Pandora

Zeus bade Hephaestus, the divine craftsman, to shape the form of a young woman from earth and water, grant her a human voice and strength inside, and fashion her face in the likeness of the immortal Goddesses. He then commanded Athena to teach her the arts of embroidery and weaving, while golden Aphrodite endowed her with grace and stirred within her a cruel longing that would weary the limbs of any striving to provide for her. Hermes, the divine messenger and guide, was instructed to bestow a shameless mind and a deceitful nature upon her. All the Gods and Goddesses obeyed lord Zeus, the son of Cronus. 

Pallas Athena then adorned her form with fine robes, while the divine Graces and regal Peitho placed gold necklaces upon her, and the rich-haired Horai crowned her head with spring flowers. All this was carried out at the will of loud-thundering Zeus, who named this young woman Pandora. And because each of those who dwell upon Mount Olympus had bestowed upon her a gift, she would bring suffering to mortals who ate bread.

Once the sheer despairing snare had been wrought, Zeus sent glorious Hermes, the swift messenger, to bestow it upon Epimetheus as a gift. Without a second thought, Epimetheus accepted the young woman and the sealed jar she brought for him. The young woman lifted the lid from the jar with her hands, scattering the gifts from the Gods and Goddesses. Her thoughts, in turn, caused mortals misery and harmful behavior.

Only Hope/Expectation remained in its unbreakable home beneath the rim of the great jar, kept from flying out by the swift close of the lid by the will of Aegis-bearer Zeus, who gathers the clouds. 

Hesiod, Works and Days

Pandora, the all-gifted, can be regarded as the soul's irrational aspect. She draws the whole downward and away from the divine, ensnaring the lower-leaning mind, Epimetheus, or afterthought. In doing so, she brings suffering to those who are poor in thought. Can such mortals truly rely on hope/expectation?

Yet Pandorra also stands as the conduit to the body and its senses, which serve as the perfect vehicle through which the rational part of the soul can recall and contemplate the beauty of the Gods, thereby unveiling one's true Self.

Note from the editor of Classical Philosophy