Oedipus and the Riddle of the Sphinx
Oedipus was born to Queen Jocasta and King Laius in the city of Thebes. When Oedipus was born, the gods told Laius he would be killed by his own son. The son would then marry his own mother. Laius felt he had to get rid of the boy. So he sent the baby Oedipus up to a mountain. There he was left to die. But Oedipus did not die. He grew to be a man. He lived his life alone and sad.
One day he heard about something called the Sphinx. This was a monster with the head of a woman, the body of a lion, the wings like a bird. Near Thebes, the Sphinx lay in wait for people to walk by. Then she would ask them a riddle. If they could not answer the riddle, she would eat them. No one got past because no one could give the right answer.
Oedipus decided to try the riddle of the Sphinx. On his way, he came across a band of four men. At last he reached the monster. “Here is a riddle,” the Sphinx said. “What goes on four legs in the morning, two at noon, and tree at night?”
As king, Oedipus wanted the killer to be found. So he asked the wisest man in Thebes to help him find that person. “That person is you,” the old man said. “That’s a crazy idea!” said Queen Jocasta.” Laius was killed by a robber. It happened at the place where three roads come together”.
“When did
Oedipus stepped down as King of Thebes. Queen Jocasta’s brother took over the throne and the country. And so Oedipus had not only answered the riddle of the Sphinx. He had found the answer to the puzzle of his whole life.
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