UnbornTao

Have you watched I, Robot? Similar to that. The potential AI has for mischief. - "Hey Siri, clean my room." - "Clean it yourself, bi**h"

Right? It's also creepy.

@StarStruck @hyruga Intellectual understanding is just the first step. The key is experiencing the communication. That is what the work is all about. If you grasped the communication, you'd be a master by now. @Jacob Morres Mastery in terms of skill. I don't think that it can be applied to enlightenment work as the latter isn't a relative matter.

Addiction might be catalyzed by an unconscious avoidance of pain. We avoid pain and seek pleasure because we presume to be lacking. Experiencing oneself as already inherently complete resolves that dilemma. You assume to be broken in some way.

A presumed lack.

I like Susanne Cook-Greuter's 9 levels of ego development.

To the average guy, self-help may have a reputation of being a shallow, BS field filled with motivating content that isn't very effective after all -- "believe in yourself", "focus on what you want", etc. It's a broad term. Real and effective self-help exists but it isn't as accessible as the viral stuff. Call it something like personal empowerment and it could turn into a social media fad. Using the word empowerment may have positive connotations in people's eyes whereas self-help doesn't. And yet we might be talking about the same thing, just with different terms. The work is essentially the same whether it's called self-growth, empowerment, self-help, or self-actualization. It is working and moving towards actualizing one's potential, whatever that looks like in your case.

Who fact-checks the one who does the fact-checking? Meta-fact-checking.

Chopin, Newton. Also unusually skilled individuals? Messi, Rafa Nadal.

@toasty7718 thank you, good to know.

Ramana said: "Self-realization is the greatest gift that you can give to the world." Why would he say that? Seeking out the truth is independent from survival. Don't limit truth seeking to a particular lifestyle. Pursuing enlightenment can occur within and without the monastery. A supportive community and environment helps the monks focus and put all their efforts into pursuing awakening. But throughout history enlightened people has lived very differently from one another.

@Water by the River (No more) water by the river.

fair, gotta acknowledge that too. @Water by the River

Elon Musk's biography by Walter Isaacson is already available for preorder, if you're interested.

You sound like an affiliate marketer

@Breakingthewall Over-expressing can be counterintuitive, it could interfere with your discovery process. Better to open a door and leading another through it, no need to describe in detail what's on the other side prior to that. Draw one square's corner and let the student draw the other three.

@Water by the River To be honest, now I find your responses annoying. They're too long. You cite too much quotes and sources. Don't oversell. Let the river alone from time to time.

God's fart.

What about Michael Greger? I'm not a nutritionist so can't tell whether his work is solid. But hey, I find it inspiring.

What a shame. It actually is very valuable.

Start with an empty sheet. Having multiple enlightenments helps in this topic as consciousness allows you to look at things as if from "nothing", freed from the prevailing assumptions that often lock or limit perceptive-awareness and thinking. If you run out of techniques for generating original thinking, create one yourself! Practice this. Create a musical genre. Reinvent a basic tool from scratch -- a hat, a shoe, socks. Study the genesis of powerful creations such as Chopin's music or psychology as a field. How come Kant's work revolutionized philosophy at the time? Contemplate: What allowed their authors to make those inventions? What place were they coming from? What state of being did they access such that they could create powerfully? Master the field in which you're trying to invent something new. Use that expertise as a starting point, as a place on which to ground your creative efforts. Which are all of the known distinctions within that field? What are its parameters and assumptions? Throughout this process, when creating something new, it is necessary to set your knowledge aside. In that way, your mind becomes flexible, freed from established experience and knowledge. This step is required in order to create something new, no matter the field. As any other skill, this one can also be practiced and developed.

Enlightenment is always positive. It's about what's true. Freedom and some form of healing usually arise after enlightenment experiences. Your nature is recognized to be inherently free and blissful. It isn't about insanity and the like. That might occur in one's process but shouldn't be confused with your consciousness in the matter. Intense emotional reactions always come up with intense contemplation, they are temporary and should be allowed to arise. Likewise, Beneficial states shouldn't be confused with consciousness of the absolute. Enlightenment is becoming conscious of what's already true! The truth is and has always been the case, so there's no need for fear or resistance. What you describe are activities the mind does. I'm speaking intellectually, not from direct experience.

Fly me to the moon... ?? ?

Some supplements have side effects. High doses of Vitamin D have caused me irritability and insomnia if taken late in the day. Expect the occasional unpleasant effect at times. Having said that, I'm not a doctor, just a guy on the internet. Try krill oil.