10 Steps to Enlightenment
June 2, 2008 |
 photo in Kamal Gad in India by Binary Half |
Want to wake up to who you are? Here it is, step by step. With links to more detailed articles.
1) Meditate. Find a way to connect with silence, with your inner Self on a reasonably regular basis. Thats the best way to help with anything that follows. Effortless approaches are usually best.*
2) Yoga. Take care of the temple. Your body is your vehicle of expression so taking reasonable care of it it helps. Yoga Asanas (stretching exercises*). A decent light Diet. Get enough Rest. Get enough Activity. Learn to eat foods that support the body rather than addict it, like sugars, caffeine, and low quality carbs. Then your bodies natural intelligence will reveal itself. Life is meant to enjoy, but moderation is a good rule of thumb.
3) Study. Learn about where you are going and whats next. Focus on quality over quantity. Seek to satisfy the mind but not indulge it. Avoid being a spiritual “looky loo”, hoping from one system to another. But don’t get trapped by “the one” either. It usually takes several teachers for us along the way. Best place to start is the study behind your practice above.
4) Inquiry. Make the study practical. Ask yourself who knows this, who is observing? Can you just be with what is? Why am I responding like this? Eckhart and Neelam focus here. Dyad is are an interesting variation.
5) Community. Develop a group of like minded people who will support you on the path. Its easier to be present with people who are more present. Mastermind, Satsang, church, etc.
6) Housecleaning. Clearing the inner house, doing the Work. This is mostly about the heart, supported by study and community, we begin to see through the illusions and shed the baggage. Sedona, EFT, and so forth.
Money is not on the list as its not a step. But your relationship with money is part of the housecleaning section. You need money to survive. Money to go to spiritual events. Money is just energy, the ability to do work. Deal with your issues here. Get real.
7) Gratitude. People find many techniques for clearing the way but I’ve found a simple habit of gratitude makes all the difference in the world. Seeing life from a grateful place rather than as a chore, burden, or hell changes everything. We begin to be able to release or forgive our burdens, let it all go. In the end, we discover there is nothing to forgive.
8 ) Allow. Gradually now we get into the more abstract. When we learn to clear the decks and understand deeper truths about the world, we find newfound trust in how it is. More and more, we learn to simply allow and be with it as it is. Even our failures in the above. This opens us to the flow of life, then the deeper flow of being.
9) Be. From allowing and connection to our true nature arises the return of simple being. Experiencing it is not Being. On can only Be Being. Then we can do from being.
10) Forget. Now comes the time to forget. Forget any idea of steps. Forget any concepts of Enlightenment. Concept means Mind. Awakening is beyond mind. Of that you know nothing. If you have gotten this far, ideas of it are a barrier to being it. Nothing you’ve know to this point has any use or validity beyond mind. Let it go. You won’t loose anything that has value. The mind will remain.
Awakening is not the end of the journey. It is not the goal. It is just the beginning. The beginning of a much grander, much happier, much better being. A life of continual growth and refinement, of deepening, and ever more bliss and peace.
There is what seems some work to be done to get there. They call it Tapas or warming in India. Preparing the ground. But its not something your individual self can control. Awakening happens in consciousness, so consciousness alone is in charge. It may seem that you are seeking Enlightenment, but really, it is Consciousness that is seeking an opening through you. When you step through the door, you will open the One to Itself and everything will celebrate.
Davidya
PS – this is an outline and first draft. Consider it a suggestion not a prescription. Each of us has a unique path home.
* while meditation and yoga can be ‘learned’ from books, its usually better to begin with a qualified teacher. Better to start correctly than have to undo poor habits.
Thanks for giving these 10 points, really interesting.
But I didn’t get this serial of ‘allow, be and last forget’, actually i get it but partially, like in my mind it’s not so clear. Put some more light on it.
I found a useful video on enlightenment http://www.gurumaa.com/videos/category/enlightenment
I hope you all like it and also i read an article here
http://www.soulcurrymagazine.com/sc
As I note, they get more subtle. As you do the housecleaning, it begins to become apparent that every-thing is either fullness or resistance. One of the tricks is to learn to open to what is, thus allowing. Allowing everything to be as it is. Eckhart Tolle and others talk about this a lot. Some say surrender but many are more resistant to that word.
As you allow and as you connect with who you are within, more and more you can just be. Being alone is beyond mind so the mind cannot grasp it. Theres another thing to allow – that you cannot grasp it with the mind. But you can be it.
Then, when we can allow and be enough, we let go of the ego concept and we “switch”, we wake up, we discover who we are. We become That.
We loose nothing but gain everything.
I talk a lot about that here so you can explore more on this in other posts, such as the ones linked above.
I have not see GuruMaa before but I have heard good things about her. There are many voices now as many are waking up. So many ways to hear the message, ways for it to get past mind and speak to who we are.
Soulcurry on quick inspection seems to be based on Zen, branching out from there. Zen is very insightful and speaks from a high truth but is not an easy practice. You may wish to explore Adyashanti’s teachings. He is from Zen roots but has stepped outside the form of it.
A small tip – your comment was in spam. Careful how many links you supply in a comment. The spam things see that as probable self-promotion.
[...] away somewhat. They tend to be rather a little too much in the head. Thats back at step 3 in the 10 steps to Enlightenment [...]
What of “forgiveness”? To me, that is a very necessary component, a foundation for peace, although I suppose it could fall under “forget.”
Yes, its there in #7. The way to forgiveness is seeing it as OK and the best way I’ve found for that is gratitude. I talk about forgiveness quite a bit here. For this post I worked at staying with just the main points, then linking off to related subjects.
Forgiveness is a form of release of resistance. Interestingly, when you have forgiven enough, you discover there was nothing to forgive. Its always been OK.
David -
I love # 8, allow. So true. Be with the flow, let go of emotions as an abstract thought and being aware of the moment are pillars of self enlightenment in IMHO.
I’m stumbling it my friend.
Shilpan
When we can fully allow, then we get out of the way of Self wanting to experience through the individual. And that is the beginning of awakening.
There is a song named “Stumbling towards Ecstasy”. At one time, it described my experience perfectly.
[...] comes down to the choice each of us have. Do we do the work of connecting with source and clearing the heart? Or do we wait for consciousness to bring it to us? In other words, do we [...]
David…. A very nice outline. I can’t disagree with anything on it. Funny how for some, they may only do 1 or 2 on the list. Others, half. But for the majority, it usually takes most of them. Although, I find that meditating and housecleaning will lead naturally to some of the others.
Interestingly, community can be a tough one for many people. Unless you live on the left coast, it isn’t easy. I’ve even heard of New Yorkers having to “look around” to find a spiritual community that was “awakening focused.” Hard to imagine out here in the hinterland.
I’m going to do my best to read the articles you’ve linked to.
@Tom – Thanks!
I would say that for the rare few, they are raised by grace. For some, they come to the path this time around with much work done. Perhaps a personality that is less prone to engaging in the drama. Some may not be clear they do the work as it comes naturally, a part of who they are. And of course the path is more an open field than a road, so there are many ways through. And there are always the exceptions. But understanding the overall process I consider a boon for #3. (laughs) Helps us avoid getting sidetracked. And understanding the process makes you a better teacher.
I agree. Meditation in itself does a lot of the cleaning and allowing and such. But often we need to make that process a little more conscious. I know a fair few meditators who have made great strides but are stuck in a routine of it rather than as a conscious process.
I know what you mean about community. I recently moved to a smaller city with less left coast. I miss the community. But I also note you are creating a community online. And going to retreats. You are finding that step in your way.
Well – there are a lot of links. Don’t feel pressured. (laughs) I couldn’t find great ones for all of them I wanted to. A lot of odd ideas about this stuff out there. They must be out in a different part of the left field. (laughs)
Well thanks David, thanks for your reply..:-)
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