VLVL "Karmic adjustment"

[jbor]

on 18/12/03 9:01 AM, Ghetta Life wrote:
 
> Like Terrance pointed out, it's a "service" offered in "Shade Creek" to
> "Thanatoids."  Shade Creek is obviously a place for "shades," that is,
> inhabitants of Hades, ie. DEAD PEOPLE, which is what Thanatoids are.

They're that for sure but I think there's also a sense in which they're an
allegory of all those (we?) suburban slobs glued to the Tube. But I don't
think you can neatly pin down what Thanatoids "are" in terms of "reality"
either.

But I agree that Takeshi's "karmic adjustment" business caters directly to
the Thanatoids, who do apparently linger on in a sort of Limbo state because
they've got all these vengeance and retribution issues from their lives
which won't allow them to pass happily across into death. I get the
impression that Takeshi comes up with his "karmic adjustment" scam on the
spur of the moment when he and DL meet up with Ortho Bob and become aware of
the Thanatoid population in Shade Creek (174-5). Living with the Thanatoids
provides them with convenient cover and and setting up this business
servicing them is their way of making a living without anyone finding out
where they are.

> So a 
> service offerd in this kind of place to this kind of pepole can not in any
> conceivable way be considered "real."  It has to be some sort of allegorical
> function, maybe a scam, but why so in this unreal world?
> 
> Vato and Blood also perfom allegorical services in this land of the dead
> much like the ferry man on the River Styx:

And a big Domo Arigato Mr Roboto to you and yours and all and sundry for the
festive season ahead.

best


> http://www.pantheon.org/articles/s/styx_river.html
> 
> "The river of which many know its name, without knowing its origin or what
> it really stood for. A river that separates the world of the living from the
> world of the dead. Styx it is said winds around Hades (hell or the
> underworld are other names) nine times. Its name comes from the Greek word
> stugein which means hate, Styx, the river of hate. This river was so
> respected by the gods of Greek mythology that they would take life binding
> oaths just by mentioning its name, as referenced in the story of
> Bacchus-Ariadne, where Jove "confirms it with the irrevocable oath,
> attesting the river Styx."
> There are five rivers that separate Hades from the world of the living, they
> are:
> 
> Acheron - the river of woe;
> Cocytus - the river of lamentation;
> Phlegethon - the river of fire;
> Lethe - the river of forgetfulness;
> Styx - the river of hate.
> It is thought that Charon, the old ferry man who ferries the dead onto the
> underworld, crosses the river Styx where the dragon tailed dog Cerberus
> guards, allowing all souls to enter but none to leave. This is a
> misconception, Charon crosses the river Acheron where also Cerebus stands
> his eternal guard. Also while on this subject, Charon only takes the souls
> across that are buried properly with a coin (called an obol) that was placed
> in their mouths upon burial.
> 
> If a god gave his oath upon the river Styx and failed to keep his word, Zeus
> forced that god to drink from the river itself. The water is said to be so
> foul that the god would lose his/her voice for nine years. The river is not
> the subject of any story itself but is mentioned in several. These little
> pieces give a wonderful view of not only the river but the ancient Greeks
> view of the underworld. From its Adamantine gates to its separate levels of
> Tartarus and Erebus onto the Elysian fields."
> 
> 
> 
> Ghetta
> 
>> From: jbor <jbor at bigpond.com>
>> 
>> on 18/12/03 6:14 AM, Terrance wrote:
>> 
>>> At first, Takeshi's notion of KA is not even known to DL. He may not
>>> even know what KA is exactly either, but he's certain that people will
>>> pay him for it, even though most of his clients don't have a pot to piss
>>> in.
>> 
>> Yes. It's part-scam and part-psychotherapy as well. The analogies Takeshi
>> makes are to garbage men, plumbers and mop hands (170-1). It's explained in
>> more detail on pp. 173-4 where we see Takeshi doing some pro bono work for
>> Ortho Bob, and again on p. 177 where he and DL are servicing Vato and
>> Blood,
>> who call Takeshi "Doc". Takeshi dishes out "white diamonds" -- uppers --
>> from the "Karmology Clinic" on request. (179)
>> 
>> I don't think that DL is as confident as Takeshi is about his "immunity".
>>