Happy Bodhi Day!

The Associated Press tells me it's Bodhi Day. The day we celebrate the Buddha's enlightenment.

I don't know much about enlightenment, I've said here how I know I'm not enlightened. Maybe I've had glimpses of the approach to enlightenment. The path is worth it to me just to move towards enlightenment. Maybe there's a bit of a faith element that it's worth it, or that something I don't really understand is the goal. I've heard people say that even though they don't know anything about it, they're OK with the path. It's an odd epistemological situation. Usually you hear more annoying questions on Reddit about what gets reincarnated, questions about karma with weird assumptions, and no self and no desire misunderstandings. You don't get a lot of questions about what enlightenment is, but there must be some. Reddit does have the question 3 years ago with some good answers.

I'm sure answers will include breaking the 10 fetters. Ending greed hatred and delusion. Nirvana over samsara. And of course the variety of sects in Buddhism won't agree on the exact answer. One of the great things about fellowship with other sanghas is that you learn about the amazing variety of ways of being a Buddhist. 

I'd say the glimpses of health, mindfulness and serenity were quit shocking to me, and for me in anapanasati I deal with the fear of enlightenment in the 15th stage, the niroda stage. Anapanasati is a robust meditation that comes down to us from the Buddha. After 3 months of intense meditation, he felt that it was such a good retreat, that he would teach the meditation for an extra month. Other meditation mentioned in the Pali Canon more than Anapanasati include metta, which the Buddha didn't invent, that was in the culture already. Perhaps his twist on it, he tailored it to the insights of the Dharma he came to understand. Impermanence and no permanent self meditation were mentioned more. And a not beauty meditation, which I think could be about conquering lust is also mentioned more than anapanasati.

I'm not a lineage holder or a teacher of any sect of Buddhism, so I'm free to develop my own take on things, and I could be wrong.

Anyway, today is Bodhi Day, the day we celebrate the Buddha's enlightenment.