VioletFlame

@Fairy You are right. It is not discussed much on this forum I think because it's considered "woo woo". This is a common cliché misconception. What's not acknowledged is that magic is spirituality and the constant seeking of wisdom. Yes some of it can be "woo woo" (such as in the New Age community where it's more about fashion and decorations), it's "woo woo" if you're practicing blindly and basing your knowledge off of disney fairytales and villainous witches, but if you know anything about the history of magic and the craft you will notice how synonymous it is to reaching "enlightenment", spiritual and intuitive awareness and overall consciousness. The more you learn about it the more you'll start to see the direct connections between magic and most forms of spiritual practice.

The magic is within and you don't need any "special powers" to practice or to get results. Anyone can do it, just learn how to meditate and improve your focus/concentration skills. And believe in you. Often times you will notice results not necessarily exactly how you even imagined, but they will instead arrive in various strange & erratic packages which will hit you with pleasurable surprise. Also, you can practice magic and refuse to be into Aleister Crowley. He is not the end all be all of magic or occult practice. This is such a vast landscape and spectrum of study and there are many things to look into. When it comes to witchcraft and magic, it is actually very practical in spirituality if you're doing it wisely and with clear understanding of it. It is highly misunderstood simply because those people who misunderstand it are naive and oblivious of the term and have not cared to give enough time in reading about it in depth and I'm talking the totally unspoken depths of magical philosophy, there is plenty about it that gets ignored or blindly defined. For instance, the term "black magick" occurs in society on a daily basis. People curse and ignorantly send negative, dark energy towards the world and towards eachother everyday without even realizing they are using techniques of "black magick." Magic is actually very psychological and linked with the mind. It is simply learning how to focus the mind as we do in zen practices, setting an intention, visualizing that intention, and then releasing it and letting it go. There is also a limit to magic. Some things just cannot be manifested and this must be recognized as what it is for the greatest good. Always put work into what you want to manifest as well, never expect the universe to do it all for you. The magic is the unity of you and the universe. It is setting your intention that will motivate you to best accomplish your goal and ultimately receive positive, powerful and synchronous results. Also note that everyone has the ability to be "psychic", most people just don't allow themselves to be. The more you practice strengthening your intuition, the more "psychic" you will realize you are and the more day by day magic will start to take place. It will no longer be categorized as "supernatural" but instead it will put the "super" in "natural". You'll realize it's all around you.

Look up Phil Hine.

@Hero in progress One of my favorites! This archetype for me is what I like to call one's inner elder. Hehe This practice of putting yourself in the shoes of an elder's, tapping into age empathy, and placing yourself in their experience, seeing from the perspective of looking back upon the time line of your life during your last days or sudden final moments in time, and imagining how you will feel or how you will respond at this time can do wonders on one's overall existential wisdom and intuitive grasp and guidance on life. This also deals with a recognition of consequences and eventual possibilities, so therefore acknowledging and becoming aware of them before they even happen, looking through the lens of karma perhaps, therefore becoming aware of the actions we take and being as loving and grateful towards life as we can everyday before we get to that final and ultimate stage of introspection and inescapable force of self-contemplation (if we don't have dementia) where we are drawing conclusions, where lights above our heads flick off (seventh chakra), and are confronting heavy realizations, questioning if whether or not we thoroughly lived the kind of fulfilling life we always truly wanted to live from deep within. This is why it's best to assemble an elderly and even deathbed perspective soon in life, befriend your inner elder like you would your inner child, don't treat them like distant strangers, prepare yourself ahead of time and nip it in the bud a bit. Before that time reveals itself to you, accept it in its entirety out of pure love and perhaps even excitement, before you have no other choice in that time but to accept it out of fear or dread. Deep within the sea, beyond the mundane seat of vision, beyond one glimpse of the surface, lies everything we seek, yet we bide our time in seeing that everything we see, we should also seize. Seize, the entire sea, and then see. Be the eye of the oceanic unseen, be the ghost. When I was young I would often spontaneously envision myself as an old lady in the future, describing that current era of my life to someone, or looking back at pages of journals or diaries I saved from years ago, and reminiscing from a futuristic perspective. This always deeply fascinated me. Wonderful post.

What @Charlotte said hahaha Also won = now. You win in the now. Hehe

@ivankiss Yeeeeessss! This is awesome, reminds me of All One = Alone ! When I came across this one day, I was terminologically bamboozled.

So I feel this is an appropriate time to mention, the artistic background to Leo's videos always reminded me of your classic background for a student's school yearbook photo. Anybody else ever notice this? ?‍♀️ ? Of course to me this clearly represents a reasonably and healthily defiant/educationally rebellious student who prefers to choose self-education and individuality/speaking up over standard curriculum nonsense. But yes patience is virtue folks, let's give the lad some time aye? ? Happy New Year everyone!

One of my many favorites by Lao Tzu ? ♥

"If you want to become whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to become straight, let yourself be crooked. If you want to become full, let yourself be empty. If you want to be reborn, let yourself die. If you want to give everything up, give everything up." ♥

@Amadeusz I guess it all really boils down to how one perceives "success". "Results" don't have to reveal themselves only through the digital realm and through the domain of social media, etc. For me personally, writing spontaneously in solitude and performing live, always felt more alive than turning it into an online business which felt slightly like a distraction to me when I knew I could just take myself on a bus with my instruments and travel to avant-garde open mics and have a direct experience, therefore direct results. (I was quite young when I started, I began playing open mics when I was about twelve with a musician relative of mine, who brought me into the scene, then gradually I started doing it completely on my own through adolescence, sometimes would bunk school to play in coffee shops, etc.. ) But fame & fortune doesn't always reach "success" and actually, not all of us even desire or want to acquire "4.5K subscribers" and all this because we'd rather just enjoy the experience. I think hunting for followers can often turn predatory or possessive/obsessive. I much prefer just creating music and performing music out in the world in atmospheric public settings or simply on the streets to grow connections that way.. Rather than have my eyes glued to a screen, contemplating "how I can best promote my music as fast as possible to gain global recognition/approval whilst waiting for the comments and likes." I find it is much more of a genuine and authentic experience when I am out in the world doing what I love to do and directly sharing with people whom it may resonate with, but that's just how I roll dude, and we all roll differently. I suppose I am just happiest when I am creating from the heart and then sharing with people and hopefully inspiring them and touching their hearts, and whenever it does, I receive their feedback, eye to eye, I feel I accomplished something much deeper, rather than just constantly checking YouTube ratings or whatever. One of my YouTube channels has about 200 subscribers and about 50k views. (I don't know how it happened exactly I just checked one day and was like "Well okay o.o") But like, that's enough for me. Honestly, local recognition is even enough for me. I mean I make some decent bucks on the side, and that's all well and good and call me old school, but truly most of all as long as I'm inspiring, energizing and healing others, through what I'm creating and performing, then I am most content. Even sometimes knowing that what you create made a huge impact on just one person or one little town, or a small group of people on an island somewhere can mean a whole lot more than 4K usernames with bubble heads and picture icons, folks.

Hmm...I don't suspect one who is fully enlightened will be the one to claim they are enlightened. neither do I suspect they will give themselves such a loud romanticized label. Many egos want us to think we are "enlightened" so therefore they make these claims, when in all actuality this idea tends to fall into one messy paradoxical trap.

It's one thing if one is relying or depending heavily on drugs for their own happiness or gratification, or using them as a crutch. Psychedelics do not fall into the same category as cocaine and heroin so if you're using psychedelics wisely for spiritual awakening or to achieve a greater existential understanding/awareness, then this is simply a true aspect of your own spiritual path and growth. I wouldn't say they're exactly a "short-cut" either. Not everyone is ready to trip, and some trips can actually feel like a fucking trek for some people. When I lost my virginity to psychedelics, I had already been into spirituality for most of my life through reading ancient spiritual texts, meditating or chanting, but once the hands of acid cradled my very being, everything I ever read or imagined, dreamed, or understood in all the years of simply being into spirituality and consciousness, suddenly just became One and I fully felt everything in its intertwined entirety, it was all confirmed and embodied, I felt this expansive universal love and like I was wearing the whole universe and had 360 degree vision all around me and I was just like, "This is it!!! This is what they're talking about!!" And I gazed at my hands and it was like literally in my hands.

Exactly dude. Intuitive intelligence is what should've been one of the most primary, basic tools one should have learned, strengthened and focused on from the very beginning of education. Intuition is so powerful and so wise and much more useful for any given situation in life, including in every day life. It is key and much more necessary over any ridiculous number on an IQ test. Think about how much pain, depression, sickness and tension one can release or prevent simply from becoming more conscious of their body alone and the signals coming from their intuitive guidance system, or enteric nervous system, the second brain. Exercising and strengthening one's intuition is perhaps one of the most significant practices in which anyone could benefit from in life. Intuition is literally your only ally at the end of the day. It is your inner-compass. Once you befriend your intuition and not only just treat it as an acquaintance, but get to know it, learn from it, and trust it, you will be able to access it anywhere at any time and never second guess it or doubt it simply because it is your inner-truth, your second nature, and accessing it will gradually become second nature, no thinking needed. ♥

Daily meditation & yoga, self-love meditation and visualization, working on creative endeavors and aspirations... Reading, writing, listening, smiling, exploring, observing. ♥

No one is their IQ or their grades. Try not to let alleged numbers and percentages distract or define you. Identifying too much with meaningless scores can lead to an overabundance of the rational which only prevents one from reaching and fulfilling their true authentic and creative potential. Intelligence is much more infinite & vast than filling in multiple choice questions and taking brief illegitimate quizzes that are aimed to judge, pollute and limit your intelligence. You know yourself better than any IQ test or computer. The duration of intelligence is eternal and goes way beyond the barriers of the mind and bogus scores. What's most valid and accurate is how passionate and determined you are about what you're learning. Focus on learning and studying the things that make you happy, excited, or inspired. I've always found that it's much easier to comprehend, deeply focus, and absorb information one is learning if they are taking in something they actually want to learn.

@kieranperez Hey man I really feel what you are going through, please don't hesitate to reach out to me if you need to vent. ❤

@Jeff Zhang Sure, I'd love to share this with you. Well, I spontaneously found this book in a thrift shop in Ireland a while ago and fell in love with it immediately, devouring and embodying it. Read it front to back, and then gave it to an amazing beloved friend of mine. It sort of compiles various Jung teachings in one little travel sized book. I have not read the Tao Te Ching yet at this time, but this book, The Tao Of Jung, includes multiple beautiful passages and quotes from the I Ching and Lao Tzu and how it clearly relates to Jung and how inspired he was by the wisdom of Taoism and how much it parallels with the Tao's teachings. It's a simple read and a great introduction to Jung and his life as well for those who are interested in learning about him. The nature of both their philosophies is about the integration of opposites; non-dualism, as well egocide and the transformation of the false self & the true self, the realization that darkness gives birth to light, the depths of inner space, eternal abyss, and void, etc. It also has many incredible non-dualistic poetry that hits me hard and gives me chills every time. "The Tao is dark and unfathomable, How can it make her radiant? Because she lets it." Most of all what makes this book so special for me personally is the amount of synchronicities and connections I've experienced whenever this book is in my hands or nearby. I will share with you some of these experiences, I am excited to share some of them, there are too many to share all at once, I would blow this whole thread up. This book for me carries intense sacred energy, it's like strange, it definitely has a mind of its own. Synchronicity #1: I recently bought it again because it was calling to me and ever since I received it, whenever I take a shower and the steam hits the bathroom mirror, this similar version of the symbol of "The Tao" that is on the cover of the book appears on the mirror. I do not know where or how it got there and it doesn't look as elaborate or exact as the symbol on the book, but it sure as hell looks similar to it, enough for me to recognize it. It resembles an ancient looking eye. Almost like a mixture of the Tao symbol and the Eye of Horus. Synchronicity #2: I astonishingly left it at work the other night and texted my co-worker/fellow Jungian friend to let her know, however she fell asleep and was not yet aware that it was left there. That night I had an eerie yet familiar dream that it was there but for some reason it was moving around the shop on its own, similar to the way a planchette moves along a spirit board. That very next morning she called me saying I left it there and she couldn't believe she had this dream seeing the book behind the counter with my name written on it. Pretty crazy right??! The most incredible synchronicity involving this book yet was what happened only yesterday: I went to work and (with no exaggeration) as soon as I picked it up with excitement, I started explaining to someone about it and suddenly, precisely as I was describing these synchronicities, this beautiful customer approached me asking questions about it and all this..Let me tell you something right now, this girl was the spitting image of my beloved friend whom I gave this book to, whom I miss dearly. Her energy was uncannily similar, and the way she spoke and carried herself..it was mad. But the weirdest thing of all was that she is also from Romania, like my friend, and her name was Naré. My friend's name is Nera!! How fucked up is that?! It was absolutely amazing haha. We ended up having a beautiful, rather long, fulfilling and emotional conversation. And while I was experiencing this synchronicity... I was explaining all this to her, and she was telling me about hers which she also had in that moment, it was highly energetic, and we were immediately expressing how amazing it was to meet each other, and as soon as she said her name I melted and got teary eyed, and she got fucking teary eyed and we just hugged and connected immediately. ❤️ So yeah this book, man my goodness hahaa

As unorthodox as this may sound to most people, you must learn to become somewhat excited for death, not suicidal but comfortable with the inevitable sudden invitation of death. Think of how exciting life is. Death is simply a part of life, so how can it not be just as exciting? Departure and arrival can be one and of the same. It's only an eternal extension to this adventure we are living and will be a great cosmic surprise in the end. And also remember the end can always mean the beginning. If there were immortality, would there even be life, or would there be any purpose or effort to live at all? Would we see any value left in life or would we become stagnant, gray and monotonous? Think about the beauty of death alone and the strength and motivation it gives us to live our life to the fullest during each moment. As I do not promote or condone self-mutilation or any self-injury, I do believe training the mind to gain fortitude and enduring certain sensations is only preparing you for an unavoidable or inescapable experience that could reveal itself ahead of time, that can not be predicted, so it's best to equip yourself for the unexpected, which will ultimately reduce your fear of life and of death. Thich Quang Duc

If anyone ever tries to tell you that it is "selfish" or "self-absorbed" to practice self-love or self-acceptance or any other spiritual practice this is used to help strengthen your relationship with yourself but also, just as importantly, your relationship with the entire world around you, they are usually the selfish ones who are not well educated enough to even understand why we pursue these practices in the first place. How can one ever truly give happiness to the world if they are not truly happy within? Of course you don't want to be so focused on yourself that you ignore or neglect the world around you. But every moment is a waking beautiful opportunity for us to be as spiritual and as helpful as possible, whether it's for ourselves or for the ones included in our lives. See every moment as a spiritual blessing you can use to your greatest advantage.

Love the image you posted. Breathe like smooth jazz. Take every breath as if it were your very first and your very last.

@ivory You're very welcome! Well my dude, you do it for you, because it is simply a healthy challenge which could help you overcome this dilemma you are having among others. Soulitude is great and it's okay to not have interest in people but in the long run, when you put yourself out there and meet like-minded people, you will gain more authentic connections to others which is certainly worthwhile. The quality of your relationships over the quantity is super important. Choosing the people you surround yourself wisely and gently is best because of course, you don't want to fall into a crowd of low-consciousness energy vampires who carry selfish agendas, simply stay away from this kind. Just let your intuition guide you, you'll know what's best for you. ♥

Expect it to last a lifetime. ? And feel excited!

@caelanb Well it's certainly okay and understandable to want to chase fun recreational stuff and explore the outside world, but when it comes to these practices, if they truly interest you and are calling to you, then you must learn to simply keep it at or else you'll never truly know how deep it can take you so long as you're not committed to it or learning how to love it. Try seeing it as embarking on an adventure, except it is an internal one. But it is a fucking voyage and a new experience every time. And the more you practice, trust me the easier it will become, like second nature. It will be challenging in the beginning, but if you make it into a priority, even if it means simplifying the duration of the practice at first and gradually working your way up through time, you'll feel so much better and eventually have some of the most amazing life changing experiences you could ever imagine or have ever dreamed of, if you simply allow them to arise. The more you continue these practices, there will be tremendous results over time. I can't tell you when, but you must trust and believe that it will. Belief is an incredibly powerful tool. Also as long as you are breathing fluidly and comfortably each time and training yourself each time to focus on that very present experience and looking deep within, then you will take off and you will transition. In the beginning, there will be times where you will sit and it won't feel so bad. Other times you will sit and it may seem pointless or confusing..or aimless thoughts/feelings will appear, drift, come & go...you may sit and suddenly you begin to cry or you may have other particular reactions that may surprise you but which must be released, so let everything go that is yearning to be released....But then other times you will sit and you will feel the most inexplicable love and joy for every single aspect of life and gratitude for simply breathing. You may thank the experience and yourself for showing up as well.♥ There's so much psyche and soul journeying within these practices and so much to experience, and are so powerful, ultimately so worth it. Everyone has different reasons, but I got off anti-depressant medication five years ago (on them way too young) and discovered they were poison so I resorted to these practices and I was healed faster within 6 months of deep meditative practices and tripping on mushrooms than 3 years of talk therapy and manipulative medication ever tried to do, or could've done. Those things for me anyway, only added more fuel to the fire, it was suffering.

@ivory I hope this was somewhat helpful. ♥

@Joseph Maynor No way dude!!! I'm currently reading one of my all time favorite books for like the 3rd time. This is called the Tao of Jung and your book is mentioned more than once in here!! I would travel and walk around everywhere with that little book in my hand...it's absolutely beautiful, I find myself in the point of tears while reading it.