A Short Introduction to Star Wars as an Allegory of Ecliptic Age Shift

I just recently rewatched Episodes I-III and I have to say I found them of much greater interest then I did previously. My recent rereading of the Jay Weidner/ Sharon Rose article "Tolkien at the End of Time", made it very clear to me that the Star Wars story as a whole is talking about the shifting of Great Ages in the Cycle of Time.

Episodes IV-VI is the Iron Age, A Long, long Time Ago in the Great Cycle. The story ends with the dawning of a new Golden Age, the Force in Balance, as prophesied.

As an allegory of astronomical time-keeping and the transmuting nature of the quality of time, the Ages revolve in the story at an accelerated rate, as always the case in these mythological models. Episodes I-III then seem to encompass the shift from Silver to Bronze and then Bronze to Iron. Note we never witness the Golden Age, its existence is only implied.

While there is darkness on the horizon in Episode I, things are far from perfect, it is still a much brighter reality then what is seen later, populated with funny cartoonish figures like the animated sequences of "Mary Poppins". A messiah has been born as the Silver Age twilights, but this is only halfway through the Cycle, things are going to get worse. By Episode II we have entered the Bronze Age and things are becoming more industrial and more corrupt. The Bronze Age gives way to the darkness of the Iron Age by the end of episode III. The messiah Anakin becomes the near-fully mechanical Darth Vader as the Democracy of the Republic falls into the Fascism of the Empire. The Order of the Jedi Knights is destroyed and the few who survive go to live monastic, solitary lives in remote locations.

There's a clear emblem of the Bronze Age in Episode III:



This familiar looking Astro-mech droid is R4-G9, or Geenine. After Obi-Wan loses his red R4-P17, we see him with Geenine. According to Wookiepedia Geenine is the property of the pretty, blue Twi'lek Jedi Aayla Secura.

In R2-D2 and C-3PO we see a bit of the alchemical symbolism of Star Wars. R2-D2 is Silver and the Moon. C-3PO is Gold and the sun. They are threads woven through all six films and serve the role of Chorus. In Episode IV it is R2 and 3PO who set events in motion. Note how the two constantly separate and came back together. In Episode I child messiah Anakin makes incarnate Tower of Babel C-3PO, and the droid goes from base Iron appearance to Gold by Episode III. The aboriginal Ewoks worship the solar C-3PO as a god in Episode VI. Thus, the appearance of a Bronze Astromech droid is a clear signifier.

As if this weren't enough, Episode II, "Attack of the Clones" contains another emblem of the shifting of Ages, this time hidden in a rather crafty manner. We find it on the planet Geonosis (Earth Knowledge and a clear nod to the philosophy of the Gnostics), which is clearly a stand in for Saturn:



The Geonosians are hive-organized insects that look like humanoid wasps or bees:



They're being ruled by the rogue Jedi/Sith Lord Count Dooku, played by Christopher Lee. Not only was Lee also Count Dracula (the name Count Dooku clearly invoking), but also the exactly-same natured as Dooku Saruman in the "Lord of the Rings" film trilogy. In both trilogies Lee's character's primary chapter is the middle chapter, "Attack of the Clones" and "The Two Towers", and both films were released in 2002.

The treacherous Count Dooku captures Obi-Wan, Anakin and Amadala and rather than killing them simply he places them in the Petranaki Arena so he can make sport of their executions. Three frightening beasts are unleashed on the trio, chained to sacrificial pillars. There is esoteric symbolism all over this sequence, but I want to focus on the hidden Tetramorph in the scene.

Let's watch:


Geonosis Arena Battle One

Sorry for the overlap, scan ahead four minutes or so for the continuation of the scene:


Geonosis Arena Battle Two

I like when Mace "Shaft(of light)" Windu and crew show up.

So did you see the Tetramorph? Kinda maybe?

Okay, so in the oval or mandalora shaped arena the heroes are attacked by three beasts.


The Bull-like Reek. Anakin tames this Taurian and uses it as a mount.


The cat, tiger, or Lion-like Nexu. Amadala, the Maiden, manages to subdue the Nexu, as Virgo does Leo each Summer.



And then there's the Acklay. Scorpio right? Nope. The Scorpio emblem in the Tetramorph is an Eagle. So game over? No. This creature is Aquarius. It is a Mantid/Crustacean hybrid, a MANtid with water creature features, a Man bearing Water.

So that's three, but where then is the Eagle of Scorpio?



It is the Eagle-like LAAT/I "Larty" Republican Infantry Transporters that fly in with Yoda like the Eagles in the Lord of the Rings and rescue everyone.

The use of the Eagle for Scorpio in the Tetramorph, rather then the Scorpion leads to a slick bit of sleight of hand in hiding these symbols. Scorpio is a Water sign and Aquarius is an Air Sign, yet the Eagle is a creature of the Air and Aquarius is the Water Bearer. This shell game is played in other places.