Are We Living In Modern Maaya?
You’re scrolling through Instagram late at night. A friend’s “casual” breakfast photo looks straight out of a magazine. Another’s “morning routine” feels impossibly perfect. Someone else’s “authentic” work moment seems meticulously curated.
And something inside you aches.
Not just because their lives look perfect. But because somewhere deep down, you know you’re chasing reflections in a digital mirror.
This modern experience has an ancient name: Maya.
What Our Feeds Hide
That influencer’s perfect morning routine? Behind it might be 47 attempts at the same shot, carefully chosen filters, and a cold breakfast.
That entrepreneur’s “just closed a deal” post? Perhaps masking months of uncertainty and sleepless nights.
That friend’s “living my best life” update? Maybe posted during a moment of deep loneliness.
We know this intellectually. Yet we scroll. We compare. We curate our own reflections to cast back into the void.
The Ancient Mirror
Thousands of years ago, Vedic sages spoke of Maya – the grand illusion that keeps us from seeing our true nature. They didn’t have Instagram, but they understood something profound about human consciousness: we tend to mistake the reflection for reality.
Maya is an essentially a cacophony of appearances that makes us forget who we really are.
Sound familiar?
The Modern Veil
Social media has become our modern Maya, a veil of curated reflections that:
- Makes us mistake others’ highlight reels for their daily reality
- Convinces us our worth lies in likes and followers
- Keeps us chasing an image instead of nurturing our essence
- Has us performing our lives instead of living them
But here’s what’s fascinating: just as ancient wisdom identified Maya, it also revealed the way through it.
The Way Through
The sages taught that Maya’s power dims when we recognize it for what it is. Not by deleting our apps or demonizing technology, but by remembering our true nature – our soul’s essence.
When you know who you are at your core:
- Others’ highlight reels lose their power to diminish your worth
- The compulsion to perform for validation fades
- Your posts become expressions of your truth rather than bids for approval
- The scroll becomes a choice rather than a compulsion
Beyond the Feed
Perhaps what we’re really seeking in those late-night scrolls isn’t the perfect life, but a reminder of our own perfection. Not the kind that needs filters, but the kind that exists in our soul’s pure essence.
Maybe every time that ache rises while scrolling, it’s not showing us what we lack, but reminding us to turn inward – to the place where no filters are needed, where no captions can capture the depth of who we are.
The Real Connection
In a world of increasing digital illusion, knowing your soul’s true purpose becomes not just meaningful, but essential. It becomes your anchor in the sea of carefully crafted images, your compass when algorithms try to define your path.
Because while Maya – ancient or modern – may be inevitable, losing ourselves in it isn’t.
Your soul’s wisdom whispers beneath the notifications. Your purpose runs deeper than any feed. Your essence needs no filters.
Are you ready to look beyond the reflections?