StephenK

@snowleopard It seems that many paths I've looked at are task oriented, whilst others negate the use of a 'path'. Rather confusing. @cirkussmile Will try @Nahm Extinction. Liberation. Cessation. I don't actually know.

Sometimes I treat my loved ones unfairly, but I mostly treat them with respect and love, yes. What do you feel when you observe the perceived 'suffering' around you? Are you compelled to help? I'm trying to figure out what this motivational space would look like, since I do not embody it myself at present.

Ok, got it. So if I was fully embedded in this state, I would perceive you as nothing more than an empty arising within awareness? How then does morality play into this? Why be moral if everything is 'self'? I see

But to presuppose the existence of other minds, you need to believe that the materialist paradigm is real. Otherwise you can't be sure that awareness resides in anything outside of your own awareness.

I may as well ask this question here rather than create my own thread since it is of a similar nature to Joseph Maynor's question: If the dream allegory is to be used, then everything is to be seen as illusion arising within 'nothingness'. That is, things lack substance and innate existence to them. Why then, do people who claim to be in this 'state' speak to other people as if they're independent minds, whilst appearing to ignore their assertion that 'people' are nothing but paper-thin fleeting illusions? Please explain this to me.

Ok. I watched Leo's video and something 'clicked'. Perception seems more clear and a massive quietness is overwhelming me. If this is all a dream, then ya'll just Maya. Tell me I'm crazy.

I've heard many people talk about the 'void' on this site, and I am curious as to what it is exactly. I experienced something life changing that think that was similar to the void when I was 16 years old (11 years ago). Due to a particularly rough patch in my life, I remember searching my mind for any semblance of 'self'. Anything I clung to seemed to disappear right before me and all that remained was this infinite blackness that seemed to have a gravity to it (a gravity made of a sense of oblivion), coming from all angles. No escape. I remember walking in a park one evening, and just crawled into a nearby bush, lay down in the foetal-position and started screaming internally. Anyway, since then I've had Depersonalization Disorder, and reality still seems kind of 'off' with a lingering sense of unease underneath it. Was this the void?

Thanks for your description of it. Seems to resonate well with my some part of my understanding of it. I hope to see it more clearly for what it is (or isn't).

The sense of 'dread/creepiness' is something that feels as if it is embedded in all of reality -- almost like space itself has an energy to it, or that everything I see and think is a form of illusion. So in that sense, a lack of solidity would be an accurate description. This feeling is very subtle nowadays though thank god. @Nahm Yes, the feeling is one of being stuck between two worlds so to speak. Thanks for the supportive words. I've 'phased' out of this feeling several times before, but only for a few seconds at a time,

Sigh. So no response then?

You see, this point of view genuinely perplexes me. I understand that everything is regarded as maya, but this fact does not negate the persistence of the illusion we're faced with. Would you simply go without food for the rest of your life since it is all maya? Would you drink bleach when you're thirsty? I'd assume not, and that you'd conform your actions to live in accordance with the rules of the dream as they are manifesting now in this present moment. If you do follow the rules of the dream (food, water, thought, action, etc), then you are living in accordance with the illusion to an extent, which means you living your own manifested Dharma (duties, rights, laws, conduct, etc) to navigate the illusion. I find it disingenuous that you'd imply that you could pass through this 'needle' with any more ease than Leo would. Please enlighten me if I've somehow misrepresented your position on the matter.

@Jedd No, not really ($4 a month for wordpress.com). Youtube is a great resource for learning this stuff. Just search for 'wordpress tutorials' or 'wix tutorials'. Here's just an example vid I found of a guy explaining how to use wordpress:

Junior web developer here (web application development). Go to Wordpress.com or Wix.com if you want to build a simple website if you intend on doing it yourself.

I'd gladly debate with you on this matter, but only if you articulate the frameworks with which you build your perception of reality, otherwise it just ends up in chaos. Do you hold that scientific empiricism is a useful tool in debate? When in conflict with subjective experience, scientific empiricism (which is also subjective, but we'll ignore that for now) is the preferred explanation for a situation? If so, scientific empiricism proves non-duality and not-self without a doubt.

Now that I have a clearer picture of Mighty Mouse's position on this matter: it seems that he negates any and all experience as Maya (which is fair) in an attempt to play the role of a contrarian on all issues on this forum (it's an easy position to take, but it is also lazy). As you put it, one can play in the absolute (as he does), but in order to have relative conversations, we must use the 'matrix' of the dream as it is manifesting now, so to speak. He tends to fall in and out of the Absolute into the Relative without so much as making a conscious distinction that he is playing with Maya (by conversing with us), but then proceeds to criticize others for doing just that (falling back into the Absolute). The problem with this forum is that many people hold their cards close to their chest when it comes to their assumptions, but readily criticize others when it comes to their own agenda. I personally don't really know what's true anymore, but the philosophical foundations of your and mighty mouse's positions are very interesting.

Haha, made me think of this:

If everything is Maya, then surely suicide accomplishes nothing (the concept of death is a part of maya, is it not?).

Let the 'evolved being' dick-swinging contest continue. Truly a beautiful sight. No sarcasm.

If it is all a dream, then nothing has innate existence to it, correct? How then can you know that 'other' minds exist (such as myself)? I take it then when you talk in your videos, you are just playing with the 'fabric' of the dream and don't believe any of it to have innately reality to it? Would this be similar to what is referred to in Buddhism as emptiness? Quote: "Sunyata refers to the tenet that "all things are empty of intrinsic existence and nature,""

I understand how everything is ultimately a subjective experience. But if we are to negate the idea of there being a universe, what then is the explanation for the causal patterns and processes that allows empiricism to function so well as a methodology of predicting future outcomes? Why does this 'predictive matrix' commonly referred to as the 'universe' even exist? When are we allowed to authentically appeal to this matrix as a part of reason, and when are we allowed to authentically negate it? I am genuinely curious as to what your answer is (since I don't know it myself).

I do have an association with love and compassion as being fear based, since they're grounded in attachment to things that are impermanent (at least that is how I perceive it). I wonder if what you're describing as 'appreciation based emotions' is similar to equanimity as described in Buddhism: The Buddha described a mind filled with equanimity as "abundant, exalted, immeasurable, without hostility and without ill-will."?

Surely that could be played for the game of life itself?

What do the Buddhists mean then when they talk about compassion?

Is unconditional love and compassion the same thing, in this context? Genuinely curious.

You clearly had an intention to belittle. But spin your story if you want to I guess. Cheers.