In ancient Greece, there was said to be a priestess known as Pythia who was said to be the Oracle of Apollo. Pythia was said to produce prophecies in a "frenzied state induced by vapors rising from the ground, and that she spoke gibberish which priests reshaped into the enigmatic prophecies". Though these "vapors" were actually a drug, many of her prophecies were written down and actually came true.
One example was in 630BC when the King of Thera brought a gift to the oracle. When he did so, she told him "that he should found a city in Libya". The king did not know where Libya was, and so he did nothing. When he returned to Thera, it did not rain for a long time and so he decided to go back to the oracle to ask her what could be done. She told him "if they...would make a settlement at Cyrene in Libya, things would go better with thelm". The king decided to follow this advice and so he sought out Libya with help from the Cretans. When he finally established a city in LIbya, things were still going poorly for the colony. So he went back to the oracle and she said, "know you better than I,fair Libya abounding in fleeces? Better the stranger than he who has trod it? Oh! Clever Therans!" And so the Therans aked to local Libyans where they should establish a city and thus the city prospered.
Another example occured in 401Bc when the oracle told the Spartans that "Sure though thy feet, proud Sparta, have a calre, a lame king's reign may see thee trip--Beware! Troubles unlooked for long shall vex thy shore, and rolling Time his tide of carnage pour" Shortly after this warning, Agesilaus, the king of Sparta at the time who acceeded the Lysander, began taking on too many battles, and inticed teh Thebans to fight. For the first time the Spartans were defeated by the Thebans.
website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famous_Oracular_Statements_from_Delphi
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