UnbornTao

The guy might have some traumas related to trusting others.

Experience emotion as an activity you're doing. Pay attention to components of that activity as you're feeling any emotion: perception, interpretation, meaning, extrapolation. These you do, they don't just fall on your ass. I may move my body in order to reach my coffee mug. The action is motivated by me wanting to reach the mug, so it is directed towards that. Emotions have a purpose, you're the one who starts and leads the motion. When you say "they're directed at something" what I hear is "'I'm at the effect of emotions rather than being their source".

We might not know what life is, so basing questions on presumptions is not a good way to go about it. Self-survival is inherently a struggle. Pain and fear are extremely accesible experiences -- as are freedom and happiness, but also less common for people to access. Self-survival demands managing what's considered negative, positive quickly fades, taken for granted and so may go unnoticed. And of course the bitch of it all is that we can't win the game of life. Ultimately self is going to die. But joy is possible too. Simplistic answers don't provide much except a new idea or opinion. Better to look at what all of this is for oneself.

@Osaid thank you, gonna add some to my next cup.

Yes, enlightenment is possible for everyone. If we postulate that the only requisite is to be human, given that other humans have done it, you can, too. Whoever says you can't is full of crap.

Adopting a loving an open disposition towards others is actually one of the hardest things to do in life, contrary to what most people may think.

Really? Can you provide a source? Why is salt added to coffee?

What you describe is an assertion and not a source, however. What is the nature of that "I" you're speaking about? Dwell on that.

Who's the one experiencing the emotion? Why do two individuals react differently to the same circumstance? Can't you not get angry at someone stepping on your toe? How come? What is the emotion for? Who are you doing it for? It might seem like one is the victim of external factors when it comes to emotions even though that's a paradigm or worldview, and a false one. You can create emotions when conscious of what they are. Being at the source of them, you are empowered to be responsible for your experience rather than blaming circumstances. What you're describing is a reactive emotion which is more difficult to tackle since they're instinctive, appearing as "automatic". Don't confuse the fact that emotions happen at light speed with being at the effect of them. Consider actors creating their emotions at will to suit their role and given situation. Another example: we generally wait for the "right" circumstances before we feel justified in generating enthusiasm. Can you create enthusiasm at will? Do "enthusiasm" right now. Intellectually, this is cute and simple but the reality of it is harder to grasp. Haven't done that yet. P.S. I didn't communicate clearly at all in my previous post. What I said was that, as a culture, we assume emotions are caused by external factors, when in fact they might not be.

@Leo Gura Plato would be proud lol

Apart from scientific evidence and nutritional value, what you eat is ultimately a matter of opinion (preference). There's no ideal diet and consciousness is a different matter. You might be conflating enlightenment with a fantasy; enlightened or not, you can eat animals. Whether or not to eat animal products is a matter of personal choice, regardless of the purported benefits -- and likely a few drawbacks -- it has on your physiology, the ecology, etc.

Not sure what you're talking about but it isn't a perspective. Sounds like a radically different and healing state.

Authenticity, being natural

Emotion is implied to be caused by external circumstances, therefore we can only be at their effect. Emotions are activities done by us. If we assume that, then a logical conclusion could be then that the only solution is to manipulate the emotions' influence. Question them as they arise. In your experience, observe as you engage in the process of creating emotion. I wanted to put out the possibility of a more direct approach: "What is this experience?" "What is this emotion doing"? "What are its components"? What you have sounds like it works for you so that's good.

Belief is a thought you have about what's true. Tons of beliefs can be dropped. When it comes to living, it's not so much about discarding beliefs altogether but about establishing a different relationship towards them. Useful beliefs can be kept as long as they're recognized as beliefs, and as long as we don't confuse them with an experience of what's true. You'd need to learn to tolerate the space or uncertainty that that would have on your experience.

Everybody has a body and is the vehicle through which you experience life. There's a lot of intelligence involved in mastering sports and and the body in general.

Frame the inquiry openly. What is anger? What is its purpose? What is it made out of? Anger is based on a sense of hurt. When angry, what a person is saying is "I feel hurt." Anger is a manipulation on your part to manage that hurt by covering it up. A more honest approach would be allowing yourself to feel the hurt without eliciting anger for the pain to be ignored. Enlightenment doesn't change your experience. Emotions are still what they are after it.

First we should look into how to live properly (consciously). A deep and authentic individual I like and recommend is Ramana Maharshi. First becoming deeply conscious of his nature, and then at the end of his life dying gracefully.

Nice, thanks for the value, guys.

Suffering is pervasive and common, it doesn't necessarily have to take the form of an excruciating event. It's subtle and deep. Do nothing for one hour. You'll see how quickly boredom, hence loneliness, might come up. Another example is not getting what you want. This domain is huge. Not having ice cream when you want it can be a form of suffering. What do you mean?

Good news, everyone! There's no reason to be happy! Happiness isn't found in any condition. It is simply the state of being that you are. The only requirement for happiness is this: be happy. This will take some contemplation as we usually conflate self-survival with happiness. What we mean by "happiness" is relief, a distraction from pain that is accompanied by an underlying sense of fear or anxiety, since that is a temporary condition. Happiness doesn't depend on circumstances but on you.

Have you been taking drugs?

Creating the possibility and vision of a hopeful future, and holding the future that way, eliminates the root of depression.

Get into the state or ground where purpose can be created in your experience. Work on creating purpose, not superficially or intellectually but actually, experientially. Notice that purpose is created; notice that you make it up! Now, create an empowering purpose for yourself that is worthwhile to you. This will encompass your life activities and give you a sense of direction and achievement, will increase your self-confidence, etc. After having gotten in touch with that "place" where genuine creation can occur, various questions can be asked in regards to any activity and undertaking: What do I want to commit myself to? What is the purpose for this activity? Why am I doing it? Why am I engaging in it in the first place? That helps you realize which assumptions are taken for granted relative to what you're doing. From that, clarity increases.