| Encounters with the Muses |
| The Muses and Apollon |
| The Muses in The Iliad (reference) |
| The Muses in The Odyssey (reference) |
The Muses are the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (Memory). Zeus came to Mnemosyne on nine consecutive nights and the nine daughters were the result of those nine unions. Mnemosyne gave birth to the nine girls near the topmost peaks of Mount Olympos (Olympus). All nine girls are of one mind ... they are free of spirit and have their hearts set upon song ... they sing of the laws of the Immortals and the goodly ways of a life. Their homes and bright dancing places are on Mount Olympos but they may appear to anyone as long as the performer is paying tribute to the immortal gods with their art. (Theogony, lines 1-53)
According to the poet, Hesiod, the Muses frequent Mount Helicon and the area around Mount Olympos known as Pieria. They arise by night and, shrouded in mist, walk the hills and bathe in springs. By calling upon and receiving the blessings of the Muses, a poet or dancer or musician can transcend the normal bounds of talent and rise to unimagined levels of creative insight. (Works and Days, lines 1 and 658) (Theogony, lines 1-53)
They are listed by name in the poem Theogony (lines 77+) but the specific attributes of each goddess were added by later poets:
Kalliope holds the highest rank of the Muses and attends the birth of kingly nobles and gives (or withholds) the gifts of the Muses as the Immortals deem fit. Mere mortals who are blessed by the Muses, can use the beauty of their song, or the grace of their dance, to heal the sick and comfort the heartbroken. (Theogony, line 80)
One story says that a singer and poet named Thamyris belittled the Muses ... he mocked them and made light of their skills. For his insolence, Thamyris was maimed and lost his memory ... he could no longer remember his songs or poems. The Muses can bestow the gift of talent and insight but they can also, viciously, revoke their blessings. King Pierus boasted that his nine daughters rivaled the Muses in beauty and talent ... all nine girls were turned into magpies for their father’s impudence.
When the poet Hesiod encountered the Muses they gave him a rod of laurel and said that they could say many false things as if they were true but that, when they wished, they could reveal the truth. They breathed a divine voice into him so that he could sing of things that will come to pass and things that came aforetime. Under the influence of their immortal guidance, Hesiod composed the poem, Theogony, i.e. The Origins of the Gods. (Theogony, lines 26-35)
Even the author of The Battle of Mice and Frogs gave praise to the Muses in his comic poem satirizing The Iliad. After reading this poem, it is easy to see that comedy, like historical epics, requires the touch of divine genius that only the Muses can provide.
The Muses attend the festivals on Mount Olympos and entertain and inspire the Immortals with their wit and charm. Apollon puts aside his bow and plays the lyre while the Muses sing of the unending gifts the Immortals enjoy and the plight of the mere mortals who must endure the pains of illness and the failings of old age. Hebe (goddess of Youth), the Graces, the Seasons, Harmonia, Artemis and Aphrodite (goddess of Love) hold hands as they join in the dance. (Hymn to Pythian Apollon, line 189)
It is by the grace of the Muses and Apollon that we have singers and lyre players but kings and princes come from Zeus. (Hymn to the Muses and Apollon)
At the shrine for Apollon in Delphi, Artemis, the Muses and the Graces gather to dance and sing the praises of Leto for bringing her shining children into the world. (Hymn to Artemis, line 15)
In the poem, The Contest of Homer and Hesiod, the author tells of how after Hesiod won the competition he dedicated the prize tripod to the Muses. He then went to Delphi to make a dedication to Apollon but as he was approaching the temple, the priestess had a divine revelation and warned Hesiod to avoid the precincts of Nemean Zeus. Hesiod misinterpreted the priestess and inadvertently went to live in the exact place the priestess had told him to avoid ... he was subsequently killed in a precinct sacred to Nemean Zeus. (The Contest of Homer and Hesiod)
A Muse holding a mask; possibly Melpomene (the Songstress), the Muse of Tragedy.
The line numbers listed here correspond fairly well with the Lattimore and Murray/Wyatt translations of The Iliad. Other translations (Fitzgerald, Fagles et al) do not correspond as well but, with a small amount of effort, you should be able to find the reference you need regardless of the translation you use. Lattimore (ISBN 0226469409); A.T. Murray/William F. Wyatt Vol. I & II (ISBN 0674995791 and 0674995805); Robert Fitzgerald (ISBN 0374529051); Robert Fagles (ISBN 0140275363)
The line numbers listed here correspond fairly well with the Lattimore and Murray/Dimock translations of The Odyssey. Other translations (Fitzgerald, Fagles et al) do not correspond as well but, with a small amount of effort, you should be able to find the reference you need regardless of the translation you use. Richmond Lattimore (ISBN 0060931957); A.T. Murray/George E. Dimock Vol. I & II (ISBN 0674995619 and 0674995627); Robert Fitzgerald (ISBN 0374525749); Robert Fagles (ISBN 0140268863)
