Odyssey, Book 5: Calypso and the Raft

1Ἠὼς δʼ ἐκ λεχέων παρʼ ἀγαυοῦ Τιθωνοῖο

ὤρνυθʼ, ἵνʼ ἀθανάτοισι φόως φέροι ἠδὲ βροτοῖσιν·

οἱ δὲ θεοὶ θῶκόνδε καθίζανον, ἐν δʼ ἄρα τοῖσι

Ζεὺς ὑψιβρεμέτης, οὗ τε κράτος ἐστὶ μέγιστον.

5τοῖσι δʼ Ἀθηναίη λέγε κήδεα πόλλʼ Ὀδυσῆος

μνησαμένη· μέλε γάρ οἱ ἐὼν ἐν δώμασι νύμφης·

Ζεῦ πάτερ ἠδʼ ἄλλοι μάκαρες θεοὶ αἰὲν ἐόντες,

μή τις ἔτι πρόφρων ἀγανὸς καὶ ἤπιος ἔστω

σκηπτοῦχος βασιλεύς, μηδὲ φρεσὶν αἴσιμα εἰδώς,

10ἀλλʼ αἰεὶ χαλεπός τʼ εἴη καὶ αἴσυλα ῥέζοι·

ὡς οὔ τις μέμνηται Ὀδυσσῆος θείοιο

λαῶν οἷσιν ἄνασσε, πατὴρ δʼ ὣς ἤπιος ἦεν.

ἀλλʼ ὁ μὲν ἐν νήσῳ κεῖται κρατέρʼ ἄλγεα πάσχων

νύμφης ἐν μεγάροισι Καλυψοῦς, ἥ μιν ἀνάγκῃ

15ἴσχει· ὁ δʼ οὐ δύναται ἣν πατρίδα γαῖαν ἱκέσθαι·

οὐ γάρ οἱ πάρα νῆες ἐπήρετμοι καὶ ἑταῖροι,

οἵ κέν μιν πέμποιεν ἐπʼ εὐρέα νῶτα θαλάσσης.

νῦν αὖ παῖδʼ ἀγαπητὸν ἀποκτεῖναι μεμάασιν

οἴκαδε νισόμενον· ὁ δʼ ἔβη μετὰ πατρὸς ἀκουὴν

20ἐς Πύλον ἠγαθέην ἠδʼ ἐς Λακεδαίμονα δῖαν.

1Dawn rose from her bed beside noble Tithonus,

to bring light to the immortals and to mortals.

The gods sat down in council, and among them

was high-thundering Zeus, whose power is greatest.

5Athena spoke to them of Odysseus’ many troubles,

remembering him, for he weighed on her heart there in the nymph’s halls:

“Father Zeus and you other blessed gods who live forever,

let no scepter-bearing king ever again be well-disposed, gentle,

and kind, nor keep what is right in his mind.

10Instead let him always be harsh and practice lawlessness,

since not one of the people ruled by godlike Odysseus remembers him,

though he was gentle as a father.

He lies on an island, suffering bitter pains,

in the halls of the nymph Calypso, who holds him by force.

15He cannot reach his native land.

No oared ships or companions are beside him

to carry him over the broad back of the sea.

And now men are bent on killing his beloved son

as he returns home. He went for news of his father

20to sacred Pylos and divine Lacedaemon.”

21τὴν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη νεφεληγερέτα Ζεύς·

τέκνον ἐμόν, ποῖόν σε ἔπος φύγεν ἕρκος ὀδόντων.

οὐ γὰρ δὴ τοῦτον μὲν ἐβούλευσας νόον αὐτή,

ὡς ἦ τοι κείνους Ὀδυσεὺς ἀποτίσεται ἐλθών;

25Τηλέμαχον δὲ σὺ πέμψον ἐπισταμένως, δύνασαι γάρ,

ὥς κε μάλʼ ἀσκηθὴς ἣν πατρίδα γαῖαν ἵκηται,

μνηστῆρες δʼ ἐν νηὶ· παλιμπετὲς ἀπονέωνται.

ἦ ῥα καὶ Ἑρμείαν, υἱὸν φίλον, ἀντίον ηὔδα·

Ἑρμεία, σὺ γὰρ αὖτε τά τʼ ἄλλα περ ἄγγελός ἐσσι,

30νύμφῃ ἐυπλοκάμῳ εἰπεῖν νημερτέα βουλήν,

νόστον Ὀδυσσῆος ταλασίφρονος, ὥς κε νέηται

οὔτε θεῶν πομπῇ οὔτε θνητῶν ἀνθρώπων·

ἀλλʼ ὅ γʼ ἐπὶ σχεδίης πολυδέσμου πήματα πάσχων

ἤματί κʼ εἰκοστῷ Σχερίην ἐρίβωλον ἵκοιτο,

35Φαιήκων ἐς γαῖαν, οἳ ἀγχίθεοι γεγάασιν,

οἵ κέν μιν περὶ κῆρι θεὸν ὣς τιμήσουσιν,

πέμψουσιν δʼ ἐν νηὶ φίλην ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν,

χαλκόν τε χρυσόν τε ἅλις ἐσθῆτά τε δόντες,

πόλλʼ, ὅσʼ ἂν οὐδέ ποτε Τροίης ἐξήρατʼ Ὀδυσσεύς,

40εἴ περ ἀπήμων ἦλθε, λαχὼν ἀπὸ ληίδος αἶσαν.

ὣς γάρ οἱ μοῖρʼ ἐστὶ φίλους τʼ ἰδέειν καὶ ἱκέσθαι

οἶκον ἐς ὑψόροφον καὶ ἑὴν ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν.

21Cloud-gathering Zeus answered her:

“My child, what a word has escaped the barrier of your teeth!

Was it not you yourself who devised this plan,

that Odysseus should return and make those men pay?

25Send Telemachus on with all your skill—you have the power—

so he may reach his native land wholly unharmed,

while the suitors sail back again in their ship.”

Then he turned and addressed his dear son Hermes:

“Hermes, since in all other matters too you are our messenger,

30tell the nymph with lovely hair our unerring decision:

steadfast-hearted Odysseus is to return,

with no escort from gods or mortal men.

Suffering hardships on a raft bound fast,

he is to reach fertile Scheria on the twentieth day,

35the land of the Phaeacians, who are near in kin to the gods.

They will honor him in their hearts as though he were a god

and send him by ship to his own native land,

giving him bronze and gold in plenty, and clothing too—

more than Odysseus would ever have won from Troy

40had he returned unharmed with his allotted share of spoil.

For this is his destiny: to see those dear to him and reach

his high-roofed house and native land.”

43ὣς ἔφατʼ, οὐδʼ ἀπίθησε διάκτορος ἀργεϊφόντης.

αὐτίκʼ ἔπειθʼ ὑπὸ ποσσὶν ἐδήσατο καλὰ πέδιλα,

45ἀμβρόσια χρύσεια, τά μιν φέρον ἠμὲν ἐφʼ ὑγρὴν

ἠδʼ ἐπʼ ἀπείρονα γαῖαν ἅμα πνοιῇς ἀνέμοιο.

εἵλετο δὲ ῥάβδον, τῇ τʼ ἀνδρῶν ὄμματα θέλγει,

ὧν ἐθέλει, τοὺς δʼ αὖτε καὶ ὑπνώοντας ἐγείρει.

τὴν μετὰ χερσὶν ἔχων πέτετο κρατὺς ἀργεϊφόντης.

50Πιερίην δʼ ἐπιβὰς ἐξ αἰθέρος ἔμπεσε πόντῳ·

σεύατʼ ἔπειτʼ ἐπὶ κῦμα λάρῳ ὄρνιθι ἐοικώς,

ὅς τε κατὰ δεινοὺς κόλπους ἁλὸς ἀτρυγέτοιο

ἰχθῦς ἀγρώσσων πυκινὰ πτερὰ δεύεται ἅλμῃ·

τῷ ἴκελος πολέεσσιν ὀχήσατο κύμασιν Ἑρμῆς.

55ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ τὴν νῆσον ἀφίκετο τηλόθʼ ἐοῦσαν,

ἔνθʼ ἐκ πόντου βὰς ἰοειδέος ἤπειρόνδε

ἤιεν, ὄφρα μέγα σπέος ἵκετο, τῷ ἔνι νύμφη

ναῖεν ἐυπλόκαμος· τὴν δʼ ἔνδοθι τέτμεν ἐοῦσαν.

πῦρ μὲν ἐπʼ ἐσχαρόφιν μέγα καίετο, τηλόσε δʼ ὀδμὴ

60κέδρου τʼ εὐκεάτοιο θύου τʼ ἀνὰ νῆσον ὀδώδει

δαιομένων· ἡ δʼ ἔνδον ἀοιδιάουσʼ ὀπὶ καλῇ

ἱστὸν ἐποιχομένη χρυσείῃ κερκίδʼ ὕφαινεν.

ὕλη δὲ σπέος ἀμφὶ πεφύκει τηλεθόωσα,

κλήθρη τʼ αἴγειρός τε καὶ εὐώδης κυπάρισσος.

65ἔνθα δέ τʼ ὄρνιθες τανυσίπτεροι εὐνάζοντο,

σκῶπές τʼ ἴρηκές τε τανύγλωσσοί τε κορῶναι

εἰνάλιαι, τῇσίν τε θαλάσσια ἔργα μέμηλεν.

ἡ δʼ αὐτοῦ τετάνυστο περὶ σπείους γλαφυροῖο

ἡμερὶς ἡβώωσα, τεθήλει δὲ σταφυλῇσι.

70κρῆναι δʼ ἑξείης πίσυρες ῥέον ὕδατι λευκῷ,

πλησίαι ἀλλήλων τετραμμέναι ἄλλυδις ἄλλη.

ἀμφὶ δὲ λειμῶνες μαλακοὶ ἴου ἠδὲ σελίνου

θήλεον. ἔνθα κʼ ἔπειτα καὶ ἀθάνατός περ ἐπελθὼν

θηήσαιτο ἰδὼν καὶ τερφθείη φρεσὶν ᾗσιν.

43So he spoke, and the guide, slayer of Argus, did not disobey.

At once he bound beneath his feet the beautiful sandals,

45immortal and golden, that carried him over the water

and over the boundless earth together with the breaths of wind.

He took the wand with which he charms the eyes of men,

whomever he wishes, and wakes others out of sleep.

Holding it in his hands, the mighty slayer of Argus flew.

50He stepped onto Pieria, then plunged from the upper air to the sea;

and skimmed the waves like a gull,

which, hunting fish through the fearful troughs

of the barren sea, drenches its close-set wings in brine.

Like that bird Hermes rode over the many waves.

55But when he reached the far-off island,

he left the violet-colored sea and went ashore,

walking until he came to the great cave where the nymph

with lovely hair lived. He found her there inside.

A great fire burned on the hearth, and over the island

60drifted the scent of well-split cedar and incense-wood

as they burned. Inside, singing in a beautiful voice,

she paced at the loom and wove with a golden shuttle.

A flourishing wood had grown around the cave:

alder, poplar, and fragrant cypress.

65There long-winged birds made their nests—

owls and falcons and long-tongued sea crows

whose work is on the sea.

A vigorous vine spread around the hollow cave

and flourished thick with clusters.

70Four springs flowed in a row with shining water,

close beside one another, each turned in a different direction.

All around, soft meadows of violets and celery

were in bloom. Even an immortal arriving there

would gaze in wonder at the sight and delight in his heart.

75ἔνθα στὰς θηεῖτο διάκτορος ἀργεϊφόντης.

αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δὴ πάντα ἑῷ θηήσατο θυμῷ,

αὐτίκʼ ἄρʼ εἰς εὐρὺ σπέος ἤλυθεν. οὐδέ μιν ἄντην

ἠγνοίησεν ἰδοῦσα Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων·

οὐ γάρ τʼ ἀγνῶτες θεοὶ ἀλλήλοισι πέλονται

80ἀθάνατοι, οὐδʼ εἴ τις ἀπόπροθι δώματα ναίει.

οὐδʼ ἄρʼ Ὀδυσσῆα μεγαλήτορα ἔνδον ἔτετμεν,

ἀλλʼ ὅ γʼ ἐπʼ ἀκτῆς κλαῖε καθήμενος, ἔνθα πάρος περ,

δάκρυσι καὶ στοναχῇσι καὶ ἄλγεσι θυμὸν ἐρέχθων.

πόντον ἐπʼ ἀτρύγετον δερκέσκετο δάκρυα λείβων.

85Ἑρμείαν δʼ ἐρέεινε Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων,

ἐν θρόνῳ ἱδρύσασα φαεινῷ σιγαλόεντι·

τίπτε μοι, Ἑρμεία χρυσόρραπι, εἰλήλουθας

αἰδοῖός τε φίλος τε; πάρος γε μὲν οὔ τι θαμίζεις.

αὔδα ὅ τι φρονέεις· τελέσαι δέ με θυμὸς ἄνωγεν,

90εἰ δύναμαι τελέσαι γε καὶ εἰ τετελεσμένον ἐστίν.

ἀλλʼ ἕπεο προτέρω, ἵνα τοι πὰρ ξείνια θείω.

ὥς ἄρα φωνήσασα θεὰ παρέθηκε τράπεζαν

ἀμβροσίης πλήσασα, κέρασσε δὲ νέκταρ ἐρυθρόν.

αὐτὰρ ὁ πῖνε καὶ ἦσθε διάκτορος ἀργεϊφόντης.

95αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δείπνησε καὶ ἤραρε θυμὸν ἐδωδῇ,

καὶ τότε δή μιν ἔπεσσιν ἀμειβόμενος προσέειπεν·

75The guide, slayer of Argus, stood there gazing.

When he had marveled at everything in his heart,

he went at once into the broad cave. Calypso,

the radiant goddess, saw him and knew him at once,

for the immortal gods are never strangers to one another,

80even when one of them makes his home far away.

But he did not find great-hearted Odysseus inside.

He sat weeping on the shore, as he always did,

wearing out his spirit with tears and groans and grief.

He gazed across the barren sea as tears streamed down.

85Calypso, radiant among goddesses, questioned Hermes

after seating him on a bright, gleaming chair:

“Why have you come to me, Hermes of the golden wand,

honored and welcome? You have not often visited before.

Say what you have in mind. My heart urges me to fulfill it,

90if I can fulfill it and if it can be done.

But come farther in, so I may set guest-gifts before you.”

With this the goddess placed a table beside him,

filled it with ambrosia, and mixed red nectar.

The guide, slayer of Argus, drank and ate.

95When he had dined and satisfied his heart with food,

he answered her:

97εἰρωτᾷς μʼ ἐλθόντα θεὰ θεόν· αὐτὰρ ἐγώ τοι

νημερτέως τὸν μῦθον ἐνισπήσω· κέλεαι γάρ.

Ζεὺς ἐμέ γʼ ἠνώγει δεῦρʼ ἐλθέμεν οὐκ ἐθέλοντα·

100τίς δʼ ἂν ἑκὼν τοσσόνδε διαδράμοι ἁλμυρὸν ὕδωρ

ἄσπετον; οὐδέ τις ἄγχι βροτῶν πόλις, οἵ τε θεοῖσιν

ἱερά τε ῥέζουσι καὶ ἐξαίτους ἑκατόμβας.

ἀλλὰ μάλʼ οὔ πως ἔστι Διὸς νόον αἰγιόχοιο

οὔτε παρεξελθεῖν ἄλλον θεὸν οὔθʼ ἁλιῶσαι.

105φησί τοι ἄνδρα παρεῖναι ὀιζυρώτατον ἄλλων,

τῶν ἀνδρῶν, οἳ ἄστυ πέρι Πριάμοιο μάχοντο

εἰνάετες, δεκάτῳ δὲ πόλιν πέρσαντες ἔβησαν

οἴκαδʼ· ἀτὰρ ἐν νόστῳ Ἀθηναίην ἀλίτοντο,

ἥ σφιν ἐπῶρσʼ ἄνεμόν τε κακὸν καὶ κύματα μακρά.

110ἔνθʼ ἄλλοι μὲν πάντες ἀπέφθιθεν ἐσθλοὶ ἑταῖροι,

τὸν δʼ ἄρα δεῦρʼ ἄνεμός τε φέρων καὶ κῦμα πέλασσε.

τὸν νῦν σʼ ἠνώγειν ἀποπεμπέμεν ὅττι τάχιστα·

οὐ γάρ οἱ τῇδʼ αἶσα φίλων ἀπονόσφιν ὀλέσθαι,

ἀλλʼ ἔτι οἱ μοῖρʼ ἐστὶ φίλους τʼ ἰδέειν καὶ ἱκέσθαι

115οἶκον ἐς ὑψόροφον καὶ ἑὴν ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν.

97“You, a goddess, question me, a god, on my arrival.

I will tell you the matter without evasion, since you ask.

Zeus ordered me to come here against my will.

100Who would willingly cross such an immeasurable waste

of salt water? No city of mortals is nearby, where men

make sacrifice to the gods and offer choice hecatombs.

Yet no other god can step beyond the mind

of Zeus who bears the aegis or frustrate it.

105He says that with you is the most afflicted man

of all who fought around Priam’s city

for nine years, then sacked it in the tenth and left

for home. But on their return they offended Athena,

and she raised against them a bitter wind and towering waves.

110There all his noble companions perished,

but wind and wave carried him here and drove him ashore.

Now Zeus orders you to send him away as quickly as possible.

It is not his fate to die here, far from those he loves.

His destiny is still to see them and reach

115his high-roofed house and native land.”

116ὣς φάτο, ῥίγησεν δὲ Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων,

καί μιν φωνήσασʼ ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·

σχέτλιοί ἐστε, θεοί, ζηλήμονες ἔξοχον ἄλλων,

οἵ τε θεαῖς ἀγάασθε παρʼ ἀνδράσιν εὐνάζεσθαι

120ἀμφαδίην, ἤν τίς τε φίλον ποιήσετʼ ἀκοίτην.

ὣς μὲν ὅτʼ Ὠρίωνʼ ἕλετο ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς,

τόφρα οἱ ἠγάασθε θεοὶ ῥεῖα ζώοντες,

ἧος ἐν Ὀρτυγίῃ χρυσόθρονος Ἄρτεμις ἁγνὴ

οἷς ἀγανοῖς βελέεσσιν ἐποιχομένη κατέπεφνεν.

125ὣς δʼ ὁπότʼ Ἰασίωνι ἐυπλόκαμος Δημήτηρ,

ᾧ θυμῷ εἴξασα, μίγη φιλότητι καὶ εὐνῇ

νειῷ ἔνι τριπόλῳ· οὐδὲ δὴν ἦεν ἄπυστος

Ζεύς, ὅς μιν κατέπεφνε βαλὼν ἀργῆτι κεραυνῷ.

ὥς δʼ αὖ νῦν μοι ἄγασθε, θεοί, βροτὸν ἄνδρα παρεῖναι.

130τὸν μὲν ἐγὼν ἐσάωσα περὶ τρόπιος βεβαῶτα

οἶον, ἐπεί οἱ νῆα θοὴν ἀργῆτι κεραυνῷ

Ζεὺς ἔλσας ἐκέασσε μέσῳ ἐνὶ οἴνοπι πόντῳ.

ἔνθʼ ἄλλοι μὲν πάντες ἀπέφθιθεν ἐσθλοὶ ἑταῖροι,

τὸν δʼ ἄρα δεῦρʼ ἄνεμός τε φέρων καὶ κῦμα πέλασσε.

135τὸν μὲν ἐγὼ φίλεόν τε καὶ ἔτρεφον, ἠδὲ ἔφασκον

θήσειν ἀθάνατον καὶ ἀγήραον ἤματα πάντα.

ἀλλʼ ἐπεὶ οὔ πως ἔστι Διὸς νόον αἰγιόχοιο

οὔτε παρεξελθεῖν ἄλλον θεὸν οὔθʼ ἁλιῶσαι,

ἐρρέτω, εἴ μιν κεῖνος ἐποτρύνει καὶ ἀνώγει,

140πόντον ἐπʼ ἀτρύγετον· πέμψω δέ μιν οὔ πῃ ἐγώ γε·

οὐ γάρ μοι πάρα νῆες ἐπήρετμοι καὶ ἑταῖροι,

οἵ κέν μιν πέμποιεν ἐπʼ εὐρέα νῶτα θαλάσσης.

αὐτάρ οἱ πρόφρων ὑποθήσομαι, οὐδʼ ἐπικεύσω,

ὥς κε μάλʼ ἀσκηθὴς ἣν πατρίδα γαῖαν ἵκηται.

145τὴν δʼ αὖτε προσέειπε διάκτορος ἀργεϊφόντης·

οὕτω νῦν ἀπόπεμπε, Διὸς δʼ ἐποπίζεο μῆνιν,

μή πώς τοι μετόπισθε κοτεσσάμενος χαλεπήνῃ.

ὣς ἄρα φωνήσας ἀπέβη κρατὺς ἀργεϊφόντης·

116So he spoke, and Calypso, radiant among goddesses, shuddered.

She addressed him with winged words:

“You gods are cruel and more jealous than all others!

You resent goddesses who sleep openly beside mortal men,

120if one makes a man her beloved husband.

So when rosy-fingered Dawn took Orion,

you gods who live at ease resented her

until at Ortygia chaste Artemis of the golden throne

came against him with her gentle arrows and killed him.

125So too when Demeter with lovely hair yielded to desire

and joined Iasion in love and bed

in a field plowed three times, Zeus was not long unaware.

He struck the man with a flashing thunderbolt and killed him.

And now you gods resent a mortal man being beside me.

130I saved him when he was astride a ship’s keel,

alone, after Zeus struck his swift ship with a flashing bolt

and shattered it in the middle of the wine-dark sea.

There all his noble companions perished,

but wind and wave carried him here and drove him ashore.

135I loved and cared for him, and I said

I would make him immortal and ageless all his days.

But no other god can step beyond the mind

of Zeus who bears the aegis or frustrate it,

let him go, if Zeus himself drives and commands him,

140over the barren sea. Yet I will not convey him anywhere.

No oared ships or companions are beside me

to carry him over the broad back of the sea.

But I will freely advise him and conceal nothing,

so he may reach his native land wholly unharmed.”

145The guide, slayer of Argus, answered her:

“Send him away now, and have regard for Zeus’s anger,

lest he grow enraged and deal harshly with you afterward.”

So he spoke, and the mighty slayer of Argus departed.

149ἡ δʼ ἐπʼ Ὀδυσσῆα μεγαλήτορα πότνια νύμφη

150ἤιʼ, ἐπεὶ δὴ Ζηνὸς ἐπέκλυεν ἀγγελιάων.

τὸν δʼ ἄρʼ ἐπʼ ἀκτῆς εὗρε καθήμενον· οὐδέ ποτʼ ὄσσε

δακρυόφιν τέρσοντο, κατείβετο δὲ γλυκὺς αἰὼν

νόστον ὀδυρομένῳ, ἐπεὶ οὐκέτι ἥνδανε νύμφη.

ἀλλʼ ἦ τοι νύκτας μὲν ἰαύεσκεν καὶ ἀνάγκῃ

155ἐν σπέσσι γλαφυροῖσι παρʼ οὐκ ἐθέλων ἐθελούσῃ·

ἤματα δʼ ἂμ πέτρῃσι καὶ ἠιόνεσσι καθίζων

δάκρυσι καὶ στοναχῇσι καὶ ἄλγεσι θυμὸν ἐρέχθων

πόντον ἐπʼ ἀτρύγετον δερκέσκετο δάκρυα λείβων.

ἀγχοῦ δʼ ἱσταμένη προσεφώνεε δῖα θεάων·

160κάμμορε, μή μοι ἔτʼ ἐνθάδʼ ὀδύρεο, μηδέ τοι αἰὼν

φθινέτω· ἤδη γάρ σε μάλα πρόφρασσʼ ἀποπέμψω.

ἀλλʼ ἄγε δούρατα μακρὰ ταμὼν ἁρμόζεο χαλκῷ

εὐρεῖαν σχεδίην· ἀτὰρ ἴκρια πῆξαι ἐπʼ αὐτῆς

ὑψοῦ, ὥς σε φέρῃσιν ἐπʼ ἠεροειδέα πόντον.

165αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ σῖτον καὶ ὕδωρ καὶ οἶνον ἐρυθρὸν

ἐνθήσω μενοεικέʼ, ἅ κέν τοι λιμὸν ἐρύκοι,

εἵματά τʼ ἀμφιέσω· πέμψω δέ τοι οὖρον ὄπισθεν,

ὥς κε μάλʼ ἀσκηθὴς σὴν πατρίδα γαῖαν ἵκηαι,

αἴ κε θεοί γʼ ἐθέλωσι, τοὶ οὐρανὸν εὐρὺν ἔχουσιν,

170οἵ μευ φέρτεροί εἰσι νοῆσαί τε κρῆναί τε.

149The sovereign nymph went to great-hearted Odysseus

150when she had heard the message from Zeus.

She found him sitting on the shore. His eyes

were never dry of tears; his sweet life ebbed away

as he mourned for his return, for the nymph no longer pleased him.

At night he slept, under compulsion,

155in the hollow cave beside her—unwilling beside the willing nymph.

By day he sat among the rocks and sands,

wearing out his spirit with tears and groans and grief,

gazing across the barren sea as tears streamed down.

The radiant goddess stood close beside him and said:

160“Poor man, do not mourn here any longer; do not let your life

waste away, for now I will send you off with a willing heart.

Come, cut long timbers and join them with bronze

into a broad raft. Build a raised deck upon it,

so it can carry you over the misty sea.

165I will put aboard bread, water, and red wine

to satisfy your appetite and ward off hunger.

I will clothe you and send a following wind,

so you may reach your native land wholly unharmed,

if the gods who hold broad heaven are willing.

170They are stronger than I am in planning and fulfillment.”

171ὣς φάτο, ῥίγησεν δὲ πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς,

καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδα·

ἄλλο τι δὴ σύ, θεά, τόδε μήδεαι, οὐδέ τι πομπήν,

ἥ με κέλεαι σχεδίῃ περάαν μέγα λαῖτμα θαλάσσης,

175δεινόν τʼ ἀργαλέον τε· τὸ δʼ οὐδʼ ἐπὶ νῆες ἐῖσαι

ὠκύποροι περόωσιν, ἀγαλλόμεναι Διὸς οὔρῳ.

οὐδʼ ἂν ἐγὼν ἀέκητι σέθεν σχεδίης ἐπιβαίην,

εἰ μή μοι τλαίης γε, θεά, μέγαν ὅρκον ὀμόσσαι

μή τί μοι αὐτῷ πῆμα κακὸν βουλευσέμεν ἄλλο.

180ὣς φάτο, μείδησεν δὲ Καλυψὼ δῖα θεάων,

χειρί τέ μιν κατέρεξεν ἔπος τʼ ἔφατʼ ἔκ τʼ ὀνόμαζεν·

ἦ δὴ ἀλιτρός γʼ ἐσσὶ καὶ οὐκ ἀποφώλια εἰδώς,

οἷον δὴ τὸν μῦθον ἐπεφράσθης ἀγορεῦσαι.

ἴστω νῦν τόδε γαῖα καὶ οὐρανὸς εὐρὺς ὕπερθε

185καὶ τὸ κατειβόμενον Στυγὸς ὕδωρ, ὅς τε μέγιστος

ὅρκος δεινότατός τε πέλει μακάρεσσι θεοῖσι,

μή τί τοι αὐτῷ πῆμα κακὸν βουλευσέμεν ἄλλο.

ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν νοέω καὶ φράσσομαι, ἅσσʼ ἂν ἐμοί περ

αὐτῇ μηδοίμην, ὅτε με χρειὼ τόσον ἵκοι·

190καὶ γὰρ ἐμοὶ νόος ἐστὶν ἐναίσιμος, οὐδέ μοι αὐτῇ

θυμὸς ἐνὶ στήθεσσι σιδήρεος, ἀλλʼ ἐλεήμων.

171So she spoke, and much-enduring godlike Odysseus shuddered.

He addressed her with winged words:

“Goddess, you must be devising something else, not a passage home,

when you tell me to cross on a raft the sea’s great gulf,

175terrible and grievous. Not even balanced, swift-faring ships

cross it, though they delight in a wind from Zeus.

I would not board a raft without your consent

unless you dared, goddess, to swear a binding oath

that you are not plotting some further harm against me.”

180So he spoke. Calypso, radiant among goddesses, smiled,

stroked him with her hand, called him by name, and said:

“What a rogue you are, and no fool,

to have thought of speaking such a word!

Now let Earth be witness, and broad Heaven above,

185and the downward-flowing water of Styx, the greatest

and most terrible oath among the blessed gods:

I am not plotting some further harm against you.

I will think and advise only what I would plan

for myself if such need pressed upon me.

190My own mind is just; the heart within my breast

is not made of iron, but feels compassion.”

192ὣς ἄρα φωνήσασʼ ἡγήσατο δῖα θεάων

καρπαλίμως· ὁ δʼ ἔπειτα μετʼ ἴχνια βαῖνε θεοῖο.

ἷξον δὲ σπεῖος γλαφυρὸν θεὸς ἠδὲ καὶ ἀνήρ,

195καί ῥʼ ὁ μὲν ἔνθα καθέζετʼ ἐπὶ θρόνου ἔνθεν ἀνέστη

Ἑρμείας, νύμφη δʼ ἐτίθει πάρα πᾶσαν ἐδωδήν,

ἔσθειν καὶ πίνειν, οἷα βροτοὶ ἄνδρες ἔδουσιν·

αὐτὴ δʼ ἀντίον ἷζεν Ὀδυσσῆος θείοιο,

τῇ δὲ παρʼ ἀμβροσίην δμῳαὶ καὶ νέκταρ ἔθηκαν.

200οἱ δʼ ἐπʼ ὀνείαθʼ ἑτοῖμα προκείμενα χεῖρας ἴαλλον.

αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ τάρπησαν ἐδητύος ἠδὲ ποτῆτος,

τοῖς ἄρα μύθων ἦρχε Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων·

διογενὲς Λαερτιάδη, πολυμήχανʼ Ὀδυσσεῦ,

οὕτω δὴ οἶκόνδε φίλην ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν

205αὐτίκα νῦν ἐθέλεις ἰέναι; σὺ δὲ χαῖρε καὶ ἔμπης.

εἴ γε μὲν εἰδείης σῇσι φρεσὶν ὅσσα τοι αἶσα

κήδεʼ ἀναπλῆσαι, πρὶν πατρίδα γαῖαν ἱκέσθαι,

ἐνθάδε κʼ αὖθι μένων σὺν ἐμοὶ τόδε δῶμα φυλάσσοις

ἀθάνατός τʼ εἴης, ἱμειρόμενός περ ἰδέσθαι

210σὴν ἄλοχον, τῆς τʼ αἰὲν ἐέλδεαι ἤματα πάντα.

οὐ μέν θην κείνης γε χερείων εὔχομαι εἶναι,

οὐ δέμας οὐδὲ φυήν, ἐπεὶ οὔ πως οὐδὲ ἔοικεν

θνητὰς ἀθανάτῃσι δέμας καὶ εἶδος ἐρίζειν.

τὴν δʼ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεύς·

215πότνα θεά, μή μοι τόδε χώεο· οἶδα καὶ αὐτὸς

πάντα μάλʼ, οὕνεκα σεῖο περίφρων Πηνελόπεια

εἶδος ἀκιδνοτέρη μέγεθός τʼ εἰσάντα ἰδέσθαι·

ἡ μὲν γὰρ βροτός ἐστι, σὺ δʼ ἀθάνατος καὶ ἀγήρως.

ἀλλὰ καὶ ὣς ἐθέλω καὶ ἐέλδομαι ἤματα πάντα

220οἴκαδέ τʼ ἐλθέμεναι καὶ νόστιμον ἦμαρ ἰδέσθαι.

εἰ δʼ αὖ τις ῥαίῃσι θεῶν ἐνὶ οἴνοπι πόντῳ,

τλήσομαι ἐν στήθεσσιν ἔχων ταλαπενθέα θυμόν·

ἤδη γὰρ μάλα πολλὰ πάθον καὶ πολλὰ μόγησα

κύμασι καὶ πολέμῳ· μετὰ καὶ τόδε τοῖσι γενέσθω.

225ὣς ἔφατʼ, ἠέλιος δʼ ἄρʼ ἔδυ καὶ ἐπὶ κνέφας ἦλθεν·

ἐλθόντες δʼ ἄρα τώ γε μυχῷ σπείους γλαφυροῖο

τερπέσθην φιλότητι, παρʼ ἀλλήλοισι μένοντες.

192With this the radiant goddess led the way

swiftly, and he followed in the goddess’s steps.

They reached the hollow cave, goddess and man.

195He sat on the chair from which Hermes had risen,

and the nymph set beside him every kind of food

and drink that mortal men consume.

She sat facing godlike Odysseus,

and the enslaved women set ambrosia and nectar before her.

200They reached their hands toward the food prepared before them.

When they had taken their fill of food and drink,

Calypso, radiant among goddesses, began to speak:

“Zeus-born son of Laertes, Odysseus of many devices,

do you truly wish to go home to your own native land

205this very moment? Farewell to you even so.

Yet if you knew in your own mind how many troubles

you are fated to endure before you reach your native land,

you would remain here with me and guard this house

and be immortal, though you long to see

210the wife you yearn for every day.

Surely I claim to be no worse than she is

in form or stature, since it is in no way fitting

for mortal women to contend with immortals in body and beauty.”

Odysseus, master of many plans, answered her:

215“Sovereign goddess, do not be angry with me for this. I know well

that discerning Penelope appears slighter than you

in beauty and stature when one looks upon her.

She is mortal, while you are immortal and ageless.

Even so, I wish and long every day

220to go home and see the day of my return.

If some god strikes me down on the wine-dark sea,

I will endure it, with a spirit steeled to suffering.

I have already suffered much and labored much

in waves and war. Let this be added to it all.”

225So he spoke. The sun set and darkness came on.

They went into the innermost hollow of the cave,

and there, side by side, they passed the night in lovemaking.

228ἦμος δʼ ἠριγένεια φάνη ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς,

αὐτίχʼ ὁ μὲν χλαῖνάν τε χιτῶνά τε ἕννυτʼ Ὀδυσσεύς,

230αὐτὴ δʼ ἀργύφεον φᾶρος μέγα ἕννυτο νύμφη,

λεπτὸν καὶ χαρίεν, περὶ δὲ ζώνην βάλετʼ ἰξυῖ

καλὴν χρυσείην, κεφαλῇ δʼ ἐφύπερθε καλύπτρην.

καὶ τότʼ Ὀδυσσῆι μεγαλήτορι μήδετο πομπήν·

δῶκέν οἱ πέλεκυν μέγαν, ἄρμενον ἐν παλάμῃσι,

235χάλκεον, ἀμφοτέρωθεν ἀκαχμένον· αὐτὰρ ἐν αὐτῷ

στειλειὸν περικαλλὲς ἐλάινον, εὖ ἐναρηρός·

δῶκε δʼ ἔπειτα σκέπαρνον ἐύξοον· ἦρχε δʼ ὁδοῖο

νήσου ἐπʼ ἐσχατιῆς, ὅθι δένδρεα μακρὰ πεφύκει,

κλήθρη τʼ αἴγειρός τʼ, ἐλάτη τʼ ἦν οὐρανομήκης,

240αὖα πάλαι, περίκηλα, τά οἱ πλώοιεν ἐλαφρῶς.

αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δὴ δεῖξʼ, ὅθι δένδρεα μακρὰ πεφύκει,

ἡ μὲν ἔβη πρὸς δῶμα Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων,

αὐτὰρ ὁ τάμνετο δοῦρα· θοῶς δέ οἱ ἤνυτο ἔργον.

εἴκοσι δʼ ἔκβαλε πάντα, πελέκκησεν δʼ ἄρα χαλκῷ,

245ξέσσε δʼ ἐπισταμένως καὶ ἐπὶ στάθμην ἴθυνεν.

τόφρα δʼ ἔνεικε τέρετρα Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων·

τέτρηνεν δʼ ἄρα πάντα καὶ ἥρμοσεν ἀλλήλοισιν,

γόμφοισιν δʼ ἄρα τήν γε καὶ ἁρμονίῃσιν ἄρασσεν.

ὅσσον τίς τʼ ἔδαφος νηὸς τορνώσεται ἀνὴρ

250φορτίδος εὐρείης, ἐὺ εἰδὼς τεκτοσυνάων,

τόσσον ἔπʼ εὐρεῖαν σχεδίην ποιήσατʼ Ὀδυσσεύς.

ἴκρια δὲ στήσας, ἀραρὼν θαμέσι σταμίνεσσι,

ποίει· ἀτὰρ μακρῇσιν ἐπηγκενίδεσσι τελεύτα.

ἐν δʼ ἱστὸν ποίει καὶ ἐπίκριον ἄρμενον αὐτῷ·

255πρὸς δʼ ἄρα πηδάλιον ποιήσατο, ὄφρʼ ἰθύνοι.

φράξε δέ μιν ῥίπεσσι διαμπερὲς οἰσυΐνῃσι

κύματος εἶλαρ ἔμεν· πολλὴν δʼ ἐπεχεύατο ὕλην.

τόφρα δὲ φάρεʼ ἔνεικε Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων,

ἱστία ποιήσασθαι· ὁ δʼ εὖ τεχνήσατο καὶ τά.

260ἐν δʼ ὑπέρας τε κάλους τε πόδας τʼ ἐνέδησεν ἐν αὐτῇ,

μοχλοῖσιν δʼ ἄρα τήν γε κατείρυσεν εἰς ἅλα δῖαν.

228When early-born Dawn appeared, rosy-fingered,

Odysseus at once put on a cloak and tunic.

230The nymph dressed herself in a great silver-white robe,

fine and graceful, and wound around her waist

a beautiful golden belt, with a veil over her head.

Then she planned the great-hearted Odysseus’s departure.

She gave him a large axe, fitted to his hands,

235of bronze, sharpened on both sides. Its handle

was beautiful olivewood, firmly fitted.

Then she gave him a polished adze and led the way

to the island’s far edge, where tall trees had grown:

alder, poplar, and fir reaching toward heaven,

240long dry and seasoned, which would float lightly for him.

When she had shown him where the tall trees grew,

Calypso, radiant among goddesses, returned home.

He cut the timbers, and the work went quickly.

He felled twenty trees in all and squared them with bronze,

245smoothed them with skill, and made them straight to the line.

Meanwhile Calypso, radiant among goddesses, brought augers.

He bored through every timber and fitted them to one another,

then drove the raft together with dowels and joints.

As wide as a skilled shipwright rounds the hull

250of a broad cargo ship, well versed in his craft,

so wide did Odysseus make his raft.

He raised its deck, joining it to closely set uprights,

and finished it with long gunwales.

In it he made a mast and a yard fitted to it.

255He also made a steering oar to guide it.

He fenced it end to end with woven osiers

as a barrier against the waves, and spread much brushwood over it.

Meanwhile Calypso, radiant among goddesses, brought cloth

to make a sail, and he fashioned that well too.

260He bound braces, halyards, and sheets into the raft,

then hauled it down to the shining sea with levers.

262τέτρατον ἦμαρ ἔην, καὶ τῷ τετέλεστο ἅπαντα·

τῷ δʼ ἄρα πέμπτῳ πέμπʼ ἀπὸ νήσου δῖα Καλυψώ,

εἵματά τʼ ἀμφιέσασα θυώδεα καὶ λούσασα.

265ἐν δέ οἱ ἀσκὸν ἔθηκε θεὰ μέλανος οἴνοιο

τὸν ἕτερον, ἕτερον δʼ ὕδατος μέγαν, ἐν δὲ καὶ ᾖα

κωρύκῳ· ἐν δέ οἱ ὄψα τίθει μενοεικέα πολλά·

οὖρον δὲ προέηκεν ἀπήμονά τε λιαρόν τε.

γηθόσυνος δʼ οὔρῳ πέτασʼ ἱστία δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς.

270αὐτὰρ ὁ πηδαλίῳ ἰθύνετο τεχνηέντως

ἥμενος, οὐδέ οἱ ὕπνος ἐπὶ βλεφάροισιν ἔπιπτεν

Πληιάδας τʼ ἐσορῶντι καὶ ὀψὲ δύοντα Βοώτην

Ἄρκτον θʼ, ἣν καὶ ἄμαξαν ἐπίκλησιν καλέουσιν,

ἥ τʼ αὐτοῦ στρέφεται καί τʼ Ὠρίωνα δοκεύει,

275οἴη δʼ ἄμμορός ἐστι λοετρῶν Ὠκεανοῖο·

τὴν γὰρ δή μιν ἄνωγε Καλυψώ, δῖα θεάων,

ποντοπορευέμεναι ἐπʼ ἀριστερὰ χειρὸς ἔχοντα.

ἑπτὰ δὲ καὶ δέκα μὲν πλέεν ἤματα ποντοπορεύων,

ὀκτωκαιδεκάτῃ δʼ ἐφάνη ὄρεα σκιόεντα

280γαίης Φαιήκων, ὅθι τʼ ἄγχιστον πέλεν αὐτῷ·

εἴσατο δʼ ὡς ὅτε ῥινὸν ἐν ἠεροειδέι πόντῳ.

262It was the fourth day, and by then everything was finished.

On the fifth, radiant Calypso sent him from the island,

after bathing him and clothing him in fragrant garments.

265The goddess put aboard one skin of dark wine

and another, a large one, of water; food was in a sack,

and she placed beside him plenty of hearty provisions.

She sent forth a warm and harmless wind.

Glad at the wind, godlike Odysseus spread his sail.

270He sat and guided the raft skillfully with the steering oar.

Sleep did not fall upon his eyelids as he watched

the Pleiades, late-setting Boötes,

and the Bear, which men also call the Wagon.

It turns in place and keeps watch on Orion,

275the only one denied a bath in Ocean.

Calypso, radiant among goddesses, had told him

to keep it on his left as he sailed the sea.

For seventeen days he sailed over the water.

On the eighteenth, the shadowed mountains appeared

280of the Phaeacians’ land at the point nearest him.

It looked like a shield upon the misty sea.

282τὸν δʼ ἐξ Αἰθιόπων ἀνιὼν κρείων ἐνοσίχθων

τηλόθεν ἐκ Σολύμων ὀρέων ἴδεν· εἴσατο γάρ οἱ

πόντον ἐπιπλώων. ὁ δʼ ἐχώσατο κηρόθι μᾶλλον,

285κινήσας δὲ κάρη προτὶ ὃν μυθήσατο θυμόν·

ὢ πόποι, ἦ μάλα δὴ μετεβούλευσαν θεοὶ ἄλλως

ἀμφʼ Ὀδυσῆι ἐμεῖο μετʼ Αἰθιόπεσσιν ἐόντος,

καὶ δὴ Φαιήκων γαίης σχεδόν, ἔνθα οἱ αἶσα

ἐκφυγέειν μέγα πεῖραρ ὀιζύος, ἥ μιν ἱκάνει.

290ἀλλʼ ἔτι μέν μίν φημι ἅδην ἐλάαν κακότητος.

ὣς εἰπὼν σύναγεν νεφέλας, ἐτάραξε δὲ πόντον

χερσὶ τρίαιναν ἑλών· πάσας δʼ ὀρόθυνεν ἀέλλας

παντοίων ἀνέμων, σὺν δὲ νεφέεσσι κάλυψε

γαῖαν ὁμοῦ καὶ πόντον· ὀρώρει δʼ οὐρανόθεν νύξ.

295σὺν δʼ Εὖρός τε Νότος τʼ ἔπεσον Ζέφυρός τε δυσαὴς

καὶ Βορέης αἰθρηγενέτης, μέγα κῦμα κυλίνδων.

καὶ τότʼ Ὀδυσσῆος λύτο γούνατα καὶ φίλον ἦτορ,

ὀχθήσας δʼ ἄρα εἶπε πρὸς ὃν μεγαλήτορα θυμόν·

ὤ μοι ἐγὼ δειλός, τί νύ μοι μήκιστα γένηται;

300δείδω μὴ δὴ πάντα θεὰ νημερτέα εἶπεν,

ἥ μʼ ἔφατʼ ἐν πόντῳ, πρὶν πατρίδα γαῖαν ἱκέσθαι,

ἄλγεʼ ἀναπλήσειν· τὰ δὲ δὴ νῦν πάντα τελεῖται.

οἵοισιν νεφέεσσι περιστέφει οὐρανὸν εὐρὺν

Ζεύς, ἐτάραξε δὲ πόντον, ἐπισπέρχουσι δʼ ἄελλαι

305παντοίων ἀνέμων. νῦν μοι σῶς αἰπὺς ὄλεθρος.

τρὶς μάκαρες Δαναοὶ καὶ τετράκις, οἳ τότʼ ὄλοντο

Τροίῃ ἐν εὐρείῃ χάριν Ἀτρεΐδῃσι φέροντες.

ὡς δὴ ἐγώ γʼ ὄφελον θανέειν καὶ πότμον ἐπισπεῖν

ἤματι τῷ ὅτε μοι πλεῖστοι χαλκήρεα δοῦρα

310Τρῶες ἐπέρριψαν περὶ Πηλεΐωνι θανόντι.

τῷ κʼ ἔλαχον κτερέων, καί μευ κλέος ἦγον Ἀχαιοί·

νῦν δέ λευγαλέῳ θανάτῳ εἵμαρτο ἁλῶναι.

282But the lord who shakes the earth, returning from the Ethiopians,

saw him far off from the mountains of the Solymi, for Odysseus

was plain to him sailing the sea. His anger deepened.

285He shook his head and spoke to his own heart:

“So! The gods have wholly changed their plans

for Odysseus while I was among the Ethiopians.

He is already near the Phaeacians’ land, where he is fated

to escape the great bond of misery that holds him.

290But I think I will still drive him to his fill of trouble.”

With this he gathered the clouds and troubled the sea,

taking the trident in his hands. He roused every blast

of every wind and covered earth and sea together

with clouds. Night rose from heaven.

295Eurus and Notus fell upon him together, with stormy Zephyrus

and sky-born Boreas, rolling a towering wave.

Then Odysseus’s knees and dear heart gave way.

In anguish he spoke to his own great-hearted spirit:

“Poor wretch, what will happen to me at last?

300I fear the goddess told me everything without evasion

when she said I would endure suffering at sea

before reaching my native land. Now it is all coming true.

See how Zeus wreathes broad heaven in clouds

and troubles the sea, while squalls from every wind

305rush upon me. Now my sheer destruction is certain.

Three and four times blessed were the Danaans who died

on the broad plain of Troy, doing service for the sons of Atreus.

If only I had died and followed my fate

that day when hosts of Trojans hurled

310bronze-tipped spears at me around the fallen son of Peleus.

Then I would have received funeral rites, and the Achaeans spread my renown.

Now I am doomed to be taken by a wretched death.”

313ὣς ἄρα μιν εἰπόντʼ ἔλασεν μέγα κῦμα κατʼ ἄκρης

δεινὸν ἐπεσσύμενον, περὶ δὲ σχεδίην ἐλέλιξε.

315τῆλε δʼ ἀπὸ σχεδίης αὐτὸς πέσε, πηδάλιον δὲ

ἐκ χειρῶν προέηκε· μέσον δέ οἱ ἱστὸν ἔαξεν

δεινὴ μισγομένων ἀνέμων ἐλθοῦσα θύελλα,

τηλοῦ δὲ σπεῖρον καὶ ἐπίκριον ἔμπεσε πόντῳ.

τὸν δʼ ἄρʼ ὑπόβρυχα θῆκε πολὺν χρόνον, οὐδʼ ἐδυνάσθη

320αἶψα μάλʼ ἀνσχεθέειν μεγάλου ὑπὸ κύματος ὁρμῆς·

εἵματα γάρ ῥʼ ἐβάρυνε, τά οἱ πόρε δῖα Καλυψώ.

ὀψὲ δὲ δή ῥʼ ἀνέδυ, στόματος δʼ ἐξέπτυσεν ἅλμην

πικρήν, ἥ οἱ πολλὴ ἀπὸ κρατὸς κελάρυζεν.

ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ὣς σχεδίης ἐπελήθετο, τειρόμενός περ,

325ἀλλὰ μεθορμηθεὶς ἐνὶ κύμασιν ἐλλάβετʼ αὐτῆς,

ἐν μέσσῃ δὲ καθῖζε τέλος θανάτου ἀλεείνων.

τὴν δʼ ἐφόρει μέγα κῦμα κατὰ ῥόον ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα.

ὡς δʼ ὅτʼ ὀπωρινὸς Βορέης φορέῃσιν ἀκάνθας

ἂμ πεδίον, πυκιναὶ δὲ πρὸς ἀλλήλῃσιν ἔχονται,

330ὣς τὴν ἂμ πέλαγος ἄνεμοι φέρον ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα·

ἄλλοτε μέν τε Νότος Βορέῃ προβάλεσκε φέρεσθαι,

ἄλλοτε δʼ αὖτʼ Εὖρος Ζεφύρῳ εἴξασκε διώκειν.

313As he spoke, a great wave struck him from above,

rushing terribly upon him, and whirled the raft around.

315He fell far from the raft and let the steering oar

fly from his hands; the mast broke in the middle

as a terrible squall of mingled winds swept in,

and the sail and yard fell far out into the sea.

The wave held him submerged for a long time. He could not

320rise quickly beneath the force of its great onset,

for the clothes radiant Calypso gave him weighed him down.

At last he came up and spat from his mouth the bitter brine

that streamed in torrents from his head.

Even in his exhaustion he did not forget the raft.

325He lunged after it through the waves and caught hold,

then sat in its middle, escaping the end of death.

The great wave carried it along the current, here and there.

As the North Wind in autumn tumbles thistles

over the plain, packed close and clinging to one another,

330so the winds carried the raft here and there across the open sea.

At one moment Notus tossed it forward for Boreas to carry;

at another Eurus yielded and let Zephyrus chase it.

333τὸν δὲ ἴδεν Κάδμου θυγάτηρ, καλλίσφυρος Ἰνώ,

Λευκοθέη, ἣ πρὶν μὲν ἔην βροτὸς αὐδήεσσα,

335νῦν δʼ ἁλὸς ἐν πελάγεσσι θεῶν ἒξ ἔμμορε τιμῆς.

ἥ ῥʼ Ὀδυσῆʼ ἐλέησεν ἀλώμενον, ἄλγεʼ ἔχοντα,

αἰθυίῃ δʼ ἐικυῖα ποτῇ ἀνεδύσετο λίμνης,

ἷζε δʼ ἐπὶ σχεδίης πολυδέσμου εἶπέ τε μῦθον·

κάμμορε, τίπτε τοι ὧδε Ποσειδάων ἐνοσίχθων

340ὠδύσατʼ ἐκπάγλως, ὅτι τοι κακὰ πολλὰ φυτεύει;

οὐ μὲν δή σε καταφθίσει μάλα περ μενεαίνων.

ἀλλὰ μάλʼ ὧδʼ ἔρξαι, δοκέεις δέ μοι οὐκ ἀπινύσσειν·

εἵματα ταῦτʼ ἀποδὺς σχεδίην ἀνέμοισι φέρεσθαι

κάλλιπʼ, ἀτὰρ χείρεσσι νέων ἐπιμαίεο νόστου

345γαίης Φαιήκων, ὅθι τοι μοῖρʼ ἐστὶν ἀλύξαι.

τῆ δέ, τόδε κρήδεμνον ὑπὸ στέρνοιο τανύσσαι

ἄμβροτον· οὐδέ τί τοι παθέειν δέος οὐδʼ ἀπολέσθαι.

αὐτὰρ ἐπὴν χείρεσσιν ἐφάψεαι ἠπείροιο,

ἂψ ἀπολυσάμενος βαλέειν εἰς οἴνοπα πόντον

350πολλὸν ἀπʼ ἠπείρου, αὐτὸς δʼ ἀπονόσφι τραπέσθαι.

ὣς ἄρα φωνήσασα θεὰ κρήδεμνον ἔδωκεν,

αὐτὴ δʼ ἂψ ἐς πόντον ἐδύσετο κυμαίνοντα

αἰθυίῃ ἐικυῖα· μέλαν δέ ἑ κῦμα κάλυψεν.

αὐτὰρ ὁ μερμήριξε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς,

355ὀχθήσας δʼ ἄρα εἶπε πρὸς ὃν μεγαλήτορα θυμόν·

ὤ μοι ἐγώ, μή τίς μοι ὑφαίνῃσιν δόλον αὖτε

ἀθανάτων, ὅ τέ με σχεδίης ἀποβῆναι ἀνώγει.

ἀλλὰ μάλʼ οὔ πω πείσομʼ, ἐπεὶ ἑκὰς ὀφθαλμοῖσιν

γαῖαν ἐγὼν ἰδόμην, ὅθι μοι φάτο φύξιμον εἶναι.

360ἀλλὰ μάλʼ ὧδʼ ἔρξω, δοκέει δέ μοι εἶναι ἄριστον·

ὄφρʼ ἂν μέν κεν δούρατʼ ἐν ἁρμονίῃσιν ἀρήρῃ,

τόφρʼ αὐτοῦ μενέω καὶ τλήσομαι ἄλγεα πάσχων·

αὐτὰρ ἐπὴν δή μοι σχεδίην διὰ κῦμα τινάξῃ,

νήξομʼ, ἐπεὶ οὐ μέν τι πάρα προνοῆσαι ἄμεινον.

333The daughter of Cadmus saw him—Ino of the lovely ankles,

Leucothea, who once had been a mortal woman with a voice

335but now had received divine honor in the reaches of the sea.

She pitied Odysseus, wandering and in pain.

Like a sea bird she rose on the wing from the water,

settled on the raft bound fast, and spoke:

“Poor man, why has Poseidon who shakes the earth

340grown so fiercely angry with you, sowing so many troubles?

For all his fury, he will not destroy you.

Do exactly as I say—you do not seem witless to me.

Strip off these clothes and leave the raft for the winds to carry.

Strike out with your hands and swim for your return

345to the Phaeacians’ land, where you are fated to escape.

Here, stretch this immortal veil beneath your chest.

You need not fear suffering or death.

But when your hands take hold of the mainland,

untie it and throw it back into the wine-dark sea,

350far from the shore, while you turn your face away.”

With this the goddess gave him the veil,

then plunged back into the heaving sea

like a sea bird, and the dark wave covered her.

But much-enduring godlike Odysseus pondered.

355In anguish he spoke to his own great-hearted spirit:

“No! Perhaps one of the immortals is weaving another snare

for me, telling me to leave the raft.

I will not yet obey. I saw with my own eyes how far away

the land still is where she said I could escape.

360Instead I will do what seems best to me.

As long as the timbers hold firm in their joints,

I will stay here and endure my suffering.

But once a wave has shaken my raft apart,

I will swim, since I can devise nothing better.”

365ἧος ὁ ταῦθʼ ὥρμαινε κατὰ φρένα καὶ κατὰ θυμόν,

ὦρσε δʼ ἐπὶ μέγα κῦμα Ποσειδάων ἐνοσίχθων,

δεινόν τʼ ἀργαλέον τε, κατηρεφές, ἤλασε δʼ αὐτόν.

ὡς δʼ ἄνεμος ζαὴς ἠΐων θημῶνα τινάξῃ

καρφαλέων· τὰ μὲν ἄρ τε διεσκέδασʼ ἄλλυδις ἄλλῃ·

370ὣς τῆς δούρατα μακρὰ διεσκέδασʼ. αὐτὰρ Ὀδυσσεὺς

ἀμφʼ ἑνὶ δούρατι βαῖνε, κέληθʼ ὡς ἵππον ἐλαύνων,

εἵματα δʼ ἐξαπέδυνε, τά οἱ πόρε δῖα Καλυψώ.

αὐτίκα δὲ κρήδεμνον ὑπὸ στέρνοιο τάνυσσεν,

αὐτὸς δὲ πρηνὴς ἁλὶ κάππεσε, χεῖρε πετάσσας,

375νηχέμεναι μεμαώς. ἴδε δὲ κρείων ἐνοσίχθων,

κινήσας δὲ κάρη προτὶ ὃν μυθήσατο θυμόν·

οὕτω νῦν κακὰ πολλὰ παθὼν ἀλόω κατὰ πόντον,

εἰς ὅ κεν ἀνθρώποισι διοτρεφέεσσι μιγήῃς.

ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ὥς σε ἔολπα ὀνόσσεσθαι κακότητος.

380ὣς ἄρα φωνήσας ἵμασεν καλλίτριχας ἵππους,

ἵκετο δʼ εἰς Αἰγάς, ὅθι οἱ κλυτὰ δώματʼ ἔασιν.

αὐτὰρ Ἀθηναίη κούρη Διὸς ἄλλʼ ἐνόησεν.

ἦ τοι τῶν ἄλλων ἀνέμων κατέδησε κελεύθους,

παύσασθαι δʼ ἐκέλευσε καὶ εὐνηθῆναι ἅπαντας·

385ὦρσε δʼ ἐπὶ κραιπνὸν Βορέην, πρὸ δὲ κύματʼ ἔαξεν,

ἧος ὃ Φαιήκεσσι φιληρέτμοισι μιγείη

διογενὴς Ὀδυσεὺς θάνατον καὶ κῆρας ἀλύξας.

365While he weighed this in mind and spirit,

Poseidon who shakes the earth raised a towering wave against him,

terrible, grievous, and overhanging, and drove it upon him.

As a raging wind scatters a heap

of dry chaff and strews it this way and that,

370so the wave scattered the raft’s long timbers. Odysseus

mounted one beam as if riding a racing horse

and stripped off the clothes radiant Calypso gave him.

At once he stretched the veil beneath his chest,

then plunged headfirst into the sea, spreading his arms,

375eager to swim. The lord who shakes the earth saw him,

shook his head, and spoke to his own heart:

“Now wander across the sea after suffering many troubles,

until you mingle with men nurtured by Zeus.

Even then, I think, you will not complain of too little hardship.”

380So he spoke, lashed his horses of lovely mane,

and came to Aegae, where his glorious halls stand.

But Athena, daughter of Zeus, devised another course.

She bound the paths of all the other winds

and ordered every one to stop and lie down.

385She raised swift Boreas and broke the waves ahead,

until he could mingle with the oar-loving Phaeacians,

Zeus-born Odysseus, escaping death and doom.

388ἔνθα δύω νύκτας δύο τʼ ἤματα κύματι πηγῷ

πλάζετο, πολλὰ δέ οἱ κραδίη προτιόσσετʼ ὄλεθρον.

390ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ τρίτον ἦμαρ ἐυπλόκαμος τέλεσʼ Ἠώς,

καὶ τότʼ ἔπειτʼ ἄνεμος μὲν ἐπαύσατο ἠδὲ γαλήνη

ἔπλετο νηνεμίη· ὁ δʼ ἄρα σχεδὸν εἴσιδε γαῖαν

ὀξὺ μάλα προϊδών, μεγάλου ὑπὸ κύματος ἀρθείς.

ὡς δʼ ὅτʼ ἂν ἀσπάσιος βίοτος παίδεσσι φανήῃ

395πατρός, ὃς ἐν νούσῳ κεῖται κρατέρʼ ἄλγεα πάσχων,

δηρὸν τηκόμενος, στυγερὸς δέ οἱ ἔχραε δαίμων,

ἀσπάσιον δʼ ἄρα τόν γε θεοὶ κακότητος ἔλυσαν,

ὣς Ὀδυσεῖ ἀσπαστὸν ἐείσατο γαῖα καὶ ὕλη,

νῆχε δʼ ἐπειγόμενος ποσὶν ἠπείρου ἐπιβῆναι.

400ἀλλʼ ὅτε τόσσον ἀπῆν ὅσσον τε γέγωνε βοήσας,

καὶ δὴ δοῦπον ἄκουσε ποτὶ σπιλάδεσσι θαλάσσης·

ῥόχθει γὰρ μέγα κῦμα ποτὶ ξερὸν ἠπείροιο

δεινὸν ἐρευγόμενον, εἴλυτο δὲ πάνθʼ ἁλὸς ἄχνῃ·

οὐ γὰρ ἔσαν λιμένες νηῶν ὄχοι, οὐδʼ ἐπιωγαί.

405ἀλλʼ ἀκταὶ προβλῆτες ἔσαν σπιλάδες τε πάγοι τε·

καὶ τότʼ Ὀδυσσῆος λύτο γούνατα καὶ φίλον ἦτορ,

ὀχθήσας δʼ ἄρα εἶπε πρὸς ὃν μεγαλήτορα θυμόν·

ὤ μοι, ἐπεὶ δὴ γαῖαν ἀελπέα δῶκεν ἰδέσθαι

Ζεύς, καὶ δὴ τόδε λαῖτμα διατμήξας ἐπέρησα,

410ἔκβασις οὔ πῃ φαίνεθʼ ἁλὸς πολιοῖο θύραζε·

ἔκτοσθεν μὲν γὰρ πάγοι ὀξέες, ἀμφὶ δὲ κῦμα

βέβρυχεν ῥόθιον, λισσὴ δʼ ἀναδέδρομε πέτρη,

ἀγχιβαθὴς δὲ θάλασσα, καὶ οὔ πως ἔστι πόδεσσι

στήμεναι ἀμφοτέροισι καὶ ἐκφυγέειν κακότητα·

415μή πώς μʼ ἐκβαίνοντα βάλῃ λίθακι ποτὶ πέτρῃ

κῦμα μέγʼ ἁρπάξαν· μελέη δέ μοι ἔσσεται ὁρμή.

εἰ δέ κʼ ἔτι προτέρω παρανήξομαι, ἤν που ἐφεύρω

ἠιόνας τε παραπλῆγας λιμένας τε θαλάσσης,

δείδω μή μʼ ἐξαῦτις ἀναρπάξασα θύελλα

420πόντον ἐπʼ ἰχθυόεντα φέρῃ βαρέα στενάχοντα,

ἠέ τί μοι καὶ κῆτος ἐπισσεύῃ μέγα δαίμων

ἐξ ἁλός, οἷά τε πολλὰ τρέφει κλυτὸς Ἀμφιτρίτη·

οἶδα γάρ, ὥς μοι ὀδώδυσται κλυτὸς ἐννοσίγαιος.

388For two nights and two days he drifted on the swelling waves,

and often his heart looked death in the face.

390But when Dawn with lovely hair brought the third day,

the wind fell and a calm came on,

still and windless. Raised high on a great wave,

he caught a sharp sight of land nearby.

As welcome as a father’s life appears to his children

395when he lies in sickness, suffering bitter pains,

wasting away for a long time while a hateful power assails him,

and to their joy the gods release him from his suffering,

so land and forest seemed welcome to Odysseus.

He swam on urgently, eager to set foot ashore.

400But when he was as far off as a man’s shout carries,

he heard the sea crashing against the reefs.

A great wave roared toward the dry land,

belching terribly, and everything was wrapped in sea foam.

There were no harbors to hold ships, no sheltered anchorages,

405only projecting headlands, reefs, and cliffs.

Then Odysseus’s knees and dear heart gave way.

In anguish he spoke to his own great-hearted spirit:

“No! Now that Zeus has let me see unhoped-for land,

and I have crossed the whole of this gulf,

410there is no way to climb out of the gray sea.

Outside stand sharp crags, and the roaring surf

thunders around them; a sheer rock rises from the water,

and the sea is deep close in. There is nowhere to plant

both feet firmly and escape disaster.

415As I try to land, a great wave may seize me

and dash me against jagged rock, making my effort useless.

But if I swim on farther, hoping somewhere to find

a sloping beach or a harbor from the sea,

I fear a squall may seize me again

420and carry me out over the fish-filled sea, groaning heavily,

or some god may send against me from the water

a great sea beast, such as renowned Amphitrite breeds in plenty.

I know how the renowned shaker of the earth hates me.”

424ἧος ὁ ταῦθʼ ὥρμαινε κατὰ φρένα καὶ κατὰ θυμόν,

425τόφρα δέ μιν μέγα κῦμα φέρε τρηχεῖαν ἐπʼ ἀκτήν.

ἔνθα κʼ ἀπὸ ῥινοὺς δρύφθη, σὺν δʼ ὀστέʼ ἀράχθη,

εἰ μὴ ἐπὶ φρεσὶ θῆκε θεά, γλαυκῶπις Ἀθήνη·

ἀμφοτέρῃσι δὲ χερσὶν ἐπεσσύμενος λάβε πέτρης,

τῆς ἔχετο στενάχων, ἧος μέγα κῦμα παρῆλθε.

430καὶ τὸ μὲν ὣς ὑπάλυξε, παλιρρόθιον δέ μιν αὖτις

πλῆξεν ἐπεσσύμενον, τηλοῦ δέ μιν ἔμβαλε πόντῳ.

ὡς δʼ ὅτε πουλύποδος θαλάμης ἐξελκομένοιο

πρὸς κοτυληδονόφιν πυκιναὶ λάιγγες ἔχονται,

ὣς τοῦ πρὸς πέτρῃσι θρασειάων ἀπὸ χειρῶν

435ῥινοὶ ἀπέδρυφθεν· τὸν δὲ μέγα κῦμα κάλυψεν.

ἔνθα κε δὴ δύστηνος ὑπὲρ μόρον ὤλετʼ Ὀδυσσεύς,

εἰ μὴ ἐπιφροσύνην δῶκε γλαυκῶπις Ἀθήνη.

κύματος ἐξαναδύς, τά τʼ ἐρεύγεται ἤπειρόνδε,

νῆχε παρέξ, ἐς γαῖαν ὁρώμενος, εἴ που ἐφεύροι

440ἠιόνας τε παραπλῆγας λιμένας τε θαλάσσης.

424While he weighed this in mind and spirit,

425a great wave carried him toward the rugged shore.

There his skin would have been stripped off and his bones crushed,

if bright-eyed Athena had not put a thought in his mind.

He lunged and seized the rock with both hands.

Groaning, he clung there until the great wave passed.

430He escaped that wave, but the returning surge

struck him as it rushed back and hurled him far out to sea.

As thick pebbles cling to the suckers

of an octopus dragged from its lair,

so strips of skin were torn from his powerful hands

435against the rocks, and the great wave covered him.

There wretched Odysseus would have died beyond his fate,

if bright-eyed Athena had not given him good judgment.

He surfaced beyond the waves that belched toward land

and swam alongside the coast, scanning it for

440a sloping beach or a harbor from the sea.

441ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ ποταμοῖο κατὰ στόμα καλλιρόοιο

ἷξε νέων, τῇ δή οἱ ἐείσατο χῶρος ἄριστος,

λεῖος πετράων, καὶ ἐπὶ σκέπας ἦν ἀνέμοιο,

ἔγνω δὲ προρέοντα καὶ εὔξατο ὃν κατὰ θυμόν·

445κλῦθι, ἄναξ, ὅτις ἐσσί· πολύλλιστον δέ σʼ ἱκάνω,

φεύγων ἐκ πόντοιο Ποσειδάωνος ἐνιπάς.

αἰδοῖος μέν τʼ ἐστὶ καὶ ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖσιν

ἀνδρῶν ὅς τις ἵκηται ἀλώμενος, ὡς καὶ ἐγὼ νῦν

σόν τε ῥόον σά τε γούναθʼ ἱκάνω πολλὰ μογήσας.

450ἀλλʼ ἐλέαιρε, ἄναξ· ἱκέτης δέ τοι εὔχομαι εἶναι.

ὣς φάθʼ, ὁ δʼ αὐτίκα παῦσεν ἑὸν ῥόον, ἔσχε δὲ κῦμα,

πρόσθε δέ οἱ ποίησε γαλήνην, τὸν δʼ ἐσάωσεν

ἐς ποταμοῦ προχοάς. ὁ δʼ ἄρʼ ἄμφω γούνατʼ ἔκαμψε

χεῖράς τε στιβαράς. ἁλὶ γὰρ δέδμητο φίλον κῆρ.

455ᾤδεε δὲ χρόα πάντα, θάλασσα δὲ κήκιε πολλὴ

ἂν στόμα τε ῥῖνάς θʼ· ὁ δʼ ἄρʼ ἄπνευστος καὶ ἄναυδος

κεῖτʼ ὀλιγηπελέων, κάματος δέ μιν αἰνὸς ἵκανεν.

ἀλλʼ ὅτε δή ῥʼ ἄμπνυτο καὶ ἐς φρένα θυμὸς ἀγέρθη,

καὶ τότε δὴ κρήδεμνον ἀπὸ ἕο λῦσε θεοῖο.

460καὶ τὸ μὲν ἐς ποταμὸν ἁλιμυρήεντα μεθῆκεν,

ἂψ δʼ ἔφερεν μέγα κῦμα κατὰ ῥόον, αἶψα δʼ ἄρʼ Ἰνὼ

δέξατο χερσὶ φίλῃσιν· ὁ δʼ ἐκ ποταμοῖο λιασθεὶς

σχοίνῳ ὑπεκλίνθη, κύσε δὲ ζείδωρον ἄρουραν.

441But when he reached the mouth of a fair-flowing river

as he swam, that place seemed best to him:

free of rocks and sheltered from the wind.

He recognized the current and prayed within his heart:

445“Hear me, lord, whoever you are. I come in urgent supplication,

fleeing from the sea and Poseidon’s rebukes.

A wandering man who comes as a suppliant is held in awe

even by the immortal gods. So I now come

to your stream and your knees after suffering much.

450Have pity, lord. I declare that I am your suppliant.”

So he spoke. The river at once checked its flow and held back the wave,

made calm water before him, and brought him safely

into its mouth. Both his knees

and his powerful hands gave way; the sea had subdued his dear heart.

455His whole body was swollen, and seawater gushed

from his mouth and nostrils. Breathless and speechless,

he lay there fainting, overcome by terrible exhaustion.

But when he caught his breath and his spirit gathered in his breast,

he untied the goddess’s veil from his body.

460He let it go into the river flowing seaward.

A great wave bore it back down the current, and Ino at once

received it in her own hands. He withdrew from the river,

sank among the reeds, and kissed the grain-giving earth.

464ὀχθήσας δʼ ἄρα εἶπε πρὸς ὃν μεγαλήτορα θυμόν·

465ὤ μοι ἐγώ, τί πάθω; τί νύ μοι μήκιστα γένηται;

εἰ μέν κʼ ἐν ποταμῷ δυσκηδέα νύκτα φυλάσσω,

μή μʼ ἄμυδις στίβη τε κακὴ καὶ θῆλυς ἐέρση

ἐξ ὀλιγηπελίης δαμάσῃ κεκαφηότα θυμόν·

αὔρη δʼ ἐκ ποταμοῦ ψυχρὴ πνέει ἠῶθι πρό.

470εἰ δέ κεν ἐς κλιτὺν ἀναβὰς καὶ δάσκιον ὕλην

θάμνοις ἐν πυκινοῖσι καταδράθω, εἴ με μεθείη

ῥῖγος καὶ κάματος, γλυκερὸς δέ μοι ὕπνος ἐπέλθῃ,

δείδω, μὴ θήρεσσιν ἕλωρ καὶ κύρμα γένωμαι.

ὣς ἄρα οἱ φρονέοντι δοάσσατο κέρδιον εἶναι·

475βῆ ῥʼ ἴμεν εἰς ὕλην· τὴν δὲ σχεδὸν ὕδατος εὗρεν

ἐν περιφαινομένῳ· δοιοὺς δʼ ἄρʼ ὑπήλυθε θάμνους,

ἐξ ὁμόθεν πεφυῶτας· ὁ μὲν φυλίης, ὁ δʼ ἐλαίης.

τοὺς μὲν ἄρʼ οὔτʼ ἀνέμων διάη μένος ὑγρὸν ἀέντων,

οὔτε ποτʼ ἠέλιος φαέθων ἀκτῖσιν ἔβαλλεν,

480οὔτʼ ὄμβρος περάασκε διαμπερές· ὣς ἄρα πυκνοὶ

ἀλλήλοισιν ἔφυν ἐπαμοιβαδίς· οὓς ὑπʼ Ὀδυσσεὺς

δύσετʼ. ἄφαρ δʼ εὐνὴν ἐπαμήσατο χερσὶ φίλῃσιν

εὐρεῖαν· φύλλων γὰρ ἔην χύσις ἤλιθα πολλή,

ὅσσον τʼ ἠὲ δύω ἠὲ τρεῖς ἄνδρας ἔρυσθαι

485ὥρῃ χειμερίῃ, εἰ καὶ μάλα περ χαλεπαίνοι.

τὴν μὲν ἰδὼν γήθησε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς,

ἐν δʼ ἄρα μέσσῃ λέκτο, χύσιν δʼ ἐπεχεύατο φύλλων.

464In anguish he spoke to his own great-hearted spirit:

465“Poor wretch, what am I to suffer? What will happen to me at last?

If I keep a grim vigil through the night beside the river,

cruel frost and soft dew together may overcome me

in my weakness and crush the breathless spirit within me.

A cold breeze blows from the river before dawn.

470But if I climb the slope into the shadowed wood

and sleep among dense bushes, if cold and exhaustion

release me and sweet sleep comes upon me,

I fear I may become the prey and spoil of beasts.”

As he considered, it seemed better to do this.

475He went into the wood, which he found close to the water

in an open place, and crept beneath two bushes

growing from a single root, one wild olive, one cultivated.

Neither the force of winds blowing wet could pierce them,

nor did the bright sun ever strike them with its rays,

480nor could rain pass all the way through, so densely

they had grown, intertwined with one another. Beneath them Odysseus

crawled and at once heaped up with his hands

a broad bed, for fallen leaves lay there in great abundance,

enough to shelter two men or even three

485in the winter season, however bitter the weather.

Much-enduring godlike Odysseus rejoiced at the sight.

He lay down in the middle and poured a heap of leaves over himself.

488ὡς δʼ ὅτε τις δαλὸν σποδιῇ ἐνέκρυψε μελαίνῃ

ἀγροῦ ἐπʼ ἐσχατιῆς, ᾧ μὴ πάρα γείτονες ἄλλοι,

490σπέρμα πυρὸς σώζων, ἵνα μή ποθεν ἄλλοθεν αὔοι,

ὣς Ὀδυσεὺς φύλλοισι καλύψατο· τῷ δʼ ἄρʼ Ἀθήνη

ὕπνον ἐπʼ ὄμμασι χεῦʼ, ἵνα μιν παύσειε τάχιστα

δυσπονέος καμάτοιο φίλα βλέφαρʼ ἀμφικαλύψας.

488As when a man hides a burning brand in black ashes

at the far edge of a field, with no neighbors nearby,

490preserving the seed of fire so he need not kindle it elsewhere,

so Odysseus covered himself with leaves. Then Athena

poured sleep over his eyes, to bring him the quickest release

from painful exhaustion, enfolding his dear eyelids.