Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah

Boy: “Do not try and bend the spoon. That’s impossible. Instead…only try to realize the truth.”
Neo: “What truth?”
Boy: “There is no spoon.”

Reading Richard Bach’s 1977 personal treatise on all things humanist, [Illusions], felt like reading Neo’s training manual. But Neo didn’t really have to read anything, did he? All in all, I’d rather have just uploaded this one and not wasted the evening it took to read. The material amounted to essentially the same thing – nothing is real; all things are possible if you just believe they are, etc. But Neo’s journey was more palatable, less preachy.

After writing [Jonathon Livingston Seagull], Bach literally checked out, vowing not to write any further. While spending show more summers flying the country in an antique biplane, he became enamored with the idea of a messiah figure who had decided to quit and turn his back on the calling. The idea became this book, featuring two barnstormers who meet in a Midwest field and strike up a friendship. One of the two men is the reluctant messiah, and he begins teaching the other how to see the truth of the world. The bulk of the narrative is told in the conversations between the two. Throughout, there are excerpts from “The Messiah’s Handbook,” which magically tells you exactly what you need to know at any time. Here’s a sampling:
“Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself. Being true to anyone else or anything else is not only impossible, but the mark of a fake messiah.”
“Learning is finding out what you already know. Doing is demonstrating that you know it.”
“You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however.”

As with any philosophy or religion, there are some valuable lessons if you look for them. Humanistic philosophy is important in demonstrating the inherent value in human life. But taken to its extreme here – everything is secondary to self-pleasing – it dissembles. Like most humanist platforms, [Illusions] takes several shots at any religion or thought that might send people on a journey outside of themselves. Odd that so many broadly accepting philosophies are rabid to exclude opposing thoughts. At several spots in the book, the messiah makes clear that the only important thing in the world is to do what feels good. But when challenged, the messiah also says that you can’t be fully self-realized if you find pleasure in pleasing or serving others. There’s the faulty logic. The difficulty of [Illusions]’ premise is that following it would create a self-obsessed world – Bach would be okay with that, apparently.
Bottom Line: Mainly a humanist philosophy platform.

3 bones!!!!! show less

VIDEO VERSION:

Illusions by Richard Bach

Having unfortunately been duped by propaganda to believe the deranged and twisted mythologies of Abrahamic deathcults (fraught with crucifixions and bloody sacrifices to vengeful gods) were actually real, I didn't find any path to spiritual enlightenment until I reached the age of 14 and finally began to think for myself, breaking free from the brainwashing dogmas of those hideous institutions. Thankfully, I never became a catamite to a clergyman in order to discover their sacred texts were pretty much evil incarnate, but I do lament that it took the better part of a decade to renounce their deceitful fictions. Would that I were only raised to accept J.R. "Bob" Dobbs as a beacon of salvation, at show more least I could have had a moneyback guarantee!

Consequently, I can sincerely say, Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach is the type of book I wish I had discovered at the age of 8 instead of 20. Had I found it sooner in my life, I may have been able to abandon the egomaniacal lies expounded by Messianic theology that much more quickly. Perhaps I would have become a bit wiser a bit sooner, and I would have ceased being so clueless when I was much younger than 14 years old.

But, as the old saying goes, "You can't second-guess fate."

For those who are wondering, yes, I am quite deliberately speaking of these topics using such a convoluted mire of haughty terminology because I know that intelligent people will follow what I'm talking about and a majority of the zealous zombies indoctrinated by theistic idiocy will have no clue what the hell I'm saying. I grew up with a number of people, bless their souls, who couldn't follow the vocabulary of Johnny Carson, let alone Dennis Miller.

While I may bemoan that the age of 20 was a far older age than I would have preferred to discover this book, things happen in their due time and perhaps Illusions came into my life at exactly the right moment. To quote from the introduction of Illusions:

"Perhaps it is no coincidence that you're holding this book; perhaps there's something about these adventures that you came here to remember. I choose to think so. And I choose to think my messiah is perched out there on some other dimension, not fiction at all, watching us both, and laughing for the fun of it happening just the way we planned it to be."

Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach tells the story of a mechanic who befriends a barnstormer. The mechanic, named Donald Shimoda, is the eponymous messiah. The book follows their meeting and developing friendship over the course of a few days where the barnstormer gains a lot of wisdom about life and learns that Donald Shimoda isn't the crackpot that most people would presume him to be. The story is wonderful. Full of deep insights and a kind of taoist existential view of the universe that can change your life. This is why you must find this book at the proper age for you. Too young and you won't understand it. Too old and you may too set in your ways to consider the possibilities. But, when you're old enough to be questioning and young enough to still be searching, Illusions will find you.

Never will I forget when and where Illusions found me for the first time.

I was already a fan of Richard Bach and I had read a number of his books. One afternoon in circa 1991, I found myself in a bookstore in downtown Cleveland and I already had a number of books in hand that I wanted to buy. However, being dirt poor, I couldn't afford all of them. I had to be careful which ones I picked to purchase. So, I decided I would open Illusions to a random page and read what was there. If the text on that page really spoke to me, I would buy the book.

I shut my eyes and flipped it open and read the words:

"Perspective - Use It or Lose It. If you turned to this page, you're forgetting that what is going on around you is not reality. Think about that. Remember where you came from, where you're going, and why you created the mess you got yourself into in the first place. You're going to die a horrible death, remember. It's all good training, and you'll enjoy it more if you keep the facts in mind. Take your dying with some seriousness, however. Laughing on the way to your execution is not generally understood by less advanced lifeforms, and they'll call you crazy."

Gasping, I slammed the book shut. Needless to say, I nearly had a heart attack. And shit myself. Seizure. Incontinence. Simultaneously.

What the fuck!?

A horrible death!? Whoa. Whoa. Whoa. Hold on a second. That's metaphorical, right? Metaphorical death? Metaphorical execution? We're not talking literal, here. Right? I want to die peacefully in my sleep at the age of 105 after a night of having sex with my 20 year old lingerie model girlfriend. That's how I plan to go out. Not a horrible execution. Shit, man, I was just asking if I should buy a book. I wasn't asking for metaphysical premonitions of being executed! What the fuck is that about!?

When I said I wanted the book to speak to me, I was not expecting the thing to answer me so literally.

Needless to say, there was no way that book was going back on the shelf. This thing was coming home with me.

Ultimately, that's what Illusions became in my life - a book that truly speaks to me. In the decades since I first discovered the book, there are still quotes and lines that have stuck with me and resonated and remain just as true and profound and relevant today as they were when I first read them. The book became the sort of story you give to girls you are dating, to test them; to see if they "get it" or not. Girl doesn't like Illusions, she's not going to be the right kind of girl for me. That was how important the book became. When you use a book to test people you're sleeping with, you know it's a damn good book. Some girls passed. Some girls failed. And sure enough, the ones who passed ended up being some of the best girls I ever dated.

Those lemmings who are still blindly following devious men preaching imaginary edicts of insane and hateful gods, will most likely not comprehend or enjoy a book like Illusions. However, those of you who know how to communicate directly with the wonderment of the universe, circumventing the antiquated mendacities of ecclesiastical catechisms, will find the story to be a profound revelation. Knowing there has been at least one other soul in the universe to see things the way you do will be enough to restore some of your dissipated faith in humanity. Something like Illusions may not help you wizened souls view any aspect of life in a new way, but rather, help you to see you are not the only savior yearning to leave your post.

Perhaps it is no coincidence that you came across this review; perhaps there's something about this book that you came here to remember. I choose to think so. And I choose to think all the joy of the universe is watching us both, and laughing for the fun of it happening just the way we planned it to be. show less

Yet another life-changing book by Richard Bach. Bach pseudo-fictionally (?) finds a man claiming to be a Messiah. He teaches Bach a 1970's version of "The Secret".

An allegory from this book was very timely for me as I read it. It told of a creature who lived at the bottom of the river -- who learned to let go of the river plants and fly above the other creatures.

This was one of many small synchronicities of that time, which gave me the strength to achieve one of my most difficult goals -- move away from my small town to Seattle.

I find Bach is the mystical Ayn Rand -- preaching egotism and enlightened self-interest, but without the militaristic adherence to atheism and logic.

I really enjoy Bach's approach, and will recommend this -- and show more Jonathan Livingston Seagull -- to anyone interested in personal growth. show less

Equal parts Carlos Castenada and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. If Castenada is Tolkien's Lord of the Rings in the genre of New Age philosophy, Bach is the Narnia of CS Lewis.

It has been several decades since I first read this book. I remember being profoundly impressed, most especially by the twist at the end. Today, the themes seem so obvious. Not necessarily simple or easy to follow, or beyond criticism, but merely less satisfying. I cannot tell if that is a change in me, or I'm only viewing it with a more mature, less impressionable mind. Still a nice read, though. I am disappointed, however, that Bach is no better an embodiment of his philosophy than Saint-Exupery was of his. Guess you can't take these pilots on their face.

The truth. It's a simple concept, yes? Well, if Richard Bach's novel Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah is any indication, this is not the case. Bach’s novel makes us question the very nature of our reality and what we perceive to be truth. Perhaps perception is simply a veil that our minds cast over reality, and if we can see through that veil, we can alter the very nature of how we perceive truth.
These are the questions that Bach proposes throughout his novel, and this is why I enjoyed the story. Though the book itself is incredibly short (I finished it on a 2 hour bus ride to DC), the lessons that it imparts are difficult to understand upon first read-through. Contemplation is the key to understanding this book, for show more it is essentially a message of borderline lethargy in the face of adversity. But this misses the point entirely, for it is not laying down and simply accepting the circumstances of the world, but knowing that the world will work to your benefit if you give it time. This is the beauty of Bach’s novel; it is a novel preaching transcendence, for all a Messiah is is someone who has transcended pain and the limitations of our world. So if this is the lesson that you seek, I highly recommend this book, simply for the nature of truth that it reveals. show less

The story of the teaching and learning the messiah's path is a story I find myself loving over and over, in many forms. Bach's modern take on the possibility of multiple, concurrent messiahs is an interesting one.

While not a perfect work, Illusions is a read that will make you rethink some of the truths you meet everyday.

This book gave me a lot to think of. Raised in a household of atheists who were the children and/or grandchildren of devout Christians, I found it gave me a way to think about spirituality and religion in a different way.
I imagine there are a lot of people who find it troubling because of its messianic tones. I did not have that kind of reaction.