潘朶拉的盒子的故事

潘朶拉的盒子(Pandora's Box)乃希臘神話。潘朵拉是宙斯創造的第一個人類女人， 主要是要報復人類。因為眾神中的普羅米修斯過份關心人類，於是惱火了宙斯。

宙斯在爭奪神界時，就是得到普羅米修斯及其弟伊皮米修斯的幫助，而能登上寶座。普羅米修斯的名字即「深謀遠慮」的意思。而其弟伊皮米修斯的意思為「後悔」，所以兩兄弟的作風就跟其名字一樣，有著「深謀遠慮」及「後悔」的特性。

潘朵拉被創造之後，就在宙斯的安排下，送給了伊皮米修斯。因為祂知道普羅米修斯不會接受祂送的禮物，所以一開始就送給了伊皮米修斯。而伊皮米修斯也接受了她，在舉行婚禮時，宙斯命令眾神各將一份禮物放在一個盒子裏，送給潘朵拉當禮物。而眾神的禮物是好是壞就不得而知了。

伊皮米修斯的胞兄普羅米修斯就警告伊皮米修斯， 千萬不要接受宙斯的禮物，尤其是女人，因為女人是危險的動物。而伊皮米修斯就跟其名字一般，娶了潘朵拉之後沒多久，就開始後悔了。因為潘朵拉除了善妒，貪婪，愛美外，最大的缺點就是好奇心了。從結婚以後，她就不斷地想打開眾神送的小盒子，而伊皮米修斯卻要時時刻刻的提防她的好奇心，因為他知道盒子裏的禮物未必都是好的。

有一天，潘朵拉的好奇心戰勝了一切。她等伊皮米修斯出門後，就打開了盒子，結果一團煙衝了出來，將一切禮物全都釋放，這裏面包含了幸福、瘟疫、憂傷、友情、災禍、愛情等等，潘朵拉害怕極了，趕緊將盒子蓋上，但一切都已經太遲，盒子內只剩下「希望」。於是潘朵拉抱著「希望」等著伊皮米修斯的歸來。

至今，它一直是人類生活動力的來源，因為它帶給人類無窮的「希望」，不管遭遇何種困境，它是人類一切不幸中唯一的安慰。

The titan Epimetheus ("hindsight") was responsible for giving a positive trait to each and every animal. However, when it was time to give man a positive trait, there was nothing left. Prometheus ("foresight"), his brother, felt that because man was superior to all other animals, man should have a gift no other animal possessed. So Prometheus set forth to steal fire from Zeus and handed it over to man.

Zeus was enraged and decided to punish Prometheus and his creation: Mankind. To punish Prometheus, Zeus chained him in unbreakable fetters and set an eagle over him to eat his liver each day, as the eagle is Zeus's sacred animal. Prometheus was an immortal, so the liver grew back every day, but he was still tormented daily from the pain, until he was freed by Heracles during The Twelve Labours. Another possible reason for Prometheus' torment was because he knew which of Zeus' lovers would bear a child who would eventually overthrow Zeus. Zeus commanded that Prometheus reveal the name of the mother, but Prometheus refused, instead choosing to suffer the punishment.

To punish mankind, Zeus demanded that the other gods make Pandora as a poisoned gift for man. Pandora was given several traits from the different gods: Hephaestus molded her out of clay and gave her form; Athena clothed her and the Charites adorned her with necklaces made by Hephaestus; Aphrodite gave her beauty; Apollo gave her musical talent and a gift for healing; Demeter taught her to tend a garden; Poseidon gave her a pearl necklace and the ability to never drown; Zeus made her idle, mischievous, and foolish; Hera gave her curiosity; Hermes gave her cunning, boldness, and charm.[citation needed] Thus the name Pandora—"all gifts"—in Hesiod's version derives from the fact that she received gifts from all deities.


Pandora by John William Waterhouse, 1896The most significant of these gifts, however, was a pithos or storage jar,[1] given to Pandora either by Hermes or Zeus. Before he was chained to the rock, Prometheus had warned Epimetheus not to take any gifts from the gods. However, When Pandora arrived, he fell in love with her. Hermes told Epimetheus that Pandora was a gift to the titan from Zeus, and he warned Epimetheus not to open the jar, which was Pandora's dowry.

Until then, mankind lived life in a paradise without worry. Epimetheus told Pandora never to open the jar she had received from Zeus. However, Pandora's curiosity got the better of her and she opened it, releasing all the misfortunes of mankind: "For ere this the tribes of men lived on earth remote and free from ills [kakoi] and hard toil [ponoi] and heavy sickness [nosoi argaleai] which bring the Keres [baleful spirits] upon men; for in misery men grow old quickly" (Hesiod, Works and Days). Once opened, she shut it in time to keep one thing in the jar: hope 1. The world remained extremely bleak for an unspecified interval, until Pandora "chanced" to revisit the box again, at which point Hope fluttered out. Thus, mankind always has hope in times of evil.

潘朵拉是宙斯創造的第一個人類女人， 主要是要報復人類。因為眾神中的普羅米修斯過份關心人類，於是惱火了宙斯。宙斯在爭奪神界時，就是得到普羅米修斯及其弟伊皮米修斯的幫助，而能登上寶座。普羅米修斯的名字即「深謀遠慮」的意思。而其弟伊皮米修斯的意思為「後悔」，所以兩兄弟的作風就跟其名字一樣，有著「深謀遠慮」及「後悔」的特性。

潘朵拉被創造之後，就在宙斯的安排下，送給了伊皮米修斯。因為祂知道普羅米修斯不會接受祂送的禮物，所以一開始就送給了伊皮米修斯。而伊皮米修斯也接受了她，在舉行婚禮時，宙斯命令眾神各將一份禮物放在一個盒子裏，送給潘朵拉當禮物。而眾神的禮物是好是壞就不得而知了。伊皮米修斯的胞兄普羅米修斯就警告伊皮米修斯， 千萬不要接受宙斯的禮物，尤其是女人，因為女人是危險的動物。而伊皮米修斯就跟其名字一般，娶了潘朵拉之後沒多久，就開始後悔了。
因為潘朵拉除了善妒，貪婪，愛美外，最大的缺點就是好奇心了。從結婚以後，她就不斷地想打開眾神送的小盒子，而伊皮米修斯卻要時時刻刻的提防她的好奇心，因為他知道盒子裏的禮物未必都是好的。
有一天，潘朵拉的好奇心戰勝了一切。她等伊皮米修斯出門後，就打開了盒子，結果一團煙衝了出來，將一切禮物全都釋放，這裏面包含了幸福、瘟疫、憂傷、友情、災禍、愛情‧‧‧，潘朵拉害怕極了，趕緊將盒子蓋上，但一切都已經太遲，盒子內只剩下「希望」。於是潘朵拉抱著「希望」等著伊皮米修斯的歸來。