Like Stories of Old explores the archetype of the king in both movies and TV in the above video.
The video’s narrator says the king archetype is primal in everyman as is also referred to as the king energy or the father energy. Any man able to fully access this archetype results in him becoming the closest he can get to divinity.
So, press the top left play button on the above feature image so the video can pop up for you to watch.
The king’s role, the narrator points out, is to channel this archetype to the people of his realm, in essence these rulers were the link between the world and the divine.
The king (and emperors etc) have two functions with the first being ‘ordering’ and the second being ‘providing fertility and blessings.’
The narrator also touches on what occurs when a king has no virtue, fails in what he is meant to do for his kingdom — where he becomes a shadow king, a bipolar dysfunctional version of the king archetype. Shadow kings are paranoid tyrants who’re often self-centered weaklings lacking inner structure — i.e. the self-serving Macbeth.
The narrator likewise points out that a virtuous king can also experience the shadow king as such darkness is present in all of us — i.e. when U.S. General Patton, as portrayed by George C. Scott, lashes out viciously at a soldier with shellshock in the war movie Patton.
Unlike a shadow king, a great king disconnects his ego and desires when performing the due functions of the king archetype. A great king acts in ultimate responsibility to his kingdom. A devotion beyond himself as seen through examples such as Aragon from Lord of the Rings movie series.
As the video explores, a great king is ultimately also a mortal man, one who is the temporary steward of the king energy and a man who likewise appreciates that one day his day will come.
Watch the video in full to learn more about what makes a great king.
