Homer (Lombardo, trans) - Odyssey lyrics

Speak, Memory— Of the cunning hero, The wanderer, blown off course time and again After he plundered Troy's sacred heights. Speak Of all the cities he saw, the minds he grasped, The suffering deep in his heart at sea 5 As he struggled to survive and bring his men home But could not save them, hard as he tried— The fools—destroyed by their own recklessness When they ate the oxen of Hyperion the Sun, And that god snuffed out their day of return. 10 Of these things, Speak, Immortal One, And tell the tale once more in our time. By now, all the others who had fought at Troy— At least those who had survived the war and the sea— Were safely back home. Only Odysseus 15 Still longed to return to his home and his wife. The nymph Calypso, a powerful goddess— And beautiful—was clinging to him In her caverns and yearned to possess him. The seasons rolled by, and the year came 20 In which the gods spun the thread For Odysseus to return home to Ithaca, Though not even there did his troubles end, Even with his dear ones around him. All the gods pitied him, except Poseidon, 25 Who stormed against the godlike hero Until he finally reached his own native land. But Poseidon was away now, among the Ethiopians, Those burnished people at the ends of the earth— Some near the sunset, some near the sunrise— 30 To receive a grand sacrifice of rams and bulls. There he sat, enjoying the feast. The other gods Were a**embled in the halls of Olympian Zeus, And the Father of Gods and Men was speaking. He couldn't stop thinking about Aegisthus, 35 Whom Agamemnon's son, Orestes, had k**ed: “Mortals! They are always blaming the gods For their troubles, when their own witlessness Causes them more than they were destined for! Take Aegisthus now. He marries Agamemnon's 40 Lawful wife and murders the man on his return Knowing it meant disaster—because we did warn him, Sent our messenger, quicksilver Hermes, To tell him not to k** the man and marry his wife, Or Agamemnon's son, Orestes, would pay him back 45 When he came of age and wanted his inheritance. Hermes told him all that, but his good advice Meant nothing to Aegisthus. Now he's paid in full.” Athena glared at him with her owl-grey eyes: “Yes, O our Father who art most high— 50 That man got the d**h he richly deserved, And so perish all who would do the same. But it's Odysseus I'm worried about, That discerning, ill-fated man. He's suffered So long, separated from his dear ones, 55 On an island that lies in the center of the sea, A wooded isle that is home to a goddess, The daughter of Atlas, whose dread mind knows All the depths of the sea and who supports The tall pillars that keep earth and heaven apart. 60 His daughter detains the poor man in his grief, Sweet-talking him constandy, trying to charm him Into forgetting Ithaca. But Odysseus, Longing to see even the smoke curling up From his land, simply wants to die. And yet you 65 Never think of him, Olympian. Didn't Odysseus Please you with sacrifices beside the Greek ships At Troy? Why is Odysseus so odious, Zeus?” Zeus in his thunderhead had an answer for her: “Quite a litde speech you've let slip through your teeth, 70 Daughter. How could I forget godlike Odysseus? No other mortal has a mind like his, or offers Sacrifice like him to the d**hless gods in heaven. But Poseidon is stiff and cold with anger Because Odysseus blinded his son, the Cyclops 75 Polyphemus, the strongest of all the Cyclopes, Nearly a god. The nymph Thoösa bore him, Daughter of Phorcys, lord of the barren brine, After mating with Poseidon in a scalloped sea-cave. The Earthshaker has been after Odysseus so Ever since, not k**ing him, but keeping him away From his native land. But come now, Let's all put our heads together and find a way To bring Odysseus home. Poseidon will have to Put aside his anger. He can't hold out alone 85 Against the will of all the immortals.” And Athena, the owl-eyed goddess, replied: “Father Zeus, whose power is supreme, If the blessed gods really do want Odysseus to return to his home, 90 We should send Hermes, our quicksilver herald, To the island of Ogygia without delay To tell that nymph of our firm resolve That long-suffering Odysseus gets to go home. 1 myself will go to Ithaca 95 TR) put some spiritinto his son— Have him call an a**embly of the long-haired Greeks And rebuke the whole lot of his mother's suitors. They have been butchering his flocks and herds. I'll escort him to Sparta and the sands of Pylos 100 So he can make inquiries about his father's return And win for himself a name among men.” Athena spoke, and she bound on her feet The beautiful sandals, golden, immortal, That carry her over landscape and seascape 105 On a puff of wind. And she took the spear, Bronze-tipped and ma**ive, that the Daughter uses То level battalions of heroes in her wrath. She shot down from the peaks of Olympus To Ithaca, where she stood on the threshold 110 Of Odysseus' outer porch. Holding her spear, She looked like Mentes, the Taphian captain, And her eyes rested on the arrogant suitors. They were playing dice in the courtyard, Enjoying themselves, seated on the hides of oxen 115 They themselves had slaughtered. They were attended By heralds and servants, some of whom were busy Blending water and wine in large mixing bowls, Others wiping down the tables with sponges And dishing out enormous servings of meat. 120 Telemachus spotted her first. He was sitting with the suitors, nursing His heart's sorrow; picturing in his mind His noble father, imagining he had returned And scattered the suitors, and that he himself, 125 Telemachus, was respected at last. Such were his reveries as he sat with the suitors. And then he saw Athena.He went straight to the porch, Indignant that a guest had been made to wait so long. Going up to her he grasped her right hand in his 130 And took her spear, and his words had wings: “Greetings, stranger. You are welcome here. After you've had dinner, you can tell us what you need.” Telemachus spoke, and Pallas Athena Followed him into the high-roofed hall. 135 When they were inside he placed her spear In a polished rack beside a great column Where the spears of Odysseus stood in a row. Then he covered a beautifully wrought chair With a linen cloth and had her sit on it 140 With a stool under her feet. He drew up An intricately painted bench for himself And arranged their seats apart from the suitors So that his guest would not lose his appetite In their noisy and uncouth company— 145 And so he could inquire about his absent father. A maid poured water from a silver pitcher Into a golden basin for them to wash their hands And then set up a polished table nearby. Another serving woman, grave and dignified, 150 Set out bread and generous helpings From the other dishes she had. A carver set down Cuts of meat by the platter and golden cups. Then a herald came by and poured them wine. Now the suitors swaggered in. They sat down 155 In rows on benches and chairs. Heralds Poured water over their hands, maidservants Brought around bread in baskets, and young men Filled mixing bowls to the brim with wine. The suitors helped themselves to all this plenty, 160 And when they had their fill of food and drink, They turned their attention to the other delights, Dancing and song, that round out a feast. A herald handed a beautiful zither To Phemius, who sang for the suitors, 165 Though against his will. Sweeping the strings He struck up a song. And Telemachus, Putting his head close to Pallas Athena's So the others wouldn't hear, said this to her: “Please don't take offense if I speak my mind. 170 It's easy for them to enjoy the harper's song, Since they are eating another man's stores Without paying anything—the stores of a man Whose white bones lie rotting in the rain On some distant shore, or still chum in the waves. 175 If they ever saw him make landing on Ithaca They would pray for more foot speed Instead of more gold or fancy clothes. But he's met a bad end, and it's no comfort to us When some traveler tells us he's on his way home. 180 The day has long pa**ed when he's coming home. But tell me this, and tell me the truth: Who are you, and where do you come from? Who are your parents? What kind of ship Brought you here? How did your sailors Guide you to Ithaca, and how large is your crew? I don't imagine you came here on foot. And tell me this, too. I'd like to know, Is this your first visit here, or are you An old friend of my father's, one of the many 190 Who have come to our house over the years?” Athena's seagrey eyes glinted as she said: “I'll tell you nothing but the unvarnished truth. I am Mentes, son of Anchialus, and proud of it. I am also captain of the seafaring Taphians. 195 I just pulled in with my ship and my crew, Sailing the deep purple to foreign ports. We're on our way to Cyprus with a cargo of iron To trade for copper. My ship is standing Offshore of wild country away from the city, 200 In Rheithron harbor under Neion's woods. You and I have ties of hospitality, Just as our fathers did, from a long way back. Go and ask old Laertes. They say he never Comes to town any more, lives out in the country, 205 A hard life with just an old woman to help him. She gets him his food and drink when he comes in From the fields, all worn out from trudging across The ridge of his vineyard plot. I have come Because they say your father has returned, 210 But now I see the gods have knocked him off course. He's not dead, though, not godlike Odysseus, No way in the world. No, he's alive all right. It's the sea keeps him back, detained on some island In the middle of the sea, held captive by savages. 215 And now I will prophesy for you, as the gods Put it in my heart and as I think it will be, Though I am no soothsayer or reader of birds. Odysseus will not be gone much longer From his native land, not even if iron chains 220 Hold him. He knows every trick there is And will think of some way to come home. But now tell me this, and I want the truth: Tall as you are, are you Odysseus' son? You bear a striking resemblance to him, 225 Especially in the head and those beautiful eyes. We used to spend quite a bit of time together Before he sailed for Troy with the Argive fleet. Since then, we haven't seen each other at all.” Telemachus took a deep breath and said: 230 “You want the truth, and I will give it to you. My mother says that Odysseus is my father. I don't know this myself. No one witnesses His own begetting. If I had my way, I'd he the son Of a man fortunate enough to grow old at home. 235 But it's the man with the most dismal fate of all They say I was bom from—since you want to know.” Athena's seagrey eyes glinted as she said: “Well, the gods have made sure your family name Will go on, since Penelope has borne a son like you. 240 But there is one other thing I want you to tell me. What kind of a party is this? What's the occasion? Some kind of banquet? A wedding feast? It's no neighborly potluck, that's for sure, The way this rowdy crowd is carrying on 245 All through the house. Any decent man Would be outraged if he saw this behavior.” Telemachus breathed in the salt air and said: “Since you ask me these questions as my guest— This, no doubt, was once a perfect house, 250 Wealthy and fine, when its master was still home. But the gods frowned and changed all that When they whisked him off the face of the earth. I wouldn't grieve for him so much if he were dead, Gone down with his comrades in the town of Troy, 255 Or died in his friends' arms after winding up the war. The entire Greek army would have buried him then, And great honor would have pa**ed on to his son. But now the whirlwinds have snatched him away Without a trace. He's vanished, gone, and left me 260 Pain and sorrow. And he's not the only cause I have to grieve. The gods have given me other trials. All of the nobles who rule the islands— Doulichium, Samé, wooded Zacynthus— And all those with power on rocky Ithaca 265 Are courting my mother and ruining our house. She refuses to make a marriage she hates But can't stop it either. They are eating us Out of house and home, and will k** me someday.” And Pallas Athena, with a flash of anger: 270 “Damn them! You really do need Odysseus back. Just let him lay his hands on these mangy dogs! If only he would come through that door now With a helmet and shield and a pair of spears, Just as he was when I saw him first, 275 Drinking and enjoying himself in our house On his way back from Ephyre. Odysseus Had sailed there to ask Mermerus' son, Ilus, For some deadly poison for his arrowheads. Ilus, out of fear of the gods' anger, 280 Would not give him any, but my father Gave him some, because he loved him dearly. That's the Odysseus I want the suitors to meet. They wouldn't live long enough to get married! But it's on the knees of the gods now 285 Whether he comes home and pays them back Right here in his halls, or doesn't. So it's up to you To find a way to drive them out of your house. Now pay attention and listen to what I'm saying. Tomorrow you call an a**embly and make a speech 290 To these heroes, with the gods as witnesses. T he suitors you order to scatter, each to his own. Your mother—if in her heart she wants to marry— Goes back to her powerful father's house. Her kinfolk and he can arrange the marriage, 295 And the large dowry that should go with his daughter. And my advice for you, if you will take it, Is to launch your best ship, with twenty oarsmen, And go make inquiries about your long-absent father. Someone may tell you something, or you may hear 300 A rumor from Zeus, which is how news travels best. Sail to Pylos first and ask godly Nestor, Then go over to Sparta and red-haired Menelaus. He was the last home of all the bronzeclad Greeks. If you hear your father's alive and on his way home, 305 You can grit your teeth and hold out one more year. If you hear he's dead, among the living no more, Then come home yourself to your ancestral land, Build him a barrow and celebrate the funeral Your father deserves. Then marry off your mother. 310 After you've done all that, think up some way To k** the suitors in your house either openly Or by setting a trap. You've got to stop Acting like a child. You've outgrown that now. Haven't you heard how Orestes won glory 315 Throughout the world when he k**ed Aegisthus, The shrewd traitor who murdered his father? You have to be aggressive, strong—look at how big And well-built you are—so you will leave a good name. Well, I'm off to my ship and my men, 320 Who are no doubt wondering what's taking me so long. You've got a job to do. Remember what I said.” And Telemachus, in his clear-headed way: “My dear guest, you speak to me as kindly As a father to his son. I will not forget your words. 325 I know you're anxious to leave, but please stay So you can bathe and relax before returning To your ship, taking with you a costly gift, Something quite fine, a keepsake from me, The sort of thing a host gives to his guest.” 330 And Athena, her eyes grey as saltwater: “No, I really do want to get on with my journey. Whatever gift you feel moved to make, Give it to me on my way back home, Yes, something quite fine. It will get you as good.” 335