There and Zen

If not via direct methods how can I deduce that you are not merely a cruton in my salad bowl of life?

You can't. Nor can I prove that I'm typing this. Besides, croutons (note the spelling) are more commonly found in soup than salad. At least in civilised (British) society.

We are getting into deep Zen here, where even if we met it would not be absolute proof of our existences.

Does Spongebob Squarepants exist? I've seen him. So, probably, have you. Yet we both know he does not exist. He's a cartoon. Even so, there is more proof of his reality available to readers of this text than there is for either of us. The square car-washing device has a series of television programs to his name. Books, toys, videos, games. If he wasn't real before, he is now.

It does beg the question: if the unreal can become real through repeated exposure, can the real dissipate into unreality through withdrawal from life? Obviously I won't try this on myself because I could not then report on my findings. A student, perhaps. I have too many anyway.

Reality is illusion, but it is an illusion difficult to get rid of. Alistair Crowley said that. Of course, he was completely bonkers but his point is still valid.

In these days of television, computerised special effects and the internet, what is reality? It is, without doubt, becoming difficult to tell.

The buddhists would love this. There is a term for this time that fits well - Kali Yuga.

Look it up.