Moksha

You can be in human form with a harmonized mind. It's true the vast majority of humans identify so closely with their conditioned thoughts that it's impossible for them to realize any space from them. They sense that something is wrong, but seek for solutions outside of themselves, rather than realizing the absolute within. Relative reality, including the human mind trying to make sense of the cosmos, is overwhelmingly complex. There is no solution to the conceptual labyrinth, other than leaving it entirely. I'm referring to absolute reality, which is profoundly simple. Direct realization stops the mind in its tracks. From your comments, I feel that you haven't realized the absolute directly yet. When it happens, there are no questions to be answered. The what/why/how/when/where that constantly consumes the mind is dissipated by the light that is your essence. It is the perpetual flow state, and the deeper your realization, the brighter the light shines. I can't describe it for you, but when it happens, there is no doubt and it is clear there is nothing to be solved. I agree that as humans, we have far greater potential compared to other creatures on this planet. Evolution has developed life to the point where we are capable of objective awareness. We can live lucidly, enjoying transient phenomena without losing our true identity in the process.

The conditioned mind holds two contradictory beliefs: 1) Reality is inordinately complex, 2) Reality can be comprehended. Neither of these beliefs is actually true. Absolute reality is too simple and too deep for the mind to grasp. It is directly realized, or not at all. Thoughts, feelings, and perceptions are phenomenally blind to it. Until the absolute within the form realizes itself, it will misidentify with the person instead of being beyond it. The only healing for the psyche is the harmony of absolute realization. The light of the absolute dissolves the conditioned attachments of the mind, leaving only the slightest attraction, like the sun being orbited by the earth, just enough to keep the system intact within the dream. Direct realization doesn't require solving anything. It is all about dissolving.

I entirely agree. Whatever breaks the chains of your conditioned mind will set you free. I don't care if it's 5-Me0, meditation, or suffering. Choose whatever boat is most reliable in crossing the river to the other shore, which is direct realization of the absolute within. If you find yourself constantly rowing on the surface of imagination without reprieve, try another boat. Once you are across, release the boat back into the river, and thrive in the lucidity of being.

That 1% though is the anadrome of dogma.

I was referring to the inability of the human mind to comprehend absolute reality. Einstein could only see the tail of the lion, but still he understood that life is less about defragging reality than about directly realizing the light that you are and living lucidly. The years of anxious searching in the dark, with their intense longing, their alternations of confidence and exhaustion, and final emergence into light—only those who have experienced it can understand that. Let us not forget that human knowledge and skills alone cannot lead humanity to a happy and dignified life. Live sober without suffering for a day, and see yourself and the cosmos with new eyes. Everything is seamlessly brilliant, blindingly so to the mind, when you are lucid.

I'm glad it is helpful, and relate to your experience. Awakening is only the beginning. After your eyes open, you have to learn to remain awake despite whatever waves life sends crashing your way. For me, the storms actually intensified after the honeymoon period of being awake. I hope it isn't the same for you, but I had to go through an even deeper suffering to drive the realization home, beyond the suffering that woke me up in the first place. The mind is an amazingly stubborn beast before it submits to being tamed.

Words again, but direct realization is beyond understanding. Your mind is incapable of making any sense of it. When I say there are levels of enlightenment, I am referring to the brightness of the light, not to its nature. The absolute intensifies or diminishes its light, but it is always light. Whatever is illuminated by the absolute is its creation. In the absence of the light, whether human, elephant, or alien, it is nothing. Call it maya, imagination, or the cosmos, none of it is absolutely real. Ask whether your journey is focused on exploring the jungle of creation, or on intensifying the absolute within. The more transparent your form, the greater the light that will shine through you.

Every word is conceptual, including imagination and pretending. They are at best pointers to reality, which is why when attempting to describe it they "turn back frightened". When I write, people usually only see the words, without looking beyond them to where they point.

Absolutely sure, and entirely ignorant of everything else Direct realization is where absolute meets relative reality. It is the purest expression of the absolute. Lucidity is the paradoxical intersection of seeing clearly, even within the dream. All forms, thoughts, feelings, experiences, and epiphanies are seen to be imagination, or the absolute pretending to be other than it is. Comprehension is always conceptual. It is imagination imagining itself. A fun game but not absolute truth, which is only directly realized.

@Brandon Nankivell Great example and self-awareness. It becomes easier to tune out the castigation of the ego when you realize that not only is it unnecessary, it is distracting and destructive. The human mind is more brilliant than we give it credit for. The simple realization that daydreaming can result in fewer grapes being harvested is enough to make you more aware in the future. The lesson passes through you, and its essence stays with you, without needing to constantly berate yourself about it. If anything, self-recrimination makes future mistakes more likely, not less.

Exactly They are opposite ends of the same stick. How can something sleep or awaken that isn't ultimately real? The mystery is that absolute reality is within and beyond the dream. It has the capacity to show and hide itself from itself.

Do you see that absolute reality is beyond understanding and is only directly realized? What is there to understand that is not imagination?

Transcending suffering is the beginning of living lucidly. Attention is the currency of life, and we profligately spend it without regard to the return on our investment. So many wasted years trapped inside my head pursuing false fears and promises, instead of letting go and flying. Don't get caught down the rabbit hole tunneling for transient realizations, no matter how mind-blowing they seem at the time. It's like eating an entire bag of potato chips in a single sitting. Tastes great, but when the bag is empty you are still hungry. The only realization needed is the direct realization of who you are. Once you see clearly, you are finally free to embrace life unconditionally. As you climb into the sky, the cosmos unfolds beneath you, and the winds of life pass through you with stunning clarity that you never knew was possible. Lucid living is the pinnacle of the dream. Beyond beggaring love, it is being it.

@Squeekytoy Names are so self-ensnaring As I see it, the mystery of absolute reality spins maya out of the void, creating the original duality, but still being beyond both. Like making cotton candy at the fair. @Yimpa ?The spiritual journey is about letting go of judgment and the need for control. Internal boundaries dissolve as the mind unifies. When you realize space by distancing your attention from your thoughts, the sharks swimming in the murky depths of the unconscious spontaneously rise to the surface and release their pain. It is serene harmonization, and it continues spreading outward to dissolve apparent boundaries separating you from others. It is only words, until it actually happens and is directly realized. You see your absolute nature, which is the seamless essence of everything (i.e., love).

@Squeekytoy It's not contradictory when you consider that the will of god (if you choose to call it that) determines the origin and interaction of every phenomenon. It creates the machine, and its hand sends the ball spinning through every phenomenal encounter, predetermining the trajectory of its course. It is absolute choice, not personal. Everything personal is ultimately unreal.

Choice is not what people think it is. It is the confluence of every phenomenon into this event, which is called a choice, but is ultimately determined by the absolute that created all of it. So why practice, realize, and teach? Or not? Because you (i.e., absolute reality) choose that it be so.

@StarStruck ?

It's the anymore part that may give people pause. When I first joined the forum, I was lectured about referring to the theory (rather than the reality) of nonduality. Now it is alien consciousness. Stay tuned for the next episode in Leo's amazing adventure! If people want to live by spiritual proxy and see the journey as entertainment that's fine, but nothing will improve the quality of their lives like direct experience. I am not disparaging Leo. Setting aside that he has to support his family, and that a cascade of self-trumping claims serves this purpose, I feel that in his core Leo is sincere. I am only asking people to be sincere themselves, and use that sincerity to dive deeply into the unchartered territory within.

I agree, but am advocating proclaiming truth without the need for comparing your present state to the state of someone else. What matters is not whether a particular teacher is "more enlightened", but whether what is taught actually helps someone along their inner path of realization. Consider: 1) Enlightenment is not a measurable state, which one can use to objectively place oneself higher or lower than someone else. 2) Each inner journey is entirely unique, and there is no universal roadmap. It is about discovering the pointers that help with your particular journey, and not being distracted by those that don't. 3) Quantity <> quality in the realm of spiritual insights. You could have hundreds of experiences which, even if there was a way to quantify them, collectively pale compared to a single brilliant realization that entirely aligns with your ultimate nature. 4) Comparisons between people are fraught with the potential for feeding the ego, regardless of how sincere they are. It is a writhing pit of snakes that is dangerous and avoidable. 5) Extreme claims, such as being the most enlightened creature on the planet, cater to the most vulnerable. People naturally gravitate to such claims, especially when they are hungry for answers and are promised that satiation is within reach.

@theleelajoker I feel it has to do with the nature of existence. The cosmos is stretched upon a dream framework of dualities. Every process must have its polar opposite to exist. Chaos/order, Destruction/creation, Suffering/enlightenment. It is the inhalation and the exhalation of being. The Big-Bang and the Big-Crunch at every level. Beyond it all is the absolute, changeless, dimensionless, and timeless.

@Thought Art What is the point of claiming to be more enlightened than someone else, other than to serve the ego? It only increases the illusion of superiority and separation. It encourages guru-worship and idolism and is a distraction. Instead, why not point toward the inner journey, which is the only true path to realization? Everyone is their own sadguru.

One point nobody can deny is that Leo's post has driven a plethora of perspectives. I love the diversity of our community and feel that every perspective has some wisdom within it. I appreciate everyone that has posted here, regardless of what has been said. My realizations: 1) Claiming to be more enlightened than someone else is egoic and therefore false. 2) Taking offense at someone claiming to be more enlightened than you is also egoic and therefore false. 3) The more enlightened you are, the more boundaries dissolve. You realize that people claiming to be more enlightened, or taking offense at not being considered enlightened, are also you. 4) Along the path of enlightenment, you see that the entire path is also part of the dream. 5) Despite being part of the dream, the spiritual path increases the lucidity and quality of the dream. The more clearly you see, the more brilliant the dream experiences become. 6) The moment you identify with or become addicted to the experiences themselves, including spiritual experiences, you have lost your lucidity and are again trapped within the dream. 7) The pinnacle purpose of life is learning to remain lucid, free of entanglement with desires and fears, and therefore able to fully enjoy the experiences of life without being suffocated by them.

@theleelajoker It is endemic to the human condition. The vast majority of people will be born and die without even seeing that they are not their thoughts, let alone directly realizing what they actually are. We feast insatiably on suffering.

Every word falls short of describing reality, but being is as good as any. The purpose of differentiating the states of being (absolute vs. relative) is to facilitate the realization that being loses and finds itself within its imagination. It is always being, but it is not always aware of its absolute nature. The apparent differentiation is a pointer created by itself to guide its awareness back to its absolute nature.

I haven't read it since I was a kid, but within the dream there's always hope. Look at Fletcher! Lowell! Charles-Roland! Judy Lee! Are they also special and gifted and divine? No more than you are, no more than I am. The only difference, the very only one, is that they have begun to understand what they really are and have begun to practice it.