The Prophecy: Fulfilled? Or just another Machine Control?

**ShiXinFeng**

Here is another question from a geek who has too much time on his hands and is obviously obsessed. . . SMILEY

In the Matrix, there was much store put by Morpheus to the Prophecy whereby the One would return and save mankind by ending the war. After his meeting with the Architect, Neo did not return to the Source, and consequently did not fulfill the Prophecy as he was supposed to. Later on, he goes so far as to tell Morpheus et al, that the Prophecy was actually a control used by the Machines.

But. . .in the end, Neo does return to the source and ends the war.

Prophecy fulfilled?

If so, how can it be, if it was written by Machines and given to each of the Ones to pass on?

**Fractor**

What neo did was different from all the 'Ones' before him because he didn't have a general feeling for the well being of mankind but more specifically for Trinity so instead of fulfilling the prophecy by rebuilding zion with some selected males and females he went back to the matrix to rescue Trinity. So I think the prophecy was a machine control because they would of won the war if the prophecy was fulfilled. Neos destiny was to end the war by going to the source but in a different way so that their was a truce and the people of zion lived.

Hexagram

Yet by ending the war trinity died!? SMILEY

**Illyria22**

Yes, the prophecy was part of the Machines' control. And Neo probably would have followed the preprogrammed path of all the previous Ones, if he hadn't exchanged some code with Smith at the end of the first movie. This exchange led to both of them going exile...Smith in the more obvious sense (refusing to return to the source, becoming a virus, etc.), and Neo deviating from the programming that should have led the One to choose the bulk of humanity (the bluepills of the Matrix) over Zion.

Illyria

Hexagram

Illyria22 wrote:

Yes, the prophecy was part of the Machines' control. And Neo probably would have followed the preprogrammed path of all the previous Ones, if he hadn't exchanged some code with Smith at the end of the first movie. This exchange led to both of them going exile...Smith in the more obvious sense (refusing to return to the source, becoming a virus, etc.), and Neo deviating from the programming that should have led the One to choose the bulk of humanity (the bluepills of the Matrix) over Zion.

Illyria

I never thought of it that way... but it makes sense! But on the topic of exchanging code? What about when smith tried to copy himself through neo in the second movie? More code swaping or what!? Could that have changed things aswell?

**Illyria22**

The Oracle only mentioned the code exchange in regards to the end of the first movie...it looked like Neo was able to completely push back Smith's code when he tried to take him over.

Illyria

Hexagram

So he just let smith copy himself through neo in the third movie!? Even thought it didnt exactly work out the way smith planed it to...

Shadow Griever

Illyria22 wrote:

Yes, the prophecy was part of the Machines' control. And Neo probably would have followed the preprogrammed path of all the previous Ones, if he hadn't exchanged some code with Smith at the end of the first movie. This exchange led to both of them going exile...Smith in the more obvious sense (refusing to return to the source, becoming a virus, etc.), and Neo deviating from the programming that should have led the One to choose the bulk of humanity (the bluepills of the Matrix) over Zion.

Illyria

Shadow Griever

god *CENSORED* it, I hit the wrong button.

What I was going to say was that I agree with this theory in general.

However, Neo did not become the "exile" and refuse to return to the source because of the code exchange with Smith. He did it because of Trinity. Even The Architect pointed it out that that was what seperated himself from the other Ones.

**zeroone506**

Marginal note: I've never understood this whole love-for-humanity vs. love-for-individual thing. I mean, it's like none of the previous Ones had any sexuality or ability to love a person, and never had a relationship, while this particular One didn't gave much about humanity.

Or as if one of these two traits were any unique to the One.

**ShiXinFeng**

zeroone506 wrote:

Marginal note: I've never understood this whole love-for-humanity vs. love-for-individual thing. I mean, it's like none of the previous Ones had any sexuality or ability to love a person, and never had a relationship, while this particular One didn't gave much about humanity.

Or as if one of these two traits were any unique to the One.

I always took it to mean that the previous ones experienced love for all of humanity in a Jesus-loves-the-world kind of way. The Architect was pointing out that Neo was experiencing this love in a much more localized way. Instead of him loving all of humanity and too busy being The One to fall in love with an individual, he did the opposite: he put all his love into one individual.

This is how the Oracle unbalanced the Architect's equation. If you'll remember, it was through her meddling with Trinity that started this whole "I love you too damned much to let go" thing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the topic though, what I was really asking was, from Neo's point of view he didn't fulfill the Prophesy. But from our point of view, he did. Didn't he?

**zeroone506**

Yea, it's just I thought everyone (ok, not everyone, but still quite a few except the Neo) would do the same for their love, even though they weren't programmed with it specifically.

As for the main topic, I think the answer is quite simple, though not definite:

The Prophecy was a form of control to lead Neo to the Source, let Zion destroy and restart the cycle, like it was probably in every previous case aswell. Since it was a lie, it wasn't meant to be fulfilled (or maybe fulfilled the way the humans wanted), and could never have been fulfilled in first place. It was pointing towards the way Neo refused to go in "Reloaded" and thus broke out of the grid.
What he does in "Revolutions", may coincidentally correspond to the believed meaning of the Prophecy, or rather not coincidentally because ot voiced the same goals the humanity and Neo had, but it isn't the Prophecy anymore because Neo acts on his own. Again, he aims the same goals as the Prophecy did, and achieves them. But it's not the Prophecy, just because the same result comes out.

In a brider sense, there is reason to believe that the Oracle, who made this Prophecy, actually had more in mind than being a form of control, and was constantly trying to break the grid aswell. In this sense, if she was the one to tweak around on Neo (more or, likelier, less directly), she might have planned for Neo to break out of the grid this way, and do his own thing to reach the humanity's and her own goals.
But then comes the question, how much did she know about what would happen thereafter? Everything points to the fact that she, in fact, did not really know about it, but rather believed (sic) in it and aimed it with her Prophecy and her role as a form of control. It's not so definite, but it's likely.

So, either way, the Prophecy was not really fulfilled. If a prophet says "in two days, an awful weather constellation shall occur and a tornado shall destroy this city", and then nothing happens with the weather but aliens come and suck the everything up... you know, the content of his prophecy would be questionable.

Zinzie

The whole Prophecy thing makes incredible sense. Neo is different from the other "Chosen Ones" because he had something they did not, Love. I belive that it was Trinity that gave Neo his powers, not "Just being The One". She triggered his inner power in a way.

**Illyria22**

The thought that Neo would have let everyone in the Matrix and Zion die just to save Trinity is kind of creepy, if you ask me.

Illyria

**zeroone506**

Illyria22 wrote:

The thought that Neo would have let everyone in the Matrix and Zion die just to save Trinity is kind of creepy, if you ask me.

Illyria

The idea was that his emotions were so strong that they defied his rational thought and simply denied the consequences. You know...: "Must... save... Trinity..."