What is Illusion?

I make a great deal of this world "illusion" so what is it? This became clearer during the week if I can rememeber.



Almost everything we call contemporary human life is illusion! When people say "get a life" they are referring to an illusion... because you cannot get what you already have. And, if you don't have it already and you need to get it then you can lose it, and the "you" that is doing all this coming and going is the truth not the places you go and theing you get and lose.



My interest in India (born of indian food and philosophy) has taught me a whole new level of things. The Indians have gone so far into the realm of illusion that it perfectly teaches the issue. Maybe Buddha spoke of illusion, but the Punjabis that I know actually live illusion just to show the rest of us clearly what it is!



To illustrate I can use the situation at work.



There are many levels to the work environment. The most important at my work is that the two managers (the share holders) have control of the company. Thus they introduce blocks to individual progress and development, and refuse to listen to anyone "below" them in the heirachy. It also happens that when they make mistakes (as has happened recently) they are not so interested in resolving the issues as rather reinforcing their superiority by pressurising and criticising everyone else in the company. Mistakes are viewed through the lens of superiority. I also had an discussion with the new accounts assistant. He was arguing that the reason companies fail is because their accounts fail.



Now maybe I'm biased because I work in production of the raw product which is also the lowest paid and lowest rung of the power structure at work. But I have chosen to remain in that position - and not take the accounts assistant position - because of the following observation.



A company exists because it supplies a saleable product. If the product does not sell there is no money and nothing to do. The whole company structure and existence is built upon one thing - the supplying to a customer of a good product that meets some need and does that well and at a reasonable price.



We have an excellent product, the result of 10 years research by the company managers. It is cheap, easy to make, is the market leader in performance, and meets a huge demand: it coats oxygenator curcuits required in current heart bypass operations. Thanks to the over zealous food market in America especially we are guarenteed a continuing niche!



The success of the company depends only upon the product quality and sales. Everything else within the company is built upon that, and so it follows that actions taken which enhance the quality and sales are good for the company and everything else is irrelevant.



Sadly the management now they have their base to build upon are wasting their time constructing arbitrary edifices of power that make them feel good. While they are able to wield enormous power within the company at the moment, they don't seem to realise that they are only able to do this because of the success of the product. Were the product to fail or the markets change, then that illusion of power would disintegrate.



This is a prime example of illusion. It also illustrates why illusion is so dangerous because it causes us to aim for unreal things at the expense of the real things.



Of course the good manager, like the good king, realises that they are only able to govern because there is something to govern. Power does not exist within them at all. They "themselves" are not powerful, they are only powerful because that power has been given to them by a situation. When the situation fails, their power evaporates also. This is the problem of Ego - the central problem in life.



In a good company the management realise that they are servants to the success of the company like everyone else. Power is only exercised with the interests of the product base in mind. Incompetent staff are reskilled, those with bad work ethic are removated, problems are analysed and problem solved. That is the appropriate use of power.



The managers problems extend much further however. The world is composed from a number of strutures which people seem to think are immutable. Money and law being the worst illusions.



A classic problem I have seen is using the courts to resolve disputes. a common thing happens that the time and stress caused by such events are huge. It is not an easy solution. Most suspicious is that the mediators of money and law are the only real winners - the banks and solicitors. No wonder these institutions have been pushed for so hard.

The solution to all problems is to see the level of reality. The Law does not see the level of reality. It only exists by agreement. It is no more true than the off-side rule in football. If someone runs onto a football pitch with a gun I don't think people will worry about the offside rule anymore - they'll be protecting their lives. Now that is more real.

In reality to fundamental solution to all problems is "love". Love means seeing the reality. Classically we say "love" when we put other people first, but actually this is only seeing the reality that in a situation the needs of the other person are just as valid as our own. And, if they are needy then even more important than our own.

Thus if we are attacked we are faced with someone whose needs are greater than our own. Often people misunderstand and put themselves first in defense, but that is probably the cause of the problem originally. Feeling unloved people turn to violence to express the hatred they feel and the abuse they sense from others. Defending yourself just reinforces this. Almost guarenteed if you visibly accept the threat of violence (like ok you can kill me) and turn instead to ask what the person wants (but how will this help you?) they will respond positively because that is actually what they want. No-one wants to kill because what do they actually gain by that? Maybe they gain money in which case just give it to them - they obviously want it real bad! Helping needy people is reality.

The illusions come in the form of rights, justice, law, compensation, money, price, politices etc. These are just rules of a game and mean nothing in reality. It is really best to watch them no more than a play or soap opera. Know the characters and the stories but know it is just illusion.

If price was real for example then why do we have to put it "onto" things? Its obviously something outside of real things. Determined actually within the huge game of exchange markets. Its fun but its not real. Adherence to this game is what maintains the unreal notions of rich and poor. Obvious the financial system has been championed by the rich so its not going away. Like they say, 'only when the last fish has been fished will we finally realise we can't eat money.'

I realised while writing the last draft of this which I lost a problem I have. I find myself happy in company but misunderstand that the happiness is not mine but comes from the situation. I seek solitide and then am suprised when the feeling evaporates. This is probably because of some experience where I enjoyed someones company but they let me down and I sort that happiness independent of them. i need to think about this because I'm pursuing an illusion myself I feel.