Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.
Albert Einstein.
"Nothing is as it seems. Nor is it otherwise."
Lankavatara Sutra - Mahāyāna Buddhism
There is no greater mystery than this; that being the reality we seek to gain reality.
Sri Ramana Maharshi (December 30, 1879 – April 14, 1950)
Plato’s cave analogy.
Inprisoned inside the cave (Us), prisoners see the shadows on the wall and mistakenly view the shadows as reality. Every now and agian someone awakens to the truth and tries to tell others (Us), but the others respond with anger.
http://theologicalstudies.org/resource-library/philosophy-dictionary/157-platos-cave-analogy
Greek word "cosmos" Meaning "In The World" functioning apart from God
And according to Early Christian gnosticism - "Seraphims" Keter - Crown Divine Plan ~ The Angel of Death. (Read John 7:7) Satan is the ruler of this "cosmos" (John 12:31; 16:11; 1 John 5:19)
Islam.
The Surah takes its title from the sentence, Wa anzalna' l-hadida, of verse 25.
(A study of its subject matter)
http://www.englishtafsir.com/Quran/57/
Surah Al-Hadid (its title meaning, 'the iron') talks about the reality of the transient life of this world.
Hinduism. (Caught up in Samsara – Maya ~ The Malevolant illusion)
In which this universe like a snake on a rope imagined appears.
15. He who sees the universe may try to deny it. What has the desireless to do? He sees not even though he sees. ASTAVAKRA SAMHITA – Chapter XVIII – P136
The universe is endlessly going through creation and dissolution. But that does not affect the Self. The Self is beyond time and causation. Creation and dissolution are in time. In reality nothing else exists. ASTAVAKRA SAMHITA – Chapter XV – P98
The world is real to both those who have not known the Truth
[That which Is] and those who have. To the ignorant, who have
not realized, Reality is of the dimension of the perceptible world. But to the Jnanis, Reality, the form of Truth, shines as the nameless formless effulgent whole, the basic substratum [Source] of the world appearances and their subsidence. Know this as the difference
between the wise and the ignorant. [Tr. T.R. Kanakammal].
Enlightened enquiry alone leads to Liberation. Supernatural powers are all illusory appearances created by the power of maya (mayashakti). Self-realization which is permanent is the only true accomplishment (siddhi). Accomplishments which appear and disappear, being the effect of maya, cannot be real. They are accomplished with the object of enjoying fame, pleasures, etc. They come unsought to some persons through their karma. Know that union with Brahman is the real aim of all accomplishments. This is also the state of Liberation (aikya mukti) known as union (sayujya)
Ramana Maharshi (30 December 1879 – 14 April 1950)
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