Seeking awakening often arises from desperation to escape one's suffering. Nonduality eliminates suffering by providing freedom from self and its problems (like the experience of intoxication). Therefore, is enlightenment the ultimate escapism?

The enlightened person is not escaping anything. Being enlightened does not mean having a free pass out of pain or the difficulties of life. Being enlightened is a vantage point from which we view our obstacles, find a way to resolve them, and return to peace. It is not running away from them.
​
Taking drugs and getting drunk can be escapism. We can’t face whatever is happening at the time. All kinds of entertainments, social media, sex, distractions, can all be temporary escapes. But enlightenment is staring our difficulties right in the face without fear. It means having trust in the perfection of the Universe and how it is put together. Even if we falter in our human error, enlightenment is not temporary. It is permanent.

Once we know that we are Eternal Souls which cannot be destroyed, we have the context in which we view all of life. It doesn’t mean that we are exempt from challenges. All the great Ascended Masters had to leave their bodies, most with illnesses. They didn’t complain or carry on as if the Universe had it against them and had singled them out to suffer.
​
Enlightenment is plunging right into life and appreciating all its aspects. Not trying to stamp out all the stuff we don’t want and making every adverse circumstance into an enemy. Enlightenment welcomes every experience and does not seek to run away.