[Note: I started to write a new blog post titled "There Is No How." After typing the title, I tried to save it, but my computer told me I already had a file by that name. Turns out I wrote a blog post by this title three years ago. I went back to read it and there was the post I was planning to write. Apparently I don't have any new ideas! So here it is again.]
Quit trying. Quit trying not to try. Quit quitting. ~zen saying
I want to be awakened. I want enlightenment. How do I get it? Where are the instructions? If I read this book, practice these techniques, listen to this podcast, attend this workshop, devote myself to this teacher, read another book, breathe a certain way, think a certain way, meditate a certain way, chant a mantra, go to a retreat, read another book – will I achieve my goal? Will I pass the test and get my certificate? Will I be enlightened then?
How do I do this? Just tell me how. Please.
You want the secret? Okay, here it is. There is no how. Take it from one who has tried everything listed above. And more.
But then how...
There is no how. There is no way to get from here to there, because there is no there. There is no journey because there is nowhere to go. There is no technique, because there is nothing to do. There is no way of teaching because there is nothing to learn.
Umm....
I know. Right? The brain can’t grasp this. Truly, the brain can’t understand this, because our brains think. That’s what they do. Sometimes they do it really well. But you cannot think your way to enlightenment. Because enlightenment transcends thought. Oh, and also because enlightenment doesn’t exist.
What??
Well, it doesn’t exist in the sense of a static state. It is dynamic, offering an opportunity in every moment to enter, as A Course in Miracles calls it, the holy instant. The holy instant reveals all eternity to us in the perfect bliss of oneness.
Missed it? That’s okay. Here is another moment. And another.
I’m trying, but...
Don’t try.
Then how...
Just allow. Take a deep breath and surrender. Let go of everything. It only takes a moment. Because a moment is all there is.
Do or do not. There is no try. ~Yoda
Do or do not. There is no how. ~Universe
My thinking brain hurts a little. Let me meditate for awhile to come to grips with the concept.
ReplyDeleteActually, starting my day with 10 minutes of meditation helps me stay in the moment for a good part of the rest of the day. It quiets my mind and allows me to experience the right now...something I am not naturally inclined to do.
By the way, reusing a post or finishing a draft from years ago is completely kosher. I reuse posts from 6 or 7 years ago quite often. After all, if it made sense in 2014, it is probably still relevant in 2021.
Yep -- your thinking brain won't get you there, and will short circuit trying to, so good idea to meditate. Adyashanti says "You can't think your way to truth." Like you, I start my day with some meditation.
DeleteI appreciate the comment about using past posts. I've been rereading my blog from its beginning, something I have not done before. There are a few posts, in addition to the current one, that I had forgotten and that I think could bear repeating.
Thanks for commenting, Bob.
Somehow I'm thinking that this is tied to the paradox about how if you were on a train going the speed of light, the headlight beam would still be leaving you at the speed of light. Or not. I just commented on a post where I ended up with a 42 year old Oak giving 58 year old acorns, so I might be confused.
ReplyDeleteParadox is at the center of deep wisdom, isn't it CW? I wonder if it only appears as paradox to our thinking brains. In mystery, we have no problem with such concepts. Maybe....
DeleteThanks for your comment, CW.
I think enlightenment happens in the moments that God breaks into our thoughts, the moments we least expect or even encourage. May we keep our hearts, souls and minds open to the message He is longing to give to us.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Galen!
Indeed, Martha. By whatever name we choose, there is a natural energy in the universe that will move through us when we are open and allowing, because in our true essence, we are a part of that energy.
DeleteWow, I need to spend more time thinking, I guess. I feel a little lost on this one. Mainly, because I think a bit different. I know there is a enlightenment, and we all have it through the light of Christ. It is there to help us make choices. We have the spirit to enlighten us even more as we study the words of God in the scriptures. The spirits helps in many ways. I know because I have received direct answers. It is amazing.
ReplyDeleteI did find this interesting and I can tell that you are searching for answers and have found many.
I have created other blogs but tend to just go back and do thoughts on my Living Waters blog. Loved dropping by today.
Hugs for you dear friend!
I think you are describing another way of saying what I'm saying. When you are aligned with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, your thoughts, words, and actions are naturally "enlightened" without trying or using a particular technique. So no need to feel lost, LeAnn. I remember that you have a long list of blogs. That is ambitious! I only manage one at a time.
DeleteWe spend so much time thinking, analysing, striving, more books, more this, more that, and I don't meditate either - I kind of use my art for that being in the peace of the moment. But it wasn't until I found a taoist blogger, Casey Kochmer,(which i think is where we collided, Galen) that I started to see all the striving wasn't the point at all. The point was to just be, and be me as part of whatever the whole is, but to allow the attachments, and expectations, become more muted, because these are the problems that cause so much conflict - inner and outer. I'm not saying I'm enlightened as such, but I feel a lot more at one with myself than I used to! So there is a place to get to after all the analysing and striving :>)
ReplyDeleteMore oracle cards. Right Lynne? Ha, just teasing. Your point is well taken. And thanks for mentioning Casey -- I had forgotten how we met, and I don't remember that blogger. I will check it out again.
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