Just B. NOSAM.

Question:

Are most people actually seeking enlightenment—or just trying to escape suffering?

Answer:

A lot of people are drawn to “enlightenment” because they believe it will free them from pain, fear, and the general unpleasantness of life. It becomes this imagined state of permanent peace or bliss—a kind of final exit from everything difficult.

But if that’s the motivation, then enlightenment has quietly turned into just another desire. Another attempt to get somewhere better than here.

That raises an uncomfortable possibility:
What if the search isn’t for truth—but for escape?

Many spiritual traditions point out that clarity doesn’t come from avoiding experience, but from seeing it fully. Not replacing discomfort with a better-feeling state, but understanding what’s actually here—without constantly trying to edit, suppress, or run from it.

That sounds simple, but in practice it’s difficult.

Try sitting quietly with no distractions for even a short time. No phone, no task, no mental entertainment. Very quickly, the mind starts pushing: “This is pointless… I should be doing something… this isn’t going anywhere.”

It feels like restlessness or boredom—but often there’s something deeper underneath. A kind of uneasiness we don’t usually stay around long enough to notice.

So we get up. We check something, do something, think something—anything to move away from just being here.

The question is:
What are we actually avoiding?

It may not be anything dramatic. Sometimes it’s just the absence of stimulation, or the lack of a solid sense of “me” doing something meaningful. But that alone can feel uncomfortable enough to escape from.

And that’s where the shift happens.

Instead of using spirituality to move away from discomfort, what if the practice is to stay? To be present not just for the calm and pleasant parts of experience, but also for the uncertain, empty, or restless ones?

Not forever. Not as an extreme lifestyle. Just intentionally, for a little while each day.

Because if we can’t sit with ourselves as we are—even briefly—then what exactly are we hoping enlightenment will give us?

Maybe the real question isn’t:

“How do I reach enlightenment?”

But:

“Am I willing to experience life as it is, without constantly trying to turn it into something else?”

If you want, I can also  make a sharper, more provocative version (Quora tends to reward those), or  tailor it to your writing voice more closely.