The next day the Phaeacians prepared to sail. They loaded the rich gifts presented to Odysseus onto the ship. Alcinous himself supervised all the preparations. When everything was ready, a sacrifice was made to Zeus in the palace of Alcinous and a farewell feast was held. Odysseus was looking forward to the evening. He was glad to see that the sun was leaning towards the west and evening was near. When the evening twilight began to thicken, Odysseus said goodbye to King Alcinous and the godlike Arete and went to the ship. Behind him, the maids carried a box with gifts, wine and food for the journey. Odysseus boarded the ship and lay down on the bed prepared for him. The mighty rowers leaned on the oars, and the ship went out into the open sea. The gods cast Odysseus into a deep sleep; He slept peacefully throughout the entire journey. The ship rushed across the sea faster than a falcon and at early dawn already landed on the shores of Ithaca, not far from the grotto dedicated to the naiads. The Phaeacians carefully carried the sleeping Odysseus to the shore and laid him on the sand. All the gifts given to him by the Phaeacians were placed near him. Then they set off on their way back. Poseidon saw the returning ship and was terribly angry with the Phaeacians for taking Odysseus to his homeland against his will. Poseidon began to complain about them to the thunderer Zeus. Zeus advised his brother to turn the Phaeacian ship, when it entered his native harbor, into a high rock as punishment. Poseidon rushed to the island of the Phaeacians and began to wait there for the return of the ship. Now a ship appeared in the sea distance. A large crowd gathered on the shore to greet the sailors. The ship is already at the entrance to the harbor. Suddenly he turned into a rock. They reported this miracle to King Alcinous. He realized that Poseidon had fulfilled his threat - to punish the Phaeacians for carrying wanderers across the sea. Alcinous called all the inhabitants and ordered them to make propitiatory sacrifices to Poseidon, so that he would not block access to their city with a high mountain. The Phaeacians earnestly began to pray to Poseidon to soften their anger and vowed never to take more strangers to their homeland.
Meanwhile, Odysseus woke up on the seashore. He did not recognize his native Ithaca, since the goddess Athena covered all the surroundings with thick fog. Odysseus fell into despair. He thought that the Phaeacians had left him on some deserted island, and began to loudly complain about his bitter fate.
Looking around, he saw gifts from the Phaeacians next to him. They were all intact. Sad, Odysseus walked along the seashore and met a beautiful young man. He asked him what kind of country this was, and suddenly heard that he was in Ithaca. The young man Odysseus also asked who he was. The cautious Odysseus replied that he was a wanderer, originally from Crete, from where he fled, killing the son of Idomeneo, Archilochus, out of revenge. On the Phoenician ship he thought to go to Pylos or Elis, but the Phoenicians treacherously abandoned him here on the shore when he fell asleep, stealing all his wealth. The young man listened to this story, smiled and suddenly changed his image. Before Odysseus stood the goddess Pallas Athena. She praised Odysseus for his caution and encouraged him, now promising him her help; the goddess said that if she had not always helped him until now, it was only because she did not want to anger Poseidon. Athena ordered Odysseus not to reveal who he was to anyone. But Odysseus could not believe that he was finally in Ithaca. Then Athena dispelled the fog that covered Ithaca, and Odysseus recognized his homeland. He fell to the ground and began to kiss her in delight. Athena turned Odysseus into a wretched beggar. The skin on Odysseus’s face and shoulders wrinkled, he lost weight, his luxurious curls fell from his head, his eyes dimmed, and his eyelids became covered with scabs. Athena dressed him in dirty rags, slung a patched bag over his shoulder on a rope, and gave him a staff in his hands. She ordered Odysseus to hide the gifts of the Phaeacians in a cave and go under the guise of a beggar to the swineherd Eumaeus, while she immediately rushed to Sparta to return Odysseus’s son Telemachus from there.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru