#while the perfect guide could be interpreted as in-universe speculation | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

baddly-well-done-translations · 3 years

Text

Hole/M. Manson: The Beauty and the Beast | by Richard Royuela, Rock Sound magazine N°15, year 1999

There’s no doubt that at the present time, Courtney Love and Marilyn Manson are two of the most controversial characters in the world of rock: egocentric, capricious, intelligent, shrewd… Well, they possess all that sort of adjectives that anybody needs if he wants to triumph in this complicated circus.

Both of them are the frontmen of their bands, Hole and Marilyn Manson if somebody was left with doubts, and have been at the center of the world these last nine months because of the editions “Mechanical Animals” and “Celebrity Skin”, albums which practically have overcame all commercial and qualitative spectations everyone had on them.

The big surprise came when at the end of last year, it was announced that Hole and Marilyn Manson were going to protagonize a two month American tour in which they’d play in big enclosures with the increasingly popular Monster Magnet. Lots of people didn’t believe in the implausible nature of the prompt, since it didn’t seem easy for the egos of Courtney and M. Manson to coexist too much time together, but at the same time, being as intelligent as they are, both of them should have known that it was the perfect way for them to be seen by the biggest number of people it could be. This way, the big question of the year was open. Or did somebody doubt this wouldn’t be?

Aerial crisis n°1

Obviously such an event couldn’t be ignored, and because of that, we decided we had to be there at all costs. The chosen date would be Sunday 14th of March, in which both bands would visit the legendary Forum of Los Angeles… But it wouldn’t be so easy.

When I entered Barcelona's airport the Saturday before the concert, I wasn’t minimally aware of what was going to happen. The so classical behind-of-schedule arrivals made me lose the junction between Paris and Los Angeles. It seems that the fact that twelve persons had to make that same junction wasn’t enough motivation for the airline to wait for us fifteen missere minutes, and there you watch me rotting seven magnificent hours in Paris airport waiting the eight of the night to come so I could take the following flight… But the surprise had to come soon, because after two hours waiting, the “magnificent and educated” company’s staff told us that the flight had been canceled and it wouldn’t leave until the next day. That meant I’d lose an entire day of my short stop in Los Angeles and also have the beautiful sensation of being treated as a donkey and of an oh-so-educated staff of my new favorite airline called me “rubbish” because I asked for explanations of that big caos. Let’s see if he’s so confident when the report arrives to him. Anyways, let it all be in the name of rock.

The preambles

Thanks to God I arrived safe and sound to Los Angeles with the exact time to go to a hotel, contact with the person from Universal Records, the great Jose Puig, take a shower, eat something and go to the Forum. Little time to find out that that would be the last concert of the tour. Yes, all those bad omens from the bad talkers had come to reality, and the tour hadn’t even lasted one month. Hole had decided to abandon. Official reason was “production problems”, a too broad term to be taken seriously. In some declarations I found on MTV, Courtney Love said that she had soon noticed that playing in sites with 25.000 persons wasn’t a very good idea and the best was to finish it soon. But as it’s often the case, the rumorology had started and now other motivations about Hole’s abandonment were running. The most popular one was one the actress Rose Mcgowan, current Manson’s girlfriend, had started. Reportedly, she was totally jealous about the possibility of Mrs. Love approaching her man and because of that, she prohibited him from having any kind of contact with Courtney. This and some declarations she made in the magazine Alternative Press, in which she said that she couldn’t understand how anybody could like Hole’s new album, and that if the press said good things about it, it was because they were scared of Courtney Love; it seems that these things flamed up the fuse of discord. What is clear is that watching the show Hole gave made it easier to me understanding why the band’s desertion. But we’ll talk about it later.

It seems that difficult times start to be history for Monster Magnet. Dave Wyndorf himself has affirmed on more than one occasion that after the “Dopes to Infinity” tour he thought about ending the band, at least at a professional level. Luckily for him and all of us, “Powertrip” has achieved an unexpected success in America, they’ve just been awarded with a gold album and in Europe they’ve even managed to increase their status in Europe. The fact that “Powertrip” has sold 500.000 CD’s in America hasn’t only been useful to the confidence of the band for going high, but apart of that to open the doors of big tours like this one. However, it’s obvious that on this tour Monster Magnet is nothing more than a special guest, as Faith no More in the tour of Guns ‘n’ Roses and Metallica. With a technically empty forum, and an empty forum is something impressive! Monster Magnet started the short half hour it had available. Without doubt the tracks of “Powertrip” are the ones that take up the totality of the repertory, being “Space Lord” and “Powertrip” those which were best received by their few, but unconditional, fans that acoplated in front of the scenery. With the inclusion of a second guitarist, the total protagonist of the stadium is Dave Wyndorf. Getting rid of his guitar in more than half concert, he feels more comfortable in his character of frontman and lots of his movements remind of the ones of his admired Iggy Pop. Having in mind that the conditions weren’t made to triumph: few lights, poor sound, so little amount of time, the truth is that Monster Magnet got off the scenery more than successfully, proving that all the rewards they’re getting and will get are more than well-deserved. At this time, a tour with Metallica, that isn’t little.

Courtney’s rage

For any fan of Hole, a start with “Violet” and “Awful”, the best songs of the new album, would be enough to be satisfied. And that’s no more, no less, what they did. Although in the course of these two songs, it’s easier to understand Courtney’s rage. Far from being the double billboard that was sold, Hole wasn’t more than some luxurious support band. The Californian quartet didn’t compete, neither in terms of scenery and sound quality, at the same conditions as Marilyn Manson and also a big part of the public, although the forum was technically full, wasn’t there because of them. But any of that was an impediment for Hole to perform an antologic concert. With the ascension of Melissa, a red-dressed goddess and the entry of the new baterist, Samantha (from Shift), spectacular and effective to the maximum; Hole has gained a lot in the aspect of visuals. Courtney is still the main focus and Eric, as always, is “conformed” with being staying next to the podium carrying the musical weight. And although she isn’t that beast that seemed to be dying in every concert anymore, she still is a star full of charisma that not even Hollywood could calm. The concert was based on “Celebrity Skin”, although the memories from the past -”Doll’s Dress”, “Miss World” or “Teenage Whore”- weren’t left to the side and in the 60 minutes the group demonstrated that they’re in the right path to be an atemporal rock band, or the Fleetwood Mac of the 2000, said in other way. As the concert continued, Courtney got hot and as she started getting out of her clothes (she ended in a transparent dress and an ass check in the wind) she didn’t stop shouting instructions against the press, television and whatever got through her head. Definitively it won’t be easy to stop Courtney and the fact that “Celebrity Skin” has got up again in the American charts will surely help with that. As expected, she didn’t even condescend to thank Marilyn for the days they spent together.

And with you, the most stupid fall of all the history of rock

When Mr. Manson appeared in the scenery crucificted in a cross made of televisions, the hysteria was total. That’s the unequivocal simbol that they’re a big group with all that entails. Dressed in the same way that in the tour that brought them to Spain, there wasn’t any real differences with what we had seen before. That means that his ribcase was punched, there were microphone foots all around the floor, the stilt act, etc… although it’s fair to recognize that the band was having an inspired night. But the great moment came when in the middle of the interpretation of “Rock is Dead”, Mr. Manson, over a one meter high platform, decided to lower his pants to his knees. Not conformed with that, he tried making some steps. Result? He couldn’t maintain the balance and fell off straight to the floor, totally fulminated. While he was still totally inmovile in there, the rest of the band kept playing as if nothing extraordinary had happened. After that the lights went off and Manson was dragged out of the scenery. In those moments we all thought it was part of the show, but something indicated to us it wasn’t normal when the concert didn’t resume and the loudspeakers told us that because of technical matters the show was going to stay interrupted for another five minutes. Five minutes which guided to the final communication said that because of an accident of the artist, the show had ended. Only a few complaints as an answer. Would we have reacted the same way in Spain? And 25.000 persons with a “circumstance face” started getting out of the forum. The next day it was said that M. Manson had suffered from an ankle break and the tour would continue with Monster Magnet and Nashville Pussy as guests.

It was speculated that the fall could had been an act that would permit Manson gain time and restructure the tour after Hole’s dissertation.

An unforeseeable end, or depending on how you see it, totally previsible for a tour that had only started a month ago.

Aerial crisis n°2

The next day I had to abandon Los Angeles and return to Barcelona, but a new surprise was waiting for me. The flight had been canceled again and I’d have to stay a short night in Los Angeles. Incredible. And as if it weren’t enough, in the hotel I was given I couldn’t smoke and there wasn’t any porn channel. Somebody take me the hell out of here!

#marilyn manson #hole #courtney love #90s nostalgia #90s aesthetic #early 00s #old magazines #translation #it is mine

1 note · View note

mayhemxmugglesxmagic · 4 years

Text

Headcanon – Draco/Alchemy/ Elemental Magic

Note: Some of this headcanon is was inspired by a conversation with the lovely @holmesdepot, and their amazing headcanon. Credit where credit is due!

Alchemy: General/History

-- Based on this.

Alchemy is a branch of magic and an ancient science concerned with the study of the composition, structure and magical properties of the four basic elements, as well as the transmutation of substances; it is thus intimately connected with Potion-making, chemistry and transformative magic. Alchemy also concerns philosophy -- one interpretation of alchemical literature, which is known to be dominated by mystical and metaphysical speculation, were that the study of Alchemy was symbolic of a spiritual journey, leading the alchemist from ignorance, or base metal, to enlightenment or gold. While Muggles for the most part largely dismiss it as an outdated forerunner of modern chemistry, there are some wizards who actively study and practice it in modern day, and who have held it to be some of the most difficult magic known

Alchemy has been a field of study since antiquity. As the time went on, the lack of common words for chemical concepts and processes, as well as the need for secrecy (presumably to avoid Muggle persecution though it may have also had something to do with cultural feelings towards Alchemy and the growing cultural divide between elemental instinctual magic and more institutionalized conduit based magic) led alchemists to borrow the terms and symbols of biblical and pagan mythology, astrology, and other esoteric fields. This marked a progress in alchemical research, as it allowed the exchange of ideas between alchemists without outside meddling. However, this also ended up making the plainest chemical recipe read like an abstruse magic incantation, probably confusing the learning and spreading of alchemy as a science.

The best known goals of the alchemists were the transformation of common metals into Gold or Silver, the creation of a Panacea (a remedy that would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely), and the discovery of a universal solvent. Two of the three primary alchemical goals were achieved by the famed French alchemist Nicolas Flamel sometime in or after the 14th century, with his creation of the Philosopher's Stone and, by extension, the Elixir of Life. Flamel went on to live to the 1990s and to six centuries old, til the destruction of the Stone.

Alchemy: The Elements (Basic)

-- Based on this:

What we know --

EARTH: In alchemy, earth was believed to be primarily dry, and secondarily cold, (as per Aristotle). Beyond those classical attributes, the chemical substance salt, was associated with earth. Earth can represent physical movements and sensations, and it’s associated with the colors green and brown, and the humor black bile. Earth is associated with matter, foundation, manifestation, money, incorporating, employment, touch, empathy, understanding, fertility, security, safety, home, prosperity, and business. Represents stability and physical endurance.

AIR: Aristotle stated that air represented heat and wetness (the wetness is from water vapor, which was thought to be part of air). The air symbol in alchemy can also represent a life-giving force, and it is associated with the colors white and blue. Hippocrates associated air with blood. Air is associated with thought, creativity, knowledge, mental activity, study, speech, intellect, ideas, communication, hearing, travel, messages, eloquence, freedom, discovery, revealing hidden things, and secrets. Represents intelligence and the arts.

FIRE: In alchemy, fire represents emotions such as passion, love, anger, and hate, which are sometimes referred to as “fiery” emotions. Aristotle labeled it as hot and dry, and it is represented by the colors red and orange, as well as the humor yellow bile. Fire is associated with energy, spirituality, passions, light, vitality, health, goals, desires, destiny, sexuality, purification, and sight. Represents courage and daring.

WATER: Aristotle labeled water as cold and wet, and Hippocrates connected it to the body humor phlegm. Additionally, it’s associated with intuition as well as the color blue, and is often linked to the alchemy symbol of mercury (as both are seen as feminine symbols). The Greek philosopher Thales believed water was the first substance created in the world. Water is associated with feelings, happiness, pleasure, love, children, friendship, marriage, family, ancestors, veils, home, taste, dreams, sleep, divination, purification, cleansings, healing, psychic and intuition, and the sub-conscious. Represents emotions and intuition.

(I’ll go into more detail on specific metals, etc later)

Alchemy: Hogwarts

-- Based on this:

What were know --

The sixth-year Potions curriculum at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry covers alchemy and, as such, Libatius Borage's Advanced Potion-Making includes a brief historical and scientific overview of alchemy. According to Horace Slughorn, the preparation of an antidote for a blended poison following Golpalott's Third Law incurs in an almost alchemical process. However, Alchemy itself is an elective subject offered at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and only when there is sufficient demand from sixth and seventh-year students only.

What this could mean --

Ministry regulations on Alchemy and the study of elemental magic due to the unpredictability of it have made learning Alchemy in depth is highly discouraged. As such even when there is an acceptable amount of students who wish to take the course it does not go forward. There are fears of individuals who are able to harness the elements in magic, specifically the element associated with their magical core. It is powerful but unstable in most peoples hands -- and alchemy is a stepping stone toward the understanding of that.

Alchemy: Draco’s research

Draco isn’t interested in eternal life, or a cure for all illness. He’s interested in harnessing the properties of the here and now -- making the most of the time given to him, and the transformative potential of life itself. That's why he's so intrigued by Felix Felicis. While commonly understood to be a luck potion that’s not exactly what it is. It’s a complex potion that aligns the users magical core with the elements and their properties in perfect harmony. People have described being on Felix Felicis as just knowing -- everything goes right. This is because it heightens the users instincts, and their magic pushes them to trust themselves, guides them in the right direction. The potion is little more than an add blocker for the wizards brain -- it removes doubt and creates a direct line from the users magical core to the universe around them.

Most wizards in the modern day have trouble tapping into this part of themselves due to an over reliance on wands, incantations, potions, etc, as well as being told that there is a right way and a wrong way to do magic. But Felix Felicis removes the barrier that’s been built by cultural reliance on things like wands and the idea of proper magic.

Through his research Draco learns of old magic -- magic based on elements and wordless/wandless casting from a time when wizards and witches instinctually knew how to cast and harness the energies around them. Their magic was directly related to their physical and emotional states as well as the stars (birth charts) they were born under. However, this often made magic unstable and unpredictable to those who did not understand or were not powerful enough to user their own magic safely. As such under the guise of creating proper magic -- wands and other tools were slowly normalized while the old ways died out or were removed.

Alchemy came about in the UK during the cultural shift from this more instinctual wandless magic to the strict conduit and incantation based magic of modern wizarding Europe. Alchemy was a way for those who remembered a time when magic was more element based and instinctual to try and make sense of the properties within their magic -- Why does lead interact the way it does with the human spleen? Why is my magic more powerful if I cast while holding tin on a Thursday, but my sisters isn’t? etc. If they could make sense of it, if the could quantitate it then they could harness the elements to do their bidding and justify further research into the link between the elements, the stars, etc, and magic. In modern times however, many witches and wizards find this field of study obsolete or foolish -- much like the way they view divination.

Birth charts, Alchemy, and Old magic: Draco

A wizards or witches birth chart dictates the elements their magic relates to so for example a wizard born under a fire star sign (Seamus such an Aries Finnegan) would find spells using fire, heat, etc easier to use and more powerful than a witch or wizard who was born under a water sign. The witch or wizards dominate star sign also can narrow down the type of accidental magic they may perform as children.

Back to Draco as an example (I’ll post Draco’s birth chart later) Draco’s dominate element is Earth with 37.04% of his birth chart falling under a planet associated with the element of Earth. (It’s important and interesting to note Water (29.63%) and Air (29.63%) are very close while Fire is almost nonexistent (3.7%) And the fact he almost died in a fiendfyre becomes very understandable). As such much of Draco’s accidental magic as a child would be Earth based, such as small manifestations and summonings (a toy he wanted suddenly appearing, or flowers blooming all over his room), or small circles of protection surrounding him when he felt uncertain or afraid.

This also means that things associated with Earth are things that can help him cast stronger and more intuitive spells. That is if he’s able to connect with the elemental core of his magic, and over come the societal and cultural norm of using a conduit. Things associated with Earth are also things he’d find easier to use, and would be more potent in potions and alchemic transmutation for him. For example potions using salt (Associated with Earth) brewed by Draco would be more potent than if they were brewed by someone whose dominate element was fire.

However, due to the close nature of the elements in his brith chart, its safe to say that most magic concerning earth, water, and air Draco would be rather good at instinctually, but wouldn’t be as strong as someone who had a single dominate element. Percentages matter.

#hc: Alchemy and Arsenic (Draco)#[outofmagic: This post got a bit out of hand]#[outofmagic: not sure if it makes sense or if I've just rambled but still here it is]#world building: Alchemy and Arsenic (Draco)#holmesdepot #[A bit like what we were talking about]

0 notes

marvelandponder · 7 years

Photo

Rainbow Power, Y’all

Happy (belated) Pride month, everybody! I’ve been wracking my brain trying to think of how I wanted to talk about gay ponies. Mostly because I literally never shut up about it so writing a opinion-based Should MLP Have a Gay Couple? editorial would be kind of self-explanatory. Kind of really self-explanatory.

Plus, we already have one. Lyra and Bon Bon might have to chant “best friends” a hundred times before they can make goo-goo eyes at each other, but that body language and even just the way they talk to each other in is pretty telling.

Damn, that’s pretty gay.

Oh and also this happened last year on the official Facebook apparently:

God, I love this show. Taking into account the fact that the other two are married couples, this is a Valentines Day promotion, and that making someone’s heart “gallop” can’t really be misconstrued as platonic, I seriously love this.

So, I mean, I can’t exactly stop you from interpreting them as platonic, but I would consider them canon and I’m even glad for the subtlety. Not all depictions need to state the obvious, so long as it is obvious.

I think with these two the intention was to make it ambiguous enough for parents to decide if they want to explain the concept. Kids aren’t stupid, but I think the demographic won’t pick up on the context clues that this could be a romantic relationship when they’ve been primed with the words “best friends” a number of times.

So, at that point, it’s up to the parents who watch the show with their kids to decide (if they haven’t already) if this is how and when they’d like to explain the concept of a same-sex relationship, with this as a visual aide. If Lyra and Bon Bon end up being baby’s first gay relationship, so to speak, that’s awesome.

So, if I’m so satisfied with those two, why write this? Why push for more in an already accepting climate, especially when an effort has already been made? Isn’t that greedy? Or exploitative? Has my shipping brain finally lead me down the road to delusion?

I hear you answering yes to that last one, but I’m just gonna ignore that.

As to the question, it comes down to the word choice. I’m not asking if it should be done---it’s already been done. I’m not asking if Hasbro would allow it, because whether or not they’d show a lot of support, they have shown some.

I’m asking how it could be done with the intention of explaining why it would or wouldn’t add something of value.

Because the landscape of children’s television is changing rapidly. From the time Friendship is Magic started in 2010 until good ol’ 2017, the number of kids’ shows that have incorporated LGBT+ characters and couples has only grown exponentially from before.

On top of that, I’m a little biased in my perception, but I’m not the only one whose noticed that this year’s pride month has been the most visibly celebrated yet. For better or worse, the amount of companies trying to support the LGBT+ community during pride has only grown.

This year’s Amazon Pride float was Rainbow Dash and MLP themed in Dublin. Don’t know if Amazon got Hasbro’s permission to use their character in a parade, but they gave her a horn because unicorns apparently are gay (just as a rule) and now she’s an alicorn.

By the way, they totally messed up those flags. If it had said My Little Pride, they could’ve been selling thousands of them. To me. Wasted potential, I tell you.

And again my bias showing: I can’t speak for other regions, but where I live all public schools, from elementary to universities and colleges, have rainbow pride flags flying.

All the schools I’ve gone to growing up are now flying pride flags for a full month.

That’s... I can’t tell you how heartwarming it is to see. And my elementary school services kindergarten kids all the way up to grade 8---some children as young as 5-6 years old are now growing up with that being a natural part of their environment throughout their entire childhood.

When we were growing up and I think in a lot of places around the world still, there was a question of when it should be taught to kids and whether the concept alone was age appropriate, but little by little, that’s just not the case anymore.

From their shows and media to even some of their schools, more and more kids are learning about this in a natural way from a young age, to the point that it is just love and it is just who these people are to them. And for once I mean it when I say I think that’s beautiful.

But things evolve like this at different rates in different places, so we’re not perfect yet, and the push for more is out of a desire to see the progress continue and for more groups than the ones that are typically represented.

Would I be heartbroken if this was as gay as MLP ever got? Nah (besides, through the power of denial, all my ships are already canon!). But at this point the question is starting to become why not? instead of just why? so even if this remains a hypothetical discussion, I think it’s still an important one.

I’m going to forever cherish the subtlety of those Lyra and Bon Bon scenes, but it’s the first pride month that I’ve been out and I feel like celebrating. Let’s get gay.

Love in Friendship is Magic

Right off the bat, I think it’s important to establish that we’re not trying to change the show fundamentally. It’s about friendship, and while other relationships are shown to be deep and fulfilling as well (family and even romantic), the show’s focus on how meaningful friendship is great.

But here’s my thing with the “this show is about friendship!” argument. It’s not like we don’t already have other types of relationships. Several episodes have been dedicated to developing purely familial relationships.

And even beyond the platonic, Spike has (had?) a crush that factored into the plot of a few episodes, Big Mac now seems to have an on-going relationship, and there are a few prominent married couples. This stuff exists largely in the background, comparatively, but it’s not like romance doesn’t have a place in the show. It just doesn’t surpass the focus on friendship.

So, yeah, just because they have a romance doesn’t mean it has to take over the show, nor should it.

If we were going to go the route of canonizing an LGBT+ couple, that would still be something to take into account.

It doesn’t mean that main characters can’t have a romance necessarily, just that they should work in a friendship lesson along with it.

If Starlight and Trixie were dating for instance (she said, as if it was a random example instead of her ship), a story would probably mostly center around their friends helping them through relationship troubles or preparing for adorable dates. Or, on the flip side, their friends learning the lesson of when not to interfere.

Or, now that Starlight’s cutie mark is on the map (indicating that other ponies can be called if necessary), perhaps a couple could be called to solve a friendship problem instead of two friends.

Basically, so long as there’s still some element of friendship, the writers can introduce a new kind of relationship and develop it in tandem with the friendships already present.

Or, as there is in The Perfect Pear (without giving spoilers beyond what the summary said, for those waiting for the US release), we could just have an episode with a bigger focus on a romance.

Notice how all these scenarios aren’t dependent on the idea that this romance be queer. I’m a bit torn on this issue, because I can see both sides, but I think I usually lean towards the idea that because there ideally doesn’t need to be a difference between straight romances and gay romances, there doesn’t need to be a story reason for them to be gay.

Like I said, I do see the appeal of stories that require the couple and/or characters to be queer, but there’s pros and cons to either side.

We don’t necessarily need to see a story dealing with homophobia in Equestria, in part because that contrasts so much with the Equestria we already know. It’s too loving. It took 4 seasons to address Scootaloo’s disability not because no one noticed, but because everyone accepted her for who she was (aside from DT and SS). It’s not like homophobia or hatred can’t exist in this world, but it’s just not widespread.

A really good reason to include romance in general and even “different kinds of love” so to speak is to give Cadence more screen-time and development.

I’d love to see the Princess of Love guiding her subjects! She could even help a character come out, which would be both a reason to have an LGBT+ character and/or romance in the show, but also make the concept relatable to young kids---a story about accepting who you are and what you love makes sense to them.

I think there’s definitely potential to take this in interesting places, develop pre-established characters and relationships, and all without stealing the focus from friendship too much.

Who Wins the Dreaded Shipping Wars

On the right, Ashleigh Ball posting a fanmade picture of an AppleDash wedding for World Pride Day. On the left, IDW comic writer Jeremy Whitley arguing for FlutterDash... either way, I’m down for this.

Fan expectation is a funny thing.

We both crave for the show to address what we’ve long speculated on, and dread it.

In the case of the Apple family’s parents, there’s been countless emotional fan-theories, stories, and ideas, and yet The Perfect Pear remains one of the most anticipated episodes (for those who have yet to watch it).

With Slice of Life, we were surprised to find some headcanons confirmed and celebrated, but also some destroyed by canon.

I think when it comes to confirming LGBT+ characters and relationships, it’s really no different. We all have different ideas about who these characters are, and those of us who ship have ideas about who they might like.

So, yeah, even if we went down the road of confirming minor characters as LGBT+, if we already know them, it would likely step on a few toes. But honestly I’d rather step on those toes than introduce a new character for the sole purpose of them being gay. Sorta boils them down to just one purpose/one “trait.”

And in the end, as much as it sucks to have your ship sunk or your headcanons burst into flames, 1. If we never wanted the show to establish new things about these characters, why continue watching? and 2. My friends, I’ve been a shipper for a long time and I can say from experience: a ship doesn’t sink even when canon contradicts you. Denial and imagination are a fan’s most awesome tools.

Oh and would you look at that, my transition is here.

Love in EQG

Just as a sidenote, because of what I ship, I’ve said before that I think the Equestria Girls franchise would actually be a perfect place to include LGBT+ relationships because the series already has a heavier focus on romance than the show.

If you’re going to have these high school drama romance subplots, which is a staple of the series now, might as well go ahead and make it gay! *Cough* Sciset still makes the most sense from a storytelling perspective *cough*

Queerer than Ever Before

I wanted to include a section like this because it’s something we’re still working on in animation as a whole: representing more than just gay and lesbian relationships.

I’m happy to report bisexuals and in and out of relationships are also now getting more love, but that’s about where the buck stops. Steven Universe has the closest thing to trans and bigender or androgynous representation, which is mostly not literal. As in, they have fusions of two different characters, and characters like Garnet who feel better in a different form, but as of yet there’s no straight up trans or non-cis-gendered characters.

BMO from Adventure Time could certainly count as gender-fluid, though, so it’s not all bad news bears.

Pansexuality and asexuality have yet to be represented in children’s animation (in adult animation, Rick Sanchez of Rick and Morty is canonically pansexual, though!) aside from Spongebob being confirmed to be asexual off-screen by the show’s creator “because he’s a sponge.”

We’re largely still figuring out how these people and more groups I haven’t even mentioned ideally should be represented, but trying is still the first step.

For example, Big Mac’s not trans, but while I reaaaally didn’t love that his cross-dressing was a joke in Brotherhooves Social, I can also appreciate the fact that everyone around him was aware he was originally a stallion but let him compete in the Sisterhooves Social anyway, a trans issue we’re still debating in reality.

So, the comedy of the episode is kinda transphobic (not because Big Mac is trans, he’s not in canon, but because the comedy comes from him being in drag), but once again Equestria itself proves to be a really accepting, tolerant place.

And I think it can be hard to know how to represent these voices well (there’s also the fact that MLP theoretically could hire on a guest writer, as they do now every season, if they wanted to specifically have someone who’s non-cisgendered tackle a story of that nature), but hey, why not be the first to try? Wouldn’t it suit the show’s loving nature to be inclusive?

LGBT+ in Equestria

More and more these days it’s becoming the norm to include more ways to love others and oneself in kids cartoons. You could argue not every show needs to have LGBT+ inclusion, which I can agree with, but by the same token and especially for shows with an expansive world, no serialized ongoing plot to adhere to, and focus on love and acceptance already, the show doesn’t need to be entirely straight, either.

Ask why not, instead of just why.

There are ways to make romance relevant to the target audience without teaching them they need it to be happy, and there are ways of explaining these concepts to them without forcing a political stance. For kids, it’s simple. Love is love, and you are who you are. That’s really all there is to it.

I’d be over the moon if the show ever had the chance to represent more than they already have. In the same way I wanted to Applejack’s parents to be dead, I’d ideally want to see how MLP specifically would deal with this hard topic with its usual kindness, gentleness, and love. As in the former case, I think it has the potential to be something wonderful.

In the end, though, I of course can’t say if we will ever see more, or exactly would or should it would be handled.

I suppose we can only hope to follow Lyra and Bon Bon’s example.

Other MLP stuff? Oh yeah, I’ve done that! I’ve got more editorials like this one over here, and episode reviews over here. But because plain old links aren’t pretty, have the last three things I’ve done with purty pictures:

Dr. Wolf Theory Reading, Parental Glidenace Review, and Celestia/Daybreaker Editorial

Year of the Pony

Visuals in this Post Wouldn’t Be Possible Without...

Pinkie Pie Vector by MPNoir Flag Vector by JayBugJimmies Lyra and Bon Bon Poster by BronybyException

Art from talented artists, what could be better? Hit up those links and check out their awesome galleries!

The Real Agenda Here is My Shipping Agenda

67 notes · View notes

tomeandflickcorner · 7 years

Text

OUAT Episode Analysis- Tougher Than the Rest

Well, after a long hiatus, we finally get the conclusion to the load of malarkey that was the Wish World. And after what we were treated to in the first half of this two-partner, complete with the problematic message that Emma needed to suffer to become the woman she is now, and it was therefore a good thing that she grew up feeling unloved and unwanted, I wasn’t exactly looking forward to this one. But, people were saying it was okay, so here we go.

We open to a 7-year-old Emma, who is living on the streets of Minneapolis during the winter of 2000. It turns out her last group home was so horrible, she felt that life on the streets was preferable. To keep warm, she’s reduced to burning the pages of an old children’s book. However, she’s approached by a 17-year-old boy who waxes philosophical about the story featured in the book- The Ugly Duckling. According to this teenage boy, the story is about a duckling who became a swan because he believed in himself. He goes on to say that it’s up to Emma to decide her fate. His words apparently do the trick, because Little Girl Emma makes her way to the local police station so she can be returned to the foster system. When the receptionist asks for her name, she states her name is Emma Swan, apparently taking the name ‘Swan’ from the story of The Ugly Duckling.

So it turns out Emma chose the surname of ‘Swan’ for herself. I guess that’s alright. All this time, I just thought that she got the surname ‘Swan’ from her first family. You know, the one that returned her to the orphanage when she was three. Jennifer Morrison even said that was the case in a tweet one time. But I guess we’re just supposed to conclude actor tweets don’t count as canon. At least this way, we know the surname ‘Swan’ doesn’t have any negative memories associated with it. On the other hand, I still find it a bit problematic. I’m obviously no expert, but I’m pretty sure the courts automatically issue surnames to abandoned and unclaimed children. And Emma probably had a case file and a social worker assigned to her somewhere. Can a kid really pick and choose their own surname? But again, this is Once Upon a Time. The show where crappy squatter dens always remain vacant and available for use by the Nevengers despite no one ever paying the rent. I guess we’re just not supposed to overthink things.

Now, it’s not obvious right now, but that teenage boy is eventually revealed to have been Teenager August. And that he knew that he was talking to Emma. I get the feeling we’re supposed to think ‘wow, August was so great, ‘cause he was able to encourage Emma to believe in herself.’ However, I’m kinda wrinkling my nose at this. I can cut Young Pinocchio a bit of slack for leaving Baby Emma, because he was just a little kid at the time, and it was rather unfair of Geppetto to burden him with the hefty responsibility of guiding Baby Emma on his own. But at this point, August is a teenager. Is there really any reason why he couldn’t have just explained to Emma now that she did have parents somewhere who loved her? You know, something a little more substantial than just spouting off his personal interpretation of a bedtime story? Also, if Teenage August knew Little Girl Emma was that miserable, you’d think he’d have made more of an effort to stick with her. You know, like he was supposed to? But no, he just tells her a pretty story and then goes back to doing his own thing, leaving her to do all the work herself. Also, that story about how Emma can decide her own fate? Yeah, okay, August. Did you think about that when you conspired with Failfire to send her to jail ‘for her own good’ roughly a decade later? Seriously, August. For someone who was supposed to be her ‘guardian angel,’ you really botched it all up.

With that flashback out of the way, we return to the dumb Wish World, where Emma and Regina have missed out on their chance to get home via magic bean portal. After Wish!Robin confiscates some of their jewelry, he hurries off, leaving Emma and Regina with barely enough time to hide from Wish!Henry, who is searching for them in order to avenge Wish!Snowing and get his mother back.

Once the coast is clear, Regina voices her shock that Wish!Robin didn’t age the way Wish!Snowing did. Emma tells Regina not to worry about it, as this world isn’t real. Although, I do find the statement that the Wish World isn’t real slightly problematic. Now, if they can journey back to Storybrooke via magic bean portal, wouldn’t that mean the Wish World is a physical realm, and therefore real? But maybe this is the rules of magic just being arbitrary again. Or A&E not thinking this whole storyline through. You make the call.

Anyway, since the magic bean portal closed up, Emma and Regina are left back at square one in regards to how they’re going to get back to Storybrooke. Fortunately, Emma gets an idea by noticing a fallen tree nearby. Remembering that she was sent away from the Enchanted Forest via magic wardrobe in the actual timeline, she makes her way to see Wish!Pinocchio, who accepts Emma’s story about her and Regina being from a different reality. Unfortunately, while the magical wardrobe had been made in this universe, Wish!Pinocchio had dismantled it years prior, due to it reminding him of darker times. However, Wish!Pinocchio speculates that they can replicate the original wardrobe, as he remembers the location of the grove where the original magical tree was taken.

While Emma and Wish!Pinoccho focus on the task of making the new wardrobe, Regina decides to go off on her own. She’s starting to wonder if everyone would have been better off without her, and wants to see if Robin was better off without her, too. Gotta say, I’m genuinely surprised she’s came to this conclusion. She’s actually realizing people would have been happier if she hadn’t been around to massacre villages and rip families apart by casting the Dark Curse? (Would it be rude to say ‘well, duh?’) On the other hand, I’m wondering if this means she’s finally accepting the fact that she played a significant role in the death of Robin Prime.

Regina locates Wish!Robin in a tavern, which clears out rather quickly when people notice her presence. The only one who doesn’t seem bothered by her arrival is Wish!Robin. Regina quickly concludes that Robin was better off without her when Wish!Robin declares himself to be happy with his life, but before they could have a further discussion, they’re interrupted with the Wish World version of the Sheriff of Nottingham, who promptly captures Regina and Wish!Robin.

When they’re confined in one of those cage wagons, Regina discovers that this version of Robin never ended up with Marian, as she died before they could marry. As a result, he never became Robin Hood and was simply an ordinary thief. Once this is out in the open, Wish!Robin admits he hasn’t been genuinely happy in a long time. Their heart-to-heart is interrupted by the sudden arrival of Wish!Rumplestiltskin (accompanied by some rather horrible CGI of Wish!Sheriff being magically dragged backwards) Regina’s relief at their rescue is short-lived, as Wish!Rumpelstiskin is not exactly happy with her. Turns out, he went looking for Wish!Belle, and found her remains locked away in the tower, where she’d starved to death. (Wait, so you’re telling me that, in this version of reality, Snow and Charming, after defeating the Evil Queen, never bothered to check the cells in her prison tower? That sounds kinda odd to me.) Either way, Wish!Rumpelstilstkin decides to take his rage out on Regina and locks her and Wish!Robin up in his castle, with the intention of torturing them to death later. While they’re once again detained, Wish!Robin shows he’s intrigued by what Regina has told him, accepting the fact that, in a different reality, he turned out completely different. After a brief back-and-forth, Wish!Robin manages to unlock the cell door with a nail he took from the nearby bed, allowing them to escape.

Meanwhile, Emma and Wish!Pinocchio locate a new magical tree to create a wardrobe from. They talk for a bit about what Emma’s role as a Savior is. Although, I get the impression that Emma doesn’t really know exactly what being a Savior entails. She seems to think it’s about saving and protecting people. However, I personally think it’s about more. Just look back at Season 1. A large chunk of Emma’s role was inspiring people. Like the way she did with Ashely. And when she encouraged Ava and Nicholas’ father to take them in. Maybe 6B will actually do what the Patchwork arc promised to do by actually exploring what it means to be a Savior. Let’s all cross our fingers.

Getting back to the episode, Emma and Wish!Pinocchio are interrupted by the arrival of Wish!Killian. And yes, this version of Killian is not in a very good state, even sporting a bit of a beer gut. Okay, I suppose I should discuss my feelings about this. On the one hand, yes, I do agree this was a wasted opportunity. This version of Killian is a Killian who never managed to get his revenge on Rumpelstiltskin AND never met Emma. It was the perfect opportunity for A&E to explore how Killian would have turned out if Emma hadn’t met him and helped remind him of who he really was. Instead, they decided to play it up for laughs had have Wish!Killian be this bumbling man who doesn’t realize he’s let himself go. And I suppose it is nice to know that Colin had a ball portraying Killian like this. Besides, I’m firmly sticking to the side that says this Wish World was simply Evil Queen’s warped interpretation of reality, and what we’re seeing is essentially how she viewed Killian. It’s not actually how Killian would have ended up if the Dark Curse hadn’t been cast. Still, there’s a part of me that can’t help but admire Wish!Killian. Think about it for a minute. Wish!Killian doesn’t even know Emma, and firmly views himself as a salty pirate. How many pirates would go out of their way to rescue a princess they never met? Even if there’s reward money involved, there’s still the matter that the man’s a pirate. If he went to collect, chances are he’d be arrested on the spot. Meaning he wouldn’t get to see the reward money, anyway. And yet, despite this, Wish!Killian still seemed determined to come to Emma’s rescue. Even in this warped version of reality, Killian still possesses his courage and determination, not to mention the uncanny ability to locate Emma. (The entire royal guard of this Wish World is out looking for her. But it’s Wish!Killian who locates her.)

Anyway, Wish!Killian attempts to duel with Wish!Pinocchio, but Emma, not wanting to see this version of Killian hurt, magically knocks him out and transports him back to the Jolly Roger. And yes, she makes a comment about how she’s going to see to it that her version of Killian cuts back on the rum and sweets. I suppose you can interpret this in multiple ways. On the one hand, you could take it as Emma knowing that her Killian would be horrified if he saw himself end up like this, and so she wants to help him avoid a possible future when he wouldn’t be living a healthy lifestyle. On the other, you have to ask yourself. Would it be funny if Killian made a comment about Emma cutting back on the bear claws and hot cocoa if he came across a version of Emma that was a bit overweight? Then again, A&E don’t generally think their jokes through very well.

Unfortunately, in the struggle with Wish!Killian, the chisel that could help them carve out a new magic wardrobe gets broken, and Wish!Pinocchio can’t fix it. This leads to Wish!Pinocchio to go off feeling sorry for himself, stating he could never live up to his father’s example, leaving Emma to try to carve the tree with the broken chisel on her own. As she struggles with the task, she chances across a wooden box in Wish!Pinocchio’s toolbox. Seeing the box has her name on it, she opens it to fins a wooden swan carving inside. When she questions Wish!Pinocchio about it, he explains he always liked swans, and how they reminded him of a story his father used to tell him. Anyway, listening to his response enables Emma to figure out that August/Pinocchio was that teenage boy she encountered in the opening flashback. I’m not going to comment on that, as I already ranted about that in the start of this analysis. Regardless, Emma tells Wish!Pinocchio to take his advice and start believing in himself and his ability change his fate. And so, Wish!Pinocchio is able to successfully carve the new wardrobe.

Once the wardrobe is done, Regina returns, with Wish!Robin in tow. Regina announces the time to leave is now, as a lot of people are after them. As Regina starts to bid Wish!Robin goodbye, he gives her a fletching feather, so she’d have a piece of Robin with her. Regina instantly remembers how Roland had entrusted a fletching feather from Robin Prime to Zelena, with the intent that it be given to Regina, and that the fletching feather had been lost before she could get it. Emma speculates that, somehow, a portion of Robin Prime’s soul ended up in Wish!Robin. Which is kinda iffy logic, but whatever. In any event, Emma suggests that Regina bring Wish!Robin with them. Funny thing is, the whole reason why Emma grew up alone was because the Magic Wardrobe could only hold two people. But then again, Wish!Pinocchio did say this tree was growing for an additional 28 years, so the magic within this wardrobe is probably stronger. Which I suppose is as good an explanation as we’re gonna get. Anyway, Emma, Regina and Wish!Robin venture through the wardrobe. But at first, it looks like Wish!Robin didn’t make it through. Emma grants Regina’s request to have a moment alone, and she goes off to rejoin her family. However, once Emma is gone, Wish!Robin appears, much to Regina’s relief.

Now, the question is, did the Wish World vanish when Emma, Regina and Wish!Robin left it? The fact that they can travel from that world to Storybrooke through Magic Bean Portal and Magic Wardrobe suggests it’s an actual realm. Which would mean it probably still exists. In which case, we’ve left a world at the mercy of an angry Rumpelstiltskin. Not to mention left Wish!Henry completely alone, without his grandparents or a mother. Can we get some definite answers, please?

As for the Outlaw Queen angle, I’m not sure how I feel about this turn of events. Now, I had no problems with Outlaw Queen. I actually low-key shipped it myself. But while it is nice to see Sean back again, this isn’t Robin Prime. This is A Robin. I know they’re saying he has a bit of Robin Prime’s soul, which is why he didn’t age in Wish World, but that’s just a theory. And considering no one seems to be able to decide if the Wish World was real or not, it’s gonna be hard to give much weight to that theory. Either way, this isn’t the same Robin that Regina was led to via pixie dust. And, in the unlikely event that Roland returns to Storybrooke, how’s he gonna feel about Wish!Robin? This man isn’t his father. He’s just someone who looks like him. I’m really on the fence about this whole thing. Was this really the best way A&E could think of to bring Robin back? Why couldn’t they just go talk to Phillip and Aurora? Seeing as they figured out a way to get Phillip’s soul back from the wraith, they should be experts on recovering lost souls. At the very least, they could have discovered Robin Prime’s soul was trapped in the Olympian Crystal. Introducing a Robin clone into the mix just doesn’t seem like the best choice to me. But that’s what they’re going with, so I guess we’re going to have to live with it.

While all this was going on, Charming and Killian were searching for the Hooded Figure, who they know is in town because of Grumpy being the town’s biggest yenta. Killian, noticing that Charming is getting very high strung over the matter, voices his concern. Charming admits he feels responsible for the Hooded Figure’s presence, as he made the wish that Evil Queen got what she deserved. Charming believes that the wish is what summoned the Hooded Figure to Storybrooke. Killian does his best to console Charming by assuring him that he’ll stand by him. We then cut to Rumple and Belle, who are being confronted by Adult Gideon, who states he was raised by the Black Fairy in a place where time moves differently. Gideon’s ultimate plan, it appears, is to kill Emma. Because he believes that killing her will enable him to become the next savior.

Okay. Hold the bus a second. Gideon, I’m pretty sure the Savior mantle isn’t passed on like that. You’re thinking of the Dark One mantle. I mean, just think about it, guy. How does committing murder make you qualified to be a Savior? You know, since murder is generally considered to be a dark act. And from what we’ve seen, the role of Savior is typically tied to the ability to wield Light Magic. This shouldn’t be rocket science. I know you say that the land where you were taken needs a Savior in order to free itself from the Black Fairy’s clutches or whatever. But wouldn’t the logical conclusion be to, I don’t know, ask Emma for help? Hate to tell you, Gideon, but I think your Stiltskin genes are showing. That’s the only explanation that could exist for you actually believing killing someone would instantly make you a hero.

Regardless, we get a scene where Gold tries to talk sense into Gideon, but that doesn’t really accomplish anything. Although, Gold does accept some responsibility for Gideon’s predicament, stating he wasn’t able to protect him from the Black Fairy. But he neglects to acknowledge the fact that none of this would have happened if he hadn’t tried to corner Belle with the intention of using the sheers on her baby. If he had just left Belle alone like she’d wanted, she wouldn’t have felt the need to send Baby Gideon to safety. In the end, Gideon teleports off, refusing to accept Gold’s help. (On a side note, I couldn’t help but notice Gold claimed he knew how it feels to grow up miserable. Right, miserable. Being raised by two loving adoptive mommies and stuffing your face with meat pies sounds like a horrible tragedy. Not nearly as glamorous as living on the street at the age of seven and being shuffled from group home to group home before being sent to jail for a crime you didn’t commit and giving birth in jail to a child you were practically forced to give up. Yeah, Rumple definitely had the worst childhood.) Meanwhile, Belle seeks out Charming and Killian to tell them the Hooded Figure is Gideon. She asks them to help her find him, hoping that she can reason with her son. Charming and Killian agree to her terms, saying they’ll let her try to talk to Gideon before doing anything rash.

It’s at this point that Emma makes it back to Storybrooke, where she’s confronted by Gideon. Instantly she realizes this is her vision come to life. And she’s even brought the sword that’s supposed to kill her back from the Wish World. In the blink of an eye, the fated duel begins, with Charming, Killian and Henry appearing just as Gideon gains possession of the fated sword. Also joining them are Regina, Wish!Robin, Belle and Gold. Gideon magically freezes everyone before they can interfere, leaving him and Emma the only ones mobile. But much to Gideon’s surprise, Emma decides to choose her own fate, and her magic returns, allowing her to shove him backward, changing the vision in the process. The fated sword also shatters, allowing Emma to take one of the shards. But as she holds it to Gideon’s throat, Gold begs her to stop, as this is his son. (Which is kinda ironic, considering he did try to kill Henry on more than one occasion. Not that anyone is going to acknowledge that.) Gideon insists he doesn’t need Gold’s help, and teleports away, with everyone unfreezing.

As Gold and Belle both leave, Charming, Killian and Henry all have a joyous reunion with Emma, as well as express their amazement at the presence of Wish!Robin. Emma and Regina give a hurried explanation of the Wish World, with Killian expressing confusion over the veiled reference to his Wish World counterpart. And again, the whole ‘switching to water’ thing from Emma can easily be taken the wrong way, but I’m choosing to view it as a call-back to Killian’s line in ‘Heartless.’ “Oh, I knew it. Never trusted the stuff. Rum would never do that.”

Later on, Emma visits August to thank him for helping her out as a kid. (Yeah, thank you, August, for doing the bare minimum instead of stepping up to the plate and actually sticking with Emma and telling her about how she had a family that loved her somewhere. You know, so she would know her parents didn’t just throw her out. And can we discuss the whole jail thing? Seriously, you didn’t think she belonged on the streets, but jail was perfectly acceptable? How’s that for warped logic?) As for Belle and Gold, they have a moment by the wishing well, discussing Gideon and how they could go about helping him. At one point, I think they had Gold acknowledging that he was wrong for trying to come at Belle with the sheers, but it wasn’t very clear. And the site I use for episode transcripts hasn’t posted the transcript for this episode yet, so I can’t examine the dialogue too closely. Regardless, I really don’t care about Rumbelle at present. But it sounds like they’re going to be using this whole thing with Gideon as a way to bring Gold and Belle back together. I know this is just a goofy mid-budget fantasy show, but is this really a good message? Saying that non-stop lies and abuse can be overlooked and instantly forgiven when the wellbeing of a child enters the equation? Just saying, a couple staying together solely for the child is rarely a good, healthy decision.

So that was the start of 6B, which currently doesn’t have a name. But who knows, maybe this will be the arc that actually explores the whole Savior mythos. We’ll see.

(Click here to read more Episode Analyses)

2 notes · View notes

intpatypical · 7 years

Note

ISTJ, INFP, ESTJ, INFJ, ENFP

ISTJ

The main ISTJ characters in my life are my mom and an ex friend from high school, plus some colleagues and acquaintances from university. I’m a regular reader of @ill-be-istj-if-no-one-else-is, but I don’t know her personally. As it happens with most strong Te-users, I get along better with them if they are women. Since I grew up with a Si-dom mother and our relationship is very good, I usually get along with Si-doms unless they are particularly immature. We tend to like the same kind of environment and share a common approach to the use of resources; I never get exhausted with Si-doms, if that makes sense.

As first impressions go, the ISTJs I know irl are very nice and proper people, probably a little blunt, literal and to the point; they’re typically well-mannered people who err on the side of honesty.

Positives I associate with ISTJs are: 1) They’re extremely realistic. If you want an accurate assessment of what’s happening, you should go to them. They are keen observers, they amass a huge amount of details for the sake of it while other people are skimming, and they don’t get lost in speculations, what-ifs and wishful thinking. If you want “just the facts”, they have all of them. As a high Ne user, sometimes I miss parts of what’s happening because I drift away mentally, and I have trouble separating facts from hypotheses, which results in anxiety and indecision. Consulting ISTJs helps me thinking better. 2) They’re materialistic in a good way. They know how to live life comfortably, and they have a healthy relationship with things, money and the body, unlike other people who ignore them or make them something abstract, like status-symbols or outlets for frustrations or sources of fear. 3) They know how to make things live long and prosper. Whatever they take up, it develops and leaves a legacy, though they often don’t realize this because they’re improvement junkies and critical of themselves and other people. As my sister said once, “ISTJs will outlive us all, with their relentless pedantry” lol.

Some negatives are: 1) Immature ISTJs can be conformists. They take anything different from the norm as a narcissistic statement and a failure to adapt, which I find unfair. 2) Sometimes ISTJs get stuck in routine and hinder their own development as people, gradually becoming bitter and depressed. While other people would notice they’re in a rut and try anything new to break the cycle, ISTJs have a harder time noticing when their bad mood is due to a lack of stimuli. Their boredom safety valve is broken, so to speak. 3) Under stress, they become worrywarts and fall prey of Dark Ne; their Dark Ne interacts with my Dark Ne and soon we all disappear in a gaping abyss of doom.

Strange as it seems given the stereotypes, I like going out and having fun with ISTJs and Si-doms in general, because they tend to go for the comfortable option rather than for the extreme one; this is not to say that they can’t dance the night away (they can be relentless in that, too) but my experience is that when you go out with Si-doms you’re likely to have a relaxing time rather than a wild night out. I’m a couch potato, so I appreciate this.

INFP

I’m pretty sure one of my school friends is INFP, and my sister’s boyfriend is textbook INFP. I’ve met several INFPs online; among the ones I follow on tumblr, there are @dragonflymage and @infpadvice.There aren’t many INFPs in my life, but the ones who are, I know them quite well. I often say INFPs come into two subtypes: the Sturm und Drang subtype and the Flowers and Butterflies subtype. I tend to get along better with the Sturm und Drang INFPs, though the general opinion online seems to be they are insufferable crybabies. Many of the stereotypes about INFPs are unfair and it’s safe to say it’s one of my “favorite” types to interact with irl, since their idealistic worldview is something I respect and value and they tend to be people with a lot of interests and an openminded, accepting attitude.

My first impression of the INFPs I met irl has been “airhead” (which is quite hypocritical coming from me, but still… I feel like Fi airhead is an upgraded version of Ti airhead) or even “attention whore” because my INFP friend happened to throw an epic emotional tantrum a few days after I met her and, being a very young Ti-dom, at the time I assumed tantrums were always contrived and attention-seeking (which, as I know now, is not always the case).

Positives I associate with INFPs: 1) They are always, sometimes doggedly, themselves. No matter what you throw at them, if they feel like something is not authentic to what they are or worse immoral, they can’t be persuaded to do it, even when it’s the most appropriate/advantageous thing to do. This is a controversial quality, but I’m persuaded society needs people like that to be remembered that not everything can be bought or coerced, however kindly. 2) They are creative; I’ve never met an INFP who wasn’t creative, even just in his/her unorthodox point of view. One of the INFPs in my life is a talented musician and when he works on his creations or gets busy playing he is the most practical and professional person in the world; there is this misconception around that INFPs are fluffy-bunny artists, but in reality, they are EITHER in fluffy-bunny mode OR in artist mode, and when they’re doing their life work they do it with Nazi rigor. 3) Though I don’t agree with the “crybaby” stereotype, the INFPs I know do have deep and nuanced emotions and a special reactivity to events. It’s like people who see colors better than others, but with feelings. I appreciate that, because when they express the results of all these reactions and introspections, they have more insight than the average person.

Negatives I associate with INFPs: 1) Sometimes they mistake what they feel for what is going on in reality, or base all their decisions on what they feel is right without taking into account real-life consequences, which can be very contradictory of their intent. 2) They’re touchy and insidious, because they don’t express anger or blow up at very small stimuli only they can discern. Beware of the Fi-dom subterranean butthurt; I’m convinced the death toll is higher than firedamp’s. 3) Epic sloppiness and distraction around anything that isn’t the central focus of their interests.Their Te is very all or nothing and they tend to be unrepentant around their disorganization.

As for what I want to do with INFPs… a writing project! Of course not all INFPs are writers, but I love their creative work process and I’d like to collaborate in some artistic endeavor; though we’d probably need some J people to keep us in check.

ESTJ

Strangely enough, I don’t know any ESTJ aside from a few acquaintances I’m not regularly in touch with. I’m ready to get to know people of any type, so I can perfect my theories about the world and everything, ESTJs included.My general impressions about ESTJs is that they would be the kind of people I squabble a lot with in the beginning, but we would come to appreciate each other in time. But again, since I don’t know any ESTJ this is all theory.

INFJ

I’ve met two INFJs irl and two are online friends, though I’m no longer regularly in touch with one of them. I follow @infjravenclaw, @infjdoodles, @mbti-notes on tumblr, among others. I can’t say I know INFJs enough to define what kind of relationship I have with them. One of my INFJ online friends is a good friend and a person I love having conversation with, but she is pretty different from other INFJs I’ve met, so I failed to develop a general idea of the type and the dynamic I have with the type. Other INFJs I met were less open, they had a more evident social facade, the context where I met them wasn’t ideal to get to know them better or they were much older. When I first met INFJs, they typically strike me as polite, soft-spoken and very civil. One of my INFJ work acquaintances is pretty much Perfect Liberal but Ambitious girl: well-dressed, firm but kind, intuitive, intelligent, slightly patronizing. If you stay with them long enough they reveal a wacky side: weird Ni theories about people, sudden flashes of sharpness or sarcasm, impulsivity/spontaneity under stress.

Positives I associate with INFJs: 1) Pretty much like INTJs, they aren’t boring people, to say the least. They lead with Ni, so there’s a particular depth and weirdness to their worldview which I love to analyze; since they strive to put other people at ease, what they really think deep down can be quite mysterious; as everybody knows, INTPs love mystery and the unknown, so… Plus, I particularly like their brand of thought, a seamless union of rationality and idealism (old-fashioned humanistic intellectuals); they think about people much more than I do, so their point of view about people or even fictional characters is particularly interesting to me. 2) The INFJ friend I regularly talk to is a generator of the kind of questions you could find in a Kokology book. What’s not to love about that? 3) They are very tactful and graceful during interactions, which is particularly relaxing to me because I’m surrounded by Thinkers (yay brutal honesty) and Introverted feelers (yay brutal authenticity). Sometimes you just need a place to rest and fangirl in peace.

Negatives I associate with INFJs: 1) Softcore manipulation and patronizing attitude. They are mostly well-intentioned and it’s almost second nature to them; they think they know what is right and gently steer people in that direction instead of asking directly or getting angry. This is controversial, since many people actually love being “guided” like that, but I’m a die-hard straight shooter and I might interpret some of these behaviors as dishonest or stemming from a superiority complex. 2) Some of them have developed such a strong social facade you get the impression you’re interacting with a kind, smiling wall. Behind the wall the INFJ sits comfortably in his/her armchair, while you are squirming uncomfortably and thinking about your undone hair. Not cool. 3) Tert-Ti is a strange beast. It supports Ni but it’s not strong enough to completely eliminate fuzziness and, well, bullshit; some INFJs spout off ideas who are suggestive but incoherent, or seem absolutely certain about stuff that isn’t proven. I think this is where the “Mystical Unicorn” stereotype comes from. Most of the INFJs I’ve met are strong readers, same for INTPs; if we were all in the same city, I’d like to create a book club lol. Lots of ideas and interesting discussion material.

ENFP

I’ve shared the same apartment with an ENFP during the first two years of university; plus one of my sister’s ex-colleagues is an ENFP and we are in one of those weird situations were both of us regularly checks each other’s Facebook but we don’t really talk lol. Here on Tumblr I and @numberoneintjfangirl, who is an ENFP, are mutuals.

Though I shared an apartment with an ENFP and before that we were schoolmates, I can’t really say I know the type well; that’s partly because I’ve only gotten to know well one person of that type, and partly because what I learnt about that person I learnt during my “wild” INTP phase. I was very immature and closed-off, even obtuse in some respects, so there’s a good chance I missed important data and misunderstood the person. I can’t recall the first impression I had of my school friend because we were probably 5 years old. The other ENFP I got to know later stroke me as a person with a very brilliant and fast-paced sense of humor; he is a true comedian, and not in an annoying way. This is a first impression I often get with Ne-doms btw.As for positives: 1) the ENFPs I met are warm and generous people with a lot to give emotionally. They seem surrounded by a positive and upbeat aura and they know how to have fun, which is a true personal quality which doesn’t get enough respect imho. 2) They are curious and openminded, and VERY accepting of other people’s lifestyle, however unconventional or even eccentric. They themselves tend to be true explorers/creatives and try anything once. This last thing is a double edged sword, but I think they can be very realistic people, despite their famous idealism, because they amass a lot of real life experience while others plan and daydream. 3) Unlike many other Feelers, they are very direct and usually sincere, maybe because of their tert-Te. If something is wrong they’re more likely to tell you instead of letting the butthurt ramp up in silence. Negatives: 1) Similar to ENTPs, they get tired of things and people very fast and lack focus. They tend to be thrill-seekers even in areas where the thrill is only associated to initial phases or tensions, like intimate relationships. This is not ideal if you want to build any stability (which one of the ENFPs I met really wanted, but failed to actualize). 2) Since they try anything once with an open heart, they try a lot of shit that is bad for them and is bound to go wrong, and hurt a lot afterwards. 3) They get annoyed by their own plasticity and wind themselves up in existential crises of the “Who am I” variety. I’d like to go on holiday with an ENFP! I’m much more cautious and “boring” in my daily life, but I ain’t scared of nothing that doesn’t live in my head, so I think it would be a fun experience for both.

Sorry for taking so much time completing this reply, the ask was huge ^^”

@likeadeepbluesea answers to your asks are included here as well.

#mbti #reply to ask

2 notes · View notes

chaoticblades · 7 years

Text

Wing Meta: Kalas

Now that the holidays (and extended family interactions =____=) are over, let’s talk about our favorite fuckup! :D

I think this one has even more spoilers than the Xelha post.

Wing Meta: Xelha

Wing Meta: Savyna and Lyude

So, good ol’ カラス. There’s little point in speculating about the inspiration for his wings (since the game is very, very clear on the raven theme), buuuut I’m gonna do it anyway ‘cause that’s just the kinda guy I am.

Well, that and the fact that they’re no ordinary corvid wings. They’ve got a distinctive hook off the wrist, which is most likely an unusually pronounced alula (aka bird thumb), meaning that what we’re looking at is exposed bone. Spooky! (Also appropriate, given the whole carrion bird/harbinger of apocalypse thing.)

Fun fact! According to Wikipedia, “alula” translates to “winglet”! And it’s also called a “bastard wing”. And Kalas has no parents, so....

Anyway, his wing is otherwise a fairly standard shape for that family... except for the pronounced secondaries. Alas, I’m not actually a bird person so I won’t speculate further about that (so as to spare myself any more hours of futile corvid research. The winglet diagram comes in real handy here, since it’s basically a mirrored skeleton of his other wing). Finally, he’s got falcon-like stripes on his pinions resulting in a mix of browns and greys.

Even expanding into other corvid species, I could’t find any that truly matched these details.

In any case, onto symbolism!

Ravens are consistently depicted across cultures as tricksters and omens of misfortune and death, though the latter is isn’t nearly as universal.

Trickster Ravens

Corvids in general are considered highly intelligent birds, an attribute that they mainly use for theft. For example, they’ve been known to yank the tails of other birds/animals in order to distract them from a tasty, tasty meal. Magpies in particular have such a rep for stealing End Magnus shinies that they’ve become synonymous with the act in much the same way as we use “packrat” to describe a hoarder and “chicken” a coward.

Ravens As Omens

In Greek tradition, a white raven was Apollo’s messenger. Ravens are more relevant in terms of the practice of augury, a form of divination in which certain birds are observed for signs of favor/displeasure of the gods. Ravens (and crows) fall under the label of “oscines”, or birds whose omens are determined based upon their calls. They aren’t regarded as being inherently unlucky (that dubious honor goes to the owl).

According to Wikipedia (citation desperately longed for), in Serbian folklore ravens “appear in pairs and play the role of harbingers of tragic news... in combination with female characters as receivers of the news”.

Unlike black cats, there’s an emphasis on ravens as a sign of misfortune to come rather than an embodiment of it. Similarly, they don’t directly symbolize death; instead they’re merely associated with it, much in the way one might associate the fall colors with the coming winter.

Ravens in Japanese Folklore

I went through many layers of questionable research to get this info, so it damn well better be accurate.

Yatagarasu, the 3-legged crow, was a guide sent by Amaterasu to Emperor Jimmu in order to guide his lost ass to his future seat of power.

Seen here: Yatagarasu and Jimmy’s lost ass (left).

After Google Fu’ing for awhile to figure out the meaning behind a sentence found word-for-word and lacking citation in nearly every article on Yatagarasu, I finally managed to track down an additional piece of lore: he is apparently an incarnation of Kamo Taketsunumi no Mikoto, god of good fortune and founder of the Kamo clan (???? Maybe??? All those articles weren’t kidding when they said the legends of Yatagarasu are contradictory).

Color Symbolism

This is, of course, something the varies from culture to culture. The relevant symbols here are black and white.

Black

West

death/void

authority

evil

mystery

Japan

evil

bad luck (take this with a grain of salt--I don’t trust my sources on this)

White

West

purity

peace

holiness

sterility

Japan

death

mourning

simplicity/purity

Interpretation

Kalas and Fate

So how does this shape how we can interpret Kalas?

It’s best to start with how he got the name in the first place.

Hearing you were not the perfect being [Geldoblame] had envisioned, he called you an ill omen, a cursed premonition of things to come. He named you Kalas, which means Raven in a long-lost language.

Larikush, on the origin of Kalas’ name

I guess it was the reason for my existence, and my hatred.... Something I just couldn’t get rid of.

Kalas, on why his name was the only thing he remembered after Alfard

And, of course, straight from Emperor Gelnochill himself:

I found you Kalas, you sickly raven!!!

Geldohead, triple exclamation his

I find Kalas’ comment the most interesting, since it’s an explicit reference to the theme of destiny yes I said it that is woven into the Baten Kaitos as a whole. One of the things I really like about this series is the interplay between fate and choice--many characters have fated roles (Kalas, Xelha, Melodia, Mizuti, Sagi, Guillo, people touched by the Dark Brethren in general) but even as they fulfill them, the narrative never treats it as if free will is antonymous with these events.

Dr. Georg’s experiments were aimed at creating a Magnus of Life. This would be the exact opposite of the End Magnus, which are symbols of death and destruction... Kalas and Malepercio may have been destined to fight one another....Kalas could be said to be a bad omen for Malpercio, a harbinger of the god’s demise

Lyude, on something that’s really sad once you’ve played Origins

Love and hatred... Melodia[sic], and Kalas... She is Malpercio’s curse to the world, Kalas must be his prayer...

Xelha, ditto

“Fate” is largely played as being somewhere between divine intervention and the consequences of choice (e.g. Malpercio seeking power from the Dark Brethren put everything in motion), hence why the Magnus of Life could and did choose not to oppose Malpercio at first. It makes for an interesting hierarchy of power, like an arch.

The Dark Brethren can be considered the keystone and Malpercio the arch itself--it is by their power that Malpercio is what it is, their locking the gods into position that keeps them from acting of their own will. Melodia and Kalas are outside forces, bound to--but unfettered by--the conflict between master and unwilling servant. Despite their role as pawns, they’re the ones with the most power. Influence can be asserted over them, but in the end it’s their hands that decide if the keystone is restored or removed.

Kalas’ identity as the ominous raven is the perfect example of this theme at play. He’s repeatedly acknowledged as an entity of misfortune, but ultimately it’s his will that decides whose. He’s no passive auspice--bad things may happen to those around him, but only by way of his own agency (and the of others. Looking at you, Geldoblameworthy-for-his-own-problems). Even at the very end, when Melodia chooses to surrender to fate, it’s he who rescues her and tells Malpercio to rest.

He and Melodia can be considered the pair of ravens, Xelha the receiver, as per her witnessing them discuss their plans in Moonguile.

Kalas the Trickster

Kalas is possibly the most wily protagonist who isn’t straight up a villain I have ever seen. Street smart, people smart, and a fantastic actor, he’s able to pull the wool over the eyes of basically anyone who isn’t already aware of what he’s trying to do. It can be surmised that he’s also gifted at sleight of hand, given that no one noticed him slip an ever-glowing magnus to the ducal heir of Mira.

The entire first half of the game is an elaborate trick on the Guardian Spirit and Malpercio, fooling them about their memories and using them as a buffer against Malpercio’s power (though one has to wonder if that wasn’t just a trick on Melodia’s part, as Kalas was already exposed to that power. It would absolutely be in character for him to nope out of the picture if he thought that coming in contact would turn him into a boob monster).

As is common in the trickster archetype, he rarely relies on brute force to achieve his goals, to the point that one of the major character shifts in the late game is him swearing to take down Malpercio. Giacomo is his other blind spot, his mere appearance sending Kalas into an otherwise unseen rage. It’s easy to overlook that these are the exceptions, given how prominent they are (and how they launch you into one of the more dreaded fights in the game).

However, when it comes down to it, most of his work is done so quietly, it becomes a major reason to replay, just to see if you can catch him. Right from the get-go, he uses Xelha’s reference to Moonguile as an excuse to head on in. When she gets mad at him for looting, he restructures his argument to appeal to emotionalism and lets her believe what she wants. And while he initially resists joining up with her, he has no problem travelling together for convenience sake (and later, presumably, to stay close to the Earth Pendant and Chaotic Trio). Then there’s his efforts to direct suspicion onto Lyude. Despite coming across as the brashest member of the party, he frequently hides behind the others in this manner.

Yatagarasu

This section won’t be as carefully constructed as the others, but I believe the allusion is intentional. For the purpose of this argument, I’m going to have Kalas’ 3 arms--his arm arms/winglets and his natural wing--stand in place of Yatagarasu’s 3 legs. (Alternatively, one could count his original wing and the white wings, but I’m not going to for reasons to be indicted.)

Xelha takes the part of Jimmu, the royal wanderer. It was, after all, her dream of Kalas that was the inciting incident for her entire part in the story, returning him to the role of omen. It lead her to send out the witches, spy on Geldoblame, and bring Kalas along even knowing his intentions. In times of uncertainty throughout the story, she turns to her desire to save him as a source of strength and guidance.

Kalas: Black and White

Melodia refers to him both as “dark-winged stranger” and “white-winged darkness”. Kalas’ treatment in the narrative is interesting regarding the idea of purity. His lack of a second wing leads to him being ostracized by everyone from Geldoblame to some Miran randos. Larikush links the single wing to Kalas being “excessively human” and Balancoir Asshole #2′s “Malformed wings are the direct result of a malformed heart. His soul must have been tainted at birth”.

Of course, once he’s touched by Malpercio, he gains a (literally) shiny new pair of wings. This is also the point where he goes from morally distraught antihero to unrepentant mwahaha’er, only changing back when he makes the choice to rip out his additional wing.

The color symbolism is a little hard to decipher here, given that it’s an Eastern game but Kalas’ design is more West-inspired than just about any other character. From a Western perspective, it’s a fairly clear-cut juxtaposition of contrary symbols--his dark wings initially foreshadow his betrayal but ultimately are associated with his good side while the white represent the acceptance he seeks but are tainted by evil.

Kalas is the fallen angel, right down to Xelha being drawn to him like a moth to flame. I could probably make a whole section on Kalas being a croc-wearing anime Lucifer but I’m kinda really uncomfy with the Church, so I’d rather save myself that stretch.

In Japan it gets more complicated, assuming that that info regarding black’s symbolism is accurate. Because while the white of death is suitable for the dark harbinger, black isn’t terribly befitting of the Divine Child. It’s possible it’s a reference to the fact that Kalas wasn’t originally the Divine Child but *shrug*

Uh, so yeah. There’s plenty more I could say but this is already too long ^^;

#baten kaitos #kalas

40 notes · View notes

didanawisgi · 7 years

Photo

Meaning in Lord of the Rings by Mark Murdock (part 1 of 6):

“ Just below the level of conscious awareness a mysterious, collective source communicates through the language of symbols. This language is not a code per se; there is no single, correct interpretation. Rather, symbols are ever pregnant with new meaning. All readers bring to bear their own experience, analogies and context to interpret symbolism and raise fresh meaning to light. If the meaning is relevant to the times, its effect will be felt by others.

Buried inside The Lord of the Rings is an initiatory process, a spiritual journey to a state of consciousness that the ancient mystery schools called Gnosis. There is a process here, a journey, a map and a set of expectations to guide us along the way.

And the journey begins, as does the novel, with the re-discovery of the ring.

But before we step forward we must first look back and ask a fundamental question, perhaps the most important question of all:

What does the ring of power symbolically represent?

I suggest the ring represents the ego, or what the Greeks referred to as the eidolon — the false self, the counterfeit consciousness, the apparent identity we believe ourselves to be.

The ring is an ancient symbol of links and bonding; it simultaneously binds and isolates. It is also a circle which delineates an outside from an inside. This is a perfect symbol for the ego, an island of consciousness, a ring of self-awareness. It binds us inside as a separate individual, and also isolates us from something greater outside, the universe.

When we are born, we have no sense of separateness from our mother. We are simply a natural extension of her, a relationship termed a dyad. Not until months later does our individual awareness slowly begin to emerge. As the Jungians tell us, this is all very normal and necessary for our psychological development.

This process of ego creation is akin to forging a ring. Not until the ring closes in on itself like the ouroboros have we created a separate space; a separate awareness; a separate individual. It is at this moment in each of our lives that we first suffer a death. Our connection to the outside world is severed. We are isolated, disconnected. For the first time in our lives, we suffer deep insecurity and fear.“

What we now desperately desire is the security of the former state, the oneness of the dyad. It is from this single base desire that all desire flows. To satisfy and regain security we need to control and influence events in the world outside of us. And to control we require power.

The ego therefore can be seen as a self-aware, power-seeking psychological complex.

The ego is a ring of power.

And if the reader accepts this interpretation, then the ramifications are enormous. For if the ring is the ego, then the each of us possesses a ring of power, and Frodo’s story is our story.

Let’s see if this symbolism holds in The Lord of the Rings. What does Tolkien tell us about the ring of power?

It was forged by Sauron in the fires of Mount Doom in the black land of Mordor.

While we shall put off the symbolism of Sauron and the nine rings for the moment, we can clearly see Tolkien’s connection of the ring to death. Doom is a ruinous fate or death. And Mordor can be translated as ‘death’s door’. A good fit for the ego, born in the pit of fear, of the doom that we experience when our rings are first forged.

Anyone who wears the ring obtains the power of invisibility but is ultimately cursed to forget his true name.

And what is it that disappears when we wear our rings of power? Isn’t it our true nature, our true selves? We are not our egos; we are something far greater. The ego, the ring, acts as a portal to a dimension slightly out of phase with this greater reality. When we wear the ring, we shift, we fall into another world. We disappear. Over time, our true nature is forgotten. We lose our true names.

Wearing the ring keeps you artificially young.

Identify with the ego and we identify with youth. For the ego is terrified of its own death, and will stop at nothing to postpone it. This is because the ego’s death is permanent. We can see countless examples of this obsession with youth in our modern life, from cosmetic surgery to health clubs to genetic engineering.

So far, the ego fits fairly well as the ring. The novel begins with a similar revelation. For if not for the discovery (or re-discovery) of the nature of the ring, there would be no story.

It is Gandalf the Wizard who first identifies the ring of power. And it is Gandalf who recognizes its danger. This is a watershed moment in the life of any individual — the moment they realize they are not who they pretend to be. It is at this moment and not before it that we can dare to remove the ring and take a tenuous step outside our ego awareness.

But like Bilbo and Gollum before him, we keep the ring near, for it is truly precious to us. After all, it embodies everything we believed ourselves to be for many, many years. It lays claim to our memories and experiences of a lifetime. Without an identity, we fear something new, our annihilation into the oneness like a raindrop in the ocean. We fear the ego’s death.

Or do we? Might we simply sense the desperation of the ego? For as Tolkien tells us, the ring possesses a will of its own.

And so the story begins. Frodo sets off on a journey to destroy the ring of power and save the world. To begin this process on an individual level, we must recognize that there is something inside us that is dangerous, and separates us from some greater reality.

It is this separateness, this ring of false consciousness that must be destroyed.

Alas, to save the world we must first save ourselves…

Source: http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue287/lotr_essay1.html

Analogical Meaning in Lord of the Rings by Mark Murdock (part 2 of 6):

I Am What Eye Am

So to recap: Tolkien’s ring can represent the ego. If so, the adventure out of the Shire is one available to us all. But before we follow our feet out the door, there is something we must know. There are very real dangers along the path.

It’s now time to address the symbolism of Sauron.

Sauros is Greek for Lizard. Sauron is the serpent, the reptile. Serpent symbolism is as vast as any, but clearly Tolkien’s serpent represents the concept of the dark lord.

Sauron lacks corporeal form and is depicted as an all-seeing eye at the top of an obelisk-like structure. The all-seeing eye is an ancient Egyptian symbol traced back to the solar cult of Aton and is commonly associated with power groups like the Illuminati and the Freemasons. Note, too, another Egyptian connection: Egypt was known as the black land, and Mordor is also the black land.

Sauron then can represent the dark force behind the power elite who have ruled civilization throughout history. The Freemasons use the eye to depict The Great Architect of the Universe, the demiurge or, as the Gnostics refer to him, Ialdaboth, the false god.

As the all-seeing eye, Sauron sweeps the land in search of the ring and in search of knowledge. Here is another clue. For as Freemason Francis Bacon stated: knowledge is power. The all-seeing eye seeks power, seeks to control and dominate all it beholds.

All of this — the dark lord, the false god, the power-seeking ruler — leads us back into ego territory again: the all-seeing eye or all-seeing “I”? Even the phallic obelisk on which the eye is perched is representative of the pronoun “I.”

Yet Sauron is not just another representation of the ego. Sauron represents the capstone eye to a pyramid of power. For as Tolkien tells us of the power of the One Ring, no matter who believes themselves to wield it, it is ultimately Sauron who is in control. All of the magical rings were bound to his One Ring.

This suggests that all of our individual ego strivings towards power flow upward into a greater network of power from which an elite few can control the many. We see this revealed today. The greatest threat to individual freedom is centralized, corporatized power — the New World Order.

We are all wired into Sauron through our rings, our individual egos.

Each of us possesses a “reptilian brain,” the brain stem, the seat of our flight or fight response. Could this be the biological home to our own ego rings? Or is there perhaps a separate reptilian race as David Icke suggests: a blue-blood line of soulless creatures that control the world’s nations and trace their ancestry back to the Genesis Sons of God?

Or could both be true? Could our rings, our egos, be a Trojan-horse tool of our enslavement engineered into us by a non-human master race? As Tolkien states, Sauron is the enemy of the free peoples of Middle Earth.

Speculative perhaps and yet all of this sounds strangely familiar…

It was the Serpent that offered Eve the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eve and Adam ate the fruit and became self-aware. God then banished them from Eden.

Tolkien’s story is another variant on the biblical Fall of Man.

We have been corrupted by the serpent Sauron in the form of a ring of power (ego i.e. self-awareness). The ring enters the Shire (Eden) and the decision is made by Gandalf (spiritual guide) to leave.

God warns Adam and Eve that they will die if they eat of the tree’s fruit. The serpent states otherwise and convinces Eve to try, telling her she will become like a god. Eve in fact did not die, but perhaps God meant something else…

The gift of self-awareness comes with a steep price. Our consciousness identifies with the temporal illusion. We become trapped in our reflections. And this separate identity does indeed die. To know good and evil is to know death. Frodo removes the ring and sets out to destroy it. Almost immediately he is pursued by the Ring-wraiths, the nine undead human kings. The act of removing the ring is accompanied by the threat of death.

And so are we when we undertake the journey to destroy our false self. For we seek to destroy the only identity we have ever known. There is nothing but death that awaits us; not physical death per se, but an ending. And this experience is terribly frightening.

It’s enough to question why anyone would undertake such a journey…

Frodo’s choice is clear: he goes to save the Shire. And herein is the final clue to the symbolism of Sauron. For the Shire is the Hobbit home, a bountiful land filled with round, womb-like houses built into the earth itself. The Shire is clearly a symbol for the feminine. This is what Frodo seeks to defend.

Sauron, and the ring itself, both represent the masculine principle. The ring is crafted for the finger, a symbol of the phallus. The tower of Sauron is also a phallus. Even the structure of the ego pronoun “I” is phallic.

Yet it is not the masculine principle that is inherently evil, only its perversion and its domination over the feminine. There was a time in our prediluvian history where masculine and feminine principles were in balance. We trusted in the land and our needs were provided. We lived in a paradise; we lived in Eden; we lived in the Shire.

Something changed all that: the Serpent race’s introduction of the self-aware ego — Sauron forged the One Ring.

And the balance is no more. Mordor is a wasteland. The forests of Isengard are ravaged for their resources. Everywhere we turn we witness the imbalance: technology, consumerism, science, war. The domineering masculine seeks to appropriate, develop and tyrannize the feminine in order to consolidate power.

The symbolism of Sauron is both diverse and consistent: Sauron is the imbalanced masculine principle; Sauron is the all-seeing eye, the shadowy force behind global domination; Sauron is the ole’ Serpent, the proselytizer of self-awareness.

So how do we defend the feminine?

Frodo set off on foot with the ring safely tucked away, but what about our more psychological journey? How do we “bear” our egos instead of operating from within them?

Any time we willingly face our fears of the unknown, and place our trust in something wholly unknowable (the Feminine), we have in essence rejected power and are holding our ring at bay.

But when we yield to fear, when it drives us to control the unknown, we in effect slip on our ring and enter its dimension — a world in which our combined efforts flow up to the capstone eye, the elite with tremendous power.

We become a cog in their grand machine. We one day find ourselves sitting in a mortgaged home, eating factory food, watching television and drinking beer. Secure, yes, but alive, questionable, and awake, no.

So, not only do we need to identify the ring of power, but we need to remove it from our finger. In the East, the practice of meditation is used to calm the mind and disengage the ego. Just sit.

But in the West it’s just the opposite or complementary path. In the West, we take the Journey of the Hero. We leave Eden. We embark on an odyssey. We leave the Shire and go in search of our destiny. This is a time in people’s lives that they remember as a trial and test of great courage.

These are the times we feel most alive.

That is the next step after we identify and isolate the ring of power. We must leave our realm of false security and risk the unknown. We must save the Shire.

We, like the Tarot’s Fool, must take a journey. It need not be a physical trip necessarily, but our masculine power-based security must be left behind. Turn off the TV; quit the job you’ve hated; leave the relationship that lacks love.

We go to destroy the imbalance, the ring. And we do not travel alone…

Source: http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue288/lotr_essay2.html

Analogical Meaning in Lord of the Rings by Mark Murdock (part 3 of 6)

To recap: To defeat the dark lord we follow Tolkien’s steps:

Recognize that we possess a ring of power and refuse it.

Journey away from our false comfort zone to face our deepest fears.

As I mentioned, we do not go alone. And this brings me to the third step: enlisting the aid of our Fellowship.

The central illusion our ego constructs is a sense of disconnectedness from the greater universe. We believe we are alone. Any help that might be available exists outside of us, in an authority figure, a doctor or priest, or in knowledge contained in books. Spiritually, we seek help from heaven, another dimension apart from the world. We petition these forces for help in prayer, and wait for some outward manifestation of our wish.

But are we truly this disconnected?

We have been culturally brainwashed to believe that we are solely our identities. The voice that is inside of you is monolithic; it is you and you alone — an inner you. To hear “other” voices is tantamount to insanity. You have stepped outside of culturally established limits. You are mentally ill and in need of medication and perhaps institutionalization.

Yet maverick thinkers like Julian Jaynes question this mainstream dogma. In his book, The Origins of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, Jaynes suggests our consciousness or self-awareness is a relatively recent development in man, and probably emerged when we became literate. Before that point, we experienced other voices as the gods. We were a collection of influences before this single, monolithic ego was born.

When we disconnect from our ego, we become an instrument for reception, like a radio. We can tune ourselves to other frequencies and receive wisdom.

We might imagine for a moment that we are an assembly, or as Tolkien puts it, a Fellowship. There is an Arthurian round table that represents our total wholeness. Here again is the symbol of the circle. Around the table sit aspects of our Self, archetypes, or characters.

There is the Wizard or Magician that guides us along our path. There is the Dwarf, a builder and explorer of subterranean (i.e. subconscious) structures. There is the Elf, our immortal spirit of Truth and Beauty. There is the Hobbit, the innocent child prior to the ego emergence, the nature spirit who cultivates the Earth, the boy prior to initiation. There is the Warrior and the Lover. There is the King, the true leader of this fellowship, but who remains in exile.

And lastly we cannot forget who dominates our table for now, and the source of all darkness in our world and in ourselves. Sauron rules through the ring itself, the ego or egg. He is the serpent that entwines the egg. Here we have another version of the fairy tales of the Dragon imprisoning the princess in the tower.

When we wear our rings of power, there is only one voice, that of our frightened ego, the agent of Sauron. But as Tolkien illustrates, when we take the ring off, we are surrounded by our fellowship, our friends.

We have the capacity to receive needed guidance by accessing these archetypes. In a very similar manner, when Shamans talk to plants for medicines, they hear the responses in their heads.

And since our outer world is but an external projection of our inner world, we may also meet people who embody these archetypes for us. We will meet friends along the way.

Again, central to summoning this fellowship is removing the ring and refusing its power.

We must be willing to let go of our fear-based security and risk the unknown. We must muster our courage and face our fears. We must trust. Like Gandalf’s leap of faith from the bridge at Khazad-Dûm, we fall into the abyss not really knowing what awaits us.

It is at this letting go, when we most are in need of help, that we discover these supportive friends. We rely on our intuition and experience the awe of synchronicity. Hidden forces now are free to work.

But if the fear becomes too much, we struggle with returning to the security of our precious monolithic ego, just like Frodo. The all-seeing (all-needing-to-know) eye reappears. Our Fellowship is lost.

All of these characters or voices reside inside us. Man is the Buddhist middle way, Tolkien’s Middle Earth. Man is the pot in which all of these archetypes are combined. We are the alchemist’s alembic.

We are the Fellowship.

The goal is wholeness. But there is one last archetype that we have not mentioned. This is the shadow that the ego creates from its own light of consciousness. It is a collection of everything the ego insists it is not. It lives apart from our awareness, in the shadows and below in the caverns. Removing the ring lures it out into the light…

It is the creature Gollum, our shadow, and it must be reckoned with….

Source: http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue289/lotr_essay3.html

Analogical Meaning in Lord of the Rings by Mark Murdock (part 4 of 6):

Many of us today sense something is very wrong with the world. Of this there is no doubt. But it takes an epiphany to realize that the world is a mere projection of our inner selves, and that there is something indeed wrong with us. Only by saving ourselves can we save the world. There is no other way. And to save ourselves, we must destroy our false self.

To recap the process thus far:

Recognize that we possess a ring of power and refuse it.

Journey out from our false comfort zone to face our deepest fears

Find strength in new found internal guidance and serendipity.

Here is a real life example of how this might actually play out:

The world is a mess and I am the problem. I reject it; I reject my false self.

I am leaving the job that I hate to go in search of something more authentic.

I feel guided, and I am having the most amazing experiences and encounters…

And if only this were enough! Brace yourself, for as the adventure begins so too does the terror.

In the next step we suffer the breakdown of our Fellowship!

In the novel, this is foreshadowed by Gandalf’s reluctance to guide the fellowship into the mines of Moira. He knows what awaits him there in the darkest depths of the subconscious, his enemy, his shadow, the Balrog. Gandalf falls (leap of faith) and in so doing, his guidance is lost to us. Soon after, the fellowship splits into pieces.

What is happening on a personal level here?

To answer this, I first would like to outline a theory by Leonard Shlain, author of The Alphabet versus the Goddess. Shlain examines many cultural responses to the introduction of the alphabet. His belief is that by learning these abstract symbols, our brains are literally rewired.

The seat of consciousness becomes anchored in the left hemisphere, the more masculine, literal and analytic. The right hemisphere represents the feminine, more spatial and more intuitive. We require both of course for balance.

Shlain alleges that as the alphabet technology (black magic symbols?) is introduced, cultures become imbalanced and move from matriarchal to patriarchal rule, nearly self-destructing in the process.

The point here is again that we are wired for a masculine imbalance. Reason seeks to rule the heart.

Is there an analog to Middle Earth? On the one side we have the dark lands of Mordor, the lands of Sauron. On the other, we have the lands of Men, Elves and Hobbits and so on. If we were standing in Middle Earth, we could look to the left to Mordor and to the right to the Shire.

There are two fronts that we as individuals must reckon with. Not only must we return to the left hemisphere of Mordor to destroy the ring, an inner journey, but we also must defend the remaining western lands of the right hemisphere, an outer journey.

There are not one but two phalluses in Middle Earth: the Two Towers. What more obvious symbol of masculine imbalance!

The Western Phallus: Outer journey

Saruman, once a nature-loving wizard, has now been corrupted and seduced by Sauron’s masculine power. Saruman is the reptile-man, the busyness man. He stokes the fires of industry and pours forth iron to make arms of war. He represents the destruction of the land and of nature for the power elite.

He even begins to tamper with genetic engineering, creating the Orucai, the perfect soldier. Never have we seen a better representation of the military-industrial complex! Saruman is the dutiful servant of soulless corporations everywhere, the bankers, the state, the Illuminati Eye.

One part of us led by our future King defends the western lands (the feminine) from the onslaught of Saruman’s forces. This corresponds to our own defense against the corrupt forces of the world. We hear a familiar voice again, that of the resurrected spirit guide now fully integrated. We can now see clearly those who are under the spell of Sauron, our friends and family. In some rare cases, we can draw them to our cause.

We gather up our uncorrupted feminine (women and children) and make our stand in Helm’s Deep. A helm is a control, a steering mechanism. Helm’s Deep is a deeper form of control that we are defending, one that rises up from the feminine, our intuition, and our heart-felt urges.

We are making a stand for the remaining Feminine.

Make no mistake about it: The unleashing of Orcs and Orucai at Helm’s Deep represents the degree of fear we must face in this quest. As individuals making this journey, we are beset with attacks from others, co-workers, family, friends, lovers as well as our institutions and mass media. Names of some of the Orcs we will face are homelessness, poverty, destitution, insanity, ostracism and more.

We must defeat these intense fears because only then are we able to sense this deeper, more subtle helm. Note that when the battle for Helm’s deep is victorious, so too is our ability to use our hearts to know. Gandalf can feel that Frodo is still alive. There is new-found hope.

Note too how it is Merry and Pippin that lead the charge against the phallus of Saruman. Here again it is the innocent child archetype who is able to marshal the goddess forces of nature, the tree herders, the Ents. The tower falls and is washed clean. (Is there a cultural equivalence to 9-11 and Katrina? Might we be living the second book of the novel on yet another level?)

The Eastern Phallus: Inner Journey

While we struggle against the fears of the world, we go to bed at night only to battle our inner demons. Our internal ring bearer plods towards Mordor but is essentially cut-off from the conscious guidance of the fellowship. We don’t know what to do; there are no answers. This is the long, dark night of the soul.

Then we meet with Gollum, our shadow, or our shadow archetype emerges from the subconscious. It is drawn to this act of ours, the denial of the ring, the disengagement of the ego. It seeks the ring because it owes its existence to it. The ring is precious to it. To destroy the ring means its destruction also.

For the first time we consciously experience a part of ourselves we denied our entire lives. We see ourselves in this ugly form. The shadow represents everything we insist we are not. This is an extremely uncomfortable encounter, and we wrestle with dark emotions and engage in thoughts of desire to wear the ring again…

We question our decision. We yearn to return to the Shire.

We recognize not just a part of us will die in this process, but the only part we ever really knew! The fear of this death becomes overpowering. What if this is all we are?

Whereas the outer journey is about facing fear, the inner journey is about facing doubt.

Both patriarchal fear and doubt must be cleansed before the matriarchal values return, before the return of the King.

Source: http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue289/lotr_essay4.html

Analogical Meaning in Lord of the Rings by Mark Murdock (part 5 of 6):

Remember: The Lord of the Rings is your story.

Inside each of us lurks the menacing land of Mordor.

It is the alien origin of all fear and the seat of masculine power. We are raised from children under its watchful eye, and it controls us. But this is not our true self. This is not who we were born to be…

Its power has spilled over and infected our feminine nature, corrupted and poisoned it. The feminine lies beneath it, buried under layers of fear: Helms Deep. We can never, never know our true destiny unless we free her. As we meet these fears, we reawaken something deep inside us: the primordial Goddess.

From time immemorial, it was the Goddess that bestowed kingship. The Goddess reveals our true destiny, not our false ego. The return of the King is the return to our true nature, our true Self. It is the Middle Earth way, the middle way, the balance between masculine (sword) and feminine (land).

The battle for Middle Earth has begun. It is time to become who we were born to be.

To recap Tolkien’s steps thus far:

Recognize that we possess a ring of power and refuse it.

Journey out from our false comfort zone to face our deepest fears.

Find strength in new-found internal guidance and serendipity.

Breakdown, defend against worldly fears, meet our shadows and suffer doubt.

In real life, it might look like this:

The world is a mess and I am the problem. I reject it; I reject my false self.

I am leaving the job that I hate to go in search of something more authentic.

I feel guided, and I am having the most amazing experiences and encounters…

I feel terrible. Everything is a mess, chaotic. I am unsure and confused and frightened.

It is always darkest before dawn. The breakthrough is arriving. Something is stirring deep within us despite the near hopeless mess we see outside of us.

As we prepare to face the most indomitable foe — that of death itself — qualities like honor and courage rise to strengthen us. These values become more important than life itself because we realize that our lives mean nothing without them. We have been living meaningless lives.

Something flashes in our souls — the beacons of Gondor have been lit! We ride to fight again.

And why is it that these values are not being respected and revered in today’s technological world? Where did we lose sight of them? When did we become mere Stewards of Gondor?

To answer this question, we turn to Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Pirsig searches for the origins of something he termed quality through the pages of philosophy and history itself. He traces it back to pre-Socratic Greeks, before literacy, before the advent of science, and the mind-matter split.

In the days described by Homer, the Greeks valued arête above anything else, translated as ‘excellence’, or ‘virtue’. What drove the ancient Greek to acts of heroism was not a sense of duty to others, rather a duty to himself. He strives to become a better man.

(It is no surprise that these early Greeks worshiped the goddess.)

Let’s see how these values return in The Lord of the Rings.

Sauron unleashes the final assault on Minas Tirith. His greatest weapon is the fear of death itself, and it is massive and seemingly indestructible. His numbers are almost limitless. How can anyone escape it? We cannot. We are doomed to it.

But it cannot take something greater than our lives. It cannot take our honor.

It is true that Elrond reforges the sword of Elendil, but it is only by the will of his daughter, Arwen, the royal maiden. Aragorn’s kingship is bestowed by Arwen, the goddess. His courage and acts of bravery and betterment have made him a worthy king by her rights.

He is given his destiny, the sword. He now is king and possesses the power of redemption. He travels into the mountain to redeem the lost souls of his ancestors, those who ran in fear and failed to uphold their oaths of a bygone battle. Without honor and virtue, we are lost souls. With it, we can marshal the forces of the spirit world.

But Sauron too can unleash dark spiritual forces. His ultimate weapon is the King of the Nazgul, the Witch-King whom no man can destroy.

The hubris of the masculine! For the Witch-King meets not a man but a woman in battle. Here we see one embodiment of the goddess in Eowyn as she defends her king. This is the starkest of reminders that man does not rule over woman, but man may only rule by her wish.

And Eowyn slays the greatest warrior of Sauron’s death forces. The Return of the Kingmaker is the Goddess. And her Kings take the day on the battlefield.

The decision is made to make an assault on the black gate of Mordor to help Frodo. This is a suicide mission, for the numbers of Sauron’s forces still outnumber those of Men. In a very stunning visual, we see Sauron’s Orcs form a ring around the feminine circle of Aragorn’s army.

The masculine imbalance is still overpowering. The fate of our souls is in the hands now of Frodo alone, i.e. in our attempt to destroy the ring of our own ego.

Frodo surmounts obstacle after obstacle in his journey to Mt. Doom. He suffers death by the sting of the spider Shelob only to be reborn again. The spider is a feminine symbol of destiny and weaving of fate, and this scene is a powerful foreshadowing of the events to come. It is Frodo’s destiny to suffer death, but it will not be final.

The climatic scene in Mt. Doom is as complex as it is illuminating about the nature of our quest.

Frodo fails to destroy the ring willingly as Isildur did ages ago. He places it on his finger and sees himself as the most powerful Hobbit King that ever lived (book version). But the goddess has not bestowed Kingship to Frodo — he is the ring bearer.

Why did Frodo consciously fail in his mission at this last decisive moment? What risk do we face?

Could it be that we cannot reject any aspect of ourselves? To reject something is to give it power over you. To reject the ring of power is to imbue it with even more power. Could our mission to destroy the ring be impossible?

It is the actions of Gollum that help us answer this.

Gollum represents the shadow, and we spend our lives rejecting the qualities that create our shadows. To gain a greater wholeness, we must integrate our shadow; realize that it is a part of ourselves.

But Sam clearly rejects Gollum. He first wants to kill him, and continually badgers and torments him. Gollum is a stark shadow figure for Sam, representing character traits that he despises. Frodo however shows compassion and view’s Gollum’s suffering as his own.

But the integration is somehow incomplete. We see Gollum returning again and again to struggle with Frodo and Sam. He cannot be destroyed like the Balrog. We cannot continue to project our shadows onto others.

I contend that this failure of Frodo (and Sam?) to fully integrate the shadow prompts his final dramatic act. And it is at this moment that Gollum leaps onto his back. The two are symbolically one in this last struggle, and it is this greater whole that can now fulfill the appointed destiny.

The masculine imbalance is symbolic here again as the two teeter to the brink of the abyss. And now our true mission comes into focus.

What we are destroying is not the ego but the ego’s masculine dominance over the feminine. Power does not fall with Sauron, but is transferred to the new King. The ring transmutes into the crown placed on Aragorn’s head. A right balance between masculine and feminine has been restored.

So our quest begins to destroy the ring of power we each possess, and ends with the realization that we cannot destroy any aspect of ourselves that we dislike. We must integrate it, and in so doing, we discover the true source of power in our lives — our goddess-bestowed destiny.

Sauron’s phallic tower and all-seeing eye collapses to the feminine earth, and his minions are swallowed up into her darkest depths…

Source: http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue290/lotr_essay5.html

Analogical Meaning in Lord of the Rings by Mark Murdock (part 6 of 6):

Conclusion

The ring is destroyed in the fires of Mt. Doom, and with it the destruction of the fiery eye of Sauron. Fire, an active masculine element, was originally stolen from the gods by Prometheus and represents among other things creative and destructive power.

So the dark, masculine destructive power has been destroyed. The goddess-bestowed King returns to rule the lands. The Age of Man has dawned. And the Hobbit Halflings return to the paradisical Shire.

But far from being a happily-ever-after story, something is still incomplete…

Frodo is unable to heal from his wounds. He chooses to join the immortals on the last ship West.

He tells Sam, “You cannot always be torn in two, you have to be one and whole for many years…”

How is Frodo torn in two?

Clearly the implication is that the death of Gollum along with the ring somehow split Frodo. Frodo lost some important aspect of his masculinity symbolized by the loss of his finger (phallus). This makes sense if we see Gollum as Frodo’s shadow.

How are we to understand this for ourselves?

It is all about wholeness. Before a return to the natural union with the feminine, one must first reject the dark lord, the destructive aspect of the masculine power. This process begins with disengaging from the ego, removing the ring, and luring our shadow out of the unconscious. The shadow is then slain, or integrated into ourselves.

This is the alchemical process that Gandalf followed in his battle with the Balrog, and the fairy-tale story of all knights who seek to free the feminine princess from the phallic tower. Before one can do so, he must slay the serpent dragon. Like Gandalf, Tolkien is saying to smote your enemy is symbolically akin to this psychological integration.

But Frodo does not consciously smite his enemy! Rather he dons the ring and claims the destructive masculine power for himself. Frodo does not defeat his shadow, rather his shadow defeats him!

Remember, the ring falls by accident, through the actions of the Fates.

When the tower falls and frees the feminine, it is not for the wounded hero Frodo. Some part of his masculinity was lost, and his ability to balance with the feminine was lost with it. So he chooses to travel West (into the right hemisphere, into the feminine) to heal in the land of the immortals.

And if we look at Frodo and Gollum as but psychological complexes of Sam, then the picture becomes even clearer.

It was Sam and always Sam who was the true hero of Tolkien’s story. He is The Fool, the first card of the Tarot, the gardener who overhears voices in his master’s house, voices of doom and dark lords and end of the world. Sam is the one who takes the hero’s journey out of the Shire.

And it is Sam who clearly rejects Gollum all along. If Frodo is but a heroic aspect of Sam, then an attempt is made to integrate Gollum along the way, but it fails in the end.

Frodo’s failure is Sam’s failure. And now it is up to Sam to become one and whole. Sam returns to the feminine Shire, with its round doors leading into womb-like houses built into the earth. Sam marries Rosie (anima) and sets out to continue his own shadow work.

Meanwhile, the archetypes of the feminine hemisphere, the elves, the wizards, dwarfs and ring bearers all slip into the sea, and return to the immortal lands to the West, Valinor. The Age of Man begins. Only through the initiatory process described herein can the voices and archetypes return.

But let’s look at another level of the novel, one of history. For I contend the story also describes events in our pre-diluvium past.

The destruction of the ring of power ushered in The Age of Man. And over time, it appears that the masculine imbalance has indeed returned. One needs only to look out upon a sprawling city to see the phallic imagery. We have both lost touch with the land and increasingly with the feminine principle.

Sauron has returned, the ring has been re-crafted, and its black magic of technology and industry is poisoning us on deep psychological levels, and literally destroying the planet.

How is it that this imbalance persists?

Throughout these essays I have made mention of some theories of consciousness that attempt to link the advent of literacy, the creation of the alphabet, and the introduction of reading and writing as shifting consciousness into the left, more masculine hemisphere.

The black magic that infects us today is rooted in the words you are reading on this page. It alone rewires us and shuts off the fellowship voices until only one voice remains, that of our left hemisphere ego selves, through which Sauron ultimately returns to rule again.

When we believe that knowledge lies outside of ourselves, in books, in priests, in doctors and politicians, we allow the source of all power to reside out there in the world. We permit the black magicians to rule over us.

When we abandon the feminine side to our being, we allow them to appropriate and pervert its power to manipulate us. We become ignorant of symbols only because we are taught to believe in a literal world.

But the true nature of Man is that our power comes from within. All knowledge comes from within, not without. One need only look to the Shamanic tradition. Shamans possess knowledge that defies explanation; they have a communion with the world. When they seek knowledge they ask questions and the answers are given from within.

We have access to this knowledge and power when we prove to our feminine nature that we are worthy, and integrate our shadow selves to become whole.

The ultimate irony is that Tolkien was a philologist, a lover of words. For the manner in which we interpret our experiences is through this left hemisphere, and when we chronicle knowledge in books, we move the source of power outside ourselves. Oral traditions of old remembered their values. Literate traditions have no need to remember, the stories are there in the book. But the books themselves are forgotten to the dusty chambers of Minas Tirith.

And so Sauron returns as we forget. This is told to us at the very beginning of the Jackson trilogy. “For none now live who remember it…”

Then it is no surprise that both ring bearers, Bilbo and Frodo, are authors like Tolkien. They commit the story of the ring to words. Sauron lives on in the words of Frodo.

I do not advocate burning of books or the return to an oral culture; however I do believe that we will one day willingly refuse the technology of literacy.

But that day is not today.

Today, the feminine is trapped in the tower of materialism. We mistakenly believe it is money that takes care of us, and meets our needs. But money is but a mere magic trick. We have lost the trust in the unknown, and lost the courage of our nobler convictions.

We need to right the masculine imbalance once again. We need to raze the tower.

If we chose to take the journey, we will begin to feel the stirrings of the trust that lies buried beneath all of that fear. Our true natures will beckon, and we will be given the sword of our destiny.

We will then truly lead magical lives that are filled with serendipity and wonder. We will help others and have saved the world.

This is the lesson of the Path of Sam-wise that anyone can follow.

Recognize that you possess a ring of power, your false ego self. Disengage from it.

Journey out from your false comfort zone to face your deepest fears of abandonment.

Find strength in new found internal guidance and serendipity. Experience fellowship.

Breakdown: defend against worldly fears, meet your shadow and suffer doubt.

Breakthrough: integrate your shadow, die to your destructive masculine power.

Paradise regained: become whole again, re-balanced with the feminine.

This is the way into Mordor, and the way back to the Shire.

And you are the lord of the ring.

Source: http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue290/lotr_essay6.html

#the lord of the rings #Mark Murdock #philosophy #Alchemy #lord of the rings #Sacred feminine #fellowship #hermeticism #gnosticism #gnostic #gnosis #rosicrucian #spiritual #spirituality #j.r.r. tolkien #carl jung #c.g. jung #Lost Keys of Freemasonry

50 notes · View notes