The White Belt

@brovakhiin I did a three month solo backpacking trip though SE Asia also. If you have any questions, let me know!

When you spot a deep dark cloud in the mind that may pass, isn't going to see a psychologist going to make it a lot worse? I mean, think about it. The ego loves to cling, it loves to conceptualize, it loves labels. When you go to a psychologist, or a therapist, isn't the first thing they do is to say, 'Ahh, okay. You are depressed/You have OCD/You have anxiety/You have PTSD'. Now don't get me wrong, I know talking about things can be very helpful! Yet some people only go to these initial consultations to discover what the initial issue is, and don't follow through with the help. Isn't labeling these things like taking ten steps back!?! I mean, all of things things are qualitative, nobody really has OCD, anxiety, depression, PTSD, in the sense that it is a one-size-fits-all costume. These things could be totally unique, and could pass much more easily without the need for some diagnosis for the Ego to cling to. Further yet, the Ego may even start to delude itself into further symptoms upon realising what these definitions entail. This isn't without direct experience. Once upon a time I had anxiety, and once I started to drop the thoughts that I am an anxious person, and I feel like this, like that, and became just mindful of the raw sensations and the thoughts that came up, without as much judgement, it began to fade to the point where i've pretty much forgotten what it's like to be anxious. Thoughts?

Your worst days are your best fellas. Simple as. I got depressed as a teenager. I became interested in why I got depressed, therefore I become interested in the mind. So I got interested in psychology, and then personal development, and then spirituality, and now I guess you could say I'm working on my liberation. My worst days, opened doors to things I didn't even know were damn possible. I had no clue. Incredible.

@Saarah Excellent quote! Quite summarises what I'm getting at! @Martin123 CBT has its uses, but it certainly isn't big picture thinking.

I agree that what I'm saying is not completely true, because I'm generalising. I'm coming from the point of looking at your everyday psychologist or therapist. Not a revolutionary one. Certainly not Carl Jung. I'm from England, and here we have the public 'National Health Service' or the NHS. Everyone with mental health issues, big or small, will be assigned practictioners of more of less the same standard, so majority of the country, unless they're private, more or less will be initially given a nice little pamphlet with what they now 'have' and all the symptoms that go with it. Perfect for the ego! Just so you know what experience I'm coming from. Of course not all psychology works this way, but I think it's safe to say that a LOT of it does.

Glad you managed to. Agreed that it should be done diligently, but the quick, easy fix, is far from the best solution in the first place! Agreed Phil. It seems the collective ego's problem is the obsession with more. More solutions, more medicine, more treatment. I bet 90% of mental health issues could be dealt with through meditation, mindfulness, acceptance, and other chemical-free, cost-free solutions. It's funny that more and more doctors are recommending these 'spiritual' practices. You're going full-circle you idiots! This stuff has been known about for thousands of years!

Agreed. It is a social construct. Oh jeez. "Everybody is a Genius. But If You Judge a Fish by Its Ability to Climb a Tree, It Will Live Its Whole Life Believing that It is Stupid" - Albert Einstein

It's quite an assumption to say everybody seems to trust him. The truth is he inspires trust in many because almost everything he says can be cross referenced. You can find dozens of reputable sources that say similar, or exactly the same thing, on psychedelics, meditation, enlightenment etc. Leo just puts it in his own way, that a lot of people resonate with because he's so down to earth, and adds his own findings, that you certainly aren't required to take on board, but you may have found those same things yourself.

@Leo Gura Where does meditation and contemplation come on that list, out of curiousity?

Yo people! This thread is for people to unleash some 'freaky', or explainable childhood occurrences that they had to tell themselves was bullshit in later life, due to everyone turning them logical, but are now tuning back into them after meditation or after having some 'freaky' adult experiences. I'll start. When I was very young I used to look at things for an extended period and start to see a black and white spiral coming into my field of vision. When I used to go to bed I always had some crazy OBEs that made me levitate above my bed! I'm only starting to remember these things that happened when I was maybe four years old, because a level on consciousness that I suppressed for 'practical' purposes is returning to me! Please, share yours with us!

Thanks for the responses, folks! Very interesting stuff. I'll throw one more in of mine (there are several more), this time, somewhat paranormal rather than meta-physical. So i'm looking for this one game disc. It's one of those times as a kid when in your mind, you just have to play this game (I think it was a PlayStation 2 game), and the more I can't find it, the more desperate I get to find it. So i'm looking EVERYWHERE. Under my bed, in my drawers, behind cupboards, etc. Then all of a sudden I hear a clunk, and I look in the drawer i've checked at least 5 times, and there it is! This totally knocked me out (figuratively). I am totally stunned. How can it just appear, with a clunk, in the drawer i've checked over and over?! Of course since then i've told myself that I didn't look properly, and skipped over it. That it was there all along. Don't get me wrong, that could totally be the truth! But the point is, not necessarily. It could just be that the event didn't fit into my paradigm of normal, so i've bent it to fit that. Who knows, eh?!

Hello, everyone! Basically, I feel like i've been contemplating for years and years, since i've been a teenager. Contemplating my life purpose, contemplating society as a whole, culture and more recently, reality. I mostly do this when i'm walking somewhere, occasionally i'll switch to mindfulness, I will also do this listening to music, 'watching' TV, etc. Should good contemplation need to be sat in a chair twiddling your mustache, or can it be as powerful when it's this informal? Thanks, ;-)

@Reality but you can contemplate existence without actually committing yourself to 'pursuing' enlightenment.

What's up guys? So, I dream about Leo more than I dream about anybody else in my life, he's always there, giving me some profound advice. Sometimes I think people think he's just another YouTuber, but when I watch Actualized.org videos, I feel like i'm watching the Socrates of our day, in digital form. When he didn't post a video today I got a bit panicky and I went for a nap, and dreamed that he had finished making videos all together, and I hugged him to thank him for what he's done for me. Maybe it stems from my father. He's not a bad man in essence, but his suffering over-takes him, and I see him as a pretty shitty role-model. So perhaps Leo is like a role-model for me. I dunno. What do you guys think? Should I detox from Actualized.org for a while? Is this an issue, or am I justified thinking like this because I've found a good role-model. Somebody who works his ass off, and never upholds himself to blatant bullshit, like so many of us do. Thanks!

@Gnosis Couldn't have put it better myself!

Hey guys. So it's happened two or three times now. When I'm meditating I feel a pressure, almost like someone is pushing hard through with their finger. Its happening between my eyebrows, yet slightly further up toward the hair line. I checked a website and it said about my 'third eye' opening. I kind of know what this means, but not really. If this is the case than can somebody explain? Making it quite grounded and less 'new agey' ;-) Thanks!

Many thanks for the continued responses!

@Zane I mediate, because the more I can see what a thought is, the more I can see it in my every day life. Therefore the more I can see bullshit in my mind, and can starve it from dictating how I feel!

Thanks dudes. It's pretty crazy, because i've been meditating for a while now, but I have only gone without missing a day for two months, and i'm starting to realise, that meditation... is not just sitting still and trying to still the mind. It's so much more. F*&K! Also i'm remembering that i've been seeing the image of an eye faintly in my closed eye lids. Thanks again!

@Dodoster Thanks man. But can you tell me, why is it activating? What's the point of that? What are the changes I'll see the more it activates?

Why are we so out of touch with oneness, if that's they way it's supposed to be? Why are we so deluded about reality? Why are we caught up in thought? Why are we so unnatural? Why are we so insistent on making ourselves so unconscious? We are we so self destructive? Who is making us this way? What is making us this way? And more importantly, why?

@Dodoster Jesus! One of my dreams was so similar it's scary. He was like at a party with a load of self-actualizers/spiritual seekers, and he was so friendly, just talking to anybody. Also he was with his girlfriend. P.S, guys, it's not sexual. I think it's just a strong admiration, and I probably gave too my rise to it by posting it here, and yet, it was nice to just lay it out there a bit.

@art Hey. Thanks for the reply. Here's my response to your suggestions; I don't get a say on what I dream That's going to give SO much more rise to any thoughts. He never promised anything. I really hate to be a dick, and I know you were trying to be helpful. But these are all horrible suggestions! No offence! I still appreciate you commenting.

@Leo Gura Leo, are you baking your weekly video for a little longer this time? Can we expect to see one next Sunday or are you taking a break?

The title is self-explanatory, but I'll elaborate with my personal experience; Often when I'm meditating the neighbours, I notice, are loud, or the kids I look after are very loud in the next room. I just try my best to bring my attention into my thoughts, or to my breath. Will these distractions hinder or help my results?