8 Ways to Attain Enlightenment

The word ‘conscious’ implies being aware. The ability to be aware of what is going on in our lives and world at large. For most of us though, we do this without fully realising it. For example, when we wake up to a new day we are suddenly aware of everything, we are alert and aware. So, how long it takes for us to become fully aware and conscious is different for each individual and depends on how we go about our business that day.

Controversial Statements about Enlightenment 

1. Spiritual people or mystics are nothing more than a bunch of deluded fools

2. The only way I attain enlightenment is through faith, practice, and through the grace of God

3. There will be no one ‘enlightened’ that knows who I am when I’m alive

4. Everyone has achieved enlightenment.

5. Enlightenment is an evolutionary concept that was created by man as a way to oppress and control the world

6. When you achieve enlightenment you will become a slave to your own selfishness’

7. When I think of enlightenment I am overcome with a feeling of emptiness and sadness.

Are There other Ways?

We don’t focus on any one way to achieve enlightenment. It’s about listening and making our choices with our heart. It is up to each of us to look within ourselves and decide what we want for ourselves and for the world.

Why Attain Enlightenment?

We all want to live a conscious life. This means we are mindful, aware, self-referenced, self-aware, compassionate and altruistic. This can mean many different things to different people but at the basic level, we want to make our surroundings a better, healthier and a more pleasant place to be. What makes us strive for this though? Does becoming enlightened have something to do with being more ‘in tune with nature’ or our surroundings?

I could look, or think, or talk till I was blue in the face but nothing would make me feel that I understood this whole thing. There was a secret and it was kept hidden from those who were not privileged to know.

Benefits of Enlightenment

Being in ‘the zone’.

When you first begin to awaken yourself and get ‘in the zone’ for a prolonged period of time, you will be amazed at the feeling of peace and calm that you feel. There is a stillness that you have not felt in a very long time. You may be in a quiet room, a car on an isolated road, or a boat on a calm ocean. So we all know that it’s important to get out in nature to relax and get into our own mind space…but it can also provide a wonderful experience as well.

Can Anyone Attain Enlightenment?

Some say “it’s impossible to attain enlightenment’. If you look at the dictionary the definition is ‘consciousness or enlightenment’. These words don’t necessarily mean the same thing. Consciousness is a word that describes a very broad group of things, feelings, emotions, thoughts and observations. I would say the word ‘enlightenment’ simply means that the person is in contact with this vast amount of information and awareness. The first step to obtaining enlightenment is to gain awareness. When you’re in life you just see. You don’t get any feelings or see what’s going on.

What Is Attaining Enlightenment?

At the very least this may involve becoming more in touch with reality. For most of us living on this earth, we’ve become isolated from what is going on. We’ve only been on our own planet a few ‘thousand’ years and for the longest time, all we had to worry about was growing and being able to reproduce. That was our ‘job’ so to speak. Now there are so many ‘realms’ that we live in now that the world is now becoming even more of ‘the real thing’. It’s a jungle out there and we don’t always know where the ‘danger’ is.

What Does Achieving Enlightenment Mean

One of my favourite definitions of what ‘achieving enlightenment’ means, is that one must give up anything and everything that makes them feel good about themselves. It’s like an ongoing quest for something that is not there. Everything becomes so clear because nothing really matters now to us, except ‘becoming closer to something’.

8 Ways to Achieve Enlightenment

1. Understanding the importance of being mindful

We’ve all heard something like ‘everything is connected’ or ‘it is what it is’. What they’re saying is that all is one. To attain enlightenment we must become ‘aware’. By that, I mean we must understand that we are not independent. We are actually intertwined with everything else in existence. In other words, you cannot ‘achieve enlightenment’ without becoming in-tune and in sync with everything around you. So if you want to attain enlightenment, start with how to be ‘mindful’.

One of the best ways to be in the present and practice mindfulness is to get away to a beautiful place and just become at-one with nature.

2. Letting go of negativity and stress

Another way to attain enlightenment is to be able to ‘let it go’, if you do this, you will be able to release your mind from the past, the present and the future. This is the essence of being in the moment. It’s so difficult to stay in the moment and focus. So how do we become more in-tuned and aware all the time? The best way is really simple, it’s called being mindful. By being mindful you will become more in tune with who you really are.

3. Letting go of material possessions

Some of us find it really easy to let go of material possessions, others just don’t have the desire. For some people it becomes another way of ‘playing God’ and using your power over the universe. Some may say that there is a ‘good life’, and for some there is a ‘better life’. If you want to attain and maintain ‘enlightenment’ then you must be willing to let go of the ‘good life’ and the ‘happy life’.

4. Achieving enlightenment through connection with others

We’ve all heard sayings such as ‘the person you spend the most time around, will define who you are’. If you want to become a ‘tribe’ member you need to spend more time with your tribe, it’s really that simple. To become enlightened, we must become a member of something greater than ourselves.

We are all connected to each other in some way. The better we get into this new realm we live in now, the closer we will become to everyone else on the planet. The more we connect with the ‘oneness’, the closer we will be to becoming enlightened.

5. How to achieve enlightenment through meditation

Meditation is probably the most important key for achieving enlightenment. Once we understand our role in nature we’re able to let go of our beliefs and judgments. That only comes from a desire to be closer to ‘the truth’ or ‘reality’ or ‘oneness’ or ‘one’. We might have thought that we needed something, like material possessions, in order to attain enlightenment. Think of it in this way – it’s only about becoming a bigger part of the universe. Once that happens, everything else falls into place.

Yoga is a great way to become in the ‘zone’ because it provides a ‘meditational ‘exercise for being in the moment. So let go and let the universe teach.

6. Achieving enlightenment through reflection

Our self-concept can cause us to get stuck in our own mind. We may be feeling so insecure or guilty about what we’re doing that we can’t see things clearly. If this is the case, then reflect on things calmly.

If you want to attain enlightenment and have the clarity of mind needed to see things clearly you must learn to observe yourself and everything that is going on around you.

7. Achieving enlightenment through experience

Every experience we have will teach us something about ourselves. Experience is what causes us to change and learn, if we don’t try to change things then nothing changes, the universe gives us all the tools we need and it’s up to us to decide what we want, what we don’t want and for what purpose we do have certain experiences in life. Being grateful for your experiences is also an important factor to reaching enlightenment.

8. Achieving enlightenment through dedication to your craft and your purpose

The reason we are here on this planet in the first place is to be of service to the universe, to each other and as a part of the ‘oneness.’ What are we really doing on this earth? There is our purpose, it is the work we are to do, we just must be open to it. Each day we must take time to be in gratitude for the gift of life and the opportunity to live.

Here’s to enlightenment!