The History of Pandora
A long time ago, men lived in ignorance without conscience of good and evil.
Them, there was someone, Pandora, who dared open the knowledge box. With knowledge came the possibility of choice.
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Unlike other animals, men where no longer limited by their instincts.
A beast cannot be censured for killing because that is in its nature. A beast has no choice, but man, on the other hand, has. So with the free will, that makes us human, something else emerged, something so terrible that it could only be punishment!
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With free will, came the pain of responsibility.
How pleasant it would be to act without the knowledge of consequences, without the weight of remorse!
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After committing the worst atrocities, during the day, a beast sleeps peacefully during the night. But humans don't. Their conscience torments them! The weight of their actions crushes them!
Then, a group of wise men had an idea to fix this problem. Soon, it would all be solved.
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The idea was ingenious and the arguments that supported it, well funded.
It was not right that man had to bear upon his shoulders such a terrible punishment! Pandora was guilty for all of this.
If she hadn't opened the box we would all still be living it the happy paradise of our ignorance.
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Why should all humanity suffer because of the unreasonable curiosity of just one element?
Then, those wise men implored the Gods for turning back the clock.
They implored with great conviction, on their knees and clutching their hair.
They sent their arguments to the sky, in a faithful prayer, and they waited for the dawn of a new beginning for mankind.
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They waited and they waited, but nothing happened.
Demoralized, some of the wise men concluded that this meant that they should resign and continue their difficult and tortuous travel along the knowledge road.
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However, others had a different idea. The absence of response from the sky that stared at them in a blue and indifferent manner was an incentive for them to take matters into their own hands.
And that's exactly what they did, even if they had to resort to cruelty. But, to fulfill this purpose, they needed a precious help.
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The wise men talked to the kings, rulers and all other leaders that hided in luxurious palaces, unable to enjoy a single minute of peace for, at each moment, they feared losing their power and the privileges that came with it.
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The wise men whispered at the kings' hears that knowledge was a threat to their status.
If they kept people in a dark ignorance, them they would finally be able to sleep peacefully.
The kings removed the crowns, they scratched their heads and they thought.
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Many of the kings gave in to the melodious promises of the wise men and so they supplied them the men, the laws, the money and everything else they needed to fulfill their plan.
The wise men, zealously, were quick to show work.
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Books were burnt, children were deprived from education, new ideas were censored and those who tried to reach a bit further were persecuted, sometimes even tortured and killed.
After many efforts, the battle was won and humanity retreated inside the darkness of atrocity and cruelty.
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However, even endangered by the threat of death, there were still those that persisted in tasting the bittersweet taste of knowledge.
Not even the most fearsome punishment could detain them.
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Pandora's Box was reopened, the knowledge was recovered and people found out that there were still many other boxes left to open, full of delicious enigmas and puzzles.
But the fight wasn't over yet.
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Today, the fight goes on.
While part of humanity keeps running along the knowledge path, others keep lagging behind, suspicious, comfortable with that they already know.
As for Pandora, she keeps smiling to all of those that dare cross the border to the unknown and her smile is as captivating as ever.
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END
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