After awakening all my interests in the world seemed to fade away. Since I feel complete, I have no desires for anything that is not already arising in this very moment. That makes me very happy, but a terrible consumer. If everyone were to awaken I imagine this consumer economy would have to undergo a major change if it could even survive at all.
But I still seem to be interested in movies. Not just spiritual movies, if there is such a thing, but all movies. Action adventure. Comedy. Romantic comedy. Drama. Super heroes. Science fiction. Not horror or even thrillers. I don’t go for that anymore. I’m not interested in fear. So I was wondering the other night why, of all things, have Hollywood movies remained an interest?
I think it’s because it’s a beautiful analogy for how I see the world. I see the world as a movie, a projection. And I am like both a member of the audience watching and the movie screen that all these amazing things are projected onto. None of it is entirely real. None of it truly affects this infinite eternal beingness/awareness that I am anymore than the images on the screen affect the screen. I am just watching this show go on with a sense of curiosity, wonder, amusement, love and joy.
Energy and feelings occur in this body and I watch this too, just as I watch thoughts. It’s amazing. It’s an amazing movie. But this deep inner stillness is not touched by these thoughts or these feelings. It is always free. And this is very much like watching a movie. I can get interested and involved in the movie when my attention is there. Otherwise what’s the point? But I am still sitting in the audience of a theater or my couch at home. And just like the movie screen, when fire appears on the screen, it is not burnt. When a blizzard appears on the movie screen, the screen itself is not cold.
In this way life itself appears kind of like a movie. Things are continually changing, coming and going, being born and dying. This is the perfect way of all life. It’s why attachment to anything always ends in suffering. But this infinite Essence, this pure Awareness, is not touched by any of it. It always remains pure and clear and free.
And perhaps this is why I still love movies so much. Watching a movie is like this infinite awareness watching life. It is a reflection of this inner awareness. When attention focuses on one thing it can be intimately involved with that one thing. Just as we are when we watch a movie. But when the movie is over and the house lights go up, we are here sitting in the theater. We never really were in a fire or freezing on a remote mountain top. And this is also true of our True Self. It is aware of everything happening in life and through attention can become intimately involved. But it is never changed by what occurs. It remains always pure, clear and free. And this freedom is where our true happiness comes from. This is where peace comes from. This is where the true love that knows there is no separation anywhere in existence is born.
So movies, yes. Pretty cool. Much like we are.
Leave a Reply