Emily

Has this happened to anyone else and is there any way I can channel this energy?... I've been meditating about four times a day for the last week but before that I've not done much 'sitting' meditation for a while (yoga is my preferred form of meditation usually). These last three days I've been experiencing this pulsating energy. It was strongest the first time it happened - I was really present and alert, then my heart started beating fast, my breath sped up and this energy started pulsating through my body. Felt really intense and I tried to stay with it and let it be, not knowing what it was. Eventually it lessened. It wasn't unpleasant but now literally every single time I've meditated since, this pulsating energy has happened again, as soon as I try to go into my inner body. It's becoming uncomfortable cos most of the muscles in my body seem to spasm/pulse as it's happening, even when I try to relax and breathe into it. I told the monk (I'm at a Buddhist center) yesterday (when I wasn't yet frustrated with the occurrences) and he just said "let it be". I'm hoping if I do let it be it'll go away but if anyone knows what it is and how to clear any blockages that may be the result of this, I'd be immensely grateful! Thanks for reading

This sounds pretty interesting/mad! Will give it a go, thanks!

Thanks Martin, I did consider that Now I just need to learn how to channel that energy properly I guess!

Impressive. I'm currently reading this for the second time. Really like its 'perspective' on the after life.

Only just seen this - haven't logged in for too long. Left Dubai in March and am now traveling around the globe in search of something more (that ol chestnut). There's tonnes of cabin crew working in Dubai. Not a bad job if you're young and wanna see the world I guess.

Documentary being released later this year: "Samadhi is so simple that when you are told what it is and how to realise it your mind will always miss it because the mind is what needs to stop before it is realised." Trailer: http://thespiritscience.net/2016/02/28/this-amazing-video-samadhi-will-awaken-you-from-the-illusion-that-is-seperateness/

Thank goodness you dropped the orgasm analogy for this part

What about an app for smartphones/tablets?

Disagree - it's worked well for me. Are you basing your statement on experience or merely struggling to believe that it could work?

It's great to be respected but it's better not to care what other people think

Is there a members list?

Touché (or nice swerve!)

Now. Because that's all we ever have. But time is an illusion, no? There's only ever now...

Would love to live in a world where there's been a shift in consciousness that tips the balance so more people than not are 'awake'. Would be interesting to see what that looks like. Some of my 'ego' desires are to live a simple life, in nature, somewhere green like Bali. Spend my time doing yoga, eating healthily, spending time with my soul mate and our dogs, sailing, seeing the world, hiking, seeing friends & family, doing some life coaching / helping those less fortunate.. (although the ultimate dream would be that people don't need coaching, and that everyone is equal in terms of health/wealth)...

Personally I don't really see an issue with taking a break from actualization work if it's starting to feel like too much of a chore. Maybe take a few days off then see how you feel. It should be mainly enjoyable and not too painful IMHO. When you do return to it, maybe look into books/videos about finding your life purpose

Thanks for sharing, interesting story. I'm more spiritual than religious, so whenever I read about God I prefer to substitute it for 'universe', and would say that this guy is correct. He is God/the universe, and you are too, as am I, as are we all. We are all 'one' - all stardust which is part of a larger cosmos of energy, currently manifesting in human form.

Lots of other topics on this book http://www.actualized.org/forum/search/?&q=%22power%20of%20now%22

No but it's nice to have!

Comparing yourself to others is the ego doing its ego thing! The only person you should try to be better than, is the person you were yesterday (as the saying goes)

Hi Rosie. I also did Rio alone. You definitely have to keep your wits about you when it comes to crime out there but as long as you're sensible (ie don't go to dangerous places alone at night like Copacabana beach / the Favellas), it's all good

I'm also considering doing one, although ideally would start off with one for a week or less. This article from The Guardian by Lavanya Sankaran, who wrote The Hope Factory, has some useful info. Vipassana meditation retreats: enjoy the silence For me, 10 days of monastic living, deep meditation and not uttering a word to anyone is the ultimate in emotional cleansing Lavanya Sankaran Sunday 9 June 2013 19.00 BST Last modified on Saturday 16 January 2016 02.56 GMT There's this thing I do, every now and then. I will step away from the comforts of my life: my spouse and child, my home and dog. I pack a small bag with two pairs of old linen trousers, three T-shirts, a thin cotton wrap and flip-flops. Then I make the trek to a Vipassana meditation centre and begin a monastic life for 10 days. These centres are scattered around India and all over the world. I have been making this trip for more than 10 years, varying my location each time. Wherever you go the retreat has an identical structure and discipline: 10 days of silence, meditating from 4am to 9pm, with short breaks for meals and rest. You rapidly get used to this routine. The morning wakeup bell at 3.45am is followed by a quick bath in warm water, then a silent walk to the main meditation hall, which can seat 200. We sit in our designated spots and meditate until breakfast, a simple vegetarian meal consumed in silence. More meditation, this time alone in our tiny cells – a room no bigger than a sofa and lit only by a round window near the ceiling – until lunch at 11am. After a short period of rest there is more meditation from 1pm to 5pm. Then a glass of lime juice and a brisk walk in the designated area. A lecture, where we learn the theory behind our meditative experiences, more meditation and bed at 9.30pm. Men and women are segregated throughout the compound; we live and eat separately. Returning meditators may get a room of their own, but newbies usually have to share. Those on retreat include students, corporate executives, artists, housewives; rich and poor. One of the great principles of Vipassana is that no fee is charged. Centres are instead maintained by the donations of those who have completed a meditation course. This opens the doors to everyone and places every meditator in the position of being a bhikshu (monk), who for those 10 days possesses nothing. It is very humbling and wonderfully freeing. Vipassana means "to see things as they really are". It is a pre-Buddhist meditation technique that was revitalised and popularised by Gautama Buddha 2,500 years ago. The instructions, played out over the speakers, are straightforward: observe your breath for three days, then observe your body for seven. Simple, the way instructions for running a marathon can be made reductively simple: take a step or two; continue for 26.2 miles in a speedy fashion. Sitting still and silent on my cushion, I learn that observing my breath at the point where it exits the nostrils focuses the brain. That by observing my breath, I am learning to observe myself. Anger and peace at the subtlest level are all in my breath. For breath, I learn, is spirit itself. As the practice deepens, my chaotic thoughts and emotions, memories fond and painful, yield all manner of sensations: pain in my joints, leaps in my chest, tingling behind my neck. I am told not to suppress them, but not to chase after them either. I am simply to observe them on their journey through me. When emotions are observed, not suppressed or amplified, they filter through quicker, leaving a smaller residue behind. Sensations rise and pass. Just observe, they say. Don't react. This is unbelievably difficult. The journey deepens. Heavier sensations dissolve from the body and awareness sharpens. Meditating for hours is throwing myself wide open: I am part of a rush of energy far bigger than myself. When I step out of my cell, the world is unimaginably bright. I notice the intense flavour of steamed rice; the music of distant everyday voices. I am extraordinarily peaceful. I carry this peace back with me to my daily life, along with the clarity and mindfulness that only peace can bring. That is one kind of experience, but not all Vipassana retreats have been filled with peace. One, in particular, undertaken when I was under severe emotional stress, stands out. I stepped inside, and was blasted by the anger and fear and hurt and sorrow that I had packaged away in my daily life. These feelings brought forth tears and heat and chills and fever as they rose to the surface – so many layers that it seemed as if it would never end. The discipline required to just observe the sensations as they happened, to not distract myself from them, to not run away, was enormous. Layer by layer they rose, in full force, before lifting away months of anguish and suffering. At the end I was drained, exhausted, limp – but cleaned out. The gift of Vipassana to my writing life is unparalleled: my relationship with words is more intense and playful; I am sensitive not just to my work but how I work. The way I observe people changes – I am able to step away from myself more easily, from the constraints of my own life and experience and understand them for who they are. I am both faster in the things I do, and calmer in the manner I do them. My world is lighter and yet more meaningful. Vipassana is the single most powerful thing I do. The Hope Factory by Lavanya Sankaran is published by Tinder Press http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/09/vipassana-meditation-retreats-enjoy-silence

Originally from the UK. Spent the last three years living in Dubai, UAE. Am I the only one!? Leaving in just over a month anyway

31, although age is but a number and time is an illusion

After I finished uni I did one of those standard round-the-world routes. Started off with a friend but she ran out of money half way through and frankly was miserable anyway. When she left I started having the best time. Felt so liberating being able to please myself, do what I want, talk to who I want, go where I want... Since then I've done a lot more solo traveling around Asia and South America. Doing another round-the-world trip starting in April, including training to be a yoga instructor, probably in India. I have a friend who wants to come with me for part of it but I'll leave before her and if her (or my) plans change I'll happily do it alone. You meet some fantastic people from all different cultures, and it's pretty eye-opening. Highly recommend it if you can get over the initial fear

Too many amazing quotes to list them all, but one that's resonated with me recently is: Life asked death: "Why do people love me but hate you?" Death responded: "Because you are a beautiful lie and I am a painful truth."