Life is an endless journey between perceptions and reality

We believe that reality is something that is permanent and is not bound by time and space constraints. Now, let us analyse the reality that is perceived by our senses by a simple example that we see a running cat. By the time our eyes capture the photons that are reflected by the physical body of this cat, incident on the retina, become an electric signal, reach the cortex at the back of the head and perceive it as a cat; the cat has already moved from that perceived position. It means, the cat that we are seeing is a few milliseconds older and is not the same cat that we have been looking at, and therefore it cannot be called as real.

Likewise, we can take any example on the surface of the earth, it cannot be real scientifically, because we always perceive past objects and never the present. Anything that is present on the surface of the earth is not static because the earth is revolving at a speed of say 100,000 km per hour and is also rotating around its own axis. Therefore, whatever we perceive is the recorded version of past and not the present absolute reality, right?

Another example will make this exercise little less complicated. Have been under an MRI machine ever? The person under observation is given two switches, and he is free to press any one of the two switches. Surprisingly, the technician sitting outside knows which particular switch the person is going to chose at least 3 seconds before. It is possible because the brain prepares itself for a particular decision and this process is being observed by the technician and not by the person involved. Does it not prove to us that anything appearing to be happening now has already happened. Nothing that we perceive with our senses can be real in the true sense of our definition of reality. However, we are trained to assume the past as the present reality.

On one hand if you see that, whatever you perceive is reality, because reality is only known by perception. If it appears to your senses, then it is as real as it is going to be. If it doesn’t appear to your senses, and you have no way of knowing it, how can it be ‘real?’ Reality is what is known. If you see the colour red in a particular shape, you know you are seeing the colour red in that particular shape. If you hear a bell ring next to you, you know that you hear a bell ringing next to you. Now which of these, you know is a direct experience, without having to think about it, is what is real.

While on the other hand, reality is merely a perception and if you realise it as an “Absolute” reality which transcends perception, then it cannot be perceived no matter what. If reality is some “Absolute” reality that is different than what you are perceiving right now, then it is a dual concept. If you think the existence of an inherently existing reality independent of your perception, which is separate from your perception, just waiting to perceived in whole or in part, then that isn’t reality. Any account of reality is actually tied to your perception.

The same thing is applicable to our all five senses. It means, our brain is designed to present to us the moving unreal things as real. Therefore, whatever that is perceived by this body instrument cannot be absolutely real. But, unfortunately, we consider this as real because of our conditioning to such a neural phenomenon!

Do you remember the story of an elephant and four blind men who have never ever seen an elephant. Therefore each of them touches the elephant from different angles and feels that the elephant is of that shape and size. One feels elephants legs are like wooden logs, one feels that elephant's trunk is like snake whereas one finds elephant's teeth like an horn and one finds the tail as a rope. Therefore, it appears to us that the difference between our perception is reality and that is real life. Stay blessed! #kishoreshintre