weary Odysseus came home at last.
The double doors were locked and closely fitted.
A woman checked the contents, night and day,
guarding it all with great intelligence,
and that was Eurycleia, child of Ops.
He called her to the chamber and addressed her.
“Nanny, please pour sweet wine in jugs for me,350
the second best one, not the one you keep
for when the poor unlucky king escapes
from evil fate and death, and comes back home.
Fill up twelve jugs with wine for me, and pour me
some twenty pounds of fine-milled barley-groats,
all packed in sturdy leather bags. Load up
all these provisions secretly. At nightfall,
I will come here and get them, when my mother
has gone upstairs to go to sleep. I am
leaving for Sparta and for sandy Pylos,360
to learn about my father’s journey home.”
At that his loving nurse began to wail,
and sobbed,
“Sweet child! What gave you this idea?
Why do you want to go so far? You are
an only child, and dearly loved! The king,
Odysseus, is gone, lost, far from home,
and they will plot against you when you leave,
scheming to murder you and share this wealth.
Stay with us, we who love you! Do not go
searching for danger out on restless seas!”370
Telemachus decisively replied,
“Nanny, you need not worry. Gods have blessed
this plan. But promise me you will not tell
Mother, until she notices me gone.
Say nothing for twelve days, so she will not
start crying; it would spoil her pretty skin.”
At that the old nurse swore a mighty oath
by all the gods that she would keep the secret,
and then she drew the wine for him in jars,
and poured the barley-groats in well-stitched bags.380
Telemachus returned to see the suitors.
Meanwhile, bright-eyed Athena had a plan.
Resembling Telemachus, she went
all through the city, standing by each man,
and urged them to assemble by the ship
at night, and asked the son of Phronius,
Noëmon, for his speedy ship; he promised
to give it gladly. Then the sun went down
and all the streets grew dark. The goddess dragged
the ship into the water, and she loaded390
the necessary tackle for a journey.
Right at the beach’s farthest end the goddess
stood and assembled good strong men as crew;
she coached each one. Then, eyes ablaze with plans,
she went back to Odysseus’ house,
and poured sweet sleep upon the drunken suitors.
She struck them and their cups fell from their hands.
Disguised as Mentor both in looks and voice,
she called the boy out from the mighty hall,
and looked intently in his face, and said,400
“Telemachus, your crew of armored men
is ready at the oar for your departure.
Come on! No time to waste! We must be gone!”
So speaking, Pallas quickly led the boy;
he followed in the footsteps of the goddess.
They went down to the seashore and the ship,
and found the long-haired sailors on the beach.
Inspired and confident, Telemachus
called out,
“My friends! Come on, let us go fetch
the rations; they are ready in the hall. 410
But quietly—my mother does not know,
nor do the other women, except one.”
And so he led them, and they followed him.
They loaded everything upon the decks;
Odysseus’ son instructed them,
and then embarked—Athena led the way.
She sat down in the stern, and next to her
Telemachus was sitting. Then the crew
released the ropes and boarded, each at oar.
Athena called a favorable wind,420
pure Zephyr whistling on wine-dark sea.
Telemachus commanded his companions
to seize the rigging; so they did, and raised
the pine-wood mast inside the rounded block,
and bound it down with forestays round about,
and raised the bright white sails with leather ropes.
Wind blew the middle sail; the purple wave
was splashing loudly round the moving keel.
The goddess rode the waves and smoothed the way.
The quick black ship held steady, so they fastened430
the tackle down, and filled their cups with wine.
They poured libations to the deathless gods,
especially to the bright-eyed child of Zeus.
All through the night till dawn the ship sailed on.
BOOK 3
An Old King Remembers
Leaving the Ocean’s streams, the Sun leapt up
into the sky of bronze, to shine his light
for gods and mortals on the fertile earth.
Telemachus arrived in Pylos, where
the Pylians were bringing to the beach
black bulls for blue Poseidon, Lord of Earthquakes.
There were nine benches, fifty men on each,
and each group had nine bulls to sacrifice.
They burned the thigh-bones for the god, and ate
the innards. Then the Ithacans arrived, 10
took down their sails, dropped anchor and alighted.
The goddess with the flashing eyes, Athena,
first led Telemachus onshore, then spoke.
“Do not be shy, Telemachus. You sailed
over the sea to ask about your father,
where the earth hides him, what his fate might be.
So hurry now to Nestor, lord of horses.
Learn what advice he has in mind for you.
Supplicate him yourself, and he will tell you
the truth; he is not one to tell a lie.” 20
Telemachus replied, “But Mentor, how
can I approach and talk to him? I am
quite inexperienced at making speeches,
and as a young man, I feel awkward talking
to elders.”
She looked straight into his eyes,
and answered, “You will work out what to do,
through your own wits and with divine assistance.
The gods have blessed you in your life so far.”
So Pallas spoke and quickly led him on;
he followed in the footsteps of the goddess.30
They reached the center of the town, where Nestor
was sitting with his sons and his companions,
putting the meat on spits and roasting it
for dinner. When they saw the strangers coming,
they all stood up with open arms to greet them,
inviting them to join them. Nestor’s son,
Pisistratus, shook hands and sat them down,
spreading soft fleeces on the sand beside
his father and his brother, Thrasymedes.
He served them giblets and he poured some wine40
into a golden cup, and raised a toast
to Pallas, child of Zeus the Aegis-Lord.
“Now guest, give prayers of thanks to Lord Poseidon,
and pour libations for the god. This feast
is in his honor; pay him proper dues.
Then give the boy the cup of honeyed wine,
so he can offer to the deathless gods
libations. Everybody needs the gods.
I give the golden chalice to you first,
because the boy is younger, more my age.”50
He put the cup of sweet wine in her hand.
Athena was impressed with his good manners,
because he rightly gave it first to her.
At once she made a heartfelt prayer.
“Poseidon!
O Shaker of the Earth, do not refuse
to grant our prayer; may all these things come true.
Bring fame to Nestor and his sons, and grant
gifts to the Pylians, as recompense
for this fine sacrifice. And may the quest
for which we sailed here in our swift black ship60
succeed, and may we come home safe again.”
She made her prayer come true all by herself.
She gave Telemachus the splendid cup
with double handle, and his prayer matched hers.
And then they cooked the outer parts of meat,
and helped themselves to pieces, sharing round
the glorious feast, till they could eat no more.
Then first Gerenian Nestor, horse-lord, spoke.
“Now that our guests are satisfied with food,
time now to talk to them and ask them questions.70