Are Animals Enlightened, And What Can We Learn From Them?

[Josh2]

Hey there,

this is Nicolas and I am an owner of a dog.

I was just wondering if animals are enlightened and if yes or no ... what else could we learn from them.

I find this extremely interesting and wanted to hear what all of you guys think ....  Happy Easter Weekend!

[Emerald]

27 minutes ago, Nicolas said:

Hey there,

this is Nicolas and I am an owner of a dog.

I was just wondering if animals are enlightened and if yes or no ... what else could we learn from them.

I find this extremely interesting and wanted to hear what all of you guys think ....  Happy Easter Weekend!

Yes, in the sense that they don't have an ego (self-concept). Most animals don't have the capacity for abstract thinking like we do, so they aren't battling constant thoughts. But they objectively are less self-aware than us. So, they are open like the enlightened, but are not aware of their enlightenment like we can be. 

I was watching a video about a man who had an enlightenment experience after sitting and meditating next to a frog. He told himself that he wasn't going to move at all until the frog moved. So, the frog sat there for hours, as still as a statue. He was going nuts internally. He started to contemplate why it was that the frog could stay still so easily but that he was going nuts staying still. He concluded that the frog and him both were like empty rooms. The only difference is that his empty room was filled with voices and sounds urging him to move. 

So, animals have the openness and emptiness aspect of enlightenment. But they are not aware of their own enlightenment. 

[cetus]

23 minutes ago, Nicolas said:

Hey there,

this is Nicolas and I am an owner of a dog.

I was just wondering if animals are enlightened and if yes or no ... what else could we learn from them.

I find this extremely interesting and wanted to hear what all of you guys think ....  Happy Easter Weekend!

My dog lives totally in the moment. We went out for a run in the woods this morning. She sniffed out every nook and cranny and did her dog thing. Now she's laying in the sun at the back door, smelling a ham cooking! Everything is exactly as it should be in her experience.

[Zane]

I notice how cats are completely relaxed and live in the moment and nothing fazes them and they always are completely cool and laid-back. They seem to focus on living rather than being busy! 

[NoOne]

What a great question!  I'm more of a cat lover myself.  i think cats are self-actualized.  They can take or leave our affection.  Dogs may have some kind of ego issues--they are possessive and territorial and the kind of loyalty they show to their masters makes me think they must attach their ego (such as it is) to their masters'.

[Zane]

6 minutes ago, NoOne said:

What a great question!  I'm more of a cat lover myself.  i think cats are self-actualized.  They can take or leave our affection.  Dogs may have some kind of ego issues--they are possessive and territorial and the kind of loyalty they show to their masters makes me think they must attach their ego (such as it is) to their masters'.

What i love about cats is how completely detached they are from masters and how they're completely free. 

[ZenMonkey]

@Nicolas

Rupert Spira once put it like that:

• for animals there is only experience
• for humans with ego there is a I and the world
• for enlightend beings there is only consciousness

So I think it means they are present but didn't realize themselfes. The two states are a bit similiar though.