What challenges does Odysseus face in The Odyssey?

Odysseus faces a great many challenges in The Odyssey.  First, although he cautions his men that they should move on quickly after the Trojan War, they "did not heed" him, got very drunk in celebration of their victory, and then were attacked by the Ciconians on Ismarus.  Next, he had to face a different kind of challenge when three of his men wanted to stay on the land of the Lotus-eaters after they had...

Odysseus faces a great many challenges in The Odyssey.  First, although he cautions his men that they should move on quickly after the Trojan War, they "did not heed" him, got very drunk in celebration of their victory, and then were attacked by the Ciconians on Ismarus.  Next, he had to face a different kind of challenge when three of his men wanted to stay on the land of the Lotus-eaters after they had eaten the lotus flower.  He had to muscle them back to the ship despite their protests.  After this, he had to fight the Cyclops, Polyphemus, who ate several of his men and then involved his father, god of the sea, Poseidon, who then made it even more difficult for Odysseus to get home. 

Once they escape the Cyclops, he had to deal with the challenge of his disloyal men who opened the bag of winds Odysseus was given by Aeolus.  This bag contained all the winds that would blow his ships away from Ithaca, and when his men opened it (thinking that it contained treasure), they are blown all the way back to the island of Aeolia.  Then, his crew is attacked by giant cannibals in Laestrygonia.  After this, Odysseus was challenged by the witch, Circe, who turned his crew to pigs.  He stayed with her for a year before he felt he could leave without insulting her.  After this, travelled to the underworld to speak with the dead prophet, Teiresias, and get his advice on how to get home.  After this, he had to get past the Sirens (not that hard since he'd been told how), Scylla (who ate six of his men), Charybdis (in which he almost drowned), and his disloyal crew again when it came to not eating the Sun god's sacred cattle.  Then, he had to deal with the challenge of being held captive by Calypso for several years, and when he gets home, he has to meet the challenge of the many suitors who have been abusing his family's hospitality and attempting to force his wife to marry one of them.