ASH PHOENIX
Illusions are something I struggle with a lot. Perhaps they are the one shadow I could never overcome. Illusions are a particular difficult shadow that we have to conquer in our lives. Overcoming our illusions is one of the most challenging things we can achieve in our lives – at least that is how I see it. Illusions should not be mixed up with dreams. We can have dreams and we should have dreams. Dreams have to do with our happiness and our passions. We should follow our dreams to become who we are capable of being. As always, it is not easy to follow our dreams.
Dreams can be achieved in one way or the other. Sometimes they are more realistic, sometimes less, but as long as we have a dream, we also have the potential to achieve it. In 1963, Martin Luther King formulated in his famous speech his dream for black people to achieve the rights of freedom, equality, and justice, and to escape racial discrimination. Since then, a lot of things have improved, and we even had the first US president of colour.
Dreams are positive most of the time. They presuppose positive change in our lives. Whether we pray for our dreams, meditate on them, or are simply fiercely determined to realise them is irrelevant in this respect. Everyone has different ways of manifesting their dreams. 
Illusions are something entirely different. This is where we trick our minds in believing something is achievable when it is actually not. Illusions can be dangerous as they let us create a mistaken reality in our minds. Illusions can be defined as a false idea or belief. My dear reader, you will see the subtle difference between dreams and illusions. Illusions cannot be achieved as they are false beliefs or ideas that do not have anything to do with our reality. We may create illusions about our lives and let our minds imprison us. Or, we let others create those illusions for us. They present us with a smoke screen behind which they hide reality. Some people are master manipulators and they are skilled in showing us something that in reality does not exist. They trick people into believing their words which are not supported by their actions. An illusionist is a performer who makes it seem that unlikely, strange or impossible things are happening. Another word for illusionist is magician.
But in the end, it is us who create illusions in our minds. For illusions to be effective, it is not enough for the illusionist to act, we actually have to believe those illusions. At the Vortex de Riambel, illusions are the sixth shadow that we have to release when walking around the circles. Once, we have released them, we can embrace the light. In my fiction novel, The Chronicles of the Tiny Island, I attribute this shadow to the third eye chakra. In meditation, it is said that if we open our third eye, we see the light. I cannot comment on that as I am just a beginner in the practice of meditation, and I have not yet experienced this. Maybe, it is because I have not been able to release my illusions. One thing I can however say for sure. It is difficult for me to release my illusions.
Many people have a positive outlook towards life. They want to believe in the good in other people even if they were disappointed before. Whatever is thrown at them, they somehow manage. Often they do not cope with life in a very effective manner but they do so full of bravery and determination. Many of us are susceptible to illusions that others create for us. We like to believe people if they say beautiful words to convince us although we should see much earlier that they only create a smoke screen of words behind which the reality looks completely different.
When we are in a good marriage, we do not tend to create illusions for our other half. In a healthy relationship, we work and grow together – mentally, spiritually, and hopefully also old together. Unhealthy relationships do not tend to reflect this. Often, one person has a different life perspective but they choose not to reveal that to the other person. They neither strive to find common ground to bridge those differences, nor do they part ways because it is beneficial for them to keep the other side in their illusions. They consciously choose to create illusions and their words become a veil that hides their real intentions and actions.
My dear reader, we cannot change the nature of these illusionists – we can neither change their words nor their actions nor the lack of them. We can only change our reaction towards the illusions that are presented to us. We have to analyse carefully what the situation is and consider the matter from every angle. And by doing so, we also have to acknowledge that the illusionist is skilled in selling us our very own dreams. Even if the naked reality looks clearly ugly, we have to accept it as it is and formulate our reaction to it. This is where the light comes in. When the confusion in our minds is gone, when the smoke screen has fallen, the light at the end of the tunnel appears. And suddenly we see the things for what they are and not how someone wants us to believe they are. That is light, that is clarity of thought, that is freedom from illusions, and that is ultimately the path towards our personal growth. So I want to close this article with the words: release your illusions and call forth within you the light.
Ash Phoenix is the author of The Chronicles of the Tiny Island which is available at Bookcourt.