Revisiting The Myth Of Sisyphus

To Explore The Possibilities

Sisyphus (as in The Myth of Sisyphus) was condemned by the gods to push a huge rock uphill, but whenever he managed to reach the top of the mountain, the rock would roll back down and he would have to start his labors all over again.

There is an intentional attempt to drive home the point that Sisyphus’s task is somewhat analogous to our lives. Like Sisyphus, we often end up spending our lives in continual, infinite loop of repetitive tasks only to lose meaning and fulfillment. Just when we think we have attained them we perpetually feel compelled to go back and start pushing the stone uphill again.

What If

But this myth would have portrayed the paradox even better had it continued like this:

What if one day, Sisyphus succeeds in stabilizing the rock at the top of the mountain. He ultimately realizes, to his great surprise, that this time the rock is not rolling back down.

No doubt he is surprised at first, but then becomes jubilant. He had finally made it. Very tired but excited, he lay down next to the rock, happy that his unceasing toil had at last ended.

He sleeps for many hours and then, after waking up, he again looks triumphantly at the rock and the slope of the mountainside. After having rested…