Last week a friend and I rented a movie which received some really good reviews, but I was disappointed. I thought the story and dialogue between the characters was poor, and it seemed like many of the actors were just regurgitating memorized material. I wasn’t believing that what was happening was real at all. During some parts of the movie, my attention was diverted and I began thinking about other things going on in my life. I really didn’t care about the characters or what was going to happen to them. On the other hand, when I watch a well-made film that I like, I forget the actors are acting and I find myself believing the story. I’m laughing and/or crying, even though in the back of my mind I know it’s not real. I’m not thinking about anything besides the film. I’m drawn to the screen and caught up in the drama. I judge the characters’ choices and actions, and decide which are good and which are bad. I also formulate an opinion of how the story will or should end.
After this movie I watched was over, I began thinking about spiritual awakening. We hear again and again that if we want to wake up, we need to go within and detach from the outside world. Perhaps, awakening eventually happens when life becomes like a bad movie. In other words, when we aren’t drawn to what’s happening on the screen or out in the world, and instead focus within on the One Self. Does that mean if we’re not awake yet, that the movie or the outside world is too engrossing right now? Maybe we just need to relax, enjoy the film and not try to rush anything, because it’ll end when it’s supposed to end and not any sooner or later.
Regardless, I’ve decided to just see where this movie I’m immersed in takes me, and not be too concerned about it. After all, I really don’t have a choice, do I?
