Why didn't Mufasa tell Simba...

[Timon the great]

[quote="DGFone"]^ Actually, I would think that, given Rafiki's reaction about the weather, plus his comments about change, that he knew the entire time what was going on.[/quote]
Rafiki probably knew what was generally going on. But this doesn't necessarily imply that he was actually seeing Mufasa talking to Simba. Rafiki only served his purpose in showing Simba the way to this. Only to come back after the event had just passed.

[quote]They never said "Simba then remembers Mufasa", but "Mufasa comes back to guide Simba in his time of need". I'm pretty sure Mufasa's ghost was meant to actually be Mufasa.[/quote]
My point basically taken. After all, TLK 1 is about Simba. Right?

[DGFone]

[quote="Timon the great"][quote="DGFone"]^ Actually, I would think that, given Rafiki's reaction about the weather, plus his comments about change, that he knew the entire time what was going on.[/quote]
Rafiki probably knew what was generally going on. But this doesn't necessarily imply that he was actually seeing Mufasa talking to Simba. Rafiki only served his purpose in showing Simba the way to this. Only to come back after the event had just passed.[/quote]

I don't know if Rafiki actually saw Mufasa or not (who was only in a small window in the clouds), but I think that Rafiki was able to very well see the effects of Mufasa's appearance in the form of the rapidly reshaping of the clouds, hence his comment about the weather. I have no doubt that he also knew that it was Mufasa.

[Regulus]

Yeah, that may be what the directors said, but let's also remember that Rafiki takes Simba through a very strange place underground, before going to the pond. Who knows what all kinds of crazy chemicals he inhaled in that sort of cave.

Rafiki claimed Mufasa was still alive. He then brought Simba to a pond so that he can see his reflection.

After Rafiki says "He lives in you," that's when Mufasa appears in the water, before appearing in the sky. That's not what actually happened, it's just what he imagined when the realization dawned on him.

The evidence always seemed quite clear to me. "He lives in you," not "he lives in the sky."

[DGFone]

[quote="Regulus"]Yeah, that may be what the directors said, but let's also remember that Rafiki takes Simba through a very strange place underground, before going to the pond. Who knows what all kinds of crazy chemicals he inhaled in that sort of cave.[/quote]

Since when did a dense jungle qualify as "underground"?

[Regulus]

It doesn't matter what you call it. You know what I was referring to.

Also, to add to my original point, Rafiki is often considered a shaman. Now, according to Wikipedia:

Shamanism (pron.: /ˈʃɑːmən/ SHAH-mən or /ˈʃeɪmən/ SHAY-mən) is a practice that involves a practitioner reaching altered states of consciousness in order to encounter and interact with the spirit world.

Does this not suggest that Mufasa's ghost was merely an extension of Simba's mind?

And, on a related note, the entire scene reminds me of one from Empire Strikes Back. Yoda tells Luke to go inside a very similar looking overgrown cave type thing. When he's in there he finds, fights, and kills an imaginary Darth Vader.

[DGFone]

That definition of "shaman" is the modern one, when we had to reconcile the notion of a shaman with modern medicine. I'm quite sure that before established medicine, the term "shaman" was used largely how we today call people "doctors". Just because their methods are not the same doesn't change what they do. You get sick and you live in a small tribe? You go to the shaman. You get sick in the city? You go see the doctor. Same job, different name on the business card.

And I really don't care about what Luke saw. This is the Lion King, not some lame sci-fi flick.

And especially considering how the directors (the guys in charge of the scene) talk about it, I am very convinced that it is indeed Mufasa who came to help Simba rather than his own mind telling him the same thing.

When all else fails, remember that this is Disney. Even for the greater good, they won't be able to get away with having a character get high on drugs.

[Ananda]

Doesn't Scar himself tells Simba that he killed his father in the final battle between the two, though?

[DGFone]

[quote="Ananda"]Doesn't Scar himself tells Simba that he killed his father in the final battle between the two, though?[/quote]

That was after Mufasa's ghost scene. Although I do think that Scar killing Mufasa was a lesson that Mufasa didn't feel that Simba was ready for just yet.