Moksha World

Am I making a good choice? I ask myself this question a lot! I was surprised by the way this series triggered me to question my process of making choices. Have I made a choice based on objective and logical reasoning? Or is my subconscious making the choice for me? 

At the beginning of the series, we are introduced to an up-and-coming politician. After an eventful day at the office, he heads to the parking garage to drive home. As he reaches the lower level, he suddenly realizes that a crime is in progress. He tries to call the police on his cell phone but can’t connect to a network. His next move is to video the assault with his phone. I assumed he would send the footage to the police when he accessed a network. When the assault is over, he approaches the victim and takes her to the hospital. He did not send the footage or call the police. Later that night, he speaks with his political advisor, and they decide to release the footage on social media anonymously.

I found this course of action to be illogical. Why didn’t he leave the parking garage immediately to call the police? I assumed at first that he was afraid of being discovered and assaulted. As the story goes viral on social media over the following days, people come to their conclusions about what happened. At no point does this politician take responsibility or clarify any of his actions. Instead, he takes advantage of the public’s perception of him as a hero for bringing the victim to the hospital. His fear of what people might think of his initial reaction and how it could affect his career takes over all his decision-making for the remainder of the series.

I found all of the characters unlikeable in different ways. However, I was intrigued by their actions and the consequences. I felt a sense of day-to-day life in which we all struggle with our human nature and the good and bad choices we make. I was reminded of how fascinated I was as a child by Captain Kirk and Spock from Star Trek. I saw them as the embodiment of the contrast between a human being’s capacity for logic and emotion. Kirk leaned on his emotions while Spock agonized about having human emotions. They balanced each other out and exemplified the contrast humans live with every day of their lives. We can evaluate if our choices are driven by emotions, yet we so often fall back on rationalizing our choices instead.

The Law of Karma says that our intentions and actions influence our future, although the consequences may not be noticeable immediately. Do we make choices with this in mind? In the case of this politician, absolutely not. His choices were to benefit his quest for power and his reputation. His guilt heavily influenced which bills he supported as well as which lies he told to whom. I wonder what the consequences would have been if he had gone directly to the police. Perhaps by doing the right thing, he would have benefitted in his career and avoided the guilt, lies, and divorce. This is something to consider while giving ourselves the space to contemplate if our choices are being influenced by Captain Kirk or Spock.