Monday, August 17, 2015

Confusion.

འཁྲུལ་པ་
Tibetan: trulpa
English: confusion, deception, misperception, distortion

Confusion is a false way of seeing the world.  It is misapprehending a situation, deceiving ourselves about what is really happening.  Confusion creates a lot of problems for us because it affects our actions and what we stand for.  If our view is distorted, our actions are likewise misaligned and we experience more anger, more frustration and more fear.   Confusion polarizes us and our world. 

Confusion is really difficult to deal with because the confused person thinks they have knowledge.  A distorted view of reality makes no difference if it is the reality you experience and all the stories you tell yourself confirm that reality.

Confusion has its own logic, its own arguments and its own justification.

So how do we uproot it?

The first step is to understand that we all have a lens through which we see the world.  I have my own lens, you have yours.   When we realize that there is some shared basis between those two worlds that we can talk about and discuss, then there is some possibility that I can undermine my own confusion.   
Knowing the relativity of our own lens opens us up to the truth.  It opens us up to empathy and genuine understanding.  With empathy and genuine understanding we can reduce the distortion of our own lens and see the world more clearly.

We cannot change the minds of others.  We can only show them another lens and start to ask questions.  


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