"Something is wrong with this world, you've known it all your life, you don't know what it is. It's like a splinter in your mind ... driving you mad." -- Morpheus, the Matrix
I didn't hear about "The Matrix" until five years after it had come out in theatres. I had moved into the monastery the same year (1999) it was released and for the next five years, I had cut myself off from all TV, movies and even news. For the most part, I had lost all interest in things of this material world.
After hearing many people talk about the spiritual connections the movie had with Hindu philosophy, in 2004, I finally decided to watch it. I was completely blown away by the character of Neo and by the notion the movie was presenting that the life we're living might be a complete dream or illusion. "How in the world could a Hollywood movie capture the state of mind of a seeker and where did they get the idea that our worldly existence is possibly an illusion" were the questions I was asking after seeing it.
The only place I had come across these topics was in the Bhagavad Gita. I could very much relate to the confused state of mind that is depicted by the character Neo. One of the first scenes of the movie show him sleeping at his computer while searching for answers about the world he lives in. I remembered a section of the Gita I read when I was searching for the purpose of life myself. The Gita explains that we carry a false conception of ourselves because we identify with the physical body and aren't able to see or experience the soul. This specific teaching turned my paradigm of life upside down. I remember standing on the sidewalk and asking myself the question, is it possible that the self is different than the body? If so, wouldn't it mean, most of us are in some kind of illusion? Having my paradigm shifted and adjusting to a new one was hard and it took a while for me to adapt.
When Neo is finally rescued by Morpheus and the resistance and is shown what The Matrix really is, he rejects it and wants out. He refuses to believe that everything he had believed all this time was actually false and illusory. The experience is so intense for him that he throws up and falls unconscious. I never threw up or fell unconscious, but the paradigm shift did make me feel very confused and uneasy for some time because I no longer understood how I fit into society.
Besides Neo's state of mind which is beautifully captured, the dialogue is absolutely phenomenal. It starts with Trinity approaching Neo in the nightclub and telling him, "It's the question that drives us Neo ... it's the question that brought you here." There are so many questions that are driving us as humanity. Whenever we're not keeping ourselves busy and distracted by all the gadgetry, I'm sure every human being has asked themselves the following questions:
Trinity also goes on to say, "the answer is out there and it will find you, if you want it to." It's possible for the answers to be right in front of our face, but if we're not looking for them, we'll completely miss them. We keep ourselves so busy in life that we leave ourselves little or no time to explore the answers to these very profound questions. Society can almost make it seem like a waste of time to pursue these queries.
The conversation dives even deeper when Neo and Morpheus finally meet. One of the first things Morpheus says is, "you look like a man who accepts what he sees because he's expecting to wake up ... this is not far from the truth." A similar line comes a few minutes into this dialogue when Morpheus questions Neo, "if you had a dream that seemed so real, what if you were unable to wake from that dream, how would you know the difference between the real and the dream." This theme of distinguishing reality from illusion runs throughout the movie as the characters from the resistance constantly go in and out of the "Matrix." It's a theme that is constantly addressed in chapter two and eight of the Gita.
Chapter two makes a distinction between the body and soul:
As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.
Chapter eight of the Gita creates a distinction between the illusory world of matter and the spiritual world.
Yet there is another unmanifest nature, which is eternal and is transcendental to this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme and is never annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part remains as it is.
After leading a discussion comparing the Gita and "The Matrix" at Columbia University, a student came up to me afterwards and told me that she was about 9 years old when she saw the movie and the idea that there may be an alternate reality really freaked her out.
One of my favorite metaphors used during the dialogue between the two main characters in their first meeting is when Morpheus says, "something is wrong with this world, you've known it all your life, you don't know what it is. It's like a splinter in your mind ... driving you mad."
Having a splinter stuck in any part of our body is very irritating and somewhat painful. It's not debilitating, but definitely disturbing. It's fascinating to imagine that we could have splinters stuck in our mind. These splinters are the very same questions that are referred to earlier in this article. We might think that if we just ignore the splinters in the mind, that somehow they will dissolve away, but these splinter don't just disappear. They keep popping until they are properly addressed. Hindu texts explain that the main purpose of human life is to address these questions and remove the splinters. To remove such splinters, we need a teacher.
The concept of "guru" or spiritual teacher is wonderfully depicted through the interaction of Morpheus and Neo. Hinduism emphasizes that in order to achieve spiritual perfection, one needs to have a guru or guide. If we look back at our lives, we've had a teacher for just about everything. For every subject in school, athletic engagements, artistic endeavors, we've needed teachers. Teachers have walked down the path we're embarking on and have gained insight and wisdom from their experiences and can help move an individual forward in their respective field. The same is true for a guru. A good teacher, in any field, can recognize the talents and weaknesses of the disciple and accordingly assist that individual grow to new heights. So, in one sense, the "guru" concept isn't so foreign when we stop to consider how many gurus we've had already.
As the "guru" and guide, Morpheus explains the truths to Neo, but ultimately leaves it up to Neo to make the decision. "You take the blue pill, you wake up in your bed believing whatever you want to believe; you take the red pill and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes." Morpheus concludes, "all I'm offering is the truth." This is very similar to the way Krishna concludes his instructions to Arjuna in the Gita.
Thus I have explained to you knowledge still more confidential. Deliberate on this fully, and then do what you wish to do.
Krishna and Morpheus both make it clear to their disciples that they can exercise their free will to either accept the advice or reject it. This theme comes up several times throughout the Matrix and at each major step Morpheus brings this choice to Neo. When Morpheus takes Neo to the Oracle, he says, "I can only show you the door, but you're the one who has to walk through it." This is very true for every spiritual seeker. At each moment, at each stage of our progress, we decide how far we want to go and we can be sure, many tests and temptations will come to distract us from our spiritual pursuits.
The Bhagavad Gita and the Matrix depict wonderfully the struggles an individual has to undergo when embarking on a spiritual journey. Some of these struggles are related to ones faith and the other to ones determination to continue. For spiritual progress to be steady, we will need to follow one of Morpheus' final pieces of advice: "You have to let it all go Neo, fear, doubt, and disbelief."
Follow Gadadhara Pandit Dasa on Twitter: www.twitter.com/nycpandit
Chris Fici: A Hindu at Union Theological Seminary
1 THEN was not non-existent nor existent: there was no realm of air, no sky beyond it.
What covered in, and where? and what gave shelter? Was water there, unfathomed depth of water?
2 Death was not then, nor was there aught immortal: no sign was there, the day's and night's divider.
That One Thing, breathless, breathed by its own nature: apart from it was nothing whatsoever.
3 Darkness there was: at first concealed in darkness this All was indiscriminated chaos.
All that existed then was void and form less: by the great power of Warmth was born that Unit.
4 Thereafter rose Desire in the beginning, Desire, the primal seed and germ of Spirit.
Sages who searched with their heart's thought discovered the existent's kinship in the non-existent.
5 Transversely was their severing line extended: what was above it then, and what below it?
There were begetters, there were mighty forces, free action here and energy up yonder
6 Who verily knows and who can here declare it, whence it was born and whence comes this creation?
The Gods are later than this world's production. Who knows then whence it first came into being?
7 He, the first origin of this creation, whether he formed it all or did not form it,
Whose eye controls this world in highest heaven, he verily knows it, or perhaps he knows not.
Source: http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/rigveda/rv10129.htm
Thank you for posting this translation
The Universe.
2.What's my purpose in life?
No ultimate purpose. Brahman does not change.
3.How did we all get here?
Dualistic reality is just apparent, not real.
4.Is there a God?
There is only Brahman.
5.Why is there suffering?
Suffering is only apparent. Brahman does not change.
6.Are we alone in the Universe or are there other beings out there?
There is only Brahman. All other beings are just apparent and temporal, not real and eternal.
What is the universe?
Why Brahman?
Reality is not real. Really?
How did we get here? From where?
If there is only Brahman is he not God? And if so are we merely playing with semantics?
Suffering may be apparent but why the appearance?
Then, are we in good company with other apparent and temporal beings?
On this path - you are either Seeking (a Seeker) or a Realized Being (have found the answer).
Calling Brahman or God or whatever is a story for a believer. It is NOT the answer. Until you know the "Complete" answer, it is not an answer at all.
"I can only show you the door, but you're the
one who has to walk through it."
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Buddha:
"I do but point the way: it is for you
to sweat and strain."
"Be a lamp unto yourself."
"Brethren! Everything that has a beginning
must have an end. Work out your salvation
with diligence."
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Our worldly existence is transitory. It is going to come to an end.
It is not an illusion. Human lifespan is many decades. It is real.
You can probably say life is an illusion in the sense that it is only
temporary and you cannot hold on to it forever and you believe
that a monastic life will lead you after death to a realm perfect,
everlasting and eternal.
recognize the remarkable similarities. The
Mahabharata is one of the sources of the New Testament.
Mahabharata
This is the sum of true righteousness ....
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Do nothing to your neighbor that hereafter
You would not have your neighbor do to you.
In causing pleasure, or in giving pain,
In doing good or injury to others,
In granting or refusing a request,
A man obtains a proper rule of action
By looking on his neighbor as himself.
Lay up the only treasure: do good deeds;
Practice sobriety and self-control;
Amass that wealth which thieves cannot rob you of,
Nor tyrants seize which follows you at death,
Which never wastes away, nor is corrupted.
Who in this world is able to disntinguish
The virtuous from the wicked? Both alike
The fruitful earth supports, on both alike
The sun pours down his beams, on both alike
Refreshing breezes blow, and both alike
The waters purify. Not so hereafter ....
Then shall the good be severed from the bad.
Then in a region bright with golden luster ....
Center of light and immortality ....
The righteous after death shall dwell in bliss.
Then a terrific hell awaits the wicked ....
Profound abyss of utter misery ....
Into the depths of which bad men shall fall
Headlong, and mourn their doom for countless years.
"Living Wisdom from the World's Religions" George L. Abernethy
the remarkable similarities. The Mahabharata is one
of the sources of the New Testament.
Mahabharata
This is the sum of true righteousness ....
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Do nothing to your neighbor that hereafter
You would not have your neighbor do to you.
In causing pleasure, or in giving pain,
In doing good or injury to others,
In granting or refusing a request,
A man obtains a proper rule of action
By looking on his neighbor as himself.
Lay up the only treasure: do good deeds;
Practice sobriety and self-control;
Amass that wealth which thieves cannot rob you of,
Nor tyrants seize which follows you at death,
Which never wastes away, nor is corrupted.
Who in this world is able to disntinguish
The virtuous from the wicked? Both alike
The fruitful earth supports, on both alike
The sun pours down his beams, on both alike
Refreshing breezes blow, and both alike
The waters purify. Not so hereafter ....
Then shall the good be severed from the bad.
Then in a region bright with golden luster ....
Center of light and immortality ....
The righteous after death shall dwell in bliss.
Then a terrific hell awaits the wicked ....
Profound abyss of utter misery ....
Into the depths of which bad men shall fall
Headlong, and mourn their doom for countless years.
"Living Wisdom from the World's Religions" George L. Abernethy
Go here and enlighten yourself:
http://jesusneverexisted.com/
http://evilbible.com/
Visit these sites to discover the influence of hinduism and buddhism on christianity
http://www.theskepticalreview.com/tsrmag/3hare94.html
http://jesusisbuddha.com/thundy.html
http://www.jesusisbuddha.com/
Illusory nature of earthly existence was first touted by Solomon in the Bible when he says 'everything is vanity, illusory.'
What is the moral philosophy in the Gita? But the moral philosophy in the Bible is: "You must put to death the earthly desires such as sexual immorality, indecency, lust, evil passions, and greed. ... You must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Be tolerant with one another. You must forgive one another just as Jesus has forgiven you.And to all these qualities add love, which binds all things together in perfect unity." (Colossians 3: 5, 12-14)
With these noble ideals in Christianity, who will be interested in a mythological story of violence and passion?
Colossians 3:5, 12-14 is not new. It is pirated from Hinduism.
"The experience is so intense for him (Neo) that he throws up and falls unconscious. I never threw up or fell unconscious, but the paradigm shift did make me feel very confused and uneasy for some time because I no longer understood how I fit into society."
Strange words from a person who has probably been exposed to Indic traditions and thought all his life. When I first read the Mandukya Upanishad, everything "fell into place" as it were. All my unease with the life I was living, the goals I was pursuing, all the unease just made complete sense to me. "This is what it really is!" was my reaction. No confusion at all, no paradigm shift, just the ecstatic realization of recognizing myself.
Do us all a favor - don't derive anything from Hindu thought.
Actually, you are not smart enough to do that as evidenced by your ignorant and false posts about Hinduism.
Stick with your guy who was nailed to a cross and then "miraculously" rose and your book ...your converted parents will be proud.
Do thou fight for the sake of fighting, without considering happiness or distress, loss or gain, victory or defeat — and by so doing you shall never incur sin (2, 38).
The discrimination of good and bad is identified as the origin of sin, resulting in unwanted karma. The same point is made in the Pentateuch, where the snake says to Eve: and you will be like God, and know good and evil (Gen 3:5). Again, it is the discrimination, not the act itself, that leads to sin.
The problem is ignorance which has two aspects: veiling and projection. Reality can either not be seen because it is hidden, or because it is experienced wrong, like the shadow of a tree stump in the dark forest, which is assumed to be a man with a dagger.
The goal of the Gita -and all Vedic scripture- is to expose the illusionary nature of perceived (un-) reality, which is primarily the wrong identification with the body. This wrong identification has to be replaced it with the correct experience of absolute reality, the conscienceness behind it all. The shadow of the post in the forest is investigated, and seen as what it truly is. Not an enemy with a dagger, but a stump. It was always a tree stump, so its reality did not change. Our perspective has, though.
The active understanding that one illimitable force is responsible for the seen, the seer, and the act of seeing is liberation. This force must include the Guru and God also, which are both manifestations of the One, and can not be different from the Self, i.e. the substratum of the Seer.
The process of understanding and attaining this (liberation) is comparable to exposing the fake reality of a dream. While in the dream, the dream-events are perceived as real. They cause fear, joy, etc. until the delusion is understood as being not real, upon waking up.
It is simple philosophy of breath-taking beauty. True too.
Is this the right forum to discuss how annoying the two sequels were?
Really?
And yet, there's obviously a splinter in your's.
Bertie would be so amused.
Asatoma Satgamaya
Tamasoma Jyothirgamaya
Mrityoma Amritamgamaya
Hinduism's concepts can not be de-linked from the context/msgs of this movie.
"From ignorance lead me to truth
From darkness lead me to light
From death lead me to immortality"
— Brhadaranyaka Upanisad, I.iii.28
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Thanks for that.
Faved.