Confused

[Kel Varnsen]

I have spent several hours a day for over two years reading and watching you tube videos about spirituality, and am more confused than ever.  Jed McKenna,  Neville Goddard, Eckhart Tolle, Mooji, Sadhguru, Alan Watts, Leo, and countless others....I have listened to them all.  I have tried to look within to find the truth, or at the very least, minimize the suffering.  There are so many contradictions that I feel like I have gone in a complete circle and am right back where I started, and made little, if no progress.  It would be amazing to wake up from the dream, but to be honest, I would settle for just a happier dream.  Where is this internal peace that is supposedly available to everyone?  Am I supposed to “let go of the tiller”, and let the universe figure it out, or try to intentionally create a better reality for myself?  I’m lost, to be honest.

[Moksha]

Welcome, @Kel Varnsen  What are you finding confusing? Teachers like Tolle and Mooji are very simple in their message. Have you tried practicing what they teach, and if so what has been the result? For example, Tolle frequently discusses nature as a way of disassociating from your conditioned mind, and learning to reside in being. Have you tried any of this?

 

[Bodhitree]

It’s certainly possible to confuse yourself by taking in too much. Practice and slow absorption are the key, in my experience, followed by a little meditation. Maybe spend some time listening to perenniallists, the idea that all paths lead up the mountain even if they don’t all reach the summit is a valuable one.

[Someone here]

You are trying to match your direct experience with their experiences . That's exactly backwards.... Start with your own direct experience.. Not with theirs. If you can't verify a guru's Claim in your direct experience then it's not true (for you at least). 

[Breakingthewall]

@Kel Varnsen you know the theory, it's time for the practice. Psychedelic are the key

[allislove]

@Kel Varnsen

Life is the teacher. The only 'problem' is by identifying yourself to a separate person you can't listen life properly, there is some distortion. By believing to more ideas without investigation of the direct experience there is more distortion. Relaxation, gratitude, doing what feels good, spiritual practices suppose to decrease distortion. Peace is always here, but you can't see it from a separate person viewpoint. You are life.

[Leo Gura]

13 hours ago, Kel Varnsen said:

I feel like I have gone in a complete circle and am right back where I started, and made little, if no progress.

Because you are not doing serious spiritual practice. It is impossible to awaken without serious spiritual practice.

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It would be amazing to wake up from the dream

Try psychedelics

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but to be honest, I would settle for just a happier dream.

With that attitude you will never awaken. You have to want it more than anything else.

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Where is this internal peace that is supposedly available to everyone?

It is only available with the death you -- the ego.

Imagine your sense of self was nuked and never returned. That's when peace comes. There cannot ever be peace so long as you think you're real.

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Am I supposed to “let go of the tiller”, and let the universe figure it out, or try to intentionally create a better reality for myself?

It is not possible for an ego to let go of the tiller.

If you want progress, you must discipline yourself to do rigorous spiritual practice.

If you want a glimpse at what's in store, take psychedelics.

But you still need a rigorous daily spiritual practice. I recommend Kriya yoga.

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I’m lost, to be honest.

That's okay. Everyone starts off lost.

Start doing practices to ground yourself.

[Guest Bazooka Jesus]

[bazera]

@Leo Gura

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I recommend Kriya yoga

What about meditation?

[Girzo]

@bazera Kriya Yoga is basically meditation for dummies. It's a set of techniques that you do in order to enter into a deep meditative state at the end of a routine and hopefully abide there for some time.

If you have natural talent at meditation you might not need it, but it's still worth a try to see if it, maybe, will allow you to enter deeper states of concentration and relaxation.

[Leo Gura]

10 hours ago, bazera said:

@Leo Gura

What about meditation?

Not effective for most people.

[The Blind Sage]

@Kel Varnsen

It took some time to admit that I wasn't ready to wake up because of the need to develop myself first (emotionally, financially, etc.) I am no longer feeding this victimhood mentality of wishing my life were in an easier situation so that I could spend my time on sadhana. I'm now focused on making money for the next few years. After that, it'll be more isha courses and maybe the life-purpose course. Essentially, I overcame my own self-deception. In some way shape or form, you're probably bullshitting yourself too. It's ok, we all go through the same process of disillusionment. I can only imagine how I'll look back at my old self in a few years and realize what dumbass I was lol. Accept where you are, be grounded and practical about what you need to do in order to get what you want.

You might find this old gem helpful, good luck

https://www.actualized.org/articles/balancing-theory-vs-practice

Edited February 26, 2021 by The Blind Sage
grammatical error

[The Blind Sage]

These are pretty great too:

https://www.actualized.org/articles/the-3-levels-of-personal-development-work

https://www.actualized.org/articles/mastery

[Vibroverse]

Confusion is stress. 

[Kel Varnsen]

On 2/24/2021 at 7:04 PM, Moksha said:

Welcome, @Kel Varnsen  What are you finding confusing? Teachers like Tolle and Mooji are very simple in their message. Have you tried practicing what they teach, and if so what has been the result? For example, Tolle frequently discusses nature as a way of disassociating from your conditioned mind, and learning to reside in being. Have you tried any of this?

 

I do spend a fair amount of time in nature.

Tolle says “you have within you something infinitely greater than anything this world has to offer.”  Good to know, but not helpful if I cannot experience it.

Mooji says “perceive the perceiver.”  He might as well be speaking  Spanish.  I do not understand how to do that.

[Moksha]

2 hours ago, Kel Varnsen said:

I do spend a fair amount of time in nature.

Tolle says “you have within you something infinitely greater than anything this world has to offer.”  Good to know, but not helpful if I cannot experience it.

Mooji says “perceive the perceiver.”  He might as well be speaking  Spanish.  I do not understand how to do that.

It is tough being a teacher; you can only point to the truth, but ultimately it must be directly realized within yourself. It is about learning to see your thoughts as something that arise within your field of awareness, but not as ultimately being who you are.

When you are in nature, how do you experience it? Are you studying it with your mind, or are you resonating with the stillness that is in it? Tolle encourages people not to label anything, but to simply observe, appreciate, and feel nature speaking to your soul. A bird watcher may be conceptually caught up in the experience, categorizing which species he is studying, noting its physical and melodic characteristics, etc., or he can give his mind a break and feel the beauty of the bird, and how that sameness resonates with something deep inside himself. That inner resonance is who you actually are. It is the same Consciousness that imbues everything, and you can become aware of it within nature, and within yourself. 

Have you practiced any meditation, where the intent is to calm the mind and simple be? That is what Mooji means by "perceive the perceiver". Who is perceiving when thoughts arise? If something deeper within is capable of observing thoughts, as they come and go, without being pulled into their gravitational field, then that something must be beyond thoughts, and who you really are.

Why does any of this matter? You mentioned in your original post that you want to reduce your suffering. Thoughts are the source of suffering, particularly identification with thoughts. If even for a moment, you are able to directly realize your true nature, that you do not have to be trapped in a conceptual prison, in that moment, you are free from suffering. Humans are so used to identifying with the conditioned mind. It is not easy so swim against the current of the mind, but it can be done, and the more you practice, the easier it will become.

It takes courage, integrity, and ongoing commitment. Don't wait for some cataclysmic "AHA!" awakening, to give yourself a break. Find glimpses of happiness and peace, with each step of the journey. The more you learn to resonate within as Consciousness, the more you will feel the unconditional Love that you actually are.

[Nahm]

Your core belief & misunderstanding is that you can think perception & feeling, which is to say, that you can think yourself.  You can not. Grounding, body awareness, feeling, and actual perception unencumbered by thought, concept & theory, is the way. 

[Dazgwny]

Well that’s what your doing. Confusing yourself. Tripping yourself up, over and over again, to eternity. To see that now. How everyone is just your own mind chiselled up in infinite different ways. Give yaself a clap. It can’t be anything other than perfection. That is ludicrously clever. How can ya ever even unget that. You’ve gotta die and wipe the slate clean and forget just how unreal you actually are. There’s literally nothing to do other than chisel this particular incarnation away. Make it feel like your doing something, until ya forget it all again and go again. Everything is completely inevitable. There’s no way out? only thing to do is just explore it’s depths and see what is possible within the realms of these 3D limits we’ve put in place for ourselves. Yep I just completely awoke to what the fuck is going on here?

[Kel Varnsen]

1 hour ago, Dazgwny said:

Well that’s what your doing. Confusing yourself. Tripping yourself up, over and over again, to eternity. To see that now. How everyone is just your own mind chiselled up in infinite different ways. Give yaself a clap. It can’t be anything other than perfection. That is ludicrously clever. How can ya ever even unget that. You’ve gotta die and wipe the slate clean and forget just how unreal you actually are. There’s literally nothing to do other than chisel this particular incarnation away. Make it feel like your doing something, until ya forget it all again and go again. Everything is completely inevitable. There’s no way out? only thing to do is just explore it’s depths and see what is possible within the realms of these 3D limits we’ve put in place for ourselves. Yep I just completely awoke to what the fuck is going on here?

What do you mean that “everything is completely inevitable”?  Do you mean pre-determined?  I go back and forth from thinking I can create my reality to thinking I have no control of it, whatsoever.

 

[VeganAwake]

@Kel Varnsen Who is this character that wants to know?

What makes up this 'YOU' character?

What does 'YOU' consist of?

Where is 'YOU' located?

❤