Why Pandora?
Wasn’t Pandora that curious little girl in the Greek myth? The one
who couldn’t stop herself from looking in the mysterious box and let loose all
the troubles into an otherwise idyllic world?
Yes.
And yet it’s the perfect name for an astrology practice.
Why?
Yes.
And yet it’s the perfect name for an astrology practice.
Why?
According
to Bullfinch’s Mythology, the name Pandora means “all-gifted.” (pan = all; dora
= gift).1
In
Roman legend, Prometheus created the first Men from clay. Then Prometheus,
himself a god, stole fire from the gods on Mount Olympus and gave it to his
creation, that Man might live and be conscious and aware. The other gods were
angry that Prometheus dared to give the power of life and consciousness to a
lowly creature like man, and so they punished him by chaining him to a rock
where each day a huge griffon (or in some versions, an eagle) came and ate his
liver from his body. Each night the liver grew back and each day the griffon
returned, causing Prometheus endless torment.
The First Woman
Pandora
was the first woman. She was created by Hephaestos (his Greek name) or Vulcan
(Roman) and given to Man as a punishment for having fire. She was bestowed with
all the graces to make her tempting to Man, but she was also intended to be his
ruin.
At
this time, humanity lived an idyllic existence, much as Adam and Eve did in the
garden before the fall. Prometheus kept in his house a box in which all the
evils of the world were sealed away. He told Pandora to stay away from this
box, but without telling her why. As soon as he left, her curiosity overcame
her. She opened the lid and out flew Trouble, Mischief, Pain, Poverty, Sorrow
and every other imaginable evil. Horrified, she closed the lid quickly, but not
fast enough to capture anything except Hope, which was at the very bottom of
the box.
Life Today
Today
in modern life, we are used to discounting myths as merely fairy stories. But
the stories we know of today were once not myths, but true religious mysteries,
endowed with as much awe and power as we experience when feeling the mystery of
the sacrament. And stories are retold and reshaped by the conquerors. The myth
of Pandora is an example of a story which changed shape in the telling.
Originally,
Pandora was not a mortal woman, nor shaped by a god, but was herself an
Earth-goddess. She was a deity of the type classicists call a “culture-bearer.”
It was her purpose to appear to humanity and to pour out of her vessel all the
things necessary for civilization: weaving, pottery, and so forth.2 She
taught humanity how to live together on the earth and poured out her gifts upon
them. And today she is remembered as a curious child.
In
my opinion, both aspects of Pandora belong in an astrology practice. To me she
is and always will be both the curious, willful child and the loving,
benevolent goddess. I’ve always found people fascinating, and astrology affords
an excellent way to “lift the lid” on a person’s character. And who better than
a curious goddess to discover and uncover and in some cases, recover, the gifts
of a client through astrology?
Pandora, the Giver of Gifts
She
says, “I am Pandora, Giver of all Gifts. I bring you flowering trees, the
olive, the grapevine. I bring you plants for hunger and illness, for weaving
and dyeing. Hidden beneath My surface you will find minerals, ore and clay of
endless form. I bring you flint. I bring you wonder, curiosity, memory. I bring
you wisdom. I bring you justice with mercy. I bring you caring and communal
bonds. I bring you courage, strength, endurance. I bring you loving kindness
for all beings. I bring you the seeds of peace.”3
And
around here, in my astrological practice, Pandora says to every client: “Let me
pour out the gifts of your personal universe. Look, here are your talents, here
are your challenges. You have everything you need for your journey. Look how
beautiful the drama of your life is. Here is the path—you are equal to it. Now:
walk.”
