HOW TO SEE THROUGH AN ILLUSION

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9qsvmqm-Uw

Srimad Bhagavatam (SB 1.7.6) Class by Srila Prabhupada on
All Problems Are Illusion – given at Geneva, May 31, 1974

WHAT IS AN ILLUSION?

Prabhupāda: Illusion means taking one thing for another. That is called illusion. Just like in the desert, accepting the sand as water. That is called illusion. Similarly, every one of us who are identified with this body, he’s under illusion. That is a false thing, but he has no knowledge.

Prabhupāda: Misconceiving one thing for another thing is called illusion. For example, accepting a rope as a snake is illusion, but the rope is not false. The rope, as it exists in the front of the illusioned person, is not at all false, but the acceptance is illusory. Therefore the wrong conception of accepting this material manifestation as being divorced from the energy of the Lord is illusion, but it is not false. And this illusory conception is called the reflection of the reality in the darkness of ignorance. Anything that appears as apparently not being “produced out of My energy” is called māyā. The conception that the living entity is formless or that the Supreme Lord is formless is also illusion.

Simply put, it’s when we have a goal or focus based on an incorrect perception. That perception is usually based on our senses. “From rags to riches” and “The American Dream ” are such illusions. Just because a handful of people were fortunate, we want to believe it will happen to us too, because the other 5 senses: eye, ear, nose, tongue and genitals, want to enjoy more and better sense gratification. Another classic example is gambling, just because somebody (supposedly) wins the jackpot, millions of people in the hope of also winning, buying lottery tickets. – The illusory truth effect is the tendency to believe false information to be correct after repeated exposure (Wikipedia) –

All ordinary transactions and dealings became polluted with cheating, even between friends. And in familial affairs, there was always misunderstanding between fathers, mothers and sons, between well-wishers, and between brothers. Even between husband and wife there was always strain and quarrel. (S.B. 1.14.4)

PURPORT: A conditioned living being is endowed with four principles of malpractice, namely errors, insanity, inability and cheating. These are signs of imperfection, and out of the four the propensity to cheat others is most prominent. And this cheating practice is there in the conditioned souls because the conditioned souls are primarily in the material world imbued with an unnatural desire to lord it over the material world. A living being in his pure state is not conditioned by the laws because in his pure state he is conscious that a living being is eternally subservient to the Supreme Being, and thus it is always good for him to remain subservient, instead of falsely trying to lord it over the property of the Supreme Lord. In the conditioned state the living being is not satisfied even if he actually becomes the lord of all that he surveys, which he never becomes, and therefore he becomes the victim of all kinds of cheating, even with his nearest and most intimate relations. In such an unsatisfactory state of affairs, there is no harmony, even between father and sons or between husband and wife. But all these contending difficulties can be mitigated by one process, and that is the devotional service of the Lord. The world of hypocrisy can be checked only by counteraction through devotional service to the Lord and nothing else. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, having observed the disparities, conjectured the disappearance of the Lord from the earth.

Because our imperfect senses DESIRE illusory sense enjoyment, we tend to make mistakes and in turn become victims of being cheated, followed by frustration, anger, hate, lamentation and suffering. Our own mind and senses are the greatest criminals and cheaters!

THE ILLUSION OF MATERIAL LIFE

Material energy ”seems” real but fades because its temporary, look at it this way, in a thousand years our present material body will be as if we never existed, ”an illusion”.

Srila Prabhupada: “This material creation is the spirit soul’s dream. Actually all existence in the material world is a dream of Maha-Vishnu, as the Brahma-Samhita describes –

“This material world is created by the dreaming of Maha-Vishnu. The real, factual platform is the spiritual world, but when the spirit soul wants to imitate the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is put into this dreamland of material creation”. (SB 4.29.83)

Srila Prabhupada: “Everything happening within time, which consists of past, present and future, is merely a dream. This is the secret in understanding in all the Vedic literature.” (SB. 4.29.2b)

Srila Prabhupada: “Our contact with matter is just like dream. Actually we are not fallen. Therefore, because we are not fallen, at any moment we can revive our Krishna consciousness, we break the dream.” (Tokyo Japan 1972: Srimad Bhagavatam 2.9.1)

Srila Prabhupada: “Factually all of material existence is only a dream. Thus there is no question of past, present or future. Persons who are addicted to karma-kanda-vicara, which means ‘working for future happiness through fruitive activities’, are also dreaming. Similarly, past happiness and present happiness are merely dreams” (SB4.29.2b)

Srila Prabhupada: ”Everything, from the beginning of our birth, we are illusioned, illusioned. And that illusion is so strong that it is very, very difficult to get out of it. Whole thing is illusion. (Lecture, 12 Apr 1966)

THE TRUTH PROMISE – “everybody calls out trust me”

(but if you trust a criminal you will become the victim)

The little girl is being promised a pony by the parents if she studies hard to get good notes in school. True? NO!

Parents are telling their children, if you work hard like us and earn a lot of money like us you will be happy like us. True? NO! They are in debt, divorced and unhappy.

The girl says to the boy trust me, I will make you happy. True? Most of the time, NO!

The boy says to the girl, trust me, I will make you happy. True? Most of the time, NO!

The physician says take these pills, they’ll make you well again. True? If you are lucky yes, but most of the time, NO!

The meat industry shouts, meat is healthy, nutritious, full of protein, all stuff the body needs. True? Yes, if you want to live until 40!

Smoking, drinking, enjoy life like there’s no tomorrow, you are young only once; do not bother about what others say! LIES, LIES, LIES !!!

The bank says give us your money, trust us, we will invest it for you and double it! True? NO!

Trust me, the politician says, give me your vote, I will work in your interest! True? NO!

Welfare organisations are crying out, give us your money, believe us, we are feeding poor children! True? NO!

The media screams, trust us, we are the only ones who give the right information! True? NO!

Billboards are shouting, look at our lies, we want you to buy our products, they are really worth it! True? NO!

The church, priests, false gurus call, believe us, we are the pure servants of God, give us your money, we bring you to heaven! True? NO!

Trust me the mind says; do not believe all the above said. This world is a good place, everybody just wants your best, do not worry. Your will find your true love, a nice rich man /woman, you will see the world, have a house with a garden, two nice children, a dog and a pony, private schools, enough money, a full fridge, two nice cars, many friends, private Medicare, a nice pension, everybody will love you, you will never get old, never get sick and you will never die! Believe me! Trust me! Trust me! True? NO!

THINK FOR YOURSELF LITTLE SOUL

WAIT !!! There is a voice calling from deep in the heart, not so fast little soul, wait, don’t you see? It’s an illusion, it’s a trap, it’s a haze!!! If you continue you will have entered a maze, with no way out.

Look around! Everybody is working hard to earn and spend a lot of money to be happy, that means they must all be rich and happy. Are they? If all have found true love, why are they walking alone? Or could It be that all their hopes, faith and trust in the lofty promises and magical illusions are shattered to pieces, like broken glass?

Look into their faces !!! Are they smiling, peaceful, content and satisfied? Look into their eyes !!! Do they look friendly, bright and happy? Are they sparkling and twinkling like the stars in the sky on a full moon night? Are they calm and quiet like the clear water of a beautiful mountain lake on a bright summer day?

Or do they look empty and hollow like a dark, cold and spooky dungeon? And, despite all their lofty promises, why is there still old age, disease and death? LOOK AROUND LITTLE SOUL, LOOK AROUND AND THINK FOR YOURSELF !!!

Examining the world around us (with different eyes)

“So his son would become famous in the world as Parīkṣit [examiner] because he would come to examine all human beings in his search after that personality whom he saw before his birth. Thus he would come to constantly contemplate Him.” (S.B.1.12.30 Text)

Here we can see how, even though imperfect, we can make good use of the eyes. By looking around we can observe and discriminate, and if things don’t tally, examine more. In this way we can slowly analyse and understand if things are really what they pretend to be.

Dhruva Maharaja fighting the illusions created by the Yaksas
(SB Canto 4, Ch. 10, TEXT  22-30)

In the meantime, while Dhruva Mahārāja, doubtful of his mystic enemies, was talking with his charioteer, they heard a tremendous sound, as if the whole ocean were there, and they found that from the sky a great dust storm was coming over them from all directions.

Within a moment the whole sky was overcast with dense clouds, and severe thundering was heard. There was glittering electric lightning and severe rainfall. In that rainfall there was blood, mucus, pus, stool, urine and marrow falling heavily before Dhruva Mahārāja, and there were trunks of bodies falling from the sky. Next, a great mountain was visible in the sky, and from all directions hailstones fell, along with lances, clubs, swords, iron bludgeons and great pieces of stone.

Dhruva Mahārāja also saw many big serpents with angry eyes, vomiting forth fire and coming to devour him, along with groups of mad elephants, lions and tigers. Then, as if it were the time of the dissolution of the whole world, the fierce sea with foaming waves and great roaring sounds came forward before him. The demon Yakṣas are by nature very heinous, and by their demoniac power of illusion they can create many strange phenomena to frighten one who is less intelligent.

When the great sages heard that Dhruva Mahārāja was overpowered by the illusory mystic tricks of the demons, they immediately assembled to offer him auspicious encouragement.

All the sages said: Dear Dhruva, O son of King Uttānapāda, may the Supreme Personality of Godhead known as Śārṅgadhanvā, who relieves the distresses of His devotees, kill all your threatening enemies. The holy name of the Lord is as powerful as the Lord Himself. Therefore, simply by chanting and hearing the holy name of the Lord, many men can be fully protected from fierce death without difficulty. Thus a devotee is saved.

PURPORT: The great ṛṣis approached Dhruva Mahārāja at a time when his mind was very perplexed due to the magical feats exhibited by the Yakṣas. A devotee is always protected by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By His inspiration only, the sages came to encourage Dhruva Mahārāja and assure him that there was no danger because he was a soul fully surrendered to the Supreme Lord. By the grace of the Lord, if a devotee, at the time of death, can simply chant His holy name—Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare—simply by chanting this mahā-mantra, he immediately surpasses the great ocean of the material sky and enters the spiritual sky. He never has to come back for repetition of birth and death. Simply by chanting the holy name of the Lord, one can surpass the ocean of death, so Dhruva Mahārāja was certainly able to surpass the illusory magical feats of the Yakṣas, which for the time being disturbed his mind.