ABSTRACT
Of course our own world does not contain such gods, but it seems possible in principle – it’s not excluded by logic – that all of the gods could form their intentions and set in place a comprehensive system of obstruction. This however is an illusion. Imagine that the gods lay mines along the route which will ensure that a barrier rises at a point if the man reaches that point. The system cannot survive being tested. For if the man gets away from a, however little distance he goes, a barrier will have risen to obstruct him before he gets there. A barrier is supposed to rise at a point p if and only if the man gets to p, and so if and only if no barrier has risen before p.
