Lost TV - The Images in the Smoke

My kids said that tonight Lost became a supernatural show.  We saw what apparently is the monster when Mr. Eko saw the smoke.  He had the same upward facing look as Locke did when Locke saw the "monster" so I assume that Locke saw the smoke also. 

We Tivo'd the episode and ran it back and forth in slow motion several times and saw several images in the smoke.  As best I could tell, in order the images were:

1. The church in Nigeria where his brother was the priest.
2. Mr. Eko as a boy on the left of the frame and his brother's face.
3. The older man that Mr. Eko killed as a boy.
4. There is something cylindrical on the right side of the screen and it is pointing down.  We think this was the gun and Mr. Eko was holding it pointing down.
5. There is an upside down image of a man who appears to be wearing a white shirt which has the top two buttons unbuttoned and he is wearing a dark coat.  My son Mike thinks it looks like Walt but I don't think so because these are scenes from Eko's life and we haven't seen Walt in his life.
6. After this there is an image of a man to the left of the screen.  My wife thinks this is the guy who pushed him out of the plane and saved his life.  I think it looks like the guy who originally kidnapped him and forced him to kill the priest.
7. A woman - I was originally thinking this was the woman that Eko kicked out of the confessional when he went to get his brother to sign the forms to make him a priest.  My wife thought it could be the woman who was selling the virgin Mary statues.  We rewound and its neither.  It could have simply been a village woman or I am thinking it might have been his mother.
8. The next one is a man at the plane when they were under attack from the army.  My wife and son think this is the guy who takes Eko's brother into the plane and kicked him out.  I am not sure about that but they are pretty sure.
9. Next, there is a picture to the upper left of the screen which seems to be Eko holding his brother after his brother had been shot.
10. The last is an image of a crucifix - my wife and son Mike spotted that one right away.

Alright, let me brainstorm here a bit. This is a "life flashing before your eyes" kind of scene which is typically associated with death. Locke had the same experience.  So, could this experience with the smoke symbolize some kind of spiritual or metaphorical death and rebirth situation?  It seems to be the case with Locke.  After he saw the "monster" or the smoke he was a changed man.   In this case Eko assumed his calling to be a priest.

Earlier in the church, Eko's brother told him that his signature did not make him a priest, he could never be a priest.  Eko seemed to know that.  But after the experience with the smoke, when Charlie asked him if he was a priest he said he was and put on the cross. 

It's also interesting that many of the scenes he saw in the vision involved his past sins.  This reminds me of Flatliners, where, when the characters flatlined they had visions of their past sins and indiscretions.

My daughter has reminded me that the smoke has appeared several times on the show, always before the monster appears.  But she also mentions that it appeared in the first episode (I don't remember where) and it apparently appeared before Arnzt went kaboom. 

So, the smoke doesn't always come to bring rebirth.  With all of the biblical imagery I am thinking that it could just symbolize God.  God appeared as a smoking firepot to Abraham, to the Israelites in the wilderness as a pillar of smoke by day.  Exodus 19:18 is an interesting Scripture passage in this regard:

Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently 
The Holy Bible  : New International Version. 1996, c1984 . Zondervan: Grand Rapids

So, maybe the smoke simply represents God, or whatever deity is in the mind of J. J. Abrams and shows up to do whatever business is needed with the people on the island. 

One of the main premises of Lost is that these folks are drawn to the island to somehow deal with, atone for, or bring some kind of closure for the past.  So, this would fit with the supernatural motif.

Related Tags: God, Lost, Lost TV, Lost ABC, Lost Monster, Lost Smoke, Flatliners, Religion, Television, Pop Culture