Aliens R Us

The Myth of Super Humans

“They are manifestations of psychic changes which always appear at the end of one Platonic month and at the beginning of another. Apparently they are changes in the constellation of psychic dominants of the archetypes, or “gods” as they used to be called, which bring about, or accompany, long lasting transformations of the collective psyche.” CG Jung

“They” here refers to flying saucers, or UFOs; and the shift from one Platonic month to the next is a reference to the precession of the equinoxes—that is, the shift of the location of the vernal equinox from one zodiac sign to the next (previous) sign. In particular, Jung is speaking of the “dawning of the Age of Aquarius.”* The quote is from the Introduction to his book, Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth, published in 1958. Jung argues that the shift from one Platonic month to the next marks a corresponding shift in mythology. We understand mythology as an expression of the archetypal contents of the collective psyche.

Myth is always an integral part of the human experience, but it is easier by far for us to recognize and reflect on archaic myth than it is to understand the emerging mythology in which we find ourselves. The mid-twentieth century was a time of great fear and apprehension (a state we could easily argue is ongoing). Bombs, wars, catastrophes: not only buildings and bridges were destroyed. As old ways of life crumbled, humanity faced the unthinkable and the unknown. Jung characterizes the emerging UFO phenomena as new mythology carrying the psychic projections of mass tension and distress. “Something is seen, but one doesn’t know what” (CW Vol 10 312). Some mix of real and fiction. Aliens become a living myth.

“It is characteristic of our time that the archetype, in contrast to its previous manifestations [as deities], should now take the form of … a technological construction … to avoid the odiousness of mythological personification. Anything that looks technological goes down without difficulty with modern man” (328).

UFOs have been observed sporadically throughout the centuries, but never before with the frequency and attendant hysteria that began in the late 1940’s.

“Kenneth Arnold … witnessed nine silvery boomerang-like shapes zip in perfect formation near Mount Rainier in Washington state. It was this sighting, on June 24, 1947, that initiated the modern flying-saucer era and gave us the modern expression “flying saucer”.… Just a few weeks later, the papers reported on a crashed flying disc that was supposedly recovered in Roswell, New Mexico” (Kripal 106-8).

Jeffrey Kripal’s fantastic book, Mutants and Mystics, follows the twentieth century progress of superhero and science fiction through pop culture and current events. He points out the thread of gnosticism that seems to hold it all together. You may not have known it was there, but once you see it, it’s undeniable.

What’s gnosticism? A christian sect emerging in the second century ce,** considered heretical by the church fathers, the main tenet is this: enclosed in the soul of each human is a divine spark which has fallen into this world from a transcendent God (a God who is not of this world). The “goal” is to reunite with God, and the method is through knowledge, but the foil is that, until liberated, we do not know of our own divinity. Rather, we live in ignorance, held captive in the world by the Archon forces, who created this world to imprison us, and who seek to hide the truth from us. Their intention is to keep the divine spark here, apart from God. The Archon rule is known to us as Fate. Through gnosis (knowledge), we are able to free ourselves from Fate, to live our own lives and free ourselves to reach the true God beyond the world. One’s free spirit is the source of direct knowledge; the gnostic (one who knows) is therefore liberated from moral law, such as would be imposed by the church. Gnosticism is a faith of non-conformism: “Every day every one of them invents something new” observed the Greek bishop Irenaeus in 2nd c ce (Jonas, The Gnostic Religion 42). A key figure in gnosticism is the divine messenger who brings revelation: the saviour without whom we are doomed to ignorance.

Kripal writes of an odd and influential early twentieth century figure by the name of Charles Fort. Fort was the author of several books collecting “excluded knowledge” — that is, reports of unexplained phenomena which had been largely rejected or ignored by mainstream religion and science, for running counter to those dominant paradigms.*** Fort believed that “we are all living in someone else’s novel … not a particularly good one” (Kripal 86). Kripal summarizes the logic thus: “if we are being written, the best way to free ourselves is to read our situation more deeply and then begin to write ourselves anew.”

The gnostic thread: We are in someone else’s novel. We need to start writing ourselves.

This idea is evident in lots of sci-fi stories —The Matrix, for example. Kripal traces it through the genre of superhero comics, its influence pervading the DC and Marvel Universes. For a particularly clear restatement of this idea, watch the recent spin-off series, Loki.

What makes aliens intriguing and/or frightening is that we don’t know anything about them. Are they real? Who are they? What do they want?

After almost 80 years of denial, the US Government has recently, for some reason, simply disclosed that:

“UFOs are real. We have no idea what they are or where they come from. This is now an accepted fact, confirmed in a June 2021 report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence” (Leslie Kean).

Whatever they are, UFOs don’t have to be all one thing. One prevalent theory is that aliens are advanced versions of ourselves—highly-evolved super humans, who have come to warn us, telling us how to save ourselves from destruction — a version of the Sumerian/Aquarian myth of Ea and Pir-na-pishtim.

Aquarius is known as the Water Bearer, identified from earliest times with the Mesopotamian god, Ea, lord of cleansing waters. Once upon a time, Ea’s brother, Bel sought to destroy humankind by deluge, on account of their disrespectful behavior. By Ea’s warning, Pir-na-pishtim was able to save his family, his servants, and a seed of every kind. (A precursor to the story of Noah found in Genesis.) Thus Ea was thought of as a protective angel, and the waters of Aquarius bring the blessing of renewal.

While Ea maps to the Water Bearer, Pir-na-pishtim exemplifies the archetypal Aquarius, for he has special knowledge that prolongs his life. His longevity and radiant health make him appear god-like to his descendant, Gilgamesh; but “super-human” is a better description.

By the way, Sumerian tradition holds that its people were of non-human origin. And: “A succession of strange creatures appears over the course of several generations. Their only apparent purpose is to instruct mankind” (Sagan and Shklovskii, Intelligent Life in the Universe 459). This ancient story is echoed by modern tales of aliens and super-heroes. Humans are perennial bad actors on the planetary stage. Once more we find ourselves on the verge of annihilation. The alien arrives with life-saving knowledge, if only we will listen.

In The Day the Earth Stood Still, the film whose first version appeared in 1951, a humanoid spaceman named Klaatu lands his craft in Washington, DC with just such a message. [SPOILER ALERT] He says to the gathered crowd, “We have come to visit you in peace and with goodwill.” And then, predictably, he is shot; and taken to the hospital for treatment and observation. His body heals quickly. Doctors find that he has the anatomy of a human, but with super-health. Though government entities try to control him, Klaatu has a message for all people on the planet: the aggression of earthly humans has grown to the point where life on other planets is threatened. Humans must desist or the planet earth will be eliminated. “There is no alternative.” Klaatu’s departing words: “Your choice is simple: Join us and live in peace, or pursue your present course and face obliteration. We shall be waiting for your answer.”

The underlying theme is that fear is at the root of human destructive behavior patterns. Our fear of the unknown is a much greater threat to us than the unknown itself. No kidding!! When fear begets panic begets mass hysteria, no one is in charge and no one is safe. Like a superstorm, the madness takes its course.

Well, humans, this is the liberating knowledge:

Remain calm.
Be kind.
Act reasonably.
Wake up to your latent superpowers.
Write your own adventure.

Any takers?

* Age of Aquarius: We don’t have exact dates for this. Calculations can only be approximate and methods vary, so precise dates are up for debate. Many feel that the 20th century was the transitional period from Pisces to Aquarius; while others feel we have not yet entered the Age of Aquarius. The Age of Pisces was characterized by the mythology of monotheism, notably Christianity. The rise of alien, superhuman, and futuristic mythology maps nicely to the incoming Aquarian theme.

**There was an earlier pre-Christian Jewish and hellenistic pagan Gnosticism.

***Charles Fort’s books can be found online as free pdfs. They are also still in print.

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