It has been about seven months since my last post. Sounds like a confession huh? In a way it is. See, I'm a really good procrastinator. If there was a profession that required sound procrastination skills I would be a Professor of it. Sounds familiar doesn't it? You're a procrastinator too aren't you? Yes... Seems to be a sign of our times.
This post is sort of about procrastination. Sort of. You see - I procrastinate mainly because I don't know how to start things. I don't know how to start this blog post, so I'm rambling. How about I jump straight in?
I'm dying.
Relax folks, so are you. We all are. The thing is we're also living. We're doing both! There is your proof right there that seeing things in black and white is probably not terribly useful. According to the film I saw the other night it is that black and white attitude that we cultivate for the purpose of being right - making our culture the right one - so that it lives on after us and makes us in that sense immortal.
Back up the truck girl - what are you talking about? Okay, so I saw a film the other night called "Flight from Death: The Quest for Immortality". At first I didn't want to watch it because I have what I regard to be an intense fear of death, well, rather of non-existence. My partner assured me though that it might be cathartic - and in a way it was. I still fear non-existence, but I look at life quite differently. The film is based on the writings of anthropologist Ernest Becker, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his book "Denial of Death". The film uncovers the researched and peer-reviewed theory that we create/cling to/get stuck in our culture as a means to immortality. This means we join a religion/political party/institution/organisation/social group for more than just the company and the ideas - we join it because it has a culture that will outlive us - so we can be part of something that is immortal, or will at least last a lot longer than our physical breathing body. It goes on to say that this fear of death, or rather, denial of it - is what causes us to go to war, to have conflicts, to argue tooth and nail with others that our culture is THE RIGHT ONE. You see, if your religion is wrong, if your institution is having you live under false values, you are not part of the group that will live forever. So you have to be right. And you'll do whatever you can to prove it.The research collected various people's reactions to questionnaires and actions in response to tests. In half of the questionnaires and tests, the subjects were reminded of their own mortality. The other half did not have these reminders. The results were that those who were reminded of their own imminent death, were much more likely to respond with violent language or mean intentions toward those with different religious views or cultures. They were also much less likely to desecrate symbols of their culture. There were various tests so I won't go into all of them, but what they suggested is that people, when reminded they will one day die, are more likely to do whatever they can to preserve their own culture, values, beliefs. They used 9/11 as an example, to great affect.
To see what I am on about I strongly recommend you see this film. If you can't get hold of it, it is available in sections on Youtube. What it has meant for me is that I now view life in quite a different way. I look at others' cultures and beliefs with a new empathy. I look at my own life with a new focus - on making others' lives as wonderful as I personally can. This is because we are all afraid. We all look to culture for meaning. We can all feel as though life has no meaning unless we give it some - and we often feel as though we are not personally qualified to do so. We look to the mass understandings and forget to look within. I am looking within, and I am seeing a burning desire to have empathy and compassion for others because they are me and I am them. Regardless of culture. Regardless of religion. Regardless of differences. We all live and we all die and we can all make our lives meaningful and beautiful for ourselves and for others.
Kia kaha.
Nga mihi nui.
P.S. I'll talk more about procrastination next time...
