I am enlightened. Sincere seekers: ask me anything

[winterknight]

23 minutes ago, seeking_brilliance said:

@winterknight I've understood about the idea of me for a while now. But I still struggled with feeling like an I. Feeling like the thinker of thoughts. But what clicked is that there is only thoughts of an I, not an I(persona). Only the thoughts. No thinker. Even now as this is being typed, it is a succession of thoughts which does this, not I. 

Again, please straighten me out if needed. I will find the I that observes. Thank you. 

Yes, it is the feeling like an I that is the key issue. The mere intellectual understanding that "there are only thoughts of an I" is  not enough.

As long as there is that feeling of an I, that feeling has to be searched for using Ramana Maharshi's self-inquiry method.

 

Edited November 11, 2018 by winterknight

[seeking_brilliance]

Ok. Could you give a beginners explanation to that method? Sorry, this thread is long so you can just link to one if you've already covered it. 

[Jack River]

9 minutes ago, winterknight said:

The mere intellectual understanding that "there are only thoughts of an I" is  not enough.

It must be seen as the reality(fact) that it is. Understanding an idea not even close to enough.

[winterknight]

11 minutes ago, seeking_brilliance said:

Ok. Could you give a beginners explanation to that method? Sorry, this thread is long so you can just link to one if you've already covered it. 

Sure. Also here.

Edited November 11, 2018 by winterknight

[seeking_brilliance]

@winterknight thank you! 

Why do we like a good story? 

I hope that makes sense... I can elaborate if you wish... 

 

Edited November 11, 2018 by seeking_brilliance

[winterknight]

7 minutes ago, seeking_brilliance said:

@winterknight thank you! 

Why do we like a good story? 

I hope that makes sense... I can elaborate if you wish... 

Yes, can you elaborate?

2 minutes ago, Ero said:

When we say "conditioned by beliefs and judgements", what is that which caused our "situation"? Why is the start of the maze within the story of "Ero"?  

??

Look deeply and you will find there is no Ero or maze, situation, or binding conditioning.

[seeking_brilliance]

@winterknight it seems that when observing thoughts, they take on a random train of subject matter, or otherwise follow a succession of thoughts that build upon each other.  By holding a certain intention in mind, the thoughts that arise tend to be about that intention, which I refer to as - "I am steering these thoughts toward so and so." Am I searching for this I that can steer these thoughts, or is it an illusion that "I" can do this? Also, are thoughts consecutive, or am I only perceiving them in a consecutive order? (that's probably a silly question, you don't have to answer that) 

[youngshinzen]

@winterknight

Ramana Maharshi says: “Everything is predetermined.“ 

Why is your answer different?

[seeking_brilliance]

11 minutes ago, winterknight said:

20 minutes ago, seeking_brilliance said:

@winterknight thank you! 

Why do we like a good story? 

I hope that makes sense... I can elaborate if you wish... 

Yes, can you elaborate?

It's just that many things seem to be propelled by story. A life. Ideas. When observing thoughts, many of them seem to cluster in favor of a story, as if propelled to do so. Stories seem to be a large part of experience. Self must love a good story....or at least a good laugh.. 

Edited November 11, 2018 by seeking_brilliance

[AMS]

@winterknight sorry if already asked but when you have the realization of oneness, does your visual field change at all?  To a point where it literally seems as if another person is identical to your own arm for example?

If you have ever done psychedelics, does anything comparable to a trip happen such as intensified sensory experience/fractal imagery?

Edited November 11, 2018 by AMS

[winterknight]

47 minutes ago, seeking_brilliance said:

@winterknight it seems that when observing thoughts, they take on a random train of subject matter, or otherwise follow a succession of thoughts that build upon each other.  By holding a certain intention in mind, the thoughts that arise tend to be about that intention, which I refer to as - "I am steering these thoughts toward so and so." Am I searching for this I that can steer these thoughts, or is it an illusion that "I" can do this? Also, are thoughts consecutive, or am I only perceiving them in a consecutive order? (that's probably a silly question, you don't have to answer that) 

That I which seems to be steering those thoughts -- who is aware of that I doing that steering? "I am," right? That's the I you're trying to find. Yeah, I might pass on the second question 

41 minutes ago, youngshinzen said:

@winterknight

Ramana Maharshi says: “Everything is predetermined.“ 

Why is your answer different?

Everything RM says has to be taken in context. First of all, RM doesn't really believe in things. So only if you have things is there a question of whether they are predetermined. 

Then, once you have things, you can either call them predetermined by laws of cause and effect or you can call them God's will. God is free, however. God's will cannot be called predetermined, because predetermination implies that God's will is conditioned by time and cause and effect, and it is not -- God's will determines those things. RM mentions God's will a lot too.

I prefer the idea of God's will to predetermination.

So choose whichever paradigm you want; both are false within the larger truth that there are no things.

41 minutes ago, seeking_brilliance said:

It's just that many things seem to be propelled by story. A life. Ideas. When observing thoughts, many of them seem to cluster in favor of a story, as if propelled to do so. Stories seem to be a large part of experience. Self must love a good story....or at least a good laugh.. 

Sure, stories are fun, agreed. But let's not anthropomorphize Self. Self doesn't want or need anything.

34 minutes ago, AMS said:

@winterknight sorry if already asked but when you have the realization of oneness, does your visual field change at all?  To a point where it literally seems as if another person is identical to your own arm for example?

No. Those are boundary-blurrings that are characteristic of either psychedelic effects or brain abnormalities. 

Quote

If you have ever done psychedelics, does anything comparable to a trip happen such as intensified sensory experience/fractal imagery?

These can happen in meditative glimpses for some people... well, intensified sensory experience, not so much fractal imagery I think. But maybe. These are not, however, the essence of spiritual self-realization.

Edited November 11, 2018 by winterknight

[Mu_]

25 minutes ago, AMS said:

@winterknight sorry if already asked but when you have the realization of oneness, does your visual field change at all?  To a point where it literally seems as if another person is identical to your own arm for example?

If you have ever done psychedelics, does anything comparable to a trip happen such as intensified sensory experience/fractal imagery?

It can.  Your visual field can change to many things, but these should not be confused with realizing your true nature.

[winterknight]

5 minutes ago, Ero said:

How did you "purify" yourself? Meaning how do you release emotional traumas, neurosis, tension, etc.? Was it an effect of the realisations or you did for ex breath work or some kind of retreats? 

Another thing - what were your greatest "hiccups"? What was really hard for you to let go of?

Tanks again

Purification is largely a process of becoming honest about what you want and pursuing it. Psychodynamic/psychoanalytic therapy, expressive writing trying to describe in great specificity and original, accurate detail my emotions, and a lot of simply learning about the world and trying to comprehend myself... a lot of trying to get what I wanted and failing, and re-evaluating... all that is part of that purification & desire discovery process.

Those are the ways of releasing trauma, neurosis, tension, etc. Well, that, and of course self-inquiry. And if you want certain other controls can be important: eating healthy, sleeping right, etc. But those will come naturally if you become honest about your desire.

The greatest hiccup was feeling a lack of motivation. Only much later did I realize that this very lack of motivation was a giant pointer to the Self. But i had to go through all the things I mentioned above to understand that.

[RichardY]

Prefreewill - The ultimate autosave, well I fucked that up badly, shit my hard drive is corrupted!!!!!!

[Mu_]

5 hours ago, Outer said:

Why does it seem so difficult to awaken, I do the inquiry and it seems like I realize my true nature for a moment but it goes right back again, completely out of my control. I just become aware of consciousness and that the thought is in consciousness, but nothing happens, again I am the thought or the emotion or my vision as that's at least what the type of thought I have imply.

If I may comment on this in extension to winterknights answer that its not easy this awakening thing.  Real awakening is never not the case.  By the way your describing your awakening to your true nature, is "You" had a experience type that was labeled as "awakening to true nature".  "You" who is never not aware/awake/infinity itself then believes it moved away from something that was awake/having a awaking experience.  Still the next question that may of arose is why do I not see/understand this and to that I say again what is it that could not be god, how could creation/infinity/self not already be whats taking place, how could there be a something to begin with without a source thats always been, a chicken can not lay a egg to create itself without a source/god to of been there all along for it to happen....  how could source not still be the case, how could you not be part/as this beginning?

[EternalForest]

What is the true meaning of dreams, and why do I experience such higher consciousness during lucidity?

[winterknight]

1 minute ago, EternalForest said:

What is the true meaning of dreams, and why do I experience such higher consciousness during lucidity?

Dreams have no one true meaning, though psychodynamic/psychoanalytic therapy can investigate some of the unconscious meanings of them -- which are certain emotions that you are not fully aware that you are feeling, and certain developments in your unconscious.

I don't know much about lucid dreams.

[Shin]

On 11/10/2018 at 0:16 AM, Outer said:

 

@winterknight

What are the things to do or not do in order to awaken in your opinion ?

 

[seeking_brilliance]

@winterknight within Maya, if we were to akowledge it, what is memory, where is it stored, (brain, body, somewhere else?) and what is its relation to thought? 

What is a human, and why do they seem to be different than other animals? 

Edited November 11, 2018 by seeking_brilliance

[Jordan94]

On 10/11/2018 at 2:15 AM, winterknight said:

Heh, yes, a captive audience would be useful. I actually have tried a little Youtube, but even there it seems like attracting an audience is quite difficult. Spirituality -- heck, nonduality alone -- is a huge marketplace with 10,000 vendors all screaming at the top of their lungs. Maybe I've just given up too soon... I dunno.

What about doing a featured video/part with @Leo Gura

In case both of you are down and interested in doing it obviously