What is Enlightenment?

Most people are confused. They do not know what hypnosis is. They do not know what meditation is, and they do not know what enlightenment is. I have written on hypnosis and meditation, but not on enlightenment. So here is my contribution to the knowledge we have.

In my mind, the ego is a product of self-hypnosis. It cannot appear in our conscious mind without words. That is why most people think and feel they cannot stop thinking. When we think, we use words, and words, hypnotize us. We live in a superficial, hypnotic world of words. The ego depends on words’ hypnotic power to travel, develop, and entertain itself. For twenty-four hours a day, we are involved in escapist activities—the radio, the TV, the cinema, books, computers, mobile phones, etc.—not realizing that we can only create a world of delusions in this "thinker and the thought" (the thinker thinking) mode. It is a typical mode of thinking for most of us. If we observe, we will find that we live in a sea of words and are drowning in it twenty-four hours a day. It is a delusional mode that takes us away from reality. Whatever we do in this mode makes us lose touch with reality. Thus, our perceptions and mental health are constantly affected.

Reality is timeless. In my mind, an actual timeless dimension exists in the present beyond the world of words we have created. The only thing that separates us from it is our perception. Anyone can experience this when they go out in the wilderness or on a mountain top. However, for this world to appear in your mind, the world of words must cease or end. That means your active thinking must stop because thinking (words) takes you away from reality into a world of delusions.

So how do we do this? The only way we can do this is to go into observer and the observed (the observer observing) mode. Please remember in this node that you have not disappeared from your mind but stopped thinking and started observing. In this mode, you are dehypnotizing yourself. In this mode, you learn, understand, and acquire knowledge and wisdom. It is the correct mode you use for meditation. Please read my article on the wrong and right ways of meditating. It's all self-hypnosis in the thinker and thought mode, which can only create a world of delusions for you.

How does one feel enlightened or know that they are enlightened? What is enlightenment? I looked up ChatGTP, and this was the reply: "Enlightenment" refers to a state of spiritual awareness and intellectual clarity characterized by freedom from ignorance and self-delusion and a heightened capacity for understanding and rational thought. In various spiritual and philosophical traditions, enlightenment is seen as a state of heightened consciousness and insight into the true nature of reality, often achieved through spiritual practice or meditation.”

As one can see, AI software can only produce the information that it was programmed to do. The knowledge of its programmers limits it. Thus, it is just another world of words created by the ego to keep everyone in the same delusional world we started (the thinker-thinking mode). Will anyone be any wiser after reading it?

Enlightenment, to me, is a state of mind where an individual acquires self-knowledge and can see and experience the difference between his present and former state. It changes one’s perception of reality. As one acquires self-knowledge, the observer-observing mode automatically replaces the constant thinker-thinking mode in mind. So life becomes an eternal meditation in contrast to the chaotic world of the thinker-thinking mode. I'm afraid this isn't a sudden spiritual awakening, as some may believe. It is a gradual, deeper understanding of reality where the phenomenon of the observer in mind and what is being observed become one, becomes a reality.

So what is the purpose of meditation? It is basically to discover our relationship with the timeless dimension that exists in the present. One can do this by harmonizing one’s inner and outer worlds and understanding how our hypnotic thinking process (verbalizing and not verbalizing) affects our thoughts and emotions. However, one can only do this in the observer and observed modes. Any other mode will be self-hypnosis.

Most people meditate the wrong way in the thinker and the thought mode. As stated before, one can only create a world of delusions in this mode. Meditation is not just about acquiring peace of mind or calming the mind. It is also a path to self-knowledge, where you learn how your thoughts and feelings affect you. Meditating the right way (the observer-observing) will change your perceptions and how you view the world and help you understand your thinking process. If you meditate the wrong way in the thinker-thinking mode, you will be chasing your shadow for the rest of your life.

Please do not take yourself seriously. Let me illustrate how delusional our thinking process is. Everyone knows the word “Santa Claus." It refers to a mythical person, not a real person. But if a person believes such a person exists, it would become a delusion. Let us again consider another word, "spirit" or ‘spiritual.’ It is a word we use to describe a world beyond the present. If people believe that spirits exist, do we think they may be deluded? As one can see, whenever we are in the thinker-thinking mode, we can only create a world of delusions. We do not realize that words can instantly create a whole new world for you—words like heaven, hell, reincarnation, resurrection, etc. Can you see how we all want to live in a world of delusions? Such is the hypnotic power words have over us and look at the fantastic world we have created. We have all the teachings and stories from the Vedas, the Gita, the Bible, the Quran, etc., to keep us happy, entertained, and secure until we die. And guess who created them? They were all created by the ego, to whom death is an anathema?

Please be aware that we live in a hypnotic world of words. So if you feel negative or positive, it is because you use negative or positive words. We can talk about peace, or we can speak of war. The ego, without self-knowledge, can take us in either direction. Enlightenment, therefore, is waking up from this hypnotic world of delusions and realizing our oneness with the timeless present. When one becomes enlightened, the timeless present becomes a new reality for the individual. One stops being a time-traveller.

After reading the above, have you gained any understanding of your thinking process? Does what I have written make any sense to you? Do you feel you should learn more about your mind? Most people are not interested in searching for or finding the truth. If you are in this category, you will not find Enlightenment because Enlightenment is awakening from the world of delusions.

Please read my other articles on the Internet to help you discover the world without words around you. When you next go into your garden, look at the flowers and plants without saying a single word in your mind and see what happens. You will find peace and tranquillity in the timeless present and understand the purpose of my writing. To learn more, visit the website at https://theenchantedtimetraveller.com.au.