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Salutations John Iverson, M'well, i think that's one crucial problem with cannabis, or more precisely the ways to vilify it. The plant itself used to be relatively safe and can even be made beneficial, but it seems to me typical initiations expose to the acquisition/development of problematic habits for reasons i've tried to explain elsewhere (*) some while ago. Mainly it's about a lack of metered dosing, extreme genetic selection and potential contaminants (legal or otherwise). These days "vaping deaths" appear to confirm my personal belief that "The Shortest Path of Lesser Transformation" can help to avoid vilification by dosing abuse and chronic self-poisoning. Instead of e-Cigs lets consider the venerable/expensive Volcano vaporizer, for example. Although this machine effectively offers deep extraction its associated ritual induces apprehension if not impatience from the long 2 ~ 3 minutes required to fill a bag, consequently the user usually wants to empty it once ready and this alone challenges dosing IMO. Not to mention being confronted to a paradox when seeking improved aroma/taste appreciation as the larger bowls (~300 mg) produce more hints compared to a load reduced tenfold... In essence failure to perform the ultimate toke promotes an obcessional loop because the more one tries the more he's likely to fail while already passing the threshold of micro-dosing. In addition, the Volcano and its vast suite of emulators happens to belong to what i call Hot Dry Air Ovenizers; which ain't too bad if dealing with dry flowers of trustable origin and nature. Most unfortunately "legaleezation" caused industrial processing to spread multiple vilification vectors like "tumbling" which effectively raises the vegetal-to-trichome ratio, leaving behind more tissue impregnated with all sorts of Pest Control Products, poorly documented and even less understood in a long-term context involving "soups" of such contaminants (on top of "secret" additives). These last few years in Canada there's been multiple myclobutanil scandals though their impact was minimized by mass media, officials of Public Health seem even prompt to refer to "chemiophobia" as an excuse, actually dismissing serious complaints from medical patients made even more ill. Briefly put LPs worked hard to define low concentrations that may be declared "safe" for incidental use, but the fact is that there are a hundred products already and nobody knows what happens to human health when these are combined by the dozen in a chronic use context. At that point we're talking "mari-caca", now imagine performing deep extraction on it (plus secondary reactions from ovenizing)! In comparison i favour "1-Hit" consumption methods where a limited amount of energy matches some intended goal like to only target the contact surface of a smaler bowl, aiming for 25 ~ 30 mg tokes instead. The challenge here is to compensate a reduced cloud size with enhanced aroma/taste appreciation (doing more with less), which i believe to require a radical change of extraction strategy i've associated to impulse mode instead of popular thermalization. I could develop further but my point is that i find quite problematic to suggest alternatives to the cigarette/"joint" format. Overall, cannabis ends up being systematically vilified simply because there are no proper consumption methods breaking a "session" into smaller chunks that conveniently allow the user to leave it there after a few tokes only. Many decades ago i tried a smoker tool which contained the fumes between 2 inhalations, in retrospective i must argue it felt like being stressed by time, because i didn't want my fire to extinguish and it multiplied losses to light up again in between 2 extractions... So, the more i tried the more i failed while accumulating frustration; such paradox was a short cut to systematic abuse that eventually required frequent "Tolerance-Breaks", so i could abuse again. Metered dosing alternatives have been explored by Syqe and more recently Grenco/Vapium (Accudose) but i yet have to know what's inside, so i certainly can't pretend these are valid smoke substitutes that i'd be ready to evaluate myself, much less recommend with confidence. Last but not least, i wish to post this evocative graphic resulting from an old article: https://www.leafly.com/news/cannabis-101/understanding-marijuana-thc-cbd-levels Leafly: How to help consumers understand the amount of THC and CBD in their cannabis (2017-Nov-29) It provides some perspective on possible explanations as to why cannabis markets focus on extreme genetic selection, e.g. either recreative THC-centric or more recently Full-CBD/1:1 for medical applications. My point is that if it's true THC and CBD are mutual moderators of each other then persons prone to marginal reactions should aim for the 2:1 (3:1 or even 4:1...) void left relatively unexplored even after "legaleezation". Dealing with conditions as ADHD i'd strongly suggest to stay away from extreme boundaries potentially amplified by other vilification factors as i just mentioned... What i'm saying i guess is that it's a bad idea to combust THC-centric stuff that was sprayed with industrial soups of pesticides, insecticides, miticides, fungicides, nematicides, bactericides - not even by using a fancy deep-extraction ovenizer, etc., etc. Hence i wish you luck! Good day, have fun!!

@Jordan94I am still doing daily releasing / letting go. If you know Julien Blanc, I'm in his 12-month program (Transformation Mastery Academy), which is based on Hawkins / E. Tolle / Dodson teachings. I have made no big breakthrough, nothing like @iluminado experienced in healing his social anxiety. I still feel that tightness in my chest ever-present. However, even when I let go, I have so much layers of resistance, that I don't even get past that. If I can't let go of the resistance to having the feeling, I can't access / let go of the feeling itself. This is the key, I think to get that massive shift in vibration. I did have a major temporary dating success: I attracted the most awesome girl I've ever been with, got her incredibly attracted to me in the beginning, but it faded away soon. The reason: self-sabotage based on my core belief (I am not good enough for her, I do not deserve to be loved), which manifested in neediness and insecurity from my part, which pushed her away. Any tips on how to let go of the resistance to having feelings?

You'll see my transformation in the future man!! ?... noted man!!

Spiritual teachers who have read A Course in Miracles seem inclined to accept the possibility of a different form of reality. Neale Donald Walsch writes in his Conversation With God books about highly evolved beings. Advaita nonduality teacher Roger Castillo, who has talked about ACIM, hasn't experienced a different reality yet but says he is open to the possibility. Eckhart Tolle, who is a fan of ACIM, writes in The Power of Now: "Our collective human world is largely created through the level of consciousness we call mind. Even within the collective human world there are vast differences, many different "sub-worlds," depending on the perceivers or creators of their respective worlds. Since all worlds are interconnected, when collective human consciousness becomes transformed, nature and the animal kingdom will reflect that transformation. Hence the statement in the Bible that in the coming age "The lion shall lie down with the lamb." This points to the possibility of a completely different order of reality." - The Power of Now, chapter 9

I've been watching actualized for quite some time now and I'm also doing the inner work stuff, without psychedelics yet, but I would say that I really heightened my level of consciousness and definitely some transformation has been occuring this year, it's like I'm just about to get struck by some deep insight, or lose my identity completely during the night of sleep, as it, weird to say, almost happened. In many videos, Leo says how everybody is God but most of us don't realize it. Funnily, what immediately comes through my head is does he mean me as a whole organism, or because everything is God, therefore every part of me is God? Would me minus my left ear still be the same God he's describing? I'm guessing yes, as he is saying that literally everything is God. Or is he "playing the game" that I'm the god, I just don't realize it because the "I" I'm refering to is a false self and that actually doesn't exist, only the God, Consciousness, Absolute Truth and Love exists? I know this is not a conceptual knowledge and everything, and if the answer won't really help me in any way, I don't mind getting this post deleted, but I thought it's worth a shot.

@Peo the catch is you die. You undergo such a radical transformation you have no idea how to integrate it. You'll be convinced you've gone crazy. You can no longer relate to friends and family. And best case scenario, it will still take years of struggle to clean up your life and take the call to the hero's journey, if you ever do. So no, it's still a brutally difficult path. Source: my own direct experience. Yes all I took were psychedelics for a couple years and I'm awake as fuck (relatively, I'm still in my early journey), but it was a hellish nightmare for a long time. Only recently have I started seeing fruits from it.

I’m honestly looking for any tool right now that can help with deep self esteem issues, crippling self-doubt in making bold decisions and taking action deciding my life purpose and having the stability of mind to pursue it without sabotaging my efforts a couple days in. On the Big 5 Scale (too no surprise of my own), my weakest points was that I scored all across the board on all the different scales with a high in neuroticism and low on all aspects regarding conscientiousness. I worked my ass off to get off all the SSRIs and mood stabilizers and adhd meds for over 10 years. Though I find breakthrough psychedelics very helpful, I can’t really sustain or even remotely integrate what comes up for me in my life because it’s nust so much and I’m really low Maslow hierarchy of needs and still trying to figure out how to escape wage slavery. Though I want an effective tool, I don’t want something that’s just going to work so long as I keep taking it. If the “progress” I get from microdosing is only brought about so long as I take it and not after i decide to stop (and as I keep doing the work despite getting off), as far as I’m concerned at least for me, that’s pseudogrowth and not what I’m looking for. I’m trying to utilize a tool that can help in the really rough stage of life to help life myself up into higher stages and also serve as tool to help facilitate deep personality change/transformation and also development or growth until I don’t need it anymore and then I can abandon it. With all that said, is microdosing a good potential option for going down that route? @Serotoninluv @outlandish @Shadowraix @Leo Gura @Girzo

I don't really have an opinion, only a theory what has happened to him, and why he now teaches on "a higher level" then before the scandal; See 9.42 in this video I found some of his teachings valuable in my early stages of actualization. Like dropping roles and letting go of feelings. But the last (two) year(s) of his teachings, he is sharing the same thing over and over again. There isn't any new insights or expansion of this ideas. So based on his videos I wasn't inspired to participate in his Transformation Mastery Course.

Hi, guys! I'm wondering here which are your thoughts on Julien Blanc. I don't ask about his PUA background, but about his trauma releasing program, Transformation Mastery. I participated in his 7 days challenges, which was kind of great. I had to exchange a toothpick at the streets for anything else and I got a BIC pen (one of his challenges was too douchy though). But some coaches who follow Julien came talk to me via Facebook and I think some of them gaslit me severily. Also, I participated in Transformation Mastery Academy for one month, but I didn't find it so supportive. I don't know what to think about Julien because sometimes he seems kind, supportive and full of great ideas, but then he comes with some repressive arguments and people who follow him seem to be a lot of guys with narcissistic problems (maybe I have some narcissistic problems, but I want to work on it). I find his pranic breathing useful though, but maybe there are better breathing exercises (anyway, his breathing technique is easy to do and it helps to emerge some feelings and emotions). His idea about triggering to release is good too. I would be glad if you can share your thoughts on this matter

This is a journal about A Course in Miracles (ACIM). I will compare ACIM with an idea I have come up with called Lazy Yoga. It's a general journal, so feel free to post your own comments, criticism, experiences, questions, etc about ACIM. "A Course in Miracles (also referred to as ACIM or the Course) is a 1976 book by Helen Schucman, a curriculum for those seeking to achieve spiritual transformation. ... The Course consists of three sections: the "Text", "Workbook for Students," and "Manual for Teachers". ... The "Workbook" presents 365 lessons, one for each day of the year" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Course_in_Miracles More information about ACIM can be found here: https://acim.org/ Definition: Lazy Yoga is about automatically overcoming entropy. "In statistical mechanics, entropy is an extensive property of a thermodynamic system. ... it is often said that entropy is an expression of the disorder, or randomness of a system, or of the lack of information about it." - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy Instead of elaborating on what Lazy Yoga means in more detail I will start comparing it directly to the lessons in A Course in Miracles, starting with Lession 1: ACIM Lesson 1 - Nothing I see in this room [on this street, from this window, in this place] means anything. 1. Now look slowly around you, and practice applying this idea very specifically to whatever you see: This table does not mean anything. This chair does not mean anything. This hand does not mean anything. This foot does not mean anything. This pen does not mean anything. 2. Then look farther away from your immediate area, and apply the idea to a wider range: That door does not mean anything. That body does not mean anything. That lamp does not mean anything. That sign does not mean anything. That shadow does not mean anything. 3. Notice that these statements are not arranged in any order, and make no allowance for differences in the kinds of things to which they are applied. That is the purpose of the exercise. The state­ment should merely be applied to anything you see. As you practice the idea for the day, use it totally indiscriminately. Do not attempt to apply it to everything you see, for these exercises should not become ritualistic. Only be sure that nothing you see is specifically excluded. One thing is like another as far as the application of the idea is concerned. 4. Each of the first three lessons should not be done more than twice a day each, preferably morning and evening. Nor should they be attempted for more than a minute or so, unless that entails a sense of hurry. A comfortable sense of leisure is essential. https://acim.org/workbook/lesson-1/ Key insight from Lesson 1: The key insight here is that meaning is only possible within limited situations. When looking at life as a whole it's impossible to define meaning. Detailed explanation Life is a process that creates meaning. This is an obvious fact in practice since things have meaning. To make a somewhat formal analysis the term meaning needs to be defined. Definition: The meaning of something is an attribute of that something determined by a particular context. When looking at the big picture and using that definition of meaning, at life as the manifestation of the totality of reality, a statement like: "The meaning of life is to create meaning" is a logical fallacy since totality has no larger context to give it meaning. And Yoga means unity: "The Sanskrit noun योग yoga is derived from the root yuj "to attach, join, harness, yoke"." - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoga So from a perpective of Lazy Yoga as the unity of total reality, it is true that nothing has meaning in itself. Only within particular and separate (not unity) contexts do things have meaning. ACIM Lesson 1 is therefore consistent with Lazy Yoga which in turn is logically consistent with the given definition of meaning. The same is true in a general sense even for immaterial things. Any description, concept or information only has meaning within a particular context. One can argue that the totality of reality is itself the largest context which gives meaning to what's in our reality. However attempting to give meaning to reality itself fails because it is itself the largest context and has no larger context to give it meaning. Practical example There is meaning to things and events in our daily life such as calendar time. Today it's Thursday and tomorrow it will be Friday. That meaning in turn depends on the context, in this case earth's orbit around the sun and the rotation around its axis. And it's clear that even such global meaning is local on this planet and even culturally dependent, such as different calendar systems. Personal consequences Recognizing that meaning is dependent on context allows me to see meaning as something that can change over time and that meaning is local instead of universal. Global perspective The global perspective is here described within the context of the global ego. Definition: The global ego is our planet struggling against entropy. The global ego has existed for the entire officially known history of planet Earth including all its geological record. And since this is a comparison with ACIM the term miracle is useful to define. Definition: A miracle is an event that transcends entropy and classical causality. As an example of a miracle, consider an untidy room. The messy state of the room is a form of entropy. And in ordinary daily life we would have to put in effort to clean the room. A miracle in this case is if the room cleaned itself without the help of external means or effort. From a global perspective the aim with Lazy Yoga and I assume also with ACIM is to transcend and include the global ego. And during earth's entire history and even today meaning has been formed out of this struggle against entropy. Even from a global perspective meaning has become limited to exclude miracles on a secular consensus level within mainstream science, in academia and generally in our whole civilization. Integral change Integral change here means transcend and include such as described by Ken Wilber with his AQAL model and by Clare W. Graves in Spiral Dynamics among others. Humanity has been living with a rigid and absolute framework of meaning. Starting to question and examining the meaning we have attributed to things, events and relationships opens up the possibility of developing new sets of meaning. It is even possible to become flexible enough to be able to move from different perspectives giving various forms of meaning to the largest perspective of all-that-is which transcends meaning altogether.

Wow, interesting question. First, you already went most of the way. To understand that the way you where raised isnt the only way and that there are better alternatives is the key to transformation. Now you need to stay conscious. You will fall back to old behaviours and ways of thinking. That is totally normal and to be expected. Just try to be conscious of that and instead switch to the new wanted behaviour and way of thinking. You can write in a diary of some sort your progress. Maybe choose one of the items on your list and make it a priority for a week or for one month to try and change this behaviour. Do one at a time to make it easier and more focused. See it as an exercise. Also talk to people or read stories of how other people dealt with those things.

According to David N. Wilkin, "The Latin Fathers translated metanoia as paenitentia, which came to mean "penance" or "acts of penance.""[4] Tertullian protested the unsuitable translation of the Greek metanoeo into the Latin paenitentiam ago by arguing that "in Greek, metanoia is not a confession of sins but a change of mind."[9] "Conversion" (from the Latin conversiōn-emturning round) with its "change in character" meaning is more nearly the equivalent of metanoia than repentance.[13] The Greek Orthodox Church in America teaches that "The Greek term for repentance, metanoia, denotes a change of mind, a reorientation, a fundamental transformation of outlook, of man's vision of the world and of himself, and a new way of loving others and God. In the words of a second-century text, The Shepherd of Hermas, it implies "great understanding," or discernment."[19] In his 1881 The Great Meaning of the Word Metanoia, Treadwell Walden, Episcopal priest and sometime rector of St. Paul's Church, Boston, designated cathedral of the diocese in 1912, asserts that metanoia conveys the essence of the Christian gospel. Walden holds that the meaning of the Greek metanoia is very different from the meaning of the English "repentance". He describes the translation of metanoia as repentance as "an extraordinary mistranslation." Walden believed the meaning of metanoia as a "transmutation" of consciousness contrasted with classical Greek which he viewed as expressing a superficial change of mind.[20] Walden sought to promote the proper meaning of metanoia as "change of Mind, a change in the trend and action of the whole inner nature, intellectual, affectional and moral" over against its translation as repentance.[21] In Repentance: A Cosmic Shift of Mind and Heart, Edward J.Anton observes that in most dictionaries and in the minds of most Christians the primary meaning of "repent" is to look back on past behavior with sorrow, self-reproach, or contrition, sometimes with an amendment of life. But neither Jesus nor John the Baptist says to look back in sorrow. For St Paul, "metanoia is a transfiguration for your brain" that opens a new future.[22] excerpt from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metanoia_(theology) If you find this inapplicable or of little use please let me know and I will 'hide'it. ?

From a SD point of view, having a center of gravity above you accelerates your development tremendously, so that's something I wouldn't say no to if I stumbled upon it. But tend to agree with you @MAYA EL; a solo hard learned lesson weights in heavier than a shortcut to an answer, losing much gained understanding on a intermittent journey lost. The question I was asked was more from a business field point of view, which is that of an organizational transformation catalyst and from such a point of view it would be easier to find mentors. Well, at least if you have been good at networking - which I haven't - which probably is more in line with why I am here, being more of an introvert, individual kind of guy. Thanks for sharing perspectives.

45 min meditation yesterday, and 45 min today. Yesterday was very peaceful and I went deep into a samadhi state. Today there was much more suffering in my system, so I had to work with that through-out the whole session, but at the end it felt like it had been transformed and now I feel really good again. Very interesting with this transformation. My life can look really dark and hopeless before I sit down to do this tranformation-work, and afterwards I feel empowered and filled up with positive energy again

I've been on a retreat with people taking high dosages of 5-MeO who didn't seem to be bothered much by it (or they'd pass out). Psychedelics are a massive catalyst for spiritual practice, but if there isn't a practice to begin with then not much is guaranteed to happen. Meditate, nurture your body, build an intimate relationship with your heart, exercise, forgive, breathe, heal. Non duality isn't an escape. You seem to want transformation instead of enlightenment at this moment of life, which is a noble desire, but it takes hard work. God chose to be you, every moment is proof of that love. You are loved so deeply you can't imagine.

It is interesting, true. But let me point this fact out. In the most Absolute sense, this post is correct, however also in an Absolute sense, there are two “destinies” for humanity, if you will. Destiny 1) is the continued expansion of consciousness as we are doing in this community, and across time. If you look at humanity, particularly through the lens of Spiral Dynamics, it is quite clear that humanity is transforming, so in the relative sense there is transformation taking place or Destiny 2) which is total extinction of the human race. Perhaps this 2nd destiny is inevitable anyways. Here’s the key insight- there are only tw outcomes for humanity, continued expansion or extinction. Destiny 1 is the only way humanity isn't going to kill itself off through some mass scale ecological meltdown or through some irreversible war. We have to expand consciousness, awareness, love, self understanding as individuals and as a collective- how do we do this? Well actualized.org is a great resource and there are many others. Like I said though, Destiny 2 may be inevitable in the end. Maybe all of our efforts for growth are in vain but... yeah well we already knew that because we’re all gonna die. However, until that happens there’s literally nothing else to do besides try to raise the collective consciousness of humanity. Yeah you could sit on the sidelines and do nothing, watching by with the Truth that nothing really matters and all is perfect, or you could work your ass off at self realization and life purpose, thus raising the collective conscious of the world as you self actualize and give your unique individual gifts back to the Universe. Life Purpose and trying to “make a change” in this light is a form of gratitude, a recognition of just how precious an opportunity it is to be alive and able to give back to existence. You can either seize this momentously rare opportunity YOU have as an individual to help shape the collective Destiny towards 1 (or 2) or you can watch the world go by passively. Each option is equally perfect. Each option need not be illusory. This idea that there is nothing to do is valid yet it lacks taking Nihilism full circle. There’s nothing to do is synonymous with there’s everything to do. Each is perfect. Each is not the Absolute and thus both are illusory in some way shape or form. - just a side note, it is a false dichotomy to think that self actualization work, life purpose, is antithetical to understanding Absolute Truth. All is Truth.

Is matter more important or energy Is steam more important than water Steam can be condensed into water but water is the deliverable form, we don't drink steam, we drink water. Energy is a field. Is force more important than matter.. What is more important, a mountain or a strong gust of wind. This is a complex question. Now when the wind becomes violent it turns into a tornado. The tornado can lift or break even large houses and buildings. But the tornado will need even greater force to lift a still bigger object like a huge building. This question is more like the eternal battle between a tortoise and a rabbit. A rabbit is agile and can run faster but it fell asleep along the way and the tortoise with its mighty determination won the race. Shows the victory of quality over stamina. This again begs the question, of what is to be needed. The answer is both. Stamina without quality is vacuous and will serve no role unless it's put to use. Quality is vacuous without stamina because by itself it cannot achieve, both are lacking something. Stamina needs only a little quality and quality needs only a little stamina and both can succeed. Who wins. It's dependent on how strong the stamina is and how intense the quality is. Both are equally formidable in their intense states. It's like what is stronger, a rock or water. Rock only appears stronger than water because when water falls, it doesn't have the impact a rock has. But now consider the same water falling at torpedo speed. It's water again. Same molecular structure. However when it is imparted such force, it can bring a flood and cause the same devastation as a falling rock. So a rock is formidable by itself but water only becomes formidable when it gains monstrous force. Now in wiccan we have 5 forces. Air water fire Earth ether. Air can be destructive like a tornado or storm. Standalone it's not. It needs a force. Water becomes destructive during a flood. By its nature it appears gentle though Fire when small appears to do nothing. When large it can consume and destroy anything. Earth or a rock appears stable at first. However an asteroid can cause tremendous destruction and so an iceberg or avalanche of ice can cause destruction on a scale unprecedented by either water or air. Ether is spiritual intent. Ether can bring primordial change. It can be powerful in its own way. It can cause transformation or decay. It's a dynamic force. It's more beautiful than any of the four forces because it can get creative and only create what it desires In short, all are powerful in their own ways depending on how strong or intense they can be. It's about quality, structure and intent. All three are equally powerful. One has to remember that a structure is not just a structure but a formation of many years. Thus it carries significance due to the hard work and time put into the making of it. I'd say there are 3 things that I observe here. The force of energy The force of matter The force of intent I will describe these with suitable adjectives The force of matter being " Carnal" The force of water or energy being "Colossal" The force of ether being "ethereal" Carnal, Colossal and Ethereal.

Nice post. By speaking the truth, the truth changes. By speaking the truth that is grounded in you being an asshole the possibility of transformation opens up. By keeping it in you resist being an asshole and will remain to be one. The inability to speak the truth comes from identification with some part that you perceive to be constant, that needs protection to survive. The more you let go of that, the more mindful you will be and the more excitement, aliveness and spontaneity you will experience in your life.

Another great article by Joshua Tilghman on www.spiritofthescripture.com http://www.spiritofthescripture.com/id4256-resurrection-its-not-what-your-local-church-teaches.html Resurrection: It’s not What Your Local Church Teaches What is the Biblical resurrection? Sadly, there is much misinformation on the subject leading to wild claims. To get a glimpse of what the true resurrection is, I am going to use the Old Testament concepts from the story of Cain and Abel, and then link it back to 1 Corinthians chapter 15. This chapter is greatly misunderstood by mainstream religion, so we’ll correct the fallacies and try to get a grip on what Paul meant. Understanding the Biblical resurrection must come from a greater understanding of ourselves. The story of Cain and Abel fills in some important concepts for us. The Symbolic Nature of Cain and Abel Much of the esoteric nature of of the Bible is hard to interpret, but the story of Cain and Abel is relatively simple. The clues aren’t even hidden. They’re blatant! Let’s break it down. The straightforward version: Adam and Eve conceive twin brothers. Cain comes first, then Abel. Cain is a tiller of the ground. Abel tends sheep. When the time comes, they both bring an offering to the Lord. For no apparent reason (at least not one revealed directly in the text), the Lord rejects Cain’s offering. But God accepts Abel’s offering of sheep. Is the Lord discriminatory against vegetables? Or maybe he just hates brussel sprouts and broccoli? All joking aside, the key to understanding the deeper spiritual significance of the story is actually in their vocations. Cain was doomed from the beginning. Let’s see why… Ancient adepts wrote this story to explain the very early stages of the One consciousness expressing itself through human kind. Adam and Eve being expelled from the garden symbolizes spirit expressing itself in duality on the lowest (physical) plane. Cain and Abel are two different paths the soul can take. One path aspires back towards unity with God (Abel), and the other (Cain), being unaware of this path back to unity, or even that there is unity, remains rooted in separateness, illusion, and the “I” feeling that consciousness experiences in duality on the physical plane. In many ways, the story of Cain and Abel represents the first metaphysical struggle between our lower and higher self. Abel is that beginning aspiration which seeks to establish consciousness in the higher self through love and unity, while Cain is that which is rooted in the lower ego, and is only concerned with “I,” or “me.” As this very early stage of human consciousness, Cain always prevails over Abel. Cain and the Ground Cain is a tiller of the ground. The ground is a symbol of the lower nature within the soul. Think of the ground as the lowest point of involution of spirit, or the one consciousness, in physical matter. Cain is the personality and lower mind that fully functions at the beginning of incarnating into physicality. God could never accept Cain’s offering, because his labor as a tiller of the ground symbolizes humans operating through the lower mind only. Paul tells us the carnal mind is at enmity with God. The carnal mind is not just sensations (physical), it is the entire personality comprised of mental, emotional, and physical consciousness at its lowest point of involution with the human (i.e., the ground). Sidenote: For someone wanting to see the bigger picture, the line of Cain, metaphorically speaking, represents those living and staying in the lower ego. Adam and Eve’s next line, with Seth, represents mankind who aspires, through stages of consciousness, to transcend the lower ego experience and expands his or her awareness as symbolized in Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joshua, David, Solomon, Elijah, and Christ. The First Murder was Metaphysical Of course in the narrative Cain gets very upset. God tells him sin (separation and illusion) is always before him, but if he does well (seeks the higher self through through virtues and love like Abel), he will be accepted. And of course Cain cannot do this. Remember what the Apostle Paul also states: “Because the mind set on flesh is hostile towards God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor can it be” (Romans 8:1). “The mind set on flesh” is the carnal or lower nature. Again, Cain signifies one whose mind is set on flesh because he is a tiller of the ground. You see! Poor Cain never had a chance! In fact, just understanding all this could make us predict would Cain would do next even if we hadn’t read the story. He kills Abel! The lower ego rejects love, always. Anytime we act from the lower aspect of ourselves, we act out of fear and survival. Keep in mind this isn’t literal. Cain never actually murdered a person. This whole fiasco is symbolic of the lower nature killing that aspect which seeks the higher nature / self. Why? Because it must in the early stages of consciousness evolution. It is always at enmity with God. What about Abel? The sheep that Abel tends are symbolic of virtues. Christ said his sheep hear his voice. These are ever the virtues that the soul can become rooted in around the Christ nature, drawing the soul closer and closer back to unity with God. But in Cain, the lower nature kills that aspect of our soul which chooses to tend to the (sheep) virtues. One more important point about Cain as a tiller of the ground: As Gaskell states, the lower nature must be sown and tilled to truly reap fruit. This long process of sowing, tilling, and reaping in the soul is what the soul’s sojourn on earth is all about. The soul that lives in ignorance, will need to be sown, tilled, and reaped over and over (karma and reincarnation) until that ego realizes it’s wretchedness and aspires towards something greater than it’s limited self. Next, God banished Cain from his presence. Cain is banished to the Land of Nod. Nod represents the land where the personality is in total control of the soul, and is at the mercy of the desire-nature, rooted in total separateness of the true self. The personality is expressed through the physical, mental, and emotional consciousness rooted in this illusory separation. These aspects of us, thoughts, emotions and sensations (all three manifested in the physical temple) always begin the journey away from God’s presence in the land of Nod. At first, no man knows God, and the illusion of separateness through the ego is our Nod experience. Cain’s Wife a Blatant Clue Cain even gets a wife in Nod. Again, not a literal woman. The term “wife” is always symbolic of the emotion nature allied with the mind (man). This is what the personality is! This shows the template for the lower nature made up of thought and emotion exhibited through the physical body. He is sent to the land of “Nod,” which is symbolic of being driven (or separate in illusion) from the presence of the Lord (higher self). Remember, the lower nature is at enmity with God and can never bring an offering (from the flesh) that would ever please God. When Paul speaks of the carnal mind, or the mind of flesh, he is speaking of the lower nature in its entirety, which again, comprises the personality manifested through thoughts, emotions, and sensations within the physical temple. This is why Cain is allowed to get away with murder and begin a new journey with a mark to protect him. No matter how corrupt the lower nature is, it always has the chance (through many lives), to evolve through the experiences of adversity and suffering. Early humanity spent many incarnations doing this. Abel doesn’t do much. But his symbolic meaning is the important part. Even in the beginning, the soul has aspirations towards something that is higher and greater than the limited ego rooted in the personality. For much of early humanity, it was just killed by our twin (within us) before it accomplished anything except the faintest of beginnings of a new consciousness experience. The Template has been Set Now we can begin to talk about Paul’s concept of resurrection. We understand from earlier Biblical stories (and not just Cain and Abel), that the lower nature, or the “I” feeling we all have, is comprised of a tri-part nature, or temple. Mind = thoughts, emotions, physical temple. All three make up the lower self. This is the grand illusion, and it is a very small and limited manifestation of who you really are. The Apostle Paul understood this lower nature of man quite well. In fact, at times he seems completely annoyed by it. He states, that which I would do, I don’t. And that which I would not do, I do! It’s like the Abel in him is killed over and over and he admits it in frustration. But no worries. Paul also understands the power of the Christ within us, our hope of Glory, who is able to resurrect this lower self and cause a union of it with the higher self. And it is only the power of Christ manifested in our complete temple that can affect this transformation of the mind. Yes! Christ is resurrected in a physical body, but it’s your physical body. One that is still alive. Not a body that’s already been literally put in the ground. He’s resurrected in your body! Most humans are past the Nod stage, but you still have to manifest an Abraham within you first that cuts covenant, or an agreement with God the higher self through faith. This is where the real journey begins. Abraham is the father of faith because he is symbolic of the divine nature becoming active in the soul by leaving his former land of the ego and traveling to a land that God will give to his seed. This is the Promised Land, and it is nothing like Nod. In fact, it is not a State of consciousness rooted only in the personality and lower ego, but a State of consciousness that receives the blessings of milk and honey (higher emotions – wisdom). Wisdom of what? Wisdom that comes from the intuition, the true reality, that is not separate from God. It is the spiritual food from above which transcends the human mind and intellect, and it is a remembering of where you came from before your descent (incarnation in matter). Paul’s Resurrection is Purely Metaphysical By this point in the article, you’ve already guessed it. Paul’s Resurrection is only metaphysical. The physical body will die. Your personality is fleeting. The labels and memories that make up who you are as the personality in this life, in the earthly vessel, will pass away. But the “who” you think you are now through labels and memory is really but a very tiny and limited aspect of your higher self. Paul knew this fact. He never ever spoke about a resurrection where literal physical bodies (along with all the thoughts and emotions and memories) would be put all back together from the grave. All his writings are spiritual in nature. Paul states flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. Paul also taught that Christ must be fully resurrected within the individual which is this great process and the completion of the renewing of the mind of man. Not just a transformation of the lower mind, but a union of lower mind with the spiritual mind and higher self. When Christ is all in all within the individual, the higher spiritual mind and emotions are in unity, being ruled by the higher self or Christ within. This is why Jesus also taught seek ye first the kingdom of God, which is within you. Paul’s vision of Christ on the road to Damascus indicates this realization. Paul speaks of this in Corinthians: 1 Corinthians 15: 3-8 “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received; how that Christ died for us according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he arose again the third day according to the scriptures; And that he was seen of cephas, then of the twelve.” Let’s break down some more symbols here. Cephas, or Peter, signifies the natural man, or the ego. The natural man must first perceive that there is a spiritual truth higher than himself. This is the first step, and it is why Paul writes esoterically, mentioning Cephas first. Cephas is the little rock that God’s kingdom is first built upon. The twelve are the disciples, which are symbolic of the soul qualities which have completed an initiation into the Christ-soul. Even Jesus went up to Jerusalem at twelve years of age for the feast (Luke 2:42). There are twelve signs of the Zodiac, twelves tribes, twelve disciples, and twelve apostles. All indicate the same. Now let’s continue quoting 1 Corinthians: “After that he was seen of five hundred brethern at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James, then all the Apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also.” What 500 signifies is too complicated to go into here, and would take another post about the book of Ezekiel to explain (maybe another day). But James is a symbol for the mind and enlightenment. According to Gaskell: James is “…the mental edifice of the human being, that is, the mentality or instrument of the mind, which is built up by the soul-qualities through aspiration and enlightenment.” Are we beginning to see a pattern here? Paul’s revelation of the Christ begins with the natural man, progresses through the soul qualities, goes through the state of James, and then to himself. Notice how Paul then states Christ was seen of him also. Paul’s statement here indicates that Christ appeared to everyone in the same way. How did Christ appear to Paul? Again, read the road to Damascus. It wasn’t Jesus in a physical body that appeared to him. It was a bright light on the road to Damascus, indicating an experience within consciousness. Paul’s risen Christ is always metaphysical in nature. Paul never speaks of a virgin birth, the miracles of Jesus, his early life, etc. Why? This was not important to Paul. Only the resurrected Christ is, which is the power within you. When Paul mentions Jesus as the son of David, he is still speaking allegorically. Finally, Paul follows James as the last (and in many ways the greatest) apostle to see the resurrected Christ because Paul is symbolic of the mind being transformed by the Christ. His boasting in the New Testament has nothing to do with being the greatest Apostle. He’s simply the mind which has realized the Christ, and still has to correct the natural man (Peter) through life. Paul gives a sharp rebuke to Peter in Galatians. This rebuke is not between two people. The rebuke is about the natural man (Peter) still wanting to be in charge of the soul rather than the Christ, and getting mixed up from time to time! Final Thoughts on the Resurrection and what it is that is resurrected I am going to quote Gaskell on the resurrection: “A symbol of the rising of the Higher Self from the potential to the actual in the minds of humanity: also the rising of the indwelling or incarnate Self from the lower nature ot the higher at the end of the cycle. In relation to the egos, the resurrection signifies the rising of the cosnciousess from the lower mind to the higher in the causal-body at the cycle’s end…” For beginners, don’t let the language confuse you. The Christ seed is sown by the word. In the beginning, it is only a potential and has not been actualized yet. But the word is not actually the Bible. The word is Christ itself, this power within you that must germinate to bear fruit. I have a great respect of my Christian heritage, even my first church, because it gave me an appreciation for the allegories meant to awaken something already within me. But I realized after many years that my church leaders were more interested in doctrine and doing “good deeds” to follow Christ. But this is not his message. Good deeds are great, but often have very little to do with the transforming of the mind that Paul spoke of. Doctrine and religion still seek Christ through the personality and lower mind, which although can do much good, it is still not the direct realization of Christ within you. The causal body that Gaskell speaks of is a the body of the spiritual ego (not to be confused with the lower mind and ego). The aspects of the personality are attached to it, and come forth from it, but the higher mind, the Christ mind, is established in the causal body, and is not dissolved with death like the personality. The resurrection symbolizes the raising of this lower mind to come into union with the higher mind at some point in human consciousness. Every human life has the potential to express Christ consciousness through the physical body. Those who actualize it are those sheep that hear and follow Christ’s voice – the wisdom gleaned from above by seeking the inner kingdom within each individual, and the higher virtues received through the wisdom-love nature that the higher self contains. More of this to come in future posts. So what is the resurrection? Let’s simplify it like this: the infinite, limitless POTENTIAL of the self cannot express itself (become actualized) in the physical temple, unless… The self transcends the mind, beyond the physical, emotional, and thinking machine that it is, while still in the physical temple. When this Transcendence takes place, this awakening, this enlightenment, this realization of itself, then the “I-ness” of the self is retained within the physical temple, while on earth, and the self is thus resurrected. And the union, the Divine marriage, of the lower and higher self is consummated. This is the immortality spoken about in the Bible. This immortality does not mean of the physical body, but of bringing awareness of the self, through direct realization, into death, where the individual remains aware and does not fall alseep (go into complete unconsciousness until the next birth). Blessings.

@1:12 "The Ox of Consciousness--Riding the Ox Backwards." -Shinzen Young It's the major singularity transformation from Truth, the pure consciousness, following the Everythingness realm. All the non-duality teachings, including the so-called "religious" ones, came from this Source. Are you even able to comprehend this? No way! You would have to become Truth and transform back to your ego to understand it. Otherwise, the Ox is just a metaphor for you. Oops, forgot to say that you become love before ego and after singularity.

Salutations Ross Labby, Smoking "joints" is a habit inherited after an invention patented by James Albert Bonsack who got rich by rendering the cigarette format commercially viable, which never really acounted for public health considerations since 1880 ~ 1881... So maybe it's quite about time for some healthwise update, hence please do yourself a great service by including non-combustion consumption methods in your opions! As a matter of fact i'd also point out such choice might prove crucial by significantly influencing your future user profile, for example a ~300 mg "joint" filled with potent THC-centric cannabis may already invite potential abuse, especially at 19. For starters it depends if it's being shared or not... Anyway, it would be too late to realize the initiation went wrong by the time you realize your need for "Tolerance Breaks" becomes more frequent. As a result i personally promote a toke-by-toke method, e.g. one that doesn't engage the user into stretching his "session" beyond what's actually sufficient in terms of dosage. In addition to gaining some degree of self-awareness between each toke i consider a habit ain't very satisfying if it doesn't also include a fair appreciative dimension, vastly based on aroma/taste in this most particular case; one major challenge being to do "more with less". IMO marginal/dysfunctional consumption issues often suggest there's been repeted abuse, which is why i point an accusating finger directly at the tool rather than the substance, because i recall when i used to smoke there was a difficult dilema to resolve between my urge to seek the ultimate toke vs a desire to "conserve" by avoiding loss from multiple igniting/extinctions, using the tool illustrated below (labelled as a "Tokeu"): There couldn't be a worse consumption tool for me, on top of being about combustion smoke. It rapidly led into a spiral as the more i tried the less i seemed to succeed. Not to mention that smoking actually destroys a large amount of noble molecules for no other prupose than to maintain the fire alive. That's a perfect objection to investing on something which costs more than paper & glue, while still having your consumption profile shaped by it. Now i propose we get a closer look at one fundamental challenge: The goal is to transfer to your bloodstream (via inhalation) a fair dose of the noble substances conveniently collected (practically "filtered") at the site of genesis on a molecular basis, delivered in natural packaging known as trichome glands... Assuming this is "bio" quality cannabis i'd strongly suggest to avoid any form of potential vilification by following "The Shortest Path of Lesser Transformation", which in my own case involves discrimination of the tiny "frosted" features in an approximative Pulse Heating scenario. Other solutions exist as well, though some trades-offs must be agreed in exchange for a prefered aspect. Stealthy pen comes to mind, etc. Which is one of the multiple possible forms of self-vilification as far as i'm concerned. ... In any case good day, have fun!!

@Hansu coal was a political decision. it is more complicated than this, multiple factors leading to that decision, on one hand it`s worker related and socialdemocratic nostalgia, on the other it`s about being independent in the transformation phase but still being able to get some energy from abroad until we make it completely. also the atomic powerplants in some regions in europe are not in their best years, so there is not only the risk of human errors. well it would also be a human error to overlook or miss that. enough reasons to work on it with higher pressure. (we seem to love challenges )

I also thought about posting this some time ago sometimes I watch Mike Tyson's podcast, he talks about the toad regulary and he still does it regulary love the transformation this guy has made

I wouldn't advise to tell anybody unless you feel they will understand what you are talking about. It will only make you feel even more alone. I didn't tell anybody. Actually I tried to tell my Dad but he basically ignored me. Nobody will believe anything you say about it until they see the positive results for themselves (after you complete the journey and they see your transformation). I knew that the people around me could only understand from what they themselves had already learned. I knew telling them would cause them suffering because they could not help me. They would see me as ill, and that would only cause them to suffer. Even many spiritual people call Kundalini nonsense because they know nothing of it. So the average person will surely consider you crazy. It's not their fault. I know it's hard but you have to take responsibility and walk this path alone. You will feel very alone, but you are not <3

When we can carry the red thread of the present moment for a whole day and not drop it. Then eventually, days at a time and finally get to the point of never dropping it. I vaguely remember Fourth Way text about the 'fake it till you make it' practice. After posting this, I'll go search,,, I thought this applicable from a Christian perspective. A lesson from an online Course during Lent a couple of years ago, about the pendulum of emotions. The yo yo of Being. Session 6: Growing Your Being "As we are raised in Being, so is meaning transformed. As we fall back, the old meanings return." — Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of G.I.Gurdjieff and P.D. Ouspensky by Maurice Nicoll, Volume 5 Commentary by Cynthia Bourgeault This arresting comment by Maurice Nicoll, one of the early British students of the Gurdjieff Work, provides some useful insights into how one might engage practically with the task of "perfecting oneself in the sense of Being," the goal of the second Obligolnian striving. First off, what does it mean to "be raised in Being?" Setting aside for the moment the question of "who" or "what" does the raising, let's start with the obvious — namely, that if we can be raised in being, Being must have levels. This is not hard to verify internally. With a flick of your imagination you can picture yourself in a relatively higher state of being. Maybe it's sitting on your meditation cushion, relaxing in nature, or almost anywhere you feel yourself in a greater spaciousness, equanimity, and inner alertness. Another flick of your imagination and you can (all too) easily recall those low-being states: when you're caught in negativity or reactivity, or as well when your attention is totally scrambled and dissipated, like noodling on the internet or wandering through a task on autopilot. During the day we travel up and down on the yo-yo of Being. Some days yo-yo feels like an understatement; it's more like bungy-jumping! Now what does this "meaning is transformed" part mean? Again, you can easily check this out in practical experience. When you're in a higher state of Being — spacious, grounded, present — it's easier to stay in touch with those loftier and more generous impulses: things like compassion, trust, forgiveness. It's easier to ponder the great questions like "What am I here for?" — or even to see, beneath the fragmented surface of things, a deeper order and presence. When you're in a lower state — negative or distracted — your perception of reality tends to get co-opted by mental scenarios, projections, cynicism, self-importance, urgency: all the small-self agendas. Ever notice how often perceptions based in negativity inevitably turn out to be skewed? In a lower state, it gets harder to hold onto large ideas like compassion, trust, non-reactivity. Even Being itself can sound like just another concept! From a Gurdjieff Work perspective, falling to a lower level of Being inevitably entails moving to a less energized state. This may not seem obvious to you at first, because negative states can sometimes feel highly energy-charged. But in the Work, the tip-off is not the state of your emotions but the state of your attention. A state in which you're collected, gathered, focused, present, is a higher energy state. This means that it is running at a more powerful magnitude of Being; it supports the "upward" transformation of meaning. A lower-level state plunges you back below the critical threshold needed for maintaining lively contact with that deeper aliveness of "Real I." Inevitably, once your reservoir of Being starts to get drawn down you fall back into identification with your smaller self, which in turn draws your reservoir of being down still further. It's a complete vicious circle. Unfortunately, it's not easy to spot when we move to a lower state. Just as most people can't see the moment they fall asleep at night, so they also can't and don't notice when Being starts to sink. And when you think about it, that actually makes sense: you can't go consciously unconscious! But with training and sincerity you can begin to notice more promptly when you've gotten hooked, and at least not feed the downward slide! Sometimes, as the Psalms say, you simply have to "wait in the darkness crying for the Lord." The ability to see a deteriorating state does not immediately mean that you can do anything about it. You have to endure for a while (sometimes a long while!) in the gap between your power to see and your power to do. It's one of the most uncomfortable tight spots in the whole spiritual journey. But simply noticing is a far more important act than you might at first expect: Because as you sit there in that unaccustomed helplessness and exposure, you gradually begin to see that there really is a "something" or "someone" who calls you back to your deeper spiritual intention. And it's not your own personal efforts but your growing trust in this deeper relational field working on your behalf that will eventually get you there. For the time being, your job is simply to notice as promptly as you can, always with a small thanks offered to that unknown "something" that always seems to notice, even when we don't, and to intervene on our behalf, as the ombudsmen of our real yearning for Being. To Practice What I've just given you here is actually a very condensed introductory course on what the Gurdjieff Work calls "self-observation." This is the capacity to notice, without judgment or self-criticism, what's physically going on inside you from an objective, "third-person" point of view. Today I invite you to further explore any or all of today's teaching in the laboratory of your own more being. Here are some practical suggestions: 1. Begin each day with at least twenty minutes of meditation, if that is not already your usual practice. (It is best to start this exploration into self-observation by "tanking up" your reservoir of Being.) 2. As much as possible, notice as your state of being shifts, particularly when you "fall asleep" (Work terminology for falling to a lower state of being). 3. What effect (if any) does simply noticing have on your state? 4. Can you begin to spot the hooks that drag your level being down? This should keep you more than busy! As you're so moved, please record your work-in-progress in your journal. "Becoming Truly Human: Gurdjieff's Obligolnian Strivings" is a joint project of Cynthia Bourgeault and Spirituality & Practice. Content copyright 2017 by Cynthia Bourgeault. Photo credit: Steve Nathans-Kelly and Wisdom Way of Knowing. Rev. Dr. Cynthia Bourgeault is the Principal Teacher and Advisor for The Contemplative Society (www.contemplative.org), an inclusive nonprofit association that encourages a deepening of contemplative prayer based in the Christian Wisdom tradition while also welcoming and being supportive of other meditation traditions. Spirituality & Practice (www.SpiritualityandPractice.com) is a multifaith website presenting resources for people on spiritual journeys. The organization is helping to build a worldwide community of people vitally engaged with the wisdom of the spiritual traditions and serving the world through spiritual practice. from https://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/ Im not sure if they're still offering this,,,?