Teiresias, a blind Theban seer was one of the favourites of Athena's grandchildren. Legend told that he lived for seven generations. Besides longevity, another of Teiresias' features involves his having lived also as a women for seven years. That experience of life as both sexes may have inadvertently caused his blindness. The story holds that Hera and Zeus disagreed about which of the sexes experienced more pleasure during lovemaking, with Hera arguing that the answer was men, by far. However Teiresias asserted - as had both pleasures in his life - that women had greater pleasure then men, deeper and more complicated. Hera thereupon struck him blind and Zeus, in thanks for his support, gave him the gift of prophecy.
This painting is about that very moment when Hera - accompanied by the rain of lilies and songbirds as her signs - got Teiresias blind. The further meaning is about what is to section us as men and women in our souls, which has no sex, which is an absolute whole.