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Hyperion, A Fragment: A Summary, Book By Book

BOOK ONE
Saturns Despondency After His Defeat

The Titans were defeated by the Olympians in a war which had started when the
Olympians rebelled against the authority of the Titans who had been ruling the universe
ever since their conquest of Chaos and Darkness.

Saturn was the chief of the Titans, while Jove or Jupiter was the supreme leader of the
Olympians. The grey-haired Saturn had, after his defeat, taken shelter in a remote and
shady place in a valley, where he now sat, quiet as a stone. Perfect silence prevailed
around him. He was feeling absolutely listless, arid his right hand lay, nerveless, on the
ground, looking like the hand of a dead body. There was no longer the divine rod of
authority in his hand. He sat there in a state of deep despondency, with his eyes closed.

A Visit By Thea

It seemed that no force would be able to wake up Saturn from his trance. But there did
come somebody to wake him up. The visitor was goddess Thea, the wife of the sun-god,
Hyperion. She too was a member of the defeated party, and she too was grief-stricken.
She woke up Saturn from his listlessness and wanted to know how he was feeling. She
told him that she had brought no comfort for him and that she was well aware that he
had lost all his power and his authority. She told him that he could continue sleeping and
that she would sit at his feet and weep.

Theas Suggestion, Accepted By Saturn

Saturn opened his eyes and, looking around him, realized that he was now a
deposed monarch who had lost all his kingdom. He told Thea that he had not only lost his
empire but his identity and his real self also. He asked her if it would be possible for him
to regain his empire. He said that, if it had been possible for him to find another chaos
somewhere, he would have created another universe out of it, just as another power had
originally created a universe from the primeval Chaos. In reply, Thea suggested that he
should visit his fellow-Titans who had taken refuge at a place to which she could escort
him. She wanted that Saturn should rejoin his defeated fellow-Titans and comfort them.
Saturn accepted her suggestion, and they both set out on their journey.

The Fears of the Undefeated Hyperion, and His Resolve

Some of the defeated Titans had been captured by the victorious gods and been put into
prisons. A few of the other Titans were wandering about in the world at large in a
disconsolate condition. But the majority of them had taken shelter at the particular place
where Thea was now taking Saturn. However, there was one Titan who had still not been
defeated and who stills held sway over his sphere. He was Hyperion, the god of the sun.
But, although Hyperion, who lived in a splendid and radiant palace and who commanded
the blazing planet of the sun, was still sovereign in his own kingdom, he had begun to
feel mentally disturbed by certain ill-omens which seemed to indicate that even he could
not feel secure and that his authority might also be threatened. The ill-omens almost
unnerved Hyperion, but he was able to overcome his fear and, gathering all his strength
and will-power, he declared that he would use his terrible right arm to infuse terror into
the heart of Jove who had rebelled against the authority of Saturn and that he would
even succeed in restoring Saturns throne to Saturn.

Hyperion, Urged By Coelus to Go and Meet the Defeated Titans

There were still a few hours before the sun was due to rise. Hyperion had already
prepared himself to start the days journey. And, though he was impatient to begin the
day, he could not commence his task before the due hour. He therefore lay down to while
away the few hours which still remained. Although he had formed a strong resolution to
fight against Jove, yet his mind was not at ease. The fear of the danger which threatened
his supremacy still weighed upon his mind. In this state of mind he heard a voice
whispering into his ears. It was the voice of his aged father, Coelus (or Uranus) who now
spoke to him from somewhere in heaven. This is what the aged god, Uranus, said to
Hyperion:

You are the brightest of my children. You were born under mysterious circumstances,
and the mystery of your birth was not revealed even to me and to your mother. You as
well as your brothers and sisters are all manifestations of that beauty which pervades
the whole universe. It is very unfortunate that a civil war has taken place among the
gods and goddesses, as a result of which my eldest son, Saturn, has been defeated and
dethroned. I was in no position to give any help to him. You, my son, are still retaining
your authority and governing your dominion. I want you to go down to the earth and
meet Saturn and his fellow-gods to see what help you can give to them. It is a bad sign
that, while you have all lived and governed your kingdoms with dignity, you are all now
experiencing such emotions as fear, anger, and hope which are the feelings
characteristic of mankind and not of gods.

At these words, Hyperion got up and, leaving the planet of the sun in the charge of his
father who had spoken to him, plunged noiselessly into the deep night in order to go
down to the earth and meet his fellow-Titans.

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