The Odyssey · chapter 11 of 29
The Land of the Dead
死人住的地方
At the dark edge of the world, Odysseus holds back a crowd of ghosts with his sword, and the first one to speak is someone he never expected.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 喀耳刻的北风带着船，走了一天。那里没有太阳。
Kǎ'ěrkè de běifēng dàizhe chuán, zǒu le yì tiān. Nàlǐ méiyǒu tàiyáng.
Circe's north wind carried the ship for a whole day. In that place, there was no sun.
- Narrator 奥德修斯杀了两只黑羊，血流到了地上。
Àodéxiūsī shā le liǎng zhī hēi yáng, xuè liú dào le dì shang.
Odysseus killed two black sheep, and their blood ran onto the ground.
- Odysseus 好多鬼！别过来！特瑞西阿斯先喝！
Hǎo duō guǐ! Bié guòlai! Tèruìxī'āsī xiān hē!
So many ghosts! Stay back! Tiresias drinks first!
Chapter 11 is part of SayMei Stories Unlimited ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Part 1 of The Odyssey (chapters 1–4) is free, and The Second Cup of Tea, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, The Kitchen God, Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, Chang'e and the Moon, Alice in Wonderland and Judge Dee's Cases are free from start to finish.
- Elpenor 奥德修斯！是我，埃尔佩诺！
Àodéxiūsī! Shì wǒ, Āi'ěrpèinuò!
Odysseus! It's me, Elpenor!
- Odysseus 埃尔佩诺？你走路，怎么比我的船还快？
Āi'ěrpèinuò? Nǐ zǒulù, zěnme bǐ wǒ de chuán hái kuài?
Elpenor? You came on foot. How did you beat my ship here?
- Elpenor 那天早上，我喝多了，在喀耳刻的房子上边睡觉。
Nà tiān zǎoshang, wǒ hē duō le, zài Kǎ'ěrkè de fángzi shàngbian shuìjiào.
That morning I'd had too much wine, and I was asleep up on Circe's roof.
- Elpenor 我站起来，就掉下来了。
Wǒ zhàn qǐlai, jiù diào xiàlai le.
I stood up, and I fell.
- Elpenor 求你回去，在海边埋了我，再把我的桨放在上边。
Qiú nǐ huíqu, zài hǎibiān mái le wǒ, zài bǎ wǒ de jiǎng fàng zài shàngbian.
Please go back and bury me by the sea, and put my oar on top.
- Odysseus 我答应你，埃尔佩诺。
Wǒ dāying nǐ, Āi'ěrpèinuò.
I promise, Elpenor.
- Odysseus 妈妈？您怎么也在这儿？
Māma? Nín zěnme yě zài zhèr?
Mother? Why are you here too?
- Odysseus 对不起，妈妈，您还不能喝。
Duìbuqǐ, māma, nín hái bù néng hē.
I'm sorry, Mother. You can't drink yet.
- Tiresias 奥德修斯，拿开你的剑，让我喝。
Àodéxiūsī, nákāi nǐ de jiàn, ràng wǒ hē.
Odysseus, take your sword away and let me drink.
- Tiresias 海神还在生气。你让他的儿子看不见了。
Hǎishén hái zài shēngqì. Nǐ ràng tā de érzi kàn bu jiàn le.
The sea god is still angry. You blinded his son.
- Tiresias 别碰太阳神的牛！碰了，你的人都会死。
Bié pèng tàiyángshén de niú! Pèng le, nǐ de rén dōu huì sǐ.
Don't touch the Sun god's cows! If you do, all your men will die.
- Tiresias 你会很晚才回家，一个人，坐别人的船。
Nǐ huì hěn wǎn cái huí jiā, yí gè rén, zuò biérén de chuán.
You will come home late, alone, on another man's ship.
- Tiresias 到了家，你会看见很多人向你的妻子求婚。你会杀了他们。
Dào le jiā, nǐ huì kànjiàn hěn duō rén xiàng nǐ de qīzi qiúhūn. Nǐ huì shā le tāmen.
At home, you will find many men asking to marry your wife. You will kill them.
- Odysseus 我妈妈为什么不跟我说话？
Wǒ māma wèishénme bù gēn wǒ shuōhuà?
Why won't my mother speak to me?
- Tiresias 让她喝一点儿血，她就认识你了。
Ràng tā hē yìdiǎnr xuè, tā jiù rènshi nǐ le.
Let her drink a little blood, and she will know you.
- Anticleia 孩子，你还活着！你怎么来了？
Háizi, nǐ hái huózhe! Nǐ zěnme lái le?
My child, you're still alive! How did you get here?
- Odysseus 妈妈，佩涅洛佩好吗？我的儿子呢？
Māma, Pèinièluòpèi hǎo ma? Wǒ de érzi ne?
Mother, is Penelope well? And my son?
- Anticleia 她白天哭，晚上也哭，还在等你。你的儿子很好。
Tā báitiān kū, wǎnshang yě kū, hái zài děng nǐ. Nǐ de érzi hěn hǎo.
She cries by day and by night, and she's still waiting for you. Your son is well.
- Anticleia 你爸爸一个人在地里，很难过。
Nǐ bàba yí gè rén zài dì li, hěn nánguò.
Your father lives alone out in the fields, and he is very sad.
- Odysseus 妈妈，您是怎么死的？
Māma, nín shì zěnme sǐ de?
Mother, how did you die?
- Anticleia 我天天想你，想了很多年，就死了。
Wǒ tiāntiān xiǎng nǐ, xiǎng le hěn duō nián, jiù sǐ le.
I missed you every day, for years and years, and then I died.
- Narrator 他三次去拉她的手。三次，她都像烟一样走了。
Tā sān cì qù lā tā de shǒu. Sān cì, tā dōu xiàng yān yíyàng zǒu le.
Three times he reached for her hand. Three times she slipped away like smoke.
- Odysseus 又来了好多鬼，都在哭！
Yòu lái le hǎo duō guǐ, dōu zài kū!
More ghosts are coming, and they're all crying!
- Odysseus 我要走！快回船上去！
Wǒ yào zǒu! Kuài huí chuán shang qu!
I have to go! Back to the ship, now!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- How did Elpenor die?
“在喀耳刻的房子上边睡觉……我站起来，就掉下来了”
- What does Elpenor ask Odysseus to put on top of his grave?
“把我的桨放在上边”
- What does Tiresias say will happen if Odysseus's men touch the Sun god's cows?
“碰了，你的人都会死”
- What does Tiresias say Odysseus will find at home?
“你会看见很多人向你的妻子求婚”
- How did Odysseus's mother die?
“我天天想你，想了很多年，就死了”