The teaching story of a man seeking full enlightenment who finds himself being chased by a demon for eternity…
He said, please master, I want full enlightenment.
“When?”
“Right now!”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes!”
The master turned into a demon and started chasing him around the cave… Forever.
It is not what we expect, or hope for, through seeking awakening. Especially, given the popularity of mindfulness these days, and the encouragement from the psychological establishment to cultivate mindfulness and presence. What does it mean?
It may seem like a koan – a puzzle without an answer, used in the Japanese Zen tradition as to tool for awakening, but it isn’t. It is much simpler than that. Simply a cautionary tale.
On the path of awakening, the unconscious mind will re-surface all of our trauma. That is what it does, and how it works. Everything incomplete is brought to the conscious mind for completion. All of our wounds that have been repressed (thank goodness!) so that we can go about our days peacefully despite the hurts we have endured, only struggling when we are triggered.
On the healing path, we can not resolve traumas without coming into contact with the triggers. We don’t need to feel into the pain, or even necessarily suffer, but we must come into contact with the triggers. By asking for full enlightenment (now!) all of his trauma had to be activated. It is a cautionary tale but not because we shouldn’t choose to resolve all of our trauma.
But, it is hard to resolve your trauma while being chased around a cave by a demon.
If you would like to explore trauma on the path of awakening, sign up for a consultation or perhaps come to one of my groups.
Best, Mark
