On Control

Anakin Skywalker, who we know will eventually be Darth Vader, is spiraling out of control. He has spent most of his young life on the path to becoming a Jedi knight. He has toiled as a mechanic, a solider in the war, and as a political pawn of both the Jedi and the Sith lords. He has seen his mother die. He has nightly dreams of the only one he has ever loved dying in childbirth. He is afraid.

The losses he has suffered in life are beyond his control. Skywalker, like the rest of us, ultimately is afraid of loss. Yoda, his Jedi master, has always warned him of becoming fearful of loss. "The fear of loss is a path to the Dark Side," he says. This fear of loss consumes Anakin. He strays to the Dark Side by desiring power to conquer loss. His need is to be able to control those things that happen to him and those he loves so that loss will not happen. This need is so strong that it warps his soul (reflective in his bodily transformation) into something less than human.

In life, control makes us feel safe. To have control over your job, your relationships, your body, your future all make us feel like we are the "masters" of our lives. To have control means that things are orderly. You do A and of course B will follow. In your job if you work hard you will succeed. If you are knowledgeable about the subject you will achieve high marks. You can expect to be the person you set your mind out to become. How others see you and what they think about you relies on your ability to maintain relationships. Do the right thing. Control. Say the right thing. Control. Live in the right place. Control. Have the right friends. Control. Love the right person. Control. Then disaster strikes.

Again, Yoda points Anakin to the now famous syllogism, "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering." For example, fear of losing a job. You begin to hate all of those who appear ready to take it from you. You then either become paranoid about when you job will let you go or who will take it. You must take steps to eradicate those who are you competitors. Suffering. You are afraid of losing your wife. You begin to feel she is spending too much time with her male friends. You become delusional that she is cheating behind your back. You become either accusatory toward her or detract from her. Suffering.

We are afraid of losing. We are afraid of trying. We are afraid of not trying. We are afraid of failing. We become preoccupied with our faults. We become preoccupied with our choices where we could have controlled life. We become angry at ourselves and the world for not having things turn out as they should. We suffer.

"Train yourself to let go... of everything you fear to lose." - Yoda