Enlightenment means Presence...

Anything is possible
It is sometimes assumed that, in enlightenment, anger and other negative feelings no longer arise. Don’t fall for that trap. Enlightenment just means presence. Anything is possible in presence. Presence is just a word pointing to the awakeness that is looking right now.

Presence is the opening through which all forms appear and disappear. Any form can come through, including anger. When emotions seem to appear from and disappear back into a story of “me,” they accumulate over time, creating resentment and conflict.

When it is recognized that the “me” is not real, presence is seen to be what you really are. When anger arises in presence, it does not accumulate into a story of “me.” Instead, it appears from and disappears back into a space that is completely and totally free of attachment or identification with what is appearing.

Anger, therefore, is no longer seen as a problem. It is just raw energy passing through. The mind is no longer moving to overcome, suppress, analyze, neutralize, or escape that energy. But even if such mind movement arises, that movement itself is just a form passing through the opening.



Scott Kiloby, Reflections of the One Life: Daily Pointers to Enlightenment