THOUGHT PAPER 3

Do you agree with Madara?

Madara the Cold-hearted Utilitarian

Madara Uchiha was the legendary leader of the Uchicha clan and a shinobi who dreamed
of peace for the entire world. He is one of the main antagonists in the entire series, but
what makes Madara such a captivating villain is that he has a point.

At its core, his vision for the world is altruistic; he wants peace and for everyone to achieve
their dreams and desires, but this comes at heavy costs. Madara was more than happy
to commit many atrocities in order to fulfill his Eye of the Moon plan, making him a
utilitarian by nature. For Madara, the ends justify the means; killing thousands of shinobi
is nothing compared to a world where everyone is at peace, a world where the Eye of the
Moon Plan is successful.

The goal of the Eye of the Moon plan was to be able to cast the infinite Tsukoyomi on the
moon to trap the world in a dream, thus ending the cycle of suffering at the cost of
removing the very concept of free will.

Madara’s dream is a hedonistic dream and checks all three of the generally accepted
principles of utilitarianism. First, pleasure is the only thing that has value; the infinite
Tsukoyomi allows everyone to live out their greatest desires, thus eliminating suffering
and making happiness the only thing you can experience. Second, actions are right only
if they promote happiness. In the infinite Tsukoyomi, there is virtually no unhappiness, as
they are living in a dream. And third, everyone’s happiness counts equally. There are no
losers in the infinite Tsukoyomi, and no one has to suffer for the benefit of others.

All this makes Madara sound like a good guy. Yes, he had good intentions. Who wouldn’t
want a utopia where everyone is happy and nobody suffers? But making the decision that
the current world isn’t worth it and that an illusion, the infinite Tsukoyomi, would be better
for everyone, removes the autonomy of humans. Even though they would get to live out
their greatest desires, a good majority of people would be against living in a dream, myself
being one of them. This makes his actions, though for the greater good, incredibly selfish,
as he is quite literally making a decision for the entire world.

The infinite Tsukuyomi and the experience machine

The infinite Tsukuyomi is an extremely powerful genjustu that traps the entire world in an
illusion, enslaving the human population in a dream. This sounds very familiar to Robert
Nozick’s critique of utilitarianism, The Experience Machine. The reasons why one would
not agree with the experience machine also apply to why one might disagree with Madara.

But the Infinite Tsukuyomi is an imperfect version of the machine, with numerous flaws,
some of which are shown in the show. This would lead to the discovery that the dream
they are living in is just an illusion. Some will want to opt out of the machine after such a
revelation, while others may want to stay. Madara takes out the choice and forces
everyone to be plugged in, which dismisses the individual and is part of the reason why
his vision for the world is so flawed.

Naruto: A Tale of Two Fates

Naruto is a show heavily influenced by Buddhism, with themes such as reincarnation

Hashirama and Madara are two very prominent characters in the story and can be seen
as the first iterations of Mara and Buddha. Buddha is Hashirama, the beloved savior, a
champion of the people, and a symbol of love and enlightenment. While Mara is obviously
Madara, loathed instead of loved and never once having defeated Buddha, just like how
Madara has never been able to defeat Hashirama, even though they are opposing forces,
they aren’t black and white, as neither of them is good nor evil.
Buddha’s path to enlightenment is filled with suffering and confrontation with the harsh
reality we live in and the various challenges that come along with it, challenges that we
often fail at and may lead us down the path of temptation. Pain is necessary on the path
of the Buddha.

Mara’s path, on the other hand, consists of giving up on trying to find enlightenment and
living in eternal bliss under the illusion of pleasure, eliminating pain but at the cost of
halting progress, much like the Eye of the Moon plan.

Almost all of the characters in Naruto were given chances to choose between these two
paths at one point. Both Obito and Naruto were stated as potential Buddhas and were
very similar characters at the start. But at one point, Obito tried to save Rin, choosing to
avoid pain and, because of this, straying away from the path of enlightenment, starting
his path as Mara. Choosing to let someone you love die is definitely an extreme of the
pain you have to go through on the path of enlightenment, but a necessary pain
nonetheless.

Like this, Madara could have been a Buddha, but the death of his brother, Izuna, was
enough for him to change paths and become a Mara.

Sympathizing with the Villain

For a show where torches are passed down and change is constant, Madara’s ideals are
very fitting for an antagonist. Someone who wants to stop the wheel of suffering at the
cost of halting innovation I don’t agree with Madara and his vision of a world devoid of
suffering, but I can understand him.

He was a good guy at first, great by all measures, talented, loving, and having dreams for
a better world. He was gifted but also lost at every crucial moment. He was good, but in
a bad environment where kids fight in wars and death is an everyday occurrence,
In some parts, I agree with him. Circling back to Buddhism, life is indeed full of suffering,
but life wouldn’t be what it is without it.

"You feel pain... Because you’re still alive."

Is what Madara said to Obito when the latter questioned his mortality. Pain is part of what
ensures us that we are still alive and that we are living in reality.

Though yes, Madara’s vision for the world would be pleasurable and pain would be
absent, the struggle and hardships of real life that make our dreams meaningful would
also not exist. It forces those trapped under it to be happy without eliminating the problems
of human existence. It is a solution that denies autonomy and any sort of growth that may
come with it, effectively putting progress at a standstill.

Moreover, nothing worthwhile is achieved through pleasure. Pain and suffering are both
ingredients that make the eventual pleasure of success that much sweeter. To add on,
problems are a part of our everyday lives; they are part of what makes us human. We
cannot control that, but what we can control is how we react to those problems. No matter
what life throws in our way or what we may go through, it is ultimately up to us whether
we want to follow Madara on the path of the Mara or choose to move forward on the path
of the Buddha.

https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Eye_of_the_Moon_Plan

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/u/utilitarianism.asp

https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Infinite_Tsukuyomi