Arman

Leo has always been our cosmic canary in the coal-mine. I like to let him go first. Every now and again it's useful to check up on him and see how he's doing for personal calibration of practices. If you check up on him and he's full blown enlightened then you start doubling down on his suggestions. But if you check up on him and he has lost most of his motor function and he's making videos of smearing poop on the walls, then we scale back whatever he was suggesting. Was it the kriya that finally got him? We'll never know, I jest (mostly), but his recent video about doing a HARDCORE 30 day challenge in attempt to kill the small self (my words, not his) is radical and exciting. What are your thoughts on this?

Depends. Letting go is more of an undoing but as you are touching on, the mind has a tendency to turn it into a doingness. The mind also tries to complicate it as subtle resistance sets in and distorts the practice. Allowing something to go on is a natural quality of letting go and one way to access it. Letting go can also be done instantly by use of decision, or the Will. For example if you were in a situation where someone has upset you, then you can choose to allow the upset feelings to be there, or you could simply choose to let it go and have the whole thing dropped and forgiven in an instant. Instant relief and increase in energy. Not all feelings will disappear instantly, but on many subjects and situations in life, they will. This become more apparent the more you practice. On subjects where the emotion continues, then the feelings are let go of in layers and the stack of energy is allowed to dissolve moment to moment. The emotional charge may not always be something that you can immediately sever, but the resistance to the experience typically is. You can immediately drop any subject and the sensations of the emotional charge may continue to surge out the remaining energy. Choosing to let go of attachment/resistance then allows you to discover immediate freedom from the experience. Trying to let go of the manifestation (feelings, situations) is often less effective than letting go of the attachment or resistance to it. Once that is let go, the manifestation tends to also disappear or shift to something better.

Nailed it, well said. The fear isn't new, it's not being 'created' To avoid reflexive victim mentality when processing the fear, it can be of use to remind yourself of the following: "I have carried this fear for a long time, even if I haven't always been aware of it's effects. Now is the opportunity to address it" Note on letting go of fear: All the techniques to release fear, such as the suggested questions above, are designed to bring up the fear and recontextualize it. Fear is released by not resisting it, which is done by dropping the story and being with it as it is. Your mind will attempt to weave stories, narrative and meaning. The fear is meaningless, and once the fear comes up, any attempt to think about it or understand it is your mind attemping to sedate the fear through mentalization. It is a defense mechanism. Let go of the thoughts and return awareness to the feeling. There's nothing to be understood, the work is to be with what if and allow the energy to process. The emotions coming up is a sign of progress, well done!

That's awesome, thanks for sharing. I saw him doing some camera tests over the last few days and wondered what he was doing. Eben Pagan is hands down one of the greatest self-development teachers of our time. What a gift to have him back. Looks like he just delivered a new uncut product live in that video, so nice find. I'd download that if I were you, as I suspect he's going to cut it up and sell it at a several hundred dollar product.

uhh have you ever paid attention to what twitch chat is actually like? It's like a monkey with a high speed internet connection. anytime you put large amounts of the public into a stream or chat group, unless they've been highly filtered, you typically end up with a moderate level of retardation. case in point: There's a good chance I would be in streams with Leo, almost certainly devolving the conversation with the stupid shit I would be saying.

Reduced cortisol, easier to meditate and do spiritual work, reduced stress and general mood benefits. 600mg is a good daily dose.

Haha, nice. You might be very impressed by the results.

Here's another mushroom that is equally as epic as psilocybin but doesn't get the same accolades: Its called Reishi mushroom; it's legal and can be bought in powder form or capsules. It acts as a nootropic but also does much more. It is historically renowned and revered in ancient china as holding a divine spiritual potency. It is an adaptogen which means it acts to balance systems within the body rather than creating excesses energies. It has a very calming and soothing effect on the nervous system. Imo it is like natures valium, but without the negative associated costs. I've been taking it and have been really impressed by the results. Google some information about it, you will find it quite interesting.

no, just very interested in certain spiritual practices

You've pretty much got it. Habitual thought patterns emerge out of a feeling energy which first emerges as a subtle impulse, then an emotional impulse, which then finally produces thoughts. There are various 'tones' of feeling energy that produce different kind of thoughts. I.e the feeling of grief will always produce the same kind of thoughts - 'It's too late... I'm not good enough... if only... I miss her...' etc. The source of the thoughts may be perpetual and unceasing unless addressed directly. Trying to remove the source of the thought patterns by addressing the thoughts themselves is like trying to chop down a forest by snipping at the individual leaves with scissors. In fact, at best, you will assist the trees to propagate. Thoughts have only one true purpose which is to reinforce the sense of small-self at all costs. Small-self is built up of negative feeling patterns which have been deemed as necessary for survival by the mind. Because they are unconsciously categorized as necessary for survival, the ego will resist the release of these feelings at all costs, and its most effective tool in keeping you enslaved is to produce more thoughts on the subject (even just to keep you thinking about the _idea_ of improving, rather than actually doing and letting go/growth) The technique is to ignore the thoughts when they arise and place your awareness on the feeling energy within without wanting to resist it, change it, or do anything about it. This starts to release the underlying energy and creates a positive feeling of release. In time, once the reservoir of feeling energy is relinquished, the thoughts that it generates naturally disappear from awareness and you typically forget you even had them because they're no longer part of your identity. The beliefs, behaviours and circumstances which these thoughts produced also dissolve and are typically replaced by a more enjoyable ones. The process does not take much effort. Really only one step is necessary, which is to set your intention to let go of the energy/behaviour, while surrending to who and what you are, now. The process then does itself over time and you don't have to worry about it because you're choosing to feel whole, now.

And then are you going to read the books that the recommended books also recommend? And then the recommendations of the books that were recommended by other recommendations? And so on and so forth I think you should do that - you might end up reading every book ever written. Imagine how smart you'd be then?

It means allowing the emotional energy to do whatever it does. Sometimes emotions will spike, intensify, plateau and then dissipate, but not always. By letting it run its course it means if it wants to get deeper and more intense, let it do so. If it wants to shift into other emotions, let it do so. If it wants to dissipate, allow it to do so, and you stay with it for as long as is necessary until it either dissolves completely, shifts into something else, or you just feel kind of done with it. It sounds like you're doing well. It's not necessary, though it can be a helpful technique for those who aren't familiar or experienced with releasing, as a kind of scaffolding so that they can see what it's like. From my perspective, any additional visualization or steps is not helpful for the dedicated seeker. The profundity of the technique is in its simplicity. While visualization and added 'intention' can work, you are losing the effectiveness of being able to train yourself to do it at anytime, anywhere with anything. You don't want to become reliant on extended techniques. For example if your boss starts yelling at you - you may not be able to start doing the visualization on the spot. Visualizing makes it no more effective and creates openings for resistance imo. To quote the book, instead of thinking about how to do it, it's better to just 'do it'.

"Letting go involves being aware of a feeling, letting it come up, staying with it, and letting it run its course without wanting to make it different or do anything about it. It means simply to let the feeling be there and to focus on letting out the energy behind it. The first step is to allow yourself to have the feeling without resisting it, venting it, fearing it, condemning it, or moralizing about it. It means to drop judgment and to see that it is just a feeling. The technique is to be with the feeling and surrender all efforts to modify it in any way. Let go of wanting to resist the feeling. It is resistance that keeps the feeling going. When you give up resisting or trying to modify the feeling, it will shift to the next feeling and be accompanied by a lighter sensation. A feeling that is not resisted will disappear as the energy behind it dissipates. As you begin the process, you will notice that you have fear and guilt over having feelings; there will be resistance to feelings in general. To let feelings come up, it is easier to let go of the reaction to having the feelings in the first place. A fear of fear itself is a prime example of this. Let go of the fear or guilt that you have about the feeling first, and then get into the feeling itself. When letting go, ignore all thoughts. Focus on the feeling itself, not on the thoughts. Thoughts are endless and self-reinforcing, and they only breed more thoughts. Thoughts are merely rationalizations of the mind to try and explain the presence of the feeling. The real reason for the feeling is the accumulated pressure behind the feeling that is forcing it to come up in the moment. The thoughts or external events are only an excuse made up by the mind." - Letting Go - The Pathway of Surrender

You have climbed the perilous mountain, passed the lions, traversed the ten thousand steps and conquered the three riddles: finally, the guru stands before you. The trials are over. This is your moment. You may ask him one question. "uhh... how do you, like, get your head so smooth?"

Very nice. Keep it up brother. I love Doc Hawkins work. 'Letting Go' is my favourite book. You can also use the 'mindfulness bell' app on smartphone to routinely chime throughout the day based in how you set it as a reminder to let go. Remember that you can let go of anything, at anytime, anywhere. A lot of things can be dropped instantly. Do it until it becomes second nature.

I wouldn't do more than 200ug outside alone. You can't control the environment and it's easy to suddenly find yourself in conversations and potentially sticky situations. Even at 200 I find that communication skills can feel moderately nerfed. Any higher and imo you risk acting a fool in public, which you don't need. Edit: I think it really secluded areas like in nature could work as long as you don't stray far. And being with nature while tripping is truly comfortingly

the fingering thing

Well, what can you get motivated by? True financial abundance is the result of passion. You don't have to be passionate about earning money, you can just be so good at something that the making money part is inevitable. When you have real passion and excitement, then there's no need to 'effort' towards your goals. It's natural. What excites you most? Don't be vague like 'helping people' or 'self-development'. Specifically what are you most excited by?

i'll help you find your feminine side, big fella come round to my place bring massage oil

The quotes kind of sound like they might be Thic Nhat Hanh

His name is Leo, you can find his videos on actualized.org

Real shift in insight is the result of shift in the energetic system. The subtle energy body shifts and its influence cascades down into physiology, thoughts, beliefs, and an 'aha!' moment. Its not uncommon for shifts in perception to be accompanied by a physically enduring experience. Insight doesn't lead to transformation, it's the opposite way round.

Nice post Nailed it

For someone who's first language isn't English, your grammar and communication is really good. You're going to do fine. I knew you were 14 because you remind me so much of myself around that age, even posting on forums. This is a crazy time for you... by 16 you'll start to think of yourself as an adult. I started smoking weed and taking psychedelics at 16 and 17. Those experiences played a big part in making me who I am but also robbed me of much balance in my early 20s. I thought my life was going to be an easy fairy-tail (magic stories they tell them kids) when I started taking psychedelics and getting into spirituality and self development. You feel like you've been chosen and given a golden ticket to an easy and incredible life. It's true, in a way, but the use of drugs made those times very chaotic (crazy), and it took years of deep struggle and inner work to find balance. I discovered many years later that I was using that stuff to run away from myself and my unhappiness. When I realised that, I started to see how lost people get with psychedelics. The ones who use it too often stray (stray: to move away from) further and further from themselves while at the same time being convinced they are making progress because they're blinded by shiny 'truths' True growth doesn't look fancy. It is about quiet self love, peace, ability to help others, being able to feel happy just sitting by yourself and making a cup of tea. Look up the word 'glamour' and try to understand it. When a thing appears glamourous, it looks fantastic and appealing in the surface, but it's true reality (substance) is weak, it robs you of your humanness. Beware glamour. Follow simplicity. It will lead you to the ultimate happiness. They turn psychedelics into another religion and get dogmatic about it. Beware the wolf in sheep's clothing. If you suggest that psychedelics may not be optimal (the best) for spiritual growth, their teeth and claws come out. Real spiritual work isn't glamourous, it looks mundane (simple/boring) and it doesn't look as appealing as the glamour of psychedelics. They can distract you all the way into infinity. You can make 100x more progress by simply making a commitment to forgive yourself and others for errors. Do you have any computer/tech related hobbies? At your age I was playing around with animation, web design and Photoshop. Playing with that stuff paid off in a HUGE way because creative tech is effortless for me now. In this online entrapaneur era, it pays to find out what excites you and learn how to build things. 'Integrity' means to be whole or complete, but people use it in a slightly different way. When someone says one thing and does another, they are broken up, they do not have integrity. Integrity means being true to yourself. It means doing the right thing and being honest. It means taking the more difficult or less appealing path because you care more about truth and peace than about short-term pleasure.

Sorry, I should have read the thread more thoroughly.