| "If your mind is empty it is always ready for anything; it is open to anything. In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities; in the expert's mind there are few."
- Shunryu Suzuki
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| "All the states of higher realization can be attained even in full activity. Trance is not essential - it can be used, but by itself cannot lead to the change of consciousness which is our object, for it gives only an inner subjective
experience which need not make any difference in the outer consciousness. There are plenty of instances of people who have fine experiences in trance but the outer being remains as it was. It is necessary to bring out what is experienced and make it a power for transformation both of the inner and the outer being. But it can be done without going into smadhi in the waking consciousness itself. Concentration of course
is indispensable." - Sri Aurobindo
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There have been stories and accounts of enlightenment and realization, or samadhi, kensho, union, through sitting and "meditating". However all these are just experiences of the time. It is necessary to assimilate them within the be-ing, to put them, and more, into practice in the daily life, and to maintain the balance of consciousness of the One with the consciousness of the world as one.
This takes practice: practice living, practice breathing, practice loving; until one becomes oneself in all that one does. There is liberation - freedom, at this point.
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"Reading about enlightenment is like reading about nutrition when you are hungry. Will that fill your belly? Obviously not. Only when you taste, chew, and swallow the food do you feel satisfied, and this is comparable to enlightenment, or awakening. But even then the food you have taken will not nourish you until digestion takes place. In the same way, until you have integrated into your daily life what you have perceived, your awakening is not working for you yet - it will not transform your life. And just as the final step in nutrition is elimination, so one must eventually rid oneself of the notion "I am enlightened." Only then can you walk freely between heaven and earth."
Now suppose your foot itches. Does it feel better to scratch your bare foot or to scratch the itch through your shoe? Reading about enlightenment is like scratching an itch through your shoe." - Philip Kapleau
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"There is no beginning to practice or end to enlightenment, and there is no beginning to enlightenment or end to practice." - Dogen
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Now many preach this sort of thing as a-reason for not speaking and therefore are able to hide (they think) their lack of realization. It is true that one cannot describe reality; however, one can give a sense of what it is like, and can give methods to attune to it or parts of it until the seeker "catches it". You see, "It can't be taught, it's got to be caught" and only you can catch it for yourself.