Leo's Blog: Infinite Insights — Page 92
When people hear the word "Nothingess", all too often they get a totally wrong idea about what that word is pointing to. Nothingness is NOT an empty void, a black screen, or a black hole.
Here's a better approximation of what nothingness looks like:
Now keep in mind, this is just an analogy. A pointer. So don't start expecting to see the above flashy object in your meditation sessions. That's never going to happen.
What the object above is showing is the dream-like, immaterial, illusory, quality of consciousness. Consciousness is totally empty, like the above object. It is fluid and can take on an infinite number of shapes, with infinite resolution and zero limitation. It is vibrant, alive, and intelligent.
Can you see why the above object would be called Nothingness? Because it has no substance to it. It's pure appearance, and it can appear as literally anything. So we call it Nothingness, which is identical to Everythingness. Or, we could call it Infinity. Imagine if the above object was infinite in size and dimension such that it depicted every form imaginable. That would be what reality is, with your present experience being one of those forms.
Try this: Look around the room you're in right now, and notice that the whole room is Nothingness, just like the object above. Don't expect the room to disappear! Stop looking for black screen. Instead, notice that the room is pure appearance with no substance behind it. The room is like a hologram. Appearance is none other than Nothingness. The room AS YOU SEE IT RIGHT NOW, is Nothingness!
"Form is emptiness, and Emptiness is form."
-- The Heart Sutra
Here's how my Hawaii solo retreat went down. Lots of dirty details and wisdom in the Nightly Insights videos below.
Nightly Insights:
Note: Keep in mind, the Nightly Insights videos are raw, off-the-cuff, and unpolished. They were shot at the end of grueling sessions of meditation.
I'm back from a week of meditation in Hawaii. Here's what it actually looked like. It's hard to imagine a more beautiful place to meditate.
"Teach the tongue to say, 'I don't know'."
-- Hebrew proverb
I don't like to get too political or too alarmist, but the reality is that if you believe in holism, you ultimately cannot separate politics from personal development. Being conscious also translates into being a good citizen and taking responsibility for the community in which you live.
These days people take government totally for granted. As if a well-functioning government is a right or a guarantee. It is not! Government is not a service. You are not entitled to any rights or any fair treatment whatsoever. The only reason we have well-functioning government today (if we do) is because high-consciousness people put a lot of blood, sweat, and thought into orchestrating and defending it. The default position is not good government. The default position is corruption, theft, gross inequality, abuse, egotism, and domination. Free democracy is a very precious and fragile thing. You should be very thankful that you live under such a regime, if you do.
It is no coincidence that the ancient Greek and Roman philosophers were also deeply involved with politics — because mankind is a social creature, and community affects consciousness ENORMOUSLY. Perhaps the best example of this was Marcus Aurelius — one of the best Roman Emperors who also happened to be deep Stoic philosopher. In his work, The Meditations, you can clearly see how his level of consciousness affected his governing. Compare the thoughtfulness of someone like Marcus Aurelius and Obama vs Caligula and Trump.
So with that justification out of the way, I want to present a couple of really good videos about the troubling situation happening with the Trump presidency. This isn't your typical partisan mudslinging contest. This is really wise analysis from hard-nosed and experienced thinkers which you rarely hear on TV or Facebook.
Please note that I am not sharing these videos to convince you to become a liberal. Whatever your political leanings are, that's okay. What's being pointed at here is a meta-issue, beyond partisanship. I want you to start to think of how it would look if you started applying principles like consciousness to your relationship with your government. If you are not American, there are still lessons to be learned here. This really isn't about Trump per se, but about psychology, ideology, consciousness, groupthink, dogma, epistemology, tribalism, critical thinking, self-deception, ego, ecology, materialism, etc.
Bonus videos from Noam Chomsky:
P.S. If you use these videos to become ideological, or to entrench deeper in your political position, you've missed the point entirely. Go meta!
"Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had."
-- F. Scott Fitzgerald
I'm about to start my second solo meditation retreat. This one's taking place on the Big Island of Hawaii, Hilo side. I booked a secluded cabin in the middle of the jungle near the volcano. It's on 20 acres of dense forest, filled with old Ohia trees and fruits trees like lechi, guava, bananas, and avocados. I'll be meditating outdoors on the 2nd floor deck. That is, if the mosquitoes let me.
(These aren't actual images, but similar to where I'll be staying.)
Can't wait to get out there and meditate my ass off. It will be 8 grueling days of nonstop meditation and self-inquiry.
As I did with my Arizona solo retreat, I will do some filming outdoors and nightly debriefs with lessons learned. I'll post those a week or two after I return.
I feel more confident and prepared for this second retreat. In the last month my gains in consciousness from 3 deep psychedelic trips have been remarkable, and my new yoga practice is showing lots of promise. My mind has become quieter, my concentration ability has improved, and my inquiry process has honed-in. Now is the time for everything to come together into a major breakthrough.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Aloha! ;)
P.S. I have 3 more solo retreats planned for 2018. One more in Hawaii, one in the jungles of Costa Rica, and one probably in the piney forests around Seattle or maybe Oregon. I also have many psychedelic trips planned. All of it should produce a big transformation in my consciousness in 2018. At least that's the plan. You never know how things will unfold. One thing I hope you take away from my retreats is that this non-seeking advice you hear from certain corners of the spiritual field is total horseshit. You should work like a mule for your enlightenment, the way all serious spiritual masters did.
P.P.S. Weekly videos and blog posts will still be released. The hopper is loaded, so stay tuned.