The obsession to end suffering is one of the causes of suffering.
—The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism
Collected in this section are tools for awakening you to your life purpose and for finding acceptance with where you are. These tools will help you make peace with the concept that you will never be complete but will always be in a state of perpetual improvement because there will always be some kind of suffering in life. Some people call this state of finding peace and not fretting about the suffering “enlightenment.”
There is an old.. Read More
The obsession to end suffering is one of the causes of suffering.
—The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism
Collected in this section are tools for awakening you to your life purpose and for finding acceptance with where you are. These tools will help you make peace with the concept that you will never be complete but will always be in a state of perpetual improvement because there will always be some kind of suffering in life. Some people call this state of finding peace and not fretting about the suffering “enlightenment.”
There is an old story about a monk who enters a classroom. He walks to the front of the room and draws a line on the blackboard going from the far left to the far right. On the left edge, he writes “suicide.” On the right, he puts “enlightenment.” What he is demonstrating is how we manage our lives that are filled with suffering. Suicide is the extreme on one end. You become so uncomfortable and hopeless that you end your life. On the other end is enlightenment, where you become comfortable with everything happening to you right now. It is not necessarily the removal of suffering, but the acceptance of it and a way of finding peace with it.
Some believe that everyone is already enlightened, which would mean that enlightenment is not your goal. It’s not a matter of working hard and trying one technique after another until you can say “I am enlightened.” Nor is it something you find after the material world disappoints you—that is, after you buy the expensive cars and yachts, make millions of dollars, have more and more power, money, and women, and then realize it’s all useless. In the aftermath of dissatisfaction, you crash and give it all up to live like a hermit in the mountains. The truth is, you don’t need to go through anything to become enlightened—you already are. You just need to be still enough to listen in the quiet calm moments for the enlightened thoughts to arise.
Perhaps it only makes sense that the Pillar tool for this chapter is Meditation. It is the ultimate tool for becoming present, for quieting the mind, and for helping you hear that still, small voice within. But you will also find other tools that will help you question and feel comfortable with your place in the universe and with your suffering, as well as tools that will help you realize and fully accept what you can and cannot change about your life.
Although this chapter does touch on concepts of God, these tools are not advocating for a replacement of anybody’s religion or lack thereof. They are here to help you explore the realm of spirituality and connection with something larger than yourself, should you ever feel you need something more or are just curious to learn more. Perhaps that explains why most of these tools do not have practical, technical applications. They fall more along the lines of how you can think about a concept, how you can reframe it, or how you can contemplate making peace with it.
One final note about enlightenment. Many of us have heard tales of the sudden attainment of it. Buddha sat under a tree and meditated for a very long time, and, suddenly, he understood and maintained that insight in perpetuity. Other people, though, work for years and years to find that moment of connection with their enlightenment but cannot maintain it. That second group exemplifies the most common experience. People often forget enlightenment is usually not a permanent state. We might attain an epiphany in meditation and feel very clear and aware for a short period of time, but then something happens and we lose it—we forget. There is nothing wrong with that. In fact, it’s just part of life. If we were able to hold onto that state of enlightenment, we wouldn’t need much life experience.
The good news here is that you can always find it again because enlightenment is always within you.
The obsession to end suffering is one of the causes of suffering.
—The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism
Collected in this section are tools for awakening you to your life purpose and for finding acceptance with where you are. These tools will help you make peace with the concept that you will never be complete but will always be in a state of perpetual improvement because there will always be some kind of suffering in life. Some people call this state of finding peace and not fretting about the suffering “enlightenment.”
There is an old.. Read More
The obsession to end suffering is one of the causes of suffering.
—The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism
Collected in this section are tools for awakening you to your life purpose and for finding acceptance with where you are. These tools will help you make peace with the concept that you will never be complete but will always be in a state of perpetual improvement because there will always be some kind of suffering in life. Some people call this state of finding peace and not fretting about the suffering “enlightenment.”
There is an old story about a monk who enters a classroom. He walks to the front of the room and draws a line on the blackboard going from the far left to the far right. On the left edge, he writes “suicide.” On the right, he puts “enlightenment.” What he is demonstrating is how we manage our lives that are filled with suffering. Suicide is the extreme on one end. You become so uncomfortable and hopeless that you end your life. On the other end is enlightenment, where you become comfortable with everything happening to you right now. It is not necessarily the removal of suffering, but the acceptance of it and a way of finding peace with it.
Some believe that everyone is already enlightened, which would mean that enlightenment is not your goal. It’s not a matter of working hard and trying one technique after another until you can say “I am enlightened.” Nor is it something you find after the material world disappoints you—that is, after you buy the expensive cars and yachts, make millions of dollars, have more and more power, money, and women, and then realize it’s all useless. In the aftermath of dissatisfaction, you crash and give it all up to live like a hermit in the mountains. The truth is, you don’t need to go through anything to become enlightened—you already are. You just need to be still enough to listen in the quiet calm moments for the enlightened thoughts to arise.
Perhaps it only makes sense that the Pillar tool for this chapter is Meditation. It is the ultimate tool for becoming present, for quieting the mind, and for helping you hear that still, small voice within. But you will also find other tools that will help you question and feel comfortable with your place in the universe and with your suffering, as well as tools that will help you realize and fully accept what you can and cannot change about your life.
Although this chapter does touch on concepts of God, these tools are not advocating for a replacement of anybody’s religion or lack thereof. They are here to help you explore the realm of spirituality and connection with something larger than yourself, should you ever feel you need something more or are just curious to learn more. Perhaps that explains why most of these tools do not have practical, technical applications. They fall more along the lines of how you can think about a concept, how you can reframe it, or how you can contemplate making peace with it.
One final note about enlightenment. Many of us have heard tales of the sudden attainment of it. Buddha sat under a tree and meditated for a very long time, and, suddenly, he understood and maintained that insight in perpetuity. Other people, though, work for years and years to find that moment of connection with their enlightenment but cannot maintain it. That second group exemplifies the most common experience. People often forget enlightenment is usually not a permanent state. We might attain an epiphany in meditation and feel very clear and aware for a short period of time, but then something happens and we lose it—we forget. There is nothing wrong with that. In fact, it’s just part of life. If we were able to hold onto that state of enlightenment, we wouldn’t need much life experience.
The good news here is that you can always find it again because enlightenment is always within you.
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