Illusion is a precondition for enlightenment.

Imagine two situations:

Scenario 1:

I explain how the sun produces heat. I go deep into the science, how it’s like a giant fusion reactor, smashing atoms together to release energy. If you’re curious, this kind of knowledge feels exciting. You’ve learned something new. This is what we call “learning”.

Scenario 2:

You’ve spent your whole life amazed by a magician’s trick. He’s tied up, dropped into a water tank, and somehow escapes every time. It’s mysterious, looks real but you know it’s just a trick. But how?! Then one day, I take you backstage and reveal exactly how he does it. Your reaction isn’t just, “Oh, cool.” It’s deeper. It’s “Wow, I have been tricked my whole life by this simple trick!” You feel like something big has clicked. That’s not just learning, that’s “enlightenment.”

That’s why the Buddha said:

“Illusion is a precondition for enlightenment.”

The world we live in is a kind of illusion. Like a magic trick, there’s a hidden truth that we don’t know. We are just virtual players in a sandbox?! Or something else?!

When you find the truth behind it, that’s when true enlightenment happens.

“Illusion is a precondition for enlightenment.”