Presentation Reflection

What the deal with mythology? It has a shaped a lot of the way we think, but how exactly? I just did my presentation of the male divine and all the different ideal forms of men throughout different culture’s histories. I learned some stuff about Hindu myth that I didn’t know before, specifically the story of Bhavagad Gita where a prince named Arjuna is about to go into battle when he encounters Lord Krishna, a god whose form is that of everything in the universe. Arjuna is stuck in his suffering state because he does not want to go to battle, but Krishna explains to him his suffering is only increased by resistance to fulfill his duty. If he does not go into battle he will surely disappoint his family and cause himself even more sorrow. Lord Krishna shows Arjuna this fate and explains that he must live with disciple and action in order to not be confused by what arises in front of him. Though killing is a non-virtuous act in every culture, one must understand that killing is sometimes a necessary part of life. The circumstances that we run into cannot always be solved by non-violence because of the paradox of life. Kill or be killed, but know the path one chooses and stick with it; as well as being aware and open to new paths.

I found this story as an important component to our current history in the west, specifically in the United States because many of the values Arjuna teaches are embedded in our everyday lives. Though American culture has many differences to eastern psychology, one can see how this myth has shaped the minds of Americans whether one realizes it or not. Arjuna speaks of renouncing desires and cravings of the world, something that is generally misunderstood or unrealized by Americans because of our consumer driven culture. People are raised and educated to eventually work and become successful with a good income, always striving to gain more. But what exactly is this success? This is something I had a hard time explaining in my presentation because I generally don’t think Americans have the capacity to let go of their possessions and their ways of thinking about the world. What Arjuna outlines is that once one can let go of these confusions (no doubt trying to find ones place within a capitalist society is difficult) one gets a better and clearer view of what one is living for. This practice teaches that there is a more spiritual element to life that must be honored. One see’s this accepting the unknown. Hindu myth as well as Buddhist belief are all about individuals looking inward to find the root of suffering (that which connects all humans) in order to make oneself more connected with every aspect of life. Many people live in confusion, trying to find out what their identity is, and a lot of the time it just leads to more suffering. In this case, Hindu myth is a way of explaining life so that people can live together more harmoniously. I enjoy this myth because unlike other main world religions it does not outline any exact path or any “right” way. It gets much more confusing, but it’s all about paradox anyway. Find peace within the paradox, the middle path. Peace within all opposites is the reality, not necessarily “good” and “evil”.