Eternal Bliss Explained

The quest for happiness is a universal impulse. Indeed, at the root of all human actions is the quest for happiness. The workaholic toils night and day to accrue accomplishments whose foundation is the search for happiness. Monks, nuns and ascetics renounce worldly endeavors because of this ubiquitous pursuit of happiness. A lover seeks this happiness from their beloved. Even beneath something as tragic as addiction, the search for happiness is the driving force. In reality, do people attain this holy grail of happiness?

What we observe is that in reality people tend to experience divided forms of happiness that fluctuate between opposing poles. At one moment, people may experience happiness, only to experience sorrow in the next moment. Extrinsic objects and other dualistic attainments are eventually found to be empty, and are seen to contribute to an ever-expanding appetite that is perpetually unquenchable and that disrupts inner peace. The result is that people generally remain unsatisfied with their lives because they have not figured out how to find true happiness. This dissatisfaction creates inner turmoil and anguish. The truth is that the happiness that people are searching for is a happiness that is infinite and eternal. Since this ultimate happiness does not have an opposite such as sorrow, into which it can sink, I will instead refer to it as bliss. This unbounded bliss is not only the purpose of all existence, but it is also the ground of all existence.

The beauty of this bliss is that is attainable by anyone. Moreover, once it has been attained, it can never be lost. Its attainment is the summit of all existence that erases all sorrows and fears. World history has witnessed sages from different cultures who have realized this ultimate bliss and who have spoken of this immortal joy to all of humanity. In portions of the various scriptures of the world, people can get glimpses of this infinite bliss. In the western world, Plotinus- the Neo-Platonic philosopher spoke about this bliss in his writings. Throughout history, there have been courageous individuals who have spent their lives seeking to find the means to attain this eternal bliss. By relentlessly inquiring into the nature of ultimate reality through all levels of consciousness, these courageous beings pierced through the veil of darkness that casts a shadow of ignorance on mankind’s material existence. In this way, these sages discovered the supernal splendor of the ultimate bliss of all existence.

From age to age, compassionate beings have been aware of this bliss. Out of profound love for humanity, they have sought to explain the nature of this bliss and the methods by which this bliss can be attained. Those sages who have realized eternal bliss are liberated beings. They have attained liberation from sorrow, fear and all forms of divided existence. They are aware of their immortality and are not afraid of death. While living in the world, they experience infinite bliss and live playful and joyful lives. The most distinctive characteristic of the sages who have attained ultimate bliss is that they are profoundly compassionate. They treat all beings with kindness, dignity and love. The liberated being’s mode of awareness is cosmic consciousness in which they experience a sense of oneness with the entire universe. It is this cosmic consciousness that must be attained in order to realize infinite bliss.

One of the most well-known liberated beings is Gautama Buddha who is famous for his compassion for the suffering of all beings. Around two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ brought a message of hope and redemption to all struggling souls. Living from a center of cosmic consciousness, Jesus led a life of compassion, love and wholeness. In India, there was a very kind woman named Sri Anandamayi Ma who lived a life that was characterized by a profound love for humanity. She was a liberated being who lived with universal consciousness. The central message that these three benevolent sages emphasized was that to find true bliss, humanity must turn their consciousness inwards and thus return to their eternal nature. By cultivating love and compassion, mankind can erase the ignorance that prevents him from finding joy.

The inner teaching of all the liberated beings shows the path by which eternal liberation can be attained. When mankind has freed his being from the disease known as the ego, he awakens to the eternal kingdom of cosmic consciousness and becomes aware of the immortality of the soul. With the delusion of ego having been erased, man thus attains eternal bliss.