"δὴ τότ᾽ ἐγὼν ἑτάροισι μετηύδων ἀχνύμενος κῆρ·

‘ὦ φίλοι, οὐ γὰρ χρὴ ἕνα ἴδμεναι οὐδὲ δύ᾽ οἴους

θέσφαθ᾽ ἅ μοι Κίρκη μυθήσατο, δῖα θεάων·155

ἀλλ᾽ ἐρέω μὲν ἐγών, ἵνα εἰδότες ἤ κε θάνωμεν

ἤ κεν ἀλευάμενοι θάνατον καὶ κῆρα φύγοιμεν.

Σειρήνων μὲν πρῶτον ἀνώγει θεσπεσιάων

φθόγγον ἀλεύασθαι καὶ λειμῶν᾽ ἀνθεμόεντα.

οἶον ἔμ᾽ ἠνώγει ὄπ᾽ ἀκουέμεν· ἀλλά με δεσμῷ160

δήσατ᾽ ἐν ἀργαλέῳ, ὄφρ᾽ ἔμπεδον αὐτόθι μίμνω,

ὀρθὸν ἐν ἱστοπέδῃ, ἐκ δ᾽ αὐτοῦ πείρατ᾽ ἀνήφθω.

εἰ δέ κε λίσσωμαι ὑμέας λῦσαί τε κελεύω,

ὑμεῖς δὲ πλεόνεσσι τότ᾽ ἐν δεσμοῖσι πιέζειν.’

ἦ τοι ἐγὼ τὰ ἕκαστα λέγων ἑτάροισι πίφαυσκον·165

τόφρα δὲ καρπαλίμως ἐξίκετο νηῦς ἐυεργὴς

νῆσον Σειρήνοιιν· ἔπειγε γὰρ οὖρος ἀπήμων.

αὐτίκ᾽ ἔπειτ᾽ ἄνεμος μὲν ἐπαύσατο ἠδὲ γαλήνη

ἔπλετο νηνεμίη, κοίμησε δὲ κύματα δαίμων.

ἀνστάντες δ᾽ ἕταροι νεὸς ἱστία μηρύσαντο170

καὶ τὰ μὲν ἐν νηὶ γλαφυρῇ θέσαν, οἱ δ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἐρετμὰ

ἑζόμενοι λεύκαινον ὕδωρ ξεστῇς ἐλάτῃσιν.

αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ κηροῖο μέγαν τροχὸν ὀξέι χαλκῷ

τυτθὰ διατμήξας χερσὶ στιβαρῇσι πίεζον·

αἶψα δ᾽ ἰαίνετο κηρός, ἐπεὶ κέλετο μεγάλη ἲς175

Ἠελίου τ᾽ αὐγὴ Ὑπεριονίδαο ἄνακτος·

ἑξείης δ᾽ ἑτάροισιν ἐπ᾽ οὔατα πᾶσιν ἄλειψα.

οἱ δ᾽ ἐν νηί μ᾽ ἔδησαν ὁμοῦ χεῖράς τε πόδας τε

ὀρθὸν ἐν ἱστοπέδῃ, ἐκ δ᾽ αὐτοῦ πείρατ᾽ ἀνῆπτον·

αὐτοὶ δ᾽ ἑζόμενοι πολιὴν ἅλα τύπτον ἐρετμοῖς.180

ἀλλ᾽ ὅτε τόσσον ἀπῆμεν ὅσον τε γέγωνε βοήσας,

ῥίμφα διώκοντες, τὰς δ᾽ οὐ λάθεν ὠκύαλος νηῦς

ἐγγύθεν ὀρνυμένη, λιγυρὴν δ᾽ ἔντυνον ἀοιδήν·

‘δεῦρ᾽ ἄγ᾽ ἰών, πολύαιν᾽ Ὀδυσεῦ, μέγα κῦδος Ἀχαιῶν,

νῆα κατάστησον, ἵνα νωιτέρην ὄπ ἀκούσῃς.185

οὐ γάρ πώ τις τῇδε παρήλασε νηὶ μελαίνῃ,

πρίν γ᾽ ἡμέων μελίγηρυν ἀπὸ στομάτων ὄπ᾽ ἀκοῦσαι,

ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γε τερψάμενος νεῖται καὶ πλείονα εἰδώς.

ἴδμεν γάρ τοι πάνθ᾽ ὅσ᾽ ἐνὶ Τροίῃ εὐρείῃ

Ἀργεῖοι Τρῶές τε θεῶν ἰότητι μόγησαν,190

ἴδμεν δ᾽, ὅσσα γένηται ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ.’

    The Greeks encounter the Sirens.

    As they approach the dreaded Sirens, Odysseus decides to level with the crew about Circe’s instructions. It is not right for only one or two to know them; he and crew are in this together and will either escape or all die together. This newfound team spirit soon rings slightly hollow, however, since what the witch in fact urged was for only Odysseus to listen to the seductive voices. In one sense, this episode echoes others in Books 9–12 where Odysseus’ restless curiosity, his desire to know things, was potentially perilous for the crew. There was no good reason for the Greeks to explore the island of the Cyclopes, but Odysseus insists because he wants to find out what kind of people live there (9.72–76); likewise, it is the captain’s urge to explore Circe’s island that puts his crew in danger (10.189–202).

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    Here it will be useful to think about the two competing urges we see in Odysseus all the way through the poem, the centripetal drive for which he is best known, the relentless quest to return home to his accustomed roles in Ithaka and the centrifugal forces fueled by his restless curiosity and determination to know the world. The poem’s dominant rhetoric points us toward accepting the need for Odysseus to become himself again in Ithaka and reassume his glorious heroic ascendancy, the product of his fame. Anything that impedes that mission is fair game, not only monsters and alluring woman, but also the suitors and even, as it happens, his crew. On the other hand, sometimes not being known proves to be an advantage to the hero as he makes his way home. Knowledge is power in the Odyssey and knowing more about others than they know about you gives you leverage. When Odysseus arrives as an anonymous stranger at a new place, he does not immediately reveal his name, but bides his time while scouting the local scene and building trust with the inhabitants. The eventual revelation of his name, by him or others, is always a dramatic high point, marking his “return” to his former heroic self. The pattern persists from Scheria to the cave of the Cyclops, to Circe’s lair, coming to a triumphant crescendo after the slaughter of the suitors. The tension between the drive to reclaim his kleos, primarily associated with the centripetal hero, and the use of anonymity in the pursuit of knowledge and thus power, characteristic of the centrifugal adventurer, is a source of energy in the story from beginning to end. (See Introduction, para. 11–19)

    In the encounter with the Sirens, these distinctions begin to blur. He will be able submit himself to the seductive powers of the Sirens and experience their dangerous knowledge (answering the call of the centrifugal urge to seek knowledge), but without anyone having to pay the price (the centripetal drive for home will not be sabotaged). The Sirens scramble other distinctions as well. Elsewhere, female singers are dangerous to men because their music surrounds them, blurring the boundaries affirmed in narrative songs that make meaning in a masculine world. The Sirens’ music, however subversive, is delivered in words and they promise Odysseus precisely the kind of knowledge that male bards deliver elsewhere in the poem. He who listens to them will gain special knowledge:

    ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γε τερψάμενος νεῖται καὶ πλείονα εἰδώς. 
    ἴδμεν γάρ τοι πάνθ᾽ ὅσ᾽ ἐνὶ Τροίῃ εὐρείῃ 
    Ἀργεῖοι Τρῶές τε θεῶν ἰότητι μόγησαν, 
    ἴδμεν δ᾽, ὅσσα γένηται ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ

    Well pleased, he (who listens to them) goes on, knowing more than he ever did. 
    For we know everything the Greeks and Trojans 
    suffered in wide Troy, by the gods’ will; 
    we know everything that happens on the generous earth.

    Odyssey 12.188–91

    With her advice, Circe offers Odysseus an antidote to the ruinous power of the Sirens, a way of experiencing their power without penalty. In this way, the entire episode recalls the beginning of the Circe episode in Book 10, where Hermes’s intervention gives Odysseus immunity from the magic of the witch, so he can enjoy her hospitality without being stranded, and perhaps the katabasis, where he can visit the land of the dead without paying the usual price of admission. As the adventures in Books 9–12 progress, the gods or their agents sometimes seem to take a more active role in protecting Odysseus from the perils toward which that his curious nature might draw him. As his centripetal drive brings him ever closer to Ithaka, he is allowed to indulge his centrifugal urges without the usual consequences. He will survive the next adventures, but at great cost to his crew.

     

    153  κῆρ: "in my heart," accusative of respect.

    154  οὐ … χρὴ: “it is not right for (acc.) to (infin.).”

    154  γὰρ: “since”; anticipatory γάρ (Smyth 2811).

    154  ἴδμεναι: infin. > οἶδα.

    155  θέσφαθ᾽: θέσφατα, “prophecies”

    156  ἵνα εἰδότες ἤ κε θάνωμεν ... / ἤ κεν ... φύγοιμεν: "so we might know whether we will die... or whether we might escape..." The only example of a purpose clause with ἵνα κε (Monro 286). κε implies conditionality, whereas purpose clauses are unconditional, but the presence here of two alternatives (ἤ κε … ἤ κεν …) implies conditionality. The subjunctive (θάνωμεν) represents the nearer possibility, and the potential optative (φύγοιμεν) the more remote possibility.

    158  ἀνώγει: Circe is the subject.

    160  ἠνώγει: introducing an accusative (οἶον ἔμε) and infinitive (ἀκούεμεν) construction of indirect discourse.

    160  ὄπ(α): acc. > ὄψ, object of the infinitive.

    162  ὀρθὸν: “standing up,” modifying με in line 160.

    162  ἐκ ... αὐτοῦ: “from there” (i.e., the mast).

    162  πείρατ(α) ἀνήφθω: “let the ends (of the rope) be fastened,” 3rd sing. pf. pass. imperat. > ἀνάπτω. This line is a repetition of 51.

    163  compare with line 53.

    164  πιέζειν: infin. as imperat. Compare this line with line 54.

    166  τόφρα: "meanwhile."

    167  Σειρήνοιϊν: gen. dual, implying that there are only two Sirens.

    167  οὖρος ἀπήμων: “favorable wind.”

    169  ἔπλετο: 3rd sing. impf. mid. > πέλω.

    171  θέσαν: “stowed”; unaugmented 3rd pl. aor.

    171  ἐπ᾽ ἐρετμὰ: “at the oars”

    172  λεύκαινον: unaugmented 3rd pl. impf.

    172  ξεστῇς ἐλάτῃσιν: dative of means. ἐλάτῃσιν, “with pine” (i.e., with oars made out of pine wood) is an example of metonymy (Smyth 3033), as is χαλκῷ (“with bronze,” i.e., with a bronze blade) in the next line.

    174  τυτθὰ διατμήξας: “cutting … in pieces,” > διατμήγω.

    174  πίεζον: “pinched”; unaugmented 1st sing. impf.

    175  κέλετο: “compelled (it),” unaugmented 3rd sing. impf. > κἐλομαι. The subjects are both ἴς and αὐγή.

    177  ἄλειψα: "stopped (their ears) with wax." This use of the verb is found only in this book of the Odyssey.

    177–79  Odysseus carries out the instructions given to him by Circe in lines 47–51

    181  ἀλλ᾽…βοήσας: “But when I was as far away as (someone) can be heard shouting.” The correlatives, τόσσον…ὅσσον, are accusatives of extent. This line is also found at 9.473.

    182  διώκοντες: “propelling (the ship)” > διώκω.

    183  ὀρνυμένη: "hurrying."

    183  ἔντυνον: "were striking up (a song)."

    184  ἄγ᾽: “come on!” an exhortation preceding an imperative, in this case κατάστησον in line 185 (Monro 327).

    184  ἰών: nom. pres. act. ptc. > εἶμι.

    185  κατάστησον: “stop," aor. sing. imperat., transitive > καθίστημι.

    186  τῇδε: “here” or “this island,” dat., with a compound verb.

    186  παρήλασε: “driven past,” “passed,” 3rd sing. aor. > παρελαύνω.

    188  καὶ πλείονα: either “even more,” or καί coordinates the two participles.

    ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion

    μεταυδάω μεταυδήσω μετηύδησα μετηύδηκα μετηύδημαι μετηυδήθην: to speak among

    ἄχομαι and ἄχνυμαι: to afflict, sadden, trouble, grieve

    κῆρ κῆρος τό: heart, mind

    οἶος –α –ον: alone

    θέσφατος –ον: fated, decreed, ordained, appointed 155

    Κίρκη –ης ἡ: Circe, the enchantress, daughter of Helius, sister of Aeētes, dwelling in the isle of Aeaea

    μυθέομαι μυθήσομαι μεμύθημαι ἐμυθήθην: speak or talk of, describe, explain, relate

    δῖος –α –ον: divine, godlike, shining

    θεά –ᾶς ἡ: goddess

    ἐρῶ εἴρηκα ἐρρήθην: to say, tell, speak

    ἀλέομαι or ἀλεύομαι, aor. ἠλεύατο, infin. ἀλέασθαι or ἀλεύασθαι: to avoid, shun

    κήρ κηρός ἡ: doom, death, fate

    Σειρήν –ῆνος ἡ: a Siren

    ἄνωγα (pf. as pres.), ἠνώγεα (plupf. as impf.): to command, invite, exhort

    θεσπέσιος [–α] –ον: divine; prodigious, extraordinary, supernatural; deafening

    φθόγγος –ου ὁ: sound; voice

    ἀλέομαι or ἀλεύομαι, aor. ἠλεύατο, infin. ἀλέασθαι or ἀλεύασθαι: to avoid, shun

    λειμών –ῶνος ὁ: grassland, meadow, field

    ἀνθεμόεις –εσσα –εν: flowery

    οἶος –α –ον: alone 160

    ἄνωγα (pf. as pres.), ἠνώγεα (plupf. as impf.): to command, invite, exhort

    ὄψ ὀπός ἡ: a voice

    δεσμός –οῦ ὁ (pl. δεσμά): a bond

    ἀργαλέος –α –ον: hard to endure or deal with, difficult

    ὄφρα: while; until; so that; ὄφρα … τόφρα, while … for so long

    ἔμπεδος –ον: firm-set, steadfast, constant, unchanged; (in neuter as adverb) firmly, steadily

    αὐτόθι: on the spot, right there

    μίμνω ––– ––– ––– ––– –––: to remain, wait

    ἱστοπέδη –ης ἡ: base of the mat

    πεῖραρ –ατος τό: border, limit

    ἀνάπτω ἀνάψω ἀνῆψα ––– ἀνῆμμαι ἀνήφθην: to attach, tie, fasten

    λίσσομαι ––– ἐλλισάμην/ἐλιτόμην ––– ––– –––: to pray, beg; to beseech with prayer

    δεσμός –οῦ ὁ (pl. δεσμά): a bond

    πιέζω πιέσω ἐπίεσα πεπίεκα πεπίεσμαι ἐπιέσθην: to press, squeeze, press tight

    τοι: let me tell you, surely 165

    ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion

    πιφαύσκω: to make manifest, declare, tell of

    τόφρα: at that very moment, so long; tόφρα … ὄφρα, as long as … until

    καρπάλιμος –ον: swift

    ἐξικνέομαι ἐξίξομαι ἐξικόμην ἐξῖγμαι: to reach, arrive at

    εὐεργής –ές: well-wrought, well-made

    Σειρήν –ῆνος ἡ: a Siren

    ἐπείγω ἐπείξομαι ἤπειξα ––– ἤπειγμαι ἐπείχθην: to press hard; (pass.) to be in a hurry

    οὖρος –ου ὁ: a fair wind

    ἀπήμων –ον gen. –ονος: unharmed, unhurt; doing no harm; favorable

    ἄνεμος –ου ὁ: wind

    ἠδέ: and

    γαλήνη –ης ἡ: stillness of the sea, calm

    πέλω ––– ἔπλον ––– ––– –––: to be (the aor. has pres. signif.)

    νηνεμίη –ης ἡ: windless calm, dead calm (in a negative sense)

    κοιμάω κοιμήσω ἐκοίμησα κεκοίμηκα κεκοίμημαι ἐκοιμήθην: (act.) to put to bed, lull; (mid. and pass.) to go to bed, lay down

    κῦμα –ατος τό: wave

    ἀνίστημι ἀνστήσω ἀνέστησα (or ἀνέστην) ἀνέστηκα ἀνέσταμαι ἀνεστάθην: make stand, set up; stand up 170

    ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion

    ἱστίον –ου τό: a sail

    μηρύομαι μηρύσομαι ἐμηρυσάμην: to draw up, furl

    γλαφῠρός –ά –όν: hollow, deep

    ἐρετμόν –οῦ τό: oar

    ἕζομαι – – – – –: to sit down

    λευκαίνω λευκανῶ ἐλεύκανα: to make white, whiten

    ξεστός –ή –όν: smoothed, polished, wrought

    ἐλάτη –ης ἡ: the silver fir (pinus picea)

    ἀτάρ (or αὐτάρ): but, yet

    κηρός –οῦ ὁ: bees-wax

    τροχός –οῦ ὁ: wheel

    χαλκός –οῦ ὁ: bronze, copper, weapon

    τυτθός [–ή] –όν: little, small

    διατμήγω διατμήξω διέτμηξα/διέτμαγον – – διετμάγην: to cut in twain

    στιβαρός –ά –όν: compact, strong, stout, sturdy

    πιέζω πιέσω ἐπίεσα πεπίεκα πεπίεσμαι ἐπιέσθην: to press, squeeze, press tight

    αἶψα: rapidly, speedily, suddenly 175

    ἰαίνω ἰανῶ ἴηνα – – ἰάνθην: to heat

    κηρός –οῦ ὁ: bees-wax

    κέλομαι κελήσομαι ἐκελησάμην ἐκεκλόμην: command, urge on, exhort, call to

    ἴς ἰνός ἡ: strength, force; sinew, tendon

    αὐγή –ῆς ἡ: the light of the sun, sunlight

    Ὑπεριονίδης –ου ὁ: Hyperion's son

    ἄναξ –ακτος ὁ: ruler, lord

    ἑξῆς: one after another, in order, in a row

    ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: comrade, companion

    οὖς ὠτός τό: ear

    ἀλείφω ἀλείψω ἤλειψα ἀλήλιφα ἀλήλιμμαι ἠλείφθην: to anoint, smear

    ὁμοῦ: together, at the same place or time

    ἱστοπέδη –ης ἡ: base of the mat

    πεῖραρ –ατος τό: border, limit

    ἀνάπτω ἀνάψω ἀνῆψα ––– ἀνῆμμαι ἀνήφθην: to attach, tie, fasten

    ἕζομαι – – – – –: to sit down 180

    πολιός –ή –όν: white

    ἅλς ἁλός ὁ: salt (m.); sea (f.)

    τύπτω τύψω ἔτυψα τέτῠφα (or τετύπτηκα) τέτυμμαι ἐτύφθην (or ἐτυπτήθην or ἐτύπην): to beat, strike

    ἐρετμόν –οῦ τό: oar

    τόσος –η –ον: so great, so vast

    ἄπειμι ἀπέσομαι ––– ––– ––– –––: to be away, be distant, be absent

    γέγωνα (perf. of γεγωνέω): to make oneself heard; to shout, cry out

    βοάω βοήσομαι ἐβόησα βεβόηκα βεβόημαι ἐβοήθην: to shout, roar

    ῥίμφα: lightly, swiftly, fleetly

    ὠκύαλος –ον: sea-swift, speeding o'er the sea

    ἐγγύθεν: close, nearby, alongside

    ὄρνυμι ὄρσω ὦρσα ὄρωρα ὀρώρεμαι –––: to stir up, move; (mid.) to rise, get up

    λιγυρός –ά –όν: clear, whistling

    ἐντύνω ἐντυνῶ ἔντυνα – – –: to equip, deck out, get ready

    ἀοιδή –ῆς ἡ: song, a singing

    δεῦρο: here, to this place

    πολύαινος –ον: much-praised

    Ὀδυσσεύς –έως ὁ: Odysseus, king of Ithaca, hero of the Odyssey

    κῦδος –ους τό: glory, majesty, might

    Ἀχαιός –ά –όν: Achaean, Greek

    νωΐτερος –α –ον: of or from us two 185

    ὄψ ὀπός ἡ: a voice

    πω: up to this time, yet

    τῇδε: here, thus

    παρελαύνω παρελῶ παρήλασα παρελήλακα παρελήλαμαι παρηλάθην: to drive by

    μέλας μέλαινα μέλαν: black, dark, obscure

    μελίγηρυς –υος: sweet-voiced, melodious

    ὄψ ὀπός ἡ: a voice

    τέρπω τέρψω ἔτερψα ––– ––– ἐτάρφθην/ἐτέρφθην: to delight; (mid./pass.) to have one's full of

    νέομαι ––– ––– ––– ––– –––: to return (often in present with future sense), go home, go

    τοι: let me tell you, surely

    Τροίη –ης ἡ: Troy

    εὐρύς –εῖα –ύ: broad

    Ἀργεῖος –η –ον: Argive, of or from Argos (Greece) 190

    Τρώς Τρωός ὁ: Trojan

    ἰότης –ητος ἡ: will, desire

    μογέω μογήσω ἐμόγησα: to toil, suffer

    χθών χθονός ἡ: the earth, ground

    πολυβότειρα –ας ἡ: much- or all-nourishing

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    Suggested Citation

    Thomas Van Nortwick and Rob Hardy, Homer: Odyssey 5–12. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2024. ISBN: 978-1-947822-17-7 https://dcc.dickinson.edu/homer-odyssey/xii-153-191