Search Results for: apollo

"how would you like to bed the golden Aphrodite?"
"Oh Apollo, if only!" the giant-killer cried.
"Archer, bind me down with triple those endless chains!
Let all you gods look on, and all you goddesses too –
how I’d love to bed that golden Aphrodite!"

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 8, lines 380-384. Like humans, the gods have a sense of humor too, as shown by this banter between Apollo and Hermes in the bawdy tale told by bard Demodocus. Apollo and Hermes are talking about how they would bed the goddess of love Aphrodite. This is after Aphrodite is caught in the act of adultery with god of war Ares. The goddess is married to god of fire Hephaestus.

Odysseus, master of many exploits, praised the singer:
"I respect you, Demodocus, more than any man alive –
surely the Muse has taught you, Zeus’s daughter,
or god Apollo himself. How true to life,
all too true…you sing the Achaeans, fate,
all they did and suffered, all they soldiered through,
as if you were there yourself or heard from one who was."

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 8, lines 545-551. Odysseus sings the praises of Demodocus for his storytelling skills. He is impressed that the bard sings of the Achaean soldiers’ exploits as if he had been there himself. Demodocus is seen as having a special gift from the gods for telling stories through song.

Now then,
I told most of my good trusty crew to wait,
to sit tight by the ship and guard her well
while I picked out my dozen finest fighters
and off I went. But I took a skin of wine along,
the ruddy, irresistible wine that Maron gave me once,
Euanthes’ son, a priest of Apollo, lord of Ismarus,
because we’d rescued him, his wife and children.

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 9, lines 214-221. Odysseus takes his best men with him to explore the cave of the Cyclops. He also takes a skin of wine that he received as a gift from Maron, a priest of Apollo, as gratitude for protecting his family.

Search further.

Close