The ENTIRE Story of The Odyssey Explained

[00:00:00]The Odyssey is one of the oldest stories ever told, nearly 3,000 years old. But the entire 10-year nightmare happened because one man couldn't keep his mouth shut after winning a fight. Yeah, seriously. Odysius had already escaped.

[00:00:14]He was safely sailing away when he turned around and shouted his real name at the monster he'd just blinded. That single moment of ego turned what should have been a two-week voyage into 10 years of monsters, shipwrecks, angry gods, and disaster. He left Troy with 12 ships, and more than 600 men. Not one of them made it home. A witch turned his crew into pigs. A six-headed monster devoured his sailors, and even the gods themselves wanted him dead. So, how did the smartest man in ancient Greece outsmart himself for an entire decade?

[00:00:48]Let's start at the end of the Trojan War. For 10 years, the Greeks had camped outside the walls of Troy, right here on the coast of modern-day Turkey. The Trojans wouldn't come out, and the Greeks couldn't get in. Odicius had an idea. Build a giant wooden horse, hide soldiers inside, and leave it at the gates as a gift. Are we sure this is going to work? Trust me, everyone loves a gift horse. What if they look inside?

[00:01:11]Who looks inside a horse? The Trojans dragged it through the gates. That night, the Greeks climbed out, opened the gates, and burned Troy to the ground. War over. Odicius was a hero.

[00:01:23]Now all he had to do was sail home to his wife Penelope and his son Tmicus on the island of Ithaca right here. Should have taken about 2 weeks. It took 10 years. The first stop was Isaris, right here, home of Sakone. Odysius and his men raided the city, grabbed treasure and wine, and Odysius told his men to get back on the ships. Did they listen?

[00:01:44]Of course not. They stayed on the beach and partied all night. The next morning, the Sakone came back with reinforcements and killed 72 of Odicius's men, six from each of his 12 ships. Day one of the trip home, and he's already burying soldiers. After that, a storm blew them off course for 9 days. They ended up at the island of Lotus Eaters. Anyone who ate the lotus forgot everything. Their home, their family, their entire life, just gone. Three of Odicius's scouts ate it and had to be dragged back to the ships crying. Not the worst stop on the trip. That honor goes to the next one.

[00:02:22]So, how did one cave on one island turn into the biggest mistake of Odysius's life? They landed on the island of Cyclopes. Odicius took 12 of his best men and explored a cave filled with cheese and lambs. His men wanted to grab the food and leave. Odysius said no. He wanted to meet the owner. The owner turned out to be Polyphimas, a oneeyed giant and son of Poseidon, the god of the sea. Polyphimas rolled a boulder over the cave entrance that was so heavy that 22 wagons couldn't move it. They were trapped. The Cyclops grabbed two of Odicius's men, smashed their heads on the ground, and ate them raw. He did the same thing the next morning. Two more men for breakfast. Odicius couldn't kill the Cyclops because then nobody could move the boulder, so he offered the giant wine. Lots of it. Cyclops, what's your name? Polyphimas, what's yours? My name is Nobody. Nobody. Well, nobody, I like you. I'll eat you last. That's my gift. Thanks. Very generous. After the cyclops passed out drunk, Odicius sharpened a massive olive steak, heated it in the fire, and drove it straight into the giant's eye. Polyphimmas screamed for help. The other cyclopes came running. Polyphimas, what's wrong?

[00:03:37]Who's hurting you? Nobody, he said.

[00:03:39]Nobody is hurting me. Well, if nobody's hurting you, go back to sleep.

[00:03:43]Brilliant, right? And in the morning, blind Polyphimas rolled back the boulder to let his sheep out and felt each one's back to make sure no men were riding them. Odicius and his surviving men strapped themselves to the bellies of the sheep and escaped right under the Cyclops's hands. If Odysius had just sailed away, that would have been the end of it. Poseidon would never have known. But Odicius was too proud for that. As his ship pulled away, he stood up and shouted back at the blinded giant. Cyclops, if anyone asks who blinded you, tell them it was Odicius, son of Learch's, king of Ithaca. His men begged him to stop. He didn't care. He wanted credit. And now Polyphimas had a name. He prayed to his father, Poseidon, god of the sea, to curse Odysius. Father Poseidon, make sure Odysius never gets home. and if he does, let him arrive late, broken, alone, into a house full of trouble. Poseidon heard every word, and he granted every part of that prayer. From this point on, the sea itself was Odicius's enemy. The next stop was the island of Eis, king of the winds. Eulas actually liked Odysius. He put all the dangerous winds inside a leather bag and gave Odysius a gentle west wind to carry him straight home.

[00:04:59]For 9 days, they sailed perfectly. On the 10th day, Ithaca appeared on the horizon. Odicius could see the smoke rising from the chimneys of his own island, and then he fell asleep. His crew had been staring at that bag for 9 days, wondering what treasure was inside. The moment Odicius closed his eyes, they opened it. What do you think is in there? Probably gold. He's been guarding it the whole trip. Let's just take a peek. Every trapped wind exploded out at once and blew all 12 ships all the way back across the sea within sight of home and now further away than ever.

[00:05:35]Odicius begged Eelis for help again.

[00:05:38]Elyss refused. The gods clearly hate you. Get off my island. But the worst was still coming. The Lestragonians were giants. All of them. And when the fleet sailed into their harbor, they attacked from the cliffs. They hurled boulders down under the ships and speared the crews like fish. 11 of 12 ships destroyed. Hundreds of men killed. Only Odicius's ship escaped because he'd parked outside the harbor. 12 ships became one. Over 500 men became a few dozen, and they hadn't even reached the halfway point. They washed up on the island of Aya, home of the witch goddess Cersei. Odicius sent a scouting party led by his officer, Urilicus. Cersei invited them in for a feast. They ate.

[00:06:22]She touched them with her wand and every single one of them turned into pigs.

[00:06:27]Urlicus hadn't gone inside. He ran back to the ship in a panic. She turned them into pigs. All of them. Every single one. They got snouts and hooves and everything. Odicius went to rescue his men alone. The god Hermes gave him a plant called Moly that blocked Cersei's magic. When her spell failed, she turned the men back and invited everyone to stay. They stayed for a year on the magical island while Penelope waited at home wondering if her husband was dead.

[00:06:54]Eventually, his men had to remind him.

[00:06:56]Sir, are we ever going home? Right.

[00:06:59]Home? Yes, let's do that. Cersei told him he couldn't go home yet. First, he had to sail to the land of the dead and speak with the prophet Tyresius. So, Odicius sailed to the edge of the world, dug a pit, filled it with blood, and summoned the dead. Tyresius gave him one warning. Do not touch the cattle of the sun god Helios or you will lose everything. While he was down there, Odysius saw his own mother. She had died of grief waiting for him to come home.

[00:07:28]He tried to embrace her three times. She slipped through his arms like a shadow.

[00:07:32]That's what his ego had caused him.

[00:07:34]Odicius now headed into the most dangerous stretch of water in the ancient world. First, the sirens.

[00:07:41]Beautiful voices that lured sailors to crash on the rocks. Odicius ordered his crew to plug their ears with beeswax and tie him to the mast so he could hear the song without steering toward it. Tie me tighter, sir. You told us not to untie you no matter what. I changed my mind.

[00:07:56]Untie me now. Uh, you also told us to ignore that. Next came Sila and Kuribdas. Sila was a six-headed monster on one side. Kuribdus was a massive whirlpool on the other. No safe path.

[00:08:09]Odicius chose Sila, knowing he would lose six men instead of the entire ship.

[00:08:14]Sila snatched six sailors and ate them alive while they screamed his name. Now came the island Tyresius had warned him about, Thratia, home of the sacred cattle of Helios. Odicius told his men not to touch them, but bad winds trapped them for a month and the food ran out.

[00:08:31]While Odicius slept, his crew slaughtered the cattle. "The gods can punish us later. We're starving now."

[00:08:38]Odysius said not to touch them. Odicius is asleep and I'd rather die by the sea than starve on this beach. When Odysius woke up and smelled roasting beef, he knew they were finished. The hides of the dead cattle crawled on the ground.

[00:08:51]The meat on the spits mood. Yeah, the meat mood. The moment they sailed, Zeus split the ship in half with a thunderbolt. Every man drowned. Every single one. Only Odysius survived by clinging to the wreckage. The sea washed him up on the island of Odigia, right here, home of the goddess Calypso. She fell in love with him and offered him immortality if he would stay forever.

[00:09:15]Odicius said no. He sat on the beach every day staring at the horizon and crying for 7 years. Finally, Athena convinced Zeus to intervene. He sent Hermes to tell Calypso to let Odysius go. Zeus says to release him. Of course, when a goddess loves a mortal, the gods always interfere. Are you going to let him go or not? Fine, but I'm not giving him a ship. Odicius built a raft and sailed for 17 days. Poseidon spotted him and smashed it into pieces because Poseidon wasn't done. Odicius washed up on the island of Fasia where King Alsinois heard his story and gave him a ship home. He woke up on the beach of Ithaca 20 years after he had left. So, what had been happening at home for 20 years? A disaster. 108 men from the surrounding islands had moved into Odicius's palace, eating his food, drinking his wine, and trying to force Penelope to marry one of them. They assumed Odicius was dead. Penelopey had been holding them off with one of the greatest stalling tactics in history.

[00:10:18]She told the suitors she would choose a husband after she finished weaving a burial shroud for Odicius's father.

[00:10:25]Every day she wo, every night she unraveled her work, 3 years before a servant gave her away. The goddess Athena disguised Odicius as an old beggar so he could enter his own home without being recognized. As he walked through the gates, an ancient dog lying on a pile of manure, lifted its head. It was Argos, the hunting dog Odicius had raised as a puppy 20 years ago. The dog wagged its tail, laid its ears flat, and died. It had waited 20 years just to see its master one last time. Who's that old beggar? Ah, nobody important. Then why is that dying dog wagging his tail at him? Inside the palace, the suitors mocked him, threw food at him, and treated him like garbage. One of them threw a stool at his head. Odicius took it all, watching, counting, and planning. Penelope announced a contest.

[00:11:15]Whoever could string Odicius's great bow and shoot an arrow through 12 axe heads in a row would win her hand. One by one, the suitors tried. Not a single one could even bend the bow, let alone string it. The old beggar asked for a turn. The suitors laughed. Odicius took the bow, strung it like it was nothing, and fired an arrow clean through all 12 axes. And then he turned the bow on the suitors. You thought your king was dead.

[00:11:41]You devoured his home. You harassed his wife. You plotted to kill his son. And now pay for all of it. He and Tmicus killed all 108 suitors in the great hall. It was a bloodbath. But Penelope still wasn't convinced. 20 years is a long time. She had one final test.

[00:12:00]Servants, move the king's bed out of the bedroom for our guest. Move the bed.

[00:12:05]That bed can't be moved. I built it myself around a living olive tree. One of the bed posts is the tree itself, still rooted in the ground. Nobody knows that except me and you. That was the answer only the real Odysius could give.

[00:12:18]Penelope broke down. They were finally reunited. 20 years, two wars, a curse from a god, six-headed monsters, witches, and a decade of suitors. And it all ended with a man remembering how he built his own bed. The Odyssey is nearly 3,000 years old. And the whole thing comes down to the same lesson it's been teaching since the 8th century BC. The smartest person in the room can still be the dumbest person in the room if they can't control their ego. Odicius outsmarted Cyclops, resisted the sirens, and navigated the land of the dead. But it took him 10 years to learn the one thing he should have known all along.

[00:12:57]Sometimes the smartest move is keeping your mouth shut. If you'd rather listen than watch, whether you're cooking, driving, working, gaming, or falling asleep, we're on Spotify, too. links in the description.