Four Types of Enlightened Being

For those struggling to get a perspective on enlightenment, it can be useful to consider the four types of being that experience enlightenment. Note — the being is defined by their type and ‘fullness’ of enlightenment.

The Vehicle (or Chariot, in some texts) represents a concept of being that carries one from the default unsatisfactory ego-state through to the ultimate concept-less state of being called Buddhahood.

The ‘Lesser Vehicle’ is so called because its benefits are personal. Here, two types of enlightened being — the Arahant and the Pratyekabuddha (Stone Buddha) — attain enlightenment with the goal of personal liberation.

The Arahant has succeeded in eliminating the concept of self entirely from experience, meaning they no longer cling to or reject phenomena. Phenomena still arise, but the Arahant is liberated from attaching meaning to them.

The Pratyekabuddha is a peculiar being who arises in periods where there is no active Buddhism, according to the texts. These are somewhat solipsistic gods who regard external phenomena as lacking self and reality, but still retain a subtle internal concept of self; their internal phenomena remain active.

The ‘Greater Vehicle’ is taken by Bodhisattvas who are unsatisfied with personal liberation and vow to progress for the benefit of others. Bodhisattvas cultivate the ten paramis (perfections), often over many lifetimes, to assist all beings.

The ‘Diamond’ or Vajra Vehicle is that set of dharma and teachings that can carry a Bodhisattva to the full, mirror-like enlightenment of Buddhahood.

While the Arahant and Pratyekabuddha experience phenomena as meaningless, they still experience phenomena. The arising and ceasing of phenomena reflect deeply ingrained mental habits, manifesting as ‘nirvana with residues’.

In The Profound Inner Principles by Rangjung Dorje, the Bodhisattva, through either meditative practice or study, must undertake a thorough understanding of the subtle body — bindus, chakras, channels, and winds. Once the subtle body is known, the winds must be mastered, which allows mastery over the perception of time and even the death process itself.

With mastery, the practitioner achieves cessation — suspension of the stream of awareness — something akin to the dying process of an Arahant. After a period (often described as three days in many texts), this process clears out the residues. It mirrors the opportunity for full enlightenment after physical death, though few recognise it without dedicated training. Through deliberate cessation, breathing stops mindfully, and full mirror-like awakening is achieved — as some traditions suggest happened with Christ, given his “missing years” and early visits by “wise astrologers from the East,” reminiscent of the process of identifying the Dalai Lama.

This Buddhic or full enlightenment is called mirror-like because awareness becomes untainted by contemplation of phenomena. Phenomena are no longer perceived as discrete entities but merely as conditions.

Awareness becomes unlimited. What does this mean?

It’s akin to the difference between quantum and digital. Our five senses and mind are digital — we either hear something or we don’t; we see when there is light or we don’t. But the mind is never truly dark — only our senses are limited. Our senses work like this because we must discriminate between what we attend to and what we ignore. Our awareness, as conditioned beings, is limited by necessity.

Without discrimination, sorting, faith, belief, doubt, or conceptual understanding, the Buddhic mind becomes free. We normally use our minds through concepts we can grasp, but when the need for comprehension falls away, the mind becomes unfettered. Without being aware of any single ‘thing,’ the mind knows all and remains pristinely empty.

It is like ‘knowing’ without needing to know how you know. Objects of the mind may arise but are left alone — the mind sees without needing to look, and knows without grasping at understanding.

“The mind is luminous by nature. It is defiled only by adventitious defilements.”
— Anguttara Nikaya 1.49