r0ckyreed

I would say personality is at number one. Fame and status get you gold diggers or low quality girls. So, I guess you are right that it will get you girls, but just not ones that I would want to be my girlfriend. What I look for is a woman who can fall in love with my own intelligence the way that I do and to love her mind as well. Not very many women I know are existentially-oriented, so it is gonna be a challenge for me. But I will not lower my standards. I’d rather be single than to have a girlfriend/wife that is below my standards. I want someone I can trust, respect, go on outdoor adventures with, who is athletic, who I can meditate with, and who I can have philosophical conversations with. Being with a woman who doesn’t fit that criteria, I am better off just masturbating to my own intelligence.

You make some good points. I am not sure what the stipulations of that law are. But I think it should only be legal for medicinal use and not recreationally. From my experience, legalization = more people using. Because somehow people get this idea that if it is legal, then it is okay. In America, we make a lot of things legal that are destroying adults and youths health. I am more liberal because I don’t think people are wise enough to make responsible choices. If you look at Covid, many people didn’t make the wise choice of choosing vaccines and masks. I am not saying that ice cream should be illegal. But it is the governments job to protect the public and community. If weed is legal recreationally, it will be harder to enforce laws of people using it in the wrong ways such as driving while high, going into restaurants while high. It should be like alcohol that if they catch you using it on the streets, you are getting fined. You need to use the substance in a controlled area like a bar or at your own home. I honestly don’t know the answer to the hard questions, but I exercise caution in legalizing drugs. As much as I want psychedelics legalized, I see so many people even on here abusing them. What do you think the average person will do with these dangerous substances especially with significant mental health issues? I think we honestly need a drug license just like we have a drivers license. People need to see a psychologist and do a psychological evaluation before they are able to have a license to drink, smoke, and use psychedelics. It’s just like gun control. We need drug control. However, that is a whole other issue that I think the USA needs to have a psych eval for that too and not just a background check.

It’s not a good idea. Studies show cannabis destroys the gray matter in your brain, which also correlates with lower levels of concentration, impairment in cognitive functioning, especially when used in adolescence. Not very wise.

Realize that without suffering, there is no conflict. Without conflict, there is no challenge. Without challenge, there is no growth. Without growth, there is no adventure. Without adventure, there is no meaning. Without meaning, there is no creation. Without creation, there is only death.

I know it’s in the guidelines but it doesn’t make sense if you are in a God-Consciousness high where you are in infinite love. People post worse things on here sober. It just seems weird to be discriminatory to states of consciousness, especially in this type of circle. I mean I am naturally high, and I can reach high states in contemplation/meditation that people who smoke weed can get. So, I shouldn’t be allowed to post if I can meditate into a “high” state?

We can’t post in God-Consciousness? WTF. How would you even enforce that rule because it is literally impossible to prove. I could type shfhjsjehshdjwbeheb jsjdhejshs and I could be completely sober but just dumb as hell. I would argue that many sober people post more dumb stuff than people in the God state. To answer the OP’s question. Reality is perfect because reality just is. It exists and in order for something to exist or even possible to exist takes infinite orders of balance and intelligence. You sitting there typing and a person born with Fragile X are perfect because reality includes everything. If reality was just rainbows and butterflies, then it wouldn’t be perfect. It would be unbalanced. There could be no free will if evil cannot exist.

That’s not the reason. It’s because society doesn’t make it a priority. It is a systemic issue with state curriculums and boards. We are all going to face some of these issues in life no matter how prepared we are because we are going to lose our health, our mind, and finances one day.

I am curious as to how me sitting down and focusing on my breath is not going to be a waste of time. 2 years ago, I meditated for 4 hours straight, and it seemed like a complete waste of time. I was sitting, focusing on my breath, and counting my breaths, and that was pretty much it lol. I don't really see how meditation is going to add to any existential understanding of reality. One thing that I did gain from my meditation retreat was that I learned how to deal with discomfort and boredom, but me sitting and counting my breaths didn't add anything else. There was no insight from no thought. It is kind of frustrating because I have read a lot of meditation books, and it just doesn't seem to be as effective as simple contemplation. The only meditation technique that has worked was Leo's Satisfaction Meditation. But that meditation doesn't gain me any insight that reality is imagination. All meditation has ever done for me is give me insights into equanimity and suffering. It seems like I gain more contemplating something for 10 minutes than I ever could from a 2 hour sit. I think a good 10 minute meditation session a day is good, but anything longer than that seems like a waste of time, and one is better off approaching women to see if their meditation practice can hold to the test. I agree with Owen Cook that sitting down and meditating is a waste of time. I can meditate while I am thinking, making a business, and socializing with women. I see the benefits of a 10 minute sit and an occasional 1 hour sit, but there is a threshold to where a certain amount of sitting time on the cushion doesn't add anything more to your life.

Why is there nothing rather than something?

The modern United States Public School System is objectively a waste of time. College is debatable and dependent on one’s study, but public schools K-12 do not teach people how to become wise adults. They just teach math, history, science and English. This alone will not make you wise. Most people’s problems stem from lack of education in their health, psychology, finances, etc. I could have a field year with why K-12 school system is objectively futile.

I have been practicing memento mori - remember, you are mortal, from the Stoics. Reflecting on my mortality and death has allowed me to be more adventurous and courageous in my life because I know this is the only one I get. The teachings of reincarnation and death being imaginary seem like dangerous teachings to me because they dismiss the value of this life and assume that this isn't the only life we live. If I think I am going to live forever, it seems to make me think I have all the time in the world. But the truth is the everyday I grow closer to death. Some people will object saying that "death is imaginary because you are literally imagining that you will die but the only thing you have is this present moment and death is something you are imagining in the future." I don't really agree with this argument because I may be imagining that I am mortal and that death will come, but the reality is that it will. To state this argument is foolish because that's like saying that Sylvester Stallone being dead is imaginary. It is like saying that the tree falling down is imaginary. But the reality is that Sylvester Stallone will die just like Carl Weathers and everyone else before him. The tree will fall down someday. And more babies and more trees will come to existence. Death and mortality might not exist in the immediate present moment and may be something I am thinking about right now, but they are still realities present in the human condition. We can see just how fragile a human being is. To say "death is imaginary" is like saying that "covid and being sick is imaginary" since I am healthy right now. But the reality is that change does exist and is not imaginary. The present moment exists right now and is not imaginary. Everything that you imagine takes place in the present moment of course, but that does not mean that it isn't a reality. Imagination is part of reality. So, therefore, anything I imagine is part of reality. Death is part of reality whether I am imagining it or not. This is what objectivity means. My main criticisms of Actualized Teachings is that they dismiss the concept of "objectivity" and focus on Absolutism and Relativism, but hardly any discussion is on the concept of Objectivity. Objectivity is things that exist whether I am imagining them or not such as gravity, death, and immortality. When I am talking about imagination, I am using that synonomously with thinking. At a higher level, the Universe is creating reality, but at my human level, my human imagination is not creating reality in the same way the Universe is. For instance, I cannot imagine myself being immortal and it becoming true. I cannot change the laws of Consciousness/Physics/Gravity because these things are being "Imagined" by the Universe, which the Universe's power exceeds my egoic power. So, objectivity does exist. People can be wrong about reality. Why would we argue if people couldn't be wrong? Ever thought about that? If it was all just opinion and subjective, then there would be no point in arguing because to say your opinion is more true than someone else's would be a subjective statement, and, hence, you would be contradicting yourself. Saying that death is imaginary is like saying that being blind is imaginary. Sure, I am imagining blindness and I am not blind right now, but if I stick a knife in my eye, I will become blind. I don't need to actually stick a knife in my eye to prove that this will happen. That is just foolish. Me knowing that blindness will happen without directly experiencing it is an example of implicit/intuitive understanding. All I am trying to express is that we should balance the teachings of death being an illusion with the teachings of death being a reality. Death of Consciousness may be an illusion at a higher level, but the death of this human experience is a reality waiting to happen just like how a seed is bound to grow into a tree, and then the tree is bound to fall over. That is its fate. Our human fate is to turn to bones. I find it helpful to reflect on my mortality rather than my immortality so that I can be ambitious in life. I may reincarnate after this lifetime, but I am not going to attach myself to that belief system. I am going to live like this is the only life I get, and I am going to put all of my effort, ambition, discipline, and love into creating the best ego I can create. What are your thoughts?

I’m thinking a short 5 minute daily practice in morning and evening would be good for me and then go and experience life while I am still alive. I never know when I will die. I don’t want to spend my existence in a monastery or cave. I want to spend it being adventurous, curious, and ambitious. Awakening is mysterious, and I believe it can happen when I least expect it.

I watched the Samadhi Documentary. It is good. Anybody else have any good documentaries?

Mega Thread for sharing the best spiritual documentaries. Please share yours! Here is mine: Limitless with Chris Hemsworth

He's referring to it in the context of insight, which is what I am referring to as "a waste of time" in this thread. There is no denying that meditating can give me peacefulness, but truth and bliss aren't the same thing.

I will just have to find the time to do a more intensive meditation retreat. The main thing that is holding me back is that I have 120 hours of paid vacation time per year, and I honestly would rather use that time to travel and go on adventures around the world than to spend all that time, confining myself in one room, one space, just sitting and meditating. Maybe confining myself in extreme solitude like that could elevate my consciousness, but I just have too much of an adventurous personality to just sit still and do nothing.

Thanks! So since death is real and imaginary, I still think it is helpful to live as if I will die and only have one life. That way I savor it and enjoy it to the fullest. I honestly go back and forth and see both sides to YOLO and Reincarnation. I personally lean more on the side of YOLO when I find myself being complacent and shy to talk to girls. But I see Reincarnation being true when I am thinking about where existence is going.

Look up what a straw man is and then reread my entire post.

False! I wrote a post about memento mori, and he responded that he does the opposite practice of living as if he will never die.

No. It is the idea that when you die, you will go to Heaven and have 69 virgins waiting for you. If people realized that this is it, they might be filled with more love instead of hate and not throw their life away.

But NDE’s are also imaginary. If we say that Death is imaginary, then Life has to be imaginary since it is its opposite. But then if imagination is the opposite of reality, then there is no difference between reality and imagination. So, therefore, death is imagination and reality. I am imagining it right now because death is also reality. If it wasn’t, then all those shootings and COVID are also imaginary.

What are some of your recommended meditation retreats? I want to see if I can level up my meditation because I realize that this is my only life, and I want to dive deep into the nature of reality and suffering. I would love to go to the Himalayan Mountains someday. I am thinking about going to the Himalayan Mountains this Summer, but I am open to it. Ever since I got heartbroken from my previous relationship, I want to get back into spirituality. Please share your thoughts on meditation retreats that you found were amazing for your growth. I want to invest in traveling and going to meditation retreats, as well as hiking in the mountains such as the Himalayan Mountains. Thanks!

Is there such a thing as an Absolute distinction? If not, then how do relative distinctions even exist in the first place? If there is, then what is an absolute distinction? I feel like you aren’t making a distinction between objectivism and absolutism. Objectivism and Absolutism aren’t the same. I thought I did a great job at distinguishing relative and absolute in my original post. I said death is an illusion at the level of the Universe but not at the level of a human being. What more can I do? We are basically saying the same thing. I am just saying that it isn’t practical to live as if death doesn’t exist. It doesn’t even fit reality. Birth and death are happening all around us inside the Universe. It is kind of redundant to say absolute death doesn’t exist because the whole concept of death is something that is inside the Universe, which means that the Universe itself is not subjugated to that reality.

Amen.

It’s as if truth-seeking is a meaningless pursuit in the most literal sense because all meaning is false-seeking. We have to live in some falsehood in order to even have a chance at understanding. For instance, even though food and sleep are hallucinations, I still need to engage in those illusions to live. I just don’t see how Truth can’t also be practical. Realizing that the ego is an illusion is so useful because I no longer need to take myself and reality so seriously. I don’t have anxiety when I am in alignment with Truth.