UnbornTao

Haribo Goldbears, of course. That phrase is part of an internet meme. First Haribo, then the truth.

"Guys literally only want one thing and it's fucking disgusting."

It was said semi-jokingly, but consider: What are extremely rich people actually up to, in the end? What we, as people, are up to is survival - fulfilling our own agendas, getting what we want, persisting as our selves, and so on. In a so-called spiritual context, this might involve making others feel good or validated. Nothing inherently wrong with that, but it's fundamentally different from the pursuit of truth, which is often seen as worthless or useless - and frequently threatening to one's current sense of self and reality. I agree with you to a point, since I'm talking about teaching or facilitating people. You could be the CEO of Whole Foods, for example, and that would be fine from the perspective of "conscious business." But that's not what I mean. Facilitating consciousness is more difficult than selling a bill of goods, because the former isn't subject to fantasy. That alone already excludes most people from participating. Consider why the more profound episodes of Leo tend to get fewer views. A video on getting laid gets far more attention than one that genuinely contemplates what reality is, without any fuss. This doesn't seem random. Broadly speaking, as a culture - or even as a species - we couldn't care less about the truth. We'd rather have our beliefs validated. Perhaps it's a bit like comparing McDonald's with a local place that values craft over convenience. Jesus's quote shines a light on this condition. What I suspect he was really pointing to is greed: "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven." Not to get moralistic about it, though. Money!

Definitely. It seems to be a common archetype among men, from my point of view. We're all little scared kids deep down.

Classic tough guy with a vulnerable and somewhat tender interior - depending on who it is directed to. Random comment: sorry, I just remembered to reply to your post. Also, I'm watching, and loving, the show.

If by "wealthy" you mean extremely rich, I'd say not really. Culture as a whole doesn't stand in favor of "consciousness," and appealing to the masses tends to water the spirit of the work down. Because, for the most part, no one gives a hoot about what's true. You could draw a correlation between poverty and consciousnes.

What is it that you're feeling hopeless about, and why? Hopelessness and an imagined negative future go hand in hand.

No idea. Austin?

Why the truth? Because it's fucking true!

I haven't been actively maintaining my commonplace book for a while now, but I'd recommend Obsidian. It is tried and tested and has a solid (free) plugin marketplace. Logseq is similar and open-source, but I haven't tried it. Same goes for Joplin.

The guy's work ethic is laudable. Remember to drink agua

I'm in!

Stop it™️

Gotta fire up that Nintendo emulat -- I mean, Switch 2, and play some Zelda.

Notice that you don't need faith to admit that you don't know what the thing you have faith in is actually about.

@Lord of Darkness Yeah, I hid your post. As long as it is reasonably respectful and meets the guidelines, you can post pretty much whatever you want. The more conscious and honest, the better.

I never speak in absolutes.

I remember enjoying Jonathan Livingston Seagull.

It's okay. I understand if you saw my post as a bit harsh. It was meant to be helpful and to point toward certain directions, but sometimes my tone can come off as cold, analytical, or detached. It might have sounded like I was invalidating your experience or not quite keeping track. I appreciate the honesty. After all, who doesn't indulge their imagination sometimes? On the other hand, you could use this as a contemplation: Why did something a stranger say on the internet affect you? Why take it personally? Confront the discomfort, silly.

So be it. 😄 Even if it sounds familiar, it has to be experienced for it to make a difference. That's the hard part for everyone, me included. From what you said above, you might notice that your mind is overly imaginative in this sense - creating images of various futures, treating them as real (in a way), and then reacting to them. It's okay to do that, of course. In some ways, thinking about the future is necessary and useful, such as when planning things. Still, I think it's something worth exploring. Focusing exclusively on the present moment, especially on physical sensations and the objective world, tends to calm the mind. And this can help increase your tolerance for certain "unpleasant" experiences. Perhaps it's this kind of mental activity - and taking it too seriously - that gives rise to much of your aversion to relatively benign forms of discomfort. In your example, you seem to be reacting to something initially imagined: your craving for an "apocalypse." It might be an ideal you're holding onto, something that you hope will come in the distant future to "save" you. Obviously, my point isn't to actively seek out discomfort, but rather to embrace some of it, not to be so against it - which is what I hear from some of your points. I could be wrong, though. I'm not sure if this helps much.

Loving it. I'm not sure alien is the right word, though. Looks promising.