How social media is ruining social interaction
Rei Rō Abhilash Nambiar
September 19, 2020
Dear Dharma Brothers and Sisters,
May I have your kind attention please. And now that I have your kind attention, can I turn around and sell it to the highest bidder? Just kidding! I am not in the business of buying or selling attention. But I believe we are all trying to cultivate the practice of staying in a state of awareness and that does help us direct our attention to things that we might not otherwise notice. But coming back to the title of this essay, at least some of you I am sure have wondered if one’s attention is now a sellable commodity like razor blades or shampoo. For better or for worse, in this day and age, the answer is a yes. In the old days advertisers and politicians tried to get your attention for their ends, naturally it was only a matter of time that those good at grabbing our attention and holding on to it would be valued in their own right. In this world of cheap computing power and high interconnectivity, that art form is being perfected with precision.
It reshapes our interactions based on our cravings effectively leading us to neglect the everyday task of living with each other and living well.
Rei Rō Abhilash Nambiar
Social media is the means, your smart phone is the tool and your attention is a profit center. Given the value that Zen practice had in my life, it was a puzzle for me why videos of cute kittens had more social engagement than the wise saying of a Buddhist master. Once I understood the nature of the beast, it becomes easy to understand. Videos of cute kittens can lead to more engagement which makes money for advertisers, while the wisdom of a Zen master survives merely on Dana. So there is little incentive to promote it on a medium that is geared towards profit.
This Hungry Ghost feeds on your attention and changes it into money and it is never going to be satisfied with just enough. In the 21st century, it is the form taken by Mara, the personification of the three poisons that separates us from enlightenment. It reshapes our interactions based on our cravings effectively leading us to neglect the everyday task of living with each other and living well. Healthy interactions are replaced with thumbs up and smiley faces, the real world is replaced with cyberspace.
So, am I asking you all to delete your Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, sell your smart phones and try going back to living like it was the 80s? Not really. Practice to me is about living in a state of awareness in the world as is. Mara will always try to assert his power in some shape or form, it is his nature. He is part of the things as they are, the part of the world as is. Engaging with Mara from the default state is certainly unhealthy, even destructive, but from a state of awareness comes the opportunity to engage with it skillfully. Therefore, a big part of Zen practice for me today is being aware of what draws my attention. Next time Mara tries to sell my attention, at least I shall be aware that he tried. From the awareness comes the opportunity to creatively engage with the world.
Let me know how you deal with this beast as you go about your daily living. Feedback, comments and constructive criticism are always appreciated. You may email me at feedback2reiro@pm.me
References:
Living with the Devil: A Meditation on Good and Evil by Stephen Batchelor
Weird Canadian Family Gives Up On Pretending Like It’s 1986 from Gizmodo
The Social Dilemma (2020) from Netflix
