Odysseus Part 11

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“Heave those oars or has one year of rest made you forget your places.” It was not me who was doing the commands but Eurylochus. We looked to the stars to head north to find the Kingdom of the Dead. The men are wary of this journey; this is like asking them to commit themselves to death. They know not what they will find there and they feared what they find. Mues came to me and questioned my command.

“I speak for the men, Odysseus. We will go anywhere with you but to the Kingdom of the Dead is not what we had in mind. We all agreed that when the times, we will be there but not before and not now. Please allowed us to sway your mind and we can turn this ship now.” He is pleading and I can see the fear in his eyes.

“We are to head there and that is what I commanded. None may change the ship’s direction as I am the one steering it. If you do want to go, then jump ship now or wait for me to land on a nearby island for you. But till then, we rowed and not a word from you all.” They followed my command but they are getting frightened by the day. Soon we reach the land where the sun shines no more. All is dark and darkness covers all the light. Where we had once felt heat, now we felt the coldness of the ice. Even the water which we sailed is murky and the bottom beneath the hull cannot be seen.

“Odysseus, I plea to you. Have some thoughts. Maybe Circe lied to you. She is sending us to be wandering spirits.” I hear the words of Eurylochus but I heed not him, as I see land ahead. Land of dark shadows and dark overcast skies. I find even the beach is dark with black sand. We beached the ship and moved inland. I hear the sound of rivers and I followed suit. The tales tells of three rivers that flows to Hades; Styx which the is the main passage to Hades, with Charon and his boat. There is also the river Aherodas and Coquitos which flows to river Styx.If one follows the rivers, you will come before Cerberus, a dog with three heads. Cerberus permitted new spirits to enter the realm of dead, but allowed none of them to leave. Only a few ever managed to sneak past the creature, among which Orpheus, who lulled it to sleep by playing his lyre, and Heracles, who brought it to the land of the living for a while. But our journey ends at the river Aherodas.

“Dig me a deep pit. We have some sacrifices to be done. Dig it fast and deep.” The men started on the works as they do not want to stay here any longer than they can. As they dug, they felt movements around them yet they sees no one that a naked eye can see. Once its done, I brought out the honey, wine and water into the pit. I also spread barley flour around it and did the sacrifices of the lambs that Circe offered him. The blood from the lambs soon coat the flour and seeped into the ground. Within seconds the lost or wandering souls came from everywhere to feast on the offerings, but I told my men to keep them at bay with the torches.

“Lit those torches and shone them at the deads. None may touch the sacrifice unless I will it so.”  I awaits one and only one; Tiresias. But he did not come as yet, but many of mine; known friends and loved ones came. I saw also my mother, who died while I was still at the Trojan’s war. I reached for her but I could not touch her at all, for she is in spiritual form. Its customary for a son to offer his parents food and drinks on seeing them after such a long absence but here I am not able to.

“Odysseus, my son. Let me drench my thirst with your wine. Do you not offer it to you mum who gave you life?” But I declined to do so. I prayed for her soul and apology but I am to stay with my oath. I prayed to Zeus for strength to see this day through. I prayed to Apollo to guide me on this ordeal. I told her I will do so when I reached back to Ithaca but she has faded away.

Has myself become so cold even to the ones I love?

I hear more pleas of fallen warriors; once known to me and fought with me with their life's. I saw Agamemnon, whom I thought was at his palace but he is actually dead; murdered by his grandson and banished to here. We sat down and talked of the better days and valor was appreciated. But when he asked, I declined his request for the sacrifice. I went on my knees to beg his forgiveness and I was given a lashing of his tongue on my cruelty. But nothing ails me than to see Achilles who came limping to me. He still pained in the leg which killed him. He asked of his family and his mother, Thetis, but I bear no words for him. I was also begged by him to taste the wine like what we used to do, but I had to hold stead my oath even my tears flowed ever earnestly down my cheeks. But I was not expected to see Elpenor. He limps too but he is still whole as one.

“Elpenor, we left you at Circe and now you are here.” I wanted to hug him but he pushed me off.

“A dead man like me does not deserved to be hugged. I was careless to stay on the roof when I should be joining you all in the preparation to leave. I regret my decision to have the last moment of joy on the roof. And I paid the price. I am now in the waiting for Charon, but I have no gold coin to pay my passage. Be fair to me, go back to Circe and retrieve my body for the proper funeral. If not for the warrior spirit, then at least for a fellow Greek.” I cried on hearing his words and I promised him that. I was to asked him why he did not asked for the feast but he truly answered me.

“Its a feast grand for for a King and if you have refused other Kings, then I am most unworthy of it too.” He walked back to his place on the river to await my contribution to his funeral. Finally Tiresias came forth.

“I am Tiresias, and I appreciate your sacrifice for me. And also for your steadfast to hold it in my name and against many you have denied including your own mother. I have my respect for you, Odysseus.” Tiresias was the son of Everes and the nymph Chariclo; he was a blind prophet, considered to be the most famous soothsayer of ancient Greece.  The most famous account of the origin of his blindness was that he was made to judged between Zeus and Hera on which had more pleasure from sex. He sided with Zeus who said it was man. Hera in anger, blinded him but Zeus in regret gave him the gift of prophecies as compensation. But Tiresias eventually died from drinking from the spring Tilphussa, but even after death his soul which appeared here now was able to offer valuable prophecy to me.

I offered Tiresias the blood of the lamb and he took his share.

“You offended Poseidon when you blind his son. For your redemption, complete one more final quest upon your reunion. Find the island of people who knows not the sea. Offer you sacrifice to Poseidon there. Then you may return to Ithaca.” I thank him and we opened the feast to all who are around us. We made our way to the beach and on our ship. The men were quiet and I am sure they see people they had known too, and feel the same as myself. We went back to see Circe not so much for food and drinks, but a time to contemplate our next moves. More so our aims in this life, as most of them saw their departed and they had been questioned on their role here. Its not fools chore to live a life of mortality and waste it on idle things like long voyages when they could be with their families and teaching the youngs. They were taught responsibilities just like me. I was with Circe as she is nearest I could lay my emotions on and she comfort me when I am in distress. We spend our time here to recuperate and regain our senses and self worth. We also buried Elpenor with the proper funeral rites and leave an oar on his grave as he died a mariner and warrior.

But the next task will be more daunting as we are to passed by the islands of Sirens.

"You will come first of all to the Sirens, who are enchanters of all mankind and whoever comes their way; and that man who unsuspecting approaches them, and listens to the Sirens singing, has no prospect of coming home and delighting his wife and little children as they stand about him in greeting, but the Sirens by the melody of their singing enchant him.” She did forewarned me of these Sirens.

I asked her who are they. She was to tell me that they are mermaids like creatures, who are seductresses who lured mariners with their enchanting music and voices to drive their ships against the rocks on the islands. Their names are Peisinoe, Aglapoe and Thelxiepeia. They sit in their meadow, but the beach before it is piled with bone-heaps of men now rotted away, and the skins shrivel upon them.

“You must drive straight on past, but melt down sweet wax of honey and with it stop your companions' ears, so none can listen; the rest, that is, but if you yourself are wanting to hear them, then have them tie you hand and foot on the fast ship, standing upright against the mast with the ropes' ends lashed around it, so that you can have joy in hearing the song of the Sirens;but if you instruct your men that they must tie you fast with even more lashings. Once its over, they can released you.” Circe was explained more on the Sirens.

“I heard of them before from the Argonauts. Orpheus sang sweetly enough to keep the men from succumbing to the Sirens. But Orpheus is not here to assist us now. If we are to survive this, we have to do as Circe advised.” I told the men as the sail takes us ever close to the straits where the Sirens dwelt.

“Is there no other route we can take?” asked Meus.

“Yes, there is an a distance of another two years more in travel whereas here we cut short the trip to one week to get across.” I dare not tell the men I want to chanced this journey as I am intrigue by the Sirens. I have told them to lash me tight to the mast while they rowed with honey wax in their ears to block the muse singing. I prayed to the Gods to forgive me and yet give me courage to go through this. I been near to the Kingdom of Death and now I am forsaking sanity for the voyage through the Sirens.

“Heave those oars!” but the men hears me not for their ears are waxed, but their backs bend as they move those oars. No words need be spoken as the men wants to get this through fast but will the coming passage be kind to us. That was what we are to find out, as we meet these creatures named as Sirens.

Legends are told of the two who lived by cliffs that narrows the Straits as they engulf mariners who sailed past. They are named as Sirens but described as dangerous monsters that dwelt on either side of a very treacherous strait.  Scylla was once a beautiful maiden loved by a sea god, but she cross the path of Circe who transformed her into a hideous monster. It was all because of one Glacus who desire Scylla but used Circe to make him a love potion. Circe found the truth and she punished the lady and not the man. This transformation became a cave-dwelling monster that is over twelve feet in length with six long necks that each possessed a head like Medusa.  Each head had three rows of teeth that devoured anything coming within their reach.  Her dwelling located on a cliff overlooked the narrow passage of water.

Opposite Scylla, there is the opposing cliff low to the water where on the top there grows a fig tree, and living under it is the other monster, Charybdis. She was cursed by Zeus to be a huge whirlpool that would suck water in and out three times a day. Thrice each day the water rushed into a frightful chasm, and thrice was disgorged.  Any vessel coming near the cliff will be engulf by the whirlpool with the tide rushing in.

We near the Straits passage and the Sirens came a  calling.

"Come this way, honored Odysseus, great warrior of Ithaca. We offered you and your men a good stay and that includes also your ship, so that you can listen here to our singing; for no one else has ever sailed past this place until he has listened to the honey sweet voice. We sing of glories and epics that mellows from from our lips; making the events ever true and bigger than the actual event. We know everything that the Greeks and Trojans went through the period of ten years, and how the Gods came to intervene. Nothing that happens on this world that evade our ears for we know everything that happens.”

They sang sweet words that mellows into our ears and brings out the emotions in us. I can hear my heart beats to  their words, as the heart within me desired to listen. I strained at my ropes and holler for my bindings to be open. I called on them, command them, pleaded with them but they hear me not. Much as I struggled, the bindings lashed tighter onto my flesh. Its the working of a good mariner who knows his knot. I saw Eurylochus rising up to come to me but instead of releasing me, he fastened me with even more lashings and squeezed me tighter. I cried for the Gods to help me from this madness. Its like a withdrawal of love yet its pains even more than the death of grandfather. We sailed too close to cliff where Scylla dwell. She took her payment with six of my men with her six heads sprouting out of the cliff cave entrance. Each head grabbed one men each and they are gone in seconds. I cried for their soul but the danger was not over as yet. Our ship sailed towards the other cliff where Charybdis dwell.

There was the whirlpool that is the works of Charybdis. She twirl the water in front of her into a spinning vortex and its movement holds my men in trance over its spin. I shouted to them to row but they are in the trance of Charybdis. I holler loud and something must had shook the men out of their trance. On seeing the danger, they rowed the ships fast passing the whirlpool. It was a fight of man against the elements but as its sucks in, its also sucks out which what saved my ship.