The Upside-Down Reality
We often find ourselves placing belief in certain assumptions, only to later uncover that reality doesn't conform with our initial convictions. For instance, we may experience frustration over our children's misbehavior, yet through open and honest communication with them, we come to realize that our judgments are rooted in preconceived notions of their behavior. Likewise, in the context of business negotiations, our perpetual vigilance may be motivated by the belief that we are safeguarding our company's best interests when in truth, it is often driven by a need for self-preservation.
This shift in perspective allows us to embrace situations from a broader, if not boundless, viewpoint. Our actions that ensue are accompanied by a sense of clarity, lovingness, kindness, and understanding. This transformation lays the groundwork for a more profound understanding of the very essence of belief itself.
Belief imparts a semblance of logic, structure, coherence, and rationality to our perceptions. It impregnates the concept of causality with linearity. Take walking, for instance. It's acknowledged as a simple, direct, effective, and practical means of moving from point A to point B. No one would ever question a commonly accepted reality. However, this apparent simplicity in actions may be due to our obliviousness to the fact we are navigating an upside-down reality. This topsy-turvy existence, though appearing upside right to us, challenges our comprehension of the nature of true reality. It compels us to accept everything our minds propose, seldom inviting scrutiny. Such is the intrinsic function of the mind.
Let's explore another example: during a conversation, we frequently assume that we've fully comprehended the message being conveyed, believing we have a complete understanding. Yet, in numerous instances, our understanding falls short. It's not just a matter of failing to comprehend the other person's perspective or making assumptions, leaving some aspects of the conversation or context hidden; it's the failure to realize the situation itself is, nothing more than a mere semblance.
When we hold onto beliefs, we often find ourselves no longer situated as the primary cause or at the center of understanding. Our perspective becomes skewed, driven by a desire to achieve or attain, which is not aligned with the genuine reality. What we currently perceive and understand might be far from the truth. What we know now is everything but the true reality. It's only when we come to acknowledge the interplay of causes and conditions as the fundamental nature of existence that we begin to truly see the bigger picture, else we are not seeing at all. In essence, many of us are akin to individuals in a state of drunkenness. It's only when the intoxication of our preconceived notions wears off that we realize the unnecessary sorrows and lamentations we've endured. We come to understand that these struggles were merely seeming, not inherent, in the grand scheme of things.
How do we shift from looking at things in the realm of appearances (falseness) to truth? We should first understand that truth is not the opposite of falseness. There's no need to combat or negate falseness to attain truth, as doing so would involve using the false as a means to find the truth. Instead, we only need to be still and observe what accompanies the observation. Asking questions like, "Why do I see what I am seeing?" and "Why do I believe what I am believing?" can be useful in leading to the true cause and steer clear of premature conclusions. It is not about what’s in it for me through this observation or removing the content of the belief, but rather, serves to unveil the distorted view of the upside-down reality. Upon the revelation of the erroneous view, the inherent truth is evident. This understanding demonstrates that falseness does not transmute into truth, instead, falseness is merely an apparition of the truth.
Neither the bad nor the good that seemed to precede our experiences are true. Right and wrong are but many shadows of the truth. As the wisdom of sages inspires us: “Fairy tales can be pleasant or fearful, but no one calls them true. Children may believe them, and so, for a while, the tales are true for them. Yet when reality dawns, the fantasies are gone. Reality has not gone in the meanwhile. The Second Coming is the awareness of reality, not its return.”
In grace,
Lee Hung Leng
21 Nov 2023