Lycaon and the Council of the Gods

When the son of Saturn saw this from his high citadel, he groaned, and — the deed not yet spread abroad, but fresh — the foul banquet of a Lycaonian table filled him with vast wrath, worthy of Jove himself, and he called a council: no delay held back the called. There is a highway, plain to see in cloudless sky: they call it the Milky Way, famous for its very whiteness. That is the road the gods take to the halls of the great Thunderer, to the royal house: on right and left the courts of noble gods are thronged, their gates flung open; the common gods dwell in other quarters: here the powerful and famous dwellers of heaven have set their household gods. This is the place which — if I may give my words such daring — I should not fear to call the Palatine of high heaven.

So when the gods had taken their seats in the marble recess, Jove himself, higher than all, leaned upon his ivory scepter, and three times, and four, shook his dread head, that shakes together earth, sea, and stars. Then in such wise he loosed his indignant lips: 'Not even in that season was I more anxious for the world's rule, when each of the hundred-handed snakes prepared to throw his captive arms about the sky. For though the enemy was savage, still that war hung from one body, from one origin. Now, wherever Nereus sounds around the world, the mortal race must perish: I swear it by the rivers of the underworld, sliding beneath the earth through the Stygian grove! Yet all must first be tried; but what no cure can mend must be cut off with the blade, lest the sound part be dragged down.

There are demigods of mine, and rustic powers, the nymphs, fauns, satyrs, and the mountain-dwelling silvani: since we do not yet vouchsafe them the honor of heaven, let us at least allow them to inhabit the lands we gave them. Do you believe, o gods above, that they will be safe enough, when Lycaon, known to me for savagery, has laid snares for me — me, who hold the thunderbolt, who hold and rule you?' All roared assent, and with burning zeal called down the punishment upon the daring one: even so, when an impious band raged to extinguish the Roman name in Caesar's blood, mankind was struck with sudden terror at so great a fall, and the whole world shuddered; nor was the piety of your own people less pleasing to you, Augustus, than was that to Jove. And when with voice and hand he had pressed down the murmur, all held their silence.

As the clamor, quelled by the weight of the ruler, stood still, Jove a second time broke the quiet: 'He has paid his penalty (dismiss this care!). But as to the deed, hear what the vengeance was. The infamy of the age had reached my ears; desiring to disprove it, I slid down from high Olympus, and, a god, went over the earth in human guise. Long were the task to count up everywhere what evil was to be found: the infamy itself was less than truth. I had passed over Maenala, dread with the lairs of beasts, and the pine-forests of Cyllene with cold Lycaeus: from there I entered the Arcadian seat, and the inhospitable halls of the tyrant, as late twilight was drawing on the night. I gave the signs of a god come; the crowd began to pray.

Lycaon laughed first at their pious prayers, then said: "I will make trial, by an open test, whether this be a god or a mortal: the truth will not be doubtful." He made ready to destroy me, heavy with sleep, by an unexpected death: this test of truth pleased him; and not content with that, with a blade he opened the throat of a hostage sent from the Molossian race, and so, part softened the half-dead limbs in boiling water, part roasted them on fires beneath. No sooner had he set these on the table than I, with avenging flame, overthrew the household gods upon their lord, well worthy of the lord. He himself fled terrified, and reaching the quiet fields howled, and tried in vain to speak: from his own mouth his rabid rage gathered, and, with his old desire for slaughter, he turned upon the flocks, and even now delights in blood.

His garments pass into hair, his arms into legs: he becomes a wolf, and keeps the traces of his former shape; the same grey hair, the same violence in his face, the same eyes gleam, the same image of ferocity. One house has fallen — but one house only did not deserve to fall: wherever the earth extends, the savage Fury reigns. You would think they had all sworn together on the deed! Let all give, with all speed — such is my decree — the penalties they have deserved.' Part approved the words of Jove, and adding goads to his hot anger; part filled out the speech with approving signs. Yet to all it was a grief, the loss of humankind, and they asked what would be the face of a world bereft of mortals: who would carry incense to the altars, or was he to deliver the lands to wild beasts to be ravaged?

Asking these things (for the rest, they said, was his care) the king of the gods forbade their trembling, and promised a generation unlike the first people, of wondrous origin. He was even now about to scatter his thunderbolts through all the lands; but he feared, lest by chance the holy ether, with so many fires, should catch the flames, and the long axis of the world be set ablaze: he remembered too that it stood in the fates, that a time would come when sea, and land, and the seized palace of the sky should burn, and the mass of the world, beleaguered, labor. The weapons forged by the Cyclops' hands were laid aside: a different punishment pleases him — to destroy the mortal race beneath the waves, and to let loose the rains from all the reaches of the sky.

When the son of Saturn saw this from his high citadel, he groaned — and the deed, not yet made public, still fresh, the filthy banquet of a Lycaonian table filled him with rage worthy of Jove himself. He called a council, and no delay held back those he summoned. There is a highway, plainly visible in a clear sky: they call it the Milky Way, famous for its very whiteness. This is the road the gods take to the halls of the great Thunderer and his royal house. On the right and left, the courts of the noble gods stand open with their doors wide; the common gods live in other quarters. Here the powerful and famous dwellers in heaven have made their homes: this is the place which — if I may give my words such boldness — I would not fear to call the Palatine of high heaven.

So when the gods had taken their seats in the marble hall, Jove himself, highest of all, leaned on his ivory scepter, and three times and four he shook his dreadful head, which shakes earth, sea, and stars together. Then he let his anger speak: "I was not more troubled for the rule of the world even in that season, when each of the hundred-handed serpents tried to throw his captive arms around the sky. Fierce as that enemy was, that war came from one body, one origin. Now, wherever the waters of Nereus sound around the world, the race of men must perish. I swear it by the rivers of hell, that slide beneath the earth through the Stygian grove! But they must all be tried first; only what no cure can mend must be cut away with the knife, so the healthy flesh is not dragged down. I have demigods of my own, and country spirits, nymphs, fauns, satyrs, and the silvani who live in the mountains: since we do not yet think them worthy of heaven, at least let them be allowed to live safely in the lands we gave them. Do you believe they can be safe, o gods, when Lycaon — known to me for his savagery — has laid snares for me, for me who hold the thunderbolt and who hold and rule you?"

All of them roared their agreement, and with burning zeal called down punishment on the daring man. Just so, when an impious band raged to wipe out the Roman name in Caesar's blood, mankind was struck dumb with terror at so great a fall, and the whole world shuddered; nor was the loyalty of your own people less pleasing to you, Augustus, than theirs was to Jove. And when with voice and hand he had pressed down their murmur, all were silent. Then, as the uproar, quelled by the weight of the ruler, died away, Jove broke the silence a second time: "He has paid the penalty — set that care aside. But hear the deed, and what the punishment was. The infamy of the age had reached my ears. Wanting to disprove it, I slipped down from high Olympus and traveled over the earth as a man. It would take too long to count the evils found everywhere: the rumor was smaller than the truth. I had crossed Maenala, dense with the lairs of wild beasts, and the pine forests of Cyllene and cold Lycaeus, and from there entered the Arcadian home of the tyrant just as late dusk was bringing on the night. I let the signs of a god be seen; the common people began to pray. Lycaon laughed at their prayers, and said: 'I will find out by an open test whether this is a god or a mortal — the proof will not be long.' He planned to destroy me in the night, asleep, by an unexpected death: that was his test of the truth. And not content with that, with a knife he cut the throat of a hostage sent from the Molossian nation, and softened part of the still-living flesh in boiling water and roasted the rest on fires below. No sooner had he served it up on the table than I brought the roof down on the household gods with a bolt of vengeance — a god repaid as he deserved. Lycaon himself fled in terror, and reaching the silent fields, howled, and tried in vain to speak: his mouth filled with rabid rage, and true to his old love of slaughter, he turned against the flocks, and even now delights in blood. His clothing turns to shaggy hair, his arms to legs: he is a wolf, keeping the traces of his old shape — the same grey hair, the same violent face, the same gleaming eyes, the same picture of ferocity. One house has fallen — but only one house deserved to fall. Wherever the earth stretches, savage Fury holds its throne. You would think they had all sworn the same oath! Let them all, quickly, pay the penalties they have earned — such is my decree."

Some approved the words of Jove and added fuel to his hot anger; others filled out the speech with signs of approval. But all of them grieved at the loss of humankind, and asked what the world would be like without mortals: who would carry incense to the altars? Or was Jove going to hand the lands over to be torn apart by wild beasts? As they asked these things — the rest, they said, was his own care — the king of the gods told them not to worry, and promised he would people the world with a race of wondrous origin, different from the first. And he was even now ready to scatter his thunderbolts over all the lands — but he was afraid the holy ether might catch fire from so many flames and the long axis of the sky blaze up. He remembered too that the fates had ordained a time when sea, land, and the palace of the sky, caught in the flames, would burn, and the whole mass of the world would labor, besieged. The weapons forged by the Cyclops' hands were put away. A different punishment pleased him: to destroy the human race beneath the waves, and let loose the rains from every quarter of the sky.