This episode of Living Myth considers the oldest versions of the tale of Pandora’s Box as a way of understanding how it is that all the ailments and troubles of the world seem to be loosed upon us again. The name Pandora is connected to the abundance of the Earth and carries meanings like “all gifted” and ‘the one who sends up gifts.” It turns out that it was not Pandora who lifted the lid and released all the anxieties, chaos and suffering that can plague life on Earth.
Pandora married Epimetheus, the brother of Prometheus who gave fire to humans and was credited with inspiring human culture. Whereas Prometheus means “far-seeing” or “one with foresight,” Epimetheus means “one who is short-sighted” and only able to see the effects of his actions after the damage has been done. In the old myths, it was the impulsive, uninformed and short-sighted brother who lifted the lid on the proverbial box and released all of the troubles of the world at the same time.
As waves of anxiety, uncertainty and panic once again spread through the world and undermine social patterns and institutions, it doesn’t take a seer to see that the self-proclaimed strong men and would be autocrats repeat the impulses and lack of foresight that characterize the weaker, blinder and ultimately ill-fated brother. While branding themselves as all-knowing culture-bringers, all would be dictators and autocrats, out of their own arrogance, blindness and greed, inevitably open Pandora’s box and release storms of uncertainty and chaos that intensify all the pain and suffering, all the corruption and injustices that torment people and threaten the core values of human culture.
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