Dear all, today we’re exploring a vital topic—“The View of Illusion.” This is deeply significant because we all encounter our karma and its obstacles. While the Shurangama Sutra emphasizes realizing our true nature, most of us can’t yet feel or perceive that true nature. What we can see are the fruits of our karma. This is tough to grasp—it’s not something we can understand instantly. Only through repeated conditioning can we come to know it.
Why We Cling to the Real and Obstruct Ourselves
Why are we so stubborn, so attached to eating? Because you like it. You don’t truly love the Dharma, nor do you genuinely care about your own well-being. You think that taste is good, but in reality, it’s just adding to your karmic obstacles. Those “goods” are conditioned into you—so can’t we shift that conditioning? When will it change? Aren’t we conditioning ourselves every day? You might ask, “Are your words conditioning us?” Words alone won’t do it. The key is you have to genuinely want this shift yourself.
You need to see that those defilements, those attachments, are blocking you. With them, nothing works; without them, everything flows—you’re free. But people don’t want freedom. They’d rather chase short-sighted gains, that one bite in front of them. “Who cares about the rest? I’ll eat now and deal with it later. I’ll eat, then practice well.” But what happens? Barely start practicing, and they’re eating again. The myriad phenomena are inherently still—they never told you to eat. Stuff’s there—don’t you have to eat it? I’ve got things sitting around all the time, and I don’t eat them!
The Power of Illusion: Turning the Real into the Unreal
Why does seeing things as illusory bring freedom? When you take something as real, it becomes a solid barrier. Say there’s a tree—you think it’s real, you’re stuck. But if you see it as illusory, not truly existent, you can just “illusion” it away. No more obstacle. Another tree over there? Illusion it away too. You can see as far as you want. If you cling to it as real, you can’t get past it. Everything—every single thing—is you obstructing yourself with this notion of “realness.” The more real you think it is, the more real it becomes. So, keep conditioning yourself with the view of illusion, and that’s enough.
The Illusory Abiding Family Instructions teaches you how to practice this view of illusion, how to apply it to yourself. It’s simple: these things don’t exist—they’re illusory. All you need is one thought, one phrase, no matter what you face: “All of this is illusory, like a dream.” That’s it.
Why Can’t We Illusion It Away Now?
So why can’t we make it illusory right now? Because what you’re experiencing is the fruit. In the past, you saw everything as real, so now you get the fruit of that realness. Right now, everything is “manifested by mind alone, sensed by karma alone, transformed by consciousness alone.” You’ve got to work on your consciousness—see it as dreamlike, unreal, empty, even nonexistent. As your consciousness shifts, the things around you start to change too. When you fully embrace this illusory view, when the concept of “real” vanishes without a trace, it’s no longer solid. At that point, you can shape it, dissolve it, or bring it back at will—total freedom.
It sounds pretty easy, right? You don’t need some fancy technique—just conditioning. Condition yourself until your sense of things being real is gone. Then, everything melts into emptiness.
Rebuilding the System: Relentless Conditioning
You’ve trained yourself so well in “realness” before—now, don’t use that. Set up a new system with “illusory existence.” This can’t stop for a second—if you pause, that old “real” habit creeps back in. You’ve got to condition yourself relentlessly, making “this is illusory” your instinct. When you do, the defilements fall away, the obstacles vanish, and you’re truly free.
Closing: Illusion Is Liberation
Dear friends, the view of illusion isn’t some lofty mystery—it’s a shift in how you see the world. From “real” to “illusory,” from clinging to letting go, it’s a process of conditioning. Past karma blocks you, but now, you can transform it with consciousness. Keep at it without interruption, and one day, you’ll see: all is illusory, all is a dream—nothing can hold you back. That’s when you’re free. Thank you all!
