Transcending physical pain

[Rinne]

Hey was sup forum guys. I want to make this topic asking if anyone knows and or has transcended ones ability to suffer from physical pain. I know peter ralston according to one of leos old videos leo said peter had a root canal or something done without any pain killers or whatever you call them. 

Personally i had some experience where i had the ability to transcend pain and suffering back when i was having this strange spiritual experience. I just wish to go back there. It was an amazing time. I was also super super present to the moment to a point where like it felt like my birth wasnt really real. 

Anyone have any pointers on this topic?

Thanks.  

[Recursoinominado]

Equanimity + the right perspective + serious concentration skills.

You observe pain and don't react at all to it, don't offer any resistance and it will subside or greatly diminish, this requires lots of concentration since your mind will probably go crazy and you have to maintain equanimity. 

The right perspective means that it is easy for a fully enlightened master that KNOWS he is freaking GOD to rise above pain that is is for the average person that it is totally lost in his character. 

Most of the pain we feel is due to our resistance to it, it's fear. The physical part is minor and if you are not super attached to the body, it will be way easier. 

[Rinne]

On 2/2/2020 at 3:08 AM, Recursoinominado said:

Equanimity + the right perspective + serious concentration skills.

You observe pain and don't react at all to it, don't offer any resistance and it will subside or greatly diminish, this requires lots of concentration since your mind will probably go crazy and you have to maintain equanimity. 

The right perspective means that it is easy for a fully enlightened master that KNOWS he is freaking GOD to rise above pain that is is for the average person that it is totally lost in his character. 

Most of the pain we feel is due to our resistance to it, it's fear. The physical part is minor and if you are not super attached to the body, it will be way easier. 

Thanks!

[kag101]

There are footages of Buddhist monks immolating themselves with fire, and they did not move a single muscle. That being said, for 99,99% of people, that's highly far-fetched. It would take MASSIVE amounts of training to accomplish something like that. 

I think increasing one's tolerance to pain is doable, but to completely "transcend" it? Virtually impossible, imo. 

 

Here's a concept I really like that can help you out with this: superconductor.

Quote

A superconductor is a material that can conduct electricity or transport electrons from one atom to another with no resistance.

That is, if you are able to have zero resistance to what is happening--no matter how painful or uncomfortable it is--you'd theoretically not suffer.

Again, having zero resistance is very unrealistic. That would be just an ideal. I find that in my life, if I am able to resist less, that already helps me a lot get thought hard shit!

Leo has a great episode on this:

 

On the other hand, many people--especially the ascetics in India--get used to feeling pain. They sleep in beds of nail, keep their arms lifted 24/7, and do other kinds of extreme practices.

I experimented with that when I was doing Strong Determination Sittings. For instance, I'd go to a mountain that had many mosquitoes. I would let them bite me, and tolerate the pain. After a while, I'd get used to the discomfort and pain. But in reality, I wasn't more "conscious", I simply got desensitized. That's all. Nowadays, I don't see any value in doing things like this.

Osho talks a lot about this:

Quote

"[...] it is a fulfillment: you have come to the ultimate peak of your being. And then flowering happens and your perfume is released to the winds. It can’t be serious and sad.

All your saints look miserable. They don’t seem to have even touched on what I am talking about. They are ascetic people, and asceticism is a kind of masochism, it is self-torture. And when you torture yourself you cannot be joyous — it is against nature. Nobody can be joyous against nature. The more natural you are, the more joyous; the less natural, the less joyous."

- Osho, “The Imprisoned Splendor”

I hope that helps!

Edited February 4, 2020 by kag101

[purerogue]

You need pain to know if your body is alright though. 

 

[Visionary]

Pain is not transcended, but suffering is. 

[Leo Gura]

If you become conscious enough you can see that pain itself is a self-bias. There is no reason why pain is worse than pleasure. This preference is a self-bias and distortion of truth.

But that requires some crazy levels of consciousness outside the ability of most people. Don't even dream of it unless you are a full-time monk.

[Sempiternity]

Pain and pleasure are relative and a perspective. A person can train themselves to view pain as pleasure. It's called Masochism. BDSM circles are full of people who experience pain as a very positive experience, orgasmic even. And non of them are full-time monks. Anyone can make that switch if they want it enough and surround themselves with inspiration. So as of pointers, go to a BDSM club and get spanked or flogged. 

[Visionary]

4 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

If you become conscious enough you can see that pain itself is a self-bias. There is no reason why pain is worse than pleasure. This preference is a self-bias and distortion of truth.

But that requires some crazy levels of consciousness outside the ability of most people. Don't even dream of it unless you are a full-time monk.

Made me sick to my stomach only imagining it lmao

[kieranperez]

There are 3 perspectives we can look at this from:

There are states like Nirrodha samadhi that would take training. This where you see videos like Ken Wilber stops his brain waves, Vietnam monks protest the war in the 60s and 70s where they sit like a rock while being set on fire and burn to the ground not moving an inch. 

There’s also where you recognize that pain is really just a thought. The very reaction is a thought. As said in The Book of Not Knowing, which you yourself can discover to be true in your own experience, “pain may be ‘so’ but it’s not ‘true’.”. What pain is is a thought that you’re doing. Pain itself is something you create. Realizing this doesn’t mean you walk around pain free or something like that. Your relationship to it would just transformed. 

You can also learn to experience pain as just a different kind of state of bliss. 

[Ambalams]

I stand outside in the cold and tell myself “it’s just a sensation.” I really feel into being cold, i think about the sensation. Usually I can stop shivering on the spot and it ceases to bother me. Do I do it for hours? Hell no! I don’t wanna be uncomfortable lol. Does it work on my lower back pain? Not as well. But I’m much more sensitive about that... almost like I’m more attached to that pain. I just realized that, actually. I blame myself for doing dumb stuff to screw it up. 
 

It probably matters where the pain comes from. 

[Javfly33]

18 hours ago, Jed Vassallo said:

Pain and pleasure are relative and a perspective. A person can train themselves to view pain as pleasure. It's called Masochism. BDSM circles are full of people who experience pain as a very positive experience, orgasmic even. And non of them are full-time monks. Anyone can make that switch if they want it enough and surround themselves with inspiration. So as of pointers, go to a BDSM club and get spanked or flogged. 

But that is because you have some juicy enjoyable neurotransmitters in your brain being produce while you feel the pain...

It´s no different than taking a drug for pain...mmm I feel that is cheating @Jed Vassallo

[Sempiternity]

From a 'brains are real and they produce chemicals' point of view, then yes, your brain is always producing Dopamine, Serotonin, Adrenaline, ect. Why not learn to use them to your benefit. If you learn to switch the perspective that any form of pain to a positive experience that you enjoy, and your brain releases Dopamine for your pleasure, what's wrong with that? Use your body to your advantage. 

But from the Absolute perspective, everything is your creation, what you think is reality. So if you being in the cold for hours is uncomfortable, that is true because you created it to be that way. If changing your perspective on pain for your lower back doesn't work, that is true because you created it to be that way. Any and all pain is pleasurable, something that serves your life in a positive way, that is also true because you created it to be so. You create your reality. If you suffer, it's because you want to suffer and have created suffering. If you no longer want to suffer, create your reality where you don't suffer. Create what serves you, don't create what doesn't. 
 

[Aaron p]

When I observe pain intensely...sometimes I'm able to realise that it's not unpleasant, that it's just there as existence and I believe that it's bad. Although this is only with minor pain. I don't know if I could let someone drill through my hand in a state of perfect meditation.

...not yet lol

[Sempiternity]

On the subject, to go a bit deeper into the BDSM/Masochism aspect. Years ago I briefly dated a Dominatrix. She would tie me up and beat me with a bamboo cane, pour scolding hot wax , leather whips, and electrocute me with a shock wand. By the end my whole body would be black/blue/purple and bloody. There would be welts and lacerations all over my body. If I went to a hospital, they would most likely say it was one of the more gruesome cases they've seen. To most people this would be the worst kind of torture one could imagine. But to me, it was one of the most loving, most pleasurable experiences of my life. Could be perspective, could be endorphins, but after that the concept of "pain" was forever altered for me. 

[Rinne]

@kag101 Thanks bro.

11 hours ago, Jed Vassallo said:

On the subject, to go a bit deeper into the BDSM/Masochism aspect. Years ago I briefly dated a Dominatrix. She would tie me up and beat me with a bamboo cane, pour scolding hot wax , leather whips, and electrocute me with a shock wand. By the end my whole body would be black/blue/purple and bloody. There would be welts and lacerations all over my body. If I went to a hospital, they would most likely say it was one of the more gruesome cases they've seen. To most people this would be the worst kind of torture one could imagine. But to me, it was one of the most loving, most pleasurable experiences of my life. Could be perspective, could be endorphins, but after that the concept of "pain" was forever altered for me. 

Wow thats intense. 

@Leo Gura Thanks for a reply

[Javfly33]

12 hours ago, Jed Vassallo said:

On the subject, to go a bit deeper into the BDSM/Masochism aspect. Years ago I briefly dated a Dominatrix. She would tie me up and beat me with a bamboo cane, pour scolding hot wax , leather whips, and electrocute me with a shock wand. By the end my whole body would be black/blue/purple and bloody. There would be welts and lacerations all over my body. If I went to a hospital, they would most likely say it was one of the more gruesome cases they've seen. To most people this would be the worst kind of torture one could imagine. But to me, it was one of the most loving, most pleasurable experiences of my life. Could be perspective, could be endorphins, but after that the concept of "pain" was forever altered for me. 

It doesn´t make you suspect that if I Dominant male would have done that to you, you wouldn´t have enjoyed a bit?

It doesn´t seem "unconditional" to me. You were highly biased, you accepted / loved the pain but just because it hit you certain sexual triggers

But a male doing that to you wouldn´t hit the triggers for you. See your self-bias?

Pain coming from a Dominatrix = Yeah, I´ll take that pain hell yeah.

Pain coming from male or women who you don´t feel sexually triggered by: Nope, I don´t want that pain.

You need to have an unconditional attitude! Which obviously nobody I´ve seen in the BDSM scene has. Is totally BS, nobody is actually Masochism unless they don´t indentify themselves with a conditional/self-biased mind.

 That´s literally the reason why human beings don´t want/judge pain! Unconditional is very rare.

However I get your point. I think your story is valuable because if observed as you did, it just gives you a "hint" that things could actually be more relative than we actually think. So I am not arguing that, definetely if that experience helps to be suspicious of apparent absolute concepts, you got the point