PANDORA
The First Woman on Earth
Presented by: Prof. Dr. Mr. Maqsood Hasni Free Abuzar Barqi kutab'khana Aguest 2017
The First Woman on Earth
Painting by John William Waterhouse "...the woman opened up the cask ,And scattered pains
and evils among men." Works and Days, Hesiod
QUICK INTRODUCTION When Zeus, the king of the Olympian gods, was young and trying to establish his rule, he was challenged by a group of ferocious Titans, who tried to keep him from gaining power. A long and terrible war ensued, with all the Olympian gods joined against the Titans, who were led by Cronus and Atlas. After ten years of fighting, and with the help of the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires (The Hundred-Handed-Ones), Zeus and his fellow Olympians defeated the Titans. Only a few Titans, including Themis, Prometheus and his brother Epimetheus, fought on the side of Zeus - against their fellow Titans - and once Zeus won, he rewarded them. But soon Prometheus made Zeus very angry by stealing fire from Mount Olympus and giving it to the race of mortal men living on earth, who were cold and hungry. Zeus had warned Prometheus not to give fire to men, and was outraged that anyone had the nerve to ignore his command. Still, he would seem ungrateful if he appeared to forget
the importantrole that Prometheus and his brother Epimetheus had played in the war against the Titans, and he couldn't just kill the brothers, so he cunningly devised a scheme to get even! PANDORA IS CREATED In revenge, Zeus ordered Hephaestus, the god of smiths, to craft a gorgeous woman out of earth and water. The beautiful goddess of Love, Aphrodite, was asked to pose as a model, just to make sure the woman was perfect. Once this was done, the Four Winds (or some say Hephaestus himself) breathed life into her and there she lay sleeping, brand spanking new! The first mortal woman on earth was to be bestowed with unparalleled charm and beauty, and her unknown mission would be to bring mischief and misery upon the human race. Zeus then summoned the other Olympians and asked them each to give this new creation a gift
Creation of Pandora, interior of Cylix, 470-460 B.C., British Museum, London, England Aphrodite adorned her with beauty, grace and desire; Hermes, the Messenger god, gave her cunning and boldness; Demeter showed her how to tend a garden; Athena taught her manual dexterity and to spin; Apollo taught her to sing sweetly and play the lyre; Poseidon's gift was a pearl necklace and the god of the sea promised her that she would never drown.
But Zeus also made her foolish, mischievous and idle. This was the first woman, divine in appearance but quite human in reality. The gods called her Pandora, which means "All-gifted", or "The gift of all", because each god had given her a power by which she would work the ruin of man, and because of the many presents bestowed upon her at Olympus. Lovely Pandora was created to become the wife of the Titan Epimetheus, who was the not-very-bright brother of Prometheus, the one who had gotten on Zeus' bad side. Before sending her to earth, the gods held a big banquet and Hermes, the Messenger god, presented Pandora with a splendidly crafted jar (some say a box), adorned with wonderful images. But Hermes warned Pandora that she must never open the jar (box)! She must NEVER open the box...And then Zeus' wife, Hera, gave her the quality of curiosity! Tell me, is that fair? They also gave her silvery raiment and a broidered veil, and in her hair they placed bright garlands of fresh flowers and a wonderful crown of gold. Her gowns were
most sumptuous and she was truly a vision from heaven. When Pandora was finally brought out and shown to the gods, resplendent in all the finery she had received, great amazement and wonder took hold of them, such was the effect of her beauty...
Desperate, Pandora took the box and locked it inside a heavy wooden chest. She placed chains around the chest, dug a hole, and buried it in her garden. With great effort she rolled a huge boulder on top of the "grave", determined to forget all about this object of her obsession. She couldn't sleep that night. No matter how she tried,
her thoughts kept returning to the buried golden box. She put on her robe and went out to the garden. As if in a trance, Pandora found herself drawn to the boulder. She reached out and touched the stone and like magic it moved, revealing the hole. This must be a sign from Hermes! "You must never open the box!" As she dug the earth to get to the box, the Messenger god's words rang in her mind. "Never open the box!" Pandora wanted to obey the command of the gods, and she really wasn't wicked, but at last she could no longer contain her curiosity. Taking the little golden key from around her neck, she fitted it into the keyhole and gently opened the box. Just a tiny bit, so that she could have a little peek, you see, and then she was going to close it up again. Just a little, tiny peek...It was her wedding gift, after all...
Painting by John William Waterhouse Bad move. No sooner had Pandora opened the box, that she realized her mistake. A foul smell filled the air and she heard swarming and rustling inside. In horror she slammed the lid shut, but alas it was too late! The evil had been unleashed! You see, the vindictive gods had each put something harmful inside the box. All the plagues and sorrows known to humanity were released once Pandora opened the jar. Old Age, Sickness, Insanity, Pestilence, Vice,
Passion, Greed, Crime, Death, Theft, Lies, Jealousy, Famine, the list went on and on...every evil, that until then had been trapped inside the gift from the gods, was now loosed upon the earth.
Illustration by Padraic Colum (1881–1972) from
The Golden Fleece and the Heroes Who Lived before Achilles, 1921. First the scourges stung Pandora and Epimetheus on every part of their body, then the evils scattered throughout the world and mixed with the good, so that they were indistinguishable, and humans had a hard time telling between the two extremes. Entering a house,
these monster hang from the rafters and bide their time, waiting for the perfect moment to swoop down and sting their victim, bringing pain, pestilence, sorrow and death. Woe was Pandora! The poor girl was terror-stricken at what she had caused, and at this unexpected eruption of evil. But just as she thought all was lost, one little Sprite, a solitary good thing, hidden at the bottom of the jar, flew out. It was Hope! Deep down inside the hateful jar was the only thing that has sustained humanity in times of sorrow, pain and misery - Hope. The endless Hope that things will soon get better. And it's this Hope that keeps us going to this very day, our sole comfort in times of misfortune. But before you go blaming all of society's ills on poor lovely Pandora, the first woman and the ultimate pariah, first consider the following question: Would you have been disciplined enough to keep the jar/box shut, or would you, like Pandora, let your curiosity get the best of you? Hey, if it was MY wedding gift, I'd be opening it! Just so I
could send a Thank You note! EPILOGUE Here's an interesting aside: At a still later period, rather than all the ills of the world, the box was said to have contained all the blessings of the gods. These were meant to have been preserved for the future benefit of the human race. Pandora was instructed never to open the box, but once again her curiosity got the better of her, and she had a peek. The winged blessings at once took flight and escaped, rarely to be seen again. If only Pandora had kept the box closed! Who knows what our world would be like!
Image from an ancient Greek vase
"And in her breast, the messenger, killer of Argos, created lies; deceiving words, a deceitful heart, just as Zeus with his angry mutterings had wished. Then the herald of the gods gave her the power of speech and the name of Pandora, because that name represented all the inhabitants of Olympus who, with this gift, made a present of misfortune to mankind." Hessiod, Theogony Topic: Examine the sequence of myths concerning Prometheus' trick of the sacrifice, his theft of fire and the creation of woman (Hesiod, Theogony 535-616, Works and Days 42-105), considering the following issues: How are these myths related thematically to each other? And in particular: How do they collectively define and justify the relationships between men and gods, men and animals, men and women? Compare and contrast what you consider to be the purpose of these myths with that of the myth of Eden and
Adam and Eve in Genesis. The works of Hesiod regarding the trick of the sacrifice, the theft of fire and the creation of women have long been regarded by analysts as being thematically linked through the concept of the deceptive gift, the fall of mankind from an era of utopia and the establishment of relationships. In a purposive analysis, it is equally possible to compare these myths and that of Adam and Eve in the Eden of Genesis, with a number of striking parallels and contrasts occurring. This essay will attempt to account for the above thematic links, and draw conclusions regarding the state of mankind in Greek and Hebrew thinking. Thematically, the myths found in Theogony 535-616 and Works and Days 42-105 are interwoven, and it is generally accepted that the differing versions of the trick of the sacrifice, theft of fire and creation of woman (and the ensuing results of this line of events) are complementary, and that each myth elaborates the barely-mentionedelements of the other. Three major themes which are found in these myths are those of deceptive gifts, the gradual fall of mankind, and the
establishment of relationships between gods, men, women (once created), and animals. Regarding the theme of deceptive gifts, it is possible to discern a pattern which runs through the myths in question, namely that each event is triggered in response to a trap, trick or deception, finally establishing social norms and causing humans to suffer more grievances than in the past. Although the different versions of the myths (Theogony and Works and Days) do not agree whether men and gods begin in a state of harmony or opposition1, both versions agree that a state of tension between Prometheus and Zeus occurs when the Titan attempts to publicly deceive Zeus2 during the sharing of ox portions. It is the deceptive gift offered by Prometheus to the father of the gods - bones, not meat, concealed under fat - that sets in motion a series of events that will have serious ramifications for social hierarchies and ritual practices; additionally, in allotting the various shares of ox for both gods and men, men and gods are finally split from an age where they dined together in harmony. The theme of the deceptive gift is developed further in
the myths, with Zeus no longer giving (I.e., hiding3) fire from the mortal men on earth, who have benefited thanks to their protector's "tricking" of Zeus. It is through this action that men are reduced to a state of primitive bestiality, in that they are no longer able to cook meat (thus eating raw meat, the practice of omophagia, just like animals) and can no longer communicate to the gods through sacrifice. Not on par with gods in that they cannot breach the gap between mortality and immortality, men are no longer stationed above wild beasts, but are their equal. This lowering of status is reversed by Prometheus, who steals fire and carries it to give to men by hiding it in a fennel stalk4, infuriating Zeus. In a way, however, the gods also benefit from this theft, as they may now receive once more the smoke of the burnt sacrifices. The final deceptive gift is the woman created by various gods on the command of Zeus - Pandora, "all-gifted"5, as she is named in Works and Days. Created from the earth by Hephaestos and animated by the power of the gods, Pandora is not just given the face of a goddess and the body of a beautiful virgin girl, but she is also given the
talents of deception, of lying, of consuming both food and sex6, yet contributes nothing to the household. Pandora is the ultimate dolos (trap), as she is irresistible, quite literally: not only is she physically attractive to men, they must marry for if they do not, then they are doomed to a miserable aged existence. With the face of a goddess, Pandora is linked to the immortals; with the "morals of a bitch" (Hesiod, Works and Days), she is linked to animals. Thus, as with man, woman is given a social status halfway between the gods and the beasts that walk the earth - not quite either, but a complex mixture of both. It is the human condition, then, to be apart and ambiguous. Marriage, sacrifice and ills that plague mankind are the by-products of the standoff between Prometheus and Zeus. Marriage, a crucial institution, governs the relationship between men and women7, and is the second evil that Zeus sends to men as a punishment, simultaneously to the giving of Pandora – in the very best scenario, marriage is described by Hesiod as being a mixture of good and evil. When Prometheus' foolish brother Epimetheus (ignoring his older brother's warning to accept nothing from Zeus) accepts Pandora,
he sets the precedent for marriage, which is considered to be unprofitable - indeed, it is a liability. Pandora is portrayed as a gaster8, a stomach which is never satisfied. She has a relentless appetite for food (and implicitly, sex), yet contributes nothing to the household9. Even the children which she may bear are ambiguous in nature: on the one hand, they will care for their parents during their old age; on the other, the division of the estate may occur if there is more than one heir (it could also be insensitively argued that if a child dies, then they may be considered to be an economic loss to the household). Beautiful on the outside, internally Pandora is worth no more than the dirt from which she was formed, and exists solely to make the lot of men harder in life. It is thus that she is a deceptive gift, and that the relationship between men and women are defined - this relationship is one of hardship. The communications between gods and men through the newly established ritual of sacrifice (the product of Prometheus' trick at Mecone, and final splitting of men from the gods) is another relationship set up due to the sequence of events told by Hesiod in these myths. In
apportioning the shares of ox, men and gods are irrevocably split. Yet more curiously, however, is the fall of mankind, a theme which finds parallels in the myth told in Genesis. Pandora carries with her, or within her, a pithos (jar10) which contains all the evils of the world in addition to the enigmatic elpis (hope). It is these evils, when released by Pandora, which further contribute to the degeneration of the state of man (as well as a women, now that they exist), and this theme is analogous to that of Adam and Eve. Moreover, hope is now the perpetual state of human existence, and also defines man as being halfway between gods and animals: "Whoever is immortal, as the gods are, has no need of Elpis. Nor is there any [... for beasts who are] ignorant of their mortality."11 Genesis begins, as Hesiod, with a utopian setting, the Garden of Eden, where man rules over animals, yet is lesser than God. Woman, Eve12, is created not as a deceptive gift to punish man, but as a companion for Adam13 - unlike Pandora who is "unquestionably inferior"14 to men. Despite this contrast between the myths, a parallel lies in the fact that in both cases, it is
woman who directly causes the fall of mankind, ignoring the progression of preceding events. Pandora wilfully opens the mysterious jar (any admonition that she should not do so has either never existed, or has been left out by Hesiod on the assumption that the audience would know of the jar and its significance), causing evils to roam the earth by night and day, harming humans forevermore - no longer do men die peacefully as they once did before the advent of woman. This releasing of evil is comparable to Eve partaking of the fruit15 on the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Although forbidden to eat this fruit, Eve does so, and additionally encourages Adam to follow suit. Upon eating the fruit, Adam and Eve lose their state of child-like innocence, and become aware of their nakedness - this fall from innocence compounds to be a fall from a blissful existence, when the couple are banned from the Garden of Eden and punished further by God's decree. The punishments of Adam and Eve - to have to work hard to gain sustenance (Adam), and to bear children with hard labour (Eve) - correspond to the punishments on humans which resulted from the original Promethean
trick of the sacrifice. Henceforth, men must work hard to obtain food from the ground which had once simply given grains without any difficulty16. Agriculture has been established, another point of differentiation between man and beast, who does not cultivate, but kills at random. Not only must the ground be ploughed in order to gain anything worthwhile, but the fertile ground of Pandora must also be seeded in order for children to eventuate, a necessity ordained by Zeus - if man has no children, then his estate will be in jeopardy in the future, and he will have nobody to look after him in his old age. Like with Pandora, Adam and Eve are forced to have children by God's decree "...in labour you shall bear children." (Genesis 3:16) The concept of the deceptive gift may also reside in Genesis - why is the tree of knowledge of good and evil placed in the Garden of Eden in the first place? Yet the more prominent parallel theme to that of the Hesiodic myths, aside from the fall of mankind, is the establishment of relationships. Adam, like Pandora, is a creation of earth - God forms him, animates him, and places him in charge of the animals in Eden, as shown by
the fact that Adam is able to name them (and thus hold mastery over them). Adam is thus subordinate to God, yet above animals. The situation with Eve is more ambiguous: it is interesting to note that after their fall from grace, Adam names Eve, perhaps implying mastery. This viewpoint has been questioned, as discussed earlier in the essay. The sequence of myths in Hesiod regarding the trick of the sacrifice, the theft of fire and the creation of woman are thematically linked through relationships, deceptive gifts and the fall of man from a state of near-perfect existence. A parallel to this set of myths may be found in Genesis, in the myth of Adam, Eve, and the Garden of Eden. In both, man originally exists in a world without trouble; after the creation of woman, humans begin to suffer as the woman in question (either Pandora or Eve) sets in motion events which lead to a worsened situation and future. Additionally, these myths show that man holds a tenuous and ambiguous position between the gods and beasts, and lives in a possibly unequal partnership with his wife. The establishment of important social customs such as marriage, agriculture and
sacrifice are the direct result of the original deception of Prometheus. In sum, the myths contained in Theogony, Works and Days, and Genesis are thematically intertwined, all explaining why humans stand alone between immortality and bestiality, why they must suffer, and what roles both sexes must play. This is perhaps best summarised by Jean-Pierre Vernant, who said Henceforward, there is a reverse aspect to everything: contact can only be made with the gods through sacrifice which at the same time consecrates the impassable barrier between mortals and immortals; there can be no happiness without unhappiness, no birth without death, no abundance without toil, no Prometheus without Epimetheus—in a word, no Man without Pandora.17 Endnotes: 1. In Theogony, men and gods are still united when they meet to share the ox, whereas in Hesiod's Works and Days, the scene is different, apparently a confrontation in metis (wisdom) between the Titan Prometheus (representing men) and the Olympian Zeus (representing the gods).
2. It has long been a point of scholarly contention as to whether or not Zeus was fooled by Prometheus at this point. Zeus, embodying wisdom, technically cannot be tricked according to Hesiod, who says that "...there is no way to flee the mind of Zeus..." (Hesiod, Works and Days). Others argue that this is simply a glossing-over, and that Zeus has been fooled, exactly like his father and grandfather before him. 3. That the text uses the word "giving" is significant, as it links in with the theme of gifts: "He bore the trick in mind, and would not give, / To wretched men who live on earth, the power / of fire, which never wearies." (Hesiod, Theogony) 4. It has been argued that gift giving is a cultural refinement of the act of taking, and that in giving a gift, social obligations are imposed (refer to Nagy, p. 191 for further discussion). Here, Prometheus takes what is not given, then gives it through deception (hiding it in the fennel stalk). 5. Hermes names Pandora this as she receives a skill, item or element from many different gods. It is
interesting to note that "Pandora" was also a title connected with the concept of the earth mother, in that the earth gave life to all. Hesiod does not recognise this connection, nor does he recognise that men henceforth are from women born Pandora is said to be the progenitor of the female "race" – "From her comes all the race of womankind..." (Hesiod, Theogony). 6. For further discussion of the concept of Pandora as an economic liability to men, refer to Zeitlin, pp. 49-55 7. It is additionally a point of separation between men and beasts, who often mate somewhat at random. For the purposes of this essay, I defined 'marriage' in a traditional way. 8. This word corresponds to the gaster in which the ox meat is hidden during the trick of the sacrifice. 9. Hesiod choses to ignore the fact that Athena is said to have taught Pandora how to weave. 10. The jar has long been under academic scrutiny. Many analysts believe it to represent female sexuality, and yet others connect it to the general
concept of fertility. For further discussion of these matters see Reeder, pp. 195-99 and Powell, pp. 121-23. 11. Vernant, p. 184 12. Eve means "mother of all", a link to the earth goddess connections regarding the name Pandora. 13. It has long been a matter of debate as to whether Eve, created from the rib of Adam, is subordinate to him or not. Although traditionally regarded as such, it has been argued that "...the woman is created as the man's full, equal partner..." O'Brien and Major, p. 92 14. Reeder, p. 278 15. Long regarded as being an apple, the more general word 'fruit' has been used to acknowledge the belief of several academics that this naming is formed merely from the fact that in Latin, the word malum is used to mean both 'apple' and 'bad'. 16. In Hesiod's Works and Days, the situation is given at the trick of the sacrifice that men and gods are already split, as the gods are portrayed as having hidden bios (grains) from humans. This may
be considered to mean that the ability to easily gain food by cultivation is no longer an option for men. 17. Vernant, p. 185 Bibliography: Primary Sources: · References to Hesiod (Theogony 535-616 and Works and Days 42-105) and Genesis are from my Classics lecture handout - sorry, I can't give specific bibliographic details. Secondary Sources: · G.S. Kirk, Myth – Its Meaning and Functions in Ancient and Other Cultures (London, 1970) pp. 172-251 · G.S. Kirk, The Nature of Greek Myths (Harmondsworth, 1974) pp. 136-143 · J.F. Nagy, 'The Deceptive Gift in Greek Mythology' in Arethusa Vol. 14 (1981) pp. 191-204 · J. O'Brien and W. Major, In the Beginning – Creation
Myths from Ancient Mesopotamia, Israel and Greece
(1982) pp. 80-122 · B.B. Powell, Classical Myth (Upper Saddle River, 2004) pp. 111-23 · E.D. Reeder, 'Pandora' in Pandora – Women in Classical Greece, ed. E.D. Reeder (Baltimore, 1995) pp. 277-279 · E.D. Reeder, 'Women as Containers' in Pandora – Women in Classical Greece, ed. E.D. Reeder (Baltimore, 1995) pp. 195-199 · J-P. Vernant, Myth and Society in Ancient Greece, trans. T. Lloyd (Brighton, 1980) pp. 168-85 · F.I. Zeitlin, 'The Economics of Hesiod's Pandora' in Pandora – Women in Classical Greece, ed. E.D. Reeder (Baltimore, 1995) pp. 49-55
Pandora, the first woman on Earth
The story of Pandora came into prominence in “Theogeny”, Hesiod’s epic poem, written circa 800 BC. The myth dates back to the first centuries of humanity, just after the Titanomachy, the Great War between the Titans and the Olympians. It is interesting to note that the reference to Pandora’s “Box” came only in the 16th century from Erasmus of Rotterdam. The bottom line is that the entire story about Pandora was fabricated. It may be considered as a misogynist stand that the creation of woman was the harbinger of all evil on this
world. The creation of Pandora All started from a gathering of the gods, where the Titans were also invited. The gathering had been organized to decide who would be favored with the better portion of a sacrifice. Prometheus, the Titan who later stole the fire from the Gods and gave it to humanity, had deviously presented the sacrifice in such a manner that Zeus chose the portion that looked more appealing when in fact it was just bones presented in a tempting manner. Outraged at this mockery, Zeus decided to take revenge and get even with Prometheus. Zeus charged Hephaestus, the god of smiths and master of crafts, with creating a dazzlingly beautiful woman, one that would appear irresistible to either god or man. To accomplish this feat Aphrodite, the goddess of love, posed as a model for the creation of the statue. The woman was molded of earth and water and once the body was ready, the Four Winds breathed life into it. She
was then given gifts from all the Olympian gods. Aphrodite gave to her unparalleled beauty, grace and desire. Hermes, the messenger god, gave her a cunning, deceitful mind and a crafty tongue. Athena clothed her and taught her to be deft with her hands. Poseidon bestowed on her a pearl necklace that would prevent her from drowning. Apollo taught her to play the lyre and to sing. Zeus gave her a foolish, mischievous and idle nature and last but not least, Hera gave her the wiliest gift, curiosity. Thus, the first mortal woman was born and she descended down to earth. Her name was Pandora, meaning all-gifted, implying all the gifts she had received from gods. Along with her, Hermes gave a gilded and intricately carved box, a gift from Zeus with an explicit warning that she must never open it, come what may. Draped in raiment fit for the gods, she was presented to Epimetheus, Prometheus' half-brother. Opening the box Epimetheus had been told by his brother never to accept any gift from Zeus. Prometheus was well aware that Zeus
was still angry with him for his effrontery at the gathering and would try to get his revenge. However, one look at Pandora was all it took for Epimetheus to fall in crazy love with her and marry her without thought or consideration. He was truly enchanted with her. To congratulate them, Hermes came to the wedding ceremony and told Epimetheus that Pandora was a gift from Zeus, a peace-offer signifying that there were no more ill feelings between the chief of the gods and Prometheus. He also told Epimetheus that the gilded box of Pandora was a wedding gift from the Olympian King. Being a bit credulous, Epimetheus believed Hermes’ words to be true. Unfortunately, Prometheus’ advice had fallen on deaf ears. The days were passing quickly and the two were leading a happy, married life but one thought was still at the back of Pandora’s mind: what was in the box that Zeus had given her? She kept thinking that maybe the box had money in it, nice clothes or even jewelry. Without thought or reason, she would find herself walking past the box and involuntarily reaching out to open it. Every time, she
was reminding herself that she had vowed never to open the box. Hera’s gift of curiosity had worked and one day, unable to take it any more, she decided to have just a brief look inside. When nobody was around, she fitted a golden key hanging around her neck to the lock on the box. Turning the key slowly, she unlocked the box and lifted the lid only for a while. Before she knew it, there was a hissing sound and a horrible odor permeated the air around her. Terrified, she slammed the lid down but it was too late. Pandora had released all the wickedness and malevolence that Zeus had locked into the box. That time, she understood that she was a mere pawn in a great game played by the gods. In that gilded box, Zeus had hidden all everything that would plague man forever: sickness, death, turmoil, strife, jealousy, hatred, famine, passion‌ everywhere the evil spread. Pandora felt the weight of the world on her shoulders and looked at the gilded box that had turned rusty and hideous. As if sensing her need, a warm and calming feeling shrouded her and she knew that not all was lost. Unknown to her,
along with the evil feelings, she had also revealed hope, the only good thing that Zeus had trapped inside the box. From now on, hole would live with man forever, to give him succor just when he felt that everything was coming to an end. Pandora's box The modern phrase “Pandora’s box” derives from this myth. It is used to say that a certain action provoked many evils, just like Pandora’s action to open the box released all the evils of humanity. However, despite these evils, we humans still have hope to encourage us. This phrase was produced by the Dutch humanist and theologian Erasmus of Rotterdam in the 16th century, when he translated the poem of Hesiod. Pandora and Eve In this myth, we can observe some similarities with the Christian story of Adam and Eve. Just like Pandora in ancient Greece, Eve was known as the first woman on
earth in Hebrew history. Even the creation of the two women is similar: Pandora was made of earth and water and Eve from the rib of Adam, the first man on earth, who was in his turn made of slay. Another similarity is that they both disobeyed god: Pandora opened the box and unleashed evil in the world and Eve tempted Adam to eat the forbidden apple, against God’s will. Some accounts maintain that Pandora tempted Epimetheus into opening the box. However, both women brought ruin and misfortune upon men who had so far lived in a paradisiacal world, free from all sins. Pandora and Eve are considered as the progenitors of the human race and because of their curiosity, the world is cursed today. Interestingly, Pandora was created with vicious intentions but not so Eve, who was simply created to be Adam’s companion.
The treachery lay in the role of Hermes and the Snake respectively. In Pandora, Hermes instilled that she must never open the box and had Hera not gifted her “curiosity�, it may have remained closed forever. In the Garden of Eden, the Snake tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and Life, bringing about realization and shame. From these two stories, we can imply that women have forever been seen as perpetrators of all that is deceitful and therefore women are to blame for every evil on this world
Pandora & Hephaestus
Pandora & Hephaestus, Athenian red-figureamphora C5th B.C., Ashmolean Museum PANDORA was the very first woman who was formed out of clay by the gods. The Titan Prometheus had originally been assigned with the task of creating man. But because he was displeased with their lot, stole fire from heaven. Zeus was angered, and commanded Hephaistos and the other gods to create a woman, Pandora, and
endow her with the beauty and cunning. He then delivered her to Epimetheus, the foolish younger brother of Prometheus, for a bride. When he had received her into his house, Pandora opened the pithos (storage jar) which Zeus had given her as a wedding present, and released the swarm of evil spirits trapped within. They would ever afterwards plague mankind. Only Elpis (Hope) remained behind, a single blessing to succor mankind in their suffering. Pandora's daughter Pyrrha (Fire) was the first-born mortal child. She and her husband Deukalion alone survived the Great Deluge. To repopulate the earth they each cast stones over their shoulder. Those cast by Deukalion formed men, and those of Pyrrha women. In ancient Greek vase painting Pandora was depicted in the scene of her creation as either a statue-like figure surrounded by gods, or as a woman rising out of the earth (the anodos). Sometimes she is surrounded by dancing Satyroi, in a scene from a lost S ENCYCLOPEDIA PANDO′RA (Pandôra), i. e. the giver of all, or endowed
with every thing, is the name of the first woman on earth. When Prometheus had stolen the fire from heaven, Zeus in revenge caused Hephaestus to make a woman out of earth, who by her charms and beauty should bring misery upon the human race (Hes. Theog. 571, &c.; Stob. Serin. 1). Aphrodite adorned her with beauty, Hermes gave her boldness and cunning, and the gods called her Pandora, as each of the Olympians had given her some power by which she was to work the ruin of man. Hermes took her to Epimetheus, who forgot the advice of his brother Prometheus, not to accept any gift from Zeus, and from that moment all miseries came down upon men (Hes. Op. et Dies, 50, &c.). According to some mythographers, Epimetheus became by her the father of Pyrrha and Deucalion (Hygin. Fab. 142; Apollod. i. 7. ยง 2 ; Procl. ad Hes. Op. p. 30, ed. Heinsius; Ov. Met. i. 350); others make Pandora a daughter of Pyrrha and Deucalion (Eustath. ad Hom. p. 23). Later writers speak of a vessel of Pandora, containing all the blessings of the gods, which would have been preserved for the human race, had not Pandora opened the vessel, so that the winged blessings escaped irrecoverably. The birth of
Pandora was represented on the pedestal of the statue of Athena, in the Parthenon at Athens (Paus. i. 24. § 7). In the Orphic poems Pandora occurs as an infernal awful divinity, and is associated with Hecate and the Erinnyes (Orph. Argon. 974). Pandora also occurs as a surname of Gaea (Earth), as the giver of all.atyr-play of Sophokles. (Schol. ad Aristoph. Av. 970; Philostr. Vit. Apoll. vi. 39; Hesych. s.v.) Source: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
Homer, The Iliad 24. 527 ff (trans. Lattimore) (Greek epic C8th B.C.) : "There are two urns (pithoi) that stand on the door-sill of Zeus. They are unlike for the gifts they bestow : an urn of evils (kakoi), an urn of blessings (dĂ´roi). If Zeus who delights in thunder mingles these and bestows them on man, he shifts, and moves now in evil, again in good fortune. But when Zeus bestows from the urn of sorrows, he makes a failure of man, and hte evil hunger drives him over the shining earth, and he wanders resepected neither of gods nor mortals."
[N.B. Later writers describe Zeus giving one of these two jars to Pandora. The poets were at odds as to which jar she received--Hesiod says the jar of evils (kakoi), but Theognis and Aesop claim it was the jar of blessings (dĂ´roi). The name Pan-dĂ´ra ("all-gifts") naturally suggests the latter.]
Hesiod, Works & Days 54 ff (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C.) : "The gods keep hidden from men the means of life . . . Zeus in the anger of his heart hid it, because Prometheus the crafty deceived him; therefore he planned sorrow and mischief against men. He hid fire; but that the noble son of Iapetus stole again for men from Zeus the counsellor in a hollow fennel-stalk, so that Zeus who delights in thunder did not see it. But afterwards Zeus who gathers the clouds said to him in anger : `Son of Iapetos, surpassing all in cunning, you are glad that you have outwitted me and stolen fire--a great plague to you yourself and to men that shall be. But I will give men as the price for fire an evil thing in which they may all be glad of heart while they
embrace their own destruction.' So said the father of men and gods, and laughed aloud. And he bade famous Hephaistos make haste and mix earth with water and to put in it the voice and strength of human kind, and fashion a sweet, lovely maiden-shape, like to the immortal goddesses in face; and Athene to teach her needlework and the weaving of the varied web; and golden Aphrodite to shed grace upon her head and cruel longing and cares that weary the limbs. And he charged Hermes the guide, the Slayer of Argus, to put in her a shameless mind and a deceitful nature. So he ordered. And they obeyed the lord Zeus the son of Kronos. Forthwith the famous Lame God moulded clay in the likeness of a modest maid, as the son of Kronos purposed. And the goddess bright-eyed Athene girded and clothed her, and the divine Kharites (Graces) and queenly Peitho (Persuasion) put necklaces of gold upon her, and the rich-haired Horai (Seasons) crowned her head with spring flowers. And Pallas Athene bedecked her form with all manners of finery. Also the Guide, the Slayer of Argus [Hermes], contrived within her lies and crafty words and a deceitful nature at the will of loud
thundering Zeus, and the Herald of the gods put speech in her. And he called this woman Pandora (All-Gifts), because all they who dwelt on Olympus gave each a gift, a plague to men who eat bread. But when he had finished the sheer, hopeless snare, the Father sent glorious Argus-Slayer [Hermes], the swift messenger of the gods, to take it to Epimetheus as a gift. And Epimetheus did not think on what Prometheus had said to him, bidding him never take a gift of Olympian Zeus, but to send it back for fear it might prove to be something harmful to men. But he took the gift, and afterwards, when the evil thing was already his, he understood. For ere this the tribes of men lived on earth remote and free from ills (kakoi) and hard toil (ponoi) and heavy sickness (nosoi) which bring the Keres (Fates) upon men; for in misery men grow old quickly. But the woman took off the great lid of the jar (pithos) with her hands and scattered all these and her thought caused sorrow and mischief to men. Only Elpis (Hope) remained there in an unbreakable home within under the rim of the great jar, and did not fly out at the door; for ere that, the
lid of the jar stopped her, by the will of Aigis-holding Zeus who gathers the clouds. But the rest, countless plagues (lugra), wander amongst men; for earth is full of evils and the sea is full. Of themselves diseases (nosoi) come upon men continually by day and by night, bringing mischief to mortals silently; for wise Zeus took away speech from them. So is there no way to escape the will of Zeus."
T1.4 PANDORA, DANCING T22.2 T22.1 T22.3 PANDORA, PANDORA, PANDORA, SATYRS HEPHAIST APHRODIT HEPHAIST E, ARES OS, OS, HERMES ATHENE
Hesiod, Theogony 510 ff (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C.) : "Scatter-brained Epimetheus who from the first was a mischief to men who eat bread; for it was he who first took of Zeus the woman [i.e. Pandora], the maiden whom he had formed."
Hesiod, Theogony 560 ff : "[Zeus] was always mindful of the trick [of Prometheus who won for mankind the meat of the sacrificial beast], and would not give the power of unwearying fire to the Melian race of mortal men who live on the earth. But the noble son of Iapetos [Prometheus] outwitted him and stole the far-seen gleam of unwearying fire in a hollow fennel stalk. And Zeus who thunders on high was stung in spirit, and his dear heart was angered when he saw amongst men the far-seen ray of fire. Forthwith he made an evil thing for men as the price of fire; for the very famous Limping God [Hephaistos] formed of earth the likeness of a shy maiden [i.e. Pandora] as the son of Kronos willed. And the goddess bright-eyed Athene
girded and clothed her with silvery raiment, and down from her head she spread with her hands an embroidered veil, a wonder to see; and she, Pallas Athene, put about her head lovely garlands, flowers of new-grown herbs. Also she put upon her head a crown of gold which the very famous Limping God made himself and worked with his own hands as a favor to Zeus his father. On it was much curious work, wonderful to see; for of the many creatures which the land and sea rear up, he put most upon it, wonderful things, ike living beings with voices: and great beauty shone out from it. But when he had made the beautiful evil to be the price for the blessing, he brought her out, delighting in the finery which the bright-eyed daughter of a mighty father had given her, to the place where the other gods and men were. And wonder took hold of the deathless gods and mortal men when they saw that which was sheer guile, not to be withstood by men. For from her is the race of women and female kind : of her is the deadly race and tribe of women who live amongst mortal men to their great trouble, no helpmeets in hateful poverty, but only
in wealth. And as in thatched hives bees feed the drones whose nature is to do mischief--by day and throughout the day until the sun goes down the bees are busy and lay the white combs, while the drones stay at home in the covered hives and reap the toil of others into their own bellies--even so Zeus who thunders on high made women to be an evil to mortal men, with a nature to do evil. And l he gave them a second evil to be the price for the good they had: whoever avoids marriage and the sorrows that women cause, and will not wed, reaches deadly old age without anyone to tend his years, and though he at least has no lack of livelihood while he lives, yet, when he is dead, his kinsfolk divide his possessions amongst them. And as for the man who chooses the lot of marriage and takes a good wife suited to his mind, evil continually contends with good; for whoever happens to have mischievous children, lives always with unceasing grief in his spirit and heart within him; and this evil cannot be healed. So it is not possible to deceive or go beyond the will of Zeus : for not even the son of Iapetos, kindly Prometheus, escaped his heavy anger, but of necessity strong bands confined him, although he knew
many a wile."
Theognis, Fragment 1. 1135 (trans. Gerber, Vol. Greek Elegiac) (Greek elegy C6th B.C.) : "Elpis (Hope) is the only good god remaining among mankind; the others have left and gone to Olympos. Pistis (Trust), a mighty god has gone, Sophrosyne (Restraint) has gone from men, and the Kharites (Graces), my friend, have abandoned the earth. Men’s judicial oaths are no longer to be trusted, nor does anyone revere the immortal gods; the race of pious men has perished and men no longer recognize the rules of conduct or acts of piety." [N.B. Theognis' account is the inverse of Hesiod's : the good spirits escaped from Pandora's jar, abandoning mankind in their flight to heaven.]
Aesop, Fables 526 (from Babrius 58) (trans. Gibbs) (Greek fable C6th B.C.) : "Zeus gathered all the useful things together in a jar and put a lid on it. He then left the jar in human hands. But man had no self-control and he wanted to know what was in that jar, so he pushed the lid aside, letting those things go back to the abode of the gods. So all the good things
flew away, soaring high above the earth, and Elpis (Hope) was the only thing left. When the lid was put back on the jar, Elpis (Hope) was kept inside. That is why Elpis (Hope) alone is still found among the people, promising that she will bestow on each of us the good things that have gone away." [N.B. By "in human hands," the story o Pandora delivering the jar to mankind is implied. However, in this version it is apparently the husband who opens it.]
Aesop, Fables 525 (from Chambry 1) (trans. Gibbs) (Greek fable C6th B.C.) : "The Good Things were too weak to defend themselves from the Bad Things, so the Bad Things drove them off to heaven. The Good Things then asked Zeus how they could reach mankind. Zeus told them that they should not go together all at once, only one at a time. This is why people are constantly besieged by Bad Things, since they are nearby, while Good Things come more rarely, since they must descend to us from heaven one by one." [N.B. This fable describes the spirits which had fled Pandora's jar. It also refers to the two jars by the throne of Zeus in the Iliad, one containing Good Things, the other Evils.]
Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound 250 ff (trans. Weir Smyth) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) : "Prometheus : Yes, I caused mortals to cease foreseeing their doom (moros).f Chorus : Of what sort was the cure that you found for this affliction? Prometheus : I caused blind hopes (elpides) to dwell within their breasts. Chorus : A great benefit was this you gave to mortals." [N.B. This is presumably a reference to Pandora's jar, a curse concocted by Zeus to punish mankind for the theft of fire. Prometheus seems to be saying that he was the one who stayed Hope inside the jar, when the other evils escaped.]
Aeschylus, Fragment 204 (from Proclus, Commentary on Hesiod’s Works and Days 156) : "A mortal woman from out a seed moulded of clay [i.e Pandora]."
Sophocles, Pandora (lost play) (C5th B.C.) : Sophocles wrote a Satyr-play entitled Pandora or Sphyrocopi which dramatised the story of the first woman. Plato, Protagoras 320c - 322a (trans. Lamb)
(Greek philosopher C4th B.C.) : "Prometheus stole the mechanical arts of Hephaistos and Athene, and fire with them (they could neither have been acquired nor used without fire), and gave them to man . . . But Prometheus is said to have been afterwards prosecuted for theft, owing to the blunder of Epimetheus [i.e. because he accepted Pandora from Zeus]."
Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 1. 46 (trans. Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : "Prometheus had a son Deukalion, who was king of the lands round Phthia and was married to Pyrrha, the daughter of Epimetheus and Pandora, the first woman created by the gods."
Euphorion of Chalcis, Fragments (trans. Page, Vol. Select Papyri III, No. 121 (2b)) (Greek epic C3rd B.C.): "Pandora, donor of evil (kakodôros), man’s sorrow self-imposed." Strabo, Geography 9. 5. 23 (trans. Jones) (Greek geographer C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) : "[The region of] Thessalia. But speaking of it as a whole, I may say that in earlier times it was called Pyrrhaia, after Pyrrha the wife of Deukalion . . . But some writers,
dividing it into two parts, say that Deukalion obtained the portion towards the south and called it Pandora after his mother [i.e. his mother-in-law], and that the other part fell to Haimon, after whom it was called Haimonia, but that the former name was changed to Hellas, after Hellen the son of Deukalion, and the latter to Thessalia, after the son of Haimon." [N.B. Pyrrha was the daughter of Pandora, and wife of Deukalion. Deukalion named parts of the region of Thessalia after his wife and mother-in-law.]
Pausanias, Description of Greece 1. 24. 7 (trans. Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd A.D.) : "On the pedestal [of the statue of Athena on the Akropolis, Athens] is the birth of Pandora in relief. Hesiod and others have sung how this Pandora was the first woman; before Pandora was born there was as yet no womankind."
Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 142 (trans. Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) : "Prometheus, son of Iapetus, first fashioned men from clay. Later Vulcanus [Hephaistos], at Jove’s [Zeus'] command, made a woman’s form from clay. Minerva
[Athene] gave it life, and the rest of the gods each gave come other gift. Because of this they named her Pandora. She was given in marriage to Prometheus’ brother Epimetheus. Pyrrha was her daughter, and was said to be the first mortal born." Nonnus, Dionysiaca 7. 7
ff (trans. Rouse) (Greek epic C5th A.D.) : "[Aion, Father Time, addresses Zeus :] `But, some may say, a medicine [Hope] has been planted to make long-suffering mortals forget their troubles, to save their lives. Would that Pandora had never opened the heavenly cover of that jar--she the sweet bane of mankind!'" o Homer, The Iliad - Greek Epic C8th B.C. o Hesiod, Theogony - Greek Epic C8th-7th B.C. o Hesiod, Works & Days - Greek Epic C8th-7th B.C. o Greek Elegaic Theognis, Fragments – Greek Elegaic
C6th B.C. o Aesop, Fables - Greek Fables C6th B.C. o Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound - Greek Tragedy C5th
B.C.
o Aeschylus, Fragments - Greek Tragedy C5th B.C. o Plato, Protagoras - Greek Philosophy C4th B.C. o Apollodorus, The Library - Greek Mythography C2nd
A.D. o Greek Papyri III Euphorion, Fragments - Greek Epic
C3rd B.C. o Strabo, Geography - Greek Geography C1st B.C. -
C1st A.D. o Pausanias, Description of Greece - Greek Travelogue
C2nd A.D. o Hyginus, Fabulae - Latin Mythography C2nd A.D. o Ovid, Metamorphoses - Latin Epic C1st B.C. - C1st A.D. o Nonnos, Dionysiaca - Greek Epic C5th A.D.
Did Pandora bring trouble or transformation for women? BY SANDRA GEYER MILLER, MA When Pandora opened the box and released the spites, was she merely the bringer of spites or the bringer of the vessel of transformation of feminine energies? During my studies of goddess mythology I was struck by the myth of Pandora and her "box". Here was a myth of the first woman that continues to haunt the image of women even today. Foolish Pandora, who opened the forbidden casket and released the Spites - Old Age, Labor, Sickness, Insanity, Vice, and Passion - to spread and cover the earth. Was she merely the bringer of spites, the revengeful curse of Zeus, or was she as the mother of life also bringer of the vessel of transformation of feminine energies? Only examination of the Greek version of the myth within the larger framework of "creation and fall" mythic themes, can reveal to us clues about the feminine psyche and its evolution. All of the psychological literature of the last twenty-five years has not dispelled the cultural and
spiritual shadow that surrounds the image of woman. The two myths still prevalent today are the Adam/Eve/Serpent and Pandora/Epimetheus/Prometheus stories depicting the first woman and the fall. In these myths the primordial images of beauty/hag, innocence/temptation, and obedience/disobedience are developed. With the coming of woman, man's paradise is ruptured, and the duality of time/eternity, good/evil and birth/death is begun. Much has been written about the Adam and Eve story, but little has been written about Pandora. The Greek and Judeo-Christian versions of the Eve and Pandora myths serve to propagandize the message of the early patriarchy about the status of women at that time. Forthwith he made an evil thing for men as the Price of fire; for the very famous Limping God formed of earth the likeness of a shy maiden as the son of Cronus willed. And the goddess bright-eyed Athene girded and clothed her with silvery raiment, and down from her head she spread with her hands a embroidered veil, a wonder to see;
And she, Pallas Athene, put about her head lovely garlands, flowers of new grown herbs. Also she put upon her head a crown of gold which the very famous Limping God made himself and worked with his own hands as a favor to Zeus his father. On it was much curious work wonderful to see; for of the many creatures which the land and sea rear up, he put most upon it, wonderful things, like living beings with voices: and great beauty shone out from it. (Evelyn-White, 1950, pp. 120ff) Pandora is portrayed as the product of Hephaestus' craft and Zeus's guile, - Zeus's curse for the theft of fire by Prometheus. She was fashioned as a bewitching beauty endowed with gifts from all the gods and goddesses. Feminists have said that women today can "have it all" which contains an element of truth, as Pandora means "all gifts", but given the requirements of the patriarchal society, today's Pandora can manifest only a few gifts if she is lucky. And as for beauty, modern day Pandora is fashioned by
the incarnate Hephaestus skilled as plastic surgeon with liposuction, face lifts, plastic implants and body contouring. The seductive beautification process has become limited to the physical body. Instead of Pandora as an image of the all-gifted, we have the anorexic, addicted star, princess or first lady who fight the ravages of time and duality with physical escapes. The quasi-feminist business woman who adorns herself in men's clothing and adopts men's behavior, crashes into the invisible corporate barrier and is dazed and perplexed. She doesn't realize that her male competitors sense that it may be Pandora with her box that is knocking on the doors of power. The ritual of the bachelor party is still prevalent today, where the groom is given one last good fling before he goes to his doom. Professor Henry Higgins in the modern musical, based on "Pygmalion", Lerner and Lowe's "My Fair Lady" quips.... Let a woman in your life and you're plunging in a knife. Let the others of my sex tie the knot around their necks, I'd prefer a new edition of the Spanish Inquisition than to
ever let a woman in my life!.....Women are irrational, that's all there is to that. Their heads are full of cotton, hay and rags. They're nothing but exasperating, irritating, fascinating, calculating, agitating, maddening, and infuriating hags! (Lerner and Lowe, 1959, p. 112) The curse is alive today and Pandora is still the "fatal attraction", adorned by the fashion designers whose models may be anorexias in beauty's garb. Poor Pandora was she really meant to become the projected vision of an angular masculine twig with no bosom, no rounded hip, no fertility? What has become of her magic girdle, her crown of gold, her iridescent gown, woven by Athene herself, the master weaver? And what of the aging crone with Aphrodite fading who has nothing left but the blame because she may be deserted by her husband who goes off with another Pandora, she is left with Rhea-coronis, the death aspect. Owning the myth of Pandora for today's woman means to be willing to live with the knowledge of the curses and the gifts, to be wholly conscious of the dark and the light side of her own psyche, and to be willing to enter into the
process of transformation of the feminine as expressed within her and as expressed within the collective. Without fight or flight, without revenge, without sex change or facsimile, without taking on the appearances or mannerisms of the masculine, each woman is challenged as never before to embrace Pandora. To get in touch with the inner Pandora is to embrace one's seductress, insatiable curiosity, deceiving beauty, cunning Trickster, spinner and weaver, politician, creator/destroyer, daughter/mother, and virgin/whore parts. For the hope shut up within the box is delusive Hope to keep us hoping for a return to lost paradise. As Hillman so aptly puts it: "Because hope has this core of illusion it favors repression. By hoping for the 'status quo ante', we repress the present state of weakness and suffering and all it can bring. Postures of strength are responsible for many major complaints today - ulcers, vascular and coronary conditions, high blood-pressure, stress syndrome, alcoholism, highway and sport accidents,
mental breakdown. The will to fall ill, like the suicide impulse, leads patient and physician face to face with morbidity, which stubbornly returns in spite of all hope to the contrary." (Hillman, 1976, p.158). While Hope is considered to be an inherent and instinctual gift of optimism in humans, it has been misunderstood in the context of the Pandora myth. This misunderstanding is still with us today commemorated in the custom of the bride's Hope Chest, filled with gifts and adornments to grace a future home. A delusional Hope is born of the Trickster archetype. Anthropologist Angeles Arrien approaches the subject this way: In Wokini, Olympic runner Billy Mills offers eight lies of Iktumi (the trickster or liar figure) from the Lakota tradition that can jeopardize happiness or set up obstacles in a person's life. Iktumi's ancient invitation to self-deception follows: If only I were rich, then I would be happy. If only I were famous, then I would be happy. If only I could find the right person to marry, then I would
be happy. If only I had more friends, then I would be happy. If only I were more attractive, then I would be happy. If only I weren't physically handicapped in any way, then I would be happy. If only someone close to me hadn't died, then I could be happy. If only the world were a better place, then I would be happy. None of these illusions is true in relationship to our happiness and salvation. We obsessively strive at work and at home for as many of the eight illusions as we can... things that Iktumi tells us will make us happy. Once these goals are attained we are often stunned to find ourselves still without satisfaction, still without meaning, or still without happiness. According to Iktomi's ways, ceasing to strive for meaning and happiness allows us to become liberated from our own fear and false attachments. If women can understand that the underlying power and
wholeness of the feminine is the mediatrix of life/death, consciousness/un-consciousness then they no longer will carry the reflection of the masculine projection of the evil "bringer". In turn, the men may be forced inward to own the feminine aspects within themselves. The new emerging mythic psychology calls for us to penetrate these inner domains and encounter the sacred images normally hidden from view. Like shamans, and like Orpheus and Persephane, we learn to journey to the underworld reality and return to the waking world. We learn to incorporate the mythic dimension within the physical, and be the knower of both.
Pandora Pandora (1861) by Pierre Loison (1816–1886) In Greek mythology, Pandora (Greek: Πανδώρα, derived from πᾶν, pān, i.e. "all" and δῶρον, dōron, i.e. "gift", thus "the all-endowed", "the all-gifted" or "the all-giving") was the first human woman created by the gods, specifically by Hephaestus and Athena on the instructions of Zeus. As Hesiod related it, each god helped create her by giving her unique gifts. Zeus ordered Hephaestus to mold her out of earth as part of the punishment of humanity for Prometheus' theft of the secret of fire, and all the gods joined in offering her "seductive gifts". Her other name—inscribed against her figure on a white-ground kylix in the British Museumis Anesidora, "she who sends up gifts" (up implying "from below" within the earth). According to the myth, Pandora opened a jar (pithos), in
modern accounts sometimes mistranslated as "Pandora's box" (see below), releasing all the evils of humanity—although the particular evils, aside from plagues and diseases, are not specified in detail by Hesiod—leaving only Hope inside once she had closed it again The Pandora myth is a kind of theodicy, addressing the question of why there is evil in the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pandora
Pandora's Box - origins What type of myth is this?
Zeus Zeus wishes to punish mankind Pandora ’s Box is an origin myth – the attempt to explain the beginning of something. People have always wanted to know why things happen in the world the way they do. Before there was much science, they did not have much understanding of how the world works, but they still wanted to know, just as much as we do. Human curiosity always asks why .. and then human creativity finds ways of giving an answer.
There are many myths, across all cultures, which attempt to explain the beginnings of human beings and why there are evil things like disease, hate and war in the world. In many stories, these evils are released because humans disobey gods. You may like to compare the story of Pandora with the story of Adam and Eve. Do you know any other similar stories from other cultures? Are there other versions of the story?
Pandora Creation
The story of Pandora and her box comes from Ancient Greece and is very old. Because of this, there are several versions of the myth. In Greek mythology, Pandora (meaning ‘all-giving’) was the first woman on earth. Before humans there were the immortals (the Gods and Titans). The brothers, Prometheus and Epimetheus were Titans (Giant people) who had fought on the Gods’ side in a war. Some say they were cousins of Zeus, king of the gods; he asked Prometheus to create man out of clay and water (in many versions Hephaestus helps in this). Epimetheus had to create the animals and give them their gifts of courage, swiftness etc. He gave out all the gifts and had none left for Man. So Prometheus decides to make man stand upright, like the gods, and give them fire (which Zeus did not want them to have – some say he had
removed it as a punishment). So Prometheus stole fire – some say from Zeus’ lightning, others from the sun and yet others from Hephaestus’ forge. Most agree that Zeus asked Hephaestus to make Pandora (the first woman) also out of earth and water, and he intended her to be a punishment. Each god and goddess gave Pandora a gift (talent), of beauty, charm, music etc but also others, like curiosity and persuasion – gifts that could be used for good or ill. Then Pandora was given a container – in the original Greek stories it was a jar and did not become a box until the Sixteenth century AD. A scholar called Erasmus, who lived in Rotterdam in Holland, translated a story of Pandora from Hesiod’s work. Hesiod was a Greek poet who lived about 700BC. Erasmus was translating the Greek into Latin (which scholars did all their writing in, in those days) and translated the Greek word ‘pithos’ meaning jar into the Latin word ‘pyxis’ meaning box. And a box it has stayed to this day!
How did the myth arise?
Pandora's Jar Originally a Jar? It arose as a way of explaining why dreadful things happened, such as people getting sick and dying. As in many origin myths, man had lived in a world without worry – until this jar / box was opened, which contained
ills for mankind. Zeus knew that Pandora’s curiosity would mean that she could not stop herself from opening it, especially when he had told her that she must not do so! Many other myths also explain the ills of the world by saying they are caused by human disobedience of a god’s instructions. (Though some versions of this story say that the box was a real gift and the box held good things for mankind, which Pandora let escape from the box, and fly away forever, only catching Hope.) Even Hope itself has been argued about by scholars – not everyone agreeing that it is a great good – that maybe Zeus meant it as an evil also – otherwise it would not have been in a jar of evil. Others believe that Zeus may have relented a little, and put Hope in to help mankind through the hard times that the other ‘gifts’ would bring. What does it mean to us today?
Pandora's Box
Today, Pandora’s box means a source of troubles. When we talk about opening Pandora’s box, we use it as a metaphor to mean that we may not know what we are getting ourselves into! Sometimes, that we do not always know how something we have started may end, that we do not know the consequences of our actions. Pandora Definition by Mark Cartwright published on 27 July 2015 Pandora (Lawrence Alma-Tadema)
Pandora is a figure from Greek mythology who was not only the first woman, but --as an instrument of the wrath of Zeus-- was held responsible for releasing the ills of humanity into the world. Pandora was also an unrelated earth goddess in the early Greek pantheon. PANDORA - AN INSTRUMENT OF PUNISHMENT The name Pandora means "gifts" and "all". According to (and perhaps even invented by) Hesiod in his Theogony and Works & Days, Zeus had Hephaistos make Pandora, the first woman, from earth and water. Zeus’ intention was to use the beautiful and lovely Pandora as a means to punish Prometheus who had stolen fire from the gods and given it to mankind, who would in turn be punished. Zeus promises: Son of Iapetus [Prometheus], you who know counsels beyond all others, you are pleased that you have stolen fire and beguiled my mind – a great grief for you yourself, and for men to come. To them I shall give in
exchange for fire an evil in which they may all take pleasure in their spirit, embracing their own evil. (Works & Days, 54-59) PANDORA’S DIVINE GIFTS Before her departure, Pandora was given a range of divine gifts by each of the Olympian gods. Athena taught her all the fine crafts and dressed her in silvery robes, Aphrodite gave her grace and the means to create burning desire, and Hermes gave her "a dog’s mind and a thievish character" and in her breast "set lies and guileful words" (Works & Days, 67-68, 77-78). If that was not enough, she was adorned with fine jewellery by the Graces, crowned with a magnificent golden headband made by Hephaistos, and given garlands of spring flowers by the Seasons. Finally, Pandora was given a large storage jar to take down to earth which she was told she must never open under any circumstances. FULFILLING HER DESTINY, CURIOSITY GOT THE BETTER OF
PANDORA AND SHE LIFTED THE LID OF THE STORAGE JAR WHICH RELEASED ALL THE EVILS OF THE WORLD. PANDORA'S BOX: THE EVILS OF THE WORLD Pandora, guided by Hermes, was sent to Epimetheus, the brother of Prometheus. Foolishly forgetting his brother’s advice never to accept a gift from the gods, the beautiful Pandora was made welcome in Epimetheus’ home and the two married, having a daughter, Pyrrha. One day, and fulfilling her destiny, curiosity got the better of Pandora and she lifted the lid of the storage jar which released all the evils of the world. These terrible things included disease, war, vice, toil, and the necessity to work for sustenance. Pandora, realising her mistake, quickly replaced the lid but it was too late and only one thing remained inside, caught in the edge of the jar’s lip --Hope-- so that humanity might somehow bear its sudden and eternal misfortune.
"Hope" is the traditional translation from the Greek but actually may be better represented by "anticipation" which includes an expectation of both good and bad events. Through this punishment Zeus thus compensated for the theft of fire and restored the eternal division between gods and humans.
PANDORA IN ART
A relief frieze showing the birth of Pandora appeared on
the statue base of the gigantic Athena Parthenos by Pheidias which stood inside the Parthenon. According to Pliny the scene included 20 gods looking on. Pandora appears too on a few Attic vases in scenes probably inspired by the now lost satyr play Pandora by Sophocles. In one 5th century BCE red-figure krater, now in the Ashmolean Museum Oxford, Pandora emerges from the ground, symbolizing her origin from clay. In such scenes either Epimetheus or satyrs hold mallets but the significance of these has, unfortunately, been lost and they once more illustrate the richness of Greek mythology beyond the surviving literary sources. http://www.ancient.eu/Pandora/