AwakeningSimple Satsang(see also Instant Enlightenment)Enlightenment is such a loaded word I'm almost loath to use it. But it does describe that moment of realization when we become conscious that we're Consciousness . . . and we discover we're not the thoughts, emotions or states that we have floating inside our bubble of consciousness.
Normally we fill our bubble with negative thoughts and spend our lives believing that all the illusions that run through our minds are real. Phew I say! How wonderful to discover they're not real! 
Even believing that we're special . . . specially enlightened . . . specially holy . . . . are discovered to be NOT true. No-one's consciousness is holier than anyone elses. (If someone thinks they're particularly holy because they're 'enlightened', it really means they 'think' they're holy.) And that's just daft. Those thoughts about ourselves are fictitious and it's 'enlightenment' that shows us that. So you simply can't call yourself 'enlightened' and THINK you're extra specially more holy. You can see the girl below is not present to the moment but is off on a flight of fancy. 
At any time we can wake up to the present moment. It's always present! We can't run from it or make it go away. But we can become hypnotized by our lives, our thoughts and emotions and our stories. It is completely natural to become hypnotized. It's part and parcel of consciousness. It's fun, it's meaningful, it's extraordinary, it takes us from the lowest of lows to the greatest highs. It's creative to have goals and desires and to chase our dreams . . . . and . . . . at any time . . . . especially since sometimes our lives can be awful . . . . its good to know we can wake up from our life story. 
So it's lucky when we discover we can awaken to the present moment. Because within the present moment is a power and presence and awakeness (and often an extraordinary bliss). Even if the bliss isn't present, there is something so special about the present moment that it doesn't matter if bliss is present or not. 
The invitation is to see the difference between illusion and the ever present moment. 
But no one's counting to see how many times we become hypnotized by all the illusions in this world. No-one's hovering over us saying "Geoffrey! You've entered trance 5 times today and cried at the movies. How unenlightened of you!" When we wake up to who we are as consciousness no one automatically becomes super intelligent, all-knowing, all-floating, bliss bombs. But there is an awareness of the illusions at play in our minds and there is a happy joy discovered within and a 'knowing' that we're all the same. Everyone, no matter how enlightened is still subject to the crises and disasters that afflict us all. And no-one is better or more perfect in any way. Everyone is still subject to individual preferences. Some find freedom and happiness in church, others from running a mile from organized religion. Some find freedom in science others in alternate fields. Some are led by logic, others follow a more intuitive path. We're each led down our own paths of interest yet can realize we're all connected by an unknowable energy. It's a divine and wondrous play of consciousness . . . 
Within this divine play we see all the events of life occurring. Some events are tragic, some sublime and then we have all the stuff in between. When all this 'stuff' happens, we react and not always as we'd like. This is where I find NLP, hypnosis, and the enneagram brilliant creative tools to help clear away the debris and promote beautiful and empowering lives. Because let's face it, sometimes life gets tough and how brilliant that we can use a number of tools to improve our lives. We can also, at any time say "Okay, life is awful, but in the face of this awfulness, can I become aware of this Presence that's here now?" At any moment we can choose to be aware of the consciousness that is holding our thoughts rather than the thoughts themselves. There's not a medal at the end of the day if you choose to become present to the moment. (There is the deliciousness of the moment though.) There are also times when its appropriate to fix a problem by thinking it through. Odd that some say one way is the holy way. Who comes up with these elitist ideas? You choose what's best for you. I have found that sometimes Presence is perfect, other times fixing a problem is needed. Presence is always present.
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