A) Iliad 7.76-91: "Thus I say, and may Zeus be witness between us. If your champion slay me, let him strip me of my armor and take it to your ships, but let him send my body home that the Trojans and their wives may give me my dues of fire when I am dead. In like manner, if Apollo grant me glory and I slay your champion, I will strip him of his armor and take it to the city of Ilion, where I will hang it in the temple of Apollo, but I will give up his body, that the Achaeans may bury him at their ships, and the build him a tomb [sêma] by the wide waters of the Hellespont. Then will one say hereafter as he sails his ship over the sea, 'This is the marker [sêma] of one who died long since a champion who was slain by mighty Hektor.' Thus will one say, and my fame [kleos] shall not perish."

B) Alcestis 995-1005, the Chorus is singing.

Let not your wife's sepulchral mound
be considered just like the tomb
of others who have died,
but let it be honored [given timê] like the gods are,
an object of wonder for the traveler.
And someone coming across it
on the road will say this:
"She once died for her husband
and now is a blessed daimôn.
Hail, O Mistress, may you be favorable to us."
Such words will be addressed to her.

C) Iliad 23.306-348: "Antilokhos," said Nestor, "you are young, but Zeus and Poseidon have loved you well, and have made you an excellent horseman. I need not therefore say much by way of instruction. You are skillful at wheeling your horses round the post [terma], but the horses themselves are very slow, and it is this that will, I fear, mar your chances. The other drivers know less than you do, but their horses are fleeter; therefore, my dear son, see if you cannot hit upon some artifice whereby you may insure that the prize shall not slip through your fingers. The woodsman does more by skill than by brute force; by skill the pilot guides his storm-tossed barque over the sea, and so by skill one driver can beat another. If a man go wide in rounding this way and that, whereas a man of craftiness may have worse horses, but he will keep them well in hand when he sees the turning-post [terma]; [324] he knows the precise moment at which to pull the rein, and keeps his eye well on the man in front of him. I will give you this certain sign [sêma], which cannot escape your notice. There is a stump of a dead tree-oak or pine as it may be - some six feet above the ground, and not yet rotted away by rain; it stands at the fork of the road; it has two white stones set one on each side, and there is a clear course all round it. It may have been a tomb [sêma] of someone long since dead, or it may have been used as a turning-post in days gone by; now, however, it has been fixed on by Achilles as the mark [terma] round which the chariots shall turn; hug it as close as you can, but as you stand in your chariot lean over a little to the left; urge on your right-hand horse with voice and lash, and give him a loose rein, but let the left-hand horse keep so close in, that the nave of your wheel shall almost graze the post; but mind the stone, or you will wound your horses and break your chariot in pieces, which would be sport for others but confusion for yourself. Therefore, my dear son, mind well what you are about, for if you can be first to round the post there is no chance of any one giving you the go-by later, not even though you had Adrestus' horse Arion behind you horse which is of divine race - or those of Laomedon, which are the noblest in this country."

D) Iliad 22.156-166: Past these did they rush, the one in front and the other close behind him: good was the man that fled, [158] but better far was he that followed after, and swiftly indeed did they run, for the prize was no mere beast for sacrifice or bullock's hide, as it might be for a common foot-race, but they ran for the life [psukhê] of Hektor. As horses in a chariot race speed round the turning-posts when they are running for some great prize [athlon]&emdash;a tripod or woman&emdash;at the games in honor of some dead hero, so did these two run full speed three times round the city of Priam. All the gods watched them…

E) Iliad 23.700-737: The son of Peleus now brought out the prizes for the third contest and showed them to the Argives. These were for the painful art of wrestling… He rose and said among the Argives, "Stand forward, you who will essay this contest [athlon]." Forthwith up rose great Ajax the son of Telamon, and crafty Odysseus, full of wiles [kerdos pl.] rose also. The two girded themselves and went into the middle of the ring [agôn]. They gripped each other in their strong hands like the rafters which some master-builder frames for the roof of a high house to keep the wind out. Their backbones cracked as they tugged at one another with their mighty arms&emdash;and sweat rained from them in torrents. Many a bloody weal sprang up on their sides and shoulders, but they kept on striving with might and main for victory and to win the tripod. Odysseus could not throw Ajax, nor Ajax him; Odysseus was too strong for him; but when the Achaeans began to tire of watching them, Ajax said to Odysseus, "Odysseus, noble son of Laertes, you shall either lift me, or I you, and let Zeus settle it between us." [725] He lifted him from the ground as he spoke, but Odysseus did not forget his cunning. He hit Ajax in the hollow at back of his knee, so that he could not keep his feet, but fell on his back with Odysseus lying upon his chest, and all who saw it marveled. Then Odysseus in turn lifted Ajax and stirred him a little from the ground but could not lift him right off it, his knee sank under him, and the two fell side by side on the ground and were all begrimed with dust. They now sprang towards one another and were for wrestling yet a third time, but Achilles rose and stayed them. "Put not each other further," said he, "to such cruel suffering; the victory is with both alike, take each of you an equal prize, and let the other Achaeans now compete."

F) Philostratus, Heroikos:

Vinedresser: Stranger, the plants no longer need watering at midday, since it is already late autumn and the season itself waters them. Therefore, I have leisure to relate everything in detail. Since these matters are sacred to the gods and so important, may they not escape the notice of cultivated people! It is also better for us to sit down in the beauty of this place.

Phoenician: Lead the way; I will follow even beyond the interior of Thrace.

Vinedresser: Let us enter the vineyard, Phoenician. For you may even discover in it something to cheer you.

Phoenician: Let us enter, for I suppose a pleasant scent comes from the plants.

Vinedresser: What do you mean? Pleasant? It is divine! The blossoms of the uncultivated trees are fragrant, as are the fruits of those cultivated. If you ever come upon a cultivated plant with fragrant blossoms, pluck rather the leaves, since the sweet scent comes from them.

Phoenician: How diverse is the beauty of your property, and how lush have the clusters of grapes grown! How well-arranged are all the trees, and how divine is the fragrance of the place!

 

Relevant Facts About Ancient Greek Hero Cult

Ajax carries the dead Achilles from battle. This image comes from the famous Francois vase. Link here to the Perseus Project essay and more images from this vase.

A hero rising, fully armed, from his sêma.

The psukhê of a hero rises from a funeral mound as a chariot rider drives his horses around the sêma.

The so-called Boston Hydria, on which is depicted the tomb and psukhê of Patroklos. On the far left, Priam and Hecuba are depcted lamenting the death of Hektor, as Achilles drags his body around the sêma of Patroklos. Link here to the Perseus Project essay and more images from this vase.