A Quote by Tenzin Palmo

There are certain people who people think are enlightened. The problem with the word enlightenment is what you mean by it. — © Tenzin Palmo
There are certain people who people think are enlightened. The problem with the word enlightenment is what you mean by it.
The world of enlightenment, and that which creates enlightenment, is much different than what most people would think. Most people have Hallmark Card descriptions of what creates enlightenment. And if their descriptions were correct, then everyone who is in religious practice would be enlightened.
People get very deep experiences and they think they're enlightened. That's not enlightenment, that's just some realization.
There was a famous Zen master whom people would seek out to become enlightened. He was strict and would occupy people with things having nothing to do with seeking enlightenment. You see, that is the only way to achieve enlightenment; by not focusing on achieving it. Then, one day it will just come to you.
Bodhisattva is enlightened in the Buddhist philosophy, religion, tradition. He's enlightened. It's fine - I don't really fight it - but many people use the term 'zen' and terms like 'nirvana,' 'enlightenment' in an almost superficial way. It's not that complicated.
Words can mean different things to different people. It is important to understand what people mean when they use a certain word. Let's make an example. Take the word gay. Fifty years ago, gay meant exclusively cheerfulness, lighthearted excitement, merry or bright colors. Today this word has a different meaning. You won't call a cheerful person gay because it could be understood as something else.
People who are enlightened in previous lifetimes have a certain degree of difficulty in regaining their enlightenment. Sometimes it comes in childhood. Sometimes it takes many years to reintegrate the personality structure that they gained when they first entered into this world.
When enlightened people are so poor that they cannot help others, if they speak a word to awaken the confused or to resolve a problem, there is also boundless merit in that.
Certain people can keep a word tune, so to speak, and certain people cannot. And, above all, certain people can tell a story, and other people can't. They don't hear that point where something else has to come.
The people to become enlightened in Atlantis lit the "flame of enlightenment" on earth for the first time. The members of the various mystery schools have kept the flame alive by passing on the secret techniques for attaining enlightenment from the time of Atlantis to our present day.
The vast majority of people support the idea of an enlightened, modern union of countries demonstrating solidarity. Film director Wim Wenders recently summed up the problem to me very well. He said the idea of Europe has become an administration, and now people think that the administration is the idea. But that doesn't mean we should give up on the idea - it means we should change the administration.
I've always had a problem with the things that people would say out of their mouths to other people. I've always had a problem with that, because a lot of people, they don't have enough information to speak to people a certain way or speak about people a certain way.
No one on this earth attains enlightenment anymore without an enlightened master as a guide, unless that person was enlightened in many previous incarnations.
It is not the responsibility of the enlightened teacher to bring the student to enlightenment. That may be true in the classroom, but in the world of enlightenment you have to find it, enter into it.
There's also something that is often mistaken for enlightenment which is a kind of insanity. Often, people will have some kind of weird experience which is quite abnormal and think, "Oh my God, that's it, I understand everything" because they start seeing things in a very weird way and think that's how enlightened people see things as well.
Enlightenment is a lot like dying. You might wonder why there aren't more enlightened people. It is because they are afraid to die.
At a certain point, what people mean when they use a word becomes its meaning.
This site uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience. More info...
Got it!