2. Inner Enlightenment
World Scripture
Brahman is all in all. He is action, knowledge, goodness supreme. To know Him, hidden in the lotus of the heart, is to untie the knot of ignorance.
Mundaka Upanishad 2.1.10 (Hinduism)
In the golden city of the heart dwells The Lord of Love, without parts, without stain. Know Him as the radiant light of lights. There shines not the sun, neither moon nor star, Nor flash of lightning, nor fire lit on earth. The Lord is the light reflected by all. He shining, everything shines after Him.
Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.10-11 (Hinduism)
God is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche, and within it a Lamp; the Lamp enclosed in Glass: The Glass as it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed Tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, Whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it. Light upon Light! God guides whom He will to His Light: God sets forth parables for men, and God knows all things.13
Qur’an 24.35
Even as a mirror stained by dust Shines brilliantly when it has been cleansed, So the embodied one, on seeing the nature of the Self, Becomes unitary, his end attained, from sorrow freed.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 2.14 (Hinduism)
The Self within the heart is like a boundary which divides the world from That. Day and night cross not that boundary, nor old age, nor death; neither grief nor pleasure, neither good nor evil deeds.
All evil shuns That. For That is free from impurity: by impurity can it never be touched. Wherefore he who has crossed that boundary and has realized the Self, if he is blind, ceases to be blind; if he is wounded, ceases to be wounded; if he is afflicted, ceases to be afflicted. When that boundary is crossed, night becomes day; for the world of Brahman is light itself.
Chandogya Upanishad 4.1-2 (Hinduism)
The Sixth Patriarch was pursued by the monk Myo as far as Taiyu Mountain. The patriarch, seeing Myo coming, laid the Robe and bowl [of office] on a rock and said, “This robe represents the faith; it should not be fought over. If you want to take it away, take it now.” Myo tried to move it, but it was as heavy as a mountain and would not budge. Faltering and trembling, he cried out, “I came for the Dharma, not for the robe. I beg you, please give me your instruction.”
The patriarch said, “Think neither good nor evil. At this very moment, what is the original self of the monk Myo?” At these words, Myo was directly illuminated. His whole body was covered with sweat.
He wept and bowed, saying, “Besides the secret words and secret meaning you have just now revealed to me, is there anything else, deeper still?” The patriarch said, “What I have told you is no secret at all. When you look into your own true self, whatever is deeper is found right there.”14
Mumonkan 23 (Buddhism)
Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
Whatever difficulties you face, do not ask others, but ask your own conscience. When you pray, do not pray vaguely. God gave you an original mind, so you should be united with that precious gift. Once you are united with it, you will know everything about yourself. Once you have cultivated your heart and mind, you can be tuned to God’s heart and mind.
(307:216, November 21, 1998)
Even though I am your teacher, my teachings cannot connect you eternally to God. It is your task to find your original heart. You have to hear the calling of Heaven through your mind’s ears. You have to see the divine nature through your mind’s eyes. You have to feel the heart of Heaven through your mind’s senses…
We have thought that God was the only precious existence, but now we should understand that our minds are just as precious. By finding the nucleus of your mind, you can attain the high standard of value by which God can make a relationship with you. Otherwise, how can you be in alignment with Heaven’s principles?…
Today’s believers frequently take comfort from their conceptual beliefs and their world of faith. Yet although we are fallen, our minds contain elements of the ideal of creation by which we can commune with the eternal God. What, after all, is the purpose of prayer? Why do Buddhists seek a state of emptiness through Zen meditation? It is to awaken the elements that lie at the nucleus of the mind.
(2:192-93, May 19, 1957)
Shakyamuni Buddha said, “In heaven and earth, I alone am the Honored One.” In what state did he teach this? If you were to enter that state of resonance, you would become one with God. In that state, you would be able to see thousands of years of human history unfold before your eyes. You would experience yourself as having that incredible value.
How can we humans escape from the painful cycle of suffering, life after life? How can we escape from our miserable life’s destiny that ends in the cemetery? This is the homework given to each of us. In order to solve this, we have to receive training to enter the realm of resonance.
(223:357, November 20, 1991)
When mind and body have the same power, they fight. We must establish the mind over the body. There are two ways: The first way is by weakening the body through conditions such as fasting, prayer vigils, etc., and then to drag about the weakened body for several months. After a while, even when the body is comfortable, it will obey the mind out of its newly acquired habit. If you reach that state, you will experience Heaven’s help bringing you success in what you do…
The second way to establish the mind’s dominion over the body… is to give more energy to the mind. Make continual efforts to give energy to the mind. When these efforts accumulate to a certain point, the door of your mind will open. Once that door opens, you will gain immense power. If you strengthen the mind’s power at least three times over, then you will have no problem with the body. People make many conditions in the religious life to focus the mind’s power to lead the body.
Once you attain spiritual enlightenment, you gain great power in your mind. Then, if you yield to your body’s desires, you will feel nauseous and want to vomit. A person who has attained spiritual enlightenment has strong mental power; hence his body follows the mind’s desires automatically… All religions teach this as the way to reach an advanced stage in the life of a human being.
Following this way, and centered on God’s love, you will enter a realm of high dimension—when you realize on your own that you are sons and daughters of God. That is why Buddha said, “In heaven and earth, I alone am the Honored One.” A person who has attained enlightenment is the source of his own authority; that is why he has the right to boast of how precious he is.
By becoming a son or daughter who receives the unique love of God, you are in a position to inherit everything that is God’s. You realize that you are of yourself an elevated being. The path of every human being ends here, in the realm of God’s love.
(38:270-73, January 8, 1971)