Animal Movie Reflections

Do movies merely entertain, or do they also shape people’s moral values? The Animal movie has sparked a lot of controversy, with people both supporting and opposing it. In this reflection, I will examine the movie from a Bhagavad Gita perspective, rather than discussing the specific issues raised by the movie itself. I want to emphasize that I have not watched the movie, nor do I have any intention of doing so, and I don’t recommend anyone watch it either. However, as a teacher of the Bhagavad Gita, I want to demonstrate how the Gita can offer us wisdom to analyze contemporary issues. The Bhagavad Gita is not just a religious or spiritual text; it is a book that offers profound insights into current issues.

The Animal movie contains a lot of gory violence, and along with a few other elements, it has triggered debates on whether such movies should be promoted and produced. What does their popularity signify in terms of people’s preferences in today’s world? Are movies just meant for entertainment, or do they influence our lifestyles and moral values?

Some argue that movies only change people’s hairstyles and don’t affect their behavior—watching violence in movies won’t make people violent in real life. But is that the reality? The Bhagavad Gita explains that when stimuli come from the outside world to us through our senses (eyes, ears, etc.), they interact with two distinct faculties within us: the mind and the intelligence.

The mind operates based on feelings. Whatever feels good, the mind consumes. The mind is not very discerning; it consumes entertainment indiscriminately, regardless of the values embedded in it. On the other hand, intelligence is meant to discern what is beneficial and harmful, what is real and unreal, what is worth embracing, and what should be avoided.

Although the concept of the mind and intelligence may not be well known in mainstream culture, there’s an understanding that entertainment involving violence or sexuality is not suitable for children. Children may have active minds but lack well-developed intelligence, which is why they can’t easily distinguish between affection and reality. This is why many countries have laws prohibiting ads targeted at children.

The mind craves escapist entertainment, and movies primarily cater to this need. The Bhagavad Gita (6.17) suggests that this craving should be regulated. The problem is that, alongside the mind, intelligence must be developed to differentiate between fiction and reality, and to know what should or shouldn’t be tried in real life. Intelligence acts as a filter at three levels:

  1. Don’t take in: We avoid inputs that we know are harmful.

  2. Don’t replay: We may take something in, but we don’t allow ourselves to dwell on it or replay it in our minds.

  3. Don’t act out: Even if we replay something, our intelligence prevents us from acting on it.

For most people with reasonably developed intelligence, even if they take in something violent or inappropriate as entertainment, they won’t act it out in real life. For example, movie scenes with unrealistic violence—like one person beating a hundred others—are understood as fictional, and most people won’t try to replicate them.

However, the issue arises when people’s intelligence is not equally developed. Some may act out what they have consumed or replayed, especially if they find themselves in situations where they have power over others. Violent fantasies fueled by such media can lead to real-life violence, especially in individuals with weaker intelligence filters.

It is undeniable that the media we consume affects us. If it didn’t, advertisers wouldn’t invest millions in promoting their products. While people know that advertisements exaggerate, they still absorb the message and may act on it, depending on their intelligence. Thus, media has an effect, though the degree of that effect varies depending on the strength of an individual’s intelligence.

The ideal intelligence is one where we don’t even take in inputs that have the potential to be destructive in the long run. The Bhagavad Gita talks about self-destructive desires, and how we should avoid indulging in such inputs in the first place. As individuals, it is our responsibility to regulate what we consume and how we process it.

The Bhagavad Gita encourages us to nourish our intelligence so that we can have the appropriate filters at the right levels. Sometimes we cannot avoid seeing harmful content, but we should avoid replaying it in our minds. The Buddha also emphasizes that replaying harmful stimuli in the mind is what causes us to spiral downward. He speaks of Shama (peace of mind) and Dama (self-control of the senses)—keeping the mind peaceful and controlling the senses, even when the mind is agitated.

As individuals, we need to be empowered in today’s world so that negative propaganda doesn’t overwhelm us. However, what about society’s responsibility? Society must also regulate media to ensure that content promoting violence or excessive sexuality isn’t easily accessible. The degree to which society takes on this responsibility will vary, but as individuals, we can’t prevent the world from producing content that contaminates people’s minds. What we can do, though, is create and promote content that nourishes people’s intelligence and provides them with inner defenses.

The Bhagavad Gita is one such resource that can strengthen individual intelligence. By studying, sharing, and encouraging others to read the Gita, we can provide people with the inner strength to defend themselves against harmful content.

In conclusion, three points:

  1. Yes, movies are meant to entertain, but they also shape values because the mind consumes entertainment without discrimination. It is the intelligence that distinguishes what should be acted out in real life.

  2. If the intelligence is weak, people may act out what they’ve consumed, causing harm.

  3. As individuals, we must take responsibility for what we consume and nourish our intelligence. Society, too, should regulate harmful media, but ultimately, the responsibility lies with us to strengthen our inner defenses through resources like the Bhagavad Gita.

Thank you.