Enlightenment
“Enlightenment
is a very special thing. But in truth, one should not focus on it.
Focus, instead, on the walls of your own making that are blocking the
light.”
Michael J.
Singer (The Untethered Soul, p.118)
I've always thought of
“enlightenment” as this eureka moment when I would comprehend
everything, and never be the same again. It would be like a
lightening strike; I would say, “Yes! Now I understand! Now I see
all things clearly.” After that, I would be a changed being—glowing
with the light of all knowing. Not so much, I'm afraid. Michael
Singer, in his book The Untethered Soul, defines enlightenment
as simply allowing life to be what it is and going about your
business without defending the walls your ego constructs around you.
Enlightenment is knowing yourself so well, that you do not need the
security of walls.
Lao-Tzu agreed: “Knowing
others is wisdom. Knowing yourself is enlightenment.” Singer
describes the walls we build as all the ways we try to protect
ourselves from feeling insecure and vulnerable—such as turning on
the power of angry words, using the identifiers we place on ourselves
to help us feel important, hiding our sensitivities behind either
bravado or indifference, to name just a few. First, however, we have
to know what our sensitivities are, and how we defend them before we
can take down the walls that protect them. That's where the work
comes in.
The other slowly dawning realization is that enlightenment doesn't happen in a
moment. In fact, the only way one may recognize it is the sense of
peace, and dare I say, even joy, within, regardless of what is going
on around you. It is a quiet thing, and not a lightening strike. It
is contentment, solid ground beneath your feet. It is exactly like
that old Zen saying: “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.
After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” Nothing changes
except your insides—and that is everything.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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