Funny enough, it’s been 11 years since The Matrix was released, first asking the masses “what is reality?” The answer, at least according to the Wachowskis Bros, is that reality is a ruined world conquered by robots.

Enter: Inception, the new film from Christopher Nolan.

Like many, I’ve been a fan of his work since Memento, and was eager to see his latest return to the mind-bending genre. Rather than offer a general review, I’ll leave that to the other bloggers and The New York Times. Instead, I’ll share relevant thoughts about the film’s major theme.

“At the heart of the movie is the notion that an idea is indeed the most resilient and powerful parasite. A trace of it will always be there in your mind…somewhere. ” – Christopher Nolan

Dom Cobb, the film’s protagonist, is the best “extractor” there is – he has the ability to steal ideas from other people’s subconscious. But aside from corporate espionage, we also learn he spent much time with his wife in their own deep subconscious realms – co-creating an artificial reality.

The power of creation is a gift. We do it every day, whether we’re aware of it or not.

Dom and his wife spin their own fantasy world, filled with their own imagination and memories. Unfortunately, the nature of fantasy is that it isn’t real. Dom realizes this, and attempts to wake up from the dream. His wife chooses to remain lost, forcing him to take more drastic measures.

Don’t worry, I won’t offer any spoilers. But I do believe this potent love story is the heart of Inception.

Whereas The Matrix asked “what is reality?” this film asks “what is meaningful?” In their dream world, Dom and his wife were able to create anything they desired – but ultimately, it’s a false reality. And it’s impossible to create meaning in a meaningless world.

You might assert that the “real” world is just as meaningless; therefore the false reality is just as valid. In response, I can only offer: if you can’t find magic in the real world, you’re not looking hard enough.

Today, the holding bag was full… in fact, it was overfull.

I had to stuff quite hard to fit all the reusable bags in. After some generous stuffing… I made them fit. But something inside tweaked me for a second.

This was supposed to be a “green” solution to the mountains of plastic bags wasted every day. These mesh bags were supposed to be the answer. Save the planet! Bring a reusable bag.

And yet, here I was (albeit more slowly) collecting another mountain of bags. It was on odd observation… so odd that I felt compelled to wander back to my computer and Tweet it:

I’m positive there’s some sort of irony when you realize you’re drowning in reusable grocery bags…

The irony is that simply changing your shopping bags doesn’t address the real issue of rampant consumption – which is essentially how our entire society is structured. We have to buy things to keep our society humming. If I stop buying things, it puts people out of jobs. The Machine stops running. And if the Machine stops running… what’s the alternative?

No one really knows.

The only thing most people are starting to realize is that the Machine is no longer working.

A few hours after my intimate moment with the shopping bags, I came across a link posted by a friend from the book “The Ascent of Humanity.” Intrigued, I read the introduction…and lo and behold, I came across this passage:

Words like “high-tech” and “modern” lose their cachet as a multiplicity of crises converge upon our planet. If we are fortunate, we might, for a time, prevent these crises from invading our personal lives.

Yet as the environment continues to deteriorate, as job security evaporates, as the international situation worsens, as new incurable diseases appear, as the pace of change accelerates, it seems impossible to rest at ease.

The world grows more competitive, more dangerous, less hospitable to easy living, and security comes with greater and greater effort. And even when temporary security is won, a latent anxiety lurks within the fortress walls, a mute unease in the background of modern life. It pervades technological society, and only intensifies as the pace of technology quickens.

We begin to grow hopeless as our solutions—new technologies, new laws, more education, trying harder—only seem to worsen our problems. For many activists, hopelessness gives way to despair as, despite their best efforts, catastrophe looms ever closer.

This book explains why trying harder can never work. Our “best efforts” are grounded in the same mode of being that is responsible for the crisis in the first place.

As Audre Lord put it, “The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house.”

Soon, though, this mode of being will come to an end, to be replaced by a profoundly different understanding of the self, and a profoundly different relationship between human and nature. This book is about the gathering revolution in human beingness.

In Universe terms…that’s what’s called a “Booyah Grandma.”

Needless to say, I ordered the book.

P.S. I realized after writing this that perhaps finding inspiration from a shopping bag is not so strange after all.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my experience at an Adyashanti satsang. Aside from the talk itself, the most interesting part of the evening was the questions asked by a few attendees.

I wrote, “And so it went. Question after question from attendees who desired an answer to their search. They practically dripped with craving; they were intoxicated with the possibilty of insight. They were like addicts to the truth.”

I wondered where this urge to “know” comes from. It wasn’t until I read a passage from Osho, in his book Courage: The Joy Of Living Dangerously, that I found a brilliant articulation of the issue:

The mind has some difficulty in accepting the idea that there is something that is not explainable. Mind has a very mad urge for everything to be explained. Anything that remains a puzzle, a paradox, goes on troubling your mind.

The whole of history of philosophy, religion, science, mathematics, has the same root, the same mind – the same itch.

You may scratch yourself one way, somebody else may do it differently, but the itch has to be understood. The itch is the belief that existence is not a mystery.

Mind can feel at home only if somehow existence is demystified.

Ideas are substitutes for where life is mysterious and you find gaps that cannot be filled with reality. You fill those gaps with ideas; and at least you start feeling satisfied that life is understood.

But is is not possible. Whatever you do, life is a mystery and is going to remain a mystery.

Norman Fischer, a Zen teacher recently returned from a meditation retreat, offers his views on why it’s important to tackle life’s problems head on.

If you live long enough you will discover the great secret we all hate to admit: life is inherently tough. Difficult things happen. You lose your job or your money or your spouse. You get old, you get sick, you die.

You slog through your days beleaguered and reactive even when there are no noticeable disasters — a normal day has its many large and small annoyances, and the world, if you care to notice, and it is difficult not to, is burning.

The people at the retreat were not in crisis — at least no more than anyone else. They are people who have made the practice of Zen meditation a regular part of their daily routine, and come here not to forget about their troubles and pressures, but for the opposite reason: to meet them head on, to digest and clarify them. Why would they want to do this?

Because it turns out that facing pain — not denial, not running in the opposite direction — is a practical necessity.

Read the full piece here.

These questions are in response to a post on Brave New Traveler, asking readers to chronicle their current spiritual beliefs.

1. Why is there poverty and suffering in the world?

There is poverty and suffering because it serves as a catalyst for people to learn and grow. Buddhists would say it exists because of karmic debts that need to be repaid.

2. What is the relationship between science and religion?

Science is a secular religion that confirms much of what tradition already knows. The “knowing” gives meaning to human existence and our place in the world. The terms may be new, but the wisdom is old.

3. Why are so many people depressed?

People are depressed because they search for fulfillment in the wrong places. They are continually told, through media/society/peers to look somewhere other than themselves. They are distracted by external stimuli, rather than finding peace within.

4. What are we all so afraid of?

Being inconsequential. We’re terrified of dying and not leaving a mark on the world – which is an idea implanted by the same media/society/peers that keep us unhappy. When you realize inner peace, it’s no longer a question worth pondering.

5. When is war justifiable?

In universal terms, it is never justified. But in reality, it is justifiable to stop a direct threat to a person’s existence.

6. How would God want us to respond to aggression and terrorism?

God would want us to respond by examining what role each of us play in fanning the flames of terror and aggression. We all contribute to a climate of terror, and we can all choose not to perpetuate it.

7. How does one obtain true peace?

By realizing they don’t need anything to obtain it. All the elements already exist within.

8. What does it mean to live in the present moment?

It means to immerse yourself fully in every activity, no matter if it’s good or bad. By focusing on the experience, you bring your awareness and presence, which alters the present (and hence, the future).

9. What is our greatest distraction?

Trying to obtain external trappings of success. Being consumed by our own delusions of ego. Televison.

10. Is current religion serving its purpose?

Religion in many ways has become a means of indoctrination, rather than salvation. The gatekeepers for the religion are more concerned with money, control, and power, rather than actually promoting human understanding.

11. What happens to you after you die?

I don’t know. I suspect the experience is like passing into unconsciousness. Spiritually speaking, it would be nice to believe your “soul” joins back with the one-ness of the universe while maintaining some kind of individuality – an imprint of all your experiences in that incarnation.

12. Describe heaven and how to get there.

Heaven is simply a way of being in the present moment. Everyday becomes an exercise in creativity and beauty.

13. What is the meaning of life?

To help the universe know itself. That means each incarnation must grow and learn more about itself through achieving their full potential (enlightenment).

14. Describe God.

God is everything. It is the underlying presence that makes up all things. To glimpse God is to feel the interconnectedness of all things, which manifests as the emotion called Love.

15. What is the greatest quality humans possess?

The ability to apply conscious energy to create. We take matter and bend it to our will, for both good and evil.

16. What is it that prevents people from living to their full potential?

Fear, in all its forms.

17. Noverbally, by motion or gesture only, act out what you believe to be the current condition of the world.

18. What is your one wish for the world?

That everyone uses their lives to move one step closer to waking up (enlightenment). That they don’t waste this incarnation.

19. What is wisdom and how do we gain it?

Wisdom is the deep understanding that usually comes from direct experience. But we can also gain wisdom by listening to the direct experience of others, and applying that wisdom to our daily lives.

20. Are we all one?

We are all here for the same reason: to realize our full potential. We are all made from the same matter. It is our ignorance (personal and collective) that prevents us from seeing reality as it really is: that we are all one.

If you’d like to share your answers, read the BNT post here.

“You are all here tonight, because you are here,” began Adyashanti, a spiritual teacher speaking in St. Andrew’s church in downtown Vancouver last Tuesday.

“Why did you come? It doesn’t matter. What matters is you are here.”

Adyashanti sat behind a microphone, with close to two hundred faces watching him from the pews. I occupied a seat on the side, accompanied by a friend. Some of the attendees closed their eyes, attempting to focus more on the words than the man himself.

He appeared in his late 40′s, quiet and unassuming with a shaved head and piercing eyes. He proceeded to speak on the nature of the universe, the spiritual quest, and the problem with wanting to “know the unknowable.”

I appreciated his words and his occasional jokes. (At one point he compared the human body to a 1970′s Cadillac: we love to consume). If you’ve read any Eckhart Tolle then you understand much of Adyashanti’s philosophy on ego and awareness.

It wasn’t until the end of the talk and the beginning of the question period that the evening really felt alive.

The first attendee approached the mic, wasting no time in spilling her words. She confessed she’d spent 20 years as a Christian minister. But recently, she’d had an epiphany which caused her to abandon the church and seek our her own spiritual path.

“It’s just…I don’t know where to turn…or to look. I can’t stop thinking about it…” She barely managed to contain her tears, bordering on hysteria. “My mind… I can’t stop my mind from trying to know…”

Adyashanti addressed her concerns with a variety of questions about this desire. Moments of silence were punctuated by glimmers of clarity. After 10 minutes she had calmed, at least enough to whisper, “Thank you…” before sitting down.

The next speaker took the mic. “So this is what it feels like,” he remarked. “I… I don’t really have a question. I just felt I needed to come up here.”

Adyashanti waited patiently.

“I guess I feel like I’m on the right path, but can’t seem to stay there.”

And so it went. Question after question from attendees who desired an answer to their search. They practically dripped with craving; they were intoxicated with the possibilty of insight. They were like addicts to the truth.

It wasn’t long before it became obvious: Adyashanti could not give them the truth. He said as much. “I cannot give you the answer, I can only lead you to find the answer within yourself.”

It stuck me: where does this need to know come from?

Obviously, the very fact I was there meant that I’m a “seeker” – insofar as I’m not content with sitting back and coasting through life without attempting to answer the difficult questions.

But the irony was apparent. At least for these attendees, the “desire to know” appeared more important than the true aim of any spiritual journey: to simply enjoy the ride.

Aside from the colourful costumes and legions of dancers, I couldn’t help but notice a little booklet that kept appearing. The book was called El Camino de la Felicidad (The Way To Happiness).

I couldn’t read the book itself (since it was in Spanish) but something about it seemed…odd. It definitely had the air of a religious text, that much was clear. But even more bizarre was when I realized the books were being handed out to the crowd by the soldiers.

Why would the theoretically neutral army agree to hand out religious texts at the Carnaval?

I asked a Spanish speaking friend to call one of the soldiers aside and ask why he was handing them out. He said they were told to. My friend asked if he knew what the book was about. He shook his head, though said “Something about how to live better?”

A large truck drove by, loaded to the brim with boxes upon boxes of this handbook. Children clutched the book in their fingers as their moms flipped through the pages of their own copy.

A group of performers walked up to the barricade near me and offered me the book. I held up the copy I was already studying – they nodded and continued on.

I had to get to the bottom of this mystery. I searched the book for any more clues as to the origin.

Finally, on the copyright page, one name struck me: L. Ron Hubbard Publications.

I couldn’t believe it. It was Scientology. Somehow, they’d managed to convince the Colombian army to hand out their “non-religious” booklets as if it were an official document, sanctioned by the state.

On the last page, a website was listed: The Way To Happiness.

Visiting the page for the first time now at home, I’m confronted with an extremely slick presentation of short video PSA’s illustrating the key concepts of this new “moral code.”

Here’s the dilemma.

The PSA’s are very good. The messages contained therein, as far as I can tell, are timely and important.

I have nothing personally against Scientology. I even took their guided tour while in LA last year. But the method of distribution for these booklets, under the facade of being “non-religious”, feels shady.

Then again, like anyone outside the Scientology, I’ve been jaded by Tom Cruise’s antics and Hubbard’s rumoured quote “The way to make a million dollars is to start a religion.”

So what’s more important: the message or the messenger?

The defining conflict of the 20th century tends to be characterized as Democracy versus Totalitarianism. First, the Fascist dictatorships of Hitler and Stalin, then the spectre of Communist Russia.

By the turn of the century, it appeared that Democracy had won. Then suddenly, a new threat emerged to fill the hole: Islamic fundamentalists.

It’s tempting to see this struggle as something new and far different than previously fought. After all, nations can be reasoned with, truces negotiated, cease-fires declared. But terrorists (theoretically) want nothing less than to destroy or convert the infidels.

Bush Jr. made it clear when he stated, “You’re either with us or with the terrorists.” There is no middle ground in this war.

And so the 21st century’s defining conflict has become Religious Fundamentalists versus Freedom. Or has it?

The real issue is revealed when you look closely enough.

Distilled even further: Good versus Evil.

Finally, you arrive at: Us versus Them.

The current struggle is simply another incarnation of the previous wars. The enemy changes, but the position remains the same.

Rather than continue to replace one external threat with another, I believe the real challenge of the 21st century will be whether we can transcend the destructive mental illusion that we are separate from others.

We must go beyond Us versus Them.

A jug fills drop by drop.
- Buddha

Chesley Sullenberger miraculously landed US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River, saving the lives of every passenger on board. On his hometown return to Danville, California, he appropriately received a hero’s welcome.

In the tv series Heroes, one of the main characters Hiro Nakamura believes he is on a quest to save New York City from nuclear desctruction. All his energy is focused toward preparing himself for this act of greatness.

So what is a hero?

It’s generally accepted that someone is a hero after performing a heroic act: saving a life, landing a plane, winning the Cup, and other “grand” moments.

But here lies the fundamental misperception of the hero myth.

The Continuum

There are no such thing as singular grand actions. There is no place to point to and say “This is the beginning, and this is the ending.”

The pilot of Flight 1549 was able to perform because of the thousands of actions and decisions he made before the day in question. All the people he met along the way, all the moments he experienced, and all the skills he aquired contributed to his “heroic” act.

Perhaps through his Eastern culture, Hiro Nakamura understands this truth.

He conquers the various trials on his way to New York City not by pushing them aside, but by choosing to act “like a hero” no matter the circumstance.

He understands each seemingly mundane act is just as important as the heroic moment.

All The Small Things

This matters because so many of us operate day to day on auto-pilot. We’re wrapped in our own work, our own issues, and lost in our own thoughts.

We interact with others through thousands of decisions that appear mundane on the surface. We cut someone off in traffic. We dismiss a chat with a friend. We spead gossip at work.

We stick to the belief that small actions don’t matter. Were a “heroic” moment to present itself, we believe we would rise to the challenge.

In the brilliant tv drama The Wire, there’s an iconic scene in Season 4 that speaks volumes.

Herc, a police officer, is charged with delivering a young witness to another lead investigator on a murder. Instead of completing this seemingly simple task, Herc shirks his duty and sets off a chain of events that result in catastrophic damage to the witness.

Herc defends his actions, stating it wasn’t a big deal. His captain, Carver, who had originally promised protection to the witness, now realizes the effect of such thoughtlessness.

“It matters,” Carver tells Herc. “Everything matters.”

The web can be divided into two people. Those that say Google is making us dumber, and those that believe Google is making us smarter.

Dumb-proponents say that we’ve become lazy. Instead of remembering long addresses and phone numbers, obscure facts about ancient Rome, or even making the attempt to spell properly, we now rely on Google to do the work for us.

The result (they say) is the slow deterioration of our brains, and a bizarre urge to vote for Sarah Palin.

But now, a new study from UCLA has discovered “searching the internet may help stimulate the brain of middle-aged and older adults beyond the benefits of reading alone.”

In the study, 24 healthy volunteers between the ages of 55 and 76 had their brains scanned while they read books or searched the web.

All participants showed significant brain activity while reading a book, which showed they were using areas in the temporal, parietal, occipital lobes and other areas that control language, reading, memory and visual ability.

But experienced internet users also showed a two-fold increase in brain activity, including areas in the frontal and temporal lobes and cingulate cortex that control decision-making and complex reasoning.

There you have it. Far from dumbing us down, Google has freed our mental processes from the tedious tasks that it can be performed faster, and allowed us to focus on subjects that matter – like blogging.

Mashable sums it up best:

…in the traditional education sense, we’re getting stupider, at least with certain types of tasks. However, we’ve learned to do something else. We’ve learned how to use Google to get information. It sounds like an evolutionary step, a natural progression.

Instead of using your brain, you’re using something else – something that works faster and easier. It will be interesting to see how this – if it keeps up, and my bet is that it will – will affect our ability to think in the future.