Sadhguru says that Realization isn't something to be learned; it’s a truth that must be lived and deeply felt. When you can truly experience the essence of an experience, allowing it to integrate into your very soul, that is real realization.
Article | Shree Siddhashram | January 15, 2002
Sadhguru: Exploring the essence of "Every realization is the experience of that experience" invites us to unravel layers of spiritual insight and philosophical depth. At its core, this phrase reflects the truth that realization is not a mere intellectual understanding but an immersion in a state of being. It is only through direct experience that one attains genuine understanding.
1. Defining Realization and Experience
To begin, it’s essential to define what we mean by “realization” and “experience.” Realization is often thought of as the awakening or understanding of a profound truth, beyond ordinary comprehension. However, in spiritual contexts, realization represents an awakening—a shift in consciousness. It signifies a direct encounter with a truth that, once realized, transforms one’s perspective permanently.
Experience, in contrast, is the engagement with phenomena through our senses, emotions, and thoughts. While we go through countless experiences daily, only certain experiences leave a profound impact on our psyche. When these experiences reveal something transcendent, they pave the way to realization.
Every true realization comes not from understanding, but from dissolving into the experience itself.
2. Realization as an Inner Journey
Every realization starts as a seed within. The potential for deeper understanding lies dormant, waiting for the right conditions to germinate. Life experiences—joys, struggles, lessons—become the conditions that trigger realization. These experiences serve as catalysts, shaping us in subtle ways until the moment of realization arrives.
Realization is less about acquiring knowledge and more about dissolving illusions. It is a process of stripping away the layers of the conditioned mind, habits, and beliefs. In doing so, one encounters pure awareness, a state of being where true knowledge arises without external input. This is where realization shifts from being an abstract concept to an experienced truth.
3. The Cycle of Experience Leading to Realization
Experience is the gateway to realization. Every experience we undergo shapes our perspective, altering our relationship with ourselves and the world. As we accumulate experiences, they create a tapestry of insights and lessons that build toward moments of clarity.
Consider a spiritual seeker on a journey toward enlightenment. For them, each meditation, each moment of silence, brings a new layer of experience. This gradual accumulation, over time, leads to a point where experiences coalesce into realization. The realization, when it comes, is the lived understanding of those accumulated experiences.
The journey to realization is not a path to be traveled but a silence to be embraced, a truth to be uncovered within.
4. Intellectual Knowledge vs. Realization Through Experience
In our modern world, we are surrounded by information and knowledge. Intellectual understanding can provide us with concepts and theories, but it remains an arm’s length from true knowing. Realization through experience, however, is a process that bypasses intellectual knowledge.
An individual may read about compassion and understand it logically. However, true compassion is only realized when one feels a genuine connection with another being’s suffering. In this moment, compassion is not a concept but an embodied experience. This is the essence of “realization as the experience of that experience”—it cannot be taught or learned second-hand.
5. Satori: The Zen of Sudden Realization
In Zen Buddhism, the concept of satori refers to a sudden awakening, an immediate realization that transcends intellectual comprehension. Satori is often described as a flash of insight, but it emerges from deep immersion in the practice. The Zen disciple goes through countless hours of meditation, a continuous experience of silence and inner reflection, until one day, the mind breaks through the illusion, achieving realization.
This sudden realization is the culmination of countless hours of experience. Every moment spent in meditation was a brushstroke on the canvas of realization, and satori is the masterpiece—the point where every stroke comes alive as a unified whole. Here, we see that true realization cannot be separated from experience; it is the distilled essence of all experiences.
To realize is to transcend the mind's boundaries, immersing oneself in the pure essence of existence.
6. Realization and Self-Transformation
Realization is not merely a shift in understanding; it is a transformative process that reshapes one’s sense of self. When a person realizes the interconnectedness of all life, for example, their identity expands beyond personal boundaries. They experience themselves not as a separate entity but as a part of a larger, interconnected reality.
With realization, one’s actions, thoughts, and intentions shift. Compassion, kindness, and wisdom flow naturally, not as learned behaviours but as expressions of inner transformation. The “experience of that experience” becomes an ongoing state of being, where every thought, action, and perception is touched by the essence of realization.
7. Stages of Realization in Spiritual Practice
Many spiritual traditions speak of stages of realization, where experience gradually refines one’s perception of truth. In Tantric philosophy, realization is seen as a multi-layered journey through different states of consciousness. Each stage of realization reveals deeper levels of understanding, often following a pattern of experience, reflection, and inner transformation.
a. Initial Insight: The first glimmer of realization often comes as a sudden insight during meditation, study, or contemplation. This insight gives a taste of a higher truth, sparking a desire to seek deeper.
b. Integration Through Practice: After the initial insight, practitioners engage in disciplines to deepen their experience. This could involve meditation, chanting, or selfless service. These experiences refine the practitioner’s awareness and gradually dissolve ego-centered perceptions.
c. Embodiment of Realization: Eventually, the realization becomes embodied. It ceases to be a concept or experience limited to specific practices; instead, it permeates every aspect of life. The practitioner lives from the space of realization, experiencing it as a natural state.
Realization isn’t the light we reach; it is the unveiling of the light within every experience we encounter.
8. The Role of Ego and the Illusion of Separation
One of the biggest obstacles to achieving true realization is the ego, which creates a sense of separation from the world. The ego perceives experiences through a lens of “I” and “other,” a duality that fragments our perception. Realization, however, is the experience of unity, of transcending this illusory separation.
When realization dawns, the ego’s hold loosens, and the individual experiences a direct connection with the essence of existence. This connection is beyond language, beyond thought—it is an experience that simply is. One realizes that they are both the experiencer and the experience, the observer and the observed.
9. Beyond Duality: The Experience of Non-Dual Realization
Non-duality is a profound realization found in many spiritual paths, including Advaita Vedanta, Zen Buddhism, and Taoism. In non-dual realization, one perceives the oneness of existence, where the boundaries between self and other dissolve completely. This realization is not intellectual; it is an experiential knowing that comes from merging with the flow of life.
In non-dual experience, the distinction between realization and experience itself fades. Realization is not separate from the experience—it is the very experience of oneness. This understanding captures the essence of “Every realization is the experience of that experience.” The experience itself becomes realization, revealing that all of existence is one interconnected dance.
In the experience of oneness, realization ceases to be a goal and becomes the nature of every moment
10. Living Realization in Daily Life
While realization is often seen as a peak spiritual moment, its truest form is embodied in daily life. Enlightened individuals don’t dwell solely in mystical states; rather, they bring the essence of realization into ordinary experiences. They see each moment as an opportunity to witness the sacred.
Whether in work, relationships, or solitude, every moment becomes a reflection of one’s realization. Each action becomes an offering, and every interaction a mirror of inner truth. In this state, life itself is seen as a continuous flow of realization, each experience affirming the essence of existence.
11. Embracing Realization as a Journey
“Every realization is the experience of that experience” points to a universal truth: that true understanding arises not from knowing about something but from merging with it. Realization is not a distant peak to reach but a process of deepening awareness, where each experience brings one closer to the heart of existence.
In embracing realization as an experiential journey, we discover that life itself is the greatest teacher. Every joy, sorrow, success, and failure becomes a stepping stone toward deeper understanding. Through patient practice, open awareness, and an unyielding commitment to truth, we come to experience each moment as a revelation—an experience of the experience, an unending journey of realization.
