libby walked up to him and he was using a seashell or something to carve into his stick-club. anybody know what it was?

i thought he was marking days to keep track, but i could be wrong.

Looked like he was carving names in it.

i thought he was marking days to keep track, but i could be wrong.

That is what I thought too especially after he told Ana it had been 40-something days...

It definitely appeared to be the number of days.

I don't think it was days. Maybe a verse from the Bible or whatever book Mr. Eko believes in, maybe a phrase, I really don't think it was just tally marks for days though.

I'm thinking Eko is a religious leader and he took a vow of silence for 40 days to atone for killing those 2 others?

The counting of days makes a lot of sense, but I'm wondering if he was carving a religious icon, psalm or something of that nature?

I was thinking it was tally marks for either a.)the people he killed or b.)the people who were taken by the others. I'm leaning more towards b.

It looked like he was keeping track of the days they have been on the island, but who knows.

i thought he was marking days to keep track, but i could be wrong.


I thought so also...went back and watched it again and it looked more like just lines than letters....but didn't freeze frame it....I will soon enough...lol...

an interview with DL in TV Guide said "pay attention to Mr Eko's stick"

I am hoping someone has a HD screencap

This sucks...I get to see the episode an hour after the east and central coasters and don't get to get anything good or cool in that hasn't been said already. I think it's to count the days. I agree with Speaker.

on another board i surmised (half-jokingly) that eko's flashback will show that he was a baseball player

i think he was going the Samuel L. Jackson route, and carving in "bad mutha f&*##" ;)

My guess is that it's some kind of prayer.

I don't think you could really tell, and I don't think we're meant to know yet. I do think it will become significant, though.

My guess is that due to his religion or another belief, he had to keep track of 40 days to mourn in silence, so he did it on his stick.

I capped it for you.

Still pretty tough to tell though. I tilited the image 90 degrees to the right for easier viewing:

http://img270.imageshack.us/img270/35/eko1mx.jpg

I thought so also...went back and watched it again and it looked more like just lines than letters....but didn't freeze frame it....I will soon enough...lol...
well... the I Ching symbols are 'just lines'. But, something on his stick looks 'H'-ish.. and that shape in not an I Ching symbol. But still... that's what I thought of.

It looks like the letters D A Y H ??

here is a higher res pic, flipped, with the brightness and contrast tweaked

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/badvibes/stickwriting.jpg

it's definitely writing and not just ticks or notches

the top piece of writing is indecipherable to me, but under that it looks like it could read "I will" and under that it kind of looks like it could say "God". that would all make sense if he was inscribing his weapon with a psalm or a prayer for protection

First off, nice cap.

I agree it says "I will" in the middle, and yes, the top is unreadable, but the bottom to me looks like it starts with a 6.

Thats off course a guess, but I really dont think it matters if we know now or not, it will show up again later and be clearer.

it could definitely be a 6. but then again, english characters don't come much more alike in shape than 6 and G

What about the 2nd word being LORD and then the E is the beginning of EKO

The top word looks like "Get" to me..

This has nothing to do with the stick (at least as far as I know), but I had an interesting (to me) thought and it fits here as well as anywhere else (and doesn't quite deserve it's own thread) (ON WITH IT WOMAN!) okay...

My first impression of Eko was a kind of tribal image. He had few clothes on. He was carrying a stick. He has a string tied around his arm. His beard was tied up. Then we see him fresh off the plane and -wow- he's pretty suited up. He looks kind of corporate-officey. But as soon as he kills the others, he strips his bloody shirt and we watch the transformation into the tribal image.

Others here have mused about a possible religious/priest/pastor connection. But for me, the tribal look makes me think less in terms of a Western religion and more in terms of something older. Something more mystical. It will be interesting to see how this stick plays out. Will it illuminate the corporate Eko or the tribal Eko.

I think it says "I WILL....
LORD E

The top is unreadable, but it sort of likes like HE... or WE....

But I think the middle might say something to the effect of "I will follow the Lord even..." or "I will follow the Lord. Evil..."

great screencaps, but the creaters dont want us to know yet, but as soon as i saw him doing it i knew it had to be something, same with the glass i eye, its gonna comeup again.

I had posted this else where, but it fits better here.....

Not sure if I caught this right or not, and I hope someone can help me. There was a scene (right before a commerical) where Eko was scribing something into this weapon. At first it looked like a rock, but then when they went back around on him it looked like it was something green.... the same thing Locke was holding when he was with Claire. I am in between DVRs so i can't go back and watch them to compare to see if i'm wrong or not. Can any one help to confirm or deny this?

i thought it was a seashell, didnt look green to me can u find a screencap?
anybody got any better screencaps of the carving?

I had posted this else where, but it fits better here.....

Not sure if I caught this right or not, and I hope someone can help me. There was a scene (right before a commerical) where Eko was scribing something into this weapon. At first it looked like a rock, but then when they went back around on him it looked like it was something green.... the same thing Locke was holding when he was with Claire. I am in between DVRs so i can't go back and watch them to compare to see if i'm wrong or not. Can any one help to confirm or deny this?
When I saw it, I thought it looked similar in size and shape to the Locke green thing, but it wasn't green (if I remember correctly).

i did a quick perspective shift in photoshop, it sure looks like "i will" and "lord en" (no surprise).

check it here:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c360/cslHaplo/stickwriting-adjust.jpg

Googling on "I will" and "Lord Enter" yields some interesting results, i'm gonna go over them when I get a chance.

de-lurked,
bagua

here is a higher res pic, flipped, with the brightness and contrast tweaked

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/badvibes/stickwriting.jpg


awesome screencap, badvibes!
It's definitely the 23rd Psalm:
The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name' sake.

is lost gettin religous or what? so are we thinking that eko is a preist or something?
i absolutly feel that this is gonna come up again, just dont know how big of a deal its gonna whind up being.

I'm thinking he killed someone in his past and due to his religious beliefs has to atone so he can get into Heaven. This is a reminder "I will Lord enter (the gates of Heaven)" or something like this.

Perhaps it was some sort of written (carved?) convenant with himself, in which he vows not to speak for 40 days after killing the Others. Like it's been stated before, he's atoning for his sins.

Either way, I find the contrasting notions between "stick as weapon" and "stick as religious vessel" to be very interesting.

Violence vs. Peace. You know, that kind of thing.

does everybody agree its gonna back around. and that it may have significance bearing ekos character. is that his real name by the way?

Then we see him fresh off the plane and -wow- he's pretty suited up. He looks kind of corporate-officey.

I usually go for the more casual look...but didn't he look GOOOOD in that suit? :biggrin:

the forty days thing makes me think he's Muslim, not Christian, according to various sites, "40 days" comes up ALOT in Islam. i would list them, but i'm back to work, so just google "40 days" and "islam", also - tell me if his tattoo does not look similar to this:

http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:mvjYwTMNqfAJ:www.weddinggreetingcard. info/gifs/sikh-symbol-2.gif

or other various sikh symbols.

not sure what he was carving although I do believe one of the words is definately 'Lord'.

As to the symbolism of the stick itself, I haven't seen this mention in direct relation to Ecko, but I did see it discussed with reference to the 'Drs. and missing limbs'.

maybe 'Ecko - if that is indeed his name - has created himself a a rough version of a 'Caduceus'. I have posted the link below for some more in depth information. But here are some exerpts from that page....

'Many "medical" organisations use a symbol of a short rod entwined by two snakes and topped by a pair of wings, which is actually the caduceus or magic wand of the Greek god Hermes (Roman Mercury), messenger of the gods, inventor of (magical) incantations, conductor of the dead and protector of merchants and thieves. It is derived from the Greek karykeion = "herald's staff", itself based on the word "eruko" meaning restrain, control.

It is interesting to see that most of organisations using this symbol are generally either commercial or military (or American). New Zealand examples include drug and pharmaceutical companies. '

I bolded some of the quote that seems to be a possible connection to Mr Ecko ( who maybe said his name was 'Eruko' not Ecko ?? just a thought ). Another interesting quote from that web page....

' Professional and patient centred organisations (such as the NZMA, in fact most medical Associations around the world including the World Health Organization) use the "correct" and traditional symbol of medicine, the staff of Asclepius with a single serpent encircling a staff, classically a rough-hewn knotty tree limb. Asclepius (an ancient greek physician deified as the god of medicine) is traditionally depicted as a bearded man wearing a robe that leaves his chest uncovered and holding a staff with his sacred single serpent coiled around it, (example right) symbolizing renewal of youth as the serpent casts off its skin '

if you feel these thoughts hold any water, here is the web addy for mor reading....

http://drblayney.com/Asclepius.html

I only hope I properly conveyed my thoughts in this post as I feel I do not post my thoughts well because as I type my mind becomes flooded with too many conflictoing and complimentary ideas, I feel I forget to stay on track.

On that note.....Any thoughts???

I don't think it was days. Maybe a verse from the Bible or whatever book Mr. Eko believes in, maybe a phrase, I really don't think it was just tally marks for days though.

I thought the same thing...

Eko is definitely the poster child for "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

I usually go for the more casual look...but didn't he look GOOOOD in that suit? :biggrin:

YES HE DID.

I don't think that Eko is counting the days on the stick (but, they did that in clan of the cave bear). But I can make the connection to Desmond's marks on the wall in the Swan hatch.

I don't think Eko has any evil or drastic sin in his background for this reason - weren't the Others trying to take Eko on the first night? Goodwin said that the good-ones were taken. He followed that up with something about Nathan being a bad man. If Eko was to be taken that makes him a good man.

I like the connection of Eko to Moses. I think he wrote a prayer on the stick and/or the names of the dead.

Eko is definitely the poster child for "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

Yep! And maybe he had to write "I will not hurt anyone" on his stick, ten times...:biggrin:

the forty days thing makes me think he's Muslim, not Christian, according to various sites, "40 days" comes up ALOT in Islam. i would list them, but i'm back to work, so just google "40 days" and "islam", also - tell me if his tattoo does not look similar to this:

http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:mvjYwTMNqfAJ:www.weddinggreetingcard. info/gifs/sikh-symbol-2.gif

or other various sikh symbols.

TBH i have no idea about the muslim connection.

But it is definitely connected to Christians. The period between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday excluding every Sunday is 40 days. It's called Lent where we sacrifice or give up something for these forty days. Sundays are excluded as it is a day of feasting for us. (i'm sure you already knew this anyway)

Seems very similar, him giving up something for 40 days.

the forty days thing makes me think he's Muslim, not Christian, according to various sites, "40 days" comes up ALOT in Islam. i would list them, but i'm back to work, so just google "40 days" and "islam", also - tell me if his tattoo does not look similar to this:

http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:mvjYwTMNqfAJ:www.weddinggreetingcard. info/gifs/sikh-symbol-2.gif

or other various sikh symbols.
40 is huge in the Bible.

The Isrealites wandered in the desert for 40 years
Noahs ark was 40 days
Lent is 40 days
Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days
I know there are tons more, but I'm drawing a blank. Can anyone else think of more? I'm leaning toward Eko being Christian as opposed to muslim. I would think that if he was muslim, then the Bible would have meant nothing to him.

IMO he was atoning some sin for not speaking for 40 days. I say killing the 2 'Others" was the sin. I am not sure about the religious practices in Nigeria, but if he is Catholic, it only makes sense. During Lent, Catholics give up something for 40 days.

Regarding the stick... obviously from the great HD screenies he is writing something about God. On a side note, being I remember reading that TPTB loved the show Survivor, I would not be surprised if this is some sort of homage to that show. All contestants on the show get a torch stick and most personalize it by carving or painting names or symbols on it. Most of the time it's the names of their children. Was the first thing I thought of when I saw him marking the stick.

More thoughts on connection to 40 days and christian faith, from this source (http://www.americancatholic.org/Messenger/Feb2005/Wiseman.asp)

Q: Why does the number 40 recur so often in the Bible? After Noah built the ark, it rained for 40 days and 40 nights. The Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years. Jesus was in the desert for 40 days and 40 nights.

A: Biblical writers assumed that 40 years was the length of a generation. Caleb and Joshua are presented as the only people who left Egypt and entered the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 1:36 for Caleb; an adult Joshua assisted Moses at Mt. Sinai—Exodus 24:13). Everyone else was born after leaving Egypt.

In that sense, 40 years represents a clean break with the past. In Psalm 95, God says, “Forty years I loathed that generation; I said: ‘This people’s heart goes astray, they do not know my ways’” (verse 10).

David reigned as king for 40 years, seven years from Hebron and 33 from Jerusalem (1 Kings 2:11).

The sense of completeness represented by 40 years was also associated with 40 days. The flood that Noah experienced with his wife, children and the animals (Genesis 7:12) represents a total break with their past.

Moses was on Mt. Sinai for 40 days and 40 nights (Exodus 24:18). After a single meal provided by God, Elijah walked for 40 days to resume his pr

ophetic mission (1 Kings 19:8).Although Jesus’ 40 days in the desert are not a break with a sinful past, they do prepare for his public ministry and its challenges. Jewish Christians readily linked those days to their ancestors’ 40 years in the desert, including the temptations they faced there. Jesus’ 40 days in the desert followed his baptism and prepared him to reject the tempter’s enticing suggestions about how to be a successful Messiah. Calvary is Jesus’ final answer to the tempter. Jesus’ followers would later face their own temptations as disciples and draw comfort from the story of Jesus’ temptations.

St. Luke places Jesus’ Ascension on the 40th day after his Resurrection (Acts 1:3).

If people in biblical times had the life expectancy that most people in the United States have today, the number 40 probably would not have been considered the length of a generation.


Also, another interesting read: http://www.creation-answers.com/forty.htm

It says something "Lord". Check out http://lost-media.com/modules/coppermine/albums/ep-caps/season2/2x07-48days/3/48days-cap216.jpg. I think it is a psalm.:hypocrit:

in the past the catholics pushed there religon on alot of less civilized people espically in africa and south america, so i wouldnt be surprised if he was a catholic leader. but it would be way cooler if he was some sorta voodoo dude

To me it looked like letter but not English. Perhaps something from his native language?

Maybe there's a better image of the writing on the stick in an earlier episode? It should have all the carving on it since this eppy was a flashback. From the screen caps we already have it definitely looks like "I will" and "Lord". Sounds like a Christian prayer to me. I'm hoping it's Psalm 23! That would be very cool!

40 is huge in the Bible.

The Isrealites wandered in the desert for 40 years
Noahs ark was 40 days
Lent is 40 days
Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days
I know there are tons more, but I'm drawing a blank. Can anyone else think of more? I'm leaning toward Eko being Christian as opposed to muslim. I would think that if he was muslim, then the Bible would have meant nothing to him.
Biblically the number 40 represents a period of probation or trial
Moses was on the mount for 40 days
40 days were involved in the story of Jonah and Nineveh
40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and ascension

Okay ... lots of great stuff here to comment on!
I capped it for you.

Still pretty tough to tell though. I tilited the image 90 degrees to the right for easier viewing:

http://img270.imageshack.us/img270/35/eko1mx.jpg
Leave it to you, sier to come up with a great cap! I love it and you can clearly see it's letters and not mere hash marks. Thanks! And, by the by, love your heart-beating DHARMA avi!! Too cool!!
here is a higher res pic, flipped, with the brightness and contrast tweaked

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/badvibes/stickwriting.jpg

it's definitely writing and not just ticks or notches

the top piece of writing is indecipherable to me, but under that it looks like it could read "I will" and under that it kind of looks like it could say "God". that would all make sense if he was inscribing his weapon with a psalm or a prayer for protection
badvibes ... awesome job! Thanks, too! It really looks like "I will ... " and then "Lord E..."
I think it says "I WILL....
LORD E

The top is unreadable, but it sort of likes like HE... or WE....

But I think the middle might say something to the effect of "I will follow the Lord even..." or "I will follow the Lord. Evil..."
Yep. I found some interesting stuff on that. I'll post it further down in this post.
I had posted this else where, but it fits better here.....

Not sure if I caught this right or not, and I hope someone can help me. There was a scene (right before a commerical) where Eko was scribing something into this weapon. At first it looked like a rock, but then when they went back around on him it looked like it was something green.... the same thing Locke was holding when he was with Claire. I am in between DVRs so i can't go back and watch them to compare to see if i'm wrong or not. Can any one help to confirm or deny this?
He's using a flint rock ... like an arrow head. I don't think it's the same thing as what Locke was holding.
awesome screencap, badvibes!
It's definitely the 23rd Psalm:
I don't think it's the 23rd Psalm. I'll post why further down in this post.
It says something "Lord". Check out http://lost-media.com/modules/coppermine/albums/ep-caps/season2/2x07-48days/3/48days-cap216.jpg. I think it is a psalm.:hypocrit:
That cap helped me even more ... I did some sharpening of my own and took a wild stab that after "Lord" it said Eko (after all, that is the name he's going by). And low and behold ... lookie what I found:
>>In conclusion, Deepavali festival bears out the profound spiritual truth.. the whole array of lamps are lit by the light from one lamp .That one lamp symbolizes the Supreme Effulgent Lord (Eko Vishnu ) the other symbolize the light in individual selves (Pruthak bhutah) . The One willed to become Many is exemplified by the lighting of the lamps by the flame of one.<< (enlarged text by me.) Essence of Srivaishnavam Practices Lifestyle Deepavali Festival (http://trsiyengar.com/id03.html) This would also tie into the Eastern religions that DHARMA seem to be connected to.


And this site speaks of Lord Eko AND Dharma! A Life Of Purity (http://www.matchlessgift.info/001-500/147.html).

Personally, I thought his stick reminded me of their dharma symbol. They have a long straight arrow through their dharma emblem. I know an arrow and a stick are different, but they did look similar.

I'm not sure if this really makes any difference to the discussion on Mr. Eko, but just to inform readers on a couple of things related to the earlier post on him maybe being Muslim:

Islamic beliefs are in many ways an extention of Judeo-Christian beliefs. Muslims believe in everything that Jews and Christians believe with two key distinctions - that Jesus was a prophet and not the son of God, and that Muhammad was a prophet after Jesus and brought the Koran to the people. So the bible is in fact a holy book of Islam and the concept of 40 days is prevalent throughout Islam, probably due to Judeo-Christian roots.

Also, assuming Mr. Eko may be Nigerian, the two major faiths in Nigeria are Christianity and Islam (more or less 50:50 split).

the more i look at it the more i think the "I WILL" i sjust "WILL" and the second line is "LAUREN"

aside from both being characters no longer on alias...they could be the ones taken by the others like someone said earlier in the thread.

a way to remember those gone...or do we know the chrildren's names?

the more i look at it the more i think the "I WILL" i sjust "WILL" and the second line is "LAUREN"

aside from both being characters no longer on alias...they could be the ones taken by the others like someone said earlier in the thread.

a way to remember those gone...or do we know the chrildren's names?
But what of the slash before "WILL"? And I can't see how you're getting "Lauren" out of the bottom line. I can see the R and the E but I clearly see a D before the E and an R before the D.

Here's the cap I enhanced more : http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/6931/48dayseko5jo.jpg (http://imageshack.us) (If it doesn't show up ... they said the site was undergoing maintenance and it might not work until they're done. But it's there.)

the explanation for all of it is simple - bad handwriting with pencils, worse with arrowheads :)

to me it looks like there is a REALLY tiny line at the bottom of the D...doesont' mean it's NOT a d, but could be an R

as for the slash b4 will...messed up, started over..or perhaps a test mark to see how it would work i dunno.....

not saying it's not "i will blah blah
lord en blah blah"

just offering up an alternative :)

40 is huge in the Bible.

The Isrealites wandered in the desert for 40 years
Noahs ark was 40 days
Lent is 40 days
Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days
I know there are tons more, but I'm drawing a blank. Can anyone else think of more? I'm leaning toward Eko being Christian as opposed to muslim. I would think that if he was muslim, then the Bible would have meant nothing to him.

The Bible is recognized as a holy book by the Muslim people as well. Particularly the Old Testament. They also believe the New Testament, with the exception of Christ being the son of God. They believe him to be a holy man and a major prophet.

Leave it to you, sier to come up with a great cap! I love it and you can clearly see it's letters and not mere hash marks. Thanks! And, by the by, love your heart-beating DHARMA avi!! Too cool!!.

Thanks Jane! I wish I could have had an HD cap at that point but the show had *just* aired and my HD Tuner card was busy at the moment so i had to screencap a low-res recording i did with my *normal* tuner card.... And yes, I am a dork for recording Lost in different formats. But I like to see what is cut off in the TV version vs HDTV. The crash at the beginning is amazing in HD.

And thanks for complimenting my avi as well =]

I needed something a bit creepy and this had just been shown, so I figured I'd be cool and make an avi from the episode that just ended..haha.

I told you i was dork.

Thanks Jane! I wish I could have had an HD cap at that point but the show had *just* aired and my HD Tuner card was busy at the moment so i had to screencap a low-res recording i did with my *normal* tuner card.... And yes, I am a dork for recording Lost in different formats. But I like to see what is cut off in the TV version vs HDTV. The crash at the beginning is amazing in HD.

And thanks for complimenting my avi as well =]

I needed something a bit creepy and this had just been shown, so I figured I'd be cool and make an avi from the episode that just ended..haha.

I told you i was dork.
You're no dork, sier! You're very creative! :biggrin: How'd you get it to pulsate like that? Very cool!!

You're no dork, sier! You're very creative! :biggrin: How'd you get it to pulsate like that? Very cool!!

Haha, thanks =]

The shot itself zoomed in slowly to the logo, so I just took a few of the frames and reorganized them, then timed it out to simulate a "pulse". Then I zoomed into the DHARMA wording and superimposed that on top of the pulsing symbol...I'm glad someone actually noticed that is what it was doing!

I usually revert back to the Locke avatar after a bit, but i like to switch things around now and then =]

Haha, thanks =]

The shot itself zoomed in slowly to the logo, so I just took a few of the frames and reorganized them, then timed it out to simulate a "pulse". Then I zoomed into the DHARMA wording and superimposed that on top of the pulsing symbol...I'm glad someone actually noticed that is what it was doing!

I usually revert back to the Locke avatar after a bit, but i like to switch things around now and then =]
Very good! I couldn't help but notice it was a 'heart beat' by counting the beats and how far apart they were. Way cool! What program did you use to do it?

Now ... if we could just get a better shot of Mr. Eko's stick ... I know we'd be able to tell what it said!

so were not sure of it at all, probobly something religous, has anybody got screencaps of it from another episode this season?

Great, so now even the stick is an unanswered question.

damn, i hate it when that happens

Right before Eko stopped talking he told Bernard he would pray for Rose and the kids who were taken. Maybe he stopped talking for 40 days as a form of prayer?

My 1st thought was he was keeping track of the days also, but I'm sure there will be more than just that to it. Wish I could find a decent picture of it!!

According to the TV guide article, for whatever it is worth..., JJ or Damon said to pay particular attention to his stick, that it holds some importance. This just could be a red herring and it may hold no meaning. Of course, they never show you a close up of what he is carving so good luck figuring that one out!

the silence was a bit of pennance i think, which he would only do if he was very religous. and his comments to bernard about praying goes along with that also. but i know when i went to sunday school they didnt teach us to make weapons and clothes in the jungle. but i've been thinking that perhaps it was a "god give me strength" type thing he was carving.