Illusions

3/23/05

I am a great admirer of Ralph Waldo Emerson and have been for many years. His wisdom has led me to many revelations. I have recently re-read his essay on Illusions and I began to recognize some of my own. I have built up a myriad of illusions throughout my life. Some self imposed and others imposed upon me by parents, teachers, government, media etc. etc. But of all the illusions I have created and have had created for me the most fundamental of all illusions has been to place too much trust in others , having faith that they know more than I know or will ever know. For some things such as Einstein’s theories I will trust the scientists and physicists to question. For surgery I will trust a surgeon of good reputation, but for all else I can trust very few to accept their theories of selfhood, government, religion, historic fact or ethics. These are ethereal areas of knowledge which are areas where most people must think for themselves yet this is where they create the greatest illusions, illusions which are most difficult to unmask because they have been part of an individual’s self image and teachings since childhood, identifiers of self such as one’s name or religion or country or ethnicity. One’s parents or grandparents or the school we go to or university we graduate from, or what a person does for a living. These are the false illusions built up over time to hide the individual from himself and others. The false status of any of these illusion makers create for those who cannot or will not think for themselves, a convenient illusion, a mask of self worth to hide a shallow reality.

“A man’s illusion is his sport.” “Life will show you masks that are worth all your carnivals… Whatever games are played with us, we must play no games with ourselves, but deal in our privacy with the lost honesty and truth….Simple childhood virtues of veracity and honesty are the roots of all that is sublime in character- speak as you think, be what you are, pay your debts of all kinds…” R.W.Emerson.

American’s have lost this noble virtue of speaking our minds. We have lost the tenacity, and veracity and courage to fight for our own dignity. Americans teach their children to be silent before erring authority or they will be punished by suspension or receive punishment of some other kind.” Be silent and stupid like me” say their parents, who numb the pain of their silence with antidepressants, alcohol, or a false illusion of Jesus. We learn to create even greater illusions than our parents and grandparents do. But be silent. Say nothing. Join the chorus if you want to sing. Join the band if you want to make noise. Join the football team if you want to express aggression. Become a parrot of a politician if you wish to be heard, or apprentice to the World Bank or a fortune 500 company if you want to learn the legal methods of corruption and bribing governments. Become a Democrat or Republican if you must not, Will Not, think for yourself, because your thoughts are invalid, unclean, undisciplined, your thoughts are underdeveloped as are those of your parents. Only the highly learned teachers, priests and preachers can teach us of God and the universe and creation. The churches say God does not want their followers to question him or his priests, popes or prophets, we must think about nothing but our work and our obedience to authority. This is the only way to live properly and be allowed to enter heaven upon one’s death. So you must love your president though he steals from you and sends you to your death in war or sells you and your children into financial slavery for the duration of your lives. .Love your father and mother though they beat you and starve you and abandon you. Love everyone who defiles you, lies to you, cheats you, rapes you, attempts to kill you. Give your heart and soul to the Church that molests you or your children. Trust all who represent the great evil which resides on earth listen and obey them who ask for your life, your money, your trust, your eternal soul, for this is the way to peace on earth and the promise of heaven.

Emerson states, ” Every moment, new changes, new showers of deception, to baffle and distant him. And when , by and by, for an instant the air clears, and clouds lift a little, there are the gods still sitting around the their thrones- they alone with him alone.” “Everyone fixes their fortune in absolute nature.”

Have Americans fixed their fortunes in absolute nature or in absolute folly, absolute deception, and absolute hypocrisy? Illusions built upon delusions designed to deceive ourselves and others. All must break the glass walls that imprison them and shout against evil and injustices, the horrors created by madmen and monstrous institutions. Shout out against the hypocrisy that surrounds you. Demand honesty and integrity in all institutions, friends and family, never fear the wrath of God or man, when you demand truth and embrace reality.

L.A. STEEL