Shin Megami Tensei IV - Neutrality and Zen - True Path

[Samsaric Spiral]

In SMT IV, there exists a land called "Mikado" located right above Tokyo. It forms a kind of "ceiling" to Tokyo preventing sunlight. It is connected by a tower that was erected by a Masakado, a national Japanese demon, that was manipulated by YHVH for his goal of expending his control. You start off the game as a "samurai", with your three friends Jonathan, Isabeau, and Walter. The main problem begins when a "black samurai", a demon named Lilith disguised in a black suit, starts giving people in Mikado books to read, and this causes them to turn into demons due to a surge of powerful emotions they have never felt in their complacent life-styles. In Mikado, the angels have complete rule and YHVH is able to subjugate his law onto the people. There is complete order but people are not able to express themselves through powerful emotions or freedom. Mikado is a world betrayed in its faith in God. In SMT II you must kill God in all the path whereas in SMT IV you only kill one of his avatars. For some reason, YHVH wants to always destroy Tokyo, for it does not live up to His standards. In the game, you have 3 friends called Isabeau, Jonathan, and Walter. Each represent an Ideaology. Jonathan represents "preservation of status quo", a henchman of YHVH, for he wants to keep Mikado away from the influence of Tokyo. Later it is shown he let himself turn into Merkabah, a fusion of the 4 archangels. He wishes to destroy Tokyo and keep Mikado "innocent". I am skimming over a lot of stuff, but I will get to the main point of Chaos-Neutral-Law alignments.

Likewise, in Tokyo, demons run amok and it is in utter chaos. It is a land where only the strong-willed survive. As a consequence, no hierarchical authoritative structure exists there. As a consequence, Tokyo is drowned in anarchy. Destroying Mikado and letting demons run amok is Walter's goal. Later it is shown Walter, your friend, fused with Lord Lucifer to make an age of destruction with no regard for preservation.

Early in the game, there is one man, named Tayama, who is able to keep Tokyo in a somewhat bearable position. He does this by making red pills for demon consumption from the brains of a select-few children he has in a facility. This serves as an analogy for Mikado; a privileged minority that lives off the majority's back. So what are we supposed to do? Let the demons run amok or create an age of preservation (at the cost of Tokyo) in Mikado?

In the game, you have the choice among the Law, Chaos, Neutral, or Nothingness routes. The neutral route is one of tolerance to both preservation and destruction, and it is obviously the best route. It is about upending the status quo and wishing to preserve it as well. The Nothingness route is just about plunging everything into a blackhole, and the 4 White Ones (i.e., entities that exist beyond space-time in the expanse that takes you to alternate realities in the future) try to manipulate you to choose this "bad ending".

I feel as if the developers of Shin Megami Tensei have a bias towards neutral. The developers of this game portray both Jonathan and Walter as extremists, willing to do anything for their causes. The path of neutrality is one of impartiality and trying to do the best for the people, something every leader should do. Rather than imposing one's beliefs onto people, for the sake of preservation, (Law) or encouraging complete lack of inhibitions in regards to desire (Chaos), the neutral path is one of being in the middle while being tolerant of both. Isabeau, the neutral hero, says here:

"The more I think about what is best for everyone, the more I see what an illusory concept it is. However much a choice may seem to be best for everyone, there is always one for whom it dissatisfying. Is it not, in fact, possible to choose an outcome that is "best" for all...?"

Neutrality is the only path not marked by extremism. Fixating on either chaos or order, at the exclusion of one or the other, simply leads to despair. One must be tolerant of both preservation and destruction in life. Stephen, one of the characters, summarized it well when he said, "Preservation and destruction. They are opposite ends of the spectrum. Do you mean to say you will be tolerant of both and strive the thorny path of neutrality?"

A lot of people argue either Law or Chaos are superior to Neutral because they come to more defined conclusions. However, this is incorrect. The path of neutrality upends BOTH the status quo and wishes to preserve it as well. The distinction between Law and Chaos is ultimately superfluous (i.e., unification of opposites, something Zen Buddhist Hui-Neng was fond of talking). In their extremism, they start to resemble something truly painful. The point is to come in control of ourselves and realize we're like "Gods who can give others hopes or despair". Isabeau expounds on this when she tells Jonathan, "As humans we must be accepting of both goodwill and spite. We can always yearn for what's best without falling into monistic extremes. Such as we have lived thus far. That is why I placed my hopes in the possibilities of humanity that is where my hope lies." We must live the middle-way of neutrality, as Zen Buddhists. My favorite philosopher J. Krishnamurti said, "Be a beacon of light onto others."

In the Law Path, Merkabah dismisses Isabeau's behavior by saying she has been tainted by reading manga. The reason why books affected the citizens of Mikado so deeply is for they have never felt strong emotions. The status quo is maintained by keeping the people innocent to the realities of life. The law of God restricts the capability of Mikaba's citizens to express themselves or cultivate their character, for there lacks a strong contrast or dynamic flow between joy and affection AND pain and sadness. Law and Chaos both need each other to have strength. In contrast, the "strong" in Ginza, a city in Japan that seeks to actualize the Chaos goal of only "the strong survive", seek to impose themselves on others, believing it to break hierarchical structures associated with the Law path. The problem with this is it only permits pain and sadness, for where does compassion exist in this picture? Moreover, it has no restrictions placed at all on human emotions, and this leads to similar problems as Mikaba citizens. It is important to remember neither Law nor Chaos are good or bad, but an extremism fixated on either-or can always be considered harmful.

The Neutral path is canon because it included over 15 hours of extra gameplay after encountering the 4 Whites, activating all the terminals, and a more "complete" ending. The developers seem to have had a bias for the Neutral path because we also seem a lot of praise for the people of Tokyo (i.e., bias is not a bad thing in this case). Through the HOPE of the people in Tokyo, the protagonist and Isabeau were able to enable happiness for everyone on the neutral path, without sacrificing any essential component of their psyches. One must be tolerant of both Mikado and Tokyo, and it does not make sense to sacrifice the people of either one. At the end of the Neutral route, citizens of Mikado flee to Tokyo, and Mikado separates from it, and this symbolizes how it is not essential to destroy any one end of the spectrum of Chaos/destruction/spite or Law/preservation/goodwill. Just remain balance, as in Zazen. As a metaphor, it is only when Shiva and Vishnu harmoniously/synchronously work together, may Brahman come! With the sunlight coming once more on Tokyo, your vision of the yound girl comes again, and she grows older thanking you for reviving Tokyo. One cannot praise Shiva at the expense of Vishnu, or praise Vishnu at the expense of Shiva. The neutral path is the only cohesive and complete path. The other ones sucked, unless you prefer genocide.

Burn a cross while at the same time planting a garden, that's my motto!

Law is associated with God, order and peace. In the game it is represented by the Messian religion, and the colors blue and white. The Law alignment promotes order and safety, but taken to an extreme it leads to dictatorship and elitism. The main goal of the Law factions in the game is to establish the Thousand Year Kingdom, a paradise on Earth ruled over by God. The truth is that only a select few who are judged worthy would be allowed to live in the Thousand Year Kingdom, while everyone else would be killed. Those who do live in the Thousand Year Kingdom would be subject to its strict, absolute laws.

Chaos is associated with Lucifer, freedom and war. In the game it is represented by the Gaian religion, and the colors red and black. This alignment promotes freedom of choice, thought and action above all else in stark contrast to the controlling nature of the Law alignment. However, this freedom can lead to a vast amount of suffering and anarchy, leading the world into a primal state of unsuppressed vice and survival of the fittest. The main goal of the Chaos factions is to crush the Messian forces opposing them and attain complete and total power over Tokyo.

Also known as "Balance", the Neutral alignment accepts the need for laws to govern the world but not at the cost of personal freedom. It rejects the concept of relying on Lawful or Chaotic powers to focus instead on personal empowerment, respect for the rights of others, and the inherent strength of Mankind. Although the most idealistic alignment, it is also the hardest alignment to attain because of its isolationist nature and requires the person to make enemies of both the Law and Chaos factions, destroying everything to gain everything.

[Samsaric Spiral]

Lao Tzu was in the first Shin Megami Tensei btw:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0knQOH3J0j0

"Can you sense it? The world... the galaxy... the universe... The common thread that connects all exists... You too are a part of it..." —Taijorokun's final words in the Neutral ending of the game.