Platon Karataev

One of the most memorable characters that I have come across in a book. The amount of space afforded to this character in the voluminous War and Peace and the impact it has on the readers is a good yard stick for it to safely say that this character is not a mere depiction of conflicts or ideals. Actually the character was remarkable for the total indifference it had towards the creator of the book. It did not demand any extra space. It did not demand any extra brush strokes of paints to deck its already satisfied appearance. It existed and still exists in the world of the novel and out of the novel. It is a character that can be said goes beyond the book that gave it semblance and the author that gave it life. The character actually threatens to engulf its creator because it is through this character that the creator, Tolstoy is able to realize his most cherished ideal. He starts talking about him and then kills him by the French soldiers thus elevating him to the position that he is at. One wonders whether it was the inability of Tolstoy to further refine that perfection that made him kill this person.
Platon is the perfect archetype of the mystic. The Sufi. Incidentally one of the yard sticks that we just used with Platon (Russian for Plato) can also be used with innumerable sages and wise men. People who despite overwhelming odds realized their life and lived it to its potential. People through whom Life itself experienced itself in all its glory and Life as well as other people were left awe struck. That would be the transcendental archetype of which Platon is one example.
Muslims believe that Prophet Muhammad PBUH is the perfect example of that archetype.