Posted by:
chainsofmind
(
)
Date: February 02, 2011 09:07PM
This is a continuation of the thread that I started with the Carl Sagan quote:
"It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
I said, in reference to the 'state of mind' that one can reach in which this reality appears to be of an illusionary nature:
"But evidently this 'delusion' has some explainable and predictable elements to it that we might as well not delude ourselves about."
Hello said,
"Don't know what it's called, but yoga gets there."
"As the Mormons have demonstrated, you can parse the false, but it remains false. That is, you can analyze the universe with an eye to improving your existence, but you will just make yourself comfortable in a falsehood. You will remain bound."
"Yes, we play the game with grace, but as I see it, your comment could well have been said by a hamster (with a "positive attitude") on an exercise wheel."
"When the hamster finally gets tired of running on the wheel (and he will), then he'll be ready to explore his extra-cage options vis a vis "reality"."
Maybe we are just hamsters on a wheel, and this entire existence is of an illusionary nature. But I think the quote still holds true. If the nature of this reality is an illusion, and we with our feeble minds are all caught up in it, than understanding that, would be part of grasping the universe as it really is. The problem comes when you try to prove it. Other than personal insights, it is pretty much a useless insight in the 'real' world.
Besides, its not like you can simply step out of the wheel and into the 'real reality' for good. (at least not in this life) These realizations come from meditating in the here and now of this existence, so, illusionary or not, where we are now, is still part of some larger whole.
So to me, grasping the universe as it really is, means to do our best to understand our existence based on what we do know, and maybe even our own insights, and to be honest with ourselves. Mormonism is a fine example of this. When we are honest with ourselves, we find that we are duping ourselves. It may make some people happy, but it's still false. Did I step out of Mormonism only to find myself in another 'cage'? I sometimes think that. Where's the keys to this cage?