Surfingthewave

@ardacigin What is your goal for meditation? I think it's good to check in with experienced teachers or other meditators once in a while. Further advice for newbies, particularly if you don't fancy the 10 day retreats, meditate every day for 20 mins then slowly build that up to 30 mins. This could take months. Consider trying different techniques (breath work, do nothing, noting etc). When you're able to quiet the monkey mind within five minutes of a sit, consider sitting for hour long sits, several times over a day or a weekend, you can do this at home or go solo somewhere you won't be disturbed. You can easily build these into your schedule. Once a year go to a formal meditation centre for a retreat or session to check in with the teachers.

Yes and that is exactly the problem. This is a great topic that has been derailed by comments about masterbation, but not in a genuine way. Just gets a bit tedious.

@bejapuskas I don't think that is what she is describing. As a teacher you still have a clear role, with all the difficulties that come with it. As a conscious teacher, you play the role in a very different way. I can imagine the battle with your ego about this.

@Shin So why are you commenting on this topic? You've apologised in the past for your comments, I'm just curious to know what your point is.

This is said with love @Aakash but why do you seek such attention to your journey?

What is sexuality @Shin?

@bejapuskasHow do you get conscious? Knowledge and discipline.

@bejapuskas Of course you are, that's the beauty of it, you just play the game, consciously. Once you're more conscious you realise the game of life, and you can play until your hearts content. Passing this on to kids is the highest power. Whether you do this directly or indirectly is up to you.

The Transparency of Things by Rupert Spira. Reality will never be seen the same again.

@CreamCat no idea, sorry! ?

Sexuality is fluid, like any non duality it can merge into one. There is no binary when it comes to sexuality and gender but the world we live it likes dualities so pressure from social norms makes us decide our sexuality from an early age. I think a mature and enlightened person can move between sexualites without judgement, or not feel pressure to "be" any sexuality.

@How to be wise If you're more conscious then so will the kids you teach. The quality of their learning will go up 100 per cent because you'll be with them, in direct experience without judgement, assumptions, conditioning, in their moment, every moment. That's the best education they can get.

@XYZ Lots of food for thought and points I found triggering. You have hit on a very sad but crucial concern of our times, the epic rise in male suicide. I think your points about how men process emotion leading to social expectation and isolation are key. I lost a good friend to suicide last year, he was such a top bloke, one the best, little did we know he was suffering. Trying to understand and contemplate why he chose to do this is still difficult process. I agree that some women struggle to feel positively about themselves and perhaps that is also to do with role models, cultural context and social conditioning. Question is, how to we address this imbalance?

Fear is a sensation, an event in the body. The best way to get rid of it is to illuminate it. Fear can also be a way of showing you the path, if you fear something usually you need to do it.

There seems to be mixed messages on here about this. When going deeper down the rabbit hole what becomes of the ego? To get rid of something you have to be aware of what it is.

"As a woman so she knows" The ego appears to take on many forms, with many layers that tricks itself into believing its own status. When you reduce it to just a state, one can transcend it. I'm interested to hear people's positive or negative versions of ego. @Aakash have you reflected on the role your own ego can play when disidentifying the mind? @Bill W illuminating the ego could begin the path to transcending it. Trying to retrain it might give you a bigger ego, as we have seen. Interesting metaphor used - Neon and the bullets. @Preetom If you are infinite how does this fit in with your idea of a universal ego? @LastThursday Absolutely - all the world's a stage, all the men and women are merely players. This "stage" is consciousness, or the screen of the mind. I tend to have different movies playing out depending on the day. Yesterday it was Neverending story, I'm hoping today it'll be Die Hard.

What is the root cause of your addiction? For example you describe when things 'get tough' you relapse, run away from problems and loose hope. This is life on the path my friend, the push and pull between light and dark. Continue your inner work and you'll not only discover more light and love you could have ever imagined but that you, are the light.

Yes I can relate to this success paradigm. I was chasing my own tail for 10 years, desperately seeking success in my career. I realise now I was resisting and avoiding my own insecurities and massive low self esteem. I wasn't able to express myself and who I was so I thought being a hot shot TV executive was the answer. I smile at this now. You mentioned you used to be poor. Why do you think the two are linked - success/relationship chasing and lack of abundance? You're doing exactly the right thing for you, raising your awareness, self inquiry etc. I also spent years in meditation, some counselling, coaching, law of attraction work, affirmations, yoga, but interestingly for me it was Reiki healing that became the tipping point because I found my voice. Good luck my friend, it's an amazing journey.

@The Don loving this thread. For me, Creativity is about intuition, the voice. Not the monkey mind, but being. I've found the more meditation I do the more creative I become. The more you quiet the mind the more the creativity unfolds. Creativity can also come from emotional turmoil, inner struggle and living life on the line. Almost as if you have nothing left, but this.

@hamedsf Good call. @Peo Describe your Do Nothing technique.

@Epiphany_Inspired There is absolutely a lot of deep rooted layers conditioning women have to contend with. Particularly when growing up from popular culture - the media, magazines, young adult fiction etc. Books studied at school - Macbeth, Hamlet, Frankenstein where the women are absolutely depicted as "damsel in distress" type women or just plain mad. In politics stong women are depicted as masculine or harassed and degraded for being over emotional or too much. Your points about self esteem and self efficacy, particularly influenced by groups of friends and sub texts is key. This develops at such a young age and continues into adulthood. Bullying, jealousy, negative self image created from these groups is damaging and long lasting. I also sigh deeply when female debates are *jokingly * pointed to periods by men or suggested there is a victimhood at the root. This is exactly the kind of conditioning we're up against. This means the inner work goes deep when it comes to gender and conditioning, more unravelling is needed, meditation, contemplation and really working on those triggers. In my experience freedom and liberation is obtainable however, its the freedom from our own thoughts and cultural conditioning which is the golden key and not about joining feminist groups or belittling men.

@Western Buddha Deeply consider your reaction to what happened. Perhaps you need to explore your thoughts on your own sexuality, gender and sexual identity. Also you mentioned in your thread you are 100 per cent "straight". Forgive me for saying but in 2019 this is quite a statement. Maybe contemplate why you feel the need to express yourself this way and keep doing the inner work.

We missed you @Solace great words

@Shaun I've been there my friend. It's not a great place to be but when you get to the next stage you'll feel a lot different. What goes down must come up. Journalling really helped me and there's some great advice here given to you about looking after yourself. Remember to continue to be aware and if it goes on for too long get professional help.

So every time I have a breakthrough, experience deep insights, awakenings or I'm getting really successful and in the flow with my life purpose breaking through plateaus etc, I get sick. I mean, probably flat out ill with a virus. Not directly straight after but sometime after. I then fall behind with meditation practice, yoga, life purpose work. This has happened several times in past six months. This ego is a total devil.