Beginner Mind

It seems to me that most Christians are just believing strange things rather than exploring the nature of reality for themselves.

I used to believe in this stuff, but no longer. All is well, everything is happening as it should, and you don't need any confirmation from an 'angel sign' to know this.

@Moksha Love your posts. You're one of the few influential people here who don't rely on psychedelics, which I appreciate.

@SS10 Great topic. Glad you asked. I have meditated both with music and without, and I personally prefer music. I feel that it nicely sets the mood, compliments the peace that is experienced when resting as awareness. I highly recommend anything by Kip Mazuy. Here's a taste of what he offers:

@BipolarGrowth I'm surprised you've been allowed to record in the hospital. When I was in the psych ward, taking photos or recordings were not permitted. Anyway, I wish you the best dude. I get a good compassionate vibe from you.

My favorite right now is "Being Aware of Being Aware" by Rupert Spira.

@Swarnim You are very wise for such a young age.

No problem. I lived in a small town on the southern coast, just above Jeju island. Yes I taught English there, in the public school system. It was difficult at first but once I got the hang of it, it was probably the easiest job I've had. Things I liked: definitely the food. Kimchi, Tappoki, Gimbap. Good stuff. I enjoyed the natural beauty of Korea. I enjoyed the people, my Korean co-workers, strangers. I found the people to be generally friendly, although not all Koreans are happy to have foreigners living there. Things I disliked: It's very difficult to find deodorant there. If you end up living there, bring lots of deodorant!

I spent a year in South Korea. I enjoyed it for the most part. I was surprised by how Christianity flourishes there. It seemed to be even more popular than Buddhism.

@spiritualryan I should also mention that the question "Am I aware?" is completely worthless unless you already know what it means to be aware. If you are not able to identify the experience of being aware, this question will do you no good. Like I said in my previous post: Just be, knowingly. And patiently wait for the peace to emerge. This is literally all you have to do. There, I just saved you from years of spiritual seeking. You're welcome.

@spiritualryan The simplest way to be aware of being aware, in my experience, is to just be, knowingly. That is, sit comfortably, just be, and be aware of the fact that you're just being. This is being aware of being aware. Rupert makes being aware of being aware sound complicated (probably to sell more books and satsangs). In reality, being aware of being aware isn't complicated at all.

@Swarnim Someone wiser than myself described their process very similarly to yours. It's not my approach but I'm sure it's worthwhile.

There are no "fireworks" when you become aware of being aware. It's extremely ordinary. The only thing that stands out about it is the peace you feel. And as I said in my initial post, this peace can take some time to emerge. So meditators may think, "Where is the peace? I must be doing this wrong." I believe that many people actually do "being aware of being aware" correctly, but because they don't experience instant peace, they give up. If the pointer "Just be, knowingly" doesn't work for you, I also recommend this pointer: Notice the fact that you are experiencing anything at all. Both of these pointers have worked well for me in the past. Let me know if you have any other questions and I'll do my best to answer them.

If you're reading this right now, chances are you're familiar with this teaching from Rupert Spira, the teaching of "Being Aware of Being Aware". If you're anything like me, you've found this instruction confusing, difficult to put into practice. I've spoken in the past about ways to do this successfully, but here I'd like to share what I've found to be the simplest way of 'being aware of being aware'. Are you ready for it? Here it is: Just be, knowingly. That is, just be, and be aware of the fact that you are just being. That's it. It's that simple. How does this work? Well, basically, your Beingness is aware, awareness itself (your true nature). So to place your attention on just Being is to place your attention on Awareness. To just be, knowingly, is to be aware of being aware. I hope this clears up some confusion for some of you who have struggled with this practice. I should also mention: patience is required for this practice. Don't expect the experience of peace to happen instantly. It usually takes time for the peace to emerge. Good luck!

"Just be" has been the most helpful pointer for me of late. However, I would add one component to that instruction, which is: Just be, KNOWINGLY. That is, just be, and be aware that you are just being. If you are just being but not doing it knowingly, it's possible you will get lost in thinking or lost in 'la la land'. The key to properly just being, for me, has been to do it knowingly. This is the exact same practice as "being aware of being aware", though simpler to execute I find.