Cox, George - Aryan Mythology Vol 2.pdf

MYTHOLOGY OF THE ARYAN NATIONS.
BOOK Thetis to preserve that of Patroldos. But the terrible fight
—^—• over the dead Patroldos is fought over again when Achilleus
is smitten, as it is fought out by the clouds which do battle
together over the dying Herakles. From this point all is
transparent. The grief of Achilleus when he learns that
his friend is dead is the darkening of the sky when the sun
which had been shining through the cloud-rifts withdraws
his light ; and in the tearing of his hair, in the defilement
of his beautiful robe and the tossing of the sand over his
head and face, we see the torn vapours hurrying hither and
thither in a thousand shapeless forms. Henceforth the one
thought which fills his heart is that of vengeance, nor is his
burning desire weakened when Thetis tells him that the
death of Hektor must soon be followed by his own, as the
sunset is not far off when the sun wins his final victory over
the clouds which have assailed him throughout his journey.
Herakles himself met boldly the doom brought upon him by
the wrath of Here ; and Achilleus is content to die, if only
he may first give his enemies sufficient cause for weeping.
Then follows the incident in which Thetis and Hephaistos
play precisely the part of Hjordis and Regin in the Yolsung
tale. The arms of Achilleus are in the hands of Hektor ; but
when the morning comes, Thetis will return from the east
bringing a goodly panoply from the lord of fire. At what
other time could the sun receive the new armour which is
to replace that of which he had been robbed by the powers
of darkness ? We can scarcely lay too much stress on these
points of detail in which the poet manifestly follows a tra-
dition too strong to be resisted. This story of the evening
which precedes the return of Achilleus to the battle-field is a
vivid picture of tli3 sun going down angrily and betokening
his appearance in fiercer strength on the morrow. When to
the bidding of Iris, that he should go forth to avenge his
friend, he replies that he has no arms, the goddess bids him
show himself in the trenches without them. Like the
sudden flash of the sun, when as he approaches the horizon
his light breaks from behind the dense veil of vapours,
is the shout of Achilleus ringing through the air. It is
absurd to think of any human warrior, or to suppose that
any hyperbole could suggest or justify the poet's words, as