The consciousness of an enlightened state is seemingly not focused on one point, but rather is one that encompasses the entire world. It is an infinite expansion of consciousness. The infinitely expanding consciousness is the consciousness of an enlightened person. This can be achieved by going through a state of single-pointed meditation. This expansion of consciousness also seems to occur among drug users. There was an incident where, under the influence of drugs, a person had the sensation that the entire universe existed within his consciousness and jumped off a building.

Single-pointed meditation, Jhana, an extraordinary state of altered consciousness, is a special experience in everyday life. An experience is just an experience. It is a product of the body and mind. The experience of a Jhana state and the experience you get from drugs or alcohol are the same experience. The only difference is whether the phenomenon is caused by a substance inside the body or by a substance outside the body.

Since experiences are created by the body and mind, they will inevitably become boring if repeated. The body and mind become less responsive to the known. This is why drug or alcohol addiction causes increased need. A person who has had repeated out-of-body experiences has said that he is tired of having such experiences. Enlightenment is not something that is produced by the body and mind. It is supposed to transcend the body and mind, so there can be no boredom. If enlightenment is an experience, then it doesn't seem like enlightenment.

Whether an experience is an extraordinary one like single-pointed meditation or an everyday experience, an experience is a phenomenon that occurs in everyday life. It is temporary, will surely fade away, and will remain only as a memory. Enlightenment is a state that transcends the body and mind, and the everyday; it is not a temporary state, but a permanent and unchanging state.

There is a saying in the Rinzai sect that goes, "If you meet Buddha, kill him." It seems to mean that you should explore deeply within yourself without relying on teachings or teachers, but I understand it to mean not to trust in experiences. In other words, the experience of enlightenment is an illusion.