The Dharma Initiative is a fictional research project featured in the American television series Lost. It was introduced in the second season episode "Orientation". During the Lost Experience it was revealed that "DHARMA" is an acronym for Department of Heuristics And Research on Material Applications.

Background

The Survivors of Oceanic flight 815 stumble upon a mysterious hatch that eventually is shown to be part of an elaborate abandoned research facility known as the Dharma Initiative. Throughout several episodes of Lost, aspects of the Dharma Initiative and the fate of its members are revealed. In a damaged film reel, it is revealed that the origins of the Dharma initiative go back to the 1970s when, at the University of Michigan, doctoral candidates Karen and Gerald DeGroot founded the Dharma Initiative with financial backing from the Hanso Foundation. The survivors learn that Dharma brought together "scientists and free thinkers" from around the globe at a "large-scale communal research compound" to conduct research in various disciplines, including meteorology, psychology, parapsychology, zoology, electromagnetism, and a sixth discipline that the film begins to identify as "utopian social-" before being cut off. The complex contains several stations throughout the Island and the exact nature of the facility is shrouded in mystery.

At least one of the stations appears to have been used for psychological testing purposes. American behaviorism psychologist and Walden Two author B.F. Skinner is cited as an influence on the DeGroots' work. Skinner's psychological studies are well known; the suggestion follows that the purpose of at least one of the stations may simply have been to test the obedience of the subjects. When the survivors of the plane crash discover the hatch they find much-needed supplies and equipment to aid them while on the island. They are also very curious regarding the reason for the research station and begin using the remaining functioning equipment to attempt to contact the outside world and secure rescue.

Eventually, it is apparent that some tragedy befell, when nearly all Dharma Initiative employees stationed on the island were "purged" by the "Hostiles" (the name given to the "Others" by the Dharma Initiative), who were present on the island long before the Initiative arrived.^[1] The Others are shown to have been responsible for killing those living in the Dharma Initiative camp with deadly gas and taking over most of the Dharma's stations and The Barracks. That event is known as "The Purge".

In the Lost Experience ARG an actor portraying fictional executive Hugh McIntyre appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live.^[2] During the appearance, on May 24, 2006, McIntyre stated that the Foundation had canceled the DHARMA Initiative in 1987.^[3] Furthermore in the Lost Experience, it is also stated by Thomas Mittelwerk, a member of the Hanso Foundation, that "The Dharma Initiative failed". However this does not account for why a Dharma Initiative supply drop was conducted in season 2 of the show. That, plus the fact that Dharma Swan Station member Kelvin Inman apparently came to the Island in the years after the Purge (perhaps he was the last person budgeted to come to the Island), leaving the operational status of the initiative ambiguous. Furthermore, in season 4, when Mercenary Commander Keamey accessess the Secondary Protocols regarding their mission, the Dharma Initiative Insignia is clearly visible in the secret orders that Keamey enacts.

It's now known that the purge of the Dharma Initiative by the Hostiles/Others, led by Benjamin Linus and Richard Alpert, occurred on 12/19/1992, which is also Ben Linus's birthday.

However, it's unclear at this point, who ordered the purge and why. In the "Cabin Fever" episode of season 4, when Locke is exhuming the corpses of the murdered Dharma Initiative staff members, Benjamin Linus tells Hurley and Locke that it was the "leader" of the Others who ordered the purge. When Hurley replies, "I thought you were their leader," Ben answers, "Not always."

It's still unknown who the "leader" of the Hostiles/Others was in 1992.

The "Lost Experience" has also revealed that the objective of the DHARMA Initiative is to alter any of the six factors of the Valenzetti Equation, revealed to have a huge impact on the date the human race will destroy itself, whether by global warming, chemical warfare, overpopulation, or many other possible methods. These factors are represented as numbers in the Valenzetti Equation and are also the numbers frequently mentioned in the show: 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42.

Research stations

The Dharma Initiative has placed several research stations around the island, which take the form of hidden, underground facilities or bunkers. The first to be discovered by the survivors is "Station 3" or "The Swan" which they refer to informally as "the hatch". It was found by John Locke, one of the survivors. They occupy it until the end of season 2, which culminated with the apparent destruction of the station. Eight additional stations have since been visited: "The Pearl", "The Arrow", "The Staff", "The Flame", "The Hydra", "The Looking Glass", "The Tempest", and "The Orchid". Each of these facilities has a particular logo associated with it: an octagon with an interior based on the bagua design, with a differing symbol at the center (pearl, swan, hydra, flame, caduceus (staff), arrow, and white rabbit, also known as the looking glass).

The following stations are listed by station number. Stations with an unknown station number will be listed in order of appearance.

Station 1: The Arrow

As of the fourth season finale, the purpose of the Arrow is unknown. It appears, to the tail section survivors of Flight 815, to have been used for storage and restocking. In "The Man Behind the Curtain" and "Cabin Fever", Horace Goodspeed dons the patch of the Arrow Station. He is also labeled as a mathematician. This leads viewers to believe that mathematics figures into the station's purposes.

The interior of The Arrow consists of only a few rooms. At the time it is discovered and inhabited by the tail section survivors, the station is long abandoned, with a filthy interior and only a few objects inside. Electricity still runs in The Arrow but only powers a couple of lamps and bare light bulbs. Electrical conduits and exposed wires run along the interior walls. The rooms are barren, with concrete floors and walls. At least one of the rooms, however, appears to have been painted off-white with a teal border running along the bottom of the walls, the paint having since peeled and chipped.The word "quarantine" also appears on the inside of the station's door.

At some point, the edits to the Swan Station's Orientation Film (edited by Radinski, or so Kelvin Inman claimed) as well as a glass eye, have made their way to the Arrow and were hidden within a Holy Bible. They were found by Mr Eko when the Tail Section survivors discovered the Arrow Station, and later returned to the Swan Station. How this film edit made it to the Arrow Station remains a mystery.

Station 3: The Swan

The Swan was a laboratory for the Dharma Initiative's research on electromagnetism. According to the station's orientation film, an "incident" occurred early in the station's experiments. This event caused a consistent build-up of electromagnetic energy, which resulted in a change of the station's focus: a two-member crew, replaced every 540 days, were since instructed to enter a numeric code into a microcomputer terminal every 108 minutes. The station is equipped with a split-flap display timer, which is interfaced to a microcomputer terminal and connected to an alarm system.

The station is almost entirely underground, except for a "hatch" entrance shaft and a concealed door. The word "quarantine" is spray-painted on the inside of the hatch, and the numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42) are inscribed into its metallic exterior edge. The station is illuminated by powerful lamps shining through underground windows as a substitute for sunlight, with a main work area resembling the interior of a geodesic dome. A strong but localized magnetic field emanates from behind a wall composed of rough concrete that appears to have previously been a corridor to another section of "the hatch". The station also has several internal blast doors. On several of these blast doors, appearing only in black light, are maps that were created by former Swan Station member Radinzski, for reasons that have never been explained. An Analysis of the Blast Door <link>http://www.lostpedia.com/wiki/Image:Dharma_stations.jpg</link>, suggests that edits to the blast door map go back a very long way, with incidents on the map cited back to the early 1980's. According to Inman, his former partner Radzinsky did most of the map; and Inman is seen in "LIVE TOGETHER DIE ALONE" to be adding to the map himself.

It is stocked with food, a record player with a collection of old LPs, a small library, an armory complete with semi-automatic rifles and other firearms, a washer and dryer, a shower, and bunk beds.

According to the feature "Access Granted" of Lost: The Complete Third Season, DHARMA drilled the earth and hit an area with large contained electromagnetic buildup. They broke into the anomaly which allowed the field to leak out. The Swan was built over this area to act as a sort of cork. DHARMA then came up with a scheme to "dam" the leak but with the drawback that the field built up behind the dam and would eventually break it. The failsafe permanently "sealed" the leak.

Station 4: The Flame

The Flame is a communication station. It uses sonar and satellite technologies to communicate with the outside world and other stations on the island. It can also order a pallet drop. It also seems to be a small but efficient farm, with a garden and chickens.

Unlike the other stations, The Flame is not an underground bunker, but rather a wood-frame bungalow. A large satellite dish is on the roof. Inside the station is a living area, kitchen, and computer room. Below the building is a large basement containing supplies, including a library of Dharma Initiative operations manuals.

In "Enter 77" Kate, Sayid and John enter "The Flame" and find that it has been occupied by The Others and is being operated by Mikhail Bakunin. "The Flame" was intentionally destroyed through a self-destruction system, which was activated by John entering "77" into a computer terminal.

Station 5: The Pearl

The Pearl itself is a psychological experiment. While its orientation film asserts the purpose of those stationed in the Pearl is to monitor and record the activities of participants in Dharma Initiative projects, scientists in the Pearl station are under surveillance.

The station consists of a three-by-three bank of television sets, two chairs and a computer, hooked to a printer. On the wall there is a pneumatic tube which the orientation film stated was used to transport notebooks supposedly to another Dharma location, but as discovered in "Live Together, Die Alone," the tube goes nowhere, dumping all of the notebooks in an open field on the island.

According to the orientation film, two-person teams, working eight-hour shifts over a three-week period, are to watch the video displays and take notes on their observations. Every action, regardless of how subtle, is to be recorded into notebooks by the Pearl's team members. This was almost certainly a wholly pointless exercise aimed at testing obedience, as in the psychological experiments of Stanley Milgram.

Station 6: The Orchid

A video aired at the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con shows footage of an orientation video for Station 6 ("The Orchid"), in which Edgar Halliwax explains that, contrary to Dharma's statements that the station was for botanical research, the station is used for researching a "Casimir effect" exhibited by the Island.

The film begins with Halliwax having stage makeup applied to his face. He is then given a rabbit and asked to hold it with its head facing the other way, thus revealing the number '15' marked on its flank. Later in the video, something falls to the floor near Halliwax, and the camera reveals another rabbit on shelving in the background, also numbered '15.' Amongst a sudden commotion, Halliwax demands that the rabbits be separated and asks a fellow scientist, "How long did you set the shift?" She replies, "Negative 20 minutes." Halliwax then turns to the camera operator and demands that the camera be turned off, countermanding previous orders that it be kept running at all times. As per usual in Lost mythology, no explanation has been given for the rabbits, the dangers of allowing them near each other, or why this particular incident should not be filmed.

Although originally in question, the producers have confirmed that the video is, in fact, canon, and holds relevance to the show itself — such as the fact that both Benjamin Linus and the polar bear appear in the Tunisian desert, as if through the use of a device handling and harnessing the effect in a way much like a teleportation device.

In the final three episodes of the fourth season, "There's No Place Like Home Parts 1, 2, and 3", "The Orchid" station appears at first to be an abandoned greenhouse. Ben then reveals a hidden elevator that takes people down to the actual Orchid station. Ben and Locke both enter the station which is hidden deep underground. The station's interior resembles that of a furnished laboratory, similar to The Swan station. The most unique feature of "The Orchid" is a small chamber adjacent to an electrical anomaly. It is revealed in a station video that the anomaly chamber could warp time and space. Ben Linus blows a hole in the chamber's wall (by filling it with metal objects, something the video warns against), leading to a small tunnel system, with what appear to be gravestones made of an unknown material and inscribed with the same unknown hieroglyphics language that have been seen in the tunnel under Ben's house at the Barracks. The tunnels lead deeper underground via ladders and end in a chamber sealed by a wall of ice. Behind the ice sheet is a sub-zero chamber covered in frost and containing several pillars, again with the mysterious hieroglyphics, and a wheel. This wheel has the ability to move the island, and is used by Ben to do so after his descent into the chamber wearing a parka (cutting his arm in the process).

As Ben completes the rotation of the wheel, sunlight creeps through the holes in the wheel, despite being at the bottom of a shaft, and an eerie sound and flash of white light soon envelops the entire island. In a previous episode's flash forward, Ben is depicted as spontaneously materializing in the middle of the Tunisian desert 10 months into the future, wearing the same parka and having an injured arm.

Station ?: The Staff

The Staff is a medical research station. Much of its original purpose was for the pregnant women who were taken to give birth and/or die.

The main entrance stairwell terminates at a circular doorway within the Staff. Connected to this doorway are two hallways on either side, giving the station the shape of a “V”. At the end of the right hallway is an operating room, consisting of built-in and overhead cabinets and surgical lights mounted to the ceiling. A nursery is located in the Staff and doorways leading into both hallways of the station. The walls of the nursery are painted baby blue. A locker room is located in the left hallway of the Staff. The room contains at least two rows of double-tier and one row of single-tier lockers with the Staff logo emblazoned on the locker doors. Hidden inside one of the lockers is a switch that unlocks a hidden vault behind a group of lockers that contains all of the medical equipment and nursery furniture that was seen by Claire in her flashback, including an ultrasound machine. Furthermore, there is another hidden room that Sun notices. It is a room, as told by Juliet, used for the mothers that have given birth on the island.

Station ?: The Hydra

The Hydra is a zoological research station located on another island which is about twice the size of Alcatraz Island, two miles off the island the survivors are on. As seen in the fourth season finale, this island is directly connected to the main island, as it, as well, vanishes after Ben activates the Orchid's hidden device.

The Hydra station has a section aboveground on the coast and another section underwater. The Hydra facility has cages outside the station in the jungle. An underwater complex was once used as an aquarium, which housed sharks and dolphins. There is also a quarry somewhere on the Hydra island where Kate and Sawyer were forced to work.

At one point, Tom says to Sawyer that "the bears" were able to solve his cage's feeding mechanism with ease, leading to the conclusion that the cages were once used to house the polar bears previously encountered by the survivors. (Charlie quips that the polar bears were the Einsteins of the bear community.)

In the season 4 episode Confirmed Dead, a leather collar bearing the Dharma Hydra symbol is found near a polar bear skeleton in the Tunisian desert. In both cases, it appears that the Dharma Initaitive were experimenting to see how quickly species adapt by locating a polar bear in tropical and desert conditions. (Or, possibly the bear appears there by means similar to the way the island teleports/reappears.)

Station ?: The Looking Glass

The Looking Glass is located on the sea-bed at approximately 60 feet (18m) depth, some 600 feet (182m) from the Beach. The Station was used to jam communications going to and from the island. The station received power from the cable that Sayid discovered in the episode "Solitary".

The Station's Logo is a Rabbit, a reference to The White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland. Its logo can be seen in the episode "Greatest Hits" when Charlie swims down to it.

The Others were under the impression that the station was flooded. Only Ben knew that the station was still in operation and there were people working there.

It was on this station that in the Season 3 finale "Through The Looking Glass", Charlie Pace discovered that the rescue boat linked to Naomi, the parachute woman, was not set out by Desmond Hume's ex-girlfriend Penny Widmore. Charlie locks the door to the control room when Mikhail shatters the porthole window, subsequently flooding the room. This prevents Desmond from getting to Charlie, thereby fulfilling Desmond's latest "premonition" (Charlie was meant to drown in the control room after disabling the jamming equipment). He quickly writes "Not Pennys Boat" on his hand and shows Desmond through the glass on the door.

Station ?: The Tempest

The Tempest is a biochemical and electrical station on the island. It is used to control poisonous gases from traveling throughout the island. Every day before his death, Goodwin would travel to The Tempest to press a button to prevent deadly gases from escaping. However, Ana Lucia killed him, so the gases built up. That is supposedly why Daniel and Charlotte traveled to The Tempest in "The Other Woman". They said they needed to press the button to save everyone, although they may have wanted to disable the station's gases to prevent Benjamin Linus from using the Tempest as a weapon of last resort against the Island's enemies.

Also, this station feeds electricity to the other DHARMA stations.

This station was first seen in the episode "The Other Woman".

As mythology on Lost

In popular culture

In Half-Life 2: Episode Two, an easter egg is present: an inaccessible room during the sixth chapter, "Our Mutual Fiend", contains a computer terminal with the numbers shown on the screen and a Dharma-style octagon with a pine tree symbol for the White Forest base on the wall. The room was inserted at the request of Gabe Newell, who promised to insert a reference to Lost in response to Half-Life references in Lost's first season.

In a scene of the U.S. version of The Office episode "Initiation," Dwight asks Ryan "What is the DHARMA initiative?" This can be seen on the season 3 DVD. He also asks this question to the character Andy in a deleted scene in the third season finale.

In the 2008 movie Cloverfield, which was produced by J.J. Abrams and the team that made Lost, a slight variation on the Dharma Initiative logo can briefly be seen in the opening of the movie. It is during the introduction of the film which states where the "video" about to be shown came from. It is only visible for a few frames on the lower right side of screen. It looks almost identical to the Pearl station logo.

At the end of the 90th issue of Ultimate X-men, a sign can be seen in the background advertising Oceanic Airlines. The sign reads: "Oceanic AIRLINES Taking you places you never imagined." On the bottom left of the page, you can see a surprised citizen with a t-shirt bearing the band name "Driveshaft" on the back of it.

References