posted on Apr, 5 2015 @ 02:51 PM
Hey ATS. How's it going.
I see threads about the Matrix pop up here and there, so when I found this paper I thought, hey, ATS might like to read it and discuss it.
From Superman to Brahman: The Religious Shift of The Matrix Mythology
'In this article, we argue two points: 1) that the religious images, symbols and allusions of The Matrix mythology shift decidedly from the West to
the East; and 2) that the Western end of this shift is grounded not in the Christian religious tradition, but in Nietzschean humanism. This humanism
explicit in the opening lines of the history of the Matrix myth, as found in The Animatrix, retains its dominance through The Matrix and into
Reloaded, at which point the myth turns increasingly eastward and ends in the cyclical images of Vedic and Puranic creation and dissolution.'
Introduction
'Religious exegeses and interpretations of the Matrix trilogy are abundant and include perspectives from all of the major world religions. Entire
books have been written interpreting the trilogy through the lens of individual traditions, and several edited works contain interpretations from
multiple perspectives. This diversity reflects what Doty views as the primary characteristic of postmodern art, namely, that it is a "pastiche” in
which "particular images from elsewhere or the past may be brought in apparently by arbitrary importation, not because they are significant in the
plot by themselves.”
Because of this fact, some have suggested that religious pluralism may be the best lens through which to view the Matrix trilogy. The simultaneous use
of multiple allusions, images and symbols from multiple religious traditions supports this notion. However, what we do not find in the voluminous
analytical literature is a discussion of the religious shifts the trilogy makes. While there is a menagerie of religious symbols and images indicative
of a pluralistic outlook at work throughout the trilogy, particular religious motifs and images do seem to take precedence at certain points and thus
help to shape the contours of the myth.
The primary religious shift in the myth is essentially one from West to East, beginning not with Christianity, as many have supposed, but with a
Nietzschean humanism that uses the images and symbols of Christianity as a foil. From here, the myth shifts subtly eastward, ending with the cyclical
images of Vedic and Puranic creation and dissolution.'
Read the rest at the above link, and comment. It has some interesting things to say about Sati.
👣