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GREEK

Pandora opened a forbidden box and let every trouble loose in the world.

According to Greek myth, the first woman was warned never to open a special jar - but curiosity got the better of her.

2 min read
Pandora opened a forbidden box and let every trouble loose in the world.
THE FULL STORY

Pandora was the first woman in Greek mythology, and her story explains why life can be hard. According to the legend, the gods gave her a beautiful jar but warned her never to open it. Curiosity got the better of her, and one day she lifted the lid just a crack to peek inside.

Out flew every kind of trouble the world had never known: sickness, sadness, anger, jealousy, and lies. They scattered everywhere and could not be caught. Pandora slammed the lid shut, but the damage was done. The Greeks said this was why humans suffer.

But the myth has one hopeful twist. When Pandora finally looked inside the empty jar, one tiny thing was still left at the bottom: hope. The story says hope stayed with humans to help them through all the troubles that had escaped. Today “opening Pandora’s box” still means causing big unexpected problems.

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