Forestluv

@Beginner Mind This is another view. If it resonates, great. If not, dismiss it. One type of relationship with thoughts is that they are merely appearances. From this perspective, we wouldn't give anymore relevance to thoughts than bird chirps. . . . Which has more relevance: frogs croaking or birds chirping? It's a silly question. However, when we ask "Which has more relevance: my thoughts or bird chirps?", it is a very different question, due to our engagement, attachment and identification to the thought stories. Thoughts can be very alluring and mesmerizing. . . . Thoughts about right and wrong, thoughts about who I am, what I need to do, how life works and on and on. . . There is nothing "wrong" with thought stories, yet we cam become immersed within them that we miss out on other stuff. I think we've all had situations in which we become "lost in thought" and miss out on other appearances. Imagine walking in nature with a mind that is consumed with worrying over work or trying to figure things out. . . That mindset will miss out on a lot. Now imagine walking through nature for an hour without a single thought. An awareness would be revealed. Reality is not dependent on my thought stories. There is a lot more going on. . . This seems to fit in with Leo's latest video on implicit and explicit understanding. The mind is conditioned to try and figure things out explicitly through thoughts, language and logic. Yet there is implicit stuff that cannot be understood through language, thoughts and logic. Often this manifests as "Ah ha!!" moments of direct experience in which there is an understanding that cannot be explicitly explained through language. When this form of realization is revealed, the mind may think "wth just happened??!!. . . Maybe it means. . . Maybe that was what Tolle was talking about. . . Was it real? Or was it imagined?". This is the mind's effort to get a sense of grounding through explicit explanation, yet doing so can detract from deepening one's implicit understanding. The mind is often conditioned toward explicit understanding through thoughts, language and explanation. Ime, letting go of this mental tendency is helpful to allow space for implicit realizations. Yet at first, this can feel uncomfortable because the mind and body is so conditioned to figure things out explicitly.

How do you imagine a Trump vs Bernie debate would play out?

If Democrats win by a landslide and Trump doesn't stand down, that would be a huge escalation at a much higher level than anything Trump has done. I'm not saying that situation is impossible, yet it is an enormous escalation and we can't assume Republicans would go along with him. This situation is on the order of the "Civil War" scenario. Personally, I think it's a low probability, yet not impossible. However, I'd say the small probability is high enough to take some preparations to reduce the probability further. If it is a close election, I think the probability dramatically increases.

@Thought Art That's all good. I'm not saying those models are wrong. If they resonate with you, go for it. . . My mind isn't oriented to model it like that. Different minds model in different ways.

Great question. Part of the exploration.

I wouldn't use a model of horizontal vs. vertical to describe the relationship between science and spirituality. I'm much more integrated than that. My mind likes to make connections with the science within spirituality and the spirituality within science - such that the duality of science vs. spirituality is interconnected. They can be completely different, completely the same or an infinite number of connections. . . That's just the way my mind likes to work. Others can use a horizontal vs. vertical model if it works for them. For me, that is too much separation and too simple.

It's says belongs to "Us", not "god". The term "god" can be so loaded, yet humans love to go there.

Yes. Bernie is not a democrat, he is officially an independent. This will play very well in a general election. There is an enormous number of people that are sick and tired of both political parties. The biggest swing group, by far, is non-voter to voter. . . Bernie's independent status will be a huge asset. Bernie doesn't want help from corporate dems. They are part of the problem. Criticism from corporate Dems helps Bernie get stronger. It fuels the grassroots movement. People are sick of corporate corruption, including corporate dems. Bernie supporters can't stand corporate corruption and the Clintons. Bernie is the only candidate that cannot be labeled as corrupt. The best the repubs can do is label him a "socialist" and they have a big surprise coming when people realize what democratic socialism looks like. This will play very well in a general election. Consider that in Canada, even the most conservative politicians are fully behind M4A. Speaking out against M4A would be political suicide, even for a conservative. That's how popular this "socialist" health care is. Progressive dems will be fully behind Bernie with their heart and soul. Not hunger for power and money at any cost - like Repubs and corporate dems.

I think you had a nice insight. It’s best I don’t stroke the Ox too much. I'd get in touch with it.

Once this level of mastery is grasped, it's best not to let go. . .

@Amilaer--- It sounds like it isn't natural and effortless. If I am intentionally trying to maintain strong eye contact, it's distracting, and it can interfere with the vibe. It can also come across as creepy or too intense. This article seems to have some good suggestions https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/look-em-in-the-eye-part-ii-how-to-make-eye-contact-the-right-way-in-life-business-and-love/ Also, you might want to try eye gazing with someone - that way you can practice/experience the connection of eye contact without worrying about following a discussion.

Keepin' it Klassy

Seeing a distinction between an awful feeling and an interpretation of it is an awful feeling is a big realization. This gets into distinctions between pain and suffering. For example, a dog can experience pain, yet it is not thinking "this pain sucks. If that pitbull across the street hadn't bit my tail, I would be ok.". There are simply appearances of uncomfortable sensations in the dog without labeling. I'm also getting at something else that is unconditional. There is unconditional Fineness that is always present, regardless of conditions. It is unconditional. There is unconditional Fineness during laughter, boredom, joy and sadness. This is distinct from relative fineness that is conditional on emotions such as comfort and joy.

He is conflating two areas, which causes his whole train of thought to be convoluted. The question he is asking is: "If I want to increase a woman's interest in me, is it best to be open about my interest and let her know? Or is it better to try an be mysterious by not revealing my interest?". (However, this is not the question he actually asked women). This is a very narrow question toward a specific outcome. Yes, this may feel vulnerable - yet he extrapolates this early in the video. He frames the issue as "Do women like guys who are open with their emotions and willing to be vulnerable?" This is a much much larger question. This question involves forming emotional connections, intimacy, vulnerability and mutual support. Of course this level of openness is not appropriate during the first couple of dates. However, by limiting openness about emotions to only include whether or not to express your interest in a woman is a massive distortion. There is nothing wrong with the specific question about whether its best to be open about one's interest. That is a totally legitimate question. The problem is that he framed it broadly as "do women like a guy who is willing to be open about his emotions and to be vulnerable". Let's look at the actual question he asked the women. "Do you prefer a man that is straightforward and tells you he likes you or someone who holds back and you feel like you need to earn his affection?". Ugh. . . This question is a terrible way to ask either the broad frame or the narrow frame. A good picture frame question to ask women "Do you like a man who is able to express his emotions and be vulnerable at times?". A good narrow frame question to ask women: "Would you prefer a guy who opens up emotionally and tells you he is interested in dating you? Or a guy who is mysterious about his desires toward you?" Yet he didn't ask this. In particular, he added in "someone who holds back and you feel like you need to earn his affection". This is a major recontextualization and it distorts all his interpretations. Of course someone will choose the straightfoward option when it's phrased this way. To further emphasis this to make it more obvious. . . Imagine I asked a woman "would you like it if a guy made you feel like you are undeserving of his affection and that you need to earn his affection?". . . And after the woman said "No", I concluded that "women just say 'no', yet they actually like a guy who is mysterious by being emotionally unavailable and unable to express his emotions". I think the video is very misleading and the author has a low emotional intelligence. I've been on dates with women that were emotionally immature and couldn't express their feelings - this can be really annoying. I've also been on dates with women that were emotionally mature, in touch with their emotions and created flirtations emotional weaves that were so intriguing and intoxicating. When someone is emotionally mature and grounded, s/he doesn't need to literally say "I like you. I hop you also like me". There are ways to indicate indicate interest that in nonverbal and enticing, yet this guy aint on that level.

You might have seen an Ox footprint. Or, you may have touched an Ox hair. In that second in which everything was fine, did everything "feel fine" because the awful emotions went away? Or was a fineness revealed in the presence of "awful" emotions?

BS vs Non-BS is a relative question. I see them as both. Non-BS: In terms of a personality, I have been conditioned to have certain traits. For example, I tend to be more introverted and get lost in thought. There are also certain patterns of people, food, movies, weather etc. that I like. There are patterns that commonly appear in my life as well as very unlikely appearances. For example, it is very unlikely that I will wake up tomorrow as a Bollywood dancer. That is very very different than my personality pattern. For me, these personality tests can provide some helpful information, yet I don't take it 100% literally. For example, I score as an "I" on the mb test. This can be useful - for example, it can help me consider what type of job might be best for me. Something like a stand-up comedian is much too extroverted for me. . . Also, it can help explain patterns in my life. For example, at parties I've never been a "social butterfly". I tend to have deeper conversations with only 1 or 2 people. Other people have suggested their is something wrong with me. "You only had one conversation the whole party? That's weird". . . For a long time, I thought I "should" be more social. Yet reading about personality dynamics dissolved this. I then saw how its ok to have 1-2 deeper conversations at a party and that this is common for an introvert. BS: There is no static personality of "me". Creating a personality construct can lead to attachment/identification and all sorts of problems for the mind and body. For example, one personality trait that I had was being a "kind person". This was ingrained into me as a child and re-inforced throughout my life. I felt a lot of distress always trying to be a "kind" person. I analyzed wether my behavior was "kind", I was hyper self-critical and very sensitive to any suggestion that I was unkind. I would try to people please others to maintain my identity as a "kind person". I repressed emotions like frustration and hurt. I wasn't allowed to be grouchy or upset because I have to be a "kind person". . . In this context, attachment/identification to a static personality trait is BS.

@Leo Gura Hehee on the video. I like how it balances "real" or "imagined". After the experience, it's easy to get immersed into the serious "realness" of it. Yet it is simultaneously silly "imagination" as well.

It depends on which conversation. I've been having conversations with people for months about how Biden is past his prime, unelectable and would tank in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. Then it would be too late for him in S. Carolina. This conversation hasn't shifted at all after Iowa, it's exactly what was expected. There were other conversations that Biden was the "most electable". in this conversation, Biden is the safe choice and has the support from moderates necessary to defeat Trump. In this conversation, Biden was expected to be competitive (top 3) in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada - and then win S. Carolina and Super Tuesday. This conversation was obviously blown to pieces and there is no way to put it back together again. Biden got slapped hard in Iowa. He was a distant 4th place and received Zero state delegates. Moderates flocked to Pete, not Biden. Pete got so many moderates that he essentially tied for 1st place. Moderates soundly rejected Biden and blew away the conversation of "Biden wins moderates and is most electable", because he lost moderates and got 4th place. . . So the conversation has shifted. Because moderates voted for Pete, not Biden. Pete is now seen as the leader in the "moderate lane". He clearly was the top moderate candidate in Iowa and polling indicates he is the top candidate in the next two states: New Hampshire and Nevada. That gives him three victories as the top moderate. The top liberal candidate and the top moderate candidate will each be seen as the possible democratic nominee. For now, the top moderate candidate is Pete - due to Iowa results, polling and fundraising. I would say the big picture significance of Iowa was that the "old guard" in the democratic party was soundly rejected. Biden is "old guard" he has been in Washington for decades as a Senator and Vice President, he has national old guard support (e.g. John Kerry) and Iowa old guard support (e.g. Vilsak). The voters, including moderates, soundly rejected this old guard and voted for the new moderate, Pete - who is a young mayor from a small city. The only thing most Americans knew about this small city was Notre Dame football.

Hmmm. . . to me the question "Why is there something rather than nothing?" assumes there is an actual thing called "something" that is distinct from "nothing". I can't begin to contemplate "why" there is a difference without knowing if and what that difference is. If someone asked me "why is there grictlef rather than nixqat?", I would need to know if there is difference between "grictlef" and "nixqat" prior to answering why there is that difference. If one goes "prior" and contemplates: "what is something?", "what is nothing?", one can observe the mind and body create stories of what "something" is relative to "nothing".

Ime, there are some similarities, yet also differences. LSD and shrooms are much more similar for me than LSD and 5-meo. For me, 5-meo is different than traditional psychedelics. It's like half psychedelic, half something else. So trying to equalize the two via dosage sounds weird to me. It would be like asking "If I took a serious trip Beijing China, would it match a casual trip to Madrid Spain? AS well, there are a wide range of resonances with psychedelics and subjective experiences that are shaped by many factors. We can't objectively say "An 300ug LSD trip will have 62.7% similarity to a 20mg 5-meo trip". Also DMT and 5-meo-dmt generally have very different effects. For example, DMT is highly visual, 5-meo-dmt is not.

Nice. That seems to be an effect for some people. That's a good point about the term "motivation". It can be used in a more general context or an acute context. For example, after my first few psychedelic trips, I became motivated to travel to spiritual places in foreign countries. I could also describe it as an energetic shift and re-alignment. The term "motivate" also has an acute "adderall-like" connotation. E.g. "I can't motivate myself to study for my exam, I need a drug to motivate me". . . Psychedelics don't have this type motivational effect on me.

I teach in a liberal arts college. Waldorf kids would do well in this environment. I agree that many University environments may favor grooming, but not all. And many Universities have honors colleges with low teacher : student ratios. Have you considered an IB program? Those kids come prepared for college. Even moreso than AP students.

@TheHealer Welcome back. It looks like you made some awesome progress ?

Everyone resonates with psychedelics differently. For me, psychedelics don't fix me, they dissolve me. Yet that's me. Psychedelics can reduce anxiety in some people. I haven't come across people becoming motivated. I only have experience using psychedelics for mystical intentions.