One realized all sorts of things. The value of an illusion, for instance, and that the shadow can be more important than the substance. All sorts of things.

Stop, shadow of my elusive beloved/ Image of enchantment that I most desire/ Beautiful illusion for whom I happily die/ Sweet fiction for whom I painfully live.

What is life? An illusion, a shadow, a story, And the greatest good is little enough: for all life is a dream, and dreams themselves are only dreams

The value of a substance depends on how you handle it

Beware that you do not lose the substance by grasping at the shadow.

The very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream.