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lovely thread with a lot of well matched words, thanks a lot. I think I have a difficulty in differentiating between the feelings and the emotions. -feelings are just bodily sensations and emotions are just relative states of mind? Emotion is triggered through perception and beliefs, and feeling is unconditional? When do people label feelings as bad and good? -in case of muscular strain as bad? How are feelings interlocked with attention/focus? -the notion of "feeling good/bad" is just out of attention on specific body part and its sensation combined with an arising thought for labelling it? It's difficult to determine my feelings. My feelings are always in nowhere, just are, maybe similiar yourself put it in words. Most of the time I have strong emotions. For years I was oftentimes stucked in them, sometimes over a period of weeks or months. Now they swing very heavily between extremes. States of bliss and states of limiting identification (sometimes frustration arises then). But after all the years it's just a relief they are flowing in higher frequencies between these different states. The dreamboard seems like a good idea to hold more stabilisation, maybe potential for alertness, when the pendulum swings back to frustration. Just for the 'benefit' of knowing and handling the swing more in alignment. Letting go the thought of being dependend of that crazy strong swing. Nevertheless being always in that rollercoaster makes everything colorful and alive but until now its different to integrate my behaviour in groups. it takes a lot of energy to align to other dynamics. After writing the text it seems it just lacks on clear sight letting this troubled root thought go (getting integration done). maybe you have some clear words for further understanding? sending love

Has someone here directly experienced what love is? We can blindly fall into belief systems as if they were true, accepting what sounds good with no personal consciousness on the matter. Setting psychedelics aside: What are you conscious of now that you weren’t of before? Is it a matter of semantics? Perhaps bliss points to the same consciousness that Leo’s referring to as love.

@The observer Interesting the projection of shame arises. Inspect that, see through it. Inspect with the finite mind, as the finite mind (be honest / be where you are) through the finite mind, as in, transcend the finite mind rather than settling for thoughts & idea’s. See what thought & idea is truly ‘made of’. Intellect can not go where it is presently claiming it is. The change of such a full & sincere inquiry & inspection, can not be spoken. One can only say this is the catalyst of the suffering, the ‘walls’ in ‘one’s life’. The dots can profoundly connect. Liberation. Glory, even, if you will. This, as it is, unfettered and untainted by the ‘bringing of a story’ to it. Love is bliss, appearing, allegedly. A wise man once said, “Infinite Love it is. Truth.”

I want to pursue dermatology in India. I am currently studying for its entrance exam. I have just discovered that my domain of mastery would be philosophy.(18/5/20) Now my problem is should I continue to pursue dermatology or should I pursue philosophy at all cost? Pursuing philosophy means I am following my bliss ( Joseph Campbell). Pursuing dermatology means I am first satisfying Maslow's hierarchy of needs. I don't know my stage in Spiral Dynamics. I might be yellow. So help me please. What should be my path?

@Lyubov Wow very cool, i'm glad i found someone in a similar spot as me. I will definitely look into psychidelic therapy. I already do psychs on my own, but my past few experiences haven't been great, but i'm going to power through. I should also add that my one break through experience came on LSD, after 2 weeks of pretty hard core practices. When the tension in the head/crown area is fully let go, everything in life made sense i had bliss flowing through me and i thought i was enlightened. What a day haha. Do you have insights into the journaling breath work combo? So you journal while doing breath work? Or you do them separately?

Hey guys. I'm about 8 hours into the life purpose course and about halfway through So Good They Can't Ignore You. Cal Newport's whole thing is that following your passion is bad career advice, instead you should leverage your skills to get the sort of lifestyle and work environment you want. This seems in direct conflict with Joseph Campbell's advice to follow your bliss. Also Leo talks about finding a new life purpose and moving on from the video game industry. This made total sense and I supported it while watching the video, but in retrospect I think Cal Newport would have advised him to hustle and become a better game designer so he could attain the autonomy he wanted. Is there an inherent contradiction here, is it just that it's easier to develop skills in something you care about? Would love to hear anyone's thoughts, thanks!

https://themindsjournal.com/intelligence-cant-find-happiness/ What do you guys think about it? Ignorance is bliss, etc. Also society brainwashing (f.e House M.D - "When I'm happy, I'm worse diagnostician"). I believed that. Now, after listening to Leo for a long time, I want to believe, that, the more intelligent you are, the happier you are. I wanted to be happy, so I dumbed myself down. I think I just realized that. I want to be smart, intelligent, brilliant, as I naturally am, but I don't want to sacrifice my happiness for that. Is it really one or another?

@JessiChell ? this journey is not never ending, you achieve the state of absolute bliss eventually. True, even though leo might claim otherwise, this forum is certainly a marketing medium for his course. But then you have to see, some of us are here because we have enough of self love and we want to contribute.

Maybe striving for that might give you some inspiration. ?? Nothing wrong with wanting some natural bliss.

Man, I've been practicing for quite a while. And what I've learned is that if you do it long enough, you end up hitting dry spots where your motivation runs dry. It's just something that happens. Part of the work is to just keep going. If you're paying attention to life, you notice that the same thing happens in other areas. Oh yeah, but like all things, bliss doesn't last. I welcome it, but don't strive for it. Thanks! I agree. Then again, life is ups and downs. I don't think we are meant to be joyous all the time. Good stuff man.

...I just can't choose between which benefit is my favorite, I'd have to say the perpetual bliss! NO! Being literally immortal! NO!! Id have to go with... understanding everything in existence. Those are my fave maybe hehe. I like the "being literally immortal" one... wouldn't you say @LfcCharlie4 ?

Have you ever had any breakthroughs in your practice that gave you any type of bliss?

Okay, i finally have to say it. In one of my ayahuasca trips it was revelad to me with complete clarity that this life is nothing than amazing dream. I could have any dream I wanted, i could be rich man, a king, famous person all that, yet i choose to be this little Me, pretending to seek something, having all these worries and overcoming silly chalenges, having nothing to his name yet possesing fine physical beauty . It was also reveled that everything i could think is not "That", so basically we are here engage in totally useless activity, yet somehow beautiful expresion percieved by the dreamer. Everything you say here is lie! It is not true! All of the "serious" things we are discussing here are coming straight out of donkey asshole, all made up that have no ground on which they rest, no solid foundation. I wish i could just be done with all this, yet im here most of the time reading all the nonsense and getting hoked by the "high consciousness" stuff. God damn it, its all a dream! I was shown this and my whole body went into trembling and awe, such bliss to know this. Yet i still cant believe this, as im wrting now. But back then it was so clear and much more real than any of this. All i have is memory now..

First of all if all you want is to lead a so called "good and happy life" you don't need to be awakened ..... because frankly you are not ready for it yet .Even deep meditation and samadhi experiences can put you in a tranquil state and joyful state. However , if someone is in samadhi , he may not be awakened or enlightened . To be awakened or enlightened does not mean that you will always be in peace ... it means to know the full nature of world and reality . it means to realize (experientially) that you are the Brahman yourself .....that you are god yourself (according to vedanta ( non duality)) , and let me tell you that if you are enlightened ... you dont need to be in heaven 24/7 , because for the one who knows the true nature of reality ....joy and bliss are just "emotions". But if you want joy and bliss , you can pursue the path of sehaj samadhi or yoga.. if you achieve sehaj samadhi , you will not need material things to make you happy , you can be happy under a tree but being enlightened is the best thing one can do in this life because he just realized what is reality.

@modmyth I read the posts you linked I say that as mammals and biological creatures there is nothing that we can do for purely altruistic motives, just for the benefit of others There is always a deeply primitive, biological reasoning behind all of our actions Even cemented into the very evolutionary process, is this brutal, pragmatic, efficient process by which that which doesn’t optimally fulfil our Darwinian imperative is selected out of the gene pool For example, take self sacrifice, someone who is a martyr, or a dog who dies defending its master If the act of self sacrifice had no biological benefit, than the martyr and dog have just selected themselves out of the gene pool, those traits that made them on the surface seem altruistic, but when you peer behind the curtain, they cant possibly be Of course any functional relationship should be built upon a healthy amount of reciprocity, e.g. mutual respect, desire and understanding This does not mean that you do it for unconditional reasons/freely, you do it in the hopes that you’ll receive dividends on your investment If you do treat all people with this philosophy you will otherwise soon bankrupt yourself (if you understand my analogy) What you’re saying is similar to Gandhi’s “Be the change you wish to see in the world” The issue with that is it doesn’t work, because the world doesn’t give a fuck, and will chew you up and spit you out when you attempt that shit, it’s a good philosophy for those who want to live in misery and as failures I haven’t settled for anything, I’m acting upon the way in which the world presents itself to me, and I don’t think if you look at the world with detached eyes that you’ll find it’s optimistic Maybe it’s better to live in ignorance but the truth will set you free, and I prefer freedom than bliss Biology is our current understanding of consciousness, it’s not our god, it’s the meta physical forces that are placed upon us of which we had no say and possibly could never even fathomably have a say The unconscious effects of our consciousness still exist within consciousness, it is a figment of our conscious experience, the same with the subconscious I’d argue that we are mostly subconscious and unconscious creatures, the only substantive thing that separates us from the animals is our neo cortex and higher brain, our ability to abstract and communicate effectively Besides that we are just impulsive, base biological animals Animals don’t do anything purely out of love so how could we Also How can you predict the future without looking at the past? Legitmately curious Im not looking for the best possible reality, I’m looking for reality, if there is such a thing I try to not have blinders I don’t think that I’ll ever make the idea of romance sustainable, if I ever have a long term monogamous relationship with a woman, it’ll be out of fondness, respect and mutual desire, never out of “unconditional” love, as that is not possible and I don’t expect it from her, and I’d prefer that the two of us wouldn’t lie to each other, play make believe and pretend that we’ve magically achieved some idealised version of love, that our souls are some how magically connected We’re just people, and we’re all gonna die, and be forgotten, but for the time being we can take pleasure in each others company, I think that’s more romantic than the shit we’re sold today

Yes, I see. Great way of looking at it. I'm becoming more and more conscious of the interconnectedness of my actions and words in other peoples lives around me. I tend to often take conversations in a meta direction with my best friends and we fall into deeper conversations about life. But sometimes I'll say something to someone that might challenge an unconscious paradigm they have and they'll seem shook up by having to face their egos in that moment. I don't know if I'm doing them a service when I do this. I'll think "maybe their ignorance is bliss". But then again, if they're not ready for it, then their ego with provent them from thinking about it deeper...or they'll just think I'm crazy...lol But really I'm just talking to myself, so sometimes I think that this is all just me being selfish, trying to pick apart other peoples (and my) unconscious behaviour so I don't fall in the same ego traps. But if we are all connected, I guess I'm raising the whole thing's awreness by a bit, right? Do you guys ever feel that way talking about this stuff in person with people who aren't ready for it? Or do you see it as a net positive? This forum is a safe space with open-minded people to talk about interesting stuff, but do you ever think that some people are better off being unaware of the true nature of reality?

Yes, eternal life, perpetual bliss, super knowledge and divine wisdom. Also man, don't worry about understanding too much. Get a basic conceptual frame for how this stuff works for a kind of "loose guidance" but then forget it after...your job is to do the practices. It's like if you studied how to fall in love in an imaginary college for 20 years but then one day you see this lovely chick and all of your learning goes out the window and you float towards her and all you feel is the feeling, and you talk to her and boom it is effortless. Doing something with your head is different than doing something with your heart. What I've said before; the most important part of spiritual concepts is abandoning them in the much greater light of actual realization.

The truth is infinite as nothing. Bliss meaning emptiness. Such as good and bad, infinite negative or positive numbers, when you plus them result will be 0, which nothing.

@Artiekee Definitely exciting. Sunday 5:27 Today 5:49 Something happened. Don't know what. Saturday I went to bed around 10pm, later than usual. I wanted to watch a movie in the evening - kinda my gift for all the hard work and determination. Because Saturday is my day off, that's the day my mom calls me to catch up. I stayed quite some time on video chat with mom and dad, had a really good conversation. Then my brother wrote to me and had a good chat with him as well. A 'friend' also wrote to me. So I ended up having to cut both at 10pm to go to sleep. I woke up on Sunday, did the all the morning work (I am excited about the jewelry - they're gonna be the best so far) and after lunch, meditation, walk, I decided to watch the movie I didn't get to watch on Saturday. Little Women - cried with it. And the 'friend' I was talking about earlier wrote to me again during the movie. This guy is someone I met on Tinder during my crazy two months (I was actually on Tinder for a couple of weeks before I got bored with the games). We had some stuff in common, we liked each other, so he came over one weekend. We loved each other on that occasion, but I had decided that I don't want to have casual sex anymore, so we kinda stayed friends, texting every now and then. He turned out to be really immature, with deep insecurity issues. He was always looking for my advice. I kept showing him where he needs to work, I sent him videos of Leo, and others, to help him figure out his issues. And it seemed that how ever much information I shared with him he was still confused. He loves to keep a victim mentality. I had to keep calling out his victim statements. He said one day he would like to come run with me to the lake. On Sunday he said something like : 'Next Saturday I am definitely coming to the lake with you, no excuses on my side.' I was not happy with that statement. So, I asked: ' Why the urgency? ' He wants to talk. I felt so tired of dealing with others issues that I told him it's my one day off. I want to relax, to enjoy, not solve someone else's problems. And he asked if talking about what I think he should change about himself would be too much for me. That moment I lost my patience. I wrote some mean, harsh truths right back to him. At least, he won't bother me with the same question, over and over again. I do wish I was able to handle it better. I am not happy hurting people's feelings. And now, today. I did the morning work and it was shopping day for the evening, but it was raining heavily and after lunch I took a shower and by the time I wanted to get out of the house, the exchange office was closed. So, I switched it for cleaning day. I cleaned the whole house, dancing and singing ? I was having so much fun that I decided to go to the park and dance some more. I danced on the running track. It was so much fun. Me dancing through the serious running people. I developed this habit of going dancing with my dog in the evening when I was working in Portugal. I was a bartender then, worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week. I used to finish work around 12 at night, go home, get my dog, a cider and a joint and walk, dance on the beach. Good times. It is there I created a strong connection to the moon. I kinda kept my dancing with my dog at night habit in England as well. I was still working late and the streets were basically empty when I was 'walking' my dog. Here though, with my routine, there is always someone in the park when I have my walk. Today I was brave. I didn't look at people, didn't care what they think. I am happy I could dance my heart out. I won't do it every evening, because I do run mornings as well, and I wish to keep my head clear (music lights up a fire within me) but once a week - end the cleaning day with a dance in the park. I like the idea. Today turned out like this because I think I needed to shake off some anger. I don't understand why broken men keep showing in my life. Where's the sign that says ' All you broken, come to me ' so I can take it off. It's like my narcissistic friend with whom I decided to spend my two months of ego backlash ( I realized that's what happened). He came over today to bring some clothes for the washing machine. He keeps asking every now and then : ' Sex? Bliss? ' laughing because he knows I smile and go ' No! ' But, for some reason, we have really strong chemistry and connection. And some days are hard. Especially on days like today when he hugs me for a few seconds before going out the door. And then, a friend of his, another broken man, approaches me on Facebook. He wants a female friend, someone to talk to, spend time with, so he can keep away from his ex, who is a broken woman. So, I ask again. If anyone is reading this, where is that sign that says ' All broken men, come to me! ' I am finally getting my shit together and it's like everyone wants a piece of me. ' Oh, I am struggling with this. Won't you help me? ' I am so tired with people who can't handle their own shit. I sit by myself, in my own pain, stare it right in the face. I hide myself from everyone and when I am up again, I go to people. With a light heart and a smile on my face. Seems the right way to do it Oh well, long post. But hey, work is amazing and the routine is working smoothly. If I manage to go to bed earlier I might wake up at 5:00 as well. But it's still light outside...

@Ali T Follow your bliss. Do the practices that resonate. There is no need to rush. The result of awakening is the absence of fear and the presence of Love. Only ego fears.

For suffering to die, its inverse must also die. How can bliss exist without an opposite?

@IJB063 Bliss is not an idea, but appears to be, by appearing twisted. No.

@Nahm If that’s your idea of bliss it’s pretty twisted Not taking a position is a position?

Bliss appears as games, projection, me’s, and is in kind veiled by itself. Absence is not an opposite. Not believing in beliefs is not a belief, any more than not driving a car is driving a car. Nonexistence is not an opposite.

@Nahm What is that if not a riddle? I don’t believe reality is bliss