Is All the Fuss About Spiritual Liberation Really Necessary?
Spiritual liberation, spiritual freedom, enlightenment, the spiritual journey – I see and hear references to these terms all the time. What is it that is being sought?
Being liberated means there is no clinging to anything; there is no worry, no concern, no heaviness. The mind is not fixated, focused or bound to any particular content; you are aware of whatever arises in the mind, without effort, without even trying to be aware. – A.H. Almaas
Does this mean we all just want to relax and be worry free? In a way yes, but perhaps there is more to the story.
What is it that keeps us stressed, uptight, reactive, fixated and un-liberated? In the greatest of all ironies – it is the very thing seeking spiritual liberation that perpetuates the state of suffering – it is us, our identification with something less than liberation.
The agitation and suffering that results from our lack of spiritual liberation keeps us seeking liberation – which is often imagined as a state of living free from sadness, difficulties, economic downturns, bursting real estate bubbles and the like. Quite preposterous if we really think about it.
Whether you are happy or sad, whether a person is there with you or not, none of these things seem important. For the moment you are completely free from all the concerns in your life. This state can never be achieved by striving for it. It will just happen one day, and if you notice it you won’t think it’s a big deal. You’ll go on eating your dinner or whatever you are doing. The moment it becomes a big deal, it’s gone. – A.H. Almaas
It’s quite the conundrum. If we do nothing, it seems like we will remain where we are, right?
The old adage – If we continue doing what we have always done, we’ll continue getting the same results.
Again it’s not so much what you do as who/what does. Getting to the point of understanding this often takes some doing for most of us – which obviously delays spiritual liberation.
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