Needs vs Attachments

[tuckerwphotography]

How does one determine what is a universal basic human need vs an ego attachment? Or are they sometimes one and the same? 

For example, if someone is feeling loneliness and longs for community and intimacy, is this a "healthy" desire based on a true need, or an ego attachment that should be witnessed and "dropped" as some spiritual practices advise? Obviously food, shelter and clothing are likely necessary for physical survival, but is everything else simply an attachment? 

Or perhaps this "letting go of attachments" teaching is more specifically directed towards desires for things like material possessions, an attractive lover, high paying job, "becoming" enlightenment, etc?

[lmfao]

Very good question. I don't know the difference to be honest. You're right in thinking they're sometimes one and the same and are connected.

The conceptual nature of a "need" is indeed a construct. But on a down to earth level and relative level, it's obvious that there are gradations of how "actual" a need is. The most clear cut case being the need for food and drink for material survival.

Sometimes we talk about needs for our own survival, and survival is a deep topic. You can think about it on many levels. Physical survival (good medical health), emotional survival (which will involve feelings of belonging, loneliness and intimacy) , conceptual survival of the ego's sense of self (metaphysical) . **


This pattern of conflict between needs and attachments mirrors itself in the tug of war between meeting your needs for "self actualisation" versus transcending your needs for enlightenment. 

If one doesn't get enough of their "attachments"/"needs" met, they often end up lost in neuroticism and cannot develop the mental clarity to even try to transcend their needs. Hence working on both ends is often important.

I use the word 'often' to emphasise that you are your own person, and whatever tends to be the case with others doesn't determine your own path. 

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** I have not the direct experience to talk as an authority, but my heresay is that physical health is in very large part determined by your beliefs, mind and consciousness. With this being the point of view of David Hawkins, who thinks that to cure medical ailments you need to pay attention to your experience without giving it medical labels.

As well as saying things which cancel your belief that you are suffering from X disease e.g. "I am not subject to X. I am an infinite being who is only subject to what I hold in mind". 

Edited September 16, 2020 by lmfao

[universe]

On 15.9.2020 at 9:09 PM, tuckerwphotography said:

How does one determine what is a universal basic human need vs an ego attachment? Or are they sometimes one and the same? 

It is the same. You have to think about the ego in a more broader way, otherwise you won't notice it when it is in a dark spot. At the same time there is no you and there is no ego.

Without ego, the survival of your human form is in danger. That is why you won't see any spiritual teachers who are 100% all the time without ego. At least I've never seen them. Getting rid of the ego is not the goal here.

The goal is to free yourself from attachments and needs. The ego will always tell you that there is never enough. But in reality you are always enough.

From this place of abundance you can start the journey of manipulating reality to give you food, money, sex you name it. But you do so playfully, knowing that if you loose your money you don't need to kill yourself over some wild attachments that you got. You can just go on and do your thing in a more healthy way.

[Someone here]

Well actually there is no difference. Between "basic human needs" and vain attachments.

You don't actually need anything from the absolute perspective.  You need stuff relative to certain conditions. So you need food and water relative to your need to survive as the human organism that you think you are.. But why do you need to survive??lol   Actually you don't. You won't survive at the end anyways because of the inevitability of death.  Same with all other needs. You need X if you need Y.. And you need Y if you need Z.. But ultimately you don't need them all.   The ego ofcourse can't take this seriously.. So don't be hard on yourself in expecting high levels of detachment.  Only few realized sages can do that. Like christ maybe.  The dude didn't care if he lived or die.  That's ultimately what you should aim for. But that's an ideal. Can only come with full awakening to your real nature as complete perfection that doesn't need anything outside of itself. But it's important to be honest about your part on the path. Don't go kidding yourself that you don't need stuff when you actually feel like you need them. 

[Danioover9000]

@tuckerwphotography

On 9/15/2020 at 8:09 PM, tuckerwphotography said:

How does one determine what is a universal basic human need vs an ego attachment? Or are they sometimes one and the same? 

For example, if someone is feeling loneliness and longs for community and intimacy, is this a "healthy" desire based on a true need, or an ego attachment that should be witnessed and "dropped" as some spiritual practices advise? Obviously food, shelter and clothing are likely necessary for physical survival, but is everything else simply an attachment? 

Or perhaps this "letting go of attachments" teaching is more specifically directed towards desires for things like material possessions, an attractive lover, high paying job, "becoming" enlightenment, etc?

   I would start by gaining more clarity behind what needs I have and what attachments I have, and keep going until it's crystal clear that that's a need, and that's an attachment on top of that need. It's true they could later overlap, but the danger is your mind overlapping them way too early in order to not engage any unwiring or re-wiring of any attachments it develops. Clarity also helps you spot what you genuinely want, and once you eventually identify that, dream bigger than you ever dreamed big before, and then start chunking it down with specific detail until it starts feeling real, and you generate some buy-in to the mind that this change isn't just an after thought, it's a serious change that's gonna happen one way or the other, and you convince it that it will be in it's best interest to start crunching down the numbers to align the manifestations to your intent.

[tuckerwphotography]

@Danioover9000 Thanks! This is well said and very constructive advice.