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I have heard many times how different Buddhists believe women cannot become enlightened. Even women themselves have told me that is the case and accept it blindly as the truth. To believe such nonsense shows a lack of understanding about what enlightenment is.
If one thinks enlightenment is some cosmic gift from the gods and can only come by way of a penis, then that person is not ready to really awaken. Enlightenment is a profound insight into our true nature that causes a shift in perspective that frees the mind from the dream of separation. It changes the way the body/mind responds to the rest of life whereby instead of feeling like you have to fight your way through life, you just flow with Life. Knowing that what you are, is Life Itself.
Where in this process is the law that women cannot become enlightened? Do those who believe this realize that women are just as intelligent as men are? And that in most cases I have seen, women are usually more intuitive than men, which is a powerful tool toward awakening. Women also do not carry as much ego baggage as most men do.
Women may feel their emotions more deeply than most men, which can be both helpful and sometimes a problem. It is good to be able to feel deeply, but if one attaches their emotions to some ideal, belief, fear, or insecurity, then it can become a problem.
If women have a problem that may hold them back, it would be their accepting dependence of an authority figure. Dependence on anyone else is a problem for all of us. In most cultures of the world women are expected to take the man as their superior and just follow along doing his bidding. This can cause problems when one is drawn towards enlightenment.
It is easy to see why so many women have been conditioned to follow men. While raising children there is an obvious need for help from the hunters who bring home the food, and nowadays the check to pay for the needs of mother and child. Therefore, it has kept most women in a state of insecurity far deeper than most men have to deal with. In societies where the males dominate, women have always been considered below the men, and men dominate most societies.
Religion has done its share of conditioning women into a subordinate role and making them feel inferior. Of course, most religions have been male dominant. It has been a control trip by neurotic men who are deeply insecure themselves and feel they have more power by dominating others. It is the same old ego game; if you can feel in power you can feel a little more secure about being some real being, when subconsciously you know you are just a dream.
Enlightenment is not a gender issue. Women are just as likely to awaken as men are. Women have the same wisdom to call on within themselves as men do.
Men are not the enemy. They have been conditioned to play their roles in life, just as women have, and most have never questioned if those roles are real or just conditioning. If both male and female partners come to understand the nature of the conditioned mind, they can help one another to find freedom. By lovingly being open and honest with one another it can carry you deep into Life and the joy of discovery. We are all both male and female and also beyond either.
So, please, my sisters, trust in your own intelligence and intuition. Do not lean on anyone else for answers, including me. Once you understand what the problem is, you are just as well equipped to come to an awakening as any man is. Trust your heart. Be open-minded and do not let any tradition blind you from looking deeper. Do not accept the authority of men, or any religion, dogma or beliefs that are imposed on you from those in control. The ones who are trying to control life are as lost as anyone else is. Let the facts of life be your only authority. If you do not understand those facts, look more deeply, ask yourself the most profound questions that you are capable of at present, observe, be open and listen to what your heart is telling you. Just make sure it is not your conditioning doing the speaking.
We all have to free ourselves. No one can do it for us. Find freedom from all conditioning by awakening to the simple truth that is ever present.
Melvyn Wartella |
