When Darkness Offers A Light

3 Feb

Written By Quinn

The Kraken is known to be a destructive force. Krakens are a recurring theme for me and represent an emotional daemon which lurks in the depths of the subconscious. Symbolically speaking, water correlates to the emotional life. As a guardian of what lies on the bottom of the ocean floor (the very foundation of our emotional life), the Kraken is often symbolic of a particular emotional state. A state which includes rage directed toward someone who has sailed into dangerous waters.

If we feel the need to release the mythical beast from the depths, there is usually a sailor within close range. A sailor who can probably sense that something lurks beneath. He, or she, may have an element of recklessness deeply rooted in the personality, or it could be a mere phase they are passing through. Either way, they know all about the mythic Kraken but may have doubted its presence in the waters they’re sailing. The waters I refer to here are another way of saying someone crossed an emotional boundary. The Kraken wakes because of a perceived threat to the emotional self.

Although here, the Kraken appears as a helpful presence offering a much-needed light in the darkness. A sense of isolation is palpable but only from humankind. I find it reassuring this Kraken holds a lamp from one of its tentacles, and I wonder if there’s a suggestion of finding answers if we’re prepared to look deeper. Light also gives off heat, and that tiny amount of warmth may be enough to keep us emotionally alive. It suggests we can maintain open lines of communication between the mind and our feelings. This is not a time to shut off, especially if you’re not in such a great place and feel drawn to this image. The woman in the boat looks ill-equipped. Not only is the boat too small for the ocean, but she’s also got nowhere near enough clothing to protect her from the elements. Although she’s holding a knife in her hands so may not have been entirely unaware that she needed to defend herself. The problem here seems to be one of proportion. There’s a suggestion from the image that she may have been blown off course and suddenly found herself in a dark and dangerous place. She didn’t correctly gauge the incoming weather; it was worse than anticipated. But, the advantageous position of the Kraken suggests a person who is at least trying hard to understand a dark aspect of their own personality.

The Kraken could represent a distorted emotional reaction. This reaction may not be entirely healthy, but it persists nonetheless. The Kraken has no magical ability and could also refer to an internal force that has quietly grown to mythic proportions because it has been undisturbed for an inordinate amount of time. Like the beast itself, it would be challenging to kill off this aspect of the core self and far easier to not have it provoked to rise in the first place.

Tennyson’s sonnet shows the Kraken in an almost sentimental light yet also has the creature dying if it should rise to the surface. This reminds me of the idea that it is only by bringing something out into the open that we can confront our shadows. This is often said when we sense something dark, demonic and depressing within our personality.

The sonnet by Alfred Tennyson, The Kraken (1830)

Below the thunders of the upper deep;

Far, far beneath in the abysmal sea,

His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep

The Kraken sleepeth: faintest sunlights flee

About his shadowy sides: above him swell

Huge sponges of millennial growth and height;

And far away into the sickly light,

From many a wondrous grot and secret cell

Unnumbered and enormous polypi

Winnow with giant arms the slumbering green.

There hath he lain for ages and will lie

Battening upon huge sea-worms in his sleep,

Until the latter fire shall heat the deep;

Then once by man and angels to be seen,

In roaring he shall rise and on the surface die.

Destructive emotions can be compared to all sorts of things metaphorically, but I’m particularly fond of the Kraken because I can easily relate to its symbolism. I often identify with this beast when I’m not ready or willing to share emotional space with someone. My personal Kraken will rise to the surface due to feeling the threat of having something stolen that I regard as precious. I am always aware that releasing this aspect of myself can lead to devastation for anyone caught in the maelstrom. Yet I find it incredibly easy to justify doing so if I see no other way of keeping myself safe. There will be more to say about the Kraken another day, but I must leave this alone for now.

Alone in The Sea is an image that caught my eye whilst mooching around DeviantArt. It initiated a closer look at the work of Lana Tustich, and you can see more of it here.