Toby

@Mal Where exactly did I recommend a teacher that sat with Papaji other than Isaac in another thread? And also you cannot say "these teachers" because they are certainly not all the same.

Be specific on what teachers you mean by that and be specific on what teachers you like. Otherwise it's just a negative comment without any contribution.

Were you not also from Germany? Are you in Heidelberg today or Berlin next week at Gangaji's meetings?

I would be cautious listen to him driving... you could drop into certain states where you are not able to drive or function. He has also a course (highly advanced though and maybe not that recommended for "beginners" even though you never know...) on Experiencing No-Self. You can listen to an Mp3 example here.

You can only write this if you don't really know what a teacher is and represents. Don't underestimate sitting with a teacher. @Teags You could also get the "End of you world" Audiobook of Adyashanti. It's specifically for people who had some form or glimpse of awakening. He also did a book-version of it for reading. It's highly recommended.

Leo is no teacher. He is more an instructor to get you started but he is no teacher. And I say this with all respect for him. For me one of my favorite teachers is Adyashanti. There are some lesser known I have but it's too intimate to write about them. They almost all were disciples of Papaji. In my kitchen I have a picture on a postcard of Papaji, Nisargadatta, Ramana and Adya. Says it all which are "my" predilect teachers.

I don't know what you are talking about. I certainly have an opinion on the issue but I did not even reply with statements or my opinion but only with questions to @dboyle . It's his issue if he feels he wants to do this. My opinion is, that it might even have toxic side effects and might add to the man's and woman's confusion. From women that I saw working as hookers, I perceived most of them somehow "dark" and "murky" energetically. They weren't ugly as such but their vibe was - to me - disgusting.

Just out of curiosity because I'm from Germany as well: do you also sit with a group or a teacher or just "alone"?

@cetus56 that's exactly why I recommend a teacher and stop asking people that might have had glimpses but are not able to see where someone is at and guide them, especially if you think you are able to guide them. that's just my experience.

Have you even taken a look on what women actually work as a hooker/escort? How do you sense them energetically? How would it feel to pay them for sex? Beautiful? Good? Or bad and ugly?

Your profile says you're from Australia. Byron Bay: Isaac Shapiro. Sydney: Isira. Melbourne: Sailor Bob Adamson. They are all really really good, although I only met Isaac personally. Other than that I guess there are tons of teachers that come to Australia like once a year or that you can find on the internet or through books.

Get yourself a teacher. A real teacher.

http://www.soundstrue.com/store/guided-meditations.html

- too many teachers at once: energetically and from the approach might be highly confusing - too much listening to "spiritual people", either "veterans" or even "teachers": a lot of them are delusional or dishonest when it comes to genuine awakening and embodiment. doesn't matter if someone is meditating for 40 years. that doesn't say anything. but a newbie might impressed with all kinds of fancy words. - listening to false teachers/teachings: teachers that are either manipulative or just have a lopsided view on reality, e.g. emphasizing one particular view like "emptiness" or "oneness" - getting "stuck" on certain view-points or states. Or getting addicted to certain states. - too abrupt changes in life. sometimes it's better to keep it simple and grounded instead of possible overwhelment. these are some of the point that came to my mind.

One of Adya's teachers.

Are you talking about cities in the US or what country? @joegarland If US, maybe SF or something like that. You could hang out with Adya or Leonard Jacobson there. And you also have some famous Zen-Centers in California I guess..

The energy doesn't resonate at all to me. Imo it has nothing to do with truth or enlightenment. I don't state this as a fact, it's just my perception at this moment.

The spiritual search (I "stole" this from facebook):

I guess he talked about a Shinzen Young retreat at least once in his videos.

read the book "Making it stick" if you haven't already work with flashcards throw in some kinesiology-braingym-exercises or aquicalents like juggling nutrition/sport/meditation/taichi do speed-reading techniques for reading faster, at least for "preview"-reading of books/scripts. You can get apps for that.

If you have good links too, feel free to share. Please: 100% legal only. Osho: http://www.osho.com/iosho/library/the-books (ebooks) http://www.oshoworld.com (discourses as mp3, ebook, video) Jiddu Krishnamurti: http://www.jkrishnamurti.org (audio, video) Sivananda: http://www.dlshq.org/download/download.htm (ebooks) Vivekananda/Ramakrishna: http://www.belurmath.org/ (ebooks) Meher Baba: http://www.ambppct.org/library.php (ebooks)

@ZenDog sounds good. You can also go by train/bus there relatively easy. I know this from last year's retreat with Adyashanti, because it was in the same area (not the same retreat center though). I guess if your interest is waking up and embodyment it could be the best choice you can make. But you have to be clear that there is not formal sitting going on as it would be on a traditional Zen/Vipassana retreat.

If your language is german, you can check out the documentary "Alphabet" which deals with it. (I haven't seen it but heard it is a good film)

It's a very complex issue. There are already different approaches in different countries and also non-mainstream approaches. They have all weaknesses and strengths. The main thing is imo to not deaden the childrens creativity and curiosity, because by default they love life and learning. I don't think it's easy to come up with a "system" that fits everyone. I guess one of the next step of mainstream education that is affordable is to use things like "Khan Academy" and then transition to what kids want to learn and not what they have to learn - at their own speed. But even with that the question then is how to keep a group of classmates together, because for young kids this is also very important developmentally. Regarding meditation: there are already schools that use mindfulness-courses, even mainstream-schools afaik. But even there it's possible that for some it is not the right time and it would be better to do some sport or learn an Instrument or do something creative - if they prefer that.