Mircea Eliade states at the heart of all legends and myths is a ‘coincidentia oppositorum.’ Essentially, this means that within these individuals, the element of divine and evil reside in them. These individuals are peaceful, while simultaneously being violent. Coincidentia oppositorum states that instead of having a protagonist and antagonist within a storyline, both diametrical oppositions are expressed within one person/being. Eliade states the reason for this is a person’s deep dissatisfaction with what is known as the ‘human condition.’ Eliade’s theory relies on a strong rejection of our objective reality. In this model, our logic system collapses. Demons are represented as angels, gods are viewed as devils — and Jon Jones is viewed as Jon Jones.
Check out the greatest example of coincidentia oppositorum the MMA world has in this picture captured by Esther Lin of Jon Jones and Lyoto Machida at UFC 140. You can check out the full version of Esther’s work here.
