Tina

I agree with many of the observations made by Bronsoval. I'd like to hear Leo's experience with radical honesty as well. +1 on this.

In my early thirties I had the realization that I didn't need anyone's approval, that I didn't need to engage in the social scene that I was previously involved in, and I just started feeling much more comfortable with who I was. It was a stage of maturation that led me to investigate deeper things, like enlightenment/awakening.

In my experience it definitely seems boring if I'm looking for something special to happen. Play games with yourself to invite some interest. Ask yourself: what is it that's seeing? what hears? what feels bored? When an answer pops up, what is it that knows the answer? Or try things like just focusing on sounds. One day, while I was sitting in a parked car with the windows open, I allowed my body to relax & just tuned into the sounds outside: car doors opening & closing, footsteps, talking & laughter, a garbage truck, a commuter train. It was all so interesting, & with varied tones, like music. At that moment it was anything but boring!

I'm not enlightened, yet, but the practice has affected me to the extent that I understand it's a subtractive process, not an additive process. So, you don't add anything to yourself, such as when you gain specific knowledge or skills that can be used for making more money or having a title at the end of your name, etc. Via meditation & mindful awareness, you see clearly the activity of creating a self, someone who likes/dislikes, wants/rejects, loves/hates. When the activity of creating yourself (being reborn) over and over is seen for what it is--stressful--you cease to grasp, little by little, onto whatever causes you craving & restlessness, ill-will, or delusion (confusion/lack of clarity). In my very limited experience, I've experienced the dissolving of self, and it is something that I can't forget. The first few times it happened, I couldn't stop laughing. When I saw the mistake in perception I had been making, it felt like the joke was on me all along. When people use the words "space-like awareness", that's pretty accurate. At least that's how it was perceived those few times, as an expansion into space or being less constricted/confined to the body. To conclude, I'd say that you don't lose anything that would keep you from living a full, enjoyable life. You lose all of the habits & perceptions that are barriers to that kind of life.

I agree with this because I have been acquainted with several enlightened/awakened people & they couldn't be more down-to-earth. Many of the people with whom I've exchanged ideas about spirituality & enlightenment are members of the Pragmatic Dharma community, and they insist on open, honest communication around practice & path attainments. They have contempt for the "mushroom" (keep 'em in the dark & feed'em sh!t) dharma culture that uses fluffy, indirect language regarding enlightenment. They feel that, since the Buddha of the Pali scriptures & his followers spoke openly about practice & enlightenment, we should too. I agree that it's much more helpful to be open about all of this, as it demystifies enlightenment & brings it into the reach of us laypeople.