| Many people have asked us why we chose the Myth of Sisyphus as the central metaphor for our work. We hope this answers the question. If not, we'll roll the rock up the hill another time!
I
We all know the tragic tale of Sisyphus, condemned by the gods to an eternity of struggle, moving a boulder to the mountaintop, only to have it tumble back to the bottom again? Again and again, forever. No hope of success nor any hope for rest in an eternity of hopeless labor.
This is one myth we can all relate to, pushing the same rock up the same mountain day in and day out. We can feel the strain, cheek pressed to stone, legs taut, pushing against resistance all day, every day.
Well, let's look again at the myth. Sisyphus was not always such a hopeless wretch; he was in fact once quite powerful, the founder and King of Corinth, wealthy beyond his dreams. Even when he offended the gods and was condemned to an eternity of ceaseless toil, Sisyphus was strong and determined.
But the gods foresaw his strength and arrogance, and one of them always stood watch, ready to flick the boulder from his grasp, if he looked as though he was about to succeed, to complete his task, to bring the boulder to rest on the mountaintop.
II
Jump ahead a few millennia. The mountain is still there; there is Sisyphus, pushing and rolling that cursed boulder. Somewhere along the way, Sisyphus got the joke, and realized he was the sorry punch line. No matter how hard he worked at his task, he was condemned to perpetual failure. The gods made sure of that; every time he came close to the mountaintop, the gods would throw a stiff breeze at him, or whip up a gale storm, or place a sharp stone under his foot.
But what he did not know, what he had no way of knowing, was this: the gods had long since grown bored with tormenting Sisyphus, and had moved on to fresh pursuits. It had been eons, ages, generations, epochs since the gods had even thought about Sisyphus!
III
Meanwhile, Sisyphus has grown resigned to his fate. Somewhere along the way, he forgets to notice how light he feels on the way back down the mountain. He stops standing tall. His confidence falters. So does his strength. Sisyphus stops noticing the world around him. Sisyphus gives up noticing, gives up paying attention, gives up thinking for himself. Now the situation that did not change becomes the situation that cannot change.
Where once Sisyphus walked proudly, eyes sharp for new information about his situation (maybe if I roll a bit to the left next time, against that indentation, maybe if), where once he owned half of his existence by walking easily and consciously down the hillside to retrieve the fallen boulder, now we find him collapsed into himself and his fate; he cannot see that now the only force prolonging his suffering is his own inability to look up, to look around and realize that he has been left alone for ages.
IV
And one day, Sisyphus once again rolls the rock up the hill, knowing that as soon as he gets near the top, the rock will be sent back down. As he gets close, as he is preparing to let go of the boulder for he long ago learned to let go just before the gods knock it from his grip small miracle comes into view.
A vivid yellow butterfly flutters past right in front of his eyes. Sisyphus is so surprised, so taken with the beauty of this tiny creature, that he forgets. He forgets that he is doomed to fail, he forgets that he will never make it to the top. And instead of letting go in anticipation of his inevitable failure, he keeps pushing, eyes following this magnificent little butterfly.
Suddenly the boulder falls away from his shoulder. It doesn't move, it simply sits, all its weight resting easily in an indentation that fits it like a hand in a glove, a perfect pedestal that seems as though it is designed to hold the boulder in place. And there sits his torment, resting easily where it belongs.
Sisyphus looks around in disbelief. He gives the stone a push to see if it might suddenly dislodge. He gives it a harder shove. Nothing. Finally, he puts all his strength (which is considerable, given several thousand years of intense exercise!) against the stone to dislodge it, to roll it back down the mountain. No, that boulder is staying right there. Amazing! He has completed his task. He is free!
V
Sisyphus has completed his task, against all odds. But suddenly, a terror grips him. What if the gods notice that he has stopped working? Their anger would be terrible, this he knows from long experience Yes, the gods will be angry. Sisyphus cringes, waiting for his inevitable punishment. But his tormentors have long since left Sisyphus to punish himself; he was really so much better at it than even they were.
So, he stands, certain that his good fortune will vanish in a flash of retribution. But at last he has to admit that, yes, he has actually made it to the mountaintop.
But now what?
VI
"I guess I'll just sit here and wait for the gods to come back and tell me what to do."
VII
"Hey, look down there! Another boulder needs to be moved up the mountain. I know I'm good at this. Why not?"
VIII
"Hey, look over there!! Some people trying to move a boulder up a mountainside. I'll bet they could use a manager!"
IX
"Perhaps I could do something new" |
