God's Earth and man's destiny in '2001: A Space Odyssey'

Rating: Null/10 (20 October 2005)

"God is the light of the heavens and the earth. The allegory of His light is that of a concave mirror behind a lamp that is placed inside a glass container. The glass container is like a bright, pearl-like star. The fuel thereof is supplied from a blessed oil-producing tree that is neither eastern, nor western. Its oil is almost self radiating; needs no fire to ignite it. Light upon light. God guides to His light whoever wills (to be guided). God thus cites the parables for the people. God is fully aware of all things. Quran - 24:35" The science fiction film 2001: A Space Odyssey presents us with a journey not only in space but in time. We begin in darkness, perhaps representative of the primordial and absolute nothingness. And then light emerges, depicted through sunrise. This opening shot is accompanied by the orchestral music of Richard Strauss, from his "Also Sprach Zarathustra" symphony. Darkness and light in Zoroastrianism have particular significance and are extremely suggestive in the movie. The religion of Zoroastrianism is widely held to be a forerunner of the major monotheistic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Zoroastrianism, light and fire are symbolic of the creative power itself. One cannot also ignore the reference to light in the book of Genesis, where we read that in the beginning "the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deepAnd God said: Let there be light." Thus, the transformation of darkness into light could be symbolic of existence. Moreover, one cannot ignore the works of Nietzsche who described the life and teachings of Zarathustra in his philosophy of the "Superman" that Man would evolve into. Thus existence is not a purposeless happening. Indeed human existence in the context of an evolutionary process can be towards a higher state of realization. We are engaged in the act of survivals or of self-preservation. This timeless challenge is portrayed in '2001' beginning with scenes from the Pleistocene world, where ape-man competes for food and water with other animals as well as with other rival groups from the same species. What is unfortunate but real is that the act of self-preservation can be violent. At least this proposition holds true historically as humans, who even after having developed consciousness have set out to slay others for resources. It should be noted that consciousness is not necessarily accompanied by moral excellence. Indeed, as it is portrayed in the movie, consciousness seems to be awakened in our progenitors as they used a bone as a tool. What is suggestive in '2001' is that scientific progress in and of itself does not curb the human tendency toward destruction and that we impart our innate and untamed violent tendencies to our own technological creations, as sophisticated as they may be. In the film, the ape-man throws the bone into the air and in one associative cut, the bone turns into a space vehicle "Discovery", suggesting that the human evolutionary progress advances through technological development. At the beginning, when viewing the spacecrafts and hearing this waltz, it seems that man has escaped the confines of this planet and by extension has escaped his own limitations and has reached a state of harmony and order. However we gradually come to realize that technological advances do not ensure inner or outer tranquility and Man, wherever s/he may be, must confront discord and destruction. While in the movie the ape-man used the tool to kill for food, we see Man in spacecrafts presented with variety of foods that is served by others on a tray as well as dispensed through machines. Thus the suggestion seems to be that even with abundance of food, that basic necessity of existence, for which our progenitors had to kill and be killed, and whether or not this basic human need is satisfied through technology (e.g., machines), the human existence is more sublime and beyond simple digestive requirements. Even in a materially abundant and advanced state, man is plagued with mistrust and discord as it is implied by Dr. Floyd's attempt to hide the discovery of the monolith from the Russian scientists or even from the crew of the Discovery. How else would a humanly created machine like HAL 9000 which was a major and a talking computer in the space ship strategies furthering its own interests? "...and I'm afraid that's something I cannot allow to happen," said HAL 9000 to astronaut David. As the film suggests, suspicion, egoism, destructive tendencies and other base human characteristics cannot be remedied through scientific progress. HAL 9000 is not a mere machine; it is a thinking entity upon which man has bequeathed his own intelligence, awareness, and character. And, this advanced creation displays human characteristics. When in a secure position, having control of the environment, the machine is confident, overpowering, and absolute in its dictates to others: "I'm sorry Dave; I can not let you do that,  But, when the situation changes and this thinking entity realizes that its survival is in jeopardy, there is a noticeable change in its expressions. "Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this...I 'honestly' think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill and think things over." When faced with punishment and destruction, the thinking being is transformed from an autocratic murderer to a negotiating, pleading, obedient and submissive one. The universal creative cycle continues and the embryo represents evolution, existence, and human potential. The embryo facing our familiar planet may suggest that Earth, with all of its particularities, is a designated place suited not only for human existence but for our evolutionary progress toward a noble state of self-actualization. "We have established you on earth, and we have provided for you the means of support therein. Rarely are you appreciative -- Quran 7:10" Perhaps our struggle ought to be for an internal transformation and not merely satisfying the needs for such necessities as food and water.