The Hymns to Apollo Summary

"The Hymn to Delian Apollo"

This hymn describes the birth and origins of the sun god Apollo, born to the minor goddess Leto after being impregnated by Zeus. The hymn narrates her search for a place to give birth, naming and describing each region of Greece that refused her out of fear of her unborn son's power. The rocky, barren island of Delos is the only place that will accept her, saying it's hated by all the Greeks and pleading for Apollo to glorify it with a temple. Leto swears the unbreakable vow of the gods (see "Quotes," p. 154) that Apollo will bring only blessings to Delos, leading the island to welcome her and her child happily. After a narrative of Apollo's difficult birth (complicated by the vulnerable jealousy of Hera), the narrative celebrates Apollo's beauty and...