Important Questions and concepts
It is important to recognize the importance of pursuing enlightenment: to avoid suffering. Ignorance leads to missteps, which can have negative consequences. Also, even those with the best intentions are often lead by Providence down challenging roads, and if one has taken the time to attain some wisdom, the challenge may be met with grace, and minimal suffering. Ignorance of any kind and every kind (ignorance about the self, about the true nature of things) leads to bondage.
Enlightenment is to know one’s self and its place in the universal reality. To know the self is to understand its origin and unique characteristics, including all faults and positive attributes. This requires honest introspection. To understand universal reality, includes understanding the origin (cause) of unique phenomena and experiences, and to understand the part we play in the creation of our individual experience, and the limits of that power.
Important questions about the universal reality:
• Are we eternal beings (do we continue our existence beyond the grave?)
• If we are eternal, how does the quality of our decisions/action affect our eternal destiny?
• How can we best avoid suffering in this stage of our existence? Can we minimize the impact on us by negative factors which we cannot avoid or control?
Enlightenment is not a passive accomplishment. A child will inevitably become an adult, and be high- functioning on a natural level, but can remain unenlightened. To become enlightened is to acquire true humanity. To remain unenlightened is to be an animal, driven by the needs and desires of the natural self.
Revelation is the only means for a person to have the higher levels of consciousness opened. One must desire to evolve, and put forth the effort to attain wisdom and goodness in one’s heart.
Important metaphysical facts:
• Our thoughts and feelings do not originate in ourselves, rather they flow in from various sources.
Even the thought and feelings we have held throughout our existence, which seem to be us.
• We have dominion over our thoughts and feelings and are responsible to manage them.
• Our thoughts and feelings, coupled with intention and desires, conscious or unconscious determine the quality of our experience.
• We create our subsequent reality through our thoughts, feelings, intentions and desires.
• We can increase our receptivity of Divine influx
• When we entertain negative input such as un-good music, movies, attitudes, judgements, etc. we are actually living in a spiritual community where our neighbors are those types of people.
• It is known that a person who immerses himself in a foreign community will assimilate the language and culture quickly, especially if that person loves some members of the group. So this principle also extends to our spiritual life, and eternal destiny. And when one chooses to naturalize into a new community, that person can become more enamored of the culture than one born in it, and often passionately disdainful of the one left behind. Be careful about the company you keep.