In Hindu belief, Maya is the thought that everything is illusion. It is of course more complicated than that, but that is the basic understanding. Underneath reality, there is a reality that is a mystery, an invisible unknown. There is an illusion both of nature and spirituality-both of which deeper reality is a mystery.
The Cosmic Game, written by Dr. Stanislav Grof, is a book on spirituality and the nature of God and reality. It is also about the nature of human consciousness. Basically, it is suggesting that God is each of us, playing out different roles.
Sometimes I think it's true and we are all just dreams of God. It makes the most sense to me. Since my own consciousness is all I can really prove to myself exists, then what else is there, really?
It solves the problem of "where did everything come from?". If there is really nothing but my own consciousness, then there really isn't anything physical after all. The problem is resolved. No messy big bang, no messy "poofing" things into existence.
What is physicality anyway? Are particles physical? Fields? Energy? What is the basis of all physical things? We look at quantum mechanics, and it is nothing all the way down. Physicists don't even agree with each other on this issue. There are no concrete definitions for mass, matter, fields, particles, or energy.
Does God dream only one of us at a time, or all of us? Is there only one "us"? All I can be sure of is my own sense of self and consciousness. Does this make me a solipsist? I'm not sure, because I'm not sure I really believe all of this. However, it is high up there on my probability scale.
What if God is the sole person in the world, and this really is an illusion? It must be lonely. At least I imagine it would be. What happens when God wakes up? Maybe that is what enlightenment is...waking up from the dream.
If this really is an illusion, then enlightenment would be the lifting of the veil. Maybe that is why people claim to have a sense of "oneness" during enlightenment. If there is only One, then there is only Oneness.
I have had spiritual experiences, but I have never felt anything like that. No sense of oneness with nature or anything else. It could be I just haven't reached that stage yet. But I wonder where that idea comes from. I doubt people who claim they experienced that are all liars, or crazy. There must be something to it.
Would I have thoughts if I didn't have language? I am unsure. I imagine a dog has thoughts, and they don't really have language. Although I have my very first memory, which wasn't long after I learned to talk. I can't remember anything before I had language. Maybe that indicates something.
I wonder if language was invented, or if it is a naturally occurring phenomenon. It doesn't seem to have evolved. It was just suddenly there, in a saltation. This is according to Noam Chomsky, a leading linguist. He says it couldn't have evolved over time. For some reason, I tend to believe this. Other animals have nothing close to our language capabilities.
Can you separate language from consciousness? I don't think so. They seem to, for some reason, go together. At least in my experience.
I know this article is choppy, and doesn't make much sense and the ideas don't fit together well on the screen. It is like a puzzle I am trying to fit together in my mind. And writing it out helps. It helps to organize my thoughts. That's why I do it, even if it doesn't make much sense at the time.
But this is why I write, mainly for myself. It does help too if other people understand and know what I'm saying. That's a rare phenomenon. But it does happen on occasion.
seven raindrops
each a different hue
seven steps
worn by few
each one fought for
each one new
veiled in mist
the morning dew
