ajasatya

@Mert you gotta do things that i'm sure you don't like yet. don't try to love others. first of all, you gotta love yourself. take good care of yourself. learn how to enjoy life. that's how i see the first commandment (love God above all). here are some practical tips on how to practice self love.

no. the main goal is to learn how to return to focus. that's what we practice. we return to focus a trillion trillion trillion times. once we're on the present moment, we just relax on it. we don't control focus. we don't control anything. just return to the present moment and relax. appreciate the sound of the breath. have you noticed its natural beauty?

no. i've read A LOT of them and they all suck. they're all useless. zen is supposed to be lived. just find a zen sangha and go practice with them. apply to as many retreats as you can. if there's no zen sangha near you, then i recommend reading this book. it contains instructions on how to practice zazen. if you read and don't practice, time wasted. a good balance for solo beginners is reading one chapter after each zen session. a zen session is composed by a certain amount of zazen (say 30m), followed by a certain amount of kin hin (say 10m) and then a certain amount of zazen (say 30m). that's how it's been practiced for almost 800 years. some retreats implement 40/10/40 sessions. a beginner should start with 20/6/20 imo.

this attitude is nothing new in the history of mankind. if you want to speak the "actual truth", go ahead and play the role of the clown. Truth cannot be spoken. if you really want to help people to experience Truth, then start a zen center and just teach them how to practice zazen. give them straightforward instructions like how to place the head above the spine and how to return to the present moment as many times as possible. nothing else. but unfortunately, i sincerely think you're unable to do that for now. you're still drunk in pride, trying to be the enlightened one who has the "actual truth" to be spoken. yes master, please, teach me.

@MiracleMan there's a middle way between "I shouldn't be doing this" and "I love you". just watch your breath.

i went through the same process and i could not stand gyms anymore. but i also realized that a healthy body would improve my daily experience of life. so i noticed that i needed to exercise the body while immersing in a mindfulness training. there was no other option for me because everything else felt like a waste of time. so i choose hatha yoga. been practicing consistently for 2 years.

give up on trying to get rid of anything and just dive deeply in the experience while you breath mindfully.

@ArasH nofap is godlike if you cannot live without masturbation.

because they want to achieve something. maybe they're feeding their spiritual ego, trying to become special. maybe they're trying to achieve some intellectual comprehension, diving in mental masturbation. maybe they're simply not practicing meditation at all.

it's not presumptuous as long as your daily experience of life is consistently conscious and content. no more existential fear of death; no more impatience; no more self-sabotage; no more greed, anger, jealousy, anxiety, regret; no more thirst for spiritual knowledge and a complete surrender to the unsolvable mystery of the mental-immaterial present moment.

Reality sees Itself through many eyes, listens to Itself through many ears and tastes Itself with many tongues. you cannot find a separated identity inside of you and you cannot find a separated identity inside of anybody. NOTHING has an inherent individuality. when we say that everything is One, it's not just a cute statement meaning that we humans should be falling in love with each other. the veracity of that statement is much much much more deeper. it's so deep that it's impossible to be put in words. it has to be lived in silence. your main obstacle for now is your intellectual pride. you're not working hard enough to let Silence grow in your mental space. it doesn't matter how smart you are, you gotta step into the unknown and get used to it. watch logical thoughts arise and let them go. they're helpless. HELPLESS. it cannot be known. let go of it. throw away all of your 30 years of philosophy. throw it all away. humble yourself before existence and let it be. cultivate silence instead. as you read these words, you feel like you know what i am trying to say to you. you may even let go for now. but i bet you won't work hard enough and mental diarrhea will destroy your peace over and over.

accept people as they are and be compassionate for they're always struggling with endless mental battles. be present and free yourself from destructive patterns by implementing a healthy way to live.

you tell me. take a leap of faith and try it yourself.

@Joseph Maynor awareness is passive and the ego may surrender itself to it. are you truly present right now? how does your right foot feel?

too much conceptualization. too little living and experiencing. you have a titanic intellect and the wisdom of a poop stick. have you ever planted your own food? have you ever striven for raw survival? go live, kid.

retreats (2~3 sesshins in an year) long meditation sessions in group (zazenkai once in a month) long meditation sessions alone (strong determination sitting) periodic zen sessions in group (regular zen meetings once in a week) consistent practice of asanas as taught by iyengar (hatha yoga) kriyas as taught by yogi bhajan (kundalini yoga) singing the mahamantra with krishna devotees (bahkti yoga) contemplation (just going to a random place and doing nothing at all) gradually transform my life in an endless meditation (24/7 mindfulness) but if i am to choose one, i'd surrender completely to zen and just go live in a zen monastery. it was extremely hard in the beginning. extremely hard. the discipline i needed was enormous but nowadays it feels effortless.

very good. i think he's going through an awakening episode. talk to him and open your heart completely. humble yourself down in a way that he'll feel as if he was talking to someone who's felt like that before. tell him about your own difficulties and how you're growing out of them, so he won't feel alone and it will be easier for him to accept himself the way he is. and when he talks, just listen deeply. listen and listen deeply. listen with compassion. don't interrupt to say that he's wrong. this episode may be a predecessor of an awakening. if he gets to know how you deal with your suffering through meditation, it may inspire him. but don't expect this to be true.

set all scriptures on fire break free from knowledge burn it all

@Jordan wang it will never work until you learn to fully appreciate the presence of a woman. nothing more than that. just her presence. do not listen to demanding thoughts.

let it eat you completely then. don't avoid these experiences. these moments of absolute pain/honesty are extremely rare. you're being blessed. i am saying these words because i know what you're talking about. we're both very very very lucky guys. sit quietly and summon boredom. you need to investigate the very root cause of your suffering. don't read about it. don't watch youtube videos. external help won't work. all i can do is try to inspire you to have enough courage to face silence. if you manage to get used to silence and transform boredom into freedom, you'll become invulnerable.

the rich man represents a materialist person who's afraid of introspection, looking for happiness where it cannot be found.

@IVONNE compassion is the key. i can lend my glasses to you. buy your own later. notice how every human being is always struggling in suffering due to their spiritual poverty. mankind looks like a fat pool of suffering. the best thing we can do is get out of that mud and purify ourselves by practicing the art of presence. just be present. it's not your fault.

slow down. freedom is not easy but it's worth it. the body is not mistaken. it's simply doing its job. the heart beats and feeds the cells etc. your weakness is in the mind. you've grown up in an ignorant society that could not offer you what a human being really needs, which is spiritual health. now it's your job to be responsible for yourself. it's time to grow up in a different direction. whenever you feel an urge to come back to an old destructive pattern, stop everything. seriously, stop completely. watch your breath and be present. it is not easy. i've been where you are and i know it. face your resistance to the present moment and let it be. notice how reality functions perfectly even if you simply stay still. nothing will go wrong. you can see it for yourself.

addiction is a consequence of the untrained mind. the root cause of all addictions is the lack of connection with the present moment. so people try to feed that connection with something else like cigars, alcohol, sex, money, fame, guilt etc.

do not play safe. you're already asking for an youtube video. that's a petty way to experience Truth. dance with shamans below the full moon. spend a month in a buddhist temple. go to vipassana retreats. transform your body in an yoga teaching course. meet thousands of different people.