Five Different Methods for Awakening -- Which One Worked for You? 

Which approach worked for you? OR which are you working with? Reply to this comment with your answer pls

I learned that awakening is something that only happens after endless eons of struggle. I realized this is a lie, but only after endless eons of struggle.

1 - let go 2 - self inquiry 3 - observe thoughts 4 - look for the sense of "I" 5 - become one pointed

Like many folks in recovery who "get spiritual" when they sober up, it was surrender for me. I hit rock bottom very hard, got dry, dragged around for four months (which looking back was me giving up my will) and then I woke up one morning and a thunderbolt hit me: I'm home. Like, home-home. And I've always been home. It's actually impossible for me to not be home because I'm connected to everything so deeply that I am everything. It was such a seismic shift that losing the desire to drink (which almost killed me a couple times) felt like a minor aspect. About a year later I learned to meditate and stumbled upon non-dual teachings on YT during quarantine. A softer thunderbolt: hey, they're talking about the thing that happened to me! And they're saying there's more to it? Tell me more! Self inquiry finally clicked after watching one of Angelo's videos and that's been huge. There have been expansions & contractions, but the trend has always been upward. If you're struggling with addiction, don't ever ever ever give up.

I am listening to a you a lot… asked for your book for my birthday… had my bedroom walls coming towards me and things changing shapes… I did go through huge trauma, depression and anxiety, but mostly happy and fine now, but still want to realise this… now no interest in anything else now… read all the books… maybe I have tried all the methods!!? Thinking does stop then comes back a bit… I am doing a lot of resting back into this… maybe fear of letting go, is left.. doing ACIM every day too… your videos are so great and so helpful… couldn’t listen to you 6 months ago!!

Had my awakening when I was 6/7 years old, totally brushed it off for my whole life. Thank you for helping me recognize that simply the pure sense of I am, a shift in identity to this raw, pure I am ness was awakening, that is Kensho. I've deepened this now over the last few weeks more than I have in 10 years and find myself coming towards the end of the 4th And 5th fetter. I am eternally grateful for that. You've inspired me to even make a video of my own on awakening. The peace and sense of flow I have felt over the last few weeks has been nice. I still have trauma from losing a parent when I was a child, but I feel ready to really move INTO that now. Thank you! To study the self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be actualized by myriad things. When actualized by myriad things, your body and mind as well as the bodies and minds of others drop away. No trace of enlightenment remains, and this no-trace continues endlessly.” ― Dogen.

First one. Surrender. Actually I didn’t have any choice: I was “surrendered” by life, through suffering and pain. If I had any participation in it, it was just trying to stay out of life’s way. Trusting life, trusting the process.. 🕊️

Imagine being halfway up a climbing wall, looking for the next foothold and not finding one .. then looking back to see none there to begin with ...and being okay with it...

Kind of feel we are all going home. Or realize that home is right here and now I guess. Thanks you for sharing your wisdom here and giving such great pointers.

I had a profound awakening in my early teens (which I didn't recognize as such) that resulted from absolute desperation (being bullied every day, etc). Eventually, I just stopped talking and gave up trying. This led to a shift in consciousness and more. Unfortunately, after perhaps one year, I lapsed back into the spell of thought, where I've been ever since. These days, surrender isn't viable as my life is too comfortable. Enquiry doesn't seem to do much for me, either. I find the third and fourth approaches most useful. They give me frequent glimpses, sign posts, but nothing lasting. (Yet?) Thanks for your wonderful videos, Angelo.

for me it's been the process of noticing thoughts that's been most beneficial. it's constant inquiry on who is thinking the thoughts. i'm grateful for this path for eventual freedom from the mind. thank you

The first time I became aware of this spacious peaceful place was during a meditation retreat in Thailand. A participant in the retreat told me this was not it. I got lost for years in this spaciousness and believe I was dissociating. At the mo I'm dropping inside to see what I find when I'm triggered, feel the feeling, allow it, watch it move and change. Last nights trigger was an annoyance from my neighbor they had left their extractor on (my fear around this is that the extractor would overheat, catch fire and I would die!) I kept dropping inside to see what feelings were there, I repeated several times, then several more times:0 and was able to not get triggered anymore, went to bed and slept well. Next time I feel it will get easier to let it go.

I was in a very traumatic and serious car accident over the summer. This triggered me to further awaken. However, I began awakening back in 2018 after I left an abusive marriage. I sometimes feel that highly stressful events can trigger- but just remaining in the present moment throughout my day allows for expansion. Multiple hardships eventually leads to resistance (which seems to always work against you), or surrendering- or “acceptance”. I’ll have to watch this! Your vids are usually always great- ty 🙏🏼

That background is so mesmerizing ☺️ thank you Angelo!

At the moment I'm trying method 3; and while I'm alert to random thoughts coming up (and recognizing these as thoughts), it still feels a bit like thinking (performing this practice). Although, it gets fairly quiet at times, and a thought about it being quiet comes up...

Another very common practice is meditation. It's very versatile to cater for the different psychological profile ie visual, auditory or kinesthetics. The object of meditation can be almost anything, image, sound, chant, counting, breathing, even simple motion like walking. Anything that is easy for one. When one has reached a certain level of peace and stillness in mind, meditation can be deepened to self-enquiry in which the object is turned inwards towards one own self, or being, or awareness. Aware I am aware. And when this has been firmly established, it can even be dropped. No need to keep reminding that myself that I am aware. I already am. Just be.

I don't know if the shift I am aware of right now is called an awakening. Words like this one make little sense at the moment. But what came before this shift is a combination of all but most prominent aspects for me are that I really want to know what's going. The suffering I had in my life, I now realise pushed me there and gave me the confidence to look "there". I now seem to know what "suffering is grace" is about although I can't explain it. I never knew what "I sense" was (still don't) or what unbound consciousness is. No clue. But hours before this here I told myself for hours with every thought: "thought". At one point the thoughts became so random, violent and disturbing that they became absolutely and clearly absurd. Hours later I said goodbye to someone or something and the whole world cried for him. Other insights that came before: A free mind is not free of something but free to do whatever it wants. And that the last stance is the need for control which also expresses itself in the whish to "let go". Finally someone told me that it's okay to go there. So here I am now ;)

One thing I find consistently helpful is a method from your book, which is to use any stimulus (sound works best for me) as a gate; looking for the distance between what is heard and what is hearing, and finding none whatsoever. It has the effect of "flattening" the screen, or revealing that it's been that way all along.

MANY roads lead to the Path but basically there are only two: reason and practice. To enter by reason means to realize the essence through instruction and to believe that all living things share the same true nature, which isn't apparent because it's shrouded by sensation and delusion. Those who turn from delusion back to reality, who meditate on walls, the absence of self and other, the oneness of mortal and sage, and who remain unmoved even by scriptures are in complete and unspoken agreement with reason. Without moving, without effort, they enter, we say, by reason. To enter by practice refers to four all-inclusive practices suffering injustice, adapting to conditions, seeking nothing, and practicing the Dharma.

Surrender, but it was combined with other practices. Additionally, for what it's worth, it came after a breakthrough in therapy. Letting go of an old trauma, even though it was just partially, seemed to make the space needed for a full surrendering and shift to occur. The thing that surprised me the most was that afterward, I still had my same ol' "bad" habits, but something was more "aware" of them than before. It's truly odd that loving awareness seems to loosen the knots we've tied over our lifetime. Also, if I could share one word to help anyone working at this: PATIENCE (and compassion, discernment, curiosity, and surrender, but I said one word 😆)

Thank you for your videos. What worked for me was relentless practice of "mind emptiness" presence practice. Once I built the habit of bringing my awareness back to presence I had a shift in perception. Since that shift my insight has been deepening and its as though its happening automatically. There is no effort anymore. The approach was very simple at the beginning as I wasn't aware of the idea of insight practice.

What about Self-abidance? Or empty looking, something Lisa Cairns has pointed out to me. Awareness without identity. I don't know if I'm awake, I sure had pre-tastes, but I lost my obsession with "becoming" enlightened i.e. getting somewhere and rather found that being at peace and looking from empty/impersonal awaeeness right now is enough for me. (Though I still have the belief that enlightenment may come "one day".) Self-Inquiry drives me crazy after I do it for a prolongued period of time. It's turns into obsessive, restless drudgery. I just wanna be without being someone all the time.

I like to moo it moo it! Probably one of the most important videos i have ever come across ever. I watched it 3 times in a row and felt like a direct inquiry was taking place. I have never felt closer to the truth without you and your channel Angelo!

Hi Definitely 1 and 2 over lapped The death of my Dad fast forwarded it.. It felt like an old friend had showed up, supremely comforting and utterly familiar From a child I've never had a fear of death, I always instinctually felt every single one of us were the same.. There came a time when in my late twenties which continued until my late 40's I grew exhausted of people leaning on me..I wanted to be just left alone.. The thoughts just kept coming I want my life back over and over and over again, My Dad passed away his acceptance of knowing he had 6 weeks was something else, so the foundation of what I had sensed from when I was a child helped the realisation that all is how it should be...simple...so simple...cut away all the bullshit... Massive sense of relief... I AM...

Thank you for posting this! (And all of your videos). I'm currently still in the process. I also purchased your book. Thanks for helping all of us out! 🙏

Wow, thanks. First time I hear someone describing my first awakening so clearly. I surrendered without knowing anything at all about spirituality. It was totally instictual and when things started to happen my curiousity was stronger than my fear. And it just felt so right to ascend. It was ten years ago and I still feel a little stupid sometimes in spiritual groups online when I apparently still dont know some of the basic teachings. Its like doing the process backwards, getting the theory much later, but some deep embodiment stuff right from the start. 🙏❤

Profound -- all "approaches" overlap...this is true . .. from a high perspective one could say, they all converge at the same point even..as they all lead to Truth

I guess I went through door number 6! My practice had distilled down to simply being present. Not going to the future, and not going to the past, and staying there. One day I was making my morning coffee and realized that I had completely lost 'myself'. Couldn't find 'me' anywhere. Love your what you bring to this exploration.

A great interview would be with David Godman.

Thank you, Sincerely.

I'm pretty sure hearing you talk about method 3 was enough to get the cogs turning. self inquiry always confused the hell out of me but saying it so clearly here in method 3 was exactly what I needed. Many Thanks!

#3 is what did it for me. Specifically your teaching to "move towards thought" somehow broke through to me and enabled a seeing into the nature of thought. From there it was just moving towards each thought. Insights came like this "Oh damn that's also just a thought!...whaaat???". 7:00 I wish you made this point earlier on. Maybe you did and I just missed it. The reality was that, at first, this insight was not really centered on "I". So while there was a clear shift in orientation, it didn't fit the classic description of the "I" falling away/being seen through/diminishing. "I" really didn't even come into the picture much. This, combined with a huge doubt mass, led to a continuation of seeking for some time. It was a confused seeking though, because every time I conjured a thought about the "awakened" state (like how I would during the "de jure" seeking phase), that thought would just fall away lol, so I was just left with nothing to seek. Then you pointed this out in an online retreat and it just clicked, "Oh yeah this is obvious, this is how it's been." I had no clue how long before then it had happened, but it happened. I think we overlook the fact that, just as the "I" is an afterthought, "no I" is also an afterthought. An interpretation/angle of experience. So awakening may happen without the interpretation of "no I". Maybe this can help provide some clarity for certain people. So much gratitude Angelo!

Maybe there is a time in which surrender would be appropriate for most people at some point in their life. But, I do know that time isn’t now for me thankfully and I’m definitely not gonna wait around until then 😂 I won’t bang my head trying to surrender anymore.

I sought hard for decades, in the end I was doing everything integrated into one flow of inquiry, contemplation, shadow work / trauma work, meditation, bhakti/devotion & prayer, as well as many years of hard physical training in Tai Chi. I attribute my breakthrough in large part to the combination of inquiry and prayer, however the way it happened was very atypical, I somehow got to a kind of non-dual experience of sensation though the painful physical training and it took about 18 months to break my gut center open first, a whole death experience. I was not exactly sure what happened at the time, but just 9 days later the head awakening happened, that amazing clarity and presence. The heart was a lot more work. Still shedding a lot and no idea how far so-called liberation is but it's all quite alright.

I rather frame changing perspective as just that- focusing on different goings-on. Branding perspective changes as "my awakening" makes me feel like I'm working on a boy scout badge... In fact, I find framing anything as "my" brings up feelings of competition. Hmmm thinking here ..

All these methods are new to me except for surrender. I will randomly use methods 1 through 4 as I go about my day. I don’t sit for any length of time to specifically work on a method and maybe that is what I need to do. I have different experiences with each of these methods and soon re-identify so I don’t know if they ultimately would lead to the same experience. With method 1. (surrender) - I experience what might be non-duality. Method 2. (self-inquiry) - When I ask, “Where am I looking from?” I am aware of a space that doesn’t change and is always present but seems to be localized behind my eyes and there’s not much body awareness. However, when I brought that question into the sound meditation with Violet at your recent retreat, I felt an opening and expansion in my heart area accompanied by a feeling of Love. Method 4. (look for where you are) - When I look for the “me” that believes it’s a separate self, I experience expansion, spaciousness, and vastness. What is the best way to work with these methods? One at a time over a certain period? Sitting with it for an allotted time and/or using it throughout the day while being active? Thank you Angelo for your time, dedication, and wisdom.

Ok, so, I've been trying self inquiry and also trying to notice thoughts quite a bit recently, but I think I need a basic refresher on the whole idea of thoughts and thinking and what is important about them (or rather NOT). I get that a lot of what our mind does is go into stories about this or that, which have nothing to do with the present moment, maybe even as a way to distract ourselves from the present moment? I guess, though, there seems to be something I'm missing about why recognizing that something is a thought automatically makes it something that would cause a shift. Maybe it's because I am such a "character 1" as Jill Bolte Taylor talks about (yes, I'm listening to her book now thanks to you), IE a left-brain thinking person. I've always used thoughts and thinking to analyze my situation, even analyze why others are having certain emotions. I've relied on thinking and thoughts my whole life. So it's not easy to just turn them off or at least to see why they are somehow grounds for awakening. I can recognize them when they come, but my mind sometimes says "so what, it's another thought." Is it just that they don't represent reality, just the mind's (incorrect) interpretation? Sorry, if there's a video about this that talks specifically about the WHY of recognizing thoughts being so important, it would be really helpful!

I watched a podcast where you interviewed someone who did 5 meo dmt. Do you believe that's another way to fast track awakening? Thank you

Incredible! This felt really helpful… Personally, I think surrender is my biggest effort, most of the time because I find myself over conceptualizing if I try to think through the eye… I also like to use transcendental meditation, which I believe might be your fifth step ..😊anyways thank you!

All of the above.

Thanks Angelo :)

Thank you. Paul

Straight up inquiry...who am I?... Who wants to know?

Agreed that Surrender method feels like really dropping out of the known 🤪 Continuing to watch/I have a feeling I’ve explored more than that method ❤

Thank you

Alcoholism brought me to my knees and surrender. I was then reintroduced to Ram Dass from my teen years. (I’m 53 now) That led to Paul Hedderman, Ramana, Nisagardatta, Byron Katie, Gary Webber, etc etc etc 10 sober years later using all the practices and having had several peak experiences, I’m still heavily mind identified most of the time. I have experienced hysterical laughter in prodigal son experiences where upon returning home I clearly saw I never actually went anywhere. Therapeutic use of Psychedelics have played a small role starting at 5 years sober feeling utterly hopeless still. Same feelings I drank about. They showed me things, healed some traumas I couldn’t get to otherwise. 2 months ago you were suggested to me and it’s been wonderful. I give up all the time and pick it all back up the next day or hours later. I’ll keep practicing because I seem to have no choice anyway. Currently the last year, who sees, hears, senses, what is suffering?

Which of your videos/playlist further clarifies approach 3

Well, if I'm being honest, none of these have "worked" for me, since I've never had an awakening. But the one that resonated the most was #3 (with a dash of #5 because I really enjoy one pointed concentration practice) #1 didn't vibe. I've been blessed enough in this life to not experience too much overt suffering or failures but it made me think of my father (who has) and I saw myself wanting to tell him "it's ok...you can go there" #2 and #4 are interesting. Like you mention in the video, there isn't a strong sense of "I" over here. I mean I guess there is some sort of sensitive core to this experience, but when I'm guided to find it or "look for the thinker" it feels very confusing. It's obvious there's nowhere to look and nothing to find. Even if you ask me to look for the sensitive core, there's no sensation or though I can identify. Maybe it's too subtle... I will continue exploring thoughts with method #3 Thanks Angelo

My breakthrough came when I gave up the search out of frustration in not getting anywhere in my search for enlightenment. Eckhart Tolle's book The Power of Now was key for me because its message prompted me to investigate the mind created identity I was trapped in, and discovered there IS no me. Things fell into place very quickly after seeing what exists beneath and prior to the ego sense.

5 years of 90% concentration/focused practice with sprinkles of surrender and inquiry. Then last 6 months increasingly became a blend surrender, thought dis-identification, and self inquiry. After 1st shift a month ago, I can tap into 'presence' easily and perhaps more often without effort. Though awareness is swept into thought/stories quite easily. Doing mainly surrender now because directing attention doesn't feel right somehow, but there isn't that quality of stable alertness that the mind yearns for. Sustained periods of unbound consciousness only came on longer retreats (pre-awakening) with concentration practices added in. Unsure of how to proceed. welcome thoughts from anyone.

Do all of these methods have a fear barrier that accompanies them?

Question: i'm doing self-inquiry by just sitting down and be aware of being aware (not asking ,,who am i"). Does this bear fruits, even when i dont question the person i take myself to be, seeing trough the illusion of person/thought-construct?

1 and 3 mostly.

I have something odd that for about a year has been happening to me- I mediate and I have a good strong core around thought processes that have stopped my old habit of thinking too hard on things out of my control Which brings me to my happening. Now every so often I can be just relaxing - reading a book or watching YT and suddenly in my stomach or at least that area I get a huge sense of doom.. a feeling or urge so strong and out of no where. It last maybe 2-3 minutes then it’s gone. Why is that happening? Nothing triggers it to my knowledge it just comes over me. I have to close my mind and push through the feeling. Has anyone else ever felt that or has anyone figure a way to end those suddenly feelings. Thank you for letting me reach out about this.

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7:30

How about the do nothing meditation

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Aren’t two and four the same?

Mu? Or moo?

There's no method. Method is for the idea you have of yourself. Interests are for identity. nobody can surrender. someone trying to surrender is not surrendering and will spawn confusing notions like trying to do nothing. nobody is enlightened, the truth is simply as it is. right now. nobody attains it. it simply is.

Hilarious,,,,,,,empty,,,,,,serious,,,,I can't tell You anything,,or,,all and none,. See You!