THE EAR

So he spoke, and the goddess did not disobey the messages of Zeus. Swiftly she darted off from the peaks of Olympus and arrived at the Rarian Field, the life-bringing fertile spot of land, in former times, at least. But, at this time, it was no longer life-bringing, but it stood idle and completely without green growth. The bright grain of wheat had stayed hidden underneath, through the mental power of Demeter, the one with the beautiful ankles. But, from this point on, it began straightaway to flourish with long ears of grain, as the springtime was increasing its power. On the field, the fertile furrows began to be overflow with cut-down ears of grain lying on the ground, while the rest of what was cut down was already bound into sheaves. This happened the moment she arrived from the boundless aether.

(Hymn to Demeter, 448-457)