Realization is not a future goal, it is in the present

Many of us think of spirituality as a pursuit of a goal. The goal is called as enlightenment, nirvana, moksha etc. However, it is this misconception that keeps us from being spiritual. We use many means to achieve this goal, called belief, faith, doubt, reason, logic, etc. However there is one word that is self-explanatory. The word is realization. The word includes the means as well as the ends. It does not distinguish the means as separate from the ends

When we think of realization or spirituality as a goal, we create a barrier between ourselves and the goal. Thus, we are unable to attain it in the present. However, the reason why we are unable to attain this goal even though we make 'efforts' sincerely towards this future goal in the present is because the only time when this goal is attainable is in the present. Thus, thinking of spirituality or realization as a goal is detrimental to achieving it. Spirituality or realization cannot be compared to an external goal like scoring a 100 in an exam or coming first in a race. Spirituality is an inner goal, so you are in perfect control of this goal, unlike external goals that depend on external factors. In spirituality, you are goal and you are the person working towards it. You are the problem and you are the solution. You are your best friend, and you are your own worst enemy.

The mind is analytical. It prefers a step by step logical approach. It uses the concept of time. According to the mind,

1) Spirituality/Enlightenment/Realization/Detachment is a goal
2) Pains are required to work towards the goal
3) In order to be prepared to take the pains, one has to be convinced t(either logically or by faith) to work towards the goal

Logically, this makes perfect sense to the mind. However, it is this analytical approach and the mind that keeps one from reaching the goal. To realize, one has to look at the whole and not just the parts. One has to let go of the serial thought process based on the past and future that is a creation of the mind and be aware of that which is all at once in a timeless state.

Instead of the 3 steps, there is only one step - Be aware now. Everything else is a by product of awareness. There is no goal for the future and no effort required in the present to achieve the future goal. A goal is something that you work towards in the present with the motive and hope to achieve it in the future. It is this process that keeps one from being aware in the present. Awareness comes spontaneously and without effort to reach it. One has to let go even of this effort to be aware. No effort is required if one is not only aware, but is also aware that one is aware. Then one need not even ask oneself if one is aware, but one is already aware of the answer.

Then comes the question, if all we need to do is to be aware, and if it is indeed so simple, why are most of us not aware? We are not aware because we identify with the mind and its analytical 'problem/solution' approach. We enjoy the drama that the mind creates because life is more interesting that way. We like the pleasure knowing that pain will follow soon after. We like the success knowing that failure too will make its presence felt. We make best friends knowing that these best friends can also become our worst enemies. We enjoy the extreme highs knowing that the morning after we will only be left with a headache. The mind creates problems and then tries to find solutions. When we accept things as they really are, we don't create imaginary problems, and there is no need to find solutions either. Most of our 'problems' are a matter of perception, and when we become aware and change the frame of reference of perception, the problems seem to disappear.

In certain rural areas, there is a perception that a good doctor is one who gives a painful injection. A doctor who tells you that you are fine when you are fine is considered to be useless. Hence, doctors in rural areas of administer injections with placebos (e.g., saline solution) to patients. This is because patients do not feel that they or the doctor has made any 'effort' to cure themselves, and so they cannot get well until and unless they make an 'effort'. The placebo satisfies them mentally, and they get well soon after. Our natural state is a healthy one, both mentally and spiritually, but it is we who create barriers to realization of this natural state. When we realize that we are the cause of the 'problem', we also realize that no 'solution' is required and we become 'cured' automatically.