What is enlightenment and how we can achieve it?
by Atman Nityananda
When the mind becomes pure and sattvic, that is to say free from egoic energies, rajas and tamas gunas, awakens and merges with its source, consciousness. In this state of total union man becomes God and God becomes man, the two become a perfect unity in the deepest sense. This is enlightenment, this is liberation, this is the divinization (apotheosis) of human being.
The liberation of the mind of egoic energies and self-realization neither happen by chance nor are products of inertia.
The idea that we can dissolve these energies and achieve enlightenment doing nothing is a misconception. Neither the body can survive by doing nothing. It is necessary to put food in our mouth, chew it and swallow it.
Changing erroneous beliefs is an important step to dissolve the egoic energies but it is not enough to get it.
Of course, spirituality does not mean accumulating knowledge in the mind or acquire something from outside.
Spirituality is something 100% practical. It is the purification and transformation of the mind (thinking mind, emotional mind and intellect), and the purification and transformation of prana and sexual energy.
Besides purification, it is necessary to create balance and harmony in all levels of our existence. It is necessary to increase the sattva guna, the ojas, the prana and the tejas and transform the sexual energy. It is necessary to control the senses and the mind, to stop the mind wander and identify with thoughts, emotions, objects, body and stop forgetting our Beingness.
It is also true that there is not a spiritual path for all. There are actually as many ways as humans. Each one according to his maturity, his mental constitution, his experiences and his needs follows its own unique way.
In short, to achieve enlightenment it is necessary follow a sattvic life oriented in spirituality, not in theory but in practice.
It takes a lot of consistent practice, determination, sincerity, courage, faith, self-confidence, dedication and most of all a burning longing to realize the truth.
Peace, Love, Harmony