Lost - Ten Common Questions Answered

(Spoiler warning if you have not seen LOST)

Lost, the television series that made fans around the world fall in love, become mesmerized, and be converted into couch potatoes for an hour of their lives each week to follow plane crash survivors on an amazing journey. If you have never watched LOST before, no doubt you have heard one or more of your friends talking about the insanity and leaving you clueless, yet curious of what's it all about.

Well, throughout six years of the series, there have been hundreds of questions. Some of the questions took a few episodes to find the answers, some were never completely answered, and other took the entire series up until the very last episode to answer. But due to the show's complexity, a lot of the answers seemed to have been drawn out by the fans and made more complex than what it really was.

So, with that said, I decided to highlight the top ten common questions answered in my perspective, a dedicated Lost fan.

Please note that I have no inside scoop or connection with the writers, staff, or actors.

1. What is the light seen shining from inside of the Island?
   The light is said by Jacob and the Man in Black's false mother as being the heart of the Island to be a physical display of life, death, and rebirth. She also commented that this light is inside of every living thing, but all living things want more. This leaves me to believe that the light symbolizes or is home to a new soul, something that is pure, innocent, and untainted. A new life is always considered to be good and sinless. At death, it is said that one is at peace without suffering. Rebirth would be starting over with a clean slate, just as a new soul would have. Humans can never just leave things be or accept things for the way they are. It seems like we always have to analyze it, find meaning for it, touch it, and prove that it is real. Why can't we believe in the unexplainable and leave it at that? Curiosity did kill the cat.
2. What were the whispers?
   The whispers are explained to Hurley as those that have died and are stuck on the island, unable to pass on. To further back up this theory, we can think back to what the light on the Island is stated to be - life, death, and rebirth. Those who have died, whose souls still roamed the island, seemed to have done something so horrible that they are filled with guilt. Their sins have consumed them that until they let go, or forgive themselves, they are unable to transcend into the light of the Island to be reborn. So it seems that they haunt the Island.
3. What was the Dharma Initiative?
   I strongly lean toward the idea that it was a government research team that Jacob allowed to find and come to the Island, possibly in hopes of recruiting candidates. I think Jacob was well aware of the DHARMA Initiatives fate, not to mention the possibility of the Island's secret getting out to the world. This may have been a careless, risky move on Jacob's behalf.
4. What were the purposes of The Numbers?
   4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42... these numbers are referenced in sequence and sometimes solo throughout the series of Lost, not to mention burned into fans minds forever. But what did they mean? Why were they there? I believe that this sequence of numbers was something that the writers just randomly created to introduce Hugo's bad luck story, only to realize later through research, random run-ins, and fans that these numbers could be cross referenced into religion, ancient civilizations, serial numbers, and other situations. This would definitely cause the viewers to become more attuned to Lost's ability to confuse and ask questions. But, you'll never find me playing those numbers in a lottery.
5. Were the survivors ever rescued?
   The answer is a definite yes. The Oceanic 6 did get rescued then managed to come back to the Island where the Ajira flight piloted by Frank Lapidus, flew Sawyer, Kate, Claire, Richard and Miles home.
6. What was the flash sideways world?
   Flash sideways world was a purgatory type setting where they were under a process of purification or temporary punishment. This setting was where their souls after death went down an alternate life path, still keeping the same like story with different outcomes, but yet crossing paths at a particular moment where a significant event caused them to realize their connection. Once the connection was made to those who were most influential and important in their lives, this essentially making them ready to pass on once they are together.
7. Did Sayid really die in the Temple?
   I believe that Sayid died. Not from his gunshot wounds, I believe that the 'blessed' water in the temple that turned dark after Jacob's death still had some healing abilities remaining, but the Temple people drowned him after Sayid regained consciousness. When he had drowned, he crossed over to the sideways world. He wasn't supposed to die, yet. The Island brought him back. From this point on, I believe Sayid was very confused as he stayed quiet, as he was piecing things together in his mind of what had occurred. I think Sayid figured out that in all of the bad things he had done, his life was being saved because he had a purpose, a chance to redeem himself.
8. What was The Sickness that some were infected with?
   It had been said that the infection is contributed by the contact of the evil from the Man in Black. We see odd signs of this personality change after Sayid is in contact with the Man in Black, and Claire followed the image of her father into the woods, however we really do not see how Rousseau became infected. Assuming it was the Man in Black using evil to cause them to go mad, it would also give the assumption that after the Man in Black died, The Sickness would be lifted. We do not know if that happened due to Sayid and Rousseau's death.
   Another possibility is that the infection came from death experiences where the Island brought them back. Creating a mental confusion of being aware that there was something out there after you had passed away and not quite grasping the fact that you are put on the Earth for a reason. Dealing with this type of knowledge or enlightenment may have caused great mental trauma.
9. What was the purpose of Desmond?
   Desmond's life appeared to be bursting with one failure after another, until he had a purpose of pressing a button every 108 minutes on the Island. He was alone, supplied with food, shelter, and getting paid for it. No one to bother him, nothing he could fail at, until one day he failed to press the button in time, believing that he caused Oceanic Flight 815 to crash. Throughout his entire pre Oceanic Flight crash on the Island, the hatch he was living in was the site of an incident that by pressing the button, kept large amounts of the Island's electromagnetic like source at bay. Desmond was at ground zero when the hatch blew, causing him to absorb some of the Island's power. I believe this absorption caused him to take on the ability to see the future (because the Island could foresee the future), travel to the purgatory realm where the alternate Desmond was awaiting the real Desmond's death in order to connect him to pass on. Therefore, the purpose of Desmond was to be a constant in both worlds; one who assisted in helping those to pass on...
10. What did they die for?
    Some died to be at peace, others died because they served their purpose, some died because they sacrificed themselves for the good of others, and many died because their soul had been corrupted.

These are ten of hundreds of common questions that were answered either obviously or not so obviously during the six year run of LOST. Most of these questions were open ended and up for the viewer's discretion for the correct answer and other answers were handed to you. But in the end, the journey with Sawyer, Jack, Kate, and the others were a valuable one.