood near him with five-pronged
spits in their hands. When the thigh-bones were burned and they had
tasted the inward meats, they cut the rest up small, put the pieces upon
the spits, roasted them till they were done, and drew them off: then,
when they had finished their work and the feast was ready, they ate it,
and every man had his full share, so that all were satisfied. As soon as
they had had enough to eat and drink, pages filled the mixing-bowl with
wine and water and handed it round, after giving every man his
drink-offering.
472. Thus all day long the young men worshipped the god with song,
hymning him and chaunting the joyous paean, and the god took pleasure in
their voices; but when the sun went down, and it came on dark, they laid
themselves down to sleep by the stern cables of the ship, and when the
child of morning, rosy-fingered Dawn, appeared they again set sail for
the host of the Achaeans. Apollo sent them a fair wind, so they raised
their mast and hoisted their white sails aloft. As the sail bellied with
the wind the ship flew through the deep blue water, and the foam hissed
against her bows as she sped onward. When they reached the
wide-stretching host of the Achaeans, they drew the vessel ashore, high
and dry upon the sands, set her strong props beneath her, and went their
ways to their own tents and ships.
488. But Achilles abode at his ships and nursed his anger. He went
not to the honourable assembly, and sallied not forth to fight, but
gnawed at his own heart, pining for battle and the war-cry.
493. Now after twelve days the immortal gods came back in a body to
Olympus, and Zeus led the way. Thetis was not unmindful of the charge
her son had laid upon her, so she rose from under the sea and went
through great heaven with early morning to Olympus, where she found the
mighty son of Cronos sitting all alone upon its topmost ridges. She sat
herself down before him, and with her left hand seized his knees, while
with her right she caught him under the chin, and besought him, saying-
503. "Father Zeus, if I ever did you service in word or deed among
the immortals, hear my prayer, and do honour to my son, whose life is to
be cut short so early. King Agamemnon has dishonoured him by taking his
prize and keeping her. Honour him then yourself, Olympian lord of
counsel, and grant victory to the Trojans, till the Achaeans give my son
his due and load him with riches in requital."
511. Zeus sat for a while silent, and without a word, but Thetis
still kept firm hold of his knees, and besought him a second time.
"Incline your head," said she, "and promise me surely, or else deny me-
for you have nothing to fear- that I may learn how greatly you disdain
me."
517. At this Zeus was much troubled and answered, "I shall have
trouble if you set me quarrelling with Hera, for she will provoke me
with her taunting speeches; even now she is always railing at me before
the other gods and accusing me of giving aid to the Trojans. Go back
now, lest she should find out. I will consider the matter, and will
bring it about as wish. See, I incline my head that you believe me. This
is the most solemn that I can give to any god. I never recall my word,
or deceive, or fail to do what I say, when I have nodded my head."
528. As he spoke the son of Cronos bowed his dark brows, and the
ambrosial locks swayed on his immortal head, till vast Olympus reeled.
531. When the pair had thus laid their plans, they parted- Zeus to
his house, while the goddess quitted the splendour of Olympus, and
plunged into the depths of the sea. The gods rose from their seats,
before the coming of their sire. Not one of them dared to remain
sitting, but all stood up as he came among them. There, then, he took
his seat. But Hera, when she saw him, knew that he and the old merman's
daughter, silver-footed Thetis, had been hatching mischief, so she at
once began to upbraid him. "Trickster," she cried, "which of the gods
have you been taking into your counsels now? You are always settling
matters in secret behind my back, and have never yet told me, if you
could help it, one word of your intentions."
545. "Hera," replied the sire of gods and men, "you must not expect
to be informed of all my counsels. You are my wife, but you would find
it hard to understand them. When it is proper for you to hear, there is
no one, god or man, who will be told sooner, but when I mean to keep a
matter to myself, you must not pry nor ask questions."
551. "Dread son of Cronos," answered Hera, "what are you talking
about? I? Pry and ask questions? Never. I let you have your own way in
everything. Still, I have a strong misgiving that the old merman's
daughter Thetis has been talking you over, for she was with you and had
hold of your knees this self-same morning. I believe, therefore, that
you have been promising her to give glory to Achilles, and to kill much
people at the ships of the Achaeans."
560. "Wife," said Zeus, "I can do nothing but you suspect me and
find it out. You will take nothing by it, for I shall only dislike you
the more, and it will go harder with you. Granted that it is as you say;
I mean to have it so; sit down and hold your tongue as I bid you for if
I once begin to lay my hands about you, though all heaven were on your
side it would profit you nothing."
568. On this Hera was frightened, so she curbed her stubborn will
and sat down in silence. But the heavenly beings were disquieted
throughout the house of Zeus, till the cunning workman Hephaestus began
to try and pacify his mother Hera. "It will be intolerable," said he,
"if you two fall to wrangling and setting heaven in an uproar about a
pack of mortals. If such ill counsels are to prevail, we shall have no
pleasure at our banquet. Let me then advise my mother- and she must
herself know that it will be better- to make friends with my dear father
Zeus, lest he again scold her and disturb our feast. If the Olympian
Thunderer wants to hurl us all from our seats, he can do so, for he is
far the strongest, so give him fair words, and he will then soon be in a
good humour with us."
584. As he spoke, he took a double cup of nectar, and placed it in
his mother's hand. "Cheer up, my dear mother," said he, "and make the
best of it. I love you dearly, and should be very sorry to see you get a
thrashing; however grieved I might be, I could not help for there is no
standing against Zeus. Once before when I was trying to help you, he
caught me by the foot and flung me from the heavenly threshold. All day
long from morn till eve, was I falling, till at sunset I came to ground
in the island of Lemnos, and there I lay, with very little life left in
me, till the Sintians came and tended me."
595. Hera smiled at this, and as she smiled she took the cup from
her son's hands. Then Hephaestus drew sweet nectar from the
mixing-bowl, and served it round among the gods, going from left to
right; and the blessed gods laughed out a loud applause as they saw him
ing bustling about the heavenly mansion.
601. Thus through the livelong day to the going down of the sun they
feasted, and every one had his full share, so that all were satisfied.
Apollo struck his lyre, and the Muses lifted up their sweet voices,
calling and answering one another. But when the sun's glorious light had
faded, they went home to bed, each in his own abode, which lame
Hephaestus with his consummate skill had fashioned for them. So Zeus,
the Olympian Lord of Thunder, hied him to the bed in which he always
slept; and when he had got on to it he went to sleep, with Hera of the
golden throne by his side.