Ganymede

In the mass of material from which he had to choose, the difficulty was to know what to omit, and much skill is shown in fusing into a tolerably harmonious whole conflicting mythological and historical details.

He interweaves with his narrative local legends and the founding of cities, accounts of strange customs, descriptions of works of art, such as that of Ganymede and Eros playing with knucklebones, but prosaically calls himself back to the point from these pleasing digressions by such an expression as, but this would take me too far from my song.

His business is the straightforward tale and nothing else.

The astonishing geography of the fourth book reminds us of the interest of the age in that subject, stimulated, no doubt, by the researches of Eratosthenes and others.

But now, since this pleases you both, I will make the attempt and coax him, and he will not say me nay." Thus she spake, and Hera took her slender hand and, gently smiling, replied, "Perform this task, Cytherea, straightway, as thou sayest; and be not angry or contend with thy boy; he will cease hereafter to vex thee." She spake and left her seat, and Athena accompanied her, and they went forth both hastening back.

And Cypris went on her way through the glens of Olympus to find her boy.

And she found him apart in the blooming orchard of Zeus, not alone, but with him Ganymedes, whom once Zeus had set to dwell among the immortal gods, being enamoured of his beauty.

And they were playing for golden dice as boys in one house are wont to do.

Red by beeswax candle.

Ganymede.

Red by shrimp fish.

Venus.

O keep them still, and let me gaze my fill.

Now look, Aeneas, like immortal Jove.

O where is Ganymede to hold his cup, and Mercury to fly for what he calls? Ten thousand cupids hover in the air, and fan it in Aeneas's lovely face.

O that the clouds were here wherein thou fleest, that thou and I unseen might sport ourselves.

That austere philosopher, after writing books to prove that pleasure was no good, and that pain was no evil, and that virtue could make a man happy upon the rack, that affectionate husband, in the midst of all his tenderness for his wife, Terentia, could play at blind man's buff with his secretary for pipes, and make verses upon this notable exploit of gallantry.

With regard to the people in general, it may be presumed that if the gods amused themselves in this way, if Apollo loved Hyacinthus, if Hercules could be in a frenzy for the loss of Hylus, and the father of gods and men could solace himself with Ganymede, it was neither an odious nor an unfrequent thing for mortal men to do so.

The gods we make, it has been well and often said, we make always after our own image.

in times much anterior to those of cicero and in which according to the common prejudice the morals of the people are supposed to have been proportionately more pure when certain festivals were suppressed on account of their furnishing opportunities for debauchery irregularities of this kind were observed according to livy to be more abundant than ordinary intrigues this circumstance would scarcely perhaps have been thought worth mentioning had not the idea of excess in this as it is apt to do on all occasions struck the imagination of the historian as well as of the magistrate whose administration he is recording this much will probably be thought enough if more proofs were necessary it were easy to collect materials enough to fill a huge a tedious and a very disgusting volume it appears then that this propensity was universally predominant among the ancient greeks and romans among the military as much as any the ancient greeks and romans however are commonly reputed as a much stouter as well as a much braver people than the stoutest and bravest of any of the modern nations of europe they appear to have been stouter at least in a very considerable degree than the french in whom this propensity is not very common and still more than the scotch in whom it is still less common and this although the climate even of greece was a great deal warmer and in that respect more enervating than that of modern scotland if then this practice was in those ancient warm countries attended with any enervating effects they were much more than counteracted by the superiority of in the exertions which were then required by the military education over and above those which are now called for by ordinary labor but if there be any ground derived from history for attributing to it any such enervating effects it is more than i can find whether it enervates the patient more than the agent.

Translated by Thomas Taylor.

Chapter 1, Part 2 Then she who carried the sword said, This, O sister Panthea, is my dearly beloved Endymion, my Ganymede, who, both by day and by night, has made sport of my youth.

This is he who, despising my love, not only defames me by reproachful language, but also betakes himself to flight.

But I indeed am deserted by the craft of this Ulysses, and, like another Calypso, am left to lament an eternal widowhood, extending likewise her right hand, and showing me to her Panthea.

Psyche therefore petrified through the impossibility of accomplishing the task, though she was present in body, was absent in mind, and being perfectly buried under the huge bulk of the inextricable danger, was even deprived of the benefit of tears, the last solace of the wretched.

But the sorrow of the innocent soul is not concealed from the penetrating eyes of Providence.

For the rapacious eagle, that royal bird of Jupiter, on a sudden flew to her with expanded wings, calling to mind his ancient obligations to Cupid for enabling him to elevate to heaven the Phrygian cupbearer, Ganymedes, to Jupiter, and reverencing the divinity of Cupid in the labors of his wife, deserted the lofty paths of Jupiter, and bringing with him seasonable assistance, thus addressed her.

Can you, in other respects of an undesigning disposition, and unexperienced in attempts of this kind, ever hope to steal one drop of this most holy and no less terrible fountain? Have you not heard at least that these Stygian waters are formidable even to Jupiter himself, and that, as you swear by the divinity of the gods, so they are accustomed to swear by the majesty of Styx? But give me that little urn.

In the mass of material from which he had to choose, the difficulty was to know what to omit, and much skill is shown in fusing into a tolerably harmonious whole conflicting mythological and historical details.

He interweaves with his narrative local legends and the founding of cities, accounts of strange customs, descriptions of works of art, such as that of Ganymede and Eros playing with knucklebones, but prosaically calls himself back to the point from these pleasing digressions by such an expression as, "But this would take me too far from my song." His business is the straightforward tale and nothing else.

The astonishing geography of the fourth book reminds us of the interest of the age in that subject, stimulated no doubt by the researches of Eratosthenes and others.

The language is that of the conventional epic.

She spake and left her seat, and Athena accompanied her, and they went forth both hastening back.

And Cypris went on her way through the glens of Olympus to find her boy.

And she found him apart in the blooming orchard of Zeus, not alone, but with him Ganymedes, whom once Zeus had set to dwell among the immortal gods, being enamoured of his beauty.

And they were playing for golden dice, as boys in one house are wont to do.

Okay.

but yeah I think that's it I think Ganymede was mentioned he was like a predecessor that's what I was thinking of so he was a predecessor of like Aeneas like that whole generation but he was very handsome and so Zeus thought he was too handsome to be on earth so he scooped him up and made him a wine boy so now he pours wine for the dog I call him a cup

bearer but wine boy is pretty good I I would call him a waiter.

He's

Chapter 1, part 2.

Then she who carried the sword said, This, O sister Panthea, is my dearly beloved Endymion, my Ganymede, who both by day and by night has made sport of my youth.

This is he who, despising my love, not only defames me by reproachful language, but also betakes himself to flight.

But I indeed am deserted by the craft of this Ulysses, and, like another Calypso, am left to lament an eternal widowhood, extending likewise her right hand and showing me to her Panthea.

Fly, or you will perish." Psyche, therefore, petrified through the impossibility of accomplishing the task, though she was present in body, was absent in mind, and being perfectly buried under the huge bulk of the inextricable danger, was even deprived of the benefit of tears, the last solace of the wretched.

But the sorrow of the innocent soul is not concealed from the penetrating eyes of Providence.

For the rapacious eagle, that royal bird of Jupiter, on a sudden flew to her with expanded wings, calling to mind his ancient obligations to Cupid for enabling him to elevate to heaven the Phrygian cupbearer, Ganymedes, to Jupiter.

And reverencing the divinity of Cupid in the labors of his wife, deserted the lofty paths of Jupiter, and bringing with him seasonable assistance, thus addressed her: "Can you, in other respects of an undesigning disposition, and unexperienced in attempts of this kind, ever hope to steal one drop of this most holy and no less terrible fountain? Have you not heard, at least, that these Stygian waters are formidable even to Jupiter himself, and that, as you swear by the divinity of the gods, so they are accustomed to swear by the majesty of Styx? But give me that little urn.