Awakened by SURPRISE

We tend to shut off awareness of other avenues of approach by predicting how awakening must occur and preparing for only that. This is no different from the suffering inherent in our preparing for predictions on how our lives should be lived. Obviously, it is your own expectations you seek to awaken from and not much else than that.

When I quickly jotted down the post AWAKENING: A Billion Dollar Business I had two chief concepts in mind. The first was to address the absurdity of the awakening industry and the second was to address who the real master teachers or gurus might be. The first issue seemed easy to address since all you need do is look around at the numerous enlightenment programs ($$$) to understand how ridiculous it can get. Of course, there are probably some very honest and sincere teachers out there, although I have yet to meet one.

The problem with “guru-master-teacher” involves two concepts: prediction and preparation.

Prediction has to do with the ego’s need to conceptualize a future that alleviates present fears. The guru-ego gives the student-ego a future prediction that obviously includes “awakening” as egoless.
The student then goes about preparing for that prediction. By adopting an ideology, and engaging in related “practices,” the student sculpts his ego entirely on the gurus prediction. Thus, the student seeks to fulfill the prediction through correct preparation. These are the rules of the game, when the object of the game is ego transcendence.

Note that, although the ego is actively preparing for the predicted outcome of “awakening,” there is another dynamic occurring under the radar. This is because the "awakening" that the student prepares for actually involves the death of the ego (the student) or that very part of mind seeking to prepare for "awakening."

Now what kinda dingbat would prepare for his own death while still fully engaged in living? Nobody I know! Problem is, the student fails to realize this underlying dynamic and does just that.

Obviously, an ego joyfully engaged in preparing for "awakening" has no intention of checking out of that process. Why should it? After all these years ego has finally found a genuine and authentic way of life that fully accentuates itself in preparing for awakening!

Fortunately, the ego may “awaken,” but it will never be as predicted and underneath all that preparation for awakening, unbeknown to the student, the real preparation has been occurring all along.

But the ego has no idea of this other preparation whatsoever, even though it’s been occurring right under its nose. In fact, it can’t be called preparation at all because there has been no prediction made for which to prepare for and therefore, the ego will be awakened by complete SURPRISE. And that awakening will have no resemblance to anything the ego could have ever comprehended, let alone understood, before it is taken by complete surprise. In fact, I suspect the surprise will fully disclose that no preparation was ever needed, since there was nothing to awaken from in the first place (but I can only speculate on that).

You can’t prepare for the unknown by predicting what it might be. This only prepares you for what you know. Prepare for SURPRISE by recognizing that it can’t be predicted, but it is certain you will be surprised if you're always prepared for only that and nothing else.

This means that any teacher you seek is NOT the teacher, although you have had thousands before this very moment and you will have many more. Just don’t expect it! The only expectation you need have is that from this moment on, nothing need be as expected, since it's only your expectations that you fear and desire to "awaken" from.

But, can your ego live with that?