History Channel - Clash of the Gods - S01E07 Odysseus Part 2 - video Dailymotion

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Documentary, History Channel - Clash of the Gods - S01E07 Odysseus Part 2   #ClashoftheGods #Documentary #Odysseus

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00:00His name is Odysseus, and he's on a mission.

00:05To return home to the woman he loves before she marries someone else.

00:10Blocking his way are bloodthirsty monsters,

00:14enchanting seductresses,

00:16treacherous seeds,

00:17and angry gods.

00:21This is the continuing journey of Odysseus,

00:25the epic quest of the greatest mythical hero of all time.

00:30To us it is myth,

00:31but to the ancients it was reality,

00:34and perhaps even a blueprint for one of the Christian gospels.

00:39This is the real story, as it was originally told,

00:42of the Odyssey.

00:56The story of Odysseus, king of Ithaca,

01:00is not like tales of other mythological heroes.

01:03He's not a god with special superpowers.

01:07Instead, his character is written as a regular man,

01:11trying to get home from a ten-year war to his wife and son.

01:16Everybody can relate to this guy.

01:18This is all of us.

01:19I'd like to spend more time with my family.

01:21I don't like my job.

01:22I'm not treated the way I ought to be.

01:24And I'm tired.

01:25I want to go home.

01:28That's Odysseus' story.

01:31But the Odyssey is not just a return home.

01:35It's a race against time.

01:37As Odysseus battles danger on the high seas,

01:41his wife, Penelope, anxiously awaits his return

01:44and wonders if she's become a sailor's widow.

01:48Meanwhile, a rogue's gallery of suitors is knocking at her door,

01:52pressuring her to forget her husband and marry again.

01:55And according to custom,

01:58he who wins the queen will win the crown.

02:02If Odysseus doesn't get home in time,

02:05he'll lose his family and his kingdom.

02:09The aristocracy of the area starts saying,

02:13Odysseus isn't coming home.

02:14We don't know what happened to him,

02:15but he's not coming back.

02:16So we need to decide who's going to be king instead of him.

02:20The person who would be a candidate

02:22would be the person who marries Penelope,

02:25since everyone assumed that she was now a widow.

02:30Odysseus' struggle to get home in time

02:32is the central focus of the Odyssey.

02:36This epic myth was the Greek author Homer's most famous work.

02:43And to the ancients,

02:45it was more than just entertaining fiction.

02:49It was a guidebook to living in a dangerous world.

02:53We need to understand,

02:54we need to tell stories to make sense of our world.

02:58And so the Greeks had myths.

03:02These are incredibly human characters

03:05going through incredibly human emotions.

03:09Odysseus' adventures on the high seas

03:11reflected how the Greeks viewed the unknown world

03:14beyond their shores.

03:16His myth was written at a time

03:17when their empire was just beginning

03:19to expand across the seas.

03:22Odysseus represents someone

03:23who is very, very prototypical Greek.

03:27Greece at that time was a very poor country.

03:29It's a rocky place

03:30surrounded by the sea.

03:33So people had to make their fortunes

03:35by being adventurers.

03:37It was the only way you can make it in ancient Greece.

03:39Odysseus' heroic journey home

03:51began with his departure from Troy

03:52where he had spent ten years

03:55fighting the Trojan War.

03:57He had hoped his return to his home island of Ithaca

03:59would be quick and painless.

04:01But for him and his soldiers

04:03it turned into a trip from hell.

04:07On a stop for supplies

04:08several weeks into the journey

04:09Odysseus narrowly escaped death

04:12at the hands of a man-eating cyclops

04:16only to draw the wrath of the monster's father

04:19the powerful sea god

04:21Poseidon.

04:25By attacking the son of a god

04:28he makes a double mistake.

04:29One is he angers a god

04:32but the second is

04:33he angers the god of the sea.

04:35He's sailing home.

04:39And that's the curse

04:41that is working against Odysseus

04:44the entire rest of his journey.

04:46Poseidon, one of the most powerful gods

04:49has this personal antipathy to Odysseus.

04:55Now Odysseus is way off course

04:58months into a journey

05:00that should have taken weeks.

05:02Little does he know

05:03he's got years still to go.

05:14But Odysseus is not one to surrender

05:16in the face of adversity.

05:18He may be knocked down

05:20just as much as all the rest of us

05:21and even harder than all the rest of us

05:23but he always can get back up.

05:25he can always find a way.

05:26And I think that really crystallizes

05:28this desire that all of us have

05:30to make it through

05:31to persevere.

05:33He's just a human being

05:34up against all kinds of odds

05:36up against gods

05:37and he has to make it through

05:39simply on his intelligence.

05:46Desperate for an escape

05:48from Poseidon's stormy seas

05:49the hero and his men

05:51make landfall

05:52on a coastline

05:53overflowing with food.

05:56Odysseus sends a scouting party

05:58to investigate

05:58while he stays close to shore.

06:02The men discover

06:03a stone palace

06:04surrounded by wolves

06:05and lions.

06:09There they meet

06:10the beautiful sorceress

06:12Circe.

06:14For these Greek warriors

06:17who have been out at sea

06:18for the past four months

06:19she's a stirring sight.

06:24And so are her maids.

06:30Circe invites the men

06:31into her home

06:32to enjoy a sumptuous feast

06:34of food and flesh.

06:37Circe is supposed to show us

06:39what happens

06:40when men

06:41get led astray

06:43not by drugs

06:45but by sex.

06:48And men coming home

06:50when you've got

06:51sexy woman

06:52with great power

06:53that can make you

06:54happy,

06:55give you anything you want

06:56well what does that do?

06:57It turns men to pigs.

07:00As Odysseus' men

07:02indulge their appetites

07:03the sorceress

07:04teaches them

07:05a hard lesson.

07:07She literally

07:07transforms the men

07:09into swine.

07:32But one man

07:33manages to escape

07:34Circe's spell

07:35and returns

07:36to warn Odysseus.

07:37without hesitation

07:39he sets out

07:41to confront

07:41the goddess.

07:43He has this

07:44almost optimism

07:45about

07:46the way

07:47things are.

07:49He has this idea

07:50that any challenge

07:51that comes his way

07:52he can overcome.

07:54And he never really

07:55seems to falter

07:56in that.

08:02According to the myth

08:03on the way

08:04to Circe's palace

08:05where his men

08:06have been turned

08:06into pigs

08:07Odysseus crosses

08:09paths

08:09with a valuable ally

08:11the ancient Greek

08:13messenger god

08:14Hermes.

08:16He's often the god

08:17who is sent

08:18from Mount Olympus

08:19down to earth

08:20to perform errands

08:22essentially.

08:23He's sent

08:24to Odysseus

08:25with a drug

08:26called mole.

08:27We don't really

08:30know what this was

08:31but it has

08:32mystical powers.

08:33He gives it

08:34to Odysseus

08:34and Odysseus

08:35takes it

08:36so that he's

08:36actually not

08:37subject to

08:38Circe's powers.

08:39Ancient

08:40storytellers

08:41may have referred

08:41to this mythical

08:42wonder drug

08:43as holy moly

08:44and inspired

08:45the phrase

08:46we know today.

08:51With the power

08:52of his moly

08:53protecting him

08:54Odysseus

08:55swaggers

08:56into Circe's palace

08:57Circe tries

08:59to turn him

08:59into a pig

09:00but fails

09:01so she changes

09:03tactics

09:03she lures him

09:06into her bedroom

09:07but Odysseus

09:09plays hard

09:10to get.

09:12Odysseus responds

09:13not so fast

09:14before I agree

09:15to this

09:16you have to promise

09:17to turn my men

09:18back into human beings

09:19and you have to promise

09:20no more funny business

09:22no more turning

09:23any of us

09:23into animals

09:24and Circe agrees

09:25to these terms.

09:30With that

09:31Odysseus enters

09:32the inner sanctum

09:33of the sex goddess

09:34and doesn't come out

09:37for a whole year.

09:39This to us

09:40seems like

09:40an extramarital affair.

09:42Homer doesn't really

09:43seem to think

09:44that this is

09:44a problem

09:45in any way.

09:49This likely

09:50has to do

09:51with the double standard

09:52in Greek society

09:53that is to say

09:54women were expected

09:56to be chaste

09:57and loyal

09:58not to seek

10:00or particularly

10:01enjoy sexual relationships

10:03whereas men

10:04could go out

10:05and have really

10:06a lot of different

10:07extramarital affairs

10:09without anybody

10:10thinking that it was wrong.

10:11after one year

10:16Odysseus decides

10:18enough is enough

10:19he's had his tryst

10:21but his heart

10:22is with his wife

10:23Penelope

10:24and he must get home.

10:27I think at this point

10:28the Odyssey

10:29is trying to show us

10:30something about

10:31Odysseus

10:32he is a man

10:33like any other man

10:34he should be

10:36striving

10:36to get home.

10:39He owes

10:40Penelope

10:41and he owes

10:42Ithaca

10:43a king

10:44and the longer

10:47he spends

10:48with Circes

10:49the more

10:50he is denying

10:51what is owed.

10:53But before

10:54he can set sail

10:55for his home island

10:56of Ithaca

10:57he'll have to make

10:58another detour

10:59to visit a place

10:59that isn't on the map

11:01but beneath it

11:04the underworld

11:07of the dead.

11:10It is a harrowing

11:11chapter

11:12in Odysseus' journey

11:13that some scholars

11:14believe

11:14even influenced

11:15one of the

11:16Christian gospels.

11:28Odysseus

11:29the mythical hero

11:30in Homer's Odyssey

11:31has been away

11:32from his family

11:33and kingdom

11:33for almost 12 years.

11:36He spent a decade

11:37fighting the Trojan War

11:38and a full year

11:40in the bedroom

11:41of Circe

11:41the sex goddess.

11:46Now he knows

11:47the time has come

11:48to move on

11:49and get home.

11:53Circe consents

11:54to his leaving

11:54but imparts

11:55an ominous warning

11:56to overcome

11:59the curse

12:00of the sea god

12:01Poseidon

12:01and get home

12:02he'll need

12:03instructions

12:03from the blind prophet

12:04Piresias.

12:08Just one problem

12:09Piresias

12:11is dead.

12:15Odysseus

12:15must now

12:16make an unplanned

12:17stop

12:17in the underworld

12:20of Hades.

12:22You think

12:24you're just

12:25going home

12:25you're going

12:26someplace

12:26that you

12:26didn't expect

12:27to go.

12:28You're going

12:29to hell.

12:32Odysseus

12:33is horrified

12:34at this thought.

12:35No human

12:35has ever

12:36gone to Hades

12:37and survived.

12:39But Odysseus

12:40has no choice.

12:42Poseidon's power

12:43over the seas

12:43is strong

12:44and he's getting

12:45nowhere fast.

12:46If he ever hopes

12:47to reclaim his family

12:48and his kingdom

12:49he must seek out

12:51Piresias

12:51in the underworld.

13:02Today we picture

13:03hell as a pit

13:04of fire

13:05and brimstone.

13:07But the ancient

13:08Greeks

13:08saw it differently.

13:10The ancient

13:11Greek underworld

13:12is mostly characterized

13:13by being misty

13:14and cool.

13:16In contrast

13:16to later ideas

13:18that come in

13:18with Christianity

13:19of the underworld

13:20as being a place

13:21of eternal punishment.

13:23It's not a kind

13:24of nasty

13:24hot fiery furnace.

13:26Instead what we've

13:26got is a grey area

13:27that's difficult

13:28to see

13:29that's misty

13:29murky

13:30and very far away.

13:34Odysseus

13:34makes a harrowing

13:36descent into Hades.

13:38The agonized

13:39cries of perished

13:40souls

13:40echo

13:41from all sides.

13:45Inside the gates

13:47he comes face

13:48to face

13:48with the prophet

13:49Tiresias

13:50who explains

13:53that Odysseus

13:53and his men

13:54can overcome

13:55the wrath of Poseidon

13:56and make it home

13:57if they follow

13:59his instructions.

14:01Tiresias gives them

14:01very specific advice.

14:03Above all

14:04what you need to do

14:05is not eat

14:06the cattle

14:08of the sun god

14:09Helios.

14:10No matter what

14:11else you do

14:12do not eat

14:14these cattle

14:15It's advice

14:19that will come

14:20back to haunt

14:20Odysseus

14:21As the souls

14:31of the dead

14:32begin to close

14:33in on him

14:33Odysseus

14:34makes his escape

14:35from the underworld

14:36more determined

14:38than ever

14:38to get home

14:39He has done

14:46what no living man

14:47is supposed

14:47to be able to do

14:48survive a trip

14:51to Hades

14:52So goes the myth

14:53but what is

14:54the link

14:55to reality?

15:00Some scholars

15:01believe

15:01this chapter

15:02of the Odyssey

15:02influenced

15:03one of Christianity's

15:04most sacred texts

15:06The Gospel of Mark

15:10It's almost impossible

15:13to overestimate

15:14the importance

15:15of Homer

15:15for ancient Greeks

15:17Mark of course

15:19was a Greek speaker

15:20the Gospels

15:21are written in Greek

15:22He almost certainly

15:23would have known

15:24the story of the Odyssey

15:25So if there are things

15:27in the book of Mark

15:27that remind us

15:28of the Odyssey

15:29that may well

15:30not be an accident

15:31A close comparison

15:33of the Odyssey

15:34and the Gospel of Mark

15:35reveals some

15:37shocking parallels

15:38Both stories

15:39revolve around

15:40the hardships

15:41of a suffering hero

15:42Odysseus

15:43and Jesus

15:44Both main characters

15:46have carpentry backgrounds

15:47Odysseus

15:49was a skilled woodworker

15:50who even built

15:51his own palace

15:52in Ithaca

15:53Jesus was the son

15:55of a carpenter

15:55and in one passage

15:57in the book of Mark

15:58he himself

15:59is referred to as

16:00the carpenter

16:01But the most

16:07intriguing connection

16:08is the similarity

16:09between Odysseus'

16:11visit to Hades

16:11and Jesus'

16:13last days on earth

16:14Both stories

16:17begin with a banquet

16:18Odysseus and his men

16:20feasting at Circe's palace

16:22Jesus and his apostles

16:24at the last supper

16:25Then as their comrades

16:28sleep

16:29both men agonize

16:30about their impending

16:31encounter with death

16:33When Odysseus learns

16:34from Circe

16:35that he needs

16:37to go to Hades

16:38he despairs

16:39of it

16:40The reason is

16:41and he says so

16:42that no mortal

16:44has ever gone to Hades

16:45and returned

16:46Jesus is about to die

16:48He has a last supper

16:49with his disciples

16:50He despairs of life

16:52because he knows

16:53he must face the cross

16:54Ultimately

16:57Odysseus would travel

16:58to the underworld

16:59of the dead

17:00and return

17:01Jesus would die

17:03on the cross

17:04and then rise

17:05to new life

17:06Could these parallels

17:09be more than coincidence?

17:11As the myth continues

17:17Odysseus leaves Hades

17:19and sets sail

17:20for Ithaca

17:21He is finally

17:24on his way home again

17:25But in his path

17:27lurks another obstacle

17:29The Island of the Sirens

17:31The Sirens

17:33are these creatures

17:36whose songs

17:38are so beautiful

17:39that they pull you

17:41off course

17:42and you shipwreck

17:44Odysseus knows

17:53he is approaching

17:54the island of the Sirens

17:55So he orders his men

17:57to plug their ears

17:58with beeswax

17:59to prevent them

18:00from hearing

18:01the Sirens song

18:02But Odysseus

18:04a man of insatiable curiosity

18:06is the exception

18:08to his own rule

18:09He has the crew

18:12tie him to the ship's mast

18:13This way

18:15he can listen

18:16to the Sirens

18:17without steering the ship

18:18toward the island's

18:19rocky shores

18:20As they row through

18:25he is screaming

18:26untie me

18:27but they can't hear him

18:28And so he hears

18:44what the Sirens song

18:45is

18:45the only human

18:46who's done it

18:47and survived

18:47But for the ancients

18:49you see this scene

18:50depicted again and again

18:52on vase painting

18:53after vase painting

18:54and it's meant

18:55to show you

18:56what the ideal man

18:59is about

18:59doing whatever

19:01is necessary

19:02to learn something new

19:04Odysseus' encounter

19:08with the Sirens

19:09is one of mythology's

19:10best known stories

19:11but new evidence

19:13suggests

19:14the song of the Sirens

19:15may be more

19:16than just a legend

19:17Italy's

19:23Ligali Islands

19:24Traditionally

19:26they have been cited

19:27as the setting

19:28of the story

19:29Centuries ago

19:31they were even called

19:32Le Sirenus

19:33The Islands

19:35of the Sirens

19:35In 2004

19:39a team of German scientists

19:40set out

19:41to investigate

19:41their link

19:42to the Odyssey

19:43and made a stunning discovery

19:45What the German team

19:47found on this island

19:49was that there was

19:49a naturally occurring

19:51formation of rocks

19:52that served as

19:53kind of a

19:53natural megaphone

19:55Any sort of sound source

19:57that happened to be

19:58located there

19:59these sound waves

20:00would bounce off them

20:01and they would

20:01amplify them

20:02out off the coast

20:04But even with this

20:06built-in megaphone

20:07human voices

20:09are impossible

20:09to hear offshore

20:10So what could have made

20:12such a loud sound?

20:19Monk seals

20:20Centuries ago

20:22they were common

20:22throughout the Mediterranean

20:23including

20:25the Ligali Islands

20:26The German team

20:27was able to

20:28demonstrate

20:29the sound of

20:30their cries

20:31actually could be heard

20:32quite clearly

20:33off the coast

20:34Could this be the call

20:37that lured sailors

20:38to a rocky grave?

20:42Back on the high seas

20:48Odysseus has survived

20:49his brush

20:50with the sirens

20:51But an even

20:52deadlier challenge

20:53lies beyond

20:54the next wave

20:55To make it home

20:58to Ithaca

20:58he'll have to confront

21:00one of two

21:01terrifying threats

21:02Some researchers

21:04believe these dangers

21:06were real

21:06and may still

21:08be out there

21:08Odysseus' shrewdness

21:20has helped him

21:20survive a series

21:21of deadly obstacles

21:23on the high seas

21:24But he's not the only one

21:26using his wits

21:27Hundreds of miles away

21:31in his kingdom

21:31of Ithaca

21:32his wife is keeping

21:34her suitors at bay

21:35with a clever ruse

21:36of her own

21:37She promises

21:39she will marry

21:40one of them

21:40as soon as she

21:41finishes weaving

21:42a burial shroud

21:43for Odysseus' father

21:45But each night

21:47she unweaves

21:48what she has woven

21:49during the day

21:50This trick has been

21:51buying her time

21:52for years

21:53Just as Odysseus

21:55is characterized

21:56by his craftiness

21:57and his cleverness

21:58and his ability

21:58to weave plots

21:59and plans

22:00so also Penelope

22:02has her claim

22:03to being able

22:04to weave plots

22:05and plans

22:05Penelope is doing

22:08her best

22:08to remain hopeful

22:09but she doesn't know

22:11what has become

22:12of her husband

22:12She really has no idea

22:14whether Odysseus

22:15is still alive

22:16and if he is still alive

22:17whether he's on his way

22:18back to her

22:19or maybe he's just

22:20decided to go

22:20somewhere else

22:21it's a terrible state

22:23of not knowing

22:23Meanwhile

22:26a horrific set

22:28of new obstacles

22:29stands between

22:30Odysseus

22:30and home

22:31He must now choose

22:33between two deadly routes

22:34The first

22:36runs through

22:37the wandering rocks

22:38floating boulders

22:40that smash ships apart

22:42The second

22:47slips through

22:48a narrow channel

22:49flanked on one side

22:50by a man-eating

22:51sea monster

22:52called the Scylla

22:53and on the other

22:55by a massive whirlpool

22:56known as the Charybdis

22:58Scylla is this terrifying

23:02sea monster

23:03with many heads

23:05and many arms

23:06this terrifying creature

23:08who you know

23:10for a fact

23:11will grab up

23:13six of your men

23:14and eat them

23:15You sail by Scylla

23:18that is what will happen

23:19Facing the Scylla

23:24is the Charybdis

23:25a giant vortex

23:26that twirls around

23:28and sucks into itself

23:30and sort of vomits back up

23:31all the stuff

23:32in any nearby area

23:34If Odysseus

23:35would go

23:36close to that

23:37he would risk

23:38having his whole ship

23:39capsized

23:41and sucked down

23:41into the bottom

23:42of the Teebon

23:42Odysseus

23:46is literally trapped

23:47between a rock

23:48and a hard place

23:49In fact

23:51some believe

23:51this is where

23:52the cliché originated

23:53He orders his men

23:58to avoid

23:58the wandering rocks

23:59and instead

24:00sail for the hard place

24:02the strait

24:04of Scylla

24:05and Charybdis

24:05There Odysseus

24:12faces two grim options

24:14Death to some

24:16or death to all

24:19He realizes

24:21in a kind of

24:21cold calculated way

24:23that losing his whole ship

24:24would be a worse outcome

24:25than losing a few

24:26of his men

24:27So he decides

24:29actively

24:30to steer closer

24:31to the Scylla

24:32There's a lesson here

24:36of course

24:36and the lesson is

24:37the most gentle

24:38and caring commander

24:39sometimes

24:40has to be willing

24:41to sacrifice

24:42some of his men

24:43in order to get

24:44the mission accomplished

24:45As they enter

24:48the strait

24:49the sky

24:50goes dark

24:51Suddenly

24:52multiple tsunamis

24:54appear

24:54out of nowhere

24:55Odysseus

25:00leads the ship

25:01away from

25:01the Charybdis

25:02As they pass by

25:06the giant whirlpool

25:07sucks up the ocean

25:08seizing everything

25:10within its reach

25:11Suddenly

25:14from the opposite

25:15side of the ship

25:16the Scylla

25:17strikes

25:17It snatches

25:30six men

25:31off the ship's deck

25:32and swallows them whole

25:34Odysseus

25:49Odysseus describes

25:51this as the worst

25:52moment

25:53of his travels

25:54His men

25:55being carried away

25:57in the mouths

25:57of this awful

25:58creature

25:58crying his name

26:00Odysseus

26:02help us

26:03and he can't

26:04and not only that

26:06Odysseus knows

26:07that those men

26:08are dying

26:08because of his

26:09decision

26:09For centuries

26:26scholars of the

26:27Odyssey puzzled

26:28over what might

26:28have inspired

26:29Homer's monstrous

26:30Scylla

26:31Then in the

26:37mid-1800s

26:38corpses of

26:39massive tentacle

26:40beasts

26:41washed up

26:41on shores

26:42across the globe

26:43This was the

26:46answer

26:46Giant Squid

26:49Overnight

26:52fiction

26:53became fact

26:54Giant Squid

26:57is a creature

26:57that's basically

26:58as long as

26:58a school bus

26:59Now imagine

27:00how big

27:01a giant squid

27:02had to look

27:03to sailors

27:03who were in

27:04boats that were

27:04just a few dozen

27:05feet long

27:06Was the Scylla

27:10based on real

27:11sightings of a

27:12giant squid?

27:16And what about

27:17its neighbor

27:17the whirlpool

27:19Charybdis?

27:21Modern oceanographers

27:22have discovered

27:23a giant whirlpool

27:24zone that matches

27:25its description

27:26in the narrow

27:27strait of Messina

27:28between Italy

27:29and Sicily

27:30To the north

27:31you have the

27:32Tyrrhenian Sea

27:33to the south

27:33the Ionian Sea

27:35The waters

27:36of the Tyrrhenian

27:37and Ionian

27:37Seas actually

27:38are quite different

27:39As a result

27:40the water moving

27:41back and forth

27:42through these

27:43straits

27:44is tremendously

27:45churned up

27:46and you get

27:47huge whirlpools

27:49and vicious tides

27:50We can scarcely

27:53imagine just how

27:54powerful they

27:55must have been

27:56back in ancient

27:56times

27:57especially for

27:57sailors who

27:58were going

27:58through them

27:59Giant squids

28:02treacherous whirlpools

28:04two real life

28:06threats faced

28:06by ancient sailors

28:07Could they have

28:09been the inspiration

28:10behind this

28:11chapter of the

28:12Odyssey?

28:12In the midst

28:18Odysseus has just

28:19seen six of his

28:21men torn apart

28:22by the Scylla

28:22When his ship

28:24reaches safety

28:25he gives in to

28:26his shell-shocked

28:27crew's demand

28:28for rest

28:29Despite the

28:31prophet Tiresias'

28:32warning to stay

28:33away from the

28:34sun god's cattle

28:35he agrees to

28:36make landfall

28:37on the island

28:37where the cattle

28:38are kept

28:39Odysseus

28:41sees the cattle

28:43and he says

28:44to his men

28:45Okay, we're on

28:46the island

28:46overnight

28:46Whatever you do

28:47don't eat

28:48those

28:48Do not eat

28:49those

28:49But with supplies

28:52running low

28:53and starvation

28:54setting in

28:55the crew

28:56disobeys Odysseus

28:57and butchers

28:58the cattle

28:58It will be the

29:01last meal

29:02they ever eat

29:04Helios

29:12Helios

29:12the sun god

29:13is furious

29:14and turns to

29:15Zeus

29:16the king of gods

29:17for justice

29:18Angering a god

29:21in antiquity

29:21was one of the

29:22worst moves

29:23you can make

29:23The gods

29:25didn't have

29:25a lot of

29:26qualms

29:27about using

29:27their powers

29:28to punish

29:29mortals

29:29that they

29:30disapproved of

29:31Zeus agrees

29:33to punish

29:34the trespassers

29:35He sends

29:37a perfect storm

29:38that strikes

29:39down

29:39Odysseus' ship

29:40All the men

29:49perish

29:49Except for one

29:56Odysseus is spared

30:01because he alone

30:03didn't eat

30:03the cattle

30:04But this is where

30:06the good news ends

30:07Now he has

30:09no men

30:09no boat

30:11and no idea

30:13where he is

30:19After three years

30:26at sea

30:26Odysseus

30:27has lost

30:28all his men

30:29and ships

30:29He is alone

30:31isolated

30:32and still

30:34no closer

30:34to home

30:35He is washed

30:39up on the

30:39island paradise

30:40of another

30:41beautiful

30:41seductress

30:42The nymph

30:44Calypso

30:45In Greek mythology

30:50nymphs were

30:52pretty young

30:52girls

30:53with magical

30:53powers

30:54Every man's

30:56wildest fantasy

30:57They lived

30:59in forests

31:01and in

31:01woodlands

31:02As their name

31:03implies

31:04nymphs

31:04or nymphomaniac

31:05is our English

31:06word

31:06They were very

31:07sprightly

31:08in their behavior

31:09At this point

31:15Odysseus

31:16is relieved

31:17just to be

31:18alive

31:18Washing up

31:19on the island

31:20of a beautiful

31:21nymph

31:21is an

31:22unexpected

31:22bonus

31:23While his

31:25wife Penelope

31:26faithfully

31:26preserves

31:27her chastity

31:28back home

31:28Odysseus

31:30treats himself

31:31to another

31:31extramarital

31:32tryst

31:33This time

31:35he winds up

31:35staying

31:36seven years

31:37Odysseus

31:43is given

31:43license

31:44to pretty

31:45much

31:45sleep

31:45with whoever

31:45he wants

31:46There doesn't

31:47seem to be

31:48in Homer's

31:49tale

31:49any particularly

31:50negative

31:51connotation

31:52that's attached

31:53to Odysseus'

31:54dalliances

31:54In fact

31:55they seem

31:55to make him

31:56into a greater

31:56more powerful

31:58kind of man

31:58because he can

31:59conquer all

32:00these women

32:01Calypso

32:04promises

32:05Odysseus

32:06immortality

32:06if he'll

32:07stay with

32:07her forever

32:08but he refuses

32:10knowing he must

32:11return to his

32:12wife

32:12and his

32:13kingdom

32:14In some

32:15ways

32:15it's a stupid

32:16choice

32:17to pick

32:18mortality

32:18and being a

32:20man

32:20over being

32:21a demigod

32:22but for

32:23Odysseus

32:24it's not a

32:24question

32:25he must

32:26reject

32:27Calypso

32:28he must

32:29leave

32:29Calypso

32:30to fulfill

32:31his fate

32:31as a man

32:32but with

32:35no ship

32:35to take

32:35him home

32:36Odysseus

32:38must take

32:38matters

32:38into his

32:39own hands

32:40he builds

32:44himself

32:44a boat

32:45for ancient

32:49Greeks

32:50carpentry

32:51was understood

32:52to be

32:52one of the

32:53great gifts

32:55and intellectual

32:56accomplishments

32:56in antiquity

32:57we often call

32:59Odysseus' craft

33:00a raft

33:01but it's anything

33:02but a raft

33:03it's got a mast

33:04it's got a rudder

33:05it's got gunnels

33:06it was a metaphor

33:08of his wisdom

33:09it's a part of

33:10his cleverness

33:11that he's able

33:12to be such

33:13a wise carpenter

33:14when the boat

33:17is finished

33:18Odysseus

33:19returns to sea

33:20he has spent

33:23nearly 20 years

33:24away from home

33:25now the end

33:27of the road

33:28is finally

33:28in sight

33:29and it's not

33:33a moment

33:34too soon

33:34back on the

33:36home front

33:36his loyal

33:37wife Penelope

33:38has exhausted

33:39all of her

33:40stall tactics

33:40to ward off

33:41the men

33:42who have

33:42pursued her

33:42year after year

33:44her suitors

33:46are losing

33:46their patience

33:47the suitors

33:48say he's not

33:49coming home

33:50he's not

33:50coming back

33:51his ship

33:52must have

33:52been destroyed

33:53on the way

33:54you must

33:55choose one

33:56of us

33:56as Odysseus'

33:58successor

33:59can Odysseus

34:01get back to

34:01Ithaca

34:02before it's

34:02too late

34:03like many

34:12elements of

34:13Homer's

34:13Odyssey

34:14the island

34:15home of

34:15Odysseus

34:16has a clear

34:17connection to

34:18reality

34:18for centuries

34:20scholars have

34:20pondered which

34:21Greek island

34:22the author had

34:22in mind

34:23when he wrote

34:24his epic story

34:25traditionally

34:27it is believed

34:27to be a Greek

34:28island known

34:29today as

34:30Ithaca

34:30but Homer's

34:33writings about

34:34Ithaca

34:34don't match up

34:36with its

34:36modern day

34:37namesake

34:37look at what

34:38Homer says

34:39Homer says

34:39Ithaca

34:40is the western

34:41island

34:42the furthest

34:43out to sea

34:44and it's low

34:44lying and

34:45you think

34:45hello this is

34:46completely wrong

34:47Ithaca is not

34:49the furthest

34:49out to the west

34:50it's not the

34:51furthest out to

34:52the sea

34:52when researchers

34:54compared ancient

34:55maps with

34:56modern day

34:57satellite images

34:57an island called

34:59Cephalonia

35:00next to Ithaca

35:01caught their

35:02attention

35:02it seemed to

35:04match Homer's

35:05description of

35:06Ithaca in

35:06every way

35:07but one

35:08what Homer

35:10describes is

35:11four islands

35:11he says there

35:12should be four

35:13islands here

35:13well we have a

35:15problem there's

35:16only really three

35:16where's the

35:17fourth island

35:18and he also

35:19says that

35:20Homer's Ithaca

35:21the disuse of

35:22Ithaca

35:22should be

35:22furthest to

35:23the west

35:23now you solve

35:25the problem

35:25if you split

35:27Cephalonia in

35:28half

35:28if you say

35:29that the

35:29western peninsula

35:30of Cephalonia

35:313000 years ago

35:33might have been

35:34a freestanding

35:35island

35:35could the

35:36single island

35:37once have

35:38been two

35:39in 2006

35:44a team of

35:45scientists

35:45set out to

35:46solve the

35:46mystery

35:47using high-tech

35:50surveying equipment

35:50the kind used

35:52in oil and gas

35:52exploration

35:53they drilled a

35:54400-foot hole

35:56into the ground

35:56of the low-lying

35:57valley that lies

35:59between Cephalonia's

36:00east and west

36:00branches

36:01if there was ever

36:03a split in the

36:03island this would

36:05have been the

36:05place

36:06we went on

36:08drilling until we

36:09ran out of drill

36:10stem actually and

36:11that was about 15

36:11meters below sea

36:12level and at no

36:13point did we hit

36:14solid mountain

36:15bedrock

36:16now you know

36:17how unlikely is

36:18that

36:19the simplest

36:20explanation of

36:21that is to say

36:21that at some

36:22point

36:23the sea went

36:24through that

36:24valley and you

36:25can still see

36:26residue of that

36:27today

36:27these results

36:29suggest that the

36:30valley was once

36:31underwater

36:31and it makes

36:33Cephalonia a prime

36:34candidate for being

36:35Homer's Ithaca

36:36the island

36:38Odysseus finally

36:39saw on the horizon

36:4020 years after he

36:42went off to fight

36:43the Trojan War

36:44Odysseus never gave

36:46up

36:46he spent years

36:47trying to get

36:48home but he was

36:49going to get home

36:49one way or another

36:50against all odds

36:57Odysseus is

36:59finally home

37:00it is the moment

37:15he has been dreaming

37:16about for the past

37:17two decades

37:18but there is no

37:20homecoming parade

37:21waiting for him

37:22instead the final

37:26arrangements are

37:27being made to

37:28redistribute his

37:28power

37:29unless he can pull

37:31off one more

37:32miracle

37:32Odysseus will lose

37:34everything he's

37:35fought to come

37:35home to

37:36it is the setup

37:39for a dramatic

37:40ending

37:40but could Odysseus'

37:42homecoming have

37:43really happened

37:43and if so

37:44when

37:45using clues

37:47buried in the

37:48Odyssey

37:48modern astronomers

37:49have been able to

37:50pinpoint the exact

37:51date Homer had in

37:53mind

37:53Odysseus' return to

38:07Ithaca was a journey

38:08that took 20 years

38:09sent over 600 men

38:11to their graves

38:12and 14 ships

38:14to the sea floor

38:15finally

38:21after all that

38:22the hero is home

38:24but is he too late

38:25to save his wife

38:26and his kingdom

38:28when Odysseus

38:30returns home

38:31his island

38:33kingdom of Ithaca

38:34is in a state

38:35of complete chaos

38:36everything has been

38:40going terribly wrong

38:41his wife is beset

38:43his household is beset

38:44by suitors

38:44108 suitors

38:46Odysseus realizes

38:54he can't just walk

38:55into his palace

38:56and reclaim

38:57his former life

38:58these suitors

38:59have long coveted

39:00his queen

39:01and his kingdom

39:02if they find out

39:04that Odysseus

39:05has returned

39:06they will undoubtedly

39:08try to kill him

39:09before he can

39:09recapture his throne

39:10one last time

39:13Odysseus must outwit

39:15outlast

39:16and outplay

39:17his enemies

39:18to survive

39:18when Odysseus

39:21arrives in Ithaca

39:22he doesn't come

39:23with a great following

39:25he doesn't arrive

39:26as the great

39:28returning king

39:29he actually

39:29disguises himself

39:31as an old beggar

39:34and he does this

39:36probably partially

39:37because he's not sure

39:39of what reception

39:40he'll receive

39:41meanwhile

39:44Odysseus' long

39:46suffering wife

39:47Penelope

39:47finally yields

39:48to the suitors

39:49pressure

39:49and announces

39:51an archery contest

39:52to determine

39:53her new husband

39:54whoever can string

39:56Odysseus' bow

39:57and shoot an arrow

39:58through twelve axes

39:59will win her hand

40:00in marriage

40:01it is the fateful day

40:13in Ithaca

40:14just before the game

40:23is about to begin

40:24Homer writes

40:25that the sun

40:26is blotted out

40:27of the sky

40:28for centuries

40:30this one line

40:31has been scrutinized

40:32is it a poetic device

40:34to build suspense

40:35or the record

40:36of a real event

40:37even the ancient Greeks

40:45thought this may be

40:46meant that

40:46Odysseus

40:47was returning home

40:48on the day

40:48of a total eclipse

40:50recently

40:52scientists

40:53examined the Odyssey

40:54for astronomical evidence

40:55that could reveal

40:56the exact date

40:57Homer was referring to

40:59they looked more closely

41:02at all the references

41:03in the Odyssey

41:04that might refer

41:06to something

41:07about astronomical events

41:09they then tried

41:10to match up

41:10those combinations

41:11of events

41:12with their eclipse dates

41:14and they found

41:18and they found

41:18that in fact

41:19it all matched

41:20for one of those eclipses

41:21one that took place

41:22on April 16th

41:241178 BC

41:26so it's possible

41:28that that was the day

41:31when Odysseus

41:32returned home

41:33to Penelope

41:34in the myth

41:41a two decade pursuit

41:43of Penelope

41:43now comes down

41:44to one main event

41:45one suitor

41:48after another

41:49proves too weak

41:50to string

41:51Odysseus' bow

41:52they are all

41:56about to give up

41:56when a tattered beggar

41:59steps forward

42:00and the beggar

42:02steps up

42:03and wants a turn

42:03but by the rules

42:05he should have a turn

42:06their response

42:08is to

42:09be irate

42:10and to deride him

42:13but the beggar

42:17strings the bow

42:18without any hesitation

42:20and the laughing

42:22suddenly stops

42:23he lines up his shot

42:26it flies

42:31straight through

42:32the 12 axe handles

42:33the contest is over

42:37but the suitors

42:39are not about

42:39to give up

42:40without a fight

42:41Odysseus' final battle

42:50ends with the suitors

42:51slaughtered

42:51and the hero victorious

42:53he has won back

43:01his throne

43:01now he has to win back

43:05his woman

43:06the king of cunning

43:08has one last test

43:10to pass

43:10after Odysseus

43:12has slaughtered

43:12all the suitors

43:13then he and Penelope

43:15enjoy a very intimate moment

43:16and they sit across

43:17from each other

43:18lit only by firelight

43:19Penelope has one last test

43:22after a long conversation

43:24she says to her servants

43:26I want this stranger

43:27to be comfortable

43:28so please

43:29bring my own bed

43:30out of my chambers

43:31and put it on the porch

43:32and let this stranger

43:33sleep in my own bed

43:34at that point

43:36Odysseus realizes

43:38that his wife

43:39is giving him

43:39a final test

43:40and he says

43:41Penelope

43:41I know this is a test

43:43I built our bed

43:44around this tree

43:45rooted

43:46into the ground

43:47our bed

43:48cannot be moved

43:49because

43:49she has never

43:50let anyone inside

43:52of that bedroom

43:52she knows for sure

43:54only Odysseus

43:55would know

43:55that that bed

43:56is not movable

43:56Odysseus' long journey

44:01his odyssey

44:02is at its end

44:04but his legend

44:05will endure

44:07it was common

44:09among ancient

44:10Greek warriors

44:11to have as a decoration

44:12on their armor

44:13the figure of Odysseus

44:15he was there for them

44:17as a symbol

44:17of someone

44:18who had always

44:19endured pain

44:19Odysseus' very name

44:21in Greek

44:22means

44:23man of pain

44:24he suffers

44:26like all of us suffer

44:27but maybe

44:30unlike all of us

44:31Odysseus

44:31always also

44:32endures

44:33so it's that ability

44:38I think

44:39to always get back up

44:40after being knocked down

44:41that makes him

44:42a character

44:43that's so relatable

44:44to people

44:44over many centuries

44:45he's pernah

44:46he's

44:59and he's

45:00one guy

45:00and he

45:01now

45:03he

45:04down

45:04he

45:05he

45:06has been

45:06he

45:07he

45:07now

45:07zo

History Channel - Clash of the Gods - S01E07 Odysseus Part 2

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