Copyright Ian Ellis-Jones 2006 - All Rights Reserved.

1. The Wizard of Oz
by Ian Ellis-Jones
PRECIS OF AN ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE SYDNEY UNITARIAN CHURCH ON SUNDAY, 7 MAY 2006
"Fantasy" is a genre of the arts in which life, or some aspect of life, is depicted in an
"unnatural" and highly imaginative manner. "Unnatural" does not necessarily mean
"unrealistic" or “supernatural” (whatever that means), but, in fantasies, imagination, wonder
and fancy all play very important roles. The characters often engage in "fantasies", that is,
visionary fancies and other kinds of mental images, including dreams, daydreams and
hallucinations. A "fantasy" ordinarily involves the following elements: (a) a quest or journey
of some kind, often involving tests, trials and tribulations, with a battle between "good" and
"evil"; (b) a fictitious or legendary place in which strange, "unnatural" events occur; (c) the
presence of strange, "unnatural", fanciful, even grotesque, characters and capricious forces;
and (d) lessons in how to live and relate to others.
The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum (1856-1919), is an American fairy tale par excellence.
Baum, a Theosophist, who once wrote, "Never question the truth of what you fail to
understand, for the world is filled with wonders." In the novel, Dorothy Gale, an orphan girl,
literally blows into Oz (a most fictitious and legendary place, although much like the "real"
world just the same) from Kansas with her dog, Toto. She embarks on a journey, hoping to
find the Wizard of Oz, who, she is told, will help her to get back to Kansas.
On her journey Dorothy (“Divine gift”) meets some wonderful fanciful characters who are
also seeking something very special. They include the Scarecrow (who is seeking brains), the
Tin Woodman (who is seeking a heart), and the Cowardly Lion (who is seeking courage).
Eventually, through the influence of the Good Witch of the North, they enter the Emerald
Palace of the Wizard of Oz and meet up with the Wizard, but he turns out to be nothing but a
"humbug" and a fake magician from Dorothy’s home town in Kansas. (Baum’s “attack” on
organized religion is thinly veiled, to say the least.) However, the Wizard does have
something of importance to offer the lead characters: he says that they already have what they
are looking for, that they need only look within themselves.
Along the way to the Emerald City and the Wizard's palace, Dorothy and her friends have to
endure numerous trials and tribulations, in which evil forces seek to destroy them or simply
test their patience and endurance. There are wicked witches (eg the Wicked Witch of the
West) as well as good witches (eg Glinda the Good). Witches, magicians and sorcerers all
practise their skills in outlying parts of Oz. There are dangerous wild creatures in some
places. There are also natural hazards, such as the road that slides back, the river that
reverses, trees that seize people and mountains that twirl around. These same elements (in
particular, a quest or journey, and battles between "good" and "evil" forces) are also found in
the fantasy works of the ever popular C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien (who wrote that all
fairy tales have 4 main uses: escape, consolation, recovery, and fantasy).
So, in The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy has her “silver shoes” - in the winderful 1939 MGM film
they were “ruby slippers” - with their wonderful powers to take her back home. The
Scarecrow learns that experience is the only thing that brings knowledge; he has developed a
brain by having to make decisions in the various experiences he has gone through. The Tin
Woodman learns that having a heart means loving unconditionally, even to the point of pain;
he finds that he does, in fact, have a heart because he has come to love Dorothy. The
Cowardly Lion learns that true courage is in facing danger when you are afraid, and that kind
of courage he always had in plenty; he has become courageous because he had to show
courage in their many adventures.

2. The ultimate "lesson": Each of us must look within and to ourselves for what is essential, but
it is only in relationship with others that we are able to do that effectively. It affirms, as J.
Krishnamurti pointed out, that truth is a "pathless land" and that you cannot approach it by
any creed or path whatsoever. (Dorothy is told that there is no road leading to the Wicked
Witch of the West, who must be liquidated.) Direct perception of truth is, however, possible,
when there is choiceless awareness of life as it really is. The important thing is life itself.
Whatever "it" may be, it is all here now, and all we have to do is to learn to perceive it here
and now. We need to see each thing as it really is - as a new moment. The Good Witch from
the North asks Dorothy, “What have you learned from your experiences?” Dorothy replies, “I
have learned that my heart’s desire is in my own home and in my own front yard.”
Now, I mentioned that the author of the book, L. Frank Baum, was a Theosophist and a
deeply spiritual man. He believed in what is known as the “Ancient Wisdom”. He believed
in the involution and evolution of the soul, karma, reincarnation, and like matters. In The
Wizard of Oz Dorothy comes from Kansas and it is to Kansas that she wishes to return.
There is, however, another land in which the fantasy is set and that is “Oz”. Kansas is grey,
colourless, flat and featureless. Oz is colourful, vibrant, and adventuresome. If you’ve seen
the MGM film starring Judy Garland you may recall that the film starts and ends in black and
white - they’re the Kansas scenes – but the rest of the film, that which takes place in Oz, is in
color. Interesting, isn’t it? Kansas is the world from which we come, and to which we will
ultimately return. Kansas is Nirvana , the Void, the Infinite, the Unknown. Unchanging
Reality - colourless, featureless, attributeless. Oz is the strange, seeming “unreal”, world in
which we now find ourselves, the world of materiality, sensation, in which we appear to be
bound in time and space. It is not the really the “real” world, although we ordinarily think
that it is because it is so seductive and colourful. There is another world, a world not bound
by time and space. It is a world that we can enter anytime, if we want to. It is a world of
inner knowing – a state of consciousness or Being in which we are in a state of at-one-ment
with Being itself, when, we come to know the Self as One. In fact, there is nowhere to “go”,
because we are already “there”. We only need to realize that fact. It is not a place, but a state
of consciousness.
Dorothy goes on a journey. First she travels from east [cf sunrise, beginning, birth] to the
centre (where the Emerald City is located), then from the centre to the west [cf sunset, end of
things, death] (in order to slay the Wicked Witch of the West), then, returning to the centre,
she finally travels from the centre to the south (to find Glinda the Good, the Witch of the
South). If you draw that, you have the shape of a big “T”, a Cross-like symbol which, in the
Ancient Wisdom, is a symbol of Life itself, a Solar symbol, representing creative power and
eternity, as well as sacrificial death. The “Yellow Brick Road” is, of course, the Path, the
Mystic Way that leads to enlightenment/salvation/liberation/freedom from birth and death.
The Emerald City is emerald, green being the colour of balance and harmony. Dorothy goes
in search of the Wizard. She goes to find the Teacher to find wisdom. As already mentioned,
the Wizard turns out to be a humbug. All teachers and so-called gurus are, says Baum.
Teachers can but point the way. We must find and follow the “teacher within”. It is in the
south - metaphysically, deep within - that Dorothy meets Glinda the Good, who represents the
intuition within us, the ‘still, small voice” that says, “This is the way.” Ultimately, we must
stand on our own two feet - using our own “silver shoes” (or, if you like, “ruby slippers”). I
am reminded of something that great Unitarian and transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson
once wrote: “What lies behind us, and what lies before us, are tiny matters compared to what
lies within us.” Yes, we must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, conquer
our fears, and press on. As the Master Jesus told us, “The kingdom of God is within you” (Lk
17:21).
Now, here is a “secret”. Oz is Kansas. Kansas is Oz. The map of Oz reveals that the land of
Oz has the same shape as the State of Kansas. All life is One. We are all in the Eternal Now.
Life cannot other than be. There is only One order or level of reality. There is only One

3. Presence and One Power active in the Universe – one Life manifesting Itself in all things and
as all things. “And oh, Aunt Em, I’m so glad to be at home again!”