Mega Thread: Common Traps of This Work

[Sahil Pandit]

There are 100's of traps in this work. Your mind will be your greatest enemy. Here are the most common traps people fall into: Journal about these issues you are dealing with

Chasing quick-fixes. Not wanting to explore issues deeply or solve problems at their root.

Not taking ownership of your life. Hoping for someone to give you a 1-2-3 step formula for success & happiness.

Trying to be like someone else rather than working to discover YOUR authentic self.

Chasing ideals and ideas of goodness.

Feeling like it's too late, I'm too old to change, I've wasted so much time.

Staying loyal to toxic friends/family who are holding you back.

Not reading, not learning, not doing enough research.

Expecting this work to be easy and pleasant.

Learning from too few perspectives, thus getting an incomplete picture, not having enough options.

Judging, moralizing, criticizing, debating, arguing, blaming.

Asking for "scientific proof", as if someone can prove quality-of-life improvements to you.

Being so skeptical of everything that you don't put the theory into practice.

Speculating about and conceptualizing enlightenment, mystical experiences, and spiritual growth.

Clinging to a naive realist paradigm, believing that reality is physical, logical, and Newtonian.

Assuming that modern science has figured out most of reality.

Underestimating the massive negative effects of mainstream culture, diet, media, entertainment, beliefs, etc.

Not understanding how happiness really works. Thinking that external conditions or possessions produce happiness. Chasing gross material pleasures.

Confusing success with happiness or true growth.

Assuming that successful people, like your favorite role-models, celebrities, professors, CEOs, etc are happy.

Not recognizing that mystical experiences are real and possible for you to have.

Becoming ideological about anything whatsoever (theory, techniques, science, logic, politics, etc), not realizing that all human perspectives are partial.

Confusing Truth with knowledge/belief

Assuming that reality is rational, mistaking scientific maps and models for being.

Working a job/career just for the money.

Being stuck in wage slavery, working a 9-5 job, not having control of your schedule.

Eating the Standard American Diet of wheat, dairy, sugar, meat, and processed foods.

Assuming that personal development is all mental work, not doing any development or purification of your body.

Consuming mainstream media. Not realizing how toxic modern media and entertainment is.

Not taking full responsibility for your life

Whining and complaining about how your situation is unfair and impossible to change.

Not valuing or pursuing truth for its own sake. Treating truth as a luxury.

Dismissing theory, philosophy, and beliefs as "merely" philosophy.

Studying tons of theory without ever taking action. Improperly balancing your ratio of theory to practice. Mental masturbation.

Keyboard-jockeying: over-conceptualizing, discussing, talking shit, and speculating but never embodying what is talked about.

Having a short time horizon for all your goals, plans, and projects.

Over-packing your schedule, leaving no time to sit, think, or meditate.

Valuing and pursuing gross experiences vs subtle ones.

Assuming that consciousness is a physical by-product of the brain.

Assuming that you are physical body, or etherial soul.

Projecting onto the teacher you're learning from. Getting triggered by teachers. Holding grudges. Debating with them. Trying to school your teacher.

Clinging to the idea of good and evil, not realizing that these are all your projections.

Going on a crusade to save the world or vanquish evil. Getting overly focused on acting "good" in the external world vs working on your own inner demons.

Assuming that if life is meaningless, that's a bad thing.

Setting unrealistic expectations. Being too impatience. Expecting big results to come quickly.

Trying to change too much too fast. Lack of focus.

Getting overwhelmed with all the options. Indecisiveness.

Not taking action because, "I don't know how."

Underestimating how much growth is possible. How much better your life can become.

Assuming boundaries between objects are scientific, physically given.

Distracting yourself from facing emptiness, negative emotions, loneliness, and ego backlashes.

Misusing psychedelics: using them recreationally, using them socially, using them without proper research.

Conceptually misunderstanding enlightenment

Confusing enlightenment with a sensory experience or emotional state

Trying to install too many new habits at once.

Quitting meditation or self-inquiry when negative emotions or resistance surfaces.

Not being decisive, thus maintaining the status quo by default.

Not having a big vision for your life.

Using negative motivation to get stuff done.

Motivating yourself through competition with others, trying to "be the best".

Making your vision all about personal success and wealth rather than contributing to the world.

Being too cheap, not investing in books, courses, workshops, etc. Undervaluing self-education.

Chasing after love, success, pleasure, excitement, rather than pursuing Truth and understanding.

Assuming you need certain physical conditions to be happy.

Conflating knowledge acquisition with growth/development.

Dismissing "new age" concepts like spirits, aliens, God, healing, love, etc.

Demonizing psychedelics.

Not taking massive action. Assuming that "things will just work out". No they won't!

Not having a spiritual practice because you've been told there's nothing to seek.

Expecting people close to you to understand and support your efforts to grow.

Trying in frustration to get everyone around you to change or become interested in personal development or spirituality.

Not realizing or appreciating the incredible value of this work.

Quitting

Quitting when resistance kicks in.

Quitting when emotional upheaval surfaces.

Not getting back on track after backsliding or quitting. Beating yourself up for failures.

Letting yourself get lulled back to sleep by our toxic and indifferent culture.

Being dogmatic about any school or practise

Not exploring various perspectives

Not reading theory/reading too much theory

Starting enlightenment wars

Theorizing and conceptualizing enlightenment

Trying to have someone else's experience (that guy got enlightened with zen meditation, I will now only do zazen!)

Trying too much/trying too little

Chasing states (all states change, the substance where all states occur does not)

Getting stuck in your mind

"why I dont get it?"

"why Im stuck in this body?"

"I just want the ego to die already!"

"Who is it who perceives me perceiving this though and who is it who asks this question, who who who who who....."

Getting caught up in words (awareness, emptiness, I, me....)

Worrying too much about what you should do vs. what you should not do

Not recognizing belief from direct experience

Not questioning your beliefs radically enough

Dismissing psychedelics / doing too much psychedelics

Believing enlightenment is hard

Not recognizing the limits of any spiritual teacher/teaching

Not recognizing the difference and limitations of both pre and post awakened advice

Making practices chores you MUST do

Dismissing the body and humanity

Going overboard with diets/fasting

Dismissing feelings and their source

Ignoring bodily functions and natural needs of the body in general

Celibacy as a method (sex is a distraction yes but so is a mind clouded in sexual thoughts, try it if you feel its part of your path)

Hurting the body (the usefulness/reward ratio of straight up physical pain is questionable, although it has been tried and practiced succesfully by individuals)

Believing there are problems

Creating  a path where the is none (I'll be closer to enlightenment when I have done x amount of yoga and y amount of meditation)

Believing any part of experience is "blocking" you from seeing the truth ("Thoughts are a problem" is a though about thoughts)

"Stopping the practice when you leave the cushion"

Not making a commitment of life long seeking. The seeking will end when the time is right.

Not conjuring massive amounts of patience and perseverance

Not recognizing ducks as the superior spiritual teachers

Edited May 25, 2018 by Sahil Pandit
Added to the list

[Nahm]

@Sahil Pandit Wow. Great thread. I can only add (and maybe it’s on there already) the trap of being unaware of fear - not just unwilling to face it, but simply unaware it’s even ‘there’, in the psyche. 

[TheSomeBody]

"Chasing quick-fixes. Not wanting to explore issues deeply or solve problems at their root." right , but still, there are quick fixes, you just cant predict them .

listening to your ego.

to be afraid from the truth

to be afraid from the loneliness in this journy 

letting any life event to make you quit or stop the prosses, you can find your way to anywhere

 

 

 

 

[Rebec]

Lecture and wanting to help other people to get on this path, this causes you to don't pay attention to your own process anymore.

Having seen a glimpse and thinking your the new 'Sadhguru' or 'Eckhart Tolle' ?

You don't need 10.000 hours to become a master. Your special, you only need 600 hours. And then wondering after 600 hours why you aren't there yet. ?

@Sahil Pandit Great thread!

Edited May 24, 2018 by Rebec

[Key Elements]

I really like this one. I still listen to it sometimes. 

[Sahil Pandit]

Clarification: This post was from Leo's "BluePrint" a long time ago, i don't know where the original post is anymore but i had saved it to my OneNote a long time ago and now here it is.

Enjoy friends.

 

 

[molosku]

+1 +1 +1 Great thread, great share. That list is pretty exhaustive and I cant come up with anything to add right now. One thing that could be added is a dedicated sublist of enlightenment traps and move all the spiritual related points there, as there are plenty of them! This thread should maybe be stickied in time @Nahm @Leo Gura? There is much discussion about traps in the enlightenment stickies in the spirituality subforum, but gathering stuff in one place could be a good resource.

I'll start with a few. These are all from the seekers perspective, before any glimpses or breaktroughs

• Being dogmatic about any school or practise
• Not exploring various perspectives
• Not reading theory/reading too much theory
• Starting enlightenment wars
• Theorizing and conceptualizing enlightenment
• Trying to have someone else's experience (that guy got enlightened with zen meditation, I will now only do zazen!)
• Trying too much/trying too little
• Chasing states (all states change, the substance where all states occur does not)
• Getting stuck in your mind
  • "why I dont get it?"
  • "why Im stuck in this body?"
  • "I just want the ego to die already!"
  • "Who is it who perceives me perceiving this though and who is it who asks this question, who who who who who....."
  • Getting caught up in words (awareness, emptiness, I, me....)
• Worrying too much about what you should do vs. what you should not do
• Not recognizing belief from direct experience
• Not questioning your beliefs radically enough
• Dismissing psychedelics / doing too much psychedelics
• Believing enlightenment is hard
• Not recognizing the limits of any spiritual teacher/teaching
• Not recognizing the difference and limitations of both pre and post awakened advice
• Making practices chores you MUST do
• Dismissing the body and humanity
  • Going overboard with diets/fasting
  • Dismissing feelings and their source
  • Ignoring bodily functions and natural needs of the body in general
  • Celibacy as a method (sex is a distraction yes but so is a mind clouded in sexual thoughts, try it if you feel its part of your path)
  • Hurting the body (the usefulness/reward ratio of straight up physical pain is questionable, although it has been tried and practiced succesfully by individuals)
• Believing there are problems
• Creating  a path where the is none (I'll be closer to enlightenment when I have done x amount of yoga and y amount of meditation)
• Believing any part of experience is "blocking" you from seeing the truth ("Thoughts are a problem" is a though about thoughts)
• "Stopping the practice when you leave the cushion"
• Not making a commitment of life long seeking. The seeking will end when the time is right.
• Not conjuring massive amounts of patience and perseverance
• Not recognizing ducks as the superior spiritual teachers

Feel free to edit your post @Sahil Pandit  with my contribution if you will

Edited May 25, 2018 by molosku

[Epiphany_Inspired]

@Sahil Pandit I love it, so glad it's not a checklist though, or I'd have a super high score for getting trapped  

Now if you could please write me a 1-2-3 step process for easily avoiding all of these...I would be happy and successful

[Widdle Puppy]

On 5/25/2018 at 0:01 AM, Sahil Pandit said:

Clarification: This post was from Leo's "BluePrint" a long time ago, i don't know where the original post is anymore but i had saved it to my OneNote a long time ago and now here it is.

Enjoy friends.

 

 

Thanks! what's the last one mean by ducks?

[Sahil Pandit]

This list is getting to me  

[Aquarius]

Not believing in yourself when no one is next to you and everyone thinks you are deluded and psychotic or evil. 

[Sahil Pandit]

Thinking that ego backlash is going to last forever and caving into whatever is bothering you.

[d0ornokey]

Trying to skip steps 

Not following your heart 

Doing a new bad habit for more than a few days in a row

 

[Joseph Maynor]

15 minutes ago, d0ornokey said:

Trying to skip steps 

Not following your heart 

Doing a new bad habit for more than a few days in a row

 

How would you even know if you were trying to skip a step?  This is weird thing.  How do you even know what a step is gonna be for you, let alone articulate the steps you think you've attained?  What are these steps?  And even if we have steps, what would it look like to try to skip a step?  How would that actually look?

Edited December 15, 2018 by Joseph Maynor

[Toby]

#1 trap of the forum: not taking feedback from teachers.

[AleksM]

Ignoring basic needs

[Nahm]

Looking at this forum, not making an account, not asking any questions. 

[Buba]

I am leaving a comment, so people who have missed it, see it.