Shadow and Tolkien

“If God is absolute, then he is complete. If he is complete, then he is finite. If he is finite, then he is limited. If he is limited, he is not Infinite.”

The trap of a visual syllogism. Infinity is absolute and ultimate finiteness. Absolute finiteness includes Infinity. God is both a thesis and an anti-thesis.

The archetype of the Shadow from Tolkien

The archetype of the Shadow is hard to grasp these days. Although I have problems with other Archetypes as well, Shadow is the most difficult to appoint, and on the other hand, it is spread the most. Lately, the Shadow has been showing itself to me in the form of an ex-girlfriend, monster, plain evil, or some form of darkness. As a child, I dreamed of it as a witch, a cannibal plant, or some kind of demon. In one dream, which I had after the death of Patriarch Pavle, it appeared to me like a cuddly black dog who flattered me but actually wanted to eat a sparrow sitting on my left shoulder (the sparrow was PP). I see it in people in the form of unambiguous desire, lack of ethics, excessive need for repetitive pleasure, wrong definitions, insufficient definitions, insufficient terms, inadequate knowledge. Like everyone else, I succumb to all these ailments.

Although fairy tales introduced me to the phenomenon, and Jung indoctrinated me into the concept, it was only with Tolkien that I actually encountered for the first time the formal gradation of the Shadow that was close to me. In The Lord of the Rings, the Shadow is elaborated on three levels (Gollum – 9 riders – Sauron) – One – Many – One. The object of the shadow is the Ring. The ring as a symbol of infinite desire – our fall – our (imperfection) – our slavery.

Gollum – Arbitrariness in relation to Sauron (source). Gollum has his own will and his own intention even though he is a lower and far less powerful level of shadow. His intention is not necessarily the same as Sauron’s, it is even opposed (logical contradiction within the Shadow).

9 Riders – From the Shadow’s perspective, they shine like angels. They are completely subservient to the collective consciousness. Complete obedience of the Riders to the initial Principle (Sauron). Overpowered by Woman (Anima)

Sauron – The Contrasting Principle of Life. The end of Kant’s categories. It is destroyed at the place where it is materialized (named).