What is 'Enlightenment'? Options

[Shawn]

It's certain that enlightenment means different things to different people, and so I'm curious what it means to other people, and also to throw out a few questions to provoke thought.

Is Enlightenment an experience, process, realization, way of living, or what?

Is Enlightenment a multi-faceted word that is context-dependent and relative, or are there absolute truths that are invariably associated with any type of Enlightenment?

What are the 'truths', if any, that would invariably be realized/experienced thru Enlightenment?

Is Enlightenment an all-or-none experience (AHA experience) or is it a gradual accumulation of wisdom?

What is the relation of Enlightenment to mystical experience?

Please note that the above constitutes a partial list and is not meant to exhaust the range of questions that could, and should, be asked.

Personally, I believe the statement, "We are the Universe conscious of Itself", is on a par with Buddha's "All that we are, is the result of what we have thought" from the opening of the Dhammapada, and that both constitute part of a collection of truths that are invariably experienced during what I think many would call Enlightenment.   The task at hand, though, is to clarify this notion of Enlightenment to the best of our abilities thru mere verbal communication.  Is anyone up to this challenge?

[synchronox]

Timothy,

I could not give you a crash course in enlightenment.
This because I am not yet enlightened, only on my path toward that goal.  I can give you some experiences that I have been through just to point out some sign posts along the way.  I am sure that you have a great deal to contribute into the pot, as well.

This is a complex field because we are very complex beings, futher confused by people taking stances that they believe in.  As if to say, I have found the way over here, but finding that a number of people shouting the same thing from different stations along the tracks.  It is a matter of perspective.  If you adopt any other perspective other than one that says I am a fluid individual on a path of enlightment is to set up a station along the route and start shouting with the rest.

That attitude is the first step to enlightenment.

Everything is my opinion and belief so I will dispense with the habit of declaration of that condition before any pronouncement.  (making sure, of course, to warn you in advance about any utturance being from the mouth of God).

We are divided beings with a full range of unintegrated equipment in our 'kit bag'.  Each with a slightly different configuration.  To name a few components is to name our four functions: sensate, feelings intuition and thinking.  Each having a host area in our brain.  We also possess the ability to be outward or inward directed-introverted or extroverted.  Add to this mix the further differentiation of our sensate; our five senses.
With a full range of feelings which by my count is 156 emotional tones.  Add different types of thinking, some would be deductive, inductive, algerbraic, intuitive flovored, sensate flavored, etc.
Further, we have two sexual orientations, the left hemisphere representing the masculine, thinking, logical, linear, digital, focused and word oriented:
the right hemisphere the femenine. symbol oriented, analog, visionary, diffused attention.  One the regulator of the physical world, the other the contact of the outside psychoidal realm and world.  One representing the organization of the region of the brain, the other the region of the mind.  One aware, the other as yet unconscious and needing exploration.
Now on top of this is to add the serial processing services of the ego which is driven by hidden survival programs ( a collection of many different archetypes to select from) that are different personalities triggered by outside events that shine through the 'lens' system of the ego so that everyone has multiple personalities.
The major failure of the Meyers Briggs test is to not discriminate which personality is taking the test, BTW.
A relatively unexplored avenue is our ability to create visions.  In it's natural unconscious state it produces imaginations, phantasies, frightening images, relfections of what lies on the other side.  When regulated, it produces, gedanken experiments, intuitive flashes that  are the seeds of all new disconery and a search lamp of the exploration of the unconscious.
I could not even begin to explain the contents of the unconscious that I suspect. This vixionary capability alone will pull all the components together.  One the other side is a genius if we just will look for him that guides us/me in putting all these components together.  I have devceloped a method started by using Jungian techniques to explore this territory  The techniques build the next structure of our psyche.

We are all lopsided,  In this civiliation of patriarchal dominance, masculine, extroverted, sensate thinking is taught to be honored.
Enlightenment is to fashion all these 'tools' into a creative wholeness-without dominance by any single part.  The middle course way.
Differentiation and then integration is the order of the day; one by one.

Thank you for asking, it made me articulate in one small place what some of the rudiments are about.
Once seen, it becomes an adventure of epic proportions.
One final caution:  Don't allow reality to distort your perceptions.  (Said in a playful jesting way)

John