“Unicorns, Soul Mates, and Other Mythical Creatures,” New Era, July 2017
Unicorns, Soul Mates, and Other Mythical Creatures
Here’s your field guide to fantastical fauna that, though unreal, can actually harm you.
Throughout history, humans have envisioned creatures that don’t actually exist in the natural world. Often, people come to actually believe in these inventions of human fantasy to some degree. This usually happens through a combination of misunderstanding, ignorance, and plain old imagination. Take the unicorn, for instance:
The Unicorn
Illustrations by Marija Tiurina; background textures by Getty Images
A creature (usually a horse) with a single horn on its head. The horn was said to have magical, healing, or medicinal properties. The word unicorn is mentioned in the King James Bible, but that is a mistranslation; the animal referred to is actually some kind of wild ox or other form of Bovidae.
Where they live: Deep in the (enchanted) forest
What they feed on: Grass, oats, absorbed sunshine, or rainbows
Creatures like this may be fun and interesting to think about (and perhaps psychologically revealing), but they still have no basis in reality.
There are other mythical creatures that a lot of people nonetheless believe in nowadays. But these are not the kind that are fun and interesting to believe in. In fact, believing in them can be spiritually and emotionally harmful.
Some of them are things people believe exist out there somewhere; some of them are things people believe themselves to be. In either case, believing in them diminishes joy and growth. So, in a way, though they’re not real, they feed off of you. See if you’ve heard of any of them.
Creatures of Perfection
The Soul Mate
Also known as the One-and-Only. A particular person of the opposite sex you are meant to be with.1
Where it lives: Out-There-Somewhere
What it feeds on: Deferred happiness, unrealistic expectations
The Flawless One
Also known as the No-Need-to-Repent-er; a perfect person; one who never makes mistakes.2
Where it lives: The Kingdom of Aboveyall
What it feeds on: Ignorance, insecurity, pride
Creatures of Ease
The Pure Talent
Also known as the Lazy Success. A person whose obvious and consistent success comes entirely from inborn qualities that they have never had to work hard at developing, maintaining, or improving.
Where it lives: The Plains of Effortlessness
What it feeds on: Lack of motivation to improve
The Life Cruiser
A person who never has to face any trials or failures. Special powers include the innate ability to avoid all pitfalls, calamities, tragedies, accidents, pain, and loss.
Where it lives: The Isle of Ease
What it feeds on: Avoiding reality; when we look at others and think it’s unfair that their lives are so much easier than ours, this creature feeds on self-pity, envy, and resentment
The Unscathed Limit-Pusher
Somebody who always walks to the edge of moral danger but never experiences any spiritual harm.
Where it lives: The Cliffs of Zero Consequence
What it feeds on: Moral risk
The Aimless Achiever
Somebody who doesn’t make or pursue concrete goals but who nonetheless achieves all kinds of success. A cousin of the Life Cruiser.
Where it lives: The Invisible Sky-Castle of No-Goal
What it feeds on: Low achievement, wasted time
The Once-and-Done Scripture Genius
A person who has read the scriptures once and doesn’t need to go back and read or study them again, having obtained the full benefits of them in one go.
Where it lives: The So-Low Plateau
What it feeds on: Minimal effort, spiritual complacency, a “been there, done that” attitude
The No-Prayer-No-Scripture-Study Lifelong Testimony Holder
A person whose special gifts make it so that they don’t need to pray or read the scriptures in order to maintain a strong testimony.
Where it lives: The Dense Hollows
What it feeds on: Spiritual complacency
The Direct Conduit
Somebody who always has crystal-clear answers to their prayers and never has to struggle because the Spirit always speaks to them and makes decisions for them.3
Where it lives: The Floating Island of Yield
What it feeds on: Misguided expectations, lack of spiritual self-reliance; can also feed on spiritual insecurity and despair when people believe they ought to possess these powers but don’t
Creatures of Impossibility
The Island
A person who never needs help from anyone for anything. Also known as a 100 Percent Do-It-Yourself-er or Do-It-All. Special powers include skills, intelligence, emotional equilibrium, and resourcefulness beyond any human.
Where it lives: The Ocean of Noman
What it feeds on: Social and emotional isolation, unrealistic expectations, pride
The Believer-Not
A person who is able to have great faith in basic gospel principles while at the same time having deep doubts about those same gospel principles.4
Where it lives: The Gray Area
What it feeds on: Doubt, insecurity, worldliness
The Ungifted
A person suffering from a curse that leaves them permanently without any talents or gifts.
Where it lives: No-Good Grotto or the Desert of Dull
What it feeds on: Lack of self-worth, insecurity, fear of failure
Creatures of Social Fantasy
The Beloved Meanie
Someone, often popular, who does and says unkind things to others and who is also truly loved for doing so.
Where it lives: Statusville, in the Bog of Belittlement
What it feeds on: Social anxiety, putting down others
The Frempter (Friend/Tempter)
Someone capable of being a person’s “good friend” while also being the one who tempts them to break standards and commandments.
Where it lives: The Frenemy Territory
What it feeds on: Social anxiety
Creatures of Habit
The Exception
An extraordinary being whose unique circumstances make it so that commandments and standards do not apply to them as they do to other, less special people.
Where it lives: Special-Special Land
What it feeds on: Excuses, pride, unwillingness to change
The Just-the-Way-I-Am-er
Once this species reaches a certain age—usually in their teens—they will never be able to change any personal attributes (never get better grades, never be more kind, keep all bad habits, etc.).
Where it lives: The Swamp of Sameness
What it feeds on: Pride, unwillingness to change, insecurity, fear of failure
Conclusion
To reiterate: Not one of these creatures exists. But your belief in them can harm you. So, rule number one in vanquishing them is simple: Don’t believe in them.