What is your definition of reality?

Question

I started doing landscaping and notice things that I never saw before in porches, gardens, etc. Now these objects have different meaning, but theyre still the same. It reality what I see things to be, or what they actually are...Why

Answer 1

Reality is absolute truth.

The catch is nobody fully sees reality.

Using Mandrunk’s example I’ll try to explain better.

Mandrunk stated he started doing landscaping and notice things that he never saw before in porches, gardens, etc. Now these objects have different meaning, but they’re still the same. He had always had a partial understanding of the reality of what these items were but as his understanding of these items grew so to did his understanding of what they are in reality.

I hope this makes sense.

Answer 2

You are asking about the definition of reality and not about what reality is. The definition depends totally on the awareness or *realization* of the person who is defining the word 'reality' and that will variate with each individual.

Words, the same like symbols are standing for a more or less complex concept, that describes the meaning of this word. So a person can include this concept into ones knowledge base, even without having any experience, not even understanding the full meaning. The vague feeling of knowledge mostly is enough, that it is not enough, shows when there is a strong challenge in a real life situation...

Let me give you an example: The Eskimos have about 200 words for 'snow', we have only a few, but the Eskimos live all year in snow and their life depends on it. We have only very few words for *love* and only one word for *reality*. That tells something about our awareness, doesn't it?

As a 'normal' person living our daily happenings, we know only one reality and that is the *fake reality* established in our society. Now this gives a distinct meaning to the simple word 'reality', although the word 'fake' gives a negative meaning and so might be rejected from people for whom their reality is the only one they know or better said: the reality they live. There is no need for another reality, people don't want to know about something else that only will irritate them. They firmly will defend their state of being and that is their limitation to their established 'reality'.

If I give you my definition of *reality* then you can't understand it, because that wouldn't be the 'reality' you are living. You might include it into the intellectual collection of concepts you have gathered and you will identify with it and so it can give you an additional good feeling of security and importance, but that's all. And it is not especially good, because not even the most beautiful or complex concept can substitute ones limited reality with something, even though it is more sophisticated. That's the danger of modern 'spiritual concepts', these give a picture of a possible reality that then is integrated into ones self image, but it is not *realized*, that is: brought into ones *(fake)reality*.

Now you see that I used the word 'reality' several times and the meaning was always different.

Conclusion: Let's say the final *reality* is *white light*, before this state is reached, it can be experienced as many different colors, that are coming from the one *light*. This describes my *reality*.

I hope this gives you some light...

BeiYin

Answer 3

Although reality is relative when it comes to talk about or define, yet it is in fact the state of what things are - whether or not we perceive them, and whether or not we are aware of their existence.

The reality of a star, for example, is there in its state as a star with all its components, number of atoms, weight, light emitting, distance from other stars and planets, size... etc, regardless of how we perceive it. What I perceive in the star is "my" view of the reality of the star, and not its actual reality which is far beyond the capacity of the tools I use for knowledge. Consequently, every observer has their "own reality" about the star, but none of them has captured – or will be able to capture - the actual reality of it.

This is significant because our imperfect perception or view or even scientific knowledge of the star is NOT the reality of that star as perfectly as it is. What is interesting about this is that the star's actual reality still exists and is there untouched. None of our natural - or artificial/technical - tools of knowledge, whether in experimental science or laboratories; whether in astronomy, astrology or modern science of space at its latest advancements, is able to capture the actual reality of the subject star because there will always be something about it that we don't know, and is yet to be discovered.



Based on the above argument, the reality of anything is what it actually is, and not how it looks to the senses or the mind or even how it looks in a perfect photograph - as this is an "image"; not reality.



Another uncertain reality is our actions and thoughts. No one among the approximately seven billion people who live on this earth has the same perfect perception of a fixed object - say a stone in the street. Each has their own realities. Even the very same person has a different reality every fraction of a second - we ourselves are not the same every second; nothing is the same every second - how then can any one whatsoever know the reality of any existing object?



The reality of things, therefore, is what they actually are, and not how they look to us.

Answer 4

There is an objective reality, independent of human experience. Then there is sociological reality. Sociological reality is something that humans have individually been contributing to since--fill in blank-- We are educated by people who have been educated by people who were educated by people. The way we view our sociological reality is something that is largely dependent on how the people before us decided to view it or in how we allow someone else to decide. For instance, the structure of our governments, the way we view relationships, the way we talk, the way we think, the way we work, the way we play, the way we act. Together we all decide what our sociological reality will be. So, while we are all constrained by environmental and biological objective reality there is a lot of play in how we can establish our sociological environments. So I have two definitions of reality and I think it's important to define which is being communicated about. Sadly, I can't fly on my own, that is a biological constraint, but because of the sociological reality we all contribute to and people in history have contributed to I can get in a plane and go anywhere I want. Sociological reality can be whatever we choose it to be within objective reality's constraints. Every single one of us either decides or leaves the decisions to others.

Answer 5

Reality, as many will tell you, is subjective. It means different things to different people, and not definition-wise. For instance, take people with schizophrenia or those who suffer from other mind-altering ailments. They see things distorted, and reality is a much different place for them than for other people. They see things that are not necessarily real to other people, but does that mean those things are not a part of their reality and therefore real? Reality, I think, is a combination of a person's life experiences, knowledge, thoughts, environment and outlook. It's all a matter of perspective, man.

Answer 6

I think everyones reality is different. My reality will be different than yours and the next person. I think its how we perceive things to be from the state of mind we are in. For eg. when we are happy and feeling happy we perceive things differently then when we are sad. But all those times those things have been the same but it was us who perceived them differently. Hope that makes sense.

Answer 7

To me ultimately, reality is as described in subjects like physics and chemistry.

Answer 8

Reality is absolute: existence is primary, consciousness is secondary.

Answer 9

Reality will exists and it doesn't matter what you make of it.. it will still exist.

Answer 10

What I see

What I believe I see

What I believe I gather through my senses, which interpret to me in return

So, what I am aware of about myself and things about me.



Hey, now what did you see?