Leo Gura

Pretty obvious that that's karma from that last 50 years of unconscious actions and ideologies of the USA and the Arab world. When people behave in egotistical ways, they get egotistical results. It would be silly to kick a hornets nest and then exclaim in surprise, "Why, why, oh why???!!!" when you get stung.

@EmilyCook26 You're addicted to WAY more than just those things. Those are super-obvious addictions. All your characteristic ways of thinking, believing, doing, and emoting are basically addictions. Not to even mention other obvious addictions like: sugar, fat, salt, alcohol, caffeine, sex, gossip, news, entertainment, phone, internet, multitasking, etc, etc.

Please refrain from topics about political events on this forum. We're here to focus on SELF-growth.

Locking this thread because of the recent up-tick in politically-related outrage threads on here. Please keep this forum focused on self-actualization, not gossip about politics or terrorism.

Consciousness and a well-rounded education into the key humanistic fields solves the problem. You don't need to be an expert in every science. But you do need to be an expert in being human, and you need to be conscious.

One of the problems with science is it's hyper-compartmentalization. When you put the blinders on and only focus on one narrow thing you lose sight of the larger picture, which leads to disaster. It is not safe to make assumptions such as, "Oh well... I'll just focus on making this one scientific breakthrough to win my Nobel prize and if someone ends up using it to destroy the world, that's not my problem. As a scientist, my only duty is making valid discoveries." That is the way of unconsciousness.

@Lenny The inquiry creates openmindedness. Just do it. There is no shortcut for the work. You can't will your way into the truth. You have do the deconstruction work.

@Will Bigger There's a bigger picture at work though. Science is not merely a human invention for our own happiness and gratification. Science is an outgrowth of the evolution of the universe. So you're not going to stop it. It needs to continue to evolve. The universe is seeking to understand itself through humans, through science, and other means. The only way to put this genie back in the bottle would be to wipe the entire human species. If, 100 years from now, science develops a foolproof technology for enlightenment, it could redeem itself big-time. Science will have to drop the naive realist paradigm pretty soon, so it will start to converge with spirituality at some point. If we can just keep our shit together for a few hundred more years and not melt down the planet or let corporations take everything over, things should look very promising.

Depends on your point of view. Primates have been evolving for over 5 million years. Does that mean Homo Sapiens are "better than" Neanderthals? What is better, a chicken or a pterodactyl? Both are highly optimized forms. Is Windows 10 better than Windows '95? Not in any absolute sense. Both are perfect at the being level. But there are differences in optimization at the relative level.

You're holding perfection as in opposition to evolution. But that's a false choice. It's both. A jagged rock is as perfect as a smooth pebble. But there is also optimization happening.

If you liked that, you'll probably love writing music on AL-LAD. To me it's more creative than 5-meo or Provigil. I would be careful with using Racetams. Might not be healthy. If a substance elevates your heart rate, I would avoid using it regularly. Which is why for example I avoid Provigil, even though it's like creative steroids. AL-LAD feels more sustainable to me in that it's not a stimulant.

@jse Don't get so clever that you use advanced spiritual truths to stunt your more basic development.

@Lenny Yeah. You basically need to be open to the possibility that you are not the human body, or any experiential object. You'll want to really question and doubt this assumption/feeling/belief that you are a human body.

Being is not a sense. The other six are the classic 6 Buddhist sense gates, with concept called "mind" or "thought".

If it helps you open your mind, sure. Although the mind is tricky. It will become immune to mechanical routines for opening it. You gotta stay sharp when you're self-inquiring. You can't just phone it in. You gotta do it consciously, afresh each time.

This is spiritual purification at work. It's not rainbows and butterflies. It's shit, blood, and smelly inner demons. All those fears you need to consciously work through. They are what hold you back from liberation. How are you gonna face the fear of death if you cannot face the fear of losing your home? You have to surrender EVERYTHING on this path (eventually). All your attachments must be carefully contemplated and surrendered in the light of higher awareness. You have embarked on a journey to dis-identify from your physical body and all of reality. This is a serious matter.

@hirax Sounds like you're simply not socializing enough. Getting a guy to cold approach you during the day is pretty rare. Very few guys know how to pull that off, and they won't do it unless you're a stunner, or you live in a huge city like London, New York, L.A., etc. In a small city, guys suck at cold approach. And the ones who are good are scummy players, who you don't want. All you gotta do is go out to a bar or club with some girlfriends once a week. You'll have tons of guys hit you up if you dress sexy and make eye contact with them. If you're sitting at home all night, how can anyone meet you? If you want to stick with that lifestyle, you should get into online dating. If you're still in college, go to some frat/sorority parties. Also, if you happen to see a guy you like, you can always start flirting with him. Don't wait for guys to do all the work. Most guys are scared shitless of you. Give the ones you like a cute puppy-dog look. They should come running. As a girl you don't need much fancy moves. All you gotta say to a guy you like is something like, "Hey handsome, *wink*" or "Why haven't you come said Hi to me?, *wink*" Do it in a playful, non-needy manner.

@Scholar A leap of faith is required. You must love Truth so much that you are willing to surrender your life to it. You must have faith that the Truth will save you. All fear is overcome by acting in accordance with your higher self, despite the fear.

1) It's very important to distinguish the desire for enlightenment from the desire for everything else. Desire for other stuff = bad. Desire for enlightenment = good. You should desire enlightenment so much that you are willing to give up your life to find it. Without that level of desire, your chances are slim. Above all else, truly spiritual people are those who put their spirituality as #1 priority. It's not a hobby for them. It's not something they just do 1 hour per day. It consumes them. You need to have a love for Truth in order for this process to work. Love Truth more than you would love your child. Then stuff will start to happen for you. 2) You are conceptualizing stuff outside of perceptions without being aware that that's a conceptualization. There is no stuff outside. The stuff you think is outside is just a concept on the inside. What you can know is that everything "outside" is actually inside. All this requires is consciousness. You can know it because reality is nondual and the distinction between inside/outside doesn't exist. Another way to put it is that there is no inside. There's only outside, and you have full access to the outside. You're accessing it right now. Everything you think is inside is actually the outside. The feelings inside your body are as outside as the stars you see at night.

Yes, definitely. Don't be doing 30mg back to back. You should need much less after a breakthrough.

@Joel3102 Even if you could verify other minds, it would be pointless. It would just be more experience. But all experience is unreal. Mind = experience. Other minds are as unreal as your mind. When you discover the one real thing: the Absolute, that will lay the issue to rest. It's not your job to jump from one private illusion (your mind) into another. It's your job to escape the whole game entirely! The problem is that you're so attached to experience that you're trying to access more of it, when you should be trying to discriminate experience from awareness.

@Echoes What you're missing is discrimination of awareness from experience. What you're calling "here and now" is an experience and NOT absolute. The Absolute we're talking about it WAY more Absolute than you're presently understanding. It's so Absolute it has no form and is therefore not an experience at all. You say you're awareness, but WHAT is awareness? You don't actually know. This still just an idea for you. You're not actually discriminating awareness from the contents of awareness. This discrimination is critical.

@Heart of Space Good! This is a test from the universe. A threshold guardian. This is the perfect opportunity for you to double down, apply your mindfulness skills to the craving for experiential pleasure, use your wisdom to see through Maya, and renew your meditation practice with an even greater vigor! Or, you can allow yourself to get seduced by Maya. Then maybe you will have enlightenment in the next life. You beat Zelda, the highest rated game in years -- and what did it do for you? Nothing. You're just as miserable as before you beat it. This is how the universe teaches. Karma 101. The universe created the perfect Zelda to teach you that you don't want Zelda. If you're too dense to learn the lesson now, don't worry, it will keep creating more and more Zelda's until you get it, or die trying. If there's anything Nintendo's great at, it's pumping out the same old favor of Maya. And now you've even got the convenience of Maya on the go! Now you can experience Maya in full force while sitting on the toilet.

Because they don't study all the traps, and inevitably fall into them. Or they simply don't desire it enough.