Very different in character is the “Hymn to Ares”, which is Orphic in character. The writer, after lauding the god by detailing his attributes, prays to be delivered from feebleness and weakness of soul, as also from impulses to wanton and brutal violence.
The only other considerable hymn is that to “Pan”, which describes how he roams hunting among the mountains and thickets and streams, how he makes music at dusk while returning from the chase, and how he joins in dancing with the nymphs who sing the story of his birth. This, beyond most works of Greek literature, is remarkable for its fresh and spontaneous love of wild natural scenes.
The remaining hymns are mostly of the briefest compass, merely hailing the god to be celebrated and mentioning his chief attributes. The Hymns to “Hermes” (xviii), to the “Dioscuri” (xvii), and to “Demeter” (xiii) are mere abstracts of the longer hymns iv, xxxiii, and ii.
Cf. Hesiod Home Page – Homer Home Page
