Underflow

Shining Apollo, bright-haired son of Zeus,
strong of arm and flawless of form, of all the gods
none are your equal in beauty or grace. Apollo,
of Leto were you born on well-favored Delos;
in Athens and in Sparta and in all the lands
were you honored. To you did men and women
offer prayers for health and healing in days of old;
to you did the poets call for inspiration,
O leader of the lovely Muses. Apollo,
driver of all ill and evil from the land,
in Delphi were you served by the faithful Pythia,
with whom you shared your prophecies.
Apollo, never has your glory been forgotten;
throughout the centuries have artists turned to you
for light and vision. Great god, I praise you and your gifts.

Fair Apollo, son of thundering Zeus who holds
in his hands the order of the world, golden god
who parcels health and illness to all as is fit,
who holds the door against disease or lets it in,
all at your will. Apollo, we thank you for health,
we thank you for the gifts of modern medicine
and the gifts of traditional cures and healing.
We thank you a world in which plague and pandemic
are uncommon. Yet what is rare still exists,
O Paean, and is as deadly as ever it was.
Great Apollo, kind-hearted god, I pray to you,
protect us from all ill. Keep from our gates infirmity
and affliction, turn away the epidemic and the blight.
Apollo, mighty one in whose power it lies
to bless us with relief from all maladies,
to end a pestilence, I pray for your favor.

Golden Apollo, son of lightning-wielding Zeus,
bright and blazing as the sun, your dreadful glory
unbearable to mortal eyes, your beauty
would blind us, an understanding of you drive us mad.
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

Beautiful Apollo, ever young, ever fair,
ever poised on the line between boy and man,
beardless and lithe, with hair shining and unshorn,
flawless of face and of form, ideal of the gods,
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

Apollo, who leads the merry Muses in dance
and song, the artist and the poet pray to you
for inspiration and for revelation.
For visions and for enlightenment, Apollo,
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

Apollo, friend of seers and soothsayers who carries
the words of father Zeus, in far-famed Delphi
were you well known, did men and women consult
your oracle, praying for insight and wisdom.
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

Far-shooting Apollo, bowman with no rival,
you loose your arrows from afar; through the air
they arc, true of flight, each shot striking its mark.
Steady-armed marksman, deadiest of huntsmen,
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

Apollo the healer, father of physicians,
sender of plagues and source of remedies,
granter of good health and sound constitution,
maker of miracles, worker of wonders,
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

Apollo, who delivers us from all that is
baneful and bad, who safeguards the city, the street,
the stranger, whose fury falls on the evildoer,
Apollo who answers the pleas of the distressed,
I praise and honor you, I thank you for your blessings.

O shining Apollo, son of lightning-wielding Zeus
and blessed Leto, brother of swift-footed
Artemis, father of gods and gallant heroes;
great Apollo, whose sun-bright hair is yet unshorn,
whose fair face and well-built form, ageless and abiding,
hold ever the beauty of youth. Laurel-wreathed god,
child of Delos, far-shooting one whose shafts fly straight
and true, you keep the evil of the world at bay,
you deliver mankind from plague and disease,
and yet your arrows carry death as well to men,
swiftly and suddenly. Sweet are the songs men sing
to laud your name, sweet too the spark of insight,
O companion of the excellent Muses.
In Delphi, O Apollo, was your name well spoken,
were you well honored with gifts and libations,
as you shared the words of father Zeus with men.
Apollo, protector of men and women,
brilliant one, I praise you and give thanks for your blessings.

Apollo, shining son of great Zeus
and blessed Leto, twin to Artemis,
bright-faced god, ever present, ever distant,
we greet you with reverence and awe.
Clear-eyed Apollo, far-seeing one,
sharp-sighted archer, always true of aim,
true of vision, true of perception,
constant guide of poets and musicians,
of those who seek beauty, of its creation,
you grant to us the tools of artistry--
words drawn from the heart, laid with care,
tales told with skill and vigor, prayer and song
to honor the gods, melody and harmony,
all the joy and sorrow of our lives
transformed. Apollo, fire and form
of inspiration, I honor you.