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Personally, I am being pulled toward deeper realizations of the illusionary nature of self and to nonduality. Much of this thread reminds me of The Four Agreements in which an "unhealthy" illusionary self is replaced with a "healthy" illusionary self. I also sense in the thread an underlying assumption that some actions are "better" than other actions. And most of those "better" actions are within the classic social framework of "success". That is: dedication, give 110% percent, achieve, dream big, reach your potential, do extraordinary things. I've found ambition and perseverance can be a major distraction to inner Truth. I've run over 50 marathons and ultramarathons. I've done IronMan triathlons. I know the dedication of training day in and out - 1-8hrs a day. I've pushed my limits to the point of hallucinations, loss of cognitive function and physical collapse in which I needed hospital care. The experiences shaped me, yet it did NOT reveal my inner truth. I've also pushed my limits mentally. I worked 12hrs a day for periods as I attained a phd in molecular biology. I persevered countless hours in the laboratory to answer a burning scientific question. I've published dozens of papers and have been featured on scientific journal covers. I've given international speeches. NONE of this revealed inner Truth. Most of it was a major distraction where I was chasing something. Based on self. Yet nothing could fill it. It was never enough. Deep down, I was trying to fulfill a self identity imposed upon me by my parents and society: of what is "good", of who I "should" be. Deep down, there was a yearning to be accepted and loved. I was often consumed with thoughts of what to do next, what will happen if XYZ occurs, what do other people think of me, how can I achieve. . . For me, deeper levels of awareness have NOT come from living a healthy lifestyle. They have NOT come from dedication and perseverance to achieve extraordinary things. When tied to my self identity, it's all a distraction. The realizations have come through cracks in my ego and self identity. For me, living a "healthy" life and achieving does not crack my ego and self identity. It can actually reinforce it. "I am a marathon runner", "I am a scholar", "I am dedicated", "I am blah blah blah". The cracks leading to glimpses of Truth have come during times I'm forced out of my self identity. For example, I've lived with native tribes in Central and South America. Also, meditation retreats (yet it is slow and subtle). And psychedelics have been a powerful tool. In the thread there also seems to be an underlying sense of free will of the little "you". There is no free will for "me". I am not making all these decisions and actions to do healthy activities and live a "meaningful" life. I am not the author of my thoughts and actions. It comes from some mysterious nothing or something that I don't understand. I don't get to receive credit or blame. . . For me, I am being pulled toward "just being" and letting that mysterious whatever flow without resistance. If that means hiking Everest naked, great. If that means dancing in my kitchen naked to disco music, great. The ideas that I "need" or "should" do certain things are limiting concepts. While living in Peru, I met a man who fortuitously became wealthy. He has spent most of his life traveling around the world. He had no dedication, ambition or agenda. He was open and free. To travel where the energy takes him. To meet people and experience things as they surface into his life in the present moment. He was pensive and introspective. He had a depth of awareness and love. He is one of the most fascinating people I've ever met in my life. His perspective was outside of the limits of my own perspective. It poked cracks into my self identity. A couple weeks ago, I frolicked with the most beautiful butterflies deep within a Belizean jungle. The present moment. The mysterious energy/consciousness flowing freely from one moment to the next. For me, that "just being" IS "doing something" with my life.

Natural/artificial is a contrived duality. Alive/not-alive is also a contrived duality. Hardware/software is also a contrived duality. The entire universe is made of one substance, and it is capable of life and consciousness and anything else, given the proper structure and organization. Whether humans can actually engineer the right structure and organization is another matter. That's an empirical question. My guess would be, they probably will figure it out at some point, but not in our lifetimes. It will not happen at least until all of science acknowledges that materialism is false, and nonduality is true. Only then will neuroscience and AI really blossom.

A) The context in which Ouspensky is speaking there is obviously a relative one. He is not trying to describe the Absolute there. B) I doubt Ouspenky truly understood full nonduality.

@Dodo nope. what can i say. imagine if u never heard about australia. does it mean that australia doesn't exist? i think nonduality makes me and everyone here to lose coordination of language. wise man said to follow truth. no need for more

@Mighty Mouse i think moderators have deleted it for some reason. anyway i think i have clarified nonduality for myself. it is one existence. that's what my contemplation tells me

this no thing is god. you wouldn't be here if this no-thing is non-existence, and you are writing this coz you r in doubts yourself there is only existence and it is one, that's all nonduality is about it cannot be both non-existence and existence at the same time because you will simply put one above another and it is only one. and im being, im not focusing on my language and dual mind, its all comes from my being contemplations

@Leo Gura Do you have a past dick-sucking hippy testimonial? That is what we are really talking about right. I understand what you are saying it was funny to me the way it was said it. Nonduality seems to me a side-dish not the main course.

@Source_Mystic I have testimonials Although on a more serious note, I wasn't speaking of my LP course (those were your words), I was speaking of many other things outside the domain of nonduality, of which the course is just one thing. Newbies get so stuck on seeking nonduality that they fall into the trap of neglecting all the other important aspects of life. That is what I was mocking.

my topic on nonduality in the video requests subforum has been disappeared after small discussion about what is true nonduality hmmm... how to i explain this? is it maya playing along.. gets stranger and stranger.. i still think Leo needs to give a shot and shoot one big video on nonduality to clarify as much as possible seems we all are so deluded talking about nonduality and truth.

After some deliberation, I've decided to lock this thread because it's becoming a distraction. Whether UFOs are real or not is too off-topic for this sub-forum. Yes, openmindedness is important, but that has to be balanced with focus. UFOs are a very controversial subject which will just cause pointless debating without really helping people grow. I personally have nothing against UFOs. I'm open to them existing, and I'm open to discussions about them, but just not here. It turns a lot of people off from spirituality. Yes, this is a subjective judgment call. It's not a black and white case. But I don't want Actualized.org to develop a reputation of UFO-ology and things like that. I'd like to stick more closely to traditional nonduality. I many ways, it's a matter of style. Different people will resonate with different styles of spirituality. Maybe this policy will change after I personally meet a UFO and discover its personal growth potential, but until then, let's cut the UFO talk here. This doesn't mean I am denying UFOs exist. It simply means they are off-topic in this sub-forum in the same way that talking about military history or knitting might be.

@egoless Well you can say the same about enlightenment. There is no "enlightenment". This is where language collapses. Every philosophical perspective has 1 magical "foundation". The magical "foundation" of "enlightenment/nonduality" is the "NOW/being/happening/awareness" itself. It's the recognition that existence is mysteriously and bizarrely just happening, without needing a justification. The magical foundation of the thought process is a brain in a universe, because of a big bang out of nothing, etc. But the magical foundation of "nonduality" is so directly in your face that it doesn't need the reasoning of the other metaphysical magical foundations. The magical foundation is self evident

@2000 nonduality

@Will Bigger You are underestimating the power of consciousness. It can literally dream up any kind of reality is wants. You are confusing perception with consciousness. Idealism is just another name for nonduality. Psychedelics would quickly show you this.

What enlightened teachers out there you think are the most profound and best at understanding nonduality?

No, not right now. Short on time. But I plan to start one in the future. I like Kriya yoga, but I'm no expert on yoga. Not a big priority in my life. Not really. That would be something which would require dedicated work which isn't high on my list of priorities. I would keep the practices separate. Law of Attraction is still good and important if you want to sculpt your mind and succeed in life. Nope I would probably get upset. But I would also come to understand why it must be so, and that would take some of the edge off. 6) Not much. That's an area I require much more work in. 7) Closer to my own age. 8) Depends on how you define "place". In the US I've lived in 4 different states. 9) No, but I own a sharp ninja sword. All trespassers will be sliced Try to treat the situation casually. Go answer the door if you must and then return back to your meditation like nothing happened. No, I don't have much doubt any more. Seen too much at this point. But of course I'm always open to being proven wrong in the future. If that happens, I will be open to it and report my discoveries and errors back to you guys. 1) Dying prematurely, before I fulfill my mission. 2) Morrowind Because for now my focus has been on building Actualized.org rather than going balls-to-the-wall on myself. My diets fluctuates a lot. These days I eat more meat because I don't find it very sustainable to only eat plants. I basically starve to death that way because I don't eat any wheat or dairy products. Healing is quite a common ability actually. There are many legit healers around. Which is not to say there aren't frauds on TV. I real healer probably wouldn't be showing off on TV. Apply everything you learn and use your consciousness to help elevate the world. I don't know for sure. Probably in the 300-range. Of course that excludes all the books I read in school and college. I'm talking post-college. Good books on epistemology are quite rare. My understanding of epistemology largely comes from years of my own personal contemplations, not books. Although I will be adding some more epistemology books to my book list in the future as I'm doing a lot of research into it right now. Yes, one. All fears are the same. You must face them head on or they will enslave you. Either way will work. Some yoga and walking meditation is healthy I think. Too much sitting isn't good for the body. You should watch my video: Meditation Technique: Do Nothing "Do Nothing" is a very specific technique. A few points about this: Yes, that's sorta my style. I like to be a bit abrasive and confrontational. I also do that because it amuses me. When I speak, it's like I'm acting in a play, or like I'm doing standup comedy. The fact is that most of the things I say are so obvious that they should be common practice. So some outrage is warranted. It would be dishonest to speak about such things nonchalantly. Society is a chimp circus, and it needs to be called out for it. In this way, I'm sort of channeling George Carlin when I speak. It's a bit over-the-top on purpose. Of course my ego is still intact, so it must show through in my work. That cannot be avoided. All enlightenment teachings are misleading, by definition, regardless of style. I find "modest" styles and teachers to be extremely misleading, even if they are very enlightened. I speak to a very broad general audience on Youtube where most people have no idea what enlightenment is, nor are they serious about pursuing it. So my style is aimed at getting them interested. That's a very different challenge than what someone like Peter is doing. Peter is only teaching small handfuls of extremely hardcore students. I teach A LOT more stuff than Peter or your typical nonduality teacher. I talk about lots of pragmatic things which have nothing to do with enlightenment. The aims of my teachings are more ambitious. A lot more territory must be covered to assemble THE BIG PICTURE which no nondual teacher gives you. My communication style will evolve and improve in the future as I become more conscious and authentic. I always tell you guys to think for yourselves and to don't believe me. My videos are already long, and I'm tired of saying it. It should be obvious that all my words are merely words. Comparing me with Peter is rather unfair. You can compare me to him when I'm 65 years old. Wheat is just empty calories and is hard for your body to digest. Without eating wheat, it is almost impossible to become fat. What's wrong is that reality is immaterial. I like having one girl who I like. I don't think polyamory is healthy or sustainable. Nope. Sometimes in early 2018, hopefully. Beans, no. I have tried, but nuts make me feel nauseous. They are too rich for me so I avoid them. ??? If you want that, you should be the one telling me. I want to make an entire course about it. Too much hassle. It takes dozens of hours to prepare things like that. Yeah, we'll get to it at some point. It's not an easy topic to cover meaningfully in 1 video.

Leo in his new motivational video talks about the importancy of extreme ownership over your life. Becoming independent from the society, surviving, starting up your own business. But I don’t understand why Leo generalizes it so much. I’ve seen people loosing their houses and all money because of unsuccessful passionate business they started. Yes reward is amazing if you are successful but sometimes the risk is higher imho. On contrary I know some people in Finance working in huge corporations with good salary and they are enjoying their life at the fullest. @Leo Gura Yes, you can keep repeating that in the end they are delusional and we are having better piece of cake here but reality is reality. These people live at the fullest. They work hard in their corporations even if they dislike the job sometimes. But due to financial stability they are free to experience whatever cones on their mind in their free time. The way you and some other people generalize about 9-5 jobs is way too extreme and I don’t agree. Everyone is different. Plus if everything is divine in the nonduality then why do you make entrepreneurship more divine?

@Shroomdoctor Yea me neither, but from time to time the nostalgia gets me. Do you know Käptn Peng? He frequently adresses topics like nonduality and "true self" in his songs.

You are right...nonduality is not a container and it is important not to get trapped up in thoughts. Also, dualities are created by thoughts. No thoughts, no dualities. I would agree. Duality is a fiction of the mind. We are not living in duality...it has always been nonduality. The idea that nonduality includes duality, in a way, gives legitimacy and reality to duality. However, one sees duality because of ignorance and illusion. It never was real...just as a rabbit being pulled from a hat is not real...but it exists as an illusion. So duality, as an illusion, exists within nonduality. There is only the appearance of duality (apparent duality) which is included in nonduality. Much of the confusion comes from conventions of speech and thought. Let's take a mirage. You see water, but in reality it is light refracting off of hot air (on the desert, pavement, etc.). As nonduality has no "other" or exclusion...so in this spirit, you would have to say there is hot air, refracted light, and the appearance of water. It would be incorrect to say there is water...as a reality. The illusion of water exists, but it is not real..water is not what is there. This is not excluding or creating otherness. It is just accurately verbalizing what is.

@Joseph Maynor seems like he’s beatin around the bush. Makes me wonder if he has actually been Alone. I’m starting to think, either there are souls and I have not experienced them / mine, or he has experienced Alone, and he is downplaying what he has to offer and undermining what he Is saying, or he’s dumbing it down to what he assumes is the reader’s level. It could totally be my ignorance, but whenever souls get brought into nonduality, my dogma radar chirps a little. Not code red, just a couple chirps.

Well, nonduality is a tricky thing. It's sorta like the elephant in the room which nobody sees. And IF you see it, it might change your plans in life. But also, don't put the cart too far before the horse. You don't really know what nonduality entails, so as always you have to keep living your life using imperfect information. Your desire to help people psychologically is probably genuine. What nonduality would do is purify that desire and show you more effective ways of serving people than perhaps traditional psychotherapy. Don't get too far ahead of where you are. Ideas of enlightenment are not enlightenment, and will not feed or comfort you. It's still the best strategy to stick to what you're more passionate about.

@Joseph Maynor In a way, I agree ... however, in an absolute nondual state there would be no possibility of this relational experience. So nonduality, all that is, allows for apparent duality for the sake of this relational experience. Realizing this, the dream doesn't end, it's just known as the creative play of Lila that it truly is, but free of the attendant suffering of not realizing this. Why the dreaming, is another question altogether.

@snowleopard I think I understand what you’re saying, maybe not. nonduality is perception without paradox. Often, ime, the big picture duality is the last paradox before nonduality. Not as a rule or anything. Just seems that way. As in, without something to do, there could be no doer - and without a doer, there could be nothing to do (duality). Without the duality, it is seen that there is no actual doer, and there is actually nothing to do. Yet, here we are, in a loop of creator and creating, as the One.

@egoless @Nahm It's a fascinating topic ... Clearly, duality is imaginable, as it is nothing but imagined ... but is nonduality? Leo's insightful 'strange loop' pointer seems like a way to visualize this apparent paradox? It's like a kind of visual koan ... he may well have pulled it off

@egoless if we’re loosely defining enlightenment as permanent nonduality - experiencing life, without a central ‘you’ - body / brain identity, only the practices will do, short of a one in a million Tolle happening. (IMO) The practices free us of “me me me” perspective. Loa takes you from there and can reveal you are, indeed, the One. It also helps with the next question that arises....if I’m the one, what about all these other ‘people’? ?❤️

@AdamDiC Dismiss what nonsense? Meditation is just one component of development. You definitely will be missing out on a lot of stuff if all you do is meditation. That is not enough, and it will produce a lopsided, half-baked development. There's nothing confusing here. Meditate your ass off if you like, but also be learning and growing in other fields as well. This is just common sense. Meditation will not make you good in relationships, social skills, life purpose, career, communication skills, understanding of society, etc. Yes, meditation can be very powerful, but it shouldn't be your only tool. Self-help and nonduality are not really in conflict. They can dove-tail beautifully. Self-help doesn't have to mean that you drift from your mindfulness practice.