An Introduction to Enlightenment

The Llewellyn Journal: Buddhist enlightenment or realization, is complete insight into the true nature of mind. The true nature or enlightened aspects of that mind, simply stated, are emptiness and awareness. Awareness is the more apparent of the two, since through its auspices we experience the sights, sounds, tastes, smells, touches, thoughts, and emotions of our everyday world. Because of those experiences, we know that awareness exists and we know what it does, but what we don’t know is what it is. When we find that out, we will see it is empty (the second component of enlightened mind) and self-existing. By empty, we mean that it is without the characteristics of a thing, such as size, shape, color, or place. In other words, awareness exists, but not as a material entity. Awareness is also self-existing, meaning that no one or thing, whether our self or any other being, creates or controls it. It is beholden only to itself...read more>>>...