enlightenment in art

[Monkey-man]

I see enlightenment motive (or spiritual path) in every great movie, novel, story, animated film, piece of art. Enlightenment is embedded within the hero’s journey. Truly Great movies are like great visual maps for spiritual path, maps that includes obstacles which are often not addressed by modern spiritual books.

You too? 

[Telepresent]

Perhaps, although any great work is great (in my opinion) because it invites interpretation and opinion - and so you read the interpretation of the enlightenment journey onto it.  Any honest artwork explores or asks questions of the human condition, and often don't provide answers, so it is up to the partaker to fill in the gaps and, in so doing, come to understand themselves a little better.  As much as you say the hero's journey is about enlightenment, I could also say it's about the solidification of ego. That's the great thing about art, so far as I am concerned - as much as it is about what the artist is trying to say, it is about what the partaker translates

[Leo Gura]

20 hours ago, Monkey-man said:

Great movies are like great visual maps for spiritual path, maps that includes obstacles which are often not addressed by modern spiritual books.

Eckhart Tolle never tells you about how evil Transformers may land on the planet from another galaxy and battle you for domination of the world.

Why! Why! Why did you not warn me of the Transformers, Tolle????! Damn you!

And the dinosaurs!!! Why did you not warn me about the genetically engineered dinosaurs what would break loose from their cages and prevent me from reaching enlightenment??? Tolleeeeee!!!!

[ADD]

Tolle said that  the movie groundhogday symbolizes enlightenment quite perfectly.

[Monkey-man]

@Leo Gura these are metaphors and they are powerful. For example I learned a lot about spiritual path from Lords of the Rigns. Ring of power is an ego, look how hard it is for Frodo to throw it away. Whole trilogy is an amazing map of how to get rid of ego and what are the obstacles for that. All the great virtues and values like Faithfulness courage nobleness that are arises in human on this journey is increasing as ego decreases. I learned that human-being is designed to be servant of higher will, not his own . In lord of the rings everyone wants to serve to ONE purpose even if it means death, they all find the only reason to live in that, and those who served ego lost. 

And even some simple cartoons like Pinocchio by Disney - this cartoon is so simple and yet genius! How mechanical puppet becomes real boy! Every second is metaphor of spiritual path and of development of consciousness.

Also very good maps: Matrix, original Star Wars, Lion King. 

Edited March 20, 2018 by Monkey-man

[Monkey-man]

33 minutes ago, ADD said:

Tolle said that  the movie groundhogday symbolizes enlightenment quite perfectly.

Oh yeah, it’s a masterpiece! And it’s a great map. Only when main character stopped pretending and acting (playing ego), only then Groundhog Day has been overcome.