The Iliad by Homer

Now Hera of the golden throne stood on the peak of Olympus,

and saw with her eyes,

and anon knew him that was her brother and her lord’s going to and fro through the glorious fight,

and she rejoiced in her heart.

And she beheld Zeus sitting on the topmost crest of many-fountained Ida,

and to her heart he was hateful.

Then she took thought,

the ox-eyed lady Hera,

how she might beguile the mind of aegis-bearing Zeus.

And this seemed to her in her heart to be the best counsel,

namely to fare to Ida,

when she had well adorned herself,

if perchance a sweet sleep and a kindly she could pour on his eye lids and his crafty wits.

And she set forth to her bower,

that her dear son Hephaistos had fashioned,

and therein had made fast strong doors on the pillars,

with a secret bolt,

that no other god might open.

There did she enter in and closed the shining doors.

With ambrosia first did she cleanse every stain from her winsome body,

and anointed her with olive oil,

ambrosial,

soft,

and of a sweet savour;

if it were but shaken,

in the bronze-floored mansion of Zeus,

the savour thereof went right forth to earth and heaven.

Therewith she anointed her fair body,

and combed her hair,

and with her hands plaited her shining tresses,

fair and ambrosial,

flowing from her immortal head.

Then she clad her in her fragrant robe that Athene wrought delicately for her,

and therein set many things beautifully made,

and fastened it over her breast with clasps of gold.

And she girdled it with a girdle arrayed with a hundred tassels,

and she set earrings in her pierced ears,

earrings of three drops,

and glistering,

therefrom shone grace abundantly.

And with a veil over all the peerless goddess veiled herself,

a fair new veil,

bright as the sun,

and beneath her shining feet she bound goodly sandals.

But when she had adorned her body with all her array,

she went forth from her bower,

and called Aphrodite apart from the other gods,

and spake to her,

saying:

“Wilt thou obey me,

dear child,

in that which I shall tell thee?

or wilt thou refuse,

with a grudge in thy heart, because I succour the Danaans,

and thou the Trojans?”

Then Aphrodite the daughter of Zeus answered her:

“Hera,

goddess queen,

daughter of mighty Kronos,

say the thing that is in thy mind,

my heart bids me fulfil it,

if fulfil it I may,

and if it may be accomplished.”

Then with crafty purpose the lady Hera answered her:

“Give me now Love and Desire wherewith thou dost overcome all the Immortals,

and mortal men.

For I am going to visit the limits of the bountiful Earth,

and Okeanos,

father of the gods,

and mother Tethys,

who reared me well and nourished me in their halls,

having taken me from Rhea,

when far-seeing Zeus imprisoned Kronos beneath the earth and the unvintaged sea.

Them am I going to visit,

and their endless strife will I loose,

for already this long time they hold apart from each other,

since wrath hath settled in their hearts.

If with words I might persuade their hearts,

and bring them back to love,

ever should I be called dear to them and worshipful.”

Then laughter-loving Aphrodite answered her again:

“It may not be,

nor seemly were it,

to deny that thou askest,

for thou steepest in the arms of Zeus,

the chief of gods.”

Therewith from her breast she loosed the broidered girdle,

fair-wrought,

wherein are all her enchantments;

therein are love,

and desire,

and loving converse,

that steals the wits even of the wise.

This girdle she laid in her hands,

and spake,

and said:

“Lo now,

take this girdle and lay it up in thy bosom,

this fair-wrought girdle,

wherein all things are fashioned;

methinks thou wilt not return with that unaccomplished,

which in thy heart thou desirest.”

So spake she,

and the ox-eyed lady Hera smiled,

and smiling laid up the zone within her breast.

Then the daughter of Zeus,

Aphrodite,

went to her house,

and Hera,

rushing down,

left the peak of Olympus,

and sped’ over the snowy hills of the Thracian horsemen,

even over the topmost crests,

nor grazed the ground with her feet,

and from Athos she fared across the foaming sea,

and came to Lemnos,

the city of godlike Thoas.

There she met Sleep,

the brother of Death,

and clasped her hand in his,

and spake and called him by name:

“Sleep,

lord of all gods and of all men,

if ever thou didst hear my word,

obey me again even now,

and I will be grateful to thee always.

Lull me,

I pray thee,

the shining eyes of Zeus beneath his brows.

And gifts I will give to thee,

even a fair throne,

imperishable for ever,

a golden throne,

that Hephaistos the Lame,

mine own child,

shall fashion skilfully,

and will set beneath it a footstool for the feet,

for thee to set thy shining feet upon,

when thou art at a festival.

Nay come,

and I will give thee one of the younger of the Graces,

to wed and to be called thy wife.”

So she spake,

and Sleep was glad,

and answered and said:

—“Come now,

swear to me by the inviolable water of Styx,

and with one of thy hands grasp the bounteous earth,

and with the other the shining sea,

that all may be witnesses to us,

even all the gods below that are with Kronos,

that verily thou wilt give me one of the younger of the Graces,

even Pasithea,

that myself do long for all my days.”

So spake he,

nor did she disobey,

the white-armed goddess Hera;

she sware as he bade her,

and called all the gods by name,

even those below Tartaros that are called Titans.

But when she had sworn and ended that oath,

the twain left the citadel of Lemnos,

and of Imbros,

clothed on in mist,

and swiftly they accomplished the way.

To many-fountained Ida they came,

the mother of wild beasts,

to Lekton,

where first they left the sea,

and they twain fared above the dry land,

and the topmost forest waved beneath their feet.

There Sleep halted,

ere the eyes of Zeus beheld him,

and alighted on a tall pine tree,

the loftiest pine that then in all Ida rose through the nether to the upper air.

But Hera swiftly drew nigh to topmost Gargaros,

the highest crest of Ida,

and Zeus the cloud-gatherer beheld her.

And as he saw her,

so love came over his deep heart,

and he stood before her,

and spoke,

and said:

“Hera,

with what desire comest thou thus hither from Olympus,

and thy horses and chariot are not here,

whereon thou mightst ascend?”

Then with crafty purpose lady Hera answered him:

“I am going to visit the limits of the bountiful Earth,

and Okeanos,

father of the gods,

and mother Tethys,

who reared me well and cherished me in their halls.

Them am I going to visit,

and their endless strife will I loose,

for already this long time they hold apart from each other,

since wrath hath settled in their hearts.

But my horses are standing at the foot of many-fountained Ida,

my horses that shall bear me over wet and dry.

And now it is because of thee that I am thus come hither,

down from Olympus,

lest perchance thou mightest be wroth with me hereafter,

if silently I were gone to the mansion of deep-flowing Okeanos.”

Then Zeus,

the gatherer of the clouds,

answered her and said:

“Hera,

thither mayst thou go on a later day.

For never once as thus did the love of goddess or woman so mightily overflow and conquer the heart within my breast.”

Thus slept the Father in quiet on the crest of Gargaros,

by Sleep and love overcome.

But sweet Sleep started and ran to the ships of the Achaians,

to tell his tidings to the god that holdeth and shaketh the earth.

And he stood near him,

and spake winged words:

“Eagerly now,

Poseidon,

do thou aid the Danaans,

and give them glory for a little space,

while yet Zeus sleepeth,

for over him have I shed soft slumber,

and Hera hath beguiled him.”

So he spake,

and passed to the renowned tribes of men,

and still the more did he set on Poseidon to aid the Danaans,

who straightway sprang far afront of the foremost,

and called to them:

“Argives,

are we again to yield the victory to Hector,

son of Priam,

that he may take our ships and win renown?

Nay,

even so he saith and declareth that he will do,

for that Achilles by the hollow ships abides angered at heart.

But for him there will be no such extreme regret,

if we spur us on to aid each the other.

Nay come,

as I command,

let us all obey.

Let us harness us in the best shields that are in the host,

and the greatest,

and cover our heads with shining helms,

and take the longest spears in our hands,

and so go forth.

Yea,

and I will lead the way,

and methinks that Hector,

son of Priam,

will not long await us,

for all his eagerness.

And whatsoever man is steadfast in battle,

and hath a small buckler on his shoulder,

let him give it to a worse man,

and harness him in a larger shield.”

So spake he,

and they heard him eagerly and obeyed him.

And them the kings themselves arrayed,

wounded as they were,

Tydeus’ son,

and Odysseus,

and Agamemnon,

son of Atreus.

They went through all the host,

and made exchange of weapons of war.

The good arms did the good warrior harness him in,

the worse he gave to the worse.

But when they had done on the shining bronze about their bodies,

they started on the march,

and Poseidon led them,

the Shaker of the earth,

with a dread sword of fine edge in his strong hand,

like unto lightning;

wherewith it is not permitted that any should mingle in woful war,

but fear holds men afar therefrom.

But the Trojans on the other side was renowned Hector arraying.

Then did they now strain the fiercest strife of war,

even dark-haired Poseidon and glorious Hector,

one succouring the Trojans,

the other with the Argives.

And the sea washed up to the huts and ships of the Argives,

and they gathered together with a mighty cry.

Not so loudly bellows the wave of the sea against the land,

stirred up from the deep by the harsh breath of the north wind,

nor so loud is the roar of burning fire in the glades of a mountain,

when it springs to burn up the forest,

nor calls the wind so loudly in the high leafy tresses of the trees,

when it rages and roars its loudest,

as then was the cry of the Trojans and Achaians,

shouting dreadfully as they rushed upon each other.

First glorious Hector cast with his spear at Aias,

who was facing him full,

and did not miss,

striking him where two belts were stretched across his breast,

the belt of his shield,

and of his silver-studded sword;

these guarded his tender flesh.

And Hector was enraged because his swift spear had flown vainly from his hand,

and he retreated into the throng of his fellows,

avoiding Fate.

Then as he was departing the great Telamonian Aias smote him with a huge stone;

for many stones,

the props of swift ships,

were rolled among the feet of the fighters;

one of these he lifted,

and smote Hector on the breast,

over the shield-rim,

near the neck,

and made him spin like a top with the blow,

that he reeled round and round.

And even as when an oak falls uprooted beneath the stroke of father Zeus,

and a dread savour of brimstone arises therefrom,

and whoso stands near and beholds it has no more courage,

for dread is the bolt of great Zeus,

even so fell mighty Hector straightway in the dust.

And the spear fell from his hand,

but his shield and helm were made fast to him,

and round him rang his arms adorned with bronze.

Then with a loud cry they ran up,

the sons of the Achaians,

hoping to drag him away,

and they cast showers of darts.

But not one availed to wound or smite the shepherd of the host,

before that might be the bravest gathered about him,

Polydamas,

and Aineias,

and goodly Agenor,

and Sarpedon,

leader of the Lykians,

and noble Glaukos,

and of the rest not one was heedless of him,

but they held their round shields in front of him,

and his comrades lifted him in their arms,

and bare him out of the battle,

till he reached his swift horses that were standing waiting for him,

with the charioteer and the fair-dight chariot at the rear of the combat and the war.

These toward the city bore him heavily moaning.

Now when they came to the ford of the fair-flowing river,

of eddying Xanthos,

that immortal Zeus begat,

there they lifted him from the chariot to the ground,

and poured water over him,

and he gat back his breath,

and looked up with his eyes,

and sitting on his heels kneeling,

he vomited black blood.

Then again he sank back on the ground,

and black night covered his eyes,

the stroke still conquering his spirit.

BOOK XV.​

Zeus awakening,

biddeth Apollo revive Hector,

and restore the fortunes of the Trojans.

Fire is thrown on the ship of Protesilaos.