Two Paths: Direct and Gradual

There are two paths to an awakened and vital life. Each are based on a different premise. The first, the direct path, asserts that the awakened state, is already and always within us. We don’t see our true nature because it’s obscured by our acquired personal self with its opaque mental activity and personal dramas. 

Now let’s consider the second, the gradual path. It is based on evolutionary or developmental theory. It asserts that by improving the quality of day-to-day life we incrementally develop or evolve the awakened state. By progressively loosening the grip of the personal self, we grow closer and closer to the essence of life. That’s the gradual path.

Explore with me how they work together.