What is enlightenment really? Is it some kind of ultimate experience? In this post, I consider a different solution while imagining a story behind a Zen koan. What does an old woman’s journey up a mountain reveal? On the path of enlightenment, at last stage only the one who has taken birth can go further but if the disciple is too much attached with his master, here Buddha, then his love, respect and gratitude towards him will not make him alone and the same Buddha who helped him reach here becomes hurdle in progressing the journey further. So Buddha said ‘chop my head’ in that moment because my job is over now and be selfish because further journey is your alone only. No scriptures, no master is allowed there. I very much like that interpretation, Gopala: “Before enlightenment I chopped wood and I carried water, after enlightenment wood was chopped and water was carried.” I hope this doesn’t disappoint you. I mean, here we are in this big beautiful world, alive, with a mind that can perceive and process and experience so much wonder, yet we still seek something more—something higher, vaster, greater, deeper. Yada, yada, yada.

Lately, the phrase chop wood, carry water has been echoing through my mind. I’ve gone through many different levels of awakening in my life recently, and I believe the universe is trying to tell me something. Dave over at Accidental FIRE created the following graphic that perfectly encapsulates the experience most people have once they achieve financial independence: Isn't it a koan? I'm not sure if koans have definite answers. It probably means something like "there's no material status change after enlightenment. Enlightenment makes one ordinary". One with wrong view might think that if you win Nirvana you get a crown, a Ferrari and you never have to keep warm or drink water again. So if a Zen master ever heard a student talk like this they could say, After spending several days stuffing my face with comfort food, watching football, and hanging out with family, I had to wake up at 7AM on Monday, get ready for work, commute in traffic, and spend the next eight hours in a cubicle. Talk about a sad end to an enjoyable weekend.People online present the best-filtered version of themselves. It’s quite normal to feel down if you compare yourself with their seemingly flawless social image. Or worse, with a world-famous athlete, actor, writer, or business tycoon. I have been very poor and I am now very rich. I am an optimist by nature. And I have the ability to write poetry and create the forest I am busy planting. Am I happy? No. Or, at least, only occasionally, when I am walking in the woods alone, or deeply ensconced in composing a difficult piece of verse, or sitting quietly with old friends over a bottle of wine. Or feeding a stray cat…I could do all those things without wealth.” In each of the examples above, each individual obtained something significant – fame, achievement, success, wealth – but found that obtaining these things didn’t bring lasting happiness.

We live in society, in communities, where our own survival (and happiness, too) is linked with every other member of society. When you achieve enlightenment, you are still responsible for participating in the well being of your community. We are recommending you take Shakeology and Energize while going through the CHOP WOOD CARRY WATER program. Shakeology is superfood nutrition with whole-food-based ingredients to help support healthy digestion, energy, and lean muscle. Energize will help fuel your workouts with our clean pre-workout formula that gives you a boost of energy and helps sharpen your focus so you can push through every workout with more endurance. This is a Zen Buddhist proverb that gives wisdom about enlightenment. It’s important to remember that enlightenment is a complex process, and in Buddhism, you work toward enlightenment (the end of suffering) through the Eightfold path. The Definition of Spiritual Enlightenment John reddened, caught, as Akira went on. “John, you keep getting in the way of your own potential, because you keep seeing everything as a test. The secret is to understand that nothing is a test, but only an opportunity to learn and grow. Many people never fulfill their potential, because they look at every situation in life as a test. If you look at something as a test, then you will focus only on passing the test instead of maximizing your growth through the experience. Over time, the person who is simply focused on maximizing what they can learn and how they can grow will become much greater than the person who sees life as one continual test to prove themselves.” John nodded, struggling with that wisdom. “Don’t fall for the trap, John. Even tests in school are not tests. Nothing is a test, it’s only an illusion. Everything is an opportunity to learn and grow, because remember, you are building your own house.” In conclusion, the meaning of the phrase “Chop wood, carry water” is like an onion. The more you meditate on this Zen proverb, the more you understand about it.Goals are things we set to make progress. To get better and to advance in life. They give us long-term vision and short-term motivation. Yet, setting goals and working towards achieving them is quite boring. Before enlightenment; chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment; chop wood, carry water.” — Zen Kōan And yeah, I forgot to mention that John practiced hard to achieve his goal. Yet, he wasn’t allowed to skip this tradition. The problem with small is that it isn’t sexy, and it’s often repetitively boring.” ~ Joshua Medcalf All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether

Bad things happen all the time if we listen to our inner critic that constantly nags, “I’m not good at this.” After all, who wouldn’t abandon a project if someone followed them around all day criticizing everything they did? In your heart, you know that this isn’t your best. But still, you ignore your inner voice and produce low-quality work.When the moment arrives, only those who have been training and expecting the day to arrive will be ready to seize the opportunity. And truthfully those people tend to create and attract many of those opportunities to them BECAUSE they’ve been training to their max rather than waiting for their moment.”