Leo, why don't you just go off to become a monk

[Eugenio]

@Lento I'm sorry. Still new on this format. Hit the wrong... well you know. Anywho, of the 12 signs a person is "not" Enlightened, I'd like to post the top four. Hey, how many of us have at one time or another adhered to the signs that we were?

THE SYMPTOMS

1)You think you are enlightened.

The most obvious one. If you find yourself thinking about yourself this way, you can rest assured, you have not nearly grasped the true meaning of what it might mean to be enlightened at all. Your ego may tell you otherwise, but the presence of the very same ego is the surest sign that something is missing and that is enlightenment itself. If you have this point checked, you may as well check all the other 12. You are as far from your goal as you humanly can be, at least for the moment. If you do not understand why, read on…

2) You talk about being enlightened and how you’ve become so.

Bragging has become quite a habit, in fact in social media culture, bragging is a must: Otherwise, people would never notice you. Do you find yourself telling others about your great experience of enlightenment? The sad news is, this is little less than bragging, and as such it has the prerequisite of an inflated ego. Yes, bragging, social media culture, and most aspects of contemporary life work very well in the favour of our egos. At the same time, they work really great against spirituality, true enlightenment, and the humility this all means. If you talk about being enlightened, rest assured, you are nowhere near it yet.

3) You think yourself special because of your enlightenment.

Enlightenment is ought to make you someone special, isn’t it? Also, you should feel this really. After all, if you are really special, the least you can expect is to feel so. The problem is, everyone craves to be special in one way or another. We all want to feel how good we are and how much better than others. We need to prove ourselves constantly, this is well built into our society. Wanting to be special is nothing special after all. Our society is obsessed with success. Such “success worship” comes directly from the need to be special, or better than others. And being special, successful or better, all mean the same thing: Placing yourself directly above others, being, or feeling to be better than them.

Truly enlightened people, on the other hand, show great humility and feel they owe mankind. Their selflessness and service are what sets them aside. Think about figures like Mother Theresa, or His Holiness The Dalai Lama. Would you agree they have been or are truly enlightened spirits? It is easy to spot the common theme of selflessness, humility and service. They have served or still serve mankind. They do not crave to be more than others. They do not try to be leaders. They do not strive for fame and riches. And most importantly: They never claim to be special: This is what makes them truly special.

Have you noticed the word selflessness? The cessation of the ego is one sure sign of being on the path to enlightenment, yet feeling special in any way is a product of a strong and inflated ego. Do you see how it is impossible to feel special and be enlightened at the same time?

4) You know more about enlightenment than an average Zen master.

Having read all the literature, traditional or modern, all religious texts, Sutras, Vedas, Viking Sagas, whatnot; memorizing all you’ve read, learning mantras by heart… this can all turn you into a great walking encyclopaedia. If you ask such a person anything about enlightenment, they will surely have a ready answer. Does knowing all about it grant they are enlightened? Not much more than knowing all about blue whales would turn you into a blue whale yourself.

"O, you say you are a blue whale? Well then, good luck in the deep blue ocean…"

From a Zen Master:

❤??????

 

[LfcCharlie4]

@Eugenio  Strongly disagree here on a number of your points. 

In fact, there's a phrase 'The Stink of Enlightenment' where people think they are better because they're enlightened, and they likely are, just not fully self-realized, it's not all or nothing with enlightenment there are different depths to it, and I would go as far as to say a lot of monks are not fully self realized as they are sheltered and have not embraced this very world as their very own selves- think of hermits etc. 

Also, if someone thinks they are enlightened and they clearly are, that doesn't stop them being enlightened, again it means they could get stuck there instead of going beyond enlightenment, non-duality and a host of other concepts to finally realize the true absolute beyond all words. 

At the end of the day, just because someone chooses to be a monk doesn't mean they are fully enlightened, in fact they will, of course, be biased to the monks way of life and believe that is the best path to enlightenment, when it isn't for all people, everyone is different and for most westerners I'd say the monkhood path isn't ideal.

[Eugenio]

@LfcCharlie4 Your point is well taken. I'll have to sit on it for a minute. Not sure what message I'm receiving from this. Please allow me to explain: 

My experience on Facebook leaves me a bit concerned. If you've ever joined any of the many so-called Enlightened groups there then you may understand  the reason for my alarm. Hmmm maybe you can help? 

Help me to know how to view the many wizards, empaths, lightworkers, fairy's etc... because I'm really getting the feeling that these are mostly mentally ill people, possibly active addicts who are posing for the audience, deceiving not only themselves but others. For a brief time, and I'm talking about a month I joined in, desperate to find others who understood me... what I am going through. I'd all but given up on being "understood" and I still don't rely on others to an extent but after stumbling on one of Leo's videos on YouTube I came here. As I watch, I feel a connection. I am of the opinion that he has experienced what I have only I don't use drugs at present to get there, (and the jury is still out) though marijuana does affect my perception and I really like the affect/effect. Ayahuasca has been a consideration but there's much fear to even consider this. I've had nothing but bad experiences those last attempts with shrooms and LSD (middle 80's). And too, I forget. All of those wonderful things that I experience leave me (that is I loose consciousness). 

I've rambled so I'll stop. Hopefully you or someone will connect with me...

After reading this for errors I'm seeing that I'm struggling with sitting still. With being. Waiting. And I'm tired of posing.

 

 

 

[LfcCharlie4]

@Eugenio Empaths are simply Highly Sensitive People, basically they absorb others emotions like a sponge and this can cause real issues, if you want to understand more there's lots on Amazon/ YouTube about it, I know a few myself and this is definitely 'real' so to speak, you can even find forums online, it's a real issue that needs specific techniques to address and deal with it. 

For lightworkers and fairies I personally haven't seen them or researched too much, I researched Empaths in detail for both my own understanding and for work reasons,  although I know witchcraft is growing a lot as well, these supernatural 'abilities' certainly exist, but vary from person to person and I wouldn't worry about them unless you actually have them, focus on your own awakening and finding your own path. 

There's certainly scammers out there like there is in every endeavour, spirituality is certainly not free of corruption, although truly self realized beings (People I class at LOC 1000) would not take part in this scamming, or scandalling. 

You don't need drugs at all, plenty have got there without them, in fact the majority have, however I acknowledge they can help a lot of people gain insights into the nature of reality, so it's up to if that's your path but I really don't recommend it for under 25s due to the brain still developing. 

Personally I feel working with a teacher 1-1 and receiving spiritual transmissions are the most efficient path but I'm biased as that's my path just as those on the Psyches path are biased to that, we're all biased in some way haha!

If you wanna connect please message me mate, I know what it's like to feel lost on this path, in fact I was depressed for a long while on this path, and to where I am now I still am so grateful for what has happened to 'me.' 

I'd recommend starting a meditation practice if you haven't just beginner level stuff to help calm your mind down a bit before jumping in at the deep end!

[Eugenio]

@LfcCharlie4 I sense that you're missing my whole point and that you are an instructor of sorts explains much. Thank you none the less... I have no interest in psychics. Nor do I have a desire for money collectors. After I read "Awakened Empath" and "Old Souls" by Luna, Lonerwolf.com and realized that there are many out there who seemingly share information under the guise of being Enlightened in order to promote a business, though they don't necessarily start out this way, I became detoured. Maybe a person truly wants to help but then greed sneaks in and all is lost, literally. I can have one Spiritual Awakening and then run with and never have another though you couldn't tell me anything because ego has the ability to deceive.

[LfcCharlie4]

@Eugenio Maybe she is doing that I'm unsure,I feel that book is more for Empaths looking to find their way, maybe the title is misleading. 

Btw people charge for spiritual teachings, if it's their job there's nothing wrong with that as long as they help you, I pay my teacher, at the end of the day they're giving up their time and deserve to live life comfortably like anyone else, if your bug is with people earning a living for spirituality you'll need to work through that!

I'm going, to be honest, your messages are hard to interpret as they are all one paragraph and chop and change topics synonymously, could you please explain what you're asking?

Yes, some people are greedy, unfortunately, that's the world we live in. How do you define greed though is my question?

[brugluiz]

On 26/11/2019 at 0:27 PM, LfcCharlie4 said:

@Eugenio Maybe she is doing that I'm unsure,I feel that book is more for Empaths looking to find their way, maybe the title is misleading. 

Btw people charge for spiritual teachings, if it's their job there's nothing wrong with that as long as they help you, I pay my teacher, at the end of the day they're giving up their time and deserve to live life comfortably like anyone else, if your bug is with people earning a living for spirituality you'll need to work through that!

I'm going, to be honest, your messages are hard to interpret as they are all one paragraph and chop and change topics synonymously, could you please explain what you're asking?

Yes, some people are greedy, unfortunately, that's the world we live in. How do you define greed though is my question?

Just to say that I like how balanced are your posts.

[Nak Khid]

So in conclusion I think we can all support the idea of Leo becoming a monk  for a year somewhere in Asia.

 

/thread