--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Share Long <sharelong60@...> wrote:
>
> Xeno wrote:Â Reconciling the disparity between your version of the world,
> and the way it actually is, is unsettling. The question then becomes, "What
> do you
> do?"Â
I did not write that, I said 'The following are comments culled from various
websites after a cursory search.'
Share replies:Â I find that laughing helps a lot.
I do not think that is going to be an effective technique here Share. If that
means brushing off the disparity, as of no big moment, it will return again and
again.
_______________________________
> From: Xenophaneros Anartaxius <anartaxius@...>
> To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Friday, May 10, 2013 10:30 AM
> Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: Time to Get Enlightened, Part 2
>
>
>
> Â
> Awakening to unity is considered enlightenment in this post. For the first
> experience of unity, there is some data available (CC and GC are regulated to
> the bin of ignorance here).
>
> Nisargadatta - 3 years (smoked and sold cigarettes, sang and lit incense by
> his teacher's instruction for those three years).
>
> Swami Brahmananda Saraswati - unknown, but years in the forest.
>
> Maharishi Mahesh Yogi - unknown, 13 years with master, another 15 years or so
> before talking distinctly about unity rather than god consciousness or unity
> in god consciousness.
>
> Ekhart Tolle - unknown, but a spontaneous event. Does not seem to have been a
> meditator of any kind up to that point.
>
> Adyashanti - 5 years for awakening no.#1. Seven more years for awakening #2
> ('final'). Had brief flashes roundabout unity as a child. Zen meditation.
>
> Melvin Wartella - spontaneous awakening at age 30, and a deeper awakening 8
> years later. A counter-culture hippy like character, ordinary family man;
> gang member as a youth in bad company. No teacher, meditation, or tradition.
> Passed away a couple of years ago. Had a web site describing his experiences
> (no longer online) in somewhat less than perfect English, as he did not seem
> to have a lot of education.
>
> Ramana Maharshi - at age 16.
>
> Jiddu Krishnamurti - unknown, but apparently at an early age.
>
> If enlightenment is said to be the full living of what the experience of
> awakening revealed, then add another 5 to 15 years. If you just rest on your
> laurels at the point of awakening, forget it.
>
> The following are comments culled from various websites after a cursory
> search. these comments reflect on misleading ideas people have about
> enlightenment. Traditions, through long tinkering by people in the lineage
> tend to clutter up the path with all kinds of crap:
>
> =====================================================
>
> 'Enlightenment is ego's ultimate disappointment.' (possibly an explanation
> why Robin's unity was probably a delusion)
>
> For the most part, enlightenment as it is sold is nothing other than a setup
> that often leads to big misconceptions. Let's examine some popular beliefs
> and why they are misleading. A frequent one you will hear is, "If you get
> enlightened your life will be like living in heaven." Another is
> "Enlightenment will give you a competitive advantage." And let's not forget
> "Enlightenment will make you a better person."
>
> What the books, DVDs and workshops often fail to tell you is that
> enlightenment reveals a problem. I guess it's bad for business for anyone
> trying to make a living selling enlightenment to admit that but it is true.
>
> It depends on you, how diligent you are, how much you want it, going through
> these levels of consciousness and lead you to where you want to be. First, it
> depends on the proper meditation method. And it depends on your teacher,
> whether that person is capable to lead you to enlightenment. Never mind
> talking about long or short. If you get a good teacher, you get immediate
> enlightenment. If you don't get a good teacher, I don't know how long, very,
> very long, many lifetimes. And also enlightenment depends on your sincerity,
> if you want it or not. If you do want it, you get it immediately. If you
> don't want it, it doesn't matter how much you pretend, how long you sit
> there, until your bottom falls off you don't have anything.
>
> "Enlightenment, whoever said you would like it when you got it."
>
> Contrary to popular myths and marketing, Enlightenment is not a final
> destination. What waits on the other side is the Human Condition, and it is a
> nasty piece of work. It is the part of us that we keep hidden in the
> background out of fear of loss or alienation -- the part of us that most
> people don't want to deal with.
>
> After the initial high of seeing reality dissipates, we become aware that the
> source of our own troubles, distress, disappointment, etc., is ourselves.
>
> Reconciling the disparity between your version of the world, and the way it
> actually is, is unsettling. The question then becomes, "What do you do?"
>
> Integrating your enlightenment is where the work really begins.
>
> Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
>
