Free or NPC?

As a video game enthusiast, my son has watched and re-watched the movie “Free Guy”, starring Ryan Reynolds. It was about an “NPC” (non-player character) named Guy who does the same thing in a video game day in and day out.

An NPC, Guy in this case, is an inconsequential background character in a video game. But, since it was a movie, Guy eventually realizes that he could break free of his pre-determined role…that he could choose to be an actual player in the game, in spite of his programming.

And, since I’m a nerd and love to think about the symbolism, this got me pondering the idea of freedom.

Over the past few years, I’ve come to think of freedom as a state of mind. But recently, after picking up Determined, by Robert Sapolsky, I’ve had my beliefs challenged.

He makes the case, through a great deal of intense scientific reasoning, that free will is only an illusion. And, as uncomfortable as I am with that idea, much of it makes incredible sense. If it is scientific fact that no free will exists, as a society, we must reconsider a whole host of things…and do better. We would need to look at how we treat persons convicted of crimes, and re-think how we handle addiction and poverty.

If people lack free will, then it would be rather sensible to acknowledge that everyone is doing their best in response to what nature and nurture has thrown at them. Furthermore, we might develop a less punitive, judgmental approach to society’s ills and find ways to meet people where they are, warts and all.

But…

I can’t help thinking that there is a piece missing. Sure, we are all running some type of program, just like Guy, in the movie. But, Guy was only stuck in the program until he realized that there was something other than the program.

You see, as far as I can tell, the argument against free will is rooted in physical reality; it is tied to the perspective that the program is all there is. 

But, and I know this is a strange question, what’s beyond that?

If there is no free will on the surface…in the world of matter, perhaps we need to look for it somewhere else. Moving beyond the physical into the realm of consciousness, can we regain a way to determine our own path? If we can get in touch with the essence at the core of ourselves, the magic that animates us in the physical world, can we change those things that seem so absolute?

Since I’ve gotten into the weird and wonderful world of meditation, I’ve come to believe that many high-level teachers were aiming at just that. In a variety of spiritual teachings, mystics recognize the difficulty and complexity at the heart of human problems. Whether or not they had the scientific language to describe it, I suspect they knew a lot of what Sapolsky writes about in his book.

The “endpoint”, if there is one in mediative practice, is often called “liberation” which sounds an awful lot like freedom to me. If you do a google search and scroll through the results, you will come across a dizzying array of complex terms and ancient Sanskrit to describe a liberated state. But what does it mean exactly? And how would a person go about getting there?

I’m not entirely sure, because I’m not at mystic level myself, but I have a hunch.

I think the beginning of actual free will is the idea of metacognition, or paying attention to what you are thinking about. Because that stream of information, that voice in your head, is the determined program that Sapolsky speaks so eloquently about.

Essentially, the work-around to grasping at ineffable freedom would have to come from evaluating this unconscious stream of thought that is ever present within each of us. And, once we know what we are thinking about, we can then find a way to become more present, such that we won’t let those “determined” thoughts take over. In order to become more present, meditation is used as the training modality.

The practice of meditation can sharpen our minds; to be aware of when the voice of our programming takes over, allowing us to regain control. Ultimately, done with enough frequency, a person will notice their thoughts and feelings as they arise and let go of what doesn’t serve them.

Because so very few people do this, I do think that, for them free will can’t exist. As long as the program is unexamined, a person remains in a loop of existence, much like an NPC. Every day, every response, every feeling- they’re all the same.

For people who incorporate this practice, although it is gradual, I think the programming loses ground after a time. Little by little, there is a recognition of thoughts that aren’t helpful. Little by little, those can be surrendered. Little by little, there is an awareness of another world of possibility.

Full liberation would then be the ability to keep the mind in a continually surrendered state…never judging or resisting circumstances, always in the flow.

So, after spending some time thinking about it, maybe freedom isn’t just a state of mind, but it is a state of mind on a continuum. Ultimate freedom and liberation being a state outside of the determined program. Being outside of the program, and I’m guessing here, might mean the ability to choose any or all directions in the video game, to become the programmer.

Or, to quote Guy: “Life doesn’t happen to be something that just happens to us.”