by Homer
There she fell in with Sleep, the brother of Death,
and clung to his hand, and spoke to him and said his name:
“Sleep, lord of all, both gods and men,
as once before you heard my plea, so now too once more
hear me; I would know gratitude to you all my days.
For my sake, lull to sleep those two bright eyes beneath the brows of Zeus,
immediately after I have lain beside him in making love.
I will give you gifts, a gorgeous throne, imperishable forever,
made of gold; Hephaestus, my crook-legged son,
will make it, fashioning it with art, and will set a stool beneath your feet,240
on which you can rest your shining feet while at your revels.”
Then answering her spoke gentle Sleep:
“Hera, eldest goddess, daughter of mighty Cronus,
any other of the everlasting gods I would
readily put to sleep, even the waters of the river
Ocean, who is the source of all things;
but Zeus, the son of Cronus, I would not come near,
nor put to sleep, unless he himself should bid me.
For another time before this your command goaded me on,
that day when Heracles, that overbearing son of Zeus,250
sailed from Ilion, having utterly sacked the city of the Trojans;
I did indeed lull to sleep the mind of Zeus who wields the aegis,
my sweetness poured about him, but in your heart you planned evils for his son.
You stirred blasts of stiff winds across the sea,
and caused him to be carried away to fair-settled Kos,
apart from all his friends. And awakening Zeus raged violently,
hurling us gods through his halls, and seeking me above all others;
and he would have cast me never to be seen again from the sheer clear air into the sea,
had Night, subduer of gods and men, not saved me.
Fleeing, I came to her as suppliant, and Zeus checked himself, angry though he was;260
for he shrank from committing deeds hateful to swift Night.
Now again you bid me accomplish this other impossible thing.”
Then in turn ox-eyed lady Hera addressed him:
“Sleep, why do you fret in your mind about these things?
Or do you think that far-thundering Zeus will aid the Trojans
as greatly as he was angered over Heracles, his own son?
But come, and I will give you one of the younger Graces
to wed and to call your wife.”268
So she spoke and Sleep rejoiced, and addressed her in answer:270
“So come, now swear oath to me on the inviolate water of the Styx,
and with one hand grasp the nourishing earth,
and with the other the shining salt sea, so that all
the lower gods round Cronus be witness to us,
swear that you will give me one of the younger Graces,
Pasithea, whom I have longed for all my days.”
So he spoke, nor did the goddess white-armed Hera disobey,
and she swore the oath as he bid, and called by name upon all gods
who are down in Tartaros, and who are called the Titans.
And when she had sworn and concluded the oath,280
the two set out from Lemnos, leaving the city of Imbros,
mantled in mist, and lightly they made their passage.
They arrived at Ida of the many springs, the mother of wild creatures,
and at Lekton, where they first left the sea; then they made their way
upon dry land, and beneath their feet the topmost forest quivered.
There Sleep remained before Zeus’ eyes beheld him,
ascending a towering fir tree, which on Ida at that time
grew tallest, reaching through the mist to clear high air;
there he sat concealed within the fir tree branches,
in the likeness of a clear-voiced bird, which in the mountains290
the gods call chalkis, but men kymindis.
But Hera swiftly proceeded to Gargaros, the peak
of lofty Ida; and Zeus who gathers the clouds beheld her.
And as he saw her, desire wrapped his sharp wits round,
just as when they first mingled in lovemaking,
rocking back and forth in bed, in secret from their beloved parents.
And he stood before her, and spoke out and said her name:
“Hera, where do you hasten, coming down from Olympus to this place?
You have no horses or chariot, in which you could have ridden.”
Then with calculated guile lady Hera gave him answer:300
“I am going to the end of the nourishing earth to see
Ocean, the source of the gods, and mother Tethys,
who in their house nurtured me well and raised me.
I am going to see them, and I will resolve their unending quarrels;
for a long time now they have held back from each other
in love and in bed, since bitterness has entered their desire.
My horses are tethered at the foot of Ida of the many springs,
who will carry me over the dry land and wet sea.
But now for your sake I have come here down from Olympus to this place,
lest somehow you be angry with me afterward, if without speaking310
I should have gone to the house of deep-flowing Ocean.”
Then answering her spoke Zeus who gathers the clouds:
“Hera, you can make your way there later just as well.
Come, let us both go to bed and find pleasure in the making of love.
For never ever has desire for goddess or woman
so overcome me, flooding my senses,
not when I desired the wife of Ixion,
who bore me Peirithoös, equal to the gods as counselor;
nor when I desired Danaë of the shapely ankles, daughter of Akrisios,
who bore Perseus, conspicuous among all men;320
not when I desired the daughter of far-famed Phoinix,
who bore me Minos and godlike Rhadamanthys too;
not when I desired even Semele, nor Alkmene in Thebes,
who gave birth to a strong-willed son, Heracles,
and Semele bore Dionysus, a source of joy for mortal men;
nor when I desired lady Demeter of the lovely locks,
nor when I desired glorious Leto, nor you yourself,
as now I desire you and sweet longing captures me.”
Then with calculated guile lady Hera addressed him:
“Most dread son of Cronus, what kind of thing have you said?330
If now you desire to go to bed in lovemaking
on the heights of Ida, everything can be seen!
How would it be, if one of the ever-living gods
should see us in bed, and go and point us out
to all the rest? I could not simply rise from bed
and return to your house; it would be cause for outrage.
But if you desire this right now and longing fills your heart,
there is your chamber, which your dear son Hephaestus built for you,
and fitted snug doors to the doorposts;
let us go to lie there, since bed is now your pleasure.”340
Then answering her spoke Zeus who gathers the clouds:
“Hera, have no fear in this regard that god or any man will see;
for I will cover such a cloud around you,
one of gold; Helios the sun himself could not see through it,
though the light of his eyes sees sharpest.”
He spoke, and the son of Cronus caught up his wife in his arms.
And the divine earth beneath them put forth new-burgeoning grass,
dewy clover, crocuses and hyacinth
so thick and soft it held them from the ground.
On this they lay, and were blanketed around by a cloud3
50
of golden beauty, and from it the bright dew fell.
So the father slept without stirring on the peak of Gargaros,
broken by sleep and desire, and held his wife in his arms.
And gentle Sleep set out on the run for the ships of the Achaeans,
to give a message to the earth-holding Shaker of the Earth.
And standing close to him he spoke winged words:
“Now with good heart, Poseidon, fight for the Danaans,
and give them glory if only for a little, while Zeus still
sleeps, since I have covered soft slumber about him;
Hera tricked him to go to bed in lovemaking.”360
So speaking he departed for the well-known tribes of men,
but incited Poseidon all the more to fight for the Danaans.
And immediately, with a great leap forward to the front ranks, he urged them on:
“Argives, do we once again yield victory to Hector,
son of Priam, so that he can seize our ships and win him glory?
For this is what he thinks and boasts, since Achilles
remains by the hollow ships angered at heart.
But our longing for Achilles will not be so great if the rest
of us stir ourselves to defend one another.
Come, let us all be persuaded as I say;370
put on your shields, whichever are the best and greatest in the army,
cover your heads with all-blazing helmets,
take in your hands your longest spears,
and let us go; and I myself will lead, nor do I think Hector
son of Priam will still stand his ground, for all his fury.
And that man who is staunch in battle but bears a small shield on his shoulders,
let him give it to one less warlike, and let him wear the greater shield.”
So he spoke; and they eagerly heeded him and obeyed.
And the kings themselves drew up their men, wounded though they were,
the son of Tydeus and Odysseus and Atreus’ son Agamemnon,380
visiting all the divisions, and made the exchange of battle armor;
and the best warriors donned the best armor, and gave the lesser armor to the lesser man.
Then when each had put the gleaming armor around his body,
they set out; and leading them was Poseidon who shakes the earth,
wielding a terrible fine-pointed sword in his mighty hand,
like a lightning bolt; against it no mortal man can join battle
in baleful war, but fear holds back all men.
From the other side shining Hector ranked the Trojans.
And now they stretched the strife of battle tight beyond endurance,
dark-haired Poseidon and shining Hector,390
the one defender of the Argives, the other of the Trojans.
And the sea surged against the shelters and the ships
of the Argives; and the men clashed with a great war cry.
No wave of the sea thunders so loud against the shore
when roused in every direction by the hard North Wind,
no roar of fire blazing is so great
in the narrow valleys of the mountain, when it springs up to consume the forest,
no wind howls so loud about the high-crowned oaks
when it roars greatest in its raging,
as was the sound of Trojans and Achaeans400
fearfully shouting, as they urged each other on.
And shining Hector first took aim at Ajax
with his spear, since he had turned to face him, nor did he miss,
but hit him where the two straps were stretched across his chest,
one for his shield, the other for his silver-studded sword;
these protected his tender skin. And Hector was angered
because his swift spear had escaped from his hand in vain,
and he drew back into the band of his companions, shunning death.
Then as Hector was retreating, great Telamonian Ajax
lifted a boulder—one of many propping the swift ships,410
which rolled among fighters’ feet—with one of these
he struck Hector in the chest above his shield rim, near the throat;
and with the blow sent him spinning like a top, and Hector whirled entirely around.
As when by force of a bolt from father Zeus an oak tree falls,
roots and all, and a dreadful scent of sulphur rises
from it, and it is not courage that grips the man who sees it
from close by—for hard to bear is the thunderbolt of mighty Zeus—
so did Hector in his might drop straightway to the ground in the dust;
and from his hand he let fall his spear, and his shield fell in upon him
and his helmet, and around him rang his armor ornate with bronze.420
And screaming loud the sons of the Achaeans ran toward him,
hoping to drag Hector away, and hurled their spears in droves;
but none was able to wound or stab
the shepherd of the people; for before that the best warriors ringed him round,
Poulydamas and Aeneas and godlike Agenor
and Sarpedon, leader of the Lycians, and blameless Glaukos;
nor did any of the others forsake him, but they held
their circled shields before him. Then his companions
lifting him in their arms carried him from the battle toil, until they came to his swift
horses, who behind the line of battle and the fighting430
stood waiting for him, holding their patterned chariot and charioteer;
and they carried him, groaning heavily, to the city
But when they reached the crossing of the fair-flowing stream
of whirling Xanthos, which is born of immortal Zeus,
there they lowered him from the horses to the ground, and over him
splashed water; and Hector came to his senses and looked up with his eyes,
then kneeling, vomited dark-clouded blood.
And back again he sank upon the ground, and over his eyes
the dark night closed; the blow still overwhelmed his strength.
And the Argives, when then they saw Hector going to a distance from them,440
lunged for the Trojans all the more, and recollected their fighting spirit.
There ahead of them all swift Ajax son of Oïleus
stabbed Satnios son of Enops, lunging with his sharp spear
for him, whom a blameless nymph of the river had borne
to Enops, as he was tending cattle by the banks of the river Satnioeis.
This man the spear-famed son of Oïleus, drawing near,
stabbed down through his flank; and Satnios fell back, and about him
the Trojans and Danaans swarmed in powerful combat.
And Poulydamas the spear-wielder, son of Panthoös,
came to his defense, and struck Prothoënor, son of Areïlykos450
on the right shoulder; through his shoulder the heavy spear
held its way; and falling in the dust he clutched the earth with his clenched hand.
And Poulydamas exulted wildly, shouting aloud:
“I, Panthoös’ great-hearted son, do not think this spear of mine
leapt in its turn from my mighty hand in vain,
but some one of the Argives safeguards it in his flesh, and I think that
propped on this staff he will descend into the house of Hades.”
So he spoke, and grief descended on the Argives at his vaunting.
And most of all he stirred the heart of Ajax,
son of Telamon; for the man fell very close to him;460
and swiftly he took aim with his shining spear as Poulydamas departed.
But Poulydamas himself avoided the dark fate of death,
leaping aside, and the son of Antenor, Archelochos,
caught the throw; since the gods purposed his destruction.
&nb
sp; The spear struck him at the joint of the head and neck,
at the last vertebra, and cut through both tendons.
His head and mouth and nose hit the ground
before his legs and knees as he fell.
Now in his turn Ajax shouted so as to be heard by blameless Poulydamas:
“Think hard, Poulydamas, and tell me truly;470
was the killing of this man not fair exchange for Prothoënor?
He does not seem base-born to me, nor from mean stock,
but a brother of Antenor breaker of horses,
or perhaps his son; for he seemed most like him in the face.”
He spoke though knowing the answer well, and grief clutched the Trojans around the heart.
Then astride his fallen brother, Akamas struck Boeotian Promachos
with his spear, since the other was trying to drag the body by the feet.
And over him Akamas exulted wildly, shouting aloud:
“Argive arrow-throwers, insatiable braggarts,
toil and hardship are not ours alone,480
but someday you too will so die.
Take thought how Promachos sleeps among you, broken
by my spear, so that recompense for my brother’s death not go
long unpaid; hence it is a man prays
that a brother be left in his halls as his defender against destruction.”
So he spoke, and grief descended on the Argives at his vaunting.
And he stirred the heart of skillful Peneleos most of all,
who rushed for Akamas; but Akamas did not await the onslaught
of lord Peneleos, who instead stabbed Ilioneus,
the son of Phorbas of the many flocks, whom Hermes loved490
best of all Trojans and to whom he granted many possessions;
but to Hermes his mother bore only Ilioneus.
This man Peneleos struck below the brow at the base of the eye,
and thrust out the eyeball; the spear drove straight through the eye
and through the tendon at the back of his neck, and he collapsed, both arms
spread wide; and Peneleos drawing his sharp sword
drove it through the middle of his neck, and struck to the ground
his head with its helmet; and still the heavy spear
was fixed in his eye. And holding it up like the head of a poppy
he flaunted it before the Trojans and spoke, vaunting:500
“From me, O Trojans, tell the beloved father
and the mother of haughty Ilioneus to wail in their halls;
nor will the wife of Promachos, son of Alegenor,
rejoice in the coming home of her beloved husband, at that time when
we lords of the Achaeans depart from Troy with our ships.”