ὡς εἰπὼν. ἀνάειρε: δόλου τ' οὐ λήθετ' Ὀδυσσεύς:
κόψ' ὄπιθεν κώληπα τυχὼν. ὑπέλυσε δὲ γυῖα:
καδ δ' ἔπες' ἐξ ὀπίσω, ἐπὶ δὲ στήθεσσιν Ὀδυσσεὺς
κάππεσε: λαοὶ δ' αὖ, θηεῦτό τε, θάμβησάν τε:
δεύτερος αὖτ' ἀνάειρε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεύς:
κίνησεν δ' ἄρα τυτθὸν ἀπὸ χθονός. οὐδ' έτ' ἄειρεν:
ἐν δὲ γόνυ γνάμψεν. ἐπὶ δὲ χθονὶ κάππεσον ἄμφω
πλησίοι ἀλλήλοισι. μιάνθησαν δὲ κονίῃ:
καί νύ κε τὸ τρίτον αὖτις ἀναΐξαντ' ἐπάλαιον.
εἰ μὴ Ἀχιλλεὺς αὐτὸς ἀνίστατο, καὶ κατέρυκε:
μὴ κέτ' ἐρείδεσθον. μηδὲ τρίβεσθε κακοῖσι:
νίκη δ' ἀμφοτέροισιν: ἀέθλια δ' ἶ¨ς' ἀνελόντες
ἔρχεσθ' ὄφρα καὶ ἄλλοι ἀεθλεύωσιν Ἀχαιοί:
He spake, and lifted him; but Odysseus forgat not his guile. He smote with a sure blow the hollow of Aias' knee from behind, and loosed his limbs, so that he was thrown backward, and Odysseus fell upon his chest; and the people gazed thereon and were seized with wonder. Then in his turn the much-enduring goodly Odysseus essayed to lift, and moved him a little from the ground, but lifted him not, howbeit he crooked his knee within that of Aias, and upon the ground the twain fell one hard by the other, and were befouled with dust. And now would they have sprung up again for the third time and have wrestled, but that Achilles himself uprose, and held them back: "No longer strain ye now, neither be worn with pain. Victory is with you both; take then equa1 prizes and go your ways, that other Achaeans too may strive."
