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Greek Mythology > Immortals >
Kalypso
Kalypso ka LIP so
The Queenly Nymph
In The Odyssey by Homer, Kalypso (Calypso) is said to be the daughter of Atlas.
Yet Kalypso is also said to be the daughter of Tethys, who brought forth a separate race of Okeanids. Kalypso is one of Tethys’ three thousand daughters... Styx, Metis and Eurynome are her sisters, just to name a few. (Theogony, line 360)
The nymph Kalypso was in love with Odysseus and caused him much sadness. After his ship was smashed and all his shipmates drowned, Odysseus was washed ashore on Kalypso’s island, Ogygia. She loved Odysseus and wanted to keep him as her immortal husband but Odysseus was determined to return to his home. She tried to charm him but, as the years passed, poor Odysseus still wept for his lonely wife and his son.
Finally, Zeus sent Hermes to order Kalypso to free Odysseus and send him on his way home. Kalypso greeted Hermes and honored him with ambrosia and red nectar. He told her of Zeus’ demands as they ate. She was upset that Zeus would ask her give up her lover but she did not refuse. If Odysseus wanted to stay with Kalypso then Zeus would permit it, but if Odysseus wanted to leave, Kalypso could not use her charms to stop him. She thought that Odysseus might change his mind if he understood her love and power. She offered Odysseus immortality and endless youth but he was determined to return to his home or die trying. Kalypso accepted her fate and agreed to let Odysseus leave unhindered. She refused to supply Odysseus with a raft or ship but she gave him some tools and the skillful Odysseus built a raft for himself. When it came time to leave, Kalypso in her loving nature, gave Odysseus provisions and sent him on his way with a fair wind to speed him home. Kalypso and Odysseus had two daughters, Nausithoos and Nausinoos. (Theogony, line 1018)
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Kalypso in The Odyssey (listed by book and line)
- 01.014 ...The nymph Kalypso (Calypso) kept Odysseus on her island so that he would eventually be her husband
- 01.052 ...Kalypso (Calypso), the daughter of Atlas, inhabits a wooded island which is the navel of all the waters
- 01.086 ...Athene (Athena) suggests to Zeus that Hermes, slayer of Argos, be sent to the island of Ogygia to tell the nymph, Kalypso (Calypso), that Odysseus must be allowed to proceed on his homeward journey
- 04.557 ...Proteus told Menelaus that the nymph, Kalypso (Calypso), held Odysseus captive on her island
- 05.006 ...Athene (Athena) remembers that Odysseus is being held captive at the nymph’s house, i.e. Kalypso (Calypso)
- 05.014 ...Athene (Athena) reminds Zeus that the nymph, Kalypso (Calypso), detains Odysseus on her island
- 05.030 ...Zeus tells Hermes to inform Kalypso (Calypso) that Odysseus must be given a raft so that he may leave her island
- 05.057 ...Hermes finds Kalypso (Calypso) at home in her cave
- 05.063 ...The home of Kalypso (Calypso) is a mere cave but the description on lines 63-74 make it sound like a beautiful and enchanting place
- 05.075 ...Argeiphontes (Hermes) stands before the cavern of Kalypso (Calypso) and admires the natural beauty of her home
- 05.077 ...Kalypso (Calypso), the shining goddess, recognizes Hermes and invites him into her home
- 05.085 ...Hermes is questioned by Kalypso (Calypso) as to why he has come to her island
- 05.096 ...Hermes ate and drank with Kalypso (Calypso) and then told her of Zeus’ message and how she must release Odysseus so he can return to his home
- 05.116 ...Kalypso (Calypso) tells Hermes that the Immortals did not object when the other gods and goddesses took mortal lovers
- 05.145 ...Argeiphontes (Hermes) warns Kalypso (Calypso) that she should obey Zeus or else face his wrath
- 05.148 ...After Argeiphontes (Hermes) leaves Kalypso (Calypso), she goes in search of Odysseus
- 05.159 ...Kalypso (Calypso) tells Odysseus that she will allow him to leave her island
- 05.180 ...Odysseus is afraid that Kalypso (Calypso) is not going to allow him to leave her island and makes her swear an oath on Styx as to her sincerity
- 05.192 ...Kalypso (Calypso) leads Odysseus back to her cavern and seats him in the same spot where Hermes had been seated
- 05.202 ...Kalypso (Calypso) asks Odysseus if he is sure he wants to leave her island and warns him of the many hardships he will endure if he decides to leave
- 05.241 ...Kalypso (Calypso) showed Odysseus where to find trees to construct a raft and then left him to his work
- 05.246 ...Kalypso (Calypso), the shining goddess, gave Odysseus an auger to help with the construction of a raft
- 05.258 ...Kalypso (Calypso), the shining goddess, gave Odysseus sails for his raft
- 05.263 ...After five days of work, Odysseus was ready to leave on his raft; Kalypso (Calypso) gave him wine and food for his journey
- 05.276 ...Kalypso (Calypso) tells Odysseus to keep the constellation of the Bear (Kallisto (Callisto) Ursa Major) on his right as he crosses the sea on his raft
- 05.321 ...When his raft was torn apart by the waves and Odysseus was plunged into the water, he was weighted down by the clothes Kalypso (Calypso) had given him
- 05.372 ...In the storm-tossed seas, the goddess, Ino, gave Odysseus a veil to keep him afloat so he removed the clothing Kalypso (Calypso) had given him
- 07.245 ...In the hall of the king of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians), Odysseus tells queen Arete about the daughter of Atlas, Kalypso (Calypso), and her island, Ogygia
- 07.254 ...In the hall of the king of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians), Odysseus tells queen Arete about the dread goddess, Kalypso (Calypso), and her island, Ogygia
- 07.260 ...In the hall of the king of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians), Odysseus tells queen Arete how he was the prisoner of Kalypso (Calypso) for seven years
- 08.452 ...In the home of the king of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians), Odysseus was given his first bath since he left the island of Kalypso (Calypso)
- 09.029 ...In the home of king Alkinoos (Alcinous) of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians), Odysseus tells how Kalypso (Calypso) kept him on her island so that he would become her immortal husband
- 12.389 ...After Odysseus’ crew had eaten the forbidden oxen of Helios, Odysseus remembered that Kalypso (Calypso) had told him that Hermes had predicted the event when he had visited her home
- 12.448 ...In the home of the king of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians), Odysseus says that he will not repeat the story of his stay on the island of Ogygia, home of Kalypso (Calypso)
- 17.143 ...Telemakhos (Telemachus) tells his mother, Penelope, the story Menelaos (Menelaus) had told him in Sparta; Proteus told Menelaus that Odysseus was alive on the island of the nymph Kalypso (Calypso)
- 23.333 ...Odysseus tells Penelope about his stay on the island Ogygia, home of Kalypso (Calypso)
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Nymphs in The Iliad
- 06.420 ...Andromakhe (Andromache) tells Hektor (Hector) that when Akhilleus (Achilles) killed her father, Eetion, the Nymphs of the mountains planted elm trees on his burial mound
- 20.008 ...Zeus called all the Immortals to Mount Olympos (Olympus) and every nymph came forth
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Nymphs in The Odyssey
- 06.107 ...Artemis dances with the nymphs in the mountains
- 06.123 ...The confused Odysseus awakes on the island of the Phaiakians (Phaeacians) and hears the voices of young girls; he is reminded of the nymphs of the high mountains, the meadows, rivers and springs
- 09.154 ...On the island of the Cyclops, Odysseus says that the nymphs, daughters of Zeus, began to herd the goats when Eos (Dawn) appeared in the sky
- 10.350 ...Odysseus describes the nymphs who serve Kirke (Circe); they are daughters of the springs and rivers
- 12.132 ...The nymphs, Lampetia and Phaethousa, daughters of Neaira (Neaera) and Hyperion, watch over the herd of Helios on the island of Thrinakia (Thrinacia)
- 12.318 ...After landing on the island of Thrinakia (Thrinacia), Odysseus and his crew berthed their ship in a cave used by the nymphs for dancing
- 13.104 ...Arriving on the island of Ithaka (Ithaca), the Phaiakians (Phaeacians) leave Odysseus at a secluded harbor with a cave that is sacred to the Naiad nymphs
- 13.108 ...In the grove sacred to the Naiad nymphs on the island of Ithaka (Ithaca), they weave purple webs on stone looms
- 13.348 ...Athene (Athena) tells Odysseus that he is on his home island of Ithaka (Ithaca) and shows him the sacred cave of the Naiad nymphs
- 13.350 ...On the island of Ithaka (Ithaca), Athene (Athena) explains to Odysseus that the sacred cave of the Naiad nymphs is used for their sacrifices
- 13.356 ...Realizing that he was on the island of Ithaka (Ithaca), Odysseus raised his hands and prayed to the Naiad nymphs, daughters of Zeus
- 14.435 ...The swineherd, Eumaios (Eumaeus), puts food aside as an offering to the nymphs and to Hermes
- 17.211 ...As the swineherd, Eumaios (Eumaeus), led Odysseus to town, they passed a fountain of cool water surrounded by a circle of poplar trees; at the center was an altar of the nymphs
- 17.240 ...Odysseus prays to nymphs of the fountain, daughters of Zeus
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