Raptorsin7

@Meditationdude @Matt8800 What is the dark knight? I'm doing self inquiry work right now and I've yet to breakthrough but is something I should prepare for?

@Nahm Very well written! (: Your explanation of self inquiry was perfect, I feel like I know to where I go with my inquiry now. As for the concentration practice I've been doing a few minutes per day of focusing on a metronome before any meditation or study sessions so ill definitely keep that up. Thank you so much for your help, I see how much work you do on the forum and its very inspiring. I was worried no one was going to answer my question here haha. Good luck with whatever you're pursuing my guy

@Nahm Do you think its possible to achieve this state if it is viewed as an ability of the self/ego. This is how I view the non-dual state at the moment. Do you think its bad to view it as such?

@Nahm Can you produce the non-dual state mentioned above at will? Or do you require requisite conditions like @Serotoninluv

Not sure about what you're experiencing, but be careful not to get attached to pleasurable or interesting feelings that arise during meditation. Just be with the experience and don't attach or pull away. Just my two cents, but i'm not enlightened so take it with a grain of salt.

@Aakash Do you think my aversion to your ideas is based solely on my own ignorance? Can you not see that countless people throughout history have claimed to know god/truth? Why should I accept your truth and disregard the truth of the schizo homeless person shouting at me on the street? What you are saying sounds CRAZY. Think about whether or not what you say might actually be CRAZY.

@Aakash So synchronicity is god? That sounds so crazy man. I feel like the only people you will attract to this message are psychologically disturbed people. Maybe there is another way to relay this message or something. You seem genuine, but this makes me very uneasy. Good luck (:

Who's synchronicity?

What do you want me to do?

Does anyone have experience with Loch Kelly's meditation courses? I understood he teaches a variant of dzogchen, and given i've been doing self inquiry work i was wondering if his teachings could be useful. Also, if you have any useful guided self inquiry meditations i would appreciate that as well. Thank you.

I'm having difficult fully letting go during inquiry. When the mind gives the instruction to fully let go there is a lot of resistance, and it usually ends with a giant gasp of air after a few seconds of attempting to let go. After the mind says "let it go" there is a usually a few moments of what seems to be an attempt to surrender to the present moment but it only lasts a few moments. Does this sound like i'm on the right track with inquiry or have i hit a dead end? Any insights would be appreciated.

I am at a point in my inquiry where I cannot identify any experience as being "me" or "I". When the thought arises "I am ___" I can turn attention on the thought and in that moment the though feels different. I recognize clearly the awareness quality of experience, for example. when I turn attention on the feeling in my face/my head I can recognize that I am aware of this even though there is no actual person or self being aware. I have yet to have a genuine experience of no self and i'm curious what I should be doing in my self inquiry at this point to facilitate some sort of breakthrough. I have heard that no self can be recognized in each moment of experience, and in that sense it makes every experience profound and interesting. Will the awakening be clear in that there is no mistaking that I have recognized the intrinsic selflessness of consciousness or is it possible for someone to who have awakened this realization without a clear "aha" moment. Does anyone remember being at this stage of their journey, and remember what they did to move forward with the inquiry?

For those who have successfully woken up to the truth of no-self through self-inquiry or some other form, is the realization stable whenever you look for it or does it need to be consistently cultivated over time. How will I know when I've broken through or if I am just tricking myself into believing I've achieved something when that's not it.

Thanks everyone for the responses. Good luck with your paths (:

@Juan Cruz Giusto Haha when I achieve any sort of awakening I will definitely do a detailed post about everything I put into the process. Now I just I gotta make sure the universe doesn't kill me before I get there (:

I've been doing self inquiry for 1 hour per day and I've begun a concentration practice of 10 minutes of listening to a metronome three times per day. Furthermore, during my self inquiry I have been turning attention on the feeling of my head/ the feeling I am behind my eyes and I've been feeling pressure in my forehead for about a week now, which I hear is a good thing because of the effect on my third eye/ pineal gland but idk. I'm curious what to expect in the coming months, how will I know if I'm making progress and what positive things do I have to look forward too?

@Aakash Ahh very interesting. I'm not interested in absolute truth, although I guess after exhausting my interests I'm going to come to the conclusion that what I've been searching for has always been absolute truth, i'm more interested in improving my fitness, my self image, my overall happiness and relationships. Is enlightenment going to be beneficial on this path? Also, do you think an hour of self inquiry and a mild concentration is enough to gain all the insights you just mentioned or am I going to need DMT and LSD to get there?

@Aakash So then why pursue this at all? If the end of the game Is to end up right where I am now then I wouldn't want to keep playing haha. There must be some benefit or something to self inquiry? Has your spiritual path had any effect on worldly aspects of success like fitness, relationships, self esteem etc?

@Aakash It is difficult to follow what you're saying given my experience is all dualistic. I know you mean well and I appreciate you taking time to help myself and others but I know for myself and i'm sure many others I just can't make sense of a lot of what you say because i haven't had those kinds of experiences. How should I interrupt what you say from your perspective?

@Inliytened1 Thank you very much for your insights. It feels good to know i'm close even though idk how close I really am haha. When I achieve some sort of break through with self inquiry ill definitely post about it and I hope to hear your thoughts. Good luck with your path man.

@Aakash ahh thank's for clarifying that. Do you really believe that reality is infinite in the sense that if I imagined my self as having the abilities of superman I could actually manifest those powers? Do you believe in some limits like the laws of our universe etc? I'm not trying to denigrate that idea because clearly we are only on the cusp of what is possible in this universe, but some of the more out there claims regarding enlightenment I've always just dismissed but i'm curious to what you think is possible.

@Inliytened1 I think no self is losing the identification with the "I" of the mind so you can just observe it and not follow it as if that's all there is to me. As far as the feeling in my head, I understand that it doesn't need to be there and I would exist just fine if my awareness were to just focus on anything I am focusing on rather than default to this position. I feel like there is the world and my awareness, and I can shine my awareness on everything in the world and that is all there is. But to be honest i'm not sure, all the jargon surrounding enlightenment like I am the world and I am love etc etc sounds great and If I experienced a major awareness shift I wouldn't be shocked because I've spent a lot of time thinking about this stuff, its just I don't experience any of this stuff in my own experience so it all rings hollow.

@Aakash What kind of traps should I watch out for?

@Inliytened1 The issue is I have watched so many videos on no self that my understanding Is beyond what I experience. For example, I know I'm not the feeling behind my eyes because I feel nothing there when i'm sleeping or focused on reading, yet I still exist in a general sense. However, I would say that my awareness identifies most strongly with the feeling in my head/the feeling behind my eyes, for example when I stop and try to be mindful while writing this paragraph my awareness goes right to the pressure in my head. I'm just powering through with the practices right now, and i'm about to start ashtanga yoga in a few days, but i'm not sure how I can make my direct experience catch up with my knowledge on the subject.

@TrynaBeTurquoise Ooo i did the float tank for about year before i got seriously into self inquiry ill definitely try it.