The Deepest Spiritual Life Ezine

A Monthly Publication, Issue #5 – January 2003

Publisher: Susan Quinn

http://www.thedeepestspirituallife.com

Enlightenment is overrated

The purpose of meditation is not to concentrate on the breath, without interruption, forever. That by itself would be a useless goal. The purpose of meditation is not to achieve a perfectly still and serene mind. Although a lovely state, it doesn’t lead to liberation by itself. The purpose of meditation is to achieve uninterrupted mindfulness. Mindfulness, and only mindfulness, produces Enlightenment. –Venerable Henepola Gunaratana, Mindfulness in Plain English

Enlightenment is a theme usually associated with Eastern religions. I think most of us would agree, however, that we would all like to be enlightened beings, regardless of our religious or spiritual faiths. I’ve discovered, however, that for me, striving for enlightenment is highly overrated.

When I first became interested in Buddhism, I read a book called The Three Pillars of Zen. At the end of the book, an appendix included stories of people who had experienced enlightenment or opening experiences, and I found them both intriguing and frightening. What if I suddenly experienced enlightenment in front of a class, or at a movie theater? My teacher at that time assured me that I didn’t need to worry about it, that I should put aside my perceptions of enlightenment, and just focus on my practice. For the most part, I was successful, but every now and then, when I had a particularly deep or blissful meditation, I found myself wondering, "Is ‘it’ (meaning an opening or enlightenment experience) about to happen?" And of course, at that moment, any chance of awakening was swallowed by my desire to wake up.

There are also two different schools of Zen Buddhism on the subject of enlightenment. The Rinzai school believes that enlightenment is sudden and profound, and is achieved through working with koans; the Soto school believes that enlightenment can be gradual, and can be experienced through regular meditation practice. I figured that I was likely to go the Soto route, but repeatedly would let go of my expectations or desires to experience enlightenment at all.

Over the years, I continued to meditate daily. I occasionally wondered about enlightenment, envying those people who had these wondrous opening experiences, when my own meditation experience was pretty ordinary. Although now and then I’d ask my teacher about enlightenment, I stopped inquiring when I realized that I truly didn’t know what I was asking for. Was I asking to be smarter? Did I want more joy, less sadness, in my life? Did I want to live a life of continuous equanimity, where I could accept happiness and disaster with equal aplomb? Did I want to be some kind of superior human being? I couldn’t identify precisely what I wanted, or what I expected. Yet I intuitively knew that although I might have all kinds of notions about what enlightenment could or should be, and I hadn’t yet experienced it, something was transforming in me. I just kept meditating regularly, participating in my faith community and deepening my spiritual friendships, as well as working hard at following the direction of my spiritual teacher.

In spite of myself, I began to realize that a favorite Zen phrase was beginning to beautifully manifest in my life: it is said that we all are already living the enlightened life; we just don’t know it. I recognized that I was living a life of gratitude, and was repeatedly expressing my thanks to life, to God. That I was appreciating how some aspects of life were becoming easier, and that the more difficult experiences had lessons to teach me. That I thought less about enlightenment and more about the love I had for my husband, my friends and my family. I agonized less about my desires for perfection, allowing myself to make mistakes with less self-criticism, and noticed my ongoing desires for perfection (because they never entirely disappear) with acceptance and compassion for myself.

I now realize that I live my life with more aliveness, attentiveness and presence. I am more conscious of moments as they arise, and more forgiving when I am unconscious and unaware. I notice, and accept more readily that life is not a fixed state, that my life is constantly changing, evolving and maturing--and I am more accepting that I still fall into moments of self-centeredness and thoughtlessness. And more than anything, I realize that all of those moments are more, collectively, than living my life. They are, whether I recognize it or not, my living the enlightened life.

Calendar of Events—Please let your friends know!

January 15, 2003, Barnes & Noble, 1040 N. El Camino Real, Encinitas, CA (760) 943-6400,7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

January 17, 2003, Barnes & Noble, 40570 Winchester Road, Temecula, CA (909) 296-0253, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

January 21, 2003, Barnes & Noble, 26751 Aliso Creek Road, Aliso Viejo, CA (949) 362-9665, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

January 24, 2003, Barnes & Noble, 6100 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Suite 1340, Woodland Hills, CA, (818) 704-3850, 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.

January 28, 2003, Barnes & Noble, 245 N. Glendale Avenue, Glendale, CA (818) 246-0630, 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

January 30, 2003, Barnes & Noble, 16461 Ventura Blvd., Encino, CA 91436 (818) 380-1641, 7:30 – 9:00 p.m.

Workshops

Sunday, January 19, 2003, St. Paul’s Cathedral, 2728 6^th Ave., San Diego, CA 92103, (619) 298-7261, 9:15 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.—"Why Develop a Personal Spiritual Practice?"

Sunday, January 26, 2003, St. Paul’s Cathedral, 2728 6^th Ave., San Diego, CA 92103 (619) 298-7261, 9:15 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.—"Learning Personal Spiritual Practices"

Thursday, February 6, 2003 - 12:00pm to 1:15pm, Garden Grove Interfaith Council, Community Meeting Center on Stafford Street west of Euclid, Garden Grove, CA

To subscribe to The Deepest Spiritual Life Ezine go to www.thedeepestspirituallife.com , press the Newsletter button and complete the "to subscribe" information.