Two Kinds of Enlightenment

“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”

— Mahatma Gandhi

Chinese Buddhists understand that there are two kinds of enlightenment:

1. Enlightenment through wisdom(慧解脫)

2. Enlightenment of the heart (心解脫)

Three decades ago, when Professor Li Heng-Yueh was still the headteacher of my Buddhist organization (WYMBA), he told us about these two kinds of liberation. I remember this clearly because I published an article on enlightenment in the early 90s. Talking about enlightenment has always been some kind of taboo within the Chinese Buddhist circles. Therefore, when I published my understanding of this semi-taboo topic, some members became uneasy. Quite frankly, they were worried that I was a fraud, talking about enlightenment without any real understanding or real experience.

Because that became a controversy, a founding member of our Buddhist organization, Cynthia Chao, consulted Professor Li about my understanding of enlightenment. Professor Li read my article. His conclusion was that I have reached the stage of “enlightenment through wisdom”(慧解脫), but I probably have not reached the stage of “enlightenment of the heart” at that time. Enlightenment of the heart (心解脫) is the ultimate stage. It is the final goal of Buddhist practice. I…