The Caucasian Chalk Circle,
Is a play by Bertolt Brecht, written in 1944. It’s a parable about justice and motherhood, set within the context of a land dispute in the Soviet Union after World War II.
Plot
The story begins with two Soviet collective farms arguing over who should control a fertile valley. To ease the tension, a singer tells the tale of “The Chalk Circle,” set in the country of Georgia. The main plot follows a servant girl named Grusha who rescues an abandoned baby, Michael, during a political uprising. Despite the dangers, she raises him as her own.
Years later, the biological mother, Natella, returns and demands Michael back. The dispute is settled by a judge who uses a chalk circle to determine the true mother. The Judge draws a circle in chalk and ask two mothers to pull the child to them. When the child starts to cry in pain, Grusha gave up early letting Natella to win. Grusha’s genuine love and care for Michael are proven when she refuses to harm him, unlike Natella.
This play highlight's themes of justice, sacrifice, and the true meaning of motherhood, in general. But it also hides some important philosophy about our mindfulness practice.
Happiness Greed.
Let's replace the child with happiness. It maybe the happiness you get from eating sugar. Listening to a song, or by taking a walk. It can be happiness you can buy from a shop or attain from meditation. It may be happiness which is drawn by an artist in a painting. It may come from your child, like in the play. Or from some close relatives or friends. Now, imagine you are playing against the nature. To win the happiness you must pull it towards yourself. If you win you are guaranteed some happiness.
You will be able to enjoy a beautiful sunset, drinking your cocktail with a plate of baked fish listening to fine music in an elegant hut by the beach if you win.
This is how we play the game. This is how we were taught to play the game. And I find this everywhere. Everyone talks about being successful. Being happy. Being in a continuous loop of growth and development. They follow the seven habits of successful people. Some twelve, to some, it is The Secret - Law of Attraction.
But when you take a back, step back and look at the end game we see, that there is a barrier. We are not allowed to leave the courtroom with the prize that we intend to keep with ourselves forever. At the door, we are asked to drop everything we have gained. So, what would you do. Would you be wise enough to recognize, the game from the point of view of the Judge?
Choosing peace over Happiness.
The game, that we play in life, is just like the game in the Caucasian Chalk circle. The winners are not the ones who plays with greed. Winners are the ones who plays with pure intentions in heart. This must be emphasized and be carved into our information sphere from early life. So, if we are not allowed to bring our winning money to the next part of the game, maybe why put effort to win it at all? Someone may argue, no, with the winnings you can do better. You can help others to win their games. But is that all? Can we fool ourselves everything we do by pulling the happiness child is to help others in turn. That is to return it to the mother?
Let's imagine you sit down to meditate. No, this time you decide you will want peace, not happiness from it. And you attain the peace, for some time, and you start to lose it. Then you get angry and ask why? did you play the game correctly?
Maybe it was wrong, Wanting the peace is also wanting something. If the mind is working according to universal rules, then it is not ours by default to what happens in it. The moment you want to change its path you are trying to pull the child to yourself. Hence the greed is at work there before even you know it.
Maybe the way to win the game is to lessen the power of the will. As the will is the one which keeps feeding the life.
コメント