Avatar, The Movie - Some lessons in it for all of us.

If you haven't been to see James Cameron's 'Avatar', you might want to do so and soon. The reason being that to wait till it comes out on DVD, would probably downgrade the visual experience, to start with. No, seriously, take yourself off to a movie theatre and enjoy!

I watched it on the big screen during December and I came away with the definite feeling that my Clansman had done a sterling job in weaving a whole array of lessons into the story for mankind to take heed of, but before I launch into any of that, let me say that the cinematography was spellbinding, the musical score mesmerising. I even went out and bought the soundtrack!!

And the story...?

Well, let's get to that then, shall we?

The Age of Conquest

Watching, as the humans colonised the planet of Pandora, I couldn't help thinking of the Spanish conquest of Central and South America, the exploitation of the Congo, (well documented in the documentary, 'King Leopold's Ghost') and many other regions of the planet during the Age of Conquest. It highlighted man's greed, insatiable lusting after profit and gain, coupled with his wanton destruction of anything natural and beautiful to get at the perceived treasures of the world's 'El Dorados'.

Shades of man's obsession with gold...? That too, came to mind!

Disregard for cultures

The Na'vi, people who populate the planet of Pandora, are perceived as the villains, the simple race that are unwilling to relinquish the wealth of their home to a marauding monster race from another planet. Therefor, they must be eradicated, their culture destroyed and their forest home razed to the ground.

The Siritual Connection

To the Na'vi, their planet is a living thing, the forest and all in it is one with everything else.... including them! To surrender it, is to meekly kneel while the axeman sharpens his blade. Their planet is the centre of their beliefs and without it, there is no reason to live, so they do the only thing they can... fight back and fight they do!!

Pity it didn't work out with the same success when arrogant, ignorant, condescending colonialists and bounty seekers spread out across the globe in the preceding centuries of recent history and decimated almost everything in their paths to satisfy their insatiable hunger for wealth, fame and fortune.

And do you think it's any different today? Not on your Nellie!

Still we exploit the earth, ravage the natural areas of the globe, probe into her depths and then still have the audacity to spill our waste into her atmosphere and oceans... how dare we!!

Whoever created humans, did a bad job. For one, we have two destructive genes, (aggression and greed) that we pass on to every generation, as we rape, pillage and wage incessant war on each other, on our way to whatever is considered the utopia of existence. Never once do we stop and consider that the Earth, our Mother, is a living thing and sooner or later she will retaliate.

Humans beware... as I said in earlier inserts.... something has to give and when it does... Eish!

Watch and Learn

Like I said; go and watch the movie if you haven't already done so. If you have and missed this little perspective, go see it again... ten times if you have to, because subliminally, it's a warning to us. Pity we haven't already colonised a place like Pandora - sans the destruction - I'd be the first settler to sign up!