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Basic Insights for Reaching Enlightenment

There may come a point in your life when you wish to understand “what’s really happening”, if you follow the course of introspection you will eventually hit the question “who am I” and other questions like “how can I be free of suffering and struggle”, “is it possible to live a life of peace and joy”. Enlightenment is a state of knowing the truth of the reality of this existence, but more important than attaining enlightenment is to the live from this state of truth and allow it to express itself, this will eventually lead to a peaceful life.

To live in an awakened or enlightened way is completely different in experience compared to the unenlightened way of living. In this article a few pointers are provided on how to reach enlightenment without getting caught up in the myriad of distractions that might come up on the path to awakening.

Enlightenment is Waking Up to Who You Really Are

It’s important to understand that enlightenment is not a state or experience, but a knowing. When you reach a point where you become aware of the reality of who you are, something in you responds by feeling good or blissful, but it’s not the feelings that are important, because they will pass, but what’s important is this knowing.

Contrary to the popular conditioning, enlightenment is a very simple and obvious process. What’s more challenging is to live your knowing or to live your realization, or to allow the truth to take over your conditioned life. But this article is not a guide on how to live an enlightened life, but a guide to reaching enlightenment. So here are the pointers on how to reach enlightenment.

The self-inquiry of “who am I” – All that is needed for enlightenment or awakening is an interest in this question of “who am I exactly”, what’s my identity or reality. But most people start using their mind to answer this question. It’s pointless, and a waste of time, to “think” about who you are.

Thoughts are objects and they can only perceive or create new objects, but who you are is not an “object” but the consciousness that perceives all objects. So how can you know who you are through thoughts? It’s just not possible. The only way to know who you are is in silence, quietness or stillness.

If you just stay still, and allow the thoughts to waft away, the space of consciousness (who you are) will automatically reveal itself in the foreground. So enlightenment really is becoming conscious of consciousness itself, become aware of awareness itself, this is what self recognition is. You are awareness and when you become aware of yourself as awareness, there is a self recognition or an awakening to your true self.

The Secret is Silence – People who are lost in the seeking of enlightenment, can spend years and years in their quest, trying one technique or the other only to find that none of them ultimately stop their seeking. The only way your seeking can ever stop is when you find yourself, and you can never find yourself in thoughts, feelings or sensations. So instead of seeking in thoughts, take a step backward, go into silence.

Sit still, be quiet, let them mind dance and throw its noise around. However noisy the mind may be, all the noise eventually subsides into silence. When consciousness stops being aware of the noise of the mind, it automatically starts becoming aware of itself and quite naturally a self recognition or awakening happens.

The Insights Will Come from Within – When consciousness recognizes itself as consciousness, it will “know” that it has finally found its truth. Several insights will make its way to the mind when this awakening happens. Insights may be about the “oneness” of all things, recognition that only consciousness exists and everything else is just an expression of forms within it, you may recognize the non-duality of everything which appears dual. All these insights feel good, but they will eventually pass away. What’s important is to allow this realization to start flowering further and mature into a daily state of being.

It Can Take Several Realizations Before Becoming Stable – Enlightenment is not about seeking a blissful experience, but to keep returning to your recognition of yourself as who you are. It may take several recognitions before the recognition becomes “stable”. You will not start living your true nature from the first recognition itself; it usually takes several realizations before one becomes grounded in their true nature.

Always remember that the secret is “silence”. Don’t fall prey to the mind which wants to “label” and “think” about who you are, it’s futile. The only away you will ever know who you are is in a self-recognition which can one happen when consciousness stops identifying with the objects of though, in stillness, in silences, in quietness of the mind.

Don’t Entangle Yourself in Questions – Your mind will come up with several clever questions, and it will be never ending if you try to answer them. Who you are, and what’s happening, can never be wrapped around in thoughts alone. The knowing which arises during the enlightenment, or self-recognition, comes from a place deeper than thought, though the mind will try to think about it later. So just ignore the questioning mind, and allow silence to guide you towards enlightenment. Only through stillness can you come to recognition of who you are, because who you are is very “still” and silent.

In Conclusion

Most people reach enlightenment when they are tired of thinking, or practicing techniques, and finally get so fed up of their mind that they choose “silence”. Who you are is the silent space of consciousness, to recognize this is enlightenment. Silence is what leads you towards reaching enlightenment, but it’s important to know that awakening is just the first step; what’s more important is to allow the truth to express itself in your life.