The Path To Enlightenment

 

Before the conclusion of the 1985-86 Secret Wars II series which saw the presumed end of the Beyonder, "the One From Beyond," would go through a bout of depression where he believed finding his path to enlightenment was a hopeless cause, a state of mind which cause him to turn to the bottle to drown his sorrows. It stands to reason that for someone who can erase the entire universe with a simple flick of his finger, the thought of such a person being in a drunken, depressed state is enough to terrify even the staunchest among us--while some might also find it equally disturbing to discover that when the Beyonder has the presence of mind to seek out Dr. Strange, the one person he believes might bring him clarity of thought and a sense of purpose (as well as someone who knows firsthand the futility of alcohol abuse), the mystic master not being at home is horrendously bad timing.

Granted, one such as the Beyonder could summon Strange to his side with a casual thought; instead, in his inebriated state, he simply brushes aside the defenses of Strange's sanctum and makes use of the Orb of Agamotto to locate Strange wherever he happens to be--in this case, the Dark Dimension, where he had joined his ex-lover and disciple, Clea, to bring an end to the tyrannical rule of Umar and Orini, her parents. The experience of using the Orb, however, has caused even such as the Beyonder to flee the premises--but Strange, startled at suddenly seeing the eyes of an unknown, powerful being gazing at him through the dimensions, pursues the wisp of a trail he's been able to salvage, and is astonished at discovering where that trail leads.

Obviously the nuances and powers of sorcery which Strange has spent time studying and mastering mean next to nothing to the Beyonder, who needs neither knowledge of nor commitment to the mystic arts to bend them to his will (though it seems even he can be surprised by their hidden depths)--yet the Beyonder is desperately in need of the enlightenment and knowledge of self which he believes Strange possesses. But will one as impatient and volatile as the Beyonder consent to take the committed and dedicated path to achieve those things--or turn on the one who cannot or will not instantly bring him the peace and happiness he craves?

 
It's at a waterfront bar where Strange tracks down the Beyonder, where the bartender has made the mistake of cutting off the drunken stranger who rambles about his state of unhappiness, while two bar patrons rashly attempt to throw him out. Strange arrives in time to save their lives--but now he must turn to the task of not only understanding what drives this man whom he has never met* but also recognizing his own limitations in the face of the awesome power the Beyonder wields which can give even the Sorcerer Supreme pause.

*We have the Secret Wars II crossovers to thank for this story being out of sequence with the main series, where Strange has already joined his fellow heroes in battling the Beyonder and, at this point, need not be taken off guard by his origin or his capabilities.

We know from an earlier story that Strange has already had occasion to mystically teach an other-world entity what it is to be human, an all-encompassing yet fairly brief process which would have likely given the Beyonder the immediacy of understanding that he craves--and so it's puzzling that Strange instead chooses to send the Beyonder down a path where only he himself could appreciate in hindsight the journey he ultimately made, but where a stranger would only see disjointed scenes which he cannot fully relate to.

Indeed, when the Beyonder emerges from the spell, he feels he has learned nothing of value, and, just as disheartening, is no happier than he was. And so even though Strange knows what the Beyonder should have taken away from the experience, the Beyonder admits to mostly confusion and feels that it was all pointless.

Dedication--sacrifice--transcend--they're words that only Strange can fully understand after his time as the Ancient One's disciple, but otherwise are simply concepts which the Beyonder has been made aware of but cannot yet grasp and apply to his own situation. In short, the Beyonder remains as lost as ever--yet look at the hopeful and optimistic road ahead for him which writer Peter Gillis allows him to have, nonetheless.

Given what we've seen, the extent to which the Beyonder will ponder paradoxical sentiments such as "...the hope of mankind--that it can rise above itself by forgetting itself" may produce an all-too-human headache for him rather than a fast track to enlightenment. And yet, as we'll learn, the Beyonder will indeed have taken Strange's words to heart, and will find himself capable of turning even tragedy into something positive.

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