A beginner's many questions on enlightenment
Hello yall, I'm a beginner to Buddhist teachings and am hoping to eventually practice soto zen. A lot of the philosophies sit very well with me, some of which I already believed in before encountering Buddhism. However, the concept of enlightenment still seems very ambiguous.
Firstly, is enlightenment already within ourselves waiting to be cultivated, or do we need to follow a series of actions in order to move into it? A great quote I saw /u/sovietcableguy say on this sub is "a path may lead to the mountain, but the mountain isn't caused by a path." If that's the case, is practice the most reliable and and likely method towards 'reaching a mountain' that already exists in ourselves? I've also heard of some Zen monks say that we practice (meditate) for the sake of practicing, and that by persistently acting enlightened we become enlightened. Is this what is meant when someone says that we are already elnlightened? That the capability of enlightenment is enlightement itself?
As for the state of enlightenment, what happens to an enlightened being (who achieved zazen) after their body has perished? Are there any distinctions (in nature, not practice) between one who follows buddhist teaching and is enlightened, and one who doesn't but is still enlightened by default (assuming we all already are)? What is the view towards existence across the various sects? Does zen buddhism have its own interpretation of an afterlife or human existence?
Sorry for writing up a wall. I will be very grateful to anyone willing to answer any of these questions. Thank you very much.
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