You’ve Got Enlightenment All Backwards...

In a magazine article, I found a question like this one: “How can we maintain inner stillness while our lives are filled with stress?” That seems like a great question. But if you ask this question, then you’ve got it all backwards. It’s not that you maintain stillness. Stillness maintains you. As it says in Answers From Silence, “This permanent dimension does not depend on you. But you depend on it.” You know...

The Aztec Calendar And The End Of The World...

There’s a big deal being made out of the fact that there exists an Aztec calendar that seems to end in the year 2012. To some people, this signifies that the world will end at that time. I could write here about the fact that various groups of people at various times have mistakenly prepared for the end of the world on a particular date. Then the date passes and the world keeps on going. But that’s not the point I want to...

Ask Your Enlightened Self...

I was meditating in my office one day when a knock came at the door, which I did not answer under the circumstances. I heard from that person later, who said, “Didn’t you know it was me? What good is all of that enlightenment if you can’t tell who’s on the other side of a door?” The answer is that I am not a professional psychic. I’m just a music teacher. A psychic has psychic gifts. A musician has musical gifts....

Your Mistaken Identity...

Yes, I am on Facebook. But I had what you might call a bit of an identity crisis when I went to create my profile there. The crisis was that my identity isn’t defined by activities, interests, music, movies, books, television, political views, religious views, and what I’m looking for. Therefore, I didn’t fill in any of those blanks. It seemed like such a diminishment. It seemed like such a misplaced idea of what...

How To Find A Piece Of Enlightenment...

A lot of classic stories have been told that are variations on the same theme: someone searches for something and then realizes that they already have it. It may be a precious jewel, or the ability to do something, or in the case of Dorothy’s ruby slippers, it is the way to get home again. This could be read as a metaphor for becoming enlightened, and you may hear the same theme from spiritual teachers. The variation goes...

“It’s The Journey That Counts.” Or Is It?...

There is a wise, insightful saying in currency these days. You may hear variations of it such as, “It’s the journey that counts,” “It’s the journey,” or, “What counts is the journey.” The idea behind the saying is this: if you only think about the goal that you are working toward, you may fail to notice, appreciate, and benefit from what you experience during the process of reaching that goal. True...

Is Jeffrey Chappell Enlightened?...

Answers From Silence traces the author’s growth of consciousness, a process that eventually culminates in “crossing over a line to an entirely new mode of existence.” This seems to be saying that, by the end of the book, Jeffrey Chappell is enlightened. “Enlightenment” can mean many things to many people. And that can be a problem. I have actually been advised not even to use the word “enlightenment” for this...

“Never Better”...

It can be hard for me to answer ordinary, everyday questions with the expected responses. For example, when somebody asks, “How are you?” I invariably answer “Never better.” This is often met with incredulity or amusement, or with a follow-up question of “What is the reason for that?” I then have to answer, “For no reason at all.” I’m really not trying to be a wise guy. Nor am I trying artificially to...

The Enlightenment Business...

I have been told, now that Answers From Silence has been published and the website has been launched, that I am in the enlightenment business. I suppose this means that my “products” will be bundled in with the general traffic of advice-giving books, magazines, websites, seminars, video courses, click ads, etc., for customers who want assurance that they are getting the right things to promote their spiritual evolution. I...

What Does Enlightenment Look Like?...

My web designer has suggested that I choose some images to illustrate my blog posts on the topic of spiritual enlightenment. There is just a slight problem with this. Enlightenment itself doesn’t have a particular look. At the same time, it can be seen in everything. I could either put up no image at all, or as an equally valid approach, I could put up any image. After all, Answers From Silence regards over one hundred...