A worm has been inserted into humanity's Soul. It is buried within the Mind so that it drips it's poison into your heart, clouding your Sovereignty and therefore your ability to make rational decisions for your life and your community. We will here explore the extent of this descent into Orcishness, and perhaps reveal ways in which we may re-member our true state of being: Elfhood.
The Moon is symbolic of the Mind - emotional and bodily intelligence, rather than intellect - and in Tolkien's Cosmology the Elves are Moon beings (rather than Men, who worshiped the Sun).* As such, the Elves have pure consciousness, live in harmony with each other (and within themselves), are fully aware of their Divine Source, and are in alignment with Nature (capital 'S' Self). The FoE's (Forces of Evil) powerful sorcery (casting SPELLS through the manipulation of language in order to alter consciousness) is useless against a Being that is connected to their Imperial Self, for they are centered, grounded and balanced.
[It's worth noting here that Tolkien said to his great friend C.S. Lewis that his Mythology was "not fiction"]
As the Silmarillion progresses, the Force of Chaos, Melkor, meaning "He who arises in might" - later named Morgoth by the Elves ("Black Foe of the World")- doubled down on his dark machinations (his blasphemy, or affront to God), breeding an army to support his Tyranny through the ritualistic abuse of Elves (sound familiar?).
Elves are immortal. They do not die from illness, or old age. Therefore, they can be made the victims of a looooooong, slow, lifetime of torture.
It was through his psychopathic determination, combined with the deepest horrors of pain and despair you could imagine, that Melkor corrupted a divine Being into the hate-filled, twisted creature that is the Orc. The Orc lives in constant terror of his Master, but finds some relief in the fear and pain it inflicts below it, those whom it sees as slaves. It isn't so much pleasure that it derives from this hate, but rather relief; relief that he isn't utterly powerless.
The Orc is a schizoid being that works to manifest its INTERNAL Master/ Slave (or Dominator/ Dominated) dynamic into the world (for more on this Master/ Slave dialectic see Hegel). Fear of The Dark one/s keep the Orc forever in servitude and entombed within his own subjective "Hell". A basic tenet of psychology is that the conditions found within psyche, will be manifested in that being's life and those close to them. Thus, we see with the slow Orcification of our world, greater levels of antipathy toward authentic Care, and ever increasing spiritual decay, darkness and chaos.
The mindless way in which the Orc approaches battle and likely death is a confirmation that to be destroyed, to be deleted from the ranks of the horde is preferred to remaining alive; the Orc is already dead inside. Could we say that this is mirrored somewhat in the nihilistic, self and nature-destructive cult-ure we have been smothered by? With suicide rates and domestic violence (perpetrated equally by both sexes) at an all-time high? With the slow suicide that people commit to daily with their "choice" of diet (both physical and digital) and the environment they expose themselves to?
{to be continued}
~ A.J. Dunbar
Art:
'The Creation of Light' by John Martin
'America' by William Blake