As far as I’m concerned, if someone claims to be wise or enlightened, they are subjects of suspicion. They probably are snake oil salesmen. They certainly have no humility. Wisdom, in my opinion, is not something you claim or can claim for yourself. It can only be conferred on you by people who appreciate your presence in your life.
As far as enlightenment is concerned—I have no clue what enlightenment is. I don’t know if I’ve ever met anyone who is enlightened. I know that anyone who claims enlightenment to me is suspicious. They usually don’t seem to have a great deal of practical understanding of life. They like to speak in enigmatic phrases and then claim they can’t be any more specific because there are no words to describe it.
I know a lot of things that are very difficult, perhaps even impossible to explain in words. But I try, anyway. I figure that maybe some day I’ll get a little closer to describing these experiences. Of course, they’re just experiences. Not enlightenment. Sigh. The skeptic in me.
I would love to be wise, but I’m not. Some people have accused me of wisdom, which is bothersome, because it both gives me what I want and stirs up that belief that I can’t be wise. There’s too much I don’t understand and don’t know. Sometimes I suppose I might sound wise just because I put “perhaps” in every sentence.
Enlightenment, though, is another thing entirely. I don’t have any idea what it is, and I don’t believe anyone can know. Frankly, I think it’s a joke. Something people strive for because they imagine it is some kind of nirvana, when in truth, whatever it is they are looking for is all around them all the time, if only they learned how to see it. But see? There’s one of those stupid but wise sounding things that I hate.
I need to stop, or I’ll get into what this kind of seeing might be like, and then who knows where it will end?