In the story "Beyond the Aquila Rift," a captain encounters a malfunction while traveling through space and ends up in a remote spaceport. There, he meets a female friend and becomes involved with her. One day, he realizes that "reality" seems to have some problems and looks at his girlfriend, who has become like his wife, for answers. She asks him if he really wants to know the truth. He answers affirmatively. After a moment of dizziness, he discovers that she is a giant insect, and the once luxurious room has turned into a gloomy cave...
Confined to the Dark Forest#
There are many similar stories, such as "The Truman Show," "A Chinese Ghost Story," "Uzumaki," and the discovery of the Dark Forest Law... All of them involve the discovery of some kind of truth at a certain level of the world, which then has a profound impact on the protagonist. They either experience rebirth or perish in agony.
Is Life Peaceful?#
However, our world seems to be peaceful, and it seems that this is the truth. But everyone in the illusion thinks the same way. This world is like a beautiful woman, with clear eyebrows and eyes. But when you look closely into her pupils, you will find a trace of impurity; when you observe her skin, you will find a lot of dirt; when you smell her body, you will smell a fishy odor beneath the perfume.
In fact, this world has never hidden anything from us. She is just like this, she is there. It's just that we treat her as a sacred goddess, and we are trapped in the illusion. Compared to her reality, we prefer to believe that she is flawless. As the saying goes, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." As someone who loves in vain, this belief is even more terrifying.
The Instinct of Truth#
However, compared to the pursuit of happiness, there is a more primitive and fundamental instinct. It is the lighthouse that awakens self-consciousness, constantly calling out to the drifting ships, reminding them of "who I am." When we indulge in the illusion we weave, there is still this highest lighthouse that awakens us from happiness, urging us to constantly search for the true self and the real world.
What pulled me out of the illusion was the Animal Lighthouse. Breeding, raising, and slaughtering animals allowed me to see many different things. Cruelty, coldness, darkness, the knife going in and the blood coming out... But I still have some expectations for humanity, like the two dark clouds over the physics building, these images have always been hidden deep in my memory.
The Appearance of the Illusion#
What is this expectation? A sense of order. Society operates in an orderly manner, and I don't have to worry about being killed. I have the dignity of being alive. I am fortunate to be a human being, not having to worry about being slaughtered. There are laws and countries to protect me from the darkness, and there are crowds for me to establish various social relationships. I can continue to exist like my countless ancestors, always existing. My children will also continue to exist...
The Emergence of the Dark Forest#
But all of this seems to be false.
What I say is only allowed by them; the laws I believe in are just tools of their rule; the people I know are just maggots tearing each other apart for their own interests; the descendants I hope for are just food for their gluttony; the country I cherish is just a costume they perform in; the peace I enjoy is just the digestion after their temporary feast...
All order is the calmness of their stable rule.
Finally, I understand that I am also one of the pigs and sheep that I slaughter. I absolutely believe in karma, because the cruelty I desperately hide is real.
The Forest of Light has turned into the Dark Forest when I realized my fate as a pig or sheep.
Sinking into the Despair of Darkness#
Escape, escape, escape, that's all I want. At first, I had some hesitation. Did I misunderstand this world? Just as I questioned my escape, the hunter I had never seen before revealed his dark gun, and I no longer hesitated.
If you feel doubtful, please state your coordinates.
Knowing your coordinates means waking up from the illusion, because the coordinates tell us the true appearance of this world, our true position.
Tell this truth to everyone, to all the people I love. Just like the dream I once had, there are ghosts in this world. I pick up my coordinates and show the real world everywhere, but I am met with rejection from my loved ones.
A bone-chilling coldness invades the world I am in, and the candlelight gradually extinguishes. At the last moment of extinction, I fall completely silent and hide my coordinates. In exchange, I get the dying embers of the flame, but no one has seen my coordinates again.
Although I don't have a hunting gun, I still quietly watch this dark world. Trapped in the Dark Forest, I am also thinking about how to escape from this dark forest.
Escaping the Dark Forest#
We often say, "If you don't care about politics, politics will care about you."
The Awakening of Lies#
This statement makes sense, but it is somewhat one-sided. In fact, whether you care about politics or not, politics will still care about you. Those who urge you to care about politics are simply trying to increase their own political power. It is more like a fundraising activity. This is very traditional, just like the primitive humans who formed groups to go hunting, the more people there are, the greater the chances of winning. But you may also be attacked by ferocious beasts and become cannon fodder for another evil force.
Powerlessness and Rage#
The truth of this world is that there is a Dark Forest, nothing more. The reason we are trapped in the Dark Forest is that we want to change the Dark Forest but lack the ability to do so.
If you do not seek to change the Dark Forest, then to some extent, you have already left the Dark Forest. It's like a dog that is tied up. When it is first put on a leash, it jumps up and down, not thinking about tea or food, and gradually becomes emaciated. When it gets used to the leash, it will lie quietly on the ground and pretend to sleep, with a clear mind like a mirror.
Someone will surely say that your method of escaping the Dark Forest is too "dog-like."
I admit it's very "dog-like." But is there a better way?
Is it fearless self-immolation, becoming a fleeting firework? Or becoming a manipulated pawn, unaware that you are being used?
The Helplessness of the Common People#
The so-called awakening more people and labeling it as "awakening" is nothing more than seeking popularity.
Those who call on the people to reflect and not remain silent always believe that "water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it." This is a matter of course. But then, they make a mistake, which is to let the water capsize the boat. If changing the Dark Forest could be achieved simply through reflection, appeals, and propaganda, then what is the point of the boat? If the people are not a scattered group, although they have power, they cannot voice their own opinions. Throughout history, there would never have been an emperor.
I once thought, if tens of thousands of people agreed with me, wouldn't the path to a republic be just around the corner? Then why bother with armed seizure of power, why bother with social systems? This human group would not have oppression from the beginning because there is some kind of physiological connection among the people. They have the ability to be free at any time. At this time, who needs an emperor? Let's just decentralize like a blockchain.
Defeating Politics with Politics#
However, the people can make use of it, but they cannot understand it. Regardless of the meaning, this sentence profoundly demonstrates the ruling group's ability to control the people.
Therefore, after this series of thoughts, we understand: discovering the Dark Forest is easy, but changing the Dark Forest often leads to the illusion of change. Changing the Dark Forest cannot be achieved through awakening others, but by seeking a truly changeable method. And for most people, the truly changeable method is to realize that you cannot change anything. Because changing the Dark Forest is a method at another level, and the Dark Forest is also a rule. The so-called change is to construct a new structure.
In simple terms, defeat magic with magic, defeat politics with politics. In the world, although there are bottom-up changes, there is no bottom-up power. Only forces at the same level can compete with each other, even if it is a commoner emperor, the power it relies on is not "water," but "boat." Even if dynasties change, the "boat" has never capsized, only the change of "helmsmen" and the movement of different forces.
From this perspective, both the "people's view of history" and the "heroic view of history" are meaningless. The development of history is the struggle of upper-level forces. Just like the church representing God has more power than God. The division of upper-level forces is based on the size of power, the order of magnitude. Power is justice, and absolute power is absolute justice.
Just like in fantasy novels, if ordinary people can cultivate immortality and their individual power is greatly expanded, the differences are greatly magnified, then it can be called the "heroic view of history." If everyone can communicate with each other's thoughts and feel each other's joys and sorrows, then there is a true "people's view of history." However, in the current human society, including other societies, there is only the "power view of history."
The Actions of Individuals#
Since we have clarified the method of changing the Dark Forest, we will know what individuals can do. It is to do what we can do. Eat well, drink well, stay healthy... When our ship rocks from side to side and needs the last straw, we, the common people, will become hunters in this power struggle. But the ship is still the same, as stable as an old dog.
To this Dark Forest, even if you take a dump, it will have a greater impact than burning yourself to light up. Since this is the case, why worry about things beyond our control? However, it is indeed difficult to endure the time of waiting for the last straw.
Even if we voice our opinions and take to the streets, we are only a small force. It will only have a certain impact on a certain force of the boat. And this impact is only useful at certain moments.
A good minister in a peaceful era, a treacherous hero in a chaotic era. The power of individuals, even if they are at the level of treacherous heroes and good ministers, can only follow the trend. When they truly become treacherous heroes, they will inevitably represent the interests of more people. But this person is never an individual. This is politics, unrelated to individuals.
Zuzheng#
In the final analysis, I like a passage from "Ode to the A Fang Palace":
Alas! The one who destroyed the six kingdoms was the six kingdoms, not Qin. The one who belonged to Qin was Qin, not the world.
The common people have never had power, they are just despised by the meat eaters, unable to plan for the future.
Conclusion#
At this moment, can you escape from this damn political Dark Forest? I believe everyone can, "The fish leaps in the sea at this moment, and the flowers bloom in the other side of the sky."
August 2, 2024, Night in GMT+8