“The Necessity of Disillusionment”

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by Timothy C. Trepanier

“Nothing is more sad than the death of an illusion.”

 ~ Arthur Koestler

“Our greatest illusion is to believe that we are what we think ourselves to be.”

 ~ H.F. Amiel

“If we only knew what Illusion is, we would then know the opposite:
 what Truth is. This Truth would liberate us from slavery.”

 ~ Boris Mouravieff

“The experience of disillusionment is one that is common to all. It is safe to say that at some time or another, every human being has had the experience of believing in something that turned out not to be true. The initial shock that comes when one’s perception of the world is revealed to be at odds with the hard facts of reality can range anywhere from mild disappointment to a feeling of overwhelming psychological trauma. 

Whatever the degree of deception, the realization that one has been believing in a lie is a painful experience, not only psychologically but physically as well. Like a punch to the stomach, it can feel like one’s breath has been taken away. And because our beliefs about the world are interconnected with other beliefs fixed in our brains, the destruction of one belief can often lead to a cascade of collapse of many others. 

When a person is confronted with facts that contradict currently held belief systems, they have one of two choices. The first choice is to go into denial mode by rejecting the facts as being untrue in order to prop up their chosen belief system and continue living as before. The second choice is to accept the new data and try and reconstruct a new internal paradigm or map of reality that accommodates the new information, which may mean putting into question all other beliefs associated with the old model. 

The second choice is difficult and takes a great deal of strength in order to let go of one’s preconceived ideas and accept the new and factual data. The first choice is easy because it requires no effort, pain, sadness, or reordering of one’s life or values. It is also more comfortable, and because humans generally prefer comfort over pain, the first choice is often the default option. 

The exact moment when a person becomes aware of facts that go against what is believed to be true, they experience what psychologists call cognitive dissonance; it is that tense, uncomfortable sensation that what one sees is so out of sync with what one already believes to be true, that the mind instantly rejects it, even when the facts are plain and indisputable. 

It is in this moment of experiencing cognitive dissonance (you can recognize it by the tension and discomfort that triggers a “knee-jerk” reaction) that the crucial battle for truth over fiction takes place. If a person can muster the awareness and strength of will to not give in and take the comfortable route by immediately dismissing the facts outright, and hold the conflicting information in their minds while consciously experiencing the negative feelings associated with cognitive dissonance, the resulting liberation can be transformational. It has to be experienced to be believed!

The interesting thing about our tendency to stick with old belief systems, even when faced with hard evidence to the contrary, is the neuro-chemical reward factor. Scientific studies have shown that when experiencing cognitive dissonance (the tension and stress produced when presented with facts that undermine one’s normal perception of reality), the decision (knee-jerk reaction) to ignore the factual data and sweep any contradictory evidence under the rug causes the brain to release certain chemicals, making us feel happy and safe again. 

So, if believing in an illusion makes us feel safe, happy and comfortable, and any contradictory evidence causes us pain, disorientation and sadness, what possible motivation is there to consciously choose to go through the process of disillusionment? 

The love and desire for Truth. Humans by nature are a curious sort and, for the most part, want to know the truth about things. This love and desire for Truth is why we like puzzles and mystery novels: because of the satisfaction that comes with learning something new. The thrill of discovery, the joy in being amazed and the excitement of finding solutions to complex problems are all strong motivators for people to seek out new and unconventional modes of thinking. 

It is only when this process of discovery conflicts with our already entrenched world view that the difficulties of accepting new information manifest. At the same time, no one likes being lied to; no one enjoys being taken advantage of or being played for a fool or turned into a chump. So when we discover that we have been deceived by people we trust, the sense of hurt and betrayal that accompanies this realization can be devastating. 

No Virginia, there is NO Santa Claus: Take the Saint Nicholas myth for example. No one would likely criticize or admonish a preschool aged child for believing in Santa Claus. But replace the child with a full grown adult who insists that Santa Claus is real, and that person would likely be considered delusional or insane. Many children can remember how hurt they felt when they first learned that Santa Claus wasn’t real; the sense of utter betrayal that all the people they loved and trusted spent so much time and energy every Christmas propping up the illusion of this magical man in a red felt suit who travelled across the world in a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer, delivering presents to every child in only one night; even the television, newspapers and radio personalities are in on the deception! 

Apologists will say that whatever negative psychological imprinting resulting from this harmless little deception is worth it because, if only for a short while, little children were actually enabled to believe in magic. But what does the child actually learn from this? They learn in a hard and painful way that there is really no magic in this world and people who are supposed to guide you and act as role models can’t be trusted. 

Now ask yourself, as an adult, would you prefer to believe in lies and fairy tales, or would you rather know the truth? Deep down, it is likely that most of us feel glad that we know the truth about Santa Claus, even though the initial realization may have caused some sadness and pain. Our understanding of Christmas is now all about the spirit of giving and sharing (and hard work in order to be able to do so) rather than an egocentric expectation of having every wish granted with no effort. Our appreciation of the holiday is deeper and richer and we gain more satisfaction from giving than getting (or should). The point is that disillusionment, no matter how uncomfortable at the time, leads us towards to the truth. We are wiser and deeper and more satisfied for it. It helps us grow up and become closer to being free agents in our world. 

Believing in illusions is akin to a form of slavery that keeps us disconnected from the real world, and from each other. 

An interesting and effective allegory is to consider the human nervous system as a kind of computer hardware. Each of us is born with a basic operating system, heartbeat, digestion, breathing, etc. Then, depending upon the circumstances of our birth, the software installed as we grow up is as varied as there are people on the planet. And in some cases, there can be enormous software conflicts, viruses, and even software that doesn’t run properly on the system. 

What this means is that our parents’ belief systems become our own, whether it be religion, politics, socio-economic status, or favorite sports team. Our national identity is forged by the place we happened to be born. All our likes and dislikes, passions and prejudices, biases and beliefs, are inculcated into us by our family, peers, education, media and society. We are, effectively, a product of a roll of the geographical dice. The entire landscape of our minds is a product of external forces. There are hardly any thoughts inside us that are truly unique and our own. 

Take a set of adopted twins for example. One is adopted by, and raised in, an American fundamentalist conservative Christian family. The other is adopted by, and raised in, an Iraqi fundamentalist conservative Muslim family. When they both turn 21, they join their respective country’s military and one day find themselves at war, face to face, as bitter ideological enemies, each ready to kill the other, each thinking the other is a savage and less than human. 

What really separates these two twin brothers other than the software installed in their brains as they were growing up? Raised together, by either family, there would be the possibility of love, understanding and support between them. And neither family can be declared to be “right” and in possession of the “Truth” because they, too, are products of their familial, social, national programming. 

This is how our programming, our illusory belief systems keep us enslaved and at odds with our fellow humans. And it is only by following our strong desire for the truth, confronting these programmed beliefs within us and consciously suffering the pain and despair of disillusionment that we have any hope of becoming free of the lies that bind us to discord and destruction. 

Objective Reality:  The world IS a certain way, of this there can be no doubt. Truth exists, but perhaps would be better described as objective reality. Things happen. There are causes and effects. Some things happen that are never observed which can lead to other things happening that are observed. Some things happen that are observed and cause other things to happen that are not observed. Philosophers, physicists, theologians, and ordinary people have thought and argued about causality and acausality for as long as humans have been self-aware. What we need to fix firmly in our minds is the fact that things that are observed can only be observed within the physical limitations of the observer, and those limitations can include a strong tendency to understand what they perceive one way or another according to the beliefs installed by socio-cultural programming. 

Humans, for example, have five basic senses; sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. As perceptive as these senses can be, they are limited to a certain range, and can never take in the whole picture. Certain wavelengths of light are beyond the scope of the human eye, as certain frequencies of sound are beyond the range of the human ear. Studies have shown that even these basic senses can be programmed! 

Considering the very narrow field of sensory perception in relation to what scientific instruments indicate actually exists, it can be safely argued that humans know very little of objective reality indeed! Still, objective reality does exist out there, and the more you can see, the more prepared you are to respond intelligently and, as a freer agent, to what IS. With practice and sharing of information from other perspectives, we can tune our minds to see more objectively and this, in itself, is a worthy goal. 

Imagine the following hypothetical scenario… A car veers off the road in the middle of the night and crashes into a tree, killing the driver, the only occupant in the car. There can be numerous possible explanations for the event, but because the only witness is deceased, we can never know with 100% certainty exactly what happened and why. We can speculate that perhaps alcohol, fatigue or some medical condition was responsible, that the driver swerved to avoid an animal, hit a slippery patch, or many other possible scenarios might account for the accident. 

Forensic experts arriving on the scene to assess the situation can piece together the many possible clues that would explain the crash. Using their knowledge and expertise to examine the facts left behind, they may come to a reasonable conclusion as to the possible cause of the event, but even then can only guess at the real cause given a certain degree of probability of being true. The driver may have alcohol in the blood. But that may not be the reason for the crash; it may have been a mechanical failure or swerving to avoid an animal crossing the road. 

The objective reality of the situation, what actually happened at the time of the crash, will never be known for certain and we have to accept that this is the case with most of what we know about our reality. However, the more facts obtained increases the probability of a correct interpretation, though it is important to always keep in mind that probabilities are not certainties, and should not be substituted for the truth. Searching for the truth means accepting probabilities, approximations, and always remaining open to new information. 

The problem of becoming more attuned to objective reality gets bigger when we factor in the programmed software in our brains that acts as a filter or distorted lens by which we perceive the world. Our belief systems and prior life experience can alter the way that everyday life events are interpreted, making us react in ways we are not even conscious of; and very often, these reactions can harm us or those we love. What we don’t know about our minds and our world can hurt us! 

Take for example a new boss with red hair hired to take over a group of office workers. One of the workers had a nasty red-headed gym teacher in high school who had humiliated her in front of the other students. Another of the workers had a kind red-headed gym teacher who helped her develop a love of sports that she continues to practice to this day. Both workers have an immediate impression of their new boss, one very positive and the other extremely negative. Neither is aware of the reasons why the new boss invokes such strong feelings, but their future relationship with the new boss, their work performance and employment satisfaction are going to be greatly affected. 

Our minds do this all the time. Every minute of every day we experience the world through a distorted lens of entrenched beliefs and past history, while the objective reality of the situation, the truth, for the most part, remains elusive. 

Of course this problem is only a problem so as long as we are unaware of it. Once we gain the knowledge of how our minds work, we can consciously strive to see any situation for what it is, gather facts, apply this insight to all we have learned and experienced, assess reality based on probabilities, and most importantly, share what we have learned with others. It is by sharing with each other our own unique and particular point of view, and really listening to others when they share theirs, that we can broaden our horizons and come closer to understanding the objective reality of any event or situation. 

Remember the Indian parable of the blind men and the elephant? “Six blind men were asked to determine what an elephant looked like by feeling different parts of the elephant’s body. The blind man who feels a leg says the elephant is like a tree trunk; the one who feels the tail says the elephant is like a rope; the one who feels the trunk says the elephant is like a snake; the one who feels the ear says the elephant is like a hand fan; the one who feels the belly says the elephant is like a wall; and the one who feels the tusk says the elephant is like a spear.”

Each of the men is experiencing their own subjective reality of the elephant, but by sharing information with each other, together they can come closer to seeing the objective reality of the elephant. You may not be able to see the whole thing yourself, on your own, but you can create a much better mind-map with good feedback from others that you take into account.” 

Please do continue to read this article,
which includes “The Big Seven Illusions Of Our Time”, here:

- http://www.sott.net/