Matt8800

@Forrest Adkins Yes, they would be able to "resist" it. Resistance is more just being fully aware of it with mindfulness and letting it be without acting.

@Forrest Adkins An enlightened person could quit any addiction they want to at any time so they would probably not be addicted to something so damaging. As to whether an enlightened person would ever try heroin once, a yogi or buddhist monk definitely not. An enlightened Tantrika might try it if they decide they want to try it for their own reasons but they would not get attached.

@Water One must establish, and communicate, firm boundaries. If they cross them, communicate that. If they dont listen, enforce those boundaries. As far as how "harsh" you need to be, thats up to them depending on how far they want to take it but you MUST always enforce your boundaries. You can either be loving and weak or loving and strong. Weakness will hold back your evolution. Learn what "tough love" is. Many people think that to be spiritual, they are "supposed" to be loving. That is just an unconscious way of societal programming. In Tantra, if one is to choose to be loving, it is because they CHOOSE to be rather than they are supposed to be. Like the Gita says, its not what you do, its why you do it.

@Nak Khid A common misunderstanding of hate is that it is the opposite of love. Thats not true - it is simply a lack of love. Lack of love + threats to ego = hate. Its similar to light and dark. The dark is not the opposite of light - it is the absence of light.

@dvdas I would say that the physical death is definitely the death of the ego...and personality. The subjective experience of the awareness that was aware of the ego, along with wisdom and will, might be another matter however.

@Beginner Mind More specifically, it would be according to SOME non-dual masters. Others would say that spirits exists in the same way other people exist. It depends on the tradition. Not all non-dual traditions have the same beliefs in that matter.

@Dimi Would you say the same thing about talking to your friend or relative? It is no different than talking to a spirit. If you are going to say its just an expression of God, than you would have to say the people you talk to and interact with are also God. You may be one with them (fundamental level) but you are also paradoxically separate (dual realms "under" the fundamental level).

@Beginner Mind You can say there is no self yet you communicate with other people in person (and on this forum) as if they are "other". A spirit is different from "you" in exactly a friend of yours is different from "you". Everything is ONE at the fundamental level. Everything is dual on the multiple levels/realms below that.

@Bodhidharma According to the Theravada Buddhism model of awakening, you just got out of the arising and passing and entered the dark night. https://alohadharma.com/2011/06/12/the-dark-night/ This takes courage to get through and it must be done right. If you do, it is the end of "you" and the beginning of something new. It can feel like intense nihilism, which must be fully accepted and transcended. If you have questions about making it through this stage, let me know. Daniel Ingram's book Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha does a great job of mapping out the process of making it through.

@Nak Khid You would have to define "enlightened" and have to define "evil" first but I would say probably no. The reason why is that when the ego is no longer in control, there is no need to cause others to suffer.

@The Don According to Tantra, play, social taboos, physical pleasure, etc are to be enjoyed and used as fuel for evolution without attachment. After the mastering of the ego, depression is gone BUT one must go through death, darkness and despair prior.

@MTR Many people seek "enlightenment" without ever defining exactly what "enlightenment" actually is. It like starting a journey without thinking about where you are going. Many people think enlightenment is just love and light without understanding the death and darkness that they must pass through.

@rnd Start small and work your way up

@Schahin As an experienced occultist, I can answer this. First, "demon" just means spirit. Some spirits are good and some bad and most in between. Some are parasitic and feed off of psychic energy that is produced by fear. If one is not fearful, they are not vulnerable to harassment by spirits. Regarding oneness, everything is ultimately One at the foundation of reality but manifests as dual in non-foundational realms (physical, astral, etc). Notice how you ask how spirits can be real considering non-duality but you didnt ask if other humans are real. Both humans and demons are spirits but one is temporarily incarnated in the physical realm.

@PlayOnWords Tantra doesnt reject any of reality, including all desires and tendencies. It accepts and integrates all of ones being. There are many societal and spiritual "rules" and dogma that one must follow in many traditions but there are no rules in Tantra, thus no rejection.

@Schahin Thats a common mistake to assume that humans are "bad". Steven Pinker writes extensively showing that humans suffer much less at each others hands now than in the past. Humans are capable of much evil and much beauty. To just focus on evil is incomplete. Also, without suffering, there is no evolution, which is the way of the universe.

@JonasVE12 The definition of the ego is pretty precise clinically but the "individual" is very difficult to define. One would have to define both to compare.

@Nak Khid Sadguru loves recognition and devotion....and probably doesnt mind the cash either The guru biz can be very profitable.

@Socrates Many people feel some aversion to people using psychedelics for tools in awakening. There is no such thing as shoulds or shouldnts. There are no rules. Furthermore, there is no such thing as a "fake" direct experience. Those are all conditioning and programming. Shake off all limitations. Those rules are all in your head....and someone else put them there.

@Tanz I think it would be an error to assume all spirits are the enemy.

@The Don When you say people are "good", what exactly is the definition of "good" to you? What things would they do to be outside of the category of "good"? Btw, I agree with that for the most part. Im just curious if you thought much about how you determine what is "good" and when something is not "good". Notice how "good" doesnt have much meaning outside of a human perspective. Its tempting to think that the human world is the whole world but that is just like Chimpanzees thinking their chimpanzee world is the whole world. Chimpanzees and humans may disagree about what is "good".

@ltp There's a lot of opinions on this but I believe that the specifics are symbols and those symbols are infused with your intention and psychic energy. Those symbols can be a way to connect to specific energetic currents. Ive heard some occultists that I respect a lot say that if something is slightly changed in a ritual, than the effect can be slightly changed - not necessarily bad, just different. I dont know very much why or how the mechanics of magick works but my experience is that you can definitely influence objective reality with it.

@Schahin Its paradoxical. Thats important to consider. These are both true statements: 1. There is no separateness; there is only ONE 2. There is separateness within the ONE You are me and also not me at the same time, depending on which "level" you are looking at it from.

@arlin Different traditions have different "flavors" of enlightenment. Not all paths lead to the same experience of enlightenment. Ken Wilber co-wrote an interesting book in which they studied enlightened masters from various traditions. Dont totally dismiss nihilism though. It must be passed through on the way to subjugating the ego when you realize there is no objective purpose or meaning. Then you must realize the profundity of your subjective values and meaning, and choose them carefully so they can guide you through life. The opinion that no subjective experience persists after the body is dead is sectarian dogma. Other traditions state that the Atman/True Self incarnates into this life to learn and evolve through struggle and then continues after this incarnation for eternal evolution. You could put three enlightened people in a room and they could all disagree. Your belief on this matter is important and should be considered carefully. One is going to live their life differently if they think nothing in this life matters or if everything in this life will impact your eternal evolution and no time in this life should be wasted. Some traditions you can study on this topic to get various angles on it are Yoga, Tantra, Kabbalah, and the Occult. Even within each tradition, opinions vary widely. One thing I consider is Ian Stevenson's studies on reincarnation show that reincarnation is mostly likely to be true.

@Conscious life The word "demon" just means spirit according to original etymology. According to Christian and Islamic dogma and duality, spirits are either completely "good" (angels) or completely "bad" (demons). Thats not true. Spirits are like people. There are different kinds and range all along the spectrum between benevolent and malevolent. Other traditions around the world arent as limiting with their dogma typically. It all comes down to control. The church had to remove the power from the people if they wanted to maintain control. Occultists have been known to use angels for curses and destruction and demons to heal or help. I invest myself into my relationships with spirits and Ive gotten a lot out of it. They can warn you of dangers, heal, protect, bring opportunities, etc, etc.