Imperishable Fame

*"He has gone the way of no return, to you and the Fathers in the mansion below, but his name does not fail or grow old; it lives in the mouths of us earth-walkers."* - Indo-European Poetry and Myth by M. L. West

**Imperishable Fame** (Indo-European: ***ḱléwos ṇdhchitóm***, Sanskrit: अक्षितम् श्रवस् *ákṣitam śrávas*, Greek: κλέος ἄφθιτον, *kléos áphthiton*) is the Indo-European concept of an ongoing remembrance of a posthumously renown person who achieved a famous deed. It is related to the word "to hear" and carries the implied meaning of "what others hear about you". The Indo-European concept of being shameful is ***kaunós**.* As an Indo-European individual, being ashamed of your misdeeds is seen as important. As the misdeed is the pinnacle of whether or not you achieve greatness. But, that is not to say you cannot overcome such a misdeed or mistake to continue your path to forever greatness.

According to Gregory Nagy, besides the meaning of "glory", *kleos* can also be used as the medium (in this case, the ancient Greek poetry or song) which conveys glory.[1]

*Kleos* is invariably transferred from father to son; the
son is responsible for carrying on and building upon the "glory" of the
father. This is a reason for Penelope putting off her suitors for so long, and one justification for Medea's murder of her own children was to cut short Jason's Kleos.

*Kleos* is a common theme in Homer's epics, the *Iliad* and the *Odyssey*, the main example in the latter being that of Odysseus
 and his son Telemachus, who is concerned that his father may have died a
 pathetic and pitiable death at sea rather than a reputable and gracious
 one in battle. The *Iliad* is about gaining ultimate *kleos* on the battlefields of Troy while the *Odyssey* is the ten-year quest of Odysseus' *nostos* (or return journey). Telemachus fears that he has been deprived of *kleos*. This links to hereditary *kleos*. *Kleos* is sometimes related to *aidos* — the sense of shame.

## Etymology & Meaning

According to Gregory Nagy, ***Kleos*** is a noun, derived from the verb ***kluein***, which means 'hear'.[2]

As the PIE people had no concept of the continuation of the individual after life, one could only hope to achieve *\*ḱlewos \*ndhgwhitom*, or "the fame that does not decay."[3] As Bruce Lincoln notes, "In a universe where impersonal matter endured
forever but the personal self was extinguished at death, the most which
could survive of that self was a rumor, a reputation. For this, the
person craving immortality—a condition proper only to the gods and
antithetical to human existence—was totally reliant on poets and
poetry."[4]

## Plato

The Greek philosopher Plato, in his dialog The Symposium
 relating a discussion about love, makes a digression into the subject
of fame and glory. It is in the section that deals with the dialog
between Socrates and Diotima.
 She is explaining that men search ways to reach some kind of
immortality, for instance by means of physical and intellectual
procreation. Then asserts that the love for fame and glory is very
strong, and in fact to obtain them, men are ready to engage in the
greatest effort, and to take risks and make sacrifices, even at the cost
 of their lives. Then makes specific references to Alcestis that died to save Admetus, or Achilles to avenge Patroclus, and to Codrus, as examples of heroes in search of fame and immortal renown.[5]

## The cṛdhos (the poet)

The ultimate goal of an IE individual, particularly an individual from
the more privileged classes, was to become a legend. The poet was one of
 the most important roles in the society; It was his job to make sure
that heroes and their deeds were well known throughout the civilization.
 More than that, it was important that stories of their successes
continued to be told long after they were gone. In fact, the words for
“fame” and “name” are related, sometimes even synonymous, in several
daughter languages of IE. Vital to the success of these epics was a
powerful name. An epic tale about a man named “Weak in battle” might not
 bode well for the poet, or for “Weak in battle” himself.[6]

## References

1. *The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours* CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS: Belknap Press. pp 26. Gregory Nage
2. Gregory Nagy. *The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours* CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS: Belknap Press. pp 51.
3. Schmitt, Rüdiger. *Dichtung und Dichtersprache in indogermanischer Zeit.* Weisbaden: Otto Harrassowitz. pp 61-102.
4. Lincoln, Bruce. *Death, War, And Sacrifice: Studies in Ideology and Practice.* Chicago UP. 1991. pp 15.
5. Hamilton, Walter (1951). Plato, The Symposium. Penguin Classics. p. 90.
6. “Heroes get remembered, but legends never die”: Proto-Indo-European Naming Practices https://blog.as.uky.edu/thebhlog/?p=144