What is Maya?
It is that ever elusive figure which holds man and the entire world in a thrall. In myth, she is seen as a lady shrouded in veils of darkness that tempts man. By offering one their greatest desires, Maya makes an undeniable offer that all fall in. Once someone accepts, she (Maya) keeps them in a slumber that they can never escape.
What could it be that could trap any man or the world inside of a thrall? What does Maya offer?
The offer Maya makes is unique to each individual. It is their innermost desire, something that they are longing for and cannot possibly deny. A similar tale is told of the Harpies in Greek mythology who would sing beautiful songs to sailors that passed by and lure them into a trap. In their song, they would offer happiness and joy in ways which the sailors could only dream off. Maya works in a similar manner and offers man the hope of happiness.
Moving away from mythology, how can such a lure exist in real life?
The way it works in real life is that Maya offers chances and hopes for happiness or satisfaction. Such as getting that new thing or getting a promotion or meeting this person, or starting a YouTube channel or blog. Now, the catch is that when we chase after these desires, it’s not that we can’t achieve them. In fact, many times we are able to achieve them but the question is at what cost and to what result?
How much is given for these chances of happiness? And once they are obtained do we really stay happy? Or is it the opposite, that our chase for these desires bring about swings in our mood and overall life? For example, what kind of grind did it take to get that new promotion? How long did that high last? Was it really worth it?
If keeping desires or chasing after them in the hopes of happiness causes so many problems can’t we just say ‘No’ to our desires?
If only it were that simple. This is when things get really interesting, and also why Maya is so ‘elusive’. You see, all of us are ‘inside’ Maya and whether we choose to or not, we are the ones perpetuating it.
How? By human nature. We will observe one-another and on many levels, imitate behaviors, thoughts and preferences.
Why? Because I see that you are happy and also want to be happy so I will follow. Out of this, new desires will be created and pursued.
Still, this can’t be enough to keep the “Thrall of Maya” going continuously. Surely, people can break out?
They might be able to, if they knew about Maya and its workings, but they know very little about it. In fact, the reason Maya works so well is because we only know so much about the world and can only know so much about each other.
Information will always be limited.
To make things even more interesting, here is the other side of Maya that we have yet to explore:
Everything in this world is constantly changing.
In case that someone did obtain Happiness or gained knowledge, everything is in constant change, meaning their attainment of satisfaction would not last. Hence all happiness and joy in this world is fleeting in nature.
No one can be truly happy or truly enlightened in this world.
Man, that’s Dark.
Yup, Maya is Dark.
Surely, there has to be a way out? Or something we can do to overcome this ‘thrall’ of Maya?
You’re not the first person to ask that question. Hopefully, you aren’t the last either. But here is the reality of it: Maya is not the elusive dark lady that comes to trap you in her thrall. It would have been much easier to overcome her if she had been as myth had described.
Instead, what we have discussed so far is the nature of creation, it’s just the way things are. Knowledge will always be limited, happiness will always be fleeting in nature and no one in this world can ever be truly fulfilled.
Who are we to escape that? Or to change that?
The best we can do is to accept it…
What??? That can’t be it! Surely there has to be a way…
There is a way, but it’s not for the faint of heart. There’s a reason this kind of knowledge is not disclosed to all…
In truth, there is no darkness in Maya. That is only an association given to explain what it feels like to be inside of Maya, or in other words, to be inside this world. Meaning, it is an association given by those that have gone outside of Maya. They felt that Maya was ‘dark’ in comparison to what they experienced outside.
Oh! That’s Amazing!.. What is outside like?
To understand the outside, we first need to understand the inside.
