One of the profound preachings of my Guruji that changed my perception of the outside world is the axiom ‘Rajju Sarpavat’. The aphoristic truth stated in Sanskrit means that ‘rajju’ — the ‘rope’ in real character — is viewed by its appearance and the ‘sarpavat’ — the ‘snake’ — means that the world is not what one sees for it is all a delusion in one’s mind. And to see its real form, one needs to acquire knowledge of the creation first and then about the subjects that prevail within it. In other words, the subject person should have knowledge of science, factual data of the object that is seen and its relationship with the world around him. I also opine that a complete understanding of whatever we view and feel should indisputably be the best psychological cure for all infirmities of the mind, including fear, for it is all a delusion from the reality that we view as both hope and danger, and lay our foundations of life on it. The delusion is commonly termed as ‘misunderstanding’, which is an understatement for it influences our lives immensely and steers us away from reality and happiness. Just as Buddha said, “Our life is a creation of our mind.”
What is a delusion? It is a belief that is clearly false and that indicates an abnormality in the affected person's content of thought and it is purely because of lack of knowledge. False belief is not due to the person's cultural or religious background or their level of intelligence. It is purely the understanding of the individual on a subject, which is based on the amount of knowledge they have acquired on such a subject in the backdrop. Experiencing a delusion or illusion manifests poor insight of the irrationality of one's beliefs that others are attempting to harm the person, which is persecutory in nature, but, on the other hand, there is also a belief that others are in love with the person; both of which are not real.
Optical illusion, including short-sightedness, is concerned also with erroneous opinions that we make in our first view. Whereas the long sight is a physical challenge that usually comes with age or from birth, and is not about opinions on observation. Delusions are common to several mental disorders and can be triggered by sleep disturbance and extreme stress, but they can also occur in physical conditions, including brain injury or tumour, drug addiction and alcoholism, and somatic illness. The subtle difference between 'illusion' and 'delusion', therefore, is that 'illusion' can remain an abstract concept, while 'delusion' is something clearly defining someone's misconception of reality. For example, some people think that they are high above the normal stature of the people around them, with a delusion that they are superior by wealth or position. It is like a paradoxical architecture in a dream where we have no logic or reason. It's a statement that is self-contradictory or logically untenable, though based on a valid deduction from acceptable premises. It is like a closed loop that can disguise a boundary.
Images do conjure, or even an idea, that is planted by a person of no knowledge — or when it is usually executed with an agenda to fracture another’s thoughts or opinions, with a purpose to project a deceptive image of the reality in the victim’s mind. Weak-minded people have persecutory delusions that they would be harmed by others' prosperity, and they, in return, design their own strategies on people around them, including their own siblings. In this connection, I am compelled to narrate the story of two sisters whom I have known for a long time, for they are distant relations of mine. It is a case where the elder one constantly worked throughout her life in the said ‘mission delusion’ with prejudice that the wellbeing of her younger sister would marginalise her own future. The story of the two sisters is very pathetic for the younger sister became the victim, but even after being aware of the said secret mission of her elder sister, instead of seeing the truth from her own perspective, she indulged in a defence of falsifying all facts while conversing with her elder sister, obviously to distract her. Sadly, the contest has not ended even today and now, the elder one had successfully brought all her family members and the people around her into her web.
Such instances are also common among brothers who are prejudiced against their sibling’s success. Such people plant ideas in the minds of others and play with them for their own needs. People do this all the time, unaware that the conjurer might become a victim in the process after a considerable period of time. It is a pity when such people declare that they are successful and happy with their families. It is not so, the disease is contagious for it does take a toll in the long run on future generations. This is a continuous process and it takes huge courage to break from the shackles of such delusion. Speaking truth and considering what is false is no ordinary feat.
In the above scenario, I have found that the first step is to view the subject matter in its real form that can only be achieved by acquiring knowledge, and the next step is to act against such distortion. The subconscious is motivated by emotion and not reason, that’s the reason I used to retaliate without reasoning in my younger days, but that’s history now. Whereafter, the best revenge I considered is to be successful in achieving results contrary to the images created by such agents of delusions, and I am happy today that I have successfully dismantled them. Presently, I am aware that those conjurers hail my present achievements to please me, steering their views on other factors, which of course I do not fail to observe that they are also acts of prejudice and, evidently, fake. These happen in everyone’s life, but the wise identify them at an early stage. Simultaneously, every person yearns to share his delusions or fractured views with others but it's a dangerous game for the concept in itself is inherent with infirmities, and it is contagious by corrupting their own.
Every image or view has a dichotomy giving contradictory inferences, and before we become judgemental, it is necessary to have a deep study to remove the infirmities. How to keep track of reality is an exercise I had evolved and it is definitely a herculean task to achieve, for with an emotion leaning on our judgement trying to influence it, is often very hard to view the real form. I also find that being in the company of unbiased and knowledgeable people such as my friend Sarma keeps me in check. I found that to keep track of reality one should also use his own image as a totem to crosscheck. This exercise of seeing my own image in the mirror reminds me that I am just a mortal without any extraordinary quality other than to be alive, and my agenda is only to spread happiness. On the other hand, I see many people placing themselves high above with their accidental achievements, or of some hard-earned reputation of their related ones, continuously boasting of their acquaintances with celebrities in other fields. I, as such, try real hard not to consider my legacies or even a fraction of my present success as a factor elevating my stature or being, for I can be elevated only by knowledge and not any material wealth. In a nutshell, I try to keep grounded and keep away from the delusion that I am not at all more than my life that’s within me.
Whatever that I see and hear, I am now applying logic earned from the little knowledge I had acquired, and I now view the rope in its original form with its basic ability to bind relationships. I am immensely inspired by the quote of Leo Tolstoy, the great Russian author who wrote timeless classics such as ‘War and Peace’ and ‘Anna Karenina’ that "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself .”
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