The Iliad by Homer — Book XIII, Poseidon rallies the Greeks

Now when Zeus had thus brought Hektor and the Trojans to the ships, he left them to their never-ending toil [ponos], and turned his keen eyes away, looking elsewhere towards the horse-breeders of Thrace, the Mysians, fighters at close quarters, the noble Hippemolgoi, who live on milk, and the Abians, the most just [dikaioi] of humankind. He no longer turned so much as a glance towards Troy, for he did not think that any of the immortals would go and help either Trojans or Danaans.

¹⁰But King Poseidon had kept no blind look-out; he had been looking admiringly on the battle from his seat on the topmost crests of wooded Samothrace, whence he could see all Ida, with the city of Priam and the ships of the Achaeans. He had come from under the sea and taken his place here, for he pitied the Achaeans who were being overcome by the Trojans; and he was furiously angry with Zeus.

¹⁷Presently he came down from his post on the mountain top, and as he strode swiftly onwards the high hills and the forest quaked beneath the tread of his immortal feet. Three strides he took, and with the fourth he reached his goal - Aigai, where is his glittering golden palace, imperishable, in the depths of the sea. When he got there, he yoked his fleet brazen-footed steeds with their manes of gold all flying in the wind; ²⁵he clothed himself in raiment of gold, grasped his gold whip, and took his stand upon his chariot. As he went his way over the waves the sea-monsters left their lairs, for they knew their lord, and came gamboling round him from every quarter of the deep, while the sea in her gladness opened a path before his chariot. So lightly did the horses fly that the bronze axle of the car was not even wet beneath it; and thus his bounding steeds took him to the ships of the Achaeans.

³²Now there is a certain huge cavern in the depths of the sea midway between Tenedos and rocky Imbros; here Poseidon lord of the earthquake stayed his horses, unyoked them, and set before them their ambrosial forage. He hobbled their feet with hobbles of gold which none could either unloose or break, so that they might stay there in that place until their lord should return. This done he went his way to the host of the Achaeans.

³⁹Now the Trojans followed Hektor son of Priam in close array like a storm-cloud or flame of fire, fighting with might and main and raising the cry battle; for they deemed that they should take the ships of the Achaeans and kill all their chiefest heroes then and there. Meanwhile earth-encircling Poseidon lord of the earthquake cheered on the Argives, for he had come up out of the sea and had assumed the form and voice of Kalkhas.

⁴⁶First he spoke to the two Ajaxes, who were doing their best already, and said, "Ajaxes, you two can be the saving of the Achaeans if you will put out all your strength and not let yourselves be daunted. I am not afraid that the Trojans, who have got over the wall in force, will be victorious in any other part, for the Achaeans can hold all of them in check, but I much fear that some evil will befall us here where furious Hektor, who boasts himself the son of great Zeus himself, is leading them on like a pillar of flame. May some god, then, put it into your hearts to make a firm stand here, and to incite others to do the like. In this case you will drive him from the ships even though he be inspired by Zeus himself."

⁵⁹As he spoke the earth-encircling lord of the earthquake struck both of them with his scepter and filled their hearts with daring. He made their legs light and active, as also their hands and their feet. Then, as the soaring falcon poises on the wing high above some sheer rock, and presently swoops down to chase some bird over the plain, even so did Poseidon lord of the earthquake wing his flight into the air and leave them. Of the two, swift Ajax son of Oileus was the first to know who it was that had been speaking with them, and said to Ajax son of Telamon, "Ajax, this is one of the gods that dwell on Olympus, who in the likeness of the seer is bidding us fight hard by our ships. It was not Kalkhas the seer and diviner of omens; I knew him at once by his feet and knees as he turned away, for the gods are soon recognized. Moreover I feel the lust of battle burn more fiercely within me, while my hands and my feet under me are more eager for the fray."

⁷⁶And Ajax son of Telamon answered, "I too feel my hands grasp my spear more firmly; my strength is greater, and my feet more nimble; I long, moreover, to meet furious Hektor son of Priam, even in single combat."

⁸¹Thus did they converse, exulting in the hunger after battle with which the god had filled them. Meanwhile the earth-encircler roused the Achaeans, who were resting in the rear by the ships overcome at once by hard fighting and by grief [akhos] at seeing that the Trojans had got over the wall in force. Tears began falling from their eyes as they beheld them, for they made sure that they should not escape destruction; but the lord of the earthquake passed lightly about among them and urged their battalions to the front.

⁹¹First he went up to Teucer and Leitos, the hero Peneleos, and Thoas and Deipyros; Meriones also and Antilokhos, valiant warriors; all did he exhort. "Shame [aidôs] on you young Argives," he cried, "it was on your prowess I relied for the saving of our ships; ⁹⁷if you fight not with might and main, this very day will see us overcome by the Trojans. Of a truth my eyes behold a great and terrible portent which I had never thought to see - the Trojans at our ships - they, who were heretofore like panic-stricken hinds, the prey of jackals and wolves in a forest, with no strength but in flight for they cannot defend themselves. Hitherto the Trojans dared not for one moment face the attack of the Achaeans, but now they have sallied far from their city and are fighting at our very ships through the cowardice of our leader and the disaffection of the people themselves, who in their discontent care not to fight in defense of the ships but are being slaughtered near them. True, King Agamemnon son of Atreus is responsible [aitios] for our disaster by having insulted the son of Peleus, still this is no reason why we should leave off fighting. Let us be quick to heal, for the hearts of the brave heal quickly. You do ill to be thus remiss, you, who are the finest warriors in our whole army. I blame no man for keeping out of battle if he is a weakling, but I am indignant with such men as you are. My good friends, matters will soon become even worse through this slackness; think, each one of you, of his own respect [aidôs] and sense of nemesis, for the hazard of the fight is extreme. Great Hektor is now fighting at our ships; he has broken through the gates and the strong bolt that held them."

¹²⁵Thus did the earth-encircler address the Achaeans and urge them on. Thereon round the two Ajaxes there gathered strong bands of men, of whom not even Ares nor Athena, marshaler of hosts could make light if they went among them, for they were the picked [krinô] men of all those who were now awaiting the onset of Hektor and the Trojans. They made a living fence, spear to spear, shield to shield, buckler to buckler, helmet to helmet, and man to man. The horse-hair crests on their gleaming helmets touched one another as they nodded forward, so closely locked in battle were they; the spears they brandished in their strong hands were interlaced, and their hearts were set on battle.

¹³⁶The Trojans advanced in a dense body, with Hektor at their head pressing right on as a rock that comes thundering down the side of some mountain from whose brow the winter torrents have torn it; the foundations of the dull thing have been loosened by floods of rain, and as it bounds headlong on its way it sets the whole forest in an uproar; it swerves neither to right nor left till it reaches level ground, but then for all its fury it can go no further - even so easily did Hektor for a while seem as though he would career through the tents and ships of the Achaeans till he had reached the sea in his murderous course; but the closely serried battalions stayed him when he reached them, for the sons of the Achaeans thrust at him with swords and spears pointed at both ends, and drove him from them so that he staggered and gave ground; thereon he shouted to the Trojans, "Trojans, Lycians, and Dardanians, fighters in close combat, stand firm: the Achaeans have set themselves as a wall against me, but they will not check me for long; they will give ground before me if the mightiest of the gods, the thundering spouse of Hera, has indeed inspired my onset."

¹⁵⁵With these words he put heart and soul into them all. Deiphobos son of Priam went about among them intent on deeds of daring with his round shield before him, under cover of which he strode quickly forward. Meriones took aim at him with a spear, nor did he fail to hit the broad orb of ox-hide; but he was far from piercing it for the spear broke in two pieces long ere he could do so; moreover Deiphobos had seen it coming and had held his shield well away from him. Meriones drew back under cover of his comrades, angry alike at having failed to vanquish Deiphobos, and having broken his spear. He turned therefore towards the ships and tents to fetch a spear which he had left behind in his tent.

¹⁶⁹The others continued fighting, and the cry of battle rose up into the heavens. Teucer son of Telamon was the first to kill his man, to wit, the warrior Imbrios son of Mentor rich in horses. Until the Achaeans came he had lived in Pedaeum, and had married Medesikaste a bastard daughter of Priam; but on the arrival of the Danaan fleet he had gone back to Ilion, and was a great man among the Trojans, dwelling near Priam himself, who gave him like honor with his own sons. The son of Telamon now struck him under the ear with a spear which he then drew back again, and Imbrios fell headlong as an ash-tree when it is felled on the crest of some high mountain beacon, and its delicate green foliage comes toppling down to the ground. Thus did he fall with his bronze-equipped armor ringing harshly round him, and Teucer sprang forward with intent to strip him of his armor; but as he was doing so, Hektor took aim at him with a spear. Teucer saw the spear coming and swerved aside, whereon it hit Amphimakhos, son of Kteatos son of Aktor, in the chest as he was coming into battle, and his armor rang rattling round him as he fell heavily to the ground. Hektor sprang forward to take Amphimakhos' helmet from off his temples, and in a moment Ajax threw a spear at him, but did not wound him, for he was encased all over in his terrible armor; nevertheless the spear struck the boss of his shield with such force as to drive him back from the two corpses, which the Achaeans then drew off. Stichios and Menestheus, leaders of the Athenians, bore away Amphimakhos to the host of the Achaeans, while the two brave and impetuous Ajaxes did the like by Imbrios. As two lions snatch a goat from the hounds that have it in their fangs, and bear it through thick brushwood high above the ground in their jaws, thus did the Ajaxes bear aloft the body of Imbrios, and strip it of its armor. Then the son of Oileus severed the head from the neck in revenge for the death of Amphimakhos, and sent it whirling over the crowd as though it had been a ball, till fell in the dust at Hektor's feet.

²⁰⁶Poseidon was exceedingly angry that his grandson Amphimakhos should have fallen; he therefore went to the tents and ships of the Achaeans to urge the Danaans still further, and to devise evil for the Trojans. Idomeneus met him, as he was taking leave of a comrade, who had just come to him from the fight, wounded in the knee. His fellow-warriors bore him off the field, and Idomeneus having given orders to the physicians went on to his tent, for he was still thirsting for battle. Poseidon spoke in the likeness and with the voice of Thoas son of Andraimon who ruled the Aetolians of all Pleuron and high Calydon, and was honored in his district [dêmos] as though he were a god. "Idomeneus," said he, "lawgiver to the Cretans, what has now become of the threats with which the sons of the Achaeans used to threaten the Trojans?"

²²¹And Idomeneus chief among the Cretans answered, "Thoas, no one, so far as I know, is responsible [aitios], for we can all fight. None are held back neither by fear nor slackness, but it seems to be the of almighty Zeus that the Achaeans should perish ingloriously here far from Argos: you, Thoas, have been always staunch, and you keep others in heart if you see any fail in duty; be not then remiss now, but exhort all to do their utmost."

²³¹To this Poseidon lord of the earthquake made answer, "Idomeneus, may he never return from Troy, but remain here for dogs to batten upon, who is this day willfully slack in fighting. Get your armor and go, we must make all haste together if we may be of any use, though we are only two. Even cowards gain a sense of striving [aretê] from companionship, and we two can hold our own with the bravest."

²⁴⁰Therewith the god went back into the thick of the fight [ponos], and Idomeneus when he had reached his tent donned his armor, grasped his two spears, and sallied forth. As the lightning which the son of Kronos brandishes from bright Olympus when he would show a sign [sêma] to mortals, and its gleam flashes far and wide - ²⁴⁵even so did his armor gleam about him as he ran. Meriones his sturdy squire [therapôn] met him while he was still near his tent (for he was going to fetch his spear) and Idomeneus said

²⁴⁹"Meriones, fleet son of Molos, best of comrades, why have you left the field? Are you wounded, and is the point of the weapon hurting you? or have you been sent to fetch me? I want no fetching; I had far rather fight than stay in my tent."

²⁵⁴"Idomeneus," answered Meriones, "I come for a spear, if I can find one in my tent; I have broken the one I had, in throwing it at the shield of Deiphobos."

²⁵⁹And Idomeneus leader of the Cretans answered, "You will find one spear, or twenty if you so please, standing up against the end wall of my tent. I have taken them from Trojans whom I have killed, for I am not one to keep my enemy at arm's length; therefore I have spears, bossed shields, helmets, and burnished corselets."

²⁶⁶Then Meriones said, "I too in my tent and at my ship have spoils taken from the Trojans, but they are not at hand. I have been at all times valorous, and wherever there has been hard fighting have held my own among the foremost. There may be those among the Achaeans who do not know how I fight, but you know it well enough yourself."

²⁷⁴Idomeneus answered, "I know you for a man of excellence [aretê]: you need not tell me. If the best men at the ships were being chosen to go on an ambush- and there is nothing like this for showing what a man is made of; it comes out then who is cowardly and who has a sense of striving [aretê]; the coward will change color at every touch and turn; he is full of fears, and keeps shifting his weight first on one knee and then on the other; his heart beats fast as he thinks of death, and one can hear the chattering of his teeth; whereas the brave man will not change color nor be on finding himself in ambush, but is all the time longing to go into action - ²⁸⁶if the best men were being chosen for such a service, no one could make light of your courage nor feats of arms. If you were struck by a dart or smitten in close combat, it would not be from behind, in your neck nor back, but the weapon would hit you in the chest or belly as you were pressing forward to a place in the front ranks. But let us no longer stay here talking like children, lest we be ill spoken of; go, fetch your spear from the tent at once."

²⁹⁵On this Meriones, peer of Ares, went to the tent and got himself a spear of bronze. He then followed after Idomeneus, big with great deeds of valor. As when baneful Ares sallies forth to battle, and his son Panic so strong and dauntless goes with him, to strike terror even into the heart of a hero - the pair have gone from Thrace to arm themselves among the Ephyroi or the brave Phlegyans, but they will not listen to both the contending hosts, and will give victory to one side or to the other - even so did Meriones and Idomeneus, leaders of men, go out to battle clad in their bronze armor. Meriones was first to speak. "Son of Deukalion," said he, "where would you have us begin fighting? On the right wing of the host, in the center, or on the left wing, where I take it the Achaeans will be weakest?"

³¹¹Idomeneus answered, "There are others to defend the center - the two Ajaxes and Teucer, who is the finest archer of all the Achaeans, and is good also in a hand-to-hand fight. These will give Hektor son of Priam enough to do; fight as he may, he will find it hard to vanquish their indomitable fury, and fire the ships, unless the son of Kronos fling a firebrand upon them with his own hand. Great Ajax son of Telamon will yield to no man who is in mortal mold and eats the grain of Demeter , if bronze and great stones can overthrow him. He would not yield even to Achilles in hand-to-hand fight, and in fleetness of foot there is none to beat him; let us turn therefore towards the left wing, that we may know forthwith whether we are to give glory to some other, or he to us."

³²⁸Meriones, peer of fleet Ares, then led the way till they came to the part of the host which Idomeneus had named.

³³⁰Now when the Trojans saw Idomeneus coming on like a flame of fire, him and his squire [therapôn] clad in their richly wrought armor, they shouted and made towards him all in a body, and a furious hand-to-hand fight raged under the ships' sterns. Fierce as the shrill winds that whistle upon a day when dust lies deep on the roads, and the gusts raise it into a thick cloud - even such was the fury of the combat, and might and main did they hack at each other with spear and sword throughout the host. The field bristled with the long and deadly spears which they bore. Dazzling was the sheen of their gleaming helmets, their fresh-burnished breastplates, and glittering shields as they joined battle with one another. Iron indeed must be his courage who could take pleasure in the sight of such a turmoil [ponos], and look on it without being dismayed.