She said she read that bliss comes before enlightenment, and
was wondering if I agreed.
I had to think about that.
I usually think about this as: First comes the agony of ego loss, then we may
enter the emotionless state of basking in All-That-Is and All-That-Is-Not, then
coming back to bliss or ecstasy when you touch back down into the ego.
Although, others have argued that ecstasy is a prerequisite
for enlightenment.
Their answer is also:
“It depends on what we mean by ecstasy, and also on what we mean by
enlightenment.”
Aye, there's the rub…
(Thanks Shakespeare).
Let us quote Adyashanti:
“Enlightenment is a destructive process. It has nothing to
do with becoming better or being happier. Enlightenment is the crumbling away
of untruth. It's seeing through the facade of pretense. It's the complete
eradication of everything we imagined to be true.”
And more here:
My take on the pre- vs post-bliss or ecstasy is that these
feelings are only a distractor.
Often people get a taste of this positive feeling and chase
after it.
Let this go.
Let everything go…
Agony may arise.
Bliss and ecstasy may arise.
Neither are of importance.
Clear seeing…
dropping all lenses…
This natural state is already present, at all times.
We just cover this natural state of being with our ego
desires, distastes, and confusions.
When we enter this state, compassion arises, we are
interested in everything, everything is new and fresh.
We dance into the world with child-like fascination.
And we can not help but act within right-action…
However, we have transcended and included our old cynical
“adult-self.”
That is what is different from our original child-level
fascination with the world.
So, don’t worry about agony, bliss, ecstasy, or even
enlightenment…
Drop all desire…
Drop all distaste…
Drop all fear…
Like the empty sky it has no boundaries. Yet it is
right here, ever serene and clear. When you seek to attain it, you
cannot see it. You cannot take hold of it. But neither can you lose
it. - Yung-chia
So sit quietly, and let this natural state arise.
Then when you have seen through “The Game.”
Sit back and enjoy the show.
Namaste
No comments:
Post a Comment