by Homer
When she had decked herself out to look her best, she left her bedroom, beckoned Aphrodite away from the other gods and spoke her mind:
(190) ’I wonder, dear child, whether you will do me a favour, or refuse because you are annoyed with me for helping the Greeks, while you are on the Trojans’ side.’
Aphrodite daughter of Zeus replied:
‘Hera, august goddess, daughter of great Cronus, tell me what is in your mind and I shall gladly do what you ask of me, if I can and if the task is not impossible.’
The lady Hera deceptively replied:
APHRODITE gives HERA her magic charm
‘Give me Love and Desire, the powers by which you yourself (200) subdue gods and men alike. You see, I am going to the ends of the fruitful earth to visit Ocean, forefather of the gods, and mother Tethys, who treated me kindly and brought me up in their own home after taking me from my mother Rhea, when far-thundering Zeus made my father Cronus a prisoner under the earth and the murmuring sea. I am going to see them and bring their interminable quarrels to an end. They have not been sleeping together for a long time now, as a result of an angry row. If by talking the matter over I could win them round and bring them (210) together again in bed, I should win their affection and esteem for ever.’
Laughter-loving Aphrodite said:
‘To refuse a request from you, that sleep in the arms of Zeus the supreme, would be both wrong and impossible.’
She spoke and undid from her breast the charm decorated with ornaments in which all her magic resides, Sexual Pleasure and Desire and Intimacies and Sweet Persuasion, that turn even wise men into fools. She placed this in Hera’s hands and said:
‘There, take this charm with its ornaments and keep it in your (220) bosom. All my magic resides in this, and I have no doubt that you will come back from your mission successful.’
So she spoke, and ox-eyed lady Hera smiled and, as she tucked the charm into her bosom, she smiled again.
Aphrodite daughter of Zeus went home, and Hera sped down from the summit of Olympus. First she dropped to the Pierian range and to lovely Emathia; then passed swiftly over the snowy mountains of the horse-breeding Thracians, the very highest peaks, but never setting foot on the ground. From Athos she (230) travelled over the foaming sea and so came to Lemnos, town of lord Thoas, where she found the god of Sleep, brother of Death. Putting her hand in his she said:
HERApersuades SLEEP to help
’Sleep, lord of all gods and all mankind, if ever you listened to me in the past, do what I ask of you now and I shall be grateful to you for ever. Seal the bright eyes of Zeus for me in sleep, directly I have lain in love with him, and in return I will give you a beautiful chair, imperishable, golden, which the lame god Hephaestus, my own (240) son, will make and finish for you, with a footstool underneath it, on which you could rest your gleaming feet as you dine.’
Sweet Sleep replied and said:
‘Hera, august queen, daughter of mighty Cronus, I should think it a small matter to put any of the other eternal gods to sleep, even Ocean Stream himself, forefather of all. But I dare not go near Zeus son of Cronus or send him to sleep, unless he asks me to do so himself.
‘I have learnt my lesson from the task you once set me before, (250) when Heracles, that arrogant son of Zeus, set sail from Ilium after sacking the Trojans’ town, and you made up your mind to make trouble for him. I gently lulled Zeus who drives the storm-cloud to sleep, while you raised a terrible tempest at sea and carried Heracles off to the prosperous island of Cos, far from all his friends. Zeus was enraged when he awoke. He hurled the gods about in his palace and looked for me everywhere as the chief culprit. I would have been thrown from Olympus into the sea and never heard of again, if Night, who overpowers gods and men alike, had not rescued me. I found (260) sanctuary with her, and Zeus, for all his fury, had to stop and think twice before doing something that swift Night would not like. And now you come to me once more with another impossible request!’
Ox-eyed lady Hera said:
‘Sleep, why are you so worried about this? Can you really think that far-thundering Zeus will exert himself in defence of the Trojans as he did when it was the abduction of his very own son, Heracles, that had enraged him? Come, do as I wish and I will give you one of the younger Graces in marriage. She shall be called your wife.’
(270) So she spoke, and Sleep was delighted and replied:
‘Very well, swear to me now by the inviolable waters of Styx, grasping the bountiful Earth with one hand and the shimmering Sea with the other, so that all the gods who are below with Cronus may be our witnesses; and promise you will give me one of the younger Graces, Pasithee¨, whom I have desired all my life.’
So he spoke, and the goddess white-armed Hera agreed and gave him her oath in the way he had prescribed, naming all the gods under Tartarus, who are called Titans. When she had (280) sworn and completed the oath, the two wrapped themselves in mist and set out, leaving the towns of Lemnos and Imbros behind them and travelling fast. They reached Mount Ida of the many springs, the mother of wild beasts, by way of a promontory at its foot, Lecton, where they first left the sea and passed over the dry land, causing the treetops to sway beneath their feet. But now, to avoid the eye of Zeus, Sleep came to a halt and climbed up into a tall pine-tree, the tallest on Ida, which reached through the mist up into the clear air above. There he perched, hidden (290) by the branches, in the form of a songbird of the mountains which is called bronze-throat by the gods and eagle-owl by men.
Meanwhile Hera rapidly drew near to Gargarus, the highest peak of lofty Ida. Zeus who marshals the clouds saw her, and at the first look desire overwhelmed his heart, as in the days when they had first made love and gone to bed together without their parents’ knowledge. He went up to her and said:
‘Hera, what business brings you here from Olympus? And why no horses and chariot to drive in?’
(300) The lady Hera deceptively replied:
‘Oh, I am going to the ends of the fruitful earth to visit Ocean, forefather of the gods, and mother Tethys, who treated me kindly and brought me up in their own home. I am going to see them and bring their interminable quarrels to an end. They have not been sleeping together for a long time now, as a result of an angry row. As for my horses . .. oh, they are waiting at the foot of Ida, ready to carry me back over the water and the solid land. But at the moment I have come here from Olympus (310) to see you. I was worried you might become angry with me afterwards, if I paid a visit to the deep Stream of Ocean without letting you know.’
Zeus who marshals the clouds replied and said: (HERA seduces ZEUS) ’
Hera, that’s a journey you can postpone. Come, let us to bed and the delights of love. Never has such desire, for goddess or mortal, flooded and overwhelmed my heart; no, not when I loved Ixion’s wife who bore Peirithous, wise as the gods; or Danae of the slim ankles, (320) daughter of Acrisius, who gave birth to Perseus, the greatest hero of his time; or the far-famed daughter of Phoenix, who bore me Minos and godlike Rhadamanthus; or Semele, or Alcmene in Thebes, whose son was lion-hearted Heracles, while Semele bore Dionysus, mankind’s delight; or lady Demeter with her lovely hair, or incomparable Leto; or you yourself – never have I felt such desire for you, or has such sweet longing overwhelmed me.’
The lady Hera replied deceptively:
(330) ’Dread son of Cronus, what are you suggesting now! Suppose we do as you wish and make love on the heights of Ida, everyone will see everything. What will happen if one of the eternal gods saw us sleeping together and ran off to tell the rest? I certainly wouldn’t relish the idea of rising straight from such a bed and going back to your palace. Think of the scandal! No, if it really is your pleasure to do this, you have a bedroom that your own son Hephaestus built for you, and the doors he made for it are (340) solid. Let us go and lie down there, since bed takes your fancy.’
Zeus who marshals the clouds replied and said:
‘Hera, don’t be afraid any god or man will see
us. I’ll hide you in a golden cloud. Even the sun, whose rays provide him with the keenest sight in all the world, will not be able to see through it.’
The son of Cronus spoke and took his wife in his arms; and the divine earth sent up spring flowers beneath them, dewy clover and crocuses and a soft and crowded bed of hyacinths, (350) to lift them off the ground. In this they lay, covered by a beautiful golden cloud, from which a rain of glistening dewdrops fell.
While the Father lay peacefully on top of Mount Gargarus, with his arms round his wife, conquered by sleep and love, sweet Sleep flew off to the Greek ships to tell the earthshaker who encircles the world the news. He went up to him and spoke winged words:
‘Poseidon, help the Greeks now with all your heart and give them the upper hand, if only for a short time, while Zeus still (360) slumbers. I sent him into a deep and gentle sleep after Hera had tricked him into making love to her.’
POSEIDON rallies the Greeks
With these words Sleep went off among the famous nations of mankind, leaving Poseidon more enthusiastic than ever in his championship of the Greeks. With a great leap forward into the front ranks, he issued his orders:
‘Greeks, are we going once more to leave the victory to Hector son of Priam, to let him destroy the ships and win the glory? He says he will and boasts about it – but only because Achilles sits in a fury by his hollow ships. Yet Achilles will not be missed so very much, if the rest of us can only rouse ourselves to stand by one another.
(370) ’So I suggest we all do what I now propose. Let’s equip ourselves with the best and biggest shields in the camp, put dazzling helmets on our heads and go into the fight with the longest spears we can lay our hands on. I myself will take command and I don’t think Hector son of Priam will stand up to us long, for all his determination. Let every warrior who has proved his worth in battle, but carries a small shield, hand it over to a weaker man, and equip himself with a larger shield.’
So he spoke, and they heard and agreed. Wounded as they (380) were, the leaders themselves, Diomedes, Odysseus and Aga- memnon, prepared their men for the struggle, visiting the ranks and interchanging their arms, so that the best warriors were now the best equipped, giving their inferior weapons to inferior troops. When all had put on their gleaming bronze, they set out with the earthshaker Poseidon at their head, carrying his long and fearful sword in his great hand. The sword is like a lightning flash. No one may engage with Poseidon in battle, and men shrink from him in terror.
On the other side glorious Hector brought the Trojans into battle order. And now the most appalling fight of all was staged (390) by sable-haired Poseidon and glorious Hector, one battling for the Greeks, the other for the Trojans. As the two sides met with a deafening clamour, the sea surged up to the Greeks’ huts and their ships. But neither the thunder of breakers on the beach, driven in from the deep by a stinging northerly gale; nor the roar of flames when fire attacks the forest in a mountain ravine; nor the call of the wind in the high foliage of the oaks when it (400) rises to a scream in its wrath, is so loud as the terrible war-cry that the Trojans and Greeks raised as they fell upon each other.
Ajax stuns Hector
Glorious Hector first hurled a spear at Ajax as he turned directly towards him. He did not miss, but hit Ajax where the two shoulder-straps, one for his shield and one for his silver-riveted sword, met across his chest, and they saved his tender flesh. Hector was frustrated that the swift spear had left his hand to no purpose and retreated into his own contingent of warriors to avoid death. As he withdrew, (410) great Ajax son of Telamon picked up one of the many boulders that had been used to support the ships and had rolled among the feet of the combatants, and with this hit Hector on the chest just below the neck over the rim of his shield, making him spin like a top and stagger about in all directions. As an oak is uprooted by a lightning-stroke from Father Zeus: it gives off a terrifying reek of sulphur, unnerving all who happen to be near – the violence of great Zeus’ bolt is a frightening thing – so Hector in all his might was brought down in the dust. His second spear fell from his hand; he crumpled up under his shield (420) and helmet, and the ornamented bronze armour clattered about him.
The Greek men-at-arms rushed towards him with triumphant cries, hoping to drag him off, and rained spears on him. But no one had a chance to stab or hit this shepherd of the people. He was surrounded too quickly by the best Trojans, Polydamas, Aeneas and godlike Agenor, Sarpedon lord of the Lycians and matchless Glaucus. And of the rest there was no one that neglected his leader. They all held their rounded shields in front of him. Then, putting their arms underneath him, his comrades lifted him up and carried him out of the fighting to his swift (430) horses, who were waiting for him behind the fighting with their charioteer and his decorated chariot. They carried him off to the town, groaning heavily.
But when they reached the ford of the sweetly flowing river, eddying Scamander whose father is immortal Zeus, Hector’s men lifted him from the chariot, laid him on the ground and poured water over him. Hector recovered and opened his eyes. He got to his knees and coughed up dark blood. Then he sank back once more on the ground, and the world went black as night before his eyes. He had not yet recovered from the blow.
(440) When the Greeks saw Hector withdraw, they fell on the (Satnius, Prothoenor and Archelochuskilled) Trojans more keenly, their will to fight renewed. First swift Ajax son of Oïleus charged with his sharp-pointed spear and stabbed Satnius, whom a flawless Nymph had borne to his father, Enops, when he was tending his herds on the banks of the River Satnioïs. The famous spearman Ajax leapt in and stabbed him in the side. Satnius fell on his back, and the Greeks and Trojans locked in a fierce tussle around him. The famous spearman Polydamas (450) son of Panthous, coming to the rescue, hit Prothoenor on the right shoulder. The heavy spear held its course through his shoulder, and he fell in the dust and clawed the earth. Polydamas boasted of his triumph over him in a loud voice:
‘That was another spear from the strong arm of Panthous’ proud son that did not fly to no purpose, but found its home in a Greek’s flesh! He can use it as a staff as he goes down to Hades’ halls.’
So he spoke, and his boasting stung the Greeks. It went straight to the heart of Aj ax, warlike son of Telamon, in particu (460) lar, who had been nearest the spot where Prothoenor fell. He quickly threw his glittering spear at the retreating Polydamas. Polydamas himself avoided certain death by leaping to one side. It was Antenor’s son, Archelochus, who received the spear. The gods meant him to die, and it hit him where the head meets the neck on the topmost segment of the spine. It severed both tendons and, as he fell, his forehead, mouth and nose hit the ground well before his legs and knees. Ajax shouted back at matchless Polydamas:
(470) ’Think it over, Polydamas, and tell me frankly – doesn’t this man’s death make up for Prothoenor’s? To judge by his looks, he was certainly no coward or low-born – more like a brother or son of horse-taming Antenor. The family likeness is striking.’
Promachus and Ilioneus killed
Ajax spoke, knowing well enough whom he had killed, and Trojan hearts sank. But Acamas stood protectively over Archelochus, who was his brother, and when a Boeotian called Promachus tried to drag off the body by the feet, he stabbed him with his spear. Acamas boasted of his triumph over him in a loud voice:
‘You Greeks, loud-mouths, so free with your threats – (480) trouble and misery are not reserved for us alone. We’ve had our losses: yours are coming. Look at your man Promachus, put to sleep by my spear in prompt repayment for my brother’s death. That’s what a man prays for – a relative to survive him and avenge his fall.’
So he spoke, and his boasting stung the Greeks. It went straight to the heart of Peneleos in particular. He made for Acamas, but Acamas did not stand up to his attack and it (490) was Ilioneus who fell to lord Peneleos. He was son of the sheep-owner Phorbas, a favourite in Troy of the god Hermes who had made him a rich man. But Ilioneus’ mother had given Phorbas
no other child, and now Peneleos struck him under the eyebrow in the socket of the eye. The spear dislodged his eyeball, pierced the eye-socket and came out at the back of his head. He sank back, stretching out both his hands. But Peneleos, drawing his sharp sword, hit him full on the neck and brought head and helmet tumbling down to the ground. The heavy spear was still stuck in the eye as Peneleos raised it aloft, like a poppy-head, (500) for the Trojans to see, and spoke in triumph:
‘Trojans, do me a favour and instruct Ilioneus’ father and mother to start lamenting him at home. After all, the wife of Promachus, son of Alegenor, will never have the happiness of seeing her husband return when we Greeks sail from Troy.’So he spoke, and the knees of all the Trojans trembled, and each man peered around to find some escape from sudden death.
Greeks slaughter Trojans
Tell me now, you Muses that have your homes on Olympus, who was the first Greek to take a bloodstained set of armour from the enemy, now that the (510) famous earthshaker Poseidon had swayed the battle in their favour? It was Ajax son of Telamon who began by stabbing Hyrtius, leader of the lionhearted Mysians. Next Antilochus killed Phalces and Mermerus; Meriones slew Morys and Hippo-tion; and Teucer slew Prothoon and Periphetes. Then Menelaus stabbed Hyperenor shepherd of the people in the side. Tearing its way through, the bronze spear let out his innards; his life hurried out through the gaping wound, and darkness engulfed (520) his eyes. But it was to Ajax, swift son of Oïleus, that the greatest number fell: for when Zeus started a panic, there was nobody like Ajax for chasing the routed enemy on foot.
15
THE GREEKS AT BAY
