7 Ithaca at last

Chapter 7 Ithaca at last As soon as Odysseus had finished his tale, he fell fast asleep in the hall of King Alcinous. The king ordered his guards to take poor Odysseus home at once. Still fast asleep, Odysseus was carried on board a ship. When he awoke, he was on the shore of a land he thought he recognized. With tears in his eyes, he realized: "It's Ithaca!" He kissed the ground with joy.

奥德修斯一讲完他的故事，就在阿尔奇诺斯国王的大厅里睡着了。 国王命令他的卫兵立刻把可怜的奥德修斯带回家。 奥德修斯还在熟睡中，他被抬上了一艘船。 当他醒来时，他已经在一个他认为他认识的陆地的岸边。 他眼中含着泪水，意识到：“这是伊萨卡！”他高兴地吻着地面。

At that moment, a tall, beautiful woman appeared. She was wearing a breastplate that glinted in the dawn light, and had a shining helmet upon her head. It was Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, who had been watching over Odysseus all this time. "Welcome home," she said. "But, before you can claim your kingdom, you have one last job to do. You must do it in disguise. With a wave of her hand, she transformed Odysseus into a ragged old beggar. Odysseus gazed at his newly- wrinkled hands in shock. But he still had his wits about him. "What's the job?" "While you've been away, your house has been full of scroungers who are eating your food and making your family's life a misery. You see, they hope that one of them can marry Penelope."

就在这时，一个高大、美丽的女人出现了。 她戴着一件在晨光中闪闪发光的胸甲，头上戴着一顶闪亮的头盔。 这是一直守护奥德修斯的智慧女神雅典娜。 “欢迎回家，”她说。“但是，在你得到你的王国之前，你还有最后一件事要做。 你必须伪装起来做这件事。 她一挥手，把奥德修斯变成了一个衣衫褴褛的老乞丐。 奥德修斯震惊地盯着他刚皱起的双手。 但他仍然头脑清醒。 “什么工作？”“当你离开的时候，你的房子里满是乞丐，他们吃你的食物，让你的家人生活很痛苦。 你看，他们希望他们中的一个能和佩内洛普结婚。”

"But she is married!" said Odysseus. "You've been gone a long time -Penelope's suitors think you're dead," said Athena. "But I can help you get rid of them. Go and rest in the cottage on the hill. It belongs to Eumaeus the shepherd. He's always been loyal to you." Then, she disappeared.

“可是她已经结婚了！”奥德修斯说。 “你离开很久了——佩内洛普的追求者以为你死了，”雅典娜说。 “但我可以帮你摆脱它们。 到山上的小屋去休息吧。 它属于牧羊人欧迈乌斯。 他一直对你很忠诚。” 然后，她消失了。

Eumaeus welcomed the old stranger, offering him a place by the fire. Odysseus played the part of a feeble old beggar so well that the kindly shepherd insisted his guest should take the bed that night, while he slept outside. The next morning, Odysseus was awoken by Athena. "I have someone to see you. But first..." She waved her hand and he felt his old and wrinkled skin become firm and young once more. "That's better," she said Just then, a young man appeared over the crest of the hill. He looked familiar. Very familiar. "Telemachus! My son!" Odysseus rushed forward to hug him. But his son flinched in shock. Odysseus's skin was still glowing from the spell. He looked more like a god than a man. "Telemachus, I'm your father. Don't you recognize me?" Telemachus's shock turned to joy, and he flung his arms around his father.

欧迈乌斯欢迎这位老陌生人，让他坐在火炉旁。 奥德修斯扮演一个虚弱的老乞丐的角色演得太好了，以至于好心的牧羊人坚持让他的客人当晚睡在床上，而他则睡在外面。 第二天早上，奥德修斯被雅典娜唤醒。 “我有人要见你。 但首先……”她挥挥手，他感到自己那又老又皱的皮肤又变得紧实而年轻了。 “这样好多了，”她说。就在这时，一个年轻人从山顶上出现了。 他看起来很眼熟。非常熟悉。 “忒勒马科斯!我的儿子!”奥德修斯冲上前拥抱他。 但他的儿子震惊地退缩了。 奥德修斯的皮肤仍然因为咒语而发光。 他看起来更像一个神而不是一个人。 “忒勒马科斯，我是你的父亲。 你不认识我了吗？”忒勒马科斯的震惊变成了喜悦，他张开双臂抱住了父亲。

"It's time," said a voice from behind them. They turned to see Athena standing there. "Go and reclaim your kingdom." She disguised him as a ragged beggar once again. "It'll give you the advantage of surprise," she said. So, old-man Odysseus and young Telemachus walked back to town, picking up Eumaeus from his cottage on their way.

“时间到了。”一个声音从他们身后传来。 他们转过身来，看见雅典娜站在那里。 “去夺回你的王国吧。” 她又把他打扮成一个衣衫褴褛的乞丐。 “这会给你带来惊喜，”她说。 于是，年老的奥德修斯和年轻的忒勒马科斯走回了镇子，在路上把欧迈厄斯从他的小屋里接走。