Khin

@TimStr This is one of Buddha's teachings or techniques. I also used it myself and very effective. Why do you afraid of death? Because you love yourself. So ask yourself "Why do I love myself?" Then look at your body. Imagine all that intestines, blood, saliva, other organs and fluids. Try to find something that is very attractive or beautiful. I know that in Biology science, we'd be learning how cool our body parts are but will you keep any body parts in a beautiful chest because they are so cool? Will you hold any body's heart in your hands and kiss them because it is the best organ for animals? Our body is disgusting after all. When you think your body is disgusting and useless, you will not love it anymore and will reduce the fear of death.

@Ryan_047 That is alright.

Wow, that monkey is cute!

Man #1: Wanna go to Nirvana? Man #2: Do they have night club over there? Man #1: Nope Man #2: Hot girls? Man #1: Nope Man #2: Nice cars and fancy house? Man #1: Nope Man #2: What do they have? Man #1: Nothing Man #2: Then, no thanks.

@framu That is not enlightenment but was just an awareness. When awareness is getting sharp. We see things the way it is. And "the way it is" is very different from what we think "the way it is." So it is kind of shocking to see it for the first time. I think that's what people meant by passing through deconstruction of ego in enlightenment experiences.

Set your goal for others. Buddha and Jesus and all other enlightened people did so many things to help human kind. Selfish goal will be meaningless in enlightenment work.

@Teags how about try other sensations instead of thoughts. Like hearing or seeing. Just grab and hold the sense. Obviously you can't but just notice the new senses. It will first feel like remembering but you'll get to it with practice. Don't look back on one sense for too long. Move on to other senses.

@bernieboy20 you won't become weirdo, but many will become weirdo in your eyes. Or you might feel like people never grew up no matter how rich and what status they have.

@likhil you will have no doubts when enlightened.

@Teags According to my research, I found out that without the self research with curiosity you will not be able to see thoughts as it happens. Lille Leo said, Truely not knowing. To be at truely not knowing stage, we must ask ourself like which is ME?

How would u see when you don't look? You can only start with what you have.

Well... I'm Theravada. I think of Nirvana as Enlightenment. Maybe my translation is a little off. After reach, I kind of thought Nirvana and Enlightenment are a little different in some people mind. When they say Enlightenment, it's more like realization of truth. Ya know... realizing the real nature. For Nirvana, one must pass through the state of realization and being one with the nature which is nothingness. Not many talk about Nirvana in this western country though. But......... I don't think that is a problem. Once one knows the true nature, one sure will accept the teachings of Buddha automatically because they are exactly what you see in your enlightenment experiences. In Theravada, every words of Buddha was kept and learned. All about Hell, heaven, reincarnation things are not the same as what most people believe. They are actually very different. Soooooooooo different. The annoying part maybe tons of rules. Don't worry, you won't go to hell if you don't follow all those rules. I don't even think of Buddhism as religion because it's not believing. All Buddha taught was reality. You believe it or not doesn't matter. Whatever happening around you will still be happening whether you notice it or agree with it or like it or not. That is why life is suffering because we are pitiful. We are pitiful because we think we have control over many things but ............... We actually don't.

@Mutupo Not really. But if you really really want to. I listened to that sadhguru or whatever once or twice. He's OK. Ya know that you should look for what you are more than thinking of what you are.

@Anthony Gosal It is very wise to choose Buddha's teachings to become enlightened. But remember, you have to find the right teacher.

@Mutupo if w break our down, only four elements left. Theres no need to label ourselves as an entity.

@Tristan speaking of dreams, I also have dreams when something is about to happen. Usually I dream in the morning if it has message. They look so real and feel real but really short. Most of the time, warning message dreams are with water for me. But.... Enlightenment has nothing to do with dreams.

Don't worry about anything man. Just go! I'm going on June 14 at MA for 7 days. I am so excited. I actually want to go for a month but ... can't for now.

Don't only look at your toes when you walk. Look further!

Haha .... definitely four elements for now!

Well, you cannot not identify yet because you are not enlightened yet. Once you understand that there is No you in actual experience, you will automatically stop thinking that YOU ARE FEELING. Because you realized there is no You to receive any feelings or to observe. There is awareness to know. For example, you are crossing the river because you there is better life on other shore. You only have woods on this side. So you hold onto a trunk and cross the river. But when you saw boats on other side and thought, man only if I could use a boat, it would be easier. Holding on the trunk was such hard way. It's exactly the same. Enlightened people are saying this and that but you can't follow them exactly because you don't have actual knowledge as them. There for you can only use what you have. if enlightened people said there's no you, you can only take the word. Observer means an awareness. That is not behind the thought, it actually comes up after senses and feelings. It is knowing the actual sense. In microscopic level, this is how it happens. < sense, awareness (noticing).>, < sense, awareness>, < sense, awareness>. It's not like something stays behind all the feelings and watching over it. You must train to have awareness. Then it goes from manmade to natural. Enlightened people may say all their knowledge but we can't deny that unenlightened people don't know as much as them. So......... in enlightenment path, main goal is to observe YOU? By thinking you are observing, is there still need to find YOU? Because there's already YOU observing things. It's like Since you are driving your car, is there still need to find where your car is at? Therefore, you need to put YOU and I away and be aware of feelings and senses as the way they are with curiosity. Try to look for YOU! like.. is that feeling me? or this?

@Argue LOOK my friend! If something makes you crazy, you should figure it out until you actually know it. This whole thing I talked about was not something I read in books or from hearsay knowledge. You will never understand it without actually experience. Instead of sitting and thinking about right or wrong, you can take an action to see right or wrong. Aware of your senses as it comes up. Aware what caused it to happen and aware when it disappears. When doing that, make sure you say yourself that there is no you.

Actually me too.. Everything I'm try so hard now is to finish my responsibility. After that, my goal is to do whatever that would make me easier to attain full enlightenment.

@Argue Do you remember when Leo said thoughts are you? (if you watch that part in his videos) This is very hard to explain. I do not expect you would understand and agree with me. You know that since you were born or we were born, there's always been this kind of mindset that a soul is in our body. Please hear my story. When I was young, I once sat down and looked at my body and thought I am inside this body. The "ME", the spirit is possessing this body. In my mind, there were two parts, the body and spirit. When the body die, the soul, me, will get out of it and move on to another body. I had very severe depression when I realized that I and every one would die someday. After that I asked myself, WHAT THE HELL AM I? WHY DEATH? I had gone crazy. So I was sent to Buddhist temple. I'm not religious though but I thank my mother for sending me there. So at the temple, I meditated. woke up early at 3:30 a.m. The temple was high up in mountains. So it was so cold. Bath place had no cover. It wasn't in temple. We all would start the meditation at 4 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. Then have breakfast. Then 6:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., had one 30 minute break in between. We would have our lunch before noon. Then whole day meditation with little breaks in between until 9 p.m. without dinner. After five days, imagine how I would be like. I was so thin and felt so dizzy for a week... I fell asleep right away when I laid down on bed. BUT........ I never hated that place. Actually, I loved it. Because all those effort I put on meditation paid off. I got this whole new knowledge of there is NO ME to DIE!! What a wonderful! I understood what ego is which basically does not exist. In Pali, it's called "Eatta," the sense of entity and permanence. There is no such thing as EGO inside you or in part of you. Actually Ego is illusion of permanence. But when you realize nothing is permanent, you can't find yourself anymore. That is called ego death for enlightened people. They didn't actually kill it or take something out of them. When they say experience of ego death, it means they understood the truth that there is no such thing as ego. There is no entity as "I." Death means, DISAPPEARING. So with enlightenment, the believe and sense of entity disappeared realizing that there wasn't You or I in the first place. That's ego death. Ego is sense of permanence. It's named for an illusion of You, the entity exists. Do you aware of you surroundings? Do you aware that nothing lasts forever. You might know but you forget most of the time. You are always filled with day to day things in life. Let alone the microscopic level of impermanence which you would see in sharp awareness, you even forgot your death most of the time. You know because it's obvious but you always feel like, oh I don't think I'm gonna die now. You know you will die and nothing lasts forever but that's just as a thought. In deep down, you don't see the impermanence. That's ego. Not seeing the way they are makes an illusion of permanence that caused a feeling of an entity, the self. Actually, every thought, every senses, every feelings are you. I am NOT saying that YOU ARE FEELING THEM. I am saying THEY ARE YOU. All of your thoughts, senses, feelings never last forever, in fact they disappear right away. Therefore, YOU are disappearing every minute, every second. So which feeling and senses were you? Could you ever hold onto any feelings or senses as the way they are for a little longer after it happened? This is how illusion of self or life or ego is formed. When something touched you, there will be a sense of "TOUCH." If you did not notice right away as soon as it happens, it generates another thought which is very similar. It's almost like "Touch" and "Touched." And if you don't notice, that "touched" generates another thought which is very similar to it but a little different from actual sense. Example, it's like "touch, touched, touched it." It happens very fast that you will never know without very sharp awareness. There's only one thought can appear in awareness field, so every time the second thought appears, the first will disappear. With awareness, you will see the sense "Touch" as soon as it appears. So awareness cut out the generation thoughts. There for no more thoughts of that sense. If not, like I said, that sense will generate similar thoughts as it disappears, makes it seem like that first actual sense was always there and is permanent. But actually, that actual sense was already gone as soon as it appears. If someone is remembering something for a long time, that means that person is thinking about it again and again. Because it is obviously not an actual sense or feeling.

Let me try this.. 1) It's more like doing research with curiosity. But if we look very deep, you brain plays in very important part too. 2) Anyone who did not kill their own parents can be enlightened. The youngest is 7 year old. 3) Animals and babies cannot be enlightened because they don't have an ability to. Mind and body are connected to each other. 4) It was discovered. 5) They will never hurt any living things intentionally. 6) No emotional feelings anymore but also will care for each other and all living things. Wouldn't hurt other living things for you own good, such as killing to eat. 7) They don't usually feel much of happiness or sadness. Only peace. 8) There are four definite levels of enlightenments. From 1st to 3rd, they do dream, but not the 4th who is fully enlightenment. 9) Not necessarily. 10) Maybe. You never know. They look so normal that most people don't recognize though. I've seen enlightened people but they were funnier than funniest jokers but always serious. Just being around them makes me feel peaceful and happy. 11) I don't think so.

Being a monk is not that hard. You'll be just fine when you see results but make sure you find the RIGHT teacher otherwise you will end up with disappointment. Being a monk is harder than being a soldier because you mind is hardest to discipline. So being a monk is like training your mind to fight yourself. You can also be Yogi if you can't be a monk.