

The prophet is usually associated with snakes, as they were what changed his future. Although he couldn’t see the literal world around him, he was able to see the future. His physical description includes a long beard and lifeless eyes, representing his blindness. Tiresias can be described as a wise looking man who unfortunately was not taken seriously by many, even though he had the true gift of prophecy. Other artistic works show him striking down the snakes that led to him experiencing life as a member of the opposite sex. Many show him using his prophetic abilities. In some, he still has his sight, while in others he is blind. Some show him as a man, while others as a woman. Tiresias is depicted in a variety of ways in artistic representations.


He did marry and bear children during this time. The only reason we know that he did is because of his time spent as a woman. Tiresias did have a family but there is little documentation of it.
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How to continue his voyage to Ithaca, such as how to get past Charybdis and Scylla. He was then visited by Odysseus, who advised him on His soul immediately entered the first level of Hades. Tiresias’ DeathĪpollo killed Tiresias with an arrow at Tilphussa, a tainted spring. Megaeus committed suicide to save the city of Thebes. Megaeus approached Tiresias for help, but was told that a voluntary death of a Theban was what the city needed. They refused to share the throne though, and eventually fought each other to the death. Oedipus eventually left the city to be ruled by his sons. Tiresias had another hand in the role of another king of Thebes. Oedipus removed Tiresias from his palace but eventually, he discovered the truth and realized that the prophet was right. Oedipus angered Tiresias by telling him that his hints were just a way to cover the fact that he couldn’t actually see the future. He told him that the killer was someone that the king would prefer not to discover. When first summoned, Tiresias refused to give Oedipus a direct answer. In Oedipus the King, the new king of Thebes, Oedipus, consults Tiresias regarding the investigation of the previous king’s death. Both Tiresias and Cadmus dressed up as worshipers of Dionysus and headed to the mountain to honor him. The first tale says that he appeared with Cadmus, who was the first king of Thebes and its founder, and warned King Pentheus about denouncing Dionysus as a god. Many of his prophetic tales surround him and those around him in the great city. Tiresias was from Thebes, the great Greek city. Zeus, in an effort to thank him for his support, gifted him with the ability to see the future. Tiresias said that the answer was definitely the woman. They consulted with Tiresias, as he had been both male and female. Hera said that it was the male, while Zeus said it was the female. The second version says that Zeus and Hera were having a discussion about whether males or females experienced more pleasure during sex. There is an alternative story regarding the events that cause the prophet’s blindness. This would point his life in a new direction. To make amends for what she had done to Tiresias, she gave him the gift of prophecy. But when she tried to restore his sight, she was unable to do so. Tiresias’ mother begged the goddess to undo the curse, and after enough persuasion, Athena agreed.

He found himself unable to turn away from her nakedness and was blinded by her as punishment. This came to be when he stumbled upon the goddess Athene while she was bathing in a lake. This reversed the curse, and Tiresias was turned into a man once again. Remembering the action that had caused her current fate, she left the snakes alone. This duty lasted for seven years and she even married and had children.Īfter seven years had passed, she came across another pair of snakes. While Tiresias was a woman, she served as a priestess for Hera. Hera punished him for his actions and turned him into a woman. For some reason, he struck the snakes and killed either both or one, depending on the version of the myth. When Tiresias was a young man, he came across two snakes that were mating on Mount Cyllene. Both have to do with alterations to his physical being that would shape his prophetic future. There are two main myths that are commonly associated with Tiresias. He is also mentioned by several other authors, including Pindar, Sophocles, Ovid and Euripides. It is in this written work that his prophetic gifts are preserved in the Underworld and he is consulted by Odysseus. Tiresias is mentioned in several mythological works, including Homer’s Odyssey.
