Penelope (Blank Verse)

Penelope

Ulysses killing his foes with his mighty bow

                        “ Son of Leartes ! Star of Ithaca ! days

                            Singe my patience and my steadfast faith in thee ;

                            Twenty years passed and Telemachus thy son

                            No more a toddler ; Even gods are perplexed    

                            By this perpetual war for one queen’s sake           

                           So many mighty kings of Argive, Lycia and Thrace

                           Fell down and blood flows like turbulent Xanthus ;

                           Memnon slain, Troilus died and strong Sarpedon fell

                           Still Paris braves in vain against Grecian armies ;

                           Durst I spend my youth wearing thus alone

                           While lusty bees buzz their amorous whispers

                           And try to tempt  a languishing lily like me ;

                           Like an old Sibyl in her holy pantheon

                           I wait and pining to see thy radiant mien.

                          These neighboring kings like hungry wolves

                          Feast on idle pleasures wasting thy treasure;

                          How long can I govern this rugged kingdom

                          With tactful means in thy long absence ?  

                          Some Achaean kings returned with Trojan spoils

                          Presaging thy victory and yet not heard of thee ;

                          By Apollo’s grace, Hellas must win and set her banner

                         On topless towers of Illium ever I pray ;

                         With thousand eyes of Argus, with fluttering soul

                         I hope to see  thy stalwart figure armed like Mars

                         Return with victorious spoils and cheer thy son ;

                         Let not the mighty trident of Poseidon

                         Obstruct thy mighty ship with stormy blasts ;

                         May great Athena’s spear guard thee from dangers

                         And make thee happy  to see the Ionian shore.

                         Let these lecherous beasts face thy dreadful darts

                         And pay with  their blood for betraying thee; 

                         Meanwhile to keep these haughty hounds at bay

                         I’ll feign to weave a votive fabric

                         And unweave in stealth for chaste Artemis

                         To score time and slip from these thankless flock ;

                         With thy mighty bow slay these lewd, rampant beasts

                         Who tried to ravish thy kingdom and thy spouse ;

                         With thirsty supplicating looks I wait for thee

                        Come soon, and end this ever burning Etna’s fire within.”

                        She spoke in doleful voice with tear-drenched face

                        Like a snow-white dove pursued by swift-winged   ravens

                        In her chamber decked with Persian shawls and costumes

                        With crystal vases foaming with Cyprian wine

                        And silver dishes filled with fruits and steaming dainties ;

                        Yet none she touched but yearned for her dearest Ulysses.

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              Notes :

     Notes : Penelope, daughter of the Spartan king Icarius and  nymph Periboea  was the wife of Odysseyus or Ulysses who ruled Ithaca, one of the islands in Greece. He was well known for his intelligence, bravery and wisdom. He participated along with other Grecian kings in Trojan War to bring back Helen who was abducted by Paris, a Trojan Prince. Many Greek heroes sacrificed their lives in this war which went on for ten years. Ulysses using his clever strategy under the pretext of leaving  a wooden horse  as a religious gift managed to score victory over Trojans. Ulysses during his return journey faced many hazards as he was cursed by Poseidon, sea-god, for blinding his son,Polyphemus, a huge monster ruling the island of Cyclops. So it took ten more years for him to return home. During his absence Penelope had to rule the kingdom and look after her son, Telemachus. The other neighboring kings gathered round her asking her to marry one of them as they thought Ulysess might have died when his ship was wrecked in the storm. Penelope asked them to wait till she wove a garment and dedicate it to Goddess, Artemis. Every night she used to unweave the garment in stealth to gain more time. After twenty years Ulysses, knowing that he was surrounded by rival kings, arrived in the guise of a beggar. Penelope laid the condition that whoever was able to string the mighty bow of Ulysses would be eligible to win her hand. None was able to string the bow. Ulysses disguised as a beggar came and  strung the bow. He slayed the rival kings with arrows assisted by his young son and servants. Penelope recognized her husband and felt happy to know that her husband had returned alive after a long gap of twenty years. In Greek mythology, Penelope was recognized for her chastity and steadfast devotion to her beloved husband.

   References : 1.    Ulysses – also called Odysseyus was the son of laertes and Anticlea.

                        2.     Singe ---- burn or scorch                        

                        3.   Xanthus --- a river in Lycia      

                        4. Argives, Thrace, Lycia ---- small kingdoms in Greece

                        5. Memnon  ------  An Ethiopian king who fought on the side of Trojan kings

                        6.  Troilus ---- A young Trojan prince killed by Achilles

                        7.  Sarpedon ----   A Lycian Trojan ally king killed by Achilles.

                       8.  Paris ---- Son of Priam and Hecuba and a Trojan prince who abducted the                                              the Greek queen, Helen

                                                  

                       9. Sibyl ---- a Greek priestess who foretells future events

                      10. Pantheon ---  a temple dedicated to all gods

                      11.  Achaean kings --- Grecian kings

                      12.  Apollo ------- Sun God                         

                      13.   Hellas ---------------   Greece

                      14.   Topless towers of Illium --- towers of Troy whose tops are too tall to see.

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                           “Was this the face that launched a thousand ships

                          And burnt the topless towers of Ilium? “– Faustus by Christopher Marlowe.

                      15.    Argus ----   a hundred-eyed giant in Greek mythology.

                      16.    Mars ---- Greek God of War

                      17.   Poseidon ---- Sea-God (Neptune) shown with a huge trident in his hand.

                      18.   Athena --- Goddess of wisdom, arts and war shown as holding a spear

                                               in her hand   

                      19.   Votive fabric --- garment offered in fulfillment of a vow.

                      20.   Artemis ----      Goddess of chastity dwelling in moon.

                      21.   Etna   -------      Mt. Etna, a volcanic mountain on the east coast of Sicily.

                      22.  Ravish ----          seize by force

                      23.  doleful ----           filled with grief

                      24.   Cyprian ---- belonging to Cyprus which is famous for quality wines.

                   

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                    7th June, 2018                                         Somaseshu Gutala

                     

                                   

                  

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