The Odyssey by Homer
r more of the suitors now devouring your livelihood."
So saying, Athene began touching him with her wand.
She shriveled the healthy flesh on his supple limbs,
430
destroyed the fair hair on his head, and over his whole
person now stretched the skin of an old and age-worn man.
She dimmed his eyes, that before were so attractive,
and changed his clothes to a ragged cloak and tunic,
all threadbare and filthy, begrimed with foul black smoke;
435
and round him she cast the great hide of a speedy deer,
bald of its hair, and gave him a staff, and a leather bag
tattered and rent, that was held by a twisted cord.
Plans made, the two of them parted. The goddess now left
for lordly Lakedaimon, in search of Odysseus' son.
Book 14
But the rough path up from the harbor was that which Odysseus
now took, by the woodland and heights, to where Athene
said he'd find the noble swineherd, who, of all the household
Odysseus possessed, devoted most care to his property.
Ensconced in his forecourt he found him, where the enclosure
5
had been built up high, at a point with a wide view round,
a fine big open courtyard, in a sheltered position. This
the swineherd had built himself, unknown to his mistress
or old Laertes, for the pigs of his absent master, using
quarried stones, topped off with a coping of prickly thorn.
10
Outside he'd driven in posts, right round in a circle,
strong and close, splitting them off from an oak's dark center;
inside the enclosure he'd fashioned a dozen sties
set close to each other, to serve as beds for the pigs:
in each of them fifty ground-sleeping swine were penned.
These were sows, for breeding; the boars bedded down outside,
15
and were fewer by far in number, for the godlike suitors
made inroads on them for feasting. The swineherd always
sent them the best of the fattened hogs: there were
three hundred and sixty of these, and there slept beside them
20
four guard dogs, as savage as wild beasts, specially reared
by the swineherd, leader of men. He himself was now busy
making a pair of sandals and fitting them to his feet,
cutting a piece of fresh-colored oxhide. The others
had gone off, one here, one there, with their droves of swine--
25
three of them, that is: the fourth he'd sent into town
with a hog, taken under constraint, to the arrogant suitors,
for them to slaughter and glut their appetites with the meat.
Odysseus was suddenly spotted by the ferocious guard dogs,
and they made for him, barking loudly. Odysseus, however,
30
showing presence of mind, sat down, letting go of his staff.
Yet there on his own farmstead he might have been badly hurt
had the swineherd not run up quickly, chasing the dogs
across the forecourt, dropping his oxhide as he came,
and, shouting loudly, had scattered them this way and that
35
with volleys of stones. He then addressed his master, saying:
"Old man, those dogs came so close to tearing you apart
in an instant, and you would have put the blame on me!
And the gods have brought on me other griefs and sorrows:
For I sit here lamenting, and mourning a godlike master
40
and fattening up these hogs for other men to devour,
while he may now be adrift, half-starved and in need of food,
in some town or country of aliens, foreign of speech--
that is, if he's still alive, and enjoying the sunlight!
But come indoors with me now, old man, and after
45
you've quietened your heart with food and wine, you too
can relate where you're from, all the hardships you've endured."
So saying, the noble1 swineherd escorted him to his hut,
ushered him in, heaped up thick rough brushwood, and on it
spread the hide of a shaggy wild goat for him to sit on--
50
his own coverlet, large and hairy--and Odysseus was pleased
at being given such a good welcome, and addressed him, saying:
"My host,2 may Zeus and the other immortal gods now grant you
what you most desire, since you gave me a ready welcome."
To him then, swineherd Eumaios, did you make answer, saying:
55
"Stranger, were one even meaner than you to come here,
I'd still have no right to reject him, for all strangers and beggars
are from Zeus, and a gift, however small, is friendly
from folk such as us; for that's always the lot of servants,
frightened when those who have the mastery over them
60
are the young. The gods, it's true, have blocked that man's return
who'd have treated me as a friend, would have given me possessions--
a home, a plot of land, a much-courted wife, such things
as a kind-hearted master gives to a servant of his
who works hard for him, whose labor a god makes prosper
65
just as this work prospers to which I'm now committed.
For me my lord would have done much, had he grown old here;
but he perished, as I now wish Helen's whole line had perished,
utterly, she who unstrung the knees of so many men!
For he too went out there to save Agamemnon's honor,
70
to Ilion, rich in good horses, to fight against the Trojans."
So saying, he quickly girded his tunic with a belt,
and went out to the sties, where the droves of pigs were confined.
From there he chose two, brought them in, and killed them both,
singed them and cut them up and put the meat on spits,
75
and roasted it. Then he placed the cuts, hot and still spitted,
with a sprinkling of white barley, in front of Odysseus.
In an ivy-wood bowl he now mixed the honey-sweet wine,
and sat down facing his guest, and addressed him invitingly:
"Eat now, stranger! Enjoy the food that's the fare for servants--
80
cheap pork! The fattened hogs are kept for the suitors' meals,
men whose minds care nothing for the gods' wrath, or for pity.
The blessed gods do not favor reckless deeds, but rather
have rewards for justice and for men's righteous deeds.
Even the hostile and lawless, who invade the land of others
85
to get a living, and Zeus allows them their plunder, so that
they sail home with laden vessels--on their minds too
falls the strong fear of the gods' wrath. But these men here
must know something, must have had some word from a god
about his sorry death, since they will not court properly
90
or go back to their own possessions, but here at their ease
waste our goods wantonly, and restraint there is none,
for on every night and day that we get from Zeus they never
sacrifice just one victim, or even two, I think,
and our wine they waste, consuming it recklessly.
95
Great indeed, past telling, were his resources: no other
heroic warrior, either away on the dark mainland,
or on Ithake itself, could match them. Not twenty men
together had as much wealth: I'll list you the sum of it.
On the mainland, twelve herds of cattle, twelve flocks of sheep,
100
as many droves of swine and wide-ranging troops of goats
are pastured alike by outsiders and his own herdsmen.
Eleven wide-ranging troops of goats browse at the farthest
end of the island, and over them good men watch,
each of whom daily drives off one of his troop for them--
105
whichever fattened goat looks to be the best that he has.
Myself, I guard and watch over these swine here, and choose
the best of the hogs to provide for them."
So he spoke.
His grateful guest was already downing the meat and wine
greedily, in silence, planning trouble for the suitors.
110
But when he'd had supper, and quietened his heart by eating,
the swineherd topped up with wine the bowl from which
he himself drank, and gave it him; he took it, glad at heart,
and spoke, and addressed him with winged words, saying: "Friend,
who was the man that bought you with his resources,
115
one as wealthy and powerful as you mentioned? You say
he perished upholding the honor of Agamemnon: tell me,
since such a person I may perhaps recognize;
for only Zeus and the other immortal gods may know
whether I've seen and had news of him: much I've wandered."
120
The swineherd, leader of men, responded to him, saying:
"Old man, no wanderer who turned up with news of him
would ever convince his wife and son: far from it!
Vagrant fellows in need of comfort and sustenance
tell lies: they have no desire to offer a true account!
125
Anyone who in his wandering stops off at Ithake
goes straight to my mistress and spins her a lying yarn;
and she entertains him kindly and questions him in detail,
while shedding tears of sorrow from beneath her eyelids,
as a woman will do when her husband has perished far away.
130
You too, old man, would be quick to concoct a story
If someone gave you for it a cloak and tunic to wear!
As for him, by now the dogs and swift birds of prey
will have torn the skin from his bones, and the soul's gone from him,
or fish in the deep sea have eaten him, and his bones
135
are now down under the sands of some mainland beach.
So he's perished out there, and on his friends hereafter--
all, but on me most of all--grief's been laid, for never again
will I find so kindly a master, however far I go,
not even if I went back to my parents' home, the place
140
where I was born, and they raised me themselves. Yet it's not
so much for them that I grieve--much though I now long
to set eyes on them again, to be in my own country--
no, it's Odysseus for whom I yearn, and he's gone!
To speak his name, stranger, even when he's absent, I find
145
presumptuous,3 since he always loved and cared for me greatly:
'Honored master' I rather call him, even though he's far away."
Much-enduring noble Odysseus responded to him, saying:
"Friend, since yours is a total denial, since you don't believe
that man will ever come back, and your heart's still incredulous,
150
then I'll not just make a plain statement, but swear an oath to it
that Odysseus will return! I claim the reward for good news
the moment that man sets foot inside his home--then clothe me
in a cloak and a tunic, fine garments! But until then,
however sore my need, I would not accept anything;
155
for as hateful to me as the gates of Hades is the man
who, yielding to poverty, concocts a deceitful story.
Zeus, first among gods, be my witness, and this guest's table,
and the hearth of peerless Odysseus, to which I have come,
that all these things indeed will come to pass as I tell you!
160
Within the current moon's sequence Odysseus will arrive here,
between this month's waning and the rising of the next.
He will come back home, and take vengeance on all those
here who dishonor his wife and his illustrious son."
To him then, swineherd Eumaios, you responded, saying:
165
"Neither shall I pay you this reward for good news, old man,
nor will Odysseus ever come home, so relax and drink,
and let's think about other matters--don't remind me of these!
The heart in my breast suffers agonies whenever
anyone mentions my caring master. As for your oath,
170
we'll let that ride: may Odysseus indeed come back,
as I hope and desire, as indeed does Penelope too,
and aged Laertes, and godlike Telemachos. Now
it's for him I ceaselessly grieve, the son Odysseus begot:
Telemachos. Him the gods bred up like a sapling: I thought
175
he'd grow to be no worse a man among men
than his own dear father, a marvel in form and looks.
But some immortal damaged the common sense within him,
or maybe some human: he went after news of his father
to sacred Pylos, and now the lordly suitors are lying
180
in wait for him on his way home, that Arkeisios' godlike
line may die out on Ithake, leave no name behind.
But we'll leave him be now, whether he's to be ambushed
or escape with a helping hand from the son of Kronos.
Come now, old sir, inform me about your own misfortunes,
185
and make it a truthful account, one that I can rely on!
Who are you? From where? What city? Who are your parents?
What kind of ship did you come on? And how did sailors
bring you here to Ithake? And who did they claim to be?
For I don't imagine you made your way here on foot."
190
Then resourceful Odysseus responded to him, saying:
"Very well, I'll give you a truthful account of these matters.
I only wish that we two had enough supplies of food
and sweet wine, here in your hut, enough to last a while,
that we could feast on in silence, while others did the work:
195
easily then could I take up the space of a whole year
and still not have finished the tale of my heartfelt sufferings--
sum total of all that by the gods' will I've endured.
"From broad Krete, I claim, derives my family background:
I'm the son of a wealthy man, and numerous other
200
offspring were born and raised in his halls, legitimate
sons of his wife; but the mother who bore me was bought,
a concubine. Yet he honored me like his true-born sons,
did Kastor, the son of Hylax, from whom I claim descent,
and who was revered like a god by the Kretans in their land
205
for his wealth and prosperity, his splendid sons. But still
the spirits of death pounced on him and carried him off
to the house of Hades. His property was divided
by his arrogant sons, who cast lots for it. But to me
they allotted a small portion only, house and all.
210
Yet I married a wife from a wealthy landowning family
on the grounds of my excellence: I was no good-for-nothing,
no coward in battle. Now all that strength is gone,
though I think when you look at the stubble you'll recognize
So saying, Athene began touching him with her wand.
She shriveled the healthy flesh on his supple limbs,
430
destroyed the fair hair on his head, and over his whole
person now stretched the skin of an old and age-worn man.
She dimmed his eyes, that before were so attractive,
and changed his clothes to a ragged cloak and tunic,
all threadbare and filthy, begrimed with foul black smoke;
435
and round him she cast the great hide of a speedy deer,
bald of its hair, and gave him a staff, and a leather bag
tattered and rent, that was held by a twisted cord.
Plans made, the two of them parted. The goddess now left
for lordly Lakedaimon, in search of Odysseus' son.
Book 14
But the rough path up from the harbor was that which Odysseus
now took, by the woodland and heights, to where Athene
said he'd find the noble swineherd, who, of all the household
Odysseus possessed, devoted most care to his property.
Ensconced in his forecourt he found him, where the enclosure
5
had been built up high, at a point with a wide view round,
a fine big open courtyard, in a sheltered position. This
the swineherd had built himself, unknown to his mistress
or old Laertes, for the pigs of his absent master, using
quarried stones, topped off with a coping of prickly thorn.
10
Outside he'd driven in posts, right round in a circle,
strong and close, splitting them off from an oak's dark center;
inside the enclosure he'd fashioned a dozen sties
set close to each other, to serve as beds for the pigs:
in each of them fifty ground-sleeping swine were penned.
These were sows, for breeding; the boars bedded down outside,
15
and were fewer by far in number, for the godlike suitors
made inroads on them for feasting. The swineherd always
sent them the best of the fattened hogs: there were
three hundred and sixty of these, and there slept beside them
20
four guard dogs, as savage as wild beasts, specially reared
by the swineherd, leader of men. He himself was now busy
making a pair of sandals and fitting them to his feet,
cutting a piece of fresh-colored oxhide. The others
had gone off, one here, one there, with their droves of swine--
25
three of them, that is: the fourth he'd sent into town
with a hog, taken under constraint, to the arrogant suitors,
for them to slaughter and glut their appetites with the meat.
Odysseus was suddenly spotted by the ferocious guard dogs,
and they made for him, barking loudly. Odysseus, however,
30
showing presence of mind, sat down, letting go of his staff.
Yet there on his own farmstead he might have been badly hurt
had the swineherd not run up quickly, chasing the dogs
across the forecourt, dropping his oxhide as he came,
and, shouting loudly, had scattered them this way and that
35
with volleys of stones. He then addressed his master, saying:
"Old man, those dogs came so close to tearing you apart
in an instant, and you would have put the blame on me!
And the gods have brought on me other griefs and sorrows:
For I sit here lamenting, and mourning a godlike master
40
and fattening up these hogs for other men to devour,
while he may now be adrift, half-starved and in need of food,
in some town or country of aliens, foreign of speech--
that is, if he's still alive, and enjoying the sunlight!
But come indoors with me now, old man, and after
45
you've quietened your heart with food and wine, you too
can relate where you're from, all the hardships you've endured."
So saying, the noble1 swineherd escorted him to his hut,
ushered him in, heaped up thick rough brushwood, and on it
spread the hide of a shaggy wild goat for him to sit on--
50
his own coverlet, large and hairy--and Odysseus was pleased
at being given such a good welcome, and addressed him, saying:
"My host,2 may Zeus and the other immortal gods now grant you
what you most desire, since you gave me a ready welcome."
To him then, swineherd Eumaios, did you make answer, saying:
55
"Stranger, were one even meaner than you to come here,
I'd still have no right to reject him, for all strangers and beggars
are from Zeus, and a gift, however small, is friendly
from folk such as us; for that's always the lot of servants,
frightened when those who have the mastery over them
60
are the young. The gods, it's true, have blocked that man's return
who'd have treated me as a friend, would have given me possessions--
a home, a plot of land, a much-courted wife, such things
as a kind-hearted master gives to a servant of his
who works hard for him, whose labor a god makes prosper
65
just as this work prospers to which I'm now committed.
For me my lord would have done much, had he grown old here;
but he perished, as I now wish Helen's whole line had perished,
utterly, she who unstrung the knees of so many men!
For he too went out there to save Agamemnon's honor,
70
to Ilion, rich in good horses, to fight against the Trojans."
So saying, he quickly girded his tunic with a belt,
and went out to the sties, where the droves of pigs were confined.
From there he chose two, brought them in, and killed them both,
singed them and cut them up and put the meat on spits,
75
and roasted it. Then he placed the cuts, hot and still spitted,
with a sprinkling of white barley, in front of Odysseus.
In an ivy-wood bowl he now mixed the honey-sweet wine,
and sat down facing his guest, and addressed him invitingly:
"Eat now, stranger! Enjoy the food that's the fare for servants--
80
cheap pork! The fattened hogs are kept for the suitors' meals,
men whose minds care nothing for the gods' wrath, or for pity.
The blessed gods do not favor reckless deeds, but rather
have rewards for justice and for men's righteous deeds.
Even the hostile and lawless, who invade the land of others
85
to get a living, and Zeus allows them their plunder, so that
they sail home with laden vessels--on their minds too
falls the strong fear of the gods' wrath. But these men here
must know something, must have had some word from a god
about his sorry death, since they will not court properly
90
or go back to their own possessions, but here at their ease
waste our goods wantonly, and restraint there is none,
for on every night and day that we get from Zeus they never
sacrifice just one victim, or even two, I think,
and our wine they waste, consuming it recklessly.
95
Great indeed, past telling, were his resources: no other
heroic warrior, either away on the dark mainland,
or on Ithake itself, could match them. Not twenty men
together had as much wealth: I'll list you the sum of it.
On the mainland, twelve herds of cattle, twelve flocks of sheep,
100
as many droves of swine and wide-ranging troops of goats
are pastured alike by outsiders and his own herdsmen.
Eleven wide-ranging troops of goats browse at the farthest
end of the island, and over them good men watch,
each of whom daily drives off one of his troop for them--
105
whichever fattened goat looks to be the best that he has.
Myself, I guard and watch over these swine here, and choose
the best of the hogs to provide for them."
So he spoke.
His grateful guest was already downing the meat and wine
greedily, in silence, planning trouble for the suitors.
110
But when he'd had supper, and quietened his heart by eating,
the swineherd topped up with wine the bowl from which
he himself drank, and gave it him; he took it, glad at heart,
and spoke, and addressed him with winged words, saying: "Friend,
who was the man that bought you with his resources,
115
one as wealthy and powerful as you mentioned? You say
he perished upholding the honor of Agamemnon: tell me,
since such a person I may perhaps recognize;
for only Zeus and the other immortal gods may know
whether I've seen and had news of him: much I've wandered."
120
The swineherd, leader of men, responded to him, saying:
"Old man, no wanderer who turned up with news of him
would ever convince his wife and son: far from it!
Vagrant fellows in need of comfort and sustenance
tell lies: they have no desire to offer a true account!
125
Anyone who in his wandering stops off at Ithake
goes straight to my mistress and spins her a lying yarn;
and she entertains him kindly and questions him in detail,
while shedding tears of sorrow from beneath her eyelids,
as a woman will do when her husband has perished far away.
130
You too, old man, would be quick to concoct a story
If someone gave you for it a cloak and tunic to wear!
As for him, by now the dogs and swift birds of prey
will have torn the skin from his bones, and the soul's gone from him,
or fish in the deep sea have eaten him, and his bones
135
are now down under the sands of some mainland beach.
So he's perished out there, and on his friends hereafter--
all, but on me most of all--grief's been laid, for never again
will I find so kindly a master, however far I go,
not even if I went back to my parents' home, the place
140
where I was born, and they raised me themselves. Yet it's not
so much for them that I grieve--much though I now long
to set eyes on them again, to be in my own country--
no, it's Odysseus for whom I yearn, and he's gone!
To speak his name, stranger, even when he's absent, I find
145
presumptuous,3 since he always loved and cared for me greatly:
'Honored master' I rather call him, even though he's far away."
Much-enduring noble Odysseus responded to him, saying:
"Friend, since yours is a total denial, since you don't believe
that man will ever come back, and your heart's still incredulous,
150
then I'll not just make a plain statement, but swear an oath to it
that Odysseus will return! I claim the reward for good news
the moment that man sets foot inside his home--then clothe me
in a cloak and a tunic, fine garments! But until then,
however sore my need, I would not accept anything;
155
for as hateful to me as the gates of Hades is the man
who, yielding to poverty, concocts a deceitful story.
Zeus, first among gods, be my witness, and this guest's table,
and the hearth of peerless Odysseus, to which I have come,
that all these things indeed will come to pass as I tell you!
160
Within the current moon's sequence Odysseus will arrive here,
between this month's waning and the rising of the next.
He will come back home, and take vengeance on all those
here who dishonor his wife and his illustrious son."
To him then, swineherd Eumaios, you responded, saying:
165
"Neither shall I pay you this reward for good news, old man,
nor will Odysseus ever come home, so relax and drink,
and let's think about other matters--don't remind me of these!
The heart in my breast suffers agonies whenever
anyone mentions my caring master. As for your oath,
170
we'll let that ride: may Odysseus indeed come back,
as I hope and desire, as indeed does Penelope too,
and aged Laertes, and godlike Telemachos. Now
it's for him I ceaselessly grieve, the son Odysseus begot:
Telemachos. Him the gods bred up like a sapling: I thought
175
he'd grow to be no worse a man among men
than his own dear father, a marvel in form and looks.
But some immortal damaged the common sense within him,
or maybe some human: he went after news of his father
to sacred Pylos, and now the lordly suitors are lying
180
in wait for him on his way home, that Arkeisios' godlike
line may die out on Ithake, leave no name behind.
But we'll leave him be now, whether he's to be ambushed
or escape with a helping hand from the son of Kronos.
Come now, old sir, inform me about your own misfortunes,
185
and make it a truthful account, one that I can rely on!
Who are you? From where? What city? Who are your parents?
What kind of ship did you come on? And how did sailors
bring you here to Ithake? And who did they claim to be?
For I don't imagine you made your way here on foot."
190
Then resourceful Odysseus responded to him, saying:
"Very well, I'll give you a truthful account of these matters.
I only wish that we two had enough supplies of food
and sweet wine, here in your hut, enough to last a while,
that we could feast on in silence, while others did the work:
195
easily then could I take up the space of a whole year
and still not have finished the tale of my heartfelt sufferings--
sum total of all that by the gods' will I've endured.
"From broad Krete, I claim, derives my family background:
I'm the son of a wealthy man, and numerous other
200
offspring were born and raised in his halls, legitimate
sons of his wife; but the mother who bore me was bought,
a concubine. Yet he honored me like his true-born sons,
did Kastor, the son of Hylax, from whom I claim descent,
and who was revered like a god by the Kretans in their land
205
for his wealth and prosperity, his splendid sons. But still
the spirits of death pounced on him and carried him off
to the house of Hades. His property was divided
by his arrogant sons, who cast lots for it. But to me
they allotted a small portion only, house and all.
210
Yet I married a wife from a wealthy landowning family
on the grounds of my excellence: I was no good-for-nothing,
no coward in battle. Now all that strength is gone,
though I think when you look at the stubble you'll recognize