The Vorlon-Shadow Questions

Post Reply New Topic

The Shadows: "What do you want?"

The Vorlons: "Who are you?"

These questions are philosophical in nature. Which do you feel is more meaningful to you? Which can you answer?

For me I'm not sure which is more meaningful, but I gravitate more towards what do you want? I can't really answer either at this time.

Sooo…

You want us to tell you ...'who you are?', and what it is that you 'want?'?

Or what?

What are you asking?

Just googled "vorlons and shadows". They are both alien species in the Babylon 5 series.

One species has a philosophy based on identity, the other based upon desire.

Hence the two respective questions: who are you? and "What do you want?".

And that all is a reference to Jungian psychology. Very interesting. Not sure where to go with that information though.

"Who are you?" is too unclear to me. In what capacity? Who I am and which parts of who I am matters is situational dependent to some degree.


"What do you want?" is far more concrete (although also more dependent on context).

You forgot "Who do you serve?" and "Who do you trust?"
(Yeah, I know they aren't vorlon or shadow questions, they just came to mind reading this. I should also add "Where are you going?" I guess)

I thought of it because they were part of the intro to Babylon 5's spin-off series Crusade. Although it's more correct to say that Crusade was the spin-off series to the Babylon 5 movie A Call To Arms.

Galen the techno mage was questioning the captain:

Nope never saw crusade. Just Babylon 5. I have been appropriately Nerd-Shamed.

What is your quest?

^ I had to google that. I guess Monty Python is where Crusade got those lines from!


^^ sorry, Antrax.