Joseph Maynor

When you're alone it's a lot easier to be aware. People can be distracting. I am 100% at peace just being alone.

ON PERCEIVED ADDICTIONS -- JUST BE MINDFUL, DON'T BE IDEOLOGICAL Addictions are conceptualizations and conceptualizations are not real. If you watch your addictions while you're engaging in them, that's still Mindfulness and still good work. Have faith that Mindfulness will auto-correct your life and find the right balance for you. Have a mindset that breathes about this. A little addiction is fine, so long as it isn't interfering with what the higher-self wants to do too much. But if you maintain Mindfulness, this balance will get calibrated right for you. Be flexible, accept reality, and maintain awareness. Even if you're drunk, maintain awareness. Don't be too puritanical. What matters is Mindfulness and clarity of mind. This is why booze is not a great idea most of the time because it screws up Mindfulness. But having a policy against drinking can cause some repression, so beware of rigid rules. Awareness alone is curative. Stop being ideological about addictions. That's an attempt to control reality. Let life live life. Just maintain keen-awareness. Stop creating limiting beliefs about perceived addictions. They're only causing you useless suffering. You're being ideological and Reality is not ideological. Judgment about addictions are conceptualizations laid up on top of reality. Like the scribbling on the glass covering the Mona Lisa that I discussed before. That's what your monkey-chatter is about addictions. You gotta stop judging reality so much. Accept reality and just be Aware of it. Video on point to watch:

Bingo! Science is a tool not the truth. Science is more accurately Natural Philosophy, as it used to be known as. Scientists are theorists about reality and about truth. They are totally bought into the paradigm of conceptual truth. Scientists are philosophers. They are totally beholden to beliefs. And that's fine as long as you don't bring that shit home with you. It's like a lawyer bring the lawyer home to the wife. Not good. Leave that at work. Put the tool back into the toolbox when you no longer need it. The problem is people equate Science with Knowledge. This issue is addressed in Philosophy, ironically, and not in Science. People are very confused about beliefs. You can go Meta on beliefs though and kind of look under the hood of what's going on there by practicing Mindfulness. You can get out of the nest of beliefs and then look at the nest as a whole. That's possible. That's called going Meta or Awareness or Atman. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_philosophy

I don't see why a Scientist could not also be Enlightened. They would be watching themselves play the Science game. There's much worse ways to make a living, I can tell you. Scientists are just explicit theorists. Most people keep their ideas to themselves. Science tries to shove theirs down everyone's throat. They attempt to do this by proving their hypotheses. That's the only difference. But we are all dogmatists. At least Scientists are basing their beliefs on testability -- much of the time. But Scientists are theorists about reality and about the truth. Science could be thought of as Natural Philosophy, which it used to be. I believe Physics was still called Natural Philosophy in Isaac Newton's day if my memory serves me well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton

Stop clinging to that Ego. That's takes a lot of work to get to though. But that's the answer. The Ego is what makes you sensitive.

This is trying to encapsulate reality in a thought. Ain’t never gonna happen. People have tried to do this from the beginning of time to today. Brahman is that which concepts exist within, to use a metaphor. Trying to fit Brahman under a concept is like trying to fit water into a net. Just be ok with reality being reality. Be mindful of what’s here. You should have little need for questions after that point. All thought-stories are laid on top of reality — like scribbling all over the glass that covers the Mona Lisa. The painting underneath is unmarred, but the obsever’s view is left muddied up. That’s what thought-stories do to reality. Let those go and just admire the painting underneath the glass for what it is. Don’t try to fit it under categories. Treat reality like this. Those scribbles on the glass are irrelevant to the reality that lies up underneath. All they do is block your clear view of reality. And that’s no good.

Once you become Enlightened you’ll watch yourself develop yourself. Enlightenment doesn’t change reality. Reality will be whatever it is without your illusion of control. There’s a difference between Egoic detachment and Enlightened detachment. Egoic detachment is what causes your life to decay. Enlightened detachment is just stepping back and letting life live in whatever way life lives. Of course you have no control over any of this. That’s the bitter pill no one wants to accept — you have no control. That control that you think you have is a total illusion. Those who accept this will have a different ride through this life than those who do not. You will do whatever happens in this life — successful or otherwise. But beware of Egoic detachment — that’s a trap and assumes you have control. Get out of life’s way and let life live life. The Ego is like the worst backseat driver ever. Totally useless and irrelevant. Just watch the Ego but don’t identify with it as ME. You are Brahman, Reality. All you gotta go is be Aware in the moment — that’s Atman. And Atman = Brahman. Brahman = Atman. Maya is clinging to Belief. Pick up beliefs when they’re useful, but put them back when they’re not useful. The mechanic doesn’t have all of his tools under the car when he’s working. He has the tools he needs, and after they’ve served their use, they go back into the toolbox. After the job, he’s not gonna be carrying those tools around with him. He picks up a tool when it’s useful and puts it back after it’s served it’s purpose. We need to treat beliefs like this. Beliefs are tools not truths.

Here’s a good question for contemplation: to what extent are my morals MY morals.

Stay on the path. I was like you 1 year ago. Enlightenment — especially the seeking phase is a long, arduous process. But it’s worth it. The most important thing in this work is to keep doing it. You just keep on keeping on no matter what. What you work on is what you improve.

Good question eh?

It’s funny how things look from the perspective of Brahman versus the perspective of Maya. It’s like the difference between night and day. But both night and day are here, part of reality. But Day is so different from night and vice versa. It’s like the difference between being awake and dreaming.

How much experience do you have with Enlightenment work?

A nihilist is still clinging to belief. When you reach the state of Brahman nihilism doesn’t make sense.

The Forum is a great place for people to grasp around until they realize that it’s all right here. It’s always all just been right here. It’s like an anti-training academy. It’s going from Maya to Brahman.