I’ve been exploring the work of Alan Watts and his metaphysical perspective on the world as drama. It seems to echo two Shakespeare quotes that we’ve all come to know and love:

“All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,”

As well as

“There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”

What if Shakespeare was onto something more profound than we realize? What if Watts is right and all of this is just an improvisational play that we’re putting on?

Buddhism teaches us there no self, no fixed identity that we can latch on to. An authentic self doesn’t exist so don’t get too attached to any aspect of yourself because you’ll just drive yourself mad. Change is the only constant in the universe.

Like actors on a stage we put on costumes, take on roles, say our lines, act out a part, and the part we play is different from year to year, week to week, day to day, or even hour to hour depending on the circumstance. Therefore, to expect any kind of stability or commitment to that part from yourself or others would setting yourself up for pain and suffering. Sure, we can play mother, father, son, daughter, sister, brother, husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, teacher, student, etc for a while. But recognize it for what it truly is and that like everything else in the world, your identity or rather your role is impermanent.

It seems like such a liberating idea to think that if we recognize that this is all just another drama and you and I are merely actors, we can actually enjoy life a bit more. We wouldn’t get too hung up on props, scenery, soundtrack. We wouldn’t get too attached to other actors because we would recognize that like us they too are just playing a role as a response to a particular improvisational cue. It’s all just comedy, tragedy, farce, mystery, action, and thriller all at the same time.

Our society uses words like ‘fake’, ‘poser’, ‘inauthentic’ to describe certain kinds of people and we fear those labels so we’re constantly seeking out our true and authentic selves. But if you are just an actor and your true self doesn’t exist, you can create it. You can play with your role and try out different characters until you find one that you like. If, after a while, you find that you’re not suited for that role, you can chose another one thereby saving yourself and others the pain and suffering of trying to be something that you’re not or cannot be. And if you’ve ever want to come back to it, you can try again and see if it works for you the second, third, or umpteenth time around.

That’s what I call letting go! 🙂

What are your thoughts?