What Do the Enlightened Understand That the Rest of Us Just Don’t Get Yet?

“What do the enlightened understand that the rest of us just don’t get yet?”

I was recently asked this question, and since there is so much misunderstanding and mystery around that term and it’s true meaning, I decided to share my answer here.

‘Enlightenment’ is one of those words like ‘god’ that come along with a whole lot of concepts, associations and imagery attached to it depending on who is perceiving the word.

Let’s define what we’re talking about here. What is different about the normal state of consciousness compared to ‘enlightened’ consciousness?

The Normal State of Mind…

The ‘normal’ human being alive today has a very noisy mind. From the moment we wake up in the morning, most people have an inner voice that chatters away, ceaselessly.

It relentlessly talks to us throughout the day, no matter where we go or what we do, leaving us precious little room for inner peace.

Have you ever had the experience of seeing a person on the streets or on a park bench rambling and mumbling to himself, incessantly? You may have thought of him as strange… crazy even.

But what he is doing probably doesn’t sound all that different to what most people are doing inside their heads all day long. The only difference is they aren’t doing it out loud!

We may think of this as ‘normal’. It seems everyone else around us is in the same predicament and so perhaps we’ve just come to accept it as ‘just the way life is’.

Studies have shown that most people think between 40,000 and 60,000 thoughts during a single day.

Interestingly approximately 96% -98% of these thoughts are said to be the same thoughts we had yesterday and the day before.

In other words, we are continuously repeating the same conditioned patterns of thought, belief and emotion. Much of these thinking patterns we did not consciously choose.

Many people remain stuck in this state often referred to as ‘autopilot’ or ‘mindlessness’.

All that internal noise creates the impression that we are separate from life instead of one with it. With the story of ‘me and my life’ going on over and over in our head we can no longer feel our inner essence and connectedness the the totality of life .

We become identified with thinking – that is, we live our lives believing that we are the mind–made version of ‘self’. We have mixed up our sense of ‘I am’ with the thoughts in our head.

When our awareness is constantly tangled up in thought processes, it’s almost like being possessed without knowing it – or as the Buddhists would say – we are walking around in a dreamlike state.

‘Enlightenment’…

It is possible how ever to dis-identify from the mind completely and this is what people talk about as awakening or enlightenment.

Through stepping back from the mind and dwelling as the ‘silent witness’ the enlightenment process begins.

Underneath the drone of the mind’s noise lies our true identity, pure unconditioned consciousness. What we usually overlook in the state of ‘mindlessness’ is the fact that underneath all that noise there is a silent watcher – unchanging, timeless and utterly whole and at peace.

To be in touch with that inner spaciousness, is to be in touch with yourself at the deepest level. This is often called the ‘I am’ realization or self realization.

In this state of mindfulness/enlightenment/awakened consciousness (or what ever other names you may have for it)- happiness, peace, wholeness and fulfillment arise spontaneously from within.

Many people are able to be in touch with that state sometimes; some- most of the time, and a few are permanently in that state.

Those who are permanently in that state are able pick up the mind, use it for a task (logic planning or building something for instance) and then simply lay the tool (mind) down when not needed.

Their identity is no longer an isolated ‘me’ with the rest of the universe ‘out there’. Their identity is life itself. They are it all.

In direct answer to the question ‘what do they understand that we just don’t get yet’, it’s not so much what they ‘understand’. Understanding is a term we use to describe the minds ability to grasp or learn a concept.

It’s what they know. They know (directly) in their own experience, that they are not separate from life and they know that at their very deepest essence they are eternal (timeless).

They experience for themselves that the very core of who they are is love. “The love that surpasses all understanding” is how St Francis of Assisi described it.

Because of this knowing they have a deep unshakable peace and are able to live very contentedly knowing that there is nothing they ever need to do, get or have that will add anything more to what they already are. They are wholeness itself.

They are able to live in harmony with others and the planet quite naturally. Because they feel deep love and reverence for all life, their actions are nurturing and generous.

They know that life is sacred. They know they are love. They are whole and complete and at peace.

That is what the enlightened know. The truth is that you know it too but that knowing may be a little more obscured by the minds noise just like clouds can sometimes obscure the sun.

Although ultimately, your own direct experience is the only true ‘knowing’ of enlightenment. I hope this helps to demystify this often misunderstood term and points you towards your own experience of self realization.

It’s certainly not some momentous incredible thing to strive for for 100 lifetimes! (as many people might believe) rather it is simply being in your natural state.

For a beautiful story of one woman’s experience of what its like to suddenly be free of minds noise – check out this great TED talk video. Jill Bolte Taylor’s stroke of insight | Video on TED.com

If you have any questions or comments be sure to post them below. I am always happy to help!