1 Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannus Introduced and Translated by ...

Or touches what must not be touched. 890
Whoever does these things
Shall not escape the shafts
Of disaster that will attack his soul.
If such a man is honored,
Why should I dance for the gods
I shall no longer go to the holy shrine of Delphi,
The navel of the earth,
Nor to the shrines of Abae or Olympia, 900
If oracles do not tell the truth to all mankind.
Almighty Zeus, lord of all,
If you hear what I say,
Do not let this escape you,
And your immortal rule.
The oracle’s sight is growing dim;
Apollo’s honor no longer shines;
The power of the gods is dying. 910
JOCASTA enters with offerings for Apollo.
Leaders of the land,
I decided to go to the temples of the gods,
and with my own hands
offer these crowns of flowers and incense.
JOCASTA
Oedipus is tormenting himself with every possible doubt.
He no longer sensibly weighs new information against the old,
but agrees with every new speaker,
especially if the message is a bad one.
Turns to the altar and addresses the god.
Since he ignores my advice,
I have come to you, Lycian Apollo. 920
You are closest, and I pray
that you find some good outcome.
We all are terrified
to see the captain of our ship struck down.
Enter MESSENGER.
MESSENGER
Strangers, could you tell me where’s the palace of Oedipus
Or better still, could you tell me where he is
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