Visions of a Prophet

            Throughout history what has been the outcome of a prophet?  Can a prophet change the world for better or worse?  There have been many prophets in the past like, Mohammad, Jesus, and Buddha.  Religions where created following the lives of all these prophets.

            In the novel “A Question of Power,” by Bessie Head, the main character Elizabeth who closely resembles the real life author experiences many prophet like dreams and visions.  However she has some differences in her visions if you were to compare them to the prophets of the past.  For example Elizabeth tries to make sense of her visions by comparing them to visions of prophets, and that is why her motto in the novel is “be ordinary.”  She tries to be ordinary because many of the prophets did extraordinary things, and this resulted in some of the prophets being prosecuted or in some cases death.  Which for some people, and Elizabeth, would be seen as an unfavorable result.  She feels that “any assumption of greatness leads to a dog-eat-dog fight and incurs massive suffering” (Head, p.39).

            Elizabeth has similarities with the prophets of the past.  Elizabeth is living in a constant struggle with good and evil.  She has visions and speaks with figures of good and evil.  Some people think she is unique from other prophets because of her common experiences with evil spirits, dreams, or visions.  However I don’t feel it is accurate to say that other prophets didn’t experience evil in a similar way as she did.  In some religions the prophets experienced horrible encounters with evil which they overcome and reject temptation.

        Bessie Head's character Elizabeth feels that, “God is the totality of all souls and their achievements” (Head, p.54).  She feels that every person’s soul makes God, and that God is everyone combined.  This story by Bessie Head wasn’t the first thing that introduced me to the idea that everyone is God.  In Christianity people feel that God is in everyone, which is similar to everyone makes up God. 

There is nothing sane about trying to understand insanity.  It seems as though trying to understand the visions or dreams of a prophet can result in the slight loss of sanity, but/or can result in a better understanding of life or inner peace.  The character Elizabeth is having unique experiences when compared to certain religious prophets, however I feel that they are similar, which I feel can only help her credibility.