Buddhism Blog Assignment #1

Clips are from the movie "Eat, Pray, Love" starring Julia Roberts



             In this parody of the movie trailer for “Eat, Pray, Love,” a Buddhist monk has left behind his entire life to follow his only goal of finding Julia Roberts.  I think that this is stereotyping the Buddhist religion in general because it essentially depicts them as impractical and unrealistic. Everyone follows a certain path with a specific goal, but this clip exaggerates the idea by showing him going to extreme lengths to achieve a seemingly meaningless goal that he takes very seriously. He even explains that this is his “life’s responsibility.”

            In the very beginning of the trailer, there is a clip of the monk lying down on his stomach bowing before a decorated shrine. There continue to be clips of various rituals, such as the monks on top of a mountain placing things into a large fire. The music in the background seems to be less serious, implying that these dramatic rituals are being made fun of.

Hinduism Aims 2 & 4

Success

Destiny's Child, "Survivor," R&B, 2001

Kevin Rudolf, "I Made It," Pop, 2010

Alanis Morissette, "Thank You," Alternative Rock, 1998

Travie Mccoy and Bruno Mars, "Billionaire," Hip Hop, 2010

Fergie, "Glamorous," Pop, 2007

Liberation

Faith Hill, "There Will Come a Day," Country, 1999

Akon, "Freedom," R&B, 2008

Natasha Bedingfield, "Pocketful of Sunshine," Pop, 2008

Kelly Clarkson, "Breakaway," Pop, 2004

Miley Cyrus, "The Climb," Pop, 2009

            After searching for songs that related to success and liberation, I realized that there seemed to be far more songs about success. I think that this is because in American culture, so much of our lives revolve around work and making money. In the United States, status in society is largely based on material values and how well you are able to provide for yourself and your family.  Many of the songs I chose for success involve being wealthy and living a life of luxury, such as in “Glamorous,” by Fergie and “Billionaire,” by Travie Mccoy.

            Included in my songs for liberation was one by Faith Hill titled “There Will Come a Day.” This song involves the Christian idea of salvation, and how everyone will eventually be at peace, which is very similar to the concept of Moksha in Hinduism.

           I was surprised at how difficult it was to find songs that related to liberation. I believe that is because of the cultural differences between Hinduism and American pop culture. The ultimate goal in Hinduism for most people is Moksha, where you are released from your karmic bonds. While in American culture, the ultimate goal of most people is to achieve a comfortable, successful life, people of the Hindu religion spend their entire lives working towards achieving Moksha, hence this is a much more prominent theme in their culture.



Hinduism Aims 1 & 3

Pleasure

Kesha, "Your Love is My Drug," Pop, 2010

Tim McGraw, "Felt Good on My Lips," Country, 2010

Bob Marley, "Three Little Birds," Reggae, 1977

Eric Church, "Smoke a Little Smoke," Country, 2010

Trey Songz, "Say Ahh," Hip Hop, 2009

Community Service

Bill Withers, "Lean on Me," Soul/R&B, 1972

Buffalo Springfield, "For What It's Worth," Folk Rock, 1967

City High, "What Would You Do," Hip Hop, 2001

Third Eye Blind, "Jumper," Alternative, 1997

Black Eyed Peas, "Where is the Love," Pop, 2003

            While I was searching for songs to use for this assignment, I found it to be much easier to find songs that related to pleasure than to community service. I think that this is because so much of American pop culture revolves around sex, drugs, and alcohol. I believe that in general our society is much more entertained by sex and intoxication than in community service. This may also be related to the fact that much of what is considered pop culture is decided by the younger generations, who typically take a greater interest in partying and having a good time.

            I also noticed that most of the community service related songs were produced in times of war and hardship, such as “Lean on Me,” by Bill Withers and “For What it’s Worth,” by Buffalo Springfield. This may be a reason that the pleasure songs far outnumbered community service songs.

            I found this assignment very interesting because it helps to contrast the differences in values between American culture and Hinduism. One of the key points of the first aim, pleasure, is to follow the basic laws of morality and seek pleasure intelligently. In American pop culture, the message seems to be a bit more rebellious when it comes to pleasure-seeking. This may be due to the differences in moral values- Americans typically are more strict about sexual behavior and drug or alcohol use with their children, which could eventually lead them to be more rebellious. However, with Hinduism, the idea is that “you can have what you want.” Children in this culture grow up with more freedom, which may eventually lead them to make more careful and thoughtful choices.