The nature of entertainment media

Akkarin wrote:

CryojenX wrote: I found I was no longer able to compartmentalize music with violent or aggressive lyrics as harmless.

This may be the crux of the issue. If one can listen/play a certain thing and separate this thing from reality/something else then of course they will be able to do this thing without there being a cross-genre negative impact. If one finds it difficult to compartmentalise two things from each other then they will both interact and perhaps be at odds.

Maybe an ability to compartmentalise is a skill, or an innate ability, or a mix of both, but if one can one can and if one can't one can't. And if one can or one can't one should or shouldn't listen/play/watch/think two different things which are in such stark opposition to each other - unless this was one's goal all along.

I believe I have figured out part of my dilemma. I think that perhaps it is not so much an inability to compartmentalize, but rather a personal question of why I am consuming entertainment that requires such compartmentalization to begin with. Rather than mindlessly thrashing to Megadeth, I could be both musically and intellectually stimulated by the deep complexities of bands such as Dream Theater (whom I prefer anyway).

It's kind of funny looking back on this thread and seeing how concerned I got over some metal and Assassin's Creed. I know these things serve as a healthy outlet for me. The real problem I was having was one of balance, I was listening ONLY to dark/heavy music or playing "mature" games in order to prove to myself that I was a hardcore metalhead. It's SO silly, and over the months since joining the Temple, I avoided those things, but I've realized this too is an unhealthy extreme. Now I get the whole balance thing. Boy do i feel silly. :blush:

If I wish to cultivate peace and tranquility, why am I drawn to games that are often centered around visceral conflict?


This is a wonderful question. and I like the quote about evil does not worry about being good.

As lightside good jedi, I feel that one of our requirements is self analysis and evaluation. I have to check in with myself constantly to make sure that what I am doing is creative and accurate in the moment. Am I allowing clarity to come into the situation or am I creating "unnecessary" drama? I have learned to surrender to the way of the Force in my life. When I come to questions like this, I like to give them up to spirit or to the Force, I let them go, and I wait for a feeling swell in my heart that reveals the insight I need to make the accurate choice.

In the end, I feel its all about the intention and perspective one does these things with. Are you doing it in secret or publicly? Are you able to talk to people about what you are doing or do you hide it from people? Is this a guilty pleasure that fosters your darkside or does it generate a feeling of lightness in your heart?

I know that I feel calmer when listening to metal music. I can get agitated listening to classical or "new age" music. The calmness unsettles me. The chaos of the metal allows me to rest. I feel that is because I do well in chaos and conflict. I do not like interpersonal conflict like arguing among friends. I am drawn to accidents, emergencies or intensity. I loved living in India and Nepal. I actually found "peace" in the hustle of those places. As a Medical first responder, I have to step into some nasty scenes. I have to be calm cool and collected dealing with screaming and blood. I enjoy the calm I feel in the storm.

How do you feel when you play these games or listen to this music, now?
What is your inner purpose for playing these games?

I play video goes for virtual combat training. Video games can be my "dojo". I can also expose myself to things that I would normally not be able to experience like a Zombie horde. How would I act if a real horde came at me? I have no real idea but I can simulate it in the game. When I play these games, I do my best to avoid the adrenaline and stress response. I do my best to meditate, lower my heart rate and breath deeply. I use these games to practice my Jedi skills in ways that I can't in reality.

also I enjoy connecting with my friends who have also played the game. it becomes a bonding experience.

Now I admit some of the story lines in Skyrim challenged me. I avoided them or I was "shocked" by them. I am amazed some of the places this game was permitted to go. I also felt that there was more evil than good.

I also find it interesting in every Jedi/Star Wars game I have very played forces the player into the depths of the Darkside. There seems to be no way around it. The player has to enter the Sith Academy or do some dark deed in order to get to the next level. I wonder why that is? But I notice that there is no mandatory Light actions required by the game for success? Why do these games only push people into experiences the darkness and not the light? Basically, I have found that in SW games, a person has to touch into the darkness to complete the game.

So in the end, I honor you for asking these questions and exploring these types of things. I feel that is what makes a Jedi - self examination.

Everything has its place. I love destroying a heavy bag to the 'soothing strains ' of slipknot, or similar. Usually slipknot tho. Angries up the blood read good. But then we usually have a semiformal dinner if my family is all eating together at the same time, almost always to Bach or Beethoven. Can you imagine juxtaposing the two? Lol

I play a lot of halo also. 49,000 kills, 27,000 deaths, level 130 spartan in 4. It's almost meditative by now, thoughtless. Motions I've gone thru a million times before. It's an outlet for aggression as well.

baru wrote: I also find it interesting in every Jedi/Star Wars game I have very played forces the player into the depths of the Darkside. There seems to be no way around it. The player has to enter the Sith Academy or do some dark deed in order to get to the next level. I wonder why that is? But I notice that there is no mandatory Light actions required by the game for success? Why do these games only push people into experiences the darkness and not the light? Basically, I have found that in SW games, a person has to touch into the darkness to complete the game.

Perhaps it is an implicit recognition of the dark side as being an integral part of the whole of light and dark. A "virtual cave of fear" if you will; a trip into the belly of the beast.

CryojenX wrote: It's kind of funny looking back on this thread and seeing how concerned I got over some metal and Assassin's Creed. I know these things serve as a healthy outlet for me. The real problem I was having was one of balance, I was listening ONLY to dark/heavy music or playing "mature" games in order to prove to myself that I was a hardcore metalhead. It's SO silly, and over the months since joining the Temple, I avoided those things, but I've realized this too is an unhealthy extreme. Now I get the whole balance thing. Boy do i feel silly. :blush:

I used to be a metalhead. I still listen to a lot of metal, I just don't identify with the subculture. I was really into black metal, but I got tired of it after I became a Christian, because I didn't feel like listening to a genre that is at least 75% dedicated to bashing Christianity. I don't like the metal culture, either. It advocates a self-destructive lifestyle.

Metal is not inherently negative, especially not Megadeth. Dave is one of the few musicians alive today who is an alright person. If more extreme metal is too negative for you, try power metal. I suggest Power Quest, DragonForce (the first four albums, at least), Sabaton, and anything else those bands might lead you to.

As for the video games: I don't mean to be pushy or preachy, but I have nothing good to say about them. I decided at the beginning of my adult life to live without video games, TV, and films, and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. My advice to you would be to throw out all your games, but I can understand if you see that as unreasonable.

Star Forge wrote: I used to be a metalhead. I still listen to a lot of metal, I just don't identify with the subculture. I was really into black metal, but I got tired of it after I became a Christian, because I didn't feel like listening to a genre that is at least 75% dedicated to bashing Christianity. I don't like the metal culture, either. It advocates a self-destructive lifestyle.

I know what you mean, part of my problem was that I wanted to belong to a community, I like a lot of metal, and so tried to fit into the subculture, as it's supposedly the place for the misfits. But while I love some metal, the culture is simply not who I am. This is one reason I puled away from the music for a while: I had completely oversaturated myself to the point of spiritual exhaustion. I do like me some indie pop and folk music, yknow?

Star Forge wrote: As for the video games: I don't mean to be pushy or preachy, but I have nothing good to say about them. I decided at the beginning of my adult life to live without video games, TV, and films, and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. My advice to you would be to throw out all your games, but I can understand if you see that as unreasonable.

To tell the truth, in the past I have done exactly that, thrown out all my games. Unfortunately with nothing to fall back on it left a vacuum in my life and never lasted for long. I don't see anything inherently wrong with the medium, or film for that matter; just as with music, one needs to simply be selective. I like films and games that show me life from a perspective I might not ordinarily have, to help me gain a better insight of universal truths. Believe it or not, there are more games out there with deep philosophical, emotional, and moral themes than you might imagine.

CryojenX wrote:

Star Forge wrote: I used to be a metalhead. I still listen to a lot of metal, I just don't identify with the subculture. I was really into black metal, but I got tired of it after I became a Christian, because I didn't feel like listening to a genre that is at least 75% dedicated to bashing Christianity. I don't like the metal culture, either. It advocates a self-destructive lifestyle.

I know what you mean, part of my problem was that I wanted to belong to a community, I like a lot of metal, and so tried to fit into the subculture, as it's supposedly the place for the misfits. But while I love some metal, the culture is simply not who I am. This is one reason I puled away from the music for a while: I had completely oversaturated myself to the point of spiritual exhaustion. I do like me some indie pop and folk music, yknow?

Star Forge wrote: As for the video games: I don't mean to be pushy or preachy, but I have nothing good to say about them. I decided at the beginning of my adult life to live without video games, TV, and films, and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. My advice to you would be to throw out all your games, but I can understand if you see that as unreasonable.

To tell the truth, in the past I have done exactly that, thrown out all my games. Unfortunately with nothing to fall back on it left a vacuum in my life and never lasted for long. I don't see anything inherently wrong with the medium, or film for that matter; just as with music, one needs to simply be selective. I like films and games that show me life from a perspective I might not ordinarily have, to help me gain a better insight of universal truths. Believe it or not, there are more games out there with deep philosophical, emotional, and moral themes than you might imagine.

Philo Farnsworth, the dude who invented TV, always thought that his invention was at best useless and at worst harmful. When he saw the moon landing, he was relieved, as he felt that his invention was validated, and had been used as a force for good, at least in that one instance.

That being said, there is one singular game that I have concluded is video gaming's "moon landing." Otherwise, I have a uniformly negative view on gaming (though I despise film the most). I won't name it publicly here. I am writing a longass treatise on the game currently. It is a project I have been planning for since 2009. I may or may not make it available here once it is done.

I've introduced gaming back into my life, and have been able to keep within the strict time limitations I've set for play time, however I have noticed that the mindfulness I work so hard at practicing with my meditation seems to go completely bye-bye when playing the game. Afterwards, I'm satisfied that I've had some fun, but also a bit disappointed with myself for effectively reversing the fruits of the day's meditation. Has anyone overcome this hurdle, can one maintain mindfulness while playing an action/adventure game, or are the demands of the game and the goals of mindfulness at odds with each other and mutually exclusive?

> Has anyone overcome this hurdle, can one maintain mindfulness while playing an action/adventure game, or are the demands of the game and the goals of mindfulness at odds with each other and mutually exclusive?

Good questions to ask. Anything, even playing video-games, can be a form of meditation. So, I believe that a person can be mindful while enjoying video-games. However, the reason we play video-games is the same as why we read fictional books and watch movies: we don't want to be alone with ourselves. This is why you see so many people with their eyes glued to their cellphones or televisions. We always have to be distracted by something.

I think it's important for people to realize that their life is much more important and interesting than what's being displayed on the screen in front of them.