John of God

"Myth is a reflection of the deepest aspects of the human mind, a powerful religious expression not of the way were were but of the way were are." -Michael W. Sexson, Myth: The Way We Were or the Way We Are?


When we were giving our one-minute Ovid presentations, Dr. Sexson mentioned something about how you see get the sense of mythology simply by watching an episode of a day-time talk show, such as Oprah or the ever-popular Jerry Springer Show. The other day, I was watching an episode of Oprah (I'd like to say that I only watch her show because it's 'the only thing that's on TV when I'm done with class', but I actually think she has interesting topics.... some days) and they were discussing something that was right up the alley of mythology. It was about this Brazilian man the natives called "John of God" (not to be confused with St. John of God - a prominent religious figure in Spain) because of his 'healing powers'. People would travel far and wide to have a consultation with the man who claimed that not only can he emotionally/spiritually heal you, but that he can physically heal you as well. Thousands of people (all required to dress in white to provide the healer with a clear, mental palette)  each week (many with terminal illnesses) attend his congregations every week with high hopes and to my surprise, it seemed like none of them left disappointed that they hadn't been cured.

I think it's pretty obvious that by going to see this man with a third grade education, you're not going to be physically cured of your illnesses. But I also think it's extraordinary that all of these people left feeling spiritually awakened, or that they had purged all of their 'inner demons' or negative energy, which I think speaks volumes about the capacity of the human mind as well as the relevance of mythological events in our modern times. This reminded me of the Bhils, mentioned in Eliade's book: the magician purifies the space beside the patient's bed and draws a mandol with corn flour while at the center of the design, he puts the house of Isvor and Bhagwan together with their figures. This drawing is then preserved until the patient is completely cured. By doing this, the Bhil magician is actually repeating the cosmogyny.

"Made symbolically contemporary with the Creation of the World, the patient is immersed in the primordial fullness of life; he is penetrated by the gigantic forces that, in illo tempore, made the Creation possible." Eliade, pg. 25

Maybe I'm reaching here, but it could be that by having all of his patients dress in white, John of God is trying to create an image of a sense of the beginning of time - where everyone is created the same and notices no difference between those you walk with (i.e. Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden?). Like I said, I could be making some far-reaching analogies, but making these kind of mythological connections is something that this class has introduced me to, and now I'm starting to realize the true importance of mythology.