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On Enlightenment and Awakening

by takuin on Friday, November 25, 2011 · 9 comments

November Project: Question #25

This question comes from A, from the comments on the post On Conclusion

Why do you think the accident [regarding awakening ~ TM] happened to you?

Thanks for your question, A.

I don’t see it as something that ‘happened to me‘.

There are beginnings and endings throughout life. They happen to you all the time, even if you cannot see them. Perhaps it was nothing more than that.

Enlightenment will never ‘happen to you‘. That is not what it is. It is not like getting a raise at work, nor is it like winning the lottery.

It is the wind touching your face. The baby crying in the street. All the things you love, and all the things you hate.

It is all the reasons you want to leave. It is all the reasons you want to stay. It is all of your regret, and all that you have let go.

It is the first time you cried in sorrow. It is the first time you smiled with joy. It is the friends you see everyday, and the friends you will never see again.

It is all you’ve ever wanted. It is all you’ve never wanted. It is the first time you held your mother’s hand, and it is also the last.

If you’ve been looking for something to happen to you, and you’ve only met with frustration, why not take a break? Or stop altogether…

Live your beautiful life while you have the chance. The necessary components are already present within you. ;-)

Faces of Buddha

{ 9 comments }

takuin November 25, 2011 at 8:08 pm

I think I have said all I want to say on this subject. It is almost time to walk out into the sun…

Brooks November 25, 2011 at 9:06 pm

Very beautiful poetic words Takuin! Your post speaks to that which is beyond words; which is ever-present during the rise and fall, birth and death of each experience. Thanks for shining the light.

BC November 25, 2011 at 9:23 pm

This brought tears to my eyes … just beautiful.

A November 26, 2011 at 12:22 am

This is beautiful, and still a mystery. Is enlightenment heightened perception?

I experience all of those things and still there is an acute need. May be I perceive with a demand that things be otherwise. At least somethings.

I am not looking, it is looking. It is something that is regardless of me. I am so lazy, so fatigued by daily life, that really i cannot look. It is looking.

Cate November 26, 2011 at 1:21 am

I see that everybody else called your post “beautiful”, too – but it the first word that came to mind as I read. Thank you, Takuin. Beautiful.

Evan November 26, 2011 at 11:50 am

Hi A, I have a bit of a controversial position. It may be that what is missing is your sense of relatedness to these things.

The underlying attitude to this position is that our relationships (to people and other parts of life) are what make us who we are.

Perhaps this would be worth exploring for you. Hope it stimulates you anyway.

A November 27, 2011 at 1:56 am

Thanks Evan for your response. I don’t understand “sense of relatedness”. I guess what you mean is that it is worth exploring if we are our relationships.

Evan November 27, 2011 at 7:01 am

Hi A, yes, that is what I meant.

takuin December 7, 2011 at 9:29 am

Thanks every one, for your comments on this post…

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