Divinities in Eclogue 2

Amphion Dircaeus (24)

Pan (31-33)

Nymphs and possibly a naiad (46)

Gods live in the woods, and Dardanian Paris (60-61)

Pallas (61-62)

The divinities which Vergil mentions in Eclogue 2 span the divide between the countryside and the opposing urban centers. Amphion Dircaeus is the first such figure mentioned (24). While Amphion is not a god himself, he is a son of Zeus. He is a famous herdsmen – and it is to this that the poet directly alludes in the poem – but he is also known as the ruler of Thebes who built the city’s walls, embodying both the rural and the urban in his character. The connection to rustic song is also the focus of the mention of Pan, the god of woodlands and pastures and herds and essentially all rustic and rural things (31-33). However, although the beginning of the description of Pan specifically mentions the notion of shepherds imitating their god by imitating his song, Vergil further tells of how Pan instituted the tradition of his pipes. The later mention of nymphs and possibly of a naiad elaborate the richness of the countryside by bearing baskets full of all manner of their flowers (46). Nais may be in reference to naiad, especially in its proximity to nymphae  earlier in the line, but the context does not seem right for mention of a fresh-water nymph, so it is possible this is imply the name of a country maiden. Finally, near the end of the poem, the narrator openly appeals to the notion that there are certain gods who dwell in the woods, and others such as Paris as well (60-61). He further emphasizes a separation between the country and the city, in opposition to the previous statement regarding woodland-dwelling gods, by wishing Pallas to remain in her citadels and cities which she has built (61-62).