I finished watching the movie Troy today, and I must say it was awesome. The thing that I like about it is that it is a different story line than other stories of the trojan war. For instance another of my favorite movies is Helen of Troy which has alot of similarities but still makes it seem like you are watching a different movie. If you haven’t seen it I highly recomend it. The main difference I noticed was how Achiles died.
In Helen of Troy he is killed in a battle between Paris and Achiles. Paris throws a spear at him and it hits him in his heal and he dies from that as the legends go. However in Troy, they touch on the fact that this legend was most likely a myth and even set the basis for how the myth may have begun.
In Troy when Achiles dies he is shot first by an arrow in his heel seemingly on accident. They do not touch on the legend of him being impervious in every other area. However they do touch on a rumor that he is not killable to which he responds “If that were true then I wouldn’ bother with a shield.” After beeing shot in the heel he stands up and Paris shoots him again in the chest. Achiles rips out the arrow and continues to advance on Paris. Paris shoots him again, and again the arrow is ripped out. He is shot about 4 or 5 times in the chest with arrows each one being ripped out before he finally falls dead with the arrow still through his ankle. He is discovered like this with seemingly no wounds other than the one in his ankle giving rise to the legend that he was only vulnerable in that one spot. I loved that twist of reality on the story.
I just love ancient greek and roman mythology. My love for the study of religions I have been developing recently comes from this I think. I am not a religous person by any means and dont believe in any religion per se. Not to say that they are all wrong because honestly, I dont know. But there are so many facts and truths out there that debunk just about every religion it makes it hard to believe in one. I believe religion came about for the one purpose, control, which has evolved over time but essentialy achieves the same goal. Alot of people need religion in thier lives to explain themselves or to have something to hold on to and believe in, and I don’t blame them. As someone who does not have a religion it does all seem kind of pointless to think that you live out your 70-100 years and then there is just nothing. Having something to look forward to keeps you going. That is what I believe religion has evolved into today. In its most basic form however, religion is merely a way to control the mass population through means of fear. I don’t necisarily think this is a bad thing as people do need to kept in line somehow. However what I do think is bad is the people who exploit it to gain more power. For example(since were already on the subject and I don’t want to piss off any catholics), the Greek Gods. In Anceint Greece kings would say that they were granted power by the gods and they were given certain rights. Thier subjects bought into that because they were scared of what may happen if they did not. This has continued throughout time and is still the same today as it was then, only it has evolved with the times. Oh well, sorry to any catholics but it looks like I am going to touch on it. The catholic church for instance, uses its power to get what it wants, and it gains its power from persuading people that they will go to hell if they dont buy into what they are selling.
Well, I think I will stop ranting now before I piss alot of people off heh. Who knows, if this gets received well and generates some intelligent conversation instead of tons of flames, I may post more of my personal views on certain subjects.
I am also non religious and believe many of the same things you do. When you look at what happened in Waco, people talk about this crazy man and his followers. Most organized religions really aren’t that much different, they are just lacking the insanity. The heads of the religions create a world of fear for their followers, claiming that if they don’t do this or that or behave in a certain way that god will judge them and punish them.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that the church doesn’t do good in the world… I just often question the motives and morals of those higher up in the chain of command. Some religions claim homosexuality is a sin, they cast out anyone who shows sign of this “disease” or “behavior” .. yet their own priests molest little boys and they cover it up to “protect their own”. They are hypocritical in so many ways that I don’t think I have enough space here to go over it all.
However, like many people my age who have lost loved ones and are starting to see the older generations of our families die away.. I wish I did have some belief because then I’d have the comfort of thinking my family are somewhere wonderful where I will see them again one day.
Six of one and half a dozen of the other I guess… Nothing is perfect and if you want to have the comfort, you have to overlook the flaws.
Wow, I do not know how I never saw this comment. Must have just slipped by. I totally agree with you, I don’t have a problem with anyone else choosing to believe in a religion, they need that ‘comfort’ or sense of purpose. It, however, is just not for me. And I can only hope that those people who do think they need to believe in something that they know deep down is most likely not true will one day realize what a fallacy it all is. And for those who are so devout to thier religion and believe it so much that the previous statement does not apply to them, I applaud you for having such strong convictions even though its not for something I think is worthwhile. It is, after all, all a matter of opinion and personal choice, I am not here to make the choice for you.