Odyssey 2.157 · Book 2, lines 157–160
Halitherses, the one man who can read birds
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τοῖσι δὲ καὶ μετέειπε γέρων ἥρως Ἁλιθέρσης Μαστορίδης· ὁ γὰρ οἶος ὁμηλικίην ἐκέκαστο ὄρνιθας γνῶναι καὶ ἐναίσιμα μυθήσασθαι· ὅ σφιν ἐὺ φρονέων ἀγορήσατο καὶ μετέειπε·
And among them also spoke the old hero Halitherses, son of Mastor; for he alone had surpassed his age-mates in knowing birds and declaring what was fated; with good will toward them he addressed them and spoke:
Word by word
The setting
The reply-formula that brings on the seer. Halitherses, an old and respected man of Ithaca, is the one person in the assembly qualified to interpret the eagles' sign.
A note on this passage
The formula that introduces a speaker, filled out for a prophet. Halitherses is named, given his patronymic, and given his credential: alone of his generation he can both read birds and say true what they mean. Then the standard line — with the assembly's good in mind, he began to speak.
Homer certifies the prophet before the prophecy, so the omen cannot be waved away as one old man's guess. The gift is deliberately doubled: γνῶναι, to know the sign, and μυθήσασθαι, to speak it rightly — reading and telling are separate skills, and he has both. The quiet ache is that Ithaca owns a genuine seer and will still not be saved by him.
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Odyssey 2.157 — The Great Library Project interlinear edition · greatlibraryproject.com/book/odyssey/2.157/