We have already published three chapters under this series
with subtitle “Freedom from Illusions”. Chapter # 15013 was more about
introducing the issue, Chapter #15014 discussed about ‘Basic Illusions’
and Chapter #15015 said that one cannot escape ‘aloneness’ while
treading on a spiritual path. In this Chapter we will discuss a few things
about the illusions that depend on place, time and circumstances.
It is best to begin with an example. The human children have
to be cared for a much longer period than that of their animal counterparts. In
modern civilized societies, particularly in those societies that attach much
value to some kind of education and
training, there are more or less accepted norms about when a child could be
treated as a ‘full human being’ capable of living his own life without much support
or interference by others. Obviously, there are many expectations and
compulsions associated with ‘growing up’ and becoming ‘grown up’ for a human child
and also for a set of ‘human beings’ that are linked to the child. Most modern
societies have a fairly complex and rigid system for development of the modern
man with only marginal and superficial flexibility of making modifications and
changes. A good part of human life is spent in knowing about and learning
alternative ways that one can adopt to grow without giving enough attention to
their harmony and consistency with one’s own experiences of life. If a troop of
monkeys finds an unsafe zone it stops visiting that zone, but a civilized
society is not as freer to quickly respond to the experiences of its
constituents, notwithstanding the superior abilities of the man to think, act
and communicate. In the matters of his life the man generally lags; he rarely
leads.
Human societies function on the basis of the experiences of
human beings who lived in the past, are often the parts of some other societies
or that of its constituents who have the strength of moulding the societies in
their favour to derive maximum benefits for themselves and excluding the others.
No one knows to what extent the society he is a part permits and enables him to
be aware of the realities of life; or it persistently delivers ever-changing
illusions to him for his survival as well as for his physical, intellectual and
spiritual growth.
A society does not have an intelligence of its own; it,
however, regulates the opportunities its constituents can have to know the
reality. The human beings, individually
try to know the truth of things looking through the open, half closed or completely
shut windows their societies permit them to look through. At no instant the man
must overlook the fact that he is ‘the creators’ of the society he lives in. A troop has the similar significance for the
monkeys they are a part of, as a society has for its members. Then why is it so
that monkeys’ response to the external world is better than that of human
beings? Is it because that individual monkey does not take his physical survival
as seriously as an individual human being takes that of his own life? When we
become too involved and concerned about our physical self do we develop a
blurred vision for the realities of life? Place, time and circumstances vary
similarly for the monkeys and the man, both. Perhaps, the man makes much hue
and cry about his place and time slot he lives in, and, about the circumstances
he is put in. Perhaps, the man creates much that influences his physical,
intellectual and spiritual being; through his own efforts to influence his surroundings
for his ‘own benefit’. Is the man too touchy and jittery about what goes on
around him, as compared to the monkeys or any other animal for that matter? Is
it possible to make ourselves relatively free from illusions, if we reduce our
nervousness about our ‘precious’ life?
May be we need to know in what way our life is ‘precious’.
Does ‘preciousness’ have something to do with what we can possess in our life;
or it is all about what we can do with it?
[This
series is being presented by Promod Kumar Sharma, who has also authored
“Mahatma A Scientist of the Intuitively Obvious” and “In Search of Our
Wonderful Words”.]
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