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Circe the Beautiful Witch

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Circe Circe ranks as one of the greatest witches from all story-telling. A beautiful enchantress, she likes nothing better than to turn men into pigs. (Some have seen her as a bit of a feminist). It is only when the wily Odysseus lands on her island that she finally meets her match.

(Many thanks to Helen Forte for permission to use her fabulous picture of Circe.)

One of our Greek Myths in the Trojan War series. As you may recall, Odysseus was on his way home from the war. He survived a nasty brush with a one eyed giant, the Cyclops, but not all of his men were so lucky. The Sea God Poseidon was angry with him, and destroyed all his ships except the one he was sailing in.

Read by Natasha. Duration 17 minutes .


Now he and his men sailed on across the wine dark sea, until once again they caught sight of an island. They slipped their boat into a snug little harbour, and there they slept for two whole days.

The following morning, Odysseus said they should explore the island and discover who lived there. At these words, his men grew afraid. They remembered the terrible Cyclops who had kept them prisoner in his cave, and had devoured some of their companions.

Odysseus divided his men into two groups, so that if one should get into trouble, the other could come and help. He was leader of one group, and Lord Eurylochus (Yuri-Locus) was the leader of the other. They drew straws to see which group should go and explore first, and as Eurylochus drew the short straw, he and his men had to set out and explore the woods.

After walking for two or three hours, the men came to a clearing. They saw a little house surrounded by wild beasts – wolves, leopards, and lions. One of the leopards sprang towards Eurylochus. He thought that he was about to die, but instead of eating him, the leopard rubbed up against him like a cat and purred.

The window of the house was open, and inside a woman was singing. Her voice was mysterious but very beautiful, and the men felt themselves being drawn towards the house, for they all longed to see if the woman was as wonderful as her voice. They walked past the fierce looking beasts, who in face were really quite tame. Inside they were greeted by tall and elegant woman, her black hair done up in braids. She did indeed look very lovely.

Her name was Circe and she invited the men to sit down at her table and drink some of her soup. They readily agreed.

As they drank the soup, Eurylochus said: “When I drew the short straw I cursed my bad luck, but how wrong I was! Our hostess is not so terrible after all, eh men?”

But they did not realise that though she was beautiful, Circe was, in fact, a witch. She had slipped a magic potion into their soup, and when they had finished drinking it, she rapped the table with a magic wand and said:

“Now you swine, be off to the pig sty where you belong.”

The men looked up astonished. “Madam. Did you just call us pigs?” asked Eurylochus. But Circe just laughed in reply, for the nose of Eurylochus was already growing into a pink snout, and his hands were becoming hairy trotters. In fact, all his men were swiftly turning into pigs. They tried to weep and cry out, but all they could do was to snort and squeal.

“Now do as I say,” cried Circe. “Pigs belong in the sty, not in my Kitchen. Be off with you.”

And off they trotted to their new home.

When the men did not return to the ship, Odysseus grew worried, and he decided to go and search for them. He set out across the island in the direction of the smoke he had seen from the cottage. While he was walking through the woods, he met a young man – - more of a boy whose beard was still soft and downy on his face.

“Stranger – what are you doing here?” asked the young man.

“I’m going in search of my men who are lost,” said Odysseus.

“No doubt they are guests of the lovely Circe. You won’t find them in her house, but outside in the pig sty. For beautiful though she is, she is really a witch, and she turns men into beasts. And if you step inside her house, she will turn you into a pig too.”

“My men – turned into pigs ! “ exclaimed Odysseus. “Is this how you treat guests on this island?

The young man did not reply, but he took small plant out of his knapsack and handed it to Odysseus. Its stem was black and its flower as white as milk. “Eat this” he said. “ It will make you safe against all magic tricks and potions. The name of this plant is molly. It is dangerous for mere mortals to pluck, for only gods can take it out of the ground safely.”

And when he spoke these words, Odysseus realised that this was no ordinary young man, but Hermes the messenger of the gods. And so he ate the molly plant and went on his way.

Soon he came to the house in the woods that was guarded by wild beasts. Circe’s lovely singing voice drifted out through the window, and Odysseus walked boldly past the beasts and into the house. Inside he was greeted by the beautiful witch, who told him to sit down and try some of her soup. While she was heating it, she slipped some magic potion into the broth, for she intended to turn Odysseus into a pig like the others. She gave the soup to him, and he drank it all down, and then she took out her wand and rapped the table with it.

“No be off with you to the sty, pig-face” she cried.

But Odysseus did not turn into a pig. Instead, he leapt to his feet, drew his sword and rushed at Circe. She, terrified, let out a shriek and fell to his feet begging for mercy.

“Please great lord. Do not take such offence. It was just my strange sense of humour. It comes from living alone for so long, here in the woods, with nothing but wild beasts for company. It is many years since I have seen a strong brave man like you. Come, let me kiss you…’

Odysseus let the beautiful witch kiss him, but all the time he was watching to see that she did not try any more of her tricks. She called her servant-girls and commanded them to prepare a bath for their visitor. They brought hot and cold water and mixed the bath until it was just right. And when Odysseus had bathed and rested, he found that they had prepared a delicious meal for him.

“Come. Why do you look so sad?” asked Circe. “let us eat together and wash the food down with honeyed wine.”

“How can a leader eat?” asked Odysseus, “When he knows that his companions are living outside in the muddy pig sty?”

And when he spoke these words, Circe knew that it was no use pretending any longer that she was anything other than a witch. She went out to the pig sty and rubbed a magic ointment onto the animals. Then she waved her wand and they began to change back into men, only younger and better looking than they were before. And then they began to weep, for what they had been through was truly terrible.

When they had recovered , Odysseus went back to the ship to fetch the rest of his men. They were all united at Circe’s house and sat down to a wonderful feast to celebrate.

The Greeks stayed with with witch Circe for an entire month – and she didn’t try any more of her magic tricks on them. One morning Odysseus spoke to her:

“Oh Beautiful enchantress – too long have we enjoyed your hospitality. We must continue our journey to our home on the rocky island of Ithaca. But unfortunately, we are completely lost. We do not know these seas. Can you direct us by the safest route?’

And Circe replied.

“Lord Odysseus. If it were up to me, I would keep you here always – but I understand that you must be on your way to your home and your lovely wife, Queen Penelope. There is no safe route for you and your men to return home. For when you leave here, you must pass through a narrow straight between the rocks of Scylla and the whirlpool of Charybdis. Both are are perilous – for Scylla is a many armed monster who yelps like a dog. If you sail close to her cliffs, will reach down and grab some of your men and shove them into her mouth. But if you sail too close to the whirlpool of Charybdis, your entire boat will be sucked down to the bottom of the sea and all of you will drown. It is a terrible choice to make but you are a leader – so plot your course as you see best. Next, if the gods permit you to pass through that dire straight, you will come to the Island of the Sun where the great Sun God, Lord Apollo, keeps his herd of sacred cows. Do as I say – steer clear of the Island and do not land there. Nothing and nobody escapes the eyes of Apollo as he looks down from the sky. If you value your lives, avoid his island!”

And so Odysseus and his men said farewell to the lovely Circe and sailed on their way. After three days, just as she had foretold, they reached the narrow passage that she had described. Up on the cliffs they could hear the monster Scylla, yelping like a dog that has been left tied up for too long. As they drew nearer, they could hear the terrible gurgling sound of the whirlpool, Charybdis.

“This is indeed a terrible choice”, thought Odysseus. “But is the lesser evil is to loose some of my men, than for all of us to down. Therefore, I must chart my course closer to the cliffs than the whirlpool.’

He did not tell his men about Scylla, in case they lost heart and put down their oars. All his men’s eyes were on the dreadful whirlpool, gurgling like a cauldron.

The men rowed as hard they could, but as they passed beneath Scylla, she reached down to the ship. Odysseus fought her with is spear, desperately stabbing at her arms, but he could not prevent her snatching up six of his men. The others rowed on, crying for their companions.

Once they passed through the straight, they saw the Island of the Sun, just as Circe had predicted.

‘Thank Heavens for land!” cried the men. But Odysseus tried to tell them it was no good. The must not land, but sail on – for Circe had warned him of terrible danger should they set foot on the island belonging to the great sun god, Lord Apollo.

“Are you a salve-driver?” cried out Lord Eurylochus. “In your rush to reach home, you deny us all rest. We are still grieving for our six lost companions. You cannot order us to sail on. We will surely die of sadness and exhaustion.’

And seeing that the men meant rebellion, Odysseus allowed the ship to land with great misgiving in his heart. They found that the island was covered in green fields, and that fat cattle were grazing. The men waited for Odysseus to fall asleep, and then they killed two cows and ate roast meat on the beach. But when the sun rose in the morning. Bright Apollo saw what they had done, and said to Zeus, who is Lord of all the gods.

“Great Lord – I am wronged. Those rascals and ruffians who crew the ship of that tricky Greek, Odysseus, have killed the scared cattle that bring joy to my heart. If you will not punish them, I shall go down to the land of the dead and light up the gloomy underworld. No more shall I shine in the skies above the world.”

And when Zeus heard these words. he replied, “It is indeed a crime to take what rightly belongs the gods. When these men set sail tomorrow, I shall hit their boat with a burning thunderbolt.’

The next day, Odysseus told his men to set sail. When they were out out at sea, the sun disappeared behind a black cloud. The dark skies filled with lightening and an electric flash shot down from the hand of Lord Zeus and hit their boat - ripping it into two. All the men fell into the raging sea. Odysseus clung for his life to the broken mast of the ship, and somehow survived the storm. The sun shone once again on the now calm waters, and Odysseus saw land. Using his last strength, he swam into the shore and staggered onto the beach, where he fell down, exhausted.

57 Comments

  1. joglili
    Posted July 26, 2007 at 12:41 pm | Permalink

    it is very good for me learning english .thank you all

  2. Jenny
    Posted July 29, 2007 at 11:33 pm | Permalink

    I love Greek myths especially this one because my friend is Greek!

  3. theresa
    Posted July 31, 2007 at 10:17 pm | Permalink

    i love greek it is so interesting, i’m even making my own book about greek mythology.

  4. no no
    Posted August 1, 2007 at 3:41 am | Permalink

    first i do not even understand

    this story is only meant for pri 1 to pri 6 and not meant for sec 1

  5. no no
    Posted August 1, 2007 at 3:45 am | Permalink

    try 2 make a new story for adult then it will be suitable for me!!!!!!

  6. shikin...
    Posted August 1, 2007 at 3:57 am | Permalink

    well,your story is quite interesting and boring

  7. lame
    Posted August 1, 2007 at 3:57 am | Permalink

    NEXT TIME TRY to write about pig better…

  8. ....
    Posted August 2, 2007 at 4:19 am | Permalink

    xiao shuang how to do the test?\

  9. chiumei
    Posted August 2, 2007 at 4:32 am | Permalink

    halo..

    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG!
    i am a PIG! i am a PIG!

  10. NAOMI
    Posted August 9, 2007 at 11:01 pm | Permalink

    YO OK THIS IS THE BEST THING I EVER HEARD THAT IS . BUT ITS JUST TO LONG BUT I LOVE IT . VISIT ME AT http://WWW.MYPLACE.COM

  11. Cecily
    Posted August 10, 2007 at 5:58 pm | Permalink

    Thank you very very very much for all the tales.
    Cecily

  12. bubbles
    Posted August 12, 2007 at 1:53 pm | Permalink

    this is a weard but cool :) :p ha ha ha cool TA TA for now

  13. NANUJI
    Posted August 12, 2007 at 4:53 pm | Permalink

    I HAVE GOT THIS STORYNORY IN DVD.

    YOURS NANUJI

  14. Ella-Rose
    Posted August 18, 2007 at 11:42 am | Permalink

    dont scare children like me because it is not safe for children to hear men getting killed so think about me and the rest of the children! please repliey

  15. Posted August 18, 2007 at 11:44 am | Permalink

    Ella-Rose - Thank you for your comment. Sorry that Circe was so scary. I will remember not to scare children too much in future !

  16. ella-rose
    Posted August 21, 2007 at 3:49 am | Permalink

    thanks bertie

  17. sucheep
    Posted August 24, 2007 at 1:16 pm | Permalink

    thank you very much for me learning english.
    It’s your kindness.
    Thanks, thanks, thanks,

  18. sister
    Posted August 28, 2007 at 5:28 pm | Permalink

    This is a wierd story!!!

  19. jazzy
    Posted August 28, 2007 at 5:29 pm | Permalink

    Not cool!!!

  20. jazzy
    Posted August 28, 2007 at 5:30 pm | Permalink

    hey ats up.

  21. tasos
    Posted September 4, 2007 at 2:21 pm | Permalink

    how are you?

  22. tasos
    Posted September 4, 2007 at 2:24 pm | Permalink

    how old are y?

  23. Piran
    Posted September 12, 2007 at 8:47 am | Permalink

    My kids love this and are eagerly waiting to find out what happens to Odysseus next ……

  24. Saffron-Sheryl
    Posted September 14, 2007 at 2:17 am | Permalink

    hi Bertie do you still remember me?
    I am Saffron and my real name is Sheryl.

    I love this story although it is very long…
    Well Done you have choose the correct story.

  25. Greek God Allen
    Posted September 18, 2007 at 1:37 am | Permalink

    Hi,
    Thanks for the Greek stories, I been trying to find a podcast that talks about them,not a lot people talk about mythology. I’m Adult and I like to listen to those type of stories when I’m riding my mountain bike :)

  26. Saffron-Sheryl
    Posted September 22, 2007 at 6:44 am | Permalink

    Hi Bertie ,
    After reading the above comments I found out that they are talking about love ……and so on ….
    May be you can be on a lookout if any more of these happens…….they even give their phone numbers
    I hope nothing will happen to storynory because of those …

  27. Posted September 22, 2007 at 7:11 am | Permalink

    Thanks Sheryl, I must have been sleeping on the pond that day. I’ve deleted them.

  28. Darshan
    Posted October 1, 2007 at 4:43 am | Permalink

    So clear and pleasant to hear these narrations especially for non-native speakers. A BIG thank you.

  29. mabel
    Posted November 12, 2007 at 3:35 pm | Permalink

    say i loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

  30. josefina
    Posted November 13, 2007 at 3:47 pm | Permalink

    Is good pronuntation, is very clearly.

  31. imesh
    Posted November 14, 2007 at 6:06 pm | Permalink

    cind of boring

  32. jeremy
    Posted November 30, 2007 at 2:23 am | Permalink

    good book but kinda boring

  33. hello!
    Posted December 1, 2007 at 6:27 pm | Permalink

    this is a great story! :) it has helped me with my work as i am doing the acient greeks at school thank you!!!

  34. hi
    Posted December 2, 2007 at 4:47 pm | Permalink

    i Know that person above me

  35. buffalo breath
    Posted December 14, 2007 at 12:44 am | Permalink

    great story cant wait to hear more !!!!!

  36. taylor
    Posted December 16, 2007 at 10:05 am | Permalink

    it is cool

  37. .........
    Posted December 26, 2007 at 9:34 pm | Permalink

    liked the story and all but …. your voice is kind of wierd. lol!

  38. DD
    Posted January 11, 2008 at 2:59 am | Permalink

    this has helped me with an essay i had to do at school soo its really a BIG help

  39. Cole
    Posted January 15, 2008 at 2:57 pm | Permalink

    it is a long story

  40. betty
    Posted January 16, 2008 at 11:48 am | Permalink

    cool story

  41. annie
    Posted January 26, 2008 at 10:41 pm | Permalink

    ok

  42. Bozkurt
    Posted February 1, 2008 at 9:38 am | Permalink

    thank you very much for all stories.l love storynory.

  43. Posted February 1, 2008 at 10:29 am | Permalink

    That’s kind of you Bozhurt, thanks !

  44. me
    Posted February 2, 2008 at 6:44 pm | Permalink

    it was a long story but it was a good story and i liked it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  45. Your helper
    Posted February 21, 2008 at 8:16 pm | Permalink

    Check for spelling errors! You have at LEAST one on every story!! Not very professional….

  46. beccash
    Posted February 26, 2008 at 4:15 pm | Permalink

    great story!!!!

  47. jen and Mon
    Posted February 29, 2008 at 4:07 pm | Permalink

    We loved the story!

  48. ur mom
    Posted March 4, 2008 at 6:19 pm | Permalink

    bad telling of the story ,sorry!

  49. Room 108, San Diego
    Posted March 24, 2008 at 6:00 pm | Permalink

    We enjoyed your emphasis and expression! “See” you next time…bye-bye!

  50. alondra
    Posted March 26, 2008 at 5:47 pm | Permalink

    i liked the story, but it could be more interesting but it was still good.<3

  51. Justin
    Posted April 1, 2008 at 2:57 pm | Permalink

    I enjoyed your story. I am a classical education homeschool dad who is looking for stories like this to supplement my curriculum. Great job! Most parents don’t mind the killing … danger is what makes heroes truly heroic.

  52. one
    Posted April 6, 2008 at 11:51 am | Permalink

    I enjoy it

  53. hi
    Posted April 27, 2008 at 6:17 am | Permalink

    a pig?how lovely

  54. Jojo
    Posted April 27, 2008 at 7:14 am | Permalink

    I always cannot understand the Greek Myths.But it is so wonderful that I love it so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  55. Jojo
    Posted April 27, 2008 at 7:16 am | Permalink

    I enjoyed your story. I am a classical education homeschool dad who is looking for stories like this to supplement my curriculum. Great job! Most parents don’t mind the killing … danger is what makes heroes truly heroic

  56. Jojo
    Posted April 27, 2008 at 7:18 am | Permalink

    Circe the Beautiful Witch”

  57. Posted May 14, 2008 at 9:17 pm | Permalink

    this is so funning i am not a pig

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