The Veil of Tranquility: Which Reality Is Real?

This morning, I had a thought-provoking exchange with a friend. She’s spending a month in Mexico and shared how deeply she’s been struck by the contrast between the peace she feels there and the chaos of the world at large.

She described it as though she’s living in a “veil of tranquility,” removed from the “real world” and its turbulence. For her, this temporary escape felt almost false, like a bubble separating her from reality.

Her words made me stop and think, and I couldn't resist pushing back on the idea.

What if, I asked her, this tranquility you’re experiencing isn’t the veil at all? What if it’s the truth? What if the chaos of the world—the noise, the fear, the division—is the real veil? Or perhaps more fitting, the mask?

It’s an idea worth thinking through. We’ve grown so accustomed to the relentless demands and noise of daily life that when we finally encounter stillness, it can feel disorienting. We’re conditioned to believe that the turbulence of the world is the real world and that peace is somehow a deviation or an illusion.

But what if it’s the opposite? What if the calm she’s experiencing isn’t an escape from reality but an invitation to rediscover it?

The world’s chaos often acts like a mask, obscuring the deeper truth that lies beneath—one of calm, connection, and simplicity. The peace my friend feels during her time in Mexico isn’t false or temporary. It’s a window into the natural state of being, free from the constructs and distractions of modern life.

When we think of reality, we’re quick to equate it with busyness, conflict, and striving. But reality isn’t loud. It doesn’t demand to be heard. It simply is. And more often than not, we only catch glimpses of it in those quiet spaces where the noise of the world fades and we can finally hear ourselves again.

To my friend, I offered this thought: Maybe the state of the world isn’t pulling you away from reality. Maybe it’s the mask that keeps you from seeing it clearly.

If you’ve ever felt that rare sense of peace, don’t dismiss it as fleeting or false. Lean into it. Perhaps what you’re experiencing is not a veil at all but a glimpse of the truth we’ve been searching for all along.