2023-10-14 11:00:10
“Losing one illusion hurts. Losing them all kills,” said the graffiti on a wall that stood out for its colorful allegorical drawings. And it’s true. In some way, a person without illusions is a person in life. Illusion It helps keep hope alive and generates expectations for the future. It would be unthinkable to embark on a project without a minimum amount of enthusiasm. I clarify that I am not talking about “vain illusions” or becoming deluded. I speak of illusion as hope, as a legitimate expectation that awakens longing and confidence.
Illusion as deception
But there is another type of illusion that can lead us to disappointment. I refer to illusion as a deception or misinterpretation of a real external stimulus. Indeed, the word illusion has another completely opposite meaning that we cannot fail to mention because of the damage it can cause us. It is about illusion as a concept or image that does not respond to reality or is caused by the deception of the senses. We must be cautious and not be fooled by appearances.
The value of illusion
Illusion is a fundamental part of the experience of living. It helps us move forward and keep us moving. It also usually has a double positive effect: in the realization of what is desired and in the possibility of enjoying, in advance, the desired moment. This is because it allows us to visualize what we want to achieve. Illusion as an internal feeling allows us to enjoy before having reached the desired goal.
From personal motivation, it is a permanent invitation to set out to seek new goals and new dreams. Our decisions reflect the strength of the enthusiasm that motivates them. Perhaps that is why Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) used to say that our choices should reflect our hopes, not our fears.
Without hope, the meaning of life is diluted and makes us sad, dull and routine people. It may be ephemeral, but its value lies in the momentum it gives to our decisions until we achieve what we long for. Now, illusion has its negative side. It can be used to manipulate people by creating a false reality. In that sense we must be cautious. We must also guard against self-deception, as a way of lying to oneself to maintain false illusions.
Life without illusions
Someone asked me not long ago whether people with terminal illnesses can harbor illusions. And the truth is that the illusion should not depend on our state of health or the time we have left to live. On the contrary, it is the time in life when we most need illusions. Without them only hopelessness, sadness and helplessness will increase. The illusion covers you and gives you wings. It is the moment of the hope of living well the time we have left, of doing those small everyday things with the joy of being able to do them. The illusion that our loved ones will be happy and achieve their goals beyond their absences. The illusion, always based on faith, that illness and pain redeem us and prepare the soul for its most important encounter. As José Narosky says: “My greatest hope is to continue having dreams.”
By Miryan Andujar
Lawyer, teacher and researcher
Institute of Bioethics of the UCCuyo
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