Buddha and the Enlightenment Seeker - Part 1

Seeker:
What is enlightenment? How do I get there?

Buddha:
There are 2 parts to this. One, which I can explain right now. And one which you need to experience.

The good thing is, that you can experience little slices of it, with even a little practice.

Seeker:
Practice? What do you mean?

Buddha:
It’s a skill. And like any other skill you can “practice” it and get better at it.

Since there is some investment of time and energy involved, let me first try to give a sense of what you will get out of it. That way, you can decide if this is something you want.

Seeker:
Yes, please. Let us start there.

Buddha:
Let me first try to describe what a mind without enlightenment is like.

Buddha:
Do you see this dirty window?

Seeker:
Yes.

Buddha:
Can you see outside it and look at the beautiful trees?

Seeker:
I can but it is quite dirty. So, not clearly.

Buddha:
Yes. That is it. That is how I want you to think of enlightenment.

Before enlightenment, everything you see, you see through a dirty glass. The universe is beautiful, and you can sort of see that. But, you cannot actually appreciate its beauty.

What would happen if you cleaned up the glass?

Seeker:
I would see the outside much more clearly?

Buddha:
Yes. And that would be enlightenment. To see the world clearly.

Seeker:
Okay. Maybe I can understand what you say. But, what’s so good about that? I mean, it’s good and all. But, what am I missing out on? Does not seem like much.

Buddha:
Good question. So, until this point, you can intellectually understand what I have to say. Beyond this point, you have to experience it. But, still, I am going to try my best to explain.

Seeker:
Okay.

Buddha:
If you looked at the universe for what it really is like, you would be stunned by how incredibly beautiful it is. Right now, because you see it through the dirty glass you think the spots on the glass are part of the universe. They are not. They are the spots on your mind.

Seeker:
Okay. I see. Interesting. But, honestly, it’s not like I am very motivated. It is nice and all. But is it “amazing”?

Buddha:
Yes, it is.

It is sad that I cannot share my experiences with you. I can only use words and analogies. And they could motivate you to try this path out. Or not.

Can I share another analogy?

Seeker:
Okay. Yeah. Why not!

Buddha:
Where do you live? In a city?

Seeker:
Yes in a city.

Buddha:
When you look up at the night sky, what do you see?

Seeker:
I don’t know. Some stars I guess.

Buddha:
Is the sky filled with stars?

Seeker:
No. Some stars here and there.

Buddha:
If you went to a place with little pollution, far away from the cities, you would see something different.

You would see the milky way cutting across the night sky.

Something like this:

Seeker:
Yes. I have heard that.

Buddha:
That’s another analogy for what enlightenment is like. The pollution of the night sky in your city is like the pollution in your mind. It prevents you from seeing the beauty that is right in front of you.

If you could see it, you would be amazed at how beautiful most things are.

There is a line in a poem by Alexander Pope: “Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind”.

That beautiful sequence of words is strung together in a way that perfectly encapsulates the idea of enlightenment.

The only thing, that makes me slightly uncomfortable is the word: “Eternal”. Almost nothing is “eternal” sadly.

Seeker:
Okay. Fine I get it. I am missing out on all this beauty because my mind has too much junk stuck on it or something.

Tell me, what is this junk?

Buddha:
Now, you have asked a very good question. We will explore that in the next session.

But for now, can we do a little experiment? Something to highlight how blind you are?

Seeker:
Okay. But I do not feel very blind.

Buddha:
Yes. But still, please try this out. Please look at the video below and reflect on your experience. The video is quite self-sufficient. So, I do not have much to say after you have seen it.

Let us talk more about this “mind pollution” in the next session.