noselfnofun

@solr Yeah I have definitely experience this, so easy to get a superiority complex as you start to understand life better and see others still stuck in a hamster wheel. Being able to relate to others and have compassion for them is definitely a major part in spiritual development so don't hide from socialising because of fear. You could try and see socialising as its own practice, try and loose your self concerns when interacting with others and see if you can relate to where people are coming from in there own journey in life. One massive realisation I had is that most people are suffering and just trying there best. We are all in this together. Its been refreshing reading this post seeing that others have also go through this. One of my teachers Rupert spira is really good at integrating his spiritual understandings when relating to others, he says its an art form in its self. Like others have said self love and compassion for yourself and others are key here. Your on the right path keep going

@Joseph Maynor Yeah I use you meditate laying down, I have had some insane experiences doing it, one experience felt like a full blown dmt trip and another time I completely vanished from existence. Its funny because I don't seen or read about anyone else doing it or other spiritual teachers talk about it.

@SQAAD Hey man, I went through this, having guilt about having lots of sexual partners. I use to be into PUA, I was brainwashed into thinking it was a good thing to be with loads of women, luckily I got out of that mindset before it got to out of hand. I think the advice everyone has said is spot on, the more awareness you can bring into relationships and sex the better and approach it in a balanced and healthy way. And that video linked above by Shadguru is great. It definitely took a good amount of work before I could see results in terms of cleansing myself from having lots of pointless sex. But it can easily be worked through, you are on the right track now. Do you have a link to the video where sadguru mentions not to have lots of sexual partners? Feel free to DM me if you want me to share more.

@ajasatya Yeah definitely, thank you so much for your responses. In my current situation I can do around 2 to 3 hours of practice a day. Rupert spira's events and a self realisation fellowship centre are only a block away from where I live also so I am super lucky in that respect. So I can live a happy balanced life in or out of a monastery its just I loved the challenge so much when I do go on intense retreats I would love to do a longer time there. I will definitely be doing one I think. Ultimately its just fear that holds us back.

Hi guys, I am in two minds about making my next step in life and would like to see what your guys opinions are. So basally I want to spend two years just focusing purely my spiritual growth in an ashram or monetary. I also want to travel around the Himalayas afterwards. I work as an apprentice in the film industry. I have had to borrow some money off my parents to be able to afford to live as the apprenticeship dose not pay that great. However I could not get the idea of going off to a monastery for a couple of years out of my head. The apprenticeship is now coming to an end so I have two options, go off and do the two years immersing in spirituality or continue my carrier getting that off the ground. I have a lot of experience doing meditation retreats so going of for two years living like a monk would not be a shock to the system. I’m 28 and fear that if I go off to the monastery I will be jeopardising my finances and carrier but if I stay in the job I have it will jeopardise my spiritual growth to some degree. I know you can off course balance your life and grow a lot with a job, What do you guys reckon would be the best option? Go off now to the monastery or wait a few years until I have control of my finances then go off?

I'd be off hhaha, I wouldn't return until enlightenment.

@winterknight Hi, great thread. Thanks for starting it. Would you say you live a happier life now because of enlightenment? If you were faced with extreme tragedy, do you feel you would now be able to face it with much more strength?

@ajasatya Amazing thank you, would you say its stayed with you in your normal life now you are back?

@Privet Yeah thats the problem, I'm not following my hearts true desire, it is a difficult decision as my whole family hate the idea of a monastery as they don't understand that side of life. But sometimes you have gotta do what you. Yeah I have lived in a monastery before on intensive retreats for some time so know what to expect.

@LeoBacca Yeah I have found working on overcoming bad habits frees up more time to give to your practice, also getting up an hour earlier than you normally wake up means you can use that hour to meditate. It takes time to get to a point where you are very disciplined with your practice. Also are there days when you are not working? I use Sundays as retreat day, you can easily get five hours or more in then. Also you can contemplate and self inquirer throughout the day whenever your by yourself or become conscious of what you are doing.

@ajasatya Do you mind sharing your experience living in an ashram/monastery? what sort of benefits did you get from it ?

@Shin For sure, I have definitely thought that and thats another reason why I'm in two minds about going, I don't want to bypass the normal everyday challenges of western life. There is amazing growth in that also. On the other hand two years is not that long and I would be back to normal western life. I guess maybe the best awnser would be to only go if I feel I have a healthy balanced life so I know I'm not bypassing any underlining issues, would you agree?

@ajasatya Thank you for your reply, yes I agree there will never be a right time. Sounds like you had a very positive time in healing yourself, inspiring to hear, thank you.