Of Sins and Dragon Skins

"I thought to myself, oh dear, how ever many skins have I got to take off? For I was longing to bathe my leg. So I scratched away for the third time and got off a third skin, just like the two others, and stepped out of it. But as soon as I looked at myself in the water, I knew it had been no good." ~ Eustace, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Caught thinking dragonish thoughts on a dragon's hoard, the dark monster within Eustace Clarence Scrubb manifested itself in a garish outward form. All his self-centeredness brewed itself from general meanness into a terror to behold. No dragon is as fearful as the inescapable one within.

Everything starts with the heart. A thought planted and nourished will grow. Whatever it may be, it will come out eventually, good or evil. And in the case of Eustace, his inner self was full of issues, and so these were exposed for the world to see.

Eustace probably knew that he wasn't the nicest of boys. Judging by his actions, he probably didn't care. He gained pleasure from the pain of others. His self-centered nature led him to believe that the whole world was against him. He grew to believe himself always in the right. Blinded by these imaginings, he failed to see the good in others.

What a great way to start a journey as a loathsome creature.

As he began to deal with his outward transformation, Eustace began to change inwardly. He desired to help as he was best able. He longed for companionship -- and found it in the least likely candidate, Reepicheep. With these changes to his attitude, the dragon within began to wither.

But he was still a monster cut off from society as he knew it.

And that's when he was visited by a Lion.

Aslan led him to a well. Water so healing, Eustace was certain it would ease his pain. But before he set foot therein, Aslan commanded him to "undress". Eustace scratched off a layer of reptilian skin... only to discover that he had another skin underneath. He tried again. And again.

It's impossible to change yourself on your own. Eustace had effectively scratched and peeled off a couple layers of dragon-skin, but there was always another layer underneath. He knew he had to get the "beastly stuff" off, but never penetrated deep enough to accomplish it. Had he continued his scraping, he would have found himself caught in a never-ending cycle of shedding and scratching.

"Then the lion said,... 'You will have to let me undress you.' I was afraid of his claws, I can tell you, but I was pretty nearly desperate now. So I just lay flat down on my back and let him do it." ~ Eustace, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Desperation. Eustace was so ready for the skin to come off, he could practically taste it. Great claws or no, he wanted out of the stuff. So he set himself at the Lion's mercy... belly side up. The most vulnerable and tender part of a dragon.

There's only One who can properly remove the dragon-skin. And while He stands ready to "undress" you, you must be willing to expose yourself to those claws. And not just merely to bare yourself before Him, but to remain open to Him. No matter the pain that's bound to come.

"The very first tear he made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart." ~ Eustace, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

You cannot pick off a dandelion blossom and say the weed is out of your garden. A dragon cannot rid himself of his skin by scratching the surface. You cannot uproot your sin by merely shedding the visible evidence of its presence.

He wastes no time. He cuts deep, straight to the heart. Everything takes root in the heart and so He needs to sever those roots in order to address the problems that have sprouted.

"And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I've ever felt. The only thing that made me able to bear it was just the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off." ~ Eustace, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

He doesn't just stop at the heart. That's merely His starting point. He begins to tear the entire skin right off. Once the heart is changed, the outside will follow. It will cling to you with a vengence, so expect pain as His claws rake it off. As He continues His "undressing", it will grow easier as less of it continues to attach itself to you.

"Well, he peeled the beastly stuff right off -- just as I thought I'd done it myself the other three times, only they hadn't hurt -- and there it was lying on the grass: only ever so much thicker, and darker, and more knobbly-looking than the others had been. And there was I as smooth and soft as a peeled switch and smaller than I had been. Then he caught hold of me -- I didn't like that much for I was very tender underneath now that I'd no skin on -- and threw me into the water. It smarted like anything but only for a moment. After that, it became perfectly delicious.... After a bit, the lion took me out and dressed me... in new clothes." ~ Eustace, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Your own scratching results in relatively painless layer-shedding; His tearing is deep and deals with the whole thing, revealing the ugliness beneath. But He doesn't stop with the skinning. He takes you in your most vulnerable state and cleanses, heals, and restores. He frees you from your dragonish self and makes you brand new. A dragon no more.

Don't be discouraged when you have relapses. We're human and we'll always fall short. Just return to the Lion and bare yourself to His tearing claws and healing touch again. As it was said of Eustace's "un-dragoning",

... he began to be a different boy. ...The cure had begun. ~ The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Introduction to "The Value of Myth"

"[In your world,] I have another name. You must learn to know me by that name. This was the very reason why you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there." ~ Aslan, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

It was time for Edmund and Lucy Pevensie to grow up and live in their own world. Their own unmagical, unadventurous England. "It isn't Narnia, you know," Lucy tells Aslan. "It's you. We shan't meet you there. And how can we live, never meeting you?" As much as Lu would miss Narnia's rolling plains, open oceans, white castles, and dear creatures, her attachment is to the lion. The lion promises that he will always watch over them. "Are -- are you there too, sir?" Ed asks. And that's when Aslan tells them that he indeed is, but by another Name. (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, "The Very End of the World")

Edmund and Lucy knew Aslan probably better than any other visitor to Narnia. They fought for him, were crowned by him, revered him, Ed was redeemed by him, Lu had the greatest faith in him, and they even had fun with him. They knew him. They loved him. We can assume that they searched for that Name and probably even found it.

But the lion's simple words were not just meant for the children. Just as they had grown to love Aslan during their adventures in Narnia, we have too. And it's time for us to put the book down (or turn off the CD or eject the DVD) and live and grow up in our own unmagical, unadventurous world. It's time for us to go search and discover this mysterious "Other Name".

There are many Narniacs who know this Other Name. Many knew it before they ever knew about Aslan. But regardless of whether or not you know it yourself, there is always something to learn about that Other Name. I find that I learn something new or am reminded about something I already know each time I enter Narnia.

Named by a phrase found in a C.S. Lewis quote, "The Value of Myth" is dedicated to mining the gems of truth rooted in Narnia's rich soils.
And though we know Aslan for a little in Narnia, we may find that through Narnia, we understand Him even a little better here.

"The value of myth is that it takes all the things you know and restores to them the rich significance which has been hidden by the veil of familiarity." ~ C.S. Lewis