Odysseus could not even have begun
to feel relieved to have escaped the peril, when they soon encountered a graver
danger. All ships that took a particular route in the rough seas had to pass
through a narrow strait bordered by two cliffs. Two horrible monsters called
Scylla and Charybdis lived on those cliffs.
Charybdis was a rapacious woman
who gulped down large volumes of the ocean waters at frequent intervals and any
unfortunate ship that happened to be in the waters at that time was also
swallowed. When the monster spewed out the water after sometime, it was with
such great force, that no mortal had ever been able to survive the occurrence.
Occasionally, a very lucky ship managed to remain intact after the process.
But don’t think a ship that sailed
through the narrow strait keeping as far from the cliff of Charybdis as
possible escaped danger. Such a ship would be within the reach of the other
monster Scylla who lived on the opposite cliff. The monster Scylla was a
dog-like creature with six heads and twelve feet. It was rather strange to hear
the huge monster yelp like a newborn puppy. As ships passed by the cavern in
which she dwelt, Scylla would reach forward and snatch the sailors on the decks.
She would devour on them later, at leisure.
“Steer clear of Charybdis. You
have no chance of surviving her tactics,” Circe had advised Odysseus. So, the
Greek sailed closer towards the cliff in which Scylla dwelt. He hoped to sail
past Scylla, before she attempted any move. But unfortunately, as the ship
moved closer to the cliff, the six-headed monster leaned forward and caught a
soldier in each of her mouths. Odysseus watched helplessly at these six poor
men, as they flailed their arms and legs around and screamed in fright. “Save
us, o Odysseus! Don’t let us die!”
He remembered Circe’s words not to
try to save them and silently sailed his ship.
Soon, the ship passed through the
strait and emerged into a bright and sunny sea. A grassy plain with great herds
of grazing cattle and sheep came into view. The whole scene soothed the nerves
of the men who had escaped from the jaws of death only a few moments ago.
“Odysseus, let us rest a while on
the island and then continue our voyage,” they told their captain. Odysseus was
reluctant to give his consent. For, Circe had warned that the cattle and sheep
roaming the plain were the property of the god Apollo. And if Odysseus’s men
slaughtered those animals, they would be inviting the wrath of the gods.
So, Odysseus extracted a promise from his men. “Swear by the gods that you will not slay any of the cattle and sheep here.” The men agreed to the condition. They consumed only the provisions provided by Circe. But as fate would have it, their stay on the plain was extended by another month due to unfavourable weather conditions.
In that time, their provisions ran out and the men began to hunt for small game and fish in the ocean waters. But that did not help in any way in satisfying the hunger of a team of famished warriors. And soon their eyes fell on the plump herds that grazed the plain. Only the oath they had taken at the insistence of Odysseus stopped them from slaughtering the animals and devouring them.
Even then, one of his men, Eurylochus,
hatched a plan to slaughter the animals when Odysseus was not around. And
luckily for him, one day, Odysseus wandered into the countryside searching for
food. Overcome by fatigue, he lay down in a grove and soon was fast asleep.
Seizing the opportunity, Eurylochus urged his men to slaughter the animals. “Why should we starve to death, when there is plenty of food within our reach? Let us kill some of the cattle and eat. After our return to Ithaca we shall make rich sacrifices to Apollo and also build a temple to him,” he told them.
(To be continued)
- The Adventures of Odysseus - An Introduction
- The Adventures of Odysseus - 1
- The Adventures of Odysseus - 2
- The Adventures of Odysseus - 3
- The Adventures of Odysseus - 4
- The Adventures of Odysseus - 5
