The Sky-High And Mile-Wide Barrier To Enlightenment

Society has an answer for everything.

And if its answers were True, then at least a fair percentage of the population would be Enlightened.

Last I checked, I don’t believe it is.

And this is because society’s idea of an “answer” is to give an Impotent Prescription.

Mind you, all “prescriptions” are impotent.

And this is why they fail to lead anyone anywhere.

Prescriptions have cannibalized the world of instruction in professional sports. And they have quite literally derailed the careers of supremely talented athletes who were at one point in their careers headed for the history books.

Beware of Prescriptions, my friend.

For they are not, nor will they ever be, The Truth.

Prescriptions are, in fact, The Trap.

The road to supremacy in professional sports, and in the attainment of Enlightenment is a veritable minefield of Traps.

And the man who reaches their destination unscathed is the one who Understands.

Take Siddhartha as an example. When he entered the forest in search of Enlightenment, he met a group of ascetics.

These ascetics were involved in various forms of bodily mutilation, starving themselves, denying themselves shelter and clothing, all in hopes of attaining enlightenment.

They gave him various prescriptions about performing penance and prostration. And they told him to sit in meditation for hours upon hours.

They gave him prescription after prescription.

And where did these prescriptions leave him?

They left him emaciated, hungry, tired, and brittle.

The deprivations left him inches from death. The hours and hours of sitting in meditation made his body brittle and stiff. The ideas they filled him with kept him as far from as enlightenment as the day he first arrived.

What is imperative to understand is this: These ascetics weren’t teaching Siddhartha to become Enlightened.

They were teaching him to become an Ascetic!

And it is only after he left them and all of their prescriptions behind that he entered the True Path to enlightenment.

Mind you, these ascetics had left the world, surrendered all of their worldly belongings, denied themselves food and shelter, and Even Their Prescriptions didn’t work!

What to say of the prescriptions that are given to you by a common and worldly society?

Society will give you all manner and form of prescription, NOT so that you will find what it is you are seeking. But so that you will forever be left seeking.

Society has no blasted clue what will get you to the goal. It only knows how to give you the proper colored robes that will make you look the part of a Seeker.

And then it will gather others from around the globe, dress them in the same colored robes, put them in a convention center and have a “convention” about seeking.

And 60 years later, these very same people will still be Seeking.

For society never promises you a Find.

Like the ascetics in the forest, it’s just in it for the search. And if you fall into society’s hands, search and search and search you will. For lifetimes and lifetimes.

Allow me to share with you One of the clever prescriptions that will leave you standing cold in the rain. This prescription sounds nice and spiritual.

But it will leave you forever on the outside looking in.

In fact, one of the first things I do with those who come to me is to dive deep into dispelling the myths that have been directly preventing them from Experiencing the Rarefied States that man was meant to experience.

I will list one of the most ubiquitous and dangerous myths here. And very briefly speak about it.

Mindfulness

You’ve likely tried it. Has your mind chatter gone away? Have you distanced yourself from thinking? Has the mind stopped talking to you endlessly? Can you stop thinking whenever you wish?

If you tell me that you’ve only just begun, I’ll tell you that others before you have been trying for 40 years and they haven’t succeeded yet either. So if you continue on this path, you’ll have lots of company.

I’ve often said that the idea of mindfulness is like holding up the walls of a collapsing house. You will be able to hold up the walls for a short while, but eventually your arms will tire. And the walls will inevitably come crashing down. It cannot be otherwise.

Remember the Colorado Gold Rush? Men from around the country set off for the Colorado mountains in search of Gold. They were so entranced and enthralled and lost in their search for the gold that had been found, that they kept their locations secret. And didn’t tell a soul once they found it.

Did they have an “annual conference” about the gold they found? Did they get together in a convention center and talk about the gold they had found and discuss the exact location where others can find it?

Do you remember those ancient and secret maps in movies and stories, in which X-marked the spot? Was the location of the “X” discussed in a conference? Or was it kept secret at all costs?

Does Warren Buffet openly share all of his wisdom on investing. Sure, he gives interviews and tells you some “tips.” But you can bet that it is precisely those things that he chooses to share that are the most generic and ineffective.

Do you think Steve Jobs opened the vault of his genius ideas? Of course not. He gave to the world a few breadcrumbs so that they could flock to them and write about them in the form of impotent quotes that don’t have the power to transform anyone.

Secrets are kept secret for a reason.

Secrets are kept secret because They Work!

And that which is discussed in a public forum such as a conference or a convention is by definition Useless! That’s precisely why it is given away!

They say that youth is wasted on the young. Similarly, true wisdom is wasted if given to the masses.

You want to know something interesting? The scrolls of ancient Tibet and the wisdom of the ancient Indian adepts were kept secret for centuries.

Why?

Because they would only benefit the one who was Truly Sincere in learning them.

As time went on, these secrets were slowly released to the masses via various books and lectures.

Those who revealed them were chastised by their orders for sharing them with the world. Now that these secrets were revealed, they could really do good in the world, right? They would be a boon for mankind, right?

Nothing could be further from the truth.

They fell upon deaf ears.

And would you like to know why?

Because they were released in the form of a Prescription!!!

Consider this, because it is truly fascinating: Buddha is perhaps the most revered spiritual icon in all of human history.

Buddha’s Four Noble Truths have been available for hundreds of years. And they can be found on every street corner in any country of the world.

Have they liberated anyone?

If Buddha himself was given the four noble truths before he became enlightened, they wouldn’t have liberated him either.

Because Prescriptions do not Liberate!!!

The sincerity of one’s search, and the subsequent Direct Experience does!

So did the successful gold miners spend their time organizing a “conference” or a “symposium” on where to find the gold?

Of course not. They were too busy enjoying the gold they found.

Conferences and meetings and symposiums are held precisely for those things that Do Not Work.

For if they truly worked, everyone would be so lost in rapture, and so enjoying having found this thing that actually worked, that there would be no need to have a “conference” about it.

The realized saints of the Himalayas were recluses. They hated getting visitors.

Why?

Because visitors interrupted their experience of bliss in solitude. They had discovered the universe within themselves. Why would they want a break from that?

Society is precisely the opposite. It has found Nothing!

Therefore, all it can do is organize a conference of people who have found nothing, and “Talk About It.”

The truth is this: Mindfulness will keep you cold, disheveled, and hungry. The mind will wear you down. You cannot and will not be able to “Force Yourself” to become present.

The mind will run over you. It will always win.

The real secret is Mind-LESS-ness. It figures, doesn’t it? A phrase that is considered derogatory is actually The Truth.

When you train yourself to achieve the state of Atmamun . . .

When you learn to live within the state of No-Mind . . .

Thoughts will no longer chase you. You won’t have to resort to the fruitless task of trying to keep them away.

Prescriptions are a plastic sword. They will not last 3 minutes in battle.

Your greatest and most powerful weapon is True Sincerity. For it is this that will give you the courage to banish all myths from your path, no matter how “healthy and spiritual” they may seem.

The path to the top of Everest is littered with traps. As they say, it’s a razor’s edge.

And only The Sincere One will pass.

Which leads me to this question:

Are you The Sincere One?

Or are you the prescription-following ascetic?