SaynotoKlaus

What's the deal with eating right before going to bed? Why do people say it's bad , because it makes you fatter? Is it unhealthy though? Lately i often wake up in the middle of the night feeling kinda hungry , so i was thinking to always have one of my meals before i go to sleep. If it makes me gain weight , that's good because i'm too skinny anyways , but i don't want to damage my health though , if this is the case.

Some of my old hobbies that i do to relax sometimes, are pretty bad for my awareness. They seem to have the opposite effect that meditation has: the more i do them, the more unaware i become. These things would be for me video games, music and watching (too many) videos/movies. I want to replace them with some activities that would rather increase my consciousness. The only one i know is drawing what you see, this is really good, sometimes it feels like meditation. But this type of drawing requires considerable mental effort, so i can't always do it. I was wondering if you guys know any other hobbies that increase your awareness, or at least they don't ruin it.

The standard eastern spiritual advice on how to enlightened and solve you psychological problems is to watch your thoughts and your emotions. This never worked for me, every time i do it what happens is that i get tormented by my thoughts more and more until the emotional pain is excruciating and i feel like i lost my mind. In the beginning it feels like it's working, making me calmer and more focused, but eventually it gets more and more painful until i feel like doing acts of violence and/or killing myself just to get away from the pain. It's incredible how such an apparently harmless thing can do this to someone. Every time i do these meditation exercises i get the same result. Eventually i realize the source of my pain, stop and instantly get relieved. But on my spiritual quest i often fall in this trap and i keep tormenting myself. Yesterday i started reading "It's not about the money", where the author suggests that you should watch your thoughts so you can see how they make you crave for various things. I did this and just earlier i found myself in such deep pain that i felt like i'm literally in hell. It's funny how i don't even realize that i am doing to this to myself with this habit until i stop. From my experience watching your thoughts is the worst thing you can ever do. I don't even feel any improvements in my awareness, it's just pure pain. The way i increase my awareness and master my emotions is by doing mindfulness meditation (the one taught by Leo) and by focusing on the world around me rather than my emotions and thoughts. So basically what i have to do is the opposite of this buddhist advice. I also saw on this forum multiple threads with people that describe the same experience. There is something wrong with this type of spiritual practice, and a big lack of knowledge in this field. I'm posting this to see if i can get some answers. Why does this happen? Don't you think this practice is dangerous to teach, because it might get someone to keep insisting with it thinking that if they face the pain they will get enlightened, and eventually they end up killing themselves?

If the pain keeps getting worse and you feel like your losing your mind, i recommend that you stop all practices and just do this.

Are the effects of enlightenment better than those of daily meditation? Spiritual people talk about enlightenment as if it's the best thing you can ever achieve, and some enlightened guy (Thich Nhat Hanh) said that most enlightened people would rather live one day enlightened, than a lifetime unenlightened. If this is true, then why should you meditate at all? Isn't it better to do only self-inquiry, since you daily free time is limited, and you want to get the best out of life? My logic says that there is no point in meditating, only after you get enlightened. But who knows, maybe meditating hardcore for a decade, lets say, is actually better than being enlightened.

I want to try yoga out, but there are no yoga classes in my city. Can you share some resources where i can learn it? Maybe some that focus more on the practical side, and don't fill your head with too much nonsense?

Is anyone meditating while standing ? I just did a sessions like this , it was pretty good. It's definitely harder to feel sleepy or lost in thoughts compared to when i'm sitting on a chair ( didn't try cross-legged yet , it's kinda painful for my legs). To me it seems that standing is the improved version of keeping your back straight. Is there a reason why i shouldn't meditate like this?

This video confirms the idea that whatever you do in life, you'll be miserable. Kind of disappointing to realize, but at least i won't be deluded by false expectations when it comes to meditation.

White rice is supposed to be a rather unhealthy food , because it lacks nutritional value and it increases the chances of getting diabetes. But this makes me think of asian people. They are notorious for eating white rice all the time , and (from what i know) they have overall better health than westerners. So how come they are doing just fine with this, while our nutritionists tell us to stay away from white rice? Maybe the studies are wrong?

@BeginnerActualizer Leo never mentioned that meditating cross-legged is important in any of his videos, so i guess it doesn't matter that much. If i remember correctly, when he had his first enlightenment experience, he was sitting on a bench. Personally, i noticed that in the cross-legged position you have a better back posture, but the leg pain pretty much ruins your meditation sessions if you are not flexible.

I suggest you do the mindfulness meditation instead of "do nothing" , it gets you better results and it's not as uncomfortable. And don't sit cross-legged, it's too painful, just sit on a chair, lol.

Does this mean i can reach enlightenment by playing TES?

I think a factor in your "insanity" might be that you got caught up in all this what's-the-meaning-of-life-and-the-truth stuff , which is a big mindfuck , if you think about it. Maybe you would be better off if you would just stop caring about this. I for one don't care about this stuff anymore, and it feels nice. Also you chasing the good feels definitely ruins your mental stability , i know this for sure because this is exactly my main problem. I often feel like you , that i'm crazy and have no self control when i keep trying to feel good all the time. This article might help

Does reading in dim light damage your sight? Someone told me this is the case.

Everyone in the self improvement field says that you should never give up on your dreams , and persist no matter how hard it is. But what if you are never getting anywhere with that dream? When/how do you know this? People say that you can achieve anything if you are perseverant , but that's not true. Life has it's limitations. What if working on your dream it's just a constant struggle? And every time you make a step forwards , you inevitably step back where you started from? What if you have this subtle feeling that you just suck at it , and your goal is forever out of your reach? Shouldn't you rather settle down with something you're good at , rather that keep struggling with something you want so bad to be real?

Please recommend me the best books you read that teach you how to think like a rich man and create abundance in your life. I know some popular titles , like "Think and grow rich" , "Rich dad poor dad" , "The secret" etc , but i have the impression that these kind of books are just well marketed products who tell people what they want to hear , and the only ones who got rich because of them are the authors. I have been relatively poor all my life , i would like to study something that helps me to change my mentality , so i can never worry about money again.

Science has proved that our minds are much more vulnerable that we like to think. Constantly exposing yourself to a certain environment and language will definitely affect you in a way or another. You seem to think that the christian doctrine might be true because it fits with the buddhist one. But are you really sure that the buddhist stories are true in the first place? I mean you also exposed yourself a lot to the buddhist doctrine too ( i know this because i'm a wizard). Also just because some things the preacher says seem true , don't forget to also take into account all the bullshit which you know it's not true. People are prone to judging something as 100% true once they see a couple of pieces of evidence that might prove this is the case , even though before they saw 8 that disproved it. Did you notice how religious texts (both christian and buddhist) , even though they claim to tell the ultimate truth , they are pretty abstract and open to loose interpretation ? I mean you might think the words mean a certain thing , which you kinda want it to be true , while the persons next to you hear whatever they want. My suggestion is to do your research on christianity from a neutral perspective , if you really want the truth. As long as you keep going to the church you are not neutral. Maybe you could do this if you also go as often to atheist meetings.

Do you think it's better that i find my own path in life , instead of finding a life purpose based on the values you teach , even though i might end up having ideals that are completely different from yours?

You greatly overvalue this woman , in reality she isn't important at all to you. Just notice that there are plenty of hot women in the world , you don't need this one.

I believed these no-self stories right from the beginning. I never understood anything , but i believed and learned them anyway because it was supposed to be like that since i'm unaware and egotistical. I wanted to progress faster and dedicate all my free time to this. This has torn me up on the inside in the last months. I lost my passion for everything i used to like and my meditation sessions were more like torture instead of bliss (like they used to be). I couldn't even sleep properly at night. All because i keep having these thoughts firing up in my head all the time - " there is no me" , "i'm not my mind" , " there is no one to be aware" , etc. These buddhist stories make you believe that you are divided , that your desires and thoughts are just burdens you need to get rid of. It's similar to what the other religions do , make you think your body and mind are dirty and you need to purge yourself in order to be good. It is toxic. The real improvement you get is from the meditation exercises. They make you more aware , calm and with better focus. The theory is just nonsense. Do your research on it if you want to , but be skeptical. YOU need to figure out what is true and works don't let others tell you , like i did. Now i need to unwire all these beliefs , and i feel like a fool. Also observe how to people who preach this stuff behave. Are they emotionally mature and happy , or do they have the same bad habits as the people they are preaching to?

I think this is a pretty crazy idea of how economics work. Especially the raping and pillaging part. There's nothing wrong with making lots of money with honest work.

@vizual I don't want to upset you , but your whole post doesn't make any sense to me. I was wondering if Leo thinks that the whole actualization thing he kept talking about in every video is actually not important , just a stepping stone for enlightenment work , so that's why i don't want self actualization.

I am meditating since a year or so. In the beginning i had some pretty good meditation sessions , in which i experienced amazing sensations , that made me very relaxed and with a clear mind after i was done for the entire day , even more. But the more time and effort i dedicated to mindfulness work , the worse results i got. Lately i'm meditating multiple times a day ,and i'm also trying to be aware as much as possible through the day , and the results i'm getting are fucking awful. The days when i used to have relaxing meditation sessions that made my mind sharp are long gone. All i get now are strong migraines all the time and frustrating experiences. I also don't enjoy anything anymore. Whatever technique i try ( I do Leo's , from the "Power of Now" , "The Miracle of Mindfulness", and a couple that i discovered myself that used to work really well) they all go the same. They are relaxing in the beginning , and after a few minutes the more i do them the more frustrating and painful it gets. I have a pretty good idea of how life works. The more you practice something , and the more effort you put into the practice itself the better results you get , not the opposite. At this point i tortured myself enough that i don't even want to do any mindfulness work ever again. Just the thought of quitting brings me peace of mind. I'm starting to think that this doesn't work for everyone in reality. It's just that the zen experts make this information available and claim that everyone should practice it , but secretly know that most will just do what i did , and only a few will be able to make it work. Since when do you meditate? What was your experience so far? Do you feel like it's making your life better , or is it just a frustrating process?

I thought i should make an update on this thread , since i solved my problem. I did some googling and most people on forums who seemed to be experienced claimed that meditation shouldn't be painful. I reviewed the steps Leo taught in the do nothing technique , and i noticed i skipped one. At some point he says that he tells himself he will do nothing , but he said it in such a way that it seemed an optional step to me. It turned out that this is actually the key to this technique. If i tell myself that i will do nothing (until the alarm goes off) , then when my mind becomes too agitated i automatically become aware of this and detach myself from the noise. When this happens i instantly feel a bit more focused and calm. If anyone reading this is suffering from intense head aches when meditating , know that you are doing it wrong and you should review the technique. An emotionally hard meditation session shouldn't be painful , it should rather make you feel so restless that you can barely sit down or even make you quit , but there's no strong head aches involved. That's just you torturing yourself.

The best way to get to be yourself is through meditation. Daily meditation reduces your anxiety , and lack of anxiety will allow you to be authentic without even trying. Most advice i red or saw on this topic suggests a fake it till you make it technique , which doesn't work that well.