The debate is nonsense. There is no debate. Michael Jordan was the greatest basketball player of all time. He played both ends, he could drive the basket. He hit free throws, three-point shots, and fadeaways. He prepared meticulously and always wanted the last shot, even when he missed. Jordan could single handedly change the momentum of a game. He raised the play of his teammates around him. He was creativity with a basketball, doing unimaginable things that surprised even himself.  

It was Game 1 of the 1992 NBA Finals, Chicago Bulls versus Portland Trail Blazers. Jordan was on fire, hitting three pointer after three pointer. After his sixth three-point basket, he turned to jog back on defense. As he did, he put his hands out to the side, palms up, and shrugged his shoulders. His face was a mixture of surprise and resignation, as if he was thinking, “I know. It’s amazing. I don’t know what’s up.” I remember that look. Even as a fifteen-year-old, I knew I was witnessing something remarkable. Greatness, yes. Best basketball player of all time in his prime leading his team to a Championship against the best players in the world, yes. A supreme athlete, absolutely. But it was more than those things. There was an ineffable force moving through his form, surprising himself as much as anyone else. That was what was so beautiful about the shrug. In that moment, Jordan was an experiencer of his own greatness rather than the doer. 

I’ve been playing with this idea of greatness lately. And I swear the answer is in that shrug. Especially when we expand the field of play to Life itself. Greatness is Living The Shrug. Greatness is doing the work to empty completely, then getting out of the way to let God play through. Greatness is: Creation flowing unencumbered through a human. 

I quite like this definition. For one, it is universal.  There are no exclusions, it takes no money, no skillset honed over years of blood sweat and tears. It can be achieved (and lost) instantaneously, and yet, is a lifelong endeavor unlimited by the wear and tear on aging joints. Then there is the beautiful byproduct of living this life of greatness. When Shakti is flowing through an open human being, their eyes sparkle, they glow from the inside. They become Love itself. And Joy itself. And Creation itself. They don’t have to do anything in particular to be beautiful, they simple are. They don’t think their way into happiness, they radiate joy. They don’t cloak themselves in spiritual identity, they live naked, exposed, dancing with the unfolding. They lift and inspire simply by being Light, not because they have deemed it their purpose. Sure, from that state beautiful things may be produced or not produced, achieved or not achieved. We may see art, magic, music, poetry, deep presence, or feats of athleticism that are creative and awe inspiring. We may be so lucky as to experience those moments when the human is just along for the ride, shocked by our own performance, knowing full well some awe-inducing abundant power is moving through us, and that we are not the doer. Or maybe there is no performance. Maybe we simply live the experience of Shakti filling us entirely until we are pure being, pure presence, with no need to do or not do anything in particular other than shine. 

That is not to say living the shrug is passive. Living the shrug is anything but passive. Life is an interactive sport. Jordan was relentless in his preparation, ruthless in his expectations, unyielding in his work ethic, and dangerously competitive. If I were the Infinite and Eternal One, I’d want to play in people like Jordan. In the person who tries. In the person who shows up especially when the game is on the line. The person who is engaged, intense, enthusiastic and giddy about getting to be alive and participate in this awe inspiring creation. I’d want to live in the person who wants to play, who wants to put themselves on the line as time is running out. Perhaps in comparison, the unshrug is living in fear, in a tight, constricted human. Or one for whom the goal is comfort. Or who wants to manipulate and control Life into a little box of parameters that will make him feel safe and okay. Or perhaps the unshrug is living in mind only, never stepping into the game, but creating an alternate reality of identities and ways of keeping score that are self-generated and require no absolute authentic criterion or genuine interaction on the field of play. I don’t know, I don’t like thinking about the unshrug really. It feels quite bad.  

I guess my point is this, we are all playing God’s Lila. Existence is God’s sport. The field of play is the time between our birth and death, at least. Whatever the timeframe, the goal and the game become the same. Get rid of everything that isn’t God. Show up. Do the work. Empty. And let God play. This is the merge, this is the goal, this is the game, this is our nature. Oh, and it’s also super fun. Live the Shrug.