RickyFitts

'Do not seek after what you yearn for, seek after the source of the yearning itself.' - Adyashanti

@Spence94 I saw your thread, trauma's a big issue for a lot of people (myself included) so it's an excellent idea.

Peter Levine's book 'Healing Trauma' is very good, it's available for free as an audiobook here.

I remember signing up for a spiritual forum a few years back with this naive idea in my head that the members would be more evolved and mature. Er yeah, didn't take me too long to figure how misguided that was! ?

@Preety_India As I say, I'm just feeling talked out at the moment and I'm working through some stubborn emotional upset and energetic issues (it's taking a while, but I'm getting there). Maybe it's something I'll do in the future.

@Preety_India I'm not feeling very talkative at the moment, I'm currently processing some emotional/energetic issues so don't have the desire or energy for journalling. I've thought about it though, maybe I'll do it in the near future.

Yeah, he gets it - when you really pay attention to your own inner workings, what he's saying becomes so obvious. Thanks for sharing, guys.

Not sure this is exactly what you have in mind, but the spiritual teacher Jon Bernie holds online gatherings for $20 per person in which he gives a talk and then has interactions with some of his students - he releases them as podcasts that you can listen to if you want to get an idea of what they're like (only the audio's available in the podcast, but video's available with the online gathering of course).

It can be very easy on the spiritual path to get caught up in the various spiritual concepts, but harnessing the power of attention is hugely important I feel (I know it's something that's been indispensible on my own path) so I just wanted to share this video that explains why it's important and how to do it:

@Esilda Yeah sorry, I meant to say 'like a favourite sister'.

I only have eyes for one woman, Loba (I mentioned my relationship with her to Esilda privately recently), I like Esilda but I've always thought of her as a favourite sister.

@Loba Respect Esilda's wishes, Loba, this is her thread.

Excuse me? Are you second-guessing my motives when you don't know the first thing about me?

@Esilda You're so welcome, you're one of those people I just instinctively liked from the start so I'm glad if I could help. People reached out to me in the past when I was having a really hard time, too, so I know just what a blessing that can be.

@Esilda Okay good, glad to hear it.

Yeah, I've come to think that's the ultimate acid test - all alone in a silent room, with no distractions. Then you're all alone with everything in your body and mind that you've been avoiding, with nothing to numb the pain or divert your attention.

Ugh, I'm so sorry you were subjected to that, that must have felt so violating.

Cool!?

Pain's only an issue when you resist it. Problem is that we tend to be so conditioned to do exactly that - as I see it, spiritual practise is all about learning how to release inner resistance.

So glad to hear that, wonderful.

You're so welcome. So interesting to hear your thoughts on the challenges we face as a society, too, I absolutely agree that things can't stay the way they are but things seem so screwed up at the moment that it's hard to know where to start. But connecting to your intuition is the way to go though I think, as you say - love that you're re-reading 'The Power of Now', because present-moment awareness is central to that I feel.

I think something's always going to feel 'off' whilst you remain unconscious of your true nature, and you're never going to feel truly satisfied. But maybe you'll labour under the illusion that lasting satisfaction can be found 'out there' in the world, which will prevent you from knowing what you truly are because your attention's directed outwards.