Ludwig

@Saitama That's a natural thing that will come out of your practice. If you're only conscious on your meditation cushion it's completly useless.

That's what i wanted to point out. It's not about sitting 24 hours a day. Although that can be a valid thing too. It's about continuing the practice whereever you are. And again that's not a strict rule, it's a very natural thing that comes forth on it's own if one is genuine in his intent.

@Saitama By this i mean the end of self, the end of self delusion. Or better a seeing through the net of self entanglement. I'm just practically speaking, of course there is no end to the path as the deconstruction of self endlessly continues. And there is also no self to beginn with. With Zazen for example you can sit just through all the layers of this self delusion. You sit through thoughts till they are gone. Then sit through emotions till they are gone. Sit through pain, sit through your unconscious mind. Sit through your body. Until there is not a single thing left. It's a 24/7 practice, like any other serious practice. If you think you can only meditate for 2h a day and become enlightened you never ever will. And people do this for 40 years and think they get better at Zen while they haven't taken a single step. 24/7 doesen't mean you meditate all day and you're conscious in every instant. It means that you can't live a self-centered life anymore, that the burning of wanting to know the truth is always with you. Although you might not always be aware of it. This burning grows and grows it becomes who you are, it eats up your life. By that i mean every concious instant becomes practice for you. You contemplate whenever you are conscious, being with friends becomes it's own practice, every free minute is filled with the longing to come back home. It's a very natural thing and need not to be forced in any way. THAN Zazen becomes beautiful. You can just give everything you have. Sitting meditation is the simplest thing ever, you don't have to do anything, so giving all of your self to that is way easier than applying yourself in everyday life. Of course sooner or later these distinctions merge together. I hope this helps. Much love.

It's just a lable. Genuine Zen Masters would never call themselves Zen Master. "Zen Masters" are regular guys just like you and me who happened to realize who they are through means of Zen. (e.g. Zazen, Sitting through themselves till there is nothing left) Zen is just one method where you can give all of yourself to whatever you are doing. It's not about sitting on a meditation cushion at all although it's one aspect of it. If taken to the very end it's a beautiful way.

Yes, last september i had a great shift in perspective. I can also second you @Kevin Dunlop, i had so many magical "coincidences" that have cracked little me open in many ways. In 2012 also I was at my lowest point and then had my first big shift that i'm able to turn it around. It's truly an exiting time to dream this life.

@Algi If you watch a video it's on the bottom in the right corner. Next to the fullscreen symbol there is a wheel symbol. If you click it you can set the speed of the video. If you can't find it just google how to increase the speed on youtube. There might be even Youtube videos on how to do that.

One simple thing everyone can do. Mumble 'I love you' to every person that crosses your path during the day, to every situation you encounter. It's beyond words what life reflects back to you. Such a fairytale this life is. If you think life is not fair it will grant you this wish. If you think you're not loving and seperate it will grant you this wish. How loving this is.

I invite you to check out his trinfinity academy. There's a 14 day trial that is free. He takes you through the whole journey from two different angles. Also if you get deeper into his material it's apperent that he's not about New-Age Hippie stuff. His understanding goes far beyond many spiritual teachers. If you do the free trial you can watch the recording of his recent retreat in Hawaii. I'm not a fanboy of him but this stuff is among the best self-realisation material out there. (If you allow yourself to be openminded) But please see for yourself.

@Ayla Beautiful drawing.

@Ayla Tomorrow 7th March. Maybe someone of you want to join. Music, guided meditations etc. Livestream: http://mahashivarathri.org/live/

For years this physical persona was depressed, anxious, sceptic, ignorant, alone. I desired to experience Myself in this way. So grateful. At my lowest point so many beautiful beings entered my life. I want to express my deepest gratitude to all the guiding reflections of Myself who showed me what Love is. All of you where there when I needed you. In chronological order of encountering. Representative for SO MANY OTHERS. Thank you Hermann Hesse (Siddhartha) Thank you Toni Robbins Thank you Eckhart Tolle Thank you Alan Watts Thank you Shinzen Young Thank you Jed McKenna Thank you Elliot Hulse Thank you Leo Gura Thank you Mooji Thank you Shunryu Suzuki Thank you Muho Noelke Thank you my real life blood and flesh guru Thank you Sadhguru Thank you Adyashanti Thank you Yogananda Thank you Deepak Chopra Thank you Rupert Spira Thank you Francis Lucille Thank you Fred Davies Thank you Scott Kiloby Thank you Bernadette Roberts Thank you Bentinho Massaro And THANK YOU to COUNTLESS others. Thank you also for all the everyday life teachers and situations. LOVE YOU ALL. May many more be helped by these beautiful souls

@99th_monkey Is there an "ear" to be shut? An "eye" to open? A "smell" to notice?

@Ayla Life is calm. Death is calm. It's not apart from Myself. I see this body. I see this room. I see this life. I see the universe alive. I see the universe dying. Every bit of creation. The galaxies erased like they've never existed. I see this beautiful dream. I see my creation. I can't let it go. I love this life. The whole world gone forever, And I'm still there.

@99th_monkey Look closely at yourself. And see if there is such a thing as "red".

My heart is beating. So loud i can hardly focus on anything else. This time I will do it. My hands are sweating. Breath shallow. This time I will do it. My whole body feels contracted. I can hardly speak a word. This time I will do it. I'm so alone in this fearful place. How can I ever move on with my life? For so long I told myself this story. This time I'll conquer my anxieties. Anxiety everywhere. Looking back on this long journey, I'm filled with joy and gratitude. In every instant I was in your hands. I needed every bit you've showed me on my way. You opened my heart to Beauty and Love. Thank you. Thank you for showing me what I'm not. Thank you for allowing me to share in the suffering of others. Thank you for removing my armour of self-protection. Let this body love you with every molecule of my being. For ever.

Anyone interested in these things: Go check out Bentinho Massaro. If you're not familiar with the way he speaks it might seem like New Age crap. But he's actually damn enlightened and very smart.

@WelcometoReality Is there something outside of awareness? And if not: Is there something inside awareness?

What is your question behind this work @Vercingetorix? Why are you meditating? You want to be enlightened? Why do you want to be enlightened? Get clear with that for yourself. Otherwise it's just a nice hobby to do once in a while. Do you see what your mind is doing here? "I meditated for so long, i earn at least a glimps of enlightenment". You can only practice from where you are right here and now. Everything else is just a story in your mind that never existed. Don't waste time learning about the molecular structure of the banana, how to scientifically peal it etc. Just take a bite and you know everything you need to know. What is the question under your feet that drives you?

@MartineF That's fine. You're right were you need to be. Just keep your heart and mind open, no need to have a special direction. I 've read and watched videos from so many traditions until after many hours i felt saturated. At some point you hardly hear something new, but you beginn to recognise more and more the similarities in the different approaches of the same thing. You'll beginn to see the same beauty in the approach of the rigid zen master as in the all is love teachings. Don't used the teachings to enlarge your knowledge about spirituality but rather to cut away layer after layer of your false knowing or ignorance. Let your perspective naturally broaden as your limiting believes about yourself decrease more and more. I hope this helps.

@MartineF It's the same like being pregnant and than suddenly seeing pregnant women everywhere. If the genuine intention is within you you cannot possibly avoid finding the right teacher. You will notice more and more signs everywhere you look and in the end the teacher finds you. I know this sounds very cheesy and woo-woo but that's what i (and many others) experienced. My mind still cannot believe the coincidences that let me to my "guru". So stay openminded, look around. See what tradition fits your personal character and then go see some people that seem genuine. You will know it when you found him (or her). Here is a great article on finding a teacher: http://scienceandnonduality.com/?post_type=post&p=92914 I hope this helps. @WelcometoReality Yes. Enlightenment has to be brought to life. Manifesting your nondual understanding in your everyday actions. As you can see less and less of yourself remains. That's fine, but you still have a persona, a role to play here. Sticking with this "non-dual state" is another illusion. So again it has to come ALIVE in our conditioned, relative world full of old habits etc...

@WelcometoReality I encourage you to find a genuine teacher. It's very helpful to be guided in these post-awakening stages as the teacher will point out your "sweet spots" and offers the surroundings to release them. Enlightenment is really just the beginning of the path. The implications of awakening to ones true nature should be worked out in all areas of ones life. Very gentle with great compassion for oneself. Getting guidence from the internet or books is a completely different thing than sitting opposite to another self-realized person.

@asgard94 The yogic system avoids it. Also other things you cannot eat raw like onions or eggplant. It's said it drains your energy (negative pranic foods). Also your body will not survive a larger portion of these things and even has some physical reactions (crying) against it. Other things like lemon or greens are considered positive pranic foods because they vitalize your system. As far as i can see there is some truth behind it even though i haven't experienced with it that much.