Natasha

@2000 Sounds like he went through what you're going through. Check it out

Lisa Cairns and Tony Parsons communicate well this kind of thing. Check this out

@krazzer I got awakened while doing Leo's guided self-inquiry in his Creating the Experience of No-Self video about 2 years ago and the shift was permanent too. Even when I learn something new about 'enlightenment' and stuff, it doesn't change the state or add anything to it, only to the conceptual knowledge base. If I threw all the concepts away, the being would still be here, infinitely. Thank you for sharing.

@Joseph Maynor I try to make my gym routine consistent yet fun - 20 mins cardio, 30 mins muscle toning, 10 mins stretches. Then the best part - sauna 10-15 mins in 180 F dry heat. Twice a week helps keep in decent shape.

@Shin Here in Florida there are plenty of mosquitos too, bug screens keep them out, though. All my window and back porch are screened for bugs. You can also use Essential oils to repel them http://info.achs.edu/blog/green-cleaning-10-essential-oils-that-naturally-repel-insects

@Joseph Maynor These sound like great practical ideas, I will definately try them out. Thank you

@Shin Don't they use mosquito screens where you live?

@Joseph Maynor I am naturally a number person, I work in accounting and love it. When I was growing up, however, I wrote poems and short stories and was even published twice in a local periodical in my country. So I already have a bit of experience from a long time ago. I jot down all the time (I have sticky notes written all over them in my top work drawer). My issue is putting all this random stuff in organized context to make it presentable for reading. Another thing that holds me back is English being my second language, it's not perfect. Ayla tells me not to overthink stuff and to just let it flow. As they say, practice make it perfect. 30 mins - 1 hr daily blocks would probably be a good start. I do have time in early mornings and in the evenings. The muse will catch up eventually, I hope

I suck at writing, but people keep telling me I need to write. So I've been thinking about starting to practice and see what comes out of it.

Rupert's teachings are full of golden nuggets, one just has to pay attention and be open to receive them.

@Joseph Maynor Eckhart Tolle has given us some of the best ego transcendence accounts that lead him to awakening. He was in a state of intense anxiety and was even thinking about ending his life. One night as he was laying in bed dwelling again on how miserable his life was, he uttered in dispair, "I cannot live with myself any longer". "Who is the 'I' and who is the 'myself' that 'I' can't live with?" he started to ponder. The turmoil of anxiety and fear suddenly lifted and he went to sleep with unusual sense of relief and peace. The following morning, as he woke up, everything in the room seemed so fresh and new. He got up , stepped outside - the busy street, the noise, traffic, hurried people - even all that seemed peaceful. Eckhart knew something of significance had happened in him. Later, as he was researching and inquiring, he learned about the ego and how people mistakenly identify with it causing them pain and suffering. If you haven't yet, check out his books The Power of Now and A New Earth where he talks in detail about this. Also YT has his talks, intervews, and guided meditations.

@John I hope this will help put things in perspective

@Joseph Maynor I've found stretches of no-thinking to be most relaxing, peaceful, and positive

Thus, raising levels of awareness is the most effective part of 'seeking' to bring one to self-realization.

@Joseph Maynor Ego death - the end of identification with body-mind/personal story of 'me' (fully occurs at physical 'death') Ego transcendence - realizing you're not the body-mind, observing the construct while not identifying with it Enlightenment - embodyment of your true nature (a.k.a awareness, the Absolute, God, etc)

@Joseph Maynor Good question, and I think Rupert Spira has the answer. Also, check out his other vids on mind, consciousness, and awareness. This is one of my favorite teachings of his:

@Joseph Maynor Since God (the Absolute) manifests itself through the object reality (the Relative), you could say that everything/existence is God 'communicating'. Conscious knowing is mere recognizing what is, not conceptulizing it. What God 'communicates' is pure Beingness, nutrality. We (the minds) assign labels/judgements to everything, not God.

It's one thing to use thought processes as a tool, it's another thing to identify with them. I think Leo is the former, not the latter.

Yes, facing our fears and feeling unpleasant emotions fully is how we begin to heal. When we dismiss/suppress them, they keep to resurface over and over reeking havoc in our psyche and disturbing our peace. And this is madness 'cos none of that stuff is even real. Check out Eckhart Tolle's talks on 'pain body' and how the ego feeds off it, powerful stuff.

Spiritual Traps discussed in this video: The Enlightenment Trance, Imitation and Concept, Beliefs and Stories, Non-Duality, Mind and No-Mind, Inclusion and Exclusion, Spiritual Fascism, Avoidance of Stopping, Silent Awareness: The Resolution. What have been your spiritual traps?

@AlwaysBeNice Yes, that's why shadow-work is so important. I repeat it again and again on these forums. It takes time and effort to root out the conditioning/programming that hold us back.

@Joseph Maynor Emerald has given a pretty good definition in her post above. I'll just add that we all have monkey-mind to one degree or another, and that it sources from the collective ego-mind. Sometimes we don't even know where our thoughts come from, they seem to just appear and as suddenly disappear and almost always revolve around either the past or the future, which are not reality. Mindfulness practice and meditation bring mind back to the present moment, here and now. Observe your thoughts, don't absorb them. Here's a funny monkey-mind stand-up for you https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-wSEtbnpnI

@Joseph Maynor Ego is a false sense of self (body-mind). Monkey-mind is thought content that 'feeds' the ego-mind in a manner that does not align with reality. A.k.a 'hamster-in-a-wheel', 'squirrel-on-steroids', or 'mental masturbation'. Daily meditation and mindfulness practice are good ways to quiet/tame monkey-mind.

Same here. Perhaps our survival mechanism is the one to blame

@Preetom Practicing gratitude and Being helps me to avoid the meaninglessness trap. I also used to be in the 'ego death' trap, now learning to integrate the ego instead of trying to eradicate it. Got to be aware of those traps, so we're not so easily caught into them in the first place.