Be a Living Zen Koan

To become enlightened one has to find a way accidentally or on purpose to end or to cease everything in one's mind that comes from conditioned response. The best way I can say it is that it is unnatural to be conditioned and it is natural to be unconditioned. So to become enlightened one must go to the most primal of places that one lived in before any cultural or family conditioning. Doing this for some might be easy, for others it is seemingly impossible. It all depends upon the individual.

For me, enlightenment comes temporarily(if we are lucky it stays permanently) and most likely enlightenment comes to us for longer and longer periods of time, in the wilderness when I am completely alone. However, today I went to a very remote pristine place with my 21 year old daughter and she was just so very happy to be somewhere this remote and beautiful that just seeing her happiness while climbing up the side of a Shasta Red Fir tree and standing on a knot barefoot made me feel enlightened like I once did when I was very young and inspired myself. Now at 62 enlightenment is completely different than when I was 21. I would define being enlightened as being totally present in every moment which for most of us tends to be a rare thing. So each totally present moment is priceless beyond words or speaking once one truly realizes what life is all about.