Had a couple of those "aha"s this morning and wanted to share with everyone
- An attraction to one thing is equivalent an aversion to its opposite, i.e. they are at the same level of consciousness. When you are attracted or repulsed by something, you automatically create the duality and thus the seemingly opposites of good (desirable) and bad (undesireable), whereas before there was only unity.
- Transcending a certain pair of opposites (dualities) or attachments gives freedom, and from one point of view enlightenment would be complete freedom to act under Divine Will. You still have the freedom to pursue the desire or avoid the aversion, but you have complete choice in the matter, it is not tainted by cravings or fears or the ego's animal instincts. I liken this to being clearer/purer channels for Divine Will to act through you (you can also call it, letting your Higher Self guide you for everybody's highest good, without attaching demands or expectations from the ego).
- Freedom from attachments brings happiness. It allows the natural joy of existence to shine forth better, with each attachment we relinquish. The pleasure we normally get with any fulfillment of desire is actually the joy of existence (joy of the Self), i.e. at that moment we are happy to exist because our desires were fulfilled. The analogy I like to use is the sun of the Self naturally shines all the time, but the ego blocks it with lots of dark clouds. When we fulfill our desires and we think we are happy "because" of something, it is actually a temporary recession of the ego-clouds and letting the sun shine forth. Instead of just temporary happiness, why not surrender the attachments themselves and be permanently fulfilled? I realize now the full meaning of "it's not the desire itself, but the attachment to the desire"... you can still fulfill your desires, but you have the complete freedom and peace of mind to choose otherwise as well.
- It is possible to fulfill your desires and be happy, but still be attached and thus always have the lingering fear of losing what you achieved. That explains a lot of things, like why many successful people still aren't happy. The only way to lasting happiness is to relinquish the attachments.
Happy to hear comments or additional ideas/insights on this, I finally discovered all these attachments that I never knew existed and I'm trying to transcend them. For example, the fear of rejection = attachment to self image and desired outcome, fear of criticism = attachment to being right, irritation/anger/impatience = wanting to change others/the world = attachment to ideals/expectations of what others/the world should be like, fear of failure = attachment to self image of success, etc. Wow, imagine being able to transcend this bunch of core attachments