Upside down world - Part 2 - The Moon version

This article is about perception and mindfulness.

Supermoons and the Moon Illusions

Have you seen a moon so big that it almost fill a half of the sky and you cannot take your eyes away from it? Then what you have observed must be a super moon. Scientifically speaking a supermoon occurs when the moon is travelling closest to earth, and it is a full moon at the same time. Out of all the 12-13 full moons per year 2or 3 can be super moons. However, there is another phenomenon which makes the full moon appear bigger. For that matter even the sun appears bigger, when it is the golden hour. When it is near the horizon. That is called moon illusion.

The theory behind this observation is fascinating. One popular explanation is the relative size hypothesis. When the moon is at the horizon, it is seen against the trees and buildings far away, and our minds perceive this as the moon is bigger than when it is relatively isolated in the mid sky. If you look at the following illustration it captures essence of this idea. Which is called Ebbinghaus Illusion.

Ebbinghaus Illusion- The moon on the right appear bigger although it is the same size as the left

I am sure, you have tried to capture such a moon and once you take the photo, it doesn't appear so big. Infact the moon which you have caputred may even seem relatively small. And I am sure you stopped trying to capture this and just look at the moon again to experience it. But photographers who are experience do know how to make this optical illusion, and with their gigantic cameras they zoom in so the moon is visible massive against the buildings and trees far away.

Another way to break the illusion is to look at it upside down. We are so much used to see the world in correct orientation that the illusion only happens when we are in our natural position. Which means standing from our legs. Yet if you turn around upside down the illusion breaks as the data on distance is valueless, in this position, as we are not used to it. And this is the main entry to the following discussion.

Golden hour : https://unsplash.com/@maazphotography

Upside down world.

Previously I have written about upside down view of the world and how, this unique perspective makes us to percieve the world different. We are so much used to what is called normal, that a man is not a man to us if we see a picture of a man upside down. We are thinking so much to our capabilities that we are proud that we can drive and we know the roads. But, I am sure nobody has driven a car upside down. The other day when I drive I noticed that even for a fraction of a second if I tilt my head, the car will drift towards the edge of the road. Surely I can drive, but I can drive only in vertical orientation! Well, that hurts my ego a little bit. You can say a Jet Pilot can do that, and a rider on a cycle in the carnival, in the Wall of death, can do it. But it is not possible, unless you train specifically to do that. This is why driving reverse in high speed is almost impossible for most of us. It is just another perspective of the world through a mirror.

I can give you loads and loads of examples of the relative nature of things that we see, but let's not exhaust ourselves. Instead, I will add to the story of colors another day. Here will I summarise the importance of our observation.

The wheel of Joy: https://unsplash.com/@hannahmorgan7

Mindfulness.

As you can see, the things we consider true in the world sometimes, appear different when we change our perspective. Like looking upside down to the moon, or driving a car in reverse. Even the act of closing your eyes for a period of time as illustrated by the blind person's world. However, in each case we cannot argue what we see is not real. The question is how come the moon be so big and not so big at the same time? What is correct? Which one is real and which one is the illusion?

If one is taken as real, the other should be wrong. If the world with our eyes open is with colors real, then the world when your eyes close must be false. If the eyes closed world is real then eyes open world must be wrong.

Only way around this problem as I can see is to consider both are relative. Both of the world upside down and correct side up and countless others in the past and each and every consciousness are just relative worlds.

And the real quesion is can we ever grasp the reality through this momentary relative world?