"Thus, then, did we sit and hold
sad talk with one another, I on the one side of the trench with my
sword held over the blood, and the ghost of my comrade saying all
this to me from the other side. Then came the ghost
[psukhê] of my dead mother Antikleia, daughter
to Autolykos. I had left her alive when I set out for Troy and was
moved to tears when I saw her, but even so, for all my sorrow I would
not let her come near the blood till I had asked my questions of
Teiresias.
"Then came also the ghost
[psukhê] of Theban Teiresias, with his golden
scepter in his hand. He knew me and said, ‘Odysseus, noble son
of Laertes, why, poor man, have you left the light of day and come
down to visit the dead in this sad place? Stand back from the trench
and withdraw your sword that I may drink of the blood and answer your
questions truly.’
"So I drew back, and sheathed my
sword, whereon when he had drank of the blood he began with his
prophecy [mantis].
"You want to know,’ said he,
‘about your return home [nostos], but heaven will
make this hard for you. I do not think that you will escape the eye
of Poseidon, who still nurses his bitter grudge against you for
having blinded his son. Still, after much suffering you may get home
if you can restrain yourself and your companions when your ship
reaches the Thrinacian island, where you will find the sheep and
cattle belonging to the sun, who sees and gives ear to everything. If
you leave these flocks unharmed and think of nothing but of getting
home [nostos], you may yet after much hardship reach
Ithaca; but if you harm them, then I forewarn you of the destruction
both of your ship and of your men. Even though you may yourself
escape, you will return in bad plight after losing all your men, in
another man's ship, and you will find trouble in your house,
which will be overrun by high-handed people, who are devouring your
substance under the pretext of paying court and making presents to
your wife.
Homer. The Odyssey. Rendered into English prose for the use of those who cannot read the original. Samuel Butler. Based on public domain edition, revised by Timothy Power and Gregory Nagy. A. C. Fifield, London. 1900 (?).
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