Skyrim Teaches Us How We Were Meant To Live
As my Skyrim-protege-brother said in his own words, “Get the fuck out of my way, Lydia.”
Skyrim gives a sense of accomplishment. Granted, all videogames are designed to tap into our pleasure systems to do this, but Skyrim does more than that. It sells us on a way of life.
What Can We Learn From Skyrim?
Do the quests make us feel stressed in Skyrim? Probably not. Why? Because each quest is broken down into little bit sized tasks that are readily accomplished. In just a few days time, you can build an amalgam of wealth, resources, and refined skill simply by following the train of one meaningful task after the other.
Each little brick that we build, and every quest we complete, gives us a sense of accomplishment because we feel we can still manage our tasks even though they challenge us.
The sensation of our veins pulsing with blood that we feel when we play Skyrim comes from the fact that we feel both challenged and comfortable. We need to be able to manage, but the managing should take all of our attention. Work should be every bit as pleasurable as this. Most of us almost never experience our work like this.
We are still stuck in a deep fear-based mindset that comes when we compare the task that’s before us with the overwhelming vision of what the completed task should look like.
If Michelangelo constantly worried himself with how incomplete the David was, he would have never found the strength to chisel away one vein at a time.
Skyrim Isn’t Always “Fun”, But That’s What Makes It So Fun.
Skyrim makes you work for it. I don’t always feel like spending an hour sweeping out a hidden cave full of undead with crap loot. But I go on anyway, not because I force myself, but because I am so engaged with what the end treasure will be.
I know there is something special — a dragon mask, an upgraded piece of armor, a new shout — waiting at the end. And it is that that we live for. We are designed to chase treasure.
There is nothing better than completing the daily meaningful tasks in pursuit of a goal that reaches deep in our gut, and stirs our blood and fire until we feel our whole body vibrate with engagement. Happiness is not the purpose of life, engagement is.
We are designed for a little adversity. Adversity makes the treasure even sweeter, and we will be glad for it before the end.
Choice
If one quest simply isn’t doing it for you, you can put it aside for the time being and pursue a quest that is doing it for you — or explore the world and stumble upon your own adventure.
The freedom to move around as you please — to experience true autonomy — is the building block that makes Skyrim so fulfilling. We must do whatever we can to secure the freedom of choice within our lives, and have some say over our fate.
Vastness
As you immerse yourself into this mysterious world full of surprises, Skyrim maintains a grand sense of vastness: hidden corridors, dark secrets, enchanted items, demons, divinities, and much more. Our world is vast too, even though we don’t always feel like it.
Our own little worlds can be overwhelming, and the news we hear about the happenings in the world make our world feel . . . insignificant. Insignificant won’t do. We have to get back to awe.
We should study memoirs from those who experience spiritual awakening. We should dive into the explorations of Lewis and Clark, the Conquistadors, and Alexander the Great.
We should watch gripping movies, listen to soul-shredding music, and study the psychic maps of the world laid out by great thinkers like Dante and Jung.
We should even study astrology, and risk contemplating an existence that is meaningfully connected, even though life often seems arbitrary.
The secret to life is that there is always more going on than what meets the eye. We simply have to ask and be asked: Do You Want To See?
