Odysseus must travel to the underworld to seek guidance from the prophet Tiresias, who can provide crucial information about how to return home to Ithaca. Tiresias offers insights into the challenges Odysseus will face, including the need to appease Poseidon and the dangers posed by the suitors vying for his wife, Penelope. This journey is essential for Odysseus to gain wisdom and foresight, ensuring his safe return and the restoration of order in his household.
Odysseus had to journey to the underworld and offer sacrifices at Tiresias' tomb in order to speak to him. Tiresias was a blind prophet in Greek mythology who could communicate with the living from the realm of the dead.
In the underworld, Odysseus speaks primarily with the souls of various heroes and figures from Greek mythology, including his mother Anticlea, Achilles, Agamemnon, and Tiresias the blind prophet. Additionally, he encounters other souls such as Elpenor and his fallen comrades from the Trojan War.
to speak with Tiresias
Tiresias
Odysseus ventures into the underworld on the orders of Circe. She tells him to find the ghost of Tiresias, a seer, and ask him how to return to Ithaca.
Odysseus wanted to speak with Agamemnon, a blind "fortune teller" in the underworld (Hades), to find a way to break Poseidon's curse.
Odysseus decided to talk with Tiresias, so he and his men journeyed to the River Acheron in Hades, where they performed sacrifices which allowed them to speak to the dead. Odysseus sacrificed a ram, attracting the dead spirits to the blood. He held them at bay and demanded to speak with Tiresias, who told him how to pass by Helios's cattle and the whirlpool Charybdis.
Odysseus does not speak to his mother initially in the underworld because of the belief that the dead must drink the blood of sacrificed animals to gain the ability to speak with the living. He first needs to ensure that he has called and spoken with the spirits of the other dead before he can speak with his mother.
Odysseus goes to the Land of the Dead because Circe told him that to get home, he would have to speak to the prophet Tiresias. When he reaches his destination, he sacrifices a ram and speaks to his dead comrade, Elpenor, who tells him that he wants to be buried properly. After that, he speaks to Tiresias. Tiresias tells him that he will sail to the island of Helios; the sun god's island where he keeps his cows. Tiresias warns Odysseus not to touch the cows or else all of his men will die. When he gets home, he has to kill all of the suitors flirting with his wife. When that's done, Odysseus will live happily ever after and die of old age. ... Or so Tiresias says.
In the Odyssey, he did not go into the Underworld but merely summoned ghosts of the dead to speak to him.
Odysseus must visit the house of Hades to consult the spirit of the blind prophet Tiresias, who can provide him with important advice on how to navigate his journey home. The visit to the underworld also allows Odysseus to encounter other spirits, including his deceased mother, which adds emotional depth to his quest.
Differences being: Odysseus is a male mortal = Persephone a goddess Queen of the Underworld Odysseus made his decent to the Underworld by choice to get information/advice. Persephone was abducted by Hades, King of the Underworld and made his wife Persephone will never die Odysseus will die Similarities: They both can speak to the ghosts of the dead