Synopses & Reviews
From the abduction of Persephone by Hades to Hermes' theft of Apollo's cattle, the Homeric Hymns recount some of the most compelling and significant episodes in Greek mythology. They were recited at festivals to honor the Olympian gods and goddesses, to pray for divine favor, and for victory in singing contests. They stand now as works of great poetic force, full of grace and lyricism, ranging in tone from irony to solemnity, ebullience to grandeur. Enhanced with an informative introduction that explores the hymns' authorship, performance, literary qualities, and influence on later writers, this collection gives an intriguing view of the ancient Greek relationship between humans and the divine.
Review
"The purest expression of ancient Greek religion we possess. Jules Cashford is attuned to the poetry of the Hymns." (Nigel Spivey, Cambridge University)
Synopsis
Composed for recitation at festivals, these 33 songs were written in honour of the gods and goddesses of the ancient Greek pantheon. They recount the key episodes in the lives of the gods, and dramatise the moments when they first appear before mortals. Together they offer the most vivid picture we have of the Greek view of the relationship between the divine and human worlds.
About the Author
Homer was probably born around 725BC on the Coast of Asia Minor, now the coast of Turkey, but then really a part of Greece. Homer was the first Greek writer whose work survives.
He was one of a long line of bards, or poets, who worked in the oral tradition. Homer and other bards of the time could recite, or chant, long epic poems. Both works attributed to Homer – the Iliad and the Odyssey – are over ten thousand lines long in the original. Homer must have had an amazing memory but was helped by the formulaic poetry style of the time.
In the Iliad Homer sang of death and glory, of a few days in the struggle between the Greeks and the Trojans. Mortal men played out their fate under the gaze of the gods. The Odyssey is the original collection of tall traveller’s tales. Odysseus, on his way home from the Trojan War, encounters all kinds of marvels from one-eyed giants to witches and beautiful temptresses. His adventures are many and memorable before he gets back to Ithaca and his faithful wife Penelope.
We can never be certain that both these stories belonged to Homer. In fact ‘Homer’ may not be a real name but a kind of nickname meaning perhaps ‘the hostage’ or ‘the blind one’. Whatever the truth of their origin, the two stories, developed around three thousand years ago, may well still be read in three thousand years’ time.
Jules Cashford writes and lectures on mythology and is the author of The Myth of the Goddess.
Nicholas Richardson is a fellow in English at Merton College, Oxford.
Nicholas Richardson is a fellow in English at Merton College, Oxford.
Table of Contents
The Homeric Hymns Introduction
Further Reading
Translator's Note
The Homeric Hymns
I. Hymn To Dionysos
II. Hymn To Demeter
III. Hymn To Apollo
Delian Apollo
Pythian Apollo
IV. Hymn To Hermes
V. Hymn To Aphrodite
VI. Hymn To Aphrodite
VII. Hymn To Dionysos
VIII. Hymn To Ares
IX. Hymn To Artemis
X. Hymn To Aphrodite
XI. Hymn To Athena
XII. Hymn To Hera
XIII. Hymn To Demeter
XIV. Hymn To The Mother Of The Gods
XV. Hymn To Herakles, The Lion-Hearted
XVI. Hymn To Asklepios
XVII. Hymn To Dioskouroi
XVIII. Hymn To Hermes
XIX. Hymn To Pan
XX. Hymn To Hephaistos
XXI. Hymn To Apollo
XXII. Hymn To Poseidon
XXIII. Hymn To The Son Of Kronos, Most High
XXIV. Hymn To Hestia
XXV. Hymn To The Muses And Apollo
XXVI. Hymn To Dionysos
XXVII. Hymn To Artemis
XXVIII. Hymn To Athena
XXIX. Hymn To Hestia
XXX. Hymn To Gaia, Mother Of All
XXXI. Hymn To Helios
XXXII. Hymn To Selene
XXXIII. Hymn To The Dioskouroi
Notes