§11.1αὐτὰρ ἐπεί ῥʼ ἐπὶ νῆα κατήλθομεν ἠδὲ θάλασσαν, §11.2νῆα μὲν ἂρ πάμπρωτον ἐρύσσαμεν εἰς ἅλα δῖαν, §11.3ἐν δʼ ἱστὸν τιθέμεσθα καὶ ἱστία νηὶ μελαίνῃ, §11.4ἐν δὲ τὰ μῆλα λαβόντες ἐβήσαμεν, ἂν δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ §11.5βαίνομεν ἀχνύμενοι θαλερὸν κατὰ δάκρυ χέοντες.
But when we had come down to the ship and the sea, first of all we dragged the ship into the divine sea, and set up the mast and the sails in the black ship, and taking the sheep we put them on board, and we ourselves embarked, grieving and shedding big tears.
§11.6ἡμῖν δʼ αὖ κατόπισθε νεὸς κυανοπρῴροιο §11.7ἴκμενον οὖρον ἵει πλησίστιον, ἐσθλὸν ἑταῖρον, §11.8Κίρκη εὐπλόκαμος, δεινὴ θεὸς αὐδήεσσα.
And for us, from behind the dark-prowed ship, she sent a favorable wind that filled the sails, a good companion, fair-tressed Circe, the dread goddess of human speech.
And we, having worked at each of the tacklings throughout the ship, sat down; and the wind and the helmsman guided her straight.
§11.11τῆς δὲ πανημερίης τέταθʼ ἱστία ποντοπορούσης· §11.12δύσετό τʼ ἠέλιος σκιόωντό τε πᾶσαι ἀγυιαί.
And all day long her sails were stretched as she journeyed over the sea; and the sun set and all the ways grew dark.
§11.13ἡ δʼ ἐς πείραθʼ ἵκανε βαθυρρόου Ὠκεανοῖο.
And she reached the limits of deep-flowing Oceanus.
§11.14ἔνθα δὲ Κιμμερίων ἀνδρῶν δῆμός τε πόλις τε, §11.15ἠέρι καὶ νεφέλῃ κεκαλυμμένοι· οὐδέ ποτʼ αὐτοὺς §11.16ἠέλιος φαέθων καταδέρκεται ἀκτίνεσσιν, §11.17οὔθʼ ὁπότʼ ἂν στείχῃσι πρὸς οὐρανὸν ἀστερόεντα, §11.18οὔθʼ ὅτʼ ἂν ἂψ ἐπὶ γαῖαν ἀπʼ οὐρανόθεν προτράπηται, §11.19ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ νὺξ ὀλοὴ τέταται δειλοῖσι βροτοῖσι.
There is the land and city of the Cimmerian men, shrouded in mist and cloud; nor does the shining sun ever look down upon them with his rays, neither when he climbs toward the starry heaven, nor when he turns back again from heaven to earth; but deadly night is stretched over wretched mortals.
§11.20νῆα μὲν ἔνθʼ ἐλθόντες ἐκέλσαμεν, ἐκ δὲ τὰ μῆλα §11.21εἱλόμεθʼ· αὐτοὶ δʼ αὖτε παρὰ ῥόον Ὠκεανοῖο §11.22ᾔομεν, ὄφρʼ ἐς χῶρον ἀφικόμεθʼ, ὃν φράσε Κίρκη.
There we came and beached our ship, and took out the sheep; and we ourselves went beside the stream of Oceanus, until we arrived at the place which Circe had told us of.
§11.23ἔνθʼ ἱερήια μὲν Περιμήδης Εὐρύλοχός τε §11.24ἔσχον· ἐγὼ δʼ ἄορ ὀξὺ ἐρυσσάμενος παρὰ μηροῦ §11.25βόθρον ὄρυξʼ ὅσσον τε πυγούσιον ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα, §11.26ἀμφʼ αὐτῷ δὲ χοὴν χεόμην πᾶσιν νεκύεσσι, §11.27πρῶτα μελικρήτῳ, μετέπειτα δὲ ἡδέι οἴνῳ, §11.28τὸ τρίτον αὖθʼ ὕδατι· ἐπὶ δʼ ἄλφιτα λευκὰ πάλυνον.
There Perimedes and Eurylochus held the victims; and I, having drawn my sharp sword from beside my thigh, dug a pit about a cubit's length each way, and poured a libation about it to all the dead, first with honeyed milk, and thereafter with sweet wine, and the third time with water; and I sprinkled white barley meal upon it.
§11.29πολλὰ δὲ γουνούμην νεκύων ἀμενηνὰ κάρηνα, §11.30ἐλθὼν εἰς Ἰθάκην στεῖραν βοῦν, ἥ τις ἀρίστη, §11.31ῥέξειν ἐν μεγάροισι πυρήν τʼ ἐμπλησέμεν ἐσθλῶν, §11.32Τειρεσίῃ δʼ ἀπάνευθεν ὄιν ἱερευσέμεν οἴῳ §11.33παμμέλανʼ, ὃς μήλοισι μεταπρέπει ἡμετέροισι.
And I made many prayers to the strengthless heads of the dead, promising that when I came to Ithaca I would sacrifice a barren heifer, the best I had, in my halls, and would fill the pyre with good things, and to Teiresias alone apart I would sacrifice a sheep, all black, which was outstanding among our sheep.
§11.34τοὺς δʼ ἐπεὶ εὐχωλῇσι λιτῇσί τε, ἔθνεα νεκρῶν, §11.35ἐλλισάμην, τὰ δὲ μῆλα λαβὼν ἀπεδειροτόμησα §11.36ἐς βόθρον, ῥέε δʼ αἷμα κελαινεφές· αἱ δʼ ἀγέροντο §11.37ψυχαὶ ὑπὲξ Ἐρέβευς νεκύων κατατεθνηώτων.
But when I had supplicated them with prayers and vows, the hosts of the dead, I took the sheep and cut their throats over the pit, and the dark blood flowed; and they assembled, the souls of the dead who are departed from out of Erebus.
§11.38νύμφαι τʼ ἠίθεοί τε πολύτλητοί τε γέροντες §11.39παρθενικαί τʼ ἀταλαὶ νεοπενθέα θυμὸν ἔχουσαι, §11.40πολλοὶ δʼ οὐτάμενοι χαλκήρεσιν ἐγχείῃσιν, §11.41ἄνδρες ἀρηίφατοι βεβροτωμένα τεύχεʼ ἔχοντες·
Brides and youths, and old men who had suffered much, and tender maidens with hearts yet new to sorrow, and many wounded with bronze-shod spears, men slain in battle, wearing their blood-stained armor.
These flitted in great numbers about the pit from every side with a wondrous cry; and pale fear seized me.
§11.44δὴ τότʼ ἔπειθʼ ἑτάροισιν ἐποτρύνας ἐκέλευσα §11.45μῆλα, τὰ δὴ κατέκειτʼ ἐσφαγμένα νηλέι χαλκῷ, §11.46δείραντας κατακῆαι, ἐπεύξασθαι δὲ θεοῖσιν, §11.47ἰφθίμῳ τʼ Ἀΐδῃ καὶ ἐπαινῇ Περσεφονείῃ·
Then indeed I urged on my companions and commanded them to flay and burn the sheep which lay there slaughtered by the pitiless bronze, and to pray to the gods, to mighty Hades and dread Persephone.
§11.48αὐτὸς δὲ ξίφος ὀξὺ ἐρυσσάμενος παρὰ μηροῦ §11.49ἥμην, οὐδʼ εἴων νεκύων ἀμενηνὰ κάρηνα §11.50αἵματος ἆσσον ἴμεν, πρὶν Τειρεσίαο πυθέσθαι.
But I myself, having drawn my sharp sword from beside my thigh, sat still, and would not permit the strengthless heads of the dead to draw near to the blood, until I had questioned Teiresias.
§11.51πρώτη δὲ ψυχὴ Ἐλπήνορος ἦλθεν ἑταίρου· §11.52οὐ γάρ πω ἐτέθαπτο ὑπὸ χθονὸς εὐρυοδείης· §11.53σῶμα γὰρ ἐν Κίρκης μεγάρῳ κατελείπομεν ἡμεῖς §11.54ἄκλαυτον καὶ ἄθαπτον, ἐπεὶ πόνος ἄλλος ἔπειγε.
And first came the soul of my companion Elpenor; for he had not yet been buried beneath the wide-wayed earth; for we had left his body in the hall of Circe unwept and unburied, since another task was pressing us.
§11.55τὸν μὲν ἐγὼ δάκρυσα ἰδὼν ἐλέησά τε θυμῷ, §11.56καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδων· §11.57Ἐλπῆνορ, πῶς ἦλθες ὑπὸ ζόφον ἠερόεντα;
Him I wept for when I saw him, and pitied him in my heart, and I spoke and addressed him with winged words: "Elpenor, how did you come beneath the misty darkness?
§11.58ἔφθης πεζὸς ἰὼν ἢ ἐγὼ σὺν νηὶ μελαίνῃ. §11.59ὣς ἐφάμην, ὁ δέ μʼ οἰμώξας ἠμείβετο μύθῳ· §11.60διογενὲς Λαερτιάδη, πολυμήχανʼ Ὀδυσσεῦ, §11.61ἆσέ με δαίμονος αἶσα κακὴ καὶ ἀθέσφατος οἶνος.
You have outstripped me, coming on foot, faster than I in my black ship." So I spoke, and he with a wail answered me in speech: "Son of Laertes, sprung from Zeus, Odysseus of many devices, a bad fate of some god and measureless wine ruined me.
§11.62Κίρκης δʼ ἐν μεγάρῳ καταλέγμενος οὐκ ἐνόησα §11.63ἄψορρον καταβῆναι ἰὼν ἐς κλίμακα μακρήν, §11.64ἀλλὰ καταντικρὺ τέγεος πέσον· ἐκ δέ μοι αὐχὴν §11.65ἀστραγάλων ἐάγη, ψυχὴ δʼ Ἄϊδόσδε κατῆλθε.
Having laid down to sleep in Circe's hall, I did not think to go back down by going to the long ladder, but fell headlong from the roof; and my neck was broken from the vertebrae, and my soul went down to the house of Hades.
§11.66νῦν δέ σε τῶν ὄπιθεν γουνάζομαι, οὐ παρεόντων, §11.67πρός τʼ ἀλόχου καὶ πατρός, ὅ σʼ ἔτρεφε τυτθὸν ἐόντα, §11.68Τηλεμάχου θʼ, ὃν μοῦνον ἐνὶ μεγάροισιν ἔλειπες· §11.69οἶδα γὰρ ὡς ἐνθένδε κιὼν δόμου ἐξ Ἀίδαο §11.70νῆσον ἐς Αἰαίην σχήσεις ἐυεργέα νῆα· §11.71ἔνθα σʼ ἔπειτα, ἄναξ, κέλομαι μνήσασθαι ἐμεῖο.
But now I supplicate you by those left behind, who are not present, by your wife and your father, who reared you when you were little, and Telemachus, whom you left all alone in your halls; for I know that when you go hence, from the house of Hades, you will touch at the Aeaean island with your well-built ship; there then, O king, I bid you to remember me.