“Child, what is Maya, the unreality or temptation?”
“Guru! Maya is something that attracts you without its existence. Maya is an illusion; it is virtual but appears to be real. This is something that takes over a man’s mind. Maya takes away his discretionary intellect and mounts in his mind and starts operating as it likes. As long as there is a veil of Maya on the eyes of a man, he sees a world that is not really there, and he leaves the world one day entangled in the same illusion.”
“Child” asked Guru, “Why do I feel like you are talking about social media?”
My lord, you are really someone that knows it all. Another name for this Maya is also “social media.”
“My dear child! What is the nature of this Maya? What is its expansion? Can you just describe it?”
“Guru”, described the disciple in detail, “Even its creators don’t know about this social media illusion in detail, so what should I tell a low intelligence creature? On the surface, understand that this virtual illusion is so strong that it binds such human beings together, who have never met, nor will ever meet, yet there is anger, malice, love, hatred, violations like jealousy, admiration, condemnation, and comparison become such strong bonds that they are not even formed even between worldly acquaintances, and relatives. Apps like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are the nymphs of this Maya who bind people with their charm like a dragon wraps a creature in its grip and then it can never be free.”
“My dear child, said Guru, “In this elusive virtual world of social media, how are the principles of karma implemented? How are karma bonds formed?”
“Guru” said the disciple, “It has its own karmic principle, which operates on the basis of the transaction of karma. Here, the transaction of deeds is done through comments and likes. Bonds are formed by sharing them. When another person likes or comments on one person’s post, a bond is formed. The other can be free from this bondage only when he turns back and likes and comments on the same person’s post. Unless he does so, he is indebted to him, which causes his bondage.
“What is the root cause of getting trapped in the vicious circle of such bonds? Is it money?” asked the guru.
"No, Guru, the reason for this is our heart and mind. Humans look at the likes and comments received on their posts and associate them with their prestige. The account holders compare their likes and comments with the likes and comments received by others, and in this muddy puddle of likes and dislikes, the flower of lotus, the ego of human blooms."
“My dear child, this looks like a strange world, full of illusions. Give some more information about it.” The guru’s face was shining with lots of curiosity!
“Guru, the glory of this Maya, the temptation is such that it has changed many spiritual definitions.”
Guru, “Child, please provide me with some more examples”
Okay, Guru, here we go.
Knowledgeable: knowing how to use all the resources of social media, skilled in the art of making followers, they are well-versed in taking good selfies even with fewer resources.
Ignorant: The one who does not know how to use social media, even in today’s time, is ignorant. The one who can’t display all his qualities, art, etc. that one can show on social media is a wise person.
The Foolish: The one who cannot display all his qualities on social media, however meaningful and beautiful, is foolish.
The Rich: The more followers you have, the richer you are.
The Poor: In this virtual world, a person who does not have enough followers is poor.
The Fearless: The one who visits the posts of others with no fear and follows them in the comments is fearless.
The Fearful: The fearful person is the one who keeps his profile locked.
A true friend: The one who happily likes and comments on your every post, is your true friend.
Enemy: The person who does not respond to your post as you wish is your enemy.
Spartan: The one who writes a post only when he has something meaningful to say is a Spartan.
A Playful person: A person with a fickle nature who appears on the wall with any useless material, at any time during the day or night.
The guru was astonished to hear all this, so he asked, “This is definitely a strange illusion, my dear child! Is there a way out of this?”
“Guru, So far, man has not discovered that remedy because the one who tried to find a remedy also got drowned in the same ocean.”
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Guru felt amused, but he was curious, “This means that this auspicious work has to be done by our own hands.” He stopped for a moment and then said, “Do this, my dear child; make my accounts on all the social media apps, too. I will show you that one learns to cross the ocean when one jumps into it.”
“But Guru, this ocean is even more dangerous than the Bermuda Triangle, which also passes through it. It entices and eventually drowns those who attempt to cross it.”
The Guru challenged his disciple, “Child! Are you questioning the confidence of a perfect man like me? There is no such illusion in the world that could keep me tied. Now you have to create my accounts on all social media sites. Be sure to follow the order.”
The disciple said, “At your service, Guru, your word is my command!”
Guru has been busy ever since and still taking a dip in the ocean of social media, but is unable to cross it.
#theinkwell prompt 'dialogue between two persons'