What do the now somewhat infamous Betelgeuse star and 2012 doomsday prophecies have in common? Furthermore, what do each of these have to do with George Lucas’ Star Wars films?
In his recent post “Betelgeuse, Star Wars & 2012: The Hero’s Journey Begins?” over at the Daily Grail website, my friend Red Pill Junkie has undertaken the monumental task of making just these sorts of associations… and with an eloquent eye cast toward the artistic beauty represented in the Star Wars films, as well as how some of that imagery relates to people’s claims that the Betelgeuse explosion “will be so bright that… it will still turn night into day and appear like there are two suns in the sky for a few weeks.”
Namely, RPJ discusses the famous “Double Sunset” scene from the first film in the series (which, I must admit, is by far my very favorite, and one of my favorites in the history of film in general). RPJ seems to agree: “This is probably one of the most powerful and beautiful scenes in the entire history of Cinema,” he writes. “But why is is that this particular scene resonates so heavily within many of us? It does that, because George Lucas weaved together a masterful mythical tale full of human archetypes.” Indeed, the famous series, alternately referred to as a “Space Western,” or merely one of the finest culminations of the fantasy and sci-fi genres of the modern era, manages to strike a chord with many. Why is this? Perhaps it’s because so many of the underlying themes in this series touch parts of the human soul that are so much a part of us, and yet we’ve all but forgotten them by taking them for granted so often, and for so long.
“In this scene, Lucas is trying to communicate to the spectator that Luke, he who is meant to ‘walk among the stars’, presently feels trapped in his earthbound routinary confines, is about to fulfill his destiny and commence what Joseph Campbell coined ‘The Hero’s Journey’.” If you enjoy philosophical and archetypal musings on the nature of humankind and myth present in pop culture, I highly recommend you go have a look at this blog:
Betelgeuse, Star Wars & 2012: The Hero’s Journey Begins?
Image courtesy of NASA.
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Thanks for the shout out, dude 😉
And as I added as a sort of separate addenda in the post’s comment section, there has been at least some other time when the imagery of a second sun has been used to convey a new beginning for mankind.
I’m talking of course about, 2010: The Year We Make Contact. Now, i seriously doubt Arthur C. Clarke was a big Star Wars fan –in fact I’m pretty sure he wasn’t! But isn’t it interesting that both artists used the SAME element of a second sun to deliver a somewhat similar message of expanded consciousness about the true nature of the Universe?
Also, I’m observing another interesting synchronicity with this crazy speculation of mine, with all the social change reported in Tunisia, with people rallying and demanding for freedom after so many years of oppression
I tried the link to the site you recommended. I just wanted to let you know it led to a adobe application.