By a guest writer and long-term meditator
Connecting to a peaceful reality
Through even the simplest form of meditation — breathing meditation — everyone can learn how to connect to a relatively peaceful mind. When we are experiencing a little peace we are, at that time, tasting a little of what it’s like for someone who experiences their life as peaceful, whether that’s for 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or all day!
Buddha explained there is no world outside our mind — our personal world, our life, is a reflection of our mind. If our mind is peaceful, our life will be experienced as peaceful; if it’s not, it won’t. So, those peaceful moments in meditation are revealing a little of our potential to live from the perspective of a peaceful reality.
This peaceful potential is what we call in Buddhism our “Buddha nature”. Someone who has fully actualized this inner potential and accomplished a supreme and lasting peace of mind and happiness, moment to moment, is an enlightened being, a Buddha. Everyone has this potential. To know it experientially we just need to connect to a little peace.
In his book The New Eight Steps to Happiness, my teacher Geshe Kelsang Gyatso says:
It is also important to understand how we too can become a Buddha, for when we are confident that enlightenment is a possibility for us we will naturally feel much closer to those who have already attained enlightenment.
For me, this has many levels of meaning. One way of understanding it is that the more we learn to access and abide in the experience of a peaceful mind, the more we become ‘confident that enlightenment is a possibility for us’; and gradually we ‘feel much closer to those who have already attained enlightenment’. Not just ideologically, but in our direct experience.
The key is, Buddha explained how our normal sense of a separate self and separate mind is mistaken. In reality there is no separate mind or self. So in reality our mind is never separate from the minds of all enlightened beings, and, when we experience a little peace, to some degree we are letting go of that experience of a separate mind and self. At that moment we are connecting with the vast peace of enlightenment, Buddha’s mind. That connection to the peace of enlightenment is what we call, in Buddhism, a blessing.
Geshe Kelsang defines blessings as:
The transformation of our mind from a negative state to a positive state, from an unhappy state to a happy state, or from a state of weakness to a state of strength through the inspiration of holy beings such as our Spiritual Guide, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.
Blessings, when two minds connect
Connecting with enlightenment
The challenge is when we try to understand how we receive the blessings of a Buddha. The reason for this is very simple, we can see our kind friend, we can’t see Buddhas.
However, just because we cannot see them, it doesn’t mean they don’t exist. For example, have you ever seen wind? Yet, if you open your window on a windy day you will feel it and its power immediately. Although we cannot see wind, we can still harness its power to accomplish beneficial outcomes, like powering wind turbines which power electricity plants.
It’s similar with the blessings of Buddhas — we may not be able to see Buddhas (at the moment!), but we can certainly feel their presence through the peaceful power of their blessings. So the good news is that even the most skeptical of us can learn to tap into this ocean of peaceful positive energy / blessings of enlightenment, whenever we wish.
How? Simply close your eyes, focus on your breath, and connect to a peaceful mind. Then just allow yourself to imagine (and in time to know) that your little peace is connecting you to the limitless peace and goodness of enlightenment, connecting with a Buddha’s mind. Gradually this is what you will experience.
With our eyes closed, centered in that inner experience in meditation, notice how that seems quite real for you. Also, notice how when you open your eyes all your doubts naturally come back. Why?
Let your experience reveal a deeper knowing
The reason for this is that when we are focused inwards (in our inner world) we are relying upon our direct experience, and when we open our eyes (back in our outer world) we go back to relying upon our so-called
This is the downside of our over-reliance on science as the only barometer of truth. We discount our own direct experience in favor of the so-called logic and truth of science. I am not dismissing science; it has many good qualities. However, when it becomes a dogma it can limit us in our exploration of deeper truth. The only constancy in science is that it is constantly proving that what we previously dogmatically thought to be true was, in fact, wrong!
Geshe Kelsang refers to Kadam Dharma as:
Scientific methods to improve our human nature and qualities.
Meditation and Dharma is inner science, the science of conscious experience. We prove empirically that by continually centering in a peaceful heart and opening up to the idea that we are connecting to the vast peace of enlightenment, this is exactly what we prove to be true, through our own direct experience, empirically.
The key is, give yourself permission to let go of what you think you know (just for a few moments!), until your experience in meditation reveals a far deeper knowing. Discover for yourself how when we surrender our current logic to our own direct experience, we find it a far more reliable barometer of truth.
Let your peace flow to the ocean
Just as the river is never separate from the ocean, so our little peace is always connected to this ocean of peace that is enlightenment. We just need to recognize this and then relax into and abide with that connection to enlightenment. In this way we allow this enlightened energy to awaken our potential for love, compassion, and wisdom, as well as pure peace and happiness.
Plug in and awaken your potential
In the eco-friendly city I live in, there is an increasing demand for Tesla electric cars. I’m not much of a car person myself, but I’m reliably informed that they are a thing of great beauty and potential. Apparently the new ones can go from 0 to 60 in 2.5 seconds! However, if your Tesla car is sitting on the side of the road and hasn’t been plugged into an electricity source, its extraordinary potential remains dormant and it can’t take you anywhere.
In a similar way, everyone already has an extraordinary (and indestructible) potential for enlightenment, our Buddha nature. This potential will remain dormant in us until we connect to an enlightened energy source, an enlightened being’s mind.
It’s simple really — the only way to enlightenment is through enlightenment.
Through plugging into the limitless peace and goodness of enlightenment in the form of blessings, we can awaken our potential for limitless compassion, wisdom, peace, and pure happiness.
It’s easier than we think
Then we will understand what Geshe Kelsang means in the book Joyful Path of Good Fortune, when he says:
The instructions of Lamrim are easy to put into practice.
The ease comes from knowing (through experience) that we are not doing this on our own, thank goodness! Rather, we are attaining enlightenment through our creative, dynamic relationship with enlightenment.
Over to you, comments for our guest author are welcome!
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26 Comments
Beautiful visioning of my river of peace flowing into an ocean of peace
*thank you*
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A wonderful reminder of what is important in this life. Thank you.
I responded to your point of connecting with the most peaceful and positive person I know. Of course this is helpful to increase peace in my own mind.
Very insightful post, thank you for sharing! Really like the emphasis on connecting with what is already here, the Buddha nature. Enjoyed the read, i’ll take this with me in my practice 🙂
The most amazing article, thank you. You write so beautifully. I have been struggling with this a lot this week, but now, so much clearer. What a blessing <3
Thank you Lee and I’m delighted you found it helpful x
Beautiful
Glad you found it helpful, with love, guest writer
Profound and beautiful, thanks for this inspiring explanation !! Still feeling the blessings!!
Delighted you enjoyed Maria.
I had lost my true connection with Buddha dharma but this article really helped me understand my connection again. I needed this so I can Eventually help Others again.
Than you x
Delighted it’s helped you reconnect Bjames x
That was so beautiful to read..
Delighted you found it helpful Lisa x
Simply beautiful and so compelling. I love this. ❤️
Delighted you found it helpful x
Such a brilliant clear explanation that anyone could relate to! I love the tesla analogy 🙂 It’s thanksgiving day and I’m so grateful for our teachers who make Dharma so clear and accessible. Blessings!! <3
Delighted you found it helpful Lesley x
Lovely article, thank you. I really like the analogy of being with a friend and feeling so much better and more peaceful after the encounter.
Delighted you found it helpful Mary x
This is such a beautiful, clear, and inspiring explanation. Thank you!
Delighted you found it helpful Cheryl x
Muchos gracias 🙂
No comment from my side, just a big thank you to both of you.
I’m keeping this one for the rest of this life.
Very important.
Love & Hugz
🙂
Delighted you found it helpful x