You Damn Well Better Take This Work Seriously!

In considering the fact that we all tend to take the ‘living of our lives' very seriously, I suppose it’s no real surprise that we take our “awakening” projects just as serious. It seems projects such as awakening and enlightenment (and they are projects with goals) are no different than pursuing a career in the world.

The consensus seems to be that it should be just as difficult to be awarded the title of “enlightened” as it is to be awarded the title of “doctor.” Both demand years of hard work and sacrifice in order to acquire the title and prestige of a life spent seriously pursuing that goal.

Yet, many might claim that to be “awakened,” no such ‘title’ is awarded nor is one necessary. However, all the games of the world have prizes based on achieving outcomes and if the world does not recognize your outcome, then essentially it has NOT been achieved.

Unless, of course, your ego-self simply eschews or discards any and all opinions other than it 'self.' Nevertheless, that paradigm of pure self-absorption is recognized as well, and we refer to it as INSANITY. You’d be surprised how many 'awakened' individuals reside in insane asylums simply because nobody else agreed that they were “awakened” but they refuse to recant (this is often referred to as "the messiah complex"). LOL!

The spiritual-work paradigm is quite similar to the ‘world’s’ paradigm of work or, as socially defined, “no pain, no gain.” If you want to be a success in the world then, obviously, we all agree that you must work hard. Of course, even in the world there are exceptions to that rule, however, the world of inner seeking or following a chosen spiritual path seems to lack such exceptions. Most of the masters, modern and ancient, espouse the paradigm of 'hard work.' Even Eckhart Tolle reports his “dark night of the soul" after many years of egoic struggle from which his ‘awakening’ magically materialized and, as long as enough people AGREE, then he is awarded that prize (and makes a decent couple a 'bucks as well).

Imagine if he had reported “yea, after a great steak dinner and a few glasses of sherry, I suddenly became “awakened!” I suppose many would simply proclaim, “You dumb bastard, that's NOT "awakening," your were just drunk!”

Problem is that the paradigm of work tends to assert an outcome or reward, since why else would you spend years 'working' if there was not some payoff or beneficial outcome rewarding you for all your years of labor. There are certainly many busy bees out there when it comes to working toward enlightenment and they revel in the struggle and sacrifice the outcome supposedly demands.

I merely suggest that there may be NO outcome and if that were true, would you continue to work?


Try to present a contradictory viewpoint to others, like, there’s nothing you can do to prepare for enlightenment, and you might be vehemently attacked. If you visit the spiritual blogs scattered throughout the internet, you will undoubtedly recognize the paradigm of the “spiritual journey” as 'work.' I like Byron Katie's site because she makes absolutely no bones about it and actually calls her practice "The Work."

I was reading about this 'work paradigm' yesterday on a very insightful blog called the Tami Simon Blog. Tami Simon writes:

“If we believe that the spiritual journey is quick and easy (like following the instructions on the back of a bag of microwave popcorn), we will not be prepared for the real work, the “heavy lifting” of genuine transformation. What I mean by “genuine transformation” is a process by which everything that is false in us—our emotional defenses, limiting beliefs, and self-structures—are seen and released, and a new unbounded and mysterious sense of self emerges which is fluid and ever-changing.”

Does this “heavy lifting” include the transformation of the 'work paradigm' because, make no mistake, within that paradigm are the principles of sacrifice and struggle. Or has the ego-self determined that the 'hard work' paradigm is NOT false but true. But is it? Well, who knows, except, if everybody's doing it, then it must be true. Right?

Good grief, if I have to sacrifice and struggle to get “enlightened," then why bother, since I do the same sacrificing and struggling just to make a damn living. Unless, of course, the ‘outcome’ is greater than what I would receive from the world's demand for 'hard work.' It must be, otherwise, why do the work.

Yet, I do understand the message of the awakening project not being “quick and easy” since that’s another western paradigm that gets a lot of mileage. In many aspects of our life, we expect “instant’ results and it seems this was developed by the ego-self in order to offset all the ‘pain’ demanded by the ‘hard work’ paradigm. With all my years of ‘hard work’ to get ‘enlightened,’ I damn well expect there to be some instant results scattered about, here and there, like, "wow, that inner buzzing from my meditation was cool, I guess I’m on my way to Awakening!”

Sure, it may not be total ‘awakening’ but at least a few little quick ‘awakenings’ to minimize the discouragement before I get to the Big Bang, because “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy!”

Many teachers and aspirants believe that the spiritual journey is not formulaic or one size fits all. But, au contraire, if the work leads to a reward, then clearly there is a formula and it’s usually presented as:

many years + struggle/sacrifice = Awakening.


It seems we all tend to subscribe to that belief system because it rolls well with what the ego-self already believes. Is it possible that something as ineffable, acutely profound and, supposedly, outside all worldly paradigms, like awakening, enlightenment, nirvana, or however you define it, would incorporate the same formula as becoming successful in the world? Because, essentially, the model is exactly the same.

Sure, your spiritual journey can be “rewarding” and I have no problems with rewards. Yet, let’s be clear on who or what is getting rewarded. It is the ego-self (belief package) or that part of you that loves the “spiritual journey.” But, hey, that’s okay, since that’s what you are, an ego-self looking for rewards. That’s what an ego-self does, for cryin’ out loud!

Now, I’m not pounding on spiritual paths, per say, (well, maybe a little) as they do tend to aid in negotiating a difficult world and, as such, they tend to provide some ego-comfort. But, my friends you’re gonna have to really question the paradigms or belief systems you idolize, and live through, as “truth.” That’s the only way your going to shift your egoic frame of reference enough to experience the SURPRISE that has no path.

Don’t ask me to define that because there really is no formula through which it can be defined, because it’s a surprise. There is no path and it doesn’t require work, HOWEVER, nor does it require that you don’t work. It simply asks that you take ‘seriously’ both paradigms. Yet, there’s the paradox. How can you take seriously both work and not work at the same time?

YOU CAN’T.

And that’s the Surprise!
(are you ‘awakened’ yet?)

mikeS