"In the miraculous experiential discovery of the enlightened perspective, our humanity is finally set free to manifest its evolutionary potential without inhibition."

Living Enlightenment, Chapter 1

preface

The implications of enlightenment are always revolutionary. The profound revelation of that which is Absolute, if it is deep enough to finally liberate, completely realigns our relationship to the human experience. But this simple truth tends to remain obscure for many seekers because the radical implications of enlightenment are so devastating for the separate self, for the ego. And many spiritual teachers these days seem to deny this truth, either because they haven't deeply realized it for themselves, or because they just don't want to threaten the status quo.

In the dialogues that follow, I have tried to convey the uncompromising yet ecstatically liberating perspective of enlightenment. And my purpose in this book is to clarify the truly revolutionary nature of that perspective in relationship to the human experience in the Western world at the beginning of the twenty-first century. My hope is that the timeless and always overwhelming impact of this revelation will be able to be intimately felt, intuitively known, and directly seen by the reader.

Once the call of the True Self is heard not only with the heart but also with the mind and conscience there will be no way back to the way things have been. Sooner or later we will recognize that we no longer have any choice but to allow ourselves the extraordinary freedom to go all the way in this life. Because after all, if we have begun to see through the illusory world that the ego creates and have heard the call of the True Self to live our lives for a greater purpose—what else is there to do?

Andrew Cohen