Seeing ones own nature is Buddhahood ~ Zen Master Bassui

The concept of Enlightenment or Awakening and how it relates to the other concept of no-self (anattor anatman)is truly one thing that sets Buddhism apart from any other major religion. After all, Buddha means The Awakened One.

But enlightenment, which is the reason we practice Buddhism, is perhaps one of the most confusing concepts to explain in Buddhism.

Hey, being unenlightened sure seems like a great thing! We love falling madly in love with people, enjoy things that delight our senses, and live our life to the fullest before we die.

But is it all that its cracked up to be? Not really, because we have many attachments when we are unenlightened that cause our suffering (called Dukkha which is part of the four noble truths) such as:

When we become enlightened, everything becomes clear so things that used to bother us, no longer do, and we can understand our place in the universe.

Enlightenment is something that happens suddenly to you when you recognize there has never been a thing known as you (ego), and it was all just a mental fabrication. This is referredto as the concept of no-self (anattor anatman) in Buddhism. Thats pretty heavy stuff for most of us to come to terms with.

As Zen MasterDgensaid:

Only be accepting that the ego is a fabricated illusion do we walk the Buddhas way.

This means that seeing you (ego) as a separate selfisthe illusion. We are all part of a connected consciousness. When you realize this, you become awake.

Author Timothy Freke made this very clear:

Enlightenment is not something that benefits you or me. It is the absence ofthe illusion ofthere beinga you or me to benefit. Enlightenment is held up as the ultimate goalof Buddhism, but ironically it is only when the concept of being a someone who could achieveanything is abandoned that enlightenment naturally occurs.

So how can you be enlightened when there cant bea thing such as you? First its important to understand that ego (referred to as tman in Buddhism) is in our mind and creates the false sense of self (thus a you) that is independent and separate. Because this is a delicious and attractive prospect to us, we cling to ittightly. This clinging to selfcreates all our sufferingbecause its like a clenching fist that wont let go.

AsDzogchenPonlopRinpoche explains:

Clinging to this mythical self is just like gripping an imaginary object in our hand. What does it accomplish? It only gives us a headache and ulcers. And we quickly develop many other kinds of suffering on top of that. This I becomes proactive in protecting its interests, because it immediately perceives other. The instant we have the thought of I and other, the wholedrama of us versus them develops. It all happens in the blink of an eye. We desire one thing and try our best to get it; we hate or fear another and work to keep it away; and there are still other things we dont care about one way or another.

Compared to other religions of the world where you are permanent (such as having a soul), Buddhism says the opposite. Sentient beings (such as people) dont have an independent self that is unchanging. Physically you can see your body change, but even you change as you are interconnectedwith everything around you. Because we are very much attached to the concept of me, its hard to grasp this concept also. The Buddha said that the concept of you is a temporary condition caused by the combination of physical and mental components of existence. You will eventually lose the body, and be no more (but not to worry, read my article about rebirth for more on this).

This doesnt mean that you are arenot in the physical (human) world right now, because you are. You can pinch yourself and fell the pain caused by it. Whats being said is that moment by moment, the concept of you is being created by your ego (mind). So loosen that grip on your ego and become liberated!

Its important to note that the two major branches of Buddhism, Theravada and Mahayana, look at the concept of no self (anattor anatman) differently as explained by Barbara OBrien:

Very basically, Theravada considers anatmanto mean that an individuals ego or personality is a fetter and delusion. Once freed of this delusion, the individual may enjoy the bliss of Nirvana.

Mahayana, on the other hand, considers all physical forms to be void of intrinsic self (a teaching calledshunyata, which means emptiness). The ideal in Mahayana is to enable all beings to be enlightened together, not only out of a sense of compassion, but because we are not really separate, autonomous beings.

Before we go any further, a little clarification is needed. You will hear the terms enlightened (and enlightenment) and awake (and awakened), which refer to the Pali term Bodhi. The Buddha said he was buddho, meaning awake. Both enlightened and awakened mean the same thing, and are perhaps not the best terms to use to describe Bodhi, but its what has been used for a long time now.

Lets use these two terms as they relate to the Buddha: Prince Siddhartha Gautamabecame awake (buddho) when he realized the true nature of things. This happened during his meditative concentration under the Bodhi treewhen he overcame all the obstacles and temptations in his mind and, no pun intended, the lights came on or enlightened (as far as understanding the true nature of things) and became the Buddha.

Often, youll see a circle, halo, or light radiating from the Buddhas head in paintings and statues, but this is purely a symbolic metaphor for enlightenment (by using light) of his mind, and not of anything spiritual or God-like.

Whats hidden? Youre already enlightened my friend. As Barbara OBrien explains:

Mahayana Buddhism teaches that, in our deepest selves, we are already perfect, complete and enlightened. However, we dont understand ourselves this way. Instead, we are caughtup in the delusion of ordinary appearances and conceptualizations to see ourselves as limited, imperfect and incomplete.

If we could sum up Enlightenment simply (no easy feat!) it is tofind what is hidden. But what is hidden? First, lets give some analogies:

Enlightenment is much like this, as it is discovering what is already there inside you (often referred to as your Buddha nature in Mahayana). As Ven. Master Hsing Yunexplains:

Before attaining enlightenment one sees the world through clouded vision, unable to understand the true nature of things. After attaining enlightenment, one looks upon all the worlds phenomena like a blind person who can now see.

We would probably not even be talking about enlightenment if it was not for Prince Siddhartha Gautamawho persisted in meditation under a pipal tree(later to be called the Bodhi tree) until he became awake. His enlightenment, and determination to share this knowledge with others, created one of the worlds largest religions. He was then able tosee and understand the world as it truly isand explained this with the Three Dharma Seals.

Upon achieving enlightenment, the Buddha said:

Marvelous, marvelous! All sentient beings have the Tathgatas wisdom and virtue, but they fail to realize it because they cling to deluded thoughts and attachments.

Tathgata is a Pali and Sanskrit word the Buddha used when referring to himself. So, hes basically saying everyone has Buddha Nature and can achieve enlightenment, and end suffering.

I wonder if the Buddha saw the world like the character Neo did in the movieThe Matrix? Well, more on that later on.

Often you will see a picture or statue of the Buddha sitting atop a lotus flower throne. This is because thelotus flower is often used to dramatically illustrate enlightenment.

Just like our mind, the lotus flower grows beneath the surface of the water which is dark, murky, and muddy (much like our perception of the world and ourselves). But, through constant effort, it finally breaks the surface of the water and blossoms in the bright and beautiful world (which is unseen).

Just like the lotus flower breaking the surface of the water, we too can break through the surface of our deluded perceptions of the world. But it takes both constant effort, and faith. If the lotus flower (lets pretend its a sentient being for a second) believed the world was just this muddy water and nothing was above, it would never become enlightened and break the surface. Or, if it did believe that there was this beautiful world above the waters surface, and spent much effort to get there, but one day gets discouraged and stopsnot knowing it was just moments away from the surface.

This is why continued practice, faith, and effort is needed and that you should never give up.

In the movieThe Matrix, Neo (Keanu Reeves) awakens from within the Matrix and can see the world around him is just computer code. Heres the scene:

Now, of course, this movie doesnt have anything to do with Buddhism, but it does have some concepts we can draw from:

So, perhaps Prince Siddhartha (the Buddha) could have been like Keanu Reeves playing the character Neo if he lived in our time. I suppose Id be ok with that as long as he didnt also play a role in Bill & Teds Excellent Adventureand doesnt fly around in a computer program.

Weve talked a lot about what enlightenment is, but how do you become enlightened? The goal of meditative concentration (part of the Noble Eightfold Path) is enlightenment.

Ven. Master Hsing Yun explains the path:

One can seek enlightenment by practicing meditation, but how should we practice so that we can attain enlightenment? Total and complete enlightenment is not attained easily. one must develop small moments of insight and understanding each day. These small, daily bits of enlightenment accumulate over time, until they culminate in a sudden flash of great enlightenment.

Getting started with meditation ideally requires a teacher, but if you dont have one where you live, here are five ways you can learn.

So what do you do after you become enlightened? Get ready for ityou continue practicing! Becoming enlightened is not the final step on the path, becoming a Buddha is.

Mahayana Buddhists who follow the Bodhisattva path can become Buddhas as well, but they choose to remain in the cycle of birth and death(samsara) in order tohelp others become enlightened as well. But lets look at it another way, that becoming enlightened is just as good as becoming a Buddha (or Arhart in Theravada). As Ven. Master Hsing Yunexplains(note that Chan and Zen are the same, except Chan refers to the original school in China, and Zen the school that Chan became in Japan):

Chan practitioners are humanistic because they have developed meditative concentration for generations and seek enlightenment rather thanattaining Buddhahood. After attaining enlightenment in this human world, they are liberated in the present moment of their lives. They find peace and freedom in body and mind, understand the mind, and see their nature. All of this comes from enlightenment-why worry about being unable to become a Buddha?

Its often said that trying to explain enlightenment is fruitless, and I agree. As someone who is clearly not enlightened, my goal with this article is to try and make a few concepts clearer and easier to understand for laypersons like you and me. But, of course, Im not enlightened! So I will leave you with this parting thought by Ven. Master Hsing Yun:

Enlightenment must bedirectly experienced and is not something an average person can wildly speculate about. Those who casually imitate the words and actions of Chan practitioners without doing the work to attain enlightenment will fall short and invite the ridicule of those who truly know.

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Continue reading here:
Wake Up! Understanding Enlightenment in Buddhism