WelcometoReality

@Neph What do you want Leo to say? If someone attempts suicide then it seems like an appropriate response to tell him to seek professional help. Mental issues can be hard to deal with and no answer that Leo makes will be adequate. When I had mental issues (depression) I went to an hour long session once a week for 2 years.

There's a time for withdrawing from life and there's a time for engaging life. There will still be preferences and paradoxically non-attachment leads to more engagement. That depends on what you want. So what do you want?

Seems like things are starting to open up. Staying quiet and resting in being might be wise.

Yeah, the ego would love to believe it's God wouldn't it. It seems like that belief has the potential to create some really dangerous egos.

Yeah, it is. ?

You're welcome! I'm a bit of a night owl myself. ?

Seems like a natural evolvement in human development. At the same time It does seem quite ridiculous that the voice was believed once transcended.

And then ther's nothing left to say. ?

@Khan 0 Good pointer. ? To question your beliefs. Do you actually know that they are true?

Yes from that perspective, without thoughts, there is only what IS which is totally unknowable. There's neither "choice" nor "no choice". No "self" nor "no self". ?

Well said. ?

Have you've ever had a thought that you want to murder somebody? Did you act on it or not? Thoughts come and go without a thinker that creates the thought but the thought can be believed/acted upon or seen and let go of.

Interesting how? ?

Surrender happened. It's not like I decided to stop trying. ? You called it nondual state of presence.

Yes a shift. The awakening was an intense release of energy. Blissful Happiness and laughter. After came alot of anger and sadness. Mostly anger. Not with the awakening itself. Awakening is only the beginning and afterwards there is still alot of ego to let go of, desire, anger and fear. No, it's only the beginning of the work. ? It died in a sense of no sensory separation. No longer a sense of self looking out from the body but the sense of self was still there in thought and feelings. After the realization the work is all about seeing the egoic energy in thoughts and feelings. Yes

Surrender happened. Real surrender is not something you do. It's the giving up. You can't decide to give up because it wouldn't be a real giving up. ? I have always had an interest in truth. But it wasn't until I had the realization that "the tree is not a tree, it just is" (realization that thoughts are not real) that I came in contact with spirituality. I got so scared by the realization because I subconsciously recognized that the ego wasn't real. The next thought I had was that I had to become something. So that led me to start with self actualization stuff, which led me to Leo, which led me to spirituality. After that maybe a year or two. That's the only big realization I had. The I am/being. And then there's the non-being which isn't a realization.

An awakening happened. A shift that continued back and fourth between separation and non-separation for a while until it was abiding non-separation.

It happened 6 years ago while writing on this forum. The day after a SDS.

Yes, one becomes aware of the struggle/intention that arises so surrender just happens without an intention to make it happen. It's felt like a giving up. The futility of struggle becomes apparent.

@RMQualtrough In what way did you not function, you said that you were walking down the street so not all funtioning was lost. I'm curious to hear what it was. ?

Why is it impossible?

What would that look like, how would your life be more exactly?

What does your soul want?

"Enlightenment is absolute cooperation with the inevitable." -Anthony de Mello

Should and shouldn't comes from the conditioned mind. If you think that you shouldn't be staying up late you can inquire into the thought like this. 1. "I shouldn't be staying up late" 2. Is this true? Why shouldn't I stay up late? 3. Because I should go up early and I'll be tired if I stay up all night. 4. Question those statements. Are they true? 5. Do I need to go up early? 6. Yes I have work tomorrow. 7. Is there something wrong with being tired? 8. No, but I don't like being tired at work. I don't perform as well when I'm tired. 9. So if I dont want to be tired at work I also want to go to bed early. Just an example but you conclude what you want rather than what you should or shouldn't do.