§21.1ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ πόρον ἷξον ἐϋρρεῖος ποταμοῖο §21.2Ξάνθου δινήεντος, ὃν ἀθάνατος τέκετο Ζεύς, §21.3ἔνθα διατμήξας τοὺς μὲν πεδίον δὲ δίωκε §21.4πρὸς πόλιν, ᾗ περ Ἀχαιοὶ ἀτυζόμενοι φοβέοντο §21.5ἤματι τῷ προτέρῳ, ὅτε μαίνετο φαίδιμος Ἕκτωρ· §21.6τῇ ῥʼ οἵ γε προχέοντο πεφυζότες, ἠέρα δʼ Ἥρη §21.7πίτνα πρόσθε βαθεῖαν ἐρυκέμεν· ἡμίσεες δὲ §21.8ἐς ποταμὸν εἰλεῦντο βαθύρροον ἀργυροδίνην, §21.9ἐν δʼ ἔπεσον μεγάλῳ πατάγῳ, βράχε δʼ αἰπὰ ῥέεθρα, §21.10ὄχθαι δʼ ἀμφὶ περὶ μεγάλʼ ἴαχον· οἳ δʼ ἀλαλητῷ §21.11ἔννεον ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα ἑλισσόμενοι περὶ δίνας.
But when they reached the ford of the fair-flowing river, eddying Xanthus, whom immortal Zeus begat, there Achilles split them and chased one part across the plain toward the city, where the Achaeans had fled in terror on the day before, when glorious Hector was raging; there they poured forward in flight, but Hera spread a thick mist before them to hold them back; and the other half were hemmed in against the deep-flowing, silver-eddying river, and they fell in with a great splash, and the steep channels resounded, and the banks all around rang loudly; and with shouting they swam here and there, spinning around in the eddies.
§21.12ὡς δʼ ὅθʼ ὑπὸ ῥιπῆς πυρὸς ἀκρίδες ἠερέθονται §21.13φευγέμεναι ποταμὸν δέ· τὸ δὲ φλέγει ἀκάματον πῦρ §21.14ὄρμενον ἐξαίφνης, ταὶ δὲ πτώσσουσι καθʼ ὕδωρ· §21.15ὣς ὑπʼ Ἀχιλλῆος Ξάνθου βαθυδινήεντος §21.16πλῆτο ῥόος κελάδων ἐπιμὶξ ἵππων τε καὶ ἀνδρῶν.
And as when locusts, driven by the blast of fire, flutter up to escape to a river; and the unwearied fire burns rushing suddenly, and they cower down into the water; so before Achilles the roaring stream of deep-eddying Xanthus was filled with horses and men tangled together.
§21.17αὐτὰρ ὃ διογενὴς δόρυ μὲν λίπεν αὐτοῦ ἐπʼ ὄχθῃ §21.18κεκλιμένον μυρίκῃσιν, ὃ δʼ ἔσθορε δαίμονι ἶσος §21.19φάσγανον οἶον ἔχων, κακὰ δὲ φρεσὶ μήδετο ἔργα, §21.20τύπτε δʼ ἐπιστροφάδην· τῶν δὲ στόνος ὄρνυτʼ ἀεικὴς §21.21ἄορι θεινομένων, ἐρυθαίνετο δʼ αἵματι ὕδωρ.
But he, the Zeus-born, left his spear there on the bank, leaning against the tamarisks, and leaped in like a god with only his sword, and devised evil deeds in his heart, and struck turning this way and that; and a hideous groaning arose from them as they were struck with the sword, and the water grew red with blood.
§21.22ὡς δʼ ὑπὸ δελφῖνος μεγακήτεος ἰχθύες ἄλλοι §21.23φεύγοντες πιμπλᾶσι μυχοὺς λιμένος εὐόρμου §21.24δειδιότες· μάλα γάρ τε κατεσθίει ὅν κε λάβῃσιν· §21.25ὣς Τρῶες ποταμοῖο κατὰ δεινοῖο ῥέεθρα §21.26πτῶσσον ὑπὸ κρημνούς.
And as when other fish flee before a monster dolphin, filling the nooks of a safe harbor in terror, for indeed he devours whomsoever he catches; so the Trojans cowered under the steep banks along the streams of the terrible river.
ὃ δʼ ἐπεὶ κάμε χεῖρας ἐναίρων, §21.27ζωοὺς ἐκ ποταμοῖο δυώδεκα λέξατο κούρους §21.28ποινὴν Πατρόκλοιο Μενοιτιάδαο θανόντος· §21.29τοὺς ἐξῆγε θύραζε τεθηπότας ἠΰτε νεβρούς, §21.30δῆσε δʼ ὀπίσσω χεῖρας ἐϋτμήτοισιν ἱμᾶσι, §21.31τοὺς αὐτοὶ φορέεσκον ἐπὶ στρεπτοῖσι χιτῶσι, §21.32δῶκε δʼ ἑταίροισιν κατάγειν κοίλας ἐπὶ νῆας.
But when he grew weary of slaying, he chose twelve young men alive from the river as a blood-price for Patroclus, son of Menoetius, who was dead; these he led out of the water dazed like fawns, and bound their hands behind them with well-cut thongs, which they themselves wore on their twisted tunics, and gave them to his companions to lead down to the hollow ships.
§21.33αὐτὰρ ὃ ἂψ ἐπόρουσε δαϊζέμεναι μενεαίνων.
But he rushed back again, eager to slay.
§21.34ἔνθʼ υἷι Πριάμοιο συνήντετο Δαρδανίδαο §21.35ἐκ ποταμοῦ φεύγοντι Λυκάονι, τόν ῥά ποτʼ αὐτὸς §21.36ἦγε λαβὼν ἐκ πατρὸς ἀλωῆς οὐκ ἐθέλοντα §21.37ἐννύχιος προμολών· ὃ δʼ ἐρινεὸν ὀξέϊ χαλκῷ §21.38τάμνε νέους ὄρπηκας, ἵνʼ ἅρματος ἄντυγες εἶεν· §21.39τῷ δʼ ἄρʼ ἀνώϊστον κακὸν ἤλυθε δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς.
There he met a son of Priam, descendant of Dardanus, fleeing from the river, Lycaon, whom once he himself had taken and led away unwilling from his father's orchard, coming upon him by night; and he with sharp bronze was cutting young shoots of a wild fig-tree to be the rims of a chariot; and upon him an unexpected evil came, noble Achilles.
§21.40καὶ τότε μέν μιν Λῆμνον ἐϋκτιμένην ἐπέρασσε §21.41νηυσὶν ἄγων, ἀτὰρ υἱὸς Ἰήσονος ὦνον ἔδωκε· §21.42κεῖθεν δὲ ξεῖνός μιν ἐλύσατο πολλὰ δʼ ἔδωκεν §21.43Ἴμβριος Ἠετίων, πέμψεν δʼ ἐς δῖαν Ἀρίσβην· §21.44ἔνθεν ὑπεκπροφυγὼν πατρώϊον ἵκετο δῶμα.
And then indeed Achilles sold him into well-built Lemnos, carrying him on his ships, and the son of Jason gave the price; and from there a guest-friend ransomed him, and gave much, Eetion of Imbros, and sent him to noble Arisbe; from there he escaped secretly and came to his father's house.
§21.45ἕνδεκα δʼ ἤματα θυμὸν ἐτέρπετο οἷσι φίλοισιν §21.46ἐλθὼν ἐκ Λήμνοιο· δυωδεκάτῃ δέ μιν αὖτις §21.47χερσὶν Ἀχιλλῆος θεὸς ἔμβαλεν, ὅς μιν ἔμελλε §21.48πέμψειν εἰς Ἀΐδαο καὶ οὐκ ἐθέλοντα νέεσθαι.
For eleven days he cheered his heart with his friends, having come from Lemnos; but on the twelfth, again a god cast him into the hands of Achilles, who was destined to send him to the house of Hades, though he was unwilling to go.
§21.49τὸν δʼ ὡς οὖν ἐνόησε ποδάρκης δῖος Ἀχιλλεὺς §21.50γυμνὸν ἄτερ κόρυθός τε καὶ ἀσπίδος, οὐδʼ ἔχεν ἔγχος, §21.51ἀλλὰ τὰ μέν ῥʼ ἀπὸ πάντα χαμαὶ βάλε· τεῖρε γὰρ ἱδρὼς §21.52φεύγοντʼ ἐκ ποταμοῦ, κάματος δʼ ὑπὸ γούνατʼ ἐδάμνα· §21.53ὀχθήσας δʼ ἄρα εἶπε πρὸς ὃν μεγαλήτορα θυμόν· §21.54ὢ πόποι ἦ μέγα θαῦμα τόδʼ ὀφθαλμοῖσιν ὁρῶμαι·
And when swift-footed noble Achilles noticed him naked, without helmet and shield, nor did he have a spear, but indeed he had thrown all these away on the ground; for sweat oppressed him as he fled from the river, and weariness overcame his knees; then, troubled, he spoke to his own great-hearted soul: "Ah, surely a great wonder is this that I behold with my eyes!
§21.55ἦ μάλα δὴ Τρῶες μεγαλήτορες οὕς περ ἔπεφνον §21.56αὖτις ἀναστήσονται ὑπὸ ζόφου ἠερόεντος, §21.57οἷον δὴ καὶ ὅδʼ ἦλθε φυγὼν ὕπο νηλεὲς ἦμαρ §21.58Λῆμνον ἐς ἠγαθέην πεπερημένος· οὐδέ μιν ἔσχε §21.59πόντος ἁλὸς πολιῆς, ὃ πολέας ἀέκοντας ἐρύκει.
Verily the great-hearted Trojans whom I have slain will rise up again from the murky darkness, even as this man has come back, escaping the pitiless day of death, though sold into sacred Lemnos; nor did the sea of grey water hold him back, which keeps many back against their will.
§21.60ἀλλʼ ἄγε δὴ καὶ δουρὸς ἀκωκῆς ἡμετέροιο §21.61γεύσεται, ὄφρα ἴδωμαι ἐνὶ φρεσὶν ἠδὲ δαείω §21.62ἢ ἄρʼ ὁμῶς καὶ κεῖθεν ἐλεύσεται, ἦ μιν ἐρύξει §21.63γῆ φυσίζοος, ἥ τε κατὰ κρατερόν περ ἐρύκει. §21.64ὣς ὅρμαινε μένων· ὃ δέ οἱ σχεδὸν ἦλθε τεθηπὼς §21.65γούνων ἅψασθαι μεμαώς, περὶ δʼ ἤθελε θυμῷ §21.66ἐκφυγέειν θάνατόν τε κακὸν καὶ κῆρα μέλαιναν.
But come, he shall taste also of the point of our spear, so that I may see in my mind and learn whether he will likewise return even from there, or whether the life-giving earth will hold him down, which holds down even the strong." So he pondered as he waited; but the other came near him, dazed, eager to touch his knees, and wished in his heart to escape evil death and black fate.