Finding Hidden Spiritual Lessons in Modern Media

Spirituality being represented in the media is nothing new at all. Good or bad it is there and a major source of entertainment for people. But some of it isn’t just there for entertainment purposes. Some of it is there to protect a practice from dying out. By, in subtle ways, teaching others the basics around the practice with hidden coded lessons.

This kind of messaging is extremely beneficial to the spiritual community at large because it creates exposure that we otherwise would not have. Because of the internet and television, in general the world became so much smaller and yet also more divisive instead of closer together. But that is what happens, when you know everyone’s business at a glance it becomes more of a desire to become reclusive. And there is the challenge in using media as a way to convey hidden messages.

We live in a world where we want things spelled out to the letter on how to do something. How to heal. How to process. How to do this or that. I’m sure there is a WikiHow on meditation…in fact let me provide one for proof. https://www.wikihow.com/Meditate

But some of the practices that exist out there are so closely guarded that the only way to get past the gatekeepers that don’t want to teach outsiders is to make subtle lessons. It’s an innovative approach but because we tend to shut things out in today’s society it’s almost futile. And that is why I am writing this post to hopefully help you to open your awareness to what is out there.

Let’s first get this out the way. I am not talking about TV shows that are centered around fictionalized fantasy spiritual practices. I am talking about things that have more of a hidden meaning. So we are not going to bring up Charmed or Supernatural in this post. 

Starting from my own childhood, Rugrats is a great example. Growing up in a Sicilian Catholic household I remember Rugrats and the Hanukkah special. Explaining what it was and how it was celebrated. I remember being a kid and becoming fascinated asking my parents and grandparents why we didn’t celebrate Hanukkah like we did Christmas. It was a huge step in children’s television at the time because there was so little representation for other beliefs and practices. It aired December 4th, 1996 which means I was not quite 10 years old yet. This put me at the perfect age to be questioning and curious about the ways of the world.

And this example really isn’t that hidden or obscure. But it was a huge step overall for media representation of something different in the United States. Especially for media directed at children. Now there were children’s programs like Reading Rainbow and Wishbone which would introduce classical stories to children. The difference with what Rugrats did was they made it real for kids. It was just retelling a story. It was a teaching moment for the kids in the show. A passing down of their heritage. It became important. That is the kind representation the world needed to start showing.

And it didn’t stop there. In the last few posts I talked about Japanese Onmyodo and how it is a true “closed practice,” but lately has started to open up a bit more to outsiders. And I contribute that opening up to a video game. I’m going to give a little explanation of what Japanese Onmyodo is and maybe through that you will be able to see what game I am talking about before I reveal it.

Japanese Onmyodo is a style of sorcery with divination, spells, and close work with spiritual beings. Now disclaimer, I am not a practitioner of Onmyodo as I am not Japanese. I just have a deep respect for the practice and it has been a major part of my childhood into my adult years, as you will see. Therefore the information going forward is the “leaked” information that has been smuggled out about the practice on hard to find websites or what has been directly represented in media like Anime and Japanese films.

The most advanced practice, to my limited understanding, is that a highly skilled Onmyoji employs spirits to perform various acts apart from divination practices. This could be employing these spirits to be protectors or become good luck charms by infusing the spirit into amulets and talismans. The spirits, once employed, would be called Shikigami or Shiki no Kami in the more traditional sense. Before becoming Shiki, they would be “wild” spirits like nature gods, demons, yokai (deceased beings turned haunt, animal and human), animal spirits, etc. In order to gain Shikigami, an Onmyoji would either have to trick the spirit into giving their name to the practitioner, defeating them in a battle, or becoming friends with the spirit. The Shikigami would then agree to a pact or contract with the Onmyoji.

The most famous Onmyoji in Japanese history was Abe no Seimei. The myth around him is that his powers came from his mother who was a Kitsune, a Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit. Seimei was a real historical person though and worked for the Japanese government and died in the year 1005. In the world of Onmyodo myth and legend, Seimei had no equal and was said to control multiple Shikigami at a time and more total than any others. The greatest number under his control, not utilized at the same time but contracted by him, was recorded by some accounts as 12. A key thing here is that he did not use all of them at one time but was able to use multiple. This is a trope also seen in “summoner” type shows where a person able to control multiple “summons” at once, even as few as two, are seen to have greater magical power. 

Also the reports of Seimei having up to 12 Shikigami under contract was a huge number to other practitioners. On top of that, Seimei’s 12 Shiki were called the 12 Divine Heavenly Spirits which meant they were all gods. One of Seimei’s greatest rivals turned students showed up to challenge him with only two Shikigami. That was Chitoku Hoshi in the stories. And for the average practitioner without the same measure of power as Seimei, Shikigami were dangerous because if the sorcerer lost control or didn’t uphold their end the spirit would rebel. 

Let’s recap this now and see if you can guess the game from the information above and the recap.

• The Onmyoji’s most advanced practice is to form contracts with “wild” spirits.

• They employ these spirits to aid in other practices or battle other spirits. 

• Onmyoji will challenge each other to battles of Shikigami.

• Commanding one Shikigami at a time is normal and more than that is considered powerful.

• A powerful Onmyoji challenged the most famous Onmyoji. The challenger had only two Shikigami and that was considered powerful. The famous one though had 12 which was almost unbelievable. 

Does it ring a bell yet? It’s Pokémon. You befriend one creature with supernatural powers (most of the creatures are based on myths and legends too). You then utilize that creature to battle and befriend more. You challenge other “trainers” to compare your abilities as “trainers.” Some people never battle but utilize their Pokémon/Shikigami for other tasks, like Nurse Joy’s and the Chansey or Audino nurses. The most you can use typically at one time is one. But on special occasions you are forced into “harder” battles against people who utilize two Pokémon at once regularly. I know this is all my speculation because the “official word” on the inspiration of Pokémon is bug catching. BUT COME ON! The similarities are just too on the nose to be coincidence. 

And if that wasn’t enough you have a rival that you always face at the end of the game AFTER defeating 12 of the strongest trainers in the game, eight gym battles and the elite four.

And the one bit of history I left out, Onymodo was banned in Japan in 1870. It was allowed to be practiced again on a limited basis in 1945. The creator of Pokémon, Satoshi Tajiri, was born in 1965. This would have been enough time for some of the fear around persecution to have fallen away and looking for avenues of preserving the practices in case another ban were to come into place. It is pure speculation. I admit that. I also admit that I don’t believe in coincidence, ducks quack and dogs bark, and that the sky is a different shade of blue for me every day. 

Other video games are pretty blatant in their representation. Pokémon is sneaky about it and unless Satoshi decides to say something, this will remain unconfirmed speculation on my part. The evidence lines up though as does the evidence from the next example in this post. Which comes surprisingly from Disney.

Disney released an animated movie that for all its efforts…flopped. I waited so long for this movie to hit the streaming service because despite the reviews I felt drawn to it. And when I watched it, I cried. I cried not because it was bad. I cried because of the beautiful representation it had. We are all made of stardust, the premise of the movie, is a concept repeated worldwide in Animistic cultures. It is the premise that we are all made of the same things and thus while different we are the same. It is a concept to illustrate Unity as I mentioned in the previous post. It is also meant to empower us to realize the ability we inherently have within us to make possible what others would call impossible. And again that is exactly what was illustrated in this movie.

The movie I am referencing is Wish. And it so beautifully captured that ancient wisdom without outright saying that was the inspiration. But watch the movie with a fresh perspective and you can see the same things I said in the previous post. Hoarding knowledge, making practices secret, consolidating power, isolation, dismissing instead of listening, etc. led to the downfall of the antagonist Magnifico. And unlike most Disney stories where ultimately the hero has to find the strength to win; in this story the entire community had to come together. Individuals uniting as one to overcome a threat to their entire wellbeing. 

AND one of the biggest points in the movie, for me, was that the villain’s wife took accountability and instead of making excuses for him stood against him as well. She recognized that though she loved him his behavior was unhealthy and dangerous. There were so many hidden messages in the movie and I watch it every now and then to see if I catch more. The problem is the movie also has dozens of hidden Disney references which distracts from the overall messaging. 

The movie is both in your face but also very low-key about so many ancient statements and messages. But when you take out the exhaustive list of past Disney movie references and focus on the story you see talk of healthy goal setting, putting in the work to make your dreams come true, recognizing the power you hold, communities working with each other, communication being prioritized, holding people accountable for their actions, not being ruled by emotions, being discerning, etc. etc. etc. And all of it comes from animistic traditional wisdom.

Media has become the new “art” in providing messaging to make us think deeper. Like the Memento Mori movement of the 17th century where painters would add reminders of death to their commissioned work. It was meant to be a reminder to the wealthy that we all die in the end. I know media is a form of art but it used to be, for the most part, purely for entertainment with few successful representations of serious matters. If we just pay attention a little more to what we are watching, playing, reading, etc. then we can start to pick up on clues of how to be better to each other. 

There are people out there desperately calling for change in society. Desperately trying to ensure the survival of their heritage and culture. Desperately wanting us to connect. We have to be willing to open our eyes though and see these things. We have to be willing to step beyond ourselves and look at our neighbors and say, “I see myself in that person.” 

And I really hope to start seeing more representation in the media. I already see more than I am saying in this post, but those three were impactful to me and done…for lack of better terms…right. And while I hoped this post would be more positive than some of the recent ones…the next post will probably need to take a step back into the Debbie Downer corner. While those representations in the media were great, I want to start to wrap up the Pathworking series. And I cannot do that without addressing further misconceptions about spirituality practices. 

The next post will address those because, in reference to Pathworking, it is better to be forewarned than fall into pitfall spirituality.

Until next time, stay informed and stay aware. There are hints everywhere if one only knows how to see. Thank you for reading and I will catch you again very soon.