This is not an essay on enlightenment but on freedom. Enlightenment differs from freedom in that enlightenment means to let go of our daily issues concerning ourselves and what we want and think we need. Kant may be a well known individual however after a fairly short time I could not help but feel beaten over the head with his ideas on enlightenment. I think he himself is stifling enlightenment by putting more thoughts than are needed into heads already confused by what social freedom is. In many ways I don't think he is enlightened himself by his attitude toward the institutions he is describing.
I believe we as a society expect, as other past and present civilisations have, that our government and ruling parties know best how to attain and keep our freedoms and ways of life. That is where we go wrong.
First gain enlightenment, and with that will come freedom. When as an individual you let go of your expectations, you will let go of your need of governments and religious orders that claim to enrich your way of life.
In his book "Zen Mind, Beginners Mind" Shunryu Suzuki says, "If you seek for freedom you cannot find it."
By saying man is ignorant of his freedoms, or his enlightenment, Kant is himself stifling freedom by suggesting that men/women must attain something more than themselves to be free. Freedom first must come from within. How would you know what you wanted from your governmet, or religious order without knowing yourself first?
Brian, you must be one of the only people in the history of the universe that reads Kant for fun, and not because they have an evil college professor. That said, I feel your point is proven time and again in our present scio-political climate. Ask 20 different occupy protesters what they are protesting, and you will get 23 different answers. Look at the republican primaries. The only thing that any of those folks can say they stand for, is changing their stance to whatever the opinion polls say. Your post has made e think. Perhaps waffling/bad politicians and religious leaders is a symptom of a greater malaise affecting the common people. Introspective thought seems to be a lost art in today's entitled society. You are correct; if we each knew ourselves, so would our leaders, and they could become effective at improving our freedom, and way of life.
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