Many people interested in the spiritual side of life may seek Enlightenment. It is the Self-Realisation, Liberation, Moksha or Nirvana, in which Reality is clearly known. It is the end of suffering and the end of ignorance. Yet it is not something that can be found. Why is this?

Anything that can be found must be temporary. It must be something that wasn't found previously and will in time be lost again. Anything expected to last forever, eternally, cannot be something that was missing. Eternity has no beginning or end. Nothing that has a beginning can be without end.

The Enlightenment that is sought is here all along. Liberation or Freedom is right here. Self-Realisation is right here. That's what 'enlightened beings' say. And they're right. Enlightenment is never found. It is here all along. But why isn't this ever-present Self-Realisation realised?

Self-Realisation is the removal of ignorance (or Avidya). Well, when ignorance is removed Self-Realisation is revealed to be ever-present. Ignorance in this sense means the misunderstanding of the mind, or indeed any form of understanding in the mind. If the mind thinks it has it then it's wrong. If the mind thinks it knows what reality is, then that knowledge, no matter how accurate it seems to be, will never be wholly accurate. With the dropping of all knowledge comes the clarity or Pure Knowing, which we call Enlightenment or Self-Realisation. It is like the silence that underlies all sound, the stillness that remains throughout the appearance of movement.

So now it is known that Self-Realisation is our natural 'state' of being, what can we do to reveal this. We need to get to the root of who 'we' are. That is part of the 'ignorance' - the belief that separation is real and that 'I' am someone trying to reveal my true nature. Truly there is nothing to be done to be as we are. But the ignorance of the mind seems to prevent this clarity of Knowing. Ramana Maharshi taught that Self Enquiry was the surest method to uproot ignorance. Self Enquiry is seeking out "Who Am I?" It doesn't mean repeating the phrase. Rather it is the deepest searching and questioning.

It is the mind activity that does this search to find out who 'I' am. It will root out the false sense of 'I' that is the flagpole of ignorance. Once the root of false identity is removed as the cause of ignorance, then the true nature of the Infinite Indivisible Self is revealed. Enlightenment, Liberation and Self-Realisation is revealed to be timelessly present, without beginning or end.