Myths are public dreams, dreams are private myths.
- Joseph Campbell
Dreams have driven us to imagine possibilities we seldom see and experience in our every day lives. Dreams are thought to be the windows in to the deepest yearnings of our soul and the same dreams when actualized have brought forth a world with greater possibilities and greater depth. Psychoanalysts of the Jungian school and comparative mythologists like Joseph Campbell argue that myths are the collective dreams of people and may also be of other beings manifest in the universe. Some of these myths, both the ancient and recent ones have always been popular as these express our collective yearning to break out from our existential limitations and validate the limits of human potential.
It is interesting to note that most of the super human potentials we see in the super-heroes in popular fiction were also present in heroes of the ancient myths. The major difference in the current mythical narrative being that the myths are filtered through our popular scientific framework. Science and Technology does allow us to break free from some limitations and hence has had an enormous influence in the expression of mythical ideas in our more recent popular fiction.It is interesting to explore the parallels in superhuman abilities in ancient myths and super-heroes in current fiction and look at the various interpretations people have held over time.
 |
| Superman, Spider man and Batman |
Religious and Popular Myths:
Myths fall in to different categories. Some myths fall under the folk category and others have this global nature to it. All the heroic deeds are generally considered an expression of some great quality of the universal in mankind. While most of the ancient myths were of religious nature and the current ones more rooted in the modern scientific framework, the boundaries do seem to merge in popular imagination. One of the reasons could be the greater appeal of super powers these heroes are shown to hold and their similarities to the powers the mythical heroes of the past were believed to posses. Despite our tendency to separate myths in to such distinctions as the science based myths and the religious ones, they do seem to merge given the source of all great deeds is the mind. However, the frame work in which we understand the basis of these myths and potentials is still different owing to our gaps in knowledge.
The Framework:
The broad framework in which super-human potential was expressed in the ancient world was that of spirituality. Spirituality is all about our individual consciousness becoming one with the cosmic consciousness or the most basic substrate of the universe. Even though several different spiritual traditions talk about it in various mildly different ways, they all say similar things at the level of ultimate reality. Below is the list of some of the super powers of ancient super heroes that were common all around the world and elucidated well in some of the yogic texts
This realization of oneness was achieved by several people in the past through various means. Some achieve it through involving in arduous physical and mental effort similar to our athletes and scholars of various disciplines. In addition to all this, it involves great practice in several virtues. Some of the ancient super-heroes were considered enlightened souls reborn to guide the world through its ordeals.
 |
| Neo Becoming one with the source in The Matrix Revolutions |
In contrast to that paradigm, most of the current super heroes in popular fiction acquire or develop super human potentials through freak accidents (Spiderman and most of his villains, Hulk and Captain America through active experiments that turned awry). These stories do shadow our Darwinian view of evolution through random processes. Some of them use advanced technological gadgetry to develop several super human abilities (Batman, Iron Man, and others). Superman is from another planet satiating our hunger for the possibility of inter-stellar travel and alien life.
One possible exception is Neo in The Matrix Trilogy, as the creators have expressed several ancient philosophical and mythological themes in a futuristic context. It is one of those movies where a whole new fictional world was created to parallel our existential condition as believed by the some of the classical philosophical schools. The Matrix Trilogy can be interpreted at several levels and has been analysed by many to a great extent to reveal its philosophical themes The matrix world represents the world of illusion and control in which people remain ignorant of their real existential condition. Morpheus wakes up Neo from the world of deceiving, illusory appearances to a world of much humble conditions always fighting against control and illusion.
 |
To create peace between the warring worlds, Neo has to reach the source and also battle with one of the characters (Smith) set loose with a strong destructive instinct (thanatos). Smith's portrayal, to some extent, expresses the aggressive expression of power to change everything in the world to a mere reflection of oneself. Towards his journey to the source, even though he becomes physically blind, he begins to see people and machines as beings of light. After his battle with Smith, he becomes one with the source and is able to redeem the matrix from its eventual destruction.
This whole concept in The Matrix Trilogy pays homage to several classical philosophies in an innovative manner set in a futuristic setting. Since the underlying metaphysics portrayed in this work of fiction is the same as those believed by the ancient schools, several super powers seen in the myths of the past were also shown in the Matrix movies.
The Super Powers:
To quote an article in Wikipedia that summarizes the 8 primary skills (siddhis) of super heroes of the past as described in yogic texts:
- Aṇimā: Shrinking one's body even to the size of an atom
- Mahima: Expanding one's body to an infinitely large size
- Garima: Becoming infinitely heavy
- Laghima: Becoming almost weightless
- Prāpti: Having unrestricted access to all places
- Prākāmya: Realizing whatever one desires
- Iṣṭva: Possessing absolute lordship
- Vaśtva: The power to subjugate all
Secondary Siddhis achieved by yoga as described by Lord Krishna in Srimad Bhagavatham
- anūrmi-mattvam: Being undisturbed by hunger, thirst, and other bodily appetites
- dūra-śravaṇa: Hearing things far away
- dūra-darśanam: Seeing things far away
- manaḥ-javah: Moving the body wherever thought goes (teleportation/astral projection)
- kāma-rūpam: Assuming any form desired
- para-kāya praveśanam: Entering the bodies of others
- sva-chanda mṛtyuh: Dying when one desires
- devānām saha krīḍā anudarśanam: Witnessing and participating in the pastimes of the gods
- yathā sańkalpa saḿsiddhiḥ: Perfect accomplishment of one's determination
- ājñā apratihatā gatiḥ: Orders or commands being unimpeded
Flight to humans has always represented freedom. Almost all the superheroes (as portrayed in fiction) have flying powers one way or the other. Superman, Iron man, Spider man and Batman somehow have flying powers. Even the giant hulk can leap high and far. Hulk is shown to have the capacity grow in to a giant whenever he gets angry. One of the most popular characters in ancient world mythology who does that and carries a mountain on his shoulders is Hanuman. He too like Hulk changes size, but according to his will, and leaps across the ocean to Lanka. All the Buddhas are believed to have such flying abilities. Jesus of Nazareth could perform miracles, fly and resurrect the dead according to the events described in the texts.
 |
| Hanuman with a mountain in his hand |
 |
| Krishna lifting a mountain to give shelter |
 |
| Christ Walking on Water Painting by Kenneth Wyatt |
 |
| The Avengers Group |
Clairvoyance, Teleportation and entering in to another's body has been portrayed in The Matrix Trilogy in addition to other abilities. Neo also resurrects Trinity just like Trinity does to Neo once. In the ancient myths, several events are portrayed where the super-heroes are shown to bring back people from the dead.
 |
| Neo Entering Agent Smith in The Matrix |
The Scientific and Philosophical Heroes:
Hulk, Spider man and Iron man are all portrayed as scientists turned super heroes. Batman is portrayed as a tech savvy genius who applies advanced tech to overcome his adversaries. Superman is shown to philosophize about his moral actions just like all others. Almost all the mythical heroes of the past were also intelligent and knowledgeable. Some of them were giants in what is now referred to as inner science, while some didn't mention it explicitly and pointed the source of their powers to god or other powers in the universe. The Buddha, Christ, Prophet Mohammed and several other sages were all great teachers and healers. Most of our super heroes in current popular fiction seem to pay homage to this intellectual tradition.
 |
| The Celestial Buddha |
The Possibilities:
In our times, most of our super powers come from the use of technology and advancements in science. Given the slow pace of transformation that happens in the physical realm, we rely on technology for drastic improvements and changes in our physical and mental potential. But the stories in the ancient myths point to some other source for these super human potential in individual humans. The metaphysical basis of those myths present a possibility for achieving those powers much like our modern physics. Our understanding of spirit/consciousness through the lens of modern science is nascent, to say the least, to pass judgement on the possibility of these phenomena. Even though there is much anecdotal evidence about several sages possessing these powers, they remain hidden for good reasons. Much remains to be seen about the possibility of these potentials in humans and other beings on earth. The fact that super human potential portrayed in recent fiction mimics those in ancient myths may point to a deeper source. It may suggest to us that our collective dreams are always there, sometimes hidden deep under the sub-conscious, awaiting full expression in all its magnificence.
#################################################################################
Note: All the images were collected from different sources in the web.
No comments:
Post a Comment