The Dance of Life

Playing with illusion.

This story is one of a number to challenge assumptions about ourselves and reality. Each is inspired by a real-world scientific or spiritual genius (Einstein, LaoTzu, Ramana Maharshi…), and is presented as a visit to a game world in which that thinker’s message is re-imagined in unconventional form.

Welcome to 1ila and Maya’s World, where we recognize the hypnosis and illusion that constitutes our sense of separateness. Here, we discover that the “meaning of life” has nothing to do with purpose or reason but is all about effortless spontaneity and play!

The inspirations for this world are not humans; instead, they are two concepts from Hindu mythology. Maya is the metaphor for the illusion that presents an eternal, undivided reality to us as a temporally flowing jumble of phenomena. The same illusion leads us to mistake our egos for ourselves. Lila is an analogy for explaining the events of life on Earth — however serious they may seem to us — as the outcomes of God’s (or the gods’) frivolous play.

Lila and Maya are best friends forever — inseparable. Yes, they’re naughty, but they’re not problems. They just wanna have fun!

You jump in and find yourself on the roof of the world, atop a snowy peak, surrounded by, as far as you can see, other white-capped mountains. A brilliant sun lights a clear, blue sky, but a biting wind warns the weather may change. As you breathe, the chill air catches in your throat. In the sharp cold, your heart races, and your breath shortens. Luckily, you’re standing still, not trying to climb to this privileged spot.

Then, with a “clang,” the panorama disappears, replaced by a white dome above and around you. At its center, plastic snow and synthetic rocks lie at your feet. Three nearby fans account for the warning breeze. The speakers that gave the wind its voice fall silent, leaving only the hum of cooling units and vacuum pumps in the background. The entire experience was a projection, a mirage, a trick.

“Who should I thank for taking me to new heights?” you ask the emptiness.

A woman steps from behind a curtain, smiles, and says, “That’s me, Maya!”

“Seems a lot of effort to create a lie.”

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