Post by Barb on Feb 3, 2004 13:46:50 GMT
*This* is what I get out of The Matrix.
And LMAO, THIS is a Greywolf smiley if I've EVER seen one!
Anyhoo, here's the article...I hope you and everyone else are doing great!
There Are No Flowers in the Real World
By Dool
The Matrix is back…and it has you. Well, maybe. As you departed the theatre, did you have the sense that something was wrong? That amidst all the kung-fu, frenetic special effects and compelling storytelling, there is something you missed? You don’t know what it is, but it is there, like a splinter in your mind.
The Matrix was clearly influenced by comics books (Jack Kirby), Hong Kong kung fu flicks, Japanese anime, and cyber-fiction (William Gibson). When the first Matrix film was released in 1999 – no coincidence that it was on Easter weekend – it was immediately seen as something new. Maybe the themes and action sequences had been done before, but the film’s authors and directors had managed to create a new reference point for pop culture, inspiring imitation, parody, and most strangely: philosophical analysis.
Seen in the context of its influences, the film’s plot is brilliant. Taken without, the characters’ dialogue and actions may seem perplexing and arbitrary. In the end, the films are simply great stories unto themselves. A deeper look, however, make give you a different experience at your next viewing.
The makers of the Matrix series have brought to you a story that asks the four really big questions of philosophy: Epistemology: What can I know? Determinism: Do I have a choice? Metaphysics: What is real? And ethics: What should I do? It then attempts to answer these questions by interweaving the teachings and folklore of Zen Buddhism, Greek mythology and Christian theology with a sprinkling of Alice in Wonderland.
Epistemology: There is no spoon but is there is a mirror?
The mirror is a common metaphor in Buddhist teachings, particularly in Zen Buddhism. We are urged to have a clear mind, a "mirror-mind," that is uncluttered. A mirror-mind reflects what comes before it and does not cling to its reflections.
We see significant use of the mirror metaphor in The Matrixes. As Neo is scolded by his employer, the window washers clear away suds that resemble Matrix code. Whereas Agent Smith’s sunglasses darkly reflect the two identities of Thomas Anderson and Neo, Morpheus’ mirrored glasses reflect them more clearly. Glasses are worn in the Matrix not in the real world. And Morpheus turns the mirrored pill box over in his hands before he offers Neo the choice of red pill or blue pill. As Neo swallows the red pill, a wet mirror consumes him and he goes "down the rabbit hole" and becomes the mirror. It is only when he becomes the mirror that he is awakened and realizes the truth.
The most profound use of the mirror takes place in the Oracle’s home. We meet a Buddhist boy capable of bending a spoon with his mind. The boy says "Do not try and bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead... only try to realize the truth." He holds the spoon up to Neo and in it we see Neo’s reflection. This represents truth and clarity and the boy gives Neo his most important lesson: "There is no spoon."
The parallel here with Buddhism is conspicuous. Many Buddhists have claimed that the illusory nature of the world consists in our knowledge of the world. The world does indeed exist but our views and perceptions do not match reality itself. The image in the mirror is not the reality that is in front of the mirror, just as a photo of the mountain is not the mountain itself. The finger that points to the moon is not the moon. It is this epistemological illusion that Buddhist teachings seek to deliver us from. This metaphysical representation is what the Matrix is all about.
There is a Zen parable about three monks observing a flag waving in the wind. One monk points out how the flag moves. The second responds that it is not really the flag, but the wind that moves. The third monk rebukes both and claims that neither the flag nor the wind moves. "It is your mind that moves." The message is clear. The spoon does not bend because there is no spoon. There is only mind.
In the Matrix Reloaded, the spoon makes an appearance while Neo is in Zion. Could this be a statement by the writers on the reality of Zion? If there is no spoon in the Matrix, maybe there is no spoon in Zion? The spoon also appears to handmade and very weathered, much like the city itself.
But if there is no spoon, there is no Neo. For Buddhists, this idea is called anatman, meaning "no self." Therefore, we can use the mirror in the wrong way. We can use it to reinforce the illusion of self that is so all-consuming that the absence of the mirror is unsettling. The mirror is needed to reaffirm the illusion of self and separateness.
This reaches into the Buddhist idea of dependent origination. This means that all things in existence are dependent with all other things. Nothing is independent or separate. We are all in the Matrix. Neo’s meeting with the Oracle show’s his inability to free his mind. Despite all his physical and spiritual training, he still has fears and doubts. The Oracle never actually states that Neo is not the One. The Oracle acts as the mirror for his doubting mind.
The barrier of reflection is shattered when Neo experiences the state of "no-mind" or no reflecting when he dies. The Buddhists call this mushin. When Trinity resuscitates him by professing her love and letting go of her fear, a product of her reflection, he now truly believes he is the One. This scene is a powerful example of the Buddhist core realization of the interdependent transformation, or pratityasamutpada.
And LMAO, THIS is a Greywolf smiley if I've EVER seen one!
Anyhoo, here's the article...I hope you and everyone else are doing great!
There Are No Flowers in the Real World
By Dool
The Matrix is back…and it has you. Well, maybe. As you departed the theatre, did you have the sense that something was wrong? That amidst all the kung-fu, frenetic special effects and compelling storytelling, there is something you missed? You don’t know what it is, but it is there, like a splinter in your mind.
The Matrix was clearly influenced by comics books (Jack Kirby), Hong Kong kung fu flicks, Japanese anime, and cyber-fiction (William Gibson). When the first Matrix film was released in 1999 – no coincidence that it was on Easter weekend – it was immediately seen as something new. Maybe the themes and action sequences had been done before, but the film’s authors and directors had managed to create a new reference point for pop culture, inspiring imitation, parody, and most strangely: philosophical analysis.
Seen in the context of its influences, the film’s plot is brilliant. Taken without, the characters’ dialogue and actions may seem perplexing and arbitrary. In the end, the films are simply great stories unto themselves. A deeper look, however, make give you a different experience at your next viewing.
The makers of the Matrix series have brought to you a story that asks the four really big questions of philosophy: Epistemology: What can I know? Determinism: Do I have a choice? Metaphysics: What is real? And ethics: What should I do? It then attempts to answer these questions by interweaving the teachings and folklore of Zen Buddhism, Greek mythology and Christian theology with a sprinkling of Alice in Wonderland.
Epistemology: There is no spoon but is there is a mirror?
The mirror is a common metaphor in Buddhist teachings, particularly in Zen Buddhism. We are urged to have a clear mind, a "mirror-mind," that is uncluttered. A mirror-mind reflects what comes before it and does not cling to its reflections.
We see significant use of the mirror metaphor in The Matrixes. As Neo is scolded by his employer, the window washers clear away suds that resemble Matrix code. Whereas Agent Smith’s sunglasses darkly reflect the two identities of Thomas Anderson and Neo, Morpheus’ mirrored glasses reflect them more clearly. Glasses are worn in the Matrix not in the real world. And Morpheus turns the mirrored pill box over in his hands before he offers Neo the choice of red pill or blue pill. As Neo swallows the red pill, a wet mirror consumes him and he goes "down the rabbit hole" and becomes the mirror. It is only when he becomes the mirror that he is awakened and realizes the truth.
The most profound use of the mirror takes place in the Oracle’s home. We meet a Buddhist boy capable of bending a spoon with his mind. The boy says "Do not try and bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead... only try to realize the truth." He holds the spoon up to Neo and in it we see Neo’s reflection. This represents truth and clarity and the boy gives Neo his most important lesson: "There is no spoon."
The parallel here with Buddhism is conspicuous. Many Buddhists have claimed that the illusory nature of the world consists in our knowledge of the world. The world does indeed exist but our views and perceptions do not match reality itself. The image in the mirror is not the reality that is in front of the mirror, just as a photo of the mountain is not the mountain itself. The finger that points to the moon is not the moon. It is this epistemological illusion that Buddhist teachings seek to deliver us from. This metaphysical representation is what the Matrix is all about.
There is a Zen parable about three monks observing a flag waving in the wind. One monk points out how the flag moves. The second responds that it is not really the flag, but the wind that moves. The third monk rebukes both and claims that neither the flag nor the wind moves. "It is your mind that moves." The message is clear. The spoon does not bend because there is no spoon. There is only mind.
In the Matrix Reloaded, the spoon makes an appearance while Neo is in Zion. Could this be a statement by the writers on the reality of Zion? If there is no spoon in the Matrix, maybe there is no spoon in Zion? The spoon also appears to handmade and very weathered, much like the city itself.
But if there is no spoon, there is no Neo. For Buddhists, this idea is called anatman, meaning "no self." Therefore, we can use the mirror in the wrong way. We can use it to reinforce the illusion of self that is so all-consuming that the absence of the mirror is unsettling. The mirror is needed to reaffirm the illusion of self and separateness.
This reaches into the Buddhist idea of dependent origination. This means that all things in existence are dependent with all other things. Nothing is independent or separate. We are all in the Matrix. Neo’s meeting with the Oracle show’s his inability to free his mind. Despite all his physical and spiritual training, he still has fears and doubts. The Oracle never actually states that Neo is not the One. The Oracle acts as the mirror for his doubting mind.
The barrier of reflection is shattered when Neo experiences the state of "no-mind" or no reflecting when he dies. The Buddhists call this mushin. When Trinity resuscitates him by professing her love and letting go of her fear, a product of her reflection, he now truly believes he is the One. This scene is a powerful example of the Buddhist core realization of the interdependent transformation, or pratityasamutpada.
