The Ultimate Paradox of Enlightenment: Why You Can't Achieve What You Already Are

Some people seek enlightenment as if it's a goal, a destination to reach.

They practice, meditate, and learn, hoping one day to attain it. But the profound realization that there is no separate self to attain enlightenment, no destination to arrive at, and that the very falling away of both separation and self is enlightenment itself, is where the truth lies.

Let's explore the radical non-duality of enlightenment and why no one is enlightened—because there is no one.

The Fallacy of Separation

The belief in separation is a great illusion.

You think you're a separate self on a journey towards something greater. But enlightenment, in its purest form, is the realization of non-duality—the falling away of both separation and self. Radical non-duality isn't a state you reach; it's the natural stage of being.

It's realizing that there's no false self, no true self, but only one Self.

The Radical Non-Duality of Enlightenment: There's No One There

1. The Illusion of the Self…

You believe you exist as a separate entity.

Yet, through my own divine intervention of radical non-duality, I came to see that there's no "you" there to achieve anything, not even enlightenment. The self is a construct, a mere idea, without substance. When you see this, you realize you're not truly here.

The notion of self dissolves, and with it, the illusion of separation.

2. Enlightenment Is Not an Achievement…

Enlightenment is often portrayed as a lofty goal.

But the ultimate insight is that there's no one there to achieve enlightenment. There's no one there to become enlightened. Enlightenment is not a final destination but the natural state of being.

Enlightenment is not something you attain; it's what you are when the illusion of self falls away.

3. No One Is Enlightened—Because There Is No One…

The idea that someone can become enlightened is another illusion.

There's no one there to become enlightened. Enlightenment is the falling away of the idea that there is someone separate from the whole. It's realizing that no one is enlightenment because there is no one.

That "no one" is enlightenment itself. You are not separate from it; you are it.

Embracing the Paradox

The Unraveling of the Self: The Ultimate Realization…

Embrace the paradox that no one can become enlightened because there is no one separate from enlightenment.

In the timeless wisdom of Zen, "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water." The difference lies not in what you do but in what you realize about who you are—or rather, who you are not. Enlightenment is not an end but a beginning, not a discovery but a realization, not a becoming but an unraveling.

It's not about finding yourself but losing yourself. And in losing yourself, you find that there was never anyone there to begin with.

That is the ultimate paradox of enlightenment.