What is enlightenment?

Before we can answer this question, let us define what we mean by “enlightened.” People often use this word loosely to mean anything from having a sudden flash of insight to learning a new piece of information. In spirituality, it usually describes someone who has attained an expanded state of consciousness. It is a prized state that can take years, decades, or even lifetimes to attain.

Enlightenment is an evolutionary process that embodied souls go through over countless physical existences. Spiritual masters often describe the process as not one of acquiring knowledge but one of removing obstacles, including any such knowledge. It is about dissolving beliefs, ridding ourselves of delusion, and finding our true Self. Through a purification process, we expand our awareness from a limited, ego-driven one to an increasingly more universal one.

Countless people who have had a single mystical or bliss-filled experience fall into the trap of believing they have attained enlightenment. Now they see themselves as better than everyone else. With a fully intact ego, they convince themselves of their holiness and become afflicted with the Messiah syndrome. They may give themselves fancy titles, don exotic costumes, and preach holy texts as if they authored them. With their newly-acquired sense of superiority, they may become arrogant, impatient, self-righteous, mean-spirited, and delusional.

The tragedy is they may quit doing their own inner work, perceiving themselves as already perfect the way they are. Since nothing is due to their fault, all problems in life are caused by others, who they view as inferior to themselves. All progress comes to a standstill. If they do not manage to wake up from this state, they will spend the rest of their current life in deep delusion.

So, how can you tell if someone, or even we ourselves, have attained enlightenment? Contrary to popular belief, enlightenment is not a yes-or-no question of either having attained it or not. Even different traditions describe different stages. Some traditions say there are four, seven, ten, or even more stages.

A common mistake is to confuse initial enlightenment with full enlightenment, or liberation (moksha). Countless people experience the former, some without having participated in any spiritual practices. In fact, some people become spiritual seekers because of that initial experience. When it comes to full liberation, however, it is much more rare.

The awakening process, or the expansion of consciousness, is like climbing a mountain. The higher up you go, the further you can see. The serious work begins after initial enlightenment. This is only the beginning, not the end. It is critical to be aware of this common misconception, otherwise, we can end up among the thousands of self-proclaimed Messiahs that seek sensorial gratification in the name of God.

Dissolution of the Ego

Enlightenment is about a gradual dissolution of the ego. We slowly go through an evolutionary process to rid ourselves of our defects, stumbling along the way. We are all at different stages. People in earlier stages of development may have serious character flaws. However, a fully-enlightened person—who has managed to merge into divine consciousness on a full-time basis—no longer feels a need to look important, accumulate possessions, or control others.

Saints and sages often use the example of a mango tree when discussing spiritual evolution. When the fruit is ripe, it will fall naturally. When we spiritually mature, our desires for fame, fortune and power drop naturally. If there is no self, how can there remain selfish behavior?

Read more:

Good vs Evil: Find Your Light in Troubling Times

Spiritual Purification: A Lifetime Journey