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POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Tuesday, January 24, 2006 05:05
VIEWED: 3195
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CHRISISALL

Monday, January 23, 2006 3:15 AM

*SPOILERS FOR THOSE UNFORTUNATE SOULS THAT HAVEN'T SEEN THE BDM YET*

There seems to me to be a strong 'karma' statement in Serenity; Mal didn't kill the Operative, and in not doing so, saved all their lives by way of the Operative's paradigm shift.

Any Buddahist-leaning Browncoats out there that can throw in your comments?

Chrisisall with his plastic rocket

FOLLOWMAL

Monday, January 23, 2006 3:52 AM

Chrisisall, I'm only Buddhist by desire, don't actually know too much about it, but if I'm right you tell me....

I think it's karmic because Mal takes what is coming his way and makes his way thru it coming out the other side having done the best he can and on his own, believing in himself and his ability to do what he has to do and do it well. I think as well that he shifted both their paradigms by letting the Operative live. Mal comes out of what he goes thru changed, I hesitate to say reborn but maybe redeemed?

I'm hoping you will let me know if I'm way off base.

"Storms getting worse." River
"We'll pass through it soon enough." Mal

JUBELLATE

Monday, January 23, 2006 4:31 AM

I am not so enlightened, but I have the utmost respect for buddhists and their beautiful religion.

And I can see how Mal could be seen as being merciful to "The Operative", but I do not believe that was Mal's concern, regardless of the kharma involved. I believe Mal gave the Operative a fate worse than death, truth. He destroyed the belief of the Operative and left him with nothing.

Mal didn't forgive the Operative as he concluded "I just as soon kill you if I see you again", but Mal had come to believe in the power of truth and through that belief conquered the Operative and destroyed his belief. Maybe it changed Mal in some way, but he certainly hadn't ended his war with the Alliance. He just found a guiding philosophy for the time being.

The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule. – H.L. Mencken

PRINCESSROHANNEN

Monday, January 23, 2006 6:21 AM

I hearby reveal my ignorance:

What's a paradigm shift?
Is that anything like a character arc?

GUTSC1

Monday, January 23, 2006 7:08 PM

Not sure if you knew that in real life "Book" Ron Glass is in fact a Buddhist. I remember Tim talking about that during one of the episode commentaries.

Ron was bringing too much a Buddhist perspective to one of the takes and Tim was telling him that they needed to got with a more Protestant take on it. Actually I think it might be in the "Out of Gas" commentary.

Just some "gee wizz" stuff. Take care

RIGHTEOUS9

Monday, January 23, 2006 7:54 PM

I know very little about Bhuddism, but everything I've ever discovered about it has fascinated me with how profetic its teachings seem to be. What I mean is as a religion, it seems so at one with science and our understanding of the universe today. The idea that everything is tied together and is somehow the same is amazingly apt.

In terms of its relationship to firefly...

I wrote a review on amazon saying that there is no place for karma in this universe, but thankfully there's Serentiy...or something sappy like that. I'll probably amend that slightely, here.

What I meant when I wrote it, is that goodness isn't about the reward. That Zoe spells out what heroism pretty well. 'someone who gets other people killed.' True to that idea, that's exactly what happens. Wash dies for everybodies efforts. So, yeah, I think that the hard lesson is that there are no rewards in this lifetime aside of your own peace of mind, or 'serenity'.

However, if everything is all connected...if we can look at ourself as part of a whole, then maybe there is karma...and maybe in a way the crew is getting repaid by their part in saving humanity in their small way. Some day in the future, that act of goodness might be the snowflake that turned into the avalanche...etc.

SPINLAND

Monday, January 23, 2006 8:03 PM

I think you're on to something there, Chris. Look at the almost careless way he dispatched people--unarmed people--throughout the movie, and I submit each time the act could be linked to some sort of defeat for him. Then, when he's completely in control, he takes the moral high ground and spares a life--a life which was dedicated to taking his if at all possible and which it could be argued he was justified in taking. Rewards rain down, Mal wins. Very Zen, methinks.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"That's what governments are for, [to] get in a man's way." -- Malcolm Reynolds

CHRISISALL

Monday, January 23, 2006 8:26 PM

FollowMal, you, Jubellate, Rightous9, and Spinland are all very promising Buddhists as far as I can tell

Buddha bless you:)

Karmic-like Chrisisall

CHRISISALL

Monday, January 23, 2006 8:27 PM

Spinland! Very precise take, IMHO.

Mal-adjusted Chrisisall

CHRISISALL

Monday, January 23, 2006 8:30 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by PrincessRohannen:

What's a paradigm shift?

Basically, a fundamental change in beliefs due to a massive re-evaluation of conflicting data.
Turned around, so to speak.

Un-Webster-like Chrisisall

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