The Importance of Understanding Metaphors

The Bin Laden Dead SubContact, which occurred shortly after the September 11 attack on America, contained a powerful metaphor that allowed us to deal with the horror of that day. This type of calamity can have a profound effect on the psyche.

Metaphors may be the most powerful educational tools available. For example, Jesus did much of his teaching in parables, which is another word for metaphors. Through careful examination, the metaphor of this SubContact provided us with the following altered perspective:

  • To us, bin Laden is dead, killed by his own people in a manner devoid of compassion, just as he was.
  • Bin Laden's very existence on this earth has been eliminated, except for traces of his DNA held, appropriately enough, by crime investigators.
  • It was not bin Laden who masterminded the terrorist attack, he was a pawn, just as al-Qaeda was and always has been, a pawn for an evil force.
  • The planning was done by the Contrascenti, an elite group of people like a super Mafia who are global in reach and who profit from chaos.
  • Bin Laden was effectively dead the moment the WTC collapsed. He was more valuable dead than alive and answerable. It was also counter productive to have him martyred to a radical cause.
  • Any videos that appeared after 11/11 were generic, filmed beforehand knowing that bin Laden would be hunted. Military/ political reactions were anticipated.

Let us for a moment consider that the metaphor was comprised of consciously known facts. Our perspective was still altered to the following point of view.

  • Bin Laden's power evaporated: financial resources under siege, lost ability to communicate, and a huge bounty on his head. He could trust no one.
  • Following the success of the attack he became the world's most wanted person. The best he could do would be to scurry from cave-to-cave.
  • The collapsing towers was unforeseen. The falling rubble sealed his fate as surely as that of his victims.

But how can we know this metaphor is true?

At its root, this metaphor is about fear and change . Bin Laden, the Taliban and al-Qaeda are fanatically committed to resisting change, represented by western technology and influence. They would rather die than accept western values. For us in the western world the terror that came from the sky was also about fear and change. Suddenly our peaceful continent was violated. How quickly we mobilized our resources so we could be safe again, even at great cost. Included in these costs are negotiations with, and accommodation of, the have-not nations in that region.

Remember, this SubContact appeared spontaneously at a time when we as individuals were trying to comprehend a horrendous event and accommodate a new worldview that included psychotics like bin Laden and al-Qaeda. This is an example of a therapeutic metaphor delivered by the subconscious to help us cope with a changing world.

In this sense, the metaphor is true for the participants of the SubContact session.

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