Hallucinating reality?

This article by Paul Devereux, from the Daily Grail examines the nature of reality by looking at the nature of hallucinations. It fits in nicely with the recent Guardian article I reposted on uncertainty as hallucinations are at the cusp between the real and un real. Devereux has written a huge amount of very thought provoking material over 40 years or so that focus specifically on the nature of reality, time and consciousness. His website is here.

I’ve been reading Oliver Sacks’ recent book, Hallucinations, and it is jaw-dropping to learn what incredible sights and sounds (not to mention touch and smell) the human brain (or is it mind?) can conjure up.¹ He describes the hallucinations people have had as a result of various illnesses and serious medical conditions like Parkinsonism, drugs both recreational and medicinal, brain damage, sensory deprivation, and several other circumstances. (Sacks notes that it wasn’t realised for years that some medical conditions often caused hallucinations in patients because of people’s reticence in letting anyone know they were “seeing things” in case they were diagnosed as being mad.) The book set me thinking about the whole matter of hallucinations, their nature and implications, and prompted memories of my own occasional hallucinatory encounters over the years. I share my musings here for anyone who might be interested, starting with a few descriptions of my hallucinations.