3 Spiritual Teachings That You Missed in ‘The Matrix’
The height of the Information Age created some of the most prolific pieces of sci-fi wonder in history, and the 1999 movie The Matrix is no exception. Written and directed by the Wachowski brothers (now sisters), the landscape of the plotline centers on the path of awakening from a false reality into the truth of existence.
Have you ever read a book or watched a movie for the second time only to find new meanings and symbols that you didn’t notice the first time? We often think, “How did I miss that?” You didn’t miss it — it was there the entire time. What happened was, the gatekeeper of your subconscious mind was just accepting the ideas you perceived to be “true” and rejecting the ideas you labeled to be “false.”
But here’s the interesting thing: truth expires as a result of awareness. As our beliefs change and we become more aware of our human experience, what we consider to be a truth today may not necessarily be a truth tomorrow.
If you’ve ever undergone a spiritual awakening or a massive shift in consciousness in your lifetime, then it’s apparent just how much newer meaning the things you observe take on. This is because as our perceptions change, our view of the world tends to follow.
So what do all the spiritual teachings have to say about the layers and meanings within the plot of The Matrix? Well, if you’ve managed to “unplug” from the system, here’s what you’ll glean.
1. You Can’t Go Back to Sleep
I know. Crazy, huh? What has been seen can truly not be unseen.
During the story, one character, Cypher, expresses so much dissatisfaction with the true nature of reality compared to the relative comforts experienced within the illusionary world that he eventually attempts to return to it permanently.
“The mind, once stretched by a new idea, never returns to its original dimensions.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Within the plotline, the concept of the red pill symbolizes ego (or “identity”) death and an awakening to the greater Truth of one’s own being. Once you’ve experienced that in your own life, pulling the wool back over your eyes isn’t as easy as cutting a deal with the “reality police.” In fact, hanging onto our old identities is the source of most human suffering. We tend to want to live in a preferred past rather than in the present moment. This was symbolized by Cypher’s rejection of “being here now”, as Ram Dass puts it. The present moment simply wasn’t good enough for him, and it eventually became the cause of his discontent and suffering.
In life, the only option that a spiritual awakening leaves us with is continuing down the rabbit hole and trusting the process of our soul’s unfoldment. If we truly are just souls having a human experience, then it is only natural that we allow this experience to play out and strip away the layers of our ego. After all, when this experience is done and dusted, we won’t be taking our identities with us.
You can’t necessarily go back to who you were —but you can, however, embrace who you presently are and who you’re becoming.
2. There’s Nothing You Can Do to Make Someone Take the Red Pill
“You’re here because you know something. What you know you can’t explain, but you feel it. You’ve felt it your entire life; that there’s something wrong with the world. You don’t know what it is, but it’s there — like a splinter in your mind driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me.” — Morpheus
Following his initial orientation of what the Matrix is, Neo undergoes a “dark night of the soul.” In just a few short scenes, he experiences a collapse of his perceived meaning of life and, subsequently, all of his paradigms are obliterated. From a spiritual standpoint, what metaphorically follows is his “shadow” work and integration period (albeit accelerated).
But the most important thing to remember here is, Neo brought himself to this point in his journey. No one did it for him.
Q: What if Neo was in a romantic relationship before taking the red pill? What if after everyone aboard the Nebuchadnezzar retired to their quarters at night, he would hop into the Matrix to spend time with her? What if he was trying to “wake her up”?
Imagine Neo trying to convince this person why she needs to take the red pill.
“If you love a flower, don’t pick it up. Because if you pick it up it dies and it ceases to be what you love. So if you love a flower, let it be. Love is not about possession. Love is about appreciation.” — Osho
All of us have been in a relationship where we wanted to change the other person. Most of that behavior comes from wanting to “save” them. But here’s the thing about relationships — if someone isn’t willing to go deep within to do the inner work, there is nothing you can do. If someone refuses to face their darkest shadows, then you’re wasting your time. If someone is still “plugged in” to old ways of thinking, the only way they will ever be ready to “wake up” is through their own experiences. And you must allow people to go through their own experiences.
There is nothing you can do to make someone take the red pill and there is nothing you can do to accelerate someone’s journey. They must arrive at their own conclusion for themselves and in their own time.
What you can do instead is love people for who they are and where they are, and know that they’re on their own unique path.
3. You are Operating Under Self-Made Rules
There is a word in the English language that — if properly understood—can change everything. This word is found in places like the Bible, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Qur’an. It’s also referenced in every notable psychology book available today. The word is belief.
“Believe, and your belief will actually create the fact.”
— William James
In the movie, Neo’s evaluation of what is possible for himself is continuously challenged. His character arc takes him through the process of overcoming his limitations through a process of constant and persistent self-evaluation. He struggles only because his perceptions are predicated on the rules he gathered from his previous experience (before his awakening). It isn’t until he allows himself to operate under a new set of rules that his ability changes.
When we replace the word rules with beliefs, it begins to make more sense.
“Their strength and their speed are still based in a world that is built on rules. Because of that, they will never be as strong or as fast as you can be.” — Morpheus
You’d probably agree that the majority of human beings today are operating within the parameters of self-imposed limitations. Our abilities are governed by our subconscious beliefs and our self-image. Consequently, we can only go as far as we believe we can go.
The belief of “I don’t have anything worthwhile to say” shows up in the form of an unpublished article. Believing “I will come off as fake or disingenuous” manifests as little to no content created. Saying to ourselves “People that know me will be weirded out by the new me” keeps us safely parked in our old identities. Our fear of being judged plays a big role in our willingness to shift our belief systems.
Luckily for Neo, he wasn’t too seized up by the opinions of others. On the contrary, he was surrounded by people who believed in him. Sometimes in life, you have to believe in someone else’s belief in you until your own belief kicks in.
“The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.” — William James
By letting go of old ways of thinking, Neo was able to transcend what he believed he was capable of doing.
And much of the spiritual journey is like that — unlearning old “rules” that no longer serve and making room for new beliefs that inspire us to go beyond our present conditions and circumstances. When we finally give ourselves permission to change our beliefs and the way we view ourselves, we change our behaviors. When we successfully change our behaviors, we form new habits. When we form new habits, we alter the outcome of our lives. And when we alter the outcome of our lives, the possibilities are always limitless.