The New Ambition

A weekend retreat has come to pass. Quite lovely.

One curious element, however, was the incredible swell of interest in and informal discussion around ‘Awakening’ or ‘Enlightenment.’ It’s a rather interesting cultural phenomenon, and it’s easy to see why it’s taken hold in the past handful of years in particular.

There’s been an explosion of mindfulness practices, primarily as a tool for reducing the stress of a hurried life. However, while likely to resolve symptoms, what remains is the insanity of the societal and cultural conditioning around ‘progress’ that’s been intensifying especially in the past 15-20 years. Our way of being within a world of constant connectivity, ‘growth mindset’, ‘hustle culture’, ‘productivity hacking’, and achievement orientation is fundamentally discrepant from the nature of our being, our deeper self, and therefore we suffer the consequences. Not much needs to be said about how this misalignment manifests on a global scale.

Mindfulness offers a glimpse of an alternative—a tuning in to a natural self that sees clearly the utter absurdity of the contemporary human project. With that ‘taste’ begins a deeper exploration of 'awakening' which presents the possibility of a complete transformation of self and the experience of being in the world. And so we’ve created a new goal to strive for, which appears to offer the answers to all of our problems. However, there’s a self-defeating element baked into the ambition itself.

It was fascinating being at this retreat and hearing the many discussions surrounding awakening and the desire to ‘get the experience.’ Particularly poignant was one answer to the direct question “Why do you want awakening?” It went something like this: I’ve never really felt like I was living life fully, never able to appreciate the moment, and so I want to awaken to the fullness of life, so that I can really feel present.

No doubt, many can relate to the sentiment. But this is the equivalent of holding a glass of water and shouting for help because you’re dying of thirst. What is always and already present, here-now, is being elevated to a mythological level and dropped somewhere in the future; something to progress towards, all the while the ‘finish line’ is moving forward at the same rate, always out of reach.

It seems that this 21st century focus on ‘programs’ and the commodification of awakening has provided the illusion of fixed, linear paths to the ‘holy grail.’ One big If/Then statement in the form of spiritual realization.

The unfortunate aspect is the failure to recognize that the totality of the journey and, simultaneously, the point of arrival, are in fact here-now. Were Ram Dass alive, his app would likely just be one screen that read: Be Here Now. It’s all in there. A very real challenge is in the simplicity and the ordinariness of it:

[Enlightenment] is just like ordinary, everyday experience, except about two inches off the ground.” —D.T. Suzuki

Those two inches of ‘lift’ are supplied by the deep peace, joy, and love that is what we are, and which unfolds from simply being present to what is. Nothing to add, nothing to take away.

Now, that certainly doesn’t take away from the immense (non)value of consistent practice (app-based included). On the contrary, in fact—practice is the 'pathless path.' By removing the insoluble goal-obstacle dilemma of the search, practice is liberated from purpose, allowing a new depth of introspection—“the royal avenue of knowledge” (Socrates)—and a connection with the Self that enables a skillful and compassionate approach to a life lived fully.

It’s not bliss, it’s just this.