What is freedom, for someone awakening? Is it an aspect of consciousness?
Indeed, what is “freedom”? How do we understand this word?
For a person who is awakening, external meanings of this word cease to exist. The focus becomes only its internal, spiritual meaning. For anyone not trying to awaken, the meaning of freedom connects with something material. To understand this difference, one must embark upon a path and make progress (“work”). Without fear or doubt, one puts external influences second, transforming oneself, accepting all challenges with tranquility and humility.
It is much easier to reach an external rather than internal freedom. This is due to the fact that internal freedom comes about by the hardest task conceivable – working on oneself.
From Clean Slate to Conscience
When a child is born, his personality is “tabula rasa”, an empty or clean slate. But thanks to external influences, this blank page fills up very quickly. At some point, a person understands that his page is overloaded or falsified by information. He realizes his personality is not really him. Usually this understanding is crucial. If it comes, a person starts to seek his “Real I.” From this point on, he may embark on a way which leads him either to evolve, or else to mistake the real for the false.
What is it within us that decides which way to follow? Probably conscience, which doesn’t want to live like this anymore. It starts to search because external freedom is simply disappointing. Conscience takes the lead in this case, moving the focus of attention to inner freedom. All our life is a journey: from birth to death, from external to internal freedom, from sleep to awakening.
As Shakespeare said: “All the world’s a stage. And all the men and women merely players.”
Life is a teacher for us and we all play our roles,
Preferably not using masks.
Passing the way, losing and discovering;
Losing again but moving further.
We are all players in this lifelong theatre,
Which we should travel through quietly and humbly,
To gain freedom, making this our aim.