The Greeks had been besieging Troy for nine years. The tenth year of the great struggle has arrived. At the beginning of this year, the priest of the archer Apollo, Chris, arrived in the Greek camp. He begged all the Greeks, and above all their leaders, to return his daughter Chryseis to him for a rich ransom. After listening to Chryses, everyone agreed to accept a rich ransom for Chryseis and give her to her father. But the mighty king Agamemnon became angry and said to Chris:
“Old man, go away and never dare to show yourself here near our ships, otherwise the fact that you are a priest of the god Apollo will not save you.” I will not return Chryseis to you. No, she will languish in captivity all her life. Be careful not to anger me if you want to return home unharmed.
In fear, Chris left the Greek camp and went saddened to the seashore. There, raising his hands to the sky, he prayed to the great son of Latona, the god Apollo:
- Oh, silver-bowed god, listen to me, your faithful servant! Take revenge on the Greeks with your arrows for my grief and insult.
Apollo heard the complaint of his priest Chryses. He quickly rushed from the bright Olympus with a bow and quiver over his shoulders. The golden arrows rattled menacingly in the quiver. Apollo rushed to the camp of the Greeks, blazing with anger; His face was darker than the night. Rushing to the Achaean camp, he took an arrow from his quiver and sent it into the camp. The string of Apollo's bow rang menacingly. After the first arrow, Apollo sent a second, a third, and arrows rained down into the Greek camp, bringing death with them. A terrible pestilence struck the Greeks. Many Greeks died. Funeral pyres were burning everywhere. It seemed that the hour of death had come for the Greeks.
The pestilence had already raged for nine days. On the tenth day, on the advice given by Hero, the great hero Achilles convened a national meeting of all the Greeks to decide what to do, how to appease the gods. When all the warriors had gathered, Achilles was the first to address Agamemnon:
“We will have to sail back to our homeland, son of Atreus,” said Achilles, “you see that warriors are dying both in battles and from pestilence.” But perhaps we will first ask the fortune-tellers: they will tell us how we angered the silver-bowed Apollo, for which he sent a disastrous pestilence on our army.
As soon as Achilles said this, the soothsayer Calchas stood up, having already revealed the will of the gods to the Greeks many times. He said that he was ready to reveal why the far-flung god was angry, but he would reveal this only if Achilles protected him from the wrath of King Agamemnon. Achilles promised his protection to Calchas and swore this by Apollo. Then only Calchas said:
“The great son of Latona is angry because King Agamemnon dishonored his priest Chryses, drove him out of the camp, without accepting a rich ransom from him for his daughter. We can appease God only by returning black-eyed Chryseis to her father and sacrificing a hundred calves to God.
Hearing what Calchas said, Agamemnon flared up with terrible anger at him and Achilles, but seeing that he would still have to return Chryseis to his father, he finally agreed, but demanded only himself a reward for her return. Achilles reproached Agamemnon for his greed. This angered Agamemnon even more. He began to threaten that with his power he would take for himself a reward for Chryseis from what fell to Achilles, or Ajax, or Odysseus.
- Shameless, insidious self-seeker! - cried Achilles, - you threaten us that you will take our rewards from us, although none of us has ever had an equal share in the rewards with you. But we didn’t come to fight for our own cause; we came here to help Menelaus and you. You want to take away from me part of the spoils that I got for the great deeds I performed. So it’s better for me to return back to my native Phthia, I don’t want to increase your booty and treasures.
- Well, run to Phthia! - Agamemnon shouted back to Achilles, - I hate you more than all the kings! You are the only one who starts discord. I'm not afraid of your anger. I'll tell you what! I will return Chryseis to her father, since this is the desire of the god Apollo, but for this I will take away your captive Briseis. You will find out how much more power I have! Let everyone be afraid to consider himself equal in power to me!
A terrible anger seized Achilles when he heard this threat from Agamemnon. The son of Thetis grabbed his sword; he had already pulled it halfway out of its sheath and was ready to rush at Agamemnon. Suddenly Achilles felt a light touch on his hair. He turned around and recoiled in horror. Before him, invisible to others, stood the great daughter of the Thunderer, Pallas Athena. Hera sent Athena. The wife of Zeus did not want the death of either of the heroes; both of them - Achilles and Agamemnon - were equally dear to her. Achilles asked the goddess Athena with trepidation:
- Oh, daughter of the thunderer Zeus, why did you come down from high Olympus? Have you really come here to see how Agamemnon rages? Oh, he will soon destroy himself with his pride!
“No, mighty Achilles,” answered the bright-eyed Pallas, “that’s not what I came for.” I have come to tame your anger, if only you obey the will of the Olympian gods. Do not draw your sword, be content with only words, with them you scourge Agamemnon. Trust me! Soon here, in this same place, they will pay you for your offense with gifts that will be many times richer. Humble yourself and submit to the will of the immortal gods.
Achilles submitted to the will of the gods: he sheathed his sword, and Athena again ascended to the bright Olympus in the host of the gods.
Achilles also said many angry words to Agamemnon, calling him a devourer of the people, a drunkard, a coward, and a dog. Achilles threw his scepter to the ground and swore with it that the time would come when his help would be needed against the Trojans, but Agamemnon would beg for it in vain, since he had offended him so severely. In vain did the wise king of Pylos, Elder Nestor, try to reconcile the warring parties. Agamemnon did not listen to Nestor, and Achilles did not humble himself. The great son of Peleus went angry with his friend Patroclus and the brave Myrmidons to their tents. Anger against Agamemnon, who had insulted him, raged furiously in his chest.
Meanwhile, King Agamemnon ordered a fast ship to be lowered to the sea, sacrifices to the god Apollo were brought to it, and the beautiful daughter of the priest Chrys was taken. This ship was to sail under the command of the cunning Odysseus to Thebes, the city of Estion, and the Greeks in the camp, at the command of Agamemnon, were to make rich sacrifices to Apollo in order to appease him.
The ship sent by Agamemnon rushed quickly along the waves of the boundless sea. Finally, the ship entered the harbor of Thebes. The Greeks lowered their sails and moored to the pier. Odysseus got off the ship at the head of a detachment of warriors ashore, took the beautiful Chryseis to his father and addressed him with the following greeting:
- Oh, servant of Apollo! I came here by the will of Agamemnon to return your daughter. We also brought a hundred bulls to appease the great god Apollo, who sent a grave disaster on the Greeks, with these sacrifices.
Elder Chris rejoiced at the return of his daughter and tenderly hugged her. They immediately began to sacrifice to Apollo. Chris prayed to the arrow god:
- O silver-bowed god! Listen to me! And before you listened to my pleas. Hear me now too! Turn away the great disaster from the Greeks, stop the disastrous pestilence!
The god Apollo heard the prayer of Chris and stopped the pestilence in the Greek camp. When Chris made sacrifices to Apollo, a luxurious feast was arranged. The Greeks feasted merrily in Thebes. The young men carried wine, filling the cups of those feasting with it to the top. The majestic sounds of the hymn in honor of Apollo, sung by the Greek youths, were heard loudly. The feast continued until sunset, and in the morning, refreshed by sleep, Odysseus and his squad set off on their way back to the vast camp. Apollo sent them a fair wind. Like a seagull, the ship rushed across the sea waves. The ship quickly reached the camp. The swimmers pulled him ashore and went to their tents.
While Odysseus was sailing to Thebes, Agamemnon also fulfilled what he threatened Achilles with. He called the heralds Talthybius and Eurybates and sent them after Briseis. Reluctantly, Agamemnon's messengers went to Achilles' tent. They found him sitting in deep thought near the tent. The ambassadors approached the mighty hero, but in embarrassment they could not utter a word. Then the son of Peleus said to them:
- Greetings, heralds. I know that you are not guilty of anything, only Agamemnon is guilty. You have come for Briseis. My friend, Patroclus, give them Briseis. But let them themselves be witnesses that the hour will come when I will be needed to save the Greeks from destruction. Then Agamemnon, who has lost his mind, will not be able to save the Greeks!
Shedding bitter tears, Achilles left his friends, went to the deserted shore, stretched out his hands to the sea and loudly called on his mother, the goddess Thetis:
“My mother, if you have already given birth to me doomed to a short life, why then does the thunderer Zeus deprive me of glory!” No, he didn’t give me fame! King Agamemnon dishonored me by taking away my reward for my exploits. My mother, hear me!
The goddess Thetis heard the call of Achilles. She left the depths of the sea and the marvelous palace of the god Nereus. Quickly, like a light cloud, she emerged from the foaming sea waves. Thetis came ashore and, sitting down next to her dearly beloved son, hugged him.
“Why are you crying so bitterly, my son?” she asked. - Tell me your grief.
Achilles told his mother how seriously Agamemnon had insulted him. He began to ask his mother to ascend to the bright Olympus and there to pray to Zeus to punish Agamemnon. Let Zeus help the Trojans, let them drive the Greeks away to the very ships. Let Agamemnon understand how foolishly he acted in insulting the bravest of the Greeks. Achilles assured his mother that Zeus would not refuse her request. She only needs to remind Zeus how she once helped him when the gods of Olympus plotted to overthrow Zeus by shackling him. Then Thetis called the hundred-armed giant Briareus to help Zeus; Seeing him, all the gods were embarrassed and did not dare raise their hands against Zeus. Let Thetis remind the great Zeus the Thunderer of this, and he will not refuse her her request. This is how Achilles prayed to his mother Thetis.
“Oh, my beloved son,” Thetis exclaimed, crying bitterly, “why did I give birth to you for so many disasters!” Yes, your life will not be long, your end is already near. And now you are short-lived and the most unhappy of all! Oh no, don't mourn like that! I will rise to the bright Olympus, there I will beg the thunderer Zeus to help me. You stay in your tent and do not take part in battles anymore. Now Zeus has left Olympus, he and all the immortals went to a feast with the Ethiopians. But when Zeus returns in twelve days, then I will fall at his feet and, I hope, beg him!
Thetis left her sad son, and he went to the tents of his brave Myrmidons. From that day on, Achilles did not participate in meetings of leaders or in battles. He sat sadly in his tent, although he longed for military glory.
Eleven days have passed. On the twelfth day, early in the morning, along with the gray fog, the goddess Thetis ascended from the depths of the sea to bright Olympus. There she fell at the feet of Zeus, hugged his knees and stretched out her hands to him with a prayer, touching his beard.
- Oh, our father! - Thetis begged, - I pray you, help me avenge my son! Fulfill my request if I ever do you a favor. Send victory to the Trojans until the Greeks begin to beg my son to help them, until they give him great honors.
The cloud suppressor Zeus did not answer Thetis for a long time. But Thetis persistently begged him. Finally, taking a deep breath, the thunderer said:
- Know, Thetis! With your request you provoke the wrath of Hera, she will be angry with me. She already constantly reproaches me for helping the Trojans in battles. But now you have escaped from high Olympus so that Hera does not see you. I promise to fulfill your request. Here is a sign for you that I will fulfill my promise.
Having said this, Zeus frowned menacingly, the hair on his head rose, and all of Olympus shook. Thetis calmed down. She quickly rushed from high Olympus and plunged into the abyss of the sea.
Zeus went to the feast where the gods had gathered. They all stood up to meet Zeus; not one dared to greet him while sitting. When the king of gods and men sat on his golden throne, Hera turned to him. She saw that Thetis came to Zeus.
“Tell me, treacherous one,” Hera said to Zeus, “with which of the immortals did you have secret council?” You always hide your thoughts and thoughts from me.
“Hera,” Zeus answered her, “don’t expect to ever know everything I’m thinking about.” What you can know, you will know before all the gods, but do not try to find out all my secrets and do not ask about them.
“Oh, cloud suppressor,” answered Hera, “you know that I never tried to learn your secrets.” You always decide everything without me. But I am afraid that today Thetis persuaded you to avenge her son Achilles and destroy many Greeks. I know that you promised to fulfill her request.
Zeus looked menacingly at Hera; he was angry with his wife for always watching everything he did. Zeus angrily ordered her to sit silently and obey him if she did not want him to punish her. Hera was afraid of Zeus's wrath. She sat silently on her golden throne. The gods were also frightened by this quarrel between Zeus and Hera. Then the lame god Hephaestus stood up; he reproached the gods for starting quarrels over mortals.
“After all, if we quarrel over mortals, then the feasts of the gods will always be deprived of fun,” said the god Hephaestus and begged his mother Hera to submit to the power of Zeus, since he is formidable in anger and can overthrow all the Olympian gods from their thrones.
Hephaestus reminded Hera how Zeus threw him to the ground because he hastened to help his mother when Zeus, who threw lightning, was angry with her. Hephaestus took the cup and, filling it with nectar, presented it to Hera. Hera smiled. Hephaestus, limping, began to scoop nectar from the bowl with a goblet and distribute it to the gods. All the gods laughed, seeing how lame Hephaestus hobbled through the banquet hall. Again, fun reigned at the feast of the gods, and they feasted serenely until sunset to the sounds of Apollo's golden lyre and the singing of the muses. When the feast ended, the gods went to their chambers, and all of Olympus fell into a peaceful sleep.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru