Ignorance presents a distorted image of the Self. A funhouse mirror reflects a distorted image. A tall man looks short and a lean person looks fat.
The Self is infinite. Its distorted image is finite. The immutable Self appears changing, and so on.
The ignorance cannot distort the true nature of the self. Hence, the distortion is a mere appearance.
Looking at a funhouse mirror is fun. Yet, when we take the distortion as true, we end up in problem. None wants to loose his original nature. A tall person cannot accept being a dwarf. A slim lady cannot see herself being fat.
The problem does not lie in the distorted image itself. The real problem arises when we attribute reality to the apparent distortions.
The sole purpose of Vedanta is to rediscover the undistorted nature of the self and stop us from attributing reality to the distorted image of the Self.
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