The expression "Spiritual Enlightenment" has been used often in reference to personal spiritual development. What exactly is meant by this term however has been vaguely defined. My research on the topic has found it linked to some of the following experiences:

1. A connection to a higher self

2. A connection to an inner knowing

3. A connection to spiritual energies or beings beyond one's self

4. Altered states of consciousness

5. Out of body experiences i.e. astral travel, remote viewing etc.

6. An greater intuitive awareness

7. An enhanced energy state in the body

8. Precognitive or other clairvoyant experiences

9. Extrasensory perceptive experiences

10. Hypnotic experiences

In this article I aim to propose a new experiential definition of Spiritual Enlightenment that is not only accessible to everyone but which also provides a road map to achieving this sought after state of being.

In order to achieve this goal I wish to examine the word "Enlightenment" itself from a strictly literal standpoint. To be "Enlightened" can be taken to mean the following:

1. To feel "lighter" as in more buoyant or less weighted down.

2. To feel or perceive oneself as being "lighter" as in brighter, more luminescent, or more radiant.

3. To be brought "into the light" thereby making things clearer or more visible.

In other words we can distill, from these literal definitions the experiences of a) Buoyancy, b) Luminescence and c) Clarity. For the analysis that follows I now propose an experiential definition of "Enlightenment" which embodies these three qualities of being.

According to this definition one can be said to be "Enlightened" if they are experiencing these three qualities simultaneously. Whether this is possible and whether this corresponds to what one might subjectively describe as being "Spiritual Enlightened" however remain to be determined.

I also wish to put forth the hypothesis that the simultaneous experience of these three qualities of "Enlightenment" can be used as a starting point in our search for what one might subjectively describe as "Spiritual Enlightenment". In order to assess this latter hypothesis I wish to digress for a moment and discuss a matter that is often missed in the discussion of Spiritual Enlightenment. That is, that in order to be searching for it we must already know, at some level within our being that a) it exists and b) what the state actually looks like.

This can be readily seen by the fact that we may feel, say in our current state, that we are not yet enlightened. This means that within us we have a "set point" (i.e a set point is like the desired temperature setting in thermostat which lets the furnace know whether the desired temperature has been attained or not) with which we compare our current state of being and which tells us whether or not we are there. Hence, in order to know that "we are not yet there" we must at some level harbor the knowledge of where "there" is.

Although we are not completely conscious of what "there" looks like we strangely know what "not being there" looks like. Having said that, it follows that an individual will "know" when they are there, or at least are getting there. With this in mind we created a tool that helps individuals move in the direction of our definition of Enlightenment (i.e. buoyancy, luminescence and clarity). We then asked individuals to assess whether this felt like what they would subjectively describe as a state of Spiritual Enlightenment.

This tool is called the Mind Resonance Process? (MRP) and we will describe it shortly. When we looked at the effects MRP had on individuals' descriptions of their new state, we, as expected found them to correspond repeatedly to our definition of Enlightenment i.e. Buoyancy, Luminescence and Clarity. This basically affirmed that MRP did what it was designed to do. What we also found was that this state of "Enlightenment" repeatedly corresponded to individuals' subjective report of what they described a state of Spiritual Enlightenment.

What does all this mean? Well to start with it means:

1. That our definition of Enlightenment appears to correspond with what individuals repeatedly subjectively described as an experience of Spiritual Enlightenment.

2. That repeated exposure to MRP facilitates shifts towards successive and heightened states of Enlightenment and subjective Spiritual Enlightenment.

3. That the effects of MRP are not reversible. That is the effects are cumulative and cannot be undone.

The MRP process is essentially a simple but powerful algorithm (i.e. a multi-step process) that targets and facilitates the complete and permanent release of "negative" beliefs, emotions, perceptions and memories from the mind/body system (or in Energy Psychology terms, from the individual's bio-field). Please note the emphasis on the word "negative". Negative here implies that the targeted item is "not desirable" i.e. our definition of "negative".

The release of such negativity is accompanied by most or all of the following: a sense of physical buoyancy, a visual sense that one is more luminescent or radiant both to self and to others, a greater sense of clarity about who one really is and who others around them are, a deep feeling of love and compassion, a sense of joy, a feeling of fulfillment, a deep sense of inner peace, a feeling of wholeness or completeness, a feeling of increased energy in the physical body, a heightened feeling of self-esteem and self-confidence, a great feeling of resilience, a feeling of expansiveness which was described as extending beyond the limits of the physical body yet being in at the same time, and much more.

Many have described this as an experience of their Real Self or even their Divine Self. Some interesting and common reactions to this new state are:

1. That it is familiar yet feels ancient at the same time. In other words, it has existed far longer than the individual has had a connection to it. Additionally, the state has been experienced at some distant time in the past.

2. That this new state feels like it has always been there i.e. there was never a time when it did not exist.

3. That who the individual thought they were before exposure to MRP is not who they ever were i.e. the negativity is not experienced as part of the Real Self.

As a result of our observations with MRP we would like to propose that:

1. Our definition of Enlightenment is taken as a close approximation to what most would consider an experience of Spiritual Enlightenment.

2. MRP is an effective tool in facilitating the shift towards a more Enlightened and Spiritually Enlightened State.

3. MRP is a powerful yet simple way of achieving what human beings have long been seeking, their Divine Self.

Copyright? 2005 Arrizza Performance Coaching Inc., All Rights Reserved

Nick Arrizza M.D. is an Energy Psychiatrist, Healer, Speaker, Author (e-book---Esteem for the Self: A Manual for Personal Transformation--available on his web site in Feb. 2005)Researcher, and Developer of the Mind Resonance Process(TM). He hosts ongoing International Tele-healing and Tele-conference Sessions for individuals, therapists and healers. Web Site: http://www.telecoaching4u.com