12 years ago I started a journey. I was deeply sick with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, bedridden by virtue of the fact that I was so terrified of germs that I could not leave my own bedroom. I had become a prisoner of a mind that was holding me back from being the human I knew I was meant to be. It was at that moment I began a deep search within myself looking for the answers that would free me of my suffering.
The biggest obstacle in the search for enlightenment is that we are looking for something, when in the final moment we realize there is nothing to be found. Even Buddhism teaches that nothing is permanent, and I firmly beleive the same could be said about the state of enlightenment. We can never 'have' enlightenment, because it is at our deepest core what we are. It takes continual spiritual practice to maintain a mindset that is able to stay in a chronic state of joy and present moment awareness. If we aren't careful the Ego will find a way to interject again and bring us out of the present moment.
Bruce Lee was a soul I have great respect for. Lee once famously stated “Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup; You put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle; You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend”. When we are perfectly still and observe nature, it is always in a constant state of flow. Humans have the unique quality of being self conscious, and thinking about the past and future. This is both a blessing and a curse, as to be conscious of the fact we are conscious is a very beautiful thing. Conversely our patterns of thought can rapidly spiral out of control and cause us immense suffering. All emotions other than love and joy are created by our own thoughts. When we are perfectly still and in acceptance of the present moment, we discover a reservoir deep within us of never ending joy. Whether we call it enlightenment, Atman, Christ consciousness, or something else, it doesn't really matter. Spiritual practices have been pointing the way to our true self for thousands of years. I have studied under many spiritual teachers, and at the deepest core they are all teaching the same thing. That when we are in the present moment, when we allow ourselves to flow with what is, then and only then will we find what we have been looking for. Heaven and hell are both here and now. In every single moment we are given the choice between the two. Which one will you choose?
-Brian Johnson
Brian Johnson is a writer for, and founder of Elysium Project. A collective of individuals passionate about fostering positive social and spiritual change in the 21st Century.