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Syzygy and Jungian Archetype -letter


It is a matter of great pleasure and surprise that, a son of the soil and Professor of English Literature Government Degree College Chitral, Shahzada Ismail Wali  has completed his task of PhD from Peshawar University , and was given the regalia of "Doctor" on Feb 04, 2009.

That he is from out reach area of Northern Chitral, further signifies his study in this difficult topic of English literature. He was so obsessed and preoccupied in the monomania of English literature that his tutors could polish him and enjoyed professional satisfaction. He off and on used to admire his tutor (s) and the inspiration he received.

We could not imagine his potentials and abilities and took him as usual ordinary literate professor, but he proved himself an unusual extra ordinary intellectual and man of research of high caliber.

Many people do their "PhD" or advance studies just for the service requirement, financial purposes and benefits. This was not in the case of Dr. Professor Ismail Wali. He did it to quench his thirst of knowledge and satisfy surge of search. His desire and inspiration sprung from within. His intellectual drive, desire and ambitions kindled in his mind and heart and sustained burning and he fuelled them with the intellectual materials and resources and gave it impetus.

His inner craving for search reflected on the mount of task he traveled on. He came to an intellectual burning flame in touching distant, and at last grasped it. Now it has illuminated his whole self. He had got the rod of knowledge to combat the forces of the Pharaoh's of ignorance. His research according to my own innocent interpretation was of a parliamentary nature for example, his Shakespeare, the source of literary inspiration which comes under the domain of literature, and "Jung" his mystic source of inspiration and illumination comes under the domain of psychology. He very beautifully harnessed them in synergy.

He delved in philosophy, psychology and literature. He sifted the Greek mythology and the metaphysical literatures. He broke through in the labyrinth of abnormalities and non traditional operandi. It is realized that nothing is achieved in a normal way. To the high task achieved "it should be taken as normal "to be abnormal" because lots of possibilities are lay there in the abnormalities.

His Title of PhD was "SYZYGY" which is a maze and tangling for a naïve like me, intellectually unconcerned with literature especially English. After going through dozen times of its definition expressed by him to the unconcerned and uninterested listeners, as we were, in an un pedagogical way (as He is unluckily non B.Ed ) we concluded, that it was something an "archetype" related to unconsciousness, sub consciousness and interacting with the outer occurring/stimuli transforms into consciousness. His topic as we could implicit was much related to psychology, and yes the literary acumen he exhibited, and the art of communicating is "literary". Hence here is literature, is a tool of communication of psychology, mystic and metaphysic with "precision and sophistication" as he has manifested in his classic work.

Syzygy is a Shakespearean literary term having dichotomous meaning and interpretation. "Archetype" is Jungian and psychological term which carry collective unconsciousness meaning common in human being. I "interpret" it is software installed in human being having diversify folders and dichotomies i.e. Angel- devil, positive- negative, enemy-friend, jinni- demon love – hate and consciousness and unconsciousness, all characteristics are at play in the development of inside and esoteric world of human being.

The hullabaloo of human inner self is a "battle field" or "playground" for all these archetypes of human nature. It is human being, responsible to monitor, control, and balance the functioning and out put of these entire phenomenon and maintains and sustains balance without "suppressing" and "undue enhancing" any one of them. We have been made understand that we cannot and should not uninstall any of these human inner characteristics from the hard disk of our mind nor should they be suppressed. They should be let to function as human has been interpreted as microcosm living within the boundaries of Macrocosm without being dissolved in it. So what happening in the universe reflected in men as a whole, and what happening in the collective human consciousness will be reflected in the outer world. Tilting completely to any one of these will entail imbalance in the human life.

Allah Almighty has well arranged and managed by His mercy not to leave human being alone at this complicated phenomena, and guided him through the Holly Channel of Prophet Hood, as well as facilitated human being to go at the right direction and not to astray by the evil forces. The actual ROLE of human being seemed in this milieu to maintain balance and equilibrium which has clearly ordained in the Holly Scripture and revelation.

We friends used to blame Professor Ismail Wali as captive of "Jungian" philosophy, unconsciousness, and dream world. He was so deeply delved and plunged in his un/sub consciousness and ecstasy, that we had to wait a long for his emerge to the surface of consciousness and register his presence. For some while he remained divided into his ecstasy and colorful world, and our real world, colorless, bleak and garish monochromatic, world of rationality and consciousness. This only proved a recess and interval until his return.

There continued an endless dialogue in his mind (not heart) between intellect and intuition. We participated and witnessed that dialogue but could decide who won. As a biased referee he always favored, and was on the side of the intuition nevertheless he used the tools of the intellect against the intellect. We felt ourselves in the phantasmagorical fairy and demon land, and spell bounded attending his impressive lecture on archetype, phantasm and its colorful, colorless shades, the shades of life, pre life and post life.

When he was busy in his archetype colorful, colorless world, the world beyond the world, pursuing the mirages that are the part of " life color " he seemed like an innocent child running after butterflies and moths tottering and staggering letting behind all worries to the rest of the world. He was so influenced by the Archetype, Syzygy and fantasies of psychology and philosophy that his whole behavior reflected his state of mind that his archetype, and syzygy which I had already stated as "Parliamentary" system of his mind reflecting the universal system of sun and moon.

The topic was mysterious, and He reflected the topic, and left no straw unturned in his reflection. The title was interesting too, and made him interesting which reminds us the story of a pir and his mureed, would I have been able to mention that.

Professor Dr. Ismail Wali proved himself a precedent and source of encouragement especially the knowledge seeker of the out reach and backward areas. Resolution is the key to resolve every human issue.
Quotation- Everyone should carefully observe which way his heart draws him, and then he choose that way with all his strength. (Quran)

Genius hath electric power
Which world can never tame: Lyda Maria

The mind thinks not with data's, but with ideas whose creation and elaboration cannot be reduced to a set of predictable values. Roszak

Syed Shamsun Nazar Fatimi
Asst Prof, Govt College, Chitral.

09 Feb 09