Great Hades, master of the darkened deep,
master of the realm beneath our feet who hears
the echoes of our steps, who takes the echoes
of our lives. Hades, you know the need for an end
to life, you know the worth of a well-deserved rest,
you know the thanks of men and women weary
from long lives of worry and toil, you know the joy
of sweet reunion as friends long parted join
together once again within your storied land.
The dim and misty underworld is yours, O Hades;
yours are the Fields of Asphodel, yours the endless
pits of Tartarus in which are cast the wicked
and the vile. Yours too are the Fortunate Isles,
the land of fair Elysium where dwell the righteous
and the good. Hades, receiver of burnt offerings,
receiver of the blood of beasts, well-honored god:
in the end, all come to you. Hades, I praise you.