Tiresias was a
Greek/
Roman prophet who came from
Thebes. He figures into several stories from
Greek and
Roman mythology.
One of the more amusing ones occured when he was walking down the road one day, and he saw two snakes having
sex. For one reason or another, he took his walking stick and thrashed them badly. The
Gods happened to notice this, and, as
punishment, turned him into a
woman. So he went around as a
woman for a while. Seven years later, he saw two snakes lying side by side, and this time he used his walking stick to make them come together. This caused him to be turned back into a
man. Later on,
Zeus and
Hera were having an argument about who has a better
orgasm during
sex. Remembering that Tiresias had been both a
man and a
woman, they decided to ask him. Tiresias replied that a woman's
orgasm is nine times better.
The
loser of the argument between
Zeus and
Hera struck Tresias with a lightning bolt, which blinded him. As compensation, the winning party gave him the ability to foresee the
future.
Tiresias is seen again later on in the story of
Odysseus/
Ulysses, where he acts as a
seer.