The Five Stoned Men: My friend reads The Illuminatus Trilogy

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

So a friend of mine decided to read The Trilogy. Poor sod. He called last night and asked for my thoughts on the story of the Five Stoned Men:

Five stoned men were in a courtyard when an elephant entered.
The first man was stoned on sleep, and he saw not the elephant but dreamed instead of things unreal to those awake.
The second man was stoned on nicotine, caffeine, DDT, carbohydrate excess, protein deficiency, and the other chemicals in the diet which the Illuminati have enforced upon the half-awake to keep them from fully waking. "Hey," he said, "there's a big, smelly beast in our courtyard."
The third stoned man was on grass, and he said, "No, dads, that's the Ghostly Old Party in its true nature, the Dark Nix on the Soul," and he giggled in a silly way.
The fourth stoned man was tripping on peyote, and he said, "You see not the mystery, for the elephant is a poem written in tons instead of words," and his eyes danced.
The fifth stoned man was on acid, and he said nothing, merely worshiping the elephant in silence as the Father of Buddha.
And then the Hierophant entered and drove a nail of mystery into all their hearts, saying, "You are all elephants!"
Nobody understood him.

I asked him what his thoughts were on it and figured I'd open it up here as well.

So thoughts?

[LMNO]

Some truth is a matter of perspective. 



Also, drugs make you gibber like an idiot.

[Jasper]

They are all elephants because they are all big smelly beasts in the courtyard.

Seems a bit prosaic, to me.  No, that can't be it.

Maybe they'd have more consensus if they were on the same drugs.  Or none at all. 

The story is an attack on the conceit of consensus reality as the ultimate truth.

Am I getting closer?

I hate parables like this.

[Doktor Howl]

Some truth is a matter of perspective. 

[Doktor Howl]

They are all elephants because they are all big smelly beasts in the courtyard.

Seems a bit prosaic, to me.  No, that can't be it.

Maybe they'd have more consensus if they were on the same drugs.  Or none at all. 

The story is an attack on the conceit of consensus reality as the ultimate truth.

Am I getting closer?

I hate parables like this.

It's RAW trying to sound all Zen.  Only this, and nothing more.  It's as bad as the garbage about Ms Mao making the fist.

[Cain]

Ratatosk's friend waited. The lights above him blinked and sparked out of the air. There were elephants in the base. He didn't see them, but had expected them now for years. His warnings to animal control were not listenend to and now it was too late. Far too late for now, anyway.
Ratatosk's friend was a computer programmer for fourteen years. When he was young he watched the spaceships and he said to Ratatosk "I want to be on the ships Tosk."
Ratatosk said "No! You will BE KILL BY ELEPHANTS"
There was a time when he believed him. Then as he got oldered he stopped. But now in the space station base of the UAC he knew there were elephants.
"This is Celine" the radio crackered. "You must fight the elephants!"
So Ratatosk's friend gotted his palsma rifle and blew up the wall.
"HE GOING TO KILL US" said the elephants
"I will shoot at him" said the cyberelephant and he fired the rocket missiles. Ratatosk's friend plasmaed at him and tried to blew him up. But then the ceiling fell and they were trapped and not able to kill.
"No! I must kill the elephants" he shouted
The radio said "No, Ratatosk's friend. You are the elephants"
And then Ratatosk's friend was a zombie.

[P3nT4gR4m]

Ratatosk's friend waited. The lights above him blinked and sparked out of the air. There were elephants in the base. He didn't see them, but had expected them now for years. His warnings to animal control were not listenend to and now it was too late. Far too late for now, anyway.
Ratatosk's friend was a computer programmer for fourteen years. When he was young he watched the spaceships and he said to Ratatosk "I want to be on the ships Tosk."
Ratatosk said "No! You will BE KILL BY ELEPHANTS"
There was a time when he believed him. Then as he got oldered he stopped. But now in the space station base of the UAC he knew there were elephants.
"This is Celine" the radio crackered. "You must fight the elephants!"
So Ratatosk's friend gotted his palsma rifle and blew up the wall.
"HE GOING TO KILL US" said the elephants
"I will shoot at him" said the cyberelephant and he fired the rocket missiles. Ratatosk's friend plasmaed at him and tried to blew him up. But then the ceiling fell and they were trapped and not able to kill.
"No! I must kill the elephants" he shouted
The radio said "No, Ratatosk's friend. You are the elephants"
And then Ratatosk's friend was a zombie.

- gets me every fucking time!  

[LMNO]

Some truth is a matter of perspective. 

Would you prefer, "all of them are correct, in some sense."?

[Doktor Howl]

Some truth is a matter of perspective. 

Would you prefer, "all of them are correct, in some sense."?

"All of them perceive the facts in a different way, none of which appears to be anything more than reality poured through their individual filters."

IOW, opinion or belief, which are NOT the same thing as Truth.

[LMNO]

I agree, though I didn't capitalize the 't' on purpose.

[LMNO]

How about, "Five prisoners, five cells."?

[Doktor Howl]

I agree, though I didn't capitalize the 't' on purpose.

Ah.

I've been collecting some thoughts on "axioms of Truth",  I believe I may post them.

[Triple Zero]

How about, "Five prisoners, five cells, one cup."?

fixed

[Jasper]

How about, "Five prisoners, five cells, one cup.  Final Destination."

No constructive proposals.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

It means that the Heirophant was a dick, is what that parable means. Come on; it's obvious. Fuck that guy.