VeganAwake

"An Empty Answer You want me to “say more” about nothingness. Could anything be more paradoxical for the reader than to try to understand “nothing”? Why? Because most people start from the conviction that there is something which does exist; if nothing more, at least “me”. So, you will not likely appreciate nothingness unless you have come to realization through advaita. At least we will, then, begin without the assumption that a “me” really exists. But even for the realized advatin, there will almost certainly be a presumption that “something” exists in the realm of reality. Even “reality”. Advaita points to ajata, and ajata is about nothingness, or emptiness. The Diamond Sutra of Buddhism, points exclusively to it. Hui Neng, the Sixth Chinese Patriarch, declares flatly: ‘There is nothing from the start.” These sources, among others, set your foot on the path, but recognize that most people are then going to immediately be lost. I have written clearly about advaita, and several have understood what I’ve said. I have spoken, to some of these, about what lies beyond the “Absolute,” and a couple have understood. So I will try to explain it, as best I can. The “ultimate condition” (if any) is nothingness, the complete “absence” of anything—no thing, of any possible description. The (approximate) comprehension of this would be to conceive of “emptiness”, as the emptiness of which not anything could be emptied; pure unassociated emptiness, and not even an emptiness which is within some imagined boundaries. The word “void” could be applied; but this “actuality” is not void of something—in any positive sense. So the nothingness of which we speak is totally empty, free of any subtlety which could even be envisioned. Hence there is not anything “within” it that can be subject to any kind of movement, or even change. Not anything can “come from” nothingness, nor “return” to it. It is not the “origin” of anything. In fact, it could not be applicable to say that it exists, or does not exist. Thus we can’t say that this is the “beginning” condition or the “ending” condition. At best, we could say that (if it were “existent”) it would be the ever-present condition. Yet, it is not an abstraction: its presence is “eternal”. “In” its presence are supposed creatures, and the world and universe they seem to inhabit. But all of these supposed things are “in” nothingness. They have not appeared from nothingness, or out of nothingness, or because of nothingness. In fact, they have not actually “appeared”, except as nothingness. The creatures take their reality, their “existence”, for granted; and thus also the reality or existence of the world and its universe—not knowing that they are nothing. The assumption is: ‘There was a time when I didn’t exist, a time when I existed, and a time when I will no longer exist”. But there are no such times. Not anything has ever “existed”, from the standpoint of nothingness. In nothingness, there is no “time”. What makes this so difficult to understand, is that because we say that “I have existed”, we conclude that there is some thing. And indeed we look around and say there are other things, such as a world or a universe. But the presumption that there was a time when I did not exist (or do; or will not exist) is false: no arising, abiding or decaying exists in nothingness. In other words, not anything “happens” in nothingness. “We” are nothing, the “world” is nothing, the “universe” is nothing. In nothingness, there is neither existence nor nonexistence. There is only nothing. From the standpoint of nothingness, no questions can arise. We can not ask for, nor expect, an explanation: not anything ever happens, in nothingness. The value of this understanding is that not anything really matters. Even understanding this does not matter. All is emptiness. That is the “empty” answer. The scriptures speak of one who is in sahaja samadhi as having “no mind” or an “empty mind”. It is this appreciation of nothingness that is referred to" - Robert Wolfe

There is nothing to drop already. That which thinks its something is already nothing.(illusion) Perfection was already at hand. "nothing matters" The illusion that something mattered just needed to be dropped. The veil of Illusion needed to dissolve. ❤

Yes there's only impermanence.... and even that is just a story. It's definitely not what the individual is seeking. The ME wants something solid to grasp, name, label and check-off as understood. THIS is unknowable.... and not because it can't be named, but because any name or meaning placed over top of it, is a projected idea at best. ❤

Let's put it this way: Say you were having a dream in which you were chasing a leprechaun that would grant you three wishes beyond your wildest dreams if he is caught. Then your alarm clock goes off and you wake up, but you still remember the dream very vividly. Would you quickly throw your socks and shoes on and run out the door trying to find this dream leprechaun?(don't answer that hehe) When Awakening occurs it's recognized that the individual and it's bundle of dream stories/beliefs and concepts never actually existed in reality. When the bottom of the bucket falls out, it never holds water again. When the snake is recognized as just a piece of rope it doesn't keep tricking you over and over again. When the foundation of Illusion dissolves under the weight of truth the Ivory Tower collapses. ❤

When you treat Illusions and dreams stories as if they are real, you are right back in the dream again. Nobody's doing or having them because they are simply already not real. This isn't directed at anybody in particular. ❤

Yes that much Freedom can malfunction ego. Particularly the part about nothing needing to be done. Ego perpetuates it's existence with meaning purpose and value. For ego there's always something else that needs to be attained no matter what. When it's recognized those illusory goals was just the ego construct itself at work, it starts to collapse under the weight of truth. The Ivory Tower gets very weak because its foundation is dissolving.

There's nothing missing and everything is already complete. This can be recognized and simultaneously it doesn't matter whether it is or isn't. ❤

Frank is enlightened. The difficulty is that the sense of self attempts to grasp, understand, embody and know what Frank is pointing to. In other words it tries to turn what's being pointed to, into a belief system. Enlightenment or Ajata is the transcendence or dropping of concepts, ideologies or belief's, because it transcends even the idea of there ever being an individual that could have had a belief system to hold onto. It literally transcends the entire dream story of a societally conditioned individual that may one day break out of the matrix and become liberated... Awakening is the recognition that the baby is not what he or she thinks it is. Enlightenment throws out the baby with the bathwater, obliterates the bathtub and burns the house down. Enlightenment is Illusions worst enemy. But that's just a story because enlightenment and illusion never actually occurred... it just seemed too ❤

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Yes exactly, no body wakes up.

I get how it sounds....there's a reason why it's called Awakening ❤

Yes, and seems that way for the "I am".

Negative, It simply never existed so how could it matter

Awakening is recognizing that the individual and all of its apparent issues is illusory. Awakening is the ultimate healing because it's recognizing that the individual needing healing, never existed. And that's not to say there's anything right or wrong with attempting to heal someone. It's literally the end of the individual and its illusory problems. After Awakening it's fair game because it's recognized for the first time, there is no right or wrong path. ❤

Negative eric, That's just what's been called spiritual ego hanging on by a very thick thread... and very persistent under the radar. Only this identification thinks it's everything, otherwise known as the spiritual ego/god. Enlightenment hasn't occurred there. But spiritual ego will always argue otherwise of course. ❤

It only seems important for that which places value on it. So what is that: nothing. Yep, nothing places value on nothing because it can and it apparently does... As someone posted previously on this forum: Much Ado About Nothing. ❤ Its THIS It's not somewhere else

First and foremost, I is not good or bad... it's unreal. And that which is unreal cannot be replaced... simply because there is nothing there in which could be replaced. I starts around the age of 3 and builds and builds and builds upon itself but it's an illusion. Sometimes when I is looked at very closely it dissolves itself. Either way it does not matter at all. But of course I doesn't see it that way.

Wait let me guess this is fun. Meditating and simultaneously ending world hunger and suffering. How close am I?

What do you imagine you'd be doing?

Yep, And It's everything. Anger hate jealousy love fear happiness regret frustration satisfaction pain pleasure good bad beautiful ugly anxiousness calmness..... its everything and nothing/real and unreal. Whole complete anarchy, bondage, and freedom for nobody. It excludes and includes everything and nothing. It's referred to as zero sometimes. Its THIS ❤

@Mu_ ego = identification period. If there's identification as this or that there will be suffering it's inevitable. Why: because identification = meaning purpose and value. Yes, ego is neither good or bad, because the only thing that would label or declare anything as good or bad is the ego. Ego identification places in an illusory overlay over top of reality (sometimes referred to as a filter) and operates from that self-centered perspective. The funniest part about the whole thing is, it's not real (Cosmic joke) although it makes an incredible damn good compelling argument opposed to that recognition. ❤

The body-mind will turn its head when it's name is called prefer coffee over tea and jump out of the way of a moving train prior to thinking about it. Ego is an illusory identity that takes ownership of everything.... it literally thinks it's running the show. The part that thinks it's running the show is the illusion

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It actually has nothing to do with stopping thinking/denying thoughts or whatever. It's recognizing that thoughts just arise, and THAT which seems to claim them as MY thoughts, isn't even real. ❤

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