Odyssey 2.1 · Book 2, lines 1–5

Dawn; the son rises and arms

ἦμος δʼ ἠριγένεια φάνη ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς, ὤρνυτʼ ἄρʼ ἐξ εὐνῆφιν Ὀδυσσῆος φίλος υἱὸς εἵματα ἑσσάμενος, περὶ δὲ ξίφος ὀξὺ θέτʼ ὤμῳ, ποσσὶ δʼ ὑπὸ λιπαροῖσιν ἐδήσατο καλὰ πέδιλα, βῆ δʼ ἴμεν ἐκ θαλάμοιο θεῷ ἐναλίγκιος ἄντην.

When early-born Dawn appeared, rosy-fingered, Odysseus's dear son then rose from his bed, put on his garments, and about his shoulder set a sharp sword, bound fair sandals beneath his shining feet, and strode from the chamber, in bearing like a god.

Word by word

ἦμοςêmoswhenδʼd’(and)ἠριγένειαērigéneiaearly-bornφάνηphánēappearedῥοδοδάκτυλοςrhododáktylosrosy-fingeredἨώςĒṓsDawn,ὤρνυτʼṓrnyt’roseἄρʼár’(then)ἐξexfromεὐνῆφινeunêphin[his] bedὈδυσσῆοςOdyssêosOdysseus'sφίλοςphílosdearυἱὸςhyiòssonεἵματαheímatagarmentsἑσσάμενοςhessámenoshaving put on,περὶperì[about]δὲdè(and)ξίφοςxíphosa swordὀξὺoxỳsharpθέτʼthét’he setὤμῳṓmōi[on his] shoulder,ποσσὶpossì[on his] feetδʼd’(and)ὑπὸhypòbeneathλιπαροῖσινliparoîsinshiningἐδήσατοedḗsatohe boundκαλὰkalàfairπέδιλαpédilasandals,βῆbêhe set outδʼd’(and)ἴμενímento goἐκekfromθαλάμοιοthalámoiothe chamberθεῷtheôia godἐναλίγκιοςenalínkioslikeἄντηνántēnto look upon.

The setting

Book 2 opens the morning after Athena, disguised as Mentes, has fired Telemachus with resolve. At first light the young prince rises, dresses, girds a sword, and leaves his room with a new, godlike bearing — the boy of Book 1 now moving like a man with a plan.

A note on this passage

Book 2 begins with the oldest gesture in epic: a man gets up at dawn and dresses. The lines are a compressed arming-scene — garments, sword, sandals, the stride out the door — the fixed sequence Homer usually gives a warrior before battle. Here it launches not a fight but a walk to the assembly ground.

That is the quiet point. Telemachus arms for politics, not war, and the poem lends him the hero's own choreography to say he is ready to act. The last half-line, θεῷ ἐναλίγκιος, ‘like a god,’ is the formula doing real work: yesterday a helpless boy, this morning he moves like someone to be reckoned with. The serene ‘rosy-fingered Dawn’ rises over a house that does not yet know the master's son has changed.

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Odyssey 2.1 — The Great Library Project interlinear edition · greatlibraryproject.com/book/odyssey/2.1/