Sisyphus was a king of Corinth who was punished by the gods for his deceitfulness and hubris.
In the Greek myth, Sisyphus was mortal but had an unusual relationship with death that involved cheating it multiple times.
The most famous version of his story involves him outsmarting Death (Thanatos) itself.
As incredible as it sounds to me, I couldn't fathom that when Death came for him, Sisyphus managed to chain up Thanatos, which meant that no one could die while Death was imprisoned!
This naturally caused chaos in the world of the gods until Ares, the god of war, freed Thanatos because wars became pointless without death.
Sisyphus also tricked Hades and Persephone.
For the latter, it happened that before dying, he instructed his wife not to perform proper burial rites for him. Which would then be used as his leverage for an appeal to the gods. Because when he arrived in the underworld, he complained about this "neglect" and convinced Hades to let him return to the world of the living to scold his wife.
But once back among the living, he simply refused to return to the underworld and lived for many more years.
Eventually, the gods recaptured him and condemned him to his eternal punishment.
Which is the central premise of this myth. His eternal punishment in the underworld was to roll a massive boulder up a mountain, only to have it roll back down each time he neared the summit. He must then begin again, repeating this futile task for eternity.
I've only read a few books written by Albert Camus, one of the most notable is "The Stranger," where he explored existentialism and the indifference of the universe.
I'm personally more drawn to the freedom aspect the book explores. It's relatable, both remotely and intimately in our own daily struggles.
Camus's Absurdism
In his 1942 essay "The Myth of Sisyphus," Albert Camus uses this story mentioned above as a metaphor for the human condition.
He argues that life is inherently absurd, in that we seek meaning and purpose in a universe that offers neither.
Like Sisyphus, we are condemned to perform seemingly meaningless tasks repeatedly, over and over again.
However, there's a twist with this perception compared to how it's traditionally or rather logically perceived.
Camus doesn't see this as cause for despair as that would obviously defeat the mood of one's existence, so to speak.
What he suggested was that we must imagine Sisyphus as happy, writing that "the struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man's heart."
In a nutshell, Camus's philosophy of absurdism advocates for embracing life's absurdity rather than escaping it.
Based on the premise that we create our own meaning through our actions and attitudes, even in the face of an indifferent universe.
Finding Light In A Dark Room
In a modern context, it's more of an opportunity to recognize the inevitable aspect of repeated patterns that we're soaked into, although the absurdity of the world seems more pronounced now given all the craziness that's happening.
In terms of inevitable aspect of repeated patterns, I think the endless scroll feature on social media and having goal posts that keep changing are a good example.
Perhaps also, working to afford a lifestyle that requires more work and getting trapped in cycles of earning and spending that never lead to lasting financial peace could be another modern parallel to Sisyphus's struggle.
When almost everything seems absurd, it's not uncommon to seek out meaning and purpose as a way to find some form of solace against the crushing weight of existential indifference.
And if the discovery made is there's no meaning and purpose in this universe, then a near perfect ground is created for nihilism and unchecked manipulation.
I think this could well be an already played strategy by the elites of the elites.
In my view, there's meaning and purpose in this universe irrespective of how absurd everything is.
A framework that I prefer to look at it from is being in a dark room. I'm aware that there's a switch to put the light on and dispel the darkness but I can't find the switch.
Possibly because the switch isn't meant to be found; it'll turn on by itself when the right time comes.
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