The Odyssey Apollo Quotes

"how would you like to bed the golden Aphrodite?"
"Oh Apollo, if only!" the giant-killer cried.
"Archer, bind me down with triple those endless chains!
Let all you gods look on, and all you goddesses too –
how I’d love to bed that golden Aphrodite!"

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 8, lines 380-384. Like humans, the gods have a sense of humor too, as shown by this banter between Apollo and Hermes in the bawdy tale told by bard Demodocus. Apollo and Hermes are talking about how they would bed the goddess of love Aphrodite. This is after Aphrodite is caught in the act of adultery with god of war Ares. The goddess is married to god of fire Hephaestus.

Hunger never attacks the land, no sickness either,
that always stalks the lives of us poor men.
No, as each generation grows old on the island,
down Apollo comes with his silver bow, with Artemis,
and they shoot them all to death with gentle arrows.

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 15, lines 457-461. Eumaeus begins his own story of how he was born into royalty on the idyllic island of Syrie. There is no hunger or sickness there and people just grow old and die a gentle death at the hands of god of archery Apollo and goddess of the hunt Artemis.

"Today is a feast-day up and down the island
in honor of the Archer God. Who flexes bows today?
Set it aside. Rest easy now. And all the axes,
let’s just leave them planted where they are.
Trust me, no one’s about to crash the gates
of Laertes’ son and carry off these trophies."

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 21, lines 288-293. After suitor Eurymachus fails to even bend Odysseus’ great bow, Antinous comes up with an excuse to postpone the archery contest. As it is the feast day of god of archery Apollo when nobody uses a bow, he suggests that they try again the following day and leave the axes in place. He says confidently that no one is going to attack the place and carry off the axes. This is ironic, because Odysseus is already in the palace with a plan in place to attack the suitors.

Now stripping back his rags Odysseus master of craft and battle
vaulted onto the great threshold, gripping his bow and quiver
bristling arrows, and poured his flashing shafts before him,
loose at his feet, and thundered out to all the suitors:
"Look – your crucial test is finished, now, at last!
But another target’s left that no one’s hit before –
we’ll see if I can hit it – Apollo give me glory!"

– Homer

The Odyssey, Book 22, lines 1-7. Odysseus reveals himself to the suitors and begins his revenge in these opening opening lines of Book 22. Seizing his great bow and quiver of arrows, he prays to archery god Apollo to give him glory in his battle.
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