Thanatos

THA na toos

Θανατος

Death

Thanatos

A Child of Nyx (Night)

Without consort, Nyx (Night) the destructive, brought forth a horde of villainous Immortals ... Thanatos is one of that wretched lot.

Nyx’s offspring are described as: horrible, painful, cruel, brooding, mocking and malignant. The one exception is Loving Affection who is placed between Deception and Old Age. (Theogony, line 212)

Thanatos might be poetically called the brother of Hypnos (Sleep) but no matter how you describe him, he is a creature of bone chilling darkness. From on high, Helios (the Sun) never casts his light on Thanatos. (Theogony, line 760)

Hypnos goes kindly among the mortals but, his brother, Thanatos has a heart made of pitiless iron ... when he takes hold of you, the world of light ceases to be.

Thanatos in The Iliad

(listed by book and line)

The line numbers listed here correspond fairly well with the Lattimore and Murray/Wyatt translations of The Iliad. Other translations (Fitzgerald, Fagles et al) do not correspond as well but, with a small amount of effort, you should be able to find the reference you need regardless of the translation you use. Lattimore (ISBN 0226469409); A.T. Murray/William F. Wyatt Vol. I & II (ISBN 0674995791 and 0674995805); Robert Fitzgerald (ISBN 0374529051); Robert Fagles (ISBN 0140275363)

14.231 - Hera promises Hypnos (Sleep), the brother of Thanatos (Death), many gifts if he will use his powers on Zeus
16.454 - When Zeus regrets the impending death of his son, Sarpedon, Hera advises him to let Sarpedon die and then send Thanatos (Death) and painless Hypnos (Sleep) to the battlefield to transport Sarpedon’s body to his home in Lykia (Lycia)
16.672 - Zeus instructs Apollon to retrieve the body of his son, Sarpedon, and to wash the body in the river then let the twin brothers, Hypnos (Sleep) and Thanatos (Death), carry the body to Lykia (Lycia)
16.682 - Apollon gives the body of Sarpedon to the twin brothers, Hypnos (Sleep) and Thanatos (Death), so they can carry the body to Lykia (Lycia) as Zeus had commanded

Thanatos and Sarpedon

At Zeus’ command, Thanatos retrieves the dead body of Sarpedon from the battlefield at Troy.

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Thanatos in The Odyssey

(listed by book and line)

The line numbers listed here correspond fairly well with the Lattimore and Murray/Dimock translations of The Odyssey. Other translations (Fitzgerald, Fagles et al) do not correspond as well but, with a small amount of effort, you should be able to find the reference you need regardless of the translation you use. Richmond Lattimore (ISBN 0060931957); A.T. Murray/George E. Dimock Vol. I & II (ISBN 0674995619 and 0674995627); Robert Fitzgerald (ISBN 0374525749); Robert Fagles (ISBN 0140268863)

11.134 - At the entrance to the Underworld, the ghost of the prophet, Teiresias, tells Odysseus that, at the end of his long life, Thanatos (Death) will come for him from the sea
23.281 - Reunited with Penelope, Odysseus tells her the prophecy of Teiresias and how Thanatos (Death) will come for him from the sea after a long life