Key Elements

@Prabhaker There was this maid (servent) who I knew, and she sent her three young children to the free hostel because of the conversion I suppose. They get free room and board, clothes, food, decent education, etc. etc., but there was a catch. She only get to see them once every week, only for a few hours. The poor don't get the best health care even though they get helped by others due to whatever reason. Ppl still have to find their own way. That's how it works. Others can only help so much.

"Could I put a word to that point? The point of where the Ox takes you, and yes, I could put a word to it, and that word is love." -Shinzen Young (@7:25)

This is an awesome topic because no one is perfect. However, it's not so easy to comment on it because both parties have to be very clear on what is being said. This topic reminds me of this saying: "There are hundreds of paths up the mountain, all leading in the same direction, so it doesn’t matter which path you take. The only one wasting time is the one who runs around and around the mountain, telling everyone that his or her path is wrong." Hindu teaching I would really like to hear very good points on this. I'm sure others do too.

To me, more emphasis has to be focused on structuring the life purpose like Maslow. Spirituality/no-self/non-duality/etc goes at the very top, but we, as a group, tend to talk about this too much. The foundation looks like an upside down Maslow. Your niche that you're passionate about should be the foundation. If it's being a doctor, so be it. If it's being a farmer, so be it. Etc. Human beings cannot survive without different professions. Once you have this going, then you can incorporate the self-transendence part. By then, the person would have gained enough self-inquiry and experience. I would structure my life purpose so that more ppl would turn inwards instead of chit chatting about spirituality. It doesn't help. Sometimes it's like the blind leading the blind. If they (the viewers) have to talk, it would be communicating a skill. Talking or emphasising on any "maps" (as I described already) won't change one's karma. Positive things in life must be earned.

You're a strong mom. Keep up the good work. Think about what you're going to do for your next steps, like baby steps toward your LP. Now, here's the catch...you do not have to tell anyone about it (LP). Most ppl don't understand. They are definitely not open-minded enough. You're going to have to approach this carefully. You know, you could call it your "hobby." I dunno...just be careful when approaching this. You have a future with your daughter together.

@zoey101 wait till you have two babies. (j/k)

Interesting song done by her brother...

Leo started a similar topic toward the opening of the forum. Just wanted to add, the forum is a great place to get ideas triggered for your LP, esp if you're doing a LP with your path in it. Some ppl bring up great topics.

Sure, if they're willing to listen to what you have to say. Only then can you share what you have to say. Otherwise, it will sound like a lecture or something "weird" to them. For most ppl who are close, you can't explain because they didn't discover their path yet. So they can't relate to you. All they do is go to the pooja room and pray. They don't go beyond that. They're stuck. However, if you make a product, like write a book and it becomes famous, they may notice. But, even then, they may not relate and they're not interested. By that time, they will notice that your life has changed and who you hang out with and what you do has completely changed. So, they'll probably come to know without you explaining. You're showing not telling. Think of Sai Baba. Look at what he has done. For most, he didn't have to speak about it. We come to know.

Do a LP with your mastery (profession) and your path. You could express your path in a product, such as a book, an app, a download, or whatever. Do it in a creative way so it doesn't sound like it's lecturing. You could tell it in 3rd person or story form. We are very lucky we could do a LP. Before, it was only by word of mouth. Now, we have Internet.

Thanks.

Because if 'you' think that you're superior to another just because they have bad habits or didn't realize the path yet, and then 'you' start to lecture them and try to put them on the path, they will probably not listen, and 'you' may be misguiding them even more. They may not understand or are not interested. They are not ready to hear it. So a debate may start and gets nowhere. Lecturing and trying to convince another person could be a form of fingerpointing.

I wasn't talking about you. I was referring to the quotation.

I agree with this saying... "The map is not the territory metaphorically illustrates the differences between belief and reality. The phrase was coined by Alfred Korzybski. Our perception of the world is being generated by our brain and can be considered as a 'map' of reality written in neural patterns." But, I want to add to it. A map could be any tool we use to get somewhere or find something we're looking for. If we find it, we may only think we found it. It may only be a vista point, not the actual territory. It's not so easy to find the actual territory, even though we may be using several maps and many references. Maps are only maps -- concepts after concepts. The territory has to happen to you on its own, and then you realize. It cannot be induced by maps. You won't learn the lessons along the way. Induced territories could be very misguided for a long time. And then following the actual territory, you get used to it, learn from it, and continue. When you get guided by the territory, it will not follow any human principles. Human principles will only be reduced to words and pointers.

@Saumaya One of my favourite quotes: If you want to show others something, it can't be done by telling them what they can and cannot do.

@cetus56 No, not at all. Did you watch the video? No, right? Where is that being candy coated? It's right there in that video. He actually did that.

@Leo Gura These sentences... "I feel pain." "I feel anger." are different from these sentences... "I am the pain." "I am the anger." Somewhere in the middle of this clip, when a monk was protesting against the Vietnam War, he lit himself with fire and wasn't even crying; it is an example of 'I am the pain.'" An example of "I am the anger," could be a high ranking Shaolin monk fighting with a major enemy in self defense, not bothering if he's going to die. Truly enlightened masters know when to exhibit, "I am the (anger/pain)." They don't do it whenever they want with whoever. They've mastered when to do it. Leo, sometimes you got to explain it in a way to reduce negative publicity and assumptions from others.

@zoey101 ?????????you're welcome????

@zoey101 Don't worry so much. Things happen in life. Wishing you all the best. I want to share something else that I noticed. God also gives us blessings all the time. Did you notice? I think the problem is, sometimes we don't know how to receive our blessings. I think if we did, things would fall into place a lot quicker. Leo, in his most recent clip on his blog, said to 'surrender' to God and become one with Him. Well, great, but I feel that what is most missing is, we still have a life to live and lessons to learn and 'surrendering' to God's blessings. Here is an example.

@Tom Daniel D This is such a cute one. I like his style here: @Leo Gura But Leo...if you're going to become The Cloth Bag Monk, you can't turn your Maslow pyramid (aka, life purpose) upside down. It looks awkward. If you had included a mastery, it would've been looking more balanced. Shaolin monks did that. Their spirituality is at the tippy top. They don't speak about it. Their actions is kung fu mastery. Only if someone is interested do they tell them about spirituality/no-self. Mother Teresa taught poor kids geography for free. That was her way of giving (mastery), even without the exchange of money.

I agree that we still have a lot of problems, and we as the human race have a long way to go. However, now we have so many tools right at our fingertips. Jesus and Buddha didn't have that. They only had word-of-mouth. But, I have to give them a lot of credit. They achieved a lot. Buddha went from Rajput to Brahmin in a time where the caste system defined who you are. Now, it's secular with a lot of opportunities.

Have you looked at this clip: It seems to relate to what you're saying. But then, you got to be careful. When you go out and talk to people, most likely they may not listen, even though they asked you tons of questions, or you expressed a lot of things to them. Following the questions or conversation, they may start criticizing. The two ppl are in very different places in their lives. They can't relate. And, it is up to the person to change himself/herself, not up to the other person. I said this before. I find the following quotes useful: A person has to take action in order for another to realize what he/she is about. What better way to do that than to use the life purpose as a vehicle? You can express your spirituality there (along with your mastery) in subtle ways so that those who are ready to hear it will hear it. Then, they will incorporate it into their lives to better the world in their own ways. It works like a ripple effect. I also like this clip of Shinzen Young. It's part 3, but he's saying metaphorically that the "hands are outstretched" without you speaking.

Compromising on something like a sexual orientation or a sexual orientation is a huge compromise. Can a person even live with it? A gay guy with a straight gal is the same as two straight guys going together. In most cases, it doesn't work. You could look it up. It backfires. The point is, you got to be very much aware of your sexual orientation and consequences. These two sentences are different: "Being very monogamous is my sexual orientation." "Being very monogamous is a paradigm."

This is an excellent and bold point. Thanks. There's probably more than just LGBT. That's why you can't just casually approach anyone. Yeah, why should the other person tell you their core values / boundaries or sexual orientation, when you're just going to put them on the spot and start criticizing and judging? It's a very uncomfortable situation.