Do meditation, contemplation, mantra, silence, satsangs, bhajans, compassion, selfless service, devotion, surrender and other spiritual practices lead to awakening? I think this one is fairly easy to answer. Does smoking cigarettes lead to lung cancer? I think that that the “scientific” “medical” consensus is that… ...it does. Does everyone who smokes gets lung cancer? No. Do only smokers get lung cancer? No.
Consciousness is like a clean mirror. In it, a new “you”, a new image of “you” is born each moment, each breath. At the in-breath, the consciousness gains energy and it creates an new “you” again. At the out-breath, it cleans the mirror again for the (new) image to be built again. If you pay very close, keen attention to the in-breath and out-breath, you can see this process happening. If you put too close, too focussed, too full attention on the in-breath and out-breath, the image itself will stop forming and the the mirror of consciousness will remain clean, clear - shining - full of light - free of any “image” of you. But, not to worry, once your attention wanders off again, the process of image building and image cleaning will resume again. If you attention wanders too far off… ...you might start… ...seeing it as continuous running movie without any breaks, any pause… ...just as you think and see 20 images per second as… ...a “continuous” movie… ...without any break, any gap…
Hi Rick, Once in a while you manage to bring teachers with unique point of view and fresh energy that inspire and introduce a new ways of expressing Awakening or self-realization - it didn’t happen here. No offence but it was so banal, slow moving and not thought (or no thought) provoking interview.
Mor Argy The place beyond thought is nice to. Not all interviews are going to be what you need at that moment. Instead of speaking negatively why not just continue your search? =)
SublimeSati i am not in a search, i am viewing the interview for fun :) and i dont know what do you meen by negativity - what i wrote was what i felt about the interview - its okey you know, its a public interview and we are allowed to write our thoughts and feelings ;)
Answer for this moment and this moment only.Who are you right in this moment?Who are you right in this moment - without bringing any memory, thoughts, experiences, knowledge, expectations, explanation, demands - for this moment - from any other moment? What do you truly lack in this moment - if you don’t put any demand on it - a demand that originated in another moment? Reality is this moment. Reality is this breathe. Reality is this Awareness… ...Right Now. “Person” is in time. “Time” is in the domain of “thoughts”. When you start “thinking”... ...you have created “another” world… ...a world of thoughts… In that “world of thoughts”... ...there is a person named “X”, a guru named “Y” and something named “Z”... In the night’s dream too… ...some people create another “world”... ...in that world, some people have “Alngelina Jollie”, “Brad Pitt” or angels, demons or snakes… In the day dream too… ...some people create “another” world… ...in that world… ...some have Kobe Bryant or Rihanna…
Your world that your create right now is different only in the type of information with which you create it… ...but, the basic process of creating it… ...the basic process of thinking of it as “real”... ...the basic process of attempting to live inside it is same… This world that you create… ...this world of your thoughts… ...is… ...samsara… The Reality is Right Now… The Reality is This Moment… The Reality is Awareness… The “person” lives in samsara… The samsara is made up of thoughts…
The samsara are the Clear Present Awareness are two different levels… ...just as dreams and waking up are… The samsara is the world made up of thoughts... The Clear Present Awareness is what exists prior to thoughts... ...it is like a clear mirror... ...that only reflects light and no objects... ...it is like the mid of the deep dreamless sleep... ...without any dreams... ...it is that in which the samsara rise... ...but, just as the clear mirror gets "covered" by, gets "filled" with the object it reflects... ...the clear present awareness gets "filled" with, covered by the thought based samsara that arise...
You don’t really live at two levels at once… ...you don't truly exist in deep dreamless sleep and in dreams... ...at exactly same time... ...the mirror is not reflecting an object and is completely devoid of all reflections at the same time... You can truly dream of being a butterfly only by forgetting the reality of being the dreamer… ...the moment you recognize yourself as the dreamer… ...the dream of being a butterfly “automatically” breaks… (of course, you can dream “again”... ...later… What is true in the present perception ... is true… ...only at this moment… At another moment, there can be a dream, a thought or a mis conception…) You can truly identify as being a time-bound “person” only by forgetting your Reality as the Present Awareness… ….the moment you truly recognize yourself as the Present Awareness, the identification with the person disappears… (of course, you can identify with it “again”... ...later… What is true in the present perception is… true only at this moment… At another moment, there can be a dream, a thought or a mis conception…)
A *1.5 on the new -3 to +3 scale. Disclaimers at the end of the comment.* A very nice interview which transmits more of the interviewee's equanimity than content. Even though laudably Rick got some of his experience during his awakening phase out of him, it would have been nice if the interviewee had dwelled more on that. Only serious flaw, observed by Thomas Seven among the comments, is the blue eyed reference by Rick to someone practicing spiritually on the stock market without even making a critical remark that this might be inherently questionable, such as someone practicing presence while killing for the CIA or for the heroine mafia. *About the rating* : anything below and including 0 means by and large a waste of time, and anything below 0 is not only worthless but damaging to the world. For comparison, on that scale, Francis Bennett would be a +2 or more and Harri Aalto would be roughly a tentative +2 to +2.5. Not coming up with original, independent cosmological insights bans any interviewee from > 2.0 ratings as a matter of principle. *General Disclaimer:* the rating _pertains to an interview, not to the interviewee_. If the rating is high it means merely and exclusively that I consider the interview to be of high value relative to the stated purpose of the channel, and that it is therefore no waste of time to listen to the interview. It would _not_ imply that whatever the interviewee speaks is the truth (as if I was the arbiter over that) or that you should follow him/her or accept whatever that person offers. _That is particularly in need of emphasis if that would be an expensive enterprise_ !
Hi there, 1. Regarding your question: if you have ever asked for directions in a foreign place, your question is hypocritical since that was as much dreamlike as the rest of the cosmos. 2. Regarding the ratings, I am retired from that job. 3. Happy New Year !
Warren Buffet is one of the most successful "stock investor" of all time... ...and... ...he is also among the most giving, most generous and kindest human we know of... Many charities are found guilty of using the money donated by others for the cancer research and treatment on cruises, vacation and sex... In theory, "communist" ideas sounded "noble". In reality, they gave rise to great cruelty, killing, oppression, selfishness and corruption. In reality, very few people "really" work for the things like... ..."stock market", "textile industry", "drug industry", "alcohol industry", "automobile industry" ...or... ..."food industry"... In reality, most people works for things like - family, needs, survival, security... ...or... ...food, medicine, shelter, clothes... ... ...or... ...prestige, respect, honor, fame, power... ...or... ...hobbies, lust, sex, vacations, retirement, life style, cars, cruises, nice house, beautiful young wife, jewelry, nice clothes, parties, functions... ...or... ...for love, compassion, peace, wisdom, non-violence, justice, awareness, happiness, enlightenment... ...or... ...they don't even know... ..."why they work"... In my opinion, to see people as working for the "stock market" or "sanitary industry" is to NOT see... ..."what is really going on"... One can work in the "stock industry"... ...and, can still be the most grateful, kind, generous, giving and compassionate human... One can work for the "noble" looking profession like... ..."police", "education", "fire fighting", "sanitation"... ...... or even... ..."charity"... ...and, can still be very selfish, self centered, cruel and scheming person and can be full of venom, hate, anger, ill intent and contempt towards most other humans...
I don't think that voting goes in the same pot with tastes of food or other things, part of the personal preferences [I've heard you using this example in other interviews]; however, the reality is that the present democratic system is a game of numbers that plays based on the ignorance of the voters [that treat this right as a matter of 'de gustibus' as you also see it], not a selection of values. Anyway, while the folk you interview still have their tastes for chocolate or beer, I don't think that any of them would bother about trying to influence the course of life through voting, especially as a matter of taste [unless they are not that enlightened as they pretend to be...]
Discussing Spirituality, is not Spirituality, wonder if Stuart have anything to share that could be ''Spiritual'' ...?independent-spiritual-technology.com/discussion
The wave is not the ocean ==================== There are points on which my thoughts are very different from the “common” nondual views: 1. Wave is the caused by the movement of the ocean. Wave is a function of the ocean. The ocean alone is real… ...i.e… the ocean alone endures in time. The wave is unreal… ...i.e. ...the wave doesn’t truly endure in time. The wave appears. The wave vanishes. The wave rises. The wave falls. The wave is temporarily formed by the movement of the ocean, the wave rises, the wave falls and then ocean moves and creates waves again. 2. Realization, awakening, understanding means that the wave realizes its non-existence (in time). The wave realizes that the ocean alone is real… ...i.e. the ocean alone endures in time. The wave itself is created by the ocean, of the ocean, the wave rises and falls in the ocean. The wave has no real, independent choice, no no real, independent existence apart from the ocean. 3. Realize your non existence (in time) and be done. Know that the ocean alone has true existence ...(in time)... and, be done. Realize that you are the movement of the ocean alone and be done. 4. A wave thinking that it is ocean… ...is… ...not true understanding, nor true jnana, nor true realization in my opinion. In my opinion, such view is even deeper ignorance than the wave being identified as the wave alone. 5. The wave by its very definition is a very limited point of view (in time and space). The essence of the ocean and the wave is same but, the vastness and scope are radically different. 6. The body is the water. Consciousness is the wave. Energy is the wave. 7. The universe is the water. Energy is the wave. Consciousness is the wave.
Sunyata... ...zeroness... ...space... ...nothingness... ...emptiness... is the water... ...creation is the wave... ...destruction is falling of the wave. Beating of the heart is (like) a wave. Breathing is (like) a wave. Flow of blood is (like) a wave. Thought is (like) a wave. Consciousness is (like) a wave. How your heart beat show up in a medical device is (like) a wave. How your brain waves shows up in a medical device is (like) a wave. The human body under general anesthesia… ...unconscious… ...unaware… ...is (like) the depth of the ocean… ...devoid of the (surface) waves of consciousness.
There are several reasons why I think that way: 1. Unconsciousness unders general anesthesia is a well-established scientific fact. Thousands of people worlwide go under surgery everyday with this knowledge. 2. The body has many very intelligent and critical processes such immune system which operate without needing direction from the intelligence, consciousness that feels like “I”, “I am”. 3. This surface intelligence, this surface consciousness, one that interprets senses, one that thinks, one that controls language and speech and sense of time and space… ...one that feels like “I” or “I am”... ...is largely unaware of many highly critical body processes such as cell division. 4. The universe, the galaxies, the solar system, the life cycle, the plant and animal system all seem creation of a great intelligence… ...that intelligence seems different from the language aware intelligence that is not even aware of the cell devision of this body. 5. The human brain and nervous system seem creation of a great intelligence… ...that intelligence seems different from the language aware intelligence that is not even aware of the cell devision of this body.
"We have bodies....but something comes before that." (I.e. "we are not the body".) Actually, if something comes 'before that', it can't possibly be experienced. Because we ARE that (i.e. the body). Therefore all talk of there being something 'before that' is a projection. By the body, or if you prefer, the 'body-mind organism'. Furthermore any experience which that 'body' has can only be with reference to and therefore not separate from what it is experiencing. So there is no question of any separate self, prior to the body, or otherwise. And another thing. If you advised an animal to 'be present' :they'd (quite rightly) look at you as if you were a fool. You are already present! And in actual factual: life being a movement, there is no such thing as the present at all. Moreover, there is no particular reason to suppose that any insight into the truth of life will occur during what the gentleman imagines to be 'Silence'. People do whatever they do (and suffer the consequences thereof). But this kind of stuff, being UNCLEAR, cannot qualify as being 'Teaching. The gentleman, I believe, referred to insights he'd had as 'miraculous'...Don't know about that. But they certainly would appear to be 'Acausal'. Which, at least in terms of 'practices', is the only teaching that's necessary. Is it not?
tim13354 I would be greatly surprised if you truly don’t know what being present and not being present means. Not being present means that all attention is taken by the internal thoughts and thus, your attention is not available to attend to what is in front of you and as result, you “miss” what is happening right now in front of you. Example of not being present: 1. Your wife said something to you, but, you didn’t hear/understand it because you busy processing internal thoughts. 2 You miss your train stop because you were busy attending to your internal day-dream.
TOA (Transmission of Awakening) All thoughts are internal thoughts. If it's a nice day, you may want to enjoy it, but cant because of your problems. If you've solved your problems, you will be able to enjoy the day. If you haven't, you won't....Either way, it all takes place 'in the present there's nowhere else FOR it to take place. So obviously you can't come to where you already are....But if some joker advises you to try..you won't be able to succeed, because, life being a movement, you won't be able to establish a 'point' to come to.....Needless to say there's absolutely no necessity to try. Trying to enjoy the day is not the antidote to your problems...in fact exactly the CONTRARY is the case. (In contradistinction to what you've been given to understand.) It's easier for Gurus to blame you than themselves for the fact that their 'practices' don't deliver the goods and right there you have a potted history of Religion. This is VERY simple TOA and, as far as I'm aware, completely undeniable. But you have an unfortunate history of effecting not to understand it. So, don't be surprised if, should you feel it necessary to 'reply' - I don't come back to you.
tim13354 BTW… …”being present” is a common enough expression and it is used in common language. A teacher asks her student… ...I think you are not present in the class, your attention is somewhere else. A karate teacher asks his student… ...are you paying attention to what I am saying. Absent-minded is a word used in dictionary to mean opposite to what “being present” means. dictionary.reference.com/browse/absent-minded …so lost in thought that one does not realize what one is doing, what is happening, etc.; preoccupied to the extent of being unaware of one's immediate surroundings. Synonyms: withdrawn, musing, daydreaming, dreamy, forgetful, distracted. Absent-minded, abstracted, oblivious all mean inattentive to immediate surroundings. Absent-minded suggests an unintentional wandering of the mind from the present: an absent-minded committee member. Abstracted implies that the mind has been drawn away from the immediate present …
tim13354 Do meditation, contemplation, mantra, silence, satsangs, bhajans, compassion, selfless service, devotion, surrender and other spiritual practices lead to awakening? I think this one is fairly easy to answer. Does smoking cigarettes lead to lung cancer? I think that that the “scientific” “medical” consensus is that… ...it does. Does everyone who smokes gets lung cancer? No. Do only smokers get lung cancer? No.
