Comments on "Losing my Religion"

The Lion King is one of Disney's most religious films. The film explores many Judeo-Christian themes, including the Garden of Eden, the Fall from Grace, the wandering in the Desert , Redemption, Salvation, etc. The film also introduces non Judeo-Christian religious themes, including a doctrine of religious wholism (all of nature is part of one larger whole, of which the sum is greater than the parts.) All of these elements are tied together through the character of Simba, and what can be understood as his spiritual quest. Simba initially lives in a state of innocence, which is lost when his father is killed. Simba "loses" his religion with the loss of his father. He lives the rest of his childhood in denial and rejection of the teachings his father embodied. With adulthood, however, comes a new sense of awareness of divine presence. Simba returns to his people with a new acceptance of his religious responsibilities and roles, accepting the truth that his father lives on within him, and that all things are connected within the "circle of life."