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Oedipus Rex and the Oracle of Delphi
The Oracle of Delphi warned Laius, ruler of Thebes, that his own child would murder him. When his wife, Jacosta,
gave birth to Oedipus, Laius took him away, drove a nail through his feet, and left him on Mount Cithaeron.
A shephard saved Oedipus and took him away to Corinth where he was adopted by King Polybus and his wife
Periboea.
Oedipus had a happy childhood, never knowing what had happened. When he get older, he too consulted the
Oracle at Delphi, who told him that he would kill his farther and marry his mother. Not wanting the prophecy to
come true, Oedipus ran away. On his way to Thebes, Oedipus had an argument with a stranger and killed him. The stranger was Laius, his
father.
 When Oedipus got to Thebes, he met the Sphinx, a monster who devoured anyone who couldn't answer her riddle.
The sphinx asked Oedipus, "What creatures have four legs in the morning, two at midday, and three in the
evening, and are their weakest when they have the most?" Oedipus guessed the answer correctly and the Sphinx
was so enraged that she killed herself. Do you know the answer?
The people of Thebes were so happy to be rid of the Sphinx that they made Oedipus their new king and he married
the recently widowed Queen Jacosta. The prophecy had come true.
After they were married, the city of Thebes suffered a terrible plague, so Oedipus again journeyed to Delphi to
consult the Oracle. This time the Oracle told him that to be rid of the plague he must banish the one who had
killed his father and married his mother. Only then did Oedipus and Jacosta learn the truth.
Jacosta hung herself and Oedipus blinded himself and went into exile - not a very happy ending, but the prophecies
of the Oracle had came true.
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