Allegory of the Cave

while on Earth. What is meant by that is in death we break the chains? The Allegory says that it is painful to break the chains, and in most cases death is not pleasant but painful. Once out of the chains, there is indecision, what to do, where to go. Only when the sunlight is spotted from the cave entrance does one know where to go. Again death echoes this same pattern. Many say after death there is indecision until the bright light draws them toward it.

The Outside of the cave, the true reality, then is a symbol of heaven. Both represent a better place, a sort of paradise where things can be more clearly understood. This interpretation may conflict with an earlier statement that suggests that some break the chains and become enlightened while on earth but it does not. Those who are lucky enough to have found true reality while on Earth were the exception. They did not have to die to find out what others find out after death. Digressing, the cave is an example of the Earth and the way we live our lives.

The breaking of the chains represent death in the sense