Question for Leo and others are welcome to respond.

[Gadasaa]

I had an intense fear of death today. As i was working out, i felt a shooting pain in the left area of my chest and it led my mind to all kinds of  negative and depressing thoughts about death. Do you have fear of death? Leo. How can one overcome this fear or reduce it significantly? 

[exhale]

This isn't answering your specific question.  A shooting pain in the left side of your chest should not be ignored, and could be suggestive of cardiovascular disease (of course it could be something else, or nothing).  Go get a physical. 

[Leo Gura]

The point of enlightenment is to realize what death is.

It cannot be explained to you in a believable way. You have to experience it to understand it.

Until then you will of course fear death. Because you believe you are real.

[ahmad ibdah]

@Leo Gura do you think this will be your last lifetime as a human ?

[Leo Gura]

@ahmad ibdah I am all things at all times. There is no end to me. I go on forever.

And so do you, since you are me

[OctagonOctopus]

@Gadasaa

Use those negative feelings about death to motivate oneself to do with this form what it wants.

NDE can make fear of death melt to a degree depending on how deep it went, a safe way of chasing a NDE would be to use psychedelics as they can give you a direct experience of dying. 

[ajasatya]

@Gadasaa Existential fear goes away after enlightenment. There can be physical agony though, as the process of the body stopping to work can be somewhat uncomfortable.

[CreamCat]

44 minutes ago, ajasatya said:

@Gadasaa Existential fear goes away after enlightenment. There can be physical agony though, as the process of the body stopping to work can be somewhat uncomfortable.

Are you considering euthanasia? A man I knew chose euthanasia to die in a controlled manner after he realized that he didn't want to keep fighting his second cancer. After he died, his twitter account stopped spewing messages. It felt weird. I also felt angry and sad. I felt that he was contributing to evolution of human species.

Edited August 1, 2019 by CreamCat

[Preetom]

17 minutes ago, CreamCat said:

Are you considering euthanasia? A man I knew chose euthanasia to die in a controlled manner after he realized that he didn't want to keep fighting his second cancer. After he died, his twitter account stopped spewing messages. It felt weird. I also felt angry and sad. I felt that he was contributing to evolution of human species.

If you believe in the collective, whole evolution of universe then his death was part of it.

Your anger and sadness is part of that too. 

[Preetom]

10 hours ago, Gadasaa said:

I had an intense fear of death today. As i was working out, i felt a shooting pain in the left area of my chest and it led my mind to all kinds of  negative and depressing thoughts about death. Do you have fear of death? Leo. How can one overcome this fear or reduce it significantly? 

The direct answer : enlightenment.

But if you want an intermidiary technique, I'd recommend the stoic outlook of regularly contemplating death several times a day.

If you want a book recommendation then "spiritual warfare" by Jed Mckenna. The entire later portion of that book is about death contemplation.

The basic idea is death sneaks from behind and completely grabs us by the throat because of its unfamiliarity and complete alienness in our mundane everyday life. So in order to counter that, make death utterly familiar. Contemplate death regularly and make it your best friend. Always keep death in your pocket. Make it so familiar that it never sneaks up from behind you.

Warning: this practice will seriously dis-orient and reorient your entire life and eventually yield enlightenment. So careful what you wish for.

[abrakamowse]

1 hour ago, Preetom said:

Warning: this practice will seriously dis-orient and reorient your entire life and eventually yield enlightenment. So careful what you wish for.

Count me in...

[tedens]

@Gadasaa cause You dont practice.

[Gadasaa]

@Leo Gura Thanks for the response, Leo. Yes, I believe the enlightenment is the way to overcome this fear. I've started meditating 1 hour a day and i seem to be becoming more calm and focused than before. If i do this long enough, let's say 1 year, will it get me a taste of what enlightenment is like? What is the minimum requirement of meditation, self-inquiry, and trip for awakening? 

[Gadasaa]

@exhale @OctagonOctopus @ajasatya @CreamCat @Preetom @tedens @abrakamowse @ahmad ibdah Thanks guys for your opinions! I'm just so glad that i've found likeminded individuals like you. And, so grateful for actualized.org and the work Leo does. 

[Gadasaa]

15 hours ago, ajasatya said:

@Gadasaa Existential fear goes away after enlightenment. There can be physical agony though, as the process of the body stopping to work can be somewhat uncomfortable.

@ajasatya  Well, that just shows how powerful and deep enlightenment is. How long have you been on this path and what are your discoveries so far?

[Gadasaa]

7 hours ago, tedens said:

@Gadasaa cause You dont practice.

@tedens probably. 

[Leo Gura]

3 hours ago, Gadasaa said:

@Leo Gura Thanks for the response, Leo. Yes, I believe the enlightenment is the way to overcome this fear. I've started meditating 1 hour a day and i seem to be becoming more calm and focused than before. If i do this long enough, let's say 1 year, will it get me a taste of what enlightenment is like? What is the minimum requirement of meditation, self-inquiry, and trip for awakening? 

There is no formula for awakening. You will only awaken if you awaken. No process can guarantee it.

Judging from my own experience, 1 hour per day is not nearly enough. But it's not a function of brute time, it's a function of effort and quality of concentration.

If you are serious about awakening, you should be doing week-long meditation retreats at least twice a year. And/or psychedelics and/or Kriya yoga.

[Truth Addict]

Whatever causes you to suffer, accept that thing and suffering like gifts from God.

Believe that it's all for your own good.

[ValiantSalvatore]

@Leo Gura How long do you recommend to meditate each day? 

I notice that 1h is great, yet somehow not enough.

Culadasa and Shinzen give similar advice at least 14 days a year and a minimum of 1h, and ideally to sit beyond 1h.

I want to go for 90mins sessions, to reach no self, some seem to be getting results here on the forum as well as others who train with shinzen. 

[Leo Gura]

@ValiantSalvatore Like I said, it's not a function of time.

If you try to reduce meditation to numbers like that, you'll end up shooting yourself in the foot, as you will overlook the most important aspect: quality.

10 minutes of quality meditation is worth more than 10 hours of poor meditation.

Be very careful about pursuing consciousness mechanically or numerically.