The Labyrinth

7: Minos

7

Minos

When Peter was only a young boy – perhaps three or four years old – his mother would read to him every night. And every night, before the lamp was switched off, before the boy shut those great blue eyes, Peter's mind would be opened to stories of witches and wizards, strange towns, flying cars, whole other universes. There would be goodies and baddies, great heroes who would defeat terrible monsters, evil enemies to destroy. These were stories that no human would ever believe But now, having been drawn into the Odyssey, thinking back to those bedtime tales, Peter started to believe that they might just be true.

Peter's mother had often told her sons the story of a peculiar young girl who, struck by curiosity, caused all evil in the world.

Prometheus and Epimetheus were two particularly mischievous brothers, living in the early times of Ancient Greece, under the watchful eyes of the King of the Gods, Zeus. Zeus was a ferocious God, often brandishing a great thunderbolt in his right arm, growling in a voice that boomed across all the skies and the land from the top of Mount Olympus. As a punishment for the troubles caused by Prometheus and Epimetheus, Zeus forbid humans from using fire, so that they would not be able to cook their meat or warm their homes.

But Prometheus was a cunning young man. On the Isle of Lemmos lived a great blacksmith, named Hephaestos, who kept a burning fire to keep his forge hot. With this knowledge, Prometheus travelled far and wide to the Isle of Lemmos, stealthily stealing a handful of flames from Hephaestos. Zeus, overcome with rage and fury, thundered from the skies in anger; he was furious with Prometheus. He thus came to the decision that humans should pay the penalty once and for all – an eternal punishment.

With Hephaestos' assistance, Zeus fashioned a woman out of clay. Turning to his fellow Gods and Goddesses, it was Athene who breathed life into the female, whilst Aphrodite made her stunningly beautiful. Meanwhile, Hermes taught the girl to be sly and deceitful, yet enchanting and charismatic. A truly wonderful woman of both intelligence and beauty had been sculpted from the Earth, and Zeus named her Pandora. He had made a trap.

Pandora was sent to Epimetheus as a gift. Despite Prometheus' warning of accepting strange gifts from the Gods, Epimetheus, spellbound by her entrancing smile and enticing eyes, could not resist Pandora. As Epimetheus willingly agreed to marry the girl, Zeus was overjoyed; his plan was falling into place. As a wedding gift, Zeus handed Pandora a magnificent box, made of the finest oak, fastened by an enormous gold clasp. The key was made of silver, dangling down from the lock like a snake. As Zeus gave the box to the loving couple, staring at both Pandora and Epimetheus dead in the eye, he said, "Whatever you do, you must never open the box. It must stay shut!" 

This girl, although she seemed innocent, was certainly not trustworthy. She sat before the box, day and night, wondering what secrets may lie inside. It was too large to tuck away in the darkness or to ignore completely, and besides, it was a particularly elegant box. Why would Zeus not let her open it? It was a gift after all! "Please, Epimetheus! Let's just take one look inside!" Pandora cried to her husband, desperate to unlock the great box.

"No," Epimetheus replied sternly, "It must remain shut. We're not opening this box, and we never will open this box!" In a strop, he marched off, adamant that Pandora should find something better to do than stare at this preposterous box all day.

However, Pandora could not bare the suspense any longer. She felt the burning desire within her to open the box, for she was certain there would be something magical inside. Whilst Epimetheus was outside of the house, she crept up to the box, overcome with temptation. Checking to see if her husband was watching, she placed her hand on the great silver key, trembling with excitement. Click. The lock turned, and Pandora breathed a heavy sigh of relief. With both hands, she heaved the lid open, hoping to find great treasures buried within the thick oak, or a crown, or glamorous jewels. What came out of the box was certainly not what she had expected.