Invert The pyramid
Understanding our world is vital to regaining sanity.
If we want to know what’s going on at the top of the pyramid, we only have to look at the bottom – what people say and what they believe, which is me and mine, my desires, aversions and indifferences.
Mara – in the room at the top – create nothing, but utilises human ignorance to deceive. Stupidity at the bottom reveals stupidity at the top … as above, so below. 🙂
Influence originates from the collective experiences of ordinary individuals at the foundation of the pyramid. It doesn’t move from the top downwards. Surveillance merely monitors our vulnerabilities, and uses them to manipulate the collective; the impetus comes from our ignorance. Those at the top simply need to monitor conversations, struggles, and beliefs of the individuals at the ground level.
Flipping the pyramid shifts the focus of importance from elite institutions to everyday people.
When ordinary people share a unified sentiment of “something is wrong”, the top adapts and changes names, fashions, trends and stories to reset. Those at the bottom can only be controlled through consent.
Longer version to fill in the gaps …
While elite institutions, governments, billionaires, and massive corporations appear to hold all the cards, their power is entirely dependent on the compliance and consumption habits of everyday people.
Because the top knows that true power sits at the bottom, their primary goal is to influence what we think, say, and believe. When everyday people change or withdraw their participation, the entire pyramid fears collapse, forcing it to reshape itself. We are the ones holding up the entire structure. The top steers the ship, but the bottom is the engine. This is why we suffer, as we believe that to participate is the right thing to do to better ourselves.
Throughout history, those in power have aggressively targeted independent thinkers and rebels. When we invert the pyramid, we realise that the top is completely terrified of the bottom waking up.
If one person successfully demonstrates independence, it proves the system’s control is an illusion. The top ‘cuts the head off’ to prevent that spark from catching fire.
Remember the inquisition which was set up to combat heresy, apostasy, and ‘witchcraft’. It is most notorious for its use of secret trials, imprisonment, and execution to enforce religious orthodoxy throughout Europe and the Americas.
Operating from the late 12th century until the 19th century, it was not a single, continuous organisation, but rather a series of distinct judicial regional bodies. The tribunals targeted those whose beliefs or practices deviated from official dogma.
Free speech faces significant challenges globally today, through digital censorship, aggressive legislative policies and the weaponisation of technology. Unlike historical tribunals such as the Inquisition, modern suppression relies on algorithmic control, corporate compliance, and state surveillance.
The top only maintains control by keeping the base compliant and fearful. True independence is the ultimate threat to that leverage.
The modern control of buying the influencers is the most efficient way to control the bottom of the pyramid. Because the elite know they cannot control populations through force alone, they pay the people you trust to shape what you think, buy, and believe. Instead of managing the crowd directly, they manage the voices the crowd listens to. Traditional corporate ads and government propaganda don’t work well any more because the bottom has grown cynical of their illusions.
Funding creators keeps the bottom of the pyramid focused on consumption and division rather than collective power. Influencers are paid to flash wealth, luxury and perfection, making the rest of the base feel inadequate. This creates a cycle where regular people spend their energy trying to buy a lifestyle, rather than questioning the system itself. Creators who want to keep getting paid learn to self-censor, and avoid talking about deep, systemic issues so that they do not lose their contracts.
Today, the top doesn’t always need to silence a rebel; they can just use money as a steering wheel.
The golden handcuffs: creators who fall in line get massive paydays. Creators who show true independence or criticise the system have their sponsorships pulled, their accounts demonetised, or their visibility suppressed by algorithms.
By funding the influencers, the top creates a buffer zone of voices that keeps the base pacified, distracted, spending and controlled.
Be aware.
Be very aware.
We’re not going to change this;
we can only be mindful that it’s going on.
BUDDHA IN THE MUD is a blog - a living book based on the Dzogchen teachings. Our teacher is life, and life is karma. We are all Buddhas in the mud of concepts. 