Changing the global society
- bringing happiness
After I watched the movies Into the Wild and Lost in Translation, in which Alaska and Tokyo were
serve as a place where people run away to escape from their problems and live
another life - a life of happiness - I could connected to the Pico Ayer beliefs.
However, as said by a monk in a
encounter with Pico Ayer " to one
rooted in Heaven, [all] places on earth will look the same" , we can
reflected : Is it not our homes and a comfortable places (Heaven) the place we should stay or
experience global integration?
The movie Into the Wild by Sean Peen, narrates
the Alex Super tramp's experience, in which he seeks for freedom and peace, believing
that in order to reach his happiness he has to live in nature and wilderness.
Yet, Pico Ayer stated in Global Soul that " Our shirking world gave more
and more of us chance to see(…) how much we have in common" ; since
globalization had reach a point where anyone can know whatever it wants
anywhere, trying to find a place of happiness . But, It is a fact that
regardless where we go will be a problem.
In
addition, Pico Ayer when talking about the globalized world, he stated that:
"A leader such as Václay Havel always takes pains to stress that the main
term to be qualified by 'global' should be 'responsibility' and that in a world
in which everyone's problems are everyone's else's (…)" . Thus, he believe
that in order to live in a global society people should care about others,
living as a single nation, and also as we are the same race everyone should
receive the same respect. On the other hand, Gary Snyder, a Buddhist, says that
the process of meditation is the freedom 'liberation' of life: " has a
grand view of universal salvation, the actual achievement of Buddhism has been the developed of practical systems of
meditation toward the end of liberating a few dedicated individuals from psychological
hang-ups and cultural conditionings" . Thus, Snyder stated peace will be achieve
by meditation and knowledge , in which is the system that make individuals follow
the correct path according to him. Although I believe that globalization should
be a process that eventually will bring the society together, where one need to
see each other sided, in order to reach peace in this world, in which is
basically based in economic and political competition.
Where is my Alaska or Tokyo? So, I can't think in a place that would be my Alaska or Tokyo… As stated by Gary Snyder in the Planetary Culture: "economically dependent on a fantastic system of stimulation of greed that cannot be fulfilled, sexual desire, that cannot be satiated, and hatred that has no outlet except against itself" - this is a reason why many people are studying and trying to be successful, while trying to find their Alaska or Tokyo, since we have to make enough money to live comfortable and give our family the best life, in this way compromising our happiness. However, I agree to some extent, since some people don’t see this as the way to be happy; thus, my Alaska right now would be play volleyball the whole day and stay with my family and my friends, because is the way where I can fell happy, comfortable and protect.
