Synopsis: Lt. Commander Data is sent to a planet to collect radioactive waste, is injured, and loses his memory of who he is, yet still is able to heal those who inadvertently come in contact with the toxic materials.
This episode illustrates James Hillman’s concept of us all having our own inner daimon that guides us in our life.
In “Thine Own Self” Lt. Commander Data is sent to a planet that is nowhere near developing space travel, yet it has had the misfortune of having a Starfleet probe carrying radioactive waste crash into it. Data is sent to collect the waste, yet in doing so, damage to his memory banks prevent him from knowing who he is and that radioactive materials are dangerous. A suspension of disbelief for this plot point is necessary. The villagers are also unfamiliar with the idea of radioactivity, and look at the metals that Data had with him, and one of them makes the metal pieces into pendants. Those that wore the pendants became ill and Data is hunted down as the source of the sickness that has spread throughout the community. However, even under this duress, Data is able to use very simple tools in order to create an antidote to the radiation poisoning. And sacrifices himself for the safety of the villagers.
The basic goodness, ability to reason out a solution, and commitment to saving the lives of the people of the village reflect Data’s nature, or in Hillman’s terms, his inner daimon. This concept Hillman calls the acorn theory, the idea that just as an acorn has all the information contained inside it to grow into a tree, we have all the information contained in our psyche to grow into the person we are destined to become.
mydailysoultrek 