Andrew Cohen - N° 33 - LAST TEACHINGS - Dec. 24 _ Feb. 25

Enlightenment is not a quiet realization. It's an explosive understanding. Not quiet. It's loud. It doesn't leave the ego alone. It doesn't let it leave the ego alone. Says, "Get out of here. This is my house." And spiritual self-confidence is utterly threatening to the ego. The confidence of enlightened awareness is very threatening. Because there's if you I use the word super self-confidence. It means oh my god I'm going to be seen. I'm going to stand out. I'm going to be obvious maybe that's okay because enlightenment threatens the status quo of human insanity. So the the super self-confidence that comes from the awakening to enlightened awareness should shock people awake. Oh my god. I had no idea. I had no idea. You should shock people awake. Shock them into awakeness. But most people are afraid of being seen. All the vulnerability and transparency. They're terrified for irrational reason. Some people for rational reasons. Some people for irrational reasons. But if you're not afraid of being seen, then you have your ego strength, positive ego strength. Then you're not trying to protect yourself anymore. Your protection is your is your authenticity. That's your badge of honor to be authentic in public. And also if you're seek if you're seeking for liberation, you can't be protecting yourself all the time. So we have to go in the opposite direction of self-p protection. It's a very different direction, right? The love experience is inspiration, spiritual inspiration, but don't depend on it. If your attention always is on the love, you're going to get hurt. It's intoxicating and beautiful, but it's not reliable. You want to be very focused on the truth with a capital T. what is the truth about reality but you don't want to depend upon love might be here today gone tomorrow yesterday I felt so much love today I don't feel it anymore a lot of people with who went to see my guru they had very strong love experience when they met him strongest experience in their life but then it faded I And ever since then, they're they're wondering what happened because it's gone now because they're because they're holding on to it. Cuz the secret if you want the love to remain, you have to let go of it without attachment and trust it unconditionally. Most people are not prepared to do that. They want to have the feeling again. I want to feel that feeling again. as if God was a feeling. So then they get into a materialistic relationship with with absolute truth. I want to have it as if you could have God for yourself. It's insanity. That's what keeps us separate. We have to let go of the whole thing completely in total trust. Then we'll always be there. So if the secret for your unity with the absolute is letting go of it, you can do that. Does God exist in all places, at all times, through all circumstances? Does God exist in all places, at all times, through all circumstances? So why does the ego insist on having a dualistic relationship with that which is ever present? God is not an object. So if we let go of the objectification of the absolute we can be free. This is exactly what my guru taught me. He was very clear about it. Most people didn't get it. If the if these big experiences are going to set us free, we have to let go of the experiences also. So big experience can be kind of a biggest form of attachment like we were talking about. Be free. But I always want to have a good feeling. Your ego doesn't like it. But if you if you accept what I'm saying, it can set you free. It can free you from so much pain and suffering. I met a guy two days ago, beautiful guy. He read my first book 30 years ago, 20 years ago. He went to see me, my guru. Had a big experience. Spent three years there. And since then, he's running all over Asia chasing after the experience. And he's not a happy man. This is what I like to say. Having nothing, knowing nothing, and being no one, that's freedom. Not having an experience, staying attached to the experience. It's not it. What I'm saying, it really works. And believe me, this is what my guru taught everybody. He freely shared it with everyone. Most people didn't have the maturity to to embrace what he was saying. He was a smart man. He told me after I had my experience with him, he said, "Andrew, I don't want you to rely on me for anything. I don't want you to rely on me for anything. I want you to stand on your own two feet." But then I didn't do what he said because I wanted to have a relationship with him. Understand? He told me to let go. He basically said, "Let go of me." He told me to let go of his form, but I wanted to have a relationship with him as my guru. So he he he told me straight as a real guru would do the first time what the truth was. But I didn't I wasn't mature enough to accept it on his terms. So I went back and tried to have a relationship with him, best disciple, whatever I wanted. He he wouldn't do it. and I got in trouble. So, the information is there when we're ready if if we're ready to hear it. So before we finish, my message to you is that uh if you want to be free, you have to be able to trust. If you want to be free, you have to be able to trust. And part of being able to trust is feeling things very deeply. So trust is something we all have to be willing to suffer for because trust will set you free. Trust means everything's okay. It's the ultimate realization. Everything's okay. There's trust. But if you're protecting yourself, you will never allow yourself to trust it will free you. Understand? So we can think of trust as a goal. Have I realized trust in in life in the dharma in enlightenment in God? Have I realized absolute trust in the highest truth? If you realize trust in the highest truth, it will set you free. This is why trying to protect yourself too much won't help you. It will keep you in prison. Trusting in a mystery that you can't see. Trusting in a mystery that you cannot see. When I say trusting in a mystery, can you see God with your naked eye? Can God be seen with the eye? Because God is not separate from you. Right? God does not exist outside your own self. Right? So God is a mystery that we cannot see. If you can see the mystery, then it becomes a separate object to yourself because the God principle is everywhere and nowhere at the same time. So you feel it and then go with it.