Because then his men wouldn't want to leave.
lotus flowers to eat
No. The Lotus eaters only ate lotus plants and were peaceful.
Odysseus finds his men sent to ahead to scout hopelessly addicted to the lotus fruit. The plant once consume make the person forget everything except the want to say and eat the lotus fruit. Odysseus had to drag them back to the ship by force and tie them to their seats as they sailed away from the island.
So there's a plant that the men eat, that tastes like honey. It makes them want to stay on the island forever.So, no men die in the land of the lotos eaters, but it is a nuisance for Odysseus to drag them back.They become addicted to it and want to do nothing else but stay there and eat it for the rest of their lives
It made his men forget about wanting to return home to Ithaca. They are content to merely eat lotus for the rest of their lives. If a man eats the flower, they never want to leave the island of the lotus eaters.
If his crew eat the Lotus, they will lose all desire to return home. Odysseus needs the men to return home himself, and he is responsible for these men.
The Lotus. He also told them to not eat Helios' cattle.
Not to eat the lotus plants
The lotus makes those who eat it lose their desire to return home, trapping them in a state of blissful forgetfulness. This poses a threat to Odysseus' mission to return to Ithaca, as his crew might be tempted to stay on the island and abandon their journey.
The men who eat the lotus become very content and forget about returning home. They have to be dragged back to the ship by Odysseus so that they will not stay on the island forever, only desiring to eat lotus.
Their lotus is so potent that it makes his men want to do nothing but eat lotus all day. As a result, they forget about their mission to return home.