In Greek mythology, Prometheus warned Epimetheus not to accept gifts from Zeus.
Prometheus understands that Zeus may use a gift as part of a punishment. He therefore cautions his brother Epimetheus against accepting anything from the Olympian ruler. Epimetheus nevertheless accepts Pandora, whom Zeus sends to humanity as part of the response to Prometheus’s theft of fire.
The warning is one of the clearest examples of the brothers’ contrasting personalities. Prometheus represents foresight, while Epimetheus represents hindsight or thinking after an event. Some retellings focus on Pandora’s vessel and omit the warning, but it is central to the myth’s logic: Pandora’s arrival is not simply an accident, but part of Zeus’s deliberate plan.