Science, philosophy, religion and other systems of thinking have all sought, throughout the ages, to address these mysteries. Many people have even concluded that these questions simply can’t be resolved. We must at this point categorically state that this is no longer the case. To discover this for ourselves we need to have access to the deepest and most profound form of meditation. This allows us "to know without thinking" and to "travel without moving". However, as we will discuss later on, even with the right meditation, progress is not possible without an experienced teacher.
When we talk about ourselves, what are we referring to? We often use terms such as "I think" or "I feel", but what is the "I" that we are referring to? The identities of who we are and what we believe are based upon our physical form, our thoughts, feelings, memories and names given to us. All of these things are "inherited" from a variety of sources such as our environment and those with whom we come into contact.
However, we grow taller, we re-evaluate our views, our feelings change, our thoughts change. All of this constitutes our "sense of identity" or "sense of self". We can refer to it as an "illusion", in that it is constantly changing. Our True self, discovered on enlightenment, does not, never has, and never will change. The mind and the emotions cannot become enlightened, and can’t assist us in realising this state. This now rules out 99.9% of all systems of meditation being of use to us in this quest!
The word "Enlightenment" has been greatly misunderstood and its true meaning lost and confused over the years. We therefore need to be absolutely crystal clear about what we in Meditation Unlimited mean by Enlightenment. The best way of doing this is to look at a number of realisations that are made on attaining this state.
We find that the "self" that we had prior to Enlightenment was only an illusion.
Enlightenment is the permanent realization of our true unchanging identity. This is our True Self as opposed to the "sense of self". On realising this True Self, we discover the following:
Let’s be clear that as long as we are only able to identity with the "sense of self," then none of these realisations are possible and we have not attained to the state of Enlightenment.
Enlightenment is our natural state, when we have reached our complete potential as human beings. Without such awareness the key questions to our existence remain unanswered. A good analogy is to liken our nature to that of the ocean, but apparently trapped in a bottle. There is always a sense that there is more to be discovered, a sense of unfinished business. When we attain to enlightenment we discover that we are and always were the ocean. The bottle is our "sense of self", the ocean the Self.
The Teacher and the Light
Enlightenment can only be achieved through a True Spiritual Teacher. The validity of such a teacher is their ability to reveal this extraordinary state to others at will. The key word here is "reveal" as opposed to discuss! Such true teachers are extremely rare and practically never conform to people’s ideals and romanticism's about how they should teach and what they should teach. And some would say, "why should they?"
The True Spiritual Path has to concern itself with the revelation of the actual "Light of Truth". This is not a physical light, an imagined light, a light of knowledge, but a transcendental revelation which allows access to higher levels of consciousness. We can perceive this as a brilliant radiance witnessed for the first time in our meditation. For the first time ever we are able to witness this energy which is the actual cause of this physical universe. This Light has been written about throughout the ages in various texts, but here we are referring to a revelation, and not an interpretation of the word "Light"!
For a path to be considered "Spiritual", this revelation of Light must take place. Without this revelation it becomes merely "a path or journey". So the practice of this unique meditation is vital if we are to have even the possibility of attaining to Enlightenment. Enlightenment however, is not, and can never be, an automatic result of meditating. Much depends on the perseverance of the meditator, the revelation of the Light and the patience and willingness of the teacher
Ultimate truth cannot be, and is not, an experience.
All experiences can only occur where there are two things present. In other words any experience requires duality. The Ultimate Truth is by its nature infinite, absolute, undivided and hence a total unity. Enlightenment is not the Ultimate Truth in itself, but the state through which it is realised. Enlightenment is therefore when we finally discover the ability to "be".
The mind is intrinsically unconscious and can never have any knowledge of Truth. The Ultimate Truth once realised cannot be lost. It has nowhere to go since it is absolute. We cannot touch on infinity or be enlightened for a few minutes. There is also no such thing as "gradual Enlightenment". People who teach these things do not know what they are talking about; they clearly do not have this state themselves!
By thinking we can only understand limits, and only work with beginnings and endings. All forms of thinking work by comparing and contrasting. When we have only one thing, then there is nothing to compare to and nothing to contrast with!
Consequently we need to employ an entirely different means of "knowing". Meditation, using the process of revelation is the only medium through which this truth can be discovered.
Many words such as "meditation, truth and enlightenment" are often defined in the vaguest possible terms and can mean practically anything! Meditation as discussed here has little to do with meditation as it is commonly recognized. Yes, both involve physically sitting still, but that is where the similarity ends! In this meditation we are not concentrating on anything specific, but rather sitting quietly and allowing the Light to fill our vision. Even the most experienced breath or mantra meditators will find this quite different. Now we are able to meditate for hours or even days at a time, which previously would not have been possible.
We need to be alive and have a vision of all of this creation at once. This can only occur with this very special meditation which is the means through which we can "prepare" ourselves for this final state. We cannot die unenlightened and then expect to continue to Enlightenment at some later stage. It’s a nice idea, which in part accounts for its popularity!
The ultimate Truth cannot be challenged by any form.
This Truth is absolute and totally unaffected by anything that demonstrates structure. It exists independently of our thoughts, feelings and even our intuition. It cannot be attacked, and therefore does not need defending. Religious systems and religious wars that advocate the defense of the ultimate truth are totally misguided. The truth is also completely unassailable and impregnable, since it is the cause of everything.
Truth makes no judgements, it does not converse, and it does not talk to people. Conversations with "spirits, deities or astral mediums" are merely "thought forms" in people’s minds. As such, all these things have nothing to do with the Ultimate Truth, which does not involve itself in creation in any way. It is forever free and detached from all activity.
Enlightenment means the complete transcendence of all levels of consciousness from the physical to the purely spiritual. There are no maps for us to consult. Imagine trying to navigate, blindfolded, to a specific address in another city in another part of the world with no assistance whatsoever! The meditative journey is a million times harder than this because without a proper teacher we can only have access to the physical realm!
In order to transcend creation we have to become it. We achieve this by having access to greater and greater levels of consciousness. As we go deeper and deeper into creation, even spiritual light, the very basis of creation is transcended.
For the person seeking Enlightenment, it is absolutely critical they find someone who has enlightened other people. They should be able to meet the Teacher and they should be able to meet others who have attained Enlightenment. Anyone who is unable to demonstrate this should not be taken seriously.
As stated throughout these pages, information alone is of no benefit to us. It’s like being presented with the finest most mouth-watering menu - but where’s the food? Revelation is the food, information merely the menu! The Spiritual Path therefore requires a combination of information and revelation.
Many of the statements here will be challenging. These words should make us ask serious questions and at the same time give us comfort that the purpose of our lives can finally be revealed.
These questions can be answered by enlightened people, who come from all walks of life. They are real people, who can be met in person and can validate everything we have discussed. What is required is for us to have a sincere attitude and the determination to co-operate with the Teacher, to discover this reality for ourselves. Then we will know what it is to be Enlightened and its significance for the world at this time.
This article comes from the website www.meditationunlimited.org.
If you want to read more from this site, you can also access it from the links page here at www.globalcrystals.com . The link can be found in the New Age section of the links directory.
Many Thanks
Mario.
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