Virtual Odyssey
continued.....
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Book X
After a few days time of sailing, Odysseus and his men
came to an island of the name of Aeolus. The island was home
to the king of the winds. The Achaeans were greeted with
hospitality, and when they were ready to depart from the
island, Aeolus, the king, gave Odysseus a large leather bag
which held all the adverse winds which would drive his ships
off course. Then they set sail and in ten days were in sight
of Ithaca.
While Odysseus slept, his men began to think that the bag
that Odysseus received from Aeolus contained treasures which
he was going to hoard to himself. So they decided to open
it. When they did they were blown away from Ithaca and back
to the island of Aeolus. King Aeolus refused to give them
forgiveness and banished them from the island. The Achaeans
were forced to leave the island without any wind so they had
to use the strength to move the ships by oars. Several days
past until they came to the island of the Laestrygonians.
These vicious cannibals attacked the unsuspecting visitors,
and all the ships except Odysseus' were sunk. The lone
surviving ship sailed on until it reached the island of
 Aeaea, the home of the goddess Circe.
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The island of
Aeolus
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After staying on the beach for a couple of days, Odysseus
sent half his men under the command of Eurylochus to explore the
island. Shortly afterward Eurylochus came back alone and told them of
what happened to the others. The men where lured into a lavish palace
where a beautiful woman lived. There they were fed and entertained.
Then when the woman waved a wand they all transformed into pigs. He
alone had stayed outside because of his suspicious nature, and so he
escaped.
Aeaea: home of the enchantress
Circe
This weird tale, scared the rest of the men, but brave Odysseus
set out alone to rescue his men. On the way there he encountered
Hermes, messenger of the gods. Hermes gave him instructions on how to
act with the enchantress, and he also gave him a magic herb called
Moly with which to protect himself from her powers.
When Odysseus came to the palace, Circe received him graciously
and then attempted to bewitch him, but with no avail. He soon
overcame her and when he threatened her life, she returned his men to
human form. After these events, Circe recognized Odysseus as someone
whose eventual arrival on her island was predicted and whose
acquaintance she longed for. The two soon became lovers and he and
his crew stay for a year at her home.
After this year, Odysseus' men start to yearn for Ithaca again.
They remind Odysseus of his home, and he holds Circe to an old
promise to help him return hime and she agreed. However, she pointed
out to him, in order to have a sage voyage he must first go to Hades
to consult the spirit of the prophet Tiresias. She gave him full
directions for his journey and provided him with provisions and
animals to sacrifice. And so, Odysseus and his men set sail once
more.