When the gods decided to return Odysseus to his homeland, the warrior goddess Athena immediately descended from high Olympus to earth in Ithaca and, taking on the image of the Tathyan king Menta, went to Odysseus’s house. In the house she found rowdy suitors wooing Penelope, the wife of Odysseus. The suitors sat in the banquet hall and played dice while waiting for the feast, which was prepared by slaves and servants. The first to see Athena was Odysseus's son, Telemachus. Telemachus warmly greeted the imaginary Ment. He took him into the house and sat him down at a separate table away from the table at which the grooms were sitting. The feast has begun. When the suitors were satisfied, they called the singer Femius to entertain them with his singing. While Phemia was singing, Telemachus leaned towards Mentu and began to complain, but so that the suitors would not hear, about the troubles that he was suffering from the suitors. Telemachus grieved that his father Odysseus had not returned for so long; if his father returned, then, as Telemachus believed, all his troubles would end. Telemachus also asked the guest who he was and what his name was. Pallas Athena, calling herself Mentus, said that she knew Odysseus, to whom his son Telemachus was so similar, and, as if not knowing what was happening in Odysseus’s house, asked Telemachus if he was celebrating a wedding or celebrating some holiday? Why are his guests acting so outrageously? And Telemachus told his guest his grief. He told him how the violent suitors forced his mother Penelope to choose one of them as a husband, how they committed outrages, how they plundered his property. Athena listened to Telemachus and advised him to seek protection from the people of Ithaca, calling him to a meeting and complaining about the suitors in the meeting. Athena also advised Telemachus to go to Pylos to Elder Nestor and to Sparta to King Menelaus and learn from them about the fate of Odysseus. Having given such advice to Telemachus, Athena left him. She turned into a bird and disappeared from the eyes of Telemachus. Then he realized that he had just talked with God.
At this time, Penelope came down from her chamber into the banquet hall. She heard the singing of Phemius, who sang a song about the return of heroes from Troy. Penelope began to ask Femius to stop the sad song and sing another. But Telemachus interrupted her. He said that the choice of the song was not the fault of the singer, but the god Zeus, who inspired him to sing this particular song. Telemachus asked his mother to return to her chamber and there do things appropriate for her as a woman and housewife: yarn, weaving, supervising the work of slaves and keeping order in the house. He asked his mother not to interfere in matters that were not appropriate for her, and said that in the house of his father Odysseus he was the only ruler. Penelope listened to her son. She obediently went to her chamber and, shutting herself up in it, remembering Odysseus, wept bitterly; Finally, the goddess Athena plunged her into a sweet sleep.
When Penelope left, the suitors argued for a long time about which of them should become her husband. They were soon interrupted by Telemachus. He said that he would turn to the people's assembly for help so that it would prohibit them from destroying his house. Telemachus threatened them with the wrath of the gods. But his threats had little effect on the suitors; they continued to make noise, sing and dance, rioting until the night. Only late at night did the suitors go their separate ways.
Telemachus also went to his bedchamber, accompanied by Odysseus’s faithful servant, the elderly Eurycleia, who nursed him in childhood. There Telemachus lay down on his bed. All night he could not close his eyes - he kept thinking about the advice given by Pallas Athena.
The next day, early in the morning, Telemachus ordered the heralds to gather a public assembly. People quickly gathered. Telemachus also came to the people's assembly, he had a spear in his hands, and two dogs were running after him. He was so beautiful that everyone present marveled at him. The elders of Ithaca made way for him, and he sat down in the place of his father. Telemachus asked the people to protect him from the outrages of the suitors robbing his house. He conjured the people in the name of Zeus and the goddess of justice Themis to help him.
Having finished his angry speech, Telemachus sat down in his place, lowered his head, and tears flowed from his eyes. The entire public assembly fell silent, but one of the suitors, Antinous, boldly began to answer Telemachus. He reproached Penelope for the cunning to which she resorted just to avoid marriage with one of the suitors. After all, she told them that she would choose a husband from among them only when she finished weaving a rich cover. During the day Penelope actually wove the cover, but at night she unraveled what she managed to weave during the day. Antinous threatened that the suitors would not leave the house of Odysseus until Penelope chose a husband from among them. Antinous even demanded that Telemachus send his mother to her father. By this he wanted to force her to choose a husband for herself. Telemachus refused to expel his mother from the house; he called Zeus as a witness to the insults and evil that he suffered from the suitors. Zeus the Thunderer heard him and sent a sign. Two high-soaring eagles rose above the people's assembly, the eagles flew to the middle of the people's assembly and rushed at each other; They tore their chests and necks bloody and quickly disappeared from the eyes of the surprised people. The bird teller Halifers announced to all those gathered that this sign foreshadowed the imminent return of Odysseus, and then woe to the suitors. Odysseus will return unrecognized and will brutally punish those who rob his house. This is what Halifers told the audience. One of the suitors, Eurymachus, began to mock the bird fortuneteller loudly. He threatened that they would kill Odysseus himself. Eurymachus proudly declared that the suitors were not afraid of anything: neither Telemachus, nor the prophetic birds with which the bird fortuneteller frightened them.
Telemachus no longer tried to convince the suitors to stop the outrages. He asked the people to give him a fast ship so that he could sail on it to Pylos to Nestor, where he hoped to learn something about his father. Telemachus was supported only by one reasonable Mentor, a friend of Odysseus; he reproached the people for allowing the suitors to offend Telemachus in this way. The citizens sat in silence. Leocritus stood up from among the suitors. He, mocking Telemachus, threatened Odysseus with death if, upon returning, he tried to drive the suitors out of his house. Leocritus was so impudent that he even dissolved the people's assembly without permission.
In deep grief, Telemachus went to the seashore, and there he turned to Pallas Athena with a prayer. The goddess appeared to him, taking the form of a Mentor. The goddess advised him to leave the suitors alone, since in their blindness they themselves were preparing their own death, which was getting closer and closer. The goddess promised to get a ship for Telemachus and accompany him on his way to Pylos. The goddess ordered him to go home and prepare everything he needed for the long journey.
Telemachus obeyed her. He found the suitors at home. They were about to start the feast. Antinous greeted Telemachus with ridicule and, taking him by the hand, invited him to take part in the feast. But Telemachus angrily snatched his hand away and left, threatening the suitors with the wrath of the gods. Telemachus called his faithful servant Eurycleia and went to Odysseus’s vast storeroom to take everything he needed for the journey. Telemachus told Eurykleia alone about his decision to go to Pylos and asked her to take care of her mother during his absence. The faithful servant Telemachus began to beg not to leave Ithaca - she was afraid that the son of Odysseus would die. But he was adamant.
Meanwhile, Pallas Athena, taking on the image of Telemachus, walked around the entire city, gathered twenty young rowers and also went to Noemon to ask for a ship. Noemon willingly gave his beautiful ship. Now everything was ready to leave. Athena, invisible, went into the hall where the suitors were feasting and plunged them all into a deep sleep. Then, again taking on the image of Mentor, she led Telemachus out of the palace and took him to the seashore to the ship. Telemachus's companions quickly carried the supplies prepared by Eurycleia to the ship and loaded them onto the ship. Telemachus boarded the ship with the imaginary Mentor. Athena sent a fair wind and the ship quickly rushed into the open sea.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru