One of the layers themes of LOST was akin to sibling rivalry.
We begin with the LOST mythology of using a waking eye. It is said to have symbolized an ancient Egyptian god. The Eye of Horus was a powerful protective symbol, and represents the eye
of the god Horus that was injured in a fight with the god of chaos, Set. This battle was for control of the underworld from the god Osiris.
Jacob and his brother were locked in a battle for the island. Jacob agreed to protect it, while his brother demanded to leave with the outsiders. But Crazy Mother said Jacob's brother could not leave. He killed her, then Jacob caused his brother's demise - - - and creating an eternal monster called The Man in Black, or a smoke monster. At some point there was a truce; and then a odd game between themselves using humans as pawns.
Then there was the battle of control over Dharma. Horus was challenged by Ben, who sided with the native Others. Ben used mass murder to overthrow Horus and eliminate any outsiders.
There were several rivalries around Jack. First, Jack had a rivalry between his father. His father's lack of interest or acceptance of Jack gnawed on his son. Second, Jack had a rivalry with Locke over the direction of the survivor's camp. Locke wanted to embrace the island. Jack wanted to find a means of leaving it. (The theme of mirroring as in the Jacob-MIB dynamic). Jack wanted the camp to move to the fresh water caves, but Sawyer, another rival, did not. And when Kate stayed on the beach with Sawyer, Jack had to suffer his first leadership defeat.
There were other personal battles. Desmond battled Widmore for Penny's affection. Hurley battled his own personal demons, including his "imaginary friend" Dave, for his own soul. Then there was Locke's rise to power in the Ben's Other's camp. The test was whether Locke could kill his father to become the leader. He could not, but since the Others had grown weary of Ben's tyranny, Alpert gave Locke a loophole to become king of the island.
So LOST could be viewed as a series of vignettes about two people butting heads. Stubbornness, anger, bruised egos, headstrong demands, illogical actions . . . . those were several key traits from the main characters draw out by the conflict between themselves.
Showing posts with label Horus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Horus. Show all posts
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
LEADERSHIP
Let
others lead small lives, but not you.. Let others argue over small
things, but not you.. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you.. Let
others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you.
— Jim Rohn
Leadership was a central theme of LOST. Various individuals wanted to control the island, but they never said what they would do with it. For a few, there was a silence of purpose that was seen in their beady eyes.
Leadership and guardianship are two different concepts. A guardian is a person who takes it upon himself or herself to look after someone, usually a minor child or disabled adult. The guardian is a person with the authority to make decisions on behalf of their ward. The guardian fulfills the role of an interested parent in the welfare of their ward. A guardian provides the basic necessities of life to the ward: food, shelter, security, medical and educational attention. Some guardianships end when the ward becomes an adult, but some guardianships last until death.
Leadership is a broader brush stroke. A leader is a decision maker in a group of people. A leader brings to the group a collective purpose, strategy and a plan in order to for the group to succeed in its goals. Leaders can be in any walk of life: business, charity, religious or even family units. A person needs a strong personality to draw other people to their way of thinking. A leader has various tools to assume power over his followers, such as persuasion, personality, intimidation, fear, or withholding favor such as life's necessities.
LOST had many strong and clashing leaders. In chronological time, the first leader we actually saw was Eloise when she was a young woman on the island. It was during a time skip when the castaways went to the 1950s to witness the Others capture the atomic bomb from the U.S. military (which in itself is a highly improbable event). But Eloise seemed to have the final word on matters, even overruling Widmore in a challenge to what to do with the strangers. We don't know Eloise's back story, but she is one of the few characters who knows how the LOST universe works, even though she explains it in vague analogies like "time correction" to Desmond. Someone who has the knowledge, the keys to a specific universe that other people cannot comprehend, can weld great power.
Widmore made his leadership mark more in the business world off the island. As a driven personality, Widmore was relentless in getting what he wanted in the real world. As a result, he acquired a vast fortune which he then used to buy loyalty of his soldiers. His leadership in the business world was apparently all for his quest to return to the island and conquer it. Whether Eloise actually indirectly helped Widmore find the island in Season 6 is a subject of debate, but she probably did since she had the sole means of finding it.
We then have the less driven leader like Horus. Horus was the man in charge of the Dharma Initiative on the island. He still reported to someone on the mainland, but he was in charge of the island group. Or so he thought, since Dr. Chang seemed to run the construction and science operations independently of Horus' input. Horus was the man in charge when Ben arrived on the island. Ben would later see weakness in Horus' power structure, which probably led Ben to devise his purge.
Ben was a role model for dictator leadership. He ruled with the iron fist of fear. He got the Others to follow him because he showed them he could kill without emotional strings, such as killing his own father. That act of rebellion seemed to be the new caveat for leadership of the Others, as Locke had to do the same thing in order to oust Ben. And when Locke arrived back at camp with Cooper's body, the Others suddenly had two viable leaders and they began to split (with Alpert siding with Locke; some followers wanted change).
Locke had failed at becoming the leader of the beach survivors. Locke had more success as the Other's leader until his decision making continued to be wrong. In order to stop the island time skips, he was told that he had to reset the frozen donkey wheel, and to die. Locke never understood the meaning of the latter. His death did not do anything to rally any island inhabitant to change or assume the leadership mantel. He was always considered a weak leader.
Another weak leader was Jacob. He was a sideline leader. The Others worshipped him like a god, which allowed their group leaders like Ben to manipulate people by claiming he had spoken to Jacob and this is what Jacob wanted them to do. But Ben never saw Jacob until the confrontation in the statue with Flocke. Jacob did not want to interact with the humans he brought to the island. Whether it was beneath him, like pets or lab rats to amuse MIB, Jacob was clearly disconnected with the idea of making decisions for other people.
In the same way, Jack did not want to make island decisions. He became the beach camp leader by default, as the survivors saw Jack, the Doctor, as an educated, smart and worthy leader because of his professional skills. He was their immediate best hope for survival from their plane crash injuries, physical and mental. But as the burden of leadership grew with Jack, he tried to make hard decisions but was stunned with the amount of push-back from his fellow survivors, including people like Kate. Jack's role as an island was one of convenience. He did not change the fate of his fellow castaways who slowly were killed off by the island events, including missions he led in the jungle.
Though leadership was a large theme of the series, the role of leader seems to be secondary. There was a large story format of "follow the leader," as in the child's game - - - which could be an explanation of the constant not-well-thought-out mission sequences. Leadership was more a childlike game on the island, possibly because the island was run by a childlike power.
It is possible that leadership was merely a decoy, a ruse, a game of play to keep the island, as a supernatural childlike entity, occupied from tapping its destructive powers that could destroy the entire universe. The island guardian was needed to check the needs and welfare of the island itself, as a living being of vast power, otherwise the island child could go on a cosmic rampage which would destroy all Life on Earth. It is an interesting theory that could have been a light bulb moment for the series if that was the explanation of the show's premise, but sadly it was not the case. The leadership story arcs were merely a tennis match of back and forth power struggles that constitute filler material in the overall story.
Leadership was a central theme of LOST. Various individuals wanted to control the island, but they never said what they would do with it. For a few, there was a silence of purpose that was seen in their beady eyes.
Leadership and guardianship are two different concepts. A guardian is a person who takes it upon himself or herself to look after someone, usually a minor child or disabled adult. The guardian is a person with the authority to make decisions on behalf of their ward. The guardian fulfills the role of an interested parent in the welfare of their ward. A guardian provides the basic necessities of life to the ward: food, shelter, security, medical and educational attention. Some guardianships end when the ward becomes an adult, but some guardianships last until death.
Leadership is a broader brush stroke. A leader is a decision maker in a group of people. A leader brings to the group a collective purpose, strategy and a plan in order to for the group to succeed in its goals. Leaders can be in any walk of life: business, charity, religious or even family units. A person needs a strong personality to draw other people to their way of thinking. A leader has various tools to assume power over his followers, such as persuasion, personality, intimidation, fear, or withholding favor such as life's necessities.
LOST had many strong and clashing leaders. In chronological time, the first leader we actually saw was Eloise when she was a young woman on the island. It was during a time skip when the castaways went to the 1950s to witness the Others capture the atomic bomb from the U.S. military (which in itself is a highly improbable event). But Eloise seemed to have the final word on matters, even overruling Widmore in a challenge to what to do with the strangers. We don't know Eloise's back story, but she is one of the few characters who knows how the LOST universe works, even though she explains it in vague analogies like "time correction" to Desmond. Someone who has the knowledge, the keys to a specific universe that other people cannot comprehend, can weld great power.
Widmore made his leadership mark more in the business world off the island. As a driven personality, Widmore was relentless in getting what he wanted in the real world. As a result, he acquired a vast fortune which he then used to buy loyalty of his soldiers. His leadership in the business world was apparently all for his quest to return to the island and conquer it. Whether Eloise actually indirectly helped Widmore find the island in Season 6 is a subject of debate, but she probably did since she had the sole means of finding it.
We then have the less driven leader like Horus. Horus was the man in charge of the Dharma Initiative on the island. He still reported to someone on the mainland, but he was in charge of the island group. Or so he thought, since Dr. Chang seemed to run the construction and science operations independently of Horus' input. Horus was the man in charge when Ben arrived on the island. Ben would later see weakness in Horus' power structure, which probably led Ben to devise his purge.
Ben was a role model for dictator leadership. He ruled with the iron fist of fear. He got the Others to follow him because he showed them he could kill without emotional strings, such as killing his own father. That act of rebellion seemed to be the new caveat for leadership of the Others, as Locke had to do the same thing in order to oust Ben. And when Locke arrived back at camp with Cooper's body, the Others suddenly had two viable leaders and they began to split (with Alpert siding with Locke; some followers wanted change).
Locke had failed at becoming the leader of the beach survivors. Locke had more success as the Other's leader until his decision making continued to be wrong. In order to stop the island time skips, he was told that he had to reset the frozen donkey wheel, and to die. Locke never understood the meaning of the latter. His death did not do anything to rally any island inhabitant to change or assume the leadership mantel. He was always considered a weak leader.
Another weak leader was Jacob. He was a sideline leader. The Others worshipped him like a god, which allowed their group leaders like Ben to manipulate people by claiming he had spoken to Jacob and this is what Jacob wanted them to do. But Ben never saw Jacob until the confrontation in the statue with Flocke. Jacob did not want to interact with the humans he brought to the island. Whether it was beneath him, like pets or lab rats to amuse MIB, Jacob was clearly disconnected with the idea of making decisions for other people.
In the same way, Jack did not want to make island decisions. He became the beach camp leader by default, as the survivors saw Jack, the Doctor, as an educated, smart and worthy leader because of his professional skills. He was their immediate best hope for survival from their plane crash injuries, physical and mental. But as the burden of leadership grew with Jack, he tried to make hard decisions but was stunned with the amount of push-back from his fellow survivors, including people like Kate. Jack's role as an island was one of convenience. He did not change the fate of his fellow castaways who slowly were killed off by the island events, including missions he led in the jungle.
Though leadership was a large theme of the series, the role of leader seems to be secondary. There was a large story format of "follow the leader," as in the child's game - - - which could be an explanation of the constant not-well-thought-out mission sequences. Leadership was more a childlike game on the island, possibly because the island was run by a childlike power.
It is possible that leadership was merely a decoy, a ruse, a game of play to keep the island, as a supernatural childlike entity, occupied from tapping its destructive powers that could destroy the entire universe. The island guardian was needed to check the needs and welfare of the island itself, as a living being of vast power, otherwise the island child could go on a cosmic rampage which would destroy all Life on Earth. It is an interesting theory that could have been a light bulb moment for the series if that was the explanation of the show's premise, but sadly it was not the case. The leadership story arcs were merely a tennis match of back and forth power struggles that constitute filler material in the overall story.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
THE EYE
One of the key shots in the series was a close up of a single eye
opening. It usually signaled a character change, a flashback, or new
story tangent. What does an eye represent?
The phrase "mind's eye" refers to the human ability for visualization,that is the experience of visual mental imagery; in other words, one's ability to "see" things within one's mind.
The biological foundation of the mind's eye is not fully understood. MRI studies have shown that the lateral geniculate nucleus and the V1 area of the brain's visual cortex are activated during mental imagery tasks. Scientists have found that this visual pathway is not a one one street. Higher areas of the brain can also send visual signals back to neurons connected in the lower areas of the visual cortex, also creating the ability to see or have a perceptual experience in the absence of actual visual imput from a person's eyes.
Deeper studies of the brain have shown that below the neocortex (where the center of perception exists), the thalamus has been found to be discrete to other components in that it processes all forms of perceptional data relayed from both lower and higher components of the brain. Damage to this component can produce permanent perceptual damage, however when damage is inflicted upon the cerebral cortex, the brain adapts to neuroplasticity to amend any occlusions for perception. It can be thought that the neocortex is a sophisticated memory storage warehouse in which data received as an input from sensory systems are compartmentalized via the cerebral cortex. This would essentially allow for shapes to be identified, although given the lack of filtering input produced internally, one may as a consequence, hallucinate - essentially seeing something that isn't received as an input externally but rather internal (i.e. an error in the filtering of segmented sensory data from the cerebral cortex may result in one seeing, feeling, hearing or experiencing something that is inconsistent with reality).
Other studies theorize that the pineal gland may be the source of the mind's eye. Researchers think that during near death experiences and dreaming, the gland may secrete a hallucinogenic chemical known as DMT which could produce internal visuals when external sensory data is occluded.
The pineal gland is a light sensitive gland that is located deep in the brain at its hemispheric division. It produces the serotonin derivative melatonin, a hormone that affects the modulation of wake/sleep patterns and seasonal functions in a person's body cycle. Because of its location and light sensitive properties, many philosophers believe this gland is the gateway into enlightenment beyond mere dream states. Some people believe that this gland is the gateway to the soul or spiritual world.
This is best described as "the third eye" (or the inner eye) in Hinduism. The third eye is a mystical concept referring to a speculative invisible eye which provides perception beyond ordinary sight. The third eye refers to the gate that leads to inner realms and spaces of higher consciousness.
In New Age spirituality, the third eye often symbolizes a state of enlightenment and process of mental images having deeply personal spiritual or psychological significance. The third eye is often associated with religious visions, clairvoyance, the ability to observe chakras or auras, precognition and out-of-body experiences. People who are claimed to have the capacity to utilize their third eyes are sometimes known as seers.
In ancient Egyptian religion, the Eye of Horus contained powerful symbolism. Horus was a sky god usually depicted as a falcon. His right eye was associated with the sun god, Ra. The eye symbol represents the marking around the eye of the falcon, including the "teardrop"marking sometimes found below the eye. The mirror image, or left eye, sometimes represented the moon and the god Djehuti (Thoth, the scribe and holder of magical powers). In one myth, when brothers Set and Horus were fighting for the throne after Orsiris's death, Set gouged out Horus's left eye. The majority of the eye was restored by either Hathor or Thoth (with the last portion possibly being supplied magically). When Horus's eye was recovered, he offered it to his father, Osiris, the god of the underworld, in hopes of restoring his life. Hence, the eye of Horus was often used to symbolise sacrifice, healing, restoration, and protection.
Besides the close ups of eyes, John Locke had a similar scar across his right eye like in the story of Horus. Locke's goal on the island was succeed Horus, and later Ben, in the leader of the natives. Locke was the person who found and interacted with the (holographic or repetitive image) of Horace near Jacob's cabin.
Also, in Season 1, Jack, Locke, Sun, Claire, Boone, Michael, Charlie, Sawyer and Jin all had eye close ups which led to flashback story lines. This is strong evidence that even though a clever foreshadowing device to get back stories started, it may have served a more compelling clue that in each case, the eye that was "opening" was the character's inner eye, or mind's eye - - - the gateway to inner, magical or spiritual realms.
It would also explain why so many people appeared to be uninjured despite the plane tearing apart and falling from 35, 000 feet. They were, but it was their minds that were creating a new perception of the world around them when they were in shock, or in a coma, or having near death experiences. The story structure then is a patchwork quilt of the passengers own perceptions if they survived the plane crash. It is a collective story telling through the portal of individual pineal glands set off by the unique electromagnetic energy of the island (which gives life, death and rebirth.) While it seems that it would be one consistent story, each individual character was in his or her own dream state. This could be why there are drastic mood and alliance changes during the series because we do not know who is the actual projector of that story line.
So when Christian tells Jack that all the people in the church, his fellow passengers, were the most important people in his "life," it was his pre-purgatory limbo that his mind's eye shared with the other island crash victims, in order to sacrifice, heal, restore, and protect their spiritual souls so they could move on in the after life together by reconnecting in the church realm. The toll to pass to the church realm was to work out one's material, selfish, and sinful nature in order to redeem the goodness trapped in one's soul. That is the true escape from the island, through each person's inner eye.
The phrase "mind's eye" refers to the human ability for visualization,that is the experience of visual mental imagery; in other words, one's ability to "see" things within one's mind.
The biological foundation of the mind's eye is not fully understood. MRI studies have shown that the lateral geniculate nucleus and the V1 area of the brain's visual cortex are activated during mental imagery tasks. Scientists have found that this visual pathway is not a one one street. Higher areas of the brain can also send visual signals back to neurons connected in the lower areas of the visual cortex, also creating the ability to see or have a perceptual experience in the absence of actual visual imput from a person's eyes.
Deeper studies of the brain have shown that below the neocortex (where the center of perception exists), the thalamus has been found to be discrete to other components in that it processes all forms of perceptional data relayed from both lower and higher components of the brain. Damage to this component can produce permanent perceptual damage, however when damage is inflicted upon the cerebral cortex, the brain adapts to neuroplasticity to amend any occlusions for perception. It can be thought that the neocortex is a sophisticated memory storage warehouse in which data received as an input from sensory systems are compartmentalized via the cerebral cortex. This would essentially allow for shapes to be identified, although given the lack of filtering input produced internally, one may as a consequence, hallucinate - essentially seeing something that isn't received as an input externally but rather internal (i.e. an error in the filtering of segmented sensory data from the cerebral cortex may result in one seeing, feeling, hearing or experiencing something that is inconsistent with reality).
Other studies theorize that the pineal gland may be the source of the mind's eye. Researchers think that during near death experiences and dreaming, the gland may secrete a hallucinogenic chemical known as DMT which could produce internal visuals when external sensory data is occluded.
The pineal gland is a light sensitive gland that is located deep in the brain at its hemispheric division. It produces the serotonin derivative melatonin, a hormone that affects the modulation of wake/sleep patterns and seasonal functions in a person's body cycle. Because of its location and light sensitive properties, many philosophers believe this gland is the gateway into enlightenment beyond mere dream states. Some people believe that this gland is the gateway to the soul or spiritual world.
This is best described as "the third eye" (or the inner eye) in Hinduism. The third eye is a mystical concept referring to a speculative invisible eye which provides perception beyond ordinary sight. The third eye refers to the gate that leads to inner realms and spaces of higher consciousness.
In New Age spirituality, the third eye often symbolizes a state of enlightenment and process of mental images having deeply personal spiritual or psychological significance. The third eye is often associated with religious visions, clairvoyance, the ability to observe chakras or auras, precognition and out-of-body experiences. People who are claimed to have the capacity to utilize their third eyes are sometimes known as seers.
In ancient Egyptian religion, the Eye of Horus contained powerful symbolism. Horus was a sky god usually depicted as a falcon. His right eye was associated with the sun god, Ra. The eye symbol represents the marking around the eye of the falcon, including the "teardrop"marking sometimes found below the eye. The mirror image, or left eye, sometimes represented the moon and the god Djehuti (Thoth, the scribe and holder of magical powers). In one myth, when brothers Set and Horus were fighting for the throne after Orsiris's death, Set gouged out Horus's left eye. The majority of the eye was restored by either Hathor or Thoth (with the last portion possibly being supplied magically). When Horus's eye was recovered, he offered it to his father, Osiris, the god of the underworld, in hopes of restoring his life. Hence, the eye of Horus was often used to symbolise sacrifice, healing, restoration, and protection.
Besides the close ups of eyes, John Locke had a similar scar across his right eye like in the story of Horus. Locke's goal on the island was succeed Horus, and later Ben, in the leader of the natives. Locke was the person who found and interacted with the (holographic or repetitive image) of Horace near Jacob's cabin.
Also, in Season 1, Jack, Locke, Sun, Claire, Boone, Michael, Charlie, Sawyer and Jin all had eye close ups which led to flashback story lines. This is strong evidence that even though a clever foreshadowing device to get back stories started, it may have served a more compelling clue that in each case, the eye that was "opening" was the character's inner eye, or mind's eye - - - the gateway to inner, magical or spiritual realms.
It would also explain why so many people appeared to be uninjured despite the plane tearing apart and falling from 35, 000 feet. They were, but it was their minds that were creating a new perception of the world around them when they were in shock, or in a coma, or having near death experiences. The story structure then is a patchwork quilt of the passengers own perceptions if they survived the plane crash. It is a collective story telling through the portal of individual pineal glands set off by the unique electromagnetic energy of the island (which gives life, death and rebirth.) While it seems that it would be one consistent story, each individual character was in his or her own dream state. This could be why there are drastic mood and alliance changes during the series because we do not know who is the actual projector of that story line.
So when Christian tells Jack that all the people in the church, his fellow passengers, were the most important people in his "life," it was his pre-purgatory limbo that his mind's eye shared with the other island crash victims, in order to sacrifice, heal, restore, and protect their spiritual souls so they could move on in the after life together by reconnecting in the church realm. The toll to pass to the church realm was to work out one's material, selfish, and sinful nature in order to redeem the goodness trapped in one's soul. That is the true escape from the island, through each person's inner eye.
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