Sisyphus
Punished shade who repeatedly drives a great stone uphill only to see it roll back.
Overview
Sisyphus appears in the punished sequence of Odyssey 11 through labour that can never be completed. He braces with hands, feet and his whole body to drive a great stone toward the crest. At the instant it is about to pass over, its weight turns it back and it rolls down to the plain, forcing him to begin again. Sweat and dust give the cycle physical weight.
Relationships
- Descent to the Underworldappears as a punished shade
Odysseus sees Sisyphus repeatedly drive a stone uphill only for it to roll back.
- Punishments in Hadesis punished in
Odyssey 11 uses Sisyphus as one figure in the afterlife punishment scene.
Story appearances
- Gates of the UnderworldPunished shade repeatedly driving the stone uphill
Punished shade repeatedly driving the stone uphill, part of the Underworld story's crossings, losses, judgments or guarded spaces.
Ancient sources
MythWeave distinguishes ancient-source evidence from later adaptations and modern interpretation.