* When reading this book for the first time, it is best to read from the beginning without skipping forward. Otherwise, the intended meaning of some words might not be obvious.
Words (an Introduction)
For thousands of years, philosophers and artists from around the world have warned us that we live in a world of illusion, a world where nothing is what it appears to be. This is not some idle fantasy; many remarkable people have stood up to tell us this in no uncertain terms. They say we have come to believe many things that are not true. They say this is the cause of great misery and suffering among us.
If these voices are right, then our task should be to discover and know what is real. But if all that we know and experience is illusion, where do we look to find reality? The first step is to understand the problem: is this world all or mostly illusion? Are we deluded even about the most ordinary things? Well, do our most cherished beliefs really seem true, or do we have doubts? I’m not asking if they seem false, only whether we know beyond any doubt that our core beliefs agree with reality. Isn’t that a hallmark of true beliefs? Think carefully:
What do you know about reality? Is it something you take for granted?
What do you know about life? Is life real or is it fantasy?
What is this place, this world, this universe? How did it get here?
In order to understand whether this world is illusory or real, we must be able to distinguish between reality and illusion. We must in some way be able to recognize reality when we encounter it and be absolutely certain that it truly is reality. So, one of the very first tasks is to be as clear as possible about what the words, “reality” and “being,” are referring to.
Modern dictionaries suggest that “reality” means actual things or facts and “being” loosely means existing. These are surprisingly weak definitions for such important words. We can do better than that.
We can easily distinguish reality from objects, ideas, facts, experiences, and such. Reality is not subject to coming and going, nor to existing or not existing, nor to birth and death. But objects, ideas, and the like are all subject to these limits. Reality is what truly is—it’s as simple as that. This allows us to talk about reality as a place, like a theater, where everything else comes and goes. It is where things happen, where something might be either true or false, or where a thing might never exist at all. It is where time and space appear.
We can easily distinguish being from existing. Being is the inner knowledge of our own reality, while existing and non-existing refer to all the things that we experience, feel, think, and imagine. This allows us to talk about our own being as the subjective knowledge of things like sensations, perceptions, emotions, ideas, and self-awareness.
With these meanings, reality and being seem closely related, as though they are just different facets of a single thing. Being knows reality, and being knows awareness. Through awareness, being and reality experience both real and unreal things. Are being and awareness just different aspects of reality?
What does this mean? Can being and awareness be the same thing as reality?
——
In all, there are six distinctions that form the core of this book:
Reality and Unreality
Being and Existence
Awareness and Experience
Container and Content
True and False
Absolute and Relative
The discussion of any particular topic, idea, or word will invariably refer in some way to these core distinctions.
How to Read This Book
First, a caution about words. The meanings of these words can never be precisely the same for you as they were for me when I wrote them, because meaning exists within us and not within the words. Meaning is essentially private. The word, “tree,” always means something different to different people. To think otherwise is just wishful thinking. This is a much richer concept of meaning than we find in common dictionaries. For convenience, we naturally limit our expectations about words and shared meanings, and we do well with that, but we still get caught in a lot of misunderstandings.
Because of the way this book is structured, the meanings of some words will seem to change from topic to topic; sometimes this change will be slight, but sometimes it will be significant. This is partly by design, but on the other hand meanings always change and evolve with use. Try to notice this as you read.
Sometimes I suggest an idea early on but I don’t explain it until later. That is another reason that meanings will appear to change. It is the nature of writing that it is linear—one word at a time, one idea at a time—even though the ideas themselves are not linear. If an idea seems too difficult to follow, just take note of it and read on. Revisit it later when something reminds you of it.
Look for ideas that inspire you. It is reality that you want, not just words and ideas. Try to be flexible. Expect nothing from this book except ideas and suggestions (and of course, encouragement). I can give you words and ideas, but I cannot give you your own knowledge of reality. No one can. You must experience for yourself what the words suggest. Practice “what if.” Ask yourself, “Does the world really look and feel like this?” Take time to reflect on each of the suggestions and questions.
The actual subject of this book is more than just words. It is a state of mind, an image of what reality is, or just self-awareness, depending upon how you read it. It is difficult to explain, but it is easy to know and understand by experiencing it yourself. But you must be willing to examine all of your assumptions. And it will take some time.
On the surface, we will explore some very common words, but the simple ideas behind these words present some of the most elusive topics imaginable. I don’t mean that these ideas are difficult to understand; when you begin to recognize what the words are referring to, you will easily understand the underlying ideas. You might not agree with some ideas, but you will understand the subject. Do not get tangled up in words. Look for ideas, and then look at the world around and inside you.
The ideas are simple and straight forward. In fact, it is because they are so simple that they become difficult to talk about. It is like a particular color that we see or a musical sound that we hear: such things are impossible to describe in words. Words present obstacles as much as they offer guidance. Don’t over-think things. Try to experience the meaning of the ideas. This is about your being, your experience, and your intuition as to what in this world is real and what is not real. This is about being fully aware of something you surely must already know.
Beneath the words and ideas, this book was written to address a single subject. Each individual topic or chapter approaches that subject from a different direction. Some of the ideas may seem unusual, but most of this material was gathered and adapted from a wide variety of well-regarded sources and traditions from around the world, some as recent as this century, some as old as thousands of years ago.
Treat this as a workbook; to get the most out of it, you must work at it.
I cannot do this for you; you must do it for yourself. Depend upon your own experience and your own intuition as you explore the ideas and puzzles that are laid out along the way. The more effort you put into this, the more satisfied you will be with the results. Explore the hints and questions you encounter—turn away from the book now and then to ask yourself if it makes sense.
There are about 40 key words or ideas for you to consider. These are arranged into 22 interrelated topics. Within these topics there are 18 stories that illustrate the ideas. The relationship between story and topic is not always obvious; as you read a story, you should ask yourself how is this story related to the stories and topics that came before it. Exploring this relationship will help you to understand how each of these is a different aspect of one single underlying subject.
The title and table of contents hint at this subject, but exactly what is it? The first story, below, is intended to help you understand this. Think about it, but don’t be discouraged if you cannot solve it right away. It is a difficult puzzle. Just keep it in mind while you are reading.
Where Is Here
The subject of this book has been around in many forms for a very long time. I find it impossible to adequately name or describe it. Every attempt I have made seemed too misleading, too restrictive, or too vague.
Instead, let me introduce it by way of this puzzle.
Here begins a journey from where beliefs seem not quite true, to where truth may seem unbelievable.
Answer this question: Where is here?
For every answer you consider, answer this question: If that is where here is, then where is that?
If you think you can answer this with a few well-chosen words, then perhaps you can.
You be the judge. Only you can decide whether or not you have solved it.
——
How is this puzzle related to the topic, Words?
How is the question, “Where is here?” similar to the question, “What color is the sky?”