Moksha

The ego trap of chasing bliss is that it distracts from who you really are. It is a fool's gold promise that never delivers. Anything you chase will inevitably disappoint, because by its nature it will never last. The only way to sustain peace and happiness is by realizing who you are: changeless Consciousness. Dark night of the soul is common for people when they first awaken. Just because you see clearly, doesn't mean all of your attachments magically dissolve. You still have to develop the discipline not to be fooled by your conditioned mind. The ego desperately needs your attention in order to exist, and the closer you get to killing it, the fiercer it will fight for survival. It is a sneaky bastard that will even play dead for a while, until your attention is momentarily diverted, and then it springs back to life with a knife at your back. If you find yourself desiring bliss, that is a red flag that you have already fallen back asleep. Your natural state as Consciousness is already here and now, you just have to open your eyes to it again.

I agree with Nyseto that it is important to allow whatever thoughts or feelings arise, without actively resisting them. Whatever you resist, you strengthen. Instead, simply observe them, without being defined by them. It is like sitting by yourself on the back row of a dark theater, and from that distance, casually watching any thoughts or feelings flow across the screen of your mind. It's even better if you are able to let feelings come and go, without labeling them. For example, notice what "depression" feels like in your body, then drop the label. The next time it happens, hmm...there's that feeling again. Allow it to enter, notice it without being drawn into it, and notice when it leaves. Don't give it any more attention than that. Focus most of your attention on the space around the feeling. You are sitting way back in a dark theater, all by yourself, with that little feeling making is way across the screen. You are not the feeling. You are the moviegoer. Also, don't fall into the trap of chasing the bliss that you felt earlier. Anything that you run toward, or run away from, is an attachment that will ultimately make you miserable. Your natural, unconditioned state is inherently peaceful and joyful. There is no need to seek anything, because you already are infinitely abundant. The more you practice this, the easier it will become. This is why meditation and mental discipline are critical, even after you have awakened. The Buddha compared it to swimming upstream. The mind has tremendous gravitational pull, but the more you exercise vigilance, the better you will be at swimming against the current. Be the Michael Phelps of meditation ?‍♀️

My best advice is to learn to discipline your conditioned mind. Do not trust it, and do not identify with it. It is relentless, and it will always try to pull you back into suffering, which it misportrays as reality. Has your conditioned mind ever delivered on its promises? Has it ever actually given you enduring peace and happiness? If not, why would you believe it can do so now? Peace goes infinitely deeper than your conditioning. It is only found in unconditional acceptance of who you are.

If you define truth as reality, the answer to your question is both. Truth is discovered when "you" awaken, and discover there is no "you". There is only Consciousness, and "you" are it. It is the peek-a-boo game Consciousness plays with itself. Truth is also hidden when the aspect of Consciousness infused into the form (i.e., Atman) identifies with the form, rather than realizing its true nature. Truth is created when any of the infinite forms arises from unmanifested reality, and becomes manifested reality. Truth is also destroyed when that form dissolves back into unmanifested reality. Both the unmanifested and the manifested are aspects of reality. Tat is everything, and every nothing.

Eckhart likes to joke that they don't make quality mirrors any more, the way they used to. Maybe the opposite is true for our spiritual mirrors

I ? Eckhart. When I first picked up The Power of Now, I dismissed it as new age drivel, and put it back on my shelf. Years later, after more living and suffering, I picked it up again and found solace. After yet more years of living and suffering, I finally directly realized what he taught. The teachings never changed, but the student did. The best teachers are the most simple. Eckhart is laser focused on his core message, which some find to be boring. His purpose isn't to entertain. He understands that metaphysics only appeal to the mind. Jesus and the Buddha were similarly focused. I enjoy metaphysics as much as anyone, but these are the true masters, and their simplicity is their strength.

A silver lining of the illusion of time, I suppose. Happiness and peace to all ?

I guess you missed the metaphysical caveat in my comment.

My body still existed in time. Why would awareness of the passing of time have anything to do with the actual passing of time? When you fall asleep at night, does your clock freeze until you wake up? Metaphysically, it is more complicated than that, since time is only relatively real. I am referring to time in the traditional sense here.

There are so many, but I will share one common scripture which holds entirely new meaning for me, and one less common scripture which points to the fundamental nature of reality. *** The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. - Psalm 23 *** Sages speak of the immutable ashvattha tree, with its taproot above and its branches below. On this tree grow the scriptures; seeing their source, one knows their essence. Nourished by the gunas, the limbs of this tree spread above and below. Sense objects grow on the limbs as buds; the roots hanging down bind us to action in this world. The true form of this tree - its essence, beginning, and end - is not perceived on this earth. Cut down this strong-rooted tree with the sharp ax of detachment; then find the path which does not come back again. Seek That, the First Cause, from which the universe came long ago. - Bhagavad Gita 15:1-4

I've experienced it and know what he is saying, but just because there is no sense of time passing between the anesthesiologist's countdown and waking up doesn't mean that nothing happened. The body was still alive, and its intelligence continued to operate, despite not being conscious of the experience. People sometimes confuse Consciousness with consciousness; they are not the same.

Are you familiar with the research of Steve Taylor? He is a spiritual psychologist who has researched awakening experiences. I saw a talk from him a few months ago, where he mentioned one woman that he interviewed who awakened after learning that she had terminal cancer. It dramatically and permanently changed her view of reality, and she lived in a state of joy until she finally passed. Since my awakening in May, my suffering has reduced dramatically. I do have an ego attack once in a while, and am working on dissolving my remaining attachments, but my natural state is mostly free from suffering. It is a paradigmatic transformation that I never could have anticipated, or knew was possible. I no longer identify with my thoughts, nor do I look for happiness outside of myself. My lifestyle has completely changed. I still honor life, but I take it much less seriously. I realize that "I" is just a transitional label, and that "my" identity is the same changeless reality that imbues all things. I had mini-awakenings numerous times during my life, like many people do, but this was different. It was a direct realization that was a seismic and permanent shift in Consciousness.

Suffering is inevitable. Until it isn't. Sukkha is not only the cessation of Duhkha. It is the natural state of being. Or is it? Find out for "yourself".

Agreed. The false separation of "reality" and "illusion" is its own delusion. Reality is everything, and every nothing. Get beyond duality, and realize the unity. We are all Tat.

You cannot choose to get an insight. You can only furrow the field and hope for rain.

Dreaming things into existence is what Consciousness does. Space is an illusion, or put another way, Consciousness is everywhere. You could also realize that every set of eyes you look through is the same set of eyes, or more precisely, the same awareness.

The root of desire is the misunderstanding that something outside of yourself can bring you permanence. The death of desire is the direct realization that you are already infinitely abundant. Words of the Buddha, which I was pondering this morning: Even a shower of gold cannot quench the passions. They are wise who know that passions are passing and bring pain in their wake.

@abrakamowse ?

Solipsism 101

Are dreams real? They may not be what they pretend to be, but they are clearly something. Every something is real, according to the limits of its dimensionality. Illusions are real. Thoughts are real. Feelings are real. Physicality is real. Existence, at any level, is real. So is nonexistence, which is nothing more than infinite latent potential. Ultimate reality includes both unmanifested reality, and the infinite manifested diverse forms of reality. It is all reality. Asking whether reality is singular and shared or individualistic is a strawman; the answer is both.

At the ultimate level, reality includes everything. The "dream world" is part of reality. Even a dream exists, in its own realm. Reality is everything that exists, and everything that does not exist. It is the unmanifested, and the manifested. It is the formless, and the formed. Think of it more in terms of states of reality, encompassed into a whole, rather than trying to separate the real from the unreal. Any separation like that is dualistic, and thus cannot capture ultimate reality.

At your age, it's easy to think in extremes. My advice to my kids at that age is to go a more moderate path. That said, if you're serious about it, you wouldn't be the first: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walden Thoreau spent 2 years living in the woods, by the labor of his own hands.

@VeganAwake I knew you already knew, just clarifying for those that may not yet know. It's a common trap to confuse acceptance of what is, with rejection of what could be. @Breakingthewall Isn't that the secret of living? This intuition of acceptance, vs. change. Either way, realization is the pathway to freedom. Being ourselves frees us from ourselves.

Karma is part of the dream. In transcendent reality, there is no change, and thus no karma, or cause and effect. Which is not to say that dream forms don't accumulate karma to themselves, like a snowball rolling down a snowy slope. If you care about the dream, and to some extent, if you are wise, you will; don't create bad karma. Pleasant dreams are better than nightmares.

Yes, it is tricky. Not only the emotions, but even the acceptance or resistance itself, is dream stuff. I would say that required change is another name for right action. It is required, only in the sense that Love asks it of us. If a person is in an abusive relationship that is unlikely to change, Love may ask that person to leave the relationship. The same is true for any other unhealthy attachment. Whether or not we respond to Love is up to us. More precisely, whether or not Love resonates with itself, as Love, is up to Love