A Personal Account of Attaining Enlightenment
This article entitled ‘A Personal Account of Attaining Enlightenment’ was an inspirational Newsletter from the 1980s by the Lifewave Light and Sound Meditation Organisation. It offers unique insights about the realisations of achieving our ultimate spiritual goal. The original document was titled ‘Liberation’ and can be viewed as a PDF at the end of the post.
There may be many kinds of liberation movements now in the world, but the greatest kind of liberation is the liberation of Enlightenment, since Enlightenment is for ever. All other forms of liberation are very coarse and really no kind of liberation at all, for the soul is still caught in the confusions of personality and the net of matter. Very few people ever attain any real freedom in life, since liberation can only really occur if freedom from form is attained, and to attain freedom from form is the most difficult thing anyone can aspire to. And yet, just a few short months ago, the four new adepts sat down for liberation, and So embarked on the most beautiful and wondrous journey of them all the journey back to the source of the whole universe, the journey back to God. No other journey could ever be as expansive or as illuminating and none could ever end in a liberation so complete.
It does not matter what else you might choose to do in this lifetime, it all pales into insignificance when compared to the sheer splendour and majesty of being given the opportunity to sit down and meditate for the realisation of the Truth. In some ways it was difficult to believe that we really were sitting down for Enlightenment, the supreme crown, since as a disciple, Enlightenment always seems so far away beyond our reach. But when we attained our liberation, we knew there really could be nothing closer, for indeed, what we found was our own true Self. There is no need to look in far away places, or beyond the heavens, or in others for God, since God lives within us as our very own being, and is the ridge pole around which all our lives are built.
For so long we are servants, and happy to be so, for when we are seeking the Truth and we stumble across the Path of true Adepts and the divine Avatar, what else can we do but seek to serve in any and every way that we can? But for Enlightenment, Ishvara prepares a throne for us, the most beautiful throne, and gladly elevates us and bestows His own unsurpassed crown of divinity upon our heads, and we are raised up as kings in our own right. Truly, Enlightenment is the gift of all gifts, and the treasure of all treasures. I am sure that all those who have attained to the final liberation have looked with new eyes at the formlessness within creation and have marvelled att the utter simplicity and deep mystery contained and have stood in awe at the enormous Grace they have received. It may not take much to set a bird free from a cage, or for a raindrop to merge with the ocean, but for a man to be given Enlightenment, the whole of creation must be set aside, and even one such as Hercules would have stood bemused and perplexed at such a task.
For so long we are caught in the hell of incarnation. Who knows how many births the pilgrim soul passes through and how many tears of joy and of sadness it sheds along the way? Suffering is endless, and yet there are who seek to find the way that leads beyond all the trials and tribulations of this world, and even those who try, there remains the eternal problem of how to realise the great goal. Our Self can never be made an object for us to look at, for it is always the eternal witness, and certainly no intellect, nor even the most pure-hearted or selfless living could ever by itself reveal the unchanging and unsurpassed reality that exists within man’s own being. Only the Grace of the Avatar, the most precious and perfect gifts of all, could ever shatter illusion and confer the supreme liberation. It is easy for me to see now that there is no way that any mortal being could ever attain liberation by their own efforts. Whilst all rivers may flow into the sea, only the Lifewave runs into God, as it is the first emanation from God, so for all those with initiation the way ahead is clear. The journey is so simple, and yet so mysterious, so beautiful and so powerful, so subtle and so fine, so swift, sure and true!
During our sadhana, we all realised how small was the mask of our personality, and how vast and infinite was our true nature. Indeed, there was nowhere we did not extend to, nothing that we were divorced from and no direction that we did not penetrate. Man’s essence is everywhere, seemingly doing nothing, and yet causing all to be, and looking after all.
God has been loved and worshipped by man throughout all the ages, but only the Adept really knows the mystery of the absolute, and dwells content in the knowledge that at the back of all becoming is the eternal Truth of pure being. So we hope that disciples everywhere will take heart from our attainment, and be happy with what you already have, for with initiation we are all linked with the great Lord of the Universe, and have our lives set fair and square on the way back home. With liberation we know our journey through life to be complete. No longer are we caught in the mesh of matter, no more does death hold us in its grip, but rather life is proved eternal.
And so, whilst the absolute cannot really be described, or even hinted at or guessed, it can be realised and there can be no greater or more heartwarming news for anyone than that. Before initiation, we all tend to act out of a desire for self-gratification and then as we begin to meditate and imbibe Ishvara’s teachings, we start to act out of duty, and so begin to practise spirituality in our everyday lives, but finally we should seek to surrender all our actions as a joyful sacrifice for which we ask nothing back, but rather give all we can for the furtherance of Ishvara’s million here on earth. Above all, whatever our situation in life, we should try to cultivate Bhakti, practice devotion, and let selfless love grow in our hearts. For of all the great Bhaktis in the past, none had a greater Master than we, and few have ever received the gifts which initiation bestows on us in such full measure. As a small boy. Ramakrishna would rub his face in the sand, and cry out “Another day has passed in vain, dear Lord, and still I have not known you in Truth”. And his mother would say how blessed he was to have such madness of love for God, for men are mad for all sorts of things in the world, some for wealth, some for women and for fame, but few there are who are intoxicated with love for God. So loosen the knots within, and let ourselves go, for there is nothing to be afraid of in love, for love purifies us from the inside, consuming all our doubts and fears, and nourishing all our actions, and lending itself to all our aspirations.
Just as the waves lap on the sea-shore, so does love for God wash and pour continually through our life, carrying us ever forward, and buoying us up with optimism, charity, kindness, hope and strength. And just as blossom appears on the trees in spring, so does love arise in the heart of the devotee when he realises the warmth and radiance of Ishvera’s perfect Grace. No aspiration or yearning for Truth can really be felt unless love for God is the very livelihood of the seeker, and no journey can really be made without some desire for the goal, so cultivate love and let it purify every day of your life and every pore of your being. Love is endless, and once we find the eternal well, however much we drink, the well never run dry, so give of your very best to all you do, try to love without wanting anything in return, and look to Ishvara at all times for truly He is everywhere.
What joy there is in following Ishvara. Our lives take on a now deeper meaning. We slowly come to realise the essential soundness and decency of the universe as we begin to appreciate the great beauty of its laws. And what joy there is in liberation, the journey to God from which one need never return. Each incarnation that we have is so very short, not even as much as one page in the great book of our life, more like a letter in one of the words on one of the lines, and yet how much our personality and our situation overcomes us with its glamour and illusion. But when the Truth is revealed, and shines everywhere for us to see, then everything else stands as shadow. To fly in a plane takes on one up, up and away, to travel to the moon takes us right off this small world of ours, but to meditate on the Lifewave on every level consciousness is supreme, and then to go beyond is to cross to the other side of life and seek only to help others find their way back home.
Each life is so short, and yet the glory and brilliance of the Truth is everlasting, and the greatness of our Master beyond imagination a or the mind’s wonder. For though He is not arrogant or proud, He is who supports and upholds all the worlds, giving of Himself like to all, and seeking always to reveal His True Self to those who care deeply enough and seek to know.
So remember the vows that you took upon initiation day, purify your heart with love for Ishvara, and meditate as if your life depended on it, for surely it does, and may everyone do their best to carry the teachings of Ishvara to all the four corners of the world.
with all my love in Ishvara
Adara Chris
ORIGINAL DOCUMENT
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