MartinGifford

Experiment with diet and locations. Five years ago my symptoms got much worse. I experimented with my diet and realised I had an allergy to eggs, chicken, and wine. I still consume those things occasionally, and it triggers the allergy. Then I spray Rhinocort, and it clears up in about 2 hours. Some people say Rhinocort only works for a while then it stops working. I think it's because they take too much. I took three squirts in each nostril for two days to knock out the bad case five years ago, but then only on squirt in each nose when needed. If just one nostril is blocked, I will just do one squirt in that nostril. It has been working for five years. Changed my life. But you've got to eliminate the cause - dietary or environmental.

It sounds like an allergy, e.g. the blockage could be polyps from the allergy. I had the same symptoms and didn't think I had an allergy. Then five years ago it got much worse. I experimented with my diet and realised I had an allergy to eggs, chicken, and wine. I still consume those things occasionally, but it triggers the allergy. Then I spray Rhinocort, and it clears up in about 2 hours. Some people say Rhinocort only works for a while then it stops working. I think it's because they take too much. I took three squirts in each nostril for two days to knock out the bad case five years ago, but then only on squirt in each nose when needed. If just one nostril is blocked, I will just do one squirt in that nostril. It has been working for five years. Changed my life. Pity doctors didn't pick it up when I was young. I just thought I was susceptible to colds and flus when it was allergy all along.

Leo, along with the rest of society, was saying that people are bad in various ways. I think that belief is harmful. So I'm questioning that belief.

Yes, seeking is suffering and happiness is the end of suffering. But suffering is not survival. Survival and suffering are due to either survival pressures or illusions. That doesn't address my point that we can negate the false. Nothing stops us from questioning the belief that we are lacking and flawed. I agree that humans created [past tense] the social matrix. But you originally wrote, "Humans create [present tense] the social matrix, and therefore the humans are fundamentally the problem." You switched from the past tense to the present tense. And so my argument that we were born into a deluded social context still stands. The deluded part of the social context was invented thousands of years ago. That part is the idea that we are lacking and flawed. We can look at it in spiral dynamics terms: PURPLE: You need to please the spirits, and you’re bad and should be outcast if you don’t. RED: You need to dominate, and if you fail, you are weak and deserve to be dominated. BLUE: You need to submit to our belief system and hierarchy, and you’re bad and bring shame to the family if you don’t. ORANGE: You need to succeed in the economy, and you are weak, foolish, or lazy if you don’t. GREEN: You need to accept other belief systems as equal, and you are a bad dominator if you don’t. The evolution here is just in the form of the belief. Each stage was a false solution to the beleif that we are lacking and flawed. Instead, of evolving a new form of the belief, we need to question the belief.

Seeking an excess of possessions, prestige, power, and money is all happiness, unless you live in a poor country where you need to buy your own army, or you might be a neurotic survivalist living in a developed democracy. Plenty of people survive happily with very little and don't seek more. You can use thought to break down the social matrix, which is negation of the false. Current humans embellish the illusion that we are lacking and flawed, but they didn't create that core concept. It was inherited from people who invented it thousands of years ago. The illusion was in society before we were born into it. Then we were brainwashed by it and then we began retransmitting it in various forms.

Suffering is real. The point is that it's caused by the belief that human beings are lacking and flawed. That makes us forget innate happiness and goodwill, and so we start fighting for illusory forms of happiness. However, I admit that it's generally easier to start with affluent healthy people. They have time and freedom to investigate. Then it can spread from there. But sometimes people have breakthroughs when they are under pressure. It depends where you are at. We could start with asking, "Why am I struggling? Why is life hard? Why do these problems exist?" Alternatively, investigate cause and effect within - whatever arises, ask what caused it. It will usually be caused by some feeling of vulnerability of hope. Alternatively, question the belief that we are lacking and flawed, and the belief that we can find reliable happiness in things that change. Regarding the belief that we are lacking and flawed, consider this evidence: A) Why are all the animals in the universe considered to be cool in their own ways, but human beings are believed to be lacking and flawed? Doesn't it seem suspicious and statistically unlikely? B) If you and I had been born on a super-developed utopian planet, would we have any of the personal and social problems that we have on Earth? C) If humankind continues to improve, will the current kinds of personal or social problems still exist in the year 10,000? D) When people have a Near Death Experience, why are they suddenly filled with love and wisdom? Could it be that that is our natural state when we are free of bodily instincts and society's illusions? If so, then doesn't that prove that instincts and society's illusions are the problem?

The idea that we cause our suffering and that it's hard to end suffering is a conventional belief in the new age movement, religion, and spirituality. I've written a book that could end the world's horrors.

It would be stupid to create our own suffering. And if we did, the solution to suffering would be easy - just stop creating it. Selfishness would mean wanting to end suffering, so that's actually a motivation not an obstacle.

Didn't your awakening include the ability to communicate? For example, if you awoke to God, then God is powerful and can communicate. If you woke to something less than God, then how do you know your awakening is the ultimate?

I have no pain point about society. I just searched for the cause of human suffering, and I found it. I'm not demonising society. I'm just saying that it contains the illusion that human beings are lacking and flawed, and that it pushes us to judge and chase illusions. Everything else about society is good. Can you prove that "society = everything you consider to be you"? Seems to be a huge claim. Participating in society's illusions just perpetuates human suffering. I'm not 100% sure if I'm separate from others or not. I know there's a common religious/spiritual belief that people are not separate, but why believe that? I was completely open to any possibility. But after rigorous investigation, I found that societal judgements are false. Are you open to the possibility that I'm right and not some clueless schmuck?

I agreed with about 2.5 hours of the video. I'm just taking Leo's point to its logical conclusion. If society's brainwashing is overwhelming, then we need to question it all the way, not keep its judgements of human beings. It's about understanding facts, not being a pussy. If it's true that society's illusions created all our problems, then we have the solution - end the illusions, which mainly includes the idea that human beings are lacking and flawed.

@RendHeaven Ego can melt if or it can be smashed. The melting version is easy and pleasant. Escape from the matrix appears difficult if you miss it’s essence, which is the idea that human beings are lacking and flawed. That idea stops progress because we are trying to overcome illusory problems rather than questioning the belief. Seeming laziness has many causes, so I need a specific example to analyse it. But look at human being’s actual lives. They go to school for 6 hours per day for 12 years, then they go to university or work for 40 hours per week doing horrible repetitive tasks, then they raise kids, which verges on the heroic. Our judgement of people is ridiculous. Regarding the hive mind, why would I want to submit to other people’s deluded agendas? Judging our supposed “selfishness and egotism” is an “attack”. I also called it a “criticism”. Definition of attack: “criticize or oppose fiercely and publicly.” Definition of criticism: “the expression of disapproval of someone or something on the basis of perceived faults or mistakes.” Definition of selfishness: “lack of consideration for other people”. Definition of egotism: “the fact of being excessively conceited or absorbed in oneself.” These are obviously negative judgements. Wrongness is implied. You wrote, “In your scurry to abandon the social matrix, there's always the danger of just driving yourself deeper and deeper into your own delusions…” But I wrote “We only need to question what's arising within.” That obviously includes questioning the motivation and assumptions behind abandoning society. You say that I might be selfish, biased, arrogant. These are just societal judgements, and they could be applied to yourself and Leo (see his comments to me in this thread), although I think everyone is ultimately innocent and perfect. Consider NDE's: Once people are free of the instinctual body and society, they suddenly become wise and loving.

Repeating societal judgements of people doesn't seem to be "extremely advanced". Have you ever questioned those judgements of your fellow human beings? Society says we are lacking and flawed, then it pushes us to compete against ourselves and others for transitory forms of happiness. So we forget our innate happiness and goodwill, and start competing for transitory forms of happiness, which leads to harm. Then society says, "See? You are lacking and flawed." So the social context caused our problems and then judges us for it. Society is obviously the problem. Consider these questions: Why are all the animals in the universe considered to be cool in their own ways, but human beings are believed to be lacking and flawed? Doesn't it seem suspicious and statistically unlikely? If you and I had been born on a super-developed utopian planet, would we have any of the personal and social problems that we have on Earth? If humankind continues to improve, will the current kinds of personal or social problems still exist in the year 10,000? Pointing out society's illusions isn't a conspiracy theory. No one consciously created the illusions. In humankind's deep past, no one had a clue what was going on, so they probably just made quick judgements to maintain order. But now we have the time and opportunity to question those cave-person judgements.

That's a bit vague. It would be simpler to discuss my statements rather than asking me to wade through your videos.

This video was a tour-de-force! It’s something that the whole world needs to see. But I found 7 points I disagree with. My view is that society is fully to blame for our problems. This seemed to be what Leo was arguing too, but then he started criticising people. That is exactly what society does. So I don’t get why Leo switched from criticising the social matrix to criticising people. Anyway, here are the 7 points of disagreement: At 1:28:00 he said it's all based on survival. It's not. Once basic survival needs are fulfilled, the social matrix is based on illusory forms of happiness such as possessions, prestige, power, and money. This distracts us away from the innate happiness and goodwill of being, and so we get trapped in competition. At 1:47:00 he said that it's hard to break free of the social matrix. That idea is part of the social matrix! Everyone says, "Questioning things is hard, which is why no one has found the big answers to life." In reality, it’s easy. At 1:59:00 he says that people are mentally lazy. That criticism is part of the social matrix. Essentially, the social matrix says, "People are weak, immoral, and lazy." We got those ideas from society. At 2:24:00, he talks about creating a "collective hive mind". Why? I don’t want to be part of a collective hive mind. We are not dependent on such outcomes. At 2:46:00, he attacks our "selfishness and egotism". The social matrix criticises those things too. But there's nothing wrong with individuals. The social matrix is the only problem. Sure, individuals must be turned around to face reality, but it should be through encouragement and insight, not criticism. At 2:53:00, he suggests we read books and whatnot. But he said the books come from the social matrix, so it doesn’t make sense. We only need to question what's arising within. Towards the end, he went on a tirade about how bad we are. That’s just channelling society again. If we fully complete the enquiry, we would come to the conclusion that nothing is wrong with people. The problem is entirely that we were born into a deluded social world that says we are lacking and flawed, and must seek happiness. That distracts us away from the innate happiness and goodwill of being.