Question

Who made Tiresias blind, and who felt guilty about it and gave Tiresias the gift of knowing everything

Answer 1

Tiresias was blinded by Athena and then given the gift of prophecy. This mythological event is a pivotal part of the dramatic irony in stories like that of Oedipus, where Tiresias's physical blindness contrasts with Oedipus's metaphorical blindness to his fate.

Step-by-step explanation:

In Greek mythology, Tiresias, the blind prophet of Thebes, was made blind by the goddess Athena. He had seen her bathing, and she blinded him to ensure his silence. However, feeling guilty about her harsh punishment, Athena gifted Tiresias with the ability to understand the language of birds, thus granting him the power of prophecy and making him a revered figure in ancient Greek stories.

Oedipus, the king of Thebes, unintentionally fulfills a prophecy that he would end up killing his father and marrying his mother, leading to his ultimate downfall. As a part of the dramatic events that unfold, Tiresias is called upon for his prophetic insight but refuses to reveal the painful truths to Oedipus, which only embroils him further in his fate. The irony of Tiresias's blindness parallels Oedipus's own metaphorical blindness to the reality of his circumstances, a common theme in Greek literature regarding sight and insight.

Answer 2

1. Who made Tiresias blind?

Tiresias was blind from his youth. He was perhaps the best known soothsayer from Thebes. As already stated, there are different traditions as to why he was blind.

One tradition says that he was blinded by the gods for revealing things to mankind that were for the gods alone. Another tradition states he was blinded by Athena for seeing her bathing naked. His mother prayed to Athena to restore his sight. Athena could not restore his sight, but instead gave him inner sight, or the ability to prophesy.

A final tradition states that Tiresias was walking and saw a male and female snake copulating. He struck at them killing the female serpent. For punishment he was turned into a woman. Seven years later he saw another pair of serpents and killing the male snake he was turned into a male. Having lived the life of both a woman and man, Zeus and Hera came to him in their dispute over who had more pleasure in sex. Tiresias said the woman enjoyed sex more. Outraged, Hera blinded him. Zeus rewarded Tiresias with prophecy and long life.

2. Who felt guilty about it and gave Tiresias the gift of knowing everything?

Athena didn’t give him back his sight. But to make up for the punishment, she gave him the gift of divination. She assured him that he wouldn’t lose it, even in death. Tiresias’ transsexuality. The second of the best-known versions of Tiresias’ origin says that he was walking in the fields one day when he saw two snakes mating.

Zeus, feeling sorry that Tiresias was blinded, gave him the gift of prophecy.

Zeus gave Tiresias the gift of second sight. Not surprisingly, from then on Tiresias lived the live of a reclusive ascetic - emerging only when there was a crisis in Thebes that needed his gifts.