Lightbringer
Active member
I study many myths and legends and I think one of my personal favorites would have to be the tale of Odin.
Odin is the father of many great gods in the Norse Pantheon and the all-father of creation including humans.
He sought knowledge and his quest took him beneath the roots of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, where a hidden well lay guarded by the being Mimir.
Mimir asked the allfather whether he would pay tribute to acquire the knowledge of this well and Odin agreed.
By plucking out one of his eyes, Odin was allowed a single drink from the well.
With the water flowing through his body Odin gained the wisdom he longed for.
It was not long that he realized the price that such wisdom exacts from its holder.
He was able to see clearly the nature of the universe and even the fate of the gods at Ragnarok.
He realized, in a fatalistic flash, that nothing was permanent, that everything would eventually perish.
The weight of this wisdom caused his normally cheerful face to sour
It was said that from that point on, Odin has never smiled again, because with great knowledge comes great sorrow.
I was always fond of this story because we all seek knowledge, but with the more knowledge we gain the more bitter we become.
So the dilemma is whether or not living a happy and ignorant life better than knowing a great deal, but never able to gain peace.
Odin is the father of many great gods in the Norse Pantheon and the all-father of creation including humans.
He sought knowledge and his quest took him beneath the roots of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, where a hidden well lay guarded by the being Mimir.
Mimir asked the allfather whether he would pay tribute to acquire the knowledge of this well and Odin agreed.
By plucking out one of his eyes, Odin was allowed a single drink from the well.
With the water flowing through his body Odin gained the wisdom he longed for.
It was not long that he realized the price that such wisdom exacts from its holder.
He was able to see clearly the nature of the universe and even the fate of the gods at Ragnarok.
He realized, in a fatalistic flash, that nothing was permanent, that everything would eventually perish.
The weight of this wisdom caused his normally cheerful face to sour
It was said that from that point on, Odin has never smiled again, because with great knowledge comes great sorrow.
I was always fond of this story because we all seek knowledge, but with the more knowledge we gain the more bitter we become.
So the dilemma is whether or not living a happy and ignorant life better than knowing a great deal, but never able to gain peace.
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