Prioritising Dilemma: Enlightenment vs Poetry

[Guest]

I recently completed the life purpose course and found my life purpose - ‘to write poetry that inspires and guides people towards truth and love’. However I’m now in a dilemma about whether to prioritize this vs seeking enlightenment. Basically I’m miles away from both of these goals and it's an issue of limited time.

I’m not expecting to support myself by writing poetry, even in the long term, as I haven’t found any evidence that anyone actually does (pro poets usually teach and do other more lucrative writing work on the side. Books, readings, etc, make 'beer money'), but I am positioning myself to be able to devote 10K hours into it regardless over the next decade (necessary to establish an audience even without the pressure of earning).

With maintaining a necessary day job alongside the poetry, I simply don’t think I’ll have the time for significant enlightenment work. Having experienced Truth before I’m having a really hard time with the idea of putting this goal on ice. I'm considering putting the LP on ice instead and channeling all those resources into enlightenment.

So which do I choose? Or do I need to go back to the drawing board and find a different LP?

There’s also the issue that not being firmly rooted in truth I'm not sure I'll be able to have the LP impact I want in the first place.

[SamC]

Both. Why not do poetry that's connected to enlightement?

[Guest]

@SamC  Hours in the day, like I said, given the necessity of a day job. I'm concerned I'll end up diluting both too much and not getting what I want with either.

[Ayham]

you could focus on poetry, and have a daily spiritual practice too, you can spare an hour for meditation or kriya yoga or self inquiry or whatever, if not, maybe try 20 minutes. 

it will help set a foundation for when you want to focus on enlightenment later on. 

[Guest]

@Ayham I already meditate 2 hours a day but doesn't seem a serious prescription for awakening. I don't necessarily want to 'focus on enlightenment later on' - that's what I'm trying to work out, the alternative being focusing on it now.

[Ayham]

@Stretch that's great, working on your life purpose makes enlightenment easier, self-actualization before self-transcendence.

so I would recommend focusing on life purpose, and still having a daily spiritual practice because aside from many normal "benefits", you will work up to enlightenment gradually. 

This is what I am personally doing. 

 

[Guest]

Thanks for your thoughts guys. Having crunched some numbers I think I should be able to get 10K hours of work each into both over the next decade if I make sacrifices and work my ass off. So maybe I will try and juggle the two after all.