“There is nothing you can do to be liberated. Because all your efforts in the direction of liberation are phony. They are based on your desire to boost and continue your ego. And that will never lead to liberation.”
There’s no shortage of motivational videos on the internet today. Short films and reels aimed at personal development, showcasing beautiful and dramatic imagery with the narration of some sort of deep and impactful speech that walks you through each frame. You can easily picture the speaker standing in front of an audience of high school grads, giving virtuous life hacks that will transcend the next chapter of life. This is the cynical side of me coming out here, but much of these things can be a bit contrived – generic inspirational words thrown into the world with nowhere to land because they lack context.
I’m not sure if this short film is really aimed at motivating, but at first glance it follows the same formula as those I’ve described. Then you realize it has that magical ingredient known as context. It’s not preaching about growth and development, or even changing a single thing in order to achieve something grand. It’s reminding us to simply be aware and be accepting.
At the risk of sounding completely cliché, this is one of the beauties of surfing. Once you’re hooked you’ll never really be “good enough,” but that never seems to stop us from having unbridled, pure fun (some of us) – even if it only lasts for a moment.
“See what is. If you can do that, you have no further problem.”
Take that generic personal development videos. Just surf.
