Monday, October 14, 2013

Thinking about violence

I recently came across this quotation from the Buddha:

"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking and pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with sensuality, abandoning thinking imbued with renunciation, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with sensuality. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with non-ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmfulness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmlessness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmfulness."

In other words, thinking negative or unwholesome thoughts of any kind has the effect of inclining your future thoughts in the direction of that kind of unwholesomeness or negativity. This should not be a surprise to us, because the mind, like the body, has a tendency to follow the "groove" left by  experience. 
 This is a reason that I am concerned with young people (or anyone) watching violent movies and television, playing violent video games, or for that matter watching TV news about real-world violence. The more we integrate violence into our daily experience, the more we will come to regard it as natural and, in some sense, acceptable. I believe this is particularly true about games and movies in which the individual is intended to identify with the violent protagonist. Because such "entertainment" appeals to the ego - which thrives on pain and destruction - it is very difficult to persuade people of the harm it can cause. Ego will cause one to shrug off this concern, with such comments as "Oh, it's just a game" or "I know the difference between fantasy and reality". Yet beneath the surface, the violent experience is working its way into the viewer's subconscious, wearing a groove that will influence that person's future attitudes and behavior. 

Even popular comedy has its violent aspects. Most of the comedy shows on television today rely on belittling or humiliating their characters to garner a laugh from the audience. This may be even more dangerous than violent drama, because these programs supposedly reflect everyday interpersonal relationships. While this is not new - ego has used comic techniques of sarcasm and humiliation to promote itself at the expense of others for thousands of years - there seems to be a sharper edge to the contemporary genre. When I can't get through a popular show without repeatedly cringing at the psychological violence the characters inflict on each other, I worry even more about the harmful effect on society if this is presented as an acceptable form of social interaction.

I don't advocate banning these or any other forms of entertainment. But I do encourage individuals, and parents on behalf of their children, to be mindful of the amount of physical and emotional violence they are exposed to, and to take steps to minimize the damage. Steps may include limiting the exposure; openly discussing whether the behavior depicted on screen is acceptable or desirable; engaging in non-violent forms of entertainment; meditation on nonviolence; and, perhaps best of all, seeking out opportunities to have real-life experiences of compassionate and loving behavior, such as volunteering.

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