Dharma Initiative

2014-11-02T01:39:00.001-07:00

Dharma Initiative

I’m going to get right to the point (because I fear this topic could sound boring): I think the Dharma Initiative was created by…The Others.

Did you gasp? Scratch your head? (Stop reading?)

Yes, I know some Lost fanatics (and the DI Orientation videos) will tell you that the Dharma Initiative was started by Gerald and Karen DeGroot, and others (like Lostpedia) will refer to the financial backing Dharma received from Alvar Hanso and the Hanso Foundation…and I don’t know about you, but all of that has always been boring to me.

I’ve never cared who started the Dharma Initiative. I only cared about the why. Until recently, when I realized that the Dharma Initiative was most likely started by Others. Now I’m extremely interested in the who and the why. Because I think it reveals a lot about the history of the island.

You might be wondering why I’m writing about this now. Well, it wasn’t until after I wrote my recap of “LA X” that the pieces came together for me. And the clue that did it: Jacob’s massive ankh.

The clues:
—Jacob gave Hurley the ankh.
—Dogen immediately knew what to do with it. (So it wasn’t an unknown object to the leader of the Temple People)
—Paul (Amy’s husband), a member of the Dharma Initiative, wore a similar ankh around his neck, and Amy kept this even after his death
—Horace was upset on the day Ethan was born because he found Paul’s ankh in Amy’s sock drawer, and he assumed it meant she wasn’t over him (isn’t it just like the Lost writers to distract us like that? Maybe Amy kept that ankh because it meant something to her…something that may or may not have had anything to do with Paul)
—The Dharma houses were built right on top of vital Other land: where Jughead was buried, the hidden room in Ben’s house (where all the hieroglyphs were), and the passageway to the place from which Smokey could be summoned…hidden rooms and hidden passageways? How could Dharma people from Ann Arbor (where the DI headquarters is) know about those places?
—Horace, the leader of the DI, built the cabin
—Ethan, the son of Horace and Amy, was spared during the Purge, and he became an Other

My Conjecture

Remember this scene from “The Brig”:

RICHARD: Cause when word got back here that there was a man with a broken spine on the plane who could suddenly walk again, well, people here began to get very excited because that, that could only happen to someone who was extremely special. But Ben doesn’t want anyone to think you’re special, John.
LOCKE: And why are you telling me this?
RICHARD: Ben has been wasting our time with novelties like fertility problems. We’re looking for someone to remind us that we’re here for more important reasons.

“Novelties like fertility problems,” huh? “We’re here for more important reasons”…you don’t say?

So what if, just maybe, the Others realized they needed to change something or discover something (this is the why about which I am still clueless), and they needed a team of scientists to help them. So they conspired to bring the Dharma Initiative to the island. And they allowed them to build the Orchid where there was a pocket of exotic matter. They let them build the Swan over the electromagnetic energy. They let them build the Looking Glass (from which and into which, I’m convinced the sub can teleport…there are a lot of clues to support this, but I’ll skip over that for now)…

And finally, on the blast door map, even The Temple is listed as a Dharma Station. The Others are so protective of their island…and yet they let outsiders come in and build stations on all the island’s most important pieces of real estate?

As for the truce…well, doesn’t that just make sense? The Others were allowing Dharma people to live on their island, but they didn’t want them interfering with their daily lives. So the truce stipulated that the DI people stayed on their grounds. In other words, the Others had them researching whatever it was that they needed, but while they were doing it, they didn’t want them interfering.

So what happened? I don’t know. But I’m guessing that Dharma started shifting its priorities. Guys like Radzinsky got a little too gung-ho about their own interests and pretty soon the Others’ purposes were no longer being served. Thus, we had a purge.

And after The Purge, a group of the Others tried to carry on Dharma’s research (i.e. Ben and the Others who lived in New Otherton). Meanwhile, the rest of the Others stayed in the Temple grounds. Somewhere along the line, Ben got distracted by “novelties like fertility problems” instead of pursuing whatever it was that the Others had been searching for all along…

So, what do you think? Sound feasible to you?

If my theory is correct, it doesn’t necessarily change the way we view the Lost story. Except in this way: It proves that the Others have been searching for something. It’s not just a leader (Locke) they wanted, but a leader to help them accomplish…something.

As for what that something might be, I don’t know, but I suspect we’ll learn more soon. Just probably not tonight, since I doubt “What Kate Does” has much to do with Dharma/Other history. But then again, you never know…

Look for my recap tomorrow.

The Dharma Initiative has infiltrated almost every aspect of my life.

The DeGroots would be proud.

I'm "marked".

My wardrobe...

I customized these shoes to wear to the LOST panel

at Comic Con a few years ago.

...and yes, I have a Dharma jumpsuit.

I made up my own job description though.

I have all of the Dharma Station patches for a quick

alteration in case I get reassigned.

There are also enamel pins for spiffing up my jumpsuit.

as well as a knapsack.

This knapsack was included in the

Official LOST Fan Club Kit #1

from Creation Entertainment.

Mealtime is affected. From the canned goods....

Dharma Initiative freeze Dried Ice Cream

-promotional item given to attendees of the

LOST Season 3 Premiere, Sunset on the Beach.

Dharma Macaroni & Cheese Supper,

signed by Naveen Andrews. The mac 'n'cheese

was one of several Dharma Initiative products

handed out to audience members of

"Jimmy Kimmel: Aloha to LOST".

Each product was signed by one of the cast members

appearing on "Aloha to LOST".

to Dharma dining.

Beverages are included....

Dharma Initiative Bottled Water

from The Official LOST Auction

Glassware

..as well as coasters for the beverages.

There's a Dharma lunchbox for meals on the go...

I bathe the Dharma way.

And drive the Dharma Mobile to work each day.

It's evident both arriving

and departing.

The fail-safe key hangs from my rear-view mirror.

Dharma Tracks was one of the six music releases

by iTunes & abc at the start of the 6th Season of LOST.

As with each of the LOST Tracks releases, I burned a CD for myself.

My dedication has been recognized by

The Hanso Foundation in association with

The Dharma Initiative.

I have Dharma Initiative trading cards.

This set was a Comic Con exclusive from Inkworks.

This is a recruitment flyer from Comic Con.

The back side features instructions for an

origami swan.

Visitors to my home are greeted by

a Dharma Initiative mini banner that hangs

from a small garden flag holder placed near the front door.

I have several individual Dharma Station signs, but will save those photos

for the individual Dharma Station entries.

Finally, my own personal Dharma logo.

"AndAlone" was designed by Jon Lachonis.

I had a ceramic tile made up at CafePress.

I've added a set of four Dharma guitar picks to my

collection. I don't play the guitar, but

they are uber-cool....and glow in the dark!

They were a gift from my son.

I completely forgot I had this Dharma poker set, so

neglected to include it in the original post.

I purchased it from the abc LOST store several years

ago. It is no longer available but I saw one

on eBay with asking price of *GASP* $500!

I paid about $50 for it as I recall.

"Skeletor Seems to Like IT. Bottoms Up"

by Josua Budich #15/50

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Dharma Initiative

Dharma Initiative