The World and the Universe are like a mirage. This statement raises eyebrows when a seeker or non-seeker hears it. An object looks different depending on the distance and the angle from which it is viewed. In the same way, this statement may sound preposterous to many but to a tiny minority there is complete truth in this statement. It all depends on the perspective.
Let us take this example. A man and his goat were walking back home in the desert one hot sunny afternoon. He had taken his goat with him to see if it could be sold in the market place. It was a long walk back from the market that they had gone to visit. On the way home, they are fairly tired, hungry and thirsty. The sun was shining brightly and it was a hot day. Out in the distance, they both see what appears to be an oasis. The water in the oasis looks real to both the man and his goat. Unfortunately, it is only a mirage. The goat thinks it is water and rushes out to the mirage. The man uses his knowledge and the power of discrimination (his intellect) and knows it is only a mirage. He cannot deny that the appearance of the water in the mirage is very realistic. Yet, because of his intellect the man can differentiate the real from the unreal and hence he does not run towards the mirage. The goat on the other hand, does not have the intellect to differentiate or discriminate and rushes towards the mirage.
From the point of view of the goat, the mirage is real. From the point of view of the man, he knows that the mirage is unreal. From the point of view of the sun, where is the question of real or unreal, mirage or no mirage, man or goat, world or no world? The sun shines regardless of anything.
The non-seeker is like the goat, not using the power of discrimination and intellect that nature has given him. He takes the world to be totally real and does not even question it. He suffers with the ups and downs that the world presents to him.
The man who has heard and understands the Truth, is one who uses his intellect to discriminate between the real and the unreal. Yet, he believes that 'he' has understood and uses the statement " I understand the Truth" and needlessly argues about the reality or non-reality of the world. He has not yet given up on the idea of being an individual.
The Jnani (the Realized) on the other hand, is like the sun. Just the self shining Self, with no question of reality or non-reality of the world. The Jnani has merged in the Absolute, where there is no question of knowledge or ignorance. The Jnani just IS.
