[Herring]

The author has a background in Taoism. That book didn’t really make sense to me until I started practicing Zen.

Like most things in that tradition, it’s less about a “message”, and more about learning something about yourself. Cf meditation.

[AlotOfReading]

Le Guin is one of the most intentional authors out there. Her works, Earthsea included, smack you in the face with deliberate messages.

[Herring]

Yes, because you don't understand them. That's basically the difference between Western and Eastern style religions. Here it's not a theory, it's a path. It's about you. When she writes “To light a candle is to cast a shadow”, what does that mean to you? How does that affect the way you live your life? Your relationship with others? To take it as a simple "message" is like going to the gym to stare at the weights.