herodotus

however, if a man should say that the Athenians proved to be thesaviours of Hellas, he would not fail to hit the truth; for towhichever side these turned, to that the balance was likely toincline: and these were they who, preferring that Hellas shouldcontinue to exist in freedom, roused up all of Hellas which remained,so much, that is, as had not gone over to the Medes, and (after thegods at least) these were they who repelled the king. Nor did fearfuloracles, which came from Delphi and cast them into dread, induce themto leave Hellas, but they stayed behind and endured to receive theinvader of their land. 140. For the Athenians had sent men to Delphito inquire and were preparing to consult the Oracle; and after thesehad performed the usual rites in the sacred precincts, when they hadentered the sanctuary[120] and were sitting down there, the Pythianprophetess, whose name was Aristonike, uttered to them this oracle:"Why do ye sit, O ye wretched? Flee thou[121] to the uttermost limits,Leaving thy home and the heights of the wheel-round city behind thee!Lo, there remaineth now nor the head nor the body in safety,--Neither the feet below nor the hands nor the middle are left thee,--All are destroyed[122] together; for fire and the passionate War-god,[123]Urging the Syrian[124] car to speed, doth hurl them[125] to ruin.Not thine alone, he shall cause many more great strongholds to perish,Yes, many temples of gods to the ravening fire shall deliver,--Temples which stand now surely with sweat of their terror down-streaming,Quaking with dread; and lo! from the topmost roof to the pavementDark blood trickles, forecasting the dire unavoidable evil.Forth with you, forth from the shrine, and steep your soul in the sorrow![126]141. Hearing this the men who had been sent by the Athenians toconsult the Oracle were very greatly distressed; and as they weredespairing by reason of the evil which had been prophesied to them,Timon the son of Androbulos, a man of the Delphians in reputationequal to the first, counselled them to take a suppliant's bough and toapproach the second time and consult the Oracle as suppliants. TheAthenians did as he advised and said: "Lord,[127] we pray thee utterto us some better oracle about our native land, having respect tothese suppliant boughs which we have come to thee bearing; otherwisesurely we will not depart away from the sanctuary, but will remainhere where we are now, even until we bring our lives to an end." Whenthey spoke these words, the prophetess gave them a second oracle asfollows:"Pallas cannot prevail to appease great Zeus in Olympos,Though she with words very many and wiles close-woven entreat him.But I will tell thee this more, and will clench it with steel adamantine:Then when all else shall be taken, whatever the boundary[128] of Kecrops