In his book, The Origins of Knowledge and Imagination, Jacob Bronowski’s emphatic suggestion on how perception alters the definition of reality provokes the human mind to question what is in fact real and how to find truth (or "what is") in reality without being too dependant on the "discriminating" human eye. He states in the first chapter, "It really is pointless to go on talking about what the world is like… when the modes of perception of the world which are accessible to us have so changed in character. And we become more and more aware that what we think about the world is not what the world is but what the human animal sees of the world" (4-5). So, I ask, "What is past what the human animal sees, and how does realizing the existence beyond the realm of reality change my personal existence? What aspects of reality apply to the outside world and how does this imply certain ideas today?"

In Bronowski’s analysis, he stresses how "Almost all the words we use about experiences of the kind that go into visions or images are words connected with the eye and with the sense of sight"(10). This emphasis in language of the eye indicates the importance of our eyesight when investigating outer reality. Bronowski apparently finds this to be detrimental when he says, "we are constantly deceived about the nature of the outside world because we interpret it in terms of the built-in search mechanism" (18). In other words, we, as humans, exalt our eyes with the most profound trust; yet, they are masters at deception. I say that they are masters at deception because no one can prove that the human eye is actually showing us what is. As magicians force you to see what isn’t there with their illusions, your eyes may actually force you to see, not what is there; but rather, what you want to see. Humans have been taught throughout the course of their lives to simply believe the assumption that our sight is trustworthy. Of course, nothing of this nature (the nature of reality) can be proven. One may say, "Of course it can! We have our senses to tell us what is there! I can touch something and know that it exists because I am touching it!" But if our sense of sight can deceive us, then why can’t our others? Our senses of touch, smell, taste, and hearing could just as well be deceiving us. Thus, because our sight is limited, our knowledge of reality is limited.

So, the question now is, if everything we know (our senses) is deceptive in nature, how do we get past this "illusion"? Personally, I believe that beyond this reality, there is a spiritual reality or a world of spiritual truth. The only way to transcend to this esoteric "truth" is to negate all senses. Since I was a child, I have been urged to meditate. During the process of meditation, one is to close his eyes, and concentrate on a specific theme (a word, an image… etc). The logic behind this is that all the senses are distracted, and the human body has deviated from the common reality of the world. Thus, a search exclusively utilizing the soul can be instigated.

On a more personal note, this spirituality intertwines with a broader subject… religion. After reading the first three chapters of Bronowski’s book and analyzing the misperceptions of mankind, I have started to question the idea of religion as a whole. Questions including, "Who is this God that gives us deceptive senses? Why does he try and deceive us by giving us false senses? If my assumption of a spiritual reality existing beyond the outer reality is correct, than why must we be held back from our spiritual, personal truth?" have inspired an individualistic realization. After questioning religion, I have come to the realization that religion is something that cannot be understood through simple human perception and language. The only method to understanding something so abstract and illogical (with respect to the "realistic definition" of logic) is to transcend, maybe through meditation or some other form of finding a median between reality as humans know it and a spiritual reality.

Throughout the world today, there are many discoveries being made that link science to religion. There are numerous theories that have been offered by scholars linking the Bible and Qu’ran (Islamic Holy Book) to many scientific discoveries. Bronowski’s ideas of perception can be applied to this realm of discovery. Not knowing what is real could change mankind’s perception of what is seen to be real. Mankind, with the present increase of research in religion, will eventually, as a whole, move closer to some type of transcendent truth, which in turn, will result in human perception to be altered. With the implication that human perception changes, it is only natural that, since humans will perceive more, scientific findings will increase as well. As science embarks on finding more to relate to religion, a kinship of science and religion could be a completely separate reality in itself.

What humans perceive to be reality now may not be accurate, or for that matter, even real, but the world we live in is one that is constantly evolving and coming closer to some new reality. This could be a cycle, reality after reality, or it may be a definite paradigm shift from one reality to another. The only option for mankind is to follow the natural progression while searching for methods to overcome misperception. Furthermore, if misperception can be alleviated, then we will have found truism of reality to the highest and final degree.