Enlightened!

Why do the Enlightened Ones blast their state of being out all over social media? 

I’m not sure how to tell if I’m enlightened.

I’m probably not then, huh? I mean, if I were enlightened, I’d probably know what it feels like. I think being enlightened must be kind of binary. Tuesday: nope, not enlightened yet. Then I’d wake up Wednesday: BINGO! Enlightened! Finally! 

I probably couldn’t wait to tell all my friends, and a bunch of strangers in a Facebook group. Because, you know, that’s where the Enlightened Ones apparently hang out – with other Enlightened Ones (and the not-yet enlightened seekers of enlightenment), on Facebook. Then I could be a big help to those enlightenment aspirants – tell them what to do in order to achieve enlightenment – just like I did.

I once had the idea that if one were to become enlightened (which, it seems to me, is like the goal post on the football field of enlightenment) they’d also be humble – that the ego would bow to the enlightened mind; and instead of publicly proclaiming their touchdown on Facebook they’d be meditating or praying; or out in the world doing some good for others. Kinda like Jimmy Carter does, for instance.

But apparently I was wrong. Because I see people all the time announcing in Facebook groups that they’re enlightened. I guess Facebook groups are the new Field of Dreams for the Enlightened Ones. Maybe that meditation and compassionate community service stuff is old school. Pre-Facebook days, ya  know?

I once had the idea that only avatars like Jesus and Buddha were enlightened. That most of the rest of us might seek ascension or enlightenment not as an end goal, but as a spiritual growth journey that continues on throughout life. A path of learning and continually integrating at deeper levels certain spiritual and emotional principles. For instance, gratitude and forgiveness; refraining from harsh judgments of self, others, and circumstances; discovering and healing our self-limiting inner messages from childhood; and other good stuff like that.

I used to really be inspired by quotes like this one from Swami Vivekananda:

“The ultimate goal of all mankind, the aim and end of all religions, is but one–reunion with God, or what amounts to the same, with the divinity which is every man’s true nature.

In this world of many, he who sees the One, in this ever-changing world, he who sees Him, who never changes, as the Soul of his own soul, as his own Self, he is free, he is blessed, he has reached the goal”.

No more words are required. Everything else is illusion , as it is temporary.”

Or this one that I especially like, from Rumi:

“I am but a hole in a flute that God’s breath passes through. Hear my music.”

Ha! Talk about old school! If Rumi were around today he’d probably replace the last sentence with “Read my Facebook comments, bruh!”.

I guess it’s time for me to upgrade my thinking; and head straight for the goal line instead of just hanging out on the field. Screw the journey, just go for the touchdown – so that I, too, might one day proclaim in a Facebook comment “I am enlightened!“.

On another subject…

Facebook God – Did you Like him? (Or should that be Him?) He’s funny as hell; and very hip. I don’t follow his every post, but I can’t remember ever seeing him in a Facebook group declaring he’s enlightened. Hmmmm… I wonder if he’s a phony?

My take on enlightenment

(the lifetime football game of spiritual evolution, not the touchdown):

• Feel good about myself and about life. Be grateful for my reality today; and know without a shadow of a doubt that even better is headed my way.
• Release anything that doesn’t feel good. Harsh judgments. Grudges. Spite. Self-sabotaging thoughts – conscious and subconscious.
• Own my divine nature. Love, Joy, Abundance and Peace are what we all came into this world with. My job is to unlearn all the crap that hides that from me moment-by-moment.
• Serve others. A bit less focus on getting more for me, and more on expressing my divine nature in the way I show up in the world for those I come in contact with.
• Meditate and pray daily. It opens Rumi’s hole in the flute. I also like the term “hollow bone” that, I think, originates in native American spirituality. Create an empty space in my mind/heart for the Divine to come in and make itself feel right at home.

Those are a few of the high points of my book Upgrade Your Lifestyle: 10 Keys to a Steady State of Happiness. Available as paperback on Amazon; and as an immediate download from this website.

Namaste!