by Homer
Priam and the other noble Trojans bid me
speak, if this be welcome and sweet to you,
the word of Alexandros, on whose account the strife arose.
Those possessions, as many as in his hollow ships Alexandros
carried off to Troy—would that he had perished—390
all these he is willing to give, and to add yet others from his own house store;
but the lawful wife of glorious Menelaos
he says he will not give back; although the Trojans urged it.
And he also bade me say this; if you would be willing
to halt this hard and painful war, until the time we can cremate
our dead; later we shall fight again, until the power above
parts us, and grants victory to one side or the other.”
So he spoke, and all the men were hushed in silence.
At length Diomedes of the war cry addressed them:
“Let no one now accept possessions from Alexandros,400
nor accept Helen. It is known to everyone, even he who is a fool,
that the snares of death are already fastened on the Trojans.”
So he spoke; and all the sons of the Achaeans shouted assent,
in admiration of the word of Diomedes breaker of horses.
And then lord Agamemnon addressed Idaios:
“Idaios, you yourself have heard the word of the Achaeans,
as they have made plain to you; and this is what is pleasing to me.
Concerning the dead, I do not begrudge creamating them;
for there should be no grudging of the corpses of those who have died,
to give them swift consolation of fire, once dead.410
Let Zeus be witness to this oath, the far-thundering husband of Hera.”
So speaking he raised his scepter to all the gods;
and Idaios went back again to sacred Ilion.
And the Trojans and sons of Dardanos were in assembly,
all of them gathered together, on the lookout for when Idaios
might come; and he came and delivered his message
as he stood in their midst. And straightway they made ready
on two fronts, to bring in the dead, and others to go after wood;
and across the way the Argives from their well-benched ships
were preparing some to bring in the dead, and others to go after wood.420
The sun then was just striking the plowed fields,
climbing out of the silent deep-flowing Ocean
into heaven, as the two sides met each other.
It was difficult there to identify each man,
but washing away with water the bloody gore,
shedding warm tears, they lifted the dead onto the wagons.
Nor did great Priam allow lament; but the Trojans in silence
kept heaping the dead upon the place of fire, grieving at heart,
and having burned them on the pyre, they went to sacred Ilion.
And likewise across the way the strong-greaved Achaeans430
kept heaping the dead upon the place of fire, grieving at heart,
and having burned them on the pyre, they went to their hollow ships.
And when it was not quite dawn, but still night’s twilight,
then around the pyre there gathered an appointed band of Achaeans,
and made one common mound around it, bringing
the material from the plain; and against it they built a wall,
with high ramparts, defense for the ships and for themselves.
And in them they built gates, close-fitting,
so there could be a road through them for driving horses.
And outside against it they dug a deep ditch,440
wide and massive, and on it they fixed stakes.
So the long-haired Achaeans toiled;
and the gods sitting beside Zeus wielder of lightning
gazed with wonder on the great work of the bronze-clad Achaeans.
And Poseidon the earth-shaker was first to speak to them:
“Father Zeus, who is there now of mortal men upon the boundless earth
who will to the immortal gods make known his mind and purpose?
Do you not see, that now again the long-haired Achaeans
have built a wall to defend their ships, and around it driven
a ditch, but did not give to the gods illustrious hecatombs?450
Surely, its fame will spread as far as the morning light,
and they will forget that wall that I and Phoebos Apollo
built for the warrior Laomedon with much toil.”
Then greatly troubled Zeus who gathers the clouds addressed him:
“Oh me, Earth-Shaker whose might is wide, what kind of thing have you said?
Some other god might fear this scheme,
one who is much weaker than you in strength of hand and might;
surely, your own fame will spread as far as the morning light.
Go to then; whenever the long-haired Achaeans again
depart with their ships for their own fatherland,460
tear the wall apart and heap the whole of it into the salt sea,
and bury again the entire great shore with sand,
so that the Achaeans’ great wall is obliterated.”
Thus the gods debated these things with one another.
The sun went down, and the Achaeans’ task was completed.
They slaughtered oxen all along the line of shelters and took their evening meal.
And ships from Lemnos came to them bringing wine,
many ships, which Euneos son of Jason sent,
whom Hypsipyle bore to Jason, shepherd of the people;
and to the sons of Atreus separately, to Agamemnon and to Menelaos,470
the son of Jason gave wine for them to bear away, a thousand measures.
Then from the ships, the long-haired Achaean men bartered for wine,
some with bronze, some with gleaming iron,
some with hides, some with oxen themselves,
some with captives of war; and they made a luxurious feast.
Then the whole night long the long-haired Achaeans
feasted, as did the Trojans through their city, and their allies;
and the whole night long all-devising Zeus plotted evil for the men,
thundering dreadfully. And pale fear gripped the men,
and they poured the wine from their cups to the ground, and no man dared480
to drink again before he made libation to the all-powerful son of Cronus.
Then they lay down and took the gift of sleep.
8.ILIÁDOS Θ
Dawn robed in saffron spread over all the earth;
and Zeus who hurls the thunderbolt made assembly of the gods
on the topmost peak of ridged Olympus.
And he himself addressed them, and all the gods paid heed:
“Hear me, all you gods, and all you goddesses too,
while I speak such things as spirit in my breast commands.
Let no god, female or male,
attempt to cut across my stated purpose, but without exception all of you
assent, so that I can accomplish these matters forthwith.
That one whom I see intending, without the knowledge of the other gods10
to assist either Trojans or Danaans,
thunderstruck against all dignity will he return to Olympus;
or I will seize and hurl him into murky Tartaros,
a very long way, where the deepest chasm is beneath the earth,
where the gates are iron and the threshold bronze,
as far below Hades as heaven is from earth;
he will know then by how much I am most powerful of all gods.
Come then, make this trial, you gods, so that you all may know—
hang a rope of gold from heaven,
all you gods, and all goddesses too, and grasp it;20
but you will not pull Zeus fr
om heaven to the ground,
he the highest lord of counsel, no, not if you should labor greatly—
but whenever I should wish, in earnest, to pull you,
I would pull you all, along with the earth itself, along with the very ocean.
The rope I would then bind around the summit of Olympus,
and everything would then be dangling in midair.
By so much do I surpass the gods, and do I surpass mortals.”
So he spoke, and all were hushed in silence,
amazed at his words; for he had spoken very powerfully.
At length the gleaming-eyed goddess Athena addressed him:30
“O father of ours, son of Cronus, most exalted of rulers,
indeed, well do we know that your strength is not to be resisted;
but nonetheless we pity the Danaan spearmen,
who filling their measure of evil destiny will perish.
To be sure, we shall keep away from the war, if you bid us,
but we will put counsel in the minds of the Argives, which may profit them,
so that not all will perish by your anger.”
And smiling on her, Zeus who gathers the clouds spoke:
“Take heart, Tritogeneia, dear child; for not in all seriousness
do I speak, and I wish to be kind to you.”40
So speaking he yoked to his chariot a pair of horses shod with
bronze,
swift-flying, with luxuriant manes of gold,
and he clad himself in gold, and grasped his golden
well-wrought whip, and stepped into his chariot,
and lashed his whip to start the horses; and they two not unwilling flew on,
between the earth and star-strewn heaven.
He arrived at Mount Ida of the many springs, mother of wild beasts,
and at the peak of Gargaros; there was his sanctuary and his altar smoking with sacrifice;
and here the father of gods and men drew up his horses,
released them from the chariot, and around them poured abundant mist,50
and he himself sat down upon the mountain height, exulting in his glory,
looking down upon the city of the Trojans and the ships of the Achaeans.
The long-haired Achaeans took their meal
swiftly beside their shelters, then rising forthwith armed for battle;
the Trojans in turn across the way prepared their arms,
fewer in number, but even so intent on fighting in the combat
through urgent necessity, for their women and for their children.
All the gates were opened, and the host surged forth,
on foot and on horse; and a great roar rose.
Then when the armies arrived in one place, pitted against each other,60
they hurled their oxhide shields together, their spears, even the strength of their
bronze-armored men; and their bossed shields
met each the other, and a great roar rose.
Then came together the cries of distress and the vaunting of men
killing and being killed, and the earth flowed with blood.
As long as it was dawn and the heaven-sent day was rising,
so long the missiles of both sides reached their marks, and the people fell;
but when the sun stood astride the middle part of heaven,
then Zeus the father leveled his gold scales,
and placed in them two portions of death that brings enduring grief,70
that of the Trojans breaker of horses and that of the bronze-clad Achaeans,
and lifted them, holding by the middle; and the measured day of the Achaeans sank.
The fates of the Achaeans settled toward the nourishing
earth, those of the Trojans were lifted toward broad heaven.
And Zeus himself from Ida thundered loudly, and let fly
a blazing flash into the host of the Achaeans; and they seeing it
were stunned, and pale fear gripped them all within.
Then Idomeneus did not dare to remain, nor Agamemnon,
nor did the two Aiantes keep their stand, Ares’ henchmen.
Only Gerenion Nestor remained, guardian of the Achaeans,80
not at all of his own will, but his horse was stricken, his horse that godlike Alexandros,
husband of Helen of the lovely hair, struck with an arrow
across the top of its head, where a horse’s forelock
grows on the skull, and where is most fatal.
The horse reared in agony, and the arrow entered into his brain,
and he flung the horses with him into panic as he writhed around the arrow-point.
While the old man cut away the traces,
lunging with his sword, Hector’s swift horses came
through the scrum bearing their fierce chariot lord—
Hector! And there, surely, the old man would have lost his life,90
had not Diomedes of the war cry paid sharp notice,
and shouted in a voice of dread, rallying Odysseus:
“Son of Laertes descended from Zeus, Odysseus of many stratagems,
how can you flee, guarding your back, into the throng like some low-born coward?
Take care lest someone plants his spear in your back as you flee.
Come, stand firm, so that we may ward off this savage from the old man.”
So he spoke, but godlike enduring Odysseus did not heed him,
but darted past toward the hollow ships of the Achaeans.
And the son of Tydeus alone as he was moved amid the front fighters,
and took his stand before the horses of the old son of Neleus,100
and lifting his voice, addressed him with winged words:
“Father, surely now the young warriors wear you out,
and your strength is broken, and age and its difficulties dog you,
your charioteer is shaky and your horses slow.
Come, mount my chariot so you may see
what kind of horses are these of Tros, expert
in making swift pursuit or flight, here and there across the plain,
which once I took from Aeneas, master of the rout:
let the two attendants take care of yours, and these we two
will drive straight for the horse-breaking Trojans, so that even Hector110
will know whether my spear rages in my hands too.”
So he spoke, nor did the Gerenian horseman Nestor disobey.
The two attendants then looked after Nestor’s horses,
powerful Sthenelos and courteous Eurymedon,
while the other two mounted the chariot of Diomedes.
And Nestor took in his hands the crimson reins
and lashed the horses; swiftly they closed on Hector.
And as he came straight for them, the son of Tydeus cast his spear,
but missed him, and it was Hector’s henchman and charioteer,
Eniopeus, the son of high-hearted Thebaios,120
he struck in the chest beside his breast as he held the horses’ reins;
he fell from the chariot, the swift-footed horses started,
and there his soul and strength were undone.
Dreadful grief closed over Hector’s heart for his charioteer;
that he let him lie, grieving though he was for his companion,
and drove in search of a bold charioteer; nor was it long
his horses lacked a master; for Hector swiftly found
the bold son of Iphitos, Archeptolemos, whom he then
made mount behind the swift-footed horses, and gave the reins into his hands.
Then there would have been destruction and works of war without remedy,130
and the Trojans would have been penned in Ilion like sheep,
had the father of gods and of men not taken sharp notice;
and thundering dreadfully he let fly a glaring thunderbolt,
and down before Diomedes’ horses he hurled it to the ground;
/> a dreadful flare of fire shot from the burning sulphur,
the two horses, terrified, cowered against their cart.
And from Nestor’s hands the crimson reins escaped,
and in his heart Nestor was afraid, and he spoke to Diomedes:
“Son of Tydeus, come, drive the single-hoofed horses back to flight.
Do you not see that Zeus-sent victory does not follow with you?140
Now Zeus the son of Cronus grants glory to this man
for today; tomorrow, in turn, he will give it to you, if he chooses.
No man wards off the design of Zeus,
not even if he is very strong, since Zeus is by far more powerful.”
Then answered him Diomedes of the war cry:
“Yes, all these things, old sir, you rightly say,
but this is a bitter pain that comes upon my heart and spirit;
for Hector, someday, speaking among the Trojans, will say,
‘The son of Tydeus fled to his ships before me’
So he will claim one day; then let the broad earth gape beneath me.”150
Then answered him the Gerenian horseman Nestor:
“Oh, come! Son of wise Tydeus, what do you say!
If ever Hector will declare you cowardly or craven,
still the Trojans and Dardanians would not believe it,
nor the wives of great-hearted shield-bearing Trojans,
whose vigorous husbands you struck down in the dust.”
So speaking he turned the single-hoofed horses to flight
back through the scrum; and Hector and the Trojans
with unearthly din poured their doleful spears and arrows after them;
and to Diomedes, in a voice that carried far, called great Hector of the shimmering helm:160
“Son of Tydeus, the Danaans of swift horses honored you excessively
with a seat of honor, with cuts of meat and goblets filled;
but now they will dishonor you; you are after all no better than a woman.
Be off! Poor puppet, since you will not set foot upon our ramparts
on account of my retreating, nor will you lead our women
in your ships; before that I will hand you your fate.”
So he spoke; and the son of Tydeus weighed whether
to turn the horses and fight face-to-face.
Three times he pondered in his mind and his heart,
and three times from the peaks of Ida thundered all-devising Zeus,170
giving signal to the Trojans, that battle victory was changing sides.
And Hector urged the Trojans, calling in a voice that carried far:
“Trojans and Lycians and Dardanian spearmen,
be men, friends, and remember your fierce courage.