#This man's only goal and focus is the end of the subjugation of the working masses | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blog-sliverofjade · 4 years

Text

Hearth Fires 2: Sneaky Like a Cat

Pairing: Remi Denier x OFC

Summary: Lorel Maddox just wants to live as a human, run her bakery in peace, and forget. Unfortunately, the alpha of the local leopard pack has very different ideas. Remi Denier doesn’t know what to make of the female Changeling who wants nothing to do with him or the RainFire pack. He does know that he has a driving need to protect her. Even if it’s from herself. While they’re embroiled in a battle of wills, there’s a war brewing on the horizon. The outside threat could not only destroy everything they hold dear, but tear apart the fragile new bonds of the Trinity Accord, plunging the world into bloodshed to rival the Territorial Wars of centuries past.

Word count: 2466

Hearth Fires Masterlist

Beta read by the invaluable pandabearer

Remi entered a familiar code into the comm screen and sprawled out on the large cushions scattered around the main floor of his aerie. Waiting for the call to connect, he cracked a longneck and took a swig. Stomach rumbling, he wished he’d at least gotten a cupcake before scaring the piss out of the little baker.

He knew she didn’t intend any harm to the pack. But sometimes what happened wasn’t what one intended, as he knew very well. Just like he hadn’t intended to throw out that ultimatum. He’d wanted to get a sense of her and make the offer. Then she’d turned him down and it was like his brain had switched off and his alpha hindbrain had taken over.

It wasn’t the first time he’d been turned down since he started building RainFire; it was, however, the first time a lone submissive female had said no. Generally, ones like her didn’t go roaming for as long as she had. The feeling that something was amiss with her hadn’t left him, like an itch that he just couldn’t scratch.

“I’m flattered I’m your drunk dial,” Lucas Hunter said dryly, “but I have a mate.”

“I’d’ve to be drinkin’ bad hooch to be drunk dialin’ your laide tchew,” he snorted. “And I’d hope it’d make me blind.”

Hunter snorted, then reached down out of view of the screen and picked up a little, black cub by the scruff of her neck. Naya purred loudly enough that Remi could hear it and butted her forehead against Lucas’ face, even though her body continued to dangle limply in his grasp.

“You know better than that,” her father frowned at her, unfazed by the cute affection, and tapped her nose. The responding mewl was adorable enough to pierce even the most jaded heart. “No, you can’t have a cookie, but you can say hi to Remi.” He pointed to the screen and set her on his lap. A fluffy black tail rose high and curled at the end in greeting.

“Quoi se fais du mal, possede?” His cat stopped its irritated pacing and chuffed in amusement at the pair of bright green eyes that now took up most of the screen as she leaned in to greet him.

“She’s been using my chair as a scratching post.” Remi coughed to cover a laugh at the other man’s deadpan expression that barely hid his amusement. At the recount of her misdeed, she flopped onto her back and put one paw over an eye as if to say “oops.” Hunter had answered in his office at DarkRiver HQ. If he’d been at home, which had cushions instead of traditional furniture much like Remi’s own, his daughter would have sharpened her claws on a tree instead. “Can you make it quick? I have a meeting in ten.”

Remi laid out the situation to Lucas, who listened without interruption.

“She says she didn’t know ‘bout the expansion.” He spread his hands wide.

“You posted to Packnet?” Hunter referred to the network utilized by Changelings all across the world. Even loners used it, primarily to keep track of claimed territory to avoid accidentally trespassing. A mistake meant death for a predatory Changeling.

“’Course I did,” Remi snapped in frustration. Lucas let that one slide. “Damnedest thing is she says she’s never heard of it!” He ran a hand through his shoulder-length hair. “I don’t know what to do.”

“Bullshit,” he snorted, then darted a glance at Naya, who’d climbed up to drape herself across his shoulders. “You just don’t like your options.”

“Could you run a submissive off your lands?” he snarled. Lucas gave a low warning growl to remind him that they were both alphas; his cub stopped kneading his shoulders and her ears swivelled forward, looking for the threat. Remi had to rein his cat in before they got into a pissing match; it had been on edge since he stepped into the bakery. The animal, too, was disturbed with the mystery that was Lorelei Cain Maddox.

“Buy her land, her mortgage, and any other debt out from under her if she doesn’t play ball. It doesn’t have to come to combat.” A ruthless solution from an alpha who was as accustomed to fighting in the boardroom as he was with teeth and claws. The merciless alpha stroked his daughter’s back, lulling her back to her sleepy state. He looked like a damn villain when he did that in that chair.

“Mais.” Blowing out a breath, he took another drink to give himself time to consider the suggestion. He shouldn’t have made the offer at all if she made his hackles rise, not until he figured out why. Now he had to deal with the fallout and any leverage would serve to protect the pack, even if he didn’t use it to force her hand. “Might have to. She looked like she’d rather chew an arm off than listen to me.”

“I can’t blame her if you were your usual charming self.” Remi flipped him the bird, but there was no heat in his accompanying glare. Lucas huffed in laughter. “You can’t help those who don’t want to be helped, you need to focus on your own. If she won’t play ball with you, she might with your enemies.”

“Ca me rapelle, there’s something else I wanted to talk to you about. I’m forwarding you something.” He set his bottle down and fired off the email as he spoke. “Several folks in town reported receiving this.”

“’Trinity’s Goal is Human Genocide’,” Lucas read the subject line with a snort. “’We won’t be replaced, trying to take power, subjugate the human race…’ Yeah, we had something like this awhile back, so did StoneWater. Do you know where it came from?”

“We got someone working to trace it. I was wonderin’ if your people have time to look at it, might be tied to the one you mentioned.” The older pack had resources that RainFire simply didn’t have yet and he wasn’t above asking for help to keep his pack safe.

“It might be the same group, but extremists tend to use the same catchphrases; it’s like they just swap out the nouns. I recommend keeping your sentinels on alert.” Remi nodded. He’d already briefed those that hadn’t brought the situation to his attention, but if this was a larger threat then they needed to know that, too.

“We’ve got some friends in the city, I’ll ask them to keep their ears to the ground.”

“This might be an individual, but if it’s a cell working to sway public opinion your friends will probably hear of it first. I’ll have my team see what they can find.” Lucas’ eyes narrowed, but that didn’t hide the teasing glint in his green eyes that looked so much like his cat’s. “You know, the mentorship was only meant to last the first year.” While that year had passed nearly nine months ago, the two of them had kept in regular contact.

“You don’t have to answer my calls,” he shrugged and tucked a hand behind his head. “I could always ring up Hawke. Say, you got his number?” Hunter scowled at the mention of the SnowDancer alpha.

“Are you so hard up you’d ask a wolf for help?”

“I’m asking my Trinity representative for help with somethin’ that might be a bigger problem, but if you’re too busy…”

“Naya, say ‘adieu’ to Oncle Couillon .” She waved her tail back and forth.

“Bye-bye, cher.” Remi blew the cub a kiss. “Donne la belle Sascha un bec pour moi.” Before hanging up, Lucas gave him one last scowl for telling him to kiss his mate for the other alpha.

He pulled out his organizer and began to plot. She might be stubborn, but he had an entire pack behind him and he wasn't afraid to use it.

At the sound of the front door opening, Lorel set down the cranberry coloured frosting she was piping onto rows of cupcakes. She wiped her hands off on a damp white washcloth that was already smeared pink and red with previous uses.

Stopping in the archway that led to the front, she stifled a groan. The customer who’d entered with her daughter was a changeling: a leopard, to be specific, and one of many who'd managed to wander into her shop over the past week. Even if she didn’t have a note in her scent that matched an element of Denier’s, she obviously had to be a member of RainFire. It seemed like she'd already met half the freaking pack, and, in the southern custom that she was rapidly coming to learn, a quick chat was at least half an hour long.

She could hardly refuse to serve the woman; not only was it illegal, but it would be hypocritical. Besides, changelings were extremely loyal and prolific customers at their favourite restaurants due to their higher caloric requirements. And not to mention it was probably unhealthy for her if she pissed off RainFire.

Somehow, she was sure the asshole was behind the parade of leopards in her bakery, even if she had no way of proving the suspicion. She had seen some underhanded tactics in her time, but this latest was the lowest of the low. Standing up straight, she braced herself.

A little girl in a lavender tutu dress toddled up to the display case like she’d found Nirvana. Her dark hair was tied up in loose buns that bobbled with every step of her purple, glitter rainboots. It was impossible not to smile at the sheer joy that lit up her face, which was marked with what looked like slashes from a set of claws, yet they lacked the pigmentation and texture of scars. They appeared to be birthmarks, albeit pale instead of dark.

“Cookie, pease?”

Seriously, those big, guileless eyes should be registered as lethal weapons.

“What kind would you like?” Lorel asked after glancing at the adult with her to make sure it was ok.

“Dat one!” A tiny finger pressed to the plas-glas pointed to a set of sugar cookies shaped and frosted to look like various types of leaves: green fading to brown, yellow to red, and whatever other combination had occurred to her at the time. Lorel picked one of her favourites: a maple leaf with yellow at its centre, surrounded by orange, and turning to red at the edges. For the veins, she’d drawn a knife through the frosting to create lines of colour that bled outward through the gradations.

“Make it a dozen, please, and a dozen each of the caramel apples, the maple pecan cupcakes, and, ooh, pumpkin cheesecake snickerdoodles,” the woman said, her eyes lighting up with the last order.

She nearly did a double-take. That was her entire stock of each of those items and over half of her seasonal items. Not that she was about to complain. She wrapped the maple leaf in a napkin and handed it to the girl, experience telling her that it wouldn’t last enough to warrant packaging.

“Thank you!” she chirped and rose on her tiptoes to take the leaf. The cookie was bigger than both of her hands. Settling back on her heels, she took a bite and exclaimed in delight, eyes going impossibly wide. Lorel struggled to breathe past the ache in her chest.

Avoiding eye contact with both of them, she quickly boxed up the goodies. The sooner she got them out of there, the sooner she could breathe easy again. It didn’t help that her cat was currently clawing at her with a fierce need to play with the cub. Kid , she mentally reprimanded herself.

“Is something wrong?” Lorel stared at the other woman for a heartbeat before she realized she’d been shaking her head while silently rebuking herself.

“Oh no.” She donned a smile like well-worn armour. “Just talking to myself. Thinking about how many to bake tomorrow, you know?”

The customer nodded and hummed in agreement, but something in her eyes said she wasn’t buying it.

“It must be hard to move to a town where you don’t know much of anyone and take over your aunt’s business.”

Lorel’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t trust sympathy from a cat, not even one with a child that appeared to be loved and treasured.

“Small towns, everybody knows everybody.” The other woman shrugged off the suspicion cast her way. “By the way, I’m Tien and this is JoJo.” JoJo was currently spinning in the sun streaming through the window and watching her skirt flare out. The glitter in her boots flashed brilliantly in the light. With each bite of her cookie, she hummed a happy little tune.

The pang in her chest was back.

“Lorel,” she flashed her customer service smile, the small one when she wasn’t really feeling like smiling. Luckily, she was ringing up the sale and therefore had an excuse to avoid anything more than briefly flicking her eyes at Tien. Then she gave the total and they went through the ritual of the transaction.

“Here’s my number.” Tien jotted down the code on a slip of paper she’d found in her purse. “Let me know if you ever want to talk or if you ever want to… I’d say go for coffee, but,” she broke off with a laugh and gestured at the espresso machine. “Do lunch or something.”

She couldn’t decline without being rude, and being rude in a small southern town would spell disaster for her business. And the other woman’s smile was so broad and genuine that she smiled back despite herself.

“Thank you.” Lorel took the scrap and slipped it into her apron; today it was yellow and edged at the bottom with lace. The lavender flowers on it matched the full-skirted dress she wore.

“Come on, kidlet.” Tien herded the girl towards the exit.

“Bye!” JoJo waved and skipped out the door, offering a bite of her cookie to her mom, who accepted with an “mmm!”

Lorel sank back against the counter and thrust her hands into her pockets, idly fingering the contact number. How could they be so happy and obviously well-adjusted in a pack with an autocratic asshole like Denier? Although, was there really any other kind of alpha? In her admittedly limited experience, the answer was no.

And yet neither of them had, had the hollow, guarded eyes that were the result of abuse from those in power. While the rest of the pack seemed friendly enough, no doubt the carrot to Denier’s stick, it wasn’t something she was used to.

She crumpled up the paper and tossed it in the recycler.

No matter how honest she appeared to be, Tien was still Denier’s pawn.

Notes: Remi isn’t canonically Cajun, it’s left ambiguous (“with a name like that sounds like he should be hunting gators in a swamp somewhere”). But I like the idea that he can play the dumb swamprat, or the suave southern gentleman, or a shark in the boardroom because he learned how to dominate whatever room he was in and that he had to learn to blend in (*foreshadowing of my personal HC’s).

I'm a bit of a language nerd. The evolution of Louisiana French is interesting because it basically takes Acadian French and drifts it, then splices in some Choctaw. And it appears to share some quirks and sentence structure with French Creoles. I'm not sure if that's due to sharing a "parent" language (I don't know enough to say) or due to cultural exchange in the region.

The Cajun French in this chapter comes from published dictionaries and articles written by native speakers, then cross-referenced (or simply plugged into google to see if similar results pop up). Then if I need to conjugate something or figure out grammar, I'll run it by my spouse who speaks Quebecois (which evolved from Acadian, too), but isn’t French Canadian. So if it’s atrocious, my apologies and please let me know.

Laide tchew - ugly ass

Quoi se fais du mal - what trouble have you been getting into?

Possede - literally possessed one, a term for a mischievous child

Mais - Literally French for “but.” According to kenwheatonwrites.com it “means “well then,” and is used to delight, shock, exasperation — any number of things. It’s almost like “dude” or “fuck” in its ability to morph into anything depending on situation, tone, delivery and other factors.”

Ca me rapelle - That reminds me

Oncle - uncle

Couillon - idiot, imbecile, funny person. In standard French, it means dickhead or bastard. I like to think that Lucas knows standard French, which helps him to understand Remi when he's slipping into his native patois. ;)

Donne la belle Sascha un bec pour moi - give the lovely Sascha a kiss for me

Fun fact: "bec" can mean "kiss" and "beak." So I'll tell my pet birds "bec la bec!" I'm easily entertained, what can I say?

9 notes · View notes

bbq-hawks-wings · 5 years

Text

Series Review Pt. 2/3

Part One

Part Three

Continuing the trend, lots to read under the cut.

In part one we established that the central conflict of the series as a whole is not so much a black and white “good guys side vs bad guys side” but of a much more complex societal problem stemming from individual choices and series of choices made by individual people and the impact those choices have on others. This is the heart of the current conflict between Hawks and Twice.

Twice and Hawks share many things in common and have been shown to develop a genuine friendship in their shared time in the PLF. This, however, has not changed the fact that they are still functioning from opposite sides of the central conflict - at least the institutional facet of it. Each of them has taken up a position fundamentally opposed to the other in attempts to bring about their prospective “big picture” futures, but that comes with the added emotional baggage each carries from the events that have happened to them in their respective pasts.

The visual direction of the scene enforces this concept. Each one is seeing the other literally from a different angle and in a different light. Twice is on the ground prone in a room where the only exit is blocked while Hawks stands alert and at attention over him, obscuring the only source of light entering the room.

From Twice’s perspective Hawks’ face is obscured- the harsh light from behind casting a dark shadow across any features that would clue him into what Hawks is feeling - and he has to use the context clues he has available (posture, words, immediate events) through tears and adrenaline to interpret how to respond to Hawks. He’s been so suddenly thrust into this situation he literally and metaphorically can’t properly tell which way is up from where he lies. (Note how Hawks’ silhouette is sideways and looming over him in the same direction as Twice would be seeing from his place on the ground on page 13.)

From Hawks’ perspective Twice is knocked off balance and panicking like a cornered animal, completely unaware of the larger situation at hand and how they arrived here. When the perspective of the camera shifts and we can see his face again for the first time we get a completely different picture of what’s going on. Importantly, we can see in the change in perspective a closeup (usually used to highlight the key emotion) of Hawks’ face, complete with a somber and compassionate gaze that Twice is incapable of discerning right now.

Read this section through again twice. The first time use only the frame from Twice’s perspective and the second time read it with Hawks’. This is something I’m actually intrigued to see the anime handle because depending how deep the divergence in perspective goes, even the vocal performance may be different depending on the camera angle.

Twice sees a sociopathic, unempathetic monster who has used, abused, and thrown away his sincere offer of friendship to get what he wants and then has the audacity to try to convince him to play the fool again to get Twice to betray his friends for an easy way out. Hawks sees a person who feels betrayed and scared so Hawks is trying sincerely to explain to him what has been going on in order to be transparent because that’s the only way he can think to communicate the fact that he still values Twice, ending on the note that he believes that while Twice has crimes to answer for, he is still a good person who deserves to have a real shot at a happy life and that Hawks is personally invested in making that a reality if he’s willing to take the offer and trust him.

Hawks is operating as an enforcing tool of the law, but while he believes that law is set in place for general stability and safety it takes a human to human connection and cooperation to save someone to whom the law is blind. On page 16 when he says, “I don’t want to fight you, Bubaigawara!” he’s identifying with him not as the villain Twice, but as a person with an identity and will separate from the personae he’s crafted for himself over the years. Hawks would probably use his own real name to try to hammer this point home if there was a way to naturally do it. If Bubaigawara continues to resist and fight Hawks cannot make the case to others that he deserves a second chance.

The exact memory that comes to Hawks’ mind is Twice’s words, “Anyone who helps his friends can’t be all bad.” Hawks is trying to say in this scene, “I’m your friend! I’m trying to help you! I know you see me as the bad guy, but I want to be your hero so please let me save you the only way I know how! Please trust me!”

He needs the cooperation, but Twice resists and Hawks has no other choice but to operate as law enforcement for the sake of the greater good. Twice has chosen to be a “villain,” so Hawks has to be a “hero.” All those feathers were for Twice in the case Hawks needed them, and now Hawks has to subdue the Sad Man’s Parade alone as well as Dabi whom neither knows is on the way.

That’s the bad news, but the good news is that hope is not lost.

This is where I repeat my mantra of “we won’t know specific, individual fates until they happen." However, I think there are notable observations to keep in mind as we watch these final battles unfold.

Coming off of the discussion with Twice and Hawks, many including myself (and arguably even Twice) have gotten hung up on whether Hawks will choose to join the League eventually. Where we are now, I think it’s become a moot point almost not worth discussion anymore. If he does, we’ll see it soon; but Hawks seems to recognize that as long as the core complaints of the individual League members - and any of their sympathizers, for that matter - are not directly addressed, some other criminal force will come alongside and clash with them continuing the cycle of bloodshed and violence as influential leaders focus on gaining power until they are absorbed or achieve their end goal of complete anarchy and societal destruction. (Remember, he’s been following the League and their movements at least as far back as Kamino.) We saw it with the MLA, we saw it with the Shie Hassaikai, and even with Stain - along with the League of Villains, it began with a guerrilla group of revolutionists seeking to right a societal injustice; but if and when a separate opposing force of revolutionist outsiders cannot agree with them a battle ensues until one is subjugated and the strength of the loser is granted to the victor. Until the underlying issues are addressed, this cycle will only continue.

This is also to bring up the fact that the League of Villains is genuinely strong in terms of interpersonal loyalty but as an organization with foundational core values and a unified end goal has been fractured and shaky since the beginning. We saw those particular cracks most prominently just before the fight with Gigantomachia when lack of outer conflict began to highlight the inherent lack of unity in the LoV, only to be interrupted once again when some outside force stirred up a reason for them to work together for survival. Remember, all of the current members of the League of Villains were initially attracted and recruited because Shigaraki falsely appropriated Stain’s ideology. Dabi has stated he wants a world where heroes are obligated to their families first and that thinking of the misery he’s left the survivors of killed heroes “drives him crazy.” Toga wants a world where she has a network of unconditional support without feeling repressed. Twice wants a world in which he can trust others and be trusted and useful despite his bad luck and occasional mistakes. Spinner has clarified he needs a cause to believe in and fight for that supports outcasts like him, and Mr. Compress’s reasons for joining the League are simply to challenge the current status quo instead of mindlessly embracing it.

Shigaraki’s nihilistic dystopia of “burn everything to the ground” is not necessary to achieve any of these goals, and if enough confidence in alternative solutions and doubts in Shiguraki’s loyalty grows in the minds of each member of the League it could genuinely fall apart at the seams, though that isn’t to say that the League isn’t an incredibly tight knit and loyal group - quite the opposite, they’ve constantly shown to be willing to risk life and limb for each others’ sake - just that they’re more concerned with tearing down the current order than restructuring a cohesive new one. However, if the context around their unity has genuinely shifted to center around Shigaraki himself as a symbolic leader as it's been implied since the fight with Gigantomachia and the MLA, this will be clarified very quickly.

Even for most other villains we’ve encountered through the series this violence-first upheaval of society is not necessary to realize most of their goals. Gentle Criminal sought to shake up heroes’ apathy and overconfidence in their strength - La Brava following him closely because of her unwavering loyalty to him as a person - and even Stain was not opposed to the concept of heroes, just an institution of heroism that breeds greed and apathy instead of elevating the ideals of heroism.

There have been exceptions like the Shie Hassaikai (who sought a complete erasure of quirks from the human genome) and the initial ideology of the Meta Liberation Army (a world ruled by the strong with completely unimpeded use of quirks) that would have required an entire shift in society on a cultural, governmental, legislative, and economic level; but for most the heart of their issues with society is an issue of the heart - that is, a cultural shift is necessary first and foremost to alleviate the problems each of these criticisms address.

This drastic but necessary change has been difficult to achieve up until this point because most of the mouthpieces for these cultural criticisms are either not weighty enough to carry traction without the threat of violence or are held by those motivated by personal vengeance who are not guaranteed to sit and talk about peaceful options even if the opportunity was presented to them. The “outsiders” are so deeply ostracized in the current social and political climate that they can’t get a word in edgewise to those “inside” who go mostly unaffected by the shortcomings the outcasts are attempting to bring to light. This is where the series’ proposed solution enters the stage.

#bnha meta #mha meta #BNHA Chapter 264 #MHA Chapter 264 #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #long post

10 notes · View notes

elitemarketingpro5-blog · 4 years

Text

The actual Network Marketing Solution?

youtube

magnetic sponsoring review

Careers, task opportunities, vocations, and ministry are all ways in which we because individuals search for personal satisfaction. All of these are productive pursuits in which we can apply each of our talents interest and passion. Throughout society today, the purpose of spending yourself to a job, career involving vocation has been misrepresented.

magnetic sponsoring review

It is just a common response when you request some one why they are within a particular job, or have a precise career, that their alternative was because of money. Men and women find jobs they similar to for money, and people stay in work they don't like for money.

A lot of who propel their life with this ideology find a useless in their lives. Money is a superb way to measure the value a person generate to society nevertheless is not an end in itself.

Dollars is just a tool used for testing the amount of value you provide peoples lives. As a small business owner you can generate value for your consumers by offering them solutions to their very own problems while building residential areas of dedicated professionals.

You can actually see why business owners make a bundle, because they bring a lot of price to those around them.

Solving the condition of discontent or displeasure with your job or occupation could be as simple as redefining what you do or you can look for personalized fulfillment in something else.

A single common mistake people accomplish when searching for professional fulfillment is self employed. When you become small you are your own accountant, director, labor, customer service, sales office, loss prevention, and legal professional in some cases.

People go in company for the love of the assistance and value offered to some others, not necessarily for the love of the paperwork involved with it.

There is a answer for those looking for personal gratification that does not involve the expense of buying, starting or running a traditional business.

The solution permits you to focus your time and energy on what is very important and that's generating valuation for people, without having to worry about all of the overhead.

Does this sound way too good to be true?

It certainly is not and the solution has really helped millions in many different kinds.

The solution is Network Marketing.

Precisely why Network Marketing? - Network Marketing is promoting into a billion dollar business since its humble beginnings within the 1950's. Amway and Avon, together, are worth virtually 20 billion dollars and many more companies gross between 700 million and a billion money yearly as we speak. The reason is not necessarily simple but can be categorised.

First and most superficially, the company model makes sense and this could be the first reason why Network Marketing performs. Why Network Marketing works is because of Network Marketing companies cut out each of the advertising and offer the people mentioning their product or service the money alternatively.

Simple enough right? I mean, the regular corporate companies throw up huge amounts of money in the air (in forms of as well as middle man costs) and anticipate that it will rain down customers. Performs this work, OF COURSE! But probably would not you rather have a chance to earn cash doing something you are going to complete anyways, which is refer something!

Isn't it human nature to relate something when it is good? SURE! Isn't it conscientious for the company to offer you money just for this? YES! And that's why Network Marketing can be a solution for many problems! Aside from, how many people know about the gecko that offers car insurance and don't get his insurance?

The second good reason that Network Marketing works is a little greater. People throw money apart in afflictions for the purpose of becoming a part of something, or obtaining something to talk about with their associates.

Seldom is the opportunity wherever their much adored ailment pays them with something aside from a good way to pass the time that is certainly usually only where playing is legal.

When people are generally introduced to the Network Marketing chance either they see that the business enterprise model makes sense or that they join for this second explanation.

They see an environment just where goal oriented professionals satisfy and celebrate communion inside a healthy positive and high energy environment with the plus area of being able to make an further buck. While many people expend most of their day at a position with only evening television set programming to look forward to, Multilevel marketing offers people the opportunity to make, meet and celebrate lifestyle with friends while creating more friends and producing an extra buck!

The Third the reason why Network Marketing works is because really based on a social wave dating back to ancient times. The particular wisdom of our fore daddies still resonate in the traditions of Network Marketing, as they speech words of liberation on the list of oppressed and those subjugated by simply Pharos, Cesar's other lord kings and their governments. That they spoke their wise phrases which has at the heart of the meaning the UNMEASURABLE VALUE OF ANYBODY and sent out the separated with the words, "go out and make disciples of the world" and so two by 2, they went out and their issuing message is carried out by individuals still committed to this vision.

This is why Network Marketing works.

Some sort of mission that speaks on the person and tells him/her that their is no reason you should feel like you aren't are generally be fulfilled as a individual. People are attracted to Network Marketing given that they feel encouraged by, not simply the message, but with the example leaders in the industry display in service of one another.

Multi-level marketing offers, without regards on their race, color, creed, nationality or economic situation, the opportunity to obtain their dreams through a motor vehicle that is meant to provide the monetary means and the personal expansion for an equal platform for all of us.

This opportunity and its strategy attracts the most committed as well as sincere servers of humankind. The leaders and control of the many Network Marketing companies are absolutely committed to the success of the testers that marry their lifestyles and dreams to the market.

Is there bad people out there profiting from others that make people inquire why Network Marketing has a awful rep? Yes.

Is just about any industry, charity or corporation free of rotten apples? ZERO!

The reason why Network Marketing has a undesirable reputation is far from purpose and is nowhere close to truth.

The bursting of the real estate property bubble and the victimizing on the subprime markets by loan companies is exponentially a whole lot worse than all lawsuits in any Network Marketing history put together. Precisely what Bernie Madoff did inside the securities industry is greatly worse than any poor rumor about why Multi level marketing has a bad reputation. As a former in the construction industry more than half my life and all what exactly I've seen makes Internet marketing seem like Zion.

- The complexities for these problems eludes to your greater cultural problem a large number of Network Marketing companies are dedicated to resolve through responsible consumerism.

Why then Network Marketing has a bad standing? I can't be sure but I am able to give a pretty good idea. It can be because its unconventional. It can weird for people to see a whole lot positivity and generosity.

Is actually weird for people so dependant upon their jobs for economic security and only have their careers to fall back about (so much for security) to see that others are daring enough to live and struggle and hurt for a wish or a purpose.

It's odd to many that so many people are certain to get together and cheer an individual on that isn't wearing the football helmet.

Misery likes company and when you are in the clouds some one on earth is eager to grab for your leg and get you down with them.

The many bad news about Network Marketing depends upon rumors of a lawsuit or possibly a cousin that lost the shirt because of a company. Normally are not there lawsuits in any enterprise? You should be afraid if you was to here that there is no such thing since lawsuits in Network Marketing. Would you want to sue somebody who have doesn't make any money?

Multilevel marketing will continue to grow and also flourish as more item companies find that leveraging men and women and their relationships at a talk about in the profit is the best approach to establish their brand, specially with the availability of social media containing refined free advertising.

Being a manufacturer, would you like to pay $1,000,000 in media and promotion for the chance of getting buyers or would you rather shell out a commission for every product or service sold without having to gamble using your money? Yes, a pet bird in the hand beats a couple of in the bush. And this is why Multi-level marketing is so attractive to many businesses.

Not all Network Marketing companies provide you the same opportunity. Some present massive bonus' for hiring and sell you the dream of eventually having enough residual level in your organization to be able to be given a worthy retirement. Network Marketing businesses that serve this type are companies that offer telephony or energy services.

The causes most in those organizations don't ever make anything is because there is very little continuing paid out and qualifying for your small percentage is challenging in those companies. rapid the lure of people acquiring paid for something they are going to perform anyways, which is pay any bill, does not stand in the eye of reality when When you qualify for the residual, it is nickels that are being paid out.

Other companies give a product through a binary payment plan which is great for specialized recruiters and marketers but it really is very difficult for your average person to make a buck.

The most successful companies offer the personal growth and an environment that allows you to have great results, probably not in the Network Marketing firm you are in but through the connection with those involved in your corporation you become a better professional and even more effective as a person. This kind of takes years of building along with growing with those in the organization.

Every rare from time to time there comes along an opportunity with the obligation product, right direction, appropriate ideals, and the right settlement plan that shows what exactly the ownership is contemplating. These opportunities are several and timing is important. So the famous saying moves, the t in moment is bigger than the testosterone levels in talent.

The real possibility is when a company is usually conscientious about their reps regarding the message about supplying everybody a chance.

A company who may have a real product that provides a true service of real worth, and a compensation plan that is certainly transparent enough that it will give you a clear idea of what the control is thinking.

A company which offers you all the educational for you to refine yourself as a particular person while paying you that which you deserved for the time an individual dedicate representing them in addition to living their opportunity.

1 note · View note

keyofjetwolf · 5 years

Text

Elisabeth: The Last Chance/Malady

Essen Alternate Title: “Surprise Bonus Syphilis Oops” Zuka Alternate Title: “YOU SHOULD DIE”

This is another short song, mostly bringing to bear Franz Joseph’s mermaid sexcapades, opening the door for Death to once again ask Elisabeth to the Sock Hop, and Elisabeth telling everyone to fuck off because she needs to take a walk for the next twenty years.

Once again the Takarazuka and Essen versions are dramatically different, which surely comes as a surprise to one and all. The framework is essentially the same: Elisabeth pursues her true life’s goal to be a carnie and collapses. Her attendants call for a doctor, who is also Death. This is literal in one, it’s metaphorical in the other, and as you might have guessed, it’s about here that the two versions of the song part ways.

Let’s talk first about the literal and metaphorical Death part, shall we? I admit I’m taking a few liberties with that claim; the Essen version could also be Literally Death, but I think it’s open enough to interpretation and more in keeping with the ideas of how Death is handled and interacts with Elisabeth that he’s personified, but never truly real. Death is a concept that Elisabeth is enamoured and tempted by, rather than A Real Dude.

The Takarazuka version has no such questions. DEATH IS REAL AND WANTS ELISABETH AND ALSO HAS AN AMAZING WARDROBE. We know the doctor is Death from the second he walks in, and we even take a moment to pause on that fact before the song starts, as Death lingers by Elisabeth’s side, partially reaching out, wanting to badly to touch her (take her?), but resolving to stick to his plan.

Essen Death, whose visage is more shrouded (though they’re not exactly trying to hide him) pretty much gets right to work, reporting what he’s observing in Elisabeth with a clinical kind of detachment feels entirely correct.

Ultimately, the greatest significance in Death’s presence from the start lies in manipulation of Elisabeth. Takarazuka Death has a VERY specific goal in mind with this visit: to expose Franz Joseph’s affair(s?) in an effort to break them up. He prays on Elisabeth’s devotion to Franz Joseph (wait, her what?), specifically talking about why she’s been pretty much starving herself to death.

Which is ... an interesting way to go with this. By that I mean, what the fuck? Particularly within the context of what the Takarazuka already altered. In our last post, for example, we talked about how “Kitsch” chooses to focus on Elisabeth’s obsession with studying the beautiful women of the world so she can stay ahead of them, also drawing direct lines that Elisabeth’s power lies in her beauty and charm. Coupled with how we’ve had her repeatedly pulling away from Franz Joseph and wielding his love for her as a weapon (SHE LITERALLY HAD AN ENTIRE SONG ABOUT THAT), the claim that she’s doing all of this to attract him comes completely out of nowhere. The only thing that makes less sense is that when confronted with his infidelity, she cries “I can’t live with this!”

Don’t worry, though. Death is here and ready to make betrayal SEXY.

I have no idea how you refuse anyone wearing that shirt. Elisabeth, you are a stronger person than me by far.

When Elisabeth realizes it’s Death and not the doctor (how hilarious if she thought the doctor was saying all this to her though), her mood whips back around to defiance.

That only actually means anything if her heart were open to him up to this point, but literally every other action we’ve seen from Elisabeth says otherwise. Which is really the heart of the problem with this scene in the Takarazuka version: IT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE. It feels, from where I’m sitting, that they’re trying to bend this around to make Elisabeth a tragic blameless victim. The problem is, she’s NOT, and the story just can’t hold up with that as its premise.

Beyond the character holes and vacillating motivations that this version of the song leaves in its wake, it also sucks out all the power. Elisabeth essentially resigns herself to Death being stronger, saying he can go ahead and take her if he wants, but she’ll never love him. That stays Death’s hand, but before he leaves, he shows Elisabeth a dagger (possibly the same she nearly used on herself earlier, I’m not sure), promising her that the day will come when she wants to die. Here’s one of the final images of the scene.

Elisabeth is staggered, nearly doubled over on the couch where earlier she was lain. She looks as if Death’s words were a physical blow. By contrast, Death is walking away, back straight, head high. He lets the dagger drift behind him almost casually, blade pointed at Elisabeth, just waiting for her. There’s no question who has all the power here. You could know nothing about the story around this cap, and you’d know.

I’m jumping way the hell forward here, but let’s compare it to one of the final shots from the Essen version.

Jesus wept, this is some different shit. We’ll look at how we got here in a minute, but again, just the image itself is everything. Elisabeth is the one standing this time, tall and resolute. You can’t tell by looking at her that she’s the one saying “Go!”, but one look at Death makes that clear (you don’t even need the subtitle, I just couldn’t get a cap without it). Even though he’s technically above her, he’s reaching out for her as desperately; the personification of Death, and he can’t hope to touch her. He’s leaving, but not because he wants to, because she’s driving him out, by no more than standing there and telling him to fuck all the way off. I think if you had to summarize the difference between the Takarazuka and Essen versions in two caps, these would be them.

It’s not the entirety of this scene, though, we walk several different paths to get here. As I said above, things diverge sharply when the doctor arrives. The doctor in the Essen version is pretty straightforward and unremarkable, really. Pretty quickly, he notes Elisabeth’s symptoms (no mention of her diet, no mention of her husband) and reaches his conclusion.

CONGRATS IT’S AN STD

He does suggest that she got it from Franz Joseph, which in my “the doctor wasn’t literally Death” theory marks the point where I think he enters the equation, BUT WE’RE NOT HERE FOR MY IRRELEVANT PET THEORIES ABOUT MINOR UNIMPORTANT DETAILS. Essen Elisabeth’s response is immediate and vastly different from her Takarazuka counterpart.

It’s all about her or, more importantly, her reputation. Ahh, character consistency! This makes every kind of sense to me, given what we’ve seen of Elisabeth so far. The power she’s managed to amass for herself depends almost entirely on the public’s perception of her and, fair or not (IT’S NOT), a woman with syphilis -- even if she got it from her husband who literally got it from a prostitute -- is going to be regarded extremely differently than a man with the same disease. Franz Joseph has managed to hurt Elisabeth far more than he could’ve dreamed possible, it just isn’t because of heartbreak (or at least not primarily).

She goes on to say that she’ll leave him, but then immediately thinks of suicide instead, which is a “solution” that’s nipped at Elisabeth’s heels from the start, so isn’t particularly surprising. This is when she hears Death whispering to her, encouraging her to do it, promising her the freedom she’s craved her whole life.

Elisabeth’s response to this is as immediate as it is unwavering.

Franz Joseph doing Elisabeth dirty is a blessing, she says, because now she can do whatever she wants without being hedged in by duty or responsibility, and he won’t be able to say a good goddamn thing about it.

“Go!” Elisabeth commands, and that’s where the scene ends.

Even as Essen Elisabeth says she’ll kill herself, she’s never diminished by what’s going on around her. Not by the doctor’s diagnosis, not by Franz Joseph’s actions, not by Death’s manipulations. It’s such a stark difference from Takarazuka Elisabeth, who, even as she tries to seize the moment and make it hers, is once more subjugated by Death’s obsession.

BREAK THE CHAINS ELISABETH

BUT MAYBE FIRST TAKE SOME PENICILLIN FOR ALL THAT SYPHILIS

#jet wolf watches elisabeth #a novel by jet wolf

23 notes · View notes

kittyrossa · 7 years

Photo

when i first watched the S5 finale, i was instantly struck by how the white lion trials parallel the marmora trials! for brevity’s sake, i will refer to them as WL (white lion) and BoM (blade of marmora) throughout the post.

my friend @shirogane-s made a gorgeous gifset that sums up the main parallel, which is, as she says in the caption:

keith initially embodies lotor’s “i will get the results i want (i.e. victory/knowledge) or die trying” approach, but is only able to awaken his blade once he yields, which nicely mirrors allura’s success with the white lion

these three characters (keith/lotor/allura) are all fascinating foils to one another, so it makes sense that their trials would highlight exactly that!

HERITAGE

kolivan: the only way [awakening the blade] is possible is if galra blood runs through your veins.

lotor: that thing is a guardian — it will only allow worthy alteans through.

the BoM trials can be completed by those of galra blood, and the WL trials can be completed by those of altean blood.

keith goes into the BoM trials wanting to discover the secrets of his past; he has spent his entire life with a blade that he does not know the origins of, but has reason to believe is connected to his mother and to galra heritage.

lotor goes into the WL trials wanting to discover the secrets of altean alchemy; he has spent centuries searching for clues of oriande, hoping it will connect him to his altean heritage and to his mother, who possessed the same thirst for knowledge.

allura goes into the WL trials wanting to discover the secrets that her father knew and that she may have inherited: the ancient altean wisdom that allowed him to create voltron and spread peace throughout the universe, the very legacy that allura wants to continue.

CHOSEN

lotor and allura are branded with “the marks of the chosen”, altean markings that glow when deemed worthy of entering oriande. lotor is unsurprised that allura is chosen — alfor had the strongest understanding of altean alchemy — but lotor does seem surprised by his own selection. because honerva did not unlock the secrets of oriande, lotor only saw allura as a potential key. it’s plausible that haggar and lotor were given the properties of a sacred altean after honerva went through the rift, but lotor is not yet admitting that haggar and honerva could be one and the same. whether or not being chosen by the guardian is due to bloodlines, lotor and allura are both chosen. lotor says this is because some alteans are more connected to energy — more “magical” than others. this is just the first step, however; they will still have to prove their worth in the WL trials.

keith being “chosen” is not quite as magical or mystical! he is chosen by his parents to own the blade, though in its knife form; the magical and mystical part comes if he awakens the blade, transforming it. from the way antok reacts — accusing keith of stealing it — it’s clear that most BoM trials end in owning a blade that is individual to the wielder. because keith comes to the trials with a blade that used to be his mother’s and was then passed on to him from his father, he has to prove that he is worthy of being “chosen” by both the blade and his parents.

you can even argue that keith is chosen by a third person: shiro, who ends up playing a crucial role in the BoM trials, and who was himself chosen by ulaz as a fighter/leader that could help the BoM. shiro chooses keith not just as a right-hand man that will partner him to the headquarters, but as someone he trusts to take over leadership should something ever happen to him. shiro says that keith needs to work on controlling his emotions and on learning self-discipline, unaware that the BoM trials will test keith with that same mindset.

BLACK HOLE VS. WHITE HOLE

each trial is hidden: the BoM trials within a space pocket bracketed by black holes, and the WL trials within the energy of a white hole.

this is true to the fact that both trials are rooted in secrecy. the BoM’s location is only revealed because ulaz entrusted shiro with the coordinates, and the WL’s location is only revealed because allura’s power granted her access to the compass stone’s map. only two are permitted to enter the BoM headquarters, and only two are chosen by the guardian to enter oriande’s realm. in both cases, the rest of the paladins are forced to wait at the castle, without a glimpse of what could be happening — the black and white holes cause too much interference, preventing any readings.

lotor: the wise stand back from the fire; fools are burned on the pyre; the mystic becomes one with the flame; the embers and he are the same.

keith has to navigate away from being sucked into the black hole, but lotor and allura have to navigate inside the white hole. this is a mirror of the trials themselves: the BoM trials are about evading a dangerous path to focus on the destination, and the WL trials are about becoming one with energy to reach the destination.

KNOWLEDGE

as soon as the trials begin, they do not stop. keith is faced with the relentless swordsmanship of the BoM, and lotor and allura are faced with the charged attacks of the white lion.

keith and lotor rise to the challenge, but allura is quick to realize that engaging in combat is not the answer:

allura: i do not wish to fight! i come here seeking knowledge. this isn’t the way.

though allura has lost altea, she has not forgotten its culture or what she has learned from her father. alfor’s contribution to peace went beyond voltron; as coran says, they “can’t always put the fate of the universe in the hands of a giant weapon — at least, that’s what your father believed.” alteans were diplomats. the first time allura awakens her magic, it’s not through weapons, but through words. her voice reaches the balmerans as she tells them not to give up — she knows what it’s like to watch her home planet die, and will not let it happen to them.

coran: in the days of old, when alteans were given the gift of crystals from a balmera, we would repay its sacrifice by performing a ceremony. a sacred altean would re-infuse the balmera with quintessence. in this way, we had a symbiotic relationship.

allura: the galra have only been taking. it’s time we give back.

allura risks the same ceremony that her father performed, even though she’s never done it before and the scale of it may come at the cost of her own life. the ceremony isn’t about power, but about how she can use power to provide peace; and since then, this has been allura’s goal every time she has awakened her magic. her magic destroys the komar (haggar’s experiment that drains planets of quintessence), and her magic revives voltron on naxzela before haggar can bomb it. allura’s magic may be new to her, but by following her father’s footsteps in saving countless lives, she is firm about what she wants to do with her magic.

this is the wisdom that allura brings with her to the WL trials. lotor admits that none of his research can prepare them for what happens once they’re in oriande, but allura is a natural at navigating the obstacles presented by the sages. she knows that she needs to kneel and seek permission for passage and clarify that they intend no harm; that they offer up the compass stone as a gift. she also spots the teludav that transports them to the WL trials, something that lotor says only a “trained altean” would recognize.

as much as he wishes to connect to his altean heritage, lotor is not a “trained altean”. he has attempted to train himself by exploring the universe and gathering what remnants of altea that he can find, but there’s a difference between scientific theory and spiritual practise. attempts at either have been shamed as weak by zarkon — “you have altean blood running through your veins, poisoning your very being” — or outright crushed.

lotor: i envy you growing up with king alfor. i always wanted to be an explorer and learn about the universe. my father was only interested in conquering it. he once put me in charge of a planet for a year, running the quintessence mining and getting to know the local population. rather than employ the usual galran methods of subjugation, i worked alongside the leadership of the planet, learning their customs. we would only extract as much quintessence as could be replenished, and i enjoyed my time there quite a bit. when my father found out what was happening, he ordered me to destroy the planet. i refused, and he sent me away. he destroyed them all. i was powerless to stop him.

lotor does try to prioritize knowledge, just as he feels his mother once did — and if he’s going to gain a victory, it’s not going to be through the brute force and aggression that is favored by his father. he’s a fighter that survives by trapping and evading and using his surroundings; when engaged in combat, he provokes whoever is at the other end of his sword — throk, zarkon, sendak — by mocking their aggressive clawing for power and glory. when zarkon pursues him in the air with the intent to kill, lotor doesn’t fight, but escapes through harnessing the power of a sun.

because he’s been raised in galra culture rather than altean culture, it’s understandable that it’s lotor who keeps repeating that the WL trials will likely test their “worth”. when we first meet lotor, one of the first things he reveals is that rising to the galra throne is through “the honorable rite of combat”, and this is further confirmed with the ceremony of kral zera. you win by being the strongest, whether your methods are mental or physical or a combination of both.

lotor is a “trained galra”, even if he tries to rebel against that training. allura isn’t afraid to be alone during her WL trials, but lotor is out of his element when he finds himself without her, asking after her by calling her name. the landscape is an open space — there is nowhere to hide and its emptiness provides nothing to use. he can’t evade this. plus, the white lion doesn’t talk: it’s like a translucent spirit, making no sounds beyond roars and growls. there is no personality for lotor to provoke, no amount of cunning that will stop the white lion’s physical force — he can only respond to it by matching it with his own.

lotor: i will not yield! i will gain your secrets!

this is an obvious echo of keith in the BoM trials, though he’s fighting people rather than projections:

BoM: surrender the blade and the pain will cease.

keith: i won’t quit.

BoM: surrender the blade and the pain will cease.

keith: never!

this is not about glory; this is not about proving himself the strongest. keith is galra, but hasn’t grown up in the empire as lotor has, internalizing its values despite himself. this isn’t about his pride as a fighter, but as a person. if he surrenders the blade, he is surrendering his identity. if he gives up the fight, he is not being faithful to his determination to always see a goal through — to be all in.

like lotor, keith hasn’t been trained by his mother. keith is coming into his trials with the least amount of knowledge about his family, and he sees his knife as his key. how can he let them take it away? he doesn’t know the BoM’s customs and culture. he doesn’t know that these trials are not just testing his endurance against the empire’s unyielding fight, but testing his ability to know when to stop — a balance that he’s already struggled with.

coran: it’s zarkon! keith, get out of there, now! zarkon is too powerful!

keith: this is my chance to put an end to the galra empire! i have to take it!

zarkon: you fight like a galra soldier — but not for long!

unlike lotor, however, keith has a support system that has helped him try to find that balance.

keith: patience yields focus.

shiro: that really stayed with you, didn’t it?

keith: you’ve given me some good advice. if it weren’t for you, my life would have been a lot different.

shiro is right there watching the BoM trials, worrying for keith and rooting for him. he knows that keith will never quit, and he knows that keith’s emotions can overpower his focus. keith may be seeking knowledge about his galra family, but shiro is his found family from earth. they met at some point in their lives, and shiro for keith became the one person who “has never given up” on him, implying that others have given up. others have perhaps looked at keith’s fire and found the flames too dangerous or destructive, a person they don’t want to get burned by, but shiro looked at keith’s fire and helped him transform it into a light to guide both keith and others, including shiro. he believes in keith.

so, it takes him some time, but keith eventually uses “patience yields focus” in the BoM trials: he slows down and notices the escape route, throwing his knife and evading without surrendering. keith is exhausted and in pain and he desperately wants to see shiro, which is why hologram!shiro appears as a manifestation of his hopes and fears — the hopes that he will support keith, and the fears that he will reject keith. hologram!shiro tries to impart wisdom, but it’s clinical and cruel: keith is selfish, keith already has family in shiro and the paladins, and if keith doesn’t give up the knife, then keith has chosen to be alone. shiro abandoning him is the first thing to make keith hesitate, but before he can run after him, the mindscape changes to a hologram of keith’s father, who has all of the knowledge that keith is seeking.

SACRIFICE

the BoM trials and the WL trials come down to the ultimate question of “what are you willing to give up, and will you give it up?”

allura: i seek the secret of life. i give my own.

allura is willing.

keith: just take the knife! it doesn’t matter where i come from — i know who i am. we all need to work together to defeat zarkon. if that means i give up this knife, fine. take it.

keith is willing.

lotor: victory or death!

lotor is unwilling.

before i continue, there’s a third “trial” that feels relevant: shiro’s battle with zarkon in the astral plane.

zarkon: you have no idea how to command a weapon like this!

shiro: no one commands the black lion!

zarkon: you dare lecture me? do you think the black lion would allow such a feeble creature to pilot it? only the powerful can command it!

shiro: you’ve forgotten what’s most important between a lion and its paladin. it’s not about power. it’s about earning each other’s trust!

lotor fails his trials because he fails to realize what allura and keith do: that it’s not about being worthy of power, but about being trustworthy.

lotor doesn’t trust the white lion not to hurt him, and it’s hard to blame him. his father has targeted him with the same physical force, and would have gone to the point of killing lotor more than once. and though lotor is adamant that “that witch is not my mother”, haggar is the nearest maternal figure that he has: she has stood alongside zarkon and participated in the attempts to control lotor, albeit more psychologically than physically. she has sent out people to spy on him (military, narti, shiro); and though she shares the same blood that blocks her from the throne, haggar coldly calls lotor a “half-breed” whose altean blood quells the rights granted by his galra blood.

so, it’s understandable that lotor isn’t quick to trust people, let alone mysterious mystical lions. his team of generals came the closest in that lotor trusted them to carry out his plans, and in the end they deserted him — but only because lotor lost their trust first. cutting narti down is an example of how lotor does not like to feel powerless — like he’s losing control — and thus is not above doing whatever it takes to regain that power and control. he has manipulated the empire, the rebels, and the paladins, presenting and performing himself as trustworthy in actions and in words. but it’s likely that the white lion would have seen a manipulative stab at diplomacy such as “i come here for nothing but peace.” lotor may claim that as his aim in discovering the secrets of altean alchemy, but in reality he is still too focused on power.

it’s comparable to the triforce from the legend of zelda: three forces (power/courage/wisdom) that need to be balanced to bring peace. allura, though she also relies on power and courage, embodies wisdom; keith, though he also relies on power and wisdom, embodies courage; and lotor, though he also relies on courage and wisdom, embodies power.

allura and keith have a better hold on balancing all three, even if one can dominate; but lotor largely uses his courage and wisdom for the endgame of power, a path that his parents went down and launched an unending war.

alfor: the ore from the comet practically engineers itself. it’s frightening, in a way.

zarkon: endlessly powerful ships for the galra empire.

alfor: and an endless source of clean energy for the entire system.

alfor: we must exercise caution. we have no idea what is out there.

honerva: the ancients thought that lightning was shot from the bows of the gods until science proved otherwise. we must always push into dangerous territory in pursuit of knowledge.

honerva: quintessence is so much more than you can understand. it is life itself.

alfor: you’ve gone too far.

honerva: you’ve always been a coward! you wish to close off our gateway to enlightenment — we should be expanding it!

zarkon: if we use voltron, we can enlarge the opening to the other reality!

alfor: it’s madness! this prolonged exposure to quintessence has poisoned your minds.

zarkon: we’ve only scratched the surface. we can rule this entire universe! we can live forever! all of us!

alfor: i cannot be a part of this.

zarkon: you are only one part of voltron, alfor. you cannot hold us all back because of your fear! alfor, i lead the paladins! i command you!

lotor doesn’t want to be his father, but emulating his mother doesn’t mean he isn’t seeking power. like honerva, lotor seeks power through knowledge; and like honerva, lotor sees going through the rift as how to get that power. plan A was reaping the rift’s quintessence by building ships from the transreality comet. when that failed, lotor went for plan B: allura and voltron — much like how zarkon and honerva manipulated alfor and voltron.

shiro: how do you get an empire that’s only known violence for thousands of years to put down their weapons?

lotor: by providing them with the very thing they’re fighting for: quintessence. unlimited amounts of it. and allura, you are the key to getting it.

lotor: in order to transition the galra empire to a peaceful existence, i need to open up a pathway to the quintessence field. once my people have access to unlimited energy, the old ways of the empire will be behind them.

allura: if this voyage is successful, the universe will finally be on the path to peace.

again, lotor is certainly saying all of the right things — but, well, “the masses are easily manipulated.” he must know that it’s not that simple: unlimited quintessence may stop the hunt for power, but that doesn’t mean it’ll stop the hunger for it. the galra spirit won’t change from power-hungry to peace-seeking overnight — the galra can still use unlimited quintessence for physical force and violent feats. when keith and krolia reunite, it’s on a mission to destroy a superweapon built from undocumented quintessence that is unparalleled in its power; and lotor says himself that haggar is constantly seeking altean magical knowledge to “pervert” for her own power.

allura: your mother was honerva? the honerva that discovered the rift on planet daibazaal? then you’re — half-altean!

lotor: yes. it was something the galra considered a weakness, but i considered it a strength. the union between zarkon and honerva sparked a technological revolution within the empire. even back then, altean culture was remarkably advanced. the kinds of experiments she was conducting — she advanced science by eons.

lotor is trying to gain power in the Altean (Honerva) Way that he sees as superior to the Galra (Zarkon) Way. given how much lotor has had to fight for his own survival, it’s not unreasonable that he thinks he needs power to do so — specifically more power than zarkon, who lotor has felt powerless against before. when the white lion attacks him, lotor kills it — “victory or death!” — out of survival instincts; he isn’t about to sacrifice his own life that easily, not after centuries of fighting for it and for the dawn of a new age that honors his (and his mother’s) vision of power.

lotor: i will light the flame. not for defeating my father, and not even for being the strongest galra here. but because i did something no one else could do: i returned the black lion to the galra!

lotor may try to distance himself from his father, but at his core, he too sees voltron as a source of power to command. he displays himself as having ownership over the black lion, which is why he doesn’t succeed with the white lion. it never once occurs to him that it’s about teamwork and trust, a sincere emotional bond — “political allyship for one’s own gain” is not going to cut it.

keith’s BoM trials are about forming an alliance between voltron and marmora, but keith succeeds where lotor fails because he puts the mission above himself. the mindscape is on the cusp of unlocking every secret kept from keith, but he’s distracted by the galra attacking earth and people screaming and the red lion waiting for him.

keith: dad, i’m sorry, i gotta go. there’s people that need me out there.

keith’s father: don’t you want to know where you came from? your mother gave [the knife] to me.

keith: mom?

keith’s father: she’ll be here soon.

keith: you gotta tell me, dad. i have to know! where did the knife come from? what does it mean?

keith’s father: your mother is almost here. she’ll tell you everything.

keith: i can’t wait around anymore, i have to go!

keith’s father: if you walk out that door, you’ll never find out who you are.

keith: goodbye, dad.

arguably, the first lion “trial” is between keith and red: the red lion requires its paladin to prove that they’re worthy of respect, and keith has to fight off galra and get thrown out into space for the red lion to believe that he’s “all in”, swooping in to save him; a pattern that continues after keith finds out that he’s able to connect to red from long distances. keith is a paladin of voltron: he knows that working together with your lion is what will save the universe. he would never strike it as lotor did to the white lion, and the red lion would never let anyone strike keith.

shiro: [the red lion] has a link with keith. it knows when he’s in danger — it’s coming for him!

shiro joins red in fighting the BoM, only letting go of a wounded keith to defend him against kolivan and antok, who demand that keith give up his blade because he “failed to awaken it.” keith stops them as shiro and antok clash, voicing what he decided in the mindscape: he knows who he is and what he wants to do. what matters is saving the universe, and they need to work together to make that happen. if he has to give up his knife for that teamwork and trust, then he’s willing to make that sacrifice.

this is what awakens keith’s blade, and it is probably what has awakened other blades: the willingness of the BoM member to put the mission above anything that could hold them back. emotions are a “luxury” they cannot afford; kolivan doesn’t call emotions a “weakness” because he recognizes emotions for what they are: powerful feelings that can make someone selfish instead of selfless, upholding their own life above the lives that the galra have been threatening for several millennia. if they want to defeat the empire, then they can’t indulge in emotions that risk outweighing that mission.

krolia tells keith that she left keith once and will never leave him again — she, too, had chosen between family and mission, and now wants to meet in the middle. in retrospect, this sheds a light on how keith has always struggled with that balance: at one moment, he is scolding pidge for wanting to find her family over forming voltron; at the next moment, he is willing to give up on voltron because he wants to find shiro, his found family.

allura: keith — i know exactly how you feel. but our mission is bigger than any one individual. even those who are … completely irreplaceable.

keith: i know you’re right. it’s time to figure out how to reform voltron.

the black lion trusts keith in replacing shiro because shiro trusted keith in replacing shiro. keith has no visions of the black lion granting him power and glory. he only sees that he is filling the seat of someone he desperately wants back, and keith talks to black as though the lion and shiro are one soul: “i know you wanted this for me, shiro. but i’m not you. i can’t lead them like you. this one’s for you, shiro.”

when shiro does come back, keith sacrifices his own place on the team to make shiro black paladin again. rather than kick lance out of red and allura out of blue, keith turns his efforts towards somewhere he knows he can play a role: the BoM. he makes this sacrifice no matter how much he may miss the lions and the paladins and the teamwork and trust that they have begun to build together. as always, the mission comes first.

and allura isn’t wrong: if anyone knows how keith feels, it’s her.

allura: i don’t know if we should run to preserve what we have, or stay and risk everything. i want to fight, but the paladins of old are gone. i know what you would do.

hologram!alfor: i scattered the lions to keep them out of zarkon’s hands. you urged me to keep them and fight, but, for the greater good of protecting the universe, i chose to hide them.

allura: i think i understand.

hologram!alfor: no, daughter, you were right. i made a terrible mistake, one that cost the universe countless lives. forming voltron is the only way to stop zarkon. you must be willing to sacrifice everything to assemble the lions and correct my error.

allura doesn’t have the luxury of putting her grief above the mission. she has lost everything irreplaceable to her — her father, her planet, her people — and yet she doesn’t falter in putting herself out there to ensure that others don’t experience her pain. she ruthlessly trains the new paladins not out of a power trip, but because she understands the urgency of war; and it’s the same when shiro disappears and she has to push keith to step up to the plate, just as she had to for alfor.

it’s hard for her to let go of those leadership instincts when it’s her turn to pilot a lion. she’s used to flying the castle, creating wormholes, and calling the shots for the entire team — and while she doesn’t lose that role completely, it takes a trial and error period to realize that she can’t command blue as she would the castle. she knows that bonding with a lion is important, but as happened to lotor, it’s one thing to know something in theory, and a whole other thing to act it out in practise.

allura: nothing works! i’ve tried asking you nicely, and i’ve tried commanding you! what do you want from me? i can’t do this. everyone depends on me. the universe depends on me, but i can’t control everything. i need your help. guide me. i can’t do it alone.

allura accepts that she can’t fight on her own, and this may be why the blue lion accepts allura where the red lion didn’t. she did ask red for help, but because alfor piloted red, allura put double the pressure on herself in asking red to accept her: not because she wanted the glory of being her father, but because some part of her felt she could only follow alfor’s footsteps if she mirrored him in every way imaginable.

she still sometimes feels that pressure, fearing that she’ll never be the alchemist her father was, but by opening herself up to the support of others as she did to blue, the journey has become less lonely. the universe doesn’t rest on her shoulders alone. the WL trials again ask her to consider the balance between power and peace, and allura accepts the white lion’s energy into her heart — she sacrifices command and control. it’s about working together and trusting each other. how else will they save the universe from a constant cycle of fighting?

allura has the same awakening in accepting the help of the galra: the BoM, keith, and lotor.

allura to keith: i’m so sorry i misjudged you. you’ve proven it’s not what’s in your blood — it’s who you are that counts.

allura to lotor: what you did was for the greater good. and for many of us, proof of your intentions for peace.

despite her trauma, allura’s perspective on galra can be changed if they prove that they are fighting for the same cause that she is. it’s an extreme emotional risk — the first time she had a galra teammate, they betrayed voltron and killed her father and destroyed her entire culture. this cannot be understated, nor can the amount of strength it takes to put herself on the line for that vulnerability again and again. but from where allura’s standing, keith and lotor have proven — again and again — that they believe in voltron’s mission.

as of S5, allura and keith have a relationship of genuine trust. it’s been tested, such as when keith began prioritizing BoM missions over being the pilot of the black lion; but at the end of the day, keith has always done whatever it takes to fight the empire. they were both willing to leave the castle to find out if zarkon was tracking them, sacrificing their own safety for the safety of their team and the entire universe. keith was willing to put action over caution and infiltrate central command to finally defeat zarkon, earning allura’s turnaround in trusting him. they were both willing to sacrifice the chance to stay with their departed fathers, letting go of their holograms to maintain their mission. and allura was willing to reach out and offer keith a place in her “new family”, knowing what it is to lose your biological family and have to rebuild and reconnect.

keith doesn’t fault allura when she falls for lotor’s trap with the altean distress signal, and allura expresses condolences when keith loses regris, partially due to keith’s own risk-taking. keith has allura’s blessing in joining the BoM, knowing he’ll make them proud — and she acknowledges that the BoM have been instrumental in the fight against zarkon, a huge leap from her initial distrust in them and criticism of their caution. though they’ve parted ways for now, allura is similar to shiro in that she has made it clear that she wants keith to feel he can come back to them; that the team has faith and trust in him.

as of S5, allura and lotor have a relationship of tentative trust — “tentative” because it’s genuine on allura’s end, but lotor’s end is debatable. fandom seems 50/50 on it, which speaks to lotor’s complexity and how you can build a case for both. but these are the facts: lotor has communicated faith and support in allura’s abilities, urging her to be the person who can carry on the tradition of altean alchemy. honerva and alfor were alchemists, and zarkon and alfor were friends that fought alongside each other. can’t lotor and allura be the same, and rewrite their wrongs? everything lotor says is rooted in truth, even if there is a part of him that’s bending it to get the results that he wants. he and allura are both genuinely nostalgic for a time that no longer exists — as the new rulers of their royal families, they can understand each other in a way that few others can.

we can assume that lotor is using altean nostalgia for an ulterior motive, just as he used the altean distress signal to appeal to allura and get him the transreality comet. what he’s doing now is a more personal version of that plan, becoming friends with her and earning her trust and confidence. he says that he cannot revive altean alchemy without her, and allura boomerangs the same sentiment back at him: “i’m glad you’re here to help me now. i never would have gotten here without you.” this comes after lotor confides in her his reasons for being exiled, and his genuine despair at how he was powerless to stop zarkon. when allura later repeats that she couldn’t have unlocked her altean alchemy without lotor, he smooths over his frown with a smile and says that oriande was for her and not for him — she is the true alchemist.

alfor was once blinded by his compassion for zarkon, and allura may have that same blindness in her compassion — and empathy — for lotor. but the potential is there for them to have a future relationship without ulterior motives; to someday join together and restore altean culture and bring peace to the universe.

what about keith and lotor to complete the trifecta? as of S5, they have what i call a “wild card” relationship, and one of distant trust. it’s unclear if they’ve properly met in terms of being formally introduced — keith knows who lotor is, but lotor doesn’t seem to have been told that a former paladin (and one that he fought) is now a part-galra member of the BoM. they used to collide in battle when keith flew black and lotor was emperor pro tem; keith had immense distrust in lotor, doing everything he could to thwart him and his traps. but more recently, they’ve collided while saving each other — lotor unaware of who he was saving, but keith completely aware and doing the exact opposite of how he’d approached lotor before. lotor saved keith and the universe for his own political gain, but keith saved lotor because he now trusted him to be someone who could change the political tide.

i said this in my keitor meta for S3 + S4, but lotor saving keith had the potential to make keith do a turnaround in his trust of lotor, and S5 confirms this even if they never met afterwards. keith is still with the BoM, and their contact with lotor is indirect — lotor gives the paladins intel to pass on to kolivan, and kolivan reports back that it’s trustworthy. communications appear to stop after lotor kills zarkon, which is why keith doesn’t hear from them about kral zera — but it’s kral zera where he and lotor collide again, and it’s kral zera where keith saves lotor.

keith and lotor’s potential dynamic is a “wild card” because unlike their dynamics with allura, it’s galra-on-galra. prior to S5, many of us assumed that keith was a prime candidate for manipulation — he was part-galra like lotor and isolated from his former teammates like lotor, and if lotor wanted to deepen that wedge, he could have appealed to keith’s desire to belong by offering him a place alongside him. but as of S5, the tables have turned: it’s increasingly clear that keith is the galra that lotor pretends to be — that lotor finds it hard to be as the emperor’s son. keith refuses to be a prisoner of his own blood, knowing that galra blood doesn’t automatically make one loyal to zarkon or “just like” zarkon. he works with the BoM to take the empire down from the inside, and not just to shift its methods of power as lotor is doing with altean methods, but to dismantle its power and restore stability — hence the plan to blow up kral zera as the symbol of the first planet the galra conquered, along with the galra’s currently powerful leaders.

keith aborts that mission when shiro and lotor arrive — and the fact that keith lumps in lotor with shiro as “someone i want to save” is huge. but it’s logical: keith’s trust in lotor shifted once lotor executed the exact action keith was planning (destroying haggar’s bomb). seeing shiro ally himself with lotor is going to deepen that trust, even if keith is only viewing things from a distance. lotor is like a “cool/calculating” version of shiro: both have been pursued by zarkon for taking his former thrones (the empire’s + the black lion’s), and zarkon has mocked shiro and lotor for being “weaker” than him, stopping at nothing to eliminate them. and of course, both have been pursued by haggar and are currently being pursued by haggar, who through her magic tries to control them for her own agenda for power. lotor and shiro deal with this trauma by masking it with composure, and they make decisive and difficult choices to keep on surviving. keith has never lost trust in shiro, so it’s not out of the question that he’d trust lotor if he got to know him more personally — unless he saw the “cool/calculating” personality for what he used to see: someone cunning and chaotic. this may depend on how lotor responds to operation kuron: eliminate shiro like he eliminated narti, or help him and empathize with him (and therefore maintain keith’s trust)?

on the flipside, keith is like a “fiery/explosive” version of acxa — lotor’s former, and most devoted, general. less is known about acxa’s backstory, but since her introduction in the weblum, she has been mysteriously honorbound. keith says she’s “just like the rest of them” after she steals the scaultrite, but acxa remains different in that she doesn’t kill keith once she gets what she needs (and she pays her debt by saving him at kral zera). she reminds her teammates not to kill anyone, but to get the intel they need and get out. like keith, she encourages her team to stay efficient and dedicated to the mission, and like keith, she is intensely loyal to her leader; she wants to trust that he’ll protect them, and she needs to be convinced to overthrow him for her own gain. even then, her decision to do so is “for narti”, and she can’t help but insist that “no one is replacing lotor” when zethrid and ezor muse about usurping him as emperor (very keith-esque in how he responded to anyone replacing shiro as black paladin). what separates them is that acxa maintains her composure where keith’s emotions are often crystal clear; but they have both served as trusted right-hands to their leaders, and so it again makes you wonder what would happen if there was a mix-and-match: lotor meeting keith, a foil to acxa, and keith meeting lotor, a foil to shiro.

if allura represents the altean side of lotor that he on some level wishes he could embody, then keith may become that for lotor’s galra side. his WL trials demonstrate that he still has a long way to go on the path to inner peace and universal peace; allura and keith are already moving ahead.

as of S5, allura is connecting more and more to alfor and her altean heritage. as of S5, keith has just been given the opportunity to connect to krolia and his galra heritage. but as of S5, lotor has been denied the secrets of oriande and seems to be in denial about haggar being honerva — if he’s admitted it to himself at all, he sees them as separate entities. discovering that haggar is essentially an “amplified” version of the mother he holds on a pedestal could be something that destroys him, or it could be something that allows him to finally move forward and balance these two important sides of himself.

there’s nothing inherently evil about seeking victory or seeking knowledge — it’s about why and how you seek those things, and allura and keith are proof that choosing the honorable path is possible. for inner peace, they could use a little of lotor’s “selfishness” (not sacrificing their own emotions), and for universal peace, lotor could use a little of their “selflessness” (not sacrificing the safety of others). even if you theorize that lotor wants to go through the rift for “selfless" reasons — quintessence to uncorrupt haggar, as his parents may have wanted quintessence to save lotor’s life — there is still an element of selfishness in seeking power that can save one person at the cost of endangering the entire universe.

whatever happens in S6 and beyond, it’s safe to say that keith/lotor/allura all have compelling arcs about the trials of repeating history + shaping their own history. i’m super excited to see how these arcs continue to parallel and/or intersect!

#leithal #vld keith #keith kogane #vld lotor #prince lotor #vld allura #princess allura #keith and allura #keith and lotor #allura and lotor #more chara-centric than shippy but tag it as kallura or keitor or lotura if you want!#vld meta #long post #add-on:#keith and shiro

720 notes · View notes

16thstreet · 7 years

Text

An Introduction to the Thinkers of Reform Judaism

By Josh Daniels, Former Research Intern

Growing up in a secular household, I had only a loose connection to the religion of Judaism. I attended Hebrew school twice a week for five years, and studied eight months independently for my bar mitzvah. I attended High Holiday services throughout my high school years, and ended up all but renounced my religious identity into college, where, ironically, I majored in religion and culture. I was always taught that social liberalism and commitment to universal human rights were sufficient markers of my Jewish identity. While I believe these traits are central to Judaism, they never gave me the drive to associate myself with any particularly Jewish values or practices. After all, given my relatively secular upbringing, why should I not just embody humanist values? It wasn’t until completing my undergraduate work in the study of religion that I realized that being intellectually fulfilled was a crucial part of a religious identity, and I found the Jewish intellectual tradition to be a rewarding avenue for articulating my own identity. It was hard to find a place to start however, considering my upbringing. As much as I’d learned while earning my degree, it was still hard for me to feel honest doing things like laying tefillin, especially since it was barely two years ago that I professed a fairly militant atheism.

Subsequently, I became particularly interested in the intellectual basis of Reform Judaism, which I saw as an opportunity to connect with both tradition and the modern world. I turned my attention to the archives at the Center for Jewish History, and through my research, found that the roots of the Judaism I was brought up in can be traced back to 19th century Germany. Germany at the time was a hotbed of ideas and had a century to react to the emergence of enlightened rationalism. Germany was churning out literary and philosophical giants such as Goethe and Hegel. Enlightenment thinking affected Jews and gentiles alike, as there arose many thinkers in Germany in the 1800’s whose ideas would have repercussions for Jews in Europe as well as America. As other secular or Reformish acquaintances of mine can attest, the real nuts and bolts of these early reformist ideas were absent from our Jewish education. Therefore, I will use my interest in the history of Reform Judaism in 19th century Germany and America to write a two-part series of blog posts hoping to give context for past attempts at reconciling Judaism with modern culture.

The Reform movement in 19th century Germany can be understood by highlighting a few of its prominent voices. Reform began in 19th century Germany despite the obstacles of ideological irrelevance in the wake of Enlightenment rationalism and political subjugation. Following the disintegration of the Holy Roman Empire, Germany consisted of a confederation of 39 different German-speaking states, all of which varied in their legislative influence on their Jewish communities.[1] Early on in the 1800s, reform was generally an urban phenomenon, mostly supported by members of the wealthier, educated classes.

One of the first attempts at a resurrection of Judaism culturally and politically was the formation of the Society for the Culture and Science of the Jews. The society was comprised of “a young generation of Jews educated at German Gymnasiums and universities [which] gathered from 1819 to 1824.”[2]

Despite the eventual conversion of almost all of the members to Christianity, one figure remained stalwart in his pursuit of the Society’s original goal. This man was Leopold Zunz (1794 – 1886). Often spoken of in the same breath as Moses Mendelssohn, Zunz was educated in the study of Classics and History at Berlin University.[3] He continued with the initial project of the Society, developing the Science of Judaism (Wissenshaft des Judentums), the precursor to what we would today consider the academic study of Judaism.

Jul Loewensohn, “Seated studio portrait of Leopold Zunz holding a book; Berlin Portraits Men,” Franz Rosenzweig Collection AR 3001, F AR 3001, Call # F3824N, Leo Baeck Institute. http://search.cjh.org/beta:CJH_SCOPE:cjh_digitool884570

This work helped to legitimized Judaism in the eyes of the educated classes of Germany and give Judaism a place in 19th century intellectual life. This work was of considerable importance towards the work of reform, considering the political situation at the time widely barred Jews from positions in academia, education, and government. Interestingly enough, however, “Zunz himself ultimately gave up hope for reform and confined himself to strictly historical researches, even adopting increasingly orthodox practices as he aged.”[4]

If Leopold Zunz represented the academic face of the reform movement, then Abraham Geiger and Samual Holdheim represented the theological face. Geiger, too, was engaged in the work of forming a science of Judaism, but did so by incorporating this work into his rabbinic career. Raised in an Orthodox family, he quickly entered secular university and began the work of reform.[5] Geiger was often at odds with more conservative members of his community, refusing to compromise by relinquishing “beth din (the Rabbinical Court) and the halakhic (legal) functions” of the Breslau Jewish community to Rabbi Solomon Tiktin, and refused a position as head of the Berlin Jewish Reform Congregation on the grounds that reform must not cause a schism in the Jewish community as a whole.[6]

“Seated studio portrait of Abraham Geiger, Portraits Men,” circa 1860, Abraham Geiger Collection AR 29 AR 29, call # F 2200, Leo Baeck Institute.http://search.cjh.org/beta:CJH_SCOPE:cjh_digitool891829

Geiger’s theology was based on the idea that Judaism evolved naturally over time, and that it was necessary to rely on these historical processes which worked over centuries for the work of reform. Geiger understood the history of Judaism to be divided into four different periods: Revelation, Tradition, Rigid Legalism, and finally Liberation and Criticism. In his own words, the task which confronts Judaism in this current stage was:

The loosening of the fetters of the previous period [Rigid Legalism] through the use of Reason and historical investigation – without interrupting the connection with the past. It is a period of attempts at self-renewal, of bringing the historical process into flux again, a period of criticism.[7]

Last, Samuel Holdheim, in contrast with Abraham Geiger, believed in a radical break with the past. Holdheim’s focus on a departure from tradition is at odds with his education as a “Talmudist of the old school.”[8] His theology was based on what he thought was a radical misunderstanding “of the events of the year 70 C.E., when the Jewish State and the Jerusalem Temple were destroyed. The task of the nineteenth-century Jew, therefore, was to get back to the Bible – or, at any rate, to those parts of the Bible which, according to Holdheim, were meant to have eternal validity.”[9] For Holdheim, the destruction of the Temple was due as much to the action of God as the actions of the Romans. This unique reading of history upended such concepts as Jewish racial purity, allowing mixed marriages, and observance of the laws associated with the ancient Jewish theocracy in Palestine.[10] These details of these two thinkers’ legacies are presented in several 20th century manuscripts which are accessible in the digital collections of the Center for Jewish History.

The waves that these thinkers made in the intellectual and theological worlds in Germany would first be exported to America in relatively insular German-Jewish communities know as Landsmanschaften, but given the absence of a deeply entrenched orthodox monolith in America, they would soon spread and develop in unique ways, which I will explore in the next entry.

Editor’s note: you can read more about the origins of the Reform movement in the YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe (http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Reform_Religious) or Jewish Encyclopedia (http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12634-reform-judaism-from-the-point-of-view-of-the-reform-jew).

References

2008. German Confederation. August 21. https://www.britannica.com/topic/German-Confederation.

Hill, Harvey. 2007. "The Science of Reform: Abraham Geiger and the Wissenschaft des Judentum." Modern Judaism 329-349.

2004. "Leopold Zunz." Encyclopedia of World Biography.

Petuchowski, Jakob J. 1976. "Abraham Geiger and Samuel Holdheim - Their Differences in Germany and Repercussions in America." New York City: Leo Baeck Institute, April 12. Hyperlink: http://search.cjh.org:1701/beta:CJH_SCOPE:CJH_ALEPH004613018

Wallach, Luitpold. 1958. "The Thoughts of Leopold Zunz." Center for Jewish History: Digital Archives. Hyperlink: http://search.cjh.org:1701/beta:CJH_SCOPE:CJH_ALEPH000202068

[1] (German Confederation 2008)

[2] (Wallach 1958)

[3] (Leopold Zunz 2004)

[4] (Hill 2007)

[5] Ibid.

[6] (Petuchowski 1976)

[7] (Petuchowski 1976)

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

#Josh Daniels #Research Intern #Reform movement #Reform Judaism

4 notes · View notes

asctx · 7 years

Text

How Sex Scenes are the Mirrors into the Dark Soul of the Film Industry

by Antonia Louisa Georgiou for New Socialist // 2017-10-19

When we watch films as a form of entertainment, we rarely consider that the violence we witness on screen could reflect a harrowing off-screen reality. Writing in The Guardian last week, French actor Léa Seydoux revealed that she was one of the many victims of Harvey Weinstein’s unwanted advances. But Seydoux’s article reminds us that the subjugation of women in the film industry is not confined to what goes on behind the screen: she also mentions two other instances of exploitation at the hands of men in the film industry. In the first, she recalls a director, whom she "really liked and respected", telling her “I wish I could fuck you”. In the second, she denounces a director who filmed long sex scenes which lasted for days, bordering on the torturous. Whoever the man in question may be, Seydoux had previously criticised her Blue is the Warmest Colour director Abdellatif Kechiche at the film’s initial release in 2013. Describing a “horrible” filmmaking experience in which filming sex scenes lasted for ten days, Seydoux said that Kechiche made her feel like a “prostitute”.

As we lament the insidious aggression committed by men like Weinstein, we must also acknowledge that much of it occurs before our very eyes. Exploitation on screen reflects the exploitation and coercion that occurs off-screen. The ways in which the industry demeans women do not begin and end with the horrors of the casting couch. Misogyny manifests in infinite subtle ways, all of which usually go unrecognised by the average viewer. In an industry where men claim ownership of women's bodies, it is through sex scenes that directors can wield their power and sense of entitlement. Take Blue is the Warmest Colour. It's interesting that much of the criticism directed at the film's sex scenes were centred on the positions of sex. For the heteronormative, it is comical to imagine lesbian sex in any way other than "woman goes down on woman". But the positions are not the issue, and are in fact the sole positive aspect of these scenes (yes, there are different ways for lesbians to have sex). The problem is with the phallocentric lens of scopophilia through which the sex is depicted. Scopophilia is the act of deriving pleasure from observing people in sexual or nude (essentially vulnerable and exposed) states, which in turn leads to the observer having mastery over the object of the gaze. When Kechiche films the actors having sex in Blue is the Warmest Colour, he is affirming his male domination over them. The camera lingers over the actors’ writhing curves, bodies without faces, synthetic sweat strategically placed to enhance the stylistic pornification. Rarely do we see the women’s reactions to what is happening to their bodies: occasionally we get a glimpse of their faces, lasting mere seconds before the camera returns to where Kechiche wants it to be – to the sum of their parts. As voyeurs, we must behold the object of the male gaze. The female protagonists are not allowed to reciprocate the gaze, which is exclusively male. When a woman becomes an object, and not a subject, she cannot reciprocate. The viewer is implicated in the gaze, complicit in the protagonists’ discomfort. Accordingly, female viewers must engage with the film as if they were men. In Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Laura Mulvey explains that “the man controls the film phantasy and also emerges as the representative of power in a further sense: as the bearer of the look of the spectator, transferring it behind the screen to neutralise the extradiegetic tendencies represented by woman as spectacle."

In retaliation to her criticism of the sex scenes, Kechiche branded Léa Seydoux an "arrogant, spoiled child". The intention of Kechiche’s response is to make Seydoux feel powerless – not just through exploitative sex scenes, but through demeaning paternalistic language that reduces her concerns to nothing more than the utterances of a spoilt child (“spoilt” implying that she doesn’t realise how lucky she is to have been humiliated and exploited). Having also watched Kechiche’s 2007 film The Secret of the Grain (also known as Couscous), it is evident that he has a penchant for filming the sexual humiliation of women. A mere three minutes into the film, a man pulls up a woman’s dress, exposes her buttocks, and repeatedly spanks her in an aggressive manner, a scene which serves the narrative in no conceivable way. Far too many male film directors use coercive methods to push women into doing things that make them feel uncomfortable under the guise of “art”.

In a phallocentric industry, there is no place for female pleasure. Capitalistic modes of mainstream film production mean that the female body is a commodity used to propagate misogynistic fantasies. The “female pleasure” we witness on screen is not the pleasure of women, but the pleasure of men in observing women. By contrast, when Lana (Chloë Sevigny) and Brandon (Hilary Swank) have their first sexual encounter in the Kimberley Pierce-directed Boys Don’t Cry (1999), there are no titillating shots of sweaty, writhing limbs or lacy underwear sliding down perfectly tanned legs; rather, the camera is fixated on Lana’s face, growing increasingly ecstatic, as Brandon brings her to orgasm. Pierce feels through herself and projects it onto her female subject: by putting women behind the camera, it enables the representation of female pleasure in ways that are not mediated through the male gaze.

For male film makers, psychologically penetrating the mind and will of a woman is yet another form of violation. In the notorious 1959 film Peeping Tom, the camera is depicted as a symbolic extension of the phallus whose ultimate goal is to destroy its female objects. This shows how the male gaze is an inherently violent one, as scopophilic exploitation not only robs women of their sexual identity, but of their humanity. After so much exploitation and abuse, women need to take back power and reclaim their bodies. Recently, film director Sarah Polley, herself once the object of Weinstein's lewd advances, explained how being a woman behind the camera meant she could film women without reducing them to sexual objects: “I could decide what I felt was important to say, how to film a woman, without her sexuality being a central focus without context.” Polley’s working conditions are the way forward: a symbiotic relationship whereby both actor and director can feel empowered, working towards the shared goal of completing the film. Film making should not be a dichotomy of masculine vs feminine power play, of male activity vs female inactivity. With more women opening up about abuses of power and rejecting the conditions they have had to endure in the past, they can make exploitation both on and off screen a relic of patriarchal domination. It is every actor’s right to be treated with dignity and respect, as opposed to being reduced to slabs of meat solely for the male gaze.

#Antonia Louisa Georgiou #Léa Seydoux #Harvey Weinstein #Abdellatif Kechiche #Blue is the Warmest Colour #scopophilia #new socialist

4 notes · View notes

lyledebeast · 7 years

Text

Robin and Guy: Part 1

By Sunday, if all goes as planned, I should be finished with season 3. It has been, to put it mildly, a trial, but the end is in sight! I’m going to watch Bad Blood tonight, which is more than enough, then whatever episode 11 is called tomorrow, and then the two parts of the final episode on Saturday.

Before I start my notes on Bad Blood, though, I wanted to write about about the background of the Robin and Guy working together arc, which is the title I prefer to “Guy’s redemption arc” for reasons that will hopefully become clear in this series of post. As the title indicates, there will be more than one, but I have no idea how many total. This post looks at the basis of Robin and Guy’s mutual hatred in earlier episodes, and the remaining ones will focus on how their relationship is presented in these final four.

What I recall from watching these four episodes previously is a that this relationship is presented in an overly simplistic and biased way. The conclusion the characters seem to arrive at is that Guy has hated Robin in the past because he didn’t really understand him, that his feelings were based on an illusion that his time with Robin has disproved. Meanwhile, Robin has hated Guy purely because of his cruel, violent behavior, so when Guy’s behavior improves, so does Robin’s opinion of him. The previous 35 episodes are overflowing with evidence that contradicts this conclusion.

This doesn’t mean that Robin’s hatred of Guy isn’t based on his behavior at all; there is much to object to in Guy’s behavior for anyone, not just Robin. But there’s more to it than that. For example, in 1x8, he’s enraged to discover that it was Guy who attempted to kill King Richard in the Holy Land. That’s treason, but Robin discovers it by accident when he has come to Locksley to humiliate Guy and Marian because he doesn’t like that they’re engaged. That’s not a crime. While it’s true that Guy coerced Marian into the engagement, it’s also pretty clear that Robin doesn’t see it that way. In 2x7, he’s devastated when Marian says she despises him, even as it’s obvious to the viewer that she’s only telling Guy what he wants to hear so he’ll leave. And Robin’s constant nagging of her throughout the season doesn’t really make sense unless he believes she has a choice. So while after the fight at Locksley, Robin wants to punish Guy as a traitor, before that, he wants to punish him for courting a woman he’s interested in. The latter reason tells us more about Robin than Guy.

Robin is fighting against Guy and the Sheriff’s goal of subjugating Nottingham to gain more power for themselves, but he also has two issues with Guy in particular. I should say one issue, because while Marian is a human being and Locksley is a manor, but Robin seems to see them in strikingly similar ways; they’re both his, and Gisborne has no business with either. Of course, the only reason Guy is in a position to see either as his business is because Robin abandoned both in his pursuit of glory. When he returns from the crusades, Guy gives up Locksley without a fight, and he doesn’t move back in until after Robin has chosen to defy the sheriff and become an outlaw. At the same time, if Robin had actually married Marian before he left, she would not be vulnerable to courtship from another man. Robin resentment for Guy arises from the fact that Guy benefits from decisions that have resulted in losses for Robin, but Robin is still the one responsible for making those decisions. Hating Guy is easier than acknowledging that responsibility, though.

On the other hand, Guy does hate Robin for some reasons that are very revealing about him. Robin frustrates his plans to attain power and position, and his later willingness to work with Robin shows that he’s relinquished these goals in favor of less self-centered, loftier ones that have more in common with some of Robin’s own goals. He also does hate Robin for having things that he wants, like Marian’s love, respect from the people of Nottingham. This is jealousy, and it tells us more about Guy than about Robin.

However, not all of Robin’s advantages over Guy are based on merit, and no one is more aware of this than Guy. Robin sees himself as being very virtuous, especially in comparison to Guy; most of Robin’s side of their dialogue involves him pontificating about Guy’s various moral shortcomings. But Guy knows, and the viewer discovers in Bad Blood, that Robin has always had people to help him who were genuinely concerned with his well-being, while Guy has not. The reasons lie less in Robin’s merit than in the fact that he was the pureblood English son of a nobleman. That’s why the village of Locksley rallied around him and exiled Guy and Isabella. Robin doesn’t have to work towards power and position as a goal, because the veritable dragon’s horde of privilege he was born into has insulated him from ever losing it, except by choice.

Now, the moments where Guy actually addresses Robin’s privilege are few and far between, but it’s hard to imagine that doesn’t rankle him when Robin is attacking him for disloyalty to England, a nation in which the deck is always stacked in favor of people like Robin, and against "outsiders” like Guy. Robin, meanwhile, is blissfully and perhaps willfully ignorant of the way others suffer from such nationalistic values. They must be good values, because they benefit him personally. Upholding them is far more important than making any effort to empathize with people whose lives have been ruined because of them. Considered in this light, it’s no wonder that Guy has feelings of resentment and hatred for Robin.

#guy of gisborne #robin #robin hood season 3 #guy and robin

7 notes · View notes

jellyfax · 7 years

Text

Voltron: Legendary [Deeply Flawed] Defender

To be honest, I’ve never been much of a fan of Voltron. I’ve probably seen more parodies of the franchise than I have episodes of the original show or any of its adaptations and spin-offs. Not too long ago, I had regret my lack of fanaticism for the cartoon because, since its release, Netflix’s 2016 remake, Voltron: Legendary Defender (VLD), has received plenty of good press. According to numerous critics and fans, the animated series is a stellar revamp of the original 1984 production. This praise sparked my interest, so I watched seasons one and two (a grand total of 24 episodes) to see what the fuss is all about.

PREMISE

The premise of the series is simple and the 1-hour pilot episode skillfully establishes the world the characters of VLD inhabit. Five young Earthlings (Shiro, Lance, Pidge, Hunk, and Keith) unwitting stumble upon an ancient mech in the shape of a lion and they are jettisoned into a cosmic battle against the Galra Empire, an oppressive alien regime which has colonized much of the universe. After a 10,000-year slumber, two survivors of the Galra’s genocidal onslaught of the planet Altea, Princess Allura and her guardian Coran, are awakened. Now the last remaining Alteans must teach the five Earthlings how to pilot five color-coded mech lions. These lions can combine to form the most powerful weapon in the universe: the giant humanoid mech, Voltron. With Voltron, our heroes are the only ones who stand a chance against the imposing Galra threat.

Given this synopsis, my first concern is: how can Voltron be the greatest weapon in the universe? Now before I tackle this issue, I must say that I’m aware that this claim originates from the 80′s series (it’s titled Voltron: Defender of the Universe for a reason). While this proclamation is a staple in the 1984 Voltron, in the 2016 remake the assertion comes off as outdated and out of place. Let me examine. What may have been an acceptable in-universe motto in the 80′s when general audiences were likely less familiar with the mindboggling scope of space, doesn’t work for viewers nowadays. Audiences of the 21st century are more acquainted with the implications of the universe through three decades of fictional media and scientific discovery. That being said, in the universe of VLD where space is filled with scores of intelligent alien lifeforms, it’s difficult to believe that only the Alteans and Galra have the capability to wield unfathomable interstellar power. The cosmos is immense, and due to its vastness, it can be sensibly assumed that there are people who have designed weapons that are far more advanced than anything either the Alteans or the Galra have produced. After 10,000 years, it’s astonishing that even the Galra are unable to match the supremacy of Voltron. Throughout the series, aliens are represented almost exclusively as peaceful or, more accurately, as people so downtrodden they can’t hope to oppose the Galra Empire. It can be expected that millenniums of subjugation by the Galra Empire would cause many civilizations to become too hesitant to cause an uprising. However, as previously stated, the universe is beyond enormous and there would more than enough people to prevent the Galra from gaining such a tight hold on most of the universe.

Aside from “because the original plot says so,” the series gives us no real justification for why team Voltron and the Galra are the most powerful forces in the entire universe. This assault on the viewer’s suspension of disbelief and deeply contrived storytelling reflects VLD’s inability to truly revive the Voltron franchise. Voltron received a remake not only to appeal to lifelong fans, but also to introduce new viewers to the franchise. The only problem is that the writers of the new series aren’t adjusting aspects of the story’s original premise to the new world they created in VLD; it isn’t enough to add glitzy CGI fight scenes, snarky characters, and edgy redesigns, the original plotline should have been retooled a bit more too. Maybe the whole “strongest in the universe” thing made sense within the context of Voltron 1984, but in Voltron 2016 it makes very little sense in an established universe that’s populated with legions of complex alien life. Overall, VLD doesn’t fully transform, reimagine, or contest Voltron’s status as the greatest weapon in the universe. Thus, making for a somewhat stale rebooted premise which simply copies the original premise instead of refining it.

CHARACTERIZATION

As the saying goes, a story is only as good as its villain, and if that saying is accurate then VLD is a very flawed story. Emperor Zarkon, the ruler of the Garla, serves as the main antagonist and it’s his motives that genuinely drive the plot. In season two, it’s revealed that he had collaborated with the Alteans to create Voltron and that he manned the lead lion, the Black Lion. In Zarkon’s eyes, Voltron is rightfully his and he is on a mission to reclaim his weapon. And while that may sound exciting, it all plays out as if Zarkon is a jilted lover who can’t stand rejection. Every time we’re confronted with Zarkon, he’s never terrorizing his dominion like a horrible tyrant, because he’s always fixated on acquiring his precious Voltron. He’s not spurred on by xenophobic hate, he’s not a well-intended extremist, or even a demented power-hungry dictator; he’s just motivated by a grudge and he wants revenge. How captivating. Granted, he states that he can unlock Voltron’s potential and conquer the universe, but conquering the universe never seems to be his main goal. After 10,000 years, you’d think Zarkon would move on to bigger and better weapons. Or even want to destroy Voltron more than anything to prove his might, but no he’s just a petty, pathetic, and uninteresting nincompoop. In the finale of season two, Zarkon has the opportunity to kill Princess Allura and effectively destroy Voltron’s headquarters, but he ignores this opening, attacks Voltron instead, and ultimately fails to defeat his enemies. In the end, it’s his singular interest in Voltron that spells his demise. While that might seem like cliché yet reasonable writing, his tactless actions are just an easy way to have the heroes win the battle. In short, Zarkon is yet another case of a villain who’s comedically inept, because the writers can’t be bothered to challenge the protagonists of their story.

Flimsy, out-of-focus characterization is the norm in VLD; characters are bland, one-note, and they don’t really develop over the course of the series. The writers never try to disguise the fact that each character is simply a plot device and nothing more. Although, the characters can be enjoyable at times and some are even quite likable, that’s likely due to the expressive voice acting. The voice performances of the cast are truly excellent with the valiant Allura (Kimberly Brooks) and funnyman Lance (Jeremy Shada) being among the most memorable. The actors do well with what they’re given, but even their fantastic acting can’t save the show.

PACING

The pacing of the narrative is also poor. Generally, a program with episodes that progress naturally, without interruption are fine and VLD is intended to be binge-watched, so it’s only appropriate that it flow so well. Even so, they flow to the point that episodes become indistinguishable and indistinct from another. This isn’t helped by how the writers choose to reveal information about the setting and its characters. Certain reveals overstay their welcome and when this happens the narrative is clearly stalling for time. Oftentimes, the stagnation of revelations only serves to make the protagonists seem like their sabotaging their own mission due to incompetence. For instance, it takes the first several episodes of season two for the characters to accept that Zarkon can sense their coordinates via his mental connection to the Black Lion, a connection they learned about in the finale of season one. Despite knowing this very relevant information, they denied the possibility that Zarkon could track their whereabouts for six, whole episodes! Even without filler episodes, the series still manages to somewhat derail itself.

FINAL VERDICT

It feels as if the experienced writers of VLD are just going through the motions and are simply writing the cartoon in their sleep. All that said, Voltron: Legendary Defender isn’t a bad series, but isn’t exactly good either; frankly it’s mediocre. Although it has highlights, it’s stunted premise, lackluster characterization, and pacing issues prevent it from being anything more than serviceable. Let’s hope that season three amends the follies of its predecessors.

#voltron #voltron: legendary defender #vld #vld review #voltron review #voltron criticism #vld criticism #venting

4 notes · View notes

ruffoverthinksthings · 7 years

Text

God Loves You, Which Is Why You’ll Burn In Hell (Part 3): “The Spawn of Heathens, False Gods, and Unbelievers” - Religion for the VKs

Note: This document clocked in at 2,862 words, written in two hours straight.

I officially have a problem, and its name is Disney Descendants Headcanon and Analyses.

By the time most of the VKs have been born, religion has been discredited in favour of worshipping Maleficent, abandoned entirely for the massive Hell that was the Great Isle War (a headcanon of mine, for clarity), or was isolated in Temple Way (the concentrated district of religious establishments, sans the church above Dragon Hall, also a headcanon of mine), with their followers generally incredibly zealous believers, to put it politely.

Most of them have not even been introduced to the idea of religion, or it was only given as explanation as to why people generally stay away from Temple Way, why you should try your damndest to do much the same (no matter how good the potential loot), and why you should try not to associate or talk with the people from there.

As with anything from the Isle, a culture of scary stories to get their children to behave have risen around Temple Way, and the Wild Fae (malevolent gargoyles, chupacabras, actual devils and the like) are not very amused by this.

Before you ask, Maleficent is ambivalent towards religion, happy to have the population do whatever keeps them distracted, complacent, and above all, from thinking of ever trying to overthrow her. She doesn’t even need to keep spies, as “those fools are happy to shout everything they’re planning to do to anyone within earshot.”

She is wary of them since she had harnessed the power of religious extremism and xenophobia during the War to her advantage, but with the aging congregations and her unquestioned, unchallenged rule, “Zealot Watch” is largely dedicated to lieutenants and underlings like Mozenrath.

As I also mentioned, the Badlands (the non-concrete, dirt and grass jungle of the Isle of the Lost) have their own religious beliefs and system, so won’t be included here.

Back on topic: almost all of the VKs are atheists by ignorance, or by choice. There are only a few exceptions to this, with individual/group explanations and how it affects their lives below:

As mentioned in the previous post, Claudine Frollo used to be the most devout of the VKs until CJ set fire to her father’s convent while she was still in it. Before Auradon, she has completely lost her faith in religion and sees it largely as a means of controlling people with promises punishment from some unseen “Higher Being,” and false senses of security that they would protect them, care for them, and reward their piety, both relying largely on them believing that such a Higher Being actually exists on faith alone.

Her current opinion on Hell is that she doesn’t mind going there, as “it can’t be that far from the Isle, and I got used to it anyway, didn’t I?”

Richard “Rick” Ratcliffe is her opposite, still as devout a Christian as ever, though he wasn’t a very good one in the first place. Most of his beliefs and his “divinely inspired” actions involve him having an incredibly overinflated sense of self-worth and confidence, being on a “holy high horse” every time he interacts with pretty much anyone, particularly when he makes one of his infamous speeches, and stealing and robbing from others like the rest of the VKs, except with the justification of him “claiming it for the Church.”

(Which he is. After he takes a cut, because doesn’t a good servant of God deserve to treat himself every once in a while?)

Privately, he still takes comfort in his faith, especially the entirety of Jesus Christ’s life in the New Testament. He sees an idol in the Christian Messiah, as he was a great orator that was constantly attacked, ostracized, and even condemned and killed before people truly realized how great he was.

(Though, he does sincerely hope he can avoid the “foregone death sentence, and being nailed to a cross” bit.)

Mal didn’t have much of an interest in religion, seeing as Maleficent’s demands and “training” of her took up most of her time, and the ultimate goal was that the two of them would supplant the current deities and objects of worship, be the ones the masses are bowing down to and in fear of.

However, for the sake of curiosity (and of course, exploring “truths” outside of everything Maleficent has fed her), she has studied the various religions, mostly through the reading of whatever surviving holy texts and handwritten copies exist on the Isle, with a few oral accounts here and there.

She was a fan of the Torah and Judaism, if only because of the Yahweh that burned down entire cities and turned those that disobeyed Him into pillars of salt (Sodom and Gomorrah, and Lot’s wife); brought massive, crippling, devastating plagues to the enemies of his followers (Moses and the Exodus from Egypt); and struck people dead where they stood if they did something as trivial as spill their semen on the ground (Onan).

She stopped being such a fan by the time she came to the Christian Bible, the New Testament, and Christianity, both because God had “gone soft,” and she wasn’t as big a fan of the idea of the Big Man Upstairs sending a Son to do all of His dirty work for Him, and the whole “Jesus getting humiliated, tortured, and ultimately crucified” being his Father’s will REALLY hit too close to home for her.

The real clincher was when she wasn’t sure if Maleficent would also go through the trouble of bringing her back to life after three days or so.

On a side note, she really liked the idea of having a close circle of twelve followers who obey you no matter what, but it soured when Judas turned on Jesus.

She stopped being such a fan of Allah by the time she was calling Him that as she studied the Quran and Islam (with Jay’s help for actually reading the texts, and why he attempted to convert—more on that in the next post), and saw all the conflicting orders and distinct cultures that had come up from who was ostensibly the same Supreme Deity.

She figured that if God/Allah/Yahweh couldn’t get His followers to agree on what exactly He said, and they had in fact been getting into constant conflict about who’s religion was the “True” religion, He wasn’t worth following.

“IT’S ALL HIS WORDS, YOU DUMBASSES! THIS IS THE SAME BIG GUY UPSTAIRS FOR ALL THREE BOOKS!” is how she put it.

As mighty as His powers of causing widespread suffering and instant death to those that disobeyed Him, that He can't keep house was a complete turn-off.

"Why do you think He's a He?" Maleficent commented. "Hmpf, Men."

She tried studying the other religions and was impressed with some such as Shiva from Hinduism, not so much Taoism with its focus on humility, and she stopped altogether after a brief study of Louisiana Vodoo with Dr. Facillier, and learning that the many, many, many other sects of Christianity she would have to read about in order to truly say that she “knew her enemies.”

At that point, she thought it’d just be much more practical to dedicate her time in learning how to subjugate the people by force than by subverting and abusing their religious practices and beliefs, as she and her mother will be the only thing they’ll be worshiping by the end, anyway.

Evie did very briefly entertain the idea of religion as a source of comfort, until the numerous patriarchal mutations and corruptions of the original traditions and practices made her realize she wouldn’t be able to maintain her current lifestyle, and lose a lot of her personal freedoms beside.

(“Modest and proper dress” was the most obvious deal breaker.)

After the elevator pitch, it was a firm “Fuck that noise!” into permanent atheism. Not even the more liberal and feminist Auradon practices can make her change her mind, though I suppose the stigma she has with the followers there doesn’t help.

Before you ask, a lot of the religious practitioners on the Isle do enforce plenty of incredibly restrictive rules and customs, all in the service of making some form of sanity and order within their communities, and making themselves distinct from the rest of the Isle that basically does as they please, so long as it doesn’t anger Maleficent too much.

Carlos did try to seek out religion as a means of relief in the day-to-day Hell that is being Cruella’s only child and personal unpaid servant, and a tentative form of escape into a better life. However, you could say his mistake/wise decision was talking to Frollo about converting, and after his admittedly rather appealing pitch to him, he opened up the floor for questions.

Carlos’ was this: “Why are some kids born into suffering like us, and others are born in a nice place like Auradon?”

“Child, God tests our faith all the time, to prove that we are worthy of His love, and our ultimate reward in Heaven; it is not something to hold against Him, but merely another part of His glorious, ineffable plan for us all,” Frollo replied.

“… So, like, how does He decide? Is there some sort of criteria about who gets born in a nice life, and who gets born in a bad life…?”

“Child, even the most faithful and Good of us all get tested, should He deem it necessary—just look at His only son, Jesus Christ, and how even with his unwavering faith in Our Father, He decided to push him to the very edge of renouncing his belief in Him all the same.”

“… So you’re basically saying that He just essentially decides on a whim who suffers and who doesn’t?”

Frollo frowned. “De Vil, it is NOT on a whim; to say that He would act in such a random manner is insulting to His greatness. He follows a Plan, known to Him and Him alone, and we are all to play our parts in it without question.”

Carlos nodded, then hopped off his chair. “Okay, that was all I had, thanks Father Frollo!” he said as he walked out of Frollo’s inner sanctum, and away from religion for the rest of his life.

Jay is interesting in that he does take a vested interest in Islam, as it is the one part of his Arabic heritage that Jafar refuses to indulge. The curiosity was first ignited with his adamant refusal to let him read the Quran even though it was one of the most easily acquired texts in Arabic, and Jafar’s incredibly hostile opinion of it.

Islam to him is just “the means for fools and weaklings to comfort themselves, lies that those in power feed to them with glee so they may selfishly keep that power, and the masses will even praise them for it.”

It doesn’t help that he tried to become a Supreme Being himself, and ultimately failed.

His foray into Islam, should he take it like @baby-prince-oppa theorizes he will, will be detailed in a future post. It’s a LOT of words, and this post is already massive, okay?

Freddie has an eclectic, limited education on Christianity and Voodoo, largely attributed to most of Dr. Facillier’s knowledge being in the darker arts as a bokor (a Vodoo Witch Doctor who plays with both good and evil, by definition). Most of it is also limited to strictly practical application such as potions, hexes, and of course the nature of the Shadow Cards.

The culture that had arisen around Louisiana Voodoo and “gris-gris” (charms) is mostly skipped over as Dr. Facillier was never interested in the “good” way to practice it, and they were too wary and knowledgeable of him to be victimized by him, so knowledge of it was largely useless to him. He also doesn’t encourage her to learn or follow the rituals and traditions, and especially not to attend Sunday church at Frollo’s, though this is mostly for safety concerns than religious ones.

(“Never deal with a man who always thinks himself on the right hand of God, sweet potato,” is how he phrases it.)

The only real takeaway she has from it is to be “very wary of the forces out there greater and wilier than mere mortals like ourselves.”

Before you ask, no, he does not encourage her to make deals with loa, his former “Friends from the Other Side.” This is because they are completely reliable; “you better believe they will do what they said when you pony up, and especially when you don’t.”

The Hook Kids (Harriet, Harry, and CJ) and the rest of the pirates/mostly seafaring Villain Kids such as those from the seedier parts of coastal China, all worship the Sea, seeing Her as their “Lady of Life, Bounty, and Death.”

This is even though their experiences with the sea are being beached for most of the year, being unable sail out or ply their trade past a certain distance off the coast where the alligators are especially active, and their (safely) being in water and enjoying themselves is in the underwater half of Serpent Prep, or in the flooded tomb “swimming pool” of Dragon Hall. (Both are headcanons of mine, for clarity.)

A lot of what you can call their religious acts and beliefs center around the vicious, man-eating crocodiles and how they avoid them like… well, vicious, man-eating crocodiles.

“Metaphors are rather twee when what you fear already has sharp teeth, massive mouths, and an insatiable hunger for flesh of any kind,” as Harriet would say.

Uma has been taught about the religious practices and beliefs Sea Witchcraft by Ursula, but she has largely focused on the matters of potion making and utmost respect for senior witches, as these were the ones that are most practical and shut her daughter up for most of the time.

Her knowledge on it is very incomplete because Ursula was a recluse, and she stops bothering with it altogether when she realizes that everything Ursula has her do is no different from the other VKs, just with different reasons behind it.

Even though Zevon has been born in a heavily polytheistic culture where it was an almost inescapable part of everyday living, he has no religion, as Yzma was never a big believer in deities or the emperors supposedly granted divine knowledge and right to rule by them.

(That she personally knows how much of a selfish, shallow, and greedy idiot Kuzco is contributed a lot to this.)

The only thing he can be said to worship is himself (and his mother), as Yzma has fed him many delusions of grandeur, and manipulative encouragements of all of his worst impulses, beliefs, and behaviours, all the traits that would best groom him as her ticket out of the Isle.

Even after infiltrating Auradon, and during his time being at-large, he does not change his mind, as by that point the brainwashing and propaganda Yzma had been feeding into him is so ingrained he sees all other religion as his “rivals,” whose followers he will steal, after he shows them that he is “The true Supreme Deity of all of Auradon!”

Or, as he pronounces it, “The true Super-eemee D-eighty of Auradon!”

The other Western European VKs, such as the Gaston brothers, LeFou Deux, Ginny Gothel, the Tremaines, the Mim Children and Grandchildren, Clay Clayton, Diego de Vil, Jace and Harry—are all atheists, and not likely to ever find or participate religion.

Aside from the fact that their respective universes did not seem to involve the dominant or possible religions at the time (likely because Disney was avoiding the massive kerfuffle that would come with portraying a canonically Catholic French Village while it’s not central to the story like Hunchback of Notre Dame), they generally come from people that put their faith in their names and reputations (de Vil and henchmen, Tremaine, Gaston), their abilities (Clayton, also Gaston), or their magic (Gothel, Mim).

The likes of Madam Mim and Mother Gothel probably know and have had contact with supreme beings and deities (such as the local Hades), but were likely not impressed by them back when they still had their powers, they still aren’t impressed with them now.

Speaking of Hades, his daughter Hadie believes in the existence of her various uncles and aunts, but does not worship them for very obvious reasons. She is a commonly seen figure at her father’s bar, “The Way Down Under,” (a headcanon of mine, for clarity) and has her own small following of loyal worshipers who frequently make tribute to her, though this is mostly because she’s smoking hot with a gift of seduction and a silver tongue.

With the exceptions of Claudine Frollo and Richard “Rick” Ratcliffe, their attitudes towards religion aren’t likely to change if they ever get to (legally) stay in Auradon.

#descendants #disney #headcanon #god loves you which is why you'll burn in hell

17 notes · View notes

adeyinka-grandson · 3 years

Text

𝘿𝙖𝙮 1: 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙎𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙨:

𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑 𝙀𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: 𝙏𝙞𝙣𝙪𝙗𝙪 𝙤𝙧 𝙔𝙤𝙧𝙪𝙗𝙖 𝙉𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣.

Although we are far from Yorubaland, we remain Yoruba citizens and cannot, under the current circumstances, remain indifferent to the fate of our beautiful homeland.

In this regards, we would like to remind the Yoruba nation that in 1954 and as a result of the new constitution of Nigeria enacted into law, Victoria Island was excised from the Western Region of Nigeria to make it the Federal Capital of Nigeria. The Island, ceased to be the Federal Capital of Nigeria in 1976 as a result of the ingenuity of the Yoruba leaders of thought led by Awolowo who asked the Federal Government of Nigeria to move the capital to Abuja in order to stop the Ißo claim that they mass migrated to Lagos because it is the Federal Capital of Nigeria. Lagos Island was therefore the Federal Capital of Nigeria for only 22 years.

Since 1976, Abuja, the land of the Gwari people, has been made the federal capital of Nigeria. It remained the Federal Capital of Nigeria for 45 years and counting. The Yoruba nation has never lay any claim on Abuja. The Ißo nation therefore has no legal or moral right to migrate en masse to any area of Yorubaland because Abuja has since been the FCT.

However, we have on good authority that the SIS, the Secret Intelligence Service in England, also known as MI6, is using the IPOB members to stage a coordinated attack on Lagos. The #EndSARS demonstration in Lagos was coordinated by British MI6 to try to assassinate Bola Ahmed Tinubu, using IPOB members led by Nnamdi Kanu.

The ongoing actions of the IPOB’s Eastern Security Network in Iboland is a prelude to an attack in Lagos by IPOB members used by British MI6. The scheme is so obvious and one of the reasons why the government in England made a provision for asylum for members of the IPOB.

In 1994, the young Yoruba of this period seized control of the Yoruba ports in Lagos from the Fulani minority. But the English Royal Navy attacked our people, killed several of them, seized our ports from us and handed it back to the Fulani who are foreigners in Nigeria and working for the English Establishment in what is known as neocolonialism. The procedure is different this time under the guise of #EndSARS, but the result is the same -the continuous subjugation of the Yoruba nation.

The ongoing bombing of the police station and government establishments in Iboland is intended to keep the Yoruba people distracted from our clear will - the Oduduwa Republic.

The Yoruba Conservatives, led by the Yoruba-APC, believe that we can get the Oduduwa Republic by electing a full blooded Yoruba citizen in the person of Tinubu as the President of Nigeria through which we are going to get the Oduduwa Republic. However, the Yoruba liberals, led by the Yoruba-PDP, who are mainly half Yoruba, believe that the only way to get the Oduduwa Republic is to go through the United Nations. But rather than for the Yoruba liberals to continue to work with the UN to get us the Oduduwa Republic, they are more focus on attacking the Yoruba Conservatives’ approach of the using the presidency of Nigeria to bring home the bacon.

It is, therefore, very clear that the Yoruba liberals of the Yoruba-PDP are not really interested in the actualisation of the Oduduwa Republic, but working with the Yoruba’s enemies to stop Tinubu from getting the presidency of Nigeria for the good of our people. This approach of the Yoruba liberals in conjunction with the Ibo and Fulani is not a new approach to destroy the Yoruba leadership. The approach was used against Chief MKO Abiola which led to the annulment of his victory and assassination by the Ißo and the Fulani.

YYF is conscious of the fact that 63% of the current population in Yorubaland was born after 1999. They were born into degradation; never experienced a welfare system; have no sense of history; being raised in a dysfunctional society where ethnically motivated killings are prevalent; and above all, never being raised to think Yoruba first, but to see themselves first as Nigerians, which is a clog in the wheel of our progress as a people.

Even in our movement, not a single member of the Young Yoruba for Freedom’s executive, a movement of young Yoruba conservatives that is changing the course of history in Yorubaland, voted in the June 12 election of 1993 because we were all under the age of 18 and many of us have never been born. But, today, due to our lack of sense of history, we see the restlessness of Prof. Banji Akintoye and Sunday Igboho, as a new approach for realising the greatness of the Yoruba nation. This is not really the case. Prof. Banji Akintoye, Sunday Igboho and the Yoruba-PDP agitators for the Republic of Oduduwa, are working on the model of the ABN that led to the assassination of Abiola.

In a research authored by the Research Directorate of Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, on information about the Association for a Better Nigeria (ABN), published on May 1, 1994, clearly shows that the no election campaign of Prof. Banji Akintoye was from the play book of the ABN.

In 1991, the Ibrahim Babangida regime abolished all political parties and created the two national parties, the National Republican Convention (NRC) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Soon thereafter, the Association for Better Nigeria (ABN) was established in June 1993 with 25 million members.

In a report released on 19 April 1993, the International Press Services (IPS) noted that the ABN had held its first formal meeting in Lagos on 15 April 1993. The same source also reported that Jerry Okoro, an Ißo, was the national coordinator for ABN. The ABN's primary goal was to keep Ibrahim Babangida in power and to maintain the military administration that ruled Nigeria for so long.

The ABN demonstrated its determination to achieve its objective by putting up billboards in the Nigerian capital Abuja that carried the message "Four More Years," which means the military government should stay in power for another four years. The intensity of the ABN's pro-government campaigns led many observers to conclude that the federal military government was behind its activities.

The Research from Canada stated that the leadership of the ABN was basically a "one-man show" headed by Chief Arthur Nzeribe, an Ibo and Abimola Davies, a half-Yoruba and director of the association. The study noted that the ABN was not a popular group and was treated with disdain particularly by pro-democracy groups and most of the Nigerian press. Consequently, many of those who were associated with ABN kept it virtually secret. Research suggests that it is difficult to determine the full leadership or composition of the ABN.

In its tenacity to support the ongoing military regime, the ABN went to court to stop the June 1993 presidential election. The ABN's reason for demanding the injunction was that the leaders of the NRC and SDP were corrupt politicians.

Why did the ABN go to court to attempt to put an end to the June 1993 presidential election? It is because the opinion polls then showed that Abiola was going to win and they didn’t want him to win because he was a full blooded Yoruba man.

Prof. Banji Akintoye and Sunday Igboho are campaigning for a no election in the 2023 presidential election because they know that if Tinubu contests, he is likely to win and they do not want a full blooded Yoruba citizen as the president of Nigeria.

In the case of the ABN, it lost the case in court. There was a presidential election in June 1993. But after the elections, the ABN again went to court to stop the release of the election results. The Research from Canada stated that the current political impasse in Nigeria began at this point, when the government cancelled the results. According to the study, the ABN has always shown contempt for the return to civil government and campaigned for the maintenance of the military regime. Therefore, it goes without saying that the ABN was happy that its immediate goal was achieved when the results were cancelled.

The clear intention of the Yoruba liberals led by Prof. Banji Akintoye in a working relationship with the Ibo and Fulani is to prevent Tinubu from being elected President of Nigeria. They will stop at nothing until they are able to stop Tinubu from becoming the next President of Nigeria. The Yoruba Conservatives must now take the war to the door steps of the Yoruba Liberals.

I would like to begin with the first day of our campaign on the State Secrets as disclosed to the public by Ms. Modupe Onitiri-Abiola, the wife of late Chief MKO Abiola.

On 21 April 2021, Ms Modupe Onitiri-Abiola, the wife of the deceased MKO Abiola's, in an exclusive interview, provided state secrets about Nigeria and the Yoruba Nation. I will underscore this and share with you our conclusions on what she said.

But first, I want to thank her for her action to enlighten the Yoruba Nation, particularly its youth. She drew our attention to the most important enemy of the Yoruba nation, the British government, and blamed it for the murder of her husband, MKO Abiola, the first Yoruba elected President of Nigeria.

She also blamed the half-Yoruba and non-Yoruba masquerading as Yoruba who worked with the Fulani and Ibo and betrayed MKO Abiola. She increased the pace of our resolution to end the minority rule of the Fulani in Nigeria by clearly stating the obvious fact that the minority Fulani in Nigeria are foreigners from Senegal and the Gambia and should have no moral right or legal right to rule over the Yoruba people in Nigeria.

Importantly, she condemned the Ißo and openly rejected their assertion that Nigeria is One. One Nigeria, she says, is a fake and that Nigeria is not one, but a country of many nations. In addition, she condemned the Nigerian census as a fraud. She says that Kano, a state that was less than Lagos in 1967, and has since been divided into Kano and Jigawa, remains the state with the highest number of people because the census in Nigeria was a fraud. Obasanjo carried out the latest fraudulent census which gave Kano, the false number of people.

For a first of its kind, she condemned Babangida, a Muslim who vowed with the Quran that he would not betray MKO Abiola, but betrayed him. She reminded the Yoruba nation, particularly its Muslims population not to ever trust the Fulani because of the religion of Islam and that the Fulani are very deceitful people and not good Muslims.

And most importantly, she rejected the 1999 Constitution as any reasonable Yoruba citizen would have done and called it the foundation of our problem in Nigeria. Going forward, she stated that it is the tradition of the English to always used the military to take other peoples' wealth and that the Government in England had always used the Fulani to disrupt peace, unity and progress in Nigeria targeted at make Yorubaland poor and underdeveloped.

To be clear, not everything she said was correct. She was wrong to assert that only the Fulani people were responsible for the annulment of MKO Abiola’s election victory. Indeed, the Ißo obtained a black market judgment in court to have the election annulled. This was the basis upon which the Fulani annulled the elections.

And while she was correct that Nigeria is not one country, her statement about southern Nigeria as a unit was misleading. The reality is that we are not people of the north or the south; we are people of the North, the Centre, the West, the East and the South. The Hausa and Kanuri occupy the North; The Nupe, Tiv, Jukun and others occupy the Central; the Yoruba occupies the West; the Ißo occupies the East; the Edo, Ijaw, Uhrobo, Efik, Ibibio and others occupy the South.

She tended to support the audio Oduduwa Republic being championed by the Yoruba liberals and members of the Yoruba-PDP when she asserted erroneously that if we go back to the regional system of government, the Ißo and Fulani who used the military to destroyed the parliamentary system could mess up everything again.

Her fear is genuine. But what she doesn’t know is that under the restructuring arrangement we desire, the police, the military as well as immigration, customs, prison, judiciary, seaports, land borders, civil service and everything else will be devolved along the ethnic/linguistic lines and answerable to the government in each region. For instance, the Yoruba police and military will be under the command and control of the government in Yorubaland and personnel will be 100% Yoruba and government in Yorubaland could sign a military pact with the United States to provide an army in case the Fulani or the Ibo military attempt to take over the Federal Government of Nigeria as they did in 1966.

She championed a government of Yoruba unity. She wanted Yoruba-APC and Yoruba-PDP to form a Yoruba Government of National Unity. This goes against the provision of the Constitution of Western Nigeria proclaimed in 1951, but suspended by Ibo in 1966. The Constitution of Western Nigeria says that in the case of an emergency like war or the dissolution of Nigeria, the subsisting government takes over the governance of Yorubaland for five years. After five years, there will be an election or reappointment of the subsisting government for another five years if the emergency situation persists. So, there is no justification for a government of Yoruba unity. If Nigeria breaks up today, the Yoruba-APC will form the government in Yorubaland for the first five years because it has the majority of the elective posts across the Yoruba states as of today.

Ms Abiola was correct with her assertion that since the 1999 election conducted by Abdulsalam Abubakar, there has never been a free and fair election in Nigeria.

The 1999 elections were rigged by the Fulani in favour of Obasanjo, an Ißo. The 2003 elections were rigged by Obasanjo of the PDP. The 2007 elections were rigged by Obasanjo in favour of Yar'Adua and the PDP. The 2011 elections were free and fair and Jonathan won it. The 2015 elections were rigged by both the PDP as well as the APC. The 2019 elections were free and fair and Buhari won it.

In closing, we are excited about Ms. Abiola's remarks that it is the tradition of the English to always use the military to take the wealth of other peoples. This is what the Government in England has been doing to the Yoruba nation since the 60s using the minority Fulani to steal the wealth and resources of the Yoruba nation to build England while the Yoruba people remain poor and miserable.

0 notes

spirit-science-blog · 4 years

Video

youtube

If you’re a fan of any kind of Fantasy, you undoubtedly know about Lord of the Rings, with its beautiful story, complex characters, and its imaginative and colorful world. The significance of Lord of The Rings for the fantasy and sci-fi genres as a whole cannot be understated. If you were to ask any Fantasy writer, chances are most today would cite Tolkein as an influence in some way. His worldbuilding, personalities, and character archetypes have influenced nearly every corner of literature profoundly.

To be honest, when sitting down to write this episode, it was a DAUNTING task. There’s so much in the lore of Middle Earth, including its expanded universe, where do you even start? In case you didn’t already know, not only was Tolkein influenced by many religious, spiritual, philosophical, and even metaphysical sources, but there are also numerous underlying spiritual messages in his works that hold great wisdom if you know where to look and how to apply it. So let's dive into the Hidden Spirituality of Lord of the Rings!

Intro

To start with, since there’s so much to cover, we should point out that we’re going to be doing it on a movie/book by book basis, starting with this episode on the Fellowship and ending with Return of the King to wrap it up. Hey, we might even include the Silmarillion for all of the nerds out there who want to explore Numenor and Eru Illuvatar!

Now, at its heart, the central theme of LoTR is the quest. On its surface, we see a kind of normal fantasy thing. In essence, the heroes have to overcome the Dark Lord by going on this great journey of self-discovery to conquer the darkness both in the world and within themselves. With Lord of the Rings, it is depicted through the temptation of the One Ring, and the journey to save Middle Earth from its destruction.

But where LoTR begins to get interesting is when you look at the actual pacing of it. The story is completely flipped on its head compared to your average story trope. See, the heroes are not seeking a “treasure,” but are questions to destroy one instead. If we were to look at this same story from Sauron's point of view, the tale is a quest, with Sauron trying to get the treasure back, with the evil Black Riders replacing the traditional "errant knights seeking the holy of holies." The movie begins with a bit of backstory, giving us an awareness of the rings, and the races. We learn about the villain, Sauron, who forged the rings of power and delivered them to the leaders of the tracks who could be controlled, humans, elves, and dwarves. These rings, bestowing power to the bearers, also binds them to the dark lord, which sets the spiritual tone of the story - the idea that absolute power corrupts absolutely, and the deception that evil will use to trap others. In giving these rings to the leaders of the three races, Sauron essentially puts his hold on the world.

But as Sauron's power grows, some fight back, and we see the fall of Sauron at the hands of Isildur, but who is unable to destroy it - another powerful lesson for us still, the temptation that power has over us. What could this ring represent? The story says that into the ring, Sauron poured his cruelty, his malice, and his will to dominate all life. And so the ring ultimately comes to represent these qualities in the form of greed. This can be reflected in our daily lives as any kind of temptation, such as money, fame, sex, all of which can be used to subjugate or manipulate others into doing what you want. In addition to this, the ring bestows the wearer with invisibility, providing a false sense of security, which we can also see in this idea of greed - for as you generate more money or fame or what have you, it gives you this sense of security, but real security - as the story also teaches us, comes from the connections that we have with our friends and family.

One of the things that Sauron creates is feelings of absolute despair through facilitating the creation of evil forces, such as manipulating Saruman, to do his bidding in creating an army of orcs and uru-kai. Gandalf, on the other hand, has the reverse power, supporting others to resist the temptation of despair, and rekindling hope and courage wherever he goes. That Tolkien was conceiving these works during England’s darkest days during World War II, gives a unique context to this power to resist fear and despair.

It would also seem that Tolkein uses this narrative, especially the easily swayed humans, to describe the over-inflated ego and the dangers of what can happen when your desire and ambition are left unchecked. From this viewpoint, it appears that the Fellowship is on a quest to destroy the ego and ultimately free the world from the dark influence of desire and temptation. Tolkien had lived through two world wars, including the "routine bombardment" of civilians, the use of famine for political gain, concentration camps, and genocide, and the development and use of chemical and nuclear weapons, and so much of this story, although based in a different world than ours, is very much rooted emotionally and contextually in severe and real events in history.

The story raises the question of whether, if the ability of humans to produce that kind of evil could somehow be destroyed, even at the cost of sacrificing something, would it be worth doing.

Now, if any of this talk of desire, temptation and evil sound familiar, that’s because Tolkein was devoutly Catholic, a trait which he admitted to having been a profound influence on his writings. While it is interesting that he never included a direct form of religion in his main body of work, the themes, moral philosophy, and cosmology of The Lord of the Rings reflect his Catholic worldview. Christian items are ever-present in much of his work, more so in the later books -especially return of the king, which we will cover when we get there, many of the ideas focus around death, resurrection, forgiveness, grace, repentance and of course, free will.

Even Tolkien himself said, "Of course God is in The Lord of the Rings. The period was pre-Christian, but it was a monotheistic world," and when questioned who was the One God of Middle-earth, Tolkien replied, "The ONE, of course! The book is about the world that God created – the actual world of this planet." Delving a bit deeper into the language of Middle Earth, even the name itself comes from the Norse Midgard - which was the name for our earth.

The influence of Norse Mythology for Tolkein was HUGE. There are some excellent videos out here on YT that talk about the Mythology of LoTR, so if you want to go deeper, we recommend looking this up. Everything from the characters to the environments is rich in symbolic meaning.

Let’s take Gandalf, for instance. Speaking purely from Tolkein’s point of view, Gandalf was mostly based off of the Norse God Odin Who is a bit different from the Marvel version you’re probably familiar with. Odin, in Norse Mythology, is described as "The Wanderer," an old man with one eye, a long white beard, a wide-brimmed hat, and a staff. Tolkien, in a 1946 letter, nearly a decade after the character was invented, wrote that he thought of Gandalf as an "Odinic wanderer." Much like Odin, Gandalf promotes justice, knowledge, truth, and insight. His battle with the Balrog in the Mines of Moria was meant to mirror that of the fight with Surtr spiritually, the Fire Giant in Norse Mythology, with the ensuing collapse of the Bridge of Khazad Dum mirroring the prophesied destruction of the Bifrost during Ragnarok.

Interestingly though, it should be said that Ragnarok was not seen as the end of the world as it is often thought, but rather the beginning of a new cycle, and this is essentially what happens in the Fellowship, with the fall of the Balrog and the collapse of the bridge, it gives way for the journey to unfold. Gandalf had to fall to be reborn as a higher, more ascended, and powerful being than he was before.

As we looked at, there are several key races in the story, which seem to spiral around the elements. This is not spelled out directly by Tolkien. Still, it would appear as though the humans reflect the element of Fire, showing their passionate ways, leadership qualities, and also a bit of their destructive power, and even in Return of the King we see that it is time for humans to take the throne as the new world leaders, further reflecting the fire being the closest to the Godhead in the alchemical systems. The Dwarves are Earth for probably obvious reasons, the Elves are Air with their both living in the trees, their precision, their mental acuity and awareness of the world, and Hobbits as Water - being natural, flowing, and most importantly, nurturing qualities, a trait that is often described as the highest form of the divine feminine, manifested through the alchemical element of water, or the emotional body. If we were to count wizards and orcs, we would see angels and demons join the fray with the aspects of Aether and Voidness, the latter of which stands for lack of substance.

Now speaking of Hobbits - the Shire itself represents an idyllic haven, where the hobbits live in harmony with nature and each other, creating an environment of peace, love, and pleasure. Even though not all hobbits get along and are mainly stuck in their ways, their ways are that of connection with the spirit of the earth. In many ways, living in the shire might be what we would think would be the end goal for many characters, a peaceful haven where evil doesn’t exist, reminiscent of the English Countryside.

We also see some new numerology here. As the story opens, we see Bilbo celebrating his eleventy-first birthday, which in the book just so happens to be on the same day as Frodo celebrating his coming of age birthday, as he turns 33. In Sacred Numerology, 111 signifies manifestation and prosperity. This number's central symbolism is manifesting thoughts into reality and is also said to symbolize awareness, uniqueness, motivation, and spiritual awakening. This makes sense as shortly after Bilbo’s celebrations; he slips away to go on a new journey in his life.

Frodo’s age is also hugely significant, as 33 in Christian numerology is the age Jesus was when he was crucified in the year 33AD. We might even go as far as to say that no number holds more esoteric significance than “33.” The number three is significant in all major religions, with there being a Trinity for Christians and even a trinity of Goddesses or Deities in many ancient cultures. The number 33 was also crucial to secret societies and is often concealed within significant literary works. There are even 33 degrees in modern Freemasonry. At the Vatican, there are 32 archways on each side of the courtyard with a giant obelisk in the middle, and the Pope’s cassock has 32 buttons with his head representing the 33rd.

Furthermore, the first Temple of Solomon stood for 33 years before being pillaged. Alexander the Great also died at 33, and Pope John Paul I was murdered after being in power for only 33 days. And if that wasn’t interesting enough, in the movie we see all of this happen on the 22nd of September! So all together, we have 111, 22, and a hidden 33.

When we first meet Bilbo and Gandalf, Bilbo is unwilling to give up a ring, a sign of being unable to let go of his worldly attachments and temptations. Eventually, after much persuasion from the Wizard, he gives it up and is relieved of a considerable burden, symbolic of him reducing his ego of its duty. When Gandalf returns later on to visit Frodo, he casts the ring into the fireplace, revealing the engraved Elvish Script. Isn’t it remarkable how the Black Speech of Mordor can be so beautiful and yet so evil at the same time? It's a scenario reminiscent of Lucifer, who was said to be the most beautiful of God’s angels, don’t you think?

Along with the strength of will, the value of wisdom is also integral to the underlying spirituality of The Lord of the Rings. Although I’m sure Tolkien never intended it this way, we find the elves to be the embodiment of and reminiscent of Taoist wisdom. Like the Taoist sage, the elves, for the most part, are free of the discontent that so affects humans. They love the natural world and govern their lives in harmony with it. They dedicate their creative powers to fashioning things of beauty that enhance the natural world without damaging it. Their dwellings bring to mind the houses in the tremendous Taoist landscapes — habitations in harmony with their environment. All of this, like the ideal government of the Tao Te Ching, is so at odds with our actual world that “fantasy” is an apt term for it. But it does bring to mind the kind of world, beings who were born with inner contentment might create. And in doing so reminds us of the degree that the world we have created is carried of our discontentment.

Leading up to their meeting in Rivendell, Frodo is stabbed by a Nazgul blade that begins to slowly infect him, which Aragorn says can only be healed by Elven Magic. If we look at it from a higher perspective, the Nazgul are creatures of Necromancy, fueled by dark magic and hatred. By being stabbed, perhaps that hatred and despair begin to enter Frodo slowly, but given that Elven magic is born solely out of love and compassion, it is the only thing that can heal a wound of fear and hatred. Much like our current situation, love is the sole real remedy for anxiety. It is no coincidence that Frodo meets Bilbo here again, as the environment itself is one of healing and repentance.

Now the first book and movie are called the Fellowship of the ring, and on a base level, it arguably represents the bonds of brotherhood and family and this idea that no one race is better than another. In this, we find that even once enemies can become friends, such as Legolas and Gimli. Although the fellowship was not meant to last, the establishing of this shared intention between all of them is ultimately what allows the entire story to transpire once they reach Rivendell.

During the council of Elrond, we see that the presence of the ring and the conversation stirs everyone to arms with each other. And honestly, if each of them tried to destroy the ring on their own, they would all fail and ultimately become corrupted by it. The only one who can do it is Frodo because he represents the purity and innocence of the natural soul, and even then, the ring still gets to him slowly but surely by the end. Nevertheless, only by having a united Fellowship made up of each of the world’s races can they hope to succeed. There is undeniably a lesson is cooperation here, only by working together and lifting each other when we can accomplish something seemingly impossible, and this is an excellent lesson for us to recognize in the world today. There is more power in unity than in separation. From a spiritual perspective, perhaps the experience here is that by creating and maintaining an environment of mutual trust and harmony and working together and creating a space for that kind of movement and growth to occur can we too “do the impossible” and curb our desires and egos, allowing us to exist in harmony with our world, collectively.

Also, it is impressive that the Fellowship numbers nine people (2 humans, an elf, a dwarf, four hobbits, and a wizard), along with their being 9 Nazgul. There's probably some strong numerology in there somewhere, as 9 is a very significant number numerologically. But for now, let's just say the two “groups” create a sense of balance, one for one.

Throughout the story, we also see the theme of personal sacrifice, over and over. I wonder if this was inspired by Tolkiens own spirituality, reflecting Jesus - who gave his own life because it was what must be done. Frodo went on the journey to take the Ring to Rivendell, and then to Mount Doom, sacrificing his old life, his old way of being, and things would never be the same again for him.

Further, Gandalf decided to allow Frodo the choice to take either the Mines or Mountains after leaving Rivendell, a decision which ultimately led to Gandalf’s death and Christ-like resurrection. While the majority of these scenes take place in the next film, it is significant that Gandalf dies his purpose, protecting and guiding the others. In doing so, he is allowed to return by the One as a much more leveled up Gandalf the White, taking the place of Saruman as the benevolent white wizard. The color symbolism here cannot go unmentioned, as his transition from Grey to White is arguably symbolic of him “shedding the veil of the night” (to quote our good friend Thoth in the Emerald Tablets) and becoming a real ascended being. This transition into ascension is also present with Galadriel in Lothlorien towards the very end of the film. For people who have only seen the movie version of The Lord of the Rings, we see a little context for Galadriel’s actions and words after she resists taking the ring. Even the book version does not provide the full context. But in the appendices at the end of The Return of the King and in The Silmarillion, we learn that Galadriel’s character flaw is the desire for power. This flaw she shares with her ancestors, who were exiled from the Far West due mainly to their pride and aggression. Through sharing in this exile, Galadriel was always torn by her love of the world and its beauty and her desire for power. Through the ages of Middle Earth, she steadfastly pitted her will against the will of Sauron, and in doing so, served in the protection of beauty and harmony against chaos and destruction. With this background, we can better understand the scene where Galadriel is finally offered the ring of power by Frodo. A part of her had long desired such an opportunity, yet she can resist this temptation, and in doing so, she finally can relinquish her desire for power. Having done so, she knows that the condition of her exile has been lifted and that she can return to the Far West, symbolic of her ascension and moving into a new life for herself.

Even the gifts of Lothlorien themselves have spiritual meaning. Frodo’s “Light of Earendil” that illuminates the darkness seems to signify light as purifying energy that provides hope, warmth, and shows the way. Interestingly there is a slight difference in the gifts that Sam gets from Galadriel. In the movie, he receives an Elven rope that can be easily anchored up by a simple tug, but in the book he receives soil from Galadriel’s garden and a seed, which he uses to replant the trees in the Shire after it is destroyed, signifying a spiritual rebirth and ultimately resurrection of the Earth. It makes sense that this item was changed for the movie because the destruction of the shire was cut from the film adaption.

The movie ends with Frodo disbanding the fellowship under the premise that the ring holds too much temptation to be able to keep the group together. Once again, he makes a substantial sacrifice for what he sees as the highest good. But like always, love is the answer. Sam, knowing Frodo as a friend, immediately guesses where he is going and follows him into what is quite literally the mouth of hell, signifying the bonds of brotherhood and family transcend even the darkest of darkness.

On that note, let’s bring this to a close. There is so much more that we could have spoken about here, and believe me, it was tough to condense this into just one video, but hey, at least we have two more to go! We will expand on each of these themes and delve more into them as we make our journey to Mt Doom by working through the story.

#spirituality #science #ascension #mystery school #spirit science

0 notes

oshangaoshanga · 4 years

Text

WELCOME TO OSHANGA BROTHERHOOD OCCULT THE TEMPLE OF WEALTH +2348177540711

Your starting maybe poor but your ending will be rich. Continue making a step to achieve what you want. Don't relax because even God himself will not send money and other of your needs from heaven and give it to you. blessings comes with at price . Join OSHANGA Brotherhood today and enjoy the sweetest part of life u can contact us on +2348177540711 your number 1 step with us in the pursuit of success will change your life forever

CREATE A LIFE THAT FEELS GOOD ON THE INSIDE, NOT JUST ONE THAT'S LOOKS GOOD ON THE OUTSIDE I am never in control of what happens around me, but with wealth and power i am always in control of what happens within me, There is nothing more important than this moment. Follow your intuition, it will always lead you to the right destination Let your faith in the power of money ritual be bigger than your fears, have faith success will be near nobody wants to make friends with a poor man, nothing good comes from being poor. Realize deeply that the present moment is all you have. Make the NOW the primary focus of your life I BELIEVE, and therefore anything is possible, No dream is too big, when you understand ABUNDANCE is your birthright. Oshanga brotherhood occult is here to liberty the poor and the weak in spirit for the Them to realize that the most important time in the world is the time you make for yourselves Our future reality depends on what we do NOW, in this present moment. Trust me when i say, you are capable of anything imaginable. Follow your heart, Lecithin," Aldrich repeated. "Time is precious. Don't waste it living someone else's life. The role of money ritual apprentice is to understand that power is unlimited, power is chaos, power is energy, power is everything… but also to never forget that your Master found that power first, Worshiping the Lord of Oshangaoshanga is no more insane...It is precisely at the moment when positivism is at its high-water mark that mysticism stirs into life and the follies of occultism begin, Black Magic is the process of self-transformation through an antinomian initiatory structure, Black meaning the hidden wisdom, power of wealth, dreams and staging the reality you wish and Magic being the process to ascend, become immortal in spirit.

Every one is welcomed to OSHANGA Brotherhood because is for the common man.POWER, SUCCESS IN LIFE And unlike groups like the Masons, which have evolved into public charitable institutions or simply social clubs, the objective of the Adelphon Kruptos is to continue the venerable tradition of uniting men together in a private society of mutual aid.The Brotherhood is a legal, non-political, non-religious society whose sole interest is building a united brotherhood of members who help each other. It has nothing to do with fanciful nonsense like the Illuminati. We have no desire to control others but only wish to gain control of our own lives and destiny. Join us now and elevate your business, WEALTH, FORTUNE, RICHES, Political Ambition and so on…for guidelines. What is secret occult? In our list of secret societies in Nigeria — cult is defined as a religious or spiritual organization or a new religious movement ruled by the common interests or philosophical beliefs to reach a certain goal. A cult can be treated as a social group with deviant to the tradition religion beliefs. Cult and cultism became the object of various dies in the 1930s. A new religious movement is related to the movements started in the mid-1800s. Researches establishes cults into several categories: Doomsday cults Political cults Destructive cults Racist cults Terrorist cults Polygamist cults Distractive … call now +2348177540711

OSHANGA Brotherhood occult is here to firmly assure you that you can get rich without any evil ritual, that you can get rich without killing your mother, father, brother, sister, uncle or a poor child on the street. It is real and don’t have any side effect. Try it now and see. Take that bold step to your world of riches. call +2348177540711, OSHANGA temple today and state what you want and how you want it. The solution is at your door step. You don’t need to be in debts and always borrow, let people now come and borrow from you. your wealth is in your palms and Your destiny is in your hands.

If you’ve had a hard life up until now — here is the opportunity to change it all. By simply allowing OSHANGA Brotherhood to reshape your life, your dreams will indeed come true. Won’t you allow yourself to finally relax, enjoy life and leave the work to us? Don’t pass up the greatest opportunity you may ever be offered! OSHANGA Brotherhood is a club or organization whose activities and inner functioning are concealed from non-members. OSHANGA Brotherhood is organized conspiracies working in secret to achieve a hidden agenda. Members use secrecy to protect themselves and their movement. Critics view as malevolent organizations working against the general will of mankind. ‘ Members may be required to conceal or deny their membership, and they are often sworn to hold the OSHANGA’s secrets by an oath. Violating the oath may result in the application of severe sanctions. Like the most successful forgeries, the most effective OSHANGA Brotherhood are unknown beyond their adherents. Members may be required to deny the organization itself exists.

IF YOU TRULY WANT TO BE SUPER RICH / WEALTHY TODAY TALK TO US, JOIN US AND BECOME A MEMBER OF THE OSHANGA BROTHERHOOD OCCULT SOCIETY , This is real, not a child’s play. join us today to find out more and see things for yourself.

IF ITS NOT THE OSHANGA BROTHERHOOD, THEN ITS NOT REAL. Shake hands with the spirit of money and enjoy a lifetime of wealth, luxury and extravagance. Live large as you’ve always wished. Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. We are a Thelemic group working the lesser and greater mysteries of the African tradition as these mysteries have been influenced by the Book of the Law. We accept all traditions except those whose dogma teaches eternal damnation or the subjugation of women or other groups based on race or creed. We are a society of individuals seeking to improve the planet by application of the principles propounded in the Book of the Law. Our rites and lore are cumulative and lead gradually to the understanding and intelligent application of that which has been called the Great Secret: Love is the law, love under will Occultism is much like water. It is neither good or bad in and of itself, but it can be used for both good and bad purposes. It can either quench thirst or drown a man, depending how it is employed. The secrets of the Occult course is meant to be used in a positive manner to help you change life for the better.We have received several emails regarding our stories on the OSHANGA BROTHERHOOD. Most have asked how they can join while others simply wanted to understand the phenomenon further.Today, we look at how to join this secret society. According to the rules and regulations on how to join The BROTHERHOOD, the promise of wealth, success, power and domination simply by joining the OSHANGA is heresy. Powerful, Influential, intelligent, entrepreneurial, successful and wealthy individuals make up the brotherhood order. In order to join the OSHANGA brotherhood there is no secret handshake and you cannot just say that you are OSHANGA family — when you are part of the New World Order you can rest assured that you will know, without being told. Surrounding yourself with successful people who support your goals, aspirations and achievements will raise your social stature; these people will know you are part of the OSHANGA brotherhood without you needing to say a thing; this successful and supportive network of people will also be OSHANGA. OSHANGA brotherhood members are handpicked through their achievements, ideas and concepts, through their interests or dedication to a cause. The New World Order guides potential candidates to become an OSHANGA associate, however being guided into the secret society does not automatically grant you a membership. Mutual interest is essential for successful initiation. Conspiracy Theorists have tried to decipher the OSHANGA’s code, and by branding the order as domineering, OSHANGA worshiping clans in order to gain greed, success and power are a fallacy. Being OSHANGA is a state of mind, belief in your own success and surrounding yourself with others who believe in the same mindset will successfully guide you on your way. Having a positive mental attitude towards success creates success and success creates wealth, which leads to a mutually exclusive group of people — The OSHANGA brotherhood. Opening your mind, dreaming and strive for success in your own right and leading by example are all traits of successful candidates and members.

#i want to join occult #how do i join occult

0 notes

chiefbeck · 4 years

Text

ACT III: A new beginning Chapter 22: What changes?

!Since starting on a journey toward the feminine in my life I have gone through changes of the physical, mental, emotional and the spiritual.

I have been on hormones for a couple of years now and I will not claim anything beyond what I know from living this journey. The experts can ply their mumbo jumbo to enhance or discredit many of the things I have to say and thats ok; I don’t know everything. I will not attempt to present you with every angle or show you “realness” or how to live you life. I pass this on to you as I know I learn many things from the most unlikely places.

I want to dive into the changes that I have succumbed first hand, going from a bearded viking, caveman, Navy SEAL into a delicate flower of a woman. Alright, maybe not a delicate flower, but I am getting closer and who knows where I will end up?

Physical:

The physical changes are the easiest to see if you wish to look. There are any number of books and films on Transgender people that spend 90% of the time on physical. They go into operations and photo montages of the effects of hormones. In all of my work I have tried to avoid this topic as it is over done and is a stereotype of a transgender person. We are more than our bodies, we are more than our jobs, we are more than this time on earth.

The little I will add to the physical changes that I have seen is the following:

I have gained weight in places that I normally would not have. I am developing breasts naturally and I have extremely increased sensation in some of my private areas, you would not believe how sensitive some areas have gotten.

My skin is softer and I have found less hair growth all around my body.

The one thing to point out is this is ALL due to a “chemical” change in my body, lack of testosterone and increase of estrogen. These hormones are amazing and the balance that we all have in our bodies is very delicate. This minor change in my chemical make up has had immense physical changes; makes you want to ask how different are we as men and women?

! ! Mental:

Women are smarter, thats about it. Next topic.... just kidding. But there are people out there that think one gender is superior to the other. People are living in a world that is built on misinformation. We all have potential and if you limit that potential to the physical world then yes, there are divisions to be made. Not everyone can make the cut to be on a professional football team, nor can everyone achieve the talent to be in a philharmonic. We all have gifts that let us wander along this life and learn what it is to be a person, we also have the ability to witness, enjoy and learn from others talents. There are many people that are smarter, faster, stronger, taller, darker, bigger, more compassionate, more graceful, and also the contrary. This is not a contest in any of the attributes that are measurable on this earth. This is an experience to bring to the next place. What are you doing with your talents and with your experiences you gain while walking on this journey?

! ! Emotions:

Women contain an innate divine of service and compassion that men do not have; I think this can be traced back to caveman instinct. The men hunt and kill and to have thoughts of compassion or nurturing pop

into your head during a kill will only get you killed. Women on the other hand were back at the home taking care of everything, expressing love through giving, nurturing and cherishing life. Women are the life givers and men were the life takers.

Spiritual:

I am a spiritual being, made up of energy or a spirit. That spirit energy does not have a gender, your penis is not going to any type of heaven or valhalla. I have come to understand that we are what we are and gender doesn't define who I am and it is not my spirit. We need to stop defining everything in terms of gender and stop the hierarchy of gender with women subjugated and inferior to men.

Since starting this new journey of the feminine I am coming closer to myself as a spirit. I understand the Native American “Two-Spirit” idea and why many two-spirit people were shamans within the tribes. I can see both sides of gender male and female and can exist in between and bring the two closer to the middle where they should reside.

Why should male and female reside more in the middle?

Think about it for a minute. Wage in equality, subjugation, mis- treatment of women in religion, division of labor and all of the stereotypes that keep women in an inferior position to men. Think of all of the underutilized intellectual capital that was never fulfilled because of prejudice against women for thousands of years. (Take this same thought and apply it to color, race, religion and all the other aspects we constantly prejudice against in society)

Where would humanity be RIGHT NOW if throughout history there was NO LIMIT on any person except their own motivation or potential?

OoO

My current focus is just on gender and the problems that have persisted when it comes to gender.

Gender, Male and Female are totally divided. One one hand you have the radical feminists and on the other are the chauvinistic man. In the middle is everyone else and we are ALL affected by gender norms that are engrained into culture and thought over thousands of years.

First I want to go into Gender a little bit and then go into some of what I am feeling and what I have learned about gender over the past few years on this journey. Three things that Gender can be divided into for study and understanding.

1. Gender Expression is in almost everything, its all the way from how we dress to how we act... its perpetuated by corporations and the media. This is just the outside covering and mannerisms that appear to be “gender” normalized.

2. Physical Gender in your body is the anatomy of yourself. Male and female genitalia, but as we look deeper into the subject we find that this is a very very gray area and there are thousands and maybe millions of combinations of “gender” and there is no 100% male or female.

3. Intellectual Gender is our thoughts and deep inside our “spirit.” This aspect of gender is the hardest to come to terms with and understand. I liken it to being born with blue eyes. You don't have a choice as to your eye color; it is just part of you.

Notice that sex is no where in the discussion. Sex and sexual orientation have nothing to do with gender and this is constantly confused by many people. Sex and Gender are separate and different.

Gender when you get right down to it is NOT ONE OR THE OTHER... it is all fluid and gray.

But our LAWs are set up for one or the other. our SCHOOLS are set up for one or the other. our clothing is designed for one or the other.

our sports, our jobs, our expectations, our salaries, our color schemes, our shoes, our jewelry, our models, our hair styles, our EVERYTHING....

Most of the media perpetuates this concept of total exclusion of one gender over the other. Religion for the most part does the same.

AND it is WRONG....It is a MYTH and a MISTAKE. How do we fix this if the two biggest influencers on peoples lives are behind the curtain and keeping the genders DIVIDED?

The general population needs to see GENDER NON- CONFORMING people and actions. The population needs to see transgender and queer people for who we are.... we are you and we are the same.  

Basically I am at peace with both genders in one body and accept both genders as equal. I have been able to move past gender to just what the spirt of a human is at its core. I have also now see past gender in other people and can treat them as who they really are as a human and as an “energy being.”

Have you ever seen old people acting like tough guys or primping around like peacocks on the seashore? When you see most people in their 80s or 90s they are closer what we should be as people. BUT we never see it, because we lack the respect for elders. We take to long to get there also and waste all of this time acting like animals with no compassion, no patience and just running around like Tarzan and Barbie and living in our body and not in our souls. It is too bad we can’t live till we were 200 so we could have a good hundred years to live and step into the next level of humanity. Can we become more if we had a chance to develop or evolve

into something greater than the animals who still fight over race or religion and any other difference we find on the surface?

OoO

Here is a further thought on the subject just to bounce around.

Evolution of every species on earth or the universe occurs because the organism has a potential and has a NEED.

Orcinus whales and some other higher beings have developed an enlarged limbic system or the area of the brain where emotions are processed. Some people refer to them as a "super-herd" and with this super herd mentality they are able to be much more than just a fish.

Can you imagine if we as humans acted as a “super-herd” with an emotional connection to each other with a common goal of becoming better and rising to a new level of humanity? If we continue to separate and divide each other and be negative with this constant struggle against each other we will never be able to know our true potentials as humans. We will always just be animals and not even as evolved as an orca in the wild.

What if there was a thousand acres of land where the only rule was to be human and endeavor to evolve the limbic system. If you think it then it could become real. 

#Kristin Beck #transgender

0 notes